By: Meredith Francis ~Campus-News-Editor~

Marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in Alabama
A federal judge in Alabama issued a ruling that instructed a probate judge in Mobile County to allow same-sex couples to obtain marriage licenses. The ruling sends a message to other Alabama counties after the Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court encouraged probate judges in many counties to ignore the federal ruling that struck down same-sex marriage bans.

ISIS kills 21 Christians in Libya
An ISIS propaganda video was released, showing 21 Egyptian Christians being beheaded on a Libyan beach. The captives had been kidnapped from Sirte, Libya, in December and January. Though ISIS’s control is mostly concentrated in Iraq and Syria, the video appears to show an affiliate group in Libya. The U.N. Security Council condemned what itcalled “the heinous and cowardly apparent murder.”

Train derails in West Virginia
A train carrying millions of pounds of oil crashed in West Virginia on Feb. 16, sending oil into Kanawha River. The CSX train derailed near Boomer, W. Va. At least seven of the derailed cars ignited, creating a massive fire that is still burning. Between 200 and 300 people were forced to evacuate the area. Firefighters continue to fight the blaze in temperatures that haven’t risen about the teens

Violence continues amid Ukraine ceasefire
Though Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists recently agreed to a ceasefire, the violence in eastern Ukraine continued on Feb. 16. Five Ukrainian service members have been killed in the clashes. The renewed outbreak of violence comes after European leaders, including Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin, reached an agreement that would temporarily halt the violence.