Iran’s new supreme leader linked to properties with ‘line of sight’ into Israeli UK Embassy
Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been linked to two luxury apartments overlooking the Israeli Embassy in London, a location that security experts said could provide “permanent surveillance,” according to multiple reports.
The multimillion-dollar Kensington properties sit next to the high-profile embassy compound and were identified by UK media, drawing on findings from a yearlong probe into Khamenei’s potential overseas assets.
The Times of London reported on March 5 that the one building “sits next to the Israeli Embassy on Palace Green,” placing the residences in exceptional proximity to one of Israel’s most sensitive diplomatic sites.
LETHAL ELITE ‘BLACK-CLAD’ KILL SQUAD GUARDS IRAN’S NEW SUPREME LEADER MOJTABA KHAMENEI
The revelations stem from a Bloomberg investigation that alleged that the Khamenei portfolio could span multiple countries and include high-value real estate in London, totaling around $138M as well as assets in Europe and the Gulf.
The two London apartments were reportedly acquired in 2014 and 2016 via intermediaries and occupy upper floors of the building, offering a direct vantage point toward the rear of the Israeli embassy compound, UK media reported.
A terrorism specialist quoted in reports said the positioning effectively means “Iran owns the view into the back of the Israeli Embassy from less than 50 meters away,” describing the situation as a potential “serious security breach.”
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Roger Macmillan, a former director of security at the Iranian dissident satellite channel Iran International, also said the two apartments had “a direct line of sight, held through Mojtaba Khamenei. That’s not a property portfolio — it’s a permanent surveillance platform.”
“This is a serious security breach,” he added.
Further details from Bloomberg’s investigation indicated that a businessman acted as a financial conduit, buying up high-end properties on Khamenei’s behalf and channeling funds through a network of investments.
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The investigation also found that 11 mansions on London’s “Billionaire’s Row” were purchased using an Isle of Man shell company.
The Financial Times has also similarly reported on links between Khamenei’s associates and luxury assets across Europe.
Khamenei, 56, has been viewed as a powerful figure within Iran’s ruling establishment, ultimately becoming the leading successor to his father, who was killed in a Tehran compound strike on Feb. 28.
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So far, since he was selected by Iran’s Assembly of Experts, he has not been seen in public.
Iranian women’s soccer team returns home after declining asylum in Australia: report
Earlier this month, Australia granted asylum to five members of the Iranian women’s soccer team who were visiting the country for a tournament when the U.S. and Israel launched a joint military campaign against the country. The remaining members of the team, however, faced uncertainty.
After the team was knocked out of the Women’s Asian Cup, most of the players that initially sought asylum later changed their minds.
On Wednesday, all but two ultimately returned to Iran after declining asylum offers in Australia, according to unconfirmed Iranian state media reports.
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Video circulating on social media showed the soccer players entering Iran after a flight landed in Turkey. Those same athletes were previously seen traveling through the country by bus shortly after the flight returned to Iran. Multiple officials were reportedly present at the border when the soccer team arrived.
Fatemeh Pasandideh and Atefeh Ramezanisadeh were the two members of the Iranian national team who reportedly elected to stay behind in Australia. Both have been training with the Brisbane Roar club.
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Iran’s squad arrived in Australia for the tournament shortly before the war began on Feb. 28. The team initially gained global attention after some players stayed silent during Iran’s national anthem before their first game.
When the team was knocked out of the tournament and faced the prospect of returning to a country under bombardment, calls grew for Australia’s government to offer the women asylum. Iranian groups in Australia and President Donald Trump were among those who expressed fears for the women’s safety.
Iranian first Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref last week dismissed suggestions the women would be unsafe if they returned home, saying the country “welcomes its children with open arms and the government guarantees their security.”
Trump also commented on the Iranian men’s team’s World Cup participation, suggesting last week that while the squad is “welcome” to compete in the U.S. after qualifying, it might not be “appropriate.”
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“The Iran National Soccer Team is welcome to The World Cup, but I really don’t believe it is appropriate that they be there, for their own life and safety,” Trump wrote in a post to Truth Social post on March 12.
