CANADIANS HELP ISRAELI WITH ARCHEOLOGY DIGS

KING JESUS IS COMING FOR US ANY TIME NOW. THE RAPTURE. BE PREPARED TO GO.

Largest Dust Storms in a Century Roll Back into Dust Bowl

Massive dust storms – the largest in a century -- are rolling back into America's Dust Bowl, bringing destructive "haboobs."

By Chana Ya'ar

First Publish: 8/1/2012, 12:16 PM

Sand and wind swirled through the Negev

Hana Levi Julian

Massive dust storms – the largest in a century -- are rolling back into America's Dust Bowl, bringing with them dust clouds known as “haboobs.” The word derives from the Arabic term for “strong wind.”
According to meteorologists, the huge dust storms are becoming more frequent, forming during the monsoon season from June until the end of September. This summer's dust storms are the worst to have hit since the massive “Dust Bowl” disaster that struck the Midwest in the 1930s. At that time, more than 100 million acres of topsoil were stripped from the land when the strong winds struck in Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. Massive storms gathered up the drought-parched topsoil and dumped it into the Atlantic Ocean, destroying the land for future farming, and creating the “Dust Bowl” region.This past Monday, the state of Arizona was struck again – as it had been one year ago -- with the city of Phoenix shrouded in a dust cloud 2,000 feet high and nearly 60 miles wide. Nine thousand homes were left in the dark as electricity poles and tree limbs were snapped, and Sky Harbor Airport was shut down temporarily. Since June, five such dust storms have rolled into the state's valley area. Phoenix was hit by three dust storms in a row in the past seven days – a very rare phenomenon, meteorologists said, and one that could be fatal for area residents.
Just one year ago, the largest dust storm ever recorded in Phoenix hit the area. It caused havoc for the city's residents, and not only through road accidents due to poor visibility. Arizona is the epicenter for 70 percent of the nation's reported “valley fever” cases, which rose by 36 percent between 2010 and 2011. The disease is caused by the Coccidioides fungus, present in desert soil, which is tossed into the air and breathed in when dust storms blow across the area.The dust that is thrown into the air also carries a poisonous mix of chemicals and bacteria resulting from fertilizers, stockyard fecal matter, other fungi and heavy metals from pollution. All of these can cause health problems such as asthma, cardiovascular and eye diseases as well as other conditions.Israel also is periodically struck by dust and sand storms, particularly in the summer, during the "sharav" or “hamsin” (desert wind) season. But residents of the Middle East have been living with the phenomenon for centuries, and at the first sign of an oncoming storm, children, the elderly, and those with medical conditions are alerted to remain indoors.

Canadian money helps Israeli archeological dig of early cities

$2.7-million grant from the Canadian government funding Bronze Age excavation By Derek Stoffel, CBC NewsPosted: Jul 30, 2012 5:30 AM ETLast Updated: Jul 31, 2012 1:41 PM ET

 

Lisa Burnett, right, is one of several University of Manitoba students taking part in an archeological dig of Bronze Age settlements near Tel Aviv, Israel, that is being funded by the Canadian government. (Derek Stoffel/CBC)

Derek Stoffel
Middle East correspondent

There are no high rises. Certainly no condos. But students from Manitoba are in Israel this month exploring some of the earliest cities on Earth.Working on their hands and knees, they use picks, trowels and brooms to clear away the dirt at an archaeological site located at Tell es-Safi, south of the main highway connecting Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.“It’s amazing! It’s the best experience I’ve had so far,” says Lisa Burnett, who studies anthropology and archaeology at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.A $2.7-million grant from the Canadian government is paying for the dig, which is focusing on Early Bronze Age remains dating back to somewhere between 3,000 and 2,500 BCE.Eight students from the University of Manitoba are in Israel taking part in the project, with students from Israel, the United States, China and other countries also participating.

