This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – A senior commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps admitted – with highly surprising candor – in an address subsequently leaked to Western media that Iran had suffered a significant defeat in the wake of former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad's ouster from the country.
Brig.-Gen. Behrouz Esbati said in a speech last week in Tehran's Valiasr mosque, "We were defeated and defeated very badly, we took a very big blow, and it's been very difficult." According to the report, Esbati added, "I don't consider losing Syria something to be proud of."
Esbati's remarks are a significant departure from Iran's previously stated official line, which sought – among myriad issues plaguing the Islamic Republic – to downplay the importance of Assad's Damascus departure. The general also highlighted the fractious relationship between the Iranians and Assad in his final months in power. The Islamic regime had wanted to use Syrian territory to launch proxy attacks against the Jewish state, which Assad reportedly refused. There is a deep irony that Israel's actions against Hezbollah, mostly in Lebanon, were the catalyst for the push the HTS rebels launched against Assad, toppling his totalitarian state in a matter of days.
While lamenting the loss of its Syrian base, Esbati stated Iran would continue to operate from Syria, "We can activate all the networks we have worked with over the years," he said. "We can activate the social layers that our guys lived among for years; we can be active in social media, and we can form resistance cells." With a strident Turkey now on the march – and maintaining significant influence over the al-Sharaa's nascent government – that claim will likely be sorely put to the test, as two of the region's behemoths warily circle each other.
In addition, Esbati criticized Russia's role in Assad's downfall, claiming they had "turned off their radar and detection systems," allowing Israel to attack Iranian military targets in Syria. Like with Iran, Russia has at least removed most – if not all – of its personnel from Syria, although it is likely some of its hardware was left behind.
Esbati's address is important because it could easily be interpreted as showing there is even a little daylight between the powerful IRGC and the seemingly ailing Ayatollah Khamenei. Rumors and innuendo abound within Iran and analysts who closely watch the Islamic Republic about just how precarious his current position is in Tehran. Indeed, people are extrapolating comparisons with what happened to Assad in Syria and what may happen to Khamenei in Iran. Assad tried to cover up the ineptitude of his leadership which led to hardships for his people, amid political repression and widespread corruption. The similarities with the current Iranian situation are almost impossible to miss.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Joe Biden's legacy is going to include 20% plus inflation that has been hugely injurious to Americans. And the ideology of body mutilating transgender "treatments" for children. And abortion. And an open southern border that allowed in millions and millions of illegal aliens.
And his fumbling, stumbling, mumbling public behavior that left no doubt about his declining physical and mental capabilities.
Further, he's moved to hurt America going forward with a new ban on oil drilling on tens of millions of undersea acres and more.
And now there's one more piece to the Biden legacy: A cash grant of taxpayer money to promote Satan.
It is the Washington Stand that documents the federal grant of $388,863 that went to the University of North Carolina for a podcast to promote "Church of Satan, paganism, a Cuban cult that practices animal sacrifice, astrology, an LGBT-friendly school of witchcraft, and other 'magico-religious' beliefs."
The Washington Stand's Ben Johnson reports, "The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) awarded a $388,863 grant to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to produce the 'Magic in the United States' podcast. The series would produce six episodes per season for three seasons between October 17, 2023, and last December 17, each highlighting different occult practices (often pointing out the LGBTQ status of its practitioners)."
The report explains the series equates being filled with the Holy Spirit with demonic possession and likens Christian prayer and New Age meditation.
Further it suggests someone who is Christian still can "work magically with non-biblical spirits."
The report said the series "crosses the line into full-blown celebration and advocacy of the pagan spirituality it chronicles."
It cites as an example the first episode, where a Wiccan, "Thorn Mooney," describes the witchcraft he practiced when he was 13 as "the happiest times in my life."
The series facilitator, Heather Freeman, "repeatedly claims that someone can say his 'religious identity is Christian' but adopt a 'bigger, richer, and more complex' set of pagan and magical beliefs."
The Washington Stand charges, "The show reaches its darkest point in the final episode of season 2, about the Church of Satan. (The episode notes that it 'includes frank conversations about sex and sex-positivity.') Freeman praises Lil Nas X, a hip-hop performer who identifies as homosexual, for producing a music video for the song 'MONTERO (call me by your name),' in which the rapper 'slides down a stripper pole into Hell, gives Satan a lap dance, and then kills the Prince of Hell to become its new reigning sovereign.'"
The report also cites the panic that targets "innocent Satanists" when concerns about "devil worship" are raised.
The report explains the series "misses few opportunities to mislead or demean the traditional Christian faith" and claims the church often was "an institution of indoctrination and oppression."
There are stories of individuals who claim to have physical interactions with spirits and perform animal sacrifices "in the most humane way."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
It was only weeks ago that a congressional report confirmed that the censorship schemes assembled and implemented by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, working with social media platforms, were "blatantly unconstitutional."
Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, already had admitted in a letter to Congress that he was censoring Americans on the orders of Biden.
In fact, he charged, "Senior officials from the Biden Administration, including the White House, repeatedly pressured our teams for months to censor COVID-19 content, including humor & satire. … I believe the government pressure was wrong & I regret we were not more outspoken about it."
Now Facebook is putting action behind Zuckerberg's words, a video from Zuckerberg in which he promises to return to a constitutional standard.
"We're going to get back to our roots and focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies and restoring free expression on our platforms. More specifically, we're going to get rid of fact-checkers and replace them with Community Notes similar to X, starting in the U.S," Zuckerberg announced.
Fox News reported the chief global affairs officer for Meta, Facebook's parent company, Joel Kaplan, joined its "Fox & Friends" broadcast.
He said, "This is a great opportunity for us to reset the balance in favor of free expression. As Mark says in that video, what we're doing is we're getting back to our roots and free expression."
Zuckerberg's "fact-checking," which often amounted to nothing more than a censorship of any opinion – or even fact – that disagreed with the agenda of American Democrats and other leftists on topics like COVID, elections and more, was installed in 2016 after the election and purportedly was to "manage" misinformation.
Executives said it was because of leftist political pressure to address what Democrats called misinformation, disinformation and malinformation, which even they admitted was true, but used in a way they didn't like.
"We went to independent, third-party fact-checkers," Kaplan told Fox News Digital. "It has become clear there is too much political bias in what they choose to fact-check because, basically, they get to fact-check whatever they see on the platform."
The censorship, he confirmed, is being ended "completely," and in its place with be a "community notes" plan similar to what Elon Musk installed on Twitter, now X, when he took it over.
"Instead of going to some so-called expert, it instead relies on the community and the people on the platform to provide their own commentary to something that they've read," Kaplan said. "We think that's a much better approach rather than relying on so-called experts who bring their own biases into the program."
President-elect Donald Trump has had repeated run-ins with social media companies' censorship his comments and opinions, and he's even been removed from some, following their adherence to the Biden censorship agenda. In response he created Truth Social.
But as he's taking over the White House in just days the political winds have shifted.
"We have a new administration coming in that is far from pressuring companies to censor and [is more] a huge supporter of free expression," Kaplan said.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Congress on Monday, meeting in a joint session of the House and Senate, voted to adopt the Electoral College victory of President-elect Donald Trump for president beginning with the new term starting Jan. 20.
The pro forma comments and recitation of the votes were in contrast to the events of four years earlier when there was considerable suspicion about election manipulation, and protesters invaded the Capitol building, causing the final vote for Joe Biden to be delayed until the late night hours.
Since then, the undue influences of Mark Zuckerberg, who handed out $400 million plus used by local election officials often to recruit voters in Democrat districts, and the FBI's decision to interfere by falsely labeling information about Biden family scandals documented in a computer abandoned by Hunter Biden, have been documented.
The routine recitations on Monday included that the certificates from the states appeared to be regular and properly authentic. Trump had 312 votes to Kamala Harris' 226.
The adoption process actually took only minutes.
The events were anticlimactic as there were no protests, disputes or challenges, as some Democrats had suggested would happen, during the process.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Middle East/Israel Morning Brief
Trump names Morgan Ortagus, former State Dept. spokeswoman, as deputy Mideast Peace envoy
Incoming President Donald Trump has named pro-Israel former State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus as Deputy Mideast Peace Envoy in his new administration.
Ortagus will serve with Jewish pro-Israel Mideast Peace Envoy pick Steve Witkoff, a close friend and confidant of the president-elect, according to the Jewish Press.
Ortagus is not new to politics. She served during Trump's first term in office, from 2019 to 2021, as the State Department spokesperson under Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, an unapologetic Israel supporter. She was a member of the president's historic Abraham Accords team during her tenure and has remained close to Jared Kushner, a lead member of the team and presidential son-in-law.
Hamas releases video of Liri Albag, female soldier kidnapped on Oct. 7
Hamas published a disturbing new video, which features one of the young female Israeli soldiers kidnapped from her Nahal Oz military base abutting the Gaza border on Oct. 7.
The three-and-a-half-minute-long video was not dated, although Albag stated in it that she has been held for over 450 days, indicating that it was filmed recently reported the Times of Israel.
Albag, a surveillance soldier, was stationed at the Nahal Oz military base close to the Gaza border when thousands of Hamas-led terrorists poured into Israel from the Palestinian enclave. Fifteen surveillance soldiers were killed in the onslaught, and Albag was abducted to Gaza along with six others.
Trump, Netanyahu named most influential people in Israel in 2024
Although he placed 4th, Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir garnered the most coverage in the Israel National News report.
