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(Worthy News) - The Iranian government warned people against further protests on Saturday after two days of demonstrations sparked by anger over an array of economic problems even as a fresh demonstration was reported at the University of Tehran. “We urge all those who receive these calls to protest not to participate in these illegal gatherings as they will create problems for themselves and other citizens,” said Interior Minister Abdolrahman Rahmani Fazli. State news channel IRINN said it had been banned from covering the protests that spread from second city Mashhad on Thursday to hit several towns and cities. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Two demonstrators were reportedly killed overnight as the Iranian government struggled to contain anti-government protests spreading throughout the country. The deaths, which were reported Sunday by the semi-official Mehr news agency, marked the first time protesters were killed in the demonstrations that began Thursday over economic woes facing the country. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested since Thursday, including 200 in Tehran on Saturday, according to Iranian media reports. [ Source: USA Today (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Thousands of Palestinians took to the streets of Gaza and the occupied West Bank for the fourth Friday in a row in protests against U.S. President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Palestinian health officials said at least 50 protesters had been wounded by live fire, mostly along the Gaza border. An Israeli military spokeswoman said soldiers had shot at the “main instigators” who she said posed a direct threat to the troops and who were trying to damage the border security fence. The spokeswoman said about 4,000 Palestinians across the West Bank and Gaza, some throwing rocks and fire bombs and setting tires alight, confronted Israeli soldiers who responded mainly by firing tear gas. [ Source: Reuters (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The White House said on Friday it was set to kick off talks next week with Republican and Democratic congressional leaders on immigration policy, government spending and other issues that need to be wrapped up early in the new year. The expected flurry of legislative activity comes as Republicans and Democrats begin to set the stage for midterm congressional elections in November. President Donald Trump’s Republican Party is eager to maintain control of Congress while Democrats look for openings to wrest seats away in the Senate and the House of Representatives. On Wednesday, Trump’s budget chief Mick Mulvaney and legislative affairs director Marc Short will meet with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan - both Republicans - and their Democratic counterparts, Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Nancy Pelosi, the White House said. [ Source: Reuters (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Syrian counterpart Bashar Assad in a new year’s greeting that Russia will continue supporting Syria’s efforts to defend its sovereignty, the Kremlin said on Saturday. Putin stressed that Russia would “continue to render every assistance to Syria in the protection of state sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, in the promotion of a political settlement process, as well as in efforts to restore the national economy,” the Kremlin said. Earlier this month Putin ordered the Russian forces in Syria to start withdrawing from the country, but said Russia would keep its Hmeymim air base in Syria’s Latakia Province as well as its naval facility at Tartous “on a permanent basis.” [ Source: Reuters (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - President Trump on Saturday again expressed his support for Iran’s growing anti-government protests, saying oppressive regimes “cannot endure forever” and that “the world is watching.” “Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people will face a choice. The world is watching!” Trump said in two tweets. “The entire world understands that the good people of Iran want change, and, other than the vast military power of the United States, that Iran’s people are what their leaders fear the most....” Against the backdrop of the Trump comments, reports emerged that the protests were escalating in their violence. Reuters said Saturday that videos posted on social media showed two young Iranian men lying motionless on the ground and covered with blood; a voiceover said they had been shot dead by police. It said security forces fired on protesters in the western town of Dorud and killed at least two. Other protesters in the same video were chanting, "I will kill whoever killed my brother!" [ Source: Fox News (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The evacuation of several hundred Syrian rebels from the Beit Jinn area on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights over the weekend puts Israel in an old-new position on the border. Assad’s army is once again at the fences, just like it was from 1967 to 2011. In the southern Golan, a few pockets of resistance remain from supporters of the Islamic State group, or as they are known locally, the Khalid Ibn Walid Army. But beyond that, the Syrians have almost completely retaken control of the border with Israel. Only a few moderate forces remain south of Kuneitra that would maintain some relative cooperation with Israel or keep the Shiite or Sunni extremists at bay. