2,000 Iranian protestors killed by Islamic regime, Franklin Graham calls America to prayer and repentance, State Department pauses immigrant visas from 75 countries

It’s Thursday, January 15th, A.D. 2026. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 140 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. ([e-mail]) By Jonathan Clark North Korea, Somalia, Yemen, & Sudan top 4 persecuting countries Open Doors released its 2026 World Watch List yesterday. The report ranks the top 50 countries where Christians face the most extreme persecution. Once again, North Korea is ranked the worst country for persecution followed by Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, and Eritrea. The remaining top 10 countries are Syria, Nigeria, Pakistan, Libya, and Iran. One out of seven Christians are persecuted worldwide. Between October 2024 and September 2025, the report documented that 4,849 Christians were killed for their faith. Over 90% of the killings occurred in sub-Saharan Africa, especially Nigeria. Hebrews 13:3 says, “Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.” 2,000 Iranian protestors killed by Islamic regime Millions of Iranians have been protesting against the country’s Islamic regime since December 28. Activists report that 2,000 people have been killed as the regime has cracked down on protestors. Listen to comments from U.S. President Donald Trump. TRUMP: “To all Iranian patriots, keep protesting, take over your institutions, if possible. … I’ve cancelled all meetings with the Iranian officials until the senseless killing of protesters stops. And all I say to them is ‘Help is on its way!’ You saw that I put tariffs on anybody doing business with Iran. Just went into effect today.” During this unrest, please pray for the underground church in Iran to remain strong and find opportunities to minister. Pentagon moving carrier strike group toward Middle East amid Iran tension In a related story, the Pentagon is moving a carrier strike group from the South China Sea to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, which includes the Middle East, as tensions escalate between the Trump administration and Iran, reports NewsNation. Moving the carrier strike group — a naval formation centering around an aircraft carrier, with a variety of support from other vessels — is expected to take about a week. The significant transfer of American military hardware comes amid developments related to unrest in Iran and questions about whether the White House will offer support to opponents of Iran’s autocratic, Islamicregime. Franklin Graham calls America to prayer and repentance In the Untied States, Evangelist Franklin Graham called for a time of prayer and repentance across the nation. The call came as “the streets of America boil over with hate, anger, crime, drugs, and just sheer hopelessness.” Listen to comments from Graham. GRAHAM: “I encourage people to pray. And first of all, we need to repent as a nation. We need to repent of our sins and turn from those sins. And we need to repent of our own sins, not just the nation's sins, but our personal sins, and ask God to forgive us.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Trump withdraws from 66 int’l groups, conventions, and treaties The Trump administration announced last Wednesday that the U.S. is withdrawing from 66 international organizations, conventions, and treaties. One of those organizations is the United Nations Population Fund, known for its support of abortion. Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, said, “From DEI mandates to ‘gender equity’ campaigns to climate orthodoxy, many international organizations now serve a globalist project. … These organizations actively seek to constrain American sovereignty.” State Department pauses immigrant visas from 75 countries Plus, the U.S. Department of State announced yesterday that it will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries. Those nations include Somalia, Russia, Afghanistan, Iran, and Nigeria. The State Department said migrants from these countries “take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates.” U.S. overdose deaths fell New federal data shows U.S. overdose deaths fell last year. Overdose deaths involving opioids and now fentanyl have been on the rise since the 1990s. An estimated 73,000 people died from overdoses during the 12-month period ending in August 2025. That’s down 21% from the previous 12-month period. Researchers suggest this drop is connected with recent regulation changes in China. These changes decreased the availability of chemicals used to make fentanyl. 4,000 U.S. Protestant churches closed in 2024 Lifeway Research reports more Protestant churches closed in the U.S. than opened. Four thousand churches were closed in America in 2024. Meanwhile, only 3,800 churches ...