Plane with 54 Aboard Goes Missing in Indonesia

Local villagers told authorities that they saw a plane crash into a mountain, and scores of rescuers were heading to the remote area and will begin searching there Monday morning. An air search for the missing plane was suspended and will resume Monday as well.

The Trigana Air Service plane was flying from Papua's provincial capital, Jayapura, to the Papua city of Oksibil when it lost contact with Oksibil's airport, said Transportation Ministry spokesman Julius Barata. There was no indication that the pilot had made a distress call, he said.

The ATR42-300 twin turboprop plane was carrying 49 passengers and five crew members on the scheduled 42-minute journey, Barata said. Five children, including three infants, were among the passengers.

Local media reports said all the passengers are Indonesians. The airline did not immediately release a passenger manifest.

Oksibil, which is about 280 kilometers (175 miles) south of Jayapura, was experiencing heavy rain, strong winds and fog when the plane lost contact with the airport minutes before it was scheduled to land, said Susanto, the head of Papua's search and rescue agency.

Residents of Okbape village in Papua's Bintang district told local police that they saw a plane flying low before crashing into a mountain, said Susanto, who like many Indonesians goes by one name. He said about 150 rescuers were heading to the area, which is known for its dense forest and steep cliffs, and would begin searching for the plane early Monday.

Okbape is about 24 kilometers (15 miles) west of Oksibil.

A plane was sent Sunday to look for the missing airliner, but the air search was suspended due to darkness and limited visibility and will resume Monday morning, Susanto said.

Much of Papua is covered with impenetrable jungles and mountains. Some planes that have crashed there in the past have never been found.

Dudi Sudibyo, an aviation analyst, said that Papua is a particularly dangerous place to fly because of its mountainous terrain and rapidly changing weather patterns. "I can say that a pilot who is capable of flying there will be able to fly an aircraft in any part of the world," he said.

Indonesia has had its share of airline woes in recent years. The sprawling archipelago nation of 250 million people and some 17,000 islands is one of Asia's most rapidly expanding airline markets, but is struggling to provide enough qualified pilots, mechanics, air traffic controllers and updated airport technology to ensure safety.

From 2007 to 2009, the European Union barred Indonesian airlines from flying to Europe because of safety concerns.

Last December, all 162 people aboard an AirAsia jet were killed when the plane plummeted into the Java Sea as it ran into stormy weather on its way from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-largest city, to Singapore.

That disaster was one of five suffered by Asian carriers in a 12-month span, including Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which went missing in March 2014 with 239 people aboard during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

Trigana Air Service, which commenced operations in 1991, had 22 aircraft as of December 2013 and flies to 21 destinations in Indonesia.

As World Sweats Iran Deal, Some EU Leaders See $$

JERUSALEM, Israel -- While most world leaders fret over bombs and stockpiles in the Iranian nuclear deal, some Europeans are focused on lining their pockets, which could mean millions with the lifting of sanctions against Iran.

That's why the German economics minister and French foreign minister ran to the front of the line to visit Tehran.

"There is a huge venue for doing business between the West and Iran, and the economic factors will be dominant while the other aspects of the deal, which is Iran compliance, will be pushed aside I'm afraid," Lt. Col. (ret.) Mickey Segall, an expert on Iran and senior analyst with the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, told CBN News.

Reports say European businesses are ready to compete for their share of the $77 million-strong Iranian market.

Sanction relief in the deal would pour between $50 and $150 billion into the Iranian economy, enabling it to become better at what it already does well: export terrorism.

"It's a huge amount of money that will help them recover their economy, to keep the regime in power, to use that money in order to finance those terrorist organizations in the region," Israeli Interior Minister Silvan Shalom said.
 
And though the U.S. won't initially lift sanctions on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard or related terror entities, Segall believes the extra funds will be used for terrorism.

"There will be enough money -- free money -- for Iran to export the revolution to Syria, to help Hezbollah, to send missiles and the know-how -- how to build missiles, rockets -- to Hamas and the PIJ, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, in the Gaza Strip," Segall said.

President Barack Obama even admitted the terrorists would benefit from sanctions relief but said it was worth the tradeoff for Iran not to get a nuclear bomb.

