Religious
The Kremlin-controlled Russian Orthodox Church Moscow Patriarchate (ROC MP) reportedly directed all its clergy to change their liturgy to include pro-war prayers in support of Russia’s war of conquest against Ukraine. A Russian Telegram channel with insider sources within the ROC MP amplified on March 31 a document dated March 29, in which Head of the ROC MP Affairs, Metropolitan Gregoriy of Voskresensk, instructed clergy to read a prayer — the “Prayer for Holy Rus” — on a daily basis during Lent. The Patriarchate also called on the clergy to read the “Prayer for Holy Rus” at home. The ROC MP had previously instituted politicized prayers in June 2014 and March 2022 supporting Russia’s aggression against Ukraine — ISW, 3/31/2024
In 2023, France registered the highest increase in recorded antisemitic incidents of any country with reliable statistics, according to data released in a new report that warned that current trends could threaten the very “ability to lead Jewish lives in the West.” Published by Tel Aviv University and the Anti-Defamation League, the report showed a near quadrupling of incidents in France to 1,676 last year. Antisemitism on US campuses was called the “most alarming” aspect of the surge of Jew-hatred in the United States. Of last year’s antisemitic incidents in France, the tally showed that 74% happened after October 7, when invading Hamas terrorists killed some 1,200 people in Israel. In the United States, the tally more than doubled, to 7,523 last year, with 52% of the 2023 total occurring after October 7. Incidents also increased in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. — Israel News, 5/4/2024
(Editor’s Note: The current surge in antisemitism may add to a significant number of Jews living in the West making Aliyah to Israel, consistent with the view of several of the editors that this largest group of Jews outside of Israel are yet to be regathered as predicted by Ezekiel and other prophets.)
A story in Time Magazine details Russia’s persecution of religious minorities, especially Evangelical communities, in occupied Ukraine. The story noted that Ukrainian Protestants represented 34 percent of cases of religious prosecution, 48 percent of which occurred in occupied Zaporizhia Oblast alone, and that Ukrainian Baptists suffered in 13 percent of reported religious persecution cases. ISW has previously reported at length on Russia’s systemic repression of both Ukrainian Orthodox and Ukrainian Protestant communities in occupied Ukraine and noted that repressions against Protestant communities are particularly intense throughout southern Ukraine. — ISW, 4/23/2024
Social
A rare pygmy hippopotamus, an endangered species, was born in Athens’ Attica Zoological Park. It was also the first pygmy hippo birth this particular zoo has witnessed in a decade. Peter Gros, wildlife expert and host of Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, says the birth is a “momentous and exciting moment” given the impact this one hippo could have on the entire species. “Pygmy hippos typically give birth to a single calf after a gestation period of about 6 to 7 months, making this new baby a significant contribution” to repopulation efforts, he explains. There was similar excitement recently around the birth of Mikolas, another male pygmy hippo born in December of 2023 at the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic. — BBC, 3/21/2024
Paying farmers to snuggle up with half-ton heifers is all the rage in the United States thanks to social media. For visitors, cuddling dairy or beef cattle can be therapeutic, or simply an adventure for city
dwellers looking for good old country fun. But this practice of opening the barn door to the public is facing a new risk, as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirmed bird flu in dairy herds in nine states. Scientists have said the outbreak is likely more widespread across the nation’s more than 26,000 licensed dairy farms based on findings of H5N1 particles in about 20% of milk samples. Government officials say the risk of human infection is low. But state and federal government officials are urging cattle and dairy farmers to limit outside visitors as much as possible. — Reuters, 5/4/2024
Stunning artworks have been uncovered in a new excavation at Pompeii, the ancient Roman city buried in an eruption from Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Archaeologists say the frescos are among the finest to be found in the ruins of the ancient site. The room’s near-complete mosaic floor incorporates more than a million individual white tiles. A third of the lost city has still to be cleared of volcanic debris. The current dig, the biggest in a generation, is underlining Pompeii’s position as the world’s premier window on the people and culture of the Roman empire. — BBC News, 4/14/2024
A Northeastern researcher and former postdoctoral fellow have created an artificial intelligence tool that uses sequences of life events — such as health history, education, job and income — to predict everything from a person’s personality to their mortality. Built using transformer models, which power large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, the new tool, life2vec, is trained on a data set pulled from the entire population of Denmark — 6 million people. But despite its predictive power, the team behind the research says it is best used as the foundation for future work, not an end in and of itself. — Northeastern (University) Global News, 12/19/2023
