Free Republic

A California man was charged Monday with operating a ring of illegal test-takers who helped dozens of Middle Eastern nationals obtain U.S. student visas by passing proficiency and college-placement exams for them. Eamonn Daniel Higgins, 46, of Laguna Niguel made an appearance in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana on one count of conspiracy to commit visa fraud as immigration agents arrested 16 of his suspected clients who remained in Southern California... The allegations revealed a potentially dangerous security breach in the country's student visa system and underscored the vulnerability of a tracking process that relies on schools to verify...

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday hailed Christian communities in the Middle East who “persevere and remain in their homelands, resisting the temptation to abandon them” despite war, marginalization or persecution. “Christians must be given the opportunity, and not just in words, to remain in their native lands with all the rights needed for a secure existence. Please, let us strive for this!” he told a meeting of Eastern Catholic Churches at the Vatican. On Sunday, the pontiff called for an "authentic and lasting peace" in Ukraine, a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all Israeli hostages held by militant group...

Journalists covering President Donald Trump’s arrival to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday observed the presence of a mobile McDonald’s set up at a press center for covering the event in Riyadh, an apparent nod to the president’s love of the burger restaurant. Officials reportedly set up the mobile McDonald’s, which was “still shuttered” as of Tuesday, in a “Media Oasis” for journalists, according to the Associated Press. The “Oasis” featured various displays of Saudi government propaganda touting the government’s construction projects, including the controversial, still-unbuilt “city of the future” Neom and venues for the 2034 FIFA World Cup, which Saudi Arabia...

Is it just me, or is this a sight to behold? Seeing Trump & MBS as co-hosts greeting all of them...I've never seen anything like it.. The MSM made it sound like a dozen or so CEO's & business leaders would be there. It seems like maybe 50.

Christian evangelist Franklin Graham is urging Americans to pray for President Donald Trump ahead of the commander-in-chief’s trip to the Middle East. “Pray for President @realDonaldTrump as he travels to the Middle East for meetings,” Graham wrote on Monday morning. “There will be much pressure put on him relating to Israel, Gaza, and the Palestinians.” “Pray for God’s protection, and may God give him wisdom,” he added. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt previewed Trump’s four-day trip to the Middle East on Friday, telling reporters that Trump plans to “reemphasize his continued vision for a proud, prosperous, and successful Middle...

Could President Donald Trump officially recognize Palestine as an independent state on his trip to the Middle East? That’s what some analysts are predicting as a lively debate rages in the Arab media sphere over just how far the U.S. president will go while abroad. There had already been some writing on the wall that Trump’s Middle East tour — which includes visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates — was not coming in the midst of a period of unalloyed harmony between the administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Hebrew-language Israeli media reported Thursday that...

Trump is furious about what he views as an attempt by Netanyahu and his team to pressure National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who has since been dismissed from his position, toward military action in Iran. Netanyahu claimed in response to the publication of this matter in The Washington Post that he spoke with Waltz only once. However, Trump remained unconvinced. The president's anger likely explains Israel's exclusion from both the announcement regarding the ceasefire with the Houthis and Israel's inclusion in the agreement. It's worth noting that even after Trump announced the agreement with the Houthis, Israeli representatives handling relations...

A report in Israel’s Israel Hayom says that President Donald Trump is “disappointed” in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and has decided to make his next moves in the Middle East without him. The report, published in Hebrew and citing two sources close to Trump, would seem to corroborate the observation that Trump has cut Netanyahu out of his decision-making process on major policy steps. Last month, Trump surprised Netanyahu by announcing that the U.S. would begin “direct” talks with the Iranian regime over a new nuclear deal. And this week, he surprised Israel again by announcing that the U.S....

Saudi Arabia's foreign minister arrived in the United States on Tuesday (Apr 8) for an official visit aimed at planning US President Donald Trump's expected trip to the kingdom later this spring, a source close to the Saudi royal court told Reuters. Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud will also discuss Gaza and the status of Yemen's Houthis during meetings with US government officials, the source said. The trip was scheduled before last week's US tariffs announcement, the source added. Trump's tariff offensive has rattled markets and raised fears of a global recession that could drive down the price of oil,...

'Genocide' is Now Practiced by Arabs in their Campaign Against Jews FRESH FROM THE WIRES. By HIRSCH WOLFSON. Paris, France, (WNS)—Some 800,000 to a million Jews living in the Arab lands of Africa and the Middle-East are today in mortal danger of annihilation. They are being subjected to a wave of persecution of Hitler prototype and are being held as hostages no less, in the calculated scheme of reactionary Arab leaders to prevent the fulfillment of the UN decision to establish independent Jewish and Arab states in Palestine. Much of the news about what is happening to the Jews in...

