Prophecy News Watch provided by Worthy Ministries

Prophecy News Watch is a service hosted by Worthy Ministries to provide Christians daily news from a Biblical, and yet Prophetic worldview. Our news is gathered by our Christian News Service, Worthy News. For more about our vision for how we assemble our daily headlines, please read, "What is Worthy News?"

Today's Breaking News
Around the World
UK Parliament gives government power to begin Brexit
Britain lurched closer to leaving the European Union Monday when Parliament stopped resisting and gave Prime Minister Theresa May the power to file for divorce from the bloc.
U.S. Navy SEALs to take part in joint drills in S. Korea
U.S. special operations forces, including the unit that killed Osama Bin Laden, will take part in joint military drills in South Korea to practice incapacitating North Korean leadership in the case of conflict, a military official said Monday.
Iran sets up underground rocket factories in Lebanon
Iran has established rocket factories in Lebanon that are under the full control of the Hezbollah terror group, a top Iranian general told a Kuwaiti newspaper.
Japan plans to send largest warship to South China Sea, sources say
Japan plans to dispatch its largest warship on a three-month tour through the South China Sea beginning in May, three sources said, in its biggest show of naval force in the region since World War Two.
Iran deploys jamming device to counter drones
Iran has deployed a new counter-drone weapon -- a rifle-shaped jamming device that the regime says can electronically separate a remotely piloted aircraft from its command pilot and even reprogram it to turn on its owner.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Abbas: Trump told me he wants two-state solution
Despite having declared at last month's press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he was not insisting on a two-state solution, Trump told Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Friday that he was committed to two states and to advancing the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians, Abbas said Sunday.

Inside the United States
Trump gives CIA authority to conduct drone strikes: WSJ
President Donald Trump has given the Central Intelligence Agency new authority to conduct drone attacks against suspected militants, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing U.S. officials.
CBO: American Health Care Act Will Reduce Deficit By $337 Billion
The American Health Care Act, the Republican replacement to the Affordable Care Act, is estimated to reduce the deficit by $337 billion from 2017 to 2026, according to the Congressional Budget Office's scoring of the legislation.
CBO Sees 24 Million More Uninsured, $337 Billion Deficit Cut in Coming Decade With GOP Health Plan
A Republican plan to replace the Affordable Care Act would leave 24 million more people without insurance in 2026 compared with current law, an analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has found.
Nor'easter to shut down travel, unleash blizzard conditions in at least 8 states
A major nor'easter threatens to shut down travel due to heavy snow and strong winds from Philadelphia to New York City and Boston early this week. Blizzard conditions will develop in part of the northeastern United States.
Trump signs executive order to eliminate government waste
President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order intended to weed out wasteful spending in the federal government.

Christian News
China's New Policy Expected to Lead to More Religious Persecution
China Aid's 2016 Annual Persecution Report details a seismic shift in the Chinese government's approach to religious policy that is expected to lead to further persecution.
Chinese Christians Still Attend Underground Churches Despite Risk of Persecution
The risks are huge, but faithful believers are not backing down - but they are being more discreet. Last year new reports surfaced that approximately a 100 million people throughout China have started to worship in 'underground churches' over traditional ones.
Aid Workers with Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse Kidnapped in South Sudan
Rebels in South Sudan have reportedly abducted eight aid workers with the Christian humanitarian organization Samaritan's Purse. The group is led by Franklin Graham, son of famed evangelist Billy Graham.
Today's Breaking News
Around the World
Trump administration to host 68-nation meeting on ways to ‘accelerate’ destruction of ISIS
The Trump administration will gather 68 foreign ministers from around the globe this month to figure out a more efficient strategy for decimating the Islamic State group.
Chinese Communist Party officials harden rhetoric on Islam
China's ruling Communist Party is hardening its rhetoric on Islam, with top officials making repeated warnings about the specter of global religious extremism seeping into the country and the need to protect traditional Chinese identity.
Death toll from Damascus bombing climbs to 74: Observatory
The death toll from a double bomb attack targeting Shi'ites visiting a pilgrimage site in Damascus has climbed to 74, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Sunday.
Israel Fears ISIS Chemical Attack in Europe
The National Security Council's Counter-Terrorism Bureau is concerned that ISIS terrorists might be plotting to carry out chemical attacks in Europe in the coming months.
Brexit set to begin as bill enters final stages
Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to trigger Brexit this week by formally informing the European Union of Britain's intention to leave the bloc, sending her country into uncharted waters.
Hillary Clinton's team met with Russian ambassador, says Kremlin spokesman, as he warns against 'hysteria'
Hillary Clinton's team members met with the Russian ambassador during the election as well as Donald Trump's, the Kremlin spokesman has alleged, as he set out to dismiss the 'hysteria' surrounding Mr Trump's links to Russia.
Iranian military says it test-fired Hormuz-2 ballistic missile
Iran successfully test-fired a Hormuz-2 ballistic missile last week, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps said Thursday.
U.S. weighs deploying up to 1,000 'reserve' troops for IS fight
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is weighing a deployment of up to 1,000 American soldiers to Kuwait to serve as a reserve force in the fight against Islamic State as U.S.-backed fighters accelerate the offensive in Syria and Iraq, U.S. officials told Reuters.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Trump mulls Middle East peace conference
US President Donald Trump is mulling the option to hold a peace conference in the Middle East in an effort to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, after speaking on Friday with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Iran accuses Israel of hiring assassins to take out nuclear scientists
Iranian Envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Reza Najafi accused Israel on Thursday of being behind the assassinations of several scientists working on Iran's nuclear energy plan.
Trump invites Palestinian leader Abbas to White House: aide
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday invited Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House, an Abbas spokesman said, after the two leaders spoke by phone for the first time since Trump took office.

