By GHAITH ALSAYED

AL-HOL, Syria (AP) — The U.S. military said Wednesday it began transferring detainees from the Islamic State group who were held in northeastern Syria to Iraq to ensure they remain in secure facilities.

The move came after Syrian government forces took control of a sprawling camp housing thousands of IS detainees following the withdrawal of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces as part of a ceasefire with the Kurdish fighters. The SDF still controls more than a dozen detention facilities with some 9,000 IS members.

U.S. Central Command said the transfer began on Wednesday and so far 150 IS members have been taken from Syria’s northeastern province of Hassakeh to “secure locations” in Iraq.

“Ultimately, up to 7,000 ISIS detainees could be transferred from Syria to Iraqi-controlled facilities,” the statement said, using a term to refer to the IS.

A convoy of armored vehicles with government forces moved into the al-Hol camp Wednesday following two weeks of clashes with the SDF, which appeared closer to merging into the Syrian military, in accordance with government demands.

At its peak in 2019, some 73,000 people were living at al-Hol camp. Their number has since declined with some countries repatriating their citizens.

The camp is still home to some 24,000, most of them women and children linked to the IS. They include about 14,500 Syrians and nearly 3,000 Iraqis. Some 6,500 others, many of them loyal IS supporters who came from around the world to join the extremist group, are separately held in a highly secured section of the camp.

There have been reports that some families fled during the chaos but there has been no official confirmation.

Families of IS militants plead to return home

An Associated Press journalist visited the camp Wednesday as scores of soldiers guarded the main entrance.

“Go inside and see the chaos that is happening. There are no clinics, no running water, no bread and no vegetables,” an Iraqi woman living in the camp said, after SDF fighters left the area. The woman, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of security concerns, called on the Iraqi government to repatriate her.

Another Iraqi woman, who also refused to give her full name out of fear of reprisal, told The Associated Press that her brother and uncle were held in jails in northeast Syria and called on authorities to release them so that she can all return home.

The Syrian government and the SDF announced a new four-day truce on late Tuesday, after a previous ceasefire broke down.

Northeast Syria was relatively calm on Wednesday. A drone attack killed seven soldiers and wounded 20 while they were inspecting a weapons depot abandoned by SDF fighters in the northeastern town of Yaaroubiyeh, the Defense Ministry said, blaming the Kurdish forces. The SDF in a statement denied it, saying the blast was triggered by soldiers moving the ammunition.

Kurdish fighters still in control of prisons with IS detainees

The SDF and the government traded blame over the escape Monday of IS members from a prison in the northeastern town of Shaddadeh. Many of the detainees were recaptured by government troops who took control of the jail, state media reported.

Under a deal announced Sunday, government forces were to take over the control of the prisons but the transfer did not go smoothly.

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The largest detention facility, Gweiran Prison, now called Panorama, has held about 4,500 IS-linked detainees and still was in the SDF hands.

Defense Ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Hassan Abdul-Ghani said in televised comments Tuesday night that the government “was and still is in direct confrontation” with the IS. He added that authorities are ready to take over prisons with IS members.

The IS was defeated in Iraq in 2017, and in Syria two years later, but the group’s sleeper cells still carry out deadly attacks in both countries. The SDF played a major role in defeating the IS.

Tom Barrack, the U.S. envoy to Syria, said in a statement Tuesday that the SDF’s role as the primary anti-IS force “has largely expired, as Damascus is now both willing and positioned to take over security responsibilities.”

He added that the “recent developments show the U.S. actively facilitating this transition, rather than prolonging a separate SDF role.”

MONTREAL — It’s OK if Minnesota Wild fans felt underwhelmed as free agency began last summer. After hinting at a free-agent splash that the team’s owner dubbed “Christmas in July,” the moves made by general manager Bill Guerin on July 1 had virtually nobody running to the season-ticket queue.

Minnesota signed faceoff specialist Nico Sturm. It grabbed local depth guys Tyler Pitlick and Matt Kiersted. The Wild did not add any potential stars named Brock and, for the most part, when players on his radar weren’t available, Guerin didn’t spend just to spend.

Perhaps the biggest name coming to Minnesota on July 1 was acquired by trade, when the Wild acquired Vladimir Tarasenko from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for future considerations. In other words, he was a freebie.

Tarasenko had tortured Wild fans for years in the regular season and playoffs; he has 14 goals and 18 assists in 37 regular-season games against Minnesota, as well as 12 goals in 17 postseason games, including two hat tricks. And he won the Stanley Cup in 2018 with the St. Louis Blues. But Tarasenko coming to Minnesota produced a serious and fair question among Wild fans: What does he have left in the tank?

