Western officials fear Iran hiding equipment it could use to build nuke — report
Iran is hiding equipment from international officials that could enable it to build a nuclear bomb, according to a Monday report.
UK
EU plans ‘green certificate’ to allow vaccinated travelers free access to European bloc
The European Union has confirmed its plans to issue ‘digital green certificates’ to vaccinated members of its 450 million population, allowing them to travel freely across the bloc this summer, the UK’s Daily Mail reports. The new ‘passport’ would be issued to those who have been recently tested or who have recovered from the virus as well.
Anti Lockdown Protests Take Place World Wide (Video)
Demonstrators took to the streets in several European cities on Saturday to protest Covid-19 lockdown restrictions, with clashes between demonstrators and police erupting in the German city of Kassel while in London, police arrested dozens of people for breaching pandemic restrictions. Protests also erupted in Austria, Belgium, Britain, Croatia, Finland, Poland, Romania, Sweden and Switzerland as European authorities confront a third coronavirus wave.
Italy, France, Germany join countries that have suspended AstraZeneca vaccine
Italy and Germany on Monday joined Ireland and Holland as the latest European Union member states to suspend the use of the British-Swedish AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, Reuters reports. The decisions follow Norwegian reports of blood clots and brain hemorrhages among people who had taken the shot; Denmark, Norway, and Bulgaria have also suspended use of the vaccine.
US designates African ISIS groups as foreign terrorists; freezes assets, prohibits business with them
The US State Department announced Wednesday it has designated two Islamic State (ISIS) affiliates in DR Congo and Mozambique as foreign terrorist organizations: it has frozen all US property and assets in their names, and has prohibited Americans from conducting business with them or providing material support to them, UPI reports.
India Persecution: Tribal animist relatives persecute Christian mother of four
Enraged by her new faith in Christ, the tribal animist relatives of a mother of four in central India have banished her from their village and barred her from harvesting the crop she needs to feed her family, Morning Star News reports.
Meghan Markle, Prince Harry Married In Secret Amid Racism Claims
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry said Sunday they married in secret three days before their highly publicized royal wedding, as they felt “trapped” in the royal family.
COVID-19: UK to discuss EU proposals for coronavirus vaccine passport aimed at reviving international travel
The UK will discuss with the EU the bloc’s proposals to create a vaccine passport that could allow people to travel more freely in time for the summer holidays.
UK, France and Germany condemn Iran over UN inspection limits
Britain, France and Germany on Tuesday said they “deeply regret” Iran’s decision to restrict site inspections by the UN’s nuclear watchdog after a US refusal to lift existing sanctions.
India: Hindu nationalists attack separate church gatherings on same day; pastor arrested
Two Christian congregations in central India were attacked on the same day by around 100 radical Hindu nationalists who stormed each of their worship gatherings on February 7, International Christian Concern (ICC) reports. While there are no reports of the attackers being arrested, the pastor of one of the churches attacked was arrested and detained before being released on bail.
Khamenei: If we wanted nukes, nobody, including ‘Zionist clown,’ could stop us
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayotallah Ali Khamenei claimed Monday that his country has no interest in a nuclear weapon, but said that if it wanted one, no one — including Israel — could prevent it.
Water Leaks Indicate New Damage at Fukushima Nuclear Plant
Cooling water levels have fallen in two reactors at the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant since a powerful earthquake hit the area last weekend, indicating possible additional damage, its operator said Friday.
IAEA found uranium traces at two sites Iran barred it from, sources say
The U.N. nuclear watchdog found uranium particles at two Iranian sites it inspected after months of stonewalling, diplomats say, and it is preparing to rebuke Tehran for failing to explain, possibly complicating U.S. efforts to revive nuclear diplomacy.
Malaysia: Abducted Pastor now missing for four years: “Please pray for justice”
A pastor who was abducted by Malaysia state police on February 13, 2017, has not been seen or heard of since, Open Doors UK reports. The fourth anniversary of the abduction of Pastor Raymond Koh has just passed and his family still has no answers as to why he was kidnapped or what has happened to him.
Hundreds of UK churches join initiative to welcome Hong Kong migrants
Over 500 British churches have joined a UK-wide initiative to welcome Hong Kong residents escaping China’s increasingly oppressive policies in the city, the Christian Post reports.
Magnitude 7.3 earthquake strikes near site of Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan
A magnitude 7.3 earthquake struck Saturday off the coast of Japan’s Fukushima prefecture, which was home to one of the world’s worst nuclear disasters almost a decade ago.
Report: Iranian nuke scientist was killed by Israeli 1-ton automated gun
Top Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was assassinated in November by a Mossad team using a one-ton automated weapon that had been smuggled into Iran in pieces, according to a Wednesday report in London’s Jewish Chronicle.
Nigerian government executes six Christian soldiers: “Nigeria is becoming like Rwanda”
The Nigerian government executed six Christian soldiers on trumped-up charges in Abuja last month, a civil rights lawyer has told the Christian Post. According to Emeka Umeagbalasi, Chair of the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, the soldiers were framed for a crime committed by one of their superiors.
COVID-19: South Africa halts rollout of Oxford/AstraZeneca jab due to ‘limited protection’ as Britons face needing a third jab
South Africa is suspending its rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine after findings suggested it offers limited protection against mild disease caused by the COVID-19 variant discovered there.
EU Furious As Russia Expels German, Swedish, and Polish Diplomats
Amid mounting international pressure over its perceived crackdown on dissent, Russia has expelled three diplomats from Germany, Sweden, and Poland, prompting an angry response from the European Union. Moscow says the diplomats joined unauthorized protests supporting opposition activist Alexei Navalny, who was jailed earlier this week.