This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
There is a banquet table in heaven with a special place reserved for those who know Jesus and love Him. We know this to be true because Jesus told us so.
Many of the good guys from the Golden Age of Hollywood have gone ahead of us to join the festivities. We know that there is rejoicing and probably a lot of wonderful conversations with their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who has wiped away all their tears.
Some of the good guys are very well-known: Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Jimmy Stewart, and a host of others.
Among that host of well-known was my father, Bob "Tex" Allen, the original Texas Ranger. He ranks among them, having won a Box Office award for his lead in "Love Me Forever" and was rated next to Tim McCoy with his Western series that still airs on Turner Network Television.
Regrettably, we live in a cynical age, which has drifted away from good and evil, as Nietzsche told us it would – an age in which we have forgotten God.
So we look back at that Golden Era and sometimes don't realize that these men not only manifested virtue on the screen, but also in their lives off the screen.
My father, a great rider and roper, was born in 1906, when the cowboys still existed, and before the last U.S. Cavalry battles with the Comanches and Apaches in 1910-1912.
Unlike the portrait painted in today's movies, I remember the stories from those old-timers who said that in the Old West – when one was in a world where death was so close and danger was just around the corner – you lived in awe of God.
Therefore, these real cowboys were good guys who wore high white hats, who didn't curse, who kept their word, and who manifested love and compassion.
In his personal life, my father manifested so much integrity, virtue, and compassion that his example helped me to know God the Father, and the truth of Jesus Christ.
Among other wonderful virtues, he was a mentor and a friend, giving and decent, full of kindness and grace. Rudeness and crudeness so shocked him that I am relieved he has gone on to glory before today's degradation of our government and the officials who act like rude barbarians and hooligans.
It is hard for us to remember, but there was a Golden Age.
There were those who tried to live by standards that are today being torn apart by evil. If we truly love those heroes of the silver screen, we can, perhaps, tell the truth of their stories instead of dragging those stories into the filth of our Freudian decadence.
If we love them, we can try to emulate the virtue that so easily and so well suited them. It is a legacy worth considering.
The Bible tells us that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, who are none other than those wonderful saints that went on to glory before us.
A saint is a person set apart by God when that person is born again through faith by the power of the Holy Spirit. I remember quite well the very moment that my father said the sinner's prayer and was born again in my home in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1982.
At the Glen Cove Hospital in the final days of his life, he reaffirmed his faith in Jesus Christ while all my family was gathered around his bed weeks before he died.
However, despite the secure knowledge I have that my father has gone on to glory to a mansion prepared just for him in heaven, I wept when my father died.
Jesus gave His precious life to purchase eternal life for each and every man, woman, and child who would accept His gift.
Although Jesus lived at an extremely pagan time – where life was cheap and disposable, where pleasure took precedence over life, where people were murdered in the Roman Colosseum to entertain the populace, where babies were left to die outside the city gates, where bodies were thrown into stew pots to feed the outcasts – Jesus knew how unique each one of us is, and so He alone redeemed us. He, of course, knew the mission and ministry to which He appointed each of us.
God designed my father to be a gentleman in every way. He possessed great talent, a wonderful mind, and was extremely handsome. He was open, decent, and humble in ways that caused most of those who knew him to love him. Throughout his life, he got better. In spite of all his gifts and talents, my father dedicated himself to his children, often at great cost to himself.
He would often come and visit me in Atlanta and then Hollywood, although it cost him interviews for movies, plays, and TV programs. He would then hasten back home to his beloved Oyster Bay because he loved my sister so much. He wanted to spend as many months a year with her and then with me.
An actor's life is extremely difficult. Getting a part is dependent on having the right look and being at the right place at the right time. When you have a major part, things are great, but when you don't, there is nothing.
I remember many days when we had nothing, but my father always had faith that God would provide. God always did. He provided in miraculous ways.
In spite of the financial highs and lows, my father never complained. He trusted God so much that he sent Kathy to Westover and Vassar and me to St. Paul's and Dartmouth. Thus, my father prepared me for faith in God and for the vagaries of ministry.