Tarasenko had just two goals in mid-November when he missed seven games due to injury, and many were ready to write off his presence in Minnesota as a nice pre-retirement gig for respected veteran. But with the rash of injuries that has beset the Wild this month, the 34-year-old has been picking up the slack.

On the Wild’s just completed, three-game road trip, Tarasenko had five goals and eight points.

“He’s playing awesome, especially with (Joel Eriksson Ek) and (Matt Boldy) down. He’s stepped up big time for us,” Wild defenseman Brock Faber said after Tarasenko scored twice in a 5-4 to the Canadiens.to Montreal. “That’s why he’s a leader. That’s why he’s had such a successful career. Such a great addition to this team.”

Wild coach John Hynes has taken a hands-on approach with Tarasenko from Day 1, flying to his family’s home in Florida over the summer to welcome the veteran and talk about his role. More recently, with all of the injuries the team is facing, Hynes reminded Tarasenko that in times like these, he’s needed most.

“Vladdy and I talked a few days ago, and just a little bit about his game,” Hynes said before Tuesday’s game at Bell Centre. “I think his game has been really solid. And his ability to use his shot when he plays with pace, playing a skating game, that’s when he’s most effective. In Buffalo and in Toronto, for sure, he was willing to skate with the puck and without the puck, and I think when he does that, he has the ability to make plays.”

Tarasenko had 11 goals in 80 games last season in Detroit. On Tuesday in Montreal, in his 44th game, he scored his 12th and 13th of this season. Whatever was said between him and his newest coach was clearly taken to heart.

“Yeah, we had a conversation. We always stay in touch during the season,” Tarasenko said. “Obviously, with the guys out, you have more minutes, more situations you play in, and try to help the team win. Like I said, I think it’s pretty good overall trip tonight and very tight schedule, so there’s no time to be upset or happy. Have to be ready for the next ones.”

The Wild return to St. Paul to begin a four-game home stand with an 8:30 p.m. ESPN game Thursday at Grand Casino Arena.

Minnesota Wild forward Vladimir Tarasenko, right, celebrates after his goal with teammate Ryan Hartman (38) during first-period NHL hockey game action against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Toronto, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

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Hotel. Motel. Holiday Inn?

Of the options famously offered by hip-hop group The Sugarhill Gang, motels are often the cheapest. They also poke a soft spot in the heart of nostalgia-lovers. Some might look down upon them, but a road trip wouldn’t be complete without these bastions of terrible coffee and neon splendor.

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Last year marked the 100th anniversary of the first motor hotel in the world – the Milestone Mo-Tel in San Luis Obispo. To mark the occasion, Vogue has published a selection of “11 Best in the U.S. to Visit Now.”

Motels are enjoying a boost, the magazine asserts, thanks to COVID steering people away from planes and toward car travel: “Their cheerful, pastel-hued mid-century designs and vintage aesthetics also speak to an increasing longing for simplicity and authenticity — motels remind us of a time when travel felt less polished and more spontaneous, filled with possibilities.”

Here are some magazine named the coolest ones to visit in 2026.

Vogue’s best motels in the U.S. to visit now

1 Austin Motel: Austin

2 Skyview Los Alamos: Los Alamos, Calif.

3 Silver Sands Motel & Beach Bungalows: Greenport, N.Y.

4 The Dive Motel: Nashville, Tenn.

5 The Vagabond Hotel: Miami

6 Hotel Lucine: Galveston, Texas

7 The Longleaf Hotel: Raleigh, N.C.

8 The Starlight Motor Inn: Charleston, S.C.

9 The Ace Hotel & Swim Club: Palm Springs, Calif.

10 Rhode’s Motor Lodge: Boone, N.C.

Source: vogue.com/article/best-motels-in-the-us

By CHEYANNE MUMPHREY

At a time when productivity means optimizing every second and screens blur the line between work and home, some people are slowing down and disconnecting by looking to communication devices from the past.

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Tactile activities ranging from writing letters and typewriter clubs to TikTok communities showcasing calligraphy skills and wax seals are giving retro writing instruments a resurgence. More than quaint throwbacks, the pursuits provide their enthusiasts with opportunities to reduce their technology use, be more intentional with time and build meaningful connections with others.