Evidence of early cities

From dawn until the early afternoon, the students and some of their professors are at the site, carrying out a careful excavation of this early example of an urban settlement. They’ve uncovered the walls of several houses, as well as walkways and courtyards. Students have discovered all kinds of pottery, including serving trays and drinking vessels.“Most Canadians today don’t live in towns and villages and the countryside,” said Prof. Haskel Greenfield of the University of Manitoba’s Department of Anthropology.“They live in massive urban centres. This [idea] has its origins here in the Middle East. And getting at a site like Tell es-Safi gives us an opportunity to try to understand that kind of lifestyle.”Greenfield says his students are learning about some of the earliest kitchens known to man. It appears that, as in modern times, the kitchen was the centre of the household. Hearths have been discovered in many of the rooms, some for cooking, others for keeping the house warm.They have discovered that the inhabitants of these Early Bronze Age dwellings also had a Do It Yourself ethos. Dr. Greenfield says there is evidence that houses were renovated, perhaps with the addition of new children. Some structures were remodeled while others became meeting places for the community.Dr. Greenfield says studying these ancient societies opens a window on how modern cultures evolved – and how we live today."It's really important to look at our behavior in Canada and see where it comes from, otherwise we can’t understand who we are, why we’re different, why the lifestyle we live is very special and why we need to protect it," said Dr. Greenfield.

'Opportunity of a lifetime'

It’s the “opportunity of a lifetime,” according to University of Manitoba grad student Jeremy Beller. But it’s hard work.Up every day around 4 a.m., the students dig from dawn to just after noon. The blazing sun makes it nearly to impossible to carry out work in the afternoon. (The dig teams work under the protective cover of cloth, but it still gets very hot in the limited shade.)In the afternoon, they study the artifacts they discovered in the morning. Often, there are guest lectures on archaeology and anthropology at night.
“You can see the development of human society,” said Beller. “It’s just really quite awe-inspiring, quite something to see.”The grant from Canadian Social Science and Humanities Research Council will allow students such as Beller to have hands-on experience at the Tell es-Safi site for the next seven years. It has also paid for high-tech scanners and computer equipment to map the digitally for future study.
"The money from the federal government is essential,“ Dr. Greenfield said. “Without the money from the federal government, this could not happen."

 DOCTOR DOCTORIAN FROM ANGEL OF GOD
then the angel said, Financial crisis will come to Asia. I will shake the world.

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

REVELATION 18:10,17,19
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.

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

REVELATION 13:16-18
16 And he(THE FALSE POPE WHO DEFECTED FROM THE CHRISTIAN FAITH) causeth all,(IN THE WORLD ) both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:(MICROCHIP IMPLANT)
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark,(MICROCHIP IMPLANT) or the name of the beast,(WORLD DICTATORS NAME INGRAVED ON YOUR SKIN OR TATTOOED ON YOU OR IN THE MICROCHIP IMPLANT) or the number of his name.(THE NUMBERS OF HIS NAME INGRAVED IN THE MICROCHIP IMLPLANT)-(ALL THESE WILL TELL THE WORLD DICTATOR THAT YOUR WITH HIM AND AGAINST KING JESUS-GOD)
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast:(WORLD LEADER) for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.(6-6-6) A NUMBER SYSTEM (6006006)OR(60020202006)(SOME KIND OF NUMBER IMPLANTED IN THE MICROCHIP THAT TELLS THE WORLD DICTATOR AND THE NEW WORLD ORDER THAT YOU GIVE YOUR TOTAL ALLIGIENCE TO HIM AND NOT JESUS)(ITS AN ETERNAL DECISION YOU MAKE)(YOU CHOOSE YOUR OWN DESTINY)(YOU TAKE THE DICTATORS NAME OR NUMBER UNDER YOUR SKIN,YOUR DOOMED TO THE LAKE OF FIRE AND TORMENTS FOREVER,NEVER ENDING MEANT ONLY FOR SATAN AND HIS ANGELS,NOT HUMAN BEINGS).OR YOU REFUSE THE MICROCHIP IMPLANT AND GO ON THE SIDE OF KING JESUS AND RULE FOREVER WITH HIM ON EARTH.YOU CHOOSE,ITS YOUR DECISION.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PX-vW4VccY&feature=player_embedded#!
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/indexes/

HALF HOUR DOW RESULTS WED AUGUST 01,2012

09:30 AM +2.43
10:00 AM +51.16
10:30 AM +18.16
11:00 AM +39.13
11:30 AM +30.01
12:00 PM +33.79
12:30 PM +37.35
01:00 PM +41.37
01:30 PM +42.65
02:00 PM +27.05
02:30 PM  -15.25
03:00 PM -16.84
03:30 PM -14.91
04:00 PM -32.55 12,976.13

S&P 500 1375.32 -4.00

NASDAQ 2920.21 -19.31

GOLD 1,603.40 -11.20

OIL 88.76 +0.70

TSE 300 11,618.53 -46.18

CDNX 1189.33 +6.25

S&P/TSX/60 663.75 -1.71

MORNING,NEWS,STATS

YEAR TO DATE PERFORMANCE
Dow +54 points at 4 minutes of trading today.
Dow +1 points at low today.
Dow +61 points at high today so far.
GOLD opens at $1,600.60.OIL opens at $88.58 today.

