Tunisian democracy group wins peace prize

Tunisian democracy group wins peace prize

OSLO, Norway

A coalition of Tunisian workers, business owners, rights activists and lawyers won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for intervening at a crucial time to push the North African country that sparked the Arab Spring revolutions toward democracy and away from civil war.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet “for its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy” following Tunisia’s 2011 revolution that overthrew its long-time dictator.

Lottery-scam charges

DES MOINES, Iowa

A former Iowa lottery security officer convicted in July of rigging a Hot Lotto game so he could win a $14 million jackpot faces new allegations that he had close acquaintances cash in on lottery prizes in other states over several years, authorities said Friday.

Eddie Tipton, 52, is charged with ongoing criminal conduct in the tampering of lottery equipment, representatives for the Iowa Lottery and the Iowa Department of Public Safety said. He turned himself in to authorities and was released from a county jail after posting a $25,000 bond.

Student killed in Texas

HOUSTON

A student was killed and another person was wounded during a shooting outside a Texas Southern University student-housing complex Friday, and police have detained two men for questioning, authorities said.

The university quickly went on lockdown after the shooting was reported about 11:30 a.m. in a parking lot at the University Courtyard Apartments, a university-owned complex on the edge of the Houston campus. Students and teachers were told to stay inside until the lockdown was lifted Friday afternoon after the two men were detained, but police said no arrests have been made.

IS forces advance

BEIRUT

Islamic State militants captured a string of villages near Aleppo on Friday in a lightning attack that brought them closer to the prized city in northern Syria, despite a major increase in Russian airstrikes that Moscow insists are targeting the extremists.

The surprise advance that brought the IS group to within a few miles of Aleppo was the most significant in months.

Associated Press