DOLLY GOES THROUGH TEXAS

EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH

GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

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.

POWERFUL QUAKE HITS JAPAN
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Powerful earthquake hits Japan, dozens injured By MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press Writer JULY 23,08

TOKYO - A powerful earthquake rattled parts of northern Japanese early Thursday, injuring nearly 100 people, triggering landslides and cutting power to thousands of people, officials said. Japan's Meteorological Agency said the temblor, which had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8, struck shortly after midnight at a depth of about 65 miles near the coast of Iwate, 280 miles northeast of Tokyo.

Japan's Meteorological Agency said there was no danger of a tsunami from the temblor, which had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8. It struck shortly after midnight about 65 miles underground and centered just off the coast of Iwate, 280 miles northeast of Tokyo.

At least 99 people were injured, mainly cuts and bruises from broken glasses and falling objects, said National Police Agency official on condition of anonymity, citing department policy. No one had life threatening injuries.The earthquake caused strong shaking of up to 40 seconds in large parts of northern Japan, official said.Everything has fallen off the shelves, scattered all over the floor, grocery store owner Tomio Kudo told national broadcaster NHK from the town of Hirono, where the shaking was most violent. Even a big refrigerator has moved about 30 centimeters (1 foot).Several nuclear power plants in the region continued operations after inspection by plant workers found no problems, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a statement.The quake caused a blackout at more than 8,000 homes, it said.

Japan's bullet super-express trains were suspended in some areas, according to operator East Japan Railway Co.The earthquake also triggered landslides at several locations, the police agency official said. Details were not immediately available.Relief workers and local officials hit the streets to take a closer look to the affected areas in daylight Thursday. A team of government officials headed by Disaster Minister Shinya Izumi also arrived in Iwate.We must grasp the extent of damage as quickly as possible so that we can immediately take necessary steps, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda told reporters.Police said some of the more serious injuries included a woman in Hirono who broke a leg falling down stairs and another woman in Aomori city who broke her hip fleeing out a window.

Japan is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries.A 6.8 magnitude earthquake is capable of causing serious, widespread damage. Last month, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck sparsely populated rural areas in northern Japan, killing at least 12 people, leaving 10 others missing and injuring more than 300.

Meteorological Agency official Takashi Yokota warned of possible aftershocks from Thursday's quake.(This version CORRECTS Corrects that quake struck near coast)

Strong quake jolts northern Japan, no tsunami By Yoko Kubota Wed Jul 23, 1:41 PM ET

TOKYO (Reuters) - A strong earthquake jolted northern Japan early on Thursday, injuring several people, burying three cars under a landslide and cutting off electric power to at least 10,000 homes, media reports and officials said. The Japan Meteorological Agency said there was no threat of a tsunami from the quake, which had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 and could be felt as far away as Tokyo.

The focus of the quake was 120 km (75 miles) below the surface of the earth in Iwate prefecture, a mountainous, sparsely populated region, the agency said.It was shaking so much that I almost couldn't step out of the kitchen and I panicked quite a bit. A lot of dishes broke, a man in Hachinohe city in Aomori prefecture, about 550 km northeast of Tokyo, told national broadcaster NHK.

Japanese media said military planes were flying over the area to try to assess the extent of damage and that local authorities had requested troops be sent to the area to help. Defence Ministry officials could not immediately be reached for comment.I don't have concrete information, but we've heard that there are several injured, Shinya Izumi, minister in charge of disaster management, told a news conference after the government set up an emergency task force at the prime minister's office.Private broadcaster TV Asahi quoted a spokesman for a hospital in Hachinohe, a city with a population of about 240,000 some 550 km northeast of Tokyo, as saying that 13 people had been brought in with injuries, but gave no details on their condition.Broadcaster TBS said 55 had been injured, while NHK put the figure at 18.There was a fire in one building in the area after the quake, and NHK's fixed cameras showed fire engines driving through the streets towards the scene of the blaze, which it reported was soon put out.Some parts of highways had been closed to traffic and some rail lines were stopped after the quake in the region, which is a mountainous and sparsely populated part of Japan, NHK reported.First it shook a little, then a strong shaking came. It shook for quite a long time, a civil servant in Iwate told NHK.Things didn't fall off the shelves. I saw some houses with shattered glass, he said.Tohoku Electric said its nuclear facilities in the area were operating normally after the quake, except for one unit that was already off-line for maintenance work.Tokyo Electric said its nuclear plants further south had not been affected.Nippon Oil said its 145,000 barrels per day Sendai refinery was operating normally after quake, but Tohoku Electric said it had manually shut down a 250-megawatt oil-fired power plant in aomori after the quake.Earthquakes are common in Japan, one of the world's most seismically active areas. The country accounts for about 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.

