Religious

Christians in India are experiencing a rise in persecution, according to a new report that has documented 745 instances of alleged violence against members of the minority community — an all-time high — during the first 11 months of 2024. The report, released by United Christian Forum (UCF), claims that anti-Christian violence across the Hindu-majority South Asian nation has risen steadily over the past decade, accompanied by apparent in—difference from officials toward the victims. The incidents include acts of physical violence, murder, social boycotts and the desecration of religious symbols. — World Religion News, 1/9/2025

Maaloula, Syria, is one of the few places where residents still speak Aramaic, the language Jesus is believed to have used. The town is also home to Syria’s two oldest active monasteries. But since the fall of former President Bashar Assad in an insurgent offensive late last year, some residents fear their future is precarious. In September 2013, rebels, including al-Qaida-linked extremists, took over the town. About two-thirds of Maaloula’s estimated 3,300 residents fled while fighters abducted 12 nuns. — AP, 2/27/2025

Colombia reported a nearly one-third increase in violations of religious freedom rights during 2023 and 2024. The violations included “discriminatory treatment toward churches and religious denominations, as well as death threats against religious leaders and authorities.” In its 2025 World Watch List, Open Doors International, a worldwide Christian outreach organization, ranks Colombia as the 46th worst country globally for Christian persecution. The report said “Church leaders are particularly at risk because they try to influence the young people that guerrilla groups want to recruit.” — World Religion News, 1/28/2025

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is the world’s greatest 400-meter hurdler. She says her true victory is in her faith. “For a long time, my identity was in track and field,” McLaughlin-Levrone told the Associated Press. “First and foremost, I’m a child of God. It set me free to run the race God has set out for me.” Her reliance on faith aligns with research. According to Baylor University sociology professor Laura Upenieks, athletes with a secure connection to God experience lower levels of depression, anxiety, and loneliness. They are less likely to tie their self-worth to public approval and more likely to find fulfillment beyond their performance. — World Religion News, 2/5/2025

Social

Researchers at Colossal Laboratories and Biosciences have successfully created “woolly mice” — tiny, fluffy creatures that carry DNA inspired by the long-extinct woolly mammoth. In 2021, the company announced its ambitious plan to resurrect the woolly mammoth using advanced gene-editing technology. The company edited seven genes in mouse embryos to create long-haired, thick-furred mice with a fat composition similar to the mammoth. These adaptations allow the mice to thrive in cold environments similar to the ancient giants in icy landscapes. Along with the woolly mammoth, they have also set their sights on returning the dodo bird. — Sunnyskyz, 3/5/2025

Seven planets graced the sky at the end of February in what’s known as a planetary parade. This occurs when several planets appear to line up in the night sky simultaneously, not in a straight line but close together on one side of the sun. The astronomical linkup is fairly common and can happen at least every year, depending on the number of planets. According to NASA, a parade of four or five planets visible to the naked eye happens every few years. — AP, 2/25/2025

Crocodiles, monkeys, tigers, zebras, and dozens of other taxidermy animals will move to new homes after concerns about arsenic exposure forced the closure of the Delbridge Museum of Natural History at the Great Plains Zoo in Sioux Falls. Testing showed potentially hazardous levels of arsenic present in 80% of the specimens. However, 117 specimens will go to the University of Notre Dame Museum of Biodiversity, 33 to the Atlanta-based Oddities Museum Inc., and two to the Institute for Natural History Arts Inc. in New Jersey. — AP, 2/24/2025

Starlink communications network, owned by Elon Musk, is facing increasingly stiff challenges to its dominance of high-speed satellite internet from a Chinese state-backed rival and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Shanghai-based SpaceSail in November signed an agreement to enter Brazil and announced it was in talks with over 30 countries. Starlink has launched more satellites into low-Earth orbit (LEO) — an altitude of less than 2,000 km — than all its competitors combined. Satellites operating at such low altitudes transmit data extremely efficiently, providing high-speed internet for remote communities, seafaring vessels and militaries at war. — Reuters, 2/24/2025

Political

The parties hoping to form Germany’s next government agreed to create a 500-billion-euro infrastructure fund and overhaul borrowing rules in a tectonic spending shift to revamp the military and revive growth in Europe’s largest economy. Friedrich Merz, Germany’s likely next chancellor, reacted to the new U.S. President’s comments that Europe strengthens its defenses. — Reuters, 3/5/2025

Rwanda-backed rebels in eastern Congo entered the region’s second-largest city of Bukavu, the latest ground gained since a major escalation of their years long fighting with government forces. The M23, supported by about 4,000 troops from neighboring Rwanda, took control of eastern Congo’s biggest city, Goma, in late January. The rebels are the most prominent of over 100 armed groups vying for control of Congo’s mineral-rich east. The rebellion has killed at least 2,000 people in and around Goma and left hundreds of thousands of displaced people stranded, the U.N. and Congolese authorities have said. — AP 2/13/2025

