IRAN TESTFIRES BUNKER BUSTER

1-Tropical Storm Florence bears down on Bermuda. 2-Forest fires could unleash toxic bomb into atmosphere: study. 3-Montana Firefighters Battle Bees as well as Wildfires. 4-Firefighting teams to fight Nev. blazes. 5-Russian FM calls for comprehensive solution for Mideast peace. 6-Israel minister says time for Palestinian talks. 7-Israel Pulling Its Ships From Lebanon. 8-Spain Approves Troop Deployment To Lebanon. 9-Sarkozy calls for major EU reform. 10-West Bank pullout plans over: Israel's Peres. 11-Iran test-fires bunker-busting bomb.

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Tropical Storm Florence bears down on Bermuda By Jane Sutton
5 minutes ago

MIAMI (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Florence headed for Bermuda as a large mass of gusty rain on Friday and seemed ready to strengthen into a hurricane before hitting the British territory, U.S. forecasters said. Bermuda issued a hurricane watch before nightfall, alerting the island's 65,000 residents to brace for hurricane conditions in the next 36 hours.Florence, the sixth tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, was poorly organized and unusually wide.

At 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT), its center was about 645 miles south-southeast of Bermuda. Florence was moving northwest at nearly 15 mph (24 kph) but was so large that Bermuda residents would likely feel its outer edges a day or two before the center arrived on Monday, forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.Florence's top sustained winds have held steady at about 50 mph (80 kph) for several days but the forecasters said they could reach the 74 mph (119 kph) threshold to become a hurricane as early as Saturday.Computer tracking models projected the storm would pass over Bermuda and turn northeast, moving away from the United States and into a part of the open Atlantic where shearing winds and cooler waters would sap its strength.But the storm was expected to kick up heavy surf and dangerous rip tides all along the U.S. eastern seaboard during the weekend, forecasters said.The six-month hurricane season that began on June 1 has produced only one hurricane so far. Tropical Storm Ernesto briefly reached hurricane strength near Haiti last month but weakened before drenching the U.S. East Coast.

REVELATION 8:7
7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

Forest fires could unleash toxic bomb into atmosphere: study
Updated Thu. Sep. 7 2006 4:59 PM ET
Brian Jackson , DiscoveryChannel.ca

Longer forest fire seasons will soon cause high levels of mercury to be released into the atmosphere, say the authors of a new study.As climate change has allowed for hotter and more numerous forest fires over a longer season, northern peat bogs in Western Canada and Alaska have been dried out. The bogs, the researchers say, will soon release centuries' worth of toxic mercury as they're set ablaze. Mercury emissions are 15-times more than previous estimates that do not account for the toxic bog fires, finds the study. We're talking about mercury that has been relatively harmless, trapped in peat for hundreds of years, rapidly being spewed back into the air,says Merritt Turetsky of Michigan State University, lead author of the study, in a statement. Our findings show us that climate change is complex.

The findings are based on research that counted the amount of soil holding mercury and the number of burn areas across Western Canada. There are currently four forest fires over 100 hectares in size raging in B.C. That includes the 2,350 hectare Tatoosh fire that recently crossed the border from the U.S. Soil in Canada's Western wetlands has acted as a mercury sponge for hundreds of years. Normal atmospheric conditions carry mercury into the region, where it settled into the ground. The released mercury will contaminate food chains as it spreads toxicity into streams and lakes, the researchers say. The researcher's work is published August 19 in Geophysical Research Letters.

Montana Firefighters Battle Bees as well as Wildfires
September 8, 2006 AP.

Montana firefighters battling a wildfire that has blackened nearly 290 square miles and burned 26 homes faced a new challenge, authorities said: bees.The blaze that started with lightning on Aug. 22 has forced hundreds to evacuate. After being grounded by smoke for a day, firefighting helicopters returned to work Wednesday, pouring water on the fire that was 45 percent contained.

Bee stings among firefighters have surged to as many as 50 a day, information officer Joan Dickerson said. Some of those stung required medical attention.We've had a couple of our leaders taken to the hospital,she said, but added that she had no explanation for the surge in stings.

