THE CHURCH MILITANT
Ephesians 5:11-"And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them". This Christian News Blog maintains a one stop resource of current news and reports of its own related to church, moral, spiritual, and related political issues, plus articles, and postings from other online discernment ministries, and media which share the aims to obey the biblical commands to shed light on and refute error, heresy, apostasy, cults, and spiritual abuse.
President Trump has in fact stated that he’s looking to defund the World Health Organization as GOP senators rally around his call to discipline this central globalist institution. We’re going to take a look at what Trump and the Republicans are proposing in terms of pulling funds from the WHO, and how it’s all just par for the course of the beginning of the end for other major globalist institutions in the midst of this pandemic; I think you’re going to love it!
GREECE ERECTS MASSIVE CONCRETE BORDER WALL TO STOP MIGRANT INVASION
★★★ A NEW CONSERVATIVE AGE IS RISING ★★★
We’re going to take a look at the latest developments going on with Greek security forces who are holding the line for all of Europe at their Turkish border ……..and how even Greece’s new president, who was otherwise thought of as a liberal cosmopolitan, has fully embraced a nationalist populist commitment to defending the nationalist sovereignty of her nation; you’re going to love it.
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Marine Le Pen has called for a national referendum in order to stop what she called the “submersion” of France via a “globalist” program of mass immigration.
Speaking during a debate on the issue in the French Parliament, the leader of the National Rally political party scorched the political establishment for overseeing the dilution of French identity at the expense of ordinary people.
Le Pen said the last 30 years of immigration laws were designed to ineffective and resulted in “nothing more than political grandstanding.”
She said the French people “recognise that uncontrolled immigration is a threat, a threat to their daily lives, to their way of life, and even, at times, a threat to their lives.”
“Our country is experiencing a veritable submersion, yes a submersion, I dare to use that term, because it describes the reality of the unbroken wave that is crashing upon our cities, our towns, and now, because of your irresponsible policy of placing migrants in the rural areas, even the smallest villages,” said Le Pen.
She slammed establishment politicians for trying to make discussion of immigration taboo and demonizing dissidents even as a giant demographic displacement of people was taking place and accused them of “treason” for failing to “defend their people.”
“But above all, without ever consulting the people, they organized the streams of legal migration and tolerated illegal immigration,” she added, saying this was driven by “the globalist ideology that guides them inexorably.”
Le Pen also accused globalists of reducing man to his “economic dimension, as a producer and consumer, an interchangeable man, with no identity or cultural reference points, nothing but a cog in the wheel of global commerce.”
“The torrent of migration is destroying our welfare system, is making the entire penal system explode and is undermining the unity of the nation,” she added.
Slamming President Macron for exacerbating the problem, Le Pen dismissed the “debate” as a pointless “rehearsal for a high school play,” calling for a national referendum on stopping mass immigration.
“In this chamber a majority want this migration madness to continue. In France, a majority want this migration madness to stop,” she concluded.
Le Pen was heckled throughout the speech by pro-mass immigration politicians, but her words were absolute fire.
Nigel Farage’s final speech at the EU ended very dramatically when he was cut off for ‘disobeying the rules’ ahead of the Brexit withdrawal agreement vote.
The United Kingdom is now officially set to leave the European Union on January 31 at 23:00 GMT. With the announcement of Royal Assent on Thursday, the withdrawal agreement championed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson officially became law.
Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans had the honor of making the announcement to a nearly empty House of Commons: “I have to announce in the House in accordance with the Royal Assent Act 1967 that her majesty has signified her Royal Assent to the following act: European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020.”
The announcement is the final finishing nail in a more than three-and-a-half-year political drama in the U.K. over the citizens' decision to leave the European Union in a 2016 referendum. The turmoil since that vote has included the resignation of two prime ministers, vicious negotiations over a “withdrawal deal” that was never truly needed, and a tumultuous snap general election in December of 2019 that became a de facto re-vote on the original referendum. That paradigm-shifting election was a resounding victory for Brexit-backing Tories.
