POSSIBLE DISASTERS 2007

1-WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS. 2-Death toll in Indonesian floods rises. 3-Malaysian flood toll rises to 11. 4-Learn more about the Day of Prayer. 5-Planeload of US Jews Arrive in Israel on One-Way Ticket. 6-Dollar Slides; U.A.E. Says Selling U.S. Currency, Buying Euros. 7-Israel won't free Palestinian prisoners. 8-Olmert OKs pinpoint attacks on militants in Gaza. 9-China's Hu calls for powerful, combat-ready navy. 10-North Korea grave threat after nuclear test: Seoul. 11-Risks, Perils and Potential Disasters of 2007.

EARTHQUAKES

MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS (USGS)

Update time = Sat Dec 30 12:02 AM EDT

DEC 30,06 NO QUAKES YET

DEC 29,06
MAP 2.8 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 2.8 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 3.5 MAINE
MAP 3.3 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 3.1 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 3.2 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 2.6 KENAI PENINSULA, ALASKA
MAP 2.7 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 2.6 GREATER LOS ANGELES AREA, CALIFORNIA
MAP 5.1 SOUTH OF BALI, INDONESIA
MAP 2.8 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.6 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

DEC 28,06
MAP 3.0 VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION
MAP 2.7 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.4 TAIWAN REGION
MAP 2.8 SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 2.7 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 3.2 VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION
MAP 3.3 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION

STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES

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.

Death toll in Indonesian floods rises By FAKHRURRADZIE GADE, Associated Press Writer Fri Dec 29, 4:54 AM ET

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia - Rescuers reached remote villages, delivering food and medicine Friday to thousands of people displaced by floods and rain-induced landslides that have claimed at least 126 lives on Indonesia's Sumatra island. In neighboring Malaysia, which is experiencing its most severe weather in a century, authorities found the body of a 14-year-old boy floating in a flood-swollen canal, bringing the death total there to 11.Days of torrential rain have forced more than 400,000 people from their homes in Indonesia and displaced nearly 90,000 in Malaysia.Heavy rain continued to fall over the hardest-hit areas of Sumatra, complicating relief efforts and adding to the misery of survivors, said local government spokesman Nadir Musa.

Most affected was the northernmost province of Aceh, where helicopters dropped food, tents and medicines while volunteers in dinghies distributed aid, Musa said.At least 76 people were killed in Aceh, said Jabad, an official in the area who goes by only one name. That was 70 less than he had reported earlier in the day. Jabad said he mistakenly added some of then 150 people listed as missing to his count of the dead.At least 50 others have died in neighboring North Sumatra province, said Edy Sofyan, the provincial spokesman.Seasonal downpours cause of dozens of landslides and flash floods each year in the sprawling archipelagic nation where millions of people live in mountainous areas or in fertile flood plains.Aceh was the hardest hit province in the 2004 tsunami, losing an estimated 167,000 people, but the floods and landslides have affected inland regions that were untouched by that disaster.

Malaysian flood toll rises to 11 Fri Dec 29, 12:08 AM ET

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - The death toll from Malaysia's worst floods in decades has risen to 11, officials have said, and the government has warned of further flooding with more heavy rain forecast. The latest victim was a 14-year-old boy whose body was found floating in a canal, the official Bernama news agency said.A five-year-old girl is also missing, after the car her family was travelling in was swept away by strong currents. Her father survived but the bodies of her mother and three-year-old sister have been retrieved.The number of people forced to flee their homes and shelter in relief centres in southern Johor state, which has been hardest-hit, rose to 61,352 on Friday from 55,212 the day before, Bernama said.The government has urged rescuers to brace themselves for another round of the disaster after forecasters perdicted more bad weather for Johor and central Pahang state until Sunday.If it doesn't occur, then thank God, but if it does, we must be in a state of readiness so that the necessary operations can be carried out efficiently, deputy premier Najib Razak said Thursday

Dear Stan, PRAYER DAY

Learn more about the Day of Prayer

Each year, during The Fellowship’s annual International Day of Prayer and Solidarity with Israel, millions of Christians in thousands of churches worldwide gather to pray for Israel’s peace and security. I always feel a deep sense of blessing when I consider how much this event has done to rally Christian support for Israel and lift up a passionate chorus of prayer to our heavenly Father. It is with a great sense of urgency that I invite you to involve your church in The Fellowship’s 2007 International Day of Prayer and Solidarity with Israel, which will take place on Sunday, January 28, 2007.