Furthermore, when I came to know God after years of rebellion, I saw how much of Him was reflected in my father, who gave himself so selflessly for his family.
Although I wept at his passing, I also rejoiced that Dad had gone ahead of me.
Today, we are confused about what is right and what is wrong, and about what makes us happy and what makes us sad. Many have forgotten that life is tenuous and can be cut short in an instant. Many who ponder the afterlife want it their way without thinking about the consequences.
They are in a sense like the inhabitants of the TV program "The Twilight Zone," who get what they want only to find out that it is not what they really want.
My father was not confused. He lived his values and was certain about the meaning of life. He listened to his family and blessed those who knew him. He saw his whole family come to know the Truth that set them free from the confusions, delusions, and demons of our age. He came to know and understand that Jesus Christ is the only Way.
God gave him faith, which is a gift.
I miss Dad. I love him and thank him for what he did for me. And I look forward to joining him in heaven.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A political organization called Evangelicals for Harris, now renamed Evangelicals for America following Kamala Harris' catastrophic presidential election loss in 2024, has posted online a multipage apology for improperly using Billy Graham's image for their politics.
The organization had used images of the late Christian leader who was in the confidence of presidents for the last 50 years in promoting Harris, who advocated deliberately for the transgender and LGBT ideologies that many Christians find unbiblical and objectionable.
The Billy Graham Evangelical Associated pointed out the misuse, and abuse of copyright law, and a year later the Harris organization has apologized.
The online apology admits that the organization used clips of Rev. Graham without permission and claimed they weren't trying to "give the impression that Rev. Graham would have taken a side in publicly supporting one political candidate over another."
The group concedes that Graham "never politicized the Gospel of Jesus Christ or the works he created through BGEA."
"We appreciate the spirit in which BGEA has approached this matter … and we affirm its intellectual property rights including copyright in these videos, and its missional interest in protecting Rev. Graham's legacy."
It continued, "We have taken down and will not repost our ads that incorporated video clips of Rev. Billy Graham…"
Not the Bee explained, "The long and short of it is that they used these clips of Billy Graham, but didn't get permission from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) to use them in their political attack ads. To avoid being sued into oblivion for lifting these clips and using them for partisan purposes to support an abortion-loving Democratic candidate, they've apologized."
When the dispute arose, WND had reported on Billy Graham's lifelong interactions with presidents, of both political parties:
He was offered government posts by Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, and politely said no.
Harry S. Truman not only met with Graham, he received him as his Independence, Missouri, home. Dwight Eisenhower asked him about sending troops into Little Rock during a time of civil unrest. John F. Kennedy met with Graham before he was inaugurated.
Graham was invited to the Johnson family ranch multiple times, and spent more than 20 nights in the White House during his presidency. Graham had known Nixon for years, and the president often asked Graham to pray with him. Gerald Ford explained, "I've heard the comments from some sources that Billy mixes politics with religion. I never felt that and I don't think that thousands and thousands of people who listen to him felt that."
Jimmy Carter was an honorary chair of an Atlanta Crusade by Billy Graham back in his day, Ronald Reagan once said, "It was through Billy Graham that I found myself praying even more than on a daily basis … and that in the position I held, that my prayers more and more were to give me the wisdom to make decisions that would serve God and be pleasing to Him." George H. W. Bush called Graham "an inspiration in my life."
Bill Clinton credited Billy Graham with refusing to racially segregate a crusade audience. George W. Bush said a turning point in his faith came during a private talk with Billy Graham in 1985. Graham said he was pleased to have had Barack Obama visit in his home.
At the time, Franklin Graham, Billy Graham's son and now chief of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, said, "The liberals are using anything and everything they can to promote candidate Harris. They even developed a political ad trying to use my father Billy Graham's image to help promote her—or rather to try to make Donald J. Trump look bad.
"They are trying to mislead people. Maybe they don't know that my father was a firm supporter of President Trump in 2016. He appreciated the conservative values and policies of President Trump, and if he were alive today, my father's views and opinions would not have changed.
