Thursday, October 31, 2013

Doomed Damascus & King of the North

My Way News - Israel strikes Russian weapons shipment in Syria
My Way News reports: "Israeli warplanes attacked a shipment of Russian missiles inside a Syrian government stronghold, officials said Thursday, a development that threatened to add another volatile layer to regional tensions from the Syrian civil war [...] the target was Russian-made SA-125 missiles."

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Persecution

My Way News - Beleaguered Syrian Christians fear future
My Way News reports: "The apparent deliberate campaign against Christians and other minorities have stoked worries in Washington and many European capitals over providing advanced weaponry to the mainstream opposition Free Syria Army, amid fears the arms will end up in the hands of extremists. Christians in Damascus are convinced that extremists are deliberately targeting their neighborhoods as rebels battle government forces trying to uproot them from the towns they control outside the capital."

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Earthquakes

My Way News - Series of earthquakes leaves Israelis jittery
My Way News reports: "Five moderate earthquakes rattled northern Israel this week, causing no major damage but prompting increased concern over the Jewish state's preparedness for a much larger disaster. Israel sits on the junction of the African and Arabian tectonic plates, and it is prone to small tremors. This week's cluster registered between magnitude 3 and 4."

Friday, October 25, 2013

Earthquake

My Way News - 7.3-magnitude quake rocks Japan; no damage reports
My Way News reports: "An earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck early Saturday off Japan's east coast, the U.S. Geological Survey said, triggering small tsunamis but causing no apparent damage. Japan's meteorological agency said the quake was an aftershock of the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami that struck the same area in 2011, killing about 19,000 people and devastating the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant."

Monday, October 21, 2013

Rumors of War - Iran

My Way News - Signs of rift between Israel and US over Iran
My Way News reports: "Just days after the first round of global nuclear talks with Iran, a rift appears to be emerging between Israel and its closest ally, the United States. Israel's prime minister on Sunday called on the U.S. to step up the pressure on Iran, even as American officials hinted at the possibility of easing tough economic pressure."

Persecution

My Way News - Christians mourn Cairo shooting that killed 4
My Way News reports: "The violence by Islamic radicals has risen since the military deposed President Mohammed Morsi in July and cracked down on his Muslim Brotherhood and its allies. The attacks have targeted mainly security forces and Christians, whom the Islamists blame because of their strong support of Morsi's ouster. In Sinai, suspected jihadist fighters have stepped up violence against soldiers and police since the coup."

Friday, October 18, 2013

Rumors of War - Iran

My Way News - Iran talks with West _ but battles over outreach
My Way News reports: "The West fears Iran's uranium enrichment labs eventually could churn out weapons-grade material, and some in Israel and elsewhere worry the outreach and goodwill by Rouhani is merely a ploy to buy time. Iran insists it does not seek nuclear weapons. [...] overtures to Washington opened by Rouhani at the U.N. in New York [...] challenges a power structure that gives the Revolutionary Guard and other hard-liners vast controls over policymaking, and forces many Iranians to re-evaluate generations of anti-American views that go back to a U.S.-backed coup that reinstalled the pro-Western shah dynasty in 1953."

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Persecution

My Way News - Amid new attacks, Egypt's Copts preserve heritage
My Way News reports: "The little known Anba Bishay Church offers a striking example of how Egypt's Orthodox Coptic Church jealously guards its heritage against formidable odds - whether decades of neglect, discrimination by the Muslim majority or the violence by Islamic militants, who have gained significant power since the 2011 ouster of longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak."

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Rumors of War - Iran

My Way News - Iran nuclear talks end on upbeat note; more in Nov
My Way News reports: "Nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers ended on an upbeat note Wednesday, with top Western and Iranian negotiators announcing a follow-up round early next month while speaking of significant progress in efforts to reduce fears that Tehran may be seeking atomic arms."

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Rumors of War - Iran

My Way News - Israel leader says world must keep pressuring Iran
My Way News reports: "A day before world powers were to renew talks with Iran over its suspect nuclear program, Israel's prime minister urged the international community Monday to maintain firm pressure on the Islamic Republic until it quits enriching uranium that the West fears could eventually be used to produce atomic weapons."

