A New Perspective on Constantine

(Worthy News) – The House Intelligence Committee issued seven subpoenas on Wednesday, in a sign that its investigation into alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 election is ramping up in scope and intensity, according to people familiar with the matter.

The committee has subpoenaed the National Security Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency for information about what is called “unmasking.” Republicans on the committee have been pushing for a thorough investigation of how the names of Trump campaign officials became exposed in classified intelligence reports based off intelligence community intercepts.

Those subpoenas seek information on requests made by former national security adviser Susan Rice, former CIA Director John Brennan and former United Nations Ambassador Samantha Power for names to be unmasked in classified material. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Tuesday that any future peace agreement reached with the Palestinians must include an Israeli military presence in the West Bank and offered insight on security concerns the government may have following a prospective deal.

During an interview with Army Radio, Netanyahu said that “In any peace agreement we [Israel] will have to maintain military control of all the territory west of the Jordan River. This is the truth and I will continue saying this truth.”

Netanyahu indicated that an Israeli military withdraw from all areas of the West Bank would likely create a vacuum prone to takeover by extremists, who could pose a threat to Israeli security. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – The communist regime of North Korea has test-fired its 9th missile this year.  In response, in a dramatic show of force, the U.S. now has three aircraft carriers in the region.

According to Voice of America, the USS Nimitz has joined USS Carl Vinson and USS Ronald Reagan in the western Pacific

This comes as America prepares to test an anti-missile systems Tuesday that will simulate a North Korean strike, including an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani on Monday called “racist” Israel a threat to the region and “humanity.”

In a message congratulating Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on the 17th anniversary of Israel’s pullout from south Lebanon, Larijani said “the aggressive and racist nature of the Zionist regime has always been and will remain a threat to humanity and to regional nations,” according to Iranian media reports.

Referring to Israel’s 2000 pullout after 15 years of conflict with Hezbollah, Larijani urged the Palestinians to follow the Lebanon terror group’s lead and “liberate” territories from Israel. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – Egyptian fighter jets struck militant bases in eastern Libya late Friday in retaliation for an attack by masked gunmen on a caravan of Coptic Christians that left 28 people dead.

In a televised address, President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said his forces were hitting what he called “training bases” for the militants who carried out the killings.

In the caravan attack, masked gunmen driving SUVs opened fire on the Coptic Christian pilgrims heading to a monastery about 130 miles south of the Egyptian capital. According to the local governor and Egyptian security and health officials, the gunmen killed 28 people, and injured at least 23. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – The FBI has illegally shared raw intelligence about Americans with unauthorized third parties and violated other constitutional privacy protections, according to newly declassified government documents that undercut the bureau’s public assurances about how carefully it handles warrantless spy data to avoid abuses or leaks.

In his final congressional testimony before he was fired by President Trump this month, then-FBI Director James Comey unequivocally told lawmakers his agency used sensitive espionage data gathered about Americans without a warrant only when it was “lawfully collected, carefully overseen and checked.”

Once-top secret U.S. intelligence community memos reviewed by Circa tell a different story, citing instances of “disregard” for rules, inadequate training and “deficient” oversight and even one case of deliberately sharing spy data with a forbidden party. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – Iran has built a third underground ballistic missile production factory and will keep developing its missile program, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Thursday, in a development likely to fuel tension with Arab neighbors and Washington.

“Iran’s third underground factory has been built by the Guards in recent years … We will continue to further develop our missile capabilities forcefully,” Fars quoted the head of the Republican Guard’s airspace division, Amirali Hajizadeh, as saying.

Since taking office in January, US President Donald Trump has imposed new sanctions on Iran in response to Tehran’s recent missile launches, putting Tehran “on notice.” [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – Donald Trump’s administration is pledging a Supreme Court showdown over his travel ban after a federal appeals ruled that the ban “drips with religious intolerance, animus and discrimination.”

Citing the president’s duty to protect the country from terrorism, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday that the Justice Department will ask the high court to review the case, although he offered no timetable.

The Supreme Court is almost certain to step into the case over the presidential executive order issued by Trump that seeks to temporarily cut off visas for people from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The justices almost always have the final say when a lower court strikes down a federal law or presidential action. [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – NATO’s chief has affirmed that the alliance will join the international coalition fighting the Islamic State group but will not wage war against the extremists, as U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to meet allied leaders.

Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday that joining “will send a strong political message of NATO’s commitment to the fight against terrorism and also improve our coordination within the coalition.”

But he underlined that “it does not mean that NATO will engage in combat operations.” [ Source ]

(Worthy News) – The US has promised to increase military aid to Israel to help maintain the country’s military edge in the region as it faces mounting threats from its neighbors, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said as he spoke at Wednesday’s Mount Herzl ceremony marking Jerusalem Day.

“The US has promised to maintain Israel’s qualitative advantage in the Middle East,” the premier stated. Netanyahu then revealed that three days earlier, before US President Donald Trump’s visit to the Jewish state, “the US added another $75 million to the aid package for [Israel’s] missile defense program.”

Trump’s promise to preserve Israel’s advantage came amid concerns in Jerusalem about the recently announced $110 billion US-Saudi Arabia arms deal. [ Source ]