Category: World

Report: Plans Underway for Possible Trump-Putin Summit

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Trump and Putin

White House officials are making plans for a possible summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to The Wall Street Journal. The report, citing a senior administration official, said U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman, has been in Washington to help schedule the meeting. “This has been an ongoing project of Ambassador Huntsman, stretching back months, of getting a formal meeting between Putin and Trump,” the official said. People familiar with the plans said the purpose of the summit would be to address long-standing differences between the two countries. U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election with the intent of helping Trump win. The findings have led to a special counsel investigation into whether Trump’s campaign colluded with Russia. Trump has denied any collusion. The U.S. also has denounced Russia’s alliance with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and has expressed opposition to Moscow’s military intervention in eastern Ukraine. Tensions between Washington and Moscow escalated in March when the U.S. and dozens of other nations ordered Russian diplomats to leave their countries after a former Russian spy and his daughter were poisoned in the United Kingdom with a military-grade nerve…

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Officials: Trump, Japan’s Abe to Meet Ahead of Possible US-North Korea Summit

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Trump and Abe

by Steve Herman President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are to meet before a planned summit between Trump and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, according to Japanese officials. Trump and Abe spoke Monday as American officials were in North Korea and Singapore to discuss arrangements for the prospective talks. The White House has not responded to VOA queries about the details of the Trump-Abe discussion, however. The phone conversation took place before Trump went to Arlington National Cemetery for a Memorial Day ceremony. There the president made no reference to the situation on the Korean peninsula in his 22-minute scripted remarks. Nearly 34,000 Americans died as a result of hostile action in the three-year war on the peninsula. Hostilities ceased in 1953 with an armistice but no peace treaty has ever been signed. It is unclear when or where Trump and Abe will meet before the anticipated Singapore summit, which the U.S. president has said in recent days is likely to occur on June 12 after he declared last Thursday that the summit would not be held on that day. Both Trump and Abe are set to attend the Group of Seven economic summit June 8-9…

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Archaeologists Discover New Geoglyphs Near Nazca Lines in Peru

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Geoglyph

Reuters   Archaeologists using drones have discovered more than 25 geoglyphs etched into a swath of coastal desert in southern Peru near the Nazca Lines, a culture ministry official said Monday. Most of the newly found geoglyphs, which include figures of a killer whale and a woman dancing, appear to have been made by the Paracas culture more than 2,000 years ago, hundreds of years before the Nazca people created similar giant drawings nearby, said Johny Isla, an archaeologist who heads the culture ministry’s conservation efforts in the region. An additional 25 geoglyphs that had previously been spotted by local residents have also been mapped with drones, Isla said. Drones “have allowed us to broaden our documentation and discover new groups of figures,” Isla said on a tour of the geoglyphs in the province of Palpa. But unlike the Nazca lines, most of which can only be seen by flying above them, many of the so-called Palpa Lines were carved into hillsides and can be seen from below, Peru’s culture ministry said in a statement. The geoglyphs created by the Nazca and Paracas cultures are striking reminders of Peru’s rich pre-Columbian history and are considered archeological enigmas, as no one…

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Google Suspends Advertising Related to Irish Abortion Referendum

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Fetus on Health

Google is suspending all advertising connected to Ireland’s abortion referendum as part of moves to protect “election integrity,” the company announced Wednesday. The move came a day after Facebook banned foreign-backed ads in the Irish campaign, amid global concerns about online election meddling and the role of internet ads in swaying voters. Google said that starting Thursday, it would no longer display ads related to the May 25 vote on whether to repeal Ireland’s constitutional ban on most abortions. The prohibition on ads connected to the Irish vote applies to both Google and YouTube, which the company owns. The online search leader, which is based in Mountain View, California, declined to say how much advertising revenue it was giving up because of the decision. Russian role The role of online ads in elections is under scrutiny following revelations that Russian groups bought ads on leading services such as Google and Facebook to try to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign. Many of the ads were designed to sow confusion, anger and discord among Americans through messages on hot-button topics. Karin von Abrams, a London-based analyst with the research firm eMarketer, said banning ads represented a short-term safeguard from potential backlash…

