PERES NEW PRES OF ISRAEL WATCHOUT

1-WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS. 2-Strong quake shakes Guatemala. 3-Rains blamed for 76 deaths in China. 4-Iraq bombers topple Samarra minarets. 5-Hamas seizing control of Gaza Strip. 6-Greece wants bigger EU role in Mideast peace. 7-Barak Wins Labor Race; Fraud Allegations at Arab Polling Station. 8-Minister Cohen Calls for Reinstating Religious Affairs Ministry. 9-Military plan against Iran is ready. 10-Ruth Bell Graham reported near death. 11-Pres. Race: Rivlin & Avital Withdraw, Peres to Become President.

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 Jun 16 12:01 AM EDT

JUNE 13,07
MAP 6.8 OFFSHORE GUATEMALA
MAP 3.1 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 5.4 KEPULAUAN TALAUD, INDONESIA
MAP 4.0 REVILLA GIGEDO ISLANDS REGION
MAP 3.3 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.9 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.6 KODIAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 3.5 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.7 SOUTH OF ALASKA
MAP 2.6 HAWAII REGION, HAWAII
MAP 3.4 KENAI PENINSULA, ALASKA
MAP 2.6 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.0 VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION
MAP 2.7 BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA
MAP 3.4 CHANNEL ISLANDS REGION, CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.9 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.6 OFFSHORE BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 2.9 OFFSHORE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.4 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

JUNE 12,07
MAP 4.7 TONGA
MAP 2.7 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 3.0 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 5.1 MACQUARIE ISLAND REGION
MAP 3.3 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 4.1 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 3.2 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 3.2 VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION
MAP 4.4 SAN JUAN, ARGENTINA
MAP 4.7 SOUTHEAST OF EASTER ISLAND
MAP 2.9 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 3.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.0 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.9 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION
MAP 4.8 NEW BRITAIN REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
MAP 4.7 BOUGAINVILLE REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
MAP 2.6 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.8 SOUTHERN ALASKA
MAP 2.6 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.0 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.0 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.2 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.6 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.6 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.5 OREGON
MAP 2.7 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 4.7 KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 3.3 GULF OF ALASKA
MAP 2.7 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 4.8 NIAS REGION, INDONESIA
MAP 3.0 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION
MAP 2.8 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.8 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 5.0 KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 2.7 BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 4.7 KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 3.1 ALASKA PENINSULA

JUNE 11,07
MAP 3.5 DOMINICAN REPUBLIC REGION
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 3.2 KODIAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 4.9 FIJI REGION
MAP 3.6 RAT ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS,
MAP 3.7 ALASKA HINDU KUSH REGION, AFGHANISTAN
MAP 4.1 WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN SEA
MAP 2.8 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 2.7 VIRGIN ISLANDS REGION
MAP 2.8 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 3.1 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 3.8 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 3.1 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 4.5 OFF THE EAST COAST OF KAMCHATKA, RUSSIA
MAP 4.6 KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 4.6 PERU-ECUADOR BORDER REGION
MAP 2.6 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.9 UTAH
MAP 3.2 KODIAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 5.2 NEAR THE COAST OF ECUADOR

Strong quake shakes Guatemala By RODRIGO ESTRADA, Associated Press Writer
JUNE 13,07

GUATEMALA CITY - A powerful earthquake shook Guatemala and parts of El Salvador Wednesday, causing some residents of the capital cities to rush from buildings into the streets for safety, officials said. The 6.8-magnitude quake snarled traffic in Guatemala City but there were no immediate reports of major damage or injuries.Aid workers across Guatemala reported only minor damage to homes in a couple of rural communities, according to Francois de la Roche, Latin America's director for humanitarian and emergency affairs for the aid organization World Vision.
I didn't notice it at first but then felt this long, swaying motion back and forward, de la Roche said in a telephone interview from Antigua, Guatemala.The quake struck at 1:29 p.m. and was centered 70 miles southwest of Guatemala City off the Pacific coast, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Guatemala's seismology institute said the quake lasted 49 seconds.In Guatemala City, people fled buildings into the streets, throwing traffic into chaos in the sprawling city.It rattled a lot of nerves, said Benedicto Giron, spokesman for the National Disaster Reduction Center.

