Wednesday, July 08, 2009

PSALMS 83 ARABS,MUSLIMS AGAINST ISRAEL

MUSLIM NATIONS

EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(PALESTINIANS,JORDAN)and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)

DANIEL 11:40-43
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south( EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) and the king of the north (RUSSIA AND MUSLIM HORDES OF EZEK 38+39) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.(JORDAN)
42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.
43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.

JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

ISRAEL DEFENCES
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2OI-yeBWO4&feature=player_embedded
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrQS1OCy7n8&feature=player_embedded
BILLS WEBSITE
http://isralestine-blog.blogspot.com/
LISTEN TO PSALMS 83 RUSSIA,MUSLIMS MARCH TO ISRAEL
http://isralestine-blog.blogspot.com/2008/12/just-posted-author-of-best-selling-book.html
BILLS GUESTS SITE LISTEN TO
http://prophecyupdateradio.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tRQHsXujpo&feature=player_embedded
EZEKIEL 38
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7-9pML1TLA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4i9ZiEz4R4&feature=related

7/7/09 DIVINE VENGEANCE - The Israeli Defense Forces in Bible Prophecy By Bill Salus

I will lay My vengeance on Edom [Palestinians] by the hand of My people Israel, that they may do in Edom according to My anger and according to My fury; and they shall know My vengeance,says the Lord GOD. (Ezekiel 25:14).From shovels to Sherman Tanks, pitchforks to Patriot Missiles, and knifes to Nuclear Warheads, those resilient Israeli Defense Forces (I.D.F.) have managed to defend a nation that for all intents and purposes should have been wiped off the map a few decades ago. Coming out of 1,878years of worldwide dispersion and the holocaust, the Jews have managed to muster up a mighty military machine that in just sixty-one years now threatens to send Iran’s nuclear program back to the stone- age.Many experts, like eschatologist Hal Lindsey and former U.S. U.N. Ambassador John Bolton, are suggesting that may soon happen. Israel appears readied to knock the nuclear bow temporarily out of Iran’s hand and from my prophetic vantage point this could be a primary reason Iran, formerly Persia until 1935, isn’t listed in the upcoming Psalm 83 confederate invasion of Israel. Persia is omitted from the Psalm 83 bible prophecy but oddly they bare their banner in the Russian invasion of Israel described in Ezekiel 38 and 39, which is an event some scholars, myself included, sequence subsequent to Psalm 83.It could be that a forthcoming strategic Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear sites renders Iran of little utility to the Psalm 83 confederates destined to soon assemble and conspire to destroy Israel according to Bible Prophecy.

Amazingly, against all odds, the nation of Israel continues to survive. The Arabs, who for the most part refuse to recognize Israel’s right to exist, have attempted to destroy the Jewish nation conventionally in 1948, 1967, and 1973. When conventional attempts failed the Arabs persuaded the Palestinian Refugees to formulate terrorist organizations like the PLO, Fatah, and Hamas, to antagonize the restoration of the Jewish nation via unconventional methods of warfare. These terrorist groups, many now turned political parties, enabled the Arab nations to maintain clean hands while busloads of Jewish blood poured into the streets of Jerusalem.In the summer of 2006 the Hezbollah terrorist organization performed a feat the Arab States had never been able to accomplish; they successfully fought against and embarrassed the Israeli Defense Forces. The Arabs walked away with a sense of victory in the aftermath of that month long conflict. The Hezbollah proved that the unconventional method of warfare called terrorism worked! The Hezbollah do not comprise an Arab State; rather they are thugs, turned terrorists, processed into militant politicians. Presently they have veto power in the Lebanese legislature and, according to conservative estimates, possess over forty thousand advanced rockets, some perhaps chemically charged, that are strategically positioned for the opportune time to take out Tel Aviv.The present Israeli leadership is so concerned about the current Hezbollah threat that they recently completed the largest civilian defense drill in their nation’s history. Turning Point 3, as it was labeled, was a societal top to bottom shake down of all facets of Israeli civilian life in preparation for the possibility of a multi-front war with Iran’s proxies the Hezbollah, Syrians, and Hamas.Why them and why now? Is Israel expecting President Obama’s dangerous Rodney King can’t we all just get along style of Mideast foreign policy, called engagement, to fail? Apparently so; Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defense Minister, has all of the I.D.F. and I.A.F. (Israeli Air Forces) combat ready for the same scenario anticipated in the Turning Point 3 exercise.

Is something of biblical proportion about to erupt in the epicenter of the Middle East? It appears so and from the prophecy buff’s perspective it fits perfectly into the present prophetic timetable. The international community has had sixty-one years to step up to the plate and promote Israel’s right to exist and to call Jerusalem its holy capital city! Instead they are encouraging the Jews to give back East Jerusalem as part of a 2-State Solution to the Palestinian Refugees. This is contrary to God's plan and warnings contained in passages like Genesis 12:3, 15:18, Jeremiah 12:14-17.

