UK - Mandarins at the Foreign Office invited staff to wear Islamic headscarves for the day, claiming they symbolised ‘liberation, respect and security’. The department was accused of backing the ‘institutional oppression of women’ by giving away taxpayer-funded headscarves at a walk-in event to mark World Hijab Day. The event was held as women in ultra-conservative Iran burned their headscarves in protest at being forced to wear them or face arrest and prison.
UK - George Soros, the billionaire known as the man who “broke the Bank of England”, is backing a campaign to overturn Brexit, the Telegraph can disclose. The investor is one of three senior figures linked to the Remain-supporting campaign group Best for Britain who plan to launch a nationwide advertising campaign this month, which they hope will lead to a second referendum to keep Britain in the EU.
USA - A spate of earthquakes near to the Yellowstone caldera in the last few days has sparked fears the potentially catastrophic volcano is about to blow. Three earthquakes in the last seven days around the Yellowstone Caldera has triggered concern that the volcano could erupt. A 1.6 magnitude quake five days ago was quickly followed by a tremor of the same magnitude on the same day. Two days later, another 1.6 magnitude tremor struck the region, taking the total to 11 earthquakes in the last month. Typically, when there are tremors around a volcano, it is a sign the magma is recharging and could lead to an explosion. If the volcano were to erupt it would kill an estimated 87,000 people immediately and make two-thirds of the USA immediately uninhabitable.
USA - This Friday was supposed to be a father-daughter dance for elementary school students in Staten Island, New York.
But now that dance has been postponed because of concerns that it would violate the state’s new gender guidelines that aim to create a more inclusive space for transgender people, according to the New York Post.
GERMANY - Martin Schulz has promised Germany will lead "fundamental EU change" after forcing his way into Angela Merkel's cabinet as part of the controversial coalition agreement. Martin Schulz, the embattled leader of the Social Democrats (SPD), will take over as foreign minister in a move likely to infuriate the German voters who opted for more eurosceptic parties in last year’s election.
GERMANY - Angela Merkel’s conservatives have finally agreed a formal coalition deal with the Social Democrats (SPD) as Germany’s four-month wait for a new government comes to an end. The coalition deadlock prompted speculation the 63-year-old Chancellor could be forced to step down but, after long negotiations and a series of “painful compromises”, it now appears Mrs Merkel will continue as the German leader for another term.
SAUDI ARABIA - Saudi Arabia has granted for the first time permission for Air India flights headed to Israel to use its airspace, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported. The decision, which will be implemented in March, means that the flights from New Delhi to Tel Aviv would be shortened by two and a half hours. The new route, Haaretz said, means that the airline would reduce fuel costs and sell cheaper tickets to passengers.
USA - Democratic Senator Tom Carper says ‘dreamer’ illegal immigrants should be hired to replace millions of Americans who supposedly are too unskilled, uneducated, unethical or drugged up to work for companies. “I think the business community is saying that to the administration [and] they are certainly saying that to those of us in the Congress, and we should focus on that,” Carper told MSNBC.
CANADA - Justin Trudeau interrupted a woman complaining about Canada’s restrictive regulations on religious volunteers to tell her to use the term ‘peoplekind’ instead of ‘mankind.’ The Canadian Prime Minister was hosting a Q&A at MacEwan University in Edmonton on Friday as part of his cross-country tour which began last month. Trudeau was listening to a complaint by a woman from a church who wanted him to look at the restrictions Canada has on people who want to volunteer for religious organizations. Which is precisely where Trudeau jumped in to explain that “we like to say peoplekind.” The PM, who is a vocal feminist, advocate for gender equality and responsible for Canada’s first gender-balanced cabinet, was trolled mercilessly on Twitter for the ridiculous correction, leaving many wondering where the politically correct war on the English language will stop.
USA - Billions of viruses fall from the sky every day, according to new research which could explain why genetically identical viruses are often found in very different environments around the world. In a scientific first, a team of international researchers recorded the number of viruses being swept up daily from the Earth’s surface into the free troposphere – the lowest layer of the atmosphere, in which nearly all weather occurs.
USA - Some 43 million Americans take statins. It is a multibillion-dollar business. Pfizer’s Lipitor went on sale in 1997 and became the best-selling drug in the history of prescription pharmaceuticals before its patent expired in 2011. Sales surpassed $125 billion. AstraZeneca’s Crestor was the top-selling statin in 2013, generating $5.2 billion in revenue that year.
SENEGAL - Three weeks after college, I flew to Senegal, West Africa, to run a community center in a rural town. Life was placid, with no danger, except to your health. That danger was considerable, because it was, in the words of the Peace Corps doctor, "a fecalized environment."
USA - The shocking revelations uncovered in yesterday’s release of the FISA memo reveal a pattern of treason among top officials at the FBI and DOJ, warns Congressman Paul Gosar of Arizona. The FISA memo documented how the most powerful law enforcement elements of the United States government were weaponized under President Obama to illegally spy on Republican political targets.
USA - President Donald Trump alluded to the successful Republican effort to release a House Intelligence memo that exposed new details of FBI officials colluding against him. “Did we catch them in the act or what? You know what I’m talking about, oh did we catch them in the act,” Trump said. “They are very embarrassed. They never thought they were going to get caught, we caught ‘em.”
USA - As US Secretary of Defense James Mattis made a case for more military funding to counter countries threatening “America’s experiment in democracy,” some members of the House Armed Services Committee questioned the expense. Representative Walter Jones (Republican for North Carolina) questioned the war in Afghanistan, which has lasted for almost 17 years at the cost of $1 trillion and thousands of lives.
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The views expressed in this section are not our own, unless specifically stated, but are provided to highlight what may prove to be prophetically relevant material appearing in the media.