Outside the capital, landslides were reported in the southwest province of Escuintla, but they apparently caused no casualties, Giron said. He added, however, that phone service was knocked out in some areas and information was only trickling in slowly.The quake was also felt strongly in neighboring El Salvador, where people ran into the streets in the capital of San Salvador, but the Red Cross there said it had no reports of damage or injuries.It was also felt in the Mexican city of Tapachula along the Guatemalan border.The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center based in Hawaii said no tsunami was expected from the quake.The region is prone to earthquakes. Almost 23,000 people died in a 1976 earthquake in Guatemala.Associated Press writers Ioan Grillo and Mark Stevenson contributed to this report from Mexico City.

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.

Rains blamed for 76 deaths in China Wed Jun 13, 1:24 AM ET

SHANGHAI, China - A southern Chinese province was rushing to shore up dams eroded by weeks of heavy rains and high waters that already have killed at least 76 people, state media reported Wednesday. Authorities in Guangdong also have diverted waters from the Hanjiang River into low-lying areas, forcing more than 10,000 people to evacuate inundated villages, the Xinhua News Agency said.Further downpours are expected through the week, according to local forecasters.

For centuries, China has relied on dams, dikes and reservoirs to control the waters of its rivers, but many were poorly built and are now feared in serious danger of collapse.Flooding and rain-triggered landslides this year have affected sections of six provinces where more than 13 million people reside. More than 788,000 people have been evacuated to high ground while economic losses have topped $606 million, Xinhua said.Half of those losses are in agriculture, sending prices for leafy greens and other vegetables soaring by 40 percent in southern cities, Xinhua said.Further to the north, authorities have warned of potentially disastrous flooding this year in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Iraq bombers topple Samarra minarets By CHARLES J. HANLEY, AP Special Correspondent JUNE 13,07

BAGHDAD - Suspected al-Qaida bombers toppled the towering minarets of Samarra's revered Shiite shrine on Wednesday, dealing a bold blow to Iraqi hopes for peace and reopening old wounds a year after the mosque's Golden Dome was destroyed. The attack stoked fears of a surge in violence between Muslim sects. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government rushed to contain Shiite wrath against Sunnis: It clamped a curfew on Baghdad and asked for U.S. troop reinforcements in Samarra, 60 miles north of here, and for a heightened American military alert in the capital.But sketchy reports of sectarian strife began to come in. Police told of at least four Sunni mosques in Baghdad and south of the capital attacked by arsonists and bombers, and of a smaller Shiite shrine bombed north of here.

The Samarra attack also threatened to deepen Iraq's political crisis, as the 30-member bloc of radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr immediately suspended its participation in parliament in protest.The Golden Dome bombing in February 2006, at one of Iraqi Shiism's holiest sites, was also blamed on Sunni militants linked to al-Qaida. That attack unleashed a bloodbath of reprisals of Shiite death squad murders of Sunnis, and Sunni bombing attacks on Shiites. At least 34,000 civilians died in last year's violence, the United Nations reported.Wednesday's stunning attack came in near-simultaneous explosions at about 9 a.m., completely bringing down the two slender golden minarets, 100 feet tall, that had flanked the dome's ruins. No casualties were reported.How the attackers evaded the Askariya shrine's guard force, strengthened considerably after the 2006 bombing, was a mystery.Al-Maliki said policemen at the shrine were detained for questioning 15 of them, according to a senior U.S. military official. The prime minister also said an unspecified number of other suspects were arrested in Samarra and were being interrogated in connection with the shrine attack.

The blasts shook the Tigris River-side city of Samarra, sending a cloud of dust billowing into the air, said Imad Nagi, a storeowner 100 yards from the shrine. After the dust settled, I couldn't see the minarets any more. So, I closed the shop quickly and went home.Nearby blacksmith shop owner Farouq al-Samaraie said, I didn't expect there would be another explosion at Askariya mosque because it was already attacked last year.Resident Abdul-Khali Mohammed predicted violence in the capital: The Shiite militias now will seize this opportunity to kill Sunni families in Baghdad.An indefinite curfew was immediately imposed on Samarra, and, as Iraqi army and police reinforcements and U.S. troops poured in, the streets emptied by mid-afternoon, witnesses said.A few hundred U.S. soldiers had been stationed around Samarra but had left shrine security to Iraqi forces.In Baghdad, the prime minister ordered an indefinite curfew, beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday, on vehicle traffic and large gatherings in the capital. Al-Maliki, whose office said the curfew would be lifted Saturday, then traveled to Samarra with U.S. ground forces commander Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno and visited the mosque ruins.An official close to the prime minister, citing intelligence reports, said Wednesday's bombing was likely the work of al-Qaida, whose militants have recently moved into Samarra from surrounding areas.

