This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

PALM BEACH, Florida – President-elect Donald Trump is now reacting to the "pure evil" in New Orleans after a pickup truck plowed through a crowd of New Year's celebrators early Wednesday morning, killing at least 15 and injuring dozens of others, with the driver, 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a naturally born U.S. citizen from Texas, ultimately shot to death.

The Advocate reports a "source said Jabbar was carrying an ISIS flag in the truck, and authorities have said he was dressed in military gear." There are also reportedly other suspects involved.

He was also reportedly carrying a Glock and a rifle.

Shamsud-Din Jabbar

The truck had a Texas license plate, and it was reportedly tracked crossing America's southern border into Eagle Pass, Texas, two days prior to the attack.

Horrific footage from New Orleans what appears to be a terrorist attack.

A truck rammed through a crowd celebrating new year's & the attacker came out of it shooting.

The attacker has been neutralized.

It appears that there is a flag on the back of truck but it's covered up… pic.twitter.com/xTOHT6wz2T

— Kirk Lubimov (@KirkLubimov) January 1, 2025

"When I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country, that statement was constantly refuted by Democrats and the Fake News Media, but it turned out to be true," Trump began.

"The crime rate in our country is at a level that nobody has ever seen before. Our hearts are with all of the innocent victims and their loved ones, including the brave officers of the New Orleans Police Department.

"The Trump Administration will fully support the City of New Orleans as they investigate and recover from this act of pure evil!"

Alex Jones of Infowars posted: "Fox News is reporting the New Orleans killer came through Eagle Pass, Texas 2 days ago. In the photo below the 'suspect' can be seen lying dead on the ground after being shot dead by police. The look of this guy shouts terrorist."

BREAKING

Fox News is reporting the New Orleans killer came through Eagle Pass, Texas 2 days ago. In the photo below the "suspect" can be seen lying dead on the ground after being shot dead by police. The look of this guy shouts terrorist. pic.twitter.com/S1JJlqLzzP

— Alex Jones (@RealAlexJones) January 1, 2025

"Shut the border down!!!" urged U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on X. "Who did our government bomb lately that is taking it out on innocent Americans?"

President Joe Biden also released a statement on the bloodshed: "I have been continually briefed since early this morning by federal law enforcement leadership and my homeland security team, including Secretary of Homeland Security Ali Mayorkas, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, White House Homeland Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall, and the Mayor of New Orleans regarding the horrific incident that occurred there overnight.

"The FBI is taking the lead in the investigation and is investigating this incident as an act of terrorism. I am grateful for the brave and swift response of local law enforcement in preventing even greater death and injury. I have directed my team to ensure every resource is available as federal, state, and local law enforcement work assiduously to get to the bottom of what happened as quickly as possible and to ensure that there is no remaining threat of any kind.

"I will continue to receive updates throughout the day, and I will have more to say as we have further information to share. In the meantime, my heart goes out to the victims and their families who were simply trying to celebrate the holiday. There is no justification for violence of any kind, and we will not tolerate any attack on any of our nation's communities."

Still unclear is whether or not the attacker was driving the vehicle when it crossed the U.S. border.

LaToya Cantrell, mayor of New Orleans, declared the incident a "terrorist attack," and the FBI is now the lead agency investigating the incident as an act of terrorism.

Former FBI Special Agent Chris Swecker told Fox News Digital that New Orleans has "always been a problematic police department."

"This type of event is indeed predictable, and it is fundamental that you protect the highest concentration of people at the event. You have to question how a truck got through the perimeter. I can see a lone gunman getting through, it's hard to fathom a truck breaching that perimeter. I suspect they were protecting the perimeter with wooden barriers," Swecker said.

"I can guarantee you in Times Square last night they were protecting that perimeter with vehicles and solid objects. Security is a tough thing when you haven't had an event like this in your Venue in a while but the fact is this has happened twice in New Orleans since 2017," he added.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said: "A horrific act of violence took place on Bourbon Street earlier this morning."