An evacuation order for 265 homes remained in effect, three days after it was issued. An alert for evacuation readiness covered another 20 homes.Smoke from the fire and others triggered air-quality warnings in southwestern Montana. The Department of Environmental Quality said the air in Bozeman and in the area of the fires was very unhealthy.Smoke may linger until Friday, forecasters said.We're not sure what the weekend is going to bring, Dickerson said. We're prepping for a cold front that could shift the wind.Air quality advisories were also issued across eastern Washington state, warning residents to take precautions against heavy smoke from more than a dozen wildfires.U.S. and Canadian fire crews were working together on two blazes, the larger of which had burned almost 255 square miles northeast of Winthrop. Nearly 1,400 firefighters were battling the blaze, which was 56 percent contained.

The smaller fire, which had burned more than 53 square miles, had already crossed into British Columbia and could pose a threat to dozens of cabins in the Pasayten River Valley, about 125 miles east of Vancouver. Residents in Eastgate, which has about 50 year-round residents and an estimated 180 cabins, were put on notice they might have to evacuate.Helicopters and tankers were grounded for a second day Wednesday due to the heavy smoke, said Kelly Baraibar, a U.S. Forest Service spokeswoman.Several other wildfires burned across Washington, including three reported Wednesday on the Yakama Indian Reservation. A 145-square-mile fire complex near Dayton in southeast Washington was 40 percent contained. Owners of 50 to 75 cabins in the area remained evacuated, said Mike Ferris, Forest Service fire information officer.

In California, a pilot and a firefighter were killed Wednesday when their Department of Forestry and Fire Protection plane crashed in remote foothills of Tulare County, about 70 miles southeast of Fresno.

The victims were identified as George Willett, 52, a Hanford pilot contracted to help battle the fire, and CDF Battalion Chief Robert Paul Stone, 36, of Visalia, spokeswoman Becki Redwine said.The crash sparked a three-acre wildfire near an area about 170 miles north of Los Angeles where firefighters battled the other blaze. Officials were investigating the cause of the crash.Also in California, a wildfire that has burned across nearly four square miles continued to rage out of control in the Los Padres National Forest, spreading in all directions, the U.S. Forest Service reported.In Nevada, crew leaders were hoping the arrival of more firefighters would help them gain ground on wildfires that have blackened nearly 375 square miles across the state's northeastern area during a four-day span.

Officials reported 32 fires touched off by lightning since Sunday, including one in Lander County that had exploded to more than 200 square miles and was only 10 percent contained.No damage to homes or injuries were reported, but the fires continued to pose a threat to scattered ranches and mines as well as wildlife habitat, said fire information officer June McMillen.

Sept. 7, 2006, 11:32PM
Firefighting teams to fight Nev. blazes
By TOM GARDNER Associated Press Writer

RENO, Nev. — A national command team and three of the top firefighting teams in the country joined the battle Thursday against a 375-square-mile wildfire that has marched through rangeland during the past four days, threatening ranches, mines and wildlife habitat.The Nevada fires are among the largest wildland blazes that have scorched more than 1 million acres nationally, or 1,563 square miles slightly more than the state of Rhode Island.Fires touched off by dry lightning since Sunday had burned 240,000 acres, or 375 square miles, in Nevada, including a fire in Lander County, which exploded to 130,000-plus acres and was 20 percent contained. Despite threats of thunderstorms and high humidity Thursday, firefighters were optimistic.If we get through today's issues, we'll be on the downhill side,said Joe Ribar, commander of the national command team.

In Montana, firefighters battling a wildfire that grew to more than 300 square miles Thursday planned to work overnight to take advantage of cooler weather, and hoped to let residents of 265 homes forced to flee return home Friday.Officials were trying to keep the fire from spreading farther west into the Boulder River Valley, which is home to numerous historic ranches and vacation homes and where the movie The Horse Whisperer was filmed.The blaze was sparked by lightning on Aug. 22 and has forced hundreds to evacuate. It was 50 percent contained on Thursday.While Nevada got assistance with its blazes, other states are worried there won't be enough help as summer ends. In just the past week, more than 100 requests for a 20-person fire crew went unfilled in Washington and Oregon alone, said Kathy Fletcher, spokeswoman for the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center in Portland, Ore.

