Here are five of the most important news stories this week, as well as relevant links to the full articles and videos here on theTrumpet.com.

Cyberwarfare Is Worse Than Ever

In “The 2018 State of the Digital Union: The Seven Deadly Sins of Cyber Security We Must Face,” defense expert Peter W. Singer wrote that there has been an explosion in numbers of “mega-breaches,” cyberattacks where at least 10 million identities are exposed. According to one estimate, ransomware attacks from 2015 to 2016 increased by 16,700 percent. The unidentified criminals behind these attacks are often agents of foreign governments, making these acts of cyberwarfare.

Pentagon: Russia and China Capable of Destroying U.S. Satellites by 2020

Russia and China are developing weaponry that can destroy vital American satellites, according to a new report by the Pentagon’s Joint Staff intelligence directorate. These weapons reportedly include ground-launched missiles, lasers, electronic jammers, and small dirigible satellites that can maneuver up to an orbiting satellite, seize it, and tear it apart.

Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said in May 2017, “Russia and China perceive a need to offset any U.S. military advantage derived from military, civil or commercial space systems and are increasingly considering attacks against satellite systems as part of their future warfare doctrine. Both will continue to pursue a full range of anti-satellite weapons as a means to reduce U.S. military effectiveness.”

Iranian Presence in Mediterranean Sea Alarms Israel

Iran “is on the verge of reaching the Mediterranean, including the use of Syrian ports by the Iranian Navy,” warned Israeli Adm. Shaul Chorev (Ret.). “Iranian ports in the eastern Mediterranean are a real risk for Israel.”

Israeli ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon warned that “the Shiite crescent has reached [Israel’s] doorstep [and] the Shiite crescent is alive and well; do not let Iran turn it into a Shiite horizon.” He told Europe, which brokered a nuclear deal with Iran, “[W]hile you are making a profit, Iran is building an empire. … Iran starts with Israel; it is you who are next.”

Why Germany Is Arming Certain African and Middle Eastern Nations

Germany’s public broadcaster ard reported on January 23 that during the legislative period between 2014 and 2017, Germany exported more weapons than any prior German government. Algeria imported the most German weapons ($1.7 billion), followed by Egypt ($866.9 million). These two nations are critical partners in monitoring the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea—the gateways for European imports from and exports to Africa and the Middle East. Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote in April 2013, “Northern Africa is turning into a battleground with enormously important prophetic implications.”

Global Pandemics Are Coming

According to Elhadj As Sy, the secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, pandemics are becoming a very real threat to humanity. Dr. Sylvie Briand, a specialist in infectious diseases at the World Health Organization, warned that a sudden, deadly viral outbreak could happen any day. “We know it’s coming,” she said, “but we have no way of stopping it!” To many experts, the question isn’t if the world will be overwhelmed by a pandemic, but when. That sobering scenario is exactly what the Bible prophesies.

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