"Love him or hate him, but one thing is clear: Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir cannot be ignored. Almost all of his actions are controversial – especially in the police, where his opponents claim that he has completed the takeover of the police and its politicization with the appointment of Commissioner Dani Levi. They further allege that he is the almost sole responsible party for the trend of senior officers leaving the Israel Police."
Biden administration planning U.N. January surprise along lines of Obama's 2016 betrayal
As WorldNetDaily is reporting, the Biden administration is planning a "January surprise" that is "modeled directly on the January surprise of the Obama administration in 2016 – that is U.N. Resolution 2334, which basically, to put it a little bit crudely, recognized the Green Line that is the June 5, 1967, ceasefire lines that separated Israel from Jordan as an international boundary," Michael Doran, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and director of its center for peace and security in the Middle East, said on his podcast on Dec. 31.
Speaking with his co-host Gadi Taub, an Israeli historian and writer, Doran said that the Obama administration's surprise meant that "any development that Israel has made to the east of the Green Line since the 1967 War is recognized by the U.N. as an illegal settlement," reported the Jewish News Syndicate.
"This means including the Western Wall uh is 'occupied territory,'" the former senior director in the U.S. National Security Council said on the "Israel Update" podcast.
"Lots of neighborhoods that any Israeli today regards as Israel proper are regarded by 2334 as Israeli illegal Israeli settlements," Doran said.
Hezbollah chief threatens to re-start hostilities if ceasefire conditions not upheld
Hezbollah's reluctant chief Naim Qassem, warned the Iranian terrorist proxy would resume the conflict if in the organization's leadership's opinion Israel has violated the conditions of the shaky ceasefire.
Speaking on Saturday, Qassem rewrote the conflict's recent history, claiming Hezbollah successfully repulsed Israel's advance to only a few hundred meters, according to Ynet.
"Israel failed to penetrate deeper into our land thanks to the strength of the resistance. The resistance is powerful, deterrent and effective, disrupting the enemy's objectives despite the extensive destruction and Israeli aggression," he added.
Regarding the fragile cease-fire, Qassem said, "The resistance wielded significant power during the cease-fire. Israel was forced to request a cease-fire due to the resistance's capabilities. We faced unprecedented aggression, stood firm and broke Israel's strength. Sacrifice is the path to dignity and the resistance will continue."
Bipartisan approach to U.S. airlines resuming flights to Israel
For all but two brief periods in 2024, the major U.S. carriers – Delta, United and American – have not flown to Tel Aviv since the war broke out, citing security concerns.
El Al, now passengers' only option for direct flights to and from America, doesn't have enough planes to meet travelers' demand, leading to crushingly high prices and flights that are often sold out weeks or months in advance, reported Jewish Insider.
Some European airlines have recently resumed flights to Israel after Israel reached a cease-fire deal with Lebanon, while several Gulf airlines have been flying to Israel throughout the conflict, including the United Arab Emirates-based Etihad Airways, which is now operating three daily flights to Tel Aviv. But those realities have not swayed U.S. airline executives.
At a meeting of United's board of directors in early December, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said he has "no interest in returning to Tel Aviv only to pull out for a third time," according to a source with knowledge of the conversation. United has also not resumed service to Amman, where it flew during the first several months of the war but suspended service in August.
Pennsylvania man indicted on terrorism charges for joining Hezbollah
A grand jury has federally indicted an American who absconded to the Middle East with the intention of joining Hezbollah – the Iran-backed Shia terrorist organization based in Lebanon – the U.S. Department of Justice announced on Thursday.
The action affirmed the veracity of evidence that Jack Danaher Molloy, 24, had "attempted to provide material support and resources" to Hezbollah both in and out of the U.S., operating in his home state of Pennsylvania as well as in Syria and Lebanon between August and December 2024, reported the Algemeiner.
The venture ultimately proved unsuccessful, however, as Molloy – a dual citizen of Ireland and former active duty soldier for the U.S. Army – was, according to the department, rejected by his would-be terrorist colleagues. They reportedly told him that "the time was not right" for his enlistment.
WATCH: Blinken says Israel's war with Hamas won't define his legacy
Iran sold 2 million barrels of oil a day during Biden administration
Yet more evidence emerged about Biden's administration effectively being Obama 3.0 when the statistics about Iran's oil production and sale, were recently published.
Iran exported approximately 2 billion barrels of oil
–a significant increase compared to the volumes recorded between 2019 and 2021, according to Iran International.
Details from Kpler, a commodity intelligence company, reveal that Iran, whose daily oil exports had fallen below 400,000 barrels in January 2021, at the start of the Biden Administration, exported 1.6 million barrels daily last year.
Similarly, the United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) organization, which also tracks oil tankers carrying Iranian oil, says: "In 2024, Iran exported 587 million barrels of oil, an increase of 10.75% compared to 2023's 530 million barrels. Over the four years since the start of the Biden Administration, with less than one month remaining in its term, Iran has exported a cumulative total of nearly 1.98 billion barrels of oil."
