A New Perspective on Constantine

(Worthy News) – Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev reportedly warned the U.S. on Friday that sanctions it plans to impose against Moscow over the nerve-agent attack of a former spy living in Britain could be treated as a declaration of an economic war.

Speaking during a trip to the Kamchatka region of Russia, Reuters reported Medvedev as saying: “I would not like to comment on talks about future sanctions, but I can say one thing: If some ban on banks’ operations or on their use of one or another currency follows, it would be possible to clearly call it a declaration of economic war.”

“And it would be necessary, it would be needed to react to this war economically, politically, or, if needed, by other means. And our American friends need to understand this,” he added. [ Source: CNBC (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday announced the first steps in the Trump administration’s bid to establish a standalone military Space Force by 2020, including creating an elite group of space troops in the same vein as current special operations forces.

Pence, in an appearance at the Pentagon, cited threats posed by adversaries like Russia and China, which are both developing anti-satellite weapons, lasers and hypersonic missiles that could threaten American reliance on space systems.

“As their actions make clear, our adversaries have transformed space into a warfighting domain already and the United States will not shrink from this challenge,” Pence said during a speech at the Pentagon. “America will always seek peace in space as on the earth, but history proves that peace only comes through strength and in the realm of outer space the United States Space Force will be that strength in the years ahead.” [ Source: Politico (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – A senior army official warned Thursday morning that Israel was nearing a full-blown military confrontation in the Gaza Strip after hundreds of rockets were launched overnight by Palestinian terror groups, adding that the government could begin evacuating communities near the coastal enclave in preparation.

“We are rapidly nearing a confrontation,” the IDF senior officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “Hamas is making serious mistakes, and we may have to make it clear after four years that this path doesn’t yield any results for it and isn’t worth it.”

Authorities said over 150 rockets and mortar shells were launched at Israeli communities since Wednesday evening. The barrages by the Hamas terror group continued throughout the night and into Thursday. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – South Carolina churches are shedding thousands of members a year, even as the state’s population grows by tens of thousands.

In the place we call the Bible Belt, where generations have hung their hats on their church-going nature and faithful traditions, an increasing trend of shrinking church attendance — and increasing church closings — signals a fundamental culture shift in South Carolina.

At least 97 Protestant churches across South Carolina have closed since 2011, according to data from the Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist and Southern Baptist denominations. An untold number of other closings, certainly, are not captured by these statistics. [ Source: SC State (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas met with Jordan’s King Abdullah in Amman on Wednesday to discuss the regional situation ahead of the expected unveiling of the U.S. administration’s Middle East peace plan.

After their meeting, Abbas said both leaders agreed to reject the plan, which U.S. President Donald Trump has described as the “deal of the century.”

Abbas declared that he would not cooperate with Trump’s peace mediation efforts after the U.S. last December officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and then moved its embassy to the city. The Palestinians envision parts of Jerusalem as the future capital of a Palestinian state. [ Source: Israel Hayom (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – After two days that saw the worst exchange of fire between Israel and Hamas since the 2014 war, a fragile truce prevailed Friday in Gaza, with no rocket attacks or airstrikes since an apparent ceasefire went into effect at midnight.

The Hamas terror group said a ceasefire had been reached “on the basis of mutual calm.” It said the deal was mediated by Egypt and other regional players.

Israel denied there was a truce, but a senior Israeli official told Israel Radio that “quiet would be met with quiet.” There were no instances of violence reported along the border overnight. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – A frustrated federal judge lashed the Trump administration Thursday and threatened to hold Attorney General Jeff Sessions in contempt after being told the government had deported an asylum seeker despite clear assurances she wouldn’t be touched.

Judge Emmet G. Sullivan said the government had “spirited away” the woman and her child, sticking them on a place back to El Salvador early in the morning even though she was a plaintiff in a groundbreaking case aiming to overturn the administration’s new stricter asylum policy.

It was the latest black eye for the administration’s deportation machinery, which just weeks ago drew the ire of other judges after admitting hundreds of illegal immigrant parents were ousted from the country without their children during the chaos of the zero-tolerance border policy. [ Source: Washington Times (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Iran and North Korea are growing their stockpile of ballistic missiles, including long-range missiles capable of striking U.S. assets, American allies, and even the continental United States, according to new congressional reports that shine a light on efforts by these rogue nations to advance their military capabilities.

North Korea continues to aid Iran with its advanced ballistic missiles program in defiance of international regulations barring such activity, according to the reports, issued by the Congressional Research Service. This includes an extensive proliferation network and multiple facilities dedicated to constructing short-range, medium-range, and long-range ballistic missiles.

Iran’s missiles, many of which are modeled off North Korean technology, are advanced enough to strike targets throughout the Middle East, including Israel, stoking fears that the next regional war—which many say is imminent—could present Iran an opportunity to show off its newest missile technology. [ Source: Washington Free Beacon (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Lawmakers are considering a bill to protect religious foster care and adoption agencies in response to recent crackdowns on religious charities by state and local governments.

Rep. Mike Kelly (R., Penn.) is sponsoring legislation aimed at protecting the religious liberty of charities that provide adoption and foster care services. The bipartisan bill, called the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act, would prohibit agencies that receive federal funding from excluding organizations based on their sincerely held beliefs.

The bill strikes close to home for the Pennsylvania Republican. One of the state’s largest foster care agencies, Catholic Social Services, could be shuttered amid a shortage crisis after Philadelphia used discrimination ordinances to cut off agencies that do not support gay marriage. Kelly said lawmakers should be increasing options for placing needy children, rather than taking them away to advance a political agenda. [ Source: Washington Free Beacon (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – The United States condemned the Hamas terror group on Thursday for launching some 180 rockets and mortar shells at Israeli population centers and defended Israel’s military response in the worst exchange of fire since the 2014 war.

The State Department’s undersecretary for public diplomacy and public affairs Heather Nauert told reporters that Israel was justified in responding with force to Hamas projectiles targeting Israeli towns and cities.

“It’s a very concerning situation,” she said. “We condemn the launching of missile attacks into Israel and call for an end to the destructive violence,” she said. “We fully support Israel’s right to defend itself and to take actions to prevent provocations of that nature.” [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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