“The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.” ’ (Numbers 6:24-26))
Revival Breaks Out at Nashville Church, 1000 Baptisms Since December
A revival that began in December at a Nashville-area church has now lasted nearly four months, with more than 1,000 baptisms and people coming to Christ long after the Sunday morning service has ended. The congregation, Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tenn., experienced a movement of God during a baptism service on December 20, when about a dozen people were scheduled to be baptized, but several dozens more – for a total of 99 – followed through with baptism that day, according to Baptist Press, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. In December, Pastor Robby Gallaty called it a “movement of God that I’ve never experienced.” On April 11, the church passed 1,000 baptisms since December, Baptist Press reported. Gallaty estimates that about 70-75 percent of the baptisms are first-time confessions of faith.
Nebraska Town 24th ‘Sanctuary City for the Unborn’ First Outside Texas
A tiny Nebraska village has become the 24th U.S. town to approve an ordinance declaring itself a “sanctuary city for the unborn,” outlawing abortion as well as abortion-inducing drugs within its municipal limits. The town of 288 residents is the first outside of Texas to adopt such a measure. “Not one person spoke in opposition of the ordinance at the public meeting,” noted the local newspaper. The American Civil Liberties Union filed and then dropped a lawsuit last year against seven East Texas cities with similar sanctuary ordinances.
Gov. Ricketts Declares Nebraska a ‘Second Amendment Sanctuary State’
Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts signed a proclamation that designates his state as a “Second Amendment Sanctuary State,” reaffirming the state’s support for gun rights. “Nebraska has always been a state that has supported our Second Amendment rights,” Ricketts said. A number of counties in the state have already declared themselves Second Amendment “sanctuaries.” The move comes in light of recent federal gun-control proposals and orders following several mass shootings.
U.S. Suffers 45 Mass Shootings Over the Past Month
Starting on March 16, when eight people were killed at three Atlanta-area spas, the U.S. has had at least 45 mass shootings, according to an analysis of data from the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), local media, and police reports. The U.S. has seen at least 147 mass shootings in 2021, according to the GVA, a non-profit based in Washington. An incident is considered to be a mass shooting if four or more people are shot, wounded, or killed, excluding the gunman. The latest incident is a mass shooting at an Indianapolis FedEx facility on Thursday night where 8 people were killed and several more wounded.
- As with most of the world’s problems, there is no perfect solution to ongoing violence. Only when Jesus comes to rule and reign on the new earth (Revelation 21) will these issues be perfectly and fully resolved.
Biden’s Budget Would Force Americans to Give Planned Parenthood $340 Million
Planned Parenthood, a billion-dollar organization that reported record-high abortion numbers earlier this year, stands to benefit hugely if President Biden’s proposed budget passes Congress. Biden announced a budget plan that would increase taxpayer funding to the abortion industry both in the U.S. and abroad. Among other things, the president wants a $340 million (18.7 percent) funding increase for the Title X family planning program. Much of that funding likely would go to Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the U.S. Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser said Biden’s budget would force “taxpayers to bankroll the abortion industry at home and abroad,” even though most Americans strongly oppose it.
Citing COVID-19, Biden FDA Approves Dispensing Abortion Pills Through Mail
The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is reversing a Trump-era decision banning the dispensation of abortion-inducing drugs by mail, claiming the policy is justified due to COVID-19 restrictions in various states supposedly making in-person consultations more difficult or dangerous. “Pro-abortion activists have exploited the COVID-19 pandemic from the beginning, working to eliminate safety precautions in order to expand the proliferation of dangerous chemical abortion drugs,” Susan B. Anthony List president Marjorie Dannenfelser responded. “This decision prioritizes abortion industry profits over the health and safety of women and puts the abortion extremism of the Biden-Harris administration on full display.”
NCAA Threatens States That Ban Biological Men from Competing in Women’s Sports
On Monday, the body that regulates college athletics said it will “closely monitor” states that pass laws restricting transgender athletes and will consider pulling championship events from such locations. The statement from the NCAA’s Board of Governors stopped short of pledging any action, although it did say it only holds championship events in locations “where hosts can commit to providing an environment that is safe, healthy and free of discrimination.” Mississippi’s governor last month signed a bill into law prohibiting biological males from competing in girls’ or women’s sports. Dozens of other states are considering similar bills. The statement from the NCAA’s Board of Governors said it “firmly and unequivocally supports the opportunity for transgender student-athletes to compete in college sports.”