Dry lightning sparked three more fires in Idaho Thursday, bringing the total number of large blazes burning in the state to 17, the most in the nation. Nine large fires were burning Thursday in both Washington and Oregon.The Portland-based center estimates state and federal agencies, as well as contract fire crews, will lose 15 percent of their firefighters as they return to college and other jobs in the next few weeks.The extended forecast indicates no relief,Fletcher said.

The good news is the days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler, which helps in the firefighting efforts.Also Thursday, a rapidly-spreading Sierra foothills wildfire in California crept to within a mile of several dozen homes. The fire, burning in steep terrain in the Tahoe National Forest, had tripled in size throughout the day to about 1,900 acres, or about 3 square miles. Smoke from the blaze was reported in Sacramento, about 50 miles to the west, and Reno, Nev., to the east. Officials asked residents living in about 50 homes to leave.Associated Press writers Martin Griffith in Reno, Susan Gallagher in Helena and Jesse Harlan Alderman in Boise contributed to this report.

LAND FOR PEACE

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.

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.

DANIEL 8:23-25
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king (EU DICTATOR) of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences,(FROM THE OCCULT) shall stand up.
24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power:(SATANS POWER) and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes;(JESUS) but he shall be broken without hand.

DANIEL 11:36-40
36 And the king shall do according to his will;(EU PRESIDENT) and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers,(THIS EU DICTATOR IS A EUROPEAN JEW) nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces:(HES A MILITARY GINIUS) and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds (CONTROL HEZBOLLAH,AL-QUAIDA MURDERERS ETC) with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many,(HIS ARMY LEADERS) and shall divide the land for gain.
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south(EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR PROTECTING ISRAELS SECURITY) and the king of the north(RUSSIA) 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.

Russian FM calls for comprehensive solution for Mideast peace
www.chinaview.cn 2006-09-07 22:42:19

DAMASCUS, Sept. 7 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday called for a comprehensive solution to the Middle East problem with the participation of all parties, the official SANA news agency reported. Lavrov told reporters upon his arrival that he would discuss with the Syrian officials means of building a comprehensive solution which he said would bring peace to the region. He said that the aim of his trip here is to bolster the Syrian-Russian relations in a bigger way. Lavrov just wrapped up a brief visit to Lebanese capital of Beirut where he discussed with the Lebanese leadership the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon's Shiite group Hezbollah that went into effect in Lebanon on Aug. 14 and Russia's participation in reconstruction efforts.

Lavrov was also scheduled to visit Israel and the Palestinian territories during his Middle east tour. Enditem Editor: Mu Xuequan

Israel minister says time for Palestinian talks
08 Sep 2006 09:59:38 GMT,Source: Reuters
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
More By Jonathan Saul

TEL AVIV, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Israel's foreign minister said on Friday it was about time the Jewish state talked to the Palestinians, adding no conditions should be put on meeting President Mahmoud Abbas.But Tzipi Livni said Abbas should expect nothing from talks, such as a release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, unless militants in the Gaza Strip freed a soldier captured in a cross-border raid on June 25.Her comments were a softening of remarks by Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres, who said this week a summit between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Abbas, who is also known as Abu Mazen, would take place only if the soldier was released first.

In relation to a meeting with Abu Mazen, I do not think there need to be any conditions for such a meeting,Livni, told a news conference in Tel Aviv with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.It is about time we found a way to talk with the Palestinians and with Abu Mazen in order to find out whether there is a way to promote a process that can lead in the future to a two-state solution.
But if Abbas wanted anything, Israel would not be able to respond until Corporal Gilad Shalit was freed, she said.Ties between Israel and the Palestinians, badly strained when the militant Hamas movement won parliamentary elections in January, hit a new low after gunmen seized the soldier and abducted him to the Gaza Strip.Israel launched a military offensive in Gaza a few days later that has killed around 210 Palestinians, half of them civilians. Preparations for an Olmert-Abbas summit had been in the pipeline, but were shelved after the abduction.