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The secret department has 20 Hebrew-speaking employees, and is hiring five more to investigate tax evasion. In Paris's 12th arrondissement, on Bercy Street by the banks of the River Seine, on the 13th floor of the Ministry of Finance is France's tax authority headquarters. Something has been afoot there recently that is liable to upset French Jews and spook their relations with the country in which they live. Under the radar, a secret department has been created with the sole purpose of handling tax evasion by French Jews. "Globes" can reveal for the first time the details of the secret department that is targeting Jews in France and new immigrants from France in Israel. [ Source: Globes (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - On Nov. 1, American Urban Radio Network’s White House correspondent April Ryan asked Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders if President Trump believes slavery was wrong. “I think it is disgusting and absurd to suggest that anyone inside of this building would support slavery,” Sanders responded. With an estimated 25 million people suffering in slavery and as victims of human trafficking, President Trump has declared January as “National Slavery and Human Traffic Prevention Month.” [ Source: WND (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Current and former U.S. officials said President Donald Trump's response to Iranian protests could have long-term effects on nuclear tensions with North Korea. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., praised Trump's foreign policy while appearing on CBS's Face the Nation on Sunday, stating Trump's handling of the situation could send a message to North Korea. "Now, the Iranians are watching the way he engages with North Korea, and vice versa," Graham said of Trump. "So, we've got a chance here to deliver some fatal blows to really bad actors in 2018. But if we blink, God help us all," he said. View the full article

(Worthy News) - Palestine recalled its envoy to the United States after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki said Sunday, Husam Zomlot, the Palestinian Liberation Organization envoy to Washington D.C., will return for "consultations." He said upon Zomlot's return discussions will take place "to set the decisions needed by the Palestinian leadership in the coming period regarding our relations with the U.S." [ Source: UPI (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he had “been soft” on China on trade issues and said he was not happy that China had allowed oil shipments to go into North Korea. Earlier on Thursday, Trump said on Twitter that China has been “caught” allowing oil into North Korea and said such moves would prevent “a friendly solution” to the crisis over Pyongyang’s nuclear program. “Caught RED HANDED - very disappointed that China is allowing oil to go into North Korea. There will never be a friendly solution to the North Korea problem if this continues to happen!” Trump wrote. [ Source: Reuters (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - President Trump's second year in office likely will focus on overhauling the legal immigration system, after combatting illegal immigration during his first year. The first 11 months of the Trump presidency were focused on enhancing border security, interior enforcement, and national security. "The president has made it clear that my number one priority as secretary of homeland security is to protect America from all threats. Making America safe starts with securing our borders, increasing interior immigration enforcement, protecting our communities, and dismantling transnational criminal organizations," recently confirmed Kirstjen Nielsen told the Washington Examiner. [ Source: Washington Examiner (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - President Donald Trump allowed the Iran nuclear deal to survive through 2017, but the new year will offer him another chance to blow up the agreement — and critics and supporters alike believe he may take it. By mid-January, the president will face new legal deadlines to choose whether to slap U.S. sanctions back on Tehran. Senior lawmakers and some of Trump's top national security officials are trying to preserve the agreement. But the deal's backers fear Trump has grown more willing to reject the counsel of his foreign policy team, as he did with his recent decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. The decision represents an opportunity for Trump to deliver on a campaign promise to rip up the Iran deal, one he has repeatedly deferred at the urging of senior officials. [ Source: Politico (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Iran and Hamas on Wednesday not to act against the Jewish state, as it has the strongest air force in the region, with the ability to reach targets at all distances. “The air force is as its peak today, with the best tools, technologies, planes and pilots in the world. With defensive and offensive capabilities and tremendous firepower, the air force has the ability to reach short distances and faraway destinations as required,” Netanyahu said at an Israel Air Force Flight Academy graduation ceremony at the Hatzerim Air Base outside Beersheba. Thirty-six officers, including one woman, received their wings after graduating from the three-year pilots course on Wednesday. The ceremony was attended by Netanyahu, Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot and IAF Commander Maj.-Gen. Amikam Norkin. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The Oregon Court of Appeals has ruled against Aaron and Melissa Klein, owners of the Sweet Cakes by Melissa bakery who in 2013 refused to design and bake a cake celebrating a lesbian couple's same-sex wedding. The Kleins felt that designing and making the cake to celebrate the 2013 same-sex wedding would violate their Christian faith. On Thursday, however, the appeals court upheld the decision by the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries to fine the Kleins $135,000. The hefty financial penalty ultimately forced the couple to close their bakery. [ Source: CBN News (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The United States and Israel are working hand in hand to counter dangerous Iranian activity in the Middle East. According to Axios News, a strategic partnership agreement was reached during a secret meeting between Israeli and U.S. officials in the White House on December 12th. A senior U.S. official told Axios that after two days of talks the U.S. and Israel "reached at a joint document which included understandings on countering Iranian actions in the region." The official said the document's goal was to translate President Trump's Iran speech into concrete strategic goals regarding Iran. [ Source: CBN News (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Islamic State claimed a suicide bomb attack carried out on Thursday on an office of the Afghan Voice news agency and a neighboring Shi'ite cultural center in Kabul, the group's Amaq news agency said in an online statement. The suicide attack was carried out by one bomber wearing a vest and followed three other bomb blasts in the same area, the statement said. The agency offered no evidence for the claim of responsibility for the attack, which killed dozens of people. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - While there may not be a Third Temple at which Israeli Jews can worship atop the Jerusalem Temple Mount, there is a brand-new synagogue under the foundation of the holy site – and it’s open for prayer. The new center of worship is the result of 12 years of construction at a cost of $50 million, and it is located directly under the Western Wall, where Jews have gathered for centuries to pray at the retaining wall for the Temple Mount. “The unique design of the prayer hall combines rare art and unique lighting, creating a wonderful contrast between ancient and modern,” said a statement by the Western Wall Heritage Foundation. [ Source: World Net Daily (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Fulani herdsmen have launched two attacks on Christian worshippers in Nigeria's Kaduna State in the Christmas period. In the first, four people were killed 10 injured in Nimdem village just before Christmas. A press statement released by the Southern Kaduna People's Union said: 'We have once again come under unprovoked and gruesome attack two days before Christmas.' The statement said: 'This has left us wondering why people who had gathered peacefully for joyful Christmas carols in their village should be gunned down for no reasons.' [ Source: Christian Today (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Atlanta Fire Chief, Kelvin Cochran claims he was terminated due to his religious beliefs and that his First Amendment rights were violated. However, the City of Atlanta and Mayor Kasim Reed hold firm that Cochran “was fired because he did not comply with the City’s pre-clearance rules for outside employment and for facilitating a massive public relations campaign against the Mayor and the City.” Cochran, a chief operating officer of the Atlanta-based Elizabeth Baptist Church, wrote in preparation of a November news conference, “In my life I have experienced firsthand the negative attitudes, racial slurs, and discrimination because of the color of my skin.” He created the Atlanta Fire Rescue Doctrine in an effort to create a just and peaceful work environment for all. Before his post in Atlanta, Cochran’s career accolades include an appointment as theUS Fire Administrator by President Obama in 2009, and one of the first African American members, and later chief of the Shreveport Fire Department. [ Source: Christian Headlines (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The United States has imposed new sanctions on two of North Korea's key figures in its weapons program. The sanctions by the Treasury Department mean that any assets Kim Jong Sik, a veteran rocket scientist, and Ri Pyong Chol, a former senior air force commander, hold in the United States can be seized and that Americans are prohibited from dealing with them. The sanctions also target any bank accounts the two have, which involve U.S. dollars. [ Source: CBN News (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Hezbollah and Syrian army forces have reportedly launched an assault on a besieged Syrian rebels’ stronghold some 11 kilometers (6.8 miles) from Israel’s border, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel will not accept Iranian proxies on its frontier. Rebels groups have reported heavy bombardments and artillery fire on their positions, and the Syrian army claimed it had encircled Mughr al Meer at the foot of Mount Hermon, the elevated area that commands the Golan Heights. The rebels holed up in those areas have been ordered by surrounding regime forces to surrender or face defeat, Reuters reported Tuesday night. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - Senior Israeli security officials have told the Security Cabinet that the current situation in Gaza resembles the one that existed just before Operation Protective Edge in 2014, warning that it might lead to a new military conflict with Hamas. The officials based their assessment on factors such as the rapidly-worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, a high unemployment rate, the cutting of funds from Qatar and the general disappointment of Gazans from the failing reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah. Above all, the officials cited the US recognition of Jerusalem as a major event that has prompted Hamas to unleash harsh statements against Israel in order to preserve its power. [ Source: Jerusalem Online (Read More...) ] View the full article

(Worthy News) - The Iranian parliament voted to approve a plan on Wednesday that would require the government of Iran to recognize Jerusalem as the permanent capital of the Palestinian people, Iranian news agency Fars reported. The vote yielded 207 supporters and met with no opposition. On December 6, US President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and announced that the American embassy will move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More...) ] View the full article