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Dispute over Christian groups’ visas to Israel resolved after Huckabee threat
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The diplomatic dispute triggered by a low-level clerk in Israel’s Interior Ministry over visa applications for Christian organizations was resolved on Monday through «fruitful cooperation,» attorney Calev Myers told Fox News Digital.
«The Evangelical Christian organizations active in Israel, which represent the vast majority of Zionists in the world today, will receive all of the visas they need through a streamlined and efficient application process,» he said.
The issue burst into the news last week when U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee publicized a letter he wrote to Israeli Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, in which he expressed «great distress» over a halt to the «routine granting of visas for Christian organizations and workers, as has been practiced for decades.»
HUCKABEE CONDEMNS EFFORTS TO ERASE JEWISH HISTORY TO THE HOLY LAND AS ‘ABSURD’
Christian pilgrims carrying wooden crosses walk through Jerusalem’s Old City toward the Holy Sepulchre church during the Orthodox Good Friday procession on May 3, 2024. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images)
According to Huckabee, beginning in early 2025, the Interior Ministry’s visa department stopped following the Ministry of Religious Affairs recommendations and began conducting its own investigations into each Christian organization to determine whether they should be recognized as «Religious Institutions» and remain eligible for visas.
He cited as examples the Baptist Convention of Israel, Christian Missionary Alliance and Assemblies of God, noting that members of these groups have been denied renewals of their A3 clergy visas and are instead required to complete lengthy questionnaires about their religious beliefs. Huckabee said the status of their applications remains «under investigation.»
«When support for Israel around the world – and in the U.S. – is under pressure, backing from our Christian friends is extremely important»
He also named the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem as another group whose visas were «being held up.»
He had threatened that unless changes were made, «I will have no choice than to instruct our Consular Section to review options for reciprocal treatment of Israeli citizens seeking visas to the United States.»
Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee speaks to Fox News Digital during an interview at the American embassy in Jerusalem. (Yoav Dudkevitch/ TPS-IL)
A source told Fox News Digital that the issue originated with a low-level clerk in Israel’s Interior Ministry who was «not particularly friendly» toward Christian visa applicants. As a result, the visa process for clergy and volunteers had become «increasingly problematic» and filled with «barriers for years.»
A second source told Fox News Digital that elements within the Israeli Interior Ministry «are not sympathetic, they don’t appreciate the relationship» with the Christian world.
Former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren told Fox News Digital that he has been involved with helping to get visas for Christian organizations that do «extraordinary and important work» and there’s no reason for them to be given a hard time.
POPE DEMANDS CEASEFIRE AFTER GAZA’S CATHOLIC CHURCH IS HIT IN APPARENT ISRAELI STRIKE
«When support for Israel around the world – and in the U.S. – is under pressure, backing from our Christian friends is extremely important,» Oren said. «They are there through thick and thin – including when bombs are falling on us – and they contribute in so many ways. Whether it’s picking grapes, attending to people in hospitals, or cooking meals for soldiers. We should do nothing but appreciate them and make them feel welcome.»
The Ministry of Interior, responsible for the Population and Immigration Authority, was led by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, a member of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition, until it bolted from the government last week over the issue of conscription into the Israeli army of ultra-Orthodox men.
Attendees wave Israel and the United States flags at the Christians United for Israel summit on July 17, 2023, in Arlington, Virginia. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
According to the first source, leadership turnover at the Population and Immigration Authority has exacerbated the issue. Amos Arbel, the former head of the authority and the uncle of outgoing Interior Minister Moshe Arbel, stepped down some five years ago. His replacements rotated through the position in quick succession, and the role is currently vacant.
«The absence of stable leadership has allowed a lower-ranking official – the head of the visa section – to make unilateral decisions,» the source explained. «She routinely disregards recommendations, including those from the ministry’s own religious affairs advisor.»
«It’s a chronic problem, and it’s disheartening,» the source said. «It shouldn’t take the intervention of someone like Ambassador Huckabee to resolve what should be a routine bureaucratic matter.»
EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS, WHO HAVE LONG SUPPORTED ISRAEL, VISIT AS WARTIME VOLUNTEERS
In response, Moshe Arbel sent a letter to Huckabee, reaffirming his «commitment to reviewing such applications [for clergy visas] with the utmost efficiency.» He wrote that «immediately following our meeting, I instructed all relevant professional bodies to act in accordance with the understandings we reached, and I assigned advisors from my office – headed by the chief of staff – to ensure a personal, continuous, and effective response to such requests.»
Arbel’s office said in a statement to Fox News Digital: «There is no fear of diplomatic repercussions. The issue is being handled in a good and friendly manner.»
Orthodox Christians carry wooden crosses along the Via Dolorosa (Way of Suffering) in the Old City of Jerusalem during the Orthodox Good Friday procession on April 14, 2023. (Saeed Qaq/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
When contacted by Fox News Digital, the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem declined to comment.