LITTLE CHANCE

Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians collapsed in 2000 amid a surge in violence.Israeli political analysts see little chance of any substantive negotiations in the near future, with Israel pre-occupied with the aftermath of the war in Lebanon and Hamas still in control of the Palestinian government.Abbas, a moderate, wants to create through negotiations a state in all of the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, land captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war.Hamas, whose charter calls for Israel's destruction, wants to establish an Islamic state in place of Israel.Abbas argues he could still be Israel's interlocutor, circumventing Hamas.

Livni also appeared to pour cold water on a call by Lavrov for an international Middle East peace conference.Lavrov said on Thursday that such a meeting to find a comprehensive solution to the Middle East conflict was the only alternative to end violence in the region.

The former Soviet Union co-sponsored with the United States the 1991 Madrid Conference, which helped seal peace deals between the Palestinians and Israel and between the Jewish state and Jordan.To put all the issues between Israel and different Arab countries together with the Palestinians as one idea I think will only complicate the issues,Livni said.
(Additional reporting by Ori Lewis in Jerusalem)

WW3 THE 3 WAVES THAT MARCH TO ISRAEL

DANIEL 11:40-45
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) 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.
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

EUROPEAN UNION ARMY

DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TR BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.( BE HEAD OF 3 NATIONS)
25 And he (EU PRESIDENT) shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.(3 1/2 YRS)

DANIEL 8:23-25
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king (EU DICTATOR) of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences,(FROM THE OCCULT) shall stand up.
24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power:(SATANS POWER) and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes;(JESUS) but he shall be broken without hand.

DANIEL 11:36-39
36 And the king (EU DICTATOR) shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers,(THIS EU DICTATOR IS JEWISH) nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.(CLAIM TO BE GOD)
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces:(WAR) and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god,(DESTROY TERROR GROUPS) whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many,(HIS ARMY LEADERS) and shall divide the land for gain.

REVELATION 19:19
19 And I saw the beast,(EU LEADER) and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse,(JESUS) and against his army.(THE RAPTURED CHRISTIANS)

Israel Pulling Its Ships From Lebanon
Ending Naval Blockade, Hopes To Have All Troops Home Within Two Weeks
JERUSALEM, Sept. 8, 2006

(CBS/AP) Israel is ending its naval blockade of Lebanon, and hopes to withdraw its last soldiers there within two weeks. The Israelis will be replaced by French, Italian, and Greek warships under a United Nations mandate, reports CBS News correspondent Robert Berger. Israel says their mission is to prevent the shipment of weapons from Syria and Iran to Hezbollah. The lifting of the air and sea blockade of Lebanon is seen as a boost to the three-week-old cease-fire. It would wind up Israel's recent campaign against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon, and allow desperately needed reconstruction projects there to proceed freely. Up to 15,000
Lebanese soldiers backed by an equal number of international forces are deploying in southern Lebanon to replace the Israelis under an Aug. 14 truce. Israel plans to pull all its troops out of Lebanon in time for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, which begins in two weeks, reports Berger. Israel is pleased about the deployment of an international force, which will include French, Italian, Spanish and Turkish troops, among others. More than 3,000 foreign troops are already in Lebanon and when the number reaches 5,000 Israel will pull out. UN officials say that should happen in about 10 days.

In other developments:

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has signaled that Israel might cede disputed territory to Lebanon if the Lebanese carry out all provisions of their recent cease-fire with Israel, including the disarming of Hezbollah guerrillas, media reported on Friday. Israel on Friday rejected Russia's proposal of a Mideast peace conference, saying Israel's immediate focus should be on its conflict with the Palestinians. I think putting all of the issues into one bowl would only make things more complicated,Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said at a joint news conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov said Russia was looking into Israeli charges that Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas used Russian arms supplied by Syria in their recent war with Israel. Russian laws governing arms sales stipulate that no weapons can be transferred to a third party, Lavrov said. British Prime Minister Tony Blair will meet this weekend with top Israeli leaders and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, but no members of Hamas, the ruling Palestinian party. Even that is too much for hundreds of Palestinians, who have signed a petition saying Blair is unwelcome because of his support for Israel. Blair cannot wash his hands, which are stained with Lebanese blood, in Palestinian waters, the petition says.