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Highlights from the Final Brexit Agreement

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David Davis and Michael Barnier

by Rev. Ben Johnson   On Monday afternoon, David Davis of the UK and Michel Barnier of the EU revealed that their governments had agreed on the shape of their relationship during the first two years after Brexit. Here’s what it will look like: A 21-month transition period: The UK will officially leave the European Union on March 29, 2019. Monday’s announcement adds a 21-month transition period, which will end on December 31, 2020. During this phase, the UK will enjoy all “the benefits, the advantages of the single market and the customs union,” Barnier said at today’s joint press conference in Brussels. The UK hoped for a full two years, but Davis deemed the agreed time limit “close enough.” Businesses had hoped for a period of stability to adjust to a post-Brexit business environment, and the government wanted more time to negotiate a final agreement with the EU. Adam Marshall of the British Chambers of Commerce called the agreement “a milestone that many businesses across the UK have been waiting for.” The UK will accept EU decisions with no input: In that 21-month period, the UK will be a rule taker, not a rule maker. The UK agrees to “be bound by the obligations…

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Pence: The United States Embassy Will Open in Jerusalem Before the End of Next Year

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Pence Knesset

Vice President Mike Pence addressed the Knesset Monday, saying the Unites States will fulfill its promise made by President Trump and open an embassy in Jerusalem by the end of 2019. “Jerusalem is Israel’s capital,” Pence stated, adding: And, as such, President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States Embassy in Jerusalem, and that United States Embassy will open before the end of next year. Our President made his decision, in his words, “in the best interests of the United States.” But he also made it clear that we believe that his decision is in the best interests of peace. By finally recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, the United States has chosen fact over fiction. And fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace.   Although Mr. Pence was by all accounts warmly received with several ovations throughout is address to the Israeli lawmakers, the Vice President’s remarks were not met with universal acceptance. The Tribune News Service reports: Twelve Arab members of the Knesset and one Jewish member…

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‘Enemies of Allah’ Turn Rockets of Hate into Peace Art

Chris Alto

Yaron Bob, an Israeli artist whose community has been repeatedly attacked with Kassam rockets fired from Gaza by Palestinian terrorists, turns the rockets of hate into metal art called “Rockets into Roses.” Bob’s work was inspired by his own close calls with rocket attacks. According to his website, “I take the Kassam, the instrument of death and I change it, I transfer it into something of beauty.” After the rockets are checked by a bomb squad, the police give Bob the metal to create the roses which he “plants” in a base shaped as a map of Israel, “so that the rose literally ‘grows’ from the place of destruction – where most of the rockets have landed.” Until very recently, HAMAS has controlled the government in Gaza and has been primarily responsible for the rocket attacks. Founded in 1987, HAMAS, an acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement, is a U.S. designated terrorist group and the self-described Palestinian arm of the Muslim Brotherhood. Its charter makes it clear that Jews are the enemies of Allah and that the HAMAS mission is to destroy Israel and kill Jewish people. Quoting Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood founder, the HAMAS charter states: Israel will exist and will continue to…

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Dual Citizenship Rule Ousts Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister

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The Australian government was thrown into turmoil Friday after losing its one-seat majority with the nation’s deputy prime minister kicked out of parliament over his dual citizenship. Barnaby Joyce was among seven politicians embroiled in a crisis after falling afoul of a previously obscure constitutional rule that bars dual citizens from sitting in parliament. The High…

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POLL: 82% of Republicans Support a Military Strike Against North Korea Should Diplomacy and Sanctions Fail

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The American attitude toward North Korea appears to be evolving ­- and not necessarily in a docile direction. The number of Americans who would support a U.S. military response to the rogue nation’s aggression is “significantly higher” these days, according to a new Gallup poll. “As North Korea continues to launch test missiles and issue provocative…

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Christian Agencies Use Know-How to Help Hurricane Victims

