Baylor News
Palestine, Texas, sophomore John Hazel is serving in Afghanistan as a specialist for the National Guard. He has been stationed there for three months; his total deployment is scheduled to last 12 months.
Hazel enlisted Jan. 5, 2011, as a senior in high school. During his freshman year at Baylor, he joined the ROTC, just to see if it was something he liked, Hazel said.
Many Baylor students have served overseas with the United States military and have brought their experiences back to Waco with them.
Seattle, Wash., junior Bryan Solis first came to Baylor in the spring of 2013, after serving six years overseas with the Marine Corps.
The university has hired former Baylor Alumni Association employees to manage previous BAA programs that are now a part of the Baylor Alumni Network.
Former BAA employees Jan Dodd, Bob Anne Senter and Tessa Jamerson are now employed by the university, said Tommye Lou Davis, Baylor vice president for constituent engagement.
Inside the gallery, artworks by Syrian artists were drawing auction bids from collectors. Outside on the street, the artists traded the latest gossip from Syria and checked their smartphones for news from the civil war.
So goes the divided world for a cadre of Syrian artists brought to the safety of Dubai by their gallery to continue their work but still remain deeply connected and influenced by the bloodshed they left behind.
Waco News
State News
Texas voters turned out in historic numbers Tuesday, delivering victories for State Rep. James Talarico and forcing a runoff between Attorney General Ken Paxton and incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the state’s U.S. Senate contest that claimed national attention. The total early-voting turnout of more than 2.5 million marks the highest ever for a midterm primary election. The results also kicked off the 2026 midterm cycle.
National
Politics
INTERNATIONAL
The Iran war is now in its 46th day. Iran responded by restricting access to Hormuz, which carries about a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil, and moving to toll vessels transiting the strait. Waco drivers are already feeling it. The local average hit $3.38 a gallon last week, up 21 cents in seven days and 75 cents year-over-year, according to AAA data.
Gas prices in Texas have surged more than 70 cents per gallon since the U.S. went to war with Iran three weeks ago. The near-total shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz has driven oil prices up more than 40%, pushing the national average to its highest point since 2023 and sending diesel past $5 for the first time in three years.
The largest U.S. military operation in the Middle East in decades unfolded as American and Israeli forces struck Iran Saturday, killing its supreme leader and triggering retaliatory strikes from the Gulf to Israel. The White House said the campaign is aimed at dismantling Iran’s military and toppling its government.
Dr. Joshua Alley, assistant professor of political science, said part of the Trump administration’s interest in Greenland has to do with America’s national security strategy.