"Now, this is not to say that sanctions relief will provide no benefit to Iran's military," Obama said. "Let's stipulate that some of that money will flow to activities that we object to."

Iran supports terrorist organizations and even groups that have killed American troops.

"The truth is that Iran has always found a way to fund these efforts, and whatever benefit Iran may claim from sanctions relief pales in comparison to the danger it could pose with a nuclear weapon," the president reasoned.

Segall says dangerous people will be taken off the sanctions list.

"For instance, there is a guy, most of the people probably didn't hear about him. His name is Fereydoon Abbasi Davani. He was the head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Association, one of the most skillful nuclear scientists, and people like him will be moved out from the sanction list," he explained.

Earlier this week, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said if he were Israeli, he'd support the agreement because it's "an important tool to take an existential threat to Israel off the table."

In response, Israeli Minister Dr. Yuval Steinitz said if he were American, he'd oppose the agreement because in 10 years Iran will be capable of producing dozens of atomic bombs every month, which will likely lead to a regional nuclear arms race. It harms the national security of the U.S., Israel and every Western country.

All of this comes at a time when countries are threatening Israel with boycott, divestment and sanctions for defending itself in last summer's Gaza war.

Shalom told CBN News it doesn't make sense.

"It looks very strange and very weird," he said. "It's something that we cannot really understand."

Meanwhile, Segall says Iran sees the deal as the latest sign of divine intervention on its behalf.

"For instance they say the Taliban, which was an arch-enemy of Iran, is gone. Saddam Hussein, which [sic] fought Iran for eight years, is gone," Segall explained. "So they say Israel [was] forced to get out of Lebanon in May 2000. So they see we managed to suffer sanctions and to put ourselves together against the United States for more than 36 years of revolution. So they feel that something is helping them."

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei may soon press his advantage.

According to a New York Post report, Khamenei recently released a 416-page book called Palestine, laying out a plan to destroy Israel. In it he says Israel has no right to exist because of its loyalty to America, the "Great Satan."

Clerk Defies Order, Won't Issue Gay Marriage Licenses

A Kentucky county clerk won't issue same-sex marriage licenses despite an order from a federal judge requiring her to do so.

Rowan County clerk Kim Davis stopped issuing all marriage licenses June 26 after the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage.

This week, U.S. District Court Judge David Bunning ordered her to perform the duties her job required.

In his order, Bunning said Davis "likely violated the constitutional rights of his constituents" by standing on her Christian beliefs "at the expense of others."

Davis' attorney, Roger Gannam, says his client doesn't intend to issue any licenses until all her appeals are exhausted.

"Kim Davis is resolute in vindicating her rights," said Gannam, senior counsel with Liberty Counsel. "Fundamentally, we disagree with this order because the government should never be able to compel a person to violate their sincerely held religious beliefs."

Ben Carson Defends Use of Fetal Tissue for Research

Former neurosurgeon Ben Carson is defending the use of fetal tissue for medical research.

"If you're killing babies and taking the tissue, that's a very different thing than taking a dead specimen and keeping a record of it," Dr. Carson told The Washington Post.

The neurosurgeon-turned-presidential candidate made the statement after a blog published sections of a 1992 paper, co-authored by Carson, which described research using aborted fetuses.

Carson told the Post the release of portions of the paper was "desperate" and ignorant of the way medical research was conducted.

"You have to look at the intent," he said before launching a campaign tour through New Hampshire. "To willfully ignore evidence that you have for some ideological reason is wrong."

Carson told the Post fetal tissue research should not be banned, and it was not immoral.

"When we obtain tissue like that, we want to know what the origin of that tissue is developmentally," he explained. "Knowing that helps us determine which patients are likely to develop a problem."

"It's one of the reasons why at the turn of the last century, the average age of death was 47," he said. "Now, the average age of death is 80. Using the information that you have is a smart thing, not a dumb thing."

Since last week's debate, Carson has risen in primary polls. He is one of the Republicans who've spoken out against Planned Parenthood after undercover videos showed organization executives talking about the extraction and distribution of tissue from aborted fetuses.

After the first videos surfaced, Carson in a July interview on Fox News said there was "nothing that can't be done without fetal tissue."

Dr. Jen Gunter released the 1992 paper.