As a true friend of Israel, you know very well that 2006 has been a difficult year for her. Last summer’s war launched by Hezbollah took a devastating toll on Israel’s people and economy. Iran’s radical Islamic president continues to call for Israel’s destruction, even as he pursues the development of nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, even Israel’s attempts at self-defense are criticized by an international community all too ready to blame the Jewish state for all the Middle East’s ills.

Clearly, the need to uphold Israel in prayer has never been greater -- and I hope you will answer the call to fulfill the biblical command to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6). I invite you to join with thousands of churches around the world to lift Israel up in prayer on January 28, 2007. When you register online, we will send you a FREE Day of Prayer Church Action Kit with sermon notes, music suggestions, a DVD, and other resources to help equip your church to be a part of the 2007 Day of Prayer.

I thank you in advance for standing solidly with Israel and the Jewish people and for praying for the peace of Jerusalem!

With prayers for shalom, peace,

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein
President International Fellowship of Christians and jews.

ISRAEL WILL BECOME A NATION. LITERALLY IN THE SPRING.

GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram,(CHANGED TO ABRAHAM LATER) Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:(PALESTINE,ISRAEL)
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.

EZEKIEL 36:24
24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.

EZEKIEL 37:9-28
9 Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds,(ALL THE WORLD) O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.(COME TO LIFE)
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.(ISRAEL WILL HAVE A POWERFUL ARMY)
11 Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.(BURNED BY HITLER)
12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.(THE DRY BONES COME TO LIFE IN ISRAEL)
13 And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,
14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.
15 The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying,
16 Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:
17 And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
18 And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these?
19 Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.
20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.
21 And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:
22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all:
23 Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.
26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.
27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
28 And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

MATTHEW 24:32
32 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:(ISRAEL WAS LITERALLY REBORN JUST BEFORE SUMMER,MAY 14,1948).

MARK 13:28
28 Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When her branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is near:

DANIEL 9:24
24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.

ISRAEL WILL BE IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM, THE SIGN OF THE START OF THE LAST GENERATION.

LUKE 21:24
24 And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

Planeload of US Jews Arrive in Israel on One-Way Ticket
By Hana Levi Julian (INN DEC 29,06)

Despite Kassam rockets, suicide bombers, a recent war with Hizbullah, and economic hardships, 220 North American immigrants stepped off this year's 8th NBN Aliyah airlift Wednesday morning. Nefesh B'Nefesh (NBN), the leading organization that facilitates aliyah (Jewish immigration to Israel) from western countries, realized a dream with this flight as their 10,000th oleh (immigrant) stepped off the plane.Most of the new arrivals were so overwhelmed, they could barely speak. This is where we belong, was the single most-often repeated comment heard from the lips of those who braved storms and sleet and freezing rain – not to mention terrorists – to make their homes in the Land. It’s really exciting, said new immigrant Dan O’Dwyer. I’m kind of tingling all over. Rain in Israel when I arrive; I actually find it fitting.When we began this organization, 10,000 was our landmark. This is a very exciting day for us, Rabbi Yehoshua Fass told the new Israelis and those who had come to greet them.

Fass and co-founder Tony Gelbart said their new goal is to bring 5,000 new immigrants each year, a benchmark they believe will be reached within the next two years. More than 3,000 immigrants from the United States, Canada and Britain made aliyah with NBN’s assistance in 2006.These people coming off the plane in the rain, it’s like a double blessing, Bat El Michel declared exuberantly, referring to the long-awaited rains and new immigrants.Bat El came out in the cold rain to meet the newcomers, including a few of her favorite friends. Two and a half years after her own arrival with Nefesh b’Nefesh, now she too waved a poster that announced to the new arrivals, Welcome Home!I think it’s very special to see so many people connected to Israel in such a special way, said Nadav, an Israeli who was there to greet his Canadian girlfriend, Lana. I know there are olim already here that made aliyah a year ago, or a few years ago, and they’re still connected to all the aliyah process and welcoming all the guys…It’s really heartwarming to see it.

