JEWISH GROUP BLAMED FOR DIVISION

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.

Tropical Storm Kiko reforms off Mexico Wed Oct 17, 9:47 AM ET

MEXICO CITY - Tropical Storm Kiko reformed before dawn Wednesday off Mexico's Pacific coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The storm was stalled far out to sea and was expected to strengthen slightly and move north in the coming days, forecasters said. It had sustained winds of 40 mph and wasn't expected to threaten land or become a hurricane.The storm had been downgraded to a tropical depression late Tuesday before regaining tropical storm status Wednesday.

Severe weather to continue Senior Meteorologist,The Weather Channel OCT 17,07

Midwest

There have been nearly 100 reports of severe weather so far this Wednesday. A tornado destroyed a house in southwestern Missouri and wind collapsed a tent at an Oktoberfest event in Tulsa, Okla., injuring at least 20. Heading through the overnight, severe thunderstorms will continue to slice eastward through the Mississippi Valley. Residents of Missouri, Iowa, and Illinois are urged to monitor these storms closely. Thursday, the storm system responsible for this nastiness will grind northeastward into the Upper Midwest. Rain, much of it wind-whipped, will drench the eastern Dakotas, much of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan. But even more daunting will be the continuing threat of severe thunderstorms, possibly including tornadoes, from the western Great Lakes into the Ohio Valley. Strong winds, possibly gusting as high as 60 mph, will be felt on the back side of this storm, from western South Dakota into western Kansas. High temperatures during the day Thursday are forecast to range from the upper 40s and 50s in the northern Plains and portions of the Upper Midwest to the 80s in southeast Missouri, southern and central Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.

South

Severe thunderstormns rolled across Louisiana and Arkansas on Wednesday, producing large hail and strong wind gusts. On Thursday, the threat of severe weather will shift farther east into Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama in advance of a cold front. Not all of the news is bad, however. Along with the specter of nasty storms will come some much-needed rain for the drought-stricken Southeast, mainly from the Florida Panhandle northeastward into South Carolina. A few spots could pick up an inch or two. The southern Plains will remain sunny and dry. High temperatures are expected to range from the 60s in parts of the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles to the 90s in the Texas coastal Plain and portions of southwest Florida.

West

A powerful Pacific storm will punch into the Northwest Thursday with the center of the cyclone charging into extreme northwest Washington or southern Vancouver Island. Strong, gusty winds and heavy rain will attack much of the region. High wind watches and warnings are posted from the southern Oregon coast northward through the interior of western Washington. The Puget Sound may see sustained winds in the 30- to 40-mph range with gusts as high as 65 mph possible. Some trees and power lines may be downed. Rain will soak areas over and west of the Cascades as far south as northern California, with lighter rain or showers reaching eastward as far as the Bitterroots. The fast movement of the storm should preclude any significant flooding. Snow levels will rise, getting up to around 4000 feet near the Canadian border, 7000 feet near the California line. Heavy surf, reaching 15 to 20 feet, will pound the Washington and Oregon beaches. (After diminishing slightly on Friday, even higher surf--24 to 28 feet--will roll in on Saturday.) The remainder of the West should see partly cloudy skies. Gusty winds will continue across the southern Rockies. High temperatures Thursday throughout the West are forecast to range from the 30s in the higher Rockies to the 80s in southeast California and southwest Arizona.

Northeast

A few light showers will work their way into the Northeast on Thursday, precursors of heavier showers and thunderstorms, some possibly severe, for Friday and Friday night. Southerly winds will push temperatures to above-average levels Thursday. Highs will range from the 50s in extreme northern Maine to the 80s in eastern Virginia.

DISEASES

REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).

Superbug kills more people in U.S. than AIDS, study finds
By THOMAS H. MAUGH II - Los Angeles Times - Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Severe infections by an antibiotic-resistant superbug, known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, are at least twice as high as researchers previously believed and now kill more Americans than AIDS, researchers reported Wednesday.The bacterial infections, commonly called MRSA (pronounced mersa), were once confined to a few hospitals, but a new study by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that in 2005 they made an estimated 94,000 Americans seriously ill and killed almost 19,000, compared with 17,000 who died of AIDS complications.