Prime Minister Johnson offered only a brief statement, saying, “At times it felt like we would never cross the Brexit finish line, but we’ve done it."
“Now we can put the rancor and division of the past three years behind us and focus on delivering a bright exciting future — with better hospitals and schools, safer streets and opportunity spread to every corner of our country.”
It wouldn’t have been about Brexit without some last-ditch attempts to change the Withdrawal Agreement. On Wednesday, the House of Lords offered several amendments on citizen’s rights, the power of British courts to deviate from EU law and the consent of the UK’s devolved administrations, all of which were rejected by the House of Commons.
The House of Commons also rejected a proposal that would have required Johnson’s government to negotiate an agreement with the EU to allow unaccompanied children who have claimed asylum in a different country but have a relative in the UK to join that relative. According to the agreement as signed, the government must still address the issue but only by a statement within the next two months — not a negotiation.
Once January 31 finally comes, the UK will enter into an 11-month transition period ending on December 31, 2020 during which the UK and the EU will negotiate their new relationship. During the transition period, the UK will remain in the customs union and follow the single-market rules. Free movement of citizens between the UK and Europe will continue as well.
But thanks to Johnson and the Conservative-led House of Commons, that transition period may no longer be extended due to a legal clause added to the Withdrawal Agreement in December that nixes any extensions.
Any issues not fully worked out and signed by both parties by the end of 2020 — such as fishing rights, consumer and environmental standards and climate-change law — will be conducted on World Trade Organization's terms. While not a perfect situation by any means, it's still infinitely better than being tied to the European Union.
There are still a few t’s to cross and some i’s to dot. The EU Parliament must debate and pass the agreement on January 29 — this is seen as simply a formality. Charles Michel, the Belgian politician who serves at the president of the European Council, must sign the agreement; and so must Johnson.
But barring something crazy like a Fort Sumter-like attack on Great Britain emanating from the EU, Great Britain will again be free to determine its own fate, a sovereign nation once again.
A memo obtained by the Daily Mail about plans for the upcoming Brexit Day sums things up quite well. Brexit Day will represent “the start of a new chapter in the history of our country, in which we come together and move forward united, unleashing the enormous potential of the British people.”
January 14, 2020—On the fourth day of student protests that began on Saturday, demonstrators called on Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of the Iranian regime, to resign. "Commander in chief, resign!" the students were chanting. Slogans also included the following:
- People didn't die for us to praise the murderous leader
- We will die and we will take back Iran
- Death to the rule of the mullahs
Protests began on Saturday after Iranian officials admitted, following a three-day delay, that security forces had shot down a civilian passenger plane flying from Tehran to Kiev, Ukraine.
I24 NEWS REPORTS:
Iranians Are Protesting, But They Aren't Protesting Trump and the Media Can't Stand It
President Trump tweets out support for Iranian protests
Iranian universities have erupted in protest and are calling for the resignation of Ayatollah Khamenei. President Trump is tweeting out his support for the protesters. One America's Chanel Rion has more from the White House.
TRUMP SPEAKS DIRECTLY
TO THE IRANIAN PEOPLE
It's impossible to overestimate the power of the president’s words.
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The Iranian people are demonstrating. You can see the protests on Twitter, and read about the internal ferment online at the Free Iran Herald, which appears on Gateway Pundit.
The current round of demonstrations erupted all over the country after the destruction of the Ukrainian commercial airplane taking off from Tehran. The security forces are reacting with even greater than usual violence, shooting the protesters with live ammunition. At the same time, supporters of deceased General Qassem Soleimani within the Revolutionary Guards are being rounded up in significant numbers, suggesting that there was a power struggle underway within his Quds Force for the succession after the death of the supreme leader—Ali Khamenei—who is now eighty years old.
According to the Free Iran Herald, published in the Gateway Pundit blog,
This news is increasing the speculation that Soleimani, who was known to act on his own initiatives, and who was being seen as a possible future dictator-in-waiting for Tehran, was betrayed to American intelligence by his own colleagues within the regime, who feared that he would deprive them of their power and privileges.