Inside the United States
AG Sessions asks remaining 46 US attorneys to resign
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has asked the remaining 46 U.S. attorneys who served under the Obama administration to resign, the Justice Department announced Friday, describing the move as part of an effort to ensure a "uniform transition."
Strong U.S. job growth, rising wages set stage for Fed rate hike
U.S. employers hired workers at a robust pace in February, beating expectations, and wages grinded higher, which could give the Federal Reserve the green light to raise interest rates next week despite slowing economic growth.
ACLU launches nationwide training on protest, resistance
The American Civil Liberties Union staged a nationwide training event Saturday to make sure people are aware of their rights as protesters and urge organized, public resistance by those opposed to policies of President Donald Trump.
Trump administration sends judges to immigration detention centers: sources
The Department of Justice is deploying 50 judges to immigration detention facilities across the United States, according to two sources and a letter seen by Reuters and sent to judges on Thursday.
FBI Used Best Buy's Geek Squad To Increase Secret Public Surveillance
Recently unsealed records reveal a much more extensive secret relationship than previously known between the FBI and Best Buy's Geek Squad, including evidence the agency trained company technicians on law-enforcement operational tactics, shared lists of targeted citizens and, to covertly increase surveillance of the public, encouraged searches of computers even when unrelated to a customer's request for repairs.
George Soros Gave $246 Million to Groups Behind 'Day Without a Woman' Protest
Liberal billionaire George Soros gave more than $246 million to groups that helped organize Wednesday's 'Day Without a Woman' protest, according to a report.
Republicans still battle each other even after gaining power
Less than twenty-four hours after Donald Trump had won the White House, House Speaker Paul Ryan triumphantly proclaimed the start of a new era of Republican leadership that would 'hit the ground running.'
$611,318,000,000: Individual Income Taxes Set Record Through February
The federal government collected a record of approximately $611,318,000,000 in individual income tax revenues through the first five months of fiscal 2017 (Oct. 1, 2016 through the end of February), according to the Monthly Treasury Statement released today.
Obama's 'Watergate': Ex-prez caught in 'biggest scandal in U.S. history'?
Thanks to the media's investigation into the Trump campaign, speculation is growing that it is the Obama administration that could end up investigated for accusations one of its targets called 'worse than Watergate.'
152,528,000: Record Number of Employed in February; Participation Rate Rises
A record 152,528,000 Americans were employed in February, 447,000 more than in January, and the labor force participation rate went up, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday.
US created 235,000 jobs in Feb, vs 190,000 expected
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 235,000 in February and the unemployment rate was 4.7 percent in the first full month of President Donald Trump's term, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