Nadav added that as an Israeli, he is more optimistic about the future after watching an NBN aliyah flight touch down. It’s nice to know there are still people who still care about Israel, he said. That makes me feel better about the future.Former Prisoner of Zion and former Deputy Prime Minister and Knesset member Natan Sharansky was invited to speak to the new immigrants and the loved ones who came despite the frigid temperatures to greet them at Ben Gurion International Airport.Sharansky praised NBN for its innovative grassroots approach to encouraging aliyah. It’s not accidental that the most successful programs which happen with American Jewry… came not as a part of establishment policy, but part of a grassroots initiative…… that is the right way to deal with this.

Asked about whether he thought the majority of American Jews would choose to come to live in Israel or remain in the U.S, Sharansky indicated that the question is not whether US Jews will remain in America, but whether they will remain Jews at all:
At this moment, unfortunately, the majority of Jews is disappearing not only in America, but all over the world through assimilation.

For the Jews of the world, said Sharansky, Israel remains the most basic, strongest connection to their Jewish identity.Shalom Woodrow, until Wednesday a resident of Toronto, spoke for the countless generations of his family who had remained outside the Holy Land. Now it’s our time to make it grow, to make our family grow and prosper and to enjoy the Land of Israel....in the place where we’re supposed to be. This is the place that we came to, to do more than we can in chutz (abroad), and Baruch Hashem (thank G-d) we’re here to thrive.He and his wife brought their five children, including a new seven-and a-half-week-old infant named Shlomo Zalmen, he added, to make [our] family grow and prosper, and to enjoy the Land of Israel.

HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER

JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.

Dollar Slides; U.A.E. Says Selling U.S. Currency, Buying Euros
By Kabir Chibber

Dec. 27 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar dropped the most in a week against the euro as the United Arab Emirates said it will convert some of its reserves of U.S. assets into the European currency. The dollar also had its biggest decline versus the yen this month before a U.S. report that may show consumer confidence fell for a third straight month, fueling bets the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates next year. The U.S. currency has slipped 9.9 percent versus the euro this year, its first slide since 2004. The U.A.E.'s decision to relocate its reserves is part of a theme that means that U.S. dollar holdings in global currency reserves are decreasing,' said Hans Guenter Redeker, head of currency strategy in London at BNP Paribas SA. The dollar is going to lose support as we see Fed rate cuts next year. The dollar fell to 118.63 yen at 7:17 a.m. in New York, from 119.15 late yesterday. The currency slid to $1.3158 versus the euro, from $1.3098. The euro traded at 156.09 yen, from 156.04, after touching a record 156.43 on Dec. 21. The dollar has risen 0.8 percent against the Japanese currency this year.

The U.A.E. will switch 8 percent of its reserves from dollars into euros before September, Sultan Bin Nasser al-Suwaidi said in a Dec. 24 interview in Abu Dhabi. The U.A.E. has started in a limited way to sell its dollar reserves, he said. The Gulf state is among oil exporters including Iran, Venezuela and Indonesia that are looking to shift their currency reserves into euros or price their oil products in the 12-nation currency.

U.S. Slowdown

The U.S. Conference Board's index of sentiment due tomorrow will probably drop to 102 this month from 102.9 in November, according to the median forecast of 48 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. MasterCard Advisors also said holiday retail sales this year grew at a slower pace this year than in 2005. The data are likely to add to an economic slowdown scenario that may prompt a rate cut in the first quarter, said Masashi Kurabe, a currency manager in Tokyo at Bank of Tokyo- Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd., a unit of Japan's largest lender by assets. The bias is to sell the dollar. The Fed has left borrowing costs at 5.25 percent for the past four policy meetings, after a two-year cycle of rate increases. The European Central Bank has raised rates six times in a year, to 3.5 percent. The Bank of Japan lifted its benchmark in July for the first time in almost six years, to 0.25 percent. Interest-rate futures show traders see a 28 percent chance the Fed will lower its overnight target lending rate between banks by a quarter point to 5 percent in March, up from a 17 percent likelihood a week ago.