"Please join Sharon and I in praying for all the victims and first responders on scene. I urge all near the scene to avoid the area."

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, D-La., also lamented the tragic incident, saying New Orleans "will rise again, stronger and more united."

"I commend the swift actions of the New Orleans Police Department and federal law enforcement partners who worked tirelessly to neutralize the threat and secure the area. Their bravery and dedication prevented further loss of life. As we continue to learn more about this tragedy, including the motive behind such senseless violence, I am committed to working with local and federal authorities to ensure justice for the victims and to strengthen measures that safeguard our communities against acts of terror," he indicated.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7 NKJV)

Citing the "high inflation" that created "tight household budgets" during 2023 when Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were running America's economy and spending schemes, the American Bible Society noted that fewer people gave to charities, dropping from 68% of the public in 2022 to 59%.

The online report said total giving was up 1.9% during the year, failing to keep up with the rate of inflation of 4.1%.

Individuals contributed about two-thirds of the total which likely was impacted by "mixed economy realities … more jobs and higher wages allowing some to give more, but high inflation creating tight household budgets and keeping others from giving at all."

The survey is based on what givers actually report on their own activities, and the organization explained "exactly half say they gave $700 or less, and half say $700 or more."

And those who are "engaged" with the Bible give more often and more dollars, the report said. Where 43% of the "disengaged" gave anything to charity during 2023, 94% of those "engaged" with the Scripture did.

Among those "engaged," 71% said they gave at least $1,000 and one in six said they gave at least $10,000.

From among the "disengaged," there was a zero-dollar median, as 57% gave nothing.

The community of those "engaged" with Scripture gave 64% of their donations to their church, with another 21% going to other religious causes.

The assessment categorized people as non-Christian, "nominals," "casuals," and "practicing Christians" and explained the median giving for those groups was $0, $30, $600 and $2,000.

"We recognize that many non-Christians donate to their religious communities, and many of them support non-religious charities. But, as a group, they donate the least," the report said.

Fifty-two percent of the practicing Christians gave between $1,000 and $9,999.

"Evangelicals lead the way in average amount donated, percentage of people donating, and percentage given to their church or any religious charity. Only one-fifth of them (20%) do not give at all. And while most of their donations support religious causes (75%, with 59% going to their church), that leaves a quarter of their contributions to support non-religious charities. Two out of five evangelicals (40%) give all their charitable contributions to their church," the report said.

Among evangelicals, the median giving was $900 and the mean level was $4,590.

There was a further, rather startling, revelation:

"Nonprofits naturally look first to the top-line dollars donated, but God looks at the heart. And giving proportions may be a better window there. Those blessed with great wealth often give from their surplus. It takes a deeper commitment to give sacrificially. Our survey shows that donors at the lowest income levels give the greatest percentage of their income to church or charity," the report said.

"Giving exceeds 10 percent of income only at income levels under $20,000 a year. As income increases to $30k, $40k, and $50k, the percentage of giving decreases, dropping to little more than 5 percent. But then, in that 'middle income' region of $50k to $100k, the percentages rise, only to plummet to the lowest proportion of all (2.9%) in the $100k–$150k income range.

"Keep in mind that this is all about the income and giving of households, not individuals. Remember also that this includes all charitable giving, not just Christians giving to Christian causes. And these are percentages of donating households. … While these figures reflect a proportion of income, they do not take accumulated wealth into account. Many older folks receive fixed incomes while living on (and giving from) their savings and retirement accounts."

The report added, "So, in terms of proportions, do Practicing Christians—who attend church and consider their faith very important—also practice generosity more than others? Yes. Practicing Christians contribute more than 9 percent of their income. Casuals and Nominals give at about half that level. With their commitment to church attendance, it's no surprise that Practicing Christians direct 87 percent of their donations to religious causes in general (including 72% to their church). While Casuals donate a lower percentage of their income than Nominals do, they are far more likely to support religious causes (70%) and specifically their church (56%)."

