Saturday, December 27, 2014

12/27/14

Islamic State fighters are moving ever closer towards Israel  Islamic State has suffered severe losses as a result of coalition air strikes in the last months. 

Iran stages massive military display to 'send message of peace' to neighbors  Iran has launched a six-day exercise involving all branches of its military. 

Muslim Scholar Calls for Jewish Place of Worship on Temple Mount  A Jordanian Muslim preacher has called for Jews to be allowed to pray on the Temple Mount, and even for a special "house of prayer" to be set up for them there. 

Erekat: UNSC to vote Monday on draft demanding Israeli withdrawal from West Bank  Erekat said that the draft resolution has been altered and amended. 

Iranian Army affiliated twitter account: Our soldiers are on Israel's borders  A twitter account affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) tweeted photos of IRGC soldiers with blurred faces supposedly on the border of Israel. 

In pictures: American astronaut photographs Israel from space on Christmas  On a clear day on Christmas morning US astronaut Barry Wilmore took some pictures of Israel from the International Space Station resulting in some stunning snaps of the holy land. 

Mashaal in Turkey: We hope to liberate Palestine with you  On a surprise visit to Turkey Saturday, Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal hailed the country's leaders and said he hoped to 'œliberate Palestine and Jerusalem' with them. 

Iran's army tests suicide drone in drills  Army's commander of ground forces calls unmanned aircraft 'a mobile bomb', designed to plunge into aerial and ground targets, as well as ships. 

It's a Black Christmas for the Christians of the Middle East  As 2014 draws to a close, ancient communities of faith confront the destruction of their world. 

Report: Islamic State is turning churches into torture chambers in Iraq and Syria  The Islamic State (IS) is turning Christian churches in Syria and Iraq into torture chambers and selling stolen holy artifacts on the black market in the process.