Biden presented plans to strike Iran if it makes dash for the bomb
The Biden administration is amidst a flurry of activity as it seeks to do in less than three weeks, things it didn't manage to achieve in four years of power.
One of those critical issues is a report from the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, which reported national security advisor Jake Sullivan presented President Biden with options last month for a U.S. attack on Iran, should the Islamic Republic push to develop a nuclear weapon prior to President Trump's Jan. 20th inauguration.
A report published by Axios on January 2 claimed the meeting included discussions of military "options and scenarios" but wasn't prompted by new intelligence. Biden reportedly did not make any final decision on a course of action.
U.K. poll predicts Starmer will be out of PM's residence within a year
Sir Keir Starmer, who seems to be the U.K.'s most unpopular prime minister in recent living memory – even more than the forgettable Liz Truss – will be gone from his official London residence of No. 10 Downing Street before the year is out, according to a poll published in the Mail on Sunday.
Voters are apparently furious over his handling of a number of issues, including the economy, the NHS, immigration, and the cost-of-living crisis. The recent revelations about his input into the prevention of prosecutions for Muslims involved in the child rape gangs will be similarly weighing on voters' minds.
Nearly a third of all Britons polled in the "state of the nation" survey expect the Labour leader to last another year at most, with more than two thirds (68%) saying he is doing "badly," just six months into the job.
And in news that will worry both Labour and the Conservatives, one in five voters thinks that Nigel Farage will be Britain's next Prime Minister.
Since Labour's landslide victory last July, the party has been dogged by a series of missteps, including rows over changes to farmers' inheritance tax reliefs, a tax raid on private school fees and freebies from donors and lobbyists.
America needs to wake up to the terrorism on its doorstep
Terrorism has once again arrived on America's doorstep, and tough questions need to be asked about how and why this happened, according to an op-ed in the New York Post.
How, for instance, was law enforcement so ill-prepared to recognize the signs of terrorism in New Orleans? And why aren't Americans adequately educated to identify potential terrorists themselves? Most urgently, what more can police do to detect and prevent explosive devices from being planted in our streets?
Unfortunately, lax laws dating back decades have enabled terrorists to use the United States as a base, and the internet as their tool for recruitment.
The 1996 Communications Decency Act, for instance, was designed to incentivize big-tech to remove content deemed harmful to children.
But Section 230 of the Act shields tech platforms from liability for harmful content posted by users, including extremist and terrorist material.
Terrorism-related content can proliferate without consequence, facilitating real-world violence.
Despite enhanced surveillance resources under the controversial 2001 USA Patriot Act, Federal law efforts failed on Bourbon Street. Law-enforcement agencies issued pre-holiday warnings that low-tech vehicle-ramming was a key area of concern.
Conservative leader Badenoch says public inquiry into 'grooming gangs' is only way to expose those who turned blind eye
U.K. Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has joined the growing chorus to push for a public inquiry into the extensive child rape rings – also known as grooming gangs – where hundreds of Muslim men from the Indian subcontinent, the majority from Pakistan, systematically raped and abused more than 1,000 white working class girls and young women.
It was a scandal made possible by the collusion and cover-ups of officials, the police and politicians who were more concerned about community relations than about victims and their families, reported the Mail on Sunday.
The fact that perpetrators of this sexual violence appeared to have deliberately picked victims because they were white – and not from their own of the community or religious background – must not be ignored.
Previous inquiries have failed to examine this. It's for society and the state to address the issue, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.
The testimonies of the victims are hard to read. Girls being forced into barbaric sexual acts. Raped by multiple men at the same time or one after the other. Punished by grotesque sexual violence when they resisted.
Rutgers University failed to address hundreds of complaints alleging harassment against Jewish students
Rutgers University faces federal scrutiny according to a new Title VI resolution agreement reached between the school and the U.S. Department of Education, in which the school failed to protect Jewish and Israeli students during the height of the post-Oct. 7 protests its campus.
The agreement says that schools must review their anti-discrimination policies, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The agreement is the latest in a flurry of such deals to be reached with schools involving allegations of antisemitic harassment in the waning weeks of the Biden administration. The administration spent the better part of the last year immersed in dozens of anti-Semitism-related Title VI campus cases.
The Education Department's Office of Civil Rights announced in its report on Rutgers that "the university likely operated a hostile environment based on national origin/shared ancestry in university programs or activities without redress," adding that the school "subjected some students to discriminatory different treatment based on national origin."
IDF destroys weapons cache found in Syrian Hermon
Israel's lightning move to take the Syrian Hermon once it became clear the Assad dynasty had collapsed after 50-plus years of dictatorship bore more fruit over the weekend, after a significant weapons cache was uncovered … and destroyed, according to Israel National News.