Japanese Rates

The yen's gains accelerated against the dollar after a Jiji Press report suggested the BOJ will push rates higher at its January meeting because of better-than-expected data yesterday. Japan's government bonds fell the most in three weeks after the Jiji article. Reports yesterday showed an unexpected fall in the unemployment rate and a smaller-than-expected decline in household spending. The Jiji report is spurring yen buying, said Nobuo Ibaraki, deputy general manager of foreign exchange at Nomura Trust & Banking Co. Ltd., a unit of Japan's largest brokerage.

Expectations for an interest-rate hike had receded. So the Jiji report will have a big impact on the yen. Japan's currency may strengthen to 118 per dollar today, he said. Jiji correctly predicted 10 days before the BOJ's meeting last week that policy makers would keep rates unchanged. The central bank will consider lifting the benchmark to 0.5 percent from 0.25 percent when it announces its next decision on Jan. 18, Jiji Press reported, citing unnamed sources.

Retail Sales

Governor Toshihiko Fukui told business leaders on Dec. 25 that the central bank will adjust policy if prices and the economy perform in line with forecasts. Gains in the yen may be limited after a government report showed retail sales rose less than expected last month. The currency is set for a second straight annual decline as interest rates in Japan, which are the lowest among major economies, prompt investors to seek higher returns offshore. Traders have still cut bets that the Japanese central bank will raise borrowing costs in January. The household spending report showed an 11th month of declines and gains in consumer prices failed to beat forecasts. It's hard to find a reason to buy the yen, said Stephen Halmarick, co-head of economic and market analysis at Citigroup Australia in Sydney. This is yet another set of disappointing numbers out of Japan. The dollar may extend declines after MasterCard Advisors said retail sales in the holiday season rose 3 percent, a slower pace than last year's 5.2 percent increase, as a cooling housing market and higher energy costs cut into spending. The National Association of Manufacturers in the U.S. predicts slower economic growth will prompt the Fed to lower rates by a half-percentage point by the middle of 2007, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday on its Web site, citing the Associated Press. To contact the reporters on this story: Kabir Chibber in London at kchibber@bloomberg.net .

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 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)

Israel won't free Palestinian prisoners
Updated 12/29/2006 10:27 AM ET By Nasser Shiyoukhi, AP

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has rebuffed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' request to free Palestinian prisoners ahead of a major Muslim holiday, insisting that Palestinian militants first agree to release a captured Israeli soldier.The decision was at odds with recent overtures by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to bolster the moderate Abbas in the eyes of the Palestinian people, who voted the militantly anti-Israel Hamas group into power nearly one year ago.Separately, the Yediot Ahronot newspaper reported that Olmert was prepared to hold back-channel talks on a blueprint for a final peace deal, as Abbas has proposed. Olmert spokeswoman Miri Eisin had no comment on the report.The estimated 8,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails enjoy iconic status in Palestinian society, and Israel usually frees a small number at Muslim holiday time in a goodwill gesture. Last week, at their first official meeting, Abbas asked Olmert to do the same before the Eid al-Adha holiday, which begins on Saturday.

Olmert said he would consider it, Abbas aide Saeb Erekat said, but just hours before the Muslim holiday and the Jewish Sabbath were to begin, no release had been announced. Right now, it's not on the agenda, so long as Cpl. Gilad Shalit remains in captivity, Eisin said.Erekat interpreted Olmert's reluctance to mean he was unwilling to risk the wrath of Israeli public opinion by releasing Palestinian prisoners without assuring Hamas-linked militants would free Shalit, seized in a June 25 cross-border raid.

It's unfortunate, Erekat said of the decision, adding that it would hurt Abbas' standing.Olmert has said repeatedly since Shalit's capture that he would not free Palestinians before the soldier was released.One of the Hamas-linked groups holding Shalit said Thursday that progress has been made toward a prisoner exchange, and media reports cited Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas as saying the soldier would be released soon. But neither said when a swap might take place, and such claims of progress have been made in the past.