Certainly, MRSA now has to be viewed as a very important target for prevention and control, said Dr. David A. Talan, an infectious diseases specialist in Sylmar, Calif., who was not involved in the study.The infections have been a growing concern, particularly over the past decade, as they have spread outside hospitals, popping up in prisons, athletic fields and locker rooms.The study reported that nearly 14 percent of new antibiotic-resistant staph infections are not linked to hospitals or other medical facilities, indicating that the disease is now comfortably ingrained in the wider community.The finding, reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association, is but the latest evidence of a widespread pattern of increasing drug resistance among a variety of infectious agents, including multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis, antibiotic-resistant Clostridium difficile and other once-innocuous organisms.The emergence of these superbugs has not been accompanied by the development of new drugs to combat them.

The spread of resistant organisms is astounding, wrote Dr. Elizabeth A. Bancroft of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health in an editorial accompanying the report.Bancroft said the reported incidence of resistant staph infections is just the tip of the iceberg because the CDC researchers studied only blood-borne infections that find their way into internal organisms.
Several studies have found that such infections represent only 6 percent to 9 percent of all MRSA infections, which can also thrive on the skin in a more innocuous form, waiting for the opportunity to enter the body.It appears that the total burden of MRSA is much greater than what was estimated in this study, she said.Most forms of the staph bacterium are easily killed with common antibiotics, such as amoxicillin. But beginning in 1968, researchers began to see variants that required treatment with stronger antibiotics.

Experts attribute the emergence of the superbugs to indiscriminate use of antibiotics, the failure of patients to complete their antibiotic regimens and the use of antibiotics in animal feed. In each case, incomplete eradication of the bacteria leads to mutations that increase resistance to the drugs.Today, the most resistant require treatment with powerful and expensive antibiotics like vancomycin, and as many as one in five patients still succumb to the infections.Confined to the surface of the skin, the bacteria do minimal damage. But in hospitals, nursing homes and dialysis centers, they can hitch a ride inside the body, spreading through the bloodstream and causing severe illness.

In the same fashion, they can be spread by tattooing and drug use in prisons and by cuts and abrasions on the athletic field.While doctors were aware of the growing staph problem, there were no hard data to document it.The new results were obtained by Dr. R. Monina Klevens of the CDC and her colleagues as part of the agency's ongoing Active Bacterial Core surveillance program, which monitors infections in nine regions of the U.S., including San Francisco, Baltimore, Atlanta and Denver. All infections were laboratory-confirmed.The group observed 8,987 cases of blood-borne MRSA infections in the survey area, which was extrapolated to come up with a nationwide estimate of 94,360 cases. There were 1,598 deaths in the area, corresponding to 18,650 deaths nationwide.Only 26.6 percent of the cases were infections that occurred in hospitals, but 58.4 percent were infections that occurred in the community but were linked to hospitalization or medical procedures. Infections unrelated to medical procedures accounted for 13.7 percent of cases.Infection rates were highest among those older than 65, and blacks were twice as likely as whites to suffer an infection. In both groups, Klevens said, the higher rates were most likely due to a higher incidence of chronic diseases, which both weakens patients and sends them more often to the hospital, where they come in contact with the bacterium.

For infants, the rate was four times as high in blacks as in whites.Health-care advocates argue that hospitals need to improve hygiene. Some studies, for example, show that hospital workers wash their hands only about half as often as guidelines recommend.
Other critics say hospitals should screen all newly admitted patients for MRSA and isolate those who are found to be positive. Hospitals, however, say such isolated patients are likely to receive less care because of the inconvenience associated with entering their rooms.palmbeachpost.com

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.

Bush warns of World War III if Iran goes nuclear
Oct 17 11:45 AM US/Eastern

If you're interested in avoiding World War III...
US President George W. Bush said Wednesday that he had warned world leaders they must prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons if you're interested in avoiding World War III.We've got a leader in Iran who has announced that he wants to destroy Israel, Bush said at a White House press conference after Russia cautioned against military action against Tehran's supect atomic program.
So I've told people that, if you're interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon, said Bush. AFP

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)

Turkey lawmakers OK possible Iraq attack By CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA, Associated Press Writer OCT 17,07

