In the news:

The first article is very unexpected and concerning:

Possible Syrian nuke facility identified by satellite

A compound in western Syria with buildings and hundreds of missile-shaped items has been identified as functionally related to a nuclear reactor Israel destroyed northeast of Damascus in 2007.

Satellite footage of the site in Masyaf was obtained by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security and shows a compound built in a ravine and surrounded by what appears to be a line of trenches.

ISIS head David Albright, who analyzed the satellite footage, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that the site at Masyaf could be a military storage facility. Hundreds of items seen stored in rows out in the open could be missiles or truck beds, he said.

On Thursday, the International Atomic Energy Agency’s governing board convened in Vienna to discuss Syria’s continued refusal to allow inspectors to visit the site of the al-Kibar reactor, in Syria’s Deir Alzour region, that was destroyed by Israel in September 2007, or other sites, like the one near Masyaf that are suspected of being functionally related to the reactor.

The second article isn't surprising, but its nice that the general public can be made aware:

Most PA Money Goes to Hamas-run Gaza, Abbas Admits

Well over half of the Palestinian Authority budget is spent in Hamas-run Gaza, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas told the Algerian paper Al-Shuruk in an interview printed Wednesday.

The PA budget is supplied mainly by the European Union and the United States, both of which refuse to fund Hamas because it is a terrorist group.

Only....as we know - this money DOES go directly to Hamas, therefore, the EU and the U.S. ARE, in fact, directly funding Hamas.

Meanwhile, Abbas plans to define a PA state in Judea and Samaria as “Palestinian,” and has stated that no Jews will remain in any territory under PA control.

Persecution back in the news:

Praying for a pardon: Pakistan Christian is sentenced to death for blaspheming against Islam

In November, a Pakistan woman was sentenced to death after being found guilty of blasphemy against Islam. Pressure groups say if executed, she'll be the first woman to be hanged for breaking the controversial law. Some critics of the law also say it's being abused to persecute non-Muslims, who make up just three percent of Pakistan's 167 million population.

Update on Korea:

NK could target mainland next

Future attacks by North Korea could target mainland South Korea, not a border island, a Japanese newspaper reported as the South remains on its highest alert after Pyongyang’s deadly shelling of Yeonpyeong Island.

Citing a source familiar with North Korea, the Tokyo Shimbun reported that a high-ranking military official in the North Korean army said late last month there would be an attack on Gyeonggi Province within the year.

Seoul officials say the North will likely carry out more belligerent acts in a bid to further ratchet up regional tension. In anticipation, the military has beefed up its capabilities on the five West Sea islands near the maritime border.

The North Korean official also said there would be another attack on South Korean warships in the West Sea, the report said. President Lee Myung-bak has pledged to make the North pay a “dear price” if it strikes again.

Wars and rumors of war, persecution, money funneling to terrorists sworn to destroy Israel, the growth of weapons capability in the Middle East...It sounds like another day of prophecy watching.