Additionally, information has surfaced that Soleimani, who had been personally leading the repression against the popular uprising in Iraq since October, had been planning a coup d’état in Baghdad that would have resulted in the assassination of the Iraqi president, and the seizing of the American embassy there.
Most of the passengers on the Ukrainian aircraft were Iranians, and speculation abounds that the flight was brought down in order to kill the "disloyal" ones. Although the question remains: disloyal to whom?
The Tehran regime organized big crowds to say goodbye to Soleimani, but the current demonstrations are explicitly against Khamenei and his cohorts, from calls for the resignation of the supreme leader to students on campus in Tehran refusing to walk on big painted images of the American and Israeli flags. The regime was shutting down Internet communications as rapidly as possible, attempting to divide the Iranian people from one another, a tactic that has proven effective in the past, while the leaders of the demonstrations used couriers to carry messages from city to city.
But perhaps the biggest news came from the White House, where President Trump spoke directly to the Iranian people in English and Farsi. He rehearsed the violence of the regime against the people, and said that he had supported the people from the outset, and would continue to do so. That was Saturday. Sunday he did it again. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has been at it for some time, stressed the same themes: the regime is the source of the violence, and the people deserve the active support of the free nations of the world.
I don’t believe it is possible to overestimate the power of the president’s words on both the regime and the seventy-or-so million Iranians who oppose it. This is the first such event in forty years, and it comes from an American leader who has tried very hard to make a deal with the regime of the Islamic Republic.
He gave it his all, and satisfied himself that the regime was not interested in a deal with the United States. Accordingly, he rejected the advice of the likes of Rand Paul, and ordered the troops to eliminate the regime’s prime killer Soleimani and the band of Mafiosi around him, in the event mostly from Iraq. Now Trump is talking directly to the Iranian people, and the demonstrations are bigger and more widespread than any earlier ones.
I don’t think that the Khamenei regime is long for this world, now that the American president has spoken directly to the masses of Iranians who had waited for the United States to do their dirty work for them. No American president -- not Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush fils, or Obama -- had understood the key to the Middle East: bring down the Islamic Republic. That, rather than the conquest of Iraq and the overthrow of Saddam, should have been our goal in 2003, but we chose the wrong target.
Now, of all the unlikely people, Donald Trump figured it out and is pursuing it. Like his predecessors, Trump does not wish to invade Iran; unlike them, he has found that the regime is ready to fall, that America can inspire and lead a revolution against the world’s leading terror country.
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After the Iranian regime first denied and then finally admitted that it had shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane killing all 176 people aboard, protests broke out against the government in Tehran as well as in other Iranian cities. As many as tens of thousands of Iranian people are said to be involved. Protesters are risking their lives denouncing the government, including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader.
“Khamenei is a murderer!” some protesters exclaimed. Others shouted slogans such as “Death to liars!”, “Death to the dictator!”, and “You have no shame!” Whatever national unity there was in the immediate aftermath of the American killing of Maj. Gen. Qassim Soleimani is now gone. Indeed, protesters were seen ripping up pictures of Soleimani. Even some hardline conservatives in Iran, who generally support the regime, were critical of how the government had handled the downing of the plane.
Riot police, plainclothes security men, and members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps have been out in full force, trying to keep things under control. Police even arrested the British ambassador to Iran, Rob Macaire, who was attending a vigil for the victims. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described Ambassador Macaire as “an unknown foreigner in an illegal gathering” before confirming the ambassador’s identity and allowing him to be freed. The United Kingdom’s Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab denounced the arrest of Ambassador Macaire as “a flagrant violation of international law.”
