Iran is testing the waters with the new American President. “Iran conducted its first ballistic missile test under Donald Trump’s presidency… U.N. resolution 2231—put in place days after the Iran nuclear deal was signed—calls on the Islamic Republic not to conduct such tests. However, this is at least Iran’s second such test since July” (Fox News, January 30, 2017).

“Brazil’s president on Monday ordered 200 troops to the southeastern state of Espirito Santo, where a police strike in recent days sparked a wave of violence including what is already believed to be dozens of murders.

This week, Iran defiantly tested a ballistic missile in apparent violation of the 2015 nuclear deal reached with world powers (The Independent, February 1, 2017).

According to the Marine Corps Times, “male and female infantry Marines [are] to share tents in the field” as the integration of females into combat roles gains momentum (January 25, 2017). One officer stated, “We’re not changing any of our tactical posture or breaking unit cohesion or adjusting anything to accommodate mixed genders while we’re operating in a field environment replicating tactical conditions” (ibid.).

Last week, the pro-Palestinian news agency Ma’an reported, “The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe adopted a report on Tuesday outlining the dire humanitarian situation in the besieged Gaza Strip and reiterating its support for lifting… [Israel’s] decade-long siege of the territory...