New Jersey to require schools to teach LGBT history

(Worthy News) – New Jersey has become the second state in the nation after California to adopt a law that requires schools to teach about LGBT history in a move hailed by civil rights groups as a step toward inclusion and fairness.

Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat who promised to promote equality for gay and transgender people during his campaign, signed the bill Thursday. Among those celebrating the news was Jaime Bruesehoff of Vernon, whose 12-year-old transgender child, Rebekah, spoke in support of the bill in Trenton in December.

“This bill is so important for our young people,” Bruesehoff said. “They need to see examples of themselves in the history being taught and in classes they are going to each day. We know representation matters. [ Source: USA Today (Read More…) ]

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Putin, Erdogan, Rohani Set For Sochi Summit On Syria

(Worthy News) – The leaders of Russia, Iran, and Turkey are scheduled to meet in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi on February 14 to discuss the situation in Syria, according to Turkish and Russian state media.

The reports on February 3 did not give full details of the planned meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Hassan Rohani of Iran.

The three countries have said they want a political solution to end the seven-year civil war in Syria.

Moscow and Tehran back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while Turkey and the United States back differing rebel groups. [ Source: Radio Free Europe (Read More…) ]

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Russia reiterates support for Nicolas Maduro by sending 400 military contractors to Venezuela

(Worthy News) – Russia is playing a high-stakes game in the mounting crisis in Venezuela, where socialist President Nicolas Maduro has been mortgaging part of the country’s oil resources in exchange for financial and military support from Moscow.

Latin America is far from Russia, and Venezuela is impoverished, surrounded by hostile neighbors and squarely in the crosshairs of the Trump administration. But for a variety of reasons, the government of President Vladimir Putin sees in Caracas an ally worth cultivating.

The Kremlin has managed to maintain a decades-long relationship with Cuba’s communist regime, whose intelligence services have worked closely with Russian advisers to make inroads into Venezuela’s military and its reserve-rich oil sector. The U.S. estimates Russia’s total investment in Venezuela to be $30 billion. [ Source: Washington Times (Read More…) ]

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Ending long wait, Israel welcomes 82 Ethiopian immigrants

(Worthy News) – A group of 82 Ethiopians immigrants landed in Israel on Monday evening, the first of some thousand members of the Jewish community to be allowed to move to the Jewish state under a cabinet decision made in October 2018.

There are about 8,000 Ethiopian Jews still in Ethiopia, most of whom are ‘Falashmura,’ meaning their ancestors converted to Christianity, often under duress, generations ago.

Only members with first degree family already in Israel were included in the October decision. They are able to bring their partners and any unmarried children who do not have children of their own. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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Women’s Health Protection Act Could Get Rid of State Restrictions on Late-Term Abortions

(Worthy News) – A proposed abortion bill in Virginia which would have allowed abortion all the way up until birth, made national headlines last week before it was tabled. As CBN News discovered, a federal bill much like the measure in Virginia has been floating around Congress for years.

The Women’s Health Protection Act would override state restrictions on third-trimester abortions. It’s been introduced in every session of Congress since 2013.

The federal measure would get rid of state restrictions on abortion even after a fetus is deemed viable, meaning no restrictions on late-term abortions. [ Source: CBN News (Read More…) ]

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EU hails system to trade with Iran despite sanctions, but warns it over missiles

(Worthy News) – The EU warned Tehran over its ballistic missile program and interference in the Syria conflict Monday, while welcoming a new mechanism to trade with Iran while bypassing US sanctions.

In a long-awaited statement on Iran that has been the subject of more than a week of wrangling in Brussels, the EU restated its commitment to saving the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and took aim at Washington for abandoning the pact and reimposing sanctions.

The bloc hailed the creation last week by France, Britain and Germany of a system to allow firms to trade with Iran without falling foul of US sanctions as vital to supporting legitimate business and said the “resolve to complete this work is unwavering.” [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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Senate pushes back against Trump over Syria troop pullout

(Worthy News) – The Senate voted Monday to oppose the withdrawal of US troops from Syria and Afghanistan, breaking with President Donald Trump as he calls for a military drawdown in those countries.

Senators voted 70-26 for the amendment sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. The measure says the Islamic State group and al-Qaeda terrorists still pose a serious threat to the United States, and it warns that “a precipitous withdrawal” of US forces from those countries could “allow terrorists to regroup, destabilize critical regions and create vacuums that could be filled by Iran or Russia.”

Trump abruptly tweeted plans for a US pullout from Syria in December, arguing that the Islamic State group had been defeated even though his intelligence chiefs have said it remains a threat. Trump also ordered the military to develop plans to remove up to half of the 14,000 US forces in Afghanistan. [ Source: Times of Israel (Read More…) ]

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Life under ISIS led these Muslims to Christianity

(Worthy News) – Four years have passed since the Islamic State group’s fighters were run out of Kobani, a strategic city on the Syrian-Turkish border, but the militants’ violent and extreme interpretation of Islam has left some questioning their faith.

A new church is attracting converts. It is the first local Christian place of worship for decades.

“If ISIS represents Islam, I don’t want to be a Muslim anymore,” Farhad Jasim, 23, who attends the Church of the Brethren, told NBC News. “Their God is not my God.” [ Source: NBC News (Read More…) ]

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North Korea trying to protect nuclear, missile capabilities: U.N. report

(Worthy News) – North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs remain intact and the country is working to make sure those capabilities cannot be destroyed by any military strikes, according to a confidential report by U.N. sanctions monitors.

The report to a 15-member U.N. Security Council sanctions committee, seen by Reuters on Monday, comes ahead of a second planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later this month. They initially met in June 2018 and Kim pledged to work toward denuclearization.

While Trump has hailed “tremendous progress” in his dealings with North Korea, the U.N. report found that Pyongyang “is using civilian facilities, including airports, for ballistic missile assembly and testing with the goal of effectively preventing ‘decapitation’ strikes” on a smaller number of identified nuclear and missile assembly and manufacturing sites.” [ Source: Reuters (Read More…) ]

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