ISIS Has Begun Executing Captured Assyrians, According to Report

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

Islamic State militants have reportedly executed 15 Christians who have been captured in villages in northeastern Syria since Monday.

A priest who has been feeding reports to Christian aid agencies around the world, including Aleteia partner Aid to the Church in Need, said today that a Christian Assyrian lawyer in the city of Hassakah told him that about 15 young Assyrians "are martyred. Many of them were fighting to defend and protect the villages and families."

Archimandrite Emanuel Youkhana of CAPNI, the Christian Aid Program in Iraq, said that in the Christian village of Tel Hormizd: 14 fighters, two of whom were women, were killed. One of the women may have been beheaded, he said. Another 13 fighters from different villages were captured.

Altogether, including civilians, as many as 350 Christians from the area have been captured, he reported--many more than the 70 originally reported. Their fate is unknown, and there is much speculation. He said that an unconfirmed report said that a mosque in the Arab Sunni village of Bab Alfaraj was calling people to attend a "mass killing of infidels in the mountain of Abdul Aziz on Friday."

Archimandrite Youkhana reported that none of the residents of one Christian village that the Islamic State attacked, Tel Shamiram, were able to escape. This village had 51 families, with an average of five persons per family, he said.

"There was fire exchange between the fighters protecting the village and IS terrorist group," the priest wrote. "It is believed there are casualties and many are Assyrians are been killed in the village. No news on the destiny of the families. Most probably they are been captured and transported to Mount Abdul Aziz, a nearby mount/region controlled by IS."

Other villages attacked included Tel Jazira, Tel Gouran, Tel Feytha, and Qabir Shamiya.

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ISIS Has Begun Executing Captured Assyrians, According to Report

As many of you already know, I was fired from my previous job back in January, as I told you in a previous post here. At the time, I did not want to go into the details of the reason I was given for being fired, so I will now. My former employer had told me, and the young lady that I worked with, that he was going to have to cut hours... Read more by clicking here.

UN Officials Voice Concern About Iraq Humanitarian Situation, Abuse of Women, Girls

[Steve says: Why are all you feminists who scream about the non-existent "War On Women" in the United States, so deafeningly silent over real violence against women in Iraq? Just doesn't fit your agenda, does it?]

An Iraqi woman from Mosul holds her daughter in one hand and empty water containers in the other. Two other children follow her in search of water near the Garmava temporary camp in central Iraq (photo: UNHCR/S. Baldwin).

The following excerpts are from AINA.org:

• Amid reports of deliberate targeting of women and girls in Iraq, senior United Nations officials today voiced deep concern about the deteriorating humanitarian and security situations in the country, where more than 1.2 million people have fled their homes in fear for their lives.
• "As the security situation continues to worsen, I am extremely worried about the families urgently in need of water, food, shelter, healthcare, sanitation and protection from violence," said Valerie Amos, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Emergency Relief Coordinator.
• That includes targeting of women and children, who have reportedly been kidnapped, raped and forcibly married to militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/ISIS) and other armed groups.
• Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women, expressed deep concern yesterday following the reported suicides of some women who had been raped, and of men who had been forced to watch the rape of their wives and daughters.
• "UN Women strongly condemns sexual and gender-based violence, and calls on all parties to address such reports and protect the rights of Iraqi women and girls," she said.

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UN Officials Voice Concern About Iraq Humanitarian Situation, Abuse of Women, Girls

Girl Scouts Suggest Abortion Activist Wendy Davis for "Woman of the Year" | LifeNews.com

The following excerpts are from LifeNews.com:

• Who should young girls grow up to be like? If you listen to the Girl Scouts, the answer is apparently they should aspire to become Wendy Davis, the state legislator whose sole claim to fame is standing up against a bill to stop abortions all the way to birth in Texas.
• On December 18, 2013, Girl Scouts USA tweeted: “Incredible Ladies Who Should Be Women of the Year for 2013” and asking if anyone should be added to the list.
• ...which promotes Davis and pro-abortion activist Gloria Steinem as potential women of the year. Are these really the kind of women the Girl Scouts want young girls to grow up to be?

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Girl Scouts Suggest Abortion Activist Wendy Davis for "Woman of the Year" | LifeNews.com

Priest pleads for international assistance as Syrian refugees overwhelm Lebanon : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

The following excerpts are from Catholic Culture's Catholic World News:

• The number of refugees who have fled Syria for Lebanon has surged to 1.2 million and threatens to overwhelm Lebanese institutions, according to the president of Caritas Lebanon.
• “Please listen to the suffering of the Syrian people inside Syria and around in the neighboring countries, especially in Lebanon. Lebanon has four million inhabitants; we are hosting 1.2 million Syrian people....

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Priest pleads for international assistance as Syrian refugees overwhelm Lebanon : News Headlines - Catholic Culture

N.C. Governor Proposes Closing State Trooper Dispatch Office In Asheville

The area of the map shaded in light yellow, shows the area from Asheville to Hickory, which is a distance of just over 77 miles.

Attention all who live or travel in Western North Carolina. North Carolina Governor Pat McRory has proposed closing dispatch offices of the North Carolina State Troopers (Highway Patrol), including the dispatch office on Tunnel Road in Asheville. The dispatching of state troopers for Western North Carolina would then come from Hickory, North Carolina. This can result in dangerous and potentially life threatening situations for travellers due to the inevitable delays in dispatching state troopers throughout the western part of the state.

Please contact your representatives in the state house and senate, by either email or telephone, and tell them you oppose the closing of the Asheville dispatch office of the North Carolina State Troopers. You may find your representatives contact information by clicking this link, and after finding his or her name in the list, click on their name for the contact info.

You can do the same for your state senator by clicking this link.

You can also contact the Office of the Governor by clicking this link and clicking "Email Pat"or by calling (919) 733-5811. You can also Fax the Office of the Governor at (919) 733-2120/