A U.S. statement, from Ambassador Ryan Crocker and U.S. Iraq commander Gen. David Petraeus, unequivocally blamed al-Qaida, saying the terror group sought to sow dissent and inflame sectarian strife.Such an attack by the Sunni extremist group al-Qaida in Iraq, increasingly at odds with more nationalist Iraqi insurgents, might have been intended to provoke Shiite retaliation that would help reunite various Sunni elements.In Washington, presidential spokesman Tony Snow said there will be aggressive outreach on all sides to try to prevent reprisal attacks. What happened after the original bombing of the mosque in Samarra I don't think the Iraqi government or the United Statesgovernment quite understood what was going to happen, in terms of a sectarian reaction, Snow said. Petraeus told ABC News that that although he initially had a terrible sinking feeling after the attack, he believes there is reason to be optimistic in the fight against al-Qaida in Iraq. There is even some hope, perhaps, that al-Qaida may have overplayed its hand, as it did in Anbar Province, as it has in some neighborhoods in Baghdad, and in some other areas where, as you know, Sunni Arabs have rejected al-Qaida and have actually sought to join coalition forces and Iraqi governmental institutions to fight against it.

Last year's surge in execution-style killings, largely blamed on Shiite militias, had begun to decline in Baghdad in February, at the start of a major U.S.-Iraqi security push to pacify the city. But violence has been on the rise elsewhere in Iraq and the Baghdad numbers have begun to rise again. On Wednesday, in what has become a routine report, Baghdad police said they found 25 handcuffed, blindfolded and bullet-riddled bodies in various locations, many with signs of torture. The al-Maliki aide and other Iraqi officials spoke on condition of anonymity, either because of the sensitivity of the matter or because they were not authorized to deal with the media. In a nationally televised address, al-Maliki said he had ordered security forces to bolster protection of religious shrines and mosques across Iraq. The Shiite prime minister also warned against reprisal sectarian attacks. In Shiite southern Iraq, the reaction to Wednesday's attack was swift. In Najaf, radical cleric al-Sadr called for a three -day mourning period and peaceful demonstrations. He criticized the government for not protecting the site, and said the U.S. occupation is the only enemy of Iraq and that's why everyone must demand its departure, or a timetable for its departure. More than 3,000 al-Sadr loyalists staged a protest in Najaf, chanting, No, no to America!, No, no to Israel! and No, no to sedition! Later, in Baghdad, the 30-member Sadrist bloc in parliament issued a statement saying it would boycott the 275-seat house until the government takes realistic steps to rebuild the shrine. The action by the Sadrists, whose support for al-Maliki has recently waned, is likely to weaken the Shiite-dominated government and delay adoption of a series of laws needed to build national reconciliation in Iraq. Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, issued a statement calling on believers to exercise self-restraint and avoid any vengeful act that would target innocent people or the holy places of others.In neighboring Shiite Iran, which has been accused of funding and arming Shiite militias in Iraq, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad blamed U.S. forces for failing to prevent the mosque attack, and threatened to halt regional cooperation to stop Iraq's spiraling violence.

The mosque contains the tombs of the 10th and 11th imams Ali al-Hadi, who died in 868, and his son Hassan al-Askari, who died in 874. Both are descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, and Shiites consider them to be among his successors. The shrine also is near the place where the 12th imam, Mohammed al-Mahdi, disappeared. Al-Mahdi, known as the hidden imam, was the son and grandson of the two imams buried in the Askariya shrine. Shiites believe he will return to Earth to restore justice to humanity.Associated Press writers Sameer N. Yacoub, Lauren Frayer and Hamid Ahmed in Baghdad and Abdul-Hussein al-Obeidi in Najaf contributed to this report.