Kremlin officials continue to exploit diplomatic engagements with Russia’s allies to reinforce Mocow’s narrative that Russia invaded Ukraine to protect Russian-speaking minorities in Ukraine. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) met with Iran. It stated that the delegations “touched upon” the situation in Ukraine and that Lavrov expressed gratitude to Iranian authorities for their “balanced position.” Russian officials claim the country needs to protect Russian-speaking minorities from alleged discrimination. — ISW, 2/25/2025

Despite being ousted in 1989 after a 35-year reign of terror, during which 20,000 people were tortured, executed, or disappeared, some Paraguayans feel as if Gen. Alfredo Stroessner never truly left. “This is probably the only country in which the political party that supported a dictator, once he is gone, remains in power,” said Paraguay’s history researcher Alfredo Boccia. Disappearances are a known phenomenon in Latin America. The numbers in Argentina and Chile might have gained the most visibility, but thousands more have vanished elsewhere under dictatorships and armed conflicts. — AP, 2/15/2025

About two-thirds of Americans say the U.S. government is spending “too little” on Social Security and education, according to a January AP-NORC poll. Another 6 in 10, say too little money is going to assistance to the poor. A similar share say spending is too low for Medicare, the national health care insurance program for seniors, and most also say the federal government underfunds Medicaid. About half say border security is not receiving enough funding. Yet while U.S. adults mostly think the government isn’t spending enough on key issues and programs, 60 percent say the government is spending “too much” overall. — AP, 2/24/2025

Financial

A new report estimates that India is home to 1.4 billion people, but around a billion lack money for discretionary goods or services. The country’s consuming class is only about as big as Mexico, 130- 140 million people, per the report from Blume Ventures, a venture capital firm. Another 300 million are “emerging” or “aspirant” consumers. The consuming class in Asia’s third-largest economy is not “widening” as much as it is “deepening,” according to the report. That means India’s wealthy population is not growing in numbers, even though those already rich are getting even wealthier. — BBC News, 2/26/2025

Israel and the Middle East

The royal seal of King Hezekiah was found in an archaeological excavation. The stamped clay seal, known as a bulla, was discovered in the Ophel excavations led by Dr. Eilat Mazar at the foot of the southern wall of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The bulla measures just over a centimeter in diameter. It bears a seal impression depicting a two winged sun disk flanked by ankh symbols and contains a Hebrew inscription, “Belonging to Hezekiah (son of) Ahaz, king of Judah.” The stamped bulla served as a signature and a means to ensure document authenticity. — Bible History Daily, 3/5/2025

A Knesset Research and Information Center report reveals a notable increase in births during late 2024. It includes data only on Israeli women. The rise in births is striking against the backdrop of a declining birth rate in Israel from 2021 to 2023. According to the Population and Immigration Authority, 172,500 births were recorded in 2023. In 2024, the number jumped to about 181,000. Israel’s Central Bureauof Statistics shows increased births from November 2024 through February 2025. Hospitals across the country reported overflowing maternity wards. Some liken the trend to the “baby boom” seen in the US after World War II. — Ynet News, 3/5/2025

An investigation determined that Hamas was able to carry out the deadliest attack in Israeli history on October 7, 2023, because the much more powerful Israeli army misjudged the group’s intentions and underestimated its capabilities. The military’s main findings were that the region’s most powerful and sophisticated military misread Hamas’ intentions, underestimated its capabilities, and was wholly unprepared for the surprise attack by thousands of heavily armed militants in the early morning hours of a major Jewish holiday. — AP, 2/28/2025

The first known person to produce acetylsalicylic acid — aka aspirin — made it with salicin, occurring naturally in plants like willow, meadowsweet, and myrtle. In the late 19th century scientists began making acetylsalicylic acid by converting benzene into phenol and phenol into salicylic acid. Aspirin debuted at the turn of the 20th century as a revolutionary drug that eased pain, reduced fever, and marked a significant achievement in modern chemistry. The question of who to credit for its invention became politicized after Nazis took power in Germany, leading to the attempted erasure of a Jewish chemist’s contributions. — History.com, 2/24/2025

On March 9, 1950, Iraq’s Chamber of Deputies and Senate approved the “Supplement to Ordinance Cancelling Iraqi Nationality” law. It stipulated that Jews could leave the country on condition that they renounce their citizenship and right to return. Of the 135,000 Jews living in Iraq, some 125,000 would be airlifted to Israel between 1950 and 1951. About 10,000 stayed behind, essentially ending more than 2,500 years of Jewish history in Mesopotamia. Initially, the law was in force for one year. It applied only to Jews. Within two months of the law’s promulgation, 90,000 Jews registered to leave, according to the Jewish Virtual Library. — JNS, 3/6/2025

The Trump administration approved a nearly $3 billion arms sale to Israel, bypassing normal congressional review to provide more of the 2,000-pound bombs Israel has used in the war against Hamas in Gaza. Secretary of State Marco Rubio approved another munitions sale to Israel worth $675.7 million to be delivered in 2028. In addition, it noted Rubio approved the sale of D9R and D9T Caterpillar bulldozers worth $295 million. — AP, 2/28/2025