Thursday's Mini-Report, 2.9.17

Today's edition of quick hits:* Syria: "U.S. forces killed 11 al Qaeda operatives -- including a longtime ally of Osama bin Laden -- in two airstrikes last week in Syria, the Defense Department said Wednesday."* Following Kellyanne Conway's on-air endorsement of Ivanka Trump's product line: "Asked about Conway's comments during Thursday's White House press briefing, Sean Spicer said she 'has been counseled on that subject, and that's all.'"* Arizona: "Emotional protests broke out in Phoenix Wednesday night after a Mexican-born mother-of-two was detained for deportation. Dozens of demonstrators surrounded a van carrying Guadalupe García de Rayos from a detention center, with one man putting his arm in a wheel well to stop it."* Afghanistan: "The commander of the American-led international military force in Afghanistan told Congress on Thursday that he needed a few thousand additional troops to more effectively train and advise Afghan soldiers."* North Dakota: "Construction crews have resumed work on the final segment of the Dakota Access pipeline, and the developer of the long-delayed project said Thursday that the full system could be operational within three months. Meanwhile, an American Indian tribe filed a legal challenge to block the work and protect its water supply."* Resignation was the right call: "A Michigan Republican has resigned after causing outrage by suggesting that protesters at University of California, Berkeley, should be shot."* Canada, Part I: "President Donald Trump will receive Canada's prime minister at the White House next week for their first official meeting, after weeks of back-and-forth about setting a tangible agenda beyond pleasantries and first-encounter photo ops."* Canada, Part II: "Canada's foreign affairs minister says she warned Washington that any border tax on Canadian imports would trigger retaliation by Ottawa."Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.