"Could he think his own research was useless?" Gunter asked. "If it was non-contributory to the field, why was it published? Maybe he forgot that he'd done the research on fetal tissue?"

Carson said the previous fetal tissue research does not contradict his pro-life views.

Carson said he has not used fetal tissue samples since then.

"My primary responsibility in that research was when I operated on people and obtained the tissue," Carson said. "This has everything to do with how it's required."

Carson still favors de-funding Planned Parenthood but would not call for stopping fetal tissue research if the tissue was available.

"I may not be completely objective about Planned Parenthood because I know how they started with Margaret Sanger who believed in eugenics," he said. "But it would be good for the public to understand this whole aspect of medical research."

Death Toll Climbs after Explosions Rock China City

The death toll continues to climb in the massive explosions that rocked the Chinese port city of Tianjin Wednesday night.  Fifty people have been killed in the warehouse blasts, including a dozen firefighters.

The powerful explosions devastated the city, blowing out the windows of high rise apartments and destroying office buildings.
   
More than 500 are injured, and some people are still missing.

"I was sleeping and got woken up by a massive explosion," eyewitness Monica Andrews recalled. "I could just feel my whole building shake. I thought it was an earthquake. So I just kind of woke up in a panic, looked out the window and the sky was red."

The National Earthquake Bureau reported two major blasts before midnight – the first with an equivalent of three tons of TNT, and the second with the equivalent of 21 tons.

The explosions took place in a mostly industrial economic development zone.

Government officials and state media say the warehouse stored dangerous materials. More than a thousand firefighters responded to the explosions.

"I was in the city just a couple of hours before the explosions took place. I would like to congratulate the prompt response of the authorities in seeking to minimize the loss of life," U.K. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said.
    
At least a half-dozen logistics companies were destroyed in the blasts and more than a thousand new cars were burned in a nearby car park.

Firefighter Found Alive in Rubble of China Blast

Good news surfaces after deadly explosions rocked a Chinese port city earlier this week - a firefighter was found alive in the rubble.

Rescuers found the man 32 hours after the blast Wednesday that killed at least 50 people, and injured more than 500. The fire was still smoldering Friday.

The National Earthquake Bureau reported two major blasts before midnight Wednesday – the first with an equivalent of three tons of TNT, and the second with the equivalent of 21 tons.

"Reinforcements had just arrived on the scene and were just getting to work when the explosions occurred and therefore there was no chance to escape, and that's why the casualties were so severe," Tianjin Fire Department head Zhou Tian said at a news conference Friday. "We're now doing all we can to rescue the missing."

Officials in Tianjin say the blast began in shipping containers owned by a company that handles hazardous material.

The toxic accident

The toxic accident caused by the Environmental Protection Agency has washed all the way from Colorado to Utah.

The accident at Colorado's Gold King Mine sent 3 million gallons of highly toxic wastewater into the Animas River and beyond.

And while the bright mustard color has faded, the poisonous damage remains.

Some of the dangerous arsenic and lead has settled on the riverbed and can be kicked up at any moment.

Efforts to clean out irrigation ditches in Colorado along the Animas river Thursday accidently released a plume of the mustard-yellow muck.

Experts say the abandoned gold mine breached by the EPA will take many years and millions of dollars simply to manage.

They say the safest solution would be to install a treatment plant that would indefinitely clean any water coming from that mine.

'Top Secret' Emails Unprotected in Clinton's Server

Hillary Clinton discussed classified information in emails sent from her private server while she was Secretary of State.
    
The Inspector General for the Intelligence Community told CBS News that after reviewing 40 emails, investigators found four that contained classified information and two that should have been labeled 'top secret.'
  
Earlier this week, Clinton agreed to turn the server over to the FBI after months of criticism.
    
The Clinton campaign says it's cooperating with the investigation, but the server was blank.
   
An attorney for the IT company that oversees the Clinton's computer systems says the drive was wiped clean when their system was upgraged.
    
Political analyst Larry Sabato said Clinton watchers have seen this pattern before.

"The fact that Hillary Clinton turned (her personal server) over says to me that it's been carefully examined in various ways by not only her lawyer but also by the campaign and if they really thought that there would be something very, very damaging in doing so, they might have fought it further. That's typically what the Clintons do, they only release what they have to release, they take a long time to do it, and they elongate scandals as a result," he said.