And, the report said, while there are many influences on happiness, it found, "At every level of giving, those who gave more had higher satisfaction scores. Could that just reflect the wealth they had to begin with? Are richer people more satisfied with their lives? Maybe, but there's more to that story."

It explained, "We broke down the scores by four income quadrants and, as you might expect, the Happiness & Life Satisfaction score increases with greater household income. Yet in each quadrant, we see givers far outpacing non-givers. The lowest satisfaction score (5.2) comes among non-givers in the poorest households, making less than $30,000 a year. But givers at that same income level have a satisfaction score of 6.5, rivaling non-givers making up to $100,000.

"You might say the joy of giving is better than getting a $50,000 raise. We really don't want to quantify it like that, because the joy of giving is worth infinitely more than any dollar amount.

"Ultimately, this chapter is not about money. It's about the miracle of generosity in people's hearts. In closing, we offer another number. Among Bible Users—a group that includes anyone who connects with Scripture on their own at least three or four times a year—eight out of nine (88%) agree that interacting with the Bible makes them 'more generous with their time, energy, and financial resources.' In the Bible, we meet the God who loves us, and we learn to love others. We meet a God of grace and generosity, who shares those traits with us. That is why we at American Bible Society continue to promote, facilitate, and track Bible engagement and its powerful effects."

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

The U.S. Supreme Court bizarrely ruled in 2005, in the Kelo case, that a government could take privately owned property from one owner to give it to another, just, well, just because.

That original ruling came down to dollars and cents, when the city of New London, New York, used eminent domain to confiscate a home belonging to Susan Kelo to give it to Pfizer for one of its business operations.

She sued, but the Supreme Court said a procedure to use eminent domain "to transfer land from private owner to another private owner" did not violate the Constitution.

Actually, the authority vested in eminent domain would be for purposes of taking property to build a highway, or some similar public benefit.

That New London scheme actually failed, as the company was unable to obtain financing for its plans, and the site remained an undeveloped empty lot.

The move already has prompted 47 states to strengthen their own eminent domain laws, and now it's time for the national precedent to be reversed, according to constitutional lawyer Jonathan Turley, who not only has testified before Congress as an expert on the Constitution but has represented members in court.

He said that one case, Kelo, "has long stood out for me as wildly off-base and wrongly decided."

He explained, "There is now a petition before the Supreme Court that would allow it to reconsider this pernicious precedent. The court should grant review in Bowers v. Oneida County Industrial Development Agency precisely for that purpose," he explained.

"Many of us expressed outrage at the actions of the city leaders of New London, Connecticut, when they used eminent domain to seize the property of citizens against their will to give it to the Pfizer corporation," he said. "This anger grew with the inexplicable decision of the Supreme Court in Kelo v. City of New London to uphold the abusive action. After all the pain that the city caused its own residents and the $80 million it spent to buy and bulldoze the property, it came to nothing. Pfizer later announced that it was closing the facility — leaving the city worse off than when it began."

He said the new case involves New York developer Bryan Bowers who challenged the decision of a county redevelopment agency to condemn his property and then give it to another developer to use as a private parking lot.

Turley noted that Justice Chase, shortly after the Bill of Rights was written, explained the injustice.

"An act of the Legislature (for I cannot call it a law) contrary to the great first principles of the social compact, cannot be considered a rightful exercise of legislative authority … . A few instances will suffice to explain what I mean…. [A] law that takes property from A. and gives it to B: It is against all reason and justice, for a people to entrust a Legislature with such powers; and, therefore, it cannot be presumed that they have done it." Calder v. Bull, 3 Dall. 386, 388 (1798).

Turley explained much has changed in the Supreme Court since its 2005 ruling and "It is possible that the new majority could finally correct the mistake made in Kelo."

He said, "This abusive use of eminent domain is not just an invitation for corrupt dealings but a denial of the core protections of individual citizens under our Constitution."

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

The ActBlue organization openly boasts of having raised billions of dollars for Democrat campaigns in recent years.

The political action committee was used by Kamala Harris and Joe Biden to pay their campaign bills. Also Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders.