During targeted raids, the soldiers searched military structures and key terrain points in the area, where they located, confiscated, and destroyed stockpiles of weapons and intelligence assets.
These included mines, explosives, anti-tank missiles, rockets, and launchers.
Two Israelis wounded in New Orleans car ramming are army reservists who fought in Gaza, Lebanon
Two of the people wounded in the murderous ISIS-inspired car-ramming attack in New Orleans on New Year's Eve are Israeli reservists who had fought together in battles in Gaza and Lebanon, and decided to get away to the United States for some rest and relaxation following more than a year of war, reported Ynet.
They're currently hospitalized in New Orleans and will only be flown back to Israel once their conditions stabilize.
The two have known each other since their compulsory military service and had planned to conclude their U.S. trip with a visit to a relative of one of them in Florida. The Foreign Ministry aided their families to fly to Louisiana.
One of the wounded is in a critical condition, and has already undergone two life-saving surgeries. His friend, while seriously wounded with limb injuries and internal trauma is not assessed to be in any immediate danger.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
The well-known critics of all things religious, especially anything connected to Christianity, at the Freedom from Religion Foundation now are being accused of adopting the very ideology the group was created to fight.
It is because the organization censored from its website an article from Jerry Coyne, professor emeritus of ecology in Chicago, an atheist and a board member.
Coyne wrote "Biology is not bigotry" to critique an early column promoting transgenderism.
Coyne's response was to point out to the FFRF, "The gender ideology which caused you take down my article is itself quasi-religious, having many aspects of religious and cults, including dogma, blasphemy, belief in what is palpably untrue ('a women is whoever she says she is'), apostasy, and a tendence to ignore science when it contradicts a preferred ideology."
Constitutional expert Jonathan Turley, the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University, has written about such contradictions in his book, "The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage."
And he said the censorship agenda at the FFRF came from "transgender activists" over Coyne's simple explanation that human sex is "binary" and his work to separate the science from the "politics" of the transgender ideology, which has been promoted widely by Joe Biden.
His criticisms took aim at Kat Grant's earlier claim that "A woman is whoever she says she is."
Turley explained, "Coyne offered a view shared by many that '[i]n biology … a woman can be simply defined in four words: 'An adult human female.'…Because some nonbinary people — or men who identify as women ('transwomen') — feel that their identity is not adequately recognized by biology, they choose to impose ideology onto biology and concoct a new definition of 'woman." While Coyne supports equal rights for transgender people, he argued that, as a scientist, 'feelings don't create reality.'"
One result was the resignations of biologist Richard Dawkins and Harvard Professor Steven Pinker in support of Coyne, Turley noted.
Even so, FFRF "caved into the pressure" and removed Coyne's comments.
The essay now is appearing on "Reality's Last Stand."
In Pinker's resignation note, he charged, the foundation "is no longer a defender of freedom from religion but the imposer of a new religion, complete with dogma, blasphemy, and heretics."
Turley wrote, "The intolerance for opposing views is so great that the FFRF is willing to engage in atheist orthodoxy, which not long ago would have been viewed as a contradiction in terms. It is a disgraceful position for a group that once defended those banned or canceled for their views. It is a moment that reminds one of what Robert Oppenheimer said about physicists, but it is particularly poignant for these atheists who have joined a mob to silence: they 'have known sin; and this is a knowledge which they cannot lose.'"
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – An Israeli organization, which is committed to restoring Jewish rights in the ancient biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria warned on Wednesday the Palestinian Authority is encouraging Palestinians in the area to continue building on Israel's state-owned land.
Regavim, one of whose three founders was current Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (although he is no longer involved), sees its mission as highlighting the numerous infractions of Palestinian construction companies and private Palestinians from building on land, which even according to the Oslo Accords, belongs to the State of Israel.
The group's latest complaint regards the establishment of permanent structures such as villas and a luxurious resort complex near to near the archaeological site of the 'Hasmonean Palaces' in Area C. Land assigned with this designation is for Israel's sole use, in the same way Area A, is supposed to be exclusively under the administration – including civil – of the Palestinian Authority.
"The archaeological site, located in the western Jericho Valley near Nachal Prat (Wadi Qelt), dates back to the Second Temple period and is of unparalleled historical and scientific significance. Among the unique elements of the site, which encompasses the winter palaces of the Hasmonean royal family, are an ancient synagogue, ritual baths, and the best luxury amenities the ancient world had to offer," according to a Regavim statement.
For years there have been twin issues of Palestinians attempting to erase several millennia of evidence of the Israelite and Jewish presence in the Land of Israel, while also simultaneously building on land, which does not belong to them.
At the site now stands an illegal Palestinian holiday resort – complete with an events compound, a swimming pool, and high-end guest rooms. The site has popular accounts on social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, where it invites guests to book events or vacations.
