14 Jan 2024

Qatar presents final draft of Gaza truce deal after a ‘breakthrough’
Qatar presented Israel and Hamas with a final draft of a ceasefire and hostage release deal on Monday, following midnight negotiations attended by US President-elect Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy that resulted in a “breakthrough.”

India gears up for world’s largest public gathering
The world’s largest public gathering — the Maha Kumbh Mela — begins this week in India. More than 400 million people are expected to take part in the six-week Hindu festival, which is held at an astrologically determined time every 12 years or so. Attendees celebrate with a ritual dip in sacred waters at the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and the mythical Sarasvati rivers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which has aggressively promoted Hindu religiosity, has essentially built a pop-up city for attendees,

‘Syrian above all’: The Alawite community refuses to pay for Assad’s crimes
A month after Bashar al-Assad’s regime collapsed, Syria’s Alawite minority, which served as the regime’s backbone, fears a witch hunt. In their stronghold of Tartus, members of the community recount that they too suffered under the former dictator’s bloody tyranny.

Israel strikes multiple Hezbollah targets, claims ceasefire mechanism did not address threats
The Israel Defense Forces announced early on Monday morning that they had conducted “intelligence-based strikes on a number of Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanon.” The Israeli military said that before the strikes were carried out, “the threat posed by the targets to the Israeli home front and IDF troops was presented to the monitoring mechanism of the ceasefire understandings between Israel and Lebanon.” However, it also claimed that those threats “were not addressed.”

Israeli Druze leader travels to US, urges protection for Syria’s Druze minority under Islamic rule
The spiritual leader of the Israeli Druze community, Sheikh Mowafaq Tarif travelled to the United States to ensure U.S. protection for the Druze community in Syria under the new Islamic rule in Damascus. The Druze minority fears that it will be persecuted by the new Islamist regime led by the Jihadist leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, also known as Al-Jolani.

New Knesset Party Emerges to Support Judea & Samaria
On Sunday, Idan Roll, a high-ranking Member of Knesset for the left-wing Yesh Atid Party, announced on Twitter that he is leaving the party to form a new party. Roll has been making public statements since October 7th, which appear to place him outside of the left-wing opposition views of the party led by Yair Lapid. I informed the chairman of the Yesh Atid faction, MK Yair Lapid, of my resignation from the party and my departure for an independent path.

Nukhba terrorists will not be released as part of hostage deal
A diplomatic source told The Jerusalem Post that Nukhba terrorists who took part in the October 7 massacre will not be released in exchange for hostages. Although some of the Palestinian prisoners slated for release in the hostage deal are serving life sentences for serious crimes, they are not part of the Nukhba terrorist forces.

Israel will not hand body of Yahya Sinwar to Hamas as part of hostage deal, source says
“Israel will not hand over the body of arch-terrorist Sinwar to Hamas as part of the deal,” the source stated. “It won’t happen, period,”

How Joe Biden’s work, with Donald Trump’s pressure, brought a hostage deal – analysis
The threat pressure was not only felt by Hamas, however, and over the past few days, Trump conveyed a message both to Qatari leadership and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the American hostages must come home “no matter what.” Trump personally sent his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, for negotiations. This is an unprecedented move in the history of transitions between US administrations and conveys the intended message.

Iran Congratulates Maduro on Inauguration, ‘Stands in Solidarity’ With Venezuela Against US ‘Coercive Measures’
The Iranian government sent its best wishes to Maduro and vowed to strengthen ties with Venezuela, describing their bilateral relationship as a way to stand up to the United States. “Congratulations to President #NicolasMaduro on his inauguration into office as President of the Bolivarian Republic of #Venezuela,”

Houthis fire missile at central Israel, triggering sirens in Samaria
The Israel Defense Forces shot down a missile launched at central Israel from Yemen by Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists on Monday night, triggering air-raid sirens throughout Samaria, the army said. “Following alerts that were activated a short time ago in several areas of the country, the Air Force intercepted one missile launched from Yemen,” the IDF stated. “The missile was intercepted before it crossed into Israeli territory;