In their landmark meeting on Saturday, Olmert agreed to ease restrictions on Palestinian travel in the West Bank and to release $100 million in frozen funds to the Palestinian Authority — moves that prompted outcries among hard-liners in Israel. Releasing prisoners before Shalit was freed would likely have angered Olmert's opponents even further.I think that a gesture that in normal times is accepted at holiday time must not happen today because it would be misinterpreted, Israeli Cabinet minister Zeev Boim told Israel Radio.Shalit's father, Noam, who has been critical of the Israeli government's conduct regarding his son, said he advocated a pre-holiday release of Palestinian prisoners.I thought it might generate some positive momentum toward a final deal to free Gilad and other prisoners, he told Israel Radio.In a letter in Arabic that appeared Friday in an East Jerusalem newspaper, Al-Quds, Shalit's parents assured their son they were doing everything to win his release and appealed to his captors to treat him well.

With regard to the peace talks, Yediot said Olmert had no intention of abandoning the internationally backed road map peace plan that Israel and the Palestinians agreed to in June 2003. The plan, which calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, stalled shortly after it was presented.In Egypt on Wednesday, Abbas said he'd like the two sides to start closed-door talks on some of their most intractable disputes, including final borders, the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees. He said he proposed such backdoor negotiations to Olmert at their weekend meeting, and that the Israeli leader promised to consider the suggestion.Abbas did not spell out why he sought backdoor talks. But as one of the architects of the 1993 Oslo peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians, negotiated secretly, he is known to champion quiet, informal diplomacy.Palestinian militants, meanwhile, fired eight rockets at Israel on Friday, the highest number in a single day since a Nov. 26 truce went into effect. On Wednesday, Olmert ordered the military to attack rocket squads, abandoning the policy of restraint it had adopted since the cease-fire.So far, Israel, which waged a five-month campaign against rocket squads before the truce took hold, has not carried out any attacks.The Associated Press.

Olmert OKs pinpoint attacks on militants in Gaza
By Richard Boudreaux,Tribune Newspapers: Los Angeles Times,December 28, 2006

JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert instructed the army Wednesday to resume pinpoint attacks against militants firing rockets from the Gaza Strip, abandoning a policy of restraint against repeated Palestinian violations of a month-old cease-fire.

But in a statement that appeared to rule out a large-scale return of ground troops to Gaza, Israel said it remains committed to the truce and will work with the Palestinian leadership so that immediate steps are taken to halt the rain of crude Qassam rockets.

The decision reflected conflicting pressures on Olmert. Just four days earlier, with U.S. encouragement, he had opened negotiations with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and was worried that mounting violence could spoil the first joint effort in nearly two years to revive talks on a final peace settlement.

Olmert acted after eight rockets landed in Israel on Tuesday, the most fired in one day since the truce was declared Nov. 26. One of the rockets wounded two teenagers in Sderot, the town on the Gaza border that has suffered most of the attacks.The defense establishment has been instructed to take pinpoint action against the rocket-launching cells, said the statement issued by Olmert's office after he met Wednesday with Defense Minister Amir Peretz and senior military officials.At the same time, Israel will continue to abide by the cease-fire, the statement said.Most of the rockets, including the one that wounded the two teenagers, have been fired by Islamic Jihad, a radical group backed by Iran that does not participate in Palestinian politics. In a statement Wednesday, the group said it would keep firing rockets in retaliation for attacks on its militants in the West Bank.Islamic Jihad fired a rocket into southern Israel shortly after Wednesday's announcement, causing no casualties.The Israeli army was given a green light to conduct air or artillery strikes at rocket squads in Gaza before, during or immediately after a launch, officials said, but not to attack them with ground troops or resume targeted killings of militants thought to have fired rockets in the past.

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said the policy reversal should not undermine the cease-fire.As long as operations are prudent and pinpointed, there is no reason for things to degenerate, she said in Jerusalem.Separately, despite the Israeli announcement, Abbas proposed Wednesday that he start closed-door talks with Israel on some of their most difficult disputes, including the status of Jerusalem and the fate of Palestinian refugees, The Associated Press reported.It is the right time to talk, Abbas said after he met with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.Abbas did not spell out why he was proposing that the negotiations with Israel be back-door. But as one of the architects of the 1993 Oslo peace accord between Israel and the Palestinians, he is known to champion quiet, informal diplomacy.We have the idea of a back-door channel between us and the Israelis, with the participation of one or all members of the Quartet to discuss all the issues of the final status, Abbas said, referring to the Western powers that oversee the Mideast peace process.Chicago Tribune

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 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.
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA 2ND WAVE OF WW3) 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.

