Indonesia: Churches close, but Christianity grows
Official church closures have not stopped the growth of Christianity in Indonesia.
Year: 2015
Mexico: Seven Evangelicals Jailed
Seven Evangelical Christians in Chiapas, Mexico, were imprisoned on Dec. 15 after refusing to convert to Catholicism.
China’s ‘Anti-Cult’ Campaign
Yet another church has been shut down in China under the Communist regime’s notorious “anti-cult” campaign.
Heavily redacted Benghazi emails released on Christmas Eve
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) released a handful of sensitive documents Thursday morning dealing with terrorism suspect Anwar al-Awlaki and the terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya.
U.S. plans raids to deport families who surged across border
The Department of Homeland Security has begun preparing for a series of raids that would target for deportation hundreds of families who have flocked to the United States since the start of last year, according to people familiar with the operation.
IDF instructs residents in North to stay away from border areas
The IDF on Wednesday instructed residents and farmers in northern Israel to refrain from approaching the border areas.
Nasrallah threatens Israel with retaliation for killing ‘brother’ Samir Kuntar
In a speech on Monday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah threatened Israel with revenge over the killing of terrorist Samir Kuntar in an air strike in Syria on Saturday.
Marc Andreessen: ‘In 20 years, every physical item will have a chip implanted in it’
The hype around the Internet of Things has been rising steadily over the past five years. In tech analyst Gartner’s Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies report in 2015, the IoT is at the peak of “inflated expectations”, particularly for areas like the smart home, which involve controlling your lights, thermostat or TV using your mobile phone.
EU gets one million migrants in 2015, smugglers seen making $1 billion
More than 1 million refugees and migrants came to the European Union this year, while almost 3,700 died or went missing in perilous journeys which reaped huge profit for smugglers, the International Organization for Migration said on Tuesday.
Israel says ‘David’s Sling’ missile shield to be deployed in 2016
Israel plans to deploy its new medium-range missile interceptor David’s Sling by mid-2016 after the U.S.-backed system passed final trials, defense officials said on Monday.
Polls may actually underestimate Trump’s support, study finds
Donald Trump leads the GOP presidential field in polls of Republican voters nationally and in most early-voting states, but some polls may actually be understating his support, according to a new study.
IDF shells South Lebanon after rocket fire on Western Galilee
Israel Defense Forces artillery units shelled targets in South Lebanon Sunday evening, shortly after at least three rockets were fired from across the border into Israeli territory.
Obama Admin: Congressional Crackdown on Terror Will Violate Iran Deal
Senior Obama administration officials are expressing concern that congressional attempts to tighten laws preventing terrorists from entering the United States could violate the Iran nuclear agreement and prompt Tehran to walk away from the agreement.
CAR: Jihadists kill eight Christians
Armed Seleka militia attacked a camp for displaced people in Ngakobo, Central African Republic on Dec. 3, killing eight Christians and wounding one UN peacekeeper.
Two Christian activists beaten
Two Christian activists who had previously served prison sentences were both beaten and detained in Vietnam’s Central Highlands last month.
Iranian Christian flees country
An Iranian convert to Christianity who was arrested during a raid of a fellowship gathering in the city of Karaj on Aug. 7 has decided to take the ‘advice’ of his Revolutionary Guard interrogators and leave Iran.
Obama triumphed all year over GOP majorities, White House crows
The White House gloated Thursday that President Obama triumphed over Republican majorities on virtually all of his priorities in 2015, from a climate change pact to the Iran nuclear deal — most of which were accomplished by sidestepping Congress.
Iran, Russia Begin Swapping Nuclear Materials
Russia and Iran are beginning to trade sensitive nuclear materials, an activity that is at least in part condoned by the Obama administration and permissible under the tenets of the recent nuclear accord, according to U.S. and Iranian officials.
Congress’ half-trillion dollar spending binge
Rand Paul thinks the national debt is the “greatest threat” to America’s future. Donald Trump warns that the nation is at risk of becoming “a large-scale version of Greece.” And Marco Rubio says the debt will “shackle future generations.”
Pakistan: Christians Fight Eviction
Thousands of poor Pakistanis face the destruction of their temporary homes in Islamabad after a government agency announced last week that Christian migrant slums threatened the demographics of the city’s Muslim majority.