AFTERNOON,NEWS,STATS
Dow -51 points at low today so far.
Dow +61 points at high today so far.

WRAPUP,NEWS,STATS
Dow -51 points at low today.
Dow +61 points at high today.

GOLD ALLTIME HIGH $1,902.60 (NOT AT CLOSE)

CRUDE OIL -6.5 MILLION BARRELS
GASOLINE -2.2 MILLION BARRELS
DISTILLATE INVENTORIES -1 MILLION BARRELS

SOMETHING CRAZY HAS HAPPENED AT THE NYSE THIS MOURNING AT 10AM THERE WAS A GLITCH AND ABOUT 200 MILLION EXTRA SHARES CAME ON THE SCENE QUICKLY AS OF NOON TODAY THERE STILL TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE PROBLEM.

ECB chief under scrutiny for alleged conflict of interest

31.07.12 @ 09:35 AUG 1,12 By Valentina Pop

BRUSSELS - The EU ombudsman has launched an investigation into an alleged conflict of interest by European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi due to his membership in a club of top bankers, the Group of Thirty (G30)."We received a complaint and sent a letter to the ECB. Now we are waiting for a reply," Gundi Gadesmann, spokeswoman for EU ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros was quoted as saying by Reuters.The ECB also confirmed it received a request from the ombudsman and will respond in due time, while rejecting the claim that membership in the G30 is against the bank's ethics code.The complaint was filed last month by Corporate Europe Observatory, a Brussels-based transparency group, which criticised Draghi's membership in a bank lobby group whose declared statement is to influence the debate on regulation of the financial sector."There's the opaque nature of the group's activities and of its membership. There is no way for the public to know the details of the President's involvement, since the meetings of the members are confidential. Information on the discussions that take place, and whether the members commit to certain lines of action is not accessible to the public," the complaint says."In our view, given the above, the group has the characteristics of a lobbying vehicle for private financial interests. It is an important interface between the private banking sector and central banks, and allows some of the biggest private banks in the world to exert a direct influence on the top executives of the most important central banks, including the European Central Bank.""We believe that any president of the ECB has to make it absolutely clear that he or she is not under the influence of the financial lobby at any time, and has to ensure that he is not attached to a forum or process that could jeopardise his independence or give rise to conflicts of interest."With the ECB in line to receive greater powers of scrutiny over banks in the eurozone, independence from the private banking sector is becoming more important, the group added.Draghi already came under fire shortly after his ECB appointment for his past as a manager at US investment bank Goldman Sachs, where he oversaw European operations which included debt swaps with Greece that allowed Athens to cover up its real deficit.Later on, in 2010, the deficit was too big to handle and Greece became the first euro country to ask for a bailout.Bloomberg news agency has also filed a case at the EU court in Luxembourg against the ECB for its refusal to disclose internal documents which refer to the Goldman Sachs-Greece operations.At a hearing in June, the ECB said it decided not to release the documents in 2010 when Bloomberg first asked for them, because it would have "fueled negative perceptions about Greece's ability to honor its debt."Greece earlier this year was unable to honour its debt and signed up to a 'voluntary' debt restructuring in which banks slashed half of its obligations."Markets will perform better when they have transparency ... The question is who knew what; and when did they know it?" Timothy Pitt-Payne, a lawyer for Bloomberg News, told the court in June.

KNOWLEGE AND WORLD TRAVEL (IMMIGRATION) INCREASED

DANIEL 12:4
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 MICROCHIPS ETC)

Lack of funding may force Syrian refugees into Europe

31.07.12 @ 18:05 By Nikolaj Nielsen

BRUSSELS - Neighbouring countries surrounding war-ravaged Syria may seal off their borders if they can no longer absorb the increasing number of refugees, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) representative to Jordan, Andrew Harper, told EUobserver on Tuesday (31 July)."If countries feel they cannot absorb the number of refugees, they have little choice but to close the borders," he said.Refugees will be forced to return to Syria or go elsewhere like Europe, Harper explained.On Sunday, Jordanian authorities opened up a new camp on the border