Monday, October 14, 2013

Pestilence

My Way News - Muslim hajj crowds thinned by virus concerns
My Way News reports: "Muslims from across the world poured Sunday into a sprawling tent city in the Saudi desert before the start of the annual Islamic hajj pilgrimage, but the number of the pilgrims this year has been reduced in part by concerns over a respiratory virus centered in the Arabian peninsula. [...]  Saudi authorities sharply cut back on visas for groups such as the elderly, pregnant women and those with chronic illnesses as a precaution against a new respiratory virus related to SARS that has killed more than 50 people in the kingdom this past year."

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Nations in Distress

My Way News - Al-Qaida surges back in Iraq, reviving old fears
My Way News reports: "Al-Qaida has come roaring back in Iraq since U.S. troops left in late 2011 and now looks stronger than it has in years. The terror group has shown it is capable of carrying out mass-casualty attacks several times a month, driving the death toll in Iraq to the highest level in half a decade. It sees each attack as a way to cultivate an atmosphere of chaos that weakens the Shiite-led government's authority."

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Future Fear

My Way News - Study: Temperatures go off the charts around 2047
My Way News reports: "Starting in about a decade, Kingston, Jamaica, will probably be off-the-charts hot - permanently. Other places will soon follow. Singapore in 2028. Mexico City in 2031. Cairo in 2036. Phoenix and Honolulu in 2043. And eventually the whole world in 2047. A new study on global warming pinpoints the probable dates for when cities and ecosystems around the world will regularly experience hotter environments the likes of which they have never seen before."

Wednesday, October 09, 2013

Persecution

My Way News - Attack on Jerusalem graves unnerves Christians
My Way News reports: "Christian leaders in Israel are up in arms over what they say is a string of relentless attacks on church properties and religious sites - most recently the desecration of a historic Protestant cemetery where vandals toppled stone crosses from graves and bludgeoned them to pieces."

Tuesday, October 08, 2013

Nations in Distress

My Way News - Egypt's capital scarred by 2 1/2 years of turmoil
My Way News reports: "Egypt's capital has long been proud of its nickname, 'Mother of the World' - a metropolis of 18 million throbbing with the vitality and fun of other great cities, even if at times it seemed unmanageable and chaotic. But Cairo's spirit has been deeply scarred by 32 months of turmoil and bloodshed from two 'revolutions,' constant protests and crackdowns, and a military coup."

Monday, October 07, 2013

Nations in Distress

My Way News - Attacks surge in Egypt, a day after deadly clashes
My Way News reports: "A string of attacks killed nine members of Egypt's security and military forces and hit the country's main satellite communications station Monday, in an apparent retaliation by Islamic militants a day after more than 50 supporters of the ousted president were killed in clashes with police. The attacks show a dangerous expansion of targets, including the first strike against civilian infrastructure in the heart of the capital."

Persecution

The Washington Post - Christians under threat in Syria as Islamist extremists gain influence
The Washington Post reports: "Syria is not the only place in the wider region where Christians are being targeted. Coptic churches in Egypt have been attacked, and Pakistan last week experienced the deadliest church bombing in the country’s history. The militants who attacked a mall in Nairobi last month singled out non-Muslims. The rash of assaults has led some to question the future of Christianity in Syria, where adherents make up about 10 percent of the population, and in the wider Middle East."

Saturday, October 05, 2013

Rumors of War - Kings of the East

My Way News - Indian army says 7 rebels killed in Kashmir
My Way News reports: "The Indian army said Saturday that it killed seven suspected rebels in two separate gunbattles near the heavily militarized line dividing the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan. Four militants were killed Saturday after they crossed over from Pakistani-held territory into the Indian portion of Kashmir in Kupwara region, an army officer said."

Thursday, October 03, 2013

Rumors of War - King of the North

My Way News - Putin says Russia will expand its Arctic presence
My Way News reports: "President Vladimir Putin pledged Thursday that Russia will expand its presence in the Arctic, adding that work is under way to restore a major Soviet-era military base there. Speaking at a meeting with activists of the main Kremlin party, United Russia, Putin said the Arctic region is essential for Russia's economic and security interests."

Tuesday, October 01, 2013

Rumors of War - Iran

My Way News - Netanyahu: Israel won't let Iran get nuclear arms
My Way News reports: "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu played the spoiler Tuesday to Iran's attempts to ease relations with the West, calling the Iranian leader 'a wolf in sheep's clothing' and declaring that Israel will do whatever it takes to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons, even if it has to stand alone."