US-backed forces in northern Syria have paused military operations near a dam held by the Islamic State group to allow engineers to fix any problems.

Inside a garage in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley filled with green dust and piles of cannabis, stand a woman and a 13-year-old boy, sifting through the twigs and buds of the recent harvest.

Australia has issued arrest warrants for a pair of Australian citizens believed to be fighting in Syria, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) reported, after images emerged of the two holding the severed heads of Syrian soldiers.