July 19, 2025 4:13 am
MAZRAA, Syria (AP) — U.S. envoy to Syria Tom Barrack says that Israel and Syria have agreed to a ceasefire following Israel’s intervention this week in fighting between Syrian government forces and . The announcement came as clashes continued between Druze groups and members of Bedouin clans in Syria’s southern Sweida province, leaving tens of thousands of people displaced in a worsening humanitarian crisis. Government forces had withdrawn from Sweida following a separate ceasefire agreed upon with Druze groups on Wednesday after Israel launched dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters.
July 19, 2025 4:12 am
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela has released 10 jailed U.S. citizens and permanent residents in exchange for getting home scores of migrants deported by the United States to El Salvador months ago under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. The arrangement represents a diplomatic achievement for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and helps President Donald Trump in his goal of bringing home Americans jailed abroad. El Salvador will send back some 300 Venezuelan migrants whom the Trump administration agreed to pay $6 million to house in a notorious Salvadoran prison. The arrangement drew immediate blowback when Trump invoked an 18th century wartime law to quickly remove men his administration had accused of belonging to the violent Tren de Aragua street gang.
July 19, 2025 3:33 am
Washington County Commissioners authorized the release of the third round of opioid settlement funds on Thursday and one of the beneficiaries of the funds is a recovery house proposed for the City of Washington. The family of Shawn Patrick Nairn will be using $350,000 to set up the Shawn Patrick House. Shawn Nairn died as a result of his addiction in 2020 at the age of 28 in a recovery home. Shawn Nairn, Sr. said that their version of a recovery home will be different. They want to create a safe space that melds recovery, jobs, counselling, family support and prayer into their program to foster successful recovery. Shawn’s mother Melissa says that paternalistic views of recovery do not really work. She says the home will focus on partnerships that will hold residents accountable for their actions. Shawn Patrick’s best friend Devin Reed says that they will be partnering with an existing recovery home in Washington. This is their first effort and they hope to expand, offering addicts an environment of work, family involvement and the ability to participate in the community. Shawn Patrick’s brother Regis says they chose to name the home after his brother because hundreds of guys are clean because of Shawn Patrick and this allows the recovery community the ability to continue to learn from him.
July 19, 2025 1:16 am
Common Ground USA and Urban Rural Action, two groups that foster community growth and cooperation through conversation hosted a United For Action Local Hub program to help residents and community leaders throughout Washington County learn to better carry on conversations that hopefully produce fruitful results. The two hour workshop consisted of several breakout sessions that teach people how to more clearly communicate with each other especially when a subject may severely divide two parties. Conversation methods that concentrated on listening and trying to understand an opposing view were highlighted for the meeting. Joe Bubman from Urban Rural Action hoped to help people shift their mindsets from competition to mutual understanding. Several people walked away from the event having learned something. Frank Gambino from Monongahela wanted to become a better listener. He said he was taking an instruction card with him to help him master that skill. Reverand Cynthia Smith of the Fourth Presbyterian Church of Washington said a conversation she had altered her perspective of people going to church to one of bringing the church to the people. Emily Holmes of Common Ground USA said that this is only a first step towards a long term goal of creating connected communities in southwestern Pennsylvania.
July 19, 2025 1:13 am
On Friday, in front of a backdrop of a partially demolished wall and under the raindrops from a summer storm, local, county and state government officials gathered with members of the new owners and demolition team of the Washington Mall to celebrate the first steps in its demolition. Tony Rosenberger is a member of the development team 79/70 Associates that closed on the purchase of the mall two weeks ago for a purchase price of more than $12 million. He detailed the chronology of events that led up to the celebration of the demolition. Washington County Commissioner Nick Sherman described Washington County’s role in delivering $5.9 million in county blight mitigation funds to the project to spearhead the demolition. While everyone there was celebrating, one South Strabane Township resident did not share the same view. Thomas Lonich attended the event at the invite of Sherman. Lonich spoke out at the most recent commissioner’s meeting asking for transparency of the county’s involvement. He also questioned the logic in using taxpayer dollars for a demolition project that he feels could have been funded by the developers themselves. With no environmental issues to navigate, the project is set to begin. In addition to the funding. Washington County will be contributing debris from the Courthouse Square building demolition to use as fill on the Washington Mall site.
July 18, 2025 10:13 pm
(WPXI) Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority is installing a solar farm at Swisshelm Park. The portion of land is a brown field and is being remediated. Freedman said the 15 acres of land will be dedicated to the solar panels, which will generate enough energy for about 175 homes. However, some neighbors like Andrew Thompson worry about losing the land. “I do know people use that land for dog walking, for biking, so I’m not in love with taking away people’s use of the space,” said Thompson. However, Freedman argues this project will give land back to the public. The URA says the land not in use for the solar panels will be donated to the city as an extension of Frick Park. Right now, that land is not open to the public. Freedman says the hope is to have the solar project complete by 2027.
July 18, 2025 9:34 pm
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch, a day after the newspaper published a story reporting on his ties to wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein. The controversy has created a major fissure between Trump and his loyal base, with some of his most vocal supporters slamming the White House for the way it has handled the case, and questioning why Trump would not want the documents made public. The lawsuit was filed Friday in federal court in Miami. It seeks at least $10 billion in damages. The move came shortly after the Justice Department asked a federal court to unseal grand jury transcripts in Epstein’s sex trafficking case. The Trump administration is trying to contain a firestorm that erupted after it previously announced it would not be releasing additional government files from the case.
July 18, 2025 8:57 pm
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela has released 10 jailed Americans in exchange for getting home scores of migrants deported by the United States to El Salvador months ago under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. The arrangement represents a diplomatic achievement for Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and helps President Donald Trump in his goal of bringing home Americans jailed abroad. El Salvador will send back some 300 Venezuelan migrants whom the Trump administration agreed to pay $6 million to house in a notorious Salvadoran prison. The arrangement drew immediate blowback when Trump invoked an 18th century wartime law to quickly remove men his administration had accused of belonging to the violent Tren de Aragua street gang.
July 18, 2025 3:29 pm
(WPXI) PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Regional Transit is reminding drivers that enforcement on the new red bus lanes in Downtown Pittsburgh will begin on Sunday. PRT said that Port Authority Police have been issuing warnings since the lanes were installed last month. According to Pennsylvania law, drivers using bus-only lanes may be issued a citation of $25 with associated fees that will bring the total cost to nearly $200. All private vehicles are prohibited from entering, stopping or parking in the bus lanes, even if it’s briefly. “These dedicated bus lanes are reserved exclusively for buses and emergency vehicles and are clearly marked to ensure the smooth and efficient flow of public transit. Drivers should pay close attention to street signage and lane markings to avoid violations,” PRT said in a release.
July 18, 2025 3:09 pm
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s former President Jair Bolsonaro has been ordered to wear an ankle monitor, his press office has confirmed. The development on Friday came as federal police conducted searches at his home and his party’s headquarters in Brasília. The former president is facing trial at the Supreme Court for allegedly leading a coup attempt to overturn the 2022 election. Bolsonaro has called the trial a “witch hunt,” echoing statements by former U.S. President Donald Trump, who has defended him. On Tuesday, Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet said in a report to the Supreme Court that the “evidence is clear: the defendant acted systematically, throughout his mandate and after his defeat at the polls, to incite insurrection and the destabilization of the democratic rule of law.” (Photo: AP)