The Third and Final Wave of WW3 is when all Nations march to Jerusalem, but JESUS bodily returns to earth and destroys them,sets up his KINGDOM OF RULE FOR 1000 YEARS THEN FOREVER.

2ND WAVE CHINA AND KINGS OF THE EAST MARCH TO ISRAEL

REVELATION 16:12
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.(THIS IS THE ATATURK DAM IN TURKEY,THEY CROSS OVER).

DANIEL 11:44 (2ND WAVE OF WW3)
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)

REVELATION 9:12-18
12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.(IRAQ-SYRIA)
15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.(1/3 Earths Population die in WW 3 2ND WAVE)
16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand:(200 MILLION MAN ARMY FROM CHINA AND THE KINGS OF THE EAST) and I heard the number of them.
17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)

China's Hu calls for powerful, combat-ready navy
Wed Dec 27, 2006 10:23pm ET

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese president and commander-in-chief Hu Jintao urged the building of a powerful navy that is prepared at any time" for military struggle, state media reported on Thursday.At a meeting of delegates to a Communist Party meeting of the navy on Wednesday, Hu said China, whose military build-up has been a source of friction with the United States, was a major maritime country whose naval capability must be improved.We should strive to build a powerful navy that adapts to the needs of our military's historical mission in this new century and at this new stage, he said in comments splashed on the front pages of the party mouthpiece People's Daily and the People's Liberation Army Daily. We should make sound preparations for military struggles and ensure that the forces can effectively carry out missions at any time, said Hu, pictured in green military garb for the occasion.
China's naval expansion includes a growing submarine fleet and new ships with blue water capability, fuelling fears in the United States that its military could alter the balance of power in Asia with consequences for Taiwan.

China has said it would attack if the self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its own formally declares independence.Analysts say China sees a stronger navy as a way to secure energy supplies and seaborne trade routes to help ease security fears over supplies of resources and oil it needs to feed its booming economy.Hu also called for the strict management of the navy according to law, a possible reference to a scandal in which a vice admiral was jailed for life on a charge of embezzlement.Wang Shouye was convicted by a military court earlier this month, Hong Kong's Wen Wei Po reported, making him the most senior Chinese military officer to be jailed for corruption.Earlier this year, Wang was sacked as navy deputy commander for bad morals and using his position to demand and accept bribes and violate laws and discipline, the report said.

North Korea grave threat after nuclear test: Seoul Fri Dec 29, 4:35 AM ET

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea on Friday termed North Korea a grave threat, a further sign of the deepening chill in relations between the two since Pyongyang's nuclear test nearly three months ago. A defense white paper used some of the harshest language to describe its communist neighbor since the South tried to set aside decades of outright hostility toward the North with the diplomacy of what Seoul dubbed its sunshine policy.North Korea's conventional forces, its nuclear test, weapons of mass destruction and the forward deployment of its troops are a grave threat to our security, the white paper said.Two years ago, the term it used was direct military threat.The ministry said the October 9 test along with the development of other weapons of mass destruction, a standing army of almost two million and the forward deployment of conventional weapons made the threat from the communist state more serious.North Korea has deployed more than 70 percent of its ground troops in the southern third of the country along the border, making it possible to mount a surprise attack against the South without a major realignment of forces, the white paper said.

It has also deployed 40 percent of its 820 jet fighters in the southern region, and a fleet of transport planes can push special units deep into the South in wartime, it said.North Korea has probably extracted more than 50 kg (110 lb) of plutonium since 1994, with more than 30 kg obtained during the past three years when it was negotiating with regional powers to end its nuclear program, a ministry official said.The two Koreas, the United States, Japan, Russia and China failed in their latest round of talks last week to make any progress in suspending the North's nuclear programs in exchange for aid and better ties with Washington and Tokyo.
Estimates of the North's nuclear arsenal have ranged from one or two weapons to 10 or more. Its plutonium stockpile is believed to be enough to make 13 bombs, according to some estimates.North Korea announced on October 9 it had successfully conducted a nuclear test, triggering a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the test and applying financial and trade sanctions.At the end of six-way talks last week, the North's top nuclear envoy said his country would continue to increase what he called its military deterrent in face of U.S. pressure.