“I feel as though my pen pals are my friends. I don’t think of them much differently than if I were chatting with a friend on the phone, in a coffee shop or at another person’s house,” said Melissa Bobbitt, 42, a devoted letter-writer who corresponds with about a dozen people from her home in Claremont, California, and has had up to 40 pen pals at one time. “Focusing on one person and really reading what they are saying, and sharing what’s on your heart is almost like a therapy session.”

Ink, paper and other tools that once were the only way to send a message from afar are continuing to bring people together from around the world. Below, some of them explain the appeal of snail mail and give recommendations for getting started.

Writing can be an escape

In a society shaped by constant availability, hands-on hobbies like writing letters and scrapbooking require focus and patience. The act of picking up a pen, sealing an envelope with wax and laying out pages may yield aesthetically pleasing results, but it also creates a space for reflection.

Stephania Kontopanos, a 21-year-old student in Chicago, said it can be hard to put her phone and computer away, especially when it seems all of her friends and peers are on social media and her classes and personal life revolve around being online.

“There are times when I’m with my friends and at dinner, I’ll realize we are all on our phones,” Kontopanos said, adding that she tries to put her phone down at those moments.

Kontopanos also unplugs consciously by sending postcards to her family and friends, scrapbooking, and junk journaling, which involves repurposing everyday materials like tickets and receipts to document memories or ideas. She says going to the post office has become an activity she does with her mother back home in Kansas and includes sharing stories with the postal workers, people she would not have routinely encountered.

Nostalgia can foster community

Writing and sending letters is nostalgic for KiKi Klassen, who lives in Ontario, Canada. The 28-year-old says it helps her feel more connected to her late mother, who was a member of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers, which represents mail carriers and other postal employees.

FILE – Flo Young, originally from Cambridge, Mass., browses through a box of a pen pal letters outside the Sullivan County Health Care nursing home in Unity, N.H., June 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

In October 2024, Klassen launched the Lucky Duck Mail Club, a subscription-based monthly mail service that sends participants a piece of her art, an inspiring quote and message. She says her membership includes more than 1,000 people across, at most, 36 countries.

“When I sit down, I’m forced to reflect and choose my words carefully,” Klassen said. “It also lends itself to vulnerability because it is easier to write down how you are feeling. I’ve had people write me back and I’ve cried hearing so many touching stories. I think for a lot of people paper creates a safe space. You write it down, send it off and don’t really think about it after.”

For Bobbitt, who has corresponded by mail for years, there is a “grand excitement” when she opens her mailbox and finds something that is not a bill or advertisement. “If we all filled each other’s mailboxes with letters, we would all be kinder and, at the very least, won’t dread checking our mailboxes,” she said.

Bobbitt says she first joined a pen pal club in second or third grade and later was connected to more writers through Postcrossing, an online project that partners people around the world to send and receive postcards. She says some of the postcards turned into letters as friendships grew between her and some other regular writers.

It’s a similar feeling of connection that inspired DJ Robert Owoyele, 34, to create CAYA, a monthly “analog gathering” in Dallas. Owoyele launched the event less than a year ago and has since organized evenings with letter writing, coloring, vinyl listening sessions and other activities.

“We live in a digital age that fosters a false sense of connection, but I think true connection happens in person,” he said. “When we are able to touch or see something, we are more connected to it naturally. These analog activities are a representation of that.”

How to get started

While writing letters and engaging in other vintage pursuits might seem accessible, it is not always easy to get involved. For many people, carving out time to slow down can feel like another obligation in a schedule filled with to-dos.

Kontopanos says she decided it was important for her to reprioritize her time. “The older I get, the more I realize how much time had been wasted on my phone,” she said. Creating space to explore allowed her to discover the hobbies she loved doing enough to make them a priority, she said.

There are many hobbies to consider, some of which don’t require expensive tools or hours of free time. Frequenting spaces where communities centered around these hobbies gather can be a way to learn about the different activities. For example, participating in typewriter clubs such as Type Pals, attending events like the Los Angeles Printers Fair hosted by the International Printing Museum in California, and engaging with social media communities like the Wax Seal Guild on Instagram and The Calligraphy Hub on Facebook.

FILE – A Bonhams employee displays a Royal Portable Typewriter Owned By Orson Welles, manufactured circa 1931, serial no. P283613, by Royal Typewriter Co. Inc., New York, at Bonhams auction house in London, Nov. 14, 2022. . (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

Klassen says that based on posts she’s seeing on her social media feeds, reviving vintage writing instruments and small tactile pleasures might be on the verge of becoming trendy.

“The girls are going analog in 2026,” she said.