Around the World
Hundreds of troops deployed to Iraq to defend US embassy as Trump says peace with Iran not likely
The US is scheduled to deploy 750 new troops to defend the US embassy in Iraq, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Tuesday night, following protests by Iran-backed groups that marched on the compound in retaliation for US strikes Sunday that killed 25 Kataeb Hezbollah fighters.
Surge of IS Violence Seen in Syria
Islamic State militants have increased their terror activity in recent weeks in Syria, carrying out deadly attacks against Syrian regime troops and U.S.-backed forces.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Israel moving towards ‘calm’ agreement with Hamas
Israel made progress toward a ceasefire agreement with Hamas in Gaza, in a two-hour meeting on Wednesday that ended without a vote.
Annual poverty report reveals 841,000 children in Israel live in poverty
The poverty rate in Israel has grown by a percent over the last year – with a bigger increase in the number of children under the line of poverty, according to the poverty report for 2018 published by the National Insurance Institute of Israel (NII) on Tuesday.
IDF unveils first-of-its-kind unit unifying pilots, tank drivers and more
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday created a new type of combat unit bringing together infantry, tanks, combat engineering and air power to serve as a proving ground for new fighting techniques and tactics.

Inside the United States
Hundreds of Counties Across America Have Declared Themselves ‘2nd Amendment Sanctuaries’
Hundreds of local counties, cities, and towns across America are declaring themselves 'Second Amendment sanctuaries' or 'constitutional counties' as part of an ever-expanding movement over the past few years that has surprised even those who enacted the sanctuary resolutions in the first place.
FBI data underscores rising threat to places of worship
When a machete-wielding attacker walked into a rabbi’s home in Monsey, New York, during Hanukkah and a gunman fired on worshipers at a Texas church 14 hours later, the two congregations in different regions of the country joined a growing list of faith communities that have come under attack in the US.
More Roman Catholic sexual abuse history comes to light in Charlotte, North Carolina
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte released a list of 14 clergy Monday it said had been credibly accused of sexual abuse of minors since its founding in 1972, including the names of six other clergy who had been credibly accused before the diocese's founding, and 23 men who had been caught outside its jurisdiction.

Christian News
China intends to exercise total control over religion beginning February 2020
China will roll out new measures to further circumscribe the spiritual activities of its citizens on February 1st in the New Year, as state news reported Monday that the 42 articles of the Administrative Measures for Religious Groups had been approved.
Radicals in India disrupt inauguration of Jesus-centered prayer hall
Three Bharatiya Janata Party-affiliated people led an attack on a new prayer hall dedicated to Jesus in India's West Bengal state Saturday, as a mob of 800 people, mostly non-Christians, surrounded the building's inauguration ceremony.