ISTANBUL, Turkey - Parliament authorized the government Wednesday to send troops into northern Iraq to root out Kurdish rebels who've been conducting raids into Turkey. The vote removed the last legal obstacle to an offensive, but there was no sign of imminent action as the United States urged restraint. Turkish leaders, under pressure from Washington and Baghdad, have signaled they would not immediately give the order to send in 60,000 soldiers, armor and attack helicopters into a region that has largely escaped the chaos of the Iraq war.The crisis along the border, where the Turkish troops have massed since summer, has driven up oil prices along with tensions between Turkey and its longtime NATO ally, the United States.President Bush said the U.S. was making clear to Turkey that it should not stage a major army operation in the Iraqi north, much of which has escaped the sustained violence and political discord common in the rest of Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Bush said Turkey has had troops stationed in northern Iraq for quite a while, a reference to about 1,500 soldiers deployed for years to monitor the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, with the permission of Iraqi Kurd authorities.We don't think it's in their interest to send more troops in, he said.While they now have the authority to strike at PKK bases used to stage attacks in Turkey, the country's leaders appear to be holding back in hopes the threat of an incursion will prod Iraq and the U.S. to move against the guerrillas.The Turkish military, which had little success when it last carried out a major incursion into Iraq a decade ago with 50,000 soldiers, estimates 3,800 Turkish Kurd guerrillas operate from Iraq territory and 2,300 are inside Turkey.

As Parliament voted 507-19 to approve military operations against PKK fighters in northern Iraq over the next year, Turkey's government moved to explain its decision to its Arab neighbors, sending Foreign Minister Ali Babacan to both Egypt and Lebanon.Oil prices surged briefly to a record $89 a barrel after the vote. Traders worry that any escalation in the conflict will cut oil supplies from northern Iraq.Hours before the vote, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki called his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, to say Iraq's government was determined to halt terrorist activities of the PKK on Iraqi territory, his office said.A close aide to al-Maliki said later that the two leaders agreed the Iraqis should deal with PKK fighters based inside Iraq and the Turks would take care of guerrillas operating in Turkish territory.But Erdogan warned that Iraq must rein in the guerrillas, the aide said. If you don't solve the problem now, we will have no choice but to pursue the PKK inside Iraq, he quoted the Turkish leader as saying.The aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to discuss the confidential conversation, added that there would be no joint operations involving Iraqi and Turkish troops. He said Iraq would not agree to more Turkish soldiers entering its territory.Erdogan had suggested that Turkey, Iraq and the U.S. conduct a joint campaign against the PKK. But U.S. and Iraqi troops are hard pressed elsewhere, and Iraqi Kurds are reluctant to fight their ethnic brethren from Turkey.

A Kurdish lawmaker in Iraq warned an incursion would threaten the relative stability of the autonomous Kurdish region in the north and called on Turkey to deal with the issue in a peaceful way.
Adnan al-Mufti, speaker of the regional parliament, also said he believed Turkey had ulterior motives aimed at upsetting the success of the Kurdish region in Iraq because it fears separatist sentiment within its own borders.PKK fighters operating from bases in the mountains of northern Iraq periodically cross the border to stage attacks in their war to win autonomy for Turkey's predominantly Kurdish southeast. More than 30,000 people have died in fighting that began in 1984. The authorization for an offensive inside Iraq had the backing of all of Turkey's parliamentary parties except a small Kurdish party. A single lawmaker from the opposition Republican People's Party voted against it. I am concerned that Turkey could be dragged into an Iraqi quagmire,said the lawmaker, Esref Erdem. Turkish leaders have said publicly that they would prefer a solution to the guerrilla problem that avoids a cross-border offensive, but Erdogan has warned that Turkey will take whatever steps it must to defeat the PKK. What's important is the parliament's decision, not what people say, Erdogan said. Public anger is high in Turkey over a recent spate of guerrilla attacks in the southeast as well as a perception that the United States has failed to back Turkey in its fight with the PKK, even though Washington lists the movement as a terrorist group.