"President Trump isn't perfect—none of us are—but I believe he has changed over the years. This recent assassination attempt has had a huge impact on him—and I thank God that his life was spared."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Layoff notices have begun going out at the Department of State, which is expected to reduce its staffing level by thousands as the administration of President Donald Trump reorganizes government.
A report from CBS said the immediate layoffs are affecting about 1,300 staff members.
That would include 1,107 civil service members and 246 foreign service workers, according to a notice sent to department workers.
"The total number of staff departing as a part of the State Department's reorganization is 'nearly 3,000,' according to the department, a figure that includes those who took the 'Fork in the Road' voluntary departure offer earlier this year," the report said.
"We took a very deliberate step to reorganize the State Department to be more efficient and more focused," Marco Rubio, secretary of state, confirmed to reporters on Thursday.
State notified lawmakers several weeks ago it planned to eliminate about 3,400 U.S.-based jobs and close or merge many of its domestic offices.
"At the time, the department said it planned to phase out some offices focused on democracy or human rights that it claimed were 'prone to ideological capture,' and add new offices focused on 'civil liberties' and 'free market principles,'" the network said.
Also inside State now are a few remaining duties of the U.S. Agency for International Development, which was shut down by Trump after its employees spent years handing out American tax cash to foreign groups with ideologies often that conflicted with America's interests.
A union representing workers complained that the moves were demoralizing the workforce.
The Washington Examiner reported some of the workers affected will be on 120-day administrative leaves before their jobs are shut down.
Rubio has said a goal is to cut through a "bloated bureaucracy."
"There were 40 boxes on this piece of paper," he told senators in May. "That means 40 people had to check off 'yes' before it even got to me. That's ridiculous. And if any one of those boxes didn't get checked, the memo didn't move. That can't continue."
The plan includes eliminating 132 offices and changing rules to allow the firing of officials.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
'The whiplash is on maximum here. Not so long ago, if you weren't wearing a mask, you were selfish, reckless, and not part of the team trying to curb the spread of COVID. Now, with ICE agents masking up to protect themselves from being doxed by left-wing domestic terrorists, the Democratic Party has suddenly become the most virulent anti-maskers in the country'
A Democrat senator whose stunt, crashing a news conference by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem without ID, leaving security fearful it was an attack on a federal official, now is demanding that federal agents wear their IDs on their uniforms.
It is Alex Padilla, of California, who has proposed legislation to require Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to wear identification badges.
His stunt at the news conference created quite a stir as he was forcibly removed by security because he charged the stage where Noem was, and had not identified himself.
The video showed multiple security officers restraining Padilla, then removing him from the room.
He shouts, "Hands off!" after being moved through double doors that partition off an entry area from the news conference room. Earlier, he is heard saying, "I'm Sen. Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary."
Increasingly strident encounters have been developing across the country as ICE officers have been carrying out President Donald Trump's campaign to secure the nation's border and remove mostly to their home countries illegal aliens, including criminals, allowed into the country under Joe Biden's tenure.
Further, Padilla was criticized for his stunt.
ESPN's Stephen A. Smith criticized him.
"Can Kristi Noem speak? Could you have waited till she finished to ask your questions — to shout your questions?" Smith asked. "You are a senator, right? You couldn't wait? So that was just you out of control because you were just losing it, huh?"
"You — a United States senator — couldn't compose yourself and let the head of Homeland Security finish her thoughts before you asked a question?" he continued. "Couldn't do that, huh? Couldn't do it, huh?"
Noem was speaking about the riots taking place in Los Angeles before Padilla began shouting a question at her. Security quickly rushed to Padilla, telling him to put his hands up.
Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin also criticized Padilla for his behavior in an X post following the incident.
"Senator Padilla chose disrespectful political theatre and interrupted a live press conference without identifying himself or having his Senate security pin on as he lunged toward Secretary Noem," McLaughlin wrote.
"Mr. Padilla was told repeatedly to back away and did not comply with officers' repeated commands," she continued. "@SecretService thought he was an attacker and officers acted appropriately."