Hamas seizing control of Gaza Strip By SARAH EL DEEB, Associated Press Writer JUNE 13,07

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Hamas fighters launched a fierce offensive on Gaza City Wednesday, firing mortars and rockets at Fatah's main security bases and the president's compound as the Islamic group appeared close to taking control of the entire Gaza Strip. Fatah's forces were crumbling fast, with some fighters seen fleeing their security posts and hundreds of others surrendering, hands raised, to masked Hamas gunmen.A Hamas military victory in Gaza could split Palestinians into a Hamas-controlled Gaza and a Fatah-run West Bank, and push the prospect of statehood even further away. It could also set the stage for a bloody confrontation with Israel, which might intervene to prevent attacks from Gaza.In the southern town of Khan Younis, Hamas militants surrounded a security headquarters and warned everyone inside to leave or they would blow it up, witnesses said. The building was then destroyed by a bomb planted in a tunnel underneath it, said Ali Qaisi, a presidential guard spokesman.An Associated Press reporter saw defeated Fatah fighters streaming out of the building after turning over their weapons to Hamas militants. Hamas took weapons, clothes and vehicles and flew a green Islamic flag over the building, then celebrated by firing in the air and passing out candy.Security forces later said they had lost control of the town.Khan Younis is finished, said Ziad Sarafandi, a senior security official.

At least 20 people were killed in fighting Wednesday. A Hamas militant was killed in a clash early Thursday in the southern town of Rafah, hospital officials said, bringing the total in four days of infighting to over 60. Among those killed Wednesday was a man shot when Hamas gunmen fired on a peaceful protest against the violence, witnesses said.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah called the fighting madness and pleaded with the exiled leader of Hamas to halt the violence.Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas issued a joint statement after nightfall, calling on all sides to halt fighting, and to return to language of dialogue and respect of agreements, according to a statement from Abbas' office. The call was broadcast on Palestinian TV.Hamas radio denied the two had agreed to a truce, and clashes intensified in the hour after their statement was broadcast.Hamas and Fatah nominally share power in a coalition government, while Fatah runs most of Gaza's security forces. But no one was listening to the elected leaders' pleas for calm as the focus of power passed to street militias.Hamas gunmen neutralized the main strongholds of the Fatah-linked security forces, ruling the streets and taking control of large parts of Gaza in the process.Abbas' forces desperately trying to cling to their besieged bases in Gaza lashed out at the president, saying he left them with no directions and no support in the fight.Hamas and Fatah have waged a sporadic power struggle since Hamas won parliament elections last year, ending four decades of Fatah dominance of Palestinian affairs. But the battle is now verging on civil war, as Hamas wages a systematic assault on security forces.U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he discussed the possible deployment of a multinational force in Gaza with the Security Council on Wednesday after the Israeli and Palestinian leaders raised the idea.

With fighting raging on rooftops and streets in nearly all corners of Gaza, residents huddled in fear in their homes.Hamas, already in control of much of northern Gaza, seized Khan Younis on Wednesday and began a coordinated assault on the southern town of Rafah, security officials said. Hamas militants blew up a security building near Rafah after a long gunbattle, said Col. Nasser Khaldi, a senior police official. What can I say? This is a fall, a collapse, he said. Fayez Abu Taha, 45, a businessman in Rafah, said he was trapped in his apartment building with his family after Hamas fighters took over a nearby rooftop and Fatah responded by taking over the roof of his building.

I don't know what they are battling for now, he said. I can see the bullets flying from my windows. Coming and going.The rout of the security forces was so bad that 40 Palestinian security officers broke through the border fence in Rafah and fled into Egypt seeking safety, Egyptian police said.

In the afternoon, Hamas forces attacked the three main compounds of the Fatah-allied forces in Gaza City the headquarters of the Preventive Security, the Intelligence Service and the National Forces in what could usher in the final phase of the battle. Hamas fighters, firing rockets and mortar shells, took over the rooftops in nearby houses and cut off the roads to prevent reinforcements from arriving. They called on the beleaguered Fatah forces to surrender. Hamas gunmen in high-rise buildings also fired at Abbas' Gaza office and house and his guard force returned fire. Abbas was in the West Bank at the time of the fighting. During the battle at the Preventive Security Service base, both sides fired wildly from high-rise rooftops. Dr. Wael Abdel Jawad, a physician trapped in his apartment, said he heard Fatah fighters shouting at colleagues on an adjacent roof to send them more ammunition. All of us are terrified here. Shooting came through the windows of our apartment, children are screaming. We are hearing from a nearby mosque the call by Hamas to surrender, he said. Those fighters on rooftops are like Don Quixote, tilting at windmills. They don't know where to shoot, he said. In another dramatic battle in Gaza City, hundreds of members of the Fatah-allied Bakr clan, which had fought fiercely for two days, surrendered to masked Hamas gunmen and were led, arms raised, to a nearby mosque. Footage broadcast on Hamas' Al Aqsa TV showed some of the Bakr women trying to enter the mosque. Hamas gunmen later drove off with some of the Bakr fighters, witnesses said.