Sam Brannen, an international security fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the U.S. had underestimated the value of Turkey as a strategic ally and created problems for itself by angering Turks with its failure to curb PKK activity in northern Iraq. He said others in the region, such as Iran, Syria and al-Qaida in Iraq, could take advantage of strained Turkish-American relations and a destabilized northern Iraq. It's not happening in a vacuum. There are other state and non-state actors who would see some advantage in drawing Turkey into the conflict, Brannen said. It's really hard to see what U.S. leverage will be in this situation.At a White House news conference, Bush urged the Democratic-controlled Congress not to worsen tensions by approving a resolution labeling as genocide the World War I-era killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians by Turks as the Ottoman Empire crumbled. Noting the number of domestic bills pending before Congress, Bush said, One thing Congress should not be doing is sorting out the historical record of the Ottoman Empire.Turkey, which argues the deaths came during civil unrest and not from a planned campaign to eradicate Armenians, is furious over the measure and has threatened repercussions if it is adopted. Turkey is a key route for moving supplies to U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The House vote to label the bloodshed nearly a century ago as genocide was in jeopardy after several Democrats withdrew their support and sounded alarms it could cripple U.S.-Turkish relations. Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkish program at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said failure of the measure might lead Turkey's leaders to forgo military action in northern Iraq as a conciliatory gesture to Washington. Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell indicated U.S. military leaders felt Turkey was not committed to invading Iraq. It would have enormous implications, not just for us but for the Turks, and I don't think there is any rush to war on the part of the Turks, Morrell said. But Cagaptay said another serious PKK attack would probably trump diplomatic gestures. If there's another massive PKK attack, killing a dozen civilians, you can expect they will go in within the next 24 hours, he said. Associated Press writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad contributed to this report.

JERUSALEM DIVIDED

ZECHARIAH 12:1-5 King James Bible
1 The burden of the word of the LORD for Israel, saith the LORD, which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him.
2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem.
3 And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.
4 In that day, saith the LORD, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness: and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the people with blindness.
5 And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the LORD of hosts their God.

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

ZECHARIAH 14:1-9 King James Bible
1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. 5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
6 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:
7 But it shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
8 And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.
9 And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

ISRAELS TROUBLE

JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.

DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)

FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU
Jewish group to blame for dividing Jerusalem?
Allowed tens of thousands of Arabs to build on land purchased for Jews - October 17, 2007 - By Aaron Klein - 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and senior members of his Kadima party have hinted the past few days the Israeli government may agree to divide Jerusalem, noting that some eastern neighborhoods have an Arab majority, with some even housing refugee camps. But WND had learned key Jerusalem neighborhoods mentions as slated for possible evacuation are owned by a U.S. Jewish group that over the years has allowed tens of thousands of Arabs to illegally squat on its land, resulting in the current Arab majority. The Jewish National Fund, or JNF, purchased the land now up for possible Israeli withdrawal using Jewish donor funds for the specific purpose of Jewish settlement. On Monday, Olmert hinted he would withdraw from parts of Jerusalem by asking whether it was necessary to retain certain Arab communities, specifically mentioning Shoafat, a Jerusalem neighborhood. Was it necessary to also add the Shuafat refugee camp, Sawakra, Walaje and other villages and define them as part of Jerusalem? On that, I must confess, I am not convinced, stated Olmert, speaking at a special Knesset session to mark the sixth anniversary of the assassination of former government minister Rehavam Ze'evi, who drew up the 1967 map.

Vice Premier Haim Ramon, a member of Olmert's ruling Kadima party, last week reportedly mapped out a future partition of Jerusalem under a deal with the Palestinians, stating Israel may give up Jerusalem's Shoafat and Qalandiya neighborhoods, among other communities. Ramon was quoted by the popular YnetNews.com Israeli website as writing in a letter to Jerusalem City Councilman Nir Barkat that under his plan, The Jewish neighborhoods (of Jerusalem) will be recognized as Israeli and under Israeli sovereignty. Accordingly, the Arab neighborhoods will be recognized as Palestinian.But some of the areas mentioned as slated for possible evacuation – hundreds of acres in Shoafat and Qalandiya – are owned by the JNF, a nonprofit that purchases property using donor funds. The JNF lands have been utilized for the illegal construction of dozens of Arab apartment buildings, a refugee camp and a U.N. school. The properties recently were blocked off from Jewish sections of Jerusalem and isolated to Arab neighborhoods by Israel's security fence. Qalandiya is located near an old Israeli airport; the Jerusalem suburb of Shoafat is adjacent to the Jewish neighborhood of Pisgat Zeev. The lands were purchased legally on behalf of JNF using Jewish donations in the early 1900s, immediately after the organization was founded in 1901 with the specific charge of repurchasing and developing the land of Israel for Jewish settlement. A tour of Qalandiya found dozens of Arab apartment complexes, a Palestinian refugee camp and a U.N. school for Palestinians constructed on the land.

