Israeli Prime Minister Faces Indictment on Charges of Corruption

Currents News Staff

Benjamin Netanyahu will become the first Israeli prime minister indicted while serving in office.

The Attorney General has announced his final decision to indict Netanyahu on three charges of corruption, and the current political stalemate means that it is not exactly clear what happens next.

Benjamin Netanyahu suffered his biggest blow as prime minister — this one not political — but legal.

The first sitting prime minister to face criminal indictment in Israel’s history, Netanyahu was defiant

“This evening, we are witnessing a governmental coup attempt against a prime minister by false libel and with a tenacious and contaminated investigation process,” he said.

The 70-year-old leader has spent years fighting against this very moment and proclaiming his innocence. Ever since the criminal investigations were made public nearly three years ago,

Netanyahu has railed against them, calling them a media-fueled witch hunt and an attempt to topple him through the justice system when they couldn’t beat him at the polls.

“The time has come to investigate the investigators. It is time to investigate the prosecution that approves these contaminated investigations,” Netanyahu said.

Israel’s longest-serving prime minister is now facing charges in three cases.

In case 4000, prosecutors say Netanyahu advanced regulatory benefits for a friend who is a multi-millionaire businessman. Those benefits were worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

In exchange, prosecutors say Netanyahu received favorable news coverage from a news site owned by that businessman. In this case Netanyahu faces the more serious charge of bribery, as well as the charge of fraud and breach of trust.

In case 2000, prosecutors say Netanyahu was working on an arrangement with the owner of one of Israel’s largest papers, Yedioth Ahronoth. Netanyahu sought more favorable news coverage in exchange for limiting the circulation of the paper’s rival.

Netanyahu also faces a charge of fraud and breach of trust in this case.

Finally, In case 100, prosecutors say Netanyahu received valuable gifts such as cigars and champagnes from overseas businessmen — gifts they say a public servant should not have received.

Netanyahu again faces a charge of fraud and breach of trust.

Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit called it a very sad day for Israel, but rejected any idea that this was a political decision against the prime minister.

“This is not an issue of right or left. It’s not a matter of politics,” he said. “This is a duty that everyone has to obey. This is my duty towards the public that everyone will live in a state where any accusation of illegality is going to be checked and investigated.”

Netanyahu’s rival, former Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Benny Gantz, called on him to step down.

He said of Netanyahu: “He is well aware that the grave and complex challenges facing the state of Israel, both in terms of security and the societal and economic areas, require a prime minister able to invest his full time, energy and attention.”

Netanyahu failed to form a government twice: first after April’s elections, and then again after September’s elections.

For months Israel has been stuck in political deadlock, one that now protects Netanyahu.

As long as no one can form a government, he remains Prime Minister.

Currents News for Thursday, November 21, 2019

On the newscast: A big day for Pope Francis in Thailand. The major highlight is an outdoor mass that attracted a huge segment of the country’s Catholics; The Impeachment battle on TV hears new witnesses today. One accused Russia of planting fake news about Ukraine; After their debate, are Democrats in danger of losing Catholic support? An expert is here; And history’s very first Christmas card goes on display.

Watch weeknights at 7:00 pm EST on NET-TV in the New York City area on Spectrum, Optimum, and Fios. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive notifications about new content.

Thanksgiving for Heroes – First Responders Inspire Catholic Students

By Tim Harfmann

There was an outpouring of thanksgiving for the men and women who keep the city safe, New York’s first responders.

The Mass offered for the heroes is timed to be celebrated near Thanksgiving, with Brooklyn Auxiliary Bishop Raymond Chappetto presiding at Holy Cross High School in Flushing.

“They’re always there to protect life. Life is valuable. Life is sacred. And I think our belief, as Catholics, that life is precious is reflected in the work that the first responders do,” said Chappetto.

Sara Keenan’s grandfather is FDNY Commissioner, Daniel Nigro.

“They’re my role models. I look up to them every day, and I aspire to be like them. They’re always helping other people, whether it’s on duty, off duty. It’s a great feeling,” said Keenan.