Israel sealed off Lebanon by air and sea at the start of its war against Hezbollah to keep Syria and Iran from resupplying it with arms. Israel, yielding to intense international pressure, ended its air blockade of Lebanon on Thursday, but said it would maintain the naval blockade until international peacekeeping vessels arrived to monitor the seas. The U.N. informed the Lebanese government that a joint French, Italian and Greek naval force began patrolling the Lebanese coastline at 12:30 p.m. (7:30 p.m. EDT) Friday, a government official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media. Israel has been
gradually pulling out its soldiers — whose number peaked at 30,000 at the war's end — as international replacements arrive.

About 3,250 U.N. troops are now in place. On Thursday, the Spanish parliament voted to contribute 1,100 soldiers to the peacekeeping mission, and the first troops were to set off on Friday. In a meeting with Lavrov on Thursday, Olmert said if the U.N.
decides the disputed Chebaa Valley is Lebanese, and if Lebanon implements U.N. resolutions ending the war, we'll agree to discuss it,the Haaretz daily said. When Israel withdrew its troops from southern Lebanon in 2000, ending an 18-year occupation, the U.N.-drawn international line did not put Chebaa Farms in Lebanese territory, but in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in 1967, and later annexed. The Lebanese have disputed this ruling, and Israel and Hezbollah have clashed in the territory since the withdrawal. Under the Aug.

14 cease-fire, the U.N. agreed to review the line within 30 days. Lebanon put on a boisterous show Thursday to celebrate the end of Israel's air blockade. In a symbolic act signaling the resumption of normal air traffic, a commercial flight by Lebanon's national carrier Middle East Airlines circled over downtown Beirut three times at 6:04 p.m., four minutes after the embargo ended. And fireworks erupted in the capital's heart. Lebanon is breathing again, proclaimed Prime Minister Fuad Saniora in a televised statement, inviting the tens of thousands of Lebanese who fled the fighting and Arab tourists who left in droves to come back to the Lebanon you love.

The land route to neighboring Syria has already been reopened, with the Lebanese government posting thousands of troops along the rugged frontier to prevent smuggling. Russia's Lavrov, who is on a tour of the Mideast, has raised the idea of a regional conference. He and other diplomats are touring the region in the aftermath of the Lebanon war. Livni said Israel should be concentrating now on the most problematic subject — the Palestinian conflict — and called for immediate, unconditional talks with the moderate Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas of the Fatah Party. But she insisted Israel wouldn't release Palestinian prisoners — a condition Abbas has set in the past for talks — until Palestinian militants freed an Israeli soldier seized more than two months ago.

The soldier's capture by gunmen linked to the Palestinians' ruling Hamas Party set off an Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip in which more than 200 Palestinians — most of them gunmen — have been killed.Livni's call for talks with Abbas echoed sentiments Olmert expressed earlier this week. There have been no official contacts between Israel and the Palestinians since Hamas, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, won Palestinian parliamentary elections in January. But the prospect of negotiations have taken on new life since Israel's recent war against Hezbollah put a chill on Olmert's plan to unilaterally withdraw from large chunks of the West Bank.
©MMVI CBS Broadcasting Inc.

SPAIN #11 IN THE EU

DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast(THE EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TR BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise:(10 NATIONS) and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(BE HEAD OF 3 KINGS OR NATIONS).

Spain Approves Troop Deployment To Lebanon
September 8, 2006 2:00 p.m. EST
Joseph S. Mayton - All Headline News Middle East Correspondent

Beirut, Lebanon (AHN) - Spanish parliament approved sending soldiers to Lebanon on Thursday evening. The vote, 304-2, agreed to send up to 1,100 troops to Lebanon to bolster the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. Despite the opposition's criticism of the decision, it gave its approval for the deployment. They said the government was sending troops to another dangerous region. This comes after withdrawing Spanish troops from Iraq in 2004. The government defended its decision, saying that it was a necessary step to take as a member of the European community. Spain will commit the third largest contingent to Lebanon following France and Italy. It is expected that Madrid will eventually take over command of the multinational force in Lebanon that will include troops from Belgium, Ireland, Finland, Poland and Portugal. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was in Spain for the vote. He has praised the decision. The revamped UN force in Lebanon is expected to reach 15,000 troops strong.