Soon it could be under investigation by the Department of Justice, following a referral from the U.S. House of Representatives.

It is Just the News that confirms House Administration Committee chairman Brian Steil has revealed he will refer findings from his investigation to the incoming Trump administration DOJ.

The report explained Steil thinks the new attorney general, Pam Bondi, when confirmed will be willing to investigate charges ActBlue refused to implement sufficient security measures to prevent illegal cash from flowing to Democrats.

"Once Pam Bondi comes in as attorney general under the Trump administration, we then have a partner at the United States Department of Justice to look at this, to do the investigation into bad actors, and to hold anyone who is engaged in this activity accountable," Steil said during an interview on the "Just the News, No Noise" show.

"The good news is President [Donald} Trump's coming to office in just a few short weeks. We're going to have an opportunity to move forward on the prosecutorial side, and then we in Congress have to continue this work, moving legislation forward."

One part of an investigation by Steil's committee into ActBlue has focused on the operation's decision allegedly to allow foreign entities to give cash to U.S. political campaigns, which is a crime.

Joe Biden's administration, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, FBI chief Christopher Wray, and Avril Haines, director of national intelligence, already have been given notice of the allegations, in a letter just weeks ago from Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, a Republican.

Johnson and Steil said in a letter, "We write to you to raise an urgent concern regarding potential illicit election funding by foreign actors. CHA has been investigating claims that foreign actors, primarily from Iran, Russia, Venezuela, and China, may be using ActBlue to launder illicit money into U.S. political campaigns."

The report noted, "ActBlue recently acknowledged to Congress that it has updated its donor verification policy to automatically reject donations that 'use foreign prepaid/gift cards, domestic gift cards, are from high-risk/sanctioned countries, and have the highest level of risk as determined,' by its solution provider, Sift."

ActBlue has denied that it has done anything wrong.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Citing Joe Biden's complaint, delivered while he was issuing a massive pardon to his son Hunter for crimes committed, about unfair prosecutions, lawyers for President-elect Donald Trump pointed to that very factor in a case involving the president-elect before New York Judge Juan Merchan and insisted it be dismissed immediately.

The case was brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and concerned business records from years ago. Those apparent violations would have been misdemeanors had they been brought before the statute of limitations expired.

But they weren't, so Bragg claimed they were felonies because they were in pursuit of another unidentified crime. It's described as the "hush money" case because it involved payments to a porn star for keeping claims of an affair private.

A report from Fox News said lawyers for Trump have demanded the case be dismissed "immediately."

"President Donald J. Trump respectfully submits this motion to dismiss the Indictment and vacate the jury's verdicts…," the lawyers wrote. "The Presidential immunity doctrine, the Presidential Transition Act, and the Supremacy Clause all require that result, and they require it immediately."

They noted Biden's claim that Hunter was prosecuted "unfairly" for his crimes, including gun charges on which he was convicted and tax violations to which he pleaded guilty.

"Yesterday, in issuing a 10-year pardon to Hunter Biden that covers any crimes whether charged or uncharged, President Biden asserted that his son was 'selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted,' and 'treated differently.' President Biden argued that 'raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice.'"

In reality, the charged, it was this "same DOJ that coordinated and oversaw the politically-motivated, election-interference witch hunts targeting President Trump by disgraced Special Counsel Jack Smith, the other biased prosecutors in Smith's Special Counsel's Office ("SCO"), and others. This is the same DOJ that sent Matthew Colangelo to DA Bragg to help unfairly target President Trump in this empty and lawless case. Since DA Bragg took office, he has engaged in 'precisely the type of political theater' that President Biden condemned."

Trump spokesman Steven Cheung charged, "President Trump and his legal team have filed a powerhouse motion to dismiss once and for all the unconstitutional and politically motivated Manhattan DA Hoax. This lawless case should have never been brought, and the Constitution demands that it be immediately dismissed, as President Trump must be allowed to continue the Presidential Transition process, and execute the vital duties of the presidency, unobstructed by the remains of this, or any other, Witch Hunt."