NASA: El Nino Helpful or Harmful for CA Drought

Forecasters are predicting a record setting El Nino for California this fall. The waters of the Eastern Pacific are heating up and the steady build-up signals a strong El Nino event this fall, with some calling it a Super El Nino.

Meteorologists say it's the second strongest on record for this time of year and could be one of the most potent weather changers of the past 65 years.
    
California desperately needs rain but El Nino could cause too much rain too soon, producing mudslides and floods.
   
"This definitely has the potential of being the Godzilla of El Nino," NASA Climatologist Bill Patzert said.

El Nino is a weather pattern that can have an impact around the world. In the U.S it usually means heavier than normal winter rain in California and much of the south and east.
 
"That classic pattern of El Nino where warm water pools off the west coast of South America will shift the jet streams that bring storm tracks in the winter time to southern California and the desert southwest a little further north, bringing some much needed rain and snow pack for that region," NASA Scientist Doug Morton said.

That could mean good news - and bad news - for drought-stricken California.

It's so dry in the state they have placed 96 million plastic balls in the states reservoirs to block the sun, hoping to save 300 million gallons from evaporation.

the drought is also fueling lots of wildfires...

"California and northern California particularly are seeing a particularly bad fire season this year, based on drought conditons," Morton added.

With the fires burning up California's vegetation, NASA says if this El Nino lives up to its potential it could bring a lot of floods, mudslides and mayhem.

Some say even if El Nino happens, it doesn't guarantee the rain and snow needed to ease the current drought problems. The state would need one-and-a-half times its normal rainfall to get to end the dry season...

"El Nino only increases the probabilities of seeing at or slightly above precipitation. It doesn't mean it's going to be a state wide, two year deficit breaking rainfall," Morton said.

In the meantime, after four years of dry weather, southern Californians are keeping their fingers crossed that El Nino saves the day.

ISIS Feared to Have and Use Chemical Weapons

American officials believe Islamic State militants are now using chemical weapons.

They say ISIS probably used mustard gas in a recent attack against Kurdish forces in northern Iraq.

About 60 Kurdish fighters suffered breathing difficulties after the attack. That is a tell-tale sign of chemical weapons use.

The jihadist fighters are believed to have used chemical weapons last month as well.

Confirmation of weapons of mass destruction would mark a dramatic turn in the threat from ISIS.

It is unclear where the militants may have obtained the weapons.

‘Man From U.N.C.L.E.’ Groovy but Not Fit For Kids?

The weekend is here and you may be thinking about heading to the movies and there is plenty to see.

The Man from U.N.C.L.E is the big screen adapation of an old TV show and this action packed spy flick has a "groovy" theme.

CIA secret agent Napoleon Solo, played by Henry Cavill, is on assignment to grab the daughter of former Nazi rocket scientist whose father is the head of an nuclear weapons production during the cold war.

Solo teams with KGB operative Illya Kurakin to partcipate in a joint mission aganist the mysterious criminial organization and the former Nazi's daughter Gaby, played by Alicia Vikander, holds the key to diffusing the explosive situation.

This film has "plenty of secret agent content to be weary of, from some fleshly sensuality, to heavy drinking and smoking, espionage, violence and torture", said Focus on the Family Plugged In Movie Department.

Although it has a "groovy" theme it may not be appropriate for all viewers.

Jesus Out to Redeem in Movie 'Hearts of Men'

The forthcoming film "Hearts of Men" is a powerful project that explores the roots of sexual brokenness.

The film is unique hybrid of documentary, dramatization and testimony. And its premise offers the compelling point that "the truth is that Jesus isn't after our sexual sobriety, he's out to give us new hearts."

Unearthed Pictures' Jason Pamer is one of the writers and producers for the project. It is the perfect follow-up to his documentary "Rape for Profit," which addressed human sex trafficking.

Pamer teamed up with actress Jada Pinkett Smith on that documentary.   

"Rape for Profit" unveiled the growing epidemic in major U.S. cities where girls are bought and sold for sex.  "Hearts of Men" now tackles the issue at its root, the hearts and desires of men. 

The film includes an amazing musical score and emotional interviews with composer Tony Anderson, best selling author William Paul Young, psychologist Dan Allender and other amazing thought leaders.

