With Red Sea mega-city, Saudis eye economic unity with Egypt, Jordan

With Red Sea mega-city, Saudis eye economic unity with Egypt, Jordan

(Worthy News) – To observers, Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman Al Saud’s flagship idea may seem overly ambitious – to build a mega-city known as Neom along the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea that extends across the borders to Jordan and Egypt.

Indeed, its proponents are describing the planned 26,500 square kilometer city in almost messianic terms. “Neom is positioned to become an aspirational society that heralds the future of human civilization by offering its inhabitants an idyllic lifestyle set against a backdrop of a community founded on modern architecture, lush green spaces, quality of life, safety and technology in the service of humanity paired with excellent economic opportunities,” says Neom’s website.

That may be overstating Neom’s significance, but the project, which is yet to get under way, promises to be extremely important – not only for Saudi Arabia but for the region as a whole. For Riyadh, it is a central component of plans by Muhammad to ween the kingdom off of its dependence on oil exports and diversify the economy by emphasizing, for example, knowledge-based industries. Egypt and Jordan are reacting with enthusiasm to the plan, hoping it can give a boost to their depressed economies. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More…) ]

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Russia says U.S. plans to strike Damascus, pledges military response

Russia says U.S. plans to strike Damascus, pledges military response

(Worthy News) – Russia said on Tuesday it had information that the United States planned to bomb the government quarter in Damascus on an invented pretext, and said it would respond militarily if it felt Russian lives were threatened by such an attack.

Valery Gerasimov, head of Russia’s General Staff, said Moscow had information that rebels in the enclave of eastern Ghouta were planning to fake a chemical weapons attack against civilians and blame it on the Syrian army. [ Source: Reuters (Read More…) ]

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Trump promises ‘one of the largest military buildups’ in history

Trump promises ‘one of the largest military buildups’ in history

(Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said he is overseeing a massive military buildup in remarks to troops at California’s Marine Corps Air Station Miramar on Tuesday.

Trump said the U.S. military has been “asked to do more with less” citing deferred modernization and maintenance as well as longer deployments, and fewer troops and resources along with other issues.

“The Trump administration is committed to a policy of peace through strength,” Trump said. “We are now undertaking one of the largest military buildups since Ronald Reagan and one of the largest military buildups we’ve ever had in the history of our nation.” [ Source: UPI (Read More…) ]

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Sentencing of Pastor Adds to Uptick in Persecution in Algeria

Sentencing of Pastor Adds to Uptick in Persecution in Algeria

(Worthy News) – In the latest of a rash of persecution incidents in Algeria, a judge on Thursday (March 8) sentenced a pastor to a fine and a suspended prison sentence under a law that prohibits causing Muslims to doubt their religion, sources said.

In Frenda, Tiaret Province, pastor Nordine B. was ordered to pay a fine of 100,000 dinars (US$868) and received a three-month suspended prison sentence, the pastor confirmed to Morning Star News in an email.

Prosecutors had sought a six-month prison sentence and a fine of 50,000 dinars (US$434), another Algerian pastor confirmed to Morning Star News in an email. His name is withheld for security reasons. [ Source: Morningstar News (Read More…) ]

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Christian Family Stabbed at Home by Armed Group in Baghdad

Christian Family Stabbed at Home by Armed Group in Baghdad

(Worthy News) – International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that on March 9, 2018, a Christian family of three living in Baghdad was found dead in their home. An investigation showed that they had been stabbed to death the previous day by an armed group and their valuables were stolen. The victims are Dr. Hisham Shafiq al-Maskuni, his wife Shaza Malik, and his elderly mother Khairiya Dawood.

This is not an isolated tragedy. Attacks on Iraq’s Christian community have forced thousands from their homes. In particular, attacks on Christians in Baghdad have led so many to flee over the years that last summer eight churches closed their doors.