The case proved to have one scandal after another, as Merchan repeatedly ruled against Trump as the judge's daughter was working with Democrats, raising money on the rulings her father made in the courtroom.

Further, the judge was known to have donated money to Democrats, and he refused to recuse himself despite the apparent conflicts of interest present in the case.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

A historic counterrevolution in public education is occurring in Texas. In an 8-7 vote, with three Republican members voting no, the Texas State Board of Education approved a new reading/language arts curriculum that jettisons Marxist ideology and returns to the traditional model that was highly successful in educating our ancestors and founders. Dubbed Bluebonnet Learning, the printed curriculum for grades K-5 is integrated with history, science, literature, art, culture, and religion as a foundational tool for history and literature.

For decades a quiet American revolution has been waged with education as a primary change agent. Public schools gradually dumbed down the curricula, normalized radical sex, discredited the family, banned all religious expression that supposedly violates the principle of "separation of church and state," discredited our founders, discouraged the teaching of American history,y and discredited American culture. The result has been ignorant, violent, and mentally destabilized students who loathe America and support socialism.

The communist attack on public education has had a devastating effect on academic achievement. From colonials who were the most literate people in the world, today our workforce is the dumbest in the industrialized world. In Texas, 19% of adults are lacking in literacy skills, placing the state at 46th out of 50. Nationally, 21% of Americans are lacking in literacy skills. The low literacy rate has impacted personal lives and income while annually costing our national economy $2.2 trillion.

Critics argue that Bluebonnet is too rigorous. With the dumbing down of academic content has come lowered public – including teacher – expectations for student achievement. Critics claim Bluebonnet's engaging stories in listening, spelling, and reading lessons are not age appropriate – 7 and 8-year-old children apparently should be reading about "puppies, kitties and birds." Compare this low level of expectation for public school students with private classical schools in Texas where children begin the study of Latin at age 6.

The problem of Texas illiteracy can be reversed by the rigorous lessons in Bluebonnet Learning. As Texas goes, so goes the nation. With 22 states already having expressed an interest in the free open source curriculum, America again can become a highly literate nation – critical if we are to Make America Great Again.

The most intense opposition to the new curriculum has been over the inclusion of religion. Critics charge that the lessons violate the "separation clause" of the Constitution, except that the phrase does not exist, only a ban on an official state-sponsored church.

Under U.S. law, public schools cannot endorse a specific religion or provide religious instruction, but they can teach religion in the context of history and other related subjects. Under Texas law, school districts must teach "religious literature, including the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and New Testament, and its impact on history and literature."

Opponents claim that lessons proselytize for Christianity and devote more time to it than to other faiths. They ignore that America's founding documents were Judeo-Christian. Do they believe that countries, where Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, or Islam are predominant, would allow Christianity to be included in their school curriculum?

Although critics claim the "Bible-infused" lessons are unconstitutional, they miss the point that the Bible is the most widely read book in the world with the English language and Western thought and culture infused with concepts, phrases, and allusions directly from the Bible.

Even Ivy League professors who tend leftward admit that, without some knowledge of the Bible as a foundational text, students are at a great disadvantage in comprehending Western and American literature. Learning to read is more complicated than whether phonics or whole language is employed. If students are to comprehend what they are reading, they must possess some background knowledge and context of the reading passage. People of all faiths daily use biblical references – see eye to eye, sour grapes, feet of clay, writing is on the wall, go the extra mile, to cast pearls before swine, straight and narrow, wolves in sheep's clothing, a house divided against itself cannot stand, salt of the earth, fall by the wayside, the blind leading the blind, flesh and blood, sign of the times and many others.

Although the fight over religious curriculum is supposed to be a constitutional violation, advocates of "religious freedom" are saying out loud what they fear most – that a conservative Christian movement is sweeping the nation. Texas was the first state to allow public schools to hire religious chaplains as school counselors. The Republican-controlled legislature has tried to require public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments and likely will try again.