Only Vaccinated People Can Board Evacuation Vessels to Leave St. Vincent
After a massive 6 mile-high eruption of ashes from the Soufriere volcano frightened the residents of Saint Vincent, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said that only those who have been vaccinated for coronavirus could board the cruise ships evacuating people off the island. “Those who are not yet vaccinated but who would be vaccinated, you wouldn’t send them immediately after vaccination,” due to possible side effects like “wooziness in the head, you know how that is,” Gonsalves said. Saint Vincent was blanketed with a thin layer of ash and a “strong sulfur” smell hung in the air on Saturday, a day after the nearby volcano spectacularly erupted after decades of inactivity. La Soufriere fired an enormous amount of ash and hot gas early Monday in its biggest explosive eruption yet.
- Also, 22 cruise line companies are mandating that their passengers receive a COVID vaccine before boarding their ships.
Buffalo, NY, Will Require Vaccination for Fans to Attend Fall Football Games
Buffalo, New York, sports fans are up in arms after an Erie County executive announced that all fans and staff will be required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 in order to attend a game. Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced that the county plans to allow full attendance at both Highmark Stadium and the Keybank Center games this fall, WGRZ-TV reported. “Our goal is to have a 100 percent full house for the Bills and Sabres starting in the fall,” Poloncarz said at the county’s weekly COVID-19 briefing.
12-Year Old Little Leaguers Will be Forced to be Vaccinated to Play in Tournament
Twelve-year-old Little League baseball players are being forced to take the COVID vaccine or they will be banned from playing in the annual tournament at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. A Texas team prepared for three years to travel to Cooperstown, New York, to play in the tournament. They spent “about $17,000 booking flights, rental homes and buying equipment,” but the team just got a letter demanding each player “must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination” in order to participate.
- The federal government is putting pressure on states, organizations, businesses, and federal departments to force people to get COVID injections. But some states are pushing back. Montana just announced a ban on vaccine passports.
Covid-19 Cases/Deaths/Hospitalizations on the Rise in U.S.
The seven-day average of new Covid-19 cases in the U.S. has risen 30% to 70,522/day on 4/16 from 54052 on March 22. Deaths, which lag infections by up to fourteen days, have just begun to rise again to a 7-day average of 750 from the recent low of 722 on 4/12. Hospitalizations have risen from a 7-day average of 39,907 on 3/15 to 44,332 on 4/14. The number of states recording at least a 10% rise in daily average positive cases of Covid-19, has risen from 5 last week to 21 now, according to Johns Hopkins University data. In Michigan, hospitals are increasingly overwhelmed and reaching full capacity. However, New Jersey and New York, which had high case levels through the winter, are now seeing sustained declines in new cases. Arizona is holding steady.
New Covid-19 Cases Have Nearly Doubled Internationally in Two Months
On the global scale, new coronavirus cases have nearly doubled in two months. Rates of infection are near their highest-ever levels, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a briefing Friday. Prevention fatigue and more transmissible variants are helping to drive this surge, which has hit countries such as Brazil, India and Poland particularly severely. Even Chile, which leads the Western Hemisphere in vaccinations per capita, is seeing a surge in cases that has sent much of the country back to a strict lockdown.
U.S. Recommends Pausing J&J Vaccine Over Blood Clots
A surprise development on the vaccine front Tuesday, and not a welcome one: U.S. health authorities are recommending a temporary halt to vaccinations with the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine amid reports of rare clotting. The move by the FDA and the CDC falls short of an order to stop the shots, but states are expected to abide by the recommendation. The federal agencies want time to investigate six reports of clotting in women between the ages of 18 and 48 who developed symptoms within a week or two after receiving the single-dose vaccine. The issue is similar to the one that has plagued the AstraZeneca vaccine overseas, as well as to one that surfaced in the J&J vaccine trials. The six cases are out of 6.8 million doses administered, so the chances of it happening are less than one in a million.
- Johnson & Johnson said that this is an “extremely rare disorder involving people with blood clots in combination with low platelets.”
