Around the World
ISIS claims responsibility for Baghdad suicide attacks killing at least 32
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for a double suicide bombing in Baghdad this week that killed at least 32 people and wounded more than 100.
US to Offer Russia 5-year Extension on Nuclear Treaty
The new administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is planning to offer Russia a five-year extension of a nuclear arms treaty that is set to expire February 5, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
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.
Iran’s nuclear program has crossed Netanyahu’s ‘red line,’ former senior advisor
The Iranian regime has taken highly dangerous steps in recent weeks that make a military strike by Israel more likely in 2021, and thus forcing the new Biden administration to make Iran its top and most urgent foreign policy priority.
1,500-year-old inscription saying “Christ, born of Mary” discovered in Israel
Archaeologists in northern Israel have unearthed a 1,500-year-old carved inscription which says "Christ, born of Mary," in Greek, Christian Today reports. The inscription was part of a lintel in the doorway of a Byzantine church.

Inside the United States
National Guard keeping 25,000 troops in Washington with no plans to leave — yet
The more than 25,000 National Guard troops called to provide inauguration security remained in place Thursday and will continue to patrol the near-vacant capital city until federal agencies release them, military officials said.
McConnell wants to push Trump’s Senate impeachment trial to mid-February
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has proposed to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer that former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial should start in mid-February, timing he laid out during a conference call with Republican colleagues Thursday, multiple sources on the call said.
Biden accused of ‘erasing women,’ threatening girls’ sports with gender-identity order
President Biden opened a Pandora’s box with his executive order on gender identity and sexual orientation, pushing the hotly contested issue of transgender participation in women’s athletics from the sidelines to the spotlight.
Biden signs executive order authorizing broader use of Defense Production Act to target COVID-19
Despite the U.S. last week averaged more than 912,000 daily vaccinations against COVIOD-19, President Biden said Thursday that "the rollout has been a dismal failure so far."
Biden nixes Keystone XL permit, halts Arctic refuge leasing
President Biden on Wednesday signed a sweeping executive order that revokes a key permit for the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, halts oil and gas leasing at a wildlife refuge in Alaska and carries out several other environmental actions.
Biden dismantles 1776 Commission and deletes its final report
US President Joe Biden has dismantled the Trump Administration’s 1776 Commission and has deleted the final report it released two days before the end of Mr. Trump’s presidential term. While the stated aim of the 1776 Commission’s report was to give future generations an understanding of US founding principles, and encourage citizens to take pride in their country, critics say the report excuses America’s history of slavery and undermines the legacy of the civil rights movement.
Biden to reverse transgender military ban imminently, White House says
President Joe Biden will soon reverse the ban on transgender people serving openly in the military, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Wednesday.
B-21 Raider stealth bomber expected to take first flight next year
The US Air Force has announced that the B-21 Raider stealth bomber currently under construction is expected to take its first flight in mid-2022, UPI reported Wednesday. A second plane is also already being built.
FBI feared foreign power was targeting money to Clinton before 2016 campaign, memos show
FBI agents opened an investigation in late 2014 into a foreign power's effort to curry influence with Hillary Clinton's prospective presidential campaign through donations, but the bureau's leadership slow-walked a surveillance warrant and instead arranged for the candidate to get a defensive briefing, newly declassified memos show.
Biden may move on wide-ranging legislation with Democrat Congress
With Democrats leading both houses of Congress, the new Biden Administration may seek to pass legislation on issues ranging from pandemic relief to US Supreme Court reform, Just the News (JN) reports.