News

Netanyahu heads to Berlin, Paris next week for talks expected to focus on Iran

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PM will meet with Merkel and Macron for first time since US withdrawal from nuclear deal, a move opposed by Germany and France By TOI STAFF /05/27/2018 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit Paris and Berlin next week, his office said Sunday, with talks expected to focus on Iran. The Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu will fly to Germany on June 4 to meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel, before traveling later that day to France for talks with President Emmanuel Macron. He will return to Israel on June 6. The meetings will be Netanyahu’s first with Merkel and Macron since US President …

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HOW IRAQ’S NEW PM COULD UPEND 15 YEARS OF U.S. IRAQ POLICY

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Whether Iraq gets Sadr’s brand of nationalism or Amiri’s brand of Tehran hegemony, Iraq has beguiled US policymakers again. BY SETH J. FRANTZMAN  MAY 27, 2018 Iraqi democracy has gone beyond anything Washington might have imagined when the US planned the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Muqtada al-Sadr, whose militia once targeted US troops, came in first in the elections in mid-May. He now holds the key to power alongside another Shi’ite strongman and Iranian ally, Hadi al-Amiri. Whether Iraq gets Sadr’s brand of nationalism or Amiri’s brand of Tehran hegemony, Iraq has beguiled US policy-makers again. In April 2004, Coalition Provisional …

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Iran says security forces to clamp-down on protests

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05/27/2018 DUBAI (Reuters) – Iranian security forces will “resolutely confront” unrest that could be exploited by the United States and other enemies, a judiciary spokesman said on Sunday, after a wave of protests across the country mainly about economic issues. The likely return of U.S. economic sanctions after Washington withdrew from an Iranian nuclear deal with world powers has triggered labour unrest and protests in Iran in the past few weeks by various groups, including teachers and truckers. Earlier in May, at least two people were killed in the southern city of Kazeroon when protesters set fire to a police …

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Liberman: UN Human Rights Council has become a cheerleader for terrorists

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Defense minister slams investigation ordered by UN’s top human rights body following weeks of violence along Gaza fence 05/19/2018 Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman on Saturday accused the UN Human Rights Council of becoming a “cheerleader for terrorists,” after the UN’s top human rights body ordered an investigation into the deadly violence along the Gaza border fence this week. Rejecting the probe, Liberman tweeted in Hebrew that “the only investigation that needs to be set up is into how the Human Rights Council became a cheerleader for terrorists.” Israel said Friday that it will not cooperate with the investigation after …

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Iran’s Khamenei: Negotiating With Israel Would Be Big Mistake

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04/04/2018 Any move to negotiate with Israel would be an “unforgivable mistake,” Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday, after Saudi Arabia’s crown prince said Israelis were entitled to live peacefully on their own land. Saudi Arabia — birthplace of Islam and site of its holiest shrines — does not officially recognize Israel, but Mohammed bin Salman’s comments, quoted in the US magazine The Atlantic, are a further sign of an apparent thawing in bilateral ties. They come as mainly Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia faces off against Shi’ite Iran in a regional power struggle. Tehran and Riyadh back opposing sides in …

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Report: Trump backtracks on decision to pull US troops out of Syria

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After consulting with his advisers, US President Donald Trump has reportedly agreed to keep US troops in Syria, backtracking on his announcement last week that the US will be withdrawing from Syria soon. 04/04/2018 US President Donald Trump has reluctantly agreed to keep US troops on Syrian soil after consulting with his advisers, MSNBC reported on Wednesday. The White House issued a statement saying ISIS is “almost completely destroyed,” but added that “the United States and our partners remain committed to eliminating the small ISIS presence in Syria that our forces have no already eradicated.” Last week, while speaking in …

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IDF: At least 10 of the 16 killed at Gaza border were members of terror groups

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Army publishes list of names, positions of men shot dead during violence at the security fence; Hamas acknowledges that five of them were gunmen from its military wing By JUDAH ARI GROSS, AGENCIES and TOI STAFF/03/31/2018 The Israeli military on Saturday night identified 10 of the 16 people reported killed during violent protests along the Gaza security fence as members of Palestinian terrorist groups, and published a list of their names and positions in the organizations. On Friday, some 30,000 Palestinians took part in demonstrations along the Gaza border, during which rioters threw rocks and firebombs at Israeli troops on the other side of …

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God’s Kingdom Overview

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The Announcement of the Kingdom Mark 1:14-15 14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, 15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel (KJV). Kingdom Overview God had an earthly Kingdom in mind before the creation of the universe (Matthew 25:34;; John 17:24; Ephesians 1:4; Hebrews 4:3; I Peter 1:20; Revelation 13:18). The Kingdom is what God has been trying to set up in a visible manner on the earth since the creation of mankind. It is …

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Hezbollah’s al-Manar: Israeli drone crashes in southern Lebanon

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03/31/2018 BEIRUT – An Israeli drone crashed in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah’s al-Manar TV reported on its website on Saturday, citing its correspondent.   “An unmanned Israeli spy plane crashes between the villages of Beit Yahoun and Baraachit,” al-Manar reported. Ynet According to reports, an unmanned Israeli spy plane crashed between the villages of Beit Yahoun and Baraachit

Saudi Crown Prince says American troops should remain inside Syria

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Staff writer, Al Arabiya EnglishSaturday, 31 March 2018 Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman wants the US military to maintain a presence in Syria, he told TIME on Thursday during his multi-city tour of the United States. “We believe American troops should stay for at least the mid-term, if not the long-term,” he said. Prince Mohammed said the US military presence is the last effort stopping Iran from continuing to expand influence with regional allies. The presence of the troops, which have a remote base at Deir Ezzor in eastern Syria, will also allow Washington to have a say in Syria’s future, …

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UN chief calls for independent investigation into Gaza deaths

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Emergency Security Council session convened after 16 Palestinians reportedly killed by IDF troops along Gaza border; top UN official warns violence may worsen By TOI STAFF and AGENCIES /03/31/2018 UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres called Friday for “an independent and transparent investigation” into deadly clashes in Gaza between Palestinians and Israeli troops as Security Council members urged restraint and a lowering of tensions on both sides. Kuwait requested the emergency Security Council meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza, where Palestinians said Israeli fire killed 16 people in the conflict’s deadliest single day since the 2014 Gaza war. After the meeting, a top UN …

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Israel deploys drones to drop tear gas on Gaza protesters

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Friday’s violence was one of the first uses of the new technology, Border Police spokesman says By AGENCIES and TOI STAFF/ 03/31/2018 Israel on Friday used new technology to counter violent protests along the Gaza border, with Border Police using small drones to drop tear gas on Palestinian protesters. An AFP correspondent saw a drone release around 10 gas canisters as protesters on the border with Israel cursed the small craft. People quickly scattered when they saw the drones approaching. A police spokesman acknowledged operational deployment of the new technology. A number of people were injured by the containers, which fell from a height of …

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