Pfizer/Moderna CEOs Says Vaccine Will Become Annual to Deal With Variants
Those who completed the two-dose regimen for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine will likely need a third shot within 12 months, CEO Albert Bourla said. There is also a chance people will need to receive an annual COVID-19 vaccine thereafter, he said. Pfizer recently announced updated results indicating its vaccine was highly effective up to six months after the second dose. In February, the company began testing whether a third shot could offer greater protection against emerging strains of the virus, like the concerning strain first detected in South Africa. Moderna CEO, Stéphane Bancel agreed, saying that with the variants mutating, getting a booster shot custom designed to neutralize whatever form of the coronavirus is dominant would be the logical path to take. He said Moderna’s goal is to develop a vaccine annually tailored to tackle both the COVID-19 and flu pathogens in one dose. The U.S. government is now making plans in case Covid-19 vaccines need booster doses later, officials told a congressional hearing Thursday.
- Of course, this means a financial windfall for both companies.
Denmark & Norway Bans AstraZeneca Vaccine, Australia Sees First Blood Clot Death
Denmark became the first country in Europe to abandon use of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. Now Norway’s health agency said the country should stop using the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, even after the World Health Organization and European Medicines Agency said the benefits of the shot outweigh its risks. Norwegian authorities in early March suspended the rollout of the vaccine after people who received the shot were hospitalized with blood clots and a low count of platelets. Three cases were fatal. The death of an Australian woman is believed to be connected to her getting AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine, authorities said Friday. The 48-year-old woman was admitted to a hospital with an extensive thromboembolic event, or blood clotting, and thrombocytopenia, or low blood platelet levels, four days after receiving the shot. The group of investigators has concluded that the case “is likely linked to the vaccination.”
Pfizer and Moderna Vaccines Have Similar Rate of Blood Clot Deaths as AstraZeneca
A rare type of blood clot occurs at a similar post-vaccination rate among those who get Pfizer or Moderna shots and people who receive the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, according to a newly published study. Researchers found that four in a million patients experienced cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) after getting a shot produced by Pfizer or Moderna, compared to the five in a million in those who received the AstraZeneca/University of Oxford vaccine. The study has not yet been peer-reviewed.
White House Invests $1.7B to Study Covid-19 Variants
The White House on Friday announced plans to help states detect and curb the spread of emerging COVID-19 variants by investing $1.7 billion in genomic sequencing, or the process to map the genetic code of a virus. The funding, which comes from President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package, will be allocated through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help states and other jurisdictions monitor potentially more contagious COVID-19 strains, including the variants driving another surge in Michigan. New strains now make up about half of all COVID-19 infections across the country.
5,800 Fully-Vaccinated People in U.S. Have Caught Covid-19
About 5,800 people who have been vaccinated against coronavirus have become infected anyway, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. About 77 million people in the U.S. are fully vaccinated against coronavirus, so the reinfection rate (so far) is less than one percent. Some of these people became seriously ill and 74 people died, the CDC said, with 396 (7%) required hospitalization. This is the CDC’s first public accounting of ‘breakthrough cases’ and the agency is searching for patterns based on patient age and gender, location, type of vaccine, variants and other factors.
Chinese COVID-19 Vaccine Effectiveness ‘Not High,’ Government Exploring Options
In a rare admission from a normally tight-lipped government, Chinese health officials admitted that their Covid-19vaccines “don’t have very high protective rates.” “It’s now under formal consideration whether we should use different vaccines from different technical lines for the immunization process,” China Centers for Disease Control director Gao Fu said at a conference Saturday. Drug companies Sinopharm and Sinovac were the leading producers for China’s vaccine efforts, with their products exported to 22 countries including Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil and Turkey. Foreign trials for the Sinovac vaccine have found a wide range of efficacy, with Brazil reporting 50% efficacy for and Turkey reporting over 80% efficacy.
Biden Administration Gains Agreement with Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala to Tighten Borders
The Biden administration has secured agreements for Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala to tighten their borders and stem the flow of migration, Special Assistant to the President for Immigration for the Domestic Policy Council Tyler Moran said Monday. “We’ve secured agreements for them to put more troops on their own border. Mexico, Honduras and Guatemala have all agreed to do this. That not only is going to prevent the traffickers, and the smugglers, and cartels that take advantage of the kids on their way here, but also to protect those children,” Moran said. The countries agreed to place more troops at its borders to discourage immigration.