Iran’s men’s team is slated to play in Inglewood, California, against New Zealand on June 15. It is also scheduled to face Belgium on June 21 before finishing group play against Egypt in Seattle on June 26. The U.S. is hosting the tournament with Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.
Iran arrests 97 people it accuses of being ‘soldiers of Israel’ in massive crackdown
Iran’s intelligence ministry has arrested 97 people accused of being “soldiers of Israel,” according to state media reports Thursday.
The arrests are part of the country’s latest security sweep, which has seen hundreds detained over alleged links to Israel and the United States since the start of the war, Reuters said.
Earlier Thursday, state media also cited the police commander of Alborz province as saying 41 people had been arrested for sending videos to opposition media channels based abroad.
TOP IRANIAN OFFICIAL, COMMANDER KILLED IN STRIKE, ISRAEL DEFENSE MINISTER SAYS
On March 10, Iran’s intelligence ministry also reported it had arrested a foreign national, along with 30 other people it described as spies, internal mercenaries and operational agents of Israel and the U.S., according to Reuters.
The latest wave of arrests came in the wake of the assassination of Iran’s intelligence minister, Esmaeil Khatib, in a targeted Israeli strike in Tehran.
Khatib’s death was confirmed March 18 by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz 10 days after the start of Operation Epic Fury and Operation Roaring Lion, both targeting the Iranian regime.
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Under Khatib, the intelligence ministry’s role broadened significantly, and it now operates extensive informant networks across universities, media organizations, minority communities and activist circles across the country.
Its agents identify protest organizers, monitor communications and conduct interrogations, according to The Jerusalem Post.
On March 12, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) also said Iranian authorities had arrested nearly 200 people on charges related to the U.S.-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic.
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The charges include alleged activity on social media, sending content to foreign media outlets, espionage and disturbing public order, HRANA said before adding that its count was based on official reports.
Trump rates Macron ‘an 8’ as France and US split over Middle East strategy
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday called for an immediate de-escalation in the Middle East, urging a halt to U.S.–Israeli strikes on critical infrastructure as fighting intensifies across the region.
“France calls for the immediate implementation of a moratorium on strikes targeting civilian infrastructure, whether related to water or to energy,” Macron wrote on X, reinforcing France’s push for diplomacy even as the United States and Israel emphasize military pressure against Iran and its proxies. “Freedom and security of navigation must be restored.”
President Donald Trump recently struck a mixed tone on France’s role, saying he had spoken with Macron and was cautiously optimistic Paris ultimately would help secure the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route for oil and energy supplies.
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On “a scale of 0 to 10,” Trump said Macron had been “an eight.”
“Not perfect, but it’s France,” he said at a press briefing in the White House Monday.
Trump went on to say he believes Macron “is going to help” regarding securing the Strait of Hormuz, but added, “I don’t do a hard sell on them, because my attitude is we don’t need anybody. We’re the strongest nation in the world.”
“I’m almost doing it . . . because I want to find out how they react,” Trump said, suggesting the U.S. is also testing its allies.
In a future crisis, he warned, “I’ve been saying for years that if we ever did need them, they won’t be there. Not all of them, but they won’t be there.”
The divide reflects a broader question shaping the conflict: whether diplomacy can contain Iran’s regional network, or whether force is required to dismantle it.
WORLD LEADERS SPLIT OVER MILITARY ACTION AS US-ISRAEL STRIKE IRAN IN COORDINATED OPERATION
That tension is playing out most clearly over the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman that serves as one of the world’s most critical energy choke points, with roughly one-fifth of global oil supplies passing through it each day.
In recent weeks, Iran has disrupted traffic through the strait with drone, missile and naval threats, raising fears of a broader economic shock as commercial shipping slows and global energy markets face increasing uncertainty.
Macron said France “will never take part in operations to open or free” the critical waterway “in the current context,” emphasizing that France is “not a party to the conflict.”
Paris instead has proposed escorting commercial vessels only after hostilities subside, in coordination with regional actors.
At the same time, European allies — including France — signaled they are not entirely stepping back from efforts to secure the strategic waterway.
Leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan expressed in a joint statement released Thursday a “readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts” to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, while calling on Iran to “cease immediately its threats” against commercial shipping.