Nigro credits religious education for molding the people who serve New York.

“That strengthening of their faith brought them, I think, to the fire and police departments, and gave them that life-long desire to serve others in the community,” he said.

Holy Cross Junior Thomas Machalek wants to be a police officer, as many in his family have done, and he believes the values of a Catholic education will help him.

“Same moral teachings, same everything that goes into being a good Catholic, being a good Christian, and a good part of your community,” said Machalek.

The first responders of tomorrow thanking the heroes of today.

Father of Parkland H.S. Victim Honors Son With One-Man Show

By Michelle Powers

Manuel Oliver never thought he’d be in a one-man show talking about his son, performing a work he never wanted to write.

But on February 14, 2018 the Oliver’s family changed forever when a gunman opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. 17 people were killed.

“Part of you —all of you —wants to think its not your kid,” Manuel explained. But it was Joaquin: their son, their hero. He was the baby they moved from Venezuela for a safer life — their funny, artistic and loving child.

Now Manuel and his wife Patricia are about to step off on a tour across the country, where he is starring in one night, one man performances that tell the story of their son, and the year after the shooting.

That day they lost their son, but the Olivers say Joaquin didn’t lose his mom and dad. “We are parents, always parents. We will keep being mom and dad,” said Patricia.

He and his wife agree: this is the moment they’ve been training for their entire lives.

They are making it their mission to keep his memory alive. Where it was too late to save Joaquin, it’s early enough to save someone else.

“I like to think of it that way, it gives me a reason for what happened,” said Manuel. “Nothing is going to bring him back, period. So because that’s how we know things will go, we need to be okay with the process and with small victories.”

What they consider a win is people stepping into their shoes and feeling with them.

They say the show is not about politics. It’s about saving lives.

The tour will kick off in New York this Friday before it makes stops in swing states and other cities marred by mass shootings.

“Our job to honor Joaquin’s life, and allow people through seeing that to draw their conclusions about the future of this country,” explained the show’s director, James Clements.

He’s been brought to tears, no matter how many times he watches Manuel.

“He isn’t a trained actor, but he what he perhaps lacks in the training he more than makes up for, because there’s no actor that could bring this amount of passion to a role,” James said. For hours and days at a time, it’s hard for James to get Manuel to take a break.

When he’s tired, Manuel just thinks of the last moments of his son’s life.

“How I feel means nothing,” he said.

“I think Joaquin is with me. I can’t have more faith than that,” said Manuel.“He just started early, he’s stepping up up there and we will be together again.”

“He’s with us,” said Patricia. “He’s with us everywhere we go.”

The Olivers say God will also give them strength and faith they need to believe they’ll see their son again.

You can see Manuel take the stage at the 92nd Street Y tomorrow on the Upper East Side.

The show begins at 8 p.m on Nov. 22, 2019. Tickets are still available at guacmysonmyhero.com.

A Jam-Packed First Day for the Pope In Thailand

By Emily Drooby

Pope Francis received a loud welcome as he greeted the people of Thailand on the first full day of his mission to Asia.

The Holy Father kicked off his busy Thursday schedule by meeting with the country’s prime minister behind closed doors.

“I am glad to visit this noble and beautiful land, and I wish it all the best,” Pope Francis said.

Then in front of a crowd, Pope Francis thanked Thailand for protecting vulnerable women and kids from sex traffickers.

“I think of all those women and children of our time, especially those who are wounded, violated and exposed to every form of exploitation, enslavement, violence and abuse,” he said.

The Holy Father is also determined to build up unity among the world’s religions.

To that end, he had a face-to-face encounter with Thailand’s buddhist patriarch.

The positive meeting ended with a symbol of unity: the two leaders holding hands.

Pope Francis also visited the St. Louis hospital of Bangkok, an institution open to rich and poor alike that was founded 120 years ago by the city’s Catholic archbishop.