- Guatemala’s government on Tuesday challenged an assertion from U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration that it agreed to surge troops to its borders to make migration to the United States more difficult. “There is no document signed” regarding border security, the government said
Illegal Immigrant ‘Getaways’ up 156% Over Last Year
Illegal immigrants are escaping capture at more than double the pace of a year ago, according to Texas figures that show the surge of migrants being caught at the border is just a part of the problem the Biden administration is facing. The Texas Department of Public Safety, which runs its own camera system under Operation Drawbridge to track illegal entries, shows nearly 21,904 migrants who evaded capture from January through April 7, according to data shared with The Washington Times. That is up from 8,561 “getaways,” as they are known, during the same period in 2020, which works out to a 156% increase. While most of the attention at the border right now is on unaccompanied juveniles, law enforcement officials say the more worrying aspect for border security is the people who aren’t being apprehended at the line. In Texas, the Cotulla Independent School District sent a letter April 1 warning parents to be wary while their children walk home from school or play outside their homes.
Many Illegal Immigrants Allowed into U.S. without Covid Testing
Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden’s special coronavirus adviser, acknowledged Thursday that illegal immigrants are being allowed across the U.S.-Mexico border without the same kind of testing and precautions any other international traveler would have to go through. Testing of migrants has improved in recent weeks, though members of Congress who recently returned from the border say agents told them the situation is still so overwhelming that some people are being released into communities untested.
Texas Ranchers Overrun by Armed Smugglers of Illegal Immigrants
Landowners and ranchers dozens of miles north of the border have long dealt with illegal aliens traversing their land as they try to evade Border Patrol highway checkpoints and law enforcement. They commonly leave gates open, which mixes stock; destroy fences and gates; light fires; break into properties; and steal property. But today’s human smugglers and illegal aliens evading capture are different, said Susan Kibbe, executive director of the South Texas Property Rights Association. The smugglers are armed, and the illegal aliens are often convicted criminals. “It’s very disturbing when you have smugglers that have a connection with the cartels, on U.S. soil carrying high-powered, semi-automatic rifles,” Kibbe told The Epoch Times.
Biden Administration Allowing Few International Refugees into U.S.
President Biden’s administration is on track to admit a record low number of refugees into the United States, according to a report by the International Rescue Committee. This is a reversal of Biden’s campaign pledge to open the doors wider. The IRC released a study that examined the first half of the 2021 fiscal year, noting that only 2,050 refugees have been admitted. The rate set so far would see the administration admit around 4,500 refugees this fiscal year — the lowest number by any president in U.S. history. That number would be less than half of what the Trump administration admitted in the final year of his presidency, for which he was severely criticized Overall, an estimated 1.4 million refugees need resettlement worldwide, but fewer than 1% of all refugees see admission to secure countries.
Young Black Man Killed by Police in Minnesota, Policewoman Says She Meant to Use Her Taser
20-year-old Daunte Wright, was stopped Sunday on an outstanding warrant for armed robbery. Police say they tried to arrest him and he got back in his car and drove away, at which point they fired upon the car and Wright was hit. He drove on for several blocks before crashing into another vehicle, and was pronounced dead at the scene. A female passenger received non-life-threatening injuries in the crash, and a police officer was taken to the hospital to be treated for injuries sustained in the incident. The officer who shot Wright apparently meant to use her Taser but accidentally fired his gun instead, police say Tensions were already high in the area as week three of former Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin’s trial in the death of George Floyd is about to begin.
- The police officer accused of shooting and killing Wright during a traffic stop over the weekend — a shooting her chief says was accidental — has resigned along with the police chief. Former police officer Kim Potter to be charged with second-degree manslaughter in fatal shooting of Daunte Wright near Minneapolis.
Protests Erupt after Cops Fatally Shoot Black Man Near Minneapolis
Crowds protesting the fatal police shooting of Daunte Wright gathered in cities across America on Tuesday night, chanting his name from coast to coast. The demonstrations turned violent and unruly in places like Brooklyn Center, Minnesota — where the 20-year-old Black man was shot and killed Sunday during a traffic stop – and in Portland, Oregon, where a police union building was set ablaze. More than a dozen Minnesota retailers were looted Monday morning and 60 people were arrested, among them self-identified Antifa members. Authorities fired tear gas, and flash-bang grenades into the crowd after warning them that they were in violation of curfew. Some rioters retaliated by throwing smoke canisters back toward law enforcement, while others launched fireworks at the police. A few officers were hit by debris and suffered minor injuries. But protests in large cities like Dallas and Philadelphia remained peaceful.