Political
More than 40% of Americans now label China as an enemy, up from a quarter two years ago and reaching the highest level in five years, according to an annual Pew Research Center survey. Half of Americans think of China as a competitor, and only 6% consider the country a partner, according to the report. The findings come as the Biden administration is seeking to stabilize U.S.-China relations to avoid miscalculations that could result in clashes, while still trying to counter the world’s second-largest economy on issues from Russia’s war in Ukraine to Taiwan and human rights. — AP News, 5/1/2024
Russia is causing disruption to satellite navigation systems affecting thousands of civilian flights, experts say. The Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean – the regions where Russia’s military has been most active — have seen an increase in disruption to the Global Positioning System (GPS). This has left aircraft unable to receive GPS signals. In March, an RAF plane carrying Defense Secretary Grant Shapps had its GPS signal jammed while flying close to Russian territory. According to Cyrille Rosay, a senior cybersecurity expert at the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), while the problem existed before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 it is worsening. “We have proof that it is coming from Russia, and Russia is violating all the international agreements. … And also, I’m really sure that they know exactly what they’re doing,” he added. — BBC News, 5/2/2024
Manipulated videos are taking center stage as campaigning heats up in India’s election, with fake clips involving two top aides of Prime Minister Narendra Modi triggering police investigations and the arrest of some workers of his rival Congress party. In what has been dubbed as India’s first AI election, Modi said fake voices were being used to purportedly show leaders making “statements that we have never even thought of,” calling it a conspiracy “to create tension in society.” — Reuters, 5/5/2024
Moldovan authorities confiscated over one million dollars from Kremlin-linked Moldovan opposition politicians at the Chisinau airport on the night of April 22 to 23, and the opposition politicians likely intended to use to bribe protestors and voters. Moldovan authorities reported that they confiscated about 62,000 rubles (about $660), 3,000 euros (about $3,200), and over $1.1 million during the searches. The Moldovan General Police Inspectorate Chief Viorel Cernauteau stated on April 23 that the money was meant to finance Moldovan political parties led by affiliates of US-sanctioned, pro-Kremlin Moldovan politician Ilan Shor. Shor reportedly paid demonstrators to protest Moldovan President Maia Sandu in 2022, and Moldovan authorities are investigating the Shor Party for bribing voters during the 2023 Gagauzia gubernatorial election. — ISW, 4/23/2024
The U.S. Navy’s efforts to build a fleet of unmanned vessels are faltering because the Pentagon remains wedded to big shipbuilding projects, according to some officials and company executives, as sea drones reshape naval warfare. The lethal effectiveness of sea drones has been demonstrated in the Black Sea where Ukraine has deployed remote-controlled speed boats packed with explosives to sink Russian frigates and minesweepers since late 2022. Yemeni-backed Houthi rebels have employed similar vessels against commercial shipping in the Red Sea in recent months, albeit without success. Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks announced an initiative in August – named Replicator — to deploy hundreds of small, relatively cheap air and sea drones within the next 18-24 months to match China’s growing military threat. — Reuters, 4/5/2024
Financial
Currently, anyone salaried in the U.S. who makes more than $35,568 is ineligible for overtime pay. As of July 1, that is set to increase to $43,888. Then, on January 1, 2025, it increases even further to $58,656. Additionally, at the start of 2025, there will be an update to the methodology that determines the threshold. According to the Department of Labor, “salary thresholds will update every three years” beginning on July 1, 2027. The first increase will benefit more than 1 million workers across the US. The second increase at the start of next year will benefit an additional 3 million workers. The second rule passed will affect how financial advisers give advice to those saving up for retirement. It mandates they provide “prudent, loyal, and honest advice” free of personal interest. — News Space, 4/26/2024
Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Europe fell 4% last year, with Germany seeing a sharp 12% drop in projects amid concern over its economic slowdown and energy security, a survey by professional services group EY found. It was the first annual fall in the number of European FDI projects registered since the COVID-19 pandemic, after gains seen in both 2021 and 2022. Foreign investment into the region is now 14% lower than at its peak in 2017. Companies surveyed cited volatile energy prices, turbulent domestic politics and the steady stream of new European regulation in areas ranging from artificial intelligence, sustainability and data protection among their concerns. — Reuters, 5/1/2024