For decades, commanders have dreamt of unlimited ammunition in the form of laser beamsIsrael has said it will deploy its Iron Beam this year, potentially beating most countries in fielding a high-powered laser defence system. Behind the claims – one analyst called it a “watershed” moment – there are important limitations of laser systems that could delay their widespread use. To illustrate how difficult it has been to turn a laser design into something that can be brought on to the battlefield, Iron Beam was announced by manufacturer Rafael at a defence show in Singapore in 2014. Eleven years later,...

Patrick Rooney watches and discusses the outrageous "Trump Gaza" video with his guests, business and political consultant Brian J. Pombo, stand-up comedian Marc Yaffee, and Jerry McClellan, graphic novelist and animator, on the "Old School With Patrick Rooney" Podcast. President Trump shared this video with no comment from his Truth Social account. The panel has varied and at times surprising takes on the video and the effect it is having and will have on Americans, Gazans, and the world. What do YOU think of it?...

And now to the few conservative news sites re Israel. VS Islamofascistic: Iran, Turkey [Abadolu, TRT, etc.], Qatar [al-jazeera, MiddleEastEye, theNewArab] or jihad-apologetic-Haaretz and the likes. JNSINNAlgemeinerJfeedYnet and JPost are center left but TimesofIsrael is lefty. (Haaretz [Haaretzism] is radical liberal, pro-atheism, anti Israel and pro Arab Islamists plus much of fake news).

On the face of it, Trump’s plan for the US to occupy Gaza is not remotely feasible, but that could all be part of the president’s scheme. US President Donald Trump dropped a bombshell on Tuesday when he announced that the United States will take over the Gaza Strip for the foreseeable future. With his declaration, the president has once again thrown a diplomatic grenade into the Middle East conversation – not a particularly quiet region at the best of times and one beset by 15 months of war. The proposal – one that envisions the US developing Gaza, creating...

The Times will accuse DNI nominee Tulsi Gabbard of meeting with then-Lebanese Hezbollah Supreme Leader Hassan Nasrallah in 2017.The New York Times is preparing to publish a deep state hit piece on President Donald Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. The piece is purportedly based on National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance of a pair of anonymous terrorists.Two people familiar with the matter told The Federalist the Times will accuse Gabbard, a former Democrat congresswoman from Hawaii, of meeting with then-Lebanese Hezbollah Supreme Leader Hassan Nasrallah on a Middle East trip in 2017. The paper of “all the...

Iran has purchased Russian-made Sukhoi-35 fighter jets, a senior Revolutionary Guards commander said on Monday, amid Western concerns about Tehran and Moscow's growing military cooperation. This is the first time an Iranian official has confirmed the purchase of Su-35 jets. Earlier this month, Iran and Russia signed a comprehensive strategic partnership which did not mention arms transfers but said the two will develop their "military-technical cooperation." Iran's air force has only a few dozen strike aircraft, including Russian jets as well as ageing U.S. models acquired before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Trump reversed the Biden administration's sanctions on Israelis, suspended new aid for the Palestinians, and withdrew the United States from the U.N. World Health Organization, which Israel has accused of colluding with Hamas. The president also spoke of confronting Iran and normalizing Israeli-Saudi relations—and vowed to bring home the remaining hostages abducted in Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.Overall, day one of Trump's second term signaled a return to form for the president, whose first administration waged a "maximum pressure" sanctions campaign against Iran, oversaw normalization between Israel and four Arab states, and recognized Israel's claims to Jerusalem and...

Donald Trump and wife Melania were all smiles as they watched a fireworks display at one of the many celebrations being held in the Washington, D.C., area ahead of the inauguration. Trump marked his return to power with a celebration at his Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, about 30 miles outside Washington. In addition to the First Couple, many of the major players in the Trump orbit were in attendance, including daughter and former senior advisor Ivanka, who was alongside her husband, Jared Kushner. All of Trump's adult children and their partners were in attendance, with Don Jr....

Ancient Map Sets Middle East Ablaze: Jordan Accuses Israel of 'Criminal[sic]' Territory Grab What started as an Israeli Foreign Ministry social media post about ancient Jewish kingdoms has erupted into a major diplomatic crisis, with Jordan and the Palestinian Authority accusing Israel of revealing "malicious[sic] territorial ambitions" by sharing a map of biblical borders that extend into modern Arab states. The map which enraged Jordan and the Palestinians. Photo: Screenshot from Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, X. A social media post by Israel's Foreign Ministry featuring an ancient biblical map has ignited fierce criticism from Arab nations, with Jordan's government...

President-elect Trump tapped Morgan Ortagus, a former State Department spokesperson, to serve as deputy special presidential envoy for Middle East peace in his next administration. Trump noted in his announcement that Ortagus previously was critical of him. As a Fox News contributor in 2016, she bashed Trump over behavior she thought was “disgusting.” She then served in the State Department from 2019 to 2021. “Early on Morgan fought me for three years, but hopefully has learned her lesson. These things usually don’t work out, but she has strong Republican support, and I’m not doing this for me, I’m doing it...