Rioters in Portland Set Fire to ICE Building
Rioters in Portland, Oregon, allegedly set fire to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building late Saturday night, according to videos posted on social media. Police and protesters faced off outside the building near the Willamette River waterfront, according to freelance journalist Chris Landis. Federal agents reportedly used pepper balls in an attempt to disperse the crowd. There were no immediate reports of arrests.
Teachers Are Quitting/Retiring in Record Numbers
Teacher retirements are up in several parts of the country. Michigan saw a 44% spike from August to February compared to the previous year, while one of the largest districts in California, Long Beach Unified, reported a 35% increase in teacher leaves of absence to the Learning Policy Institute (LPI) at Stanford University. “There’s fear about the safety of coming back in person,” said Linda Darling-Hammond, LPI president. “People are getting rid of mask mandates and things like that sooner than everyone is vaccinated. So I think those are the things that are causing exhaustion and the fear that is driving a lot of teachers out.”
Democrats Introduce Bill to Pack Supreme Court with Four More Justices
Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate announced Thursday morning that they are introducing legislation that would expand the size of the Supreme Court from nine to 13 justices. This would allow President Biden to add four justices, overcoming the high court’s present 6-3 conservative majority. The U.S. Constitution is silent about how many justices should sit on the Supreme Court. It’s Congress, not the Constitution, that decides the size of the Supreme Court, which it did for the first time under the Judiciary Act of 1789. When George Washington signed the Act into law, he set the number of Supreme Court justices at six. Only since 1869 have there been nine justices appointed to the Supreme Court. Before that, Congress routinely changed the number of justices to achieve its own partisan political goals, resulting in as few as five Supreme Court justices under John Adams to as many as 10 under Abraham Lincoln.
- Only a handful of Supreme Court justices have publicly commented on proposals to add seats to the court, but those who have spoken out are fiercely opposed. That opposition doesn’t break along ideological grounds either, as justices appointed by both Republican and Democratic presidents have condemned previous efforts to expand the court. “Nine seems to be a good number. It’s been that way for a long time,” Ginsburg told NPR in July 2019. “I think it was a bad idea when President Franklin Roosevelt tried to pack the court.”
$50 Billion in Rental Assistance Now Up for Grabs
Typically, rent relief is supposed to bridge a temporary loss of income and help keep renters in place. But massive job losses due to the pandemic have made the need for relief even more critical. Now there is a race to dispense nearly $50 billion in federal aid into communities to cover months of back rent before eviction protections expire. “Direct financial assistance has been shown to be the most effective approach toward keeping apartment residents safely and securely housed and to preserving the stability of the rental housing industry,” said Bob Pinnegar, president and chief executive officer of the National Apartment Association. The stimulus money can cover an eligible household’s rent and utilities for up to 15 months. Tenants or landlords can initiate the application process.
Arizona Passes Bill to Absolve Individuals & Organizations from Covid Liability
Arizona has 31% fewer small businesses than it did just before the COVID-19 outbreak. The government mandated shutdown clearly took a toll. But even as fear of getting the virus drove customers away, fear of being held liable for spreading the virus fueled business owners’ hesitance to reopen or remain open, reports Cathi Herrod, President of Center for Arizona Policy. The same is true of churches, private schools, nonprofit organizations, and more. That won’t happen again, at least not in Arizona. In an effort to combat frivolous lawsuits and reward good faith efforts to keep people safe, the Arizona legislature passed, and Governor Ducey signed SB 1377 which protects people and providers from liability in an emergency when a good faith effort is made to protect others from injury. This includes just about every business and organization: service providers, entertainment establishments, schools, state agencies, government institutions, churches and other religious organizations, etc. It’s also retroactive to last March.
Economic News
Consumer prices for March rose 2.6% compared to the same month last year. They were lifted in particular by surging energy prices, including the cost of gasoline — which jumped 22.5% over the last 12 months ending in March. Prices are rising as the economy is gathering momentum. The Fed has repeatedly said that inflation would need to run above its target of around 2% for a while before they make interest rate changes.
The U.S. Production Index, which measures the overall output of the manufacturing sector, rebounded from a large decline in February but well short of analysts’ expectations. After the big, unexpected drop (-2.6%) in February, analysts were disappointed in March’s 1.4% increase, versus the +2.5% expected. The index is up 1% from a year ago, indicating tepid growth in what was hoped to be a strongly rebounding economy.
Housing starts in March jumped by 19.4% from the prior month to 1.74 million units, the best showing since June 2006, while permits rose over 2% to 1,76 million units. Both are signs of future demand.