A European diplomat told Fox News that the United Kingdom is leading a diplomatic effort to build support among European and Gulf partners for a coordinated response, with discussions underway on how such a mission could be structured.
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However, European officials remain divided over timing, with concerns that launching such an effort during active hostilities could introduce new high-value targets into the conflict, according to the diplomat.
France pushes diplomacy across Iran-linked fronts
Lebanon has emerged as a second front in the war after Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group, began attacking Israel following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.
The group launched rockets and drones from southern Lebanon, prompting Israeli retaliatory strikes and escalating the conflict into a broader regional confrontation tied directly to Tehran, Iran, and its proxy network.
While distancing itself from direct military involvement, France is intensifying its diplomatic push in Lebanon, urging direct negotiations between Israel and Beirut following signals from Lebanese President Joseph Aoun that he is open to talks.
French officials view this as a “window of opportunity” to stabilize the border and prevent further escalation, arguing that both sides share an interest in preventing Lebanon from becoming a launchpad for attacks against Israel.
But Israeli officials have sharply pushed back, arguing that diplomacy cannot succeed while Hezbollah remains armed and active.
The Israel Defense Forces said Thursday that since Hezbollah joined the fighting following strikes on Iranian regime, the group has launched hundreds of rockets, missiles and drones toward Israel.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Israel has come under sustained attack from Lebanese territory in recent weeks.
“Since March 2nd, Israel has been attacked from Lebanese territory more than 2,000 times with missiles and drones,” he wrote on X Tuesday.
Sa’ar warned that the crisis extends beyond the region, calling disruptions to maritime routes “naval terrorism that harms the global economy.”
While expressing openness to normalization with Lebanon, Sa’ar made clear, “The obstacle to this is Hezbollah,” adding that Beirut must take “meaningful action” against the group’s weapons, funding and leadership.
Analysts say that gap — between France’s diplomatic push and Israel’s security demands — reflects a deeper structural problem that has persisted for years.
France has “potential influence that they never use … essentially the stick,” David Schenker, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs who oversaw Lebanon policy during the first Trump administration and now directs the Program on Arab Politics at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told Fox News Digital.
He argued that Paris has failed to use its leverage to pressure Hezbollah or its backers.
While Schenker said direct negotiations between the Lebanese government and Israel could be useful, he questioned whether they would change realities on the ground.
“I don’t see how a ceasefire in and of itself changes the status quo,” he said.
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Lebanese leaders repeatedly have pledged to assert a state monopoly over weapons, but “they haven’t really done much,” Schenker said, adding there is “zero confidence” they would move forward given Hezbollah’s opposition.
Even the Lebanese army has signaled its limits, prioritizing “national unity and the safety of the army above disarmament,” he said.
On the ground, the situation continues to deteriorate rapidly.
Violence in Lebanon has surged dramatically since the war in Iran began.
“There has been a 400% increase in violence events in Lebanon,” said Bassel Doueik, a researcher at the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED), adding that Israeli strikes and Hezbollah clashes have displaced at least 1 million people.
Doueik said Israel appears to be seeking to create a buffer zone south of the Litani River in Lebanon, warning the escalation could lead to “another occupation of southern Lebanon similar to 1982.”
At the same time, Hezbollah — long backed by Iran — continues to operate as a powerful armed force inside Lebanon, complicating efforts to reach any durable political settlement.
France has played a leading diplomatic role in Lebanon for years, including backing the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). But the mission has faced growing challenges, including restrictions on movement and attacks on its personnel, raising criticism about its effectiveness.
Critics argue that repeated diplomatic initiatives have failed to curb Hezbollah’s military buildup, leaving Israel increasingly skeptical of new proposals.
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“The French are specializing in carrots,” Schenker said, arguing that Paris has been reluctant to use pressure despite its influence in Lebanon.
But he added that the transatlantic divide is not entirely one-sided.
“This is a war that was launched by Israel and the United States, and they disagreed with it,” he said, noting that protecting global energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz should be “an international responsibility.”
Trump quips about Pearl Harbor when asked if Japan given advanced notice on Iran attacks: ‘Wanted surprise’
President Donald Trump made a quip about Pearl Harbor Thursday when asked if Japan and other American allies were given advance notice about attacking Iran, saying the U.S. “wanted surprise.”