Two women from the clan tried to leave the area to take a sick girl to a hospital and were shot and killed by jittery Hamas gunmen, a clan member said. After nightfall, Hamas militants blew up the house of one of the Bakr clan's leaders, witnesses said. Early Thursday, Fatah officials said their forces withdrew from some bases in central Gaza and destroyed them, rather than allow them to fall into Hamas hands. In Washington, U.S. officials condemned the fighting. Violence certainly does not serve the interest of the Palestinian people, and it's not going to bring the peace and prosperity that they deserve, White House spokesman Tony Snow said. They are shooting at anyone and everyone who is Fatah, said Youssef Abu Siyam, a Preventive Security officer in Rafah. The fighting spilled into the Fatah-dominated West Bank. Hamas and Fatah gunmen exchanged fire in the city of Nablus and a nearby refugee camp after Fatah gunmen tried to storm a pro-Hamas TV production company. Hamas said 12 of its fighters were wounded. Hamas charged that Fatah-linked security forces were rounding up Hamas activists in the West Bank early Thursday. On Wednesday, Abbas spoke by phone with the Damascus-based Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal to try to stop the crisis, said Abbas aide Nimr Hamad. This is madness, the madness that is going on in Gaza now, Abbas told reporters.

The U.N. Relief and Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinian refugees, said it would curtail its operations after two of its Palestinian workers were killed by crossfire. Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, said the clashes could have been avoided if Abbas had given the Hamas-led Cabinet control over the security forces, which he blamed for a wave of kidnappings, torture and violence in Gaza. AP reporter Diaa Hadid contributed to this report.

Greece wants bigger EU role in Mideast peace
12 June 2007, 17:00 CET Eu Business

(DAMASCUS) - The European Union should play a bigger role in the Middle East peace process, Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis said during a visit to Damascus on Tuesday.The European Union should be much more involved, Bakoyannis told journalists. And our message is strong and clear: we need to encourage all the parties for a new process for peace in the Middle East.But with rumours swirling of a possible Israeli peace overture to Syria, from which the Jewish state captured the strategic Golan Heights in 1967, Bakoyannis denied she had any message from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.She described her talks with the Syrian leadership as very interesting and hailed Greece's relations with Syria as very good, despite Washington's efforts to sideline Damascus for its alleged sponsorship of terrorism.The minister repeated EU backing for an Arab League peace plan that offers Israel normalised relations with all Arab nations in return for land captured in 1967, a viable Palestinian state and the return of refugees.We have to give the Arab League's proposals a chance, she said. We have to encourage the European Union to be more involved in the region so that we can attempt peace which is the goal and we should spend more effort to do that.

Barak Wins Labor Race; Fraud Allegations at Arab Polling Station
by Ezra HaLevi (INN) JUNE 13,07

Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak narrowly won the Labor Party primaries Monday, once again becoming chairman of the party. Barak garnered a total of 34,542 votes - 51.3 percent. His opponent, former Shabak (General Security Service) chief MK Ami Ayalon, received 32,117 votes 47.7 percent. 65 percent of Labors eligible voters cast their ballots in this second round of primaries. Barak pledged to work to strengthen the IDF and restore Israels deterrence. It is widely believed that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will appoint Barak as Defense Minister in the near future, replacing outgoing Labor Chairman Amir Peretz. The former prime minister left politics for the private business sector after his loss to Ariel Sharon in 2001. His return to politics is considered a comeback he was placed fourth in early opinion polls among Labor voters.

Comeback or Fraud?