Thursday's quake follows a string of earthquakes in the same region, the first of which in mid-June killed at least 10 people and left as many again missing.In October 2004, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 struck the Niigata region in northern Japan, killing 65 people and injuring more than 3,000. That was the deadliest quake since a magnitude 7.3 tremor hit the city of Kobe in 1995, killing more than 6,400.(Reporting by Linda Sieg and Yoko Kubota; Additional reporting by Isabel Reynolds and Osamu Tsukimori; Writing by Chris Gallagher; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

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.

DOLLY MAKES LANDFALL
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OIL BRACES FOR HURRICANE SEASON
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Hurricane Dolly hammers northern Mexico By MARK WALSH, Associated Press Writer JULY 23,08

MATAMOROS, Mexico - Hurricane Dolly toppled trees and sent billboards flying in the Mexican city of Matamoros on Wednesday, and authorities south of the U.S. border warned of possible flooding. No deaths were immediately reported in Mexico from Dolly, which struck land just north of the border in Texas, but Tamaulipas state Gov. Eugenio Hernandez urged residents there to be alert for flooding because of the heavy rains.Dolly didn't leave behind any incidents for us to lament, Hernandez told reporters. But he said 50 neighborhoods in Matamoros are still in danger of flooding. About 13,000 people have taken refuge in 21 shelters.Strong winds are no longer the problem. Now we have to worry about intense rain in the next 24 hours, Hernandez said.Dolly became a Category 2 hurricane as it neared land Wednesday but its winds slowed to 95 mph (150 kph), and the storm was downgraded to a Category 1.Mexican officials were monitoring the Rio Grande's water levels, which were at 13 feet (4 meters) before the storm hit. Eduardo Perez, spokesman for the Tamaulipas state water commission, said the river could reach 30 feet (9 meters) before overflowing.

Authorities asked local factories to close so employees would not brave the rough weather, and most businesses were closed as the storm hit. In the few stores still open, shelves largely emptied by people stocking up on food and water.About 4,800 soldiers and Tamaulipas state civil protection officials patrolled to prevent looting. Electricity was cut to the city of Matamoros to guard against electrocutions from downed power lines.Authorities attempted to evacuate up to 23,000 people, but many refused to leave.As rain and wind beat against his brick home outside Matamoros, 21-year-old Hector Gonzalez said he planned to ride out the storm in the kitchen with his younger brother and parents. Surrounding fields already were under water.The trees are really moving in the wind, he said.Maria Lorenzo Agustin, 49, said she was not taking any chances after losing her home and other belongings in past hurricanes.Last time a hurricane hit, we lost the roof and everything was destroyed inside the house, Agustin said.She and her 102-year-old grandmother fled their wooden shack in the fishing community of Higuerilla and spent the night at a convention center-turned-shelter in Matamoros.Alejandrina Salas, 53, abandoned about 60 chickens at her home in Manos de Leon and arrived at a Matamoros shelter Tuesday night carrying one bird.I love this one a lot, she said.

Dolly weakens to tropical storm over Texas JULY 23,08

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hurricane Dolly has weakened to a tropical storm as it moved inland over Texas after drenching the Texas-Mexico coast with heavy rains, the National Hurricane Center said on Wednesday. In its 11 p.m. EDT advisory, the hurricane center said Dolly's center was located about 55 miles northwest of Brownsville, Texas, and the storm had maximum sustained winds of 70 miles per hour (110 kph).

DOLLY SLAMS S TEXAS BEFORE WEAKENING
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BEAR ATTACK
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Hurricane Dolly pounds Texas, Mexico Wed Jul 23, 7:35 PM ET

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (AFP) - Hurricane Dolly pounded the Texas-Mexico border region on Wednesday with rain and powerful winds, flooding part of a Mexican city where 250,000 people were left without drinking water. The storm made landfall in South Padre Island, Texas, as a category two hurricane packing winds of 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour, the National Hurricane Center said.