Regavim said it, and the Binyamin Regional Council, had received numerous complaints about the structure over the preceding few years. Some concrete fences were successfully removed, and individual structures demolished, however, construction has seemingly unhindered has continued to expand, only meters away from the priceless archaeological remains, effectively blocking access to the site.
Israel Ganz, head of the Binyamin Regional Council and chairman of the Yesha Council said: "The Palestinian Authority encourages and orchestrates Arab annexation of Area C – using methods that are trampling and destroying magnificent, unique heritage sites, the physical record of history that is a cultural and scientific asset of the Jewish people and the entire world. The Civil Administration must enforce the law more rigorously and put an end to this travesty. It is inconceivable that the Jewish people abandon their national historical property in this way. We must re-establish our presence here, settle and stay here forever."
Moshe Shmueli, Regavim's field coordinator, said: "As we celebrate Hanukkah, this might be the last opportunity to remind ourselves and the world of the grave threat of extinction facing the Hasmonean Palaces, just before ancient history is erased forever. Live on TikTok videos, unashamedly, our unprotected, abandoned national assets – both land and cultural treasures – are being wiped out. The Palestinian takeover is a ruthless, systematic plan that is being marketed as a dream vacation. We must not abandon this strategic area that guards the eastern front of the state."
Regavim's ongoing efforts to protect the Hasmonean Fortresses near Jericho began in 2019, when the Hasmonean necropolis at the site – the largest of its kind in the world – was devastated by PA-approved work.
It is not entirely true to say the government's attention has been diverted away from this arena by the multiple front war the country is still currently engaged in, because this apparently wanton disregard for thousands of years of history has been a feature of successive Israeli administrations.
As for the Palestinian Authority, it joins the list of organizations, including the Jordanian-run Waqf, which administers the Temple Mount, attempting to erase the fact of Jewish connection to the land through archaeological piracy.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
A school district in Texas has backed away from its threat to ban the Bible.
It was an official in Canyon Independent School District in Canyon who told parents he had ordered librarians to remove the Bible because of a new state law called the "Restricting Explicit and Adult-Designated Education Resources" law.
That now has been reversed, according to a report from columnist Todd Starnes.
He noted how the district "felt the wrath of every church-going citizen in the Panhandle after they compared the Holy Bible to pornography and banned God's Word from school libraries."
School Supt. Darryl Flusche had claimed the Bible was subject to a law "aimed at removing sexually explicit material from school libraries – especially materials that 'describe or portray sexual conduct…in a patently offensive way.'"
He had insisted to parents, "This standard for library content prohibits books that have one instance of sexual content as described above. Therefore, HB 900 doesn't allow numerous books, including the full text of the Bible, to be available in the school library."
Parent Regina Kiehne told the board at a recent meeting, "In a day when we need security guards and bulletproof windows and doors, I think having the Word of God available to our children cannot only be preventative to violence but also provide comfort and a sense of security in a chaotic world.
"It seems absurd to me that the Good Book was thrown out with the bad books."
Jared Patterson, a Republican lawmaker who worked on the law, suggested the fault was not with the Bible, but with the education bureaucrat.
"The superintendent's position here was indefensible and appeared to be a result of open hostility toward folks who want sexually explicit content removed from public schools. HB 900 clearly protects the Bible and all religious texts," he said.
Further, he warned the school that its censorship may have violated the law.
"The Bible is the most important and most read book in history, and removing it does a grave injustice to the students in your care," he said in a letter. "Let me be very clear: the Bible and other religious texts are protected under HB 900. Any assertion to the contrary is either rooted in ignorance of state law or an open hostility to the will of the people."
Starnes explained the result: "That letter left the superintendent and school board members sweating like sinners in church. And after that 'Come to Jesus' board meeting — they reinstated the Bible."
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
PALM BEACH, Florida – Another Florida lawmaker is announcing her switch to the Republican Party less than two months after running and being elected as a Democrat.
State Rep. Hillary Cassel of Dania Beach in Broward County announced her political party change online this week, citing Democrats' lack of support for Israel.
"The decision was not made lightly but comes from a deep sense of responsibility to my constituents and my commitment to the values that guide my service," Cassel indicated.
"As a mother, I want to help build a world where our children are judged on their character and their actions not their labels," Cassel said.
"As a proud Jewish woman, I have been increasingly troubled by the Democratic Party's failure to unequivocally support Israel and its willingness to tolerate extreme progressive voices that justify or condone acts of terrorism."
"I'm constantly troubled by the inability of the current Democratic Party to relate to everyday Floridians."
"I can no longer remain in a party that doesn't represent my values," she continued.
"I know I won't always agree on every detail with every Republican, but I do know that I will always have input, collaboration and respect."
"I ran for office to make my community and this state better," she concluded. "I want my constituents to know my resolve to deliver on these promises has never been stronger."
Just weeks ago on Dec. 9, another Democrat in the Florida House, Tampa state Rep. Susan Valdés, also switched from Democrat to Republican, after feeling she was ignored by fellow Democrats.