A doctor who worked in the same hospital as Dr. Hisham Shafiq told ICC in tears, “I cannot believe that he passed away in such a terrible way… I once heard Hisham say how people in his neighborhood are giving him hard times because they are trying to take his house and buy it. (I think) probably the killer was trying to threaten him and when Hisham recognized who he is, the killer decided to kill him and the rest of the family.” [ Source: Christian Headlines (Read More…) ]

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‘He’s a Very Devout Christian’: Why Pompeo Is Perfect Pick for Secretary of State

‘He’s a Very Devout Christian’: Why Pompeo Is Perfect Pick for Secretary of State

(Worthy News) – Despite skepticism over the latest White House cabinet shakeup, observers say CIA chief Mike Pompeo’s replacement of Rex Tillerson as secretary of state will likely have a positive effect on US foreign policy.

“This is actually a very good change and the timing of it couldn’t have been any better,” CBN News National Security Correspondent Erik Rosales said.

Rosales also noted that Pompeo and President Donald Trump are on the same page when it comes to the Iran nuclear deal, regarding it as a bad bargain for the US that “only favored Iran and the increase of nuclear arms in the area.” [ Source: CBN News (Read More…) ]

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Hundreds of U.S. Marines, IDF troops train in southern Israel

Hundreds of U.S. Marines, IDF troops train in southern Israel

(Worthy News) – Hundreds of Israeli soldiers and US Marines trained shoulder-to-shoulder Monday in southern Israel as part of Juniper Cobra 2018, drilling on close urban combat and tunnel warfare.

While the two-week joint Israeli/American military exercise drills on various scenarios adapted to Israel’s operational reality such as missile threats in various sectors simultaneously, the Marines have not directly participated in the missile drills that comprised the majority of Juniper Cobra.

Instead the 650 Marines trained with Israeli troops at the Tze’elim Army Base in several operational scenarios, including live fire and artillery drills, in order to enhance interoperability and cooperation between the two allies. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More…) ]

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Convening Israelis and Arabs, White House says Gaza central to peace effort

Convening Israelis and Arabs, White House says Gaza central to peace effort

(Worthy News) – Trump administration officials worked the phones for weeks to bring Israeli and Arab diplomats around the same table at the White House, and finally succeeded in doing so for the first time on Tuesday.

Senior administration officials said several parties to the US conference, which focused on the dire and pressing humanitarian plight facing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, had expressed that “they could not be in the same room as each other.”

And yet, “we had discussions with them, and everybody realized the importance of being in the room,” one senior official told The Jerusalem Post after the six-hour conference, held in the gilded Indian Treaty Room of the executive office building.

The discussion brought national security officials from Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain together for an exceptional diplomatic moment – the possible start of a regional dialogue over Israeli-Palestinian peace, ahead of the publication of a peace plan by the Trump administration meant to comprehensively end claims to the conflict. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More…) ]

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Poll: 64% of Americans favor Israelis in conflict with Palestinians

Poll: 64% of Americans favor Israelis in conflict with Palestinians

(Worthy News) – A Gallup poll published Tuesday found that 64 percent of Americans sympathize with Israelis in the conflict with Palestinians.

The poll, which surveyed 1,044 adults in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, reveals the highest level of support for Israel since 2013, which also found 64 percent of Americans favoring the Jewish state over the majority Muslim occupied territory.

“Israel and the Palestinian Authority have nearly reverse images in the U.S., further underscoring Americans’ partiality for Israel in the Mideast conflict,” Gallup said. [ Source: UPI (Read More…) ]

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Op-Ed: The Constitution may finally catch up with Obamacare

Op-Ed: The Constitution may finally catch up with Obamacare

(Worthy News) – Obamacare’s future is once again in jeopardy, thanks to one of the law’s most stubborn opponents — the U.S. Constitution. Twenty states are suing the federal government in Texas on the grounds that, since Congress zeroed-out the penalty for the individual mandate, the law is no longer constitutional.

They’re right.

The U.S. Supreme Court deemed the individual mandate constitutional back in June 2012 by interpreting the provision as a tax — something Congress clearly has the power to impose. But the tax reform law enacted in December 2017 reduced the penalty for not having coverage to zero dollars, starting in 2019. So, as a matter of fact, there’s no longer a tax for those going without insurance coverage.

This, the plaintiffs argue, means that the defense that allowed Obamacare to survive six years ago no longer applies. And that makes the mandate unconstitutional. [ Source: Washington Examiner (Read More…) ]

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