But Dolly lost some punch as it interacted with the cooler land mass after leaving the Gulf of Mexico, downgrading to a category one storm with 150 kph (95 mph) winds soon after making landfall.By 2100 GMT, Dolly's winds fell to 140 kilometers (85 miles) per hour, as it moved northwest 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the Texas border town of Brownsville.While still a category one storm, further weakening is forecast during the next 24 hours, the NHC said.As pounding rain and strong winds battered the US-Mexico coast, authorities worried whether levees could sustain the flood waters.Bracing for as many as 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain, residents boarded up windows and piled up sandbags and thousands fled for safer ground.In Matamoros, 60 kilometers (37 miles) south of South Padre Island, Dolly's winds damaged the city's main water treatment plant, leaving half of the 500,000 inhabitants without drinking water, while heavy rain triggered extensive flooding, local officials said.Texas Governor Rick Perry issued disaster declarations in 14 counties across the southern portion of the state, and hundreds of National Guard troops and other emergency crews were deployed in advance of the storm.White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said federal authorities were helping with hurricane preparations.

We've been identifying resources and pre-positioning supplies in case they are needed after the landfall, she told reporters in Washington.As the storm made landfall, the NHC warned that isolated tornadoes could hit south Texas and there could be widespread flooding across portions of south Texas and northeast Mexico.As Dolly weakened over southern Texas, hurricane warnings were replaced by tropical storm warnings in many areas north and south of the US-Mexico border.The first hurricane of the season in the Gulf of Mexico prompted some oil companies to evacuate personnel from their offshore rigs, but by early Wednesday the storm looked set to bypass the major oil producing areas.However, concerns were raised about the ability of levees to withstand the floodwaters, which could go as high as three feet (one meter) in southern Texas's Cameron County, officials told the local Brownsville Herald.

I ask that any residents that live near the levee in Cameron County to please move away from the river levees near the Rio Grande River. We believe those will be breached if the path continues, said Johnny Cavazos, emergency management coordinator for the county.Authorities called for the evacuation of more than 23,000 people from coastal areas in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, Governor Eugenio Hernandez said.The NHC has forecast an especially active 2008 weather season, saying there could be up to nine hurricanes and 12 tropical storms in the Atlantic region. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through the end of November. About 35 million people live in the most hurricane-prone US region, the southeastern coastline running from the states of North Carolina to Texas, according to the US Census Bureau.

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

EU threatens obligatory visa for US diplomats
HONOR MAHONY 23.07.2008 @ 18:45 CET

The European Commission has raised the stakes in its tussle with Washington over visas by suggesting that from the beginning of next year US diplomats be required to apply for a visa for t ravel to the European Union.Brussels' move is prompting by frustration at the US government over the slow pace of talks on granting all EU citizens visa-free travel to the United States.No tangible progress has been made regarding the United States despite all efforts of the commission and individual member states, the commission said on Wednesday (23 July).Therefore, the commission will propose retaliatory measures e.g. temporary restoration of the visa requirement for US nationals holding diplomatic and service or official passports as of 1 January, 2009 if no progress is achieved.

At the moment, citizens from 12 of the 27 member states need a visa when travelling to the US – these include most of the ex-Communist countries that joined the bloc since 2004 as well as Greece.The visa issue has bubbled below the surface continually since the EU's major enlargement to the east four years ago.The countries it took on included several very pro-US states – some of whom committed troops to Iraq – and they could not understand why their citizens were not being treated equally to citizens from western states such as Germany, France and the UK.Earlier this year, Washington irritated Brussels by initiating air passenger data deals with individual eastern countries on the understanding that they in return would also become part of the US visa-waiver programme.The Czech Republic reached a deal with Washington in spring, it was later followed by Hungary and Bulgaria.The European Commission was annoyed at what it saw as Washington's divide-and-rule tactics, especially as it believed the bloc's data privacy laws would be undermined as a side effect.Eastern member states have often raised the prospect of reciprocity on the visa issue but this is the first time that the commission has come with a concrete retaliatory suggestion.It is unacceptable that nationals from some third countries can benefit from visa-free travel to the EU whilst some of our fellow EU citizens cannot travel visa-free to those countries, said EU justice commissioner Jacques Barrot.The US visa waiver programme was set up in 1988 and originally focussed on restricting immigration, but the emphasis changed to a security issue after the al-Qaeda attacks on New York and Washington in 2001.

