Month: July 2021

Knesset fails to renew family reunification law as opposition MKs vote against government

After opposition MKs and a member of PM Naftali Bennet’s Yamina party voted against the new coalition government Tuesday, the Knesset failed to renew the temporary family reunification law which blocks the automatic granting of Israeli citizenship or residency to Palestinians who are married to Israeli citizens, the Times of Israel reports. Considered necessary to Israel’s security, the law has been renewed every year since its inception in 2003: that opposition MKs voted against its re-extension this time is understood as a political move to signal no confidence in the government.

U.N. urges Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan to recommit to dam talks

The United Nations called on Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt on Tuesday to recommit to talks on the operation of a giant hydropower dam, urging them to avoid any unilateral action, a day after Ethiopia began filling the dam’s reservoir.

Evangelical denomination passes resolution to acknowledge Church’s “complicity” in “dispossession, subjugation” of Indigenous peoples in Americas

On June 25 the Evangelical Covenant Church in the US voted to approve its “Resolution to Repudiate the Doctrine of Discovery,” acknowledging what it calls the Christian church’s “complicity” in the “dispossession, subjugation and relegation” of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Christianity Today reports.

China intensifies censorship of religious books in schools

A rights group that focuses on China has reported that, in the run-up to the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on July 1, the CCP intensified its nation-wide censorship of religious books and materials, Assist News reports. ChinaAid said in its report that a number of schools received notifications forbidding students to read religious books or use other faith-based materials.

Protestant leaders accuse Indonesian government of perpetuating unrest and division

Protestant Church leaders in Indonesia have accused Jakarta of perpetuating unrest and division instead of addressing human rights violations in the country, International Christian Concern reports. The Protestant Church Council, which comprises the Indonesian Christian Church in Papua, the Kemah Injili Church, and the Evangelical Church in Indonesia, published its accusations in a June 2 statement.

Poll: Over 25% of US churchgoers plan to stay away from in-person services

A new AP-NORC poll shows that over 25% of US adults who attended a church, mosque, or synagogue prior to the coronavirus pandemic have no plans to return to in-person services at this time, Christian Headlines reports. The survey was carried out from June 10–14 with 1,125 adults across the US and a margin of error of +/- 4.2 percentage points.

Bennett: If infection rate keeps rising, we will consider reinstating ‘Green Pass’

At the weekly cabinet meeting Sunday, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said that due to the recent spike in coronavirus infections, the government was considering reinstating some aspects of the so-called Green Pass system that differentiates between vaccinated and unvaccinated Israelis in terms of access to certain venues and activities.

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