NUCLEAR WEAPONS WILL BE USED.

ISAIAH 26:21
21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.(WW3,1/2 earths population die).

ISAIAH 13:6-13 KJV
6 Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man's heart shall melt:(FROM FRIGHT)
8 And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.
9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.

ISAIAH 24:17-23 KJV
17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.
20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.
23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.

2 TIMOTHY 3:1
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous (DANGEROUS) times shall come.

JOEL 2:20,30
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.

ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.

EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.

ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.

MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

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.

REVELATION 9:18
18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

HALF OF EARTHS POPULATION DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION.(THESE VERSES ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES)

LUKE 17:34-37
34 I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left.
35 Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.(Christians have new bodies,this is the people against Jerusalem during the 7 yr treaty)(Christians bodies are not being eaten by the birds).

MATTHEW 24:37-51
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

2006-12-29 09:50:53
Risks, Perils and Potential Disasters of 2007

From the worsening of the Middle East to the worsening in the horn of Africa; from the potential of an Israeli-American attack on Iran to the overarching anarchy from a lack of global leaders with vision and influence, Patrick Seale offers a dire look at the problems in the New Year.Although peering into the fog of the future is always a hazardous business, it would not be rash to say that, of all the potential man-made catastrophes that might afflict the world this coming year, for sheer destructiveness none would surpass an American/Israeli attack on Iran. Is such an attack probable, or even possible? Regrettably, it is. In the current confrontation with Iran, the military option remains very much on the table. In both the United States and Israel, the same military planners, political lobbyists and armchair strategists that pressed America to attack Iraq are now urging it to strike Iran -- and for much the same reasons. These reasons may be briefly summarized as the need to control the Middle East’s oil resources and deny them to potential rivals, such as China; the wish to demonstrate to friend and foe alike America’s unique ability to project military power across the globe; and, last but not least, Israel’s determination to maintain its supremacy over any regional challenger, especially one as recklessly provocative as Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

To be effective, an American/Israeli strike against Iran would have to destroy not only its nuclear facilities but also its ability to hit back, that is to say its entire military-industrial complex. The attack would have to be so devastating as to rob Iran of the will and the means to retaliate. This could take weeks of air and missiles attacks and, because of the size of the country and the dispersal of its military assets, would be exceedingly difficult to achieve.It seems more than likely that, if attacked, Iran will, one way or another, manage to strike back -- against U.S. troops in Iraq, against Israel, and against U.S. bases and U.S. allies in the Gulf.
Of all these targets, the Arab states of the Gulf -- the most prosperous, modern and forward-looking of the entire Arab world -- are perhaps the most vulnerable and could go up in flames. The impact on the future of Arab society would be incalculable.The impact would also be devastating on U.S.-Arab relations, on Israel’s long-term security, on the flow of oil from the Gulf, on the oil price, on the economies of the industrial world and on the already highly fragile dollar. And yet, some influential voices argue that the only way the United States can hope to ‘win’ in Iraq is to destroy Iran.

President George W. Bush is due to make a statement of his Middle East strategy early in the New Year. All the indications are that he will reject the advice of the Iraq Study Group, led by James Baker and Lee Hamilton, to withdraw combat troops from Iraq, to engage Iran and Syria in a dialogue and to give top priority to resolving the Arab-Israeli conflict. Instead, Bush seems to be heading in the opposite direction.There is talk of sending more troops to Iraq, of tightening sanctions against Iran and Syria, of mobilising ‘moderate’ Arab states against ‘extremists’, of arming the Fuad Siniora government in Lebanon against Hizbullah, and the Fatah forces of Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority president, against the democratically elected Hamas government. In the Horn of Africa, the United States is lending its tacit support to Ethiopia in its war against Somalia’s Union of Islamic Courts, all this in the name of the ill-conceived Global War on Terrorism, which continues to create more terrorists than it eliminates.Instead of calming passions and bringing peace to a deeply troubled region, American policies are feeding the flames of civil war in Iraq, exposing American troops to still greater danger, forcing Iran and Syria to look to their defences, exacerbating conflicts in Lebanon and Palestine and opening a new front in Somalia, which risks destabilising much of East Africa.