Washington assess countries for inclusion in the programme on the basis of a number of criteria such as the number of visas that have been refused - however the EU would like the bloc to be treated as whole.Travel arrangements between the two blocs is set to continue as a hot topic for the coming months. The US has already announced plans to create an Electronic System of Travel Authorisation for all citizens travelling to the States, including Europeans, from January next year.It maintains it is not a disguised form of visa, but the Europe Commission has yet to establish whether it amounts to a visa policy or not.

Military strike not an option on Iran, EU ministers say
LEIGH PHILLIPS 23.07.2008 @ 09:26 CET

European Union foreign ministers on Tuesday (22 July) called for further diplomacy in dealing with concerns over Iran's nuclear programme and ruled out a military strike as an option.UK foreign secretary David Miliband said following the meeting: We are 100 percent focussed on a diplomatic resolution to the Iranian issue.

The EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, said there was no other route apart from diplomacy.The position of the European Union is clear, said Mr Solana according to the AP. We want to find a diplomatic solution to this, in particular to clarify to the fullest the nature of their nuclear programme.Mr Solana outlined for the ministers the results of a meeting on Saturday between Iran and diplomats from the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China, and Russia, where Tehran was encouraged to halt its uranium enrichment in return for a package of economic and political carrots.With the US for the first time sending a high-ranking diplomat to the meeting, expectations were high that better relations between the two main antagonists would bear fruit. However, Iran maintained that its nuclear programme had only peaceful purposes.American secretary of state Condoleeza Rice described Iran's negotiations following the meeting as not serious.

Mr Solana on Tuesday however said he hoped to have to have clear and simple answers from Tehran within two weeks' time.The six nations and the EU have given Iran a fortnight to reply to the latest offer. If the response is unsatisfactory, further sanctions could be considered.The offer that has been made to Iran on the one hand...and the sanctions on the other, if they refuse to engage and reply, is exactly the right approach, said Mr Miliband following the EU ministers' meeting.

Sarkozy suggests Irish revote in June 2009
LEIGH PHILLIPS 22.07.2008 @ 09:29 CET

French President Nicholas Sarkozy has proposed to the Irish prime minister that a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty be held on the same day as elections to the European Parliament next June.Mr Sarkozy made the suggestion during a private discussion with Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, according to reports in the Irish Times, during a six-hour whistle-stop trip to Dublin to meet with government leaders and campaigners from both sides of the treaty battle.At the same time, publicly, the French president denied that he had said Ireland must vote again.I never said that Ireland had to organise a new referendum. I said that at some stage or another the Irish had to be given the opportunity to give their opinion.Last week, he told a private session with deputies from his UMP party in Paris that Ireland would have to hold a second referendum, according to an attendee of the meeting.However, in Dublin the president said he accepted that there could be no resolution to the issue under his country's six-month presidency of the European Union, due to end in December.We don't want to push you into anything, said Mr Sarkozy at a joint press conference with Mr Cowen.The Irish newspaper also reports that Mr Cowen underscored that his government was prepared only to offer a preliminary report to his fellow EU leaders when they meet at October's European Summit, and not a conclusive document detailing a way out of the impasse.The French president's strategy for holding a second poll would be unveiled at the December summit in Brussels, and would involve a guarantee of a commissioner for every member state alongside non-legally-binding declarations - not protocols or opt-outs - targeting perceived Irish concerns around abortion and defence, among other issues.Guarantees on abortion repeatedly figure among the possible responses of European leaders, despite representing the concerns of only two percent of those who voted No, according to the European Commission's own Eurobarometer poll on why people voted the way they did.

Mr Sarkozy also spent two hours meeting with 21 representatives from the various No-side campaign groups, including Libertas, Sinn Fein, the People's Movement and People Before Profit, each of which had three minutes to make their case. A handful of campaigners from the Yes side, including individuals from the Irish employers association, IBEC, were also in attendance.The No campaigners, for their part, felt that the French president was not listening to their concerns.The most worrying thing about this meeting is the fact that clearly the message is not properly being heard, perhaps not even being heard at all. We have said no, said Declan Ganley the millionaire backer of Libertas, whose arguments against the treaty focussed on taxation and regulation as well as democracy issues.That this process should continue, this wish to force through this agenda. There is just something fundamentally wrong and broken with that, he added.Patricia McKenna, of the left-wing People's Movement and a former Green MEP, said after meeting with Mr Sarkozy the whole trip was just a public relations exercise.