"In the House, I have long known that no one has a monopoly on good ideas," she said.
"I will not waste my final two years in the Florida Legislature being ignored in a caucus whose leadership expects me to ignore the needs of my community.
This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
JERUSALEM – Middle East/Israel Morning Brief
Bethlehem's clergy says, 'We may face extinction'
Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ, marked a subdued Christmas, overshadowed by the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the devastating local economy. For the second consecutive year, the city's Christian community faced a bleak holiday season, with rising fears about the survival of one of the world's oldest Christian populations.
Friar Ibrahim Faltas, vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land, told The Media Line, "This has become an open-air prison. On top of the conflict in Gaza, people here have been struggling for 15 months without income, with restricted mobility, and no change in sight."
The Christian population of Bethlehem has plummeted precipitously since the Palestinian Authority took over its administration in 1995. In the intervening 29 years, the 85% majority Christian town is now between 7-12%.
The streets of Bethlehem reflected this despair. Palestinian scouts marched silently through the streets at noon, departing from the usual raucous brass band procession. At the end of the march, Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa addressed the crowd beside a picture of two Gazan children. "Despite the current suffering you are facing on every front, we stand with you. Do not surrender, do not be afraid, because you are the light in this darkness. This has to be the last Christmas like this," he declared.
Erdogan's son organizes massive protest, threatens to take over Jerusalem
It often seems to be the way with male rulers who have been the heads of their country's government for a good deal of time – their grown-up sons, looking to fulfill their more famous father's legacies, become involved with political machinations. It has happened with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and so too, it appears to have happened with his great rival, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
His son, Bilal, organized a massive rally in Istanbul the other day, whose title was, "Yesterday Hagia Sophia, today Umayyad Mosque, tomorrow Al-Aqsa."
This call to jihad is the latest in Turkey's history of Islamist imperialism, according to the GatewayPundit. Hagia Sophia was an eastern Orthodox Church that the Turks conquered and turned into a Mosque. The Umayyad Mosque is a Mosque in Syria recently captured by Turkish-backed Islamist forces. Al Aqsa refers to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem which apparently The Turks are threatening to conquer.
Syrian authorities say rebel groups have agreed to disband
Syria's rebel groups who fought to oust Bashar al-Assad have agreed to disband and merge into the defense ministry, according to the new administration, reported Semafor.
The groups will report to Murhaf Abu Qasra, the former military head of leading rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, and will include army officers who defected from Assad's regime. Syria's leaders now face the "daunting" task of trying to avoid clashes between the different groups.
The move comes as mass protests in Damascus and elsewhere erupted Tuesday after a Christmas tree was deliberately set on fire. The demonstrators demanded that HTS protect religious freedoms, and the group said two foreign fighters were detained over the incident.
Hamas says list of hostages only possible once truce starts
The familiar story of claims and counter-claims about whether Hamas or Israel is responsible for the collapse of previous hostage negotiations is being repeated, as both sides declare the other is the impediment to a deal.
According to the Times of Israel, reports have emerged about Hamas' inability to provide a fulsome list of living hostages, because it says it is not in contact with all the groups or individuals holding them. It has stated the imposition of a truce would facilitate easier communication.
Ben Gvir prays peace of soldiers, hostages' release when he prayed on Temple Mount, Hamas calls to 'escalate clashes'
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir visited the Temple Mount on Thursday morning, the first day of Hanukkah, reported i24NEWS.
According to a statement from his office, the minister prayed for "the peace of soldiers, the return of hostages, both living and dead, and total victory in the war."
This visit, as his previous visits, immediately provoked a strong reaction from Mansour Abbas, chairman of the Ra'am party, who accused Ben Gvir of "desecrating the sanctity of Al-Aqsa Mosque" and trying to "drag the Arab citizens of Israel into a confrontation with the state." Abbas also slammed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his responsibility in authorizing the visit.
An update to the story posted under i24NEWS' X handle is that Hamas has called on Muslims to "escalate attacks" as a response to Ben Gvir's visit.
A rare ceramic oil lamp dated to the late Roman period which bears images of items used in the Second Temple was discovered in Jerusalem, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Thursday.
The Antiquities Authority explained that the lamp was a "unique find" and, judging by the soot marks on its nozzle, it was probably used about 1,700 years ago, reported the Jerusalem Post.
The symbols which decorate the lamp include a depiction of the menorah used in the Second Temple, an incense shovel, and lulav (the date palm branch used in Jewish ritual during Sukkot or Feast of Tabernacles).
Lost ancient village described by Josephus, Jewish sources found in Galilee
Archaeologists working in Israel's Galilee determined they have found the remnants, including a synagogue, of small town close to Sepphoris, which both Jewish-Roman historian Josephus and other Jewish sources mentioned.