Rescue Your Marriage: The Power of 'Safe Conversation'

DALLAS -- Talking: it's something we do throughout the day. We chat about the weather, movies, our kids. We breeze from one subject to another, yet when it comes to talking about relationships, we often hit the brakes -- or worse.

"There is a myth in our culture and that myth is that if you're struggling in your relationship, maybe you're married to the wrong person. If you're fighting, maybe you should get a divorce," Dr. Helen Hunt said.

Time for a Change

Hunt and her husband, Dr. Harville Hendrix, say it's time to change that.

"Through conversation alone, a safe conversation, a new kind of talking, we could change the whole fabric of human beings all over the world," said Hendrix.

For years, the couple worked to help others, just like themselves, build stronger relationships. Then they looked at society as a whole and found relationships were still falling a part. That led them to take their relational technology, information and science from clinic to community.

In 2012, they began an experiment to improve the wellness of Dallas by first concentrating on the wellness of the family.

"When the couple falls apart then their kids fall a part," Hunt explained. "When the couple fights, the kids pick up that toxic energy and they begin to absorb it and they don't thrive at home."

"If the kids don't thrive at home, they can't thrive at school," she continued. "And if they don't do well at school then they don't do well when they graduate, and then they don't do well at work."

"When they don't work well at work, it becomes a drain on the culture and then there are all these welfare programs. If you want to solve the problem of poverty, go upstream and fix the couple," Hunt said.

The "technology," called Safe Conversations, teaches a couple to both talk and listen.

"Talking is the most dangerous thing that people do and everybody talks. Very few people know how to talk so that they don't produce some kind of rupture or conflict or get into competition or say, 'That's not right. What I'm saying is right and what you're saying is wrong,' or, 'You should correct that,'" Hendrix said.

Connection, Safety & Communication

During free workshops, Hendrix and Hunt teach couples to connect and feel safe with each other through healthy communication.

"People are longing to be in relationship, but they didn't know how," Hunt said. "We now have the technology to teach couples to be in relationship and when couples are in relationship, their kids pick it up. And when their kids pick it up, it can begin to go out into the culture."

That's why special childcare is provided during the workshops, so the kids can learn the same lessons as their parents.

"What happens with that now is that the whole family is equipped with the same information and the same technology about how to be safe in a conversation," Hendrix told CBN News.

"What we're excited about is, it's the lack of safety in families that ultimately produces the ruptures that cause family splitting and divorce and all the negative things that go with a loss of family cohesion," he said.

It's becoming a relationship revolution. The goal is to change the entire culture of society, one relationship at a time.

"If we could change up to 30 percent of the families in America, we would change the whole culture and in that sense change western civilization," Hendrix said.

More Than Therapy

Hendrix and Hunt tested this relationship technology on their own marriage out of necessity and desperation.

"The therapist actually called us the 'Couple from Hell.' We were horrible," Hunt recalled. "We knew more than that therapist; we'd read every relationship book. We went to five therapists in New York, so we started talking to the divorce lawyer."

"Then we decided, 'Well maybe we should apply the system to our relationship.' So we did and oh my goodness it works," she said.

"What we discovered was that you can't just decide to do it," Hendrix added. "You have to practice it every day."

The Dallas experiment is working and now the couple plan to take their workshops into other communities. As a bonus, they told CBN News the couples they've helped are spreading the word as well.

"These couples are becoming a little army in the front-line of a relational revolution and we're going to support them," Hendrix said.

Baker Who Refused Gay Wedding Cake Can't Cite Faith

A Colorado baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a same-sex couple because of his religious beliefs has lost his appeal to the state's court of appeals. 

Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple in 2012.

Phillips said he told the couple that his faith would not allow him to bake them a wedding cake, but that he would create any other baked good that they wished.

The couple filed a complaint with the the Colorado Civil Rights Commission.
    
A judge for the commission ruled that Phillips discriminated against the couple and ordered him to change his store policy or face fines ranging from $50 to $500 and required Phillips "re-educate" his employees.

Phillips appealed to the Colorado Court of Appeals.

On Thursday, the court said Phillips cannot cite his religious beliefs in refusing service to gay couples because it would lead to discrimination.
    
