A New Perspective on Constantine

(Worthy News) – Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said Sunday that US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw US troops from Syria shouldn’t be “exaggerated” as it has little bearing on Israel’s activity in the region since the Israeli military has been operating independently in the war-torn country for years.

On Wednesday, President Trump announced the withdrawal of all US troops from Syria, which has been sharply criticized by many, especially by America’s Kurdish allies, who may well face a Turkish assault once US troops leave, and had been staunchly opposed by the Pentagon.

“The IDF has operated independently in this region for decades … the arrival of the Russians at the end of 2015 created a new challenge, and made it necessary for us to establish a mechanism to prevent friction,” the chief of staff said. [ Source: Ynet News (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – The Palestinian Authority announced on Sunday that its security forces have thwarted attempts by Palestinians to sell lands and houses in the West Bank and east Jerusalem to Jewish buyers, and the PA’s Preventive Security Service said in a rare statement that it has arrested 44 Palestinians suspected of involvement in the alleged real estate transactions.

The statement is in the context of a stepped-up PA campaign to deter Palestinians from selling properties to Jews. PA law bars selling land to a “hostile state or any of its citizens.”

In recent weeks, Palestinian religious authorities have repeatedly warned Palestinians against engaging in such deals and said that anyone who violates the law would be accused of “high treason.” The warning came in the aftermath of a number of cases in which east Jerusalem residents either sold their houses to Jewish organizations or were suspected of acting as middlemen in the real estate transactions. [ Source: Jerusalem Post (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – The federal government remains in partial shut down after Congress and President Donald Trump failed to reach an agreement on $5 billion in spending for his border wall.

Vice President Mike Pence went to Capitol Hill Saturday to take a counter-offer to Democrats, while President Trump met with Republican lawmakers over lunch. Some told the president to fight for the wall. Others told him to reopen the government.

The Senate and the House also met on Saturday for a rare weekend session, but adjourned until Christmas Eve, and will not be back for a full session until Thursday. [ Source: CBN News (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich has signed a bill into law that would imprison doctors who perform an abortion method commonly used during the second trimester, but vetoed another bill that would have banned abortion after six weeks.

“I’m pro-life,” Kasich said at the bill’s signing Wednesday, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. “I think the issue, whether you’re pro-life or you’re pro-choice, is moving in the direction of the earliest the better and not the latest.”

The ban he signed into law would affect abortions 12 weeks into a pregnancy or later that use a method known as dilation and evacuation. Doctors perform these types of abortion by using surgery tools and suction to remove a fetus from the womb. [ Source: Washington Examiner (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – President Trump has offered to come down from his $5 billion border wall demand, the White House said Sunday, signaling he would sign a bill that includes less money and puts limits on the type of fencing that can be constructed.

White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said they made an offer to Democrats between the $1.3 billion included in last year’s spending and the $5 billion Mr. Trump has demanded this year. He said they will agree that the money must be spent on a “steel slatted fence,” which would rule out any of the concrete prototypes that the president tested last year.

“We moved off of the 5, we hope they move up from their 1.3,” Mr. Mulvaney said on “Fox News Sunday.” [ Source: Washington Times (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – President Trump said Sunday that Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan will become acting Pentagon chief on Jan. 1, greatly accelerating the exit of current Defense Secretary James Mattis who had promised to stay on the job until the end of February.

The president announced on Twitter that Mr. Shanahan will take the reins of the Defense Department at the beginning of 2019. It’s unclear whether Mr. Mattis decided to leave his post earlier than expected or whether he’s being forced out ahead of schedule by the White House.

A former Boeing executive, Mr. Shanahan has been deputy defense secretary since July 2017. [ Source: Washington Times (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Turkey deployed hundreds of troops near a Kurdish stronghold in Syria Sunday, in the wake of the United States announcing plans to withdraw from the country.

A Turkish military column including trucks and armored personnel carriers as well as other carriers with armored vehicles, other material and ammunition entered the countryside of the Manbij area, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Trump wrote on Twitter Sunday that he had a “long and productive” call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan regarding military deployment in Syria. [ Source: UPI (Read More…) ]

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(Worthy News) – Doctors worked to help survivors and hundreds of people searched on debris-strewn beaches for more victims Monday from a deadly tsunami that smashed into houses, hotels and other buildings without warning in the darkness along an Indonesian strait.

The waves that swept terrified people into the sea Saturday night along the Sunda Strait followed an eruption and possible landslide on Anak Krakatau, one of the world’s most infamous volcanic islands.

At least 281 people were killed and more than 1,000 were injured. Dozens are missing from the disaster areas along the coastlines of western Java and southern Sumatra islands, and the numbers could increase once authorities hear from all stricken areas. [ Source: Washington Times (Read More…) ]

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