As 30% of North Korean Troops Are Eliminated, Ukraine Still Holds Parts of Russia’s Kursk
According to Ukrainian authorities, Pyongyang volunteered to send approximately 12,000 troops, aiming to gain combat experience for its military. This marks North Korea’s full entry into the war on Russia’s side. However, North Korean forces—poorly prepared for modern warfare—have sustained heavy casualties. President Zelenskyy stated in an interview with Lex Fridman that around 3,800 North Korean soldiers have been killed or wounded. Despite these losses, Pyongyang appears ready to increase its contingent by 30,000–40,000 troops if needed.

‘IDF will stay in Lebanon until Hezbollah is dismantled’
Israel is not relying on anyone but itself to ensure Hezbollah does not rebuild in Lebanon, according to Brig.-Gen. Amir Avivi, founder and chairman of HaBithonistim. But more than 40 Hezbollah terrorists have been killed by Israel since the beginning of the cease-fire because they were trying to rebuild themselves. And this is not going to change—not only in South Lebanon, but all over Lebanon.”

Musk Says Neuralink Implanted Third Patient With Brain Device
“We’ve got now three humans with Neuralinks implanted and they’re all working well,” Musk said during an event in Las Vegas this week that was streamed on X, his social media service. Neuralink is one of a growing group of startups developing brain implants that can help treat conditions such as paralysis and ALS. They are experimental procedures that usually require opening up the skull to place electrodes in the brain tissue. A year ago, Neuralink said it had implanted its device in its initial patient, Noland Arbaugh.

FBI’s Wray Drops ‘Chinese Infiltration’ Bomb On Way Out, Warns Of Threat To Critical Infrastructure
While the FBI – the same FBI that participated in the Russiagage hoax, polarizing half of America into focusing on the Kremlin for a decade, the Chinese government – the same one that enriched the Biden family to the tune of millions, has apparently been ‘lying in wait’ all over America and is ready to attach critical infrastructure at a moment’s notice. According to … Wray “The Chinese government is prepositioning on American civilian critical infrastructure to lie in wait on those networks to be in a position to wreak havoc & inflict real world harm at a time & place of their choosing.”

Blaming ‘Climate Change’ For L.A. Fires Only Makes Newsom Look Criminally Incompetent
Newsom is again blaming “climate change” for the fires ravaging Los Angeles. But wait. If climate change really is to blame, why was California so obviously, so woefully, so inexcusably unprepared? Someone needs to ask Newsom why the state didn’t spend the last four years aggressively clearing out underbrush to minimize the chances of a catastrophic wildfire. Why didn’t it carve out large and effective buffer zones … In 2018, former Gov. Jerry Brown signed a $1 billion bill that was supposed to “prevent catastrophic wildfires and protect Californians.” Where did that money go?

House Republicans Weigh Sweeping $5.7 Trillion In Spending Cuts To Fund Trump’s Domestic Agenda
The plan, designed to bankroll President-elect Donald Trump’s ambitious priorities – including tax cuts and increased border security – details reductions to major federal programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and Biden-era climate initiatives. slashing welfare programs, revising Affordable Care Act subsidies, and rolling back green energy tax credits.

Woke DEI + Green Nihilism = Dresden In California
No one has really taken charge yet. And now even the woke culprits for the catastrophe are blame-gaming each other to determine who was the more incompetent, which in this case translates to the most woke. No one knows how many have died; all know the number will escalate in the next few days. The eventual price tag of the ruin will exceed $200-300 billion and outstrip the billions of dollars given to Ukraine. All the state media, the legacy newspapers, the Silicon Valley daily online news sites, the Bay Area-based Apple, Google, and Facebook monopolies, and the local news outlets are parrots of the woke-green mindset.