Ayalons camp accuses Barak of election fraud in the Arab and Druze sectors, where Barak received an overwhelming majority of the votes. In Shfaram, for example, Barak suddenly received 2,000 more votes than he had in the previous round. In Um el-Fahm, Barak received three times as many votes as Ayalon despite the towns hostility toward Barak for sending police into the town to quell Israeli-Arab riots in October, 2000. In that incident, several rioters were shot dead. A local electioneer, speaking with Army Radio, did not deny the possibility of fraudulent voting carried out by an election worker who then voted on behalf of his whole clan, for example.Labor Secretary-General MK Eitan Cabel said the allegations had been reviewed and been found to be not substantive. Ayalon said that he does not plan on appealing the results, though he does plan to pursue a police investigation into the fraud itself. Ayalon supporters say they have evidence of enough fraudulent voting to change the outcome of the election. Barak associates called the allegations the whining of losers.

There were several reports of violence at Labor voting stations.

Victory Speech

There is no governing without the public's trust, Barak said in his victory speech. In these times of anxiety, distrust and a general feeling that we have lost our way and our leadership, the Labor Party must position itself at the head of a democratic alternative leadership of Israel Today begins the long journey toward bringing back level-headed, responsible, and experienced leadership to the State of Israel. He also issued a call to Kadima party members who left when Shimon Peres lost to Amir Peretz to come home.Likud Knesset Member Silvan Shalom has challenged Barak to break up the government coalition and face new general elections. Barak said prior to his election that he will not remain in a government headed by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert but wants a replacement from within the coalition instead of elections. This is the true public test of him [Barak], MK Shalom stated. Can he be trusted on his promises to the public or was he elected to be faithful to those who want to hold onto their positions in the government?

IsraelNationalRadio.com Commentator Jay Shapiro noted: The percentage of Labor voters who turned out to vote was highest in the Arab sector - and the Arabs voted overwhelmingly for Barak. He won the election by a slim majority, and the Arab vote was the deciding one. So the new head of the Labor party who will probably move into the present government and probably will be the Minister of Defense is a man who created the situation in the north that resulted in the war last summer and the growing threat in the north even today. The leader of the Labor party owes his election to the Arabs. None of this bodes well for Israeli democracy or for the State of Israel in general.

Minister Cohen Calls for Reinstating Religious Affairs Ministry
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz (INN) JUNE 13.07

In the wake of a sharply critical ombudsman's report on state religious services, the Minister for Religious Affairs in the Prime Minister's Office, Shas Knesset Member Yitzchak Cohen, suggested reviving the defunct Religious Affairs Ministry. During a meeting of the Knesset's State Control Committee on Monday, representatives discussed the State Comptroller's report on the municipal religious councils and on the national Religious Affairs Authority. According to the report: many municipalities have failed to transfer funds earmarked for the use of their respective religious councils; the councils themselves have displayed serious administrative failures; the Religious Affairs Authority did not administer the religious councils appropriately; the Authority was often staffed by politically motivated appointees, primarily from the Likud party. The Comptroller recommended reforms in state-provided religious services.

In light of the report, Minister Cohen said, The situation has yet to improve. We have not yet healed the religious councils, [but] in terms of reform, we have successes in broad areas. However, we believe that the transfer of the religious councils to the municipalities was a correct step. At the same time, Cohen noted that the debt owed the councils by the municipalities is around 150 million shekels, and the employees of the councils and the rabbis are not getting paid. To improve the situation, Minister Cohen recommended that the state provide 75% of the religious councils' funding, while the municipalities provide the remainder, as is common regarding health and social services.Minister Cohen added that the only reason he is heading a ministry that is not a ministry is due to a whim of the [now-defunct] Shinui party [during the Sharon administration] to dismantle the ministry. The Ministry of Religious Affairs must be reinstated.MK Orlev noted that the issue has been on the public agenda since 2002.

On the other hand, Meir Shpiegler, Director of the Religious Affairs Authority, claimed that the establishment of the body that he heads has led to intensified supervision and control of the regional religious councils. Such oversight, he noted, includes a review of expenditures by accountants. Shpiegler confirmed, however, that there are rabbis who have not been paid their salaries, just as there are mayors and other officials in similar situations. Knesset Member Zevulun Orlev (National Religious Party), Chairman of the State Control Committee, summed up the discussion, saying that there is no agreed-upon reform for religious services at the moment. He noted that the issue has been on the public agenda since 2002, when budgetary cutbacks began to take effect. Unless there is a governmental decision on the matter, complete with a time table for implementation, according to MK Orlev, there will be no solution to the problem.