As of the end of 2024, Israel’s Christian population was estimated at 180,300 – roughly 1.8% of the total population – reflecting a 0.6% increase from 2023, according to data from the Central Bureau of Statistics. Israel is the only country in the Middle East where the local Christian population is growing.
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David Parsons, vice president of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, told Fox News Digital that he is «very grateful that the U.S. ambassador has intervened on behalf of all the Christian organizations.
«It’s a shame that it takes this sort of action when the government and the minister of interior should have reined in the head of the visa section and corrected her wrong decisions,» he said.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman told Fox News Digital that he had spoken to individuals on both sides of the issue and believed it «was a misunderstanding and the Christian groups will get what they need. This does not at all speak to the very important relationship that Israel has with the Christian community,» he said.
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Voters react as Trump calls Dems ‘crazy’ for not applauding ban on secret teen gender transitions
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President Donald Trump’s decision to rip Democrats as «crazy» during his State of the Union address on Tuesday — after they remained seated while he demanded a ban on socially transitioning minors without parental consent — drew sharply divided reactions from a live panel of voters.
The panel, assembled by polling group Maslansky & Partners, included 29 Democrats, 30 Independents and 40 Republicans. Their real-time reactions were displayed as colored lines on a graph, with higher values representing positive reactions and lower values indicating negative ones.
«But surely we can all agree no state can be allowed to rip children from their parents’ arms and transition them to a new gender against the parents’ will,» Trump said. «Who would believe that?… We must ban it, and we must ban it immediately.»
As Trump delivered the remarks, the Republican line, shown in red, climbed sharply into positive territory. Independents, represented in yellow, also ticked upward, while Democrats, shown in blue, trended downward into negative territory.
President Donald Trump speaks during his State of the Union address as a live reaction panel assembled by Maslansky & Partners tracks voter responses to his remarks on banning school gender transitions without parental consent. Republicans are shown in red, Independents in yellow and Democrats in blue. (Fox News)
The comments drew applause from Republicans in the chamber, but the president became incensed when he realized that Democrats refused to stand.
«Look, nobody stands up,» Trump said.
«These people are crazy. I’m telling you. They’re crazy,» Trump said, pointing his finger at Democratic senators and House members who remained seated.
Republican reactions stayed elevated during the remarks, while Democratic responses remained negative and independent voters held relatively steady.
Sage Blair and her mother, Michelle Blair, stand in the gallery during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address after he highlighted her case involving alleged school gender transition policies. (Pool)
Trump made the remarks as he called on Sage Blair, a Virginia teenager whose family filed a 2023 lawsuit alleging that Appomattox County High School staff socially transitioned her without parental knowledge.
According to a lawsuit filed by her family, Blair began identifying as male at school, where staff used male names and pronouns and allowed her to use male facilities without informing her parents.
WATCH: Trump highlights teen whose family says school hid her gender transition during State of the Union
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The family alleges the situation escalated after Blair ran away from home and later became a victim of sex trafficking, with the lawsuit alleging she was kidnapped and raped in multiple states.
Highlighting the case during his address, Trump said Blair was 14 when school officials sought to socially transition her «to a new gender,» treating her as a boy and hiding it from her parents.
«But today, all of that is behind them because Sage is a proud and wonderful young woman with a full-ride scholarship to Liberty University. Sage and Michelle, please stand up,» Trump said as Republicans in the chamber cheered.
«Thank you for your great bravery,» he added.
The gender policy segment generated some of the strongest reactions of the night from the panel.
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President Donald Trump demanded a ban on schools socially transitioning minors without parental consent at Tuesday’s State of the Union. (Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty Images)
Among supporters, several comments focused on protecting children and parental involvement, including: «Protect children,» and «Parents should be informed.»
Opponents pushed back on the scope of the proposal, writing comments such as: «Every case is unique,» and «A total ban is not good.»
The issue appeared to trigger deeply personal reactions on both sides.
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El primer ministro de la India, Narendra Modi, llegó a Israel el miércoles para una visita de dos días destinada a profundizar los lazos con un socio comercial y de defensa clave, un viaje que ha generado críticas en el país.
Es la segunda visita de Modi a Israel como primer ministro.
Tiene previsto reunirse con su homólogo Benjamin Netanyahu y con el presidente Isaac Herzog.
“Nuestras naciones comparten una asociación estratégica sólida y multifacética”, dijo Modi en una declaración antes de salir de Nueva Delhi, y agregó que se dirigirá a la Knesset, el parlamento de Israel, más tarde el jueves.
“Los lazos se han fortalecido significativamente en los últimos años”.
Nueva Delhi ha ampliado constantemente la cooperación con Israel en los sectores de defensa, agricultura, tecnología y ciberseguridad, al tiempo que equilibra sus intereses diplomáticos en Oriente Medio.
