Dispatches

SEPT. 15: Teachers evacuate children from their elementary school in Weed, Calif., as smoke from a wildfire rises over a hill behind the school. In just a few hours, wind-driven flames destroyed or damaged 100 homes, the saw mill, and a church in Weed. At times, the fire moved so quickly that residents had only a few minutes to get out of the way.

Wednesday, Sept. 3

Marriage wins one

A federal judge in Louisiana, by upholding the state’s traditional marriage law, became the first of 20-plus federal courts to do so since the Supreme Court struck down part of the Defense of Marriage Act last year. District Judge Martin Feldman argued that states have the right to regulate marriage, and that the law and the Constitution “are directly related to achieving marriage’s historically preeminent purpose of linking children to their biological parents.” The same-sex couples who challenged the law plan to appeal to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, one of the nation’s most conservative courts.

Thursday, Sept. 4

Al-Qaeda in India

Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri announced in a video that his group was starting a branch in India and had already spent two years finding recruits. Majority Hindu India has one of the world’s largest Muslim populations, with about 175 million, but up to now the country has not had many al-Qaeda recruits. Terror threats in India come mainly from Pakistan and Kashmir. Zawahiri’s announcement came as al-Qaeda tries to win back attention from ISIS, which it disowned in February, reportedly for the group’s brutality.

Guilty governor

A Virginia court convicted former Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife Maureen of corruption charges for taking $165,000 in gifts and loans from a Virginia businessman who wanted the couple’s help promoting a dietary supplement. The jury heard testimony about the McDonnells’ broken marriage and the couple’s relationship with Star Scientific CEO Jonnie Williams, who testified against them. Once a potential Republican presidential candidate, McDonnell could now face up to 20 years in prison.

Rivers dies

Comedian Joan Rivers, 81, died one week after she stopped breathing during an elective surgical procedure on her vocal cords at the Yorkville Endoscopy clinic in New York City. Rivers had been on life support since Aug. 30. The doctor who performed the procedure, Dr. Lawrence Cohen, stepped down as the State Health Department investigated the case.

Friday, Sept. 5

Ukraine cease-fire

After nearly five months of fighting, Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists signed a cease-fire deal, even as rebels continued pushing to split from Ukraine. Negotiators agreed to withdraw heavy weapons, deliver aid to cities in eastern Ukraine, and exchange more than 1,000 prisoners. The United States and Europe still plan to move ahead with tougher sanctions on Moscow.

Killer killed

The Pentagon confirmed that airstrikes killed Ahmed Abdi Godane, the leader of Somali Islamist group al-Shabab and one of the State Department’s most-wanted men. Godane’s group has claimed responsibility for suicide bombings as well as the attack on Kenya’s Westgate Mall, which killed at least 67 persons and wounded 175 last September. Analysts viewed Godane’s death as a major blow to the group.

Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 6-7

Decree delayed

President Obama announced he would delay taking executive action on immigration until after the November election, upsetting both political allies and opponents. He cited public reaction to the influx of immigrant children over the summer as the reason for the delay, yet Speaker of the House John Boehner said the president’s decision “smacks of raw politics.” Immigration reform advocates agree in one sense: “For Obama, the question is never what he can do for the immigration issue, but what the immigration issue can do for him,” said CNN contributor Ruben Navarrette.

Meteorite hits

A meteorite hit Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, leaving a crater 39 feet wide and 16 feet deep. No one was injured at the crash site in a wooded area near the city’s airport. NASA believes the meteorite broke off the 60-foot-wide asteroid 2014 RC, which safely passed by the Earth on Sunday.

Yosemite blazes

Helicopters rescued 100 visitors from Yosemite National Park as a 700-acre wildfire trapped hikers at Half Dome peak and nearby campgrounds and trails. Lightning sparked the blaze several weeks ago, and strong winds and high temperatures started a spot fire that spread rapidly. The rescue came a day after firefighters contained a 300-acre fire leading to the evacuation of 300 homes.

Tuesday, Sept. 8

Fatal floods

More than 375 persons died from floods in northern India and Pakistan as intense monsoon rains pounded the region. Indian media declare it the worst flooding the country has seen in 60 years. Despite strained relations over the Kashmir region, leaders of both countries offered to help the other in the aftermath of the floods. Given the heavy militarization of Kashmir, it’s unlikely either side will accept.

Watch out

Apple released its much-anticipated iPhone 6 and Apple Watch to media fanfare. Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled a slightly thinner and slightly larger iPhone, as well as the iPhone 6 Plus, which has a 5.5-inch screen that places it between the size of a phone and an iPad mini. Other new products: a new mobile payment service that transforms any device into a credit card, and the Apple Watch, which has a small touchscreen face and can display apps, track a user’s heartbeat, and—customers hope—tell time.

Wednesday, Sept. 9

Back in Iraq?