Jason M. Reynolds
Tennessee Star

The Daily Caller reports that Christian non-profits do more than any government agency to support victims of disasters like hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The story says that faith-based organizations provide the bulk of relief, even when compared to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, quoting a national media story. The National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (NVOAD) works with FEMA to distribute resources in disaster areas and help victims find the help they need. Seventy-five percent of NVOAD’s membership is comprised of faith-based organizations, The Daily Caller reports. The disaster coordination agency’s membership, includes notables like the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team and Convoy of Hope, plus many denominational response organizations including those for the Adventists, Disciples of Christ and Episcopalians. There are non-Christian and secular groups as well. Such organizations have the experience and logistical infrastructure to effectively respond to disasters and work with devastated communities in the long-term. Jake Raabe, in the Baptist Standard, speaks out against the “second disaster” created when well-intentioned people send useless items like teddy bears that overwhelm meaningful relief operations. Supply planes could not land in Honduras after Hurricane Mitch ravaged that nation in 1998 because Americans had donated so much used clothing that boxes of…

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‘DRIVE THEM OUT’: President Trump Delivers Historic Speech in Riyadh at Arab Islamic American Summit

Tina LaFleur
Tennessee Star

  President Trump’s Arab Islamic American Summit remarks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia were billed as the most important speech he’s given to date. And by all accounts, he delivered. Unapologetically, forcefully, and truthfully – Mr. Trump confronted, then challenged the Arab leaders at the Summit and the world to do what is necessary to end the scourge of Islamic terror: But the nations of the Middle East cannot wait for American power to crush this enemy for them. The nations of the Middle East will have to decide what kind of future they want for themselves, for their countries, and for their children. It is a choice between two futures – and it is a choice America CANNOT make for you. A better future is only possible if your nations drive out the terrorists and extremists. Drive. Them. Out. DRIVE THEM OUT of your places of worship. DRIVE THEM OUT of your communities. DRIVE THEM OUT of your holy land, and DRIVE THEM OUT OF THIS EARTH. Watch:   Reaching out directly to people across the globe, Mr. Trump tweeted that his speech is posted in full on his Facebook page: Speech transcript at Arab Islamic American Summit ➡️https://t.co/eUWxJXJxbe Replay ➡️https://t.co/VtmlSqciXx#RiyadhSummit #POTUSAbroad — Donald J.…

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American Killed in London Islamic Terrorist Attack

Tina LaFleur
Tennessee Star

The New York Daily News reports at least one American was injured and another killed in the Westminster Bridge terror attack Wednesday. Utah couple Kurt Cochran and his wife Melissa were in London on a ‘dream vacation’ to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. Via the Daily News: “Our family is heartbroken to learn of the death of our son-in-law, Kurt W. Cochran, who was a victim of Wednesday’s terrorist attack in London,” said Melissa’s brother, Clint Payne, in a statement issued by the Mormon church. “Kurt was a good man and a loving husband to our daughter and sister, Melissa.”   Read the full story at: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/utah-man-identified-victim-deadly-london-attack-article-1.3006601

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French Terrorist Was Egyptian Citizen On Tourist Visa

Tennessee Star Staff

February 3, 2017 Saagar Enjeti Posted with permission from Daily Caller News Foundation The Islamic terrorist who tried to attack French soldiers with a machete at the famous Louvre Museum Friday was an Egyptian citizen on a French tourist visa, BBC News reports. The 29-year-old man was reportedly a resident of the United Arab Emirates and arrived in France Jan. 26 on a one-month visa. The terrorist was shot five times in the abdomen by French soldiers and remains in critical condition. French President Francois Hollande confirmed the attack was a terrorism incident. The attack also garnered a response from President Donald Trump early Friday morning. Trump’s warning comes a week after he signed his controversial travel suspension for refugees from seven terror-rife countries and an indefinite pause on the Syrian refugee program. Trump’s executive order directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prepare “extreme vetting” procedures for travelers from seven terror-prone countries after a period of 90 days. The DHS similarly has 120 days to strengthen security procedures for refugees who are not from Syria. The attempted attack in France occurred when a man rushed towards soldiers with a machete, before being shot in the abdomen. Reports indicate…

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