In the past, the Iranian regime has been brutal to its own citizens who dared to protest against the government. A bloody crackdown late last year resulted in the deaths of as many as 1000 demonstrators and the wounding and imprisonment of thousands more. President Trump cautioned Iran’s leaders this time to show restraint. He tweeted:
“To the leaders of Iran - DO NOT KILL YOUR PROTESTERS. Thousands have already been killed or imprisoned by you, and the World is watching. More importantly, the USA is watching. Turn your internet back on and let reporters roam free! Stop the killing of your great Iranian people!”
Clearly, the Iranian regime is on the defensive. Iran’s foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, offered a half-apology while also blaming the Great Satan, the United States, for the tragedy. “Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster,” he tweeted. But the Iranian leaders and military have nobody to blame but themselves. And the Iranian people are tired of the regime’s standard propaganda.
Many poor and lower middle class people who have supported the regime in the past turned against it last fall after the regime imposed an increase in gas prices. The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ costly military ventures abroad, while Iranian citizens were suffering economic misery at home, added to the anger fueling the protests. The shooting down of the passenger plane and the cover up that followed may become the tipping point.
The Iranian regime had no explanation as to why commercial planes were allowed to take off from Iran in the first place, after the regime had launched missiles aimed at Iraqi bases housing U.S. troops and was anticipating a possible military response by the United States. Then, the regime offered a lame explanation for the crash, ascribing it to technical problems, before being forced to admit the truth in the face of overwhelming evidence that an Iranian missile had struck the Ukrainian aircraft. Even after admitting what the regime called a human error on its part, Iran’s military tried to deflect some blame onto the flight’s crew for allegedly veering off course near a sensitive military base. After Ukraine pushed back on this claim, an Iranian commander with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps walked it back. In short, the Iranian regime has bungled the whole incident from beginning to end.
"This tragedy will not be forgotten nor is it easy to overcome for the population under sanctions and pressure not just from abroad but also from the state," said Sanam Vakil, Senior Research Fellow at Middle East and North Africa Programme, Chatham House. "This incident is a stark reminder of the gaping lack of governance."
Ray Takeyh, senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that the downing of the plane “has shocked the public. Once more, the regime carelessly kills its own people. It punctures the already spurious narrative that the killing of Soleimani has united the Iranian people behind their government."
Internationally, the Iranian regime’s claim to “credibility” has also taken a major hit.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine has insisted on “a full admission of guilt” by the regime. “We expect Iran to assure its readiness for a full and open investigation, to bring those responsible to justice, to return the bodies of the victims, to pay compensation, and to make official apologies through diplomatic channels,” he said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, the home country of many who were killed in the downed plane, said he was “outraged and furious” and demanded a “full and complete investigation.” For once, Trudeau is right.
In the irony of ironies, as reported by Voice of America, "Iran has invited the National Transportation Safety Board, the U.S. accident investigation agency, to participate” in the Ukrainian plane crash investigation. Is German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas right in saying that Iran’s invitation is “a very important signal" of possible de-escalation? It’s doubtful, but one can hope.
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BRUSSELS, Belgium, November 20, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) ― Over 400 members of the European Parliament have voted to pass a resolution criticizing a Polish bill called “Stop Pedophilia” that seeks to protect minors from sexual abuse by adults.
The “Stop Pedofilii” bill seeks to make the incitement of minor children to sexual activity illegal in Poland. According to Euronews, the 471 MEPs who voted on November 14 to condemn Poland for the potential legislation were particularly concerned about the possibility of teachers and activists being sent to prison for promoting or approving underage sex.
That part of the bill states that “anyone who promotes or approves sexual intercourse or other sexual activity by a minor, in connection with performing the position, occupation, or performing activities related to upbringing, education, health care or care of minors, or operating on school premises or other educational or child care institution, is liable to imprisonment up to three years.”
The opening items in the bill stipulate fines, restricted liberty, or imprisonment for anyone who promotes or praises pedophile activity.
The age of consent in Poland is currently 15. According to the “AgeofConsent.net” website, anyone who has sex with a child under 15, including another child under 15, in Poland can be charged with statutory rape.