He wants to be able to go back to his own people and say I've consulted all sections of Irish society in relation to the Lisbon Treaty, but he is not getting the message, Ms McKenna said.It was very disappointing when he said that it's only extreme situations that you avoid a vote, in other words that Ireland has to vote again.However, the head of Sinn Fein, the only mainstream party to oppose the treaty, found the short discussion he had with the French leader more constructive, saying that at least he met with the No campaigners, unlike the Irish government.I noted to the EU President that the reasons behind the No vote were not as complex as he and others have suggested, he said.The Irish electorate were deeply concerned with issues such as democracy, Ireland's loss of power within the EU, neutrality and militarisation, workers rights and public services. Indeed these same concerns are shared by many across the European Union.As the Mr Sarkozy arrived, he was greeted by a small protest of a few hundred No campaigners waving No Means No placards.

Ukraine gets green light for EU association pact
PHILIPPA RUNNER 22.07.2008 @ 09:29 CET

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has backed French proposals for the EU to sign an association pact with Ukraine in September, amid uncertainty over what the move could mean for Ukraine's EU membership aspirations.This agreement will not only mean a strengthened partnership. It can also qualify as an associate member agreement, the chancellor said after meeting Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko on a brief visit to Kiev on Monday (21 July).Her comment came one day before EU foreign ministers come together in Brussels on Tuesday to rubber-stamp plans for the EU-Ukraine summit in Evian, France on 9 September, where the two sides aim to sign the political chapter of a new bilateral deal.

The title association agreement - recalling the association treaties signed with former eastern bloc countries before the 2004 EU enlargement - would be a diplomatic victory for Kiev, which has pushed for an EU membership perspective since it broke away from the Russian sphere of influence in the 2004 Orange Revolution. The discussions relating to the name of the agreement have ended. It's a colossal step, President Yushchenko said after talking with Ms Merkel.The chancellor's visit itself - the first by a German leader since the Orange uprising - was greeted as a new development in EU-Ukraine relations by some analysts.Her predecessor never found his way to Kiev because he was worried by the grievances from Moscow that such a trip would have provoked. Merkel, though, gives less weight to Russia's concerns, the German Marshall Fund's Joerg Himmelreich told RFE/RL.But despite the warm atmosphere on Monday, Ms Merkel made clear the association pact would not in itself guarantee that Ukraine will one day start EU entry talks. It would mean that progress [in EU-Ukraine relations] has been achieved but there would be no automatic mechanism concerning [EU] membership, she explained. This question is not on the agenda.French diplomats, who first floated the association agreement proposal last December, have in the past pointed out that while the EU and Ukraine are coming closer together, the word association in itself does not relate to enlargement, as the EU also has association deals with states such as Chile and Egypt.

Polish media reports that discussion on the precise wording of the EU-Ukraine treaty preamble is ongoing at the diplomatic level, with the EU negotiating mandate allowing a clause along the lines that the EU recognises Ukraine's EU membership aspirations. Ukrainian diplomats are still struggling to have pro-enlargement wording included in the text before the Evian meeting, Polish daily Rzeczpospolita reports, while Spain leads an EU camp which wants the preamble to explicitly say the new treaty does not relate to accession.

OBAMA SAYS HES COMMITTED TO ISRAELS SECURITY
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Obama pays visit to Jerusalem holy site By DAVE ESPO, AP Special Correspondent JULY 23,08

JERUSALEM - Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama paid a predawn visit to the holiest place in Judaism on Thursday, bowing his head in prayer at the Western Wall. Obama placed a small note inside a crevice in the ancient wall, a custom observed by many. He made his brief stop as he completed a trip to the Middle East in which he met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders as well as Jordan's King Abdullah.

