Central-bank digital currency” doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. But you might want to get used to saying it. These so-called CBDCs, or digital versions of dollars, yuan, euros, yen or any other currency, are coming, say those who study them. And depending on how they are designed and rolled out, their impact on the banking system could be profound.
Japan has declined the refugee status of a Christian evangelist who fled his native Bangladesh after Islamic militants threatened to kill him for converting to Christianity and being forced to marry a Muslim woman.
New York City health officials announced Friday that Omicron XBB.1.5 is the most transmissible COVID-19 variant they know of to date, and it may be more likely to affect those who have been vaccinated against the Covid-19 and those who have already had the virus, NBC New York reports.
Palestinian militant groups are preparing for new rounds of violent conflict with Israel this year as part of their resistance to the new “fascist and racist” right-wing Israeli government, Israel National News (INN) reports.
A US State Department spokesperson has told the Washington Free Beacon news outlet that it would be “unacceptable” to the Biden administration for Israel to unilaterally change the “historic status quo” and allow Jews to pray on Jerusalem’s famous Temple Mount.
Hungary’s rightwing government has condemned the West for allegedly playing down the persecution of Christians after Islamists in Africa killed and injured dozens of believers on Sunday, including a priest.
Several House Republicans introduced a bill on Jan. 13 that would prohibit federal workers from using their position to advocate for censoring free speech expressed on social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, and on other outlets.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Israel is prepared to use force to confront Iran, hours after a senior security official claimed the prime minister would be willing to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities if other options for preventing the Islamic Republic from acquiring nuclear weapons are exhausted.
A group of more than 90 countries — the majority of them Arab, but also including European, Asian, and South American nations — signed an open letter on Monday, demanding that Israel lift sanctions recently introduced against the Palestinian Authority.
A German court tried to force 85-year-old Holocaust survivor Inna Zhvanetskaya to get COVID-19 vaccinations and be committed to a psychiatric facility.
The US Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case brought by an Evangelical Christian who claims his employer discriminated against him by refusing to honor his religious beliefs and allow him Sundays off as a Sabbath, the Christian Post (CP) reports.
The i24NEWS media outlet reported exclusively Monday that an Iranian Shiite mullah recently went to Israel for a secret meeting with officials close to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Italy’s most wanted Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, who was accused of several high-profile murders, has been detained after three decades on the run. The man was captured Monday by police at a private hospital on the Italian island of Sicily.
Suspected Islamist gunmen burned a Catholic priest to death and shot and injured his colleague in northwest Nigeria on Sunday, police and church sources said, prompting Christians to call for prayers.
A group of eight House Republicans have introduced legislation to end a federal mandate requiring foreign air travelers to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before entering the United States. House bill HR 185 was filed by Representative Thomas Massie and seven GOP co-sponsors on January 9.
A federal court has ruled that Christian colleges and universities with traditional views on sexuality and marriage can continue to receive funding through Title IX, rejecting LGBT students’ efforts to strike down a religious exemption to federal discrimination law.
Tens of thousands of demonstrators braved pouring rain Saturday night to gather at Tel Aviv’s Habima Square for protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government and its plans for sweeping changes to Israel’s justice system.
An aircraft carrier strike group led by the USS Nimitz is conducting operations in the disputed South China Sea, including practice strike missions by aircraft, the Navy disclosed Friday.
The House Judiciary Committee is spearheading an investigation into the discovery of classified documents at President Biden’s home and office, less than two weeks after Republicans took control of the lower chamber.
Authorities in Nepal confirmed Sunday that at least 68 people died after a regional passenger plane with 72 aboard crashed into a gorge while landing at a newly opened airport in the resort town of Pokhara.