Opponents of the bill described it as seeking to “criminalize sex education in Poland.” However, defenders of the bill said it was designed simply to stop adults from encouraging minors to have sex and to protect the right of parents to direct their children’s sexual education themselves.
Polish journalist Krystian Kratiuk told LifeSiteNews via email that the European Parliament’s resolution was an “obvious scandal.”
“The EU Parliament has no right to interfere in Poland's internal affairs, including its education system,” he said.
Kratiuk explained that the “Stop Pedofilii” bill was submitted by Polish citizens themselves. The Polish Constitution allows for the introduction of a bill by ordinary citizens as long as it is signed by a group of 100,000 or more Poles who have the right to vote. The “Stop Pedofilii” citizen’s project has been signed by 265,000 Polish voters.
“It’s curious that the Left in Brussels wants to intervene in a legislative process based on the will of citizens,” Kratiuk said.
“After all, what is this about? A citizens’ project that prohibits inciting minors to have sex!”
The journalist underscored that the bill is not a ban on all sexual education.
“If someone during a sex education lesson persuades minors to have sex, according to this project they should, of course, be punished, but this is absolutely not about banning sex education as such.”
An explanatory note attached to the “Stop Pedofilii” bill gives some historical context for the proposal. It says some sex education teachers have been promoting sexual activity, including homosexual acts and masturbation, to Polish children, thanks to sexual education standards for Europe composed by the World Health Organization and the German Federal Center for Health Education (BZgA). These standards were introduced to Poland for the first time in 2013.
“According to the Standards, children of the age of 0–4 should learn information regarding masturbation and enjoying pleasure by touching their bodies,” the note states.
Apparently, the Standards also stipulate that children from the age of 4–6 are supposed to know how to express their own sexuality and sexual feelings as well as “take pleasure and joy in” masturbating. Children aged 6–9 must learn about sexual consent and different methods of intercourse and contraception. Children between 9 and 12 are supposed to learn how to use condoms, learn about their first sexual experiences, and receive information about orgasms. Children between 12 and 15 should be able to communicate about their own and their partners’ desires “in order to have safe and pleasant sex.”
“According to the Standards, at every step of development there is also intensive familiarizing of children with homosexuality,” the note adds.
Krystian Kratiuk sees the debate over the “Stop Pedofilii” bill as another battle between a left-leaning European Parliament determined to impose its worldview and a proud nation that cares deeply for its children.
“The Left dominates the EU Parliament,” he told LifeSiteNews.
“Although Poles were promised before they joined the EU that they would always be sovereign in worldview, the Left wants to decide from Brussels what Polish teachers teach Polish children,” he continued.
“Poles will never agree to this.”
Kratiuk believes that his countrymen will particulary resent the attempts of MEPs to condemn a bill against pedophilia as an attempt to deprive people of their freedoms and their right to education.
However, he admits that there are Poles among the MEPs and activists who object to the “Stop Pedofilii” bill. Kratiuk told LifeSiteNews that left-wing Polish activists invite their “progressive colleagues from all over Europe” to Poland.
“They are common traitors to the Polish cause ― to Polish religious beliefs, to Polish tradition, and to the Polish family.”
Kratiuk is pessimistic about the chances that “Stop Pedofilii” will gain a majority vote in the Sejm, the lower house of Poland’s Parliament.
“MPs will probably ‘freeze’ it, just as they did with the citizens’ bill completely prohibiting abortion,” he said.
The journalist was referring to the “Stop Abortion” (“Zatrzymaj aborcję”) bill that was signed by more than 830,000 Polish citizens and supported by the Catholic Church. The bill seeks to outlaw the abortion of unborn children on the grounds that they are sick and disabled. Besides so-called “fetal abnormality,” the other circumstances under which abortion is permitted in Poland is if the unborn child is the result of a criminal act or poses a severe threat to the life or health of his mother.
One hundred twenty-eight MEPs voted against the condemnation of the “Stop Pedofilii” Bill, and 57 abstained.