Trump made the comment while sitting across from Prime Minister of Japan Sanae Takaichi during a bilateral meeting at the White House.
“Japan and the U.S. are very good friends, but one question, why didn’t you tell U.S. allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before attacking Iran? So we are very confused about, we Japanese citizens,” a reporter asked Trump.
“Well, one thing, you don’t want to signal too much,” the president responded. “You know, when we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn’t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Okay? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Okay? Right?”
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“You know, he’s asking me, ‘Do you believe in surprise?’ I think much more so than us. And we had to surprise them. And we did,” Trump continued. “And because of that surprise, we knocked out the first two days, we probably knocked out 50% of what we — and much more than we anticipated doing. So, if I go and tell everybody about it, there’s no longer a surprise, right?”
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Earlier in the meeting, Trump told reporters, “We’re doing this excursion. And when it’s completed, we’re going to have a much safer world. And the Prime Minister agrees with me on this.
“Iran is a serious threat to the world, to the Middle East and to the world. And everybody agrees with me,” Trump said. “I think virtually every country agrees with me on that. So I wanted to put out that fire.”
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Operation Epic Fury was launched by the U.S. on Feb. 28, and as of Thursday, is on day 20.
Neither the US nor Israel will ‘succeed in replacing the Iranian regime,’ retired US general says
A retired U.S. general predicted that “neither Israel nor the U.S. will fully succeed in replacing the Iranian regime.”
Former Lt. Gen. Mark Schwartz was quoted by the Israel Hayom newspaper as making the remark. The joint U.S. and Israeli missions against Iran, named Operation Epic Fury and Operation Roaring Lion, are in their 20th day Thursday.
“In my professional assessment, neither Israel nor the U.S. will fully succeed in replacing the Iranian regime. The main reason is that there are dozens, if not hundreds, of Iranian religious leaders who can replace the Supreme Leader, the Ayatollah, if he is eliminated,” Schwartz told Israel Hayom.
“No matter how many successors you kill one after another, there will always be another one in line. Iran’s intelligence and security apparatus, the Revolutionary Guards, and the Iranian military also have depth. They are capable of replacing the top of the organization if it is destroyed,” he reportedly added.
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Schwartz is a career Green Beret who served in the U.S. Army for 33 years, according to The National Special Forces Green Beret Memorial, where he is the chairman of the advisory board.
The organization said, “During his career, Mark served throughout the Middle East, Europe, and North Africa,” and, “He has had the opportunity to lead strategic planning and operations working with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the United Nations, the European Union, and the United States Agency for International Development.”
PENTAGON SEEKS AT LEAST $200 BILLION FROM CONGRESS FOR IRAN WAR
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard had warned Wednesday that if the Iranian regime survives Operation Epic Fury, “it will likely seek to begin a yearslong effort to rebuild its military, missiles and UAV forces.”
Gabbard also said the intelligence community “assesses that Operation Epic Fury is advancing fundamental change in the region that began with Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7th, 2023, and continued with the 12-day war last year, resulting in weakening Iran and its proxies.”
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The campaign so far has resulted in the killing of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has been replaced by his son, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Pentagon targets Iran-linked militias in Iraq as Hegseth vows ‘we will finish this’ for fallen US troops
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said the U.S. military is striking “Iranian-aligned militia groups” in Iraq as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth vowed Thursday to “honor” the sacrifice of six U.S. service members killed in a plane crash there last week.
President Donald Trump, Hegseth and Caine on Wednesday attended the dignified transfer of the six fallen soldiers at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The Pentagon said last week that the U.S. forces were killed when a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq during a combat mission in support of Operation Epic Fury.
Caine said Thursday that in Iraq, AH-64 helicopters “have been striking against Iranian-aligned militia groups to make sure that we suppress any threat in Iraq against U.S. forces or U.S. interests.”
“And we remain focused on pursuit of any platform that Iran could field to harm Americans or our partners,” he added.
TRUMP THREATENS KEY IRANIAN GAS FIELD AFTER ISRAELI STRIKE
Reflecting on the fallen U.S. service members, Hegseth said, “Yesterday at Dover Air Force Base, President Trump, the chairman, and I stood in solemn silence as heroes came home.”