At the national level, the conservative Christian coalition will have power at the highest levels of all three branches of government. Alongside Trump in the White House, Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, a Catholic, will elevate the traditionalist vision of family life. In Congress, House Speaker Mike Johnson's political vision is through an evangelical lens. The Supreme Court, with Trump's three nominees, is expected to further strengthen religious rights.

To understand why revolutionaries for the overthrow of the U.S. have targeted education and religion, one must consider the vision of our founders. John Adams thought that education was vital for the preservation of rights and liberties. Thomas Jefferson held that the surest prevention of tyranny was to educate the masses. With Bluebonnet Learning, students will learn about our founding – that "all men are created equal," found in our Declaration of Independence, is related to the Magna Carta that was inspired by Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. They will learn why the Sermon on the Mount is the key building block of Western civilization.

John Adams said, "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people." Through classroom activities and biblical stories about the Golden Rule, the Good Samaritan, and the Sermon on the Mount, students are taught moral values and positive character traits.

Those who clamor for the downfall of America have much to fear with Bluebonnet Learning and the rigorous traditional education it will restore to our public schools.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

One of the big projects President-elect Donald Trump has taken on in his landslide campaign victory to Make America Great Again is the wasteful, even fraudulent, spending that goes on in the government every year.

Estimates are that it costs American taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars, and Trump already has tasked billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy with the work.

Now Congress is lining up to help.

A report from Fox News explains a Republican lawmaker has launched a new congressional caucus "aimed at working hand-in-hand with President-elect Trump's soon-to-be DOGE – Department of Government Efficiency."

It is U.S. Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., who has confirmed he's written to House colleagues seeking others to join in the work.

"Taking on Crazytown is no easy task," he said.

The report noted already two have already joined, Reps. Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey and Ralph Norman of South Carolina.

Bean explained that Musk and Ramaswamy "will need partners in Congress to accomplish many of the cuts necessary to rein in the unelected bureaucrats who have had unchecked power for far too long."

The letter cited America's $36 trillion debt, including massive amounts acquired during the reign of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Among the profligate government actions under the Democrats was the trillion-dollar spending package called the Inflation Reduction Act, which actually has been documented to be causing inflation to go up.

"We must take action to avoid diving headfirst off the cliff of fiscal ruin… Our DOGE Caucus will work closely with the Department of Government Efficiency to help rein in reckless spending and stop the abuse of taxpayer dollars," he said.

He noted that the Biden-Harris administration has been borrowing $6 billion a day.

"Republicans must live up to our principle of fiscal responsibility by reining in the spending that is driving both inflation and our unsustainable debt. The DOGE Caucus will bring together members from across our conference who are ready to rein in unelected bureaucrats and end the over-regulation that has crippled American Main Street," he said.

Musk already has started the work:

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

President-elect Donald Trump returned to the White House Wednesday, holding a meeting with Joe Biden as the two discussed plans for a peaceful transition of power.

Biden greeted Trump, saying: "Mr. President-elect and former President, Donald, congratulations and looking forward to having a, like we said, a smooth transition.

"[We'll] do everything we can to make sure you are accommodated and what you need and we're gonna get a chance to talk about some of that today. Welcome. Welcome back."

"Politics is tough and it's in many cases not a nice world," Trump told Biden after the two shook hands.

"It is a nice world today and I appreciate very much a transition that's so smooth. It'll be as smooth as it can get and I very much appreciate that, Joe."

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

JERUSALEM – The election of Donald Trump as the presumptive 47th president of the United States has led to a raft of recent headlines about this being a catalyst for the resumption of an Israeli push to announce annexation over Judea and Samaria.

Whether the daylight which existed between Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over this matter has closed, is yet to be seen, however, some on Israel's Right are sensing an opportunity to put their case. Indeed, the nomination of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee – who has gone on the record to say there are no Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria, merely Jewish communities, as U.S. ambassador to Israel could be a sign of which way the wind is blowing inside the putative second Trump administration.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the Religious Zionist Party is one of the figures at the forefront of these calls, and a recent press tour to the region, which the movement Regavim organized, (which he along with two others established in 2006, but with which he is no longer involved) – provided an opportunity to see the issues up-close and attempt to get a firmer grip on the reality on the ground.