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In a bombshell announcement on Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heralded a new White House stance on the extremely divisive issue of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Pompeo said that the United States will no longer view those settlements as “inconsistent with international law.”
“After carefully studying all sides of the legal debate … the establishment of Israeli civilian settlements in the West Bank is not, per se, inconsistent with international law,” Pompeo said, citing President Ronald Reagan’s view that the settlements were not “inherently illegal.”
The move is not only a reversal of Obama era policies, but would seem to signal an end to U.S. adherence to a 1978 Carter-era State Department legal opinion that such settlements violated international law. Known as the Hansell Memorandum, the opinion stated that creating settlements in the West Bank is “inconsistent with international law” and also a violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.
“Calling the establishment of civilian settlements inconsistent with international law has not advanced the cause of peace,” Pompeo said. “The hard truth is there will never be a judicial resolution to the conflict, and arguments about who is right and who is wrong as a matter of international law will not bring peace.”
Since that 1978 opinion, no U.S. president has referred to the settlements as “illegal,” although some have labeled them an “obstacle to peace” or “illegitimate.” While the Trump administration didn’t go so far as to call the settlements “legal,” the announcement is a definite move in favor of Israel’s position on the settlements, at least as far as the United States is concerned.
Palestinians were understandably upset with the new U.S. view on those settlements. Saeb Erekat, the general secretary of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which negotiates on behalf of the Palestinians, attacked the Trump administration after Pompeo’s announcement.
“Once again, with this announcement, the Trump administration is demonstrating the extent to which it’s threatening the international system with its unceasing attempts to replace international law with the ‘law of the jungle,” Erekat said. “Henceforth, the international community must take all necessary measures to respond and deter this irresponsible U.S. behavior, which poses a threat to global stability, security and peace.”
The European Union was also quick to criticize the Trump administration’s new policy, quickly releasing a statement stating that their “position on Israeli policy in the occupied Palestinian territory is clear and remains unchanged: all settlement activity is illegal under international law and it erodes the viability of the two-state solution and the prospects for a lasting peace.” The EU also pressed “Israel to end all settlement activity, in line with its obligations as an occupying power.”
The United Nations itself has also weighed in, flatly rejecting the new policy of the United States. “We continue to follow the long-standing position of the U.N. that Israeli settlements are in breech of international law,” said UN human rights spokesman Rupert Colville.
“A change in the policy position of one state does not modify existing international law nor its interpretation by the International Court of Justice and the Security Council.”
So, we can expect a pro-forma United Nations condemnation soon.
On the other hand, embattled Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the new policy: “Today, the United States adopted an important policy that rights a historical wrong when the Trump administration clearly rejected the false claim that Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria are inherently illegal under international law.”
Netanyahu further welcomed Pompeo’s assertion that the settlement issue belongs in the hands of Israeli courts — not in the hands of the globalists at the UN: “Israel’s legal system, which has proven itself fully capable of addressing legal questions relating to the settlements, is the appropriate place for these matters to be adjudicated — not biased international forums that pay no attention to history or facts.”
This announcement is only the latest in a series of pro-Israel measures taken during the Trump administration. In December of 2017, Trump announced that the United States was formally recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of the country, despite the United Nations considering the action “null and void” shortly after the initial announcement. President Trump chose not to listen to the UN in that case, and in May of 2018, the U.S. embassy officially opened in Jerusalem.
Then, in March of this year, Trump officially recognized Israel’s sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights, which Israel seized during the Six Day War in 1967 when Israel was attacked by the combined forces of Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and Iraq. Israel responded by naming one of the towns in the area Trump Heights in appreciation.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán says that the situation in western Europe means that the continent must look to central European countries like Hungary and the Czech Republic for a bright future.
Orbán gave a speech in Prague on Sunday in memory of the 1989 Velvet Revolution in 1989, which saw the end of Communist rule in Czechoslovakia.
“Thirty years ago we thought that Europe was our future, but today we think we are Europe’s future, and we are ready for this mission,” said Orbán.