OBAMA JERUSALEM WILL BE ISRAELS CAPITAL
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Obama tells Israel he's committed to its security By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent JULY 23,08

SDEROT, Israel - From the solemnity of a Holocaust museum to a dusty village battered by Hamas rockets, Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama on Wednesday professed an unshakable commitment to the security of Israel, whether the threat comes from terrorists, Iran or elsewhere. The way you know where somebody's going is where have they been. And I've been with Israel for many, many years now, he said on a day that bore striking similarities to campaigning in the United States.In his public remarks, Obama sidestepped a question of whether he would condone an Israeli attack to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. But he said he was confident that in several private meetings he had not left Israeli politicians with the impression that, if elected president, he would be pressuring them to accept any kinds of concessions that would put their security at stake.Obama packed more than a half-dozen meetings, a stop at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, a helicopter tour of the country and a visit to a house hit by Hamas rockets into his only full day in Israel during his trip to the Middle East and Europe.He also rode past an Israeli checkpoint into Ramallah on the West Bank, where he assured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of his support for a two-state resolution of the region's long animosities. Later, entering a session with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Obama said his talks with Abbas indicated there's a strong sense of progress being made toward peace. Olmert nodded and said, Indeed.Before dawn Thursday in Jerusalem, paid a predawn visit to the holiest place in Judaism, bowing his head in prayer at the Western Wall and pushing a small note into a crevice in the ancient wall, a custom that is observed by many.

Obama's major focus was clearly reassuring Israelis — and by extension millions of Jewish voters in the United States — of his commitment to the survival of the Jewish state. He leads his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, among Jewish voters, but his support falls short of what Democrat John Kerry drew four years ago.Obama said Israelis could be certain of his commitment to Israel's security by looking at my deeds.Just this past week, we passed out of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee, which is my committee, a bill to call for divestment from Iran, as a way of ratcheting up the pressure to ensure that they don't obtain a nuclear weapon, he said.However, Obama does not serve on the banking committee, and McCain's campaign seized on the mistake.Not only is it not his committee, but he's not even on the committee, he didn't vote on the bill, and he had nothing to do with its passage, McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds said in a statement issued Wednesday.Obama's trip is financed by his presidential campaign, and he flew to Israel from Jordan on Tuesday night about his chartered Boeing 757 emblazoned with his trademark slogan, Change We Can Believe In.If his campaign aides were looking for memorable images during the day, they got them, from Obama donning a skullcap at the Holocaust memorial, to President Shimon Peres saying, God Bless You outside his official residence, to a stop at a house under reconstruction in Sderot where he saw firsthand the destruction caused by Hamas rockets.People are committed, he said, making a fist and thumping his chest three times.Shielded by intense U.S. and Israeli security, he then traveled a short distance to the local police station. There, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and local officials showed him racks filled with debris from Hamas rockets that have landed in Sderot in the past seven years. In 2005 Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip a mile away.The same racks formed a made-for-television backdrop for a news conference attended not only by U.S. reporters, but also Israelis whose satellite trucks jammed the parking lot across the street.Eli Moyal, the local mayor, gave Obama a souvenir T-shirt — merely the latest he has received since he began running for president — and the senator also came away with a gift of a piece of rocket as artwork, attached to a wooden plaque.Gaza Hamas official Fawzi Barhoum had a less-favorable response to Obama's visit to Sderot: Hamas considers the remarks of the Democratic candidate today to be part of the American policy of bias towards Israel and giving legitimacy to Israeli crimes against our people. His remarks today give cover for the occupation's nonstop crimes against our people.The subject of Tehran's presumed drive to gain a nuclear weapon — and the threat that would pose to Israel — was a recurrent theme throughout the day. The American presidential candidate said, Iranians need to understand that whether it's the Bush administration or an Obama administration, that this is a paramount concern to the United States.He said he favors both big sticks and carrots to persuade Iranians to switch course. What I have also said, though, is that I will take no options off the table in dealing with this potential Iranian threat. And understand part of my reasoning here. A nuclear Iran would be a game-changing situation, not just in the Middle East but around the world. Whatever remains of our nuclear nonproliferation framework, I think, would begin to disintegrate. You would have countries in the Middle East who would see the potential need to also obtain nuclear weapons.