Military plan against Iran is ready
By YAAKOV KATZ JUNE 11,07

Predicting that Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon within three years and claiming to have a strike plan in place, senior American military officers have told The Jerusalem Post they support President George W. Bush's stance to do everything necessary to stop the Islamic Republic's race for nuclear power. Bush has repeatedly said the United States would not allow Iran to go nuclear.Israel successfully launches Ofek 7 spy satellite

JPost special: US candidates talk tough on Iran

A high-ranking American military officer told the Post that senior officers in the US armed forces had thrown their support behind Bush and believed that additional steps needed to be taken to stop Iran.

Predictions within the US military are that Bush will do what is needed to stop Teheran before he leaves office in 2009, including possibly launching a military strike against its nuclear facilities. On Sunday, Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut said the US should consider a military strike against Iran over its support of Iraqi insurgents. I think we've got to be prepared to take aggressive military action against the Iranians to stop them from killing Americans in Iraq, he said. And to me, that would include a strike over the border into Iran, where we have good evidence that they have a base at which they are training these people coming back into Iraq to kill our soldiers.According to a high-ranking American military officer, the US Navy and Air Force would play the primary roles in any military action taken against Iran. One idea under consideration is a naval blockade designed to cut off Iran's oil exports. The officer said that if the US government or the UN Security Council decided on this course of action, the US Navy would most probably not block the Strait of Hormuz - a step that would definitely draw an Iranian military response - but would patrol farther out and turn away tankers on their way to load oil.

On Sunday, the Israel Air Force held joint exercises with visiting US pilots, but IDF sources dismissed speculation that the drills were connected to an attack on Iran. The US officer said that perhaps even more dangerous to Israel and the Western world than Iranian nukes was the possibility that a terrorists cell associated with al-Qaida or global jihad would acquire a highly radioactive dirty bomb or a vial of deadly chemical or biological agents. The officer said al-Qaida was gaining a strong foothold in the Middle East and that Israel was being surrounded by global jihad elements in Lebanon, Jordan and Sinai. Iran is a state-sponsored type of terrorism that can be dealt with, he said, adding that it was far more difficult to strike at the source of an isolated terrorist cell. To combat this threat, the US Navy has come up with a plan for a 1,000-ship navy - a transnational network composed of navies from around the world that would raise awareness of maritime threats and more effectively thwart sea-based terrorism and the illicit transfer of arms by sea. The idea is to allow free trade and to prevent criminal and terror activity at sea, the officer said. A smaller-scale example of the US Navy's vision is NATO's Active Endeavor antiterrorism operation based in Naples. Israel plans to send an officer to be stationed there in the coming months. NATO launched Operation Active Endeavor in wake of 9/11 and has succeeded in bringing together a number of Mediterranean countries to work together in Naples to share information on naval terrorism and suspicious vessels in the region.

Ruth Bell Graham reported near death
Famed evangelist, gathered with children, says wife 'close to going home to heaven'
June 13, 2007 - 3:51 p.m. Eastern - 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Ruth Bell Graham

Ruth Bell Graham, the wife of evangelist Billy Graham, slipped into a coma this morning after suffering from pneumonia and is near death, according to a family spokesman. Four of the couple's five children are at their home in Montreat, N.C., and son Ned Graham is on his way, said A. Larry Ross. Billy Graham issued a statement today saying he and his wife, who turned 87 Sunday, had decided to be buried next to each other at the Billy Graham Library in Billy Graham's hometown of Charlotte. We have held this decision privately and only decided to announce it now that she is close to going home to heaven, Billy Graham said. Ruth is my soul mate and best friend, and I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side. I am more in love with her today than when we first met over 65 years ago as students at Wheaton College.

Graham, 88, said Ruth and I appreciate, more than we can express, the prayers and letters of encouragement we have received from people across the country and around the world.Our entire family has been home in recent days and it has meant so much to have them at our side during this time, he said. We love each one of them dearly and thank God for them.In December, the Washington Post reported the family was divided over the Grahams' burial place, indicating Ruth objected to a site at a museum being built in Charlotte that was favored by son Franklin. Billy Graham responded to the story, stating he and Ruth would make the decision together privately.