Texas Sues Allstate For Secretly Tracking Drivers Through Apps, Using Data To Raise Rates
The state of Texas has sued Allstate and a subsidiary, Arity, accusing the insurance giant of illegally tracking drivers through cell phone apps without their consent and then using the data to charge more for car insurance. Allstate created the “world’s largest driving behavior database,” which collected information on more than 45 million Americans after paying mobile app developers millions of dollars to secretly incorporate tracking software. Texas says Allstate also profited by selling the data to other insurers.

A Comet That Appears Every 160,000 Years, A ‘Glowing Ring Of Metal’ That Just Fell Out Of The Sky, And A Giant Coronal Hole Spanning 1/4 Of The Circumference Of The Sun
2025 has been quite a chaotic year already. On New Year’s Eve lightning struck four of the most iconic buildings in our entire country, on New Year’s Day we had terror attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas, Justin Trudeau stepped down just a few days later, and now we are in the midst of the worst fire disaster in U.S. history. Meanwhile, a lot of other really weird stuff has been going on in the sky above our heads. For example, a “once-in-a-lifetime comet” that only comes around once every 160,000 years is about to be visible from our planet.

New earthquake swarm in Campi Flegrei Italy
An earthquake swarm began in the Campi Flegrei area of southern Italy at 07:58 LT (06:58 UTC) on January 13, 2025.

Strong and shallow M6.8 earthquake hits Kyushu Japan
A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.8 hit near the coast of Kyushu, Japan at 12:19 UTC (21:19 LT) on January 13, 2025. The agency is reporting a depth of 49 km (30 miles). The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) is reporting M6.6 at a depth of 36 km (22.3 miles).

Extreme rainfall leaves 10 dead in Ipatinga Minas Gerais, Brazil
Extreme rainfall hit parts of Minas Gerais, Brazil late Saturday into Sunday, January 11 into 12, 2025, causing destructive landslides in which at least 10 people lost their lives. Most casualties were reported in Ipatinga where nearly 80 mm (3.1 inches) of rain fell in just one hour, causing widespread destruction.

TRUMP EFFECT: Hamas Is Prepared to Make Ceasefire Deal with Israel Following Trump’s Threat to “Raise Hell in the Middle East” 
In a no-holds-barred press conference at Mar-a-Lago following the certification of his 2024 election victory, President-elect Donald Trump issued a stern warning to Hamas, demanding the immediate release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip.

The Insurance Industry Is Going To Be Absolutely Devastated By The Los Angeles Fires
Will the insurance industry be able to survive tens of billions of dollars in losses from the Los Angeles fires?  There have been catastrophic fires in California before, but never anything quite like this. So what is going to happen to homeowners if their insurance companies go bankrupt and cannot pay?  Even the ones that do not go bankrupt are really going to struggle.  I have a feeling that some of them will delay payouts for an extended period of time and will deny as many claims as they possibly can in a desperate attempt to survive.  In the end, it is likely that vast numbers of homeowners that were counting on their insurance companies to bail them out will be left holding the bag.

Cotton Reintroduces Legislation to Expel Chinese Police Operatives in U.S.
Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) today reintroduced the Expel Illegal Chinese Police Act of 2025, legislation that will impose sanctions with respect to police departments run by the People’s Republic of China and other persons seeking to establish a Chinese police presence in the United States. This reintroduction comes after a man accused of running a secret police station on behalf of China’s Ministry of Public Security pled guilty to a charge of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government.

Romania Rises: Mass Protests Ignite Against EU-Backed Election Overturn
Romania’s annulled election is a chilling wake-up call to Europe: when the will of the people threatens Brussels’ grip, democracy becomes disposable.

Embalmers Keep Finding Fibrous CV19 Vax Clots
…An embalmer from Indiana, Wallace Hooker, was lecturing at an Ohio embalmer’s conference in Columbus, Ohio, on the 26th of October in 2022.  He was lecturing to a room of about 100 embalmers.  He showed them photographs of the white fibrous clots he had been pulling out of his corpses for the last year or so, and he asked by a show of hands how many of you are seeing these white fibrous clots?  He said almost the entire room of 100 embalmers raised their hands and said yes. He then asked when did you start seeing them?  They all said about six months after the Covid vaccines rolled out.”