U.S. retail sales jumped 9.8% in March from February, blowing past economists’ forecasts for 5.5% growth. Much of the surge was due to $1,400 payments from the U.S. government’s latest economic rescue effort hitting households’ bank accounts. Economists said it shows how primed people are to spend as the economy reopens and conditions brighten. That’s huge for an economy that’s made up mostly of consumer spending.
The U.S. federal government spent $660 billion more in March than it collected in revenue, the third-largest monthly deficit on record. The huge gap was driven by the millions of $1,400 stimulus checks authorized by the White House and Democrats in Congress. Some Republicans have complained about the high levels of government spending as they seek to scale back the proposed infrastructure package.
The tourism industry is reviving after mass layoffs last year, with 13.8 million Americans working in leisure and hospitality as of March. (A year ago, that had dipped to 8.7 million jobs.) But that’s still far below pre-pandemic levels of employment, leaving millions of hospitality workers wanting for work — and wondering if they’ll ever get called back.
West Virginia is encouraging digital nomads to consider packing up and heading to the Mountain State. If selected for the program, during your first year you’ll get $10,000 cash in monthly payments. Then you’ll receive an additional $2,000 at the end of your second year. The state is also offering a year’s worth of free outdoor recreation and two years of free outdoor gear rentals.
While bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies may be virtual, they have very real-world tax consequences. Even though you can buy things with bitcoin, it’s not the same as cash. At least not in the eyes of the IRS. Virtual currencies are taxed as property, or as an investment. That means almost every transaction may be taxable and should be reported.
Egyptian authorities have seized a massive cargo ship which blocked the Suez Canal for almost a week last month, amid a dispute over financial damages. An Egyptian court ordered the vessel’s Japanese owner, Shoei Kisen Kaisha, to pay $900 million in compensation as a result of losses inflicted when the Panamanian-flagged Ever Given prevented marine traffic from transiting through the vital global trade waterway, the state-run Al Ahram news outlet said on Tuesday. The hefty bill also includes maintenance fees and the costs of the rescue operation, Al Ahram reported.
The Forum for British Pubs estimates that at least 2,000 pubs have shut permanently over the past year. Many other retailers have also closed their doors for good despite government programs aimed at helping businesses during the pandemic. UK stores have missed out on roughly £30 billion ($41.2 billion) in lost sales during the country’s three lockdowns, according to the British Retail Consortium, which estimates that 67,000 retail jobs were lost in 2020.
When British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his Brexit trade deal on December 24, he said it would enable UK companies “to do even more business” with the European Union. But it’s been 100 days since the United Kingdom split from its single biggest trading partner and Brexit is proving to be disastrous for many British exporters who are now asking the government to take urgent action to prevent further losses. So far, the deal has been bad for trade.
Iran Accuses Israel of Sabotage at Natanz Nuclear Plant
Iran on Monday blamed Israel for a sabotage attack on its underground Natanz nuclear facility that damaged the centrifuges it uses to enrich uranium there, warning that it would avenge the assault. The comments by Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh represent the first official accusation leveled against Israel for the assault Sunday that cut power across the facility. Israeli media widely reported that the devastating cyberattack orchestrated by Israel caused the blackout. “The answer for Natanz is to take revenge against Israel,” Khatibzadeh said.” On Tuesday, Iran will begin enriching uranium at highest level yet after the attack, getting closer to creating a nuclear bomb.
Iran Attacks Israeli Ships, But Israel Declines to Retaliate
On Tuesday, the MV Hyperion Ray, an Israeli-owned ship which sails under a Bahamian flag, came under missile fire near Fujairah, close to the Gulf of Oman. A source told the New York Times that the ship successfully evaded the attack and was not damaged. However, Hebrew language media reported that the Hyperion Ray was lightly damaged. The attack marked the third of its kind in recent months, as other Israeli owned ships were hit by Iranian forces or agents while sailing near India and in the Gulf of Oman. But according to a Times report, Jerusalem is not interested in retaliation for this latest maritime attack. A senior Israeli security official told the Times that Israel was “seeking to reduce tensions in the Persian Gulf region” and that it had “no intention of responding with another attack on an Iranian vessel.”