Sarkozy calls for major EU reform

The EU’s institutions and policies need to be thoroughly overhauled if Europe is to recover from its current crisis, Nicolas Sarkozy has claimed.Speaking in Brussels, the French interior minister gave some indication of the way his country’s attitude to Europe would change should he replace Jacques Chirac as president following next May’s elections. There is a crisis in Europe…our citizens are plagued by doubt and indifference, he said.But Europe should be seen as something to aspire to, not something that holds us back. I want it to inspire enthusiasm in our citizens, not distrust.The next few months will be vital for the EU, Sarkozy said, with elections in 11 member states. Now more than ever we need to think about how we can reconcile Europe with Europeans,he said. The constitutional treaty in its current form will never enter into force, however sad that might be. The decision of the French
people [in last year’s referendum] was clear,he said.

Cherry-picking

Instead, Sarkozy repeated calls for cherry-picking the best bits of the existing treaty text, including extending the scope of qualified majority voting among member states and giving the European parliament a bigger role.This ‘mini-treaty’ could be quickly agreed since the issues have already been debated at length by the Convention,he said.Our aim would be to launch the project under the German EU presidency [which starts in January] and finish it under the French [in the second half of 2008].Such a treaty would give a let out clause to those countries who said no to the constitution without humiliating those who said yes, he added.

Institutional reform

But he stressed that some issues still needed to be resolved. The commission needs to be reformed,he said. “This is one of the most important, and definitely one of the most difficult, institutional questions to resolve.He said that the current system was neither efficient nor fair, primarily because commissioners were nominated by national governments.Why don’t we take the bold decision to allow the commission president to choose his or her own commission?

After all, this is how national governments are chosen A commission president, himself approved by both MEPs and national governments, could choose the best people for each post, creating a real team of committed commissioners, he said.Sarkozy also reiterated calls for an easing of the EU’s rules on decision-making.We need to change the rule about unanimity. We cannot impose decisions upon countries if they do not agree; nor can I accept that countries which do not want to go forward should be allowed to hold back others.

Instead, Sarkozy is suggesting a system based on what he calls super qualified majority, where decisions could be taken with the backing of 70-80 per cent of the votes, allowing certain key issues to be resolved.He gave the example of taxation, where certain countries continue to block attempts to introduce a uniform EU corporation tax.Some countries use zero rates to attract business. This fiscal dumping, which is allowed to continue because of the unanimity rule, is not acceptable within the EU, he said.Other blocked dossiers, such as working time or European patents, could also be concluded more rapidly under these more flexible
proposals.Sarkozy also backed calls for working parties between member states that could push the agenda forward without the need for everyone to agree. Why shouldn’t countries such as France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece get together to discuss
plans to control forest fires?Why shouldn’t the Mediterranean countries work together to put the best possible measures in place to tackle illegal immigration?” he added.

Immigration and enlargement

The controversial French minister has been criticised for his increasingly tough stance on immigration, and he used his Brussels speech to criticise recent decisions in Spain and Italy to regularise black market workers.These countries should have asked for the support of other EU countries before doing this,he said.Otherwise what is the point of the Schengen agreement [which removes internal borders].He said that it was no surprise that Italy and Spain were now being inundated by floods of illegal immigrants, although he stressed that he backed their calls for help from other EU countries.Sarkozy also tackled the issue of Europe’s absorption capacity and where its boundaries should be set. Europe is not just an idea, it is a shared identity, a shared history and a shared geography,he said.The EU should be open to everyone in the European continent – Switzerland, Norway, the Balkans or Iceland, if they want.

