Switzerland to Vote on Banning Banks from Creating Money

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Switzerland will hold a referendum to decide whether to ban commercial banks from creating money.

The Swiss federal government confirmed on Thursday that it would hold the plebiscite, after more than 110,000 people signed a petition calling for the central bank to be given sole power to create money in the financial system.

The campaign – led by the Swiss Sovereign Money movement and known as the Vollgeld initiative – is designed to limit financial speculation by requiring private banks to hold 100pc reserves against their deposits.

“Banks won’t be able to create money for themselves any more, they’ll only be able to lend money that they have from savers or other banks,” said the campaign group . . .

If successful, the sovereign money bill would give the Swiss National Bank a monopoly on physical and electronic money creation, “while the decision concerning how new money is introduced into the economy would reside with the government,” says Vollgeld. (Read more from “Switzerland to Vote on Banning Banks from Creating Money” HERE)

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Christmas Comes Early for Iranian Pastor Jailed for ‘Actions Against National Security’

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Iranian Christian pastor Farshid Fathi, imprisoned for his faith five years ago, was released from prison on Monday, two years before the end of a seven-year sentence.

Fathi has been incarcerated in Iran’s notorious Evin prison since December 26, 2010, according to the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ). The regime reportedly argued that his Christian activities were equivalent to “actions against national security.” He was separated from his wife Leila and two children, Rosana and Bardia.

Fathi’s initial six-year prison sentence was extended to seven years according to World Watch Monitor. He was due to be released in Dec. 2017 but learned from prison officials last July that he would be released this year.

Elam, an Iranian church working to secure Farshid’s release, said it was “overjoyed and celebrating” the news.

“We are deeply grateful for your faithful prayers for Farshid while he has been in prison. We would like to request that you continue praying for Farshid today and in the coming weeks. Please pray especially for protection, his family and his adjustment to life outside prison,” Elam executive director David Yeghnazar said in a statement. (Read more from “Christmas Comes Early for Iranian Pastor Jailed for ‘Actions Against National Security'” HERE)

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Town of Bethlehem Bans ‘Merry Christmas’ Signs

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The town named after the birthplace of Jesus Christ has banned signs celebrating the holidays at an intersection in the town that has become a local battleground for the War on Christmas.

Officials from Bethlehem, New York had a “Happy Hanukkah” sign and a “Merry Christmas” sign removed from a busy intersection and have refused to put up any new holiday signs out of fear the signs would be breaking the law, The Albany-Times Union reports. The town’s lawyer reportedly said Christmas trees and other symbols were acceptable, but written signs would not be allowed, a decision that has caused an uproar in the local community.

The town’s decision has drawn criticism from residents and outsiders. A small group of protesters met Wednesday night at the location where the signs were. One resident, Elena Marcelle, bought two Christmas signs for the area but was told they would not be allowed. She corresponded with the town’s lawyer via email.

“Moreover, there is limited space at the Four Corners, and adding signage could potentially be visually distracting to motorists,” the town’s attorney James Potter said in a Dec. 14 email to Marcelle, the woman who offered to buy the sign. “The town cannot endorse one religion over another, so the town must either allow signs for all groups participating in the holiday display, or prohibit signs altogether.”

The Christian legal group, The Alliance Defending Freedom, has weighed in to let the town know they should not be afraid.

(Read more from “Town of Bethlehem Bans ‘Merry Christmas’ Signs” HERE)

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Christians in China Feel Full Force of Authorities’ Repression

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Pastor Su Tianfu slides into the back seat and tells the driver to hit it . . .

It is days before Christmas, but instead of working on his sermon, Su is giving his tail the slip.

The slight and soft-spoken Protestant preacher is no stranger to surveillance. Su has worked for years in China’s unregistered “house churches,” and he said he has been interrogated more times than he can count.

But even Su is surprised by what has happened in Guiyang this month: a crackdown that has led to the shuttering of the thriving Living Stone Church, the detention of a pastor on charges of “possessing state secrets” and the shadowing of dozens of churchgoers by police.

A local government directive leaked to China Aid, a Texas-based Christian group, and reviewed by The Washington Post advises local Communist Party cadres that shutting down the church is necessary to “maintain social stability”— a catchall phrase often used to justify sweeping clampdowns. (Read more from “Christians in China Feel Full Force of Authorities’ Repression” HERE)

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Christmas Eve Danger: Troops Attacked as Tourists Flock to Bethlehem

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Four Palestinians were killed on Thursday, among them three who Israel said were carrying out attacks on soldiers in the West Bank, as tourists and Christian faithful were gathering in Bethlehem for Christmas celebrations.

Bethlehem has been a focal point for clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian protesters during the three month-long wave of violence that has gripped the region. While the annual festivities in the city’s Manger Square were set to go on, other celebrations in the city were cancelled or toned down because of the violence.

“We’re in Bethlehem celebrating Christmas, celebrating the birthday of our lord Jesus Christ. This is the birthplace of the king of peace so what we want is peace,” said Rula Maayah, the Palestinian Tourism Minister.

Israeli authorities said that three Palestinians were killed after they carried out or attempted to carry out attacks against Israelis across the West Bank. A fourth Palestinian was killed in clashes with Israeli troops, according to a Palestinian hospital official.