Houthis Indoctrinating Children In Yemen ‘With Violent, Anti-Semitic And Extremist Material’
Three million Yemeni children living in areas under Houthi control are being indoctrinated with education material filled with violent, anti-Semitic propaganda, an official from the Yemeni Teachers Syndicate has told the Telegraph. Yahya Al-Yinai, the union’s head of media, said he had documented hundreds of changes to the teaching curriculum by the Iran-backed group, which since 2014 has fought a war against the government of Yemen. The group has also replaced nearly 90 percent of school principals with pro-Houthi figures, he told The Telegraph. Iran is overseeing the changes, he said, accusing Tehran of pursuing a “policy of cultural colonialism” by trying to introduce the “ideology of the Khomeinist revolution in Yemen through public education.” The Houthis emerged from northern Yemen in the 1990s and were named after their original leader Hussein al Houthi, who returned from time in Iran inspired by the Islamic revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini.
Russian Troops Appear to Be Moving Into Ukraine
Amid growing tensions with the United States and its Western allies, Russian forces have been spotted on the move across the border sparking concerns that war may be reignited. For years, the brutal conflict in eastern Ukraine, between government forces and Russian-backed separatists, has been locked in a tense standoff. Major combat, which cost thousands of lives since 2014, has given way to a grinding stalemate. Following the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, fighting erupted in the neighboring Donbas region — another mainly Russian speaking area of Ukraine with rebels demanding independence from Kiev.
Biden Imposes Sanctions on Russia for Election Interference & Cyberattacks
The Biden administration targeted Russia with sweeping sanctions and diplomatic expulsions Thursday, punishing Moscow for its interference in the 2020 U.S. election, its SolarWinds cyberattack and its ongoing occupation and “severe human rights abuses” in Crimea. The executive order signed by President Biden expels 10 diplomats from the Russian Embassy in Washington, sanctions more than three dozen individuals and entities, and bans U.S. financial institutions from trading in newly issued Russian state debt and bonds. President Joe Biden said Thursday that the sanctions he announced on Russia are a proportionate response to cyber-attacks against the US and interference in two different presidential elections. Biden said he told Russian President Vladimir Putin in a call earlier in the week that he could have gone further with the measures. While he wanted to avoid escalating tensions, Biden made clear that he will not hesitate to take further action in the future. “We cannot allow a foreign power to interfere in our democratic process with impunity,” Biden said.
- Russia said it will expel 10 U.S. diplomats in response to the sanctions by Biden administration
Biden to Withdraw All U.S. Troops from Afghanistan by 9/11/21
President Biden announced plans to withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan by Sept. 11, 2021, the 20th anniversary of attacks that drew U.S. into war there in the first place. The military exit will keep thousands of U.S. forces in Afghanistan beyond the May 1 deadline that the Trump administration negotiated last year with the Taliban. Biden concluded that there is no military solution to the complex security and political problems plaguing Afghanistan. NATO troops will also follow the same withdrawal timeline. But the Taliban on Wednesday issued a stark warning to President Biden – don’t break the Trump deal or U.S. troops still in Afghanistan past May 1 will be “held liable” and will face a fresh wave of attacks. The new withdrawal date ignores a May 1 deadline put in place by former President Trump, who last year struck a historic peace deal with the Taliban.
Mozambique Now ‘The Land of Fear’ for Christians Targeted by Islamists
The savage violence of Islamist militants in northern Mozambique is driving the local population from their homes in terror – and Christians are one of their main targets. Beheading, skinning and cutting off the limbs of their victims are the group’s typical methods. “What they do to the people they capture and kill I have never seen anywhere in Africa,” said an expert. It is little wonder northern Mozambique is now called “the land of fear.” Around three-quarters of a million people are displaced – that is a third of the population of Cabo Delgado province, where the militants operate. Some fled to the bush. Some took boats to the regional capital Pemba and set up makeshift shelters on the beach. The result is that almost a million people face severe hunger in northern Mozambique, according to the World Food Program.
Islamists kill at Least Eight in Nigeria’s Damasak, Hundreds Flee to Niger
Islamists attacked the northeast Nigerian border town of Damasak, killing at least eight people and causing hundreds to flee to neighboring Niger, local officials and a resident said on Wednesday. No group claimed responsibility but militant Islamist group Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, carry out these kinds of attacks in northeast Nigeria. Some 2 million people have fled their homes and 30,000 have been killed since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009 aimed at creating an Islamic state in the region. Nigeria, which has Africa’s biggest economy, faces a raft of security challenges. Authorities are grappling with the insurgency, a spate of school kidnappings in the northwest and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.