Pres. Race: Rivlin & Avital Withdraw, Peres to Become President
by Hillel Fendel (INN) JUNE 13,07

Shimon Peres will be Israel's ninth President, following Ruby Rivlin's surprise withdrawal from the presidential race after the results of the first round became known. With the news that Peres had received 58 votes, third-place finisher Labor MK Collette Avital (21 votes) withdrew her candidacy, as expected, leaving Peres and Rivlin to battle it out in the second round. However, Rivlin, who had expected to receive many more than the 37 votes he garnered, then surprised the nation by announcing his withdrawal from the race. Given the fact that most or all of Avital's votes were expected to go to former Laborite Peres, a Peres victory seemed to be a foregone conclusion.With a breaking voice, MK Ruby Rivlin thanked all the 70 MKs who had said they would support my candidacy... and informed the country that he was withdrawing from the race. With teary eyes, he asked the Knesset to support Shimon Peres.Even Peres's victory, practically his first in public electoral life, was thus tainted by the fact that he did not win outright; his opponents merely withdrew.

Three MKs abstained in the first round, and one vote was disqualified.

In what is virtually certain to be a two-round contest, the Knesset will elect Israel's 9th president today. Underdog Ruby Rivlin still hopes to beat Shimon Peres. Israel's three largest parties are fielding candidates in today's election: Kadima is running with Vice Premier Shimon Peres, Labor - three-time MK Collette Avital, and the Likud with five-term MK Ruby Rivlin. The 120 Knesset Members will vote in a secret ballot for the new President, beginning at noon. If no one candidate receives at least 61 MKs, which is virtually certain, a second round will be held. Any candidate has the option of bowing out at that point, and tremendous pressure will likely be exerted upon the third-place finisher - likely to be Avital - to do so. If in the second round as well, no one receives 61 votes, the rules change slightly, and become complex. If in the second round three candidates run, then the two higher-placing candidates run against each other, and whoever receives more votes than the others is declared Israel's president. If, however, only two candidates ran in the second round, then in the third round, only the highest-placing candidate runs - and the MKs must vote either for or against.Behind the scenes, the lobbying of the MKs continues to be feverish. For Peres, famous throughout Israel as a perennial "loser" of elections, today's election is a last-ditch effort to change his historic reputation. His support in Kadima is mostly strong, and he is also expected to garner most or all of the votes of the Pensioners and Meretz parties. Shas has officially announced its support for him.Rivlin, on the other hand, known to be right-wing politically, is well-respected in the Knesset for his fairness and affability. The Likud, National Union/NRP, Yisrael Beiteinu and UTJ are expected to support him nearly unanimously. MK Avital's support comes only from Labor, and even there it is fairly weak.

In each voting round, every MK will be called by name and will step up to the curtained ballot box in front of the Knesset podium. Behind the curtain, he or she will take a slip of paper with his/her chosen candidate's name, place it into the supplied envelope, and then step out from behind the curtain and place the envelope into the ballot box. Many questions remain unanswered as the MKs near the moment of decision - and some will remain unanswered even after the election. For instance, does Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef's ruling in favor of Peres obligate all 12 Shas MKs - or did some of them receive "private" rulings allowing them to vote for Rivlin? Nissim Ze'ev, the most right-wing Shas MK, denied this possibility today, saying that Rabbi Yosef's ruling was unambiguous and firm and that he does not believe anyone will go against the rabbi's will. Despite this, skepticism still reigns in the Knesset as to whether every Shas MK will vote for Peres.It is widely believed that in the previous election seven years ago, when Moshe Katzav defeated Peres in the second round, Shas MKs did not fulfill their semi-pledges to vote for Peres, thus giving Katzav the victory. It is also not clear how many Kadima MKs who say they will vote for Peres will actually do so. Many of them are former Likud members and have strong loyalties to Peres. MK Ze'ev Elkin, a Peres man, says he knows of some party colleagues who plan to defy the party decision.In addition, what will Labor do after Avital drops out? Many Labor MKs are friends and long-time party allies of Peres, but many of them are furious at him for having quit the party to join Kadima. The Arab MKs, too, are a question mark. Even Prime Minister Olmert himself, though he instructed his party to vote for Peres, may not want to see such an active president beside him at the helm of leadership. Some of the answers will be provided within a few hours - and others will remain forever secret.