“You must be ready to embrace whatever each new day sets before us. It is about welcoming and embracing human life as it arrives at the hospital’s emergency room,” explained the pontiff

He was then greeted by cheers and song before lunch at the Vatican’s embassy. The Holy Father wrapping the day with a big outdoor Mass at Thailand’s national stadium.

60,000 people celebrated the liturgy with the pontiff. That amounts to about ten percent of the 400,000 Catholics living in Thailand.

His homily highlighted those people who are some of the most important to him, the migrants and those on the peripheries.

“I think of young people enslaved by drug addiction and a lack of meaning that makes them depressed and destroys their dreams. I think of migrants, deprived of their homes and families, and so many others, who like them can feel forgotten, orphaned or abandoned,” said Pope Francis.

The Papal Mass ended with 800 Thai women who performed several traditional dances.

Currents News for Wednesday, November 20, 2019

On the newscast: We’ll have full coverage of the Pope in Asia. The Holy Father is there now with a big schedule ahead; Thailand is the first stop for Francis. Tonight, we welcome a special guest to Currents News… Thailand’s Consul-General in New York; A violent attack on a cathedral in Nicaragua. A priest and a nun were beaten; An inspirational story of a boy who lost his mom. He knows she’s in heaven.

Watch weeknights at 7:00 pm EST on NET-TV in the New York City area on Spectrum, Optimum, and Fios. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to receive notifications about new content.

Queens Catholic Academy Immerses Students in Dual-Language Learning

By Emily Drooby

Inside St. Michael’s Catholic Academy in Flushing, Queens, students learn in English and in Mandarin Chinese.

The school says the dual-language program of Mandarin and English is the only one offered in a Catholic elementary school anywhere in New York State.

It’s needed now more than ever: the number of Americans speaking a foreign language at home has exploded over the past 30 years. In 1990, about 30 million people in the U.S. spoke a language other than English at home. That number more than doubled by 2018 with over 67 million.

Most of those people speak Spanish or Chinese.

“The Chinese population is so big in the world, it’s so popular,” explained Sister Martina Hou, who teaches Mandarin at St. Michael’s.

The program is an immersion curriculum, where sometimes students learn other subjects like math in Mandarin, too.

“We’re preparing them for the future, and research does show that learning a second language bilingual brain does improve your cognition,” added Principal Maureen Rogone.

Developed by Boston College, the program allows students who speak a second language at home to grow those skills while in school.

“My favorite classes are technology and science,” said Aaron, a student at St. Michael’s.

But it also teaches the language to students who don’t speak it at home, like Gabriela, who learned Spanish from her parents and Mandarin in school.

Through the program, Gabriela has become fluent enough to say the Our Father.

The program has been around for about seven years and St. Michael’s plans on growing it.

Postal Service Delivers Magic Through ‘Operation Santa’

By Tim Harfmann

The United States Postal Service is delivering some magic this Christmas season.

“It’s been a long tradition of us creating a way where people can really help families in need,” said Amy Bolger. She helped kickoff the campaign at the Cadman Plaza Post Office in Downtown Brooklyn.

It’s the one-hundred-seventh annual ‘Operation Santa’ event.

Children write letters to the jolly man and mail them to him at the North Pole.

The postal service lets other people adopt the requests and bring gifts to local post offices.

Bolger said children often ask for toys or clothes — but sometimes the request is a lot harder to fulfill.

“Sometimes you get a kid who’s asking for, ‘my dad needs a job.’ All these things, they really tug at your heartstrings,” said Bolger.

Eighteen-year-old Anna Riddo wrote to Santa hoping to help others.

“I asked for health and happiness to people. People need kindness or something to help them out,” said Riddo.

When a child receives a present in the mail, the package will read ‘from Santa.’

“I work with kids, so I know there are a lot of families struggling; and the kids look forward to getting things for the holiday, and they may not be able to. I think this will be a great opportunity to make them happy,” said Antalaya Israel, who visited the post office on November 20.

“Giving back could actually benefit majority of people because they could feel like they have a place in the world,” Riddo added.

To help them sort the mail, the post office is asking to write to Santa at 123 Elf Road, North Pole, 88888.