No my brothers and sisters it appears the time has come for the fulfillment of prophecies that demonstrate today’s Israeli Defense Forces exist in Bible Prophecy. Prophecies like Ezekiel 25:14 and Obadiah 1:18 which announce the I.D.F. will destroy the Palestinians likely leaving hardly a survivor behind, and passages like Isaiah 17:1 and Jeremiah 49:2 that declare the doom of Damascus and the transfer of Jordanian sovereignty into Israeli hands.These passages and a flurry of others highlighted by Ezekiel 37:10, which declares that someday the I.D.F. will be called an exceedingly great army, appear about ready to adorn the prophetic pages of modern day history. The only thing standing between the crowning achievements of the I.D.F becoming classified as exceedingly great are a few decisive victories over Israel’s modern day nemeses. Victories that may begin with a surgical strategic strike upon Iran’s nuclear sites and conclude with a massive domino Israeli conquest over the Hezbollah, Syrians, Hamas, and other members of the Psalm 83 confederates.

OTHER SCRIPTURES TO THIS STORY

EZEKIEL 37.10
10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

GENESIS 15:18
18 In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,(ISRAEL)saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:

DEUTERONOMY 30:4-5
4 If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:
5 And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed,(TODAYS ISRAEL) and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.(PROSPER ISRAEL MORE THEN ISRAELS FATHERS)

GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram,(HEBREW) Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

PSALMS 82:1-5
1 A Psalm of Asaph. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.(JESUS HATERS AND ISRAEL HATERS)
2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
8 Arise, O God,(JESUS) judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.

MESSAGE TO ARAB,MUSLIM NATIONS
JEREMIAH 12:14-17
14 Thus saith the LORD against all mine evil neighbours,(ARAB,MUSLIMS) that touch the inheritance which I have caused my people Israel to inherit; Behold, I will pluck them out of their land, and pluck out the house of Judah from among them.
15 And it shall come to pass, after that I have plucked them out I will return, and have compassion on them, and will bring them again, every man to his heritage, and every man to his land.
16 And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, The LORD liveth; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built in the midst of my people.
17 But if they will not obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation, saith the LORD.

EZEKIEL 25:13-14
13 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also stretch out mine hand upon Edom,(JORADAN) and will cut off man and beast from it; and I will make it desolate from Teman; and they of Dedan (SAUDI-ARABIA) shall fall by the sword.
14 And I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel: and they shall do in Edom according to mine anger and according to my fury; and they shall know my vengeance, saith the Lord GOD.

OBADIAH 1-21
1 The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning Edom;(ARABS,JORDAN) We have heard a rumour from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle.
2 Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.
3 The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?
4 Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle,(AGAINST AMERICA POSSIBLY) and though thou set thy nest among the stars,(CRESENT MOON OF ISLAM POSSIBLY) thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.
5 If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough? if the grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes?
6 How are the things of Esau (JORDAN) searched out! how are his hidden things sought up!
7 All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him.
8 Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, even destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?
9 And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter.
10 For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.
11 In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.
12 But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.
13 Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;
14 Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.
15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
16 For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.
17 But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.
18 And the house of Jacob shall be a fire,(NUKES USED AGAINST ISLAM HERE) and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.
19 And they of the south (ISRAELIS) shall possess the mount of Esau;(ARABS) and they of the plain the Philistines:(PALESTINIANS) and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim, and the fields of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20 And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel shall possess that of the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south.
21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.

GENESIS 32:28
28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

GENESIS 36:8
8 Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom.(JORDAN)

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus.(SYRIA) Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.(BOMBED OR NUKED)

JEREMIAH 49:1-2
1 Concerning the Ammonites, thus saith the LORD; Hath Israel no sons? hath he no heir? why then doth their king inherit Gad, and his people dwell in his cities?
2 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah (AMON) of the Ammonites;(JORDAN) and it shall be a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with fire:(BOMBS OR NUKES) then shall Israel be heir unto them that were his heirs, saith the LORD.(ISRAEL FROM THE NILE RIVER OF EGYPT TO THE EUPHRATES RIVER IN WESTERN IRAQ)90,000 SQUARE MILES ISRAEL WILL INHERIT IN THE FUTURE THROUGH WW3.MOST OF TODAYS MIDEAST ISRAEL WILL OWN AND THE 12 TRIBES WILL BE GIVEN THEIR LAND INCLUDED IN THE 90,000 SQUARE MILES ISRAEL WILL CAPTURE IN WW3.

ISAIAH 19:2,16-19
2 And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.
16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women: and it shall be afraid and fear because of the shaking of the hand of the LORD of hosts, which he shaketh over it.
17 And the land of Judah (ISRAEL) shall be a terror unto Egypt, every one that maketh mention thereof shall be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the LORD of hosts, which he hath determined against it.
18 In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan,(HEBREW) and swear to the LORD of hosts; one shall be called, The city of destruction.
19 In that day shall there be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the LORD.

ZEPHANIAH 2:6-7
6 And the (MEDITERRANEAN) sea coast shall be dwellings and cottages for shepherds, and folds for flocks.
7 And the coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; they shall feed thereupon: in the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening: for the LORD their God shall visit them, and turn away their captivity.

ZEPHANIAH 3:8-9
8 Therefore wait ye upon me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
9 For then will I turn to the people a pure language,(HEBREW) that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.

