Blog Heap of Links for the day 17 December 2015

The Camden County (Missouri) Sheriff's Office has verified that it received a tip regarding a group of Middle Eastern men asking about Bagnell Dam and have forwarded the report to the FBI and a joint task force on terrorism. …

A Middle Eastern woman was caught surveilling a U.S. port of entry on the Mexican border holding a sketchbook with Arabic writing and drawings of the facility and its security system… appeared to have two accomplices, a 31-year-old man… and a 28-year-old woman…

Israeli archaeologists discovered a 1,500-year-old slab of marble with Hebrew inscriptions by Kursi near the Sea of Galilee in Israel’s north, reaffirming a Jewish presence at what Christians believe to be the location of Jesus’ “Miracle of the Swine.” …first piece of evidence confirming the existence of a Jewish or early Christian community in Kursi…

Canadian Prime Minister Justin “Baby Doc” Trudeau said that Donald Trump’s statements about Islam were “ignorant and irresponsible”. Meanwhile, Matteo Salvini, the leader of the Northern League in Italy, described Mr. Trump as “heroic”.

In migration news, an Afghan “refugee” was stabbed to death by a fellow asylum seeker at a shelter in southwestern Germany. …

…On this day in 497 BC the first Saturnalia festival was celebrated in ancient Rome. This holiday became very popular and formed some of the basis for Christmas celebrations that came later as the Roman Empire became Christianized.