Phillips now faces fines if he refuses to make wedding cakes for gay couples.  He said he has no problem serving gays at his store, but reiterated that making a wedding cake for gay couples violates his Christian beliefs.
    
The Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing Philips, said it would consider appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court. 

"Americans are guaranteed the freedom to live and work consistent with their faith," the ADF said in a statement. "Government has a duty to protect people's freedom to follow their beliefs personally and professionally rather than force them to adopt the government's views."

"Jack simply exercised the long-cherished American freedom to decline to use his artistic talents to promote a message with which he disagrees," the statement continued. "The court is wrong to deny Jack his fundamental freedoms. We will discuss further legal options."

Harvesting Fetal Parts without Consent?

The Center for Medical Progress, the whistleblower who's been exposing Planned Parenthood's daily practice of harvesting fetal body parts, has released another video.

The latest video suggests the nation's largest abortion provider sometimes harvests baby body parts without obtaining consent from their clients.

Holly O'Donnell, a former blood and tissue procurement technician for StemExpress, one of the companies that partners with Planned Parenthood said sometimes they "just take" what the want.

"If there was a higher gestation and the technicians needed it, there were times when they would just take what they wanted. And these mothers don't know. And there's no way they would know," O'Donnell explains.

Stop Planned Parenthood from harvesting and selling babies' organs. Sign the petition.

Federal Law requires patient consent to the tissue donation following a decision to go through with an abortion.

O'Donnell says Planned Parenthood would give StemExpress employees access to patient records and schedules ahead of time so the harvesting company could plan which patient "supply" would be greatest.

"They give you a sheet, and it's everybody for that day -- who's coming in for an ultrasound, who's coming in for an abortion, medical or a late-term abortion," O'Donnell continues.

Another shocking revelation: patients simply seeking a pregnancy test at Planned Parenthood were considered part of the supply.

"Pregnancy tests are potential pregnancies, therefore potential specimens. So it's just taking advantage of the opportunities," O'Donnell says.

The undercover videos prompted several congressional investigations of Planned Parenthood and calls to defund the agency continue.

Bringing Relief to Flood Devastated Myanmar

CBN Humanitarian and Disaster Relief teams are bringing aid to the people of Myanmar. The nation was devastated by massive flooding responsible for the deaths of more than 100 people - and displacing at least 300,000.

In the wake of the severe flooding people are suffering from food shortages, especially in hard to reach villages.

Aye Aye Aung and her children were stranded for two weeks because of the flood waters.

Aung told CBN News  ," I was very scared and my children were crying. We sat on the bed waiting for people to come and give us food."

CBN relief teams provided goods to close to 300 families inside the village in Mandalay.

"Thank you for the food. This is a big help to us. My daughter is very happy with her new blanket," said Aung.

U Chit Thin, the village humanitarian head, also expressed gratitude to CBN for the help.

Thin said, "Thank you CBN. We appreciate your help and your words of encouragement. "

As the efforts continue, CBN Myanmar County Manager Sandy Baratha is looking for ways to minimize future flood damage.

"The flood will happen again and again. From my point of view we need to do rehabilitation projects so they will be relieved from the flood in the future, " said Baratha.

She says relief is about more than just meeting physical needs.

"We want to equip the body of Christ so they can reach and share the love of God in the community," Baratha added.

This latest crisis to hit Myanmar has provided Christians with an unprecedented opportunity to share their faith with the people of the country.

Cuban Rule Change Allows More Business, Ministry

Senator Marco Rubio, (R) Florida, is blasting President Obama for his handling of Cuba, saying he has made no efforts "to stand on the side of freedom." The criticism comes as the U.S. embassy opens in Havana for the first time in five decades.
          
Meanwhile, a change in Cuban government rules has allowed a small number of residents to become private business owners.

A few Cubans, like photographer Eduardo Perez, have done quite well. But Perez is not as concerned about making a profit as he is about blessing the church. 

Eduardo Perez stepped into the unknown five years ago when he got permission to start his own business in Havana. His talent for photography quickly led to professional success. 

Today, Eddos Studio is not only making a profit, it also gives Perez a platform for supporting a cause close to his heart.  

"This business has always been a tool God gave us to talk about him," Perez explained.