“Flag-draped caskets. We honored them. We grieved with their families, and we listened. What I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve was the same from family after family. They said, ‘finish this. Honor their sacrifice. Do not waver. Do not stop until the job is done.’ My response, along with that of the president, was simple — of course, we will finish this. We will honor their sacrifice,” Hegseth said.
“Yesterday’s ceremony reminded us why we fight. Not for nation building or democracy promotion, but to crush direct threats to America, Americans, and our interests. We fight to win, and we are winning, on our terms, following our objectives,” he continued.
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“My 13-year-old son popped into my office last night while I was editing these remarks. He asked about the war and the families I met at Dover, and I looked at him and I said, ‘They died for you, son, so that your generation doesn’t have to deal with a nuclear Iran’,” Hegseth also said. “It’s the truth. And they did. So to the families who said, ‘finish this,’ we will. And I say the same to every American who wants peace through strength. May Almighty God continue to bless our troops in this fight. And again to the American people, please pray for them, every day, on bended knee, with your family, in your schools, in your churches, in the name of Jesus Christ. To the troops, keep going and Godspeed.”
Those killed were Maj. John “Alex” Klinner, 33; Maj. Ariana Savino, 31; Tech. Sgt. Ashley Pruitt, 34; Capt. Seth Koval, 38; Capt. Curtis Angst, 30; and Master. Sgt. Tyler Simmons, 28.
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Caine said at the Pentagon Thursday that, “Our nation will never forget their sacrifice, and we will never forget their names,” and, “Our entire joint force mourns with you today.”
Trump threatens key Iranian gas field after Israeli strike
President Donald Trump warned in a Truth Social post that the U.S. will powerfully attack Iran’s South Pars natural gas field if the Islamic Republic targets a Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility again.
“Israel, out of anger for what has taken place in the Middle East, has violently lashed out at a major facility known as South Pars Gas Field in Iran. A relatively small section of the whole has been hit. The United States knew nothing about this particular attack, and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape, or form, involved with it, nor did it have any idea that it was going to happen. Unfortunately, Iran did not know this, or any of the pertinent facts pertaining to the South Pars attack, and unjustifiably and unfairly attacked a portion of Qatar’s LNG Gas facility,” Trump declared in the Truth Social post.
“NO MORE ATTACKS WILL BE MADE BY ISRAEL pertaining to this extremely important and valuable South Pars Field unless Iran unwisely decides to attack a very innocent, in this case, Qatar — In which instance the United States of America, with or without the help or consent of Israel, will massively blow up the entirety of the South Pars Gas Field at an amount of strength and power that Iran has never seen or witnessed before,” he continued.
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Trump warned that while he does not want to take such action, he would be willing to do so.
“I do not want to authorize this level of violence and destruction because of the long term implications that it will have on the future of Iran, but if Qatar’s LNG is again attacked, I will not hesitate to do so,” he declared in the post.
Trump’s threat comes as the U.S. and Israel are deep into the third week of their controversial war with Iran.
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Earlier this week, Joe Kent resigned from his position as National Counterterrorism Center director due to his opposition to the war.
“Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby,” Kent declared in his resignation letter.
FORMER COUNTERTERRORISM CHIEF JOE KENT UNDER FBI INVESTIGATION FOR ALLEGED CLASSIFIED LEAKS
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Trump pushed back on Tuesday, saying that “it’s a good thing that he’s out because he said that Iran was not a threat. Iran was a threat. Every country realized what a threat Iran was. The question is whether or not they wanted to do something about it.”
MORNING GLORY: Israel is America’s best ally — we must reject the evil of antisemitism
The stunning and ominous rise in antisemitism in the United States cannot be disputed, but can be resisted. It is particularly the obligation of genuine Christians to participate in the repression through education of the ancient evil. It is the particular obligation of Christian institutions — churches, colleges, publishers and more — to do their part in making this sin once again an obvious source of shame and to help cure those who suffer from it and, where it cannot be cured, to force it back by shaming and shunning into the deepest shadows where it belongs.