According to officials in Israel's Housing Ministry, Arabs first constructed facilities illegally in Qalandiya and Kfar Akev between 1948 and 1967, prior to the 1967 Six-Day War during which Israel retook control of the entire city of Jerusalem. Qalandiya, still owned by JNF, came under the management of the Israeli government's Land Authority in the late 1960s. Ministry officials say the bulk of illegal Arab construction in Qalandiya took place in the past 20 years, with construction of several new Arab apartment complexes taking place in just the past two years. Neither the Israeli government nor JNF took any concrete measures to stop the illegal building, which continues today with at least one apartment complex in Qalandiya under construction. Jerusalem's Shoafat neighborhood, which has an estimated value of $3 million, was also purchased by JNF in the early 1900s and fell under the management of the Israel Land Authority about 40 years ago. Much of the illegal Arab construction in Shoafat took place in the past 15 years, with some apartment complexes built as late as 2004. In Qalandiya and Shoafat, Israel's security fence cordons off the Arab sections of the JNF lands from the rest of Jewish Jerusalem.

Internal JNF documents obtained by WND outline illegal Arab construction on the Jewish-owned land. A survey of Qalandiya summarized on JNF stationery conducted in December 2000 and signed by a JNF worker states, In a lot of the plots I find Arabs are living and building illegally and also working the JNF land without permission.The JNF survey goes on to document illegal construction of Arab apartment complexes and the U.N. school under the property management of Israel's Land Authority.

Group misleading donors?

In response to a WND exclusive report on the JNF's alleged mismanagement of the properties, JNF CEO Russell Robinson sent statements to concerned donors that the illegal construction occurred during periods the Jerusalem land was occupied by Jordan.
During that time the Jordanian government oversaw all activities, including the U.N. building. Under international law, this makes matters pertaining to the land more complicated than what [WND describes],states Robinson's letter

Jordan, together with other Arab countries, attacked Israel after its founding in 1948 and administered eastern sections of Jerusalem following an armistice agreement until Jordan attacked again and Israel liberated the entire city of Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day War. During the period of Jordanian control, some new construction took place, including in areas previously purchased by Jews.

1991 photo of Shoafat shows region entirely forest land

But WND obtained aerial photos of the two JNF sites in question, Shoafat and Qalandiya, which Robinson claimed were illegally built upon prior to 1967.

1967 aerial photo of Qalandiya region

An aerial photo taken in 1967 of the second site, Qalandiya, which is now a large Arab town, finds construction of a U.N. building but few other sites, indicating the vast majority of Arab construction – dozens of large apartment complexes – occurred under JNF control. WND originally reported some of the construction took place prior to 1967, but the bulk of the building occurred the past few years, under Jewish management. Robinson did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Leftist millionaires influencing JNF?

Illegal Arab construction on Jewish-owned lands is not limited to Jerusalem. Arabs reportedly are building without permits on JNF-owned property in the Galilee and in areas outside Bethlehem. Due to Israeli military laws, Jews are barred from building on the JNF lands near Bethlehem. Also, Arabs are living illegally in JNF-owned apartments in strategic areas in Jerusalem's Old City. Asked to explain why the esteemed Jewish organization would allow Arabs to illegally occupy strategic land purchased for Jews, one JNF source involved in land acquisition pointed to what he claimed was the disproportionate influence over the organization by a small group of Jewish multimillionaires in New Jersey who lead major public fundraising efforts for JNF. The source said the group of wealthy New Jersey Jews, all of whom are real estate moguls and many of whom invest in projects as a team, are largely also donors to leftist causes associated with Israeli President Shimon Peres, who advocates the division of Jerusalem and an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank.

The Jews include the Wilf, Halpern, Zuckerman and Tisch families, according to the JNF source. The key lands in Jerusalem upon which the JNF has allowed Arabs to illegally build are part of the areas Peres has advocated handing to the Palestinians. Peres currently serves as Israel's minister for the development of the Negev Desert, which the JNF has been leading a massive campaign to populate, with the goal of bringing 250,000 Jewish residents there. Peres' face is prominently featured on JNF advertisements and material. The wealthy New Jersey Jews are highly politically motivated, support leftist causes and are involved in JNF affairs, charged the JNF source. It is unfair to Jews worldwide who donate to the JNF with certain expectations, such as that their donations will be used for Jewish settlement in Jerusalem.