"Whether it's photos for clients or our personal work, we always want to highlight the beauty of God through photography. That's what we were called to do. From the beginning we were very clear that this should be a business that serves others, not just a means for financial gain. As we've gotten better we have done well financially, that has helped us support other ministries." 

Grisel Perez, Eduardo's wife, told CBN News how the business grew beyond photography.

"We began with nothing, then we expanded our photography to other goals, like social work that we've done in communities, in schools," she said.

Eddos Studio became known for unique crowd photos of the Christian community, one of the fastest-growing groups in Cuba, yet virtually ignored by Cuban media.

The Perezes have documented public activities of the church and even managed to display those pictures in secular exhibitions, a major accomplishment in Cuba.  

"We are trying to capture highly attended church activities on a national level, and create a photo report so that it's documented," Eduardo said. "We want the people in the eastern and central parts of the country to know what's being done in Havana and vice versa."

"Every chance I get, I show other believers that we're more than they think, that more things are being done than we think, that God is opening more doors than any of us realize," he said.

Israel to Jewish Extemists: Killing Babies 'Not Us'

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Israeli security has been stepped up following two recent arson attacks allegedly carried out by Jewish extremists.  Authorities are on guard for further acts and the possibility of violence in the form of Palestinian revenge. But the incidents have also forced the country to examine its own society.

When an apparent Jewish extremist hurled a firebomb into an Arab home, killing a toddler and his father, it led to outrage from Israeli leaders and citizens. 

"Every society has extremists and has murderers," said Itamar Marcus, director of Palestinian Media Watch. "The test of the morality of a society is how it responds to those extremists and how it responds to those murderers."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin visited the family targeted in the attack and rabbis prayed for their recovery.

Israeli leaders also quickly condemned an arson attack on the historic Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes in the Galilee in June.

Hebrew graffiti scrawled at both sites led authorities to conclude that Jewish extremists were behind the attacks.

And the violence continued Thursday when someone set a Bedouin tent on fire near the West Bank city of Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority has its headquarters. 

"We're talking about a youth culture that is in opposition to the Israeli state as it is, to Israeli society as it is [and] would like to change Israeli society to something else," said Dr. Shlomo Fischer, an expert on Jewish extremism at the Jewish People Policy Institute.

Fischer says these extremists believe they are carrying out God's will.

"They say they would want to have more biblical law, more biblically oriented, more religiously oriented -- maybe change some of the governing arrangements," Fischer told CBN News. "They talk about a monarchy."

That means inviting a king to rule Israel and ridding the country of idolatry as they see it.

"They would not want what they consider to be idolatry, which does include Christianity, especially eastern Christianity," he said. "The rabbinical establishment does not accept that definition."

While this phenomenon isn't new, Fischer maintains it's on the fringe of society.

"Israel does have a self-image that it is [a] democracy, that it's committed to humanistic values, that it values human life of everyone who's created in the image of God," Fischer said. "And when incidents happen that threaten that, Israelis, all Israelis get very uncomfortable. That's not us. That's not us. Killing a baby is not us."

For Israel, the other consequence comes in the form of revenge from Palestinian Arabs; yet that violence receives no condemnation. On the contrary, when Israelis are killed or wounded in this form of terrorism, Palestinians rejoice.

"Israel loathes, ostracizes and actually prosecutes any Israeli who would dare to kill a Palestinian," Marcus told CBN News. "The Palestinian Authority does just the opposite. They honor, they even reward with financial rewards Palestinians who would kill an Israeli." 

Marcus says the Palestinian Authority makes role models and heroes out of terrorists.

"There are 25 schools we have found, and there are probably more, that are named after terrorists -- schools named after terrorists like Dalal Mugrabi, who was responsible for the death of 37 in a bus hijacking," Marcus said.

"They name sporting events after them. They build memorials and name town squares after the terrorists," he added.

Mueller Rape by ISIS Leader Confirmed, Not Surprising

Kayla Mueller was repeatedly raped by ISIS leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi. The parents of the American woman, who was killed while being held captive by the terror group, confirmed the U.S. government told them about the sexual abuse suffered by their daughter.

Her father, Carl Mueller told the Associated Press about their conversation, "They told us that he married her, and we all understand what that means."