Beyond Padilla's own hypocrisy, a report at Townhall noted the hypocrisy of Democrats across the country, who mandated masks during COVID, but now want them banned.
"The whiplash is on maximum here. Not so long ago, if you weren't wearing a mask, you were selfish, reckless, and not part of the 'team' trying to curb the spread of COVID. Quietly, liberals cheered that leftist rioters were protected by masking up during the riots of 2020. Now, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents masking up to protect themselves from being doxed by left-wing domestic terrorists, the Democratic Party has suddenly become the most virulent anti-maskers in the country. It's truly amazing (and hilarious) stuff," the report said.
The report cited Padilla's plan.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
In his first public appearance at a religious event after a 23-day absence – likely due to fear of airstrikes – Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei made a calculated effort to present himself as a patriotic leader. Meanwhile, just one day after the ceasefire was declared, Iran's security and law enforcement forces launched a new campaign – this time, against their own people. They set up checkpoints across the country and began widespread arrests, particularly targeting youth, often simply for having anti-regime content on their mobile phones.
Enforced disappearances of prisoners and ordinary citizens have continued, as have the arrests of foreign and dual nationals – especially Europeans and French citizens. These acts appear aimed at preventing the reactivation of the U.N. "snapback" sanctions. Simultaneously, the regime has escalated executions to an unprecedented level, aiming to stifle any and all domestic dissent.
The targeted elimination of several senior intelligence and IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) commanders has shattered the regime's image of control, which heavily depended on its intelligence apparatus. A growing atmosphere of distrust and insecurity has spread within the regime, prompting significant defections. In response, the Supreme Leader has turned to hollow displays of strength in an effort to suppress a potential uprising.
In the early 1980s, a similarly vulnerable regime sought to suppress opposition – particularly members of the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) – through widespread checkpoints and mass arrests. Today, the same strategy is being used to identify and detain members of the MEK-affiliated Resistance Units, which are now active throughout the country.
These units have become a nightmare for the regime. While state media entities avoid mentioning them, the regime knows its most serious threat comes not from foreign powers, but from within – namely, these Resistance Units. They have the potential to mobilize a powerful street force capable of confronting the Revolutionary Guards and security forces.
Escalating internal power struggles
As the regime's fall becomes more conceivable, internal fractures are widening. Recently, 180 economists, university professors and former officials called for a "paradigm shift" in the Islamic Republic's governance model, referencing the 12-day conflict with Israel. In stark contrast, the IRGC-affiliated Fars News Agency praised the 1988 massacre of political prisoners – mostly MEK members – as a "successful precedent," advocating for its repetition to suppress today's dissent. Simultaneously, calls for the impeachment of newly elected President Masoud Pezeshkian are gaining momentum within parts of the regime.
The third option
The regime understands that war alone will not bring about its collapse. Its only real concern is the potential targeting of Supreme Leader Khamenei's hideouts in such a conflict. This explains its behind-the-scenes efforts to initiate talks with the United States – possibly via back channels in Norway – to defuse that threat. But retreating from its core policies – from repression to executions or nuclear ambitions – is not an option. Such concessions would signal the start of reform, inevitably triggering demands for basic freedoms and accelerating the regime's downfall.
The only realistic path to democracy in Iran lies with the organized resistance movement, which has fought the regime for over four decades, weathered two mass slaughter campaigns, and continued its struggle outside the clerical system. Despite relentless repression, the resistance has built a vast network of Resistance Units inside Iran – tasked with exposing regime crimes, mobilizing citizens, directing protests and hitting the regime's centers of oppression.
Alongside these units, a broad social support base – including families of political victims, former prisoners and various civic actors – actively participates in protest efforts. This network has succeeded in obtaining highly classified intelligence from within the regime. Much of what the world knows today about Iran's nuclear and terror programs comes from this very source.
Conclusion
Iran's crisis cannot be solved by foreign military intervention or appeasement. The only sustainable solution is to support the Iranian people and their organized resistance – a path that could actually lead to democracy, equality and enduring peace.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The Department of Defense is torpedoing the career plans of a Navy admiral who was caught facilitating drag shows on the USS Ronald Reagan.
