Live updates on faith, culture, politics, and humanitarian issues impacting Christians across the globe.
Turkey Wages Water War With Syria
Posted on Saturday, June 14, 2014
The Syrian civil war has once more taken a dire turn for the worse. Turkey has altered its strategy against its opponents, the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Instead of simply aiding the Syrian rebels, Turkey is…
Obama Weighs Military Options in Iraq
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
The menu of options available to President Barack Obama in Iraq is a familiar one: Share intelligence, give tactical advice, launch airstrikes. But the president's decision is complicated by the difficult relationship with Baghdad since U.S. troops left,…
U.S. Quietly Sending Troops to Train Forces in Baltic States
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
As NATO refocuses on its eastern borders after Russia's annexation of Crimea, the U.S. is quietly deploying more troops to train special forces in former Soviet bloc states anxious about Moscow's intentions.
Iran Open to Shared Role with U.S. in Iraq
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
Shi'te Muslim Iran is so alarmed by Sunni insurgent gains in Iraq that it may be willing to cooperate with Washington in helping Baghdad fight back, a senior Iranian official told Reuters.
New Al Qaeda Group Targets Westerners
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
Al Qaeda's ultra-extremist Syrian offshoot known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) is stepping up efforts to recruit Americans and other westerners for jihad in Syria and possibly for future domestic terror attacks, according to…
Jihadists Institute Sharia ‘Code of Conduct’ in Captured Cities
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
The Islamic extremist group that has captured several Iraqi cities and pushed the country into chaos has now begun issuing a "code of conduct" to all residents living in the seized territories, which are now under strict Islamic…
Islamic Caliphate Established Across Syria, Northern Iraq
Posted on Friday, June 13, 2014
The Obama administration’s failure to secure a status-of-forces agreement with the government of Iraq, or to take decisive action in Syria to end that civil war, has provided al-Qaida an opportunity to fulfill its dream of creating an…
Russia on Iraq: ‘We told you so’
Posted on Thursday, June 12, 2014
As the situation in Iraq begins to looks more and more like a complete state meltdown, Russia has stepped in with a familiar refrain: "We told you so."
In Extremist’ Rise in Iraq, America’s Legacy in Iraq Being Defined
Posted on Thursday, June 12, 2014
First Falluja, then Mosul, and now the oil-refinery town of Bayji. The rapid advance of Al Qaeda-inspired militants across the Sunni heartland of northern and western Iraq has been stunning and relentless—and utterly predictable. Here’s a forecast: the…
Terrorists “Praise Allah” for Twitter
Posted on Thursday, June 12, 2014
Jihadists fighting in Syria and Iraq have "thanked Allah" for the existence of Twitter, the social media platform, as a means of advertising their "victories in battle."
Iraq Sought U.S. Strikes in March and Again in May Against Terrorists
Posted on Thursday, June 12, 2014
As the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) threatened Western Iraq, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki secretly asked the Obama administration to consider carrying out air strikes against the terrorist organization, according to the New…
