Syrian Christians Confront Growing Hostilities
At least hundreds of thousands of Syrian Christians face growing anti-Christian hostilities in war-ravaged Syria and neighboring Lebanon, aid workers said Friday.
Lebanon
Syria says Israel targeted Damascus area in airstrikes
Syria’s official SANA news agency said Tuesday evening that Israel carried out airstrikes on targets in the Damascus area and southern Syria, Israel National News (INN) reports. In its report, SANA said Syria’s air defense systems had been activated due to “Israeli aggression,” and that several missiles had been intercepted.
In message to Hezbollah, IAF practices striking 3,000 targets in 24 hours
A Hezbollah missile hits an IAF fighter jet. In response, the entire air force is scrambled to participate in a broad offensive against Lebanon, including attacks against infrastructure such as bridges, power plants and airports spanning 24 hours. That scenario was the focus of an IDF exercise that began on Sunday morning and ended on Tuesday at noon.
Iran could deploy 200 missiles in Iraq to attack Israel
With tensions rising with Iran, Israel is concerned that the Islamic Republic could deploy up to 200 long-range missiles in Iraq that could be used to attack the Jewish state. Iran is already believed to have hundreds of missiles that can reach Israel.
New report exposes Hezbollah missile sites near Beirut charity-run schools
A new report has shed light on Hezbollah’s systematic use of civilian infrastructure to shield its missile storage and launch sites in Lebanon.
Ex-U.S. Secretary Schultz Dies At 100
Former U.S. Secretary of State George P. Shultz, who spent most of the 1980s trying to end the Cold War and reach Middle East peace, has died. He was 100.
Report: Israel strikes Hezbollah targets in Syria
Syrian state television said Wednesday evening the country’s air defenses responded to “Israeli aggression” in what appears to be an attack on Hezbollah targets in the area.
Syrian media reports Israeli airstrikes near western city of Hama
Syrian state media reported Israeli airstrikes near the western city of Hama in the predawn hours of Friday morning.
US official: Target of Syria airstrikes was used for Iran’s nuclear program
Airstrikes near the Syria-Iraq border early Wednesday targeted sites used for Iran’s nuclear program, a senior US intelligence official told AlJazeera Wednesday.
Explosion in Lebanon injures at least 10 people
At least 10 people were injured when an explosion erupted in a warehouse holding gas canisters in Lebanon Sunday, France24 reports. The wounded were rushed to the hospital by Lebanese Red Cross rescuers who had been sent to the site of the explosion near Lebanon’s border with Syria.
Hezbollah TV denies new Lebanese reservoir will deplete water flow into Israel
The Hezbollah terror group’s al-Manar television channel on Friday denied that a reservoir being constructed by Lebanon near the northern border will limit water flow to the tributaries of Israel’s Jordan River.
Nasrallah claims Saudi-Israeli plot to kill him; says precision missiles doubled
Lebanon’s Hezbollah has doubled the number of its precision missiles over the past year, the terror group’s leader Hassan Nasrallah said Sunday.
Israel expects Iranian attacks may come through Iraq and Yemen
According to an Israeli military spokesman, Israel anticipates that an Iranian attack may come from Iraq and Yemen – two countries that are considered Iran’s proxies in its conflict with the Jewish State, the Jerusalem Post reports.
New paper warns Israel, Iran on collision course
The US is making a mistake by leaving the Middle East to its own devices and this could lead to a conflagration between Israel and Iran, wrote former Turkish MP Aykan Erdemir and former US Ambassador to Turkey Eric Edelman in an article for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
Hungary Soccer Club And Government Support Persecuted Christians
Hungary’s leading soccer club Ferencváros (FTC) and the conservative government have agreed to support persecuted Christians worldwide.
Iran: assassinated nuclear scientist almost impossible to replace; Iranian-backed Hezbollah leader reportedly fears he may be targeted next
A former head of Israel’s military intelligence service has said it will be almost impossible for Iran to replace top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who was assassinated Friday in an operation attributed to Israeli spy agency Mossad, World Israel News reports. Moreover, Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Lebanon-based Iranian terror proxy Hezbollah, has reportedly gone underground out of concern he may be targeted next.
Israeli military prepares for possibility Trump will strike Iran
The Israel Defense Forces have in recent weeks been instructed to prepare for the possibility that the U.S. will conduct a military strike against Iran before President Trump leaves office, senior Israeli officials tell me.
Lebanese society and Christian community endangered by Hezbollah and regional actors
The head of a leading Christian advocacy group has urgently called for political reform that would protect Lebanese society – and its Christian community – from power-hungry actors like the leaders of Turkey, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, Real Clear Religion (RCR) reports.
Hamas calls on Biden to reverse current US policy toward Palestinians
While the leaders of several Arab countries expressed enthusiasm for future cooperation with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris following the November 3 US election, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called on a Biden administration to “correct” what he described as “discriminatory American policy toward the Palestinian people that has caused instability in the region and the world,” the Jewish Press reports.
US sanctions leading Christian political ally of Hezbollah
The Trump administration announced Friday that it has placed sanctions on Lebanon’s ex-foreign minister, a key Christian parliamentary ally of the Lebanese Iran-backed group Hezbollah, PBS reports. The sanctions were placed on current lawmaker Gebran Bassil, who is a son-in-law of President Michel Aoun and head of the largest political bloc in Lebanon’s parliament.