The department confirmed it is withdrawing the nomination of Rear Adm. Michael "Buzz" Donnelly over the drag performances on the vessel while under his command.
The Daily Wire reported that Donnelly was commander of the aircraft carrier from April 2016 to September 2018.
During that time, the report said, "Yeoman 2nd Class Joshua Kelley performed as a drag queen under the name 'Harpy Daniels' at a department-sanctioned 'Morale, Welfare, and Recreation' event."
When President Donald Trump nominated Donnelly for promotion to vice-admiral and an appointment to command the 7th Fleet, the Daily Wire inquired about the drag shows.
The report said the result is that "a source at the Defense Department said that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is withdrawing Donnelly's nomination to lead the 7th Fleet. Hegseth is looking for a new 7th Fleet commander, the source shared."
The Daily Wire noted Donnelly drew national attention in 2023 when Sen. Tommy Tuberville held up his promotion as part of his blockade on Defense Department promotions. The Alabama Republican was challenging one part of Joe Biden's agenda to promote abortion and transgenderism.
In this fight, Tuberville opposed Biden's demand that taxpayers pay for three weeks of leave and travel expenses for military members and their dependents who demanded abortions.
The senator pointed out that the spending was completely unrelated to the department's mission of protecting the nation.
A number of legacy media outlets had highlighted the drag shows that occurred during Donnelly's tour, the report said.
Back at the time the performances were being scheduled, William Thibeau of The American Military Project at The Claremont Institute, told the Daily Signal, "Every military officer takes command of units large and small with the understanding they are responsible for everything that does and does not happen under their command. It's the basic truth of military leadership, whether you command an infantry company or an aircraft carrier."
He noted the drag shows are not "random acts of entertainment," they were "sanctioned Navy programs."
Donnelly's immediate future was unspecified in the report, but often when military commanders fail in one command, their next one is not considered a promotion.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a millionaire many times over, died allegedly by his own hand several years ago while waiting in a New York Jail for development of more sex charges against him.
People across America of multiple political ideologies have anxiously awaited the release of details about his death, and his associates during his lifetime, including a long list of high-profile personalities to include Bill Gates and Bill Clinton.
That, more or less, had been part of a commitment made by Trump administration officials just weeks ago.
But then came the Department of Justice notification, in an unsigned note, that little more information about Epstein and his lifestyle should be expected.
Obviously, the sudden change triggered an explosion of criticism and demands for details, which have not yet come.
But one explanation is being offered why Epstein information apparently, suddenly, went through a paper shredder, more or less.
Maybe he was a government asset?
That suspicion comes from things including his relatively gentle treatment when he first was convicted several years ago, and the currently handling of his record.
It is the Daily Caller that explains that the federal prosecutor, Alex Acosta, who went after Epstein on sex charges years ago allegedly confirmed, "I was told Epstein 'belonged to intelligence' and to leave it alone."
The report noted that Attorney General Pam Bondi was questioned at a Cabinet meeting this week on that topic.
Bondi responded, "I have no knowledge about that. We can get back to you on that."
She had been asked, "Your memo and release yesterday with Jeffrey Epstein left some lingering mysteries, one of the biggest ones is whether he ever worked for an American or foreign intelligence agency. … The former labor secretary and Miami U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta, he allegedly said that he did work for an intelligence agency. So could you resolve whether or not he did?"
Bondi, months ago, had told Fox News that Epstein's "list" was "sitting on my desk right now to review."
Acosta was part of the prosecution team that in 2007 gave Epstein immunity as part of a plea deal. Epstein pleaded to state charges and served time in a county jail.
The issue arose again when Epstein was arrested in another case in 2019.
The Daily Caller said:
The Miami Herald spent five years in a legal battle to obtain documents related to Epstein, while extensively covering both the current case and earlier proceedings against him in Florida, according to a Vanity Fair report.