Mueller's mother Marsha said she knows it was forced, "Kayla did not marry this man. He took her to his room and he abused her and she came back crying."

ISIS is known not only for beheading and crucifying its male captives for holding females as sex slaves.

A 14-year-old Yazidi girl who was being held with Mueller and others managed to escape captivity. She told U.S. commandos about the repeated raping of Mueller and others. U.S. intelligence agencies finally confimed the account and passed the information on to Mueller's parents.

The teenager also told U.S. soldiers that Mueller tried to shiedl them from abuse and ultimately decided not to escape with them since she was American and would draw attention to them.

"Kayla tried to protect these young girls. She was like a mother figure to them," Mueller's mother said.

Mueller was killed in February. ISIS said she died in a Jordanian air strike. Her death was confirmed by U.S. agents but not the claims by ISIS.

Sadly, Al-Baghdadi's use of Kayla Mueller as a sex slave is not surprising. ISIS's leadership has specifically condoned sex slavery in various publications and statements, and ISIS foot soldiers have followed suit.

ISIS has systematically enslaved women and young, pre-teen girls from the Yazidi minority in Iraq and are using the prospect of sex with them as a recruiting tool. Girls as young as 9 and 10 years old are held captive and raped repeatedly by ISIS fighters in Iraq and Syria and the group actually holds modern day slave markets where Yazidi women and girls are bought and sold.

ISIS considers these non-Muslim women to be inhuman--infidels--and therefore born to be enslaved under Islamic Sharia law. Again, this view comes from the very top leadership of ISIS, so Baghdadi--the group's overall leader--clearly believes, practices and sanctions it. Not only was Kayla Mueller a non-Muslim "infidel"; she was also American, a fact which undoubtedly led her to suffer even harsher abuse at the hands of Al-Baghdadi. 

Iraqi Christian Radio Reaches Millions Amid ISIS Threat

WASHINGTON -- Iraq is considered one of the most dangerous countries in the world for Christians. Some two-thirds of its once large Christian population have fled the country in the past 12 years alone. And even in cities not controlled by ISIS, like Baghdad, Islamic jiahdists have placed a bullseye on the backs of believers in Jesus. Most of Baghdad's Christians have fled the endless violence. But one Iraqi pastor has not only stayed behind -- he's leading Iraq's first Christian radio station. "When we started this project, it was a pioneering project," Pastor Maher Fouad told CBN News. "No one ever applied for a radio station in the history of Iraq, especially a Christian radio station." Pastor Maher leads Baghdad's New Testament Baptist Church. He told CBN News he founded 102.9 FM in Baghdad a decade ago to reach Iraqis with the Gospel. "During the time, violence was a major problem in Baghdad, with the sounds of explosions and car bombs," Pastor Maher said. "And out of all these radio stations that broadcast violence and negative news, our radio station appeared broadcasting the Gospel and the Good News of Jesus Christ." Since then, the violence hasn't stopped -- and neither has Pastor Maher. The station's daily programing now reaches up to 8 million people in and around Baghdad. "I pray publicly on our radio station so all the Iraqis will hear it." he said. "Not only Christians but also Muslims call us live on the air requesting that we pray for them." His bold stance has brought countless death threats -- and with ISIS declaring war on Christians, things have only become more dangerous. "The situation here in Baghdad is not only bad, it is very bad," Pastor Maher told CBN News. "When ISIS occupied Ramadi, we became in danger because Ramadi is not very far away from Baghdad. On one side, we have ISIS threatening us. And the second danger we face is from car bombs and explosions." But Pastor Maher remains on the air and he's spreading the message beyond Baghdad. In 2010, with the help of U.S.-based High Adventure Ministries, he established another Christian radio station in Basra, in southern Iraq. That station can be heard as far away as neighboring Kuwait and Iran. "We rejoice because many, many people are listening and receiving the message and are responding to the message of the Gospel," Pastor Maher said. In the meantime, he says he has no plans to leave Iraq. "The Lord protected us," he declared. "And I believe the Lord will protect us also in the coming days." Web page converted to PDF with the PDFmyURL PDF creation API! 5 He says thousands of Iraqi Christian refugees need aid -- and he's praying the U.S. government and the American Church will step up to help as ISIS continues to wreak havoc.