If you know a child who wants to send their wish to Santa, their letter must be postmarked by December 14.

Pope’s Visit to Thailand a ‘Morale Booster’ for Tiny Catholic Flock

By Inés San Martín

BANGKOK, Thailand – Pope Francis arrived in Thailand Wednesday to open a Nov. 20-26 Asia tour that will also take him to Japan. It marks the first time a pope has visited the former kingdom of Siam since St. John Paul II in 1984.

Francis’s visit to Thailand, a nation that has a Catholic population of fewer than 400,000, has been described as a “morale booster” for this small community that represents 0.58 of the total population of 69 million.

In a video he sent ahead of the trip, the pope said that Thais are called to “work for their homeland,” and that he hoped his trip would “encourage them in their faith and in the contribution they make to the whole of society.”

Upon arriving at Bangkok’s military airport, he was welcomed by a member of the Council of the Crown who offered him a Phuang malai, meaning a traditional garland made of flowers that are traditionally given in this country as an offering.

Also ready to welcome him were 11 children dressed in traditional costume, several Thai authorities and the local bishops.

Francis is scheduled to rest Wednesday afternoon, a rarity for a pope who often hits the ground running when he arrives in a new country. As usual, he’ll stay in the apostolic nunciature, meaning the residence of the papal ambassador in Thailand. According to the official schedule, he’ll say Mass and then have dinner, both privately.

The pope is expected to touch upon several subjects during the eight speeches he’ll deliver in Thailand, which will be translated by his second cousin, Sister Ana Rosa Sivori, 77, who’s been a missionary in Thailand for more than 50 years.

Among the pope’s likely areas of focus is poverty, with one percent of the population holding 60 percent of Thailand’s wealth, according to a 2018 Credit Suisse report.

In addition, it’s possible that while he engages Buddhist leaders he’ll address climate change and pollution. With a wide coastal line, Thailand, according to the United Nations, is the world’s 6th largest ocean polluter.

Never one to mince words, it’s also expected that Francis will address the scourge of sex tourism – which affects girls and boys as young as 10 in Thailand – and human trafficking. Both have been a key social concern for Francis since he was still the archbishop of Buenos Aires.

The Thai government is trying to curb human trafficking, defined by the pontiff as “modern day slavery” and a “crime against humanity.” Thailand is set to hit a record number of human trafficking victims rescued. Scholarly articles estimate that the sexual tourism industry is one of the country’s largest foreign currency generators.

Though the Church first arrived in Thailand in the hands of Portuguese-sponsored Dominican missionaries in 1567, Catholicism wasn’t always allowed to flourish, particularly during WWII, when a nationalistic movement tried to convert every citizen to Buddhism.

On Thursday, Francis is scheduled to visit the Governmental House, where he will address civil authorities and diplomats, including Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha. He’ll also visit the Wat Ratchabophit Sathit Maha Siaram Buddhist Temple, meeting the head of Thailand’s Buddhist community, Supreme Patriarch Somdet Phra Maha Muniwong Ariyavongsagatayana.

On the same day, the pope will have an audience with 40 sick and disabled people at Bangkok’s St. Louis Hospital. He’ll also meet king Rama X and say Mass for 50,000 people at the national stadium.

On Friday, Francis will meet local bishops and, later, priests and religious men and women.

Ambassador to European Union, Gordon Sondland Arrives to Testify Publicly Wednesday

Currents News Staff

The U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland testified under oath there was a ‘quid pro quo’ surrounding security aid to Ukraine.

The House is looking into if President Trump withheld military aid money from Ukraine — unless they investigated his political opponent Joe Biden and his son.

Sondland had perhaps the closest, most direct contact with President Trump of any witnesses to testify publicly so far.

Sondland told lawmakers Wednesday the quid-pro-quo arrangement came directly from Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani and at the direction of the President.

He also said he raised concerns with Vice President Mike Pence that the freezing of security aid to Ukraine was linked to the political investigations.

President Trump denies any wrongdoing and has repeatedly called the hearings into question.