At his news conference, Obama brushed aside a question of whether he had backed off his statement this spring that Jerusalem should be the undivided capital of Israel. Palestinians also lay claim to the city as the capital for any state they establish as the result of peace talks, and the two sides have agreed that the final decision is to be negotiated. Criticized by Abbas after he made that comment, Obama subsequently amended it. Well, obviously, it's going to be up to the parties to negotiate a range of these issues. And Jerusalem will be part of those negotiations, he said. He added that as a practical matter, it would be very difficult to execute a division of the city. Abbas issued a statement saying he and Obama had not discussed the issue in their hour together. Asked by an Israeli reporter about the matter, Obama said, I continued to say that Jerusalem will be the capital of Israel. And I have said that before and I will say it again. And I also have said that it is important that we don't simply slice the city in half. But I've also said that that's a final status issue.Obama departs on Thursday for Germany, where he is scheduled to deliver an outdoor speech before a large crowd. He also has stops planned for France and England before flying back to the United States on Saturday.
Associated Press writers Matti Friedman, Laurie Copans and Ian Deitch contributed to this story.

Stocks advance following sharp drop in oil prices By TIM PARADIS, AP Business Writer Wed Jul 23, 6:08 PM ET

NEW YORK - Stocks advanced for the second straight session Wednesday as another decline in oil prices and several upbeat profit reports eased some of Wall Street's concerns about the economy. Investors expect that a sustained pullback in oil prices would give a crucial boost to the economy. Crude has retreated as oil investors have worried that high prices and a sluggish economy are reducing demand. The government reported Wednesday that domestic inventories increased last week as consumers curbed their energy use.Oil is down more than $20 a barrel since hitting a record above $147 just weeks ago. A barrel of light, sweet crude fell $3.98 to settle at $124.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.While oil at times tugged at stocks, as it has for months, investors also examined a raft of earnings reports Wednesday that indicated not all corporate profits were suffering because of the slower economy. That left some investors more upbeat about the prospects for the overall economy. AT&T Inc., McDonald's Corp. and Pfizer Inc., all among the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones industrial average, weighed in with reports that generally pleased investors.

Oil is a positive but I think bigger than that is the earnings news is not as catastrophic as people were thinking, said Noman Ali, portfolio manager of U.S. equities for MFC Global Investment Management in Toronto. Some of the bellwethers are reporting earnings that are better-than-expected. And outside of the financials, things aren't so bad.The Dow rose 29.88, or 0.26 percent, to 11,632.38 after rising nearly 100 points early in the session. On Tuesday, the blue chips gained 135 points.Broader stock indicators also advanced Wednesday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5.19, or 0.41 percent, to 1,282.19 and the technology-laden Nasdaq composite index rose 21.92, or 0.95 percent, to 2,325.88.

Nasdaq's gains came ahead of a report from Amazon.com Inc., which said after the closing bell that its second-quarter profit more than doubled to top Wall Street's expectations.Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 5 to 3 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 6.56 billion shares, compared with 6.04 billion shares traded Tuesday.Bond prices slipped as some investors moved from the safety of government debt to stocks. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 4.12 percent from 4.10 percent from late Tuesday.The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices fell.Some strength in the dollar helped push oil lower. The drop in oil helped a range of sectors like airlines. Delta Air Lines Inc. rose 89 cents, or 12 percent, to $8.60, while Continental Airlines Inc. jumped $1.54, or 12 percent, to $14.80.Energy companies lost ground as oil fell. Exxon Mobil Corp. fell $1.87, or 2.3 percent, to $80.99 and Chevron Corp. slid $2.98, or 3.5 percent, to $82.65.Investors appeared unfazed by the Federal Reserve's Beige Book, which provides readings on the U.S. economy by region and indicated that business conditions have slowed in recent months as consumer spending has turned sluggish. The report arrives two weeks before policymakers' next meeting but seemed to hold few surprises for investors.Wall Street instead appeared more focused on oil and corporate news.AT&T rose $1.24, or 3.9 percent, to $33.06 after the company said quarterly profits rose amid a big spike in wireless subscribers that offset its shrinking landline business.Pfizer, the world's biggest drug maker, said its second-quarter earnings more than doubled as restructuring charges declined and the weak dollar helped lift overseas revenue. The stock rose 72 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $19.07.McDonald's credited strong overseas sales with driving the company's second-quarter profit. The stock fell 46 cents to $59.66.