"It's not beyond the realm of possibility that Epstein had connections to the [Israeli intelligence community]," Julie K. Brown, investigative reporter for the Miami Herald, told the Times of Israel in a 2021 interview.
She pointed to Epstein's convicted co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell's father, Robert Maxwell.
"Robert Maxwell certainly had those kinds of connections, and Epstein had a close relationship with Robert Maxwell," she told the outlet.
Maxwell's 1991 burial on Jerusalem's Mount of Olives drew Israeli political leadership, according to a New York Times (NYT) obituary.
Ehud Barak, the former Israeli prime minister, allegedly visited Epstein numerous times, taking private jet flights and spending time at Epstein's homes in both Florida and New York, according to documents obtained by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in 2023.
Further reported was that Iraseli officials met with Epstein at times early in the 2000s.
And, the report said, "William Burns, former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) under the Biden administration, had three scheduled meetings with Epstein in 2014 during his time as deputy secretary of state, according to a separate 2023 WSJ report. Tammy Kupperman Thorp, former CIA spokeswoman, told the publication that Burns 'did not know anything about [Epstein] other than that he was introduced as an expert in the financial services sector and offered general advice on transition to the private sector.'"
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Six of the U.S. Secret Service agents on duty in Butler, Pennsylvania, a year ago when a gunman shot at and wounded President Donald Trump at a rally have been punished, according to a report.
During an interview with CBS, Matt Quinn, the agency's deputy director, affirmed that the agents were suspended for periods ranging from 10 to 42 days, during which they were not paid.
Then when they returned to duty they were placed on restricted duty, roles with less responsibility.
He defended the decision by the agency not to fire anyone.
"We are laser-focused on fixing the root cause of the problem," Quinn said.
It was July 13, 2024, when a gunman opened fire during a campaign rally. A bullet grazed Trump's ear and the president has credited God with saving his life. The gunman, carrying a rifle, inexplicably, had gained access to the roof of a building near the rally.
One person was killed by the gunman, and two others injured.
The alleged gunman, Thomas Crooks, was killed by a Secret Service sniper.
Quinn said Butler "was an operational failure and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again."
One development, he explained, is that the service has introduced a new fleet of military grade drones and mobile command posts that allows agents to communicate over radio directly with local law enforcement – interoperability that didn't exist last year, the report said.
That attack on Trump, as well as a second, failed attack plan in West Palm Beach, Florida, a few weeks later, triggered the resignation of then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle and several investigations and confrontational congressional hearings.
A 180-page report released by a bipartisan House panel a few months ago confirmed that the security lapses that led to the first incident were "not isolated to the campaign event itself."
The "leadership and training" allowed for "failures" to happen, the report said.
It was Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, father and husband, who was killed by Crooks' shots.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Almost universally regarded as the most egregious single event of the Biden presidency, the 2021 withdrawal of U.S. military forces from Afghanistan is, in fact, considered by many to be one of the most disastrous and staggeringly incompetent military actions in modern history.
Indeed, this past May, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued an official statement announcing a special review of the event. Hegseth said:
Tens of thousands of Afghans who aided the U.S. military were left behind in the military withdrawal, and while many attempted to flee Taliban rule by leaving the country, others escaped torture and/or death through hiding.
One of them is Abdul (a pseudonym), who spoke to WorldNetDaily on the condition of anonymity due to concerns for his safety. He worked as a security guard for a U.S. company and had previously served in the Afghan National Army for nearly a decade as an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) and improvised explosive device disposal (IEDD) technician. Abdul's last day of service was Aug. 15, 2021, about two weeks prior to the conclusion of the U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan.
"When Afghanistan collapsed," he told WND, "it was very difficult to save my life and also my family." He considers himself "lucky" to have found the Afghan Liberty Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provided "safe housing for hundreds of Afghans at risk of retaliation by the Taliban for working with the U.S.-backed government," as a 2022 report by The Intercept described it.
Abdul expressed deep appreciation to Ryan Mauro, the organization's founding director and national security analyst at the Capital Research Center, saying, "Ryan is a very great and kind person, giving a safe house in Kabul and saving my family for one year with financial support and also food packages and medical care."