When opponents of the so-called "Two State Solution" to the Israel-Palestine issue say Israel is only some 9 miles wide at its narrowest point, it takes a vantage point on the roof of a Rosh Ha'ayin apartment block to bring this point home.

When opponents of the so-called "Two State Solution" to the Israel-Palestine issue say Israel is only some 9 miles wide at its narrowest point, it takes a vantage point on the roof of a Rosh Ha'ayin apartment block to bring this point home.

"We are living in one of the largest neighborhoods in all of Israel," said Moriah Tzafar, talking about Psagot Afek, which by 2025 year's end is supposed to have some 50,000 residents. "As you can see, it abuts the Green Line, and over the other side is a[n IDF] firing zone [203]. It stretches until the nearby Palestinian villages; Deir Balut, Rafat, and Zahawiya," she said.

"We see a lot of suspicious activity that is concerning. It is supposed to be an area where the IDF carries out training, but we see vehicles all the time. There is no road here for workers, no agriculture or shops, so what are they doing here? It is a hostile population and the question we have to ask is why are they encroaching so close to the fence? After Oct. 7, it reminds us of the female observers who pointed out the dangers in the south – and also reports from the north [of residents who heard suspicious noises]; we point these things out to the authorities; flashlights visible at night-time, and people approaching the fence on foot, who are scoping the situation out. Given what we know, how are we still relying on a fence and ignoring the concerns of residents?" she asked plaintively.

According to Naomi Kahn, director of Regavim's International Division, one of the key aims of the movement is to lobby Israel's government to acknowledge how "land use policy is the most basic expression of national sovereignty."

Structures, that do not belong to the IDF, nor any Israeli – and at the moment they would not receive permission to build on this territory – are popping up in what is supposed to be an area the army controls, however "the Palestinians build, and the IDF retreats," according to Kahn.

"The Oslo Accords were supposed to pull the two sides apart, and here the evidence on the ground is de facto pushing them closer together."

The Arabs who are illegally attempting to settle on land that does not belong to them, and is in fact, illegal according to the Oslo Accords and international law, are acting rationally according to a power vacuum that exists, and are attempting to create facts on the ground. Both sides of this issue are working on different levels of understanding; meaning both Palestinians and Israelis saw how long it took for the IDF to wrest control of southern Israel back from Hamas terrorists following the Oct. 7 attack.

Israel's long internal border with Jordan, which stretches roughly along the 1949 Armistice Line from the Gilboa area in the north down to Ein Gedi near the Dead Sea, is dangerously porous – and where several infiltrations have already taken place – and difficult to defend.

Kahn also pointed out that some 65% of the area given over to the Palestinian Authority to control has no construction on it. If we accept this is the case, why, if their intentions are allegedly peaceful, would they permit building within a literal stone's throw distance from Israeli neighborhoods? Not only does the question practically answer itself, it is astonishing any Israeli government would countenance continuing to permit it given the catastrophic results of ignoring similar activity along the Gaza border. Regavim claims the Israeli government has not prevented Palestinians from building on state land and encroaching onto Israel's state land, including the construction of some 90,000 edifices of different kinds.

Even from the point of view of the Oslo Accords, the construction is difficult to legitimize, given they were supposed to enforce a 500-meter buffer from the border fence, which would require permits (which again would never be given to any Israeli to build on), and were intended to distance Arabs from Israeli bureaucracy. They were supposed to pull the two sides apart, and here the evidence on the ground is de facto pushing them closer together.

The danger is not theoretical, it is very real. While it doesn't get overly mentioned much in the international press, and it has not been given an official title, the third intifada effectively started in about June 2021. It has largely centered around Iranian efforts to transfer increasingly powerful weaponry to Islamists in Judea and Samaria, principally through holes in Israel's security apparatus via Jordan. This movement of men and materiel has picked up in speed and intensity over the last year or so, especially as access from Gaza and across the Lebanese border is now significantly more challenging. At least the IDF has acknowledged this threat and for several months has aggressively targeted terrorist leaders and their so-called battalion commanders in Judea and Samaria.