EZEKIEL 39:4-8
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.



LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)

JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS

Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week: and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.

DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

Israel strikes deal with US on settlements: report JULY 8,09

JERUSALEM (AFP) – Israel and the United States have reached a deal allowing the Jewish state to build about 2,500 housing units already under construction in West Bank settlements, a newspaper reported on Wednesday.The agreement was secured during a meeting between Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak and US Middle East envoy George Mitchell on Monday, said the Maariv newspaper, quoting unnamed sources.Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas later insisted that no accord had been struck to build new settlements.On this subject the situation remains as is and Israel must stop all activity related to the construction of new settlements,he told reporters during a visit to Cyprus, speaking through an interpreter.Under the reported arrangement, Israel would be allowed to continue work on about 700 buildings already under construction on the occupied Palestinian territory, or about 2,500 units.If confirmed, the deal would go counter to repeated demands by the administration of US President Barack Obama for Israel to stop all activity in the settlements, which the international community considers illegal and which are one of the major obstacles in the hobbled Middle East peace process.Barak and Mitchell reportedly agreed that a halt to settlement construction would come only within the framework of regional peace negotiations that would also involve Syria and Lebanon.In other words, the Americans have adopted the position that Israel should not be required to halt settlement construction as a precondition, but rather only when the peace process with the Arab countries and the Palestinian Authority gets on track,the Maariv said.

It quoted an unnamed senior political source as saying Obama could host an international conference where Israel would be required to freeze all settlement construction and Arab states would express their commitment to the process and begin normalising their relations with Israel.Asked about the report, Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said that contacts are continuing to arrive at an arrangement. The rest is speculation.In a joint statement following their meeting, Barak and Mitchell said they held constructive talks and reaffirmed a commitment of a regional peace between Israel, the Palestinians, Syria and Lebanon.Among steps required for a peace deal, they listed Palestinian action on security, moves by Arab states towards normalisation of ties with Israel and Israeli measures on settlements and on access and movement in the West Bank.

Israel raps EU over settlement criticism Wed Jul 8, 3:36 am ET

JERUSALEM (AFP) – Israel has protested to the European Union over a critical report on Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank, summoning the bloc's envoy to tell him the statement ignored security concerns.The head of the EU delegation to Israel, Ramiro Cibrian Uzal, was summoned to the foreign ministry after a report by the European Commission on Monday said settlements were strangling the Palestinian economy and perpetuating Palestinian dependence on donors, a ministry statement said.

The foreign ministry blasted the EU report as unfounded.

It ignores the fact that the issue of settlements has been agreed by the parties to be addressed in parallel with the fulfillment of other obligations -- including Palestinian security obligations,it said.Even more troubling is the... implication that Israeli security measures in the West Bank are unnecessary and even illegal, alongside a total failure to recognise that it is the continued activity of Palestinian terrorist groups which makes such measures an unfortunate necessity,it said.The issue of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which the international community considers illegal, is one of the main stumbling blocks in the stalled Middle East peace process.The European Union is one of the largest donors to the Palestinians.

Absolutely no green light for Israel to strike Iran: Obama Tue Jul 7, 6:52 pm ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – US President Barack Obama strongly denied in an interview on Tuesday that the United States had given Israel a green light to strike Iran's nuclear facilities.Asked on CNN television whether Washington had given Israel the go-ahead for such an attack, Obama said: Absolutely not.In the interview with the US network broadcast from Russia where he is on an official visit, Obama added that Washington could not dictate the security interests of other countries and would seek to settle the dispute through diplomacy.What is also true is, it is the policy of the United States to try to resolve the issue of Iran's nuclear capabilities,Obama said.

This would be achieved through diplomatic channels,he said.The remarks followed comments by Vice President Joe Biden over the weekend that the United States would not stand in the way of Israel in its response to Iran's nuclear ambitions.Israel can determine for itself... what's in their interest and what they decide to do relative to Iran and anyone else,Biden told ABC television's This Week program in an interview broadcast Sunday.We cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do when they make a determination -- if they make a determination -- that they're existentially threatened,Biden said.Obama on Tuesday stressed that he wanted first to see progress on diplomacy, as the United States attempts to end Tehran's controversial nuclear drive.I think Vice President Biden stated a categorical fact, which is that we can't dictate to other countries what their security interests are, the US president said.Obama said that the United States reserve(s) the right, and I as commander-in-chief reserve the right, to take whatever actions are necessary to protect the United States.Asked about Iran at an event Tuesday in Washington, the top US military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, said Tehran could have an atomic bomb within one to three years and that such a development risked unleashing a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.If Iran secured a nuclear arsenal it would be potentially very destabilizing,Mullen told an audience at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

My concern is that, you know, the clock has continued to tick,he said.Saying Israel viewed a nuclear-armed Iran as an existential threat, Mullen spoke of the criticality in my view of solving this before Iran gets a nuclear capability or that anyone would, you know, take action to strike them.Mullen, who is chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the focus was on diplomatic efforts but echoed Obama's comments, refusing to rule out military options.There is a great deal that certainly depends on the dialogue and the engagement, and I think we need to do that with all options remaining on the table, including certainly military options,he said.

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