El lunes se iniciaron en Nueva Delhi las conversaciones para un Acuerdo de Libre Comercio (TLC) entre India e Israel, dijo el gobierno de India en un comunicado, señalando que el comercio de mercancías alcanzó los 3.620 millones de dólares en 2024-2025.
Modi dijo que mantendría conversaciones con Netanyahu para “discutir formas de fortalecer la cooperación”.
Las relaciones diplomáticas plenas entre ambos países se establecieron en 1992. Los lazos se profundizaron después de que el líder nacionalista hindú Modi asumiera el cargo en 2014.
Modi visitó Israel por primera vez como primer ministro en 2017, antes de que Netanyahu hiciera una visita recíproca a la India el año siguiente.
Ambos líderes de derecha se han llamado mutuamente “amigos”.
En septiembre de 2023, se dieron a conocer en Nueva Delhi grandes planes para un Corredor Económico India-Medio Oriente-Europa, que conectaría ferrocarriles, puertos, electricidad, redes de datos y oleoductos, incluso a través de Arabia Saudita e Israel.
Esos planes se vieron frustrados por el ataque de Hamas del 7 de octubre contra Israel, que respondió con una guerra devastadora en la Franja de Gaza.
“Lo que ocurrió el 7 de octubre fue recibido en la India con conmoción y horror, y es por eso que el apoyo a Israel fue rápido, instantáneo y enorme”, dijo Ashok Malik, director de la firma de asesoría estratégica The Asia Group, con sede en Nueva Delhi.
Los vínculos entre India e Israel, que Modi está “impulsando con esta visita”, no surgen únicamente de una alineación estratégica en cuestiones como el terrorismo, añadió.
“Israel tiene mucho que aportar en materia de innovación tecnológica, incluyendo agricultura, tecnología, alianzas económicas y, por supuesto, defensa… Esto es completamente independiente de la cuestión palestina”, afirmó Malik.
Meses después de su visita a Israel en 2017, Modi viajó a Ramallah, sede de la Autoridad Palestina.
Sin embargo, su visita actual ha suscitado críticas en su país.
Priyanka Gandhi, figura destacada del partido del Congreso y hermana del líder de la oposición Rahul, publicó el miércoles en las redes sociales que esperaba que Modi mencionara el asesinato de “miles de hombres, mujeres y niños inocentes en Gaza” cuando se dirigiera al parlamento de Israel.
India, la nación más poblada del mundo con 1.400 millones de habitantes, es mayoritariamente hindú, pero se estima que 220 millones de indios son musulmanes.
Uno de los conglomerados más grandes de la India, Adani Group, opera el puerto israelí de Haifa, mientras que la tecnología de drones militares israelíes jugó un papel fundamental durante el enfrentamiento de mayo de 2025 entre la India y Pakistán.
Al mismo tiempo, India mantiene fuertes relaciones con los países del Golfo y Teherán, incluido el desarrollo del puerto iraní de Chabahar, una puerta de entrada comercial a Afganistán, donde Nueva Delhi ha construido una relación con las autoridades talibanes.
(con información de AFP)
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The director of the Louvre Museum in Paris has stepped down, months after thieves stole $102 million in crown jewels in a lightning-fast weekend robbery.
Laurence des Cars presented French President Emmanuel Macron with her resignation, which Macron accepted, according to a statement from the presidential office.
It said Macron praised her decision as «an act of responsibility at a time when the world’s largest museum needs calm and a strong new impetus to carry out major projects involving security upgrades, modernization» and other projects.
Macron thanked des Cars for «her work and commitment,» and said he wanted to give her a new mission focused on cooperation among major museums, the statement said, without saying if she had accepted.
Laurence des Cars, director of Le Louvre Museum, poses before a hearing at the Culture commission of the Senate, three days after historic jewels were stolen in a daring daylight heist, Oct. 22, 2025, in Paris. (AP Photo/Emma Da Silva, File)
Des Cars has remained under fire in the wake of the heist, which many critics have labeled a stunning embarrassment.
Thieves took less than eight minutes in October to steal priceless crown jewels at the world’s most visited museum in broad daylight.
People queue outside the Louvre Museum, in Paris, France, Friday, Feb. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
WORLD’S MOST FAMOUS MUSEUM SLAMS DOORS TO VISITORS AS EMPLOYEE REVOLT CONTINUES
The thieves left behind Eugénie’s emerald-encrusted crown, which is set with over 1,300 diamonds, along their escape route outside the museum. The crown was damaged but deemed recoverable.
A police car parks in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum, one week after the robbery, on Oct. 26, 2025, in Paris. (Thomas Padilla, File/AP Photo)
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Authorities have arrested several suspects in that case, but the seven other priceless treasures, including Eugenie’s diamond-studded tiara, necklaces, earrings and brooches, remain missing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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