Netanyahu's Christmas Message

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has released his Christmas message, to the world.

He started off by saying,

As Christians around the world and in Israel prepare to celebrate Christmas, I want to wish you all the merriest of holidays.

Today, Christian communities throughout the Middle East are shrinking, and many of them are endangered. This is, of course, not true in Israel. Here there is a strong and growing Christian community that participates fully in the life of our country.

Israel is proud of its record of religious tolerance and pluralism, and Israel will continue to protect freedom of religion for all. And we will continue to safeguard places of Christian worship throughout our country. We will not tolerate any acts of violence or discrimination against any place of worship. This is not our way, and this is something we cannot accept.

He then continued to talk about the locations, in Israel, that Christianity and Judaism share, and welcomed all to come see them.

Copahue Volcano Calming Down

Copahue on Sunday

Parts of Chile and Argentina are on high alert after a volcano suddenly became active, on Saturday.

The Copahue volcano began registering high seismic activity and started throwing smoke nearly a mile into the air.

On Monday, seismic readings returned to normal and the plume dropped to only a couple hundred feet.

However, officials, on both sides of the border, kept alerts running, warning residents of possible evacuation.

Only about twenty-two hundred people live near the volcano, but officials want them ready, just in case.

The volcano last erupted in 1991 and showed a lot of activity in 2001.

Kristen Stewart Promises Snow White and The Huntsman Sequel

Kristen Stewart has stated that she will be starring in a rumored sequel to Snow White and The Huntsman.

Chris Hemsworth and Sam Claflin would be expected to return, for a sequel, as well.

However, director Rupert Sanders will definitely be out, after the drama he and Stewart created.

While at this point, the sequel is rumors with Stewart's word added, many who saw the first film expected a sequel come out of it.

Expect the movie to hit theaters in the summer or fall of 2014.

Queen Elizabeth's Christmas Message is in 3D

Elizabeth II watches her Christmas message with diamond studded 3D glasses

Queen Elizabeth II is setting yet another royal first.

This year, her annual Christmas message is in 3D.

The video spends a good bit of it's time praising everyone involved in this year's summer Olympics.

It also marks the end of her diamond jubilee year, which has been greatly celebrated all year long, across the UK and the world.

Elizabeth II marked her sixtieth year, as Queen, with many royal firsts.

One of them included starring in an clip for the opening of the Olympics, where she was seen working with James Bond.

Among her other royal firsts, through her reign, have been a Facebook account, Youtube channel, and paying taxes.

NASA Joins The Gangnam Style Craze

NASA has joined in on the Gangnam Style craze, with their own parody.

Filmed at the Johnson Space Center, it does a lot to show off what NASA does there.

Named NASA Johnson Style, after the center, it became one of the few parodies to write new words for the song.

With lyrics that talk about science and NASA's accomplishments and future projects, it's a fun way for NASA to try and get kids interested in the program.

On Friday, the original Gangnam Style video, by Psy, became the first youtube video to hit one billion views.

Houston Shooting Leaves 1 Officer and 1 Bystander Dead

Two people were killed in a shooting, Monday morning, in Houston, Texas.

A police officer was conducting a routine traffic stop, when the driver tried speeding away.

While fleeing the driver ran into another vehicle.

When the officer approached, the driver shot him and tried running away.

They exchanged fire, hitting each other and a bystander.

The driver then fled, on foot, but was eventually caught by other officers, and is now in the hospital.

Both the original officer and the bystander died of their wounds.

2 New York Firefighters Killed in Ambush

Early Monday morning, two New York firefighters were killed, in Webster, New York.

They responded to a house and car fire, only to have shots fired upon them, killing two and wounding another two.

Two police officers were also wounded during a fire fight with the shooter.

SWAT was called in, and searched the nearby houses, eventually finding the shooter, dead from a gunshot wound.

It is unclear if the gunman shot himself or was hit in the exchange with police.

By the time it was deemed safe, for the firefighters, other houses were burning.

In all four houses and one car were destroyed and four homes were damaged.

Police believe that the shooter purposefully lit the fire, and then waited in ambush for firefighters to respond.

Puntlandi Troops Rescue Pirate Hostages

Puntlandi troops claim to have rescued twenty-two sailors from their pirate captors.

The twenty-two hostages had been held since their ship, the MV Iceberg 1, had been captured by Somali pirates, in March of 2009, off Yemen.

Their twenty-three month long captivity was ended Sunday, after Puntlandi troops had besieged the pirates and engaged in fighting, over the last two weeks.

Though showing signs of abuse, malnutrition, and illness, the hostages are expected to recover now that they are receiving medical care and better food and water.

Syrian Bakery Hit by Airstrike

As many as two hundred people were killed in Halfaya, Syria, on Sunday. According to rebels, who took the town last week, a government jet struck a bakery.

As many as a thousand people were in line, at the bakery, when the air strike hit. Many of the dead would've been women and children. The bakery was the biggest still running, until the attack.

Video, purportedly from the scene, showed dozens of bodies lined up against a blackened building, mostly reduced to rubble. Screams and sirens could be heard, with people trying to make their way from the area, with rescuers running towards it.

This would not be the first time that Syrian forces had targeted bakeries. In the past they have repeatedly singled out bakeries, claiming that terrorist forces uses them for fronts.

Egypt's Constiution Passes, Will Face Court Challenges

Egypt's two step voting process concluded, on Saturday, with seventeen of the twenty-seven provinces taking their turn.

In an unsurprising vote, the proposed constitution passed, with a turn out of only thirty-two percent.

The opposition has already announced that they will challenge the vote, with charges of fraud and emphasis on the low turn out.

This constitution is highly contested in the country, with deadly riots against it taking place over the last couple weeks, in most of the cities.

Opposition members may continue the protests, while they challenge the constitution through the court system.

The courts may over turn it, as many judges and lawyers went on strike when the constitution was announced.

Many Egyptians fear the amount of Islamic influence in the constitution, believing it to be too close to shariah law.