In the first incident, police spokeswoman Luba Samri said the attacker approached the entrance to an industrial zone in the Ariel settlement and stabbed two security guards, wounding them moderately, before they shot and killed him. Two other Palestinians were killed in two other incidents, including an attack by a motorist on Israeli troops, with one soldier lightly wounded. (Read more from “Christmas Eve Danger: Troops Attacked as Tourists Flock to Bethlehem” HERE)

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British, U.S. Embassies Warn of Threats Against Westerners in Beijing

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The British and the American embassies in China say they have received information of possible threats against Westerners visiting a popular shopping district in Beijing around Christmas.

Both embassies sent out warnings to their citizens and staff, urging extra vigilance if they are in the Sanlitun district.

The district is home to a popular open-plan mall that boasts high-end brands like Mango, Reiss, and Lacoste, and some of Beijing’s best Western dining.

In August, a woman was stabbed to death in broad daylight by a sword-wielding man there. The attacker also injured a French man. Beijing police said the man stabbed the two passerby “without cause or reason.” (Read more from “British, U.S. Embassies Warn of Threats Against Westerners in Beijing” HERE)

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Re-Print of Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ Unleashes Row in Germany

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For the first time since Hitler’s death, Germany is publishing the Nazi leader’s political treatise “Mein Kampf”, unleashing a highly charged row over whether the text is an inflammatory racist diatribe or a useful educational tool.

The 70-year copyright on the text, written by Hitler between 1924-1926 and banned by the Allies at the end of World War Two, expires at the end of the year, opening the way for a critical edition with explanatory sections and some 3,500 annotations.

In January the 2,000 page, two-volume work will go on sale after about three years of labor by scholars at Munich’s Institute for Contemporary History.

Hitler wrote most of the first, highly autobiographical, volume while incarcerated in Landsberg prison after his failed Munich coup attempt in 1923. After his release, he wrote much of the second volume at his mountain retreat near Berchtesgaden.

In the book, a mix of personal experience and political ideology, he outlined his strategy. A bestseller after he became chancellor in 1933, it had by 1945 sold 12 million copies and been translated into 18 languages. (Read more from “Re-Print of Hitler’s ‘Mein Kampf’ Unleashes Row in Germany” HERE)

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Iranian Hackers Have Gained Access to ‘Mission Critical’ American Blueprints

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Security researcher Brian Wallace was on the trail of hackers who had snatched a California university’s housing files when he stumbled into a larger nightmare: Cyberattackers had opened a pathway into the networks running the United States power grid.

Digital clues pointed to Iranian hackers. And Wallace found that they had already taken passwords, as well as engineering drawings of dozens of power plants, at least one with the title “Mission Critical.” The drawings were so detailed that experts say skilled attackers could have used them, along with other tools and malicious code, to knock out electricity flowing to millions of homes.

Wallace was astonished. But this breach, The Associated Press has found, was not unique.

About a dozen times in the last decade, sophisticated foreign hackers have gained enough remote access to control the operations networks that keep the lights on, according to top experts who spoke only on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the subject matter.

The public almost never learns the details about these types of attacks – they’re rarer but also more intricate and potentially dangerous than data theft. Information about the government’s response to these hacks is often protected and sometimes classified; many are never even reported to the government. (Read more from “Iranian Hackers Have Gained Access to ‘Mission Critical’ American Blueprints” HERE)

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US Poised to Lift Sanctions on Iran Under Nuclear Deal

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The United States appears poised to lift at least some sanctions against Iran — possibly as early as January — as members of Congress urge a swift, robust US response to Tehran’s recent ballistic missile test.

Secretary of State John Kerry said in a letter Wednesday to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Iran is fulfilling its obligations under the international agreement in what Kerry calls a “transparent” and “verifiable” way, and that “suspension of sanctions … is appropriate.”

The committee’s top Democrat, Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin, said at a hearing Thursday that it appears that sanctions relief could start as early as January, not in the spring as initially anticipated.

The deal involving the United States, Iran and five other world powers would curb Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for giving Iran access to billions in frozen assets and oil revenue.

Cardin said that throughout the congressional review of the deal, witnesses for the administration guessed that it would be spring until Iran could comply with the terms required for that relief to begin. (Read more from “US Poised to Lift Sanctions on Iran Under Nuclear Deal” HERE)

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Hamas Seeking to Orchestrate Suicide Bombings in Israel

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Hamas is attempting to launch major terror attacks against Israel, including suicide bombings, from the West Bank, a senior Palestinian Authority source told The Times of Israel.

Information gleaned from interrogations of Hamas operatives arrested recently by PA security services shows that the terror group’s leaders in Gaza and abroad have sent orders to local commanders to escalate their activities — from encouraging protests and stabbing attacks to more dramatic and deadly assaults on Israeli civilians, the source said.

Some two dozen Israelis and others have been killed in a wave of Palestinian stabbings, car-rammings and shootings since the start of October. More than 100 Palestinians have been killed, a majority of them attackers who died during their terrorist attacks.

Over 1,000 Israelis were killed in terror attacks, including dozens of suicide bomb attacks, during the Second Intifada, from 2000 until roughly 2004, many of them carried out by Hamas operatives.

The PA sources said Hamas’s new efforts to escalate the violence would further raise tensions, as Israel would be expected to counter the increased violence with further clampdowns on Palestinian areas in the West Bank, in turn leading to a weakening of the Palestinian Authority – a key interest of Hamas. (Read more from “Hamas Seeking to Orchestrate Suicide Bombings in Israel” HERE)

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