Our neighbours elsewhere, in Eurasia or North Africa, should be offered privileged partnerships with the EU, but not membership.Turkey is our friend and our neighbour, it shares many of our security concerns and some of our interests… we must deepen our relationship with Turkey, but not go as far as full membership.There are 25 EU members, not 24. I call once again for membership negotiations with Turkey to be suspended until it has ratified the Ankara protocol and recognised Cyprus.

Budget and election reform

The French EU presidency in 2008 will be responsible for the review of EU spending, and Sarkozy had some early suggestions for change, including an EU tax.The current system, based on national contributions, is illogical, unfair and incomprehensible to European citizens,he said. European expenditure should be covered by European resources, just as local taxes are used to finance local services.And the EU electoral system could also be overhauled, he suggested, by the introduction of Europe-wide lists along party lines.European elections are always dominated by national issues, there is no European campaigning.Party members from across Europe should be allowed to campaign on the issues – energy, environment, immigration, the economy, defence – that are common to Europe as a whole.

West Bank pullout plans over: Israel's Peres Fri Sep 8,

JERUSALEM (AFP) Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shimon Peres has reiterated that his government had abandoned plans to withdraw from most of the occupied West Bank. The idea of unilateral disengagement or realignment is over. It is over politically,
psychologically as well as operationally,Peres was quoted as telling the top-selling Yediot Aharonot daily on Friday.There will not be a manifold repetition in Judaea and Samaria (the southern and northern West Bank) of the withdrawal from Gaza. There will not be massive evacuation of the settlements,he added, giving three reasons.He listed them as continued Palestinian attacks from Gaza despite Israel's withdrawal last year, fractured Palestinian politics with no one to take responsibility, and unfavourable public opinion in Israel.

Peres said Israel would instead hold talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, albeit bypassing the governing Hamas movement that does not officially recognise Israel's right to exist.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that he had shelved his disengagement plan, which could have seen tens of thousands of Jews uprooted from Arab land and which was a cornerstone of his March election. Instead he said he wanted dialogue with Abbas.

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 and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE 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 have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)

Iran test-fires bunker-busting bomb
07.09.06 A 200lb guided bomb, similar to that test-fired by Iran

Iran today ended its large-scale military exercises by testing firing a 2000-pound guided bomb, state-run television reported.It is a

flying bomb and can be used as a guided long-range air-to-surface missile,Gen. Amir Amini, deputy commander of Iran's air force, told state TV.Amini added that the bomb was a special weapon developed for penetrating military, economic and strategic targets located deep underground on the soil of the enemy.He said the bomb has an exceptional explosive power against its targets either on the ground or in the sea.

The bomb, named Qassed or Herald, was shown in a televised picture in white, yellow, red and green colors.A flying bomb is an unmanned aerial vehicle or small aircraft carrying a large explosive warhead. In contrast to a bomber aircraft, which is intended to release bombs and then return to its base, a flying bomb crashes into its target and is therefore itself destroyed in its attack.

Iran is involved in a major military build-up, concerned about the U.S. military presence in neighboring Iraq and Afghanistan at a time when the international community has threatened to impose sanctions against Tehran because of its disputed nuclear program.During maneuvers dubbed The Blow of Zolfaghar, which began on August 19, Iran has test fired short range surface-to-surface and sub-to-surface missiles, a new air defense system, fighter planes and laser bombs.

State TV said that Iran had flown a light fighter plane which has capability of close-range support, Azarakhsh or Lightning, during Wednesday's exercises. It did not explain the delay in the announcement.Azarakhsh is derived from the reverse engineered components of U.S. fighter planes and was the first warplane to be manufactured domestically in Iran.Also on Wednesday, Iran exhibited its first locally designed fighter plane, the bomber Saegheh, which is similar to the American F-18 fighter plane.

Saegheh is a war plane that we completely designed and manufactured inside the country,said air force commander Gen. Karim Ghavami on Thursday. This is a great achievement.After decades of relying on foreign weapons purchases, Iran now says it is increasingly self-sufficient in its military equipment claiming it annually exports more than US$100 million (¤81 million) worth of military equipment to more than 50 countries.Since 1992, Iran has produced its own tanks, armored personnel carriers and missiles, the government said. It announced in early 2005 that it had begun producing torpedoes.