Belgium I O Dine; The Israel-US Game: How Much/How Little?; Turkey Longs for End of Iran's Sanctions; China + Russia Scold US; Syria's Once Was Peace Over; Barrel Roll Temptation; A Second Scolding from Russia in Syria; UN - More Money and One Voice = Peace; Biden Gushes, Pope Returns Favor; EU's Banks Not Prepared; On Marrying Vishnu; Finally Some Sound Theology in the UK!; and a Robot Humans Chase

Today we have little bits of "war brewing" news from all over the world. I didn't plan it that way, but when I compiled the final list, I found that I had stories about or referencing at least 9 different countries! Here's a hint - most of them aren't singing our praises :)

Belgium

Belgium Issues Iodine Pills to All Citizens in Nuclear Emergency Plan nbcnews

A dose of iodine, which helps to limit the effects of radiation on the body, will be made available to all 11 million people in the small country, Health Minister Maggie De Block told reporters Thursday.

Israel

Israel denies waiting for Obama successor to strike defense aid deal jpost

Reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is waiting for a new administration to assume power in Washington before reaching an agreement with the United States on a new defense aid package are false, an Israeli official told The New York Times on Thursday.

Turkey

Turkey to boost economic ties with Iran worldbulletin.net

In remarks made at Anadolu Agency Editors’ Desk, Tufenkci said: "We believe economic relations between Turkey and Iran will gain a significant momentum with the lifting of sanctions.”

Koreas

China, Russia rap US missile defence plan in South Korea  economictimes.indiatimes

We both are gravely concerned about the US's likely deployment of the THAAD system in South Korea, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a briefing with his visiting Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.

Syria

Aleppo rocked by fresh fighting bbc

The military meanwhile has announced a "regime of calm" will take effect elsewhere in Syria early on Saturday.

The "regime of calm" is not explained nor is there any mention of Aleppo, where seven days of escalating violence has left more than 200 civilians dead.

War

Russians 'barrel roll' over another U.S. Air Force plane cnn v

The SU-27 approached alongside within 100 feet of the U.S. aircraft and then flew inverted over the top of the plane to the other side. The U.S. considers this a very unsafe aerial maneuver and is expected to voice its concerns to the Russians, one of the officials said.

‘Violation of sovereignty’: Moscow slams Obama decision to send 250 more US troops to Syria rt

"Speaking from the position of the Foreign Ministry, we can't help but be concerned about the fact that such actions are being carried out by the US without the consent of the legitimate government of the Syrian Arab Republic,” Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov told TASS.

UN

Australian Ex-PM: UN More Efficient if Properly Funded, Speaks in One Voice sputniknews

Rudd, [contender for Secretary-General of the United Nations], said the first thing to improve the efficiency of this global organization, was “to nurture a new culture and practice and capacity for preventative diplomacy.” He said that the current funding of the United Nations’ operations often failed to achieve the results needed.

Global Medical

Biden Urges Nations to Adopt Cancer 'Moonshot' Effort in Vatican Speech abcnews.go

He said a global coalition would be required to reach a cure for cancer, with concentration on a set of principles including a renewed focus on preventative measures, an urgency similar to infectious disease and an increase in the coordination of research.

Pope Francis addressed the crowd following Biden, stressing that despite what many see as an economic inconvenience, seeking a cure for cancer is a moral issue for societies.

Banking

EU not fully prepared to deal with failing banks reuters

The European Union still has work to do to prepare for handling bank collapses in the event of a new financial crisis, EU officials said on Friday, urging member states to agree on pooling more resources to weather future storms.

False Religion

Nepali girls ‘marry’ Hindu god to protect from widowhood arynews.tv

The centuries-old custom is believed to protect girls from the stigma of widowhood by ensuring that a Newari woman’s first husband — the god — will inevitably outlive her mortal spouse.

Apostasy

Theologian refutes Chuch in Wales letter affirming same-sex relationships christianconcern

"The fundamental theological reason why the Church in Wales should not change its teaching and practice is because the Bible makes clear (Genesis 1-2, Mark 10:2-9) that God has created human beings as male and female and has created marriage as a lifelong exclusive relationship between one man and one woman and as the sole legitimate context for entering into sexual union."

I'll admit I don't know much about Christian Concern beyond this one article, so I tentatively link to them. But the article seems safe :)

Robotics

Puma built a fast robot to race fast humans theverge

The BeatBot, which looks like a rolling shoebox with LED lights, can trace a perfect line around a track at world record speeds to help give professional runners a physical target to chase down.

Others...

Massive 600kg haul of ancient Roman coins unearthed in Spain theguardian