— ❗️🇮🇱/🇵🇸 NEW: Three Israeli settlers were killed and at least four injured in a shooting targeting a bus in the 'Kedumim' settlement in the West Bank.

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— 🇮🇱/🇱🇧 NEW: Israel has started withdrawing from Lebanon's Western Sector, with the Lebanese Army entering Naqoura

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— 🇺🇸/🇨🇦 NEW: Following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s official resignation, Donald Trump suggests that Canada joins the U.S. as the 51st state, saying it would solve many problems.

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— ☦️ 🎄 Merry Christmas to our Orthodox Christian subscribers!

🇷🇺 С Рождеством

🇷🇸 Срећан Божић

🇧🇬 Весела Коледа

🇷🇴 Crăciun fericit

🇬🇷 Καλά Χριστούγεννα

عيد ميلاد مجيد 🇵🇸

🇺🇦 щасливого Різдва

🇦🇲 շնորհավոր Սուրբ Ծնունդ

— Fatwa from the Supreme Religious Authority, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei:

Q: 'Some Muslims celebrate certain religious holidays that Christians also celebrate (like Christmas), is there any problem with this?'

A: 'In itself, there is nothing wrong with celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ (peace be upon him). However, it should not be done in a way that promotes the degenerate culture of the West, or in a way that entails corruption / sinning or deviating from our (Islamic) beliefs.'

In other words, while we as Muslims do not recognize December 25th or January 7th as the authentic legitimate birth dates of Jesus Christ, there is no problem with being happy or rejoicing for his birth, because Jesus is a beloved Prophet of God. However, celebrating Christmas in a religious sense, and in a way that entails deviating from the Islamic doctrine, is forbidden.

This includes things like going to church, proclaiming that Jesus is God (or the Son of God), believing that Jesus was truly born on Christmas day, and so on.

But in general, things like gathering with family members, exchanging gifts, or wishing Christian friends a Merry Christmas entails no issues from an Islamic perspective.

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇮🇱/🇵🇸 NEW: The IDF has announced the death of Cpt. Eitan Shiknazi, 24, a deputy company commander in the 'Nahal' Brigade, who was killed in northern Gaza, along with another unidentified soldier

Additionally, two soldiers from the 932nd Battalion were seriously wounded.

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— 🇮🇱/🇵🇸 UPDATE: The other soldier has been identified as Maj. Dvir Zion Revah, 28, a company commander in the 'Nahal' Brigade's 932nd Battalion

Both the company commander and his deputy were killed in the same incident.

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— 🇨🇳 NEW: A 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck the city of Shigatse, Tibet in western China

The death toll from the Tibet earthquake in western China currently stands at least 95, with 130 injured. Rescue efforts are ongoing and the toll is expected to rise.

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— 🇵🇸/🇮🇱 NEW: Al-Qassam Brigades destroy Israeli armored vehicles west of Jabalia, northern Gaza.

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— 🇮🇱/🇵🇸 NEW: The IDF has announced that Staff Sergeant Ido Samiach, 20, a member of the 'Nahal' Brigade's special forces, was killed in northern Gaza.

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— 🇻🇪/🇵🇾 NEW: Venezuela has severed diplomatic relations with Paraguay after President Santiago Peña expressed support for the Venezuelan opposition. In response, Paraguay has expelled Venezuelan diplomats from the country.

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— 🇺🇸/🇸🇩 NEW: The U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions Mohammad Hamdan Daglo Mousa (Hemedti), leader of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF), along with seven companies, including one based in the UAE.

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— 🇵🇰/🇩🇪 NEW: Thomas Jurgen Bielefeld, 58, a German diplomat and second secretary at the German Embassy in Islamabad, was found dead in his residence in Pakistan

The cause of death remains unclear, although preliminary information suggests he had a history of heart problems.

@Middle_East_Spectator

— 🇺🇸/🇲🇽 NEW: U.S. President Donald Trump says he will officially rename 'Gulf of Mexico' to the 'Gulf of America'

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— 🇺🇸/🇬🇱/🇵🇦 BREAKING: Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump says it 'may be necessary' to use economic or even military pressure in order to integrate Greenland and the Panama Canal into the United States

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