The Prime Minister warned that globalists in western Europe are currently in the process of wiping out a European society based on nation states and Christian culture and that central European countries were standing up to this.
“We want to live as free nations, not as provinces or subordinates to empire,” said Orbán, adding, “We are Central European Democrats. Therefore, we must defend the sovereignty of nation states, because if we abandon it, it will mean the end of democracy.”
One way Orbán is trying to rebuild his country is by encouraging its citizens to have children in order to eliminate the need for mass immigration.
Hungary is offering €30,600 to married couples who have three or more children.
A married couple receives the €30,600 as a loan from the government upon getting married. The loan then has to be repaid until the couple has three children. At this point, the debt is completely forgiven.
The impact of pro-family policies in Hungary has been massive.
Abortions dropped from 40,449 to 28,500 from 2010 to 2017, divorces fell from 23,873 in 2010 to 18,600, and marriages increase by a huge 42 percent.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced that his government rejects any migrant resettlement quotas imposed by the European Union, but will gladly participate in deporting masses of illegal aliens.
Speaking at an event in Rome organized by the nationalist-conservative party Fratelli d'Italia (Brothers of Italy), PM Orbán urged Italian leadership to protect its citizens and borders, vowing to support in the effort if they do, while acknowledging that the new government seems to be realigning itself with the globalist agenda.
"Hungary is ready to help Italy in whatever way we can, but there are areas where we cannot help," Orbán said. "We cannot help with the transport and settlement of any migrants in Hungary. That is impossible."
"But once you decide it, we can help you defend your borders, and if you are determined to send home the migrants who are already here, we can help you with that, too."
"Mandatory settlement quotas, we cannot accept, but deportation quotas with pleasure," Orbán declared. "So if PM Conte were to ask the Hungarians to send home a couple of thousand migrants from Italy back to where they came from, then Hungary will be ready and help fulfill such obligations."
Orbán's speech came as EU officials and interior ministers from Italy, Germany, France, and Malta met in Birgu, Malta, to hammer out the details of a new 'migrant resettlement' agreement reportedly based upon on a European Solidarity Mechanismsigned by 15 countries in June.
"Europe is entering a phase in which anti-migration governments could be subject to increased pressure and face attempts to cram mandatory migrant quotas down the throats of European countries," warned Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó during an interview on Sunday.
Prime Minister Orbán's full speech with English subtitling can be viewed at Vlad Tepes blog.
“Too often people in power preach diversity, while shunning or silencing the faithful,” Trump said. “True tolerance means respecting the rights of all people to express their deeply held religious beliefs.”
While Trump did not specifically call out individual nations, Vice President Pence -- who spoke before the president -- criticized several countries for attacks on religious freedom, including China's persecution of ethnic Uyghur Muslims, Venezuela's contested leader Nicolás Maduro's anti-Semitic rhetoric and Iran's oppression of Christians, Jews and Sunni Muslims.
Trump -- who was joined on stage by Pence, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other world leaders -- also announced that his administration was allocating an additional $25 million to protect religious freedom as well as religious sites and relics, and launching an initiative with business leaders to protect religious freedom in the workplace.
“This institution will engage the private sector to protect people of all faiths in the workplace,” he said.
HONG KONG PROTESTERS MARCH TO U.S. CONSULATE CALLING FOR SUPPORT
CALLING ON U.S. CONGRESS TO PASS
"HONG KONG HUMAN RIGHTS & DEMOCRACY ACT"
In their 14th straight weekend of anti-government protests, Hong Kong's demonstrators have taken their case to the US consulate, their latest attempt to bring an international spotlight to the political crisis in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
Calling for politicians in the United States to support their cause, thousands of people gathered in central Hong Kong and marched towards the consulate, waving US flags and shouting slogans in English, such as "Fight for freedom! Stand with Hong Kong!".
The rally was peaceful, but riot police were out in force to ensure protesters steered clear of the nearby Government House, the chief executive's gated residential compound.