Disruption to Red Sea container shipping is rising, Maersk said, forecasting this will cut the industry’s capacity between Asia and Europe by up to 20% in the second quarter. Maersk and other shipping companies have diverted vessels around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope since December to avoid attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi militants in the Red Sea, with the longer voyage times pushing freight rates higher. Attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militants on ships in the Red Sea are disrupting maritime trade through the Suez Canal, with some vessels re-routing to a much longer East-West route via the southern tip of Africa. Maersk’s fuel costs on the affected routes between Asia and Europe are now 40% higher per journey, a spokesperson said. — Reuters, 5/6/2024
Defaults are reaching historic levels in the office market, as a growing number of owners capitulate to persistently high interest rates and weak demand. More than $38 billion of U.S. office buildings are threatened by defaults, foreclosures or other forms of distress, according to data firm MSCI. That is the highest amount since the fourth quarter of 2012 in the aftermath of the 2008-2009 financial crisis. Office owners are paying back their loans at a much slower rate. As recently as 2021, more than 90% of office loans that were converted into commercial mortgage-backed securities were paid off when they became due, according to Moody’s. Last year, that figure fell to 35%, the worst payoff rate in the history of the data, which goes back to 2007. — Wall Street Journal, 4/30/2024
Israel and the Middle East
A new radiocarbon study of First Temple Jerusalem — conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority, Tel Aviv University, and the Weizmann Institute of Science — has produced some intriguing results. Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the results have challenged previous theories regarding Jerusalem’s size during the reigns of the earliest kings of Judah. More than 100 radiocarbon dates were taken from four different excavation areas throughout the City of David, which is located on ancient Jerusalem’s southeastern ridge. Samples of grape seeds, date pits, and even bat skeletons were used to reconstruct a first-of-its-kind chronology of ancient Jerusalem from1200 BC to its destruction by the Babylonians in 587 BC. The study also challenged the common belief that Hezekiah was responsible for building the walls of Jerusalem on the eastern slopes of the City of David (2 Chronicles 32:5). Instead, the data suggest the walls were constructed earlier, around 750 BCE, in the days of King Uzziah — which also seems to be hinted at in the biblical text (2 Chronicles 26:9). — Bible History Daily, 5/6/2024
The U.S., for the first time, abstained on a vote regarding Israel in the United States Security Council. The resolution for an immediate ceasefire was deemed to be a fundamental betrayal of the US-Israel alliance. Resolutions have the effect of international law and can be used as a basis for international sanctions. — JNS, 3/26/2024
A prominent Iranian-backed Iraqi militia threatened to create and arm a new Iranian proxy in Jordan, which may reflect a greater, more confrontational, shift in the Iranian strategy vis-a-vis Jordan. A military spokesperson said that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which is a coalition of Iranian-backed militias, has prepared to “equip” 12,000 “Islamic Resistance in Jordan” fighters with a significant supply of weapons. The mention of an Islamic resistance network in Jordan is a notable inflection, as Iranian and Iranian-backed actors have not previously mentioned the existence of such an entity. Hezbollah’s choice to publicize its desire to set up a large armed militia indicates a growing Iranian interest in using Jordan in its anti-Israel campaign, however. Jordan offers a direct front from which Iranian-backed fighters could more easily conduct and direct attacks into Israel. The Islamic Resistance in Iraq already utilizes Jordanian airspace for its drone attacks into Israel. An active and well-armed Iranian-backed militia based out of Jordan would dramatically advance Iran’s military encirclement of Israel. — ISW, 4/2/24
Western media reported that Khalil al Hayya, the deputy chairman of Hamas’ Political Bureau, said during an interview on April 25 that Hamas is prepared to reach a truce of five or more years with Israel and implied that Hamas would turn into a political party and turn its military wing into “the national [Palestinian] army” if Israel recognizes a fully sovereign Palestinian state in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. Hayya did not mention abandoning Hamas’ objective of destroying Israel, nor did he say that the new” sovereign Palestinian state” would recognize Israel. — ISW, 4/26/2024