Christianity didn’t invent antisemitism. It existed before Christ and the empires of the ancient world would target Jews for many reasons. But, once Christianity rose to dominate Europe, antisemitism spread alongside and within a vast portion of the Church.
Some, but not enough, of the Church always spoke out against antisemitism and its costumed version of today — anti-Zionism — and continues to do so. Saint John Paul the Great and Pope Benedict were the most visible and outspoken opponents of antisemitism from within the Catholic Church of my lifetime, but many others have noted the obvious intractable hostility of real Christianity to the sin of hatred embedded in hatred of Jews or their country.
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When Colorado Christian University — originally founded in 1914 as Denver Bible College, but now a flourishing university in Lakewood, Colorado — invited me to a day of teaching, feasting and lectures, I chose as my topic the reasons why Americans of all faiths, or none at all, ought to support Israel. I included in those remarks the obvious: It is sinful for Christians to hate Jews or Israel.
That’s hardly a lightning bolt for even the “slightly churched.” But. I wanted primarily to stress that America is an ally of Israel for non-theological reasons — reasons with which Christians ought to be familiar. It is bad writing to reproduce speeches and brand them columns, but here in condensed form is the argument I made.
First, in a dangerous world, even the dominant superpower — the United States — needs allies, especially as the People’s Republic of China stretches to become a peer in military and intelligence matters as well as economic influence.
The State of Israel is, objectively, the most important ally of the United States. It is a nuclear power. It is the equal of any military on the globe in its ability to strike far and hard and to dominate its region. It’s an intelligence superpower and an engine of technological excellence and ever-increasing breakthroughs. If any country had to pick one strong ally not named the United States, it would pick Israel.
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Israel is also a reliable and fully-integrated-into-our-military ally. Israel takes what the United States makes and improves on it, as had been the case with the F-35 fighter. It sometimes takes the rudiments of a technology and develops them to scale and deploys them, as with Iron Dome and soon Iron Beam. Those advancements will return to America as the Golden Dome and the Golden Beam. Would that Israel got into the ship building business at scale, but we have allies in South Korea and Japan that are doing just that.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Israel shares America’s founding values of individual liberty and democratic governance. Israel is as politically fractious as the U.S., but freedom of speech is as robust there as it is here. Human rights are respected there as they are here. It is a “Western nation” in every respect, despite having to have fought for its very life since the state’s modern founding in 1948.
I also reminded the audience in quick fashion that, as a matter of American law, both constitutional, statutory and treaty-based law, that the United States recognizes Israel as a nation state with all the rights and responsibilities of a nation state.
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“Zionism” — the term that originated in the late 19th century movement to re-establish the Jewish homeland in the ancestral lands of the Jews — is not some ideological outlier, but very much a historical movement that culminated in the United Nations’ recognition of Israel as a nation state via actions of both that body’s General Assembly and Security Council. The United States participated in that process and voted for it. While theology might underlay some Americans’ support for Israel, belief in the rule of law is the best and enduring case for most Americans to stand by and with Israel because American law is pledged to respect Israeli nationhood.
After the invasion of Israel by Hamas from Gaza on October 7, 2023, and the massacre and kidnapping that followed, one would have predicted the death of much of antisemitism in the West, so awful was the cruelty of that day and so evil and hideous the unmasked face of Jew-hatred.
Instead, and to the shock of many, Israel’s just war to recover its captives and destroy the threat to the state posed by Hamas triggered not just more attacks on it from Hezbollah nested in Lebanon, the Houthis embedded in Yemen and the “head of the snake” in the Islamic Republic of Iran, but also a geyser of Jew-hatred in the United States.
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What had been marginal and a marginalized, weird, cultish and conspiracist belief system suddenly went mainstream and apparently became a much larger phenomenon than most Americans believed possible (or at least seemed that world in the fun house mirrors of the web.) Antisemitism and the subset of the ancient evil under the name of anti-Zionism is still very much an outlier in American public opinion, but the damage this loathsome ideology has wrought post 10/7 to the collective American psyche is significant as those possessed by this repugnant hatred feel free to express it in public.
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So it is long past time for Americans, and especially mainstream Christian Americans, to make the theological case against antisemitism — it is a grave sin, indeed, for Catholics, a “mortal sin” — and just as importantly if not more so, the secular case for being pro-Zionist laid out in brief above.