Still in the grip of the neo-con cabal, which has destroyed his presidency by its insane belligerence, Bush continues to see the Tehran-Damascus-Hizbullah-Hamas axis as the main enemy to confront and bring down. The real danger this coming year is that Saudi Arabia, alarmed at the rise of Iran and at the self-assertion of Shi‘a communities in Lebanon and the Gulf region, will be persuaded to side with the United States against Tehran. It would be wiser for the Kingdom to engage Tehran in a wide-ranging dialogue leading to an agreement on mutual interests, and even to the conclusion of a Saudi-Iranian security pact which alone could stabilise the region without the interference of external powers. Meanwhile, Israel continues to play cat-and-mouse with the international community, pretending to make concessions to Mahmud Abbas, like removing a few checkpoints and releasing a fraction of the funds it has sequestered, while blatantly establishing a new illegal settlement in the Jordan valley and pressing ahead with its infamous separation wall. The message is clear: Israel’s land grab on the West Bank will continue whatever Washington or anyone else might say.Last summer’s war in Lebanon confronted Israel with a clear choice: whether to continue to seek to dominate the region by military force and to expand its territory at the expense of the Palestinians, or to make peace with the entire Arab world on the basis of something like its 1967 borders.

The Olmert government in Israel has chosen the first option: It has rejected Syria’s offer to reopen peace negotiations for the return of the Golan Heights; it is not ready to end its occupation of Palestinian territory or allow the creation of a viable Palestinian state; it is rearming and retraining its forces in anticipation of a second round against Hizbullah in Lebanon; it continues its cruel war of attrition against the Hamas movement in Gaza; and, it is determined to maintain its regional monopoly of weapons of mass destruction. Various influential Israelis have stated that if the United States does not strike Iran to destroy its nuclear facilities, Israel must do so itself. If one considers the likely impact of these American and Israeli policies, it is clear that the coming year is likely to be a hot one in the region. The real problem is a world-wide lack of leadership. There is hardly anyone around with the power or the vision to end the current state of international anarchy.George W. Bush has de-legitimised himself and squandered American authority by his blunders. Russia’s Vladimir Putin has managed to hoist his country back into the front rank of international powers, but his focus is still on reasserting Russian state control over oil and gas resources, while keeping neighbours like Ukraine, Belarus and Georgia firmly within Russia’s orbit.

The European Union is a magnificent example of how 27 nations can, by mutual agreement and by means of carefully crafted laws, give 500 million people a life of peace, stability and considerable prosperity. But in terms of a common foreign policy, the Union has been a failure. Its members have pulled in different directions.Britain’s Tony Blair has marginalised himself and his country by his slavish attachment to the United States. He will, in any event, be leaving office in 2007. President Jacques Chirac of France -- an experienced and sober Middle East hand -- will be out of office by May. Neither of his potential successors has much foreign affairs experience, and both are committed to mistaken policies. The right-wing Nicolas Sarkozy wants to keep Turkey out of the European Union -- a mistake of strategic proportions -- while the socialist Ségolène Royal has pledged to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear technology, even for peaceful purposes. Of the two, Sarkozy is the more dangerous, because he is likely to depart from Chirac’s independent posture in international affairs and align himself with the United States and Israel.In the Middle East, three men will bear a heavy burden of responsibility in the coming year. They are King Abdallah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia, President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. They all have great problems at home, but if they were to get together, pool their considerable resources and jointly exert their political influence, they could protect the region from some of the risks, perils and potential catastrophes of the year ahead.Patrick Seale is a leading British writer on the Middle East, and the author of The Struggle for Syria; also, Asad of Syria: The Struggle for the Middle East; and Abu Nidal: A Gun for Hire.Patrick Seale