The emotional power of the olive tree

A typical image of the countryside in Judea and Samaria is one of the often craggy rocks interspersed with olive trees. The assumption – particularly in the Western imagination – is that these trees are centuries old and have been nurtured for all that time by ancient and noble Palestinian families. The truth, however, is more complex.

As part of their attempts to annex the land, Palestinians have taken to planting copious amounts of these trees, which provide them with dual use. They are used as cover for ongoing surveillance of the neighboring Israeli communities, and they can be utilized as a symbol of their supposed ownership of the land.

"These people are just like Hamas or Hezbollah," said Rani Gavriel, head of an auxiliary police unit, which is designed to be a fast response to reports of infiltrations – of which there have already been many – as well as fence cutting and other suspicious activity. "They openly say that Rosh Ha'Ayin is theirs," he added.

This story was originally published by the WND News Center.

Joe Biden has used dozens, probably hundreds, of executive orders from the desk of the White House to try to install in America a biased election system, using federal agencies to recruit supporters, "diversity" agendas around the world, and much more to which Americans, by and large, object.

Expect them to vanish on Jan. 20.

That's the day that President-elect Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated, and analysts are advising there will be numerous changes that day.

The Washington Examiner predicted Trump "will waste no time working to undo the efforts of his predecessor, President Joe Biden when he retakes office next January. Much of what Trump is expected to do will simply be undoing what Biden did to him upon winning the White House four years ago."

Biden, for example, signed 24 executive orders during his first eight days in office, sparking charges of hypocrisy from Republicans who pointed out Biden had claimed executive orders should be limited "unless you're a dictator."

Trump already has indicated there will be action that day.

Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt explained that at least "tens" of orders are imminent.

"We know that he promised to sign an executive order to secure the southern border, something the Harris-Biden administration has refused to do. We know that, on Day One, he's going to launch the largest mass deportation operation of illegal immigrants in American history."

The "Remain in Mexico" practice might come back that same way.

CATO Institute scholar Andrew Gillen said the Biden-Harris regime's demand to promote the transgender ideology also won't stand long, especially with women's sports.

"The cultural stuff is what I think we'll see on Day One. Fighting against what Trump calls wokeness and being anti-DEI. I wouldn't be surprised to see executive action on those," Gillen said.

Trump also has confirmed plans to work on the Deep State, and expected is an order called Schedule F, which, the report said, "would allow him to fire some federal employees who previously enjoyed job protections."

Trump had begun that process in his first term, only to have Biden reverse it and Deep State employees then finalize a rule against reclassifying workers. Trump wanted that ability because, during his first term, there were several instances of federal workers openly defying and opposing the president's work. The new rule means it might take him longer to move in that direction.

The report explained Republican strategist John Feehery suggests Trump do as much as possible.

"He should reverse every single Biden EO, especially the ones regarding immigration, the border, and crime. Then he needs to reverse every executive order that has anything to do with COVID-19 and education. Then he needs to dive deep into any of the transgender stuff. I think he needs to be as aggressive as legally possible. The election was a mandate, and Congress will move too slow for the American people."

Trump himself, has promised, "Many things will be done on day one. Your head will spin when you see what's going to happen."

Trump also has suggested that many of those J6 protesters, in jail sometimes for years for offenses as dire as trespassing, maybe get pardons.

He's also talked about halting the propaganda being used in schools to promote "critical race theory or transgender insanity."

One firing that is expected, if he does not quit first, would be special counsel Jack Smith, who has handled multiple lawfare claims against Trump as part of Biden's weaponized Department of Justice.

Smith already reportedly is considering ways to back down on his "insurrection" and "classified documents" claims.

Trump also has promised to take action on inflation, which has been a stunning 22% plus since Biden and Harris took office.

© 2025 - Patriot News Alerts