President Obama announced plans to eradicate the terrorist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the broadest military action he has ever launched. The plan includes expanding airstrikes wherever ISIS exists, sending 475 military advisers, and asking Congress to approve hundreds of millions of dollars to train and equip Syrian rebels. This would be the United States’ first foray into the Syrian conflict, after long resisting involvement in that country’s 3-year-long civil war. Obama claimed U.S. combat troops would not be deployed.

Lobbying the Scots

Leaders of the U.K.’s three political parties pleaded with Scots to vote against independence on Sept. 18. Polls show supporters of independence in a neck-and-neck race with those wanting to remain tied to England. The impending vote has dropped the value of the British pound and led financial groups, including Standard Life, Lloyds, and RBS to say they would move their headquarters to England if Scotland secedes. Other restive regions, including Flanders, Catalonia, and Kurdistan, hope the referendum passes, creating a precedent for them to separate as well.

Thursday, Sept. 11

Remembering 9/11

Americans observed a moment of silence to mark the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, which held special relevance this year as the United States faces another group of terrorists, the Islamic State. At the 9/11 Memorial in lower Manhattan, family and friends of those who died read the names of the nearly 3,000 victims. Fear of another attack remains: A CNN poll found 90 percent of Americans think ISIS is a threat to the country.

‘Excessive force’

A South African court found Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius not guilty of murdering his girlfriend, but abruptly ended the court session before announcing whether he was guilty of culpable homicide. On Sept. 12 Judge Thokozile Matilda Masipa convicted Pistorius of the latter, which could result in up to 15 years in prison. She said Pistorius acted negligently and “used excessive force” by shooting four times into his bathroom door. Pistorius was accused of deliberately killing girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, who was inside the bathroom at the time, but the double amputee claims he thought an intruder had come into his home.

Friday, Sept. 12

All in the family

Known best worldwide for smoking crack and public drunkenness, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford withdrew his reelection bid as his brother runs in his place. Ford made the announcement two days after doctors found a tumor in his abdomen. He will still run for a City Council seat in his hometown of Etobicoke, after his nephew dropped his bid to make room for Ford.

Trooper attacked

A gunman killed Pennsylvania state trooper Byron Dickson and injured another during an ambush outside a police barracks at a remote post in northeast Pennsylvania. Trooper Alex Douglass, who was injured in the attack, is in stable but critical condition. Police have yet to make an arrest in the case and hope Douglass will be able to provide information to help identify the shooter. Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers offered a $50,000 reward for any tips on the shooting.

Saturday, Sept. 13

Briton beheading

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron verified an ISIS video of the beheading of U.K. aid worker David Haines, who was abducted in Syria last year. Similar to the earlier beheading videos of American journalists, Haines is shown with an executioner dressed in black who speaks with a British accent. Haines tells the camera Cameron is responsible for his death because the U.K. entered into “a coalition with the United States against the Islamic State.” At the end, the executioner brings out another captive, U.K. charity worker Alan Henning, and threatens to kill him next. Cameron called the slaying “an act of pure evil” and plans to support American military action.

Leaving Qatar

In an effort to ease tensions in the region, at least seven members of Egypt’s exiled Muslim Brotherhood are leaving their safe haven of Qatar more than a year after Egypt removed President Mohamed Morsi from office. Qatar has riled its neighbors by rallying for the reinstatement of Morsi and supporting of Islamist groups such as Hamas. While it does not provide financial support to Islamic State, many have argued that the wealthy nation has not reined in fundraising for jihadist causes. Some of the Muslim Brotherhood will go to the Islamist-leaning country of Turkey.

Sunday, Sept. 14

Hurricane Odile hits

Category 3 Hurricane Odile hit Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, making landfall near the vacation destination of Cabo San Lucas. The heavy rains and flooding forced evacuations, destroyed small buildings, stranded cars, and downed electricity for 200,000 people. Tourists took shelter as hotels saw windows blown out, lobbies flooded and covered in debris, and facades damaged. The hurricane also produced waves of up to 24 feet.

American sentenced

North Korea sentenced 24-year-old American Matthew Miller to six years of labor on charges of entering the country illegally and trying to commit espionage. Miller entered the country on April 10 and reportedly tore his visa, claiming that he was “not a tourist,” on arrival at Pyongyang airport. According to the court, he wanted to “experience prison life so that he could investigate the human rights situation.” In an interview with CNN, Miller said he had expected to be detained.

Monday, Sept. 15

Scrubbed docs?

A former State Department diplomat dropped a bombshell in the Benghazi investigation, telling reporter Sharyl Attkisson of The Daily Signal that employees had taken out damaging documents about the 2012 terror attacks in Benghazi before turning them over to the Accountability Review Board. Former Deputy Assistant Secretary Raymond Maxwell said he saw top advisers of then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the after-hours operations, where employees were told to separate documents that may put Clinton and the department in a “bad light.” Maxwell also claimed the board investigating the incident was “anything but independent” and failed to interview key people involved, such as Clinton and Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Nides. The revelations came days before the House Select Committee on Benghazi was scheduled to hold its first hearing on Sept. 17.