In the face of economic sanctions and international condemnation, Iran remains defiant over its nuclear energy program.

It has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, a major passageway for much of the world's oil, in retaliation for any embargo. And it has vowed to punish the United States and Israel, accusing them of being connected to the recent assassinations of some Iranian nuclear scientists.

U.S. and Israeli officials have denied having anything to do with the mysterious killings, but they're not backing down on their hard-line stance.

"As long as (the Iranians) shirk their responsibilities, this pressure will not relent," U.S. President Barack Obama said Tuesday night in his State of the Union speech. "Let there be no doubt: America is determined to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and I will take no options off the table to achieve that goal. But a peaceful resolution of this issue is still possible, and far better."

Read more at CNN

Even as Israel becomes increasingly liberal (see recent report on Tel Aviv being rated top gay travel destination), it is also becoming increasingly religious, or, perhaps more accurately, increasingly God-fearing.

A survey conducted by the Guttman-Avi Chai Foundation in 2009, and whose results were finally published on Thursday after more than two years of analysis, revealed that over 80 percent of Israeli Jews believe in God. The Guttman-Avi Chai Foundation started conducing this survey over two decades ago. The 2009 poll registered by far the highest level of belief in God yet.

Furthermore, over 70 percent of Israeli Jews accept the biblical principle that the Jewish people have been "chosen" by God for a specific prophetic destiny. Seventy-one percent of respondents said they want increased biblical studies in Israeli schools.

But that doesn't mean Jews in general are becoming more religious, at least not in an Orthodox Jewish way. Only 37 percent of Israeli Jews had a problem with fellow Jews not following the biblical commandments, and nearly 70 percent said they want more entertainment venues to be open on the Shabbat.

Read more at Israel Today

Three Christian men, Pastor Farhad Sabokrouh, Davood (David) Ali-Jani and Naser Zamen-Dezfuli, remain in detention after their arrest on Dec. 23, 2011, at an Assemblies of God (AOG) church in Ahwaz, Iran. The pastor’s wife, Shahnaz Jizan, was also arrested and held until Jan. 1, when her $200,000 bail was paid.

The families have not been told where the men are being held or what condition they are in, and officials have said they know nothing about the arrests. Authorities did, however, tell the families not to contact international media.

Read more at Voice of Martyrs

Fighting sanctions with sanctions in a trial of strength with the West over its nuclear ambitions, Iran warned on Friday it may halt oil exports to Europe next week in a move calculated to hurt ailing European economies.

At the same time, the government in Tehran, grappling with its own economic crisis under Western trade and banking embargoes, will host a rare visit on Sunday by U.N. nuclear inspectors for talks that the ruling clergy may hope can relieve diplomatic pressure as they struggle to bolster public support.

Read more at Yahoo

Many end times experts believe the “Gog of Magog” invasion described in Ezekiel 38 and 39 is nearing the time of its prophetic fulfillment. Russia’s seemingly inseparable alliance with Iran, Turkey’s increased disdain toward Israel, and Libya’s uncertain future all suggest that the stage is rapidly setting for the fulfillment of the Magog invasion of Israel. All of these countries along with several more appear to be part of the Russian coalition that mounts this massive attack.

Putting the icing on the cake is the fact that Iran’s apocalyptic leadership wants to wipe Israel off the map and is on the verge of producing nuclear weapons. Certainly all the above, coupled with a host of other unmentioned indicators provides just cause to consider that the Ezekiel 38 prophecy could soon occur. But what about the war prophesied in Ezekiel 35? Is it conceivable that the war of Ezekiel 38 could precede the last days Arab–Israeli conflict predicted three chapters earlier?

Read more at Bible Prophecy

Months before the debate about Internet censorship raged as SOPA and PIPA dominated the concerns of web users, President Obama signed an international treaty that would allow companies in China or any other country in the world to demand ISPs remove web content in the US with no legal oversight whatsoever.

The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement was signed by Obama on October 1 2011, yet is currently the subject of a White House petition demanding Senators be forced to ratify the treaty. The White House has circumvented the necessity to have the treaty confirmed by lawmakers by presenting it an as “executive agreement,” although legal scholars have highlighted the dubious nature of this characterization.

Read more at Prison Planet

Muslim Brotherhood spokesperson Mahmoud Ghezlan told the London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper on Wednesday that the militant group will neither speak nor meet with Israeli officials. He added that the Brotherhood’s stance on Israel is unwavering and not up for discussion.

Read more at the Blaze

Two words jumped out at me in listening to the President’s State of the Union address, and the Republican response: “collapse” and “implode.” Did they strike you, too?

“In 2008, the house of cards collapsed,” President Obama told the nation. “We learned that mortgages had been sold to people who couldn’t afford or understand them. Banks had made huge bets and bonuses with other people’s money. Regulators had looked the other way, or didn’t have the authority to stop the bad behavior. It was wrong. It was irresponsible. And it plunged our economy into a crisis that put millions out of work, saddled us with more debt, and left innocent, hardworking Americans holding the bag.” The President did not use the occassion to offer a plan to reform Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, or end deficits of $1 trillion or more, or deal with the $65 trillion of unfunded liabilities hurtling towards us. Yet he vigorously made the case that ”the state of our Union is getting stronger.”

Is the President right? Are things improving significantly enough to avoid another — and possibly far worse — collapse of the American economy?

Read more by Joel Rosenberg

Will unmanned surveillance drones one day buzz the tops of skyscrapers and hover above crowds in the city that never sleeps?

Recent evidence suggest that yes, the New York Police Department could one day soon have aerial drones in its arsenal of crime fighting tools.

The evidence pointing to police deployment of drones is preliminary, but it is there.

According to WCBS-TV, an e-mail has been released through the Freedom of Information Act that’s  ”purportedly from a detective in the NYPD counterterrorism division, asking the Federal Aviation Administration about the use of unmanned aerial vehicles as a law enforcement tool.”

Read more at The Blaze

DEAR BILLY GRAHAM: Do you think Jesus will come again this year? I’ve heard people say that the world is going to come to an end in 2012, and I’ve wondered if maybe they have some inside knowledge about Jesus’ return. — E.H.

A. DEAR E.H.: The Bible doesn’t tell us exactly when Jesus will come again — but it does promise that someday he definitely will return. As Jesus returned to heaven at the end of his ministry, the angels promised his disciples that “This same Jesus… will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

Read more at WND