Al Jazeera's Adrian Brown reports from Hong Kong.
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Jim Risch (R-ID), Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today reintroduced the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, bipartisan legislation that would reaffirm U.S. commitment to democracy, human rights, and the rule of law at a time when Hong Kong’s autonomy is under assault by interference from the Chinese government and Communist Party.
Co-sponsors include Senators Angus King (I-ME), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Ed Markey (D-MA) and Tom Cotton (R-AR). Representatives Jim McGovern (D-MA) and Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ) introduced companion legislation in the House.
“As over one million Hong Kongers take to the streets protesting amendments to the territory’s extradition law, the U.S. must send a strong message that we stand with those peacefully advocating for freedom and the rule of law and against Beijing’s growing interference in Hong Kong affairs,” Rubio said. “I am proud to re-introduce legislation that places the U.S. firmly on the side of human rights and democracy and against those who would erode the freedoms and autonomy guaranteed to the people of Hong Kong, freedoms that have made the city a prosperous global commercial hub governed by the rule of law.”
“America’s strength has been and always will be in our values. We cannot stand idly by as the rights of the people of Hong Kong are trampled on by China,” Cardin said. “I’m proud of our continued, bipartisan affirmation of the United States’ commitment to Hong Kong’s autonomy, to Hong Kong’s vibrant civil society and to the basic human rights of the people of Hong Kong.”
“A Hong Kong that safeguards its autonomy, upholds fundamental freedoms, and maintains an open business environment is good for Hong Kong, good for the United States, and good for the world,” Chairman Risch said . Bipartisan concern about the erosion of Hong Kong’s autonomy has been growing for several years, but the proposed extradition law has taken that concern to new heights. I continue to urge that the extradition law be withdrawn or indefinitely postponed. Passage will compel the U.S. Senate to reevaluate aspects of the U.S.-Hong Kong relationship.”
“As the world bears witness to the brutality with which security forces in Hong Kong are responding to tens of thousands of pro-democracy activists in a display of force not seen in years, I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing this important legislation to reaffirm our steadfast support for Hong Kong’s autonomy, democracy and respect for human rights,” Ranking Member Menendez said. “The United States must use all of our diplomatic tools to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of Hong Kong in the face of this latest effort by Beijing to censor them and infringe upon their basic rights and freedoms.”
“The protests in Hong Kong are grounded in the removal of an unpopular and unfair extradition bill,” said Senator Toomey. “However, the fight extends well beyond one piece of legislation. It extends to stopping the growth of Chinese authoritarianism, which poses a threat to basic human rights, including the right to free speech, the right to a fair trial, and the right to a genuinely representative government. This bipartisan legislation makes clear that the United States stands alongside the Hong Kong people in their struggle for freedom, and I urge all my colleagues to support this measure.”
The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act would:
Require the Secretary of State to issue an annual certification of Hong Kong’s autonomy to justify special treatment afforded to Hong Kong by the U.S. Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992.
Require the President to identify persons responsible for the abductions of Hong Kong booksellers and journalists and those complicit in suppressing basic freedoms in Hong Kong, including those complicit in the forced removal of individuals exercising internationally recognized rights to mainland China for detention or trial, and to freeze their U.S.-based assets and deny them entry to the United States.
Require the President to issue a strategy to protect U.S. citizens and businesses from the implications of a revised Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, including by determining whether to revise the U.S.-Hong Kong extradition agreement and the State Department’s travel advisory for Hong Kong.
Require the Secretary of Commerce to issue an annual report assessing whether the Government of Hong Kong is adequately enforcing both U.S. export regulations regarding sensitive dual-use items and U.S. and U.N. sanctions, particularly regarding Iran and North Korea.
Make clear that visa applicants shall not be denied visas on the basis of the applicant’s arrest, detention or other adverse government action taken as a result of their participation in the nonviolent protest activities related to pro-democracy advocacy, human rights, or the rule of law in Hong Kong.
