1. Netanyahu and the Republicans had a love in
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the United States against accepting a nuclear deal with Iran, saying that the country would "will always be an enemy of America". His address to the US Congress was not universally regarded as helpful or appropriate, since he wasn't invited by the White House and the speech was a fierce attack on Administration policy, but Republicans loved it, interrupting frequently with applause. Netanyahu is facing a knife-edge re-election battle at home shortly, which adds to the piquancy of the debate. US secretary of state John Kerry said demanding Iran's "capitulation" is "not a plan" and President Obama said that speech contained nothing new. It's hard not to conclude that the episode didn't reflect well on Congress or on Netanyahu, though he is undoubtedly sincere in his passionate belief in the threat posed by Iran.
2. Candian pastor Rev Hyeon Soo Lim held by North Korea
A Christian pastor has gone missing in North Korea, shortly after he was invited to the capital Pyongyang. Rev Hyeon Soo Lim, 60, of the Light Korean Presbyterian Church in Toronto, Canada arrived in North Korea at the end of January and went missing shortly afterwards. He was involved in various humanitarian projects including orphanages, nursing homes and food production from noodle plants to flour mills. Some of these were linked to President Kim Jong Un's uncle Jang Song-Thaek, who was executed in 2012. The arrest is the latest example of what this reclusive, paranoid and oppressive state is capable of: it regularly tops the list of countries that persecute people on the grounds of their religion, but the suffering of large sections of the general population is appalling.
3. Russian leader of the opposition Boris Nemtsov shot dead outside the Kremlin
Boris Nemtsov, an outspoken critic of President Vladimir Putin and Russia's role in the Ukraine crisis, was shot dead steps from the Kremlin in a murder that underscored the risks taken by the Russian opposition. He was shot four times in the back by assailants in a white car which had apparently trailed him round the area, which is heavily covered by CCTV cameras. Thousands of people filed past his coffin and Russia's president Vladimir Putin expressed regret at the killing. However, this is the latest in a series of murders of Putin critics. Most informed commentators have been wary of saying that the Kremlin specifically ordered the killing, but they have been clear that the Putin regime is one that creates a climate of fear for its critics and impunity for their attackers. Democracies don't do this.
4. Kids in Britain go hungry. New stats show 100,000 affected by austerity.
About 100,000 children were affected by benefit sanctions last year, according to a new report which says people are still going hungry in modern Britain. The data was published by a coalition of churches. The research shows that nearly seven million weeks of sanctions were handed out to benefit claimants, many of whom had children. Claimants are sanctioned (have their benefits stopped) because they are late for interviews or fill in forms wrongly. Supporters say that the regime is hard but fair, and encourages people to find work. Philosophically, this is entirely defensible; if someone genuinely has no intention of working, it's hard to argue that they should receive state funding. However, its practical outworking is raising moral questions that call the whole enterprise into question. Whoever is in power at the next election will have to fix it.
5. Georgia halts planned execution of Christian woman on death row
Faith leaders in Georgia petitioned for a permanent stay of execution for Kelly Gissendaner, who plotted to kill her husband Douglas with her boyfriend Gregory Owen. She repented of her crime while in prison and now counsels others. The execution was delayed because of bad weather and then because the prison pharmacist noticed that the substance used to carry out the sentence, pentobarbital, was cloudy. The case is troubling on many levels. Owen, who carried out the murder, made a plea bargain and is in jail; Gissendaner, who was in a bar, rejected the bargain and is to die. But would she be the focus of a Christian campaign if she hadn't become a Christian – and been a white woman, as well? It's not just Gissendaner but the campaign against the death penalty itself that needs support.
A good week for:
Archaeologists, who might have found the house that Jesus grew up in – though read on, and they might not.
A bad week for:
Marks and Spencer, which wins out storm-in-a-teacup award for excluding the words 'Jesus' and 'Christ' from its online gift cards, but not 'jihad'. The idea of sending M&S flowers to someone off to join Islamic State is irresistible.
The story you might not have read but ought to know about:
Britain's immigration detention system is not working, says a Parliamentary working group. We lock up too many people for too long, and they are terribly treated when they are.
And one for pure enjoyment:
A priest in Texas is accepting confessions via Snapchat, which deletes messages after a few seconds. Safe, yes – but spiritual, really?