Due to a lack of funding after the fall of Kabul, Mauro was unable to continue providing safe houses for those hiding from the Taliban, so Abdul said for the following year he was forced to move from one house to another during the night to keep his wife and children safe.
In 2023, Abdul and his family finally escaped to Islamabad, Pakistan, purchasing visas from that country. "We waited for two years in Islamabad for the humanitarian visa of Brazil," Abdul said. A few weeks ago, he and his family arrived safely in Brazil.
Unfortunately, Abdul had to leave his parents behind in Kabul, telling WND "they're still hiding in different houses." Through it all, though, he remains hopeful: "In Brazil, I just want to work hard for my family." And "God willing," he added, he hopes to make it to America one day.
While building a new life for his family is his first priority, Abdul admitted, "I can't forget the very rough time for people who are left behind in Afghanistan under the brutal regime of Taliban." He recalls a friend by the name of Ihsanudin Zadran, who served as an Afghan National Army captain, but was subsequently tortured and killed by the Taliban in 2021 in Khost Province.
It's a fate many former U.S. allies and members of the ANA continue to fear on a daily basis.
One of them is Ahmad Ehsan (a pseudonym), who has received letters of denial for Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) status from the U.S. State Department and remains in hiding in Afghanistan. Ehsan is one of an estimated 62,000 Afghan interpreters and others who have sought a U.S. visa in exchange for having worked alongside U.S. forces prior to Biden's August 2021 withdrawal.
WND also spoke to Mauro, who explained: "Afghan Liberty Project was a volunteer effort," saying he "had never done anything close to running humanitarian operations overseas, nor had our volunteers." Yet, said Mauro, they were able to "provide crucial assistance to hundreds of Afghans in need, from medical aid to emergency rescues to safe shelter."
"If there's one thing that I hope people take away from this story," he said, "it's to never, ever doubt your ability to significantly help people in any situation – anywhere around the world. It's a blessing and a burden that everyone needs to understand and take seriously."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
There long have been claims, including some that are fairly wild, about the exhaust trails from passenger jets traveling over the United States.
Deliberate distribution of chemicals to change the weather, to alter populations, even for mind control.
Now Lee Zeldin, the chief of the Environmental Protection Agency in the administration of President Donald Trump, has announced an online posting with explanations.
In his video message, he said the new web pages were posted to inform "anyone who's ever looked up to the streaks in the sky and asked, 'What the heck is going on?'"
A report in the New York Post said the facts debunk claims, including some from Zeldin's fellow Republicans, that contrails are actually "chemtrails" that are deliberately being used to distributed … something.
"We did the legwork, looked at the science, consulted agency experts, and pulled in relevant outside information to put these online resources together," Zeldin said. "Everything we know about contrails to solar geoengineering will be in there."
The EPA says the "contrails," or condensation trails, are common clouds created by the exhaust from high-altitude jets and can be seen "for the same reason that you can see the exhaust from your vehicle or your own breath on a cold day."
The EPA states, "The federal government is not aware of there ever being a contrail intentionally formed over the United States for the purpose of geoengineering or weather modification."
There are such distributions, the agency confirms, when low-altitude, propeller driven airplanes are used to distribute chemicals for firefighting, or farming, an industry that uses a variety of weed and pest controls.
Further, he said, despite headline claims about private individuals or government operations trying to "blot out the sun in the name of stopping global warming" are made up.
The report said, "Only one private company, South Dakota-based Make Sunsets, has experimented in the U.S. with solar geoengineering through what is known as stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI) and marine cloud brightening (MCB) to potentially lower the Earth's temperature."
But there have been plans that used processes like cloud seeding to modify the weather.
Most cloud seeding is carried out to learn how to combat heavy droughts and is "primarily funded at the state or local level," the GAO has reported.
Rep. Marjorie Taylore Green, R-Ga., has promised legislation to ban releasing substances into the atmosphere in attempts to alter the weather, and HHS chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr. responded to a viral video by promising to "stop" such activity.