Christian News
Christian groups launch TV series defending Israel
A partnership of Christians groups have collaborated to create a series called 'Why Israel Matters,' which intends to set the record straight on Israel and the Jewish state.
Syrian Muslim Refugees Converting to Christianity After Fleeing War Zone: 'Jesus Saved Us'
Abu Radwan enters a church on the outskirts of Beirut with his wife and two kids. His wife removes the black headscarf covering her hair. It was here, a year and a half ago, that they converted to Christianity.
Today's Breaking News
Around the World
Russia NATO War: Moscow Deploys Nuclear Missiles In Europe, Subsonic Weapons At Sea
A top U.S. military official accused Russia of breaking its commitment to a decades-old arms treaty Wednesday by deploying a new land-based, nuclear-capable cruise missile in Europe. The remarks came days after the Russian military announced it was arming its nuclear submarine fleet with new supersonic cruise missiles to modernize its naval forces.
U.S. weighs deploying up to 1,000 'reserve' troops for IS fight
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is weighing a deployment of up to 1,000 American soldiers to Kuwait to serve as a reserve force in the fight against Islamic State as U.S.-backed fighters accelerate the offensive in Syria and Iraq, U.S. officials told Reuters.
ISIS In India: Islamic State Terror Strikes As Father Refuses 'Traitor' Son's Body
The father of a young man suspected of being involved in a train blast allegedly conducted on behalf of the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, refused Wednesday to accept his son's body in the latest instance of India's struggle to contain jihadist militant activity.
IBM to build quantum computers, selling machines millions of times faster than anything made before
IBM has taken its first step towards selling computers that are millions of times faster than the one you're reading this on.
Iran test-fires missiles, harasses U.S., British ships in Strait of Hormuz
Fast-moving Iranian vessels forced a U.S. Navy surveillance ship to change course in the Strait of Hormuz last week, U.S. officials said.
Iran's leader, military spend billions on terror and weapons, Iranian dissidents report
Iran has spent up to $100 billion the last five years financing operations in Syria that were instrumental in keeping President Bashar Assad in power, according to a new book on the hard-line Islamic theocracy's vast business holdings and wealth.
US general says Russia has deployed banned missile
The U.S. military for the first time is publicly accusing Russia of deploying a land-based cruise missile in violation of a Cold War-era nuclear arms treaty.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Arab League to resist embassies moving to Jerusalem
Arab League foreign ministers adopted a resolution Tuesday against any attempt to move diplomatic missions to Jerusalem, following Donald Trump's presidential campaign pledge to move the American embassy in Israel.
Netanyahu, Trump 'speak at length' about the Iranian threat
U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on the phone Monday and discussed the danger posed by Iran.
The Wikileaks CIA Disclosure: A Warning for Israel's Intelligence Agencies
We shouldn't have been surprised this week when tens of thousands of CIA documents were released, revealing the organization's cyber warfare methods and its operations to break into and attack computers and smart phones. Even the fact that a Samsung refrigerator can be used as a listening device that records voices in its vicinity is not new. The Korean company itself issued a warning saying as much to its customers more than a year ago.

Inside the United States
NSA Whistleblower Backs Trump Up on Wiretap Claims
President Donald Trump is 'absolutely right' to claim he was wiretapped and monitored, a former NSA official claimed Monday, adding that the administration risks falling victim to further leaks if it continues to run afoul of the intelligence community.
WikiLeaks' reveal of CIA hacking trove has feds on mole hunt
A day after WikiLeaks released what it alleged to be the 'entire hacking capacity of the CIA,' the focus Wednesday began shifting to just who gave the stunning surveillance information to the anti-secrecy website.
'Day Without a Woman' supporters got $246M from Soros
Billionaire George Soros gave $246 million to groups behind Wednesday's 'Day Without a Woman' protest, according to a report by a conservative think tank.
US Senators Ask FBI, DOJ for any Evidence of Trump Wiretap
Two senior members of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday asked the FBI and Justice Department for any information they have on President Donald Trump's claim that his predecessor Barack Obama ordered wiretaps of him during last year's presidential campaign.
Edward Snowden says WikiLeaks' CIA documents look legit
Documents released by WikiLeaks alleging the CIA's ability to compromise and commandeer the world's most popular electronic devices appear to be authentic examples of its vast but 'reckless' hacking prowess, former NSA contractor Edward Snowden said Tuesday.
Obamacare Repeal Update: Planned Parenthood Defunded Under Republicans' American Healthcare Act
House Republicans unveiled the replace part of their effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, lifting penalties against those who don't buy health insurance, replacing subsidies with tax credits and defunding Planned Parenthood.

Christian News
Egypt Coptic Father and Son Killed in Sinai
The bodies of two murdered Coptic men were found on 22 February in the city of Al-Arish in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, the latest in a series of sectarian killings since 31 January.
Christian groups launch TV series defending Israel
A partnership of Christians groups have collaborated to create a series called 'Why Israel Matters,' which intends to set the record straight on Israel and the Jewish state.