According to Haaretz, the town, which was developed sometime in the second century B.C. and finally abandoned in the third century A.D. was built with the express intention of serving the pottery needs of Sepphoris (Tzipori in Hebrew), and the wider Galilee.
"Ptolemy fell upon Asochis, a city of Galilee, and took it by force on the sabbath day: and there he took about ten thousand slaves, and a great deal of other prey." – Josephus Chapter 12, Antiquities of the Jews, Book XIII.
IDF eliminates several terrorists in Samaria operation
The IDF, ISA, and Israel Border Police concluded a two-day-long counterterrorism operation in the area of Tulkarem on Wednesday, which produced a number of positive results, reported Israel National News.
In a joint statement, the security forces said: "During the operation, IAF aircraft struck a number of armed terrorist cells on several different occasions. Additionally, IDF soldiers eliminated two additional terrorists during close-quarter encounters, dismantled dozens of improvised explosive devices hidden beneath roads , apprehended a number of suspects, and confiscated weapons."
Among the eliminated terrorists were: Qusai Amin Ibrahim Oqasha, a senior terrorist in the Tulkarem terrorist network, who replaced the terrorist Tarek Doush who was eliminated last week in a joint IDF and ISA aerial strike.
Invoking ancient Maccabee resistance, Netanyahu warns Houthi leaders
At a menorah-lighting ceremony on Wednesday evening in his office, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered words of warning to the Houthi chiefs.
"Today we are lighting the first candle of Chanukah to mark the victory of the Maccabees then, and also the victory of the Maccabees of today," said Netanyahu.
"Like then, we are striking at our enemies…. The Houthis will also learn what Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime and others have learned, and this will also take time. This lesson will be learned across the Middle East," he added.
A day earlier, Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz had delivered a similar message saying the IDF would target the Houthi leaders.
The warnings came after the Houthi fired five ballistic missiles at Israel in a seven-day period.
IDF unveils massive Hezbollah weapons cache
The IDF revealed for the first time the massive arsenal seized from Hezbollah's Radwan Forces in the border area with Lebanon, reported Ynet.
Nearly a month after the northern ceasefire began, the IDF on Wednesday showcased the significant collection of weapons and equipment Hezbollah had prepared for a large-scale invasion of Israel. The plan, described as far deadlier and more extensive than the Oct. 7 massacre in southern Israel, was thwarted during IDF ground operations.
IDF forces confiscated at least 85,000 weapons and intelligence items, with additional findings still being uncovered along the Lebanon border. Tens of thousands of other pieces of weaponry were destroyed in Lebanon but could not be retrieved due to logistical reasons.
Hezbollah's weapons are sourced mostly from Russia and Iran, although some are locally produced.
Will Trump's re-entrance to the WH allow IDF to 'open gates of hell' on Hamas?
An article in Thursday's IsraelHayom posits that President-elect Donald Trump's reentry into the White House might enable Israel and the IDF to remove the shackles outgoing President Joe Biden and his administration has placed on them.
Some senior Israeli officials have reportedly stated that starting Jan. 20, 2025, "it will be possible to take additional actions in Gaza." The prevailing impression in Israel is that Trump does not particularly care what measures Israel employs in the Gaza Strip. He has two clear objectives: the release of the hostages and an Israeli victory to conclude the war. The methods to achieve these aims appear irrelevant to him.
In Jerusalem, as well as in the Kirya (IDF HQ) in Tel Aviv, preparations for the Trump era are being kept under strict secrecy. When that moment arrives, if no deal has been reached by then, Israel is expected to reset the rules of engagement against Hamas.
What actions could Israel take that are currently off the table? According to a source, humanitarian aid that the outgoing administration insisted Israel deliver to Gaza will no longer matter to Trump. Reducing such aid, or taking full control over what enters the strip, could worsen Hamas's situation and increase pressure on the organization to release the hostages.
Another critical aspect is armaments. Trump has pledged to release all the weapons shipments currently delayed under Biden on his first day in office. Once the delayed bombs and shells arrive, the IDF will have the means to expand its military operations significantly.
Ministry of Health report highlights released hostages brutal treatment at hands of Hamas
A draft Ministry of Health report, which is based on testimonies from hostages who were released or rescued from Gaza, describes the horrific conditions in which their captors kept them. It also highlights the ongoing consequences, reported Ynet.
"It contains materials that tell the story of those who returned from captivity over the past year, some in the major return operation in the last week of November 2023, and some in other cases of rescue," a senior official at the Health Ministry said of the report. The Health Ministry was careful to word the information provided in the report in a way that would prevent identification of the freed hostage and there is no mention of ages or family composition.
The senior official at the Health Ministry added that the report "includes information that the returning hostages did not share in the first weeks after returning home. As time passed, they allowed themselves to share more. It describes many aspects of neglect, torture, humiliation, and physical and mental abuse."