America needs a healthy polity, one free of all racial and religion-based hatred, and it needs allies as strong and reliable as Israel. The two arguments cannot be made often enough in too many places, but both ought to be made especially on and within any institution identifying itself as “Christian.” I thank Colorado Christian University for giving me the opportunity to do so.
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SEN JOHN KENNEDY: Democrats are gambling with our lives by not funding DHS
My Democratic colleagues have opposed President Donald Trump’s agenda at every turn, and that’s their right. But their decision to shut down the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) isn’t some harmless act of political gamesmanship; it’s incredibly dangerous.
In the one month since Democrats voted to deny funding to DHS, the United States has faced at least four apparent terrorist attacks.
On March 1, a gunman wearing a “Property of Allah” shirt killed three Americans and wounded 13 others outside Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden in Austin, Texas. On March 7, two men tossed explosives into a crowd of protesters near Gracie Mansion in New York City. The men told the New York Police Department that they had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. They had hoped to kill more people than the Boston bombers, but the courageous acts of NYPD officers on the scene foiled their attack.
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On March 12, a gunman — who had been released from prison after providing material support to ISIS — entered a classroom on the campus of Old Dominion University, shouted “Allahu Akbar,” and opened fire. He killed an ROTC instructor before brave students stopped him. That same day, a man in West Bloomfield, Michigan, injured one security guard when he rammed his vehicle into the Temple Israel synagogue while preschool was in session. According to the Israeli government, the suspect — who apparently shot himself amid a shootout with the Temple’s security — had a brother who was a member of the terrorist group Hezbollah.
These terrorists killed four Americans and injured dozens more. It makes me nauseous to imagine how many more could have died if not for the bravery of local law enforcement officers, the Temple’s armed security and Old Dominion’s ROTC students.
These attacks on American soil all occurred against the backdrop of President Trump’s decisive action in Iran. To be clear: President Trump had no choice but to strike Iran. He wasn’t trying to start a war; he is trying to end one. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — who shared the same affinity for killing Americans as the terrorists who just struck within the United States — wanted to resume building nuclear weapons, and he would have been able to do that if we didn’t stop Iran’s missile and drone production soon.
I’m confident our airmen will annihilate Iran’s missile supply, but that won’t eliminate the threat to the American people. The ayatollah may have used his last rotten breath to trigger sleeper cells within the United States. These lone-wolf terrorists may be plotting additional attacks here at home, and we have no clue how many terrorists may be living among us because President Biden left our border wide open for four years.
During that time, the Biden administration released at least 99 known individuals from the terrorist watchlist into the country — and those are just the suspects we know about. It will take an all-hands-on-deck effort to find and deport every terrorist lurking among the estimated millions of unvetted people that the Biden administration released into our country.
Yet DHS, which employs the very people who should be hunting these lone wolves, is shut down because my Democratic colleagues have been throwing a month-long temper tantrum.
At the heart of this meltdown is the fact that many of my Democratic colleagues want open borders. They don’t think we should deport anybody, and they’re holding funding for DHS hostage because they hate the idea that officers at Customs and Border Protection or Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) might actually enforce our immigration laws.
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In turn, they’ve made a series of demands to resume funding. Some of the requests were reasonable, and the Trump administration agreed to implement them as soon as possible. For example, all ICE officers will wear body cameras during future operations. They’d do it right now, but it’s hard to buy cameras when Democrats won’t approve their funding.
The remaining Democratic demands are weapons-grade stupid. For example, they want to forbid ICE officers from wearing masks and force them to display their names on their uniforms. These policies would endanger the lives of ICE agents and their families. We can’t expect these law enforcement officers to focus on hunting terrorists when anti-ICE lunatics are following their vehicles or showing up at their churches.
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We all know some Democrats hate President Trump more than the Devil hates holy water, but we’ve seen four apparent terrorist attacks in two weeks. The Department of Homeland Security isn’t a pawn in a political game. We need these officers focused on spotting sleeper cells, not their missing paychecks.
To my Democratic colleagues: Don’t wait for another attack to get serious about protecting America’s security. Reopen DHS today.
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