Boeing Co. fell $2.54, or 3.7 percent, to $66.72 after reporting second-quarter earnings fell 19 percent due to a $248 million charge related to a defense program. The world's second-largest commercial airplane maker had already warned it would book the expense. Washington Mutual Inc. fell $1.17, or 20 percent, to $4.65 after the nation's largest thrift reported a $3 billion loss due to increases in its loss reserves to cover souring loans in its mortgage portfolio. Costco Wholesale Corp. warned that its fiscal fourth-quarter and full-year profits will fall short of Wall Street's expectations. The warehouse club operator expects higher energy costs to hurt its results. The stock fell $8.57, or 12 percent, to $63.43. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac advanced ahead of an ultimately successful House vote Wednesday on legislation to tap the mortgage giants' profits to cover any losses from saving 400,000 homeowners from foreclosure. The measure, which won easy approval in a vote after the closing bell on Wall Street, would give the Treasury Department authority to extend the companies a temporary lifeline. Fannie Mae rose $1.59, or 12 percent, to $15, while Freddie Mac rose $1.10, or 11 percent, to $10.80. Hours before the vote, President Bush dropped his opposition to the measure, which appears likely to pass the Senate and become law within days. Bill Stone, chief investment strategist for PNC Wealth Management, said some investors had been overly concerned about some financials and that some companies' quarterly reports had quelled some fears.

They were pricing some of these companies seemingly for the end. And when you don't get the worst possible outcome you get at least a jump out of them, he said. MFC's Ali said that while the government's action to help Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has reassured investors he remains cautious. Some of the biggest rallies happen in bear markets. The outlook for the market is still pretty negative, he said, pointing to a general decline in earnings, a slowdown in international growth, rising prices and a weak dollar. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 2.37, or 0.33 percent, to 719.19. Overseas, Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 0.97 percent. Britain's FTSE 100 added 1.60 percent, Germany's DAX index rose 1.45 percent, and France's CAC-40 jumped 1.88 percent. On the Net: New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com
Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com

Unknown disease killing off Florida's state tree By SARAH LARIMER, Associated Press Writer Wed Jul 23, 5:50 PM ET

MIAMI - The sabal palm, Florida's state tree, is under attack by a microscopic killer that has scientists stumped. An unknown but growing number of sabal palms in the Tampa Bay area have died from a mysterious disease that researchers are struggling to identify. Even after scientists pinpoint the disease — and that could take years — they will have to learn what insect spreads it. The disease will be tough to stop. It's not simply a matter that we will be able to eradicate, said Monica Elliott, a University of Florida plant pathologist. That's not very likely.Sabal palms, also known cabbage palms, can grow to 50 feet. In the United States, they can be found from the Florida Keys to parts of North Carolina and can grow in marshes, woodlands or along the coastline. The palm, which is also South Carolina's state tree, is featured in Florida's state seal and was designated the state tree in the 1950s.Tim Schubert, an administrator and pathologist in Florida's Division of Plant Industry, said it's impossible to say what the disease's eventual effect on the state's sabal palms will be, but it's not going to be good.There's going to be fewer palms, he said. They may present a less attractive tree in nature because of this new disease showing up.Schubert said he knew of no cases of the disease in sabal palms outside Florida.This is not the first time iconic Florida trees have been ravaged by disease. The state's orange and other citrus trees are being attacked by canker and greening. Scientists have been unable to stop either.

The new disease destroys the sabal palm and its other victims, which include Canary Island date palms and queen palms, from within. It's a tough diagnosis, Elliott said, often confused with nutrient deficiencies or excessive trimming. First to go are the lower leaves in the tree's canopy, followed by a dead spear leaf. Finally, the palm's canopy collapses.Understanding how the disease spreads requires a trip back to high school science class.This is a phytoplasma disease, which means it is a very small bacterium that doesn't have a cell wall. And it can only be transmitted through a plant's phloem, a type of transport tissue similar to veins in a human. The disease has likely found its way to sabal palms' phloem by either a tree- or leaf-hopping insect.The disease is hitting the state during a tight budget year and University of Florida research funding has taken a hit. Officials can still turn to federal and private grants, and a proposal to dip into a small emergency fund is being considered, said Jack Battenfield, a spokesman for UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.We don't have some of the freedoms we might have had before, Battenfield said. The budget's tighter. We've got to look at things we can do most effectively, most efficiently, and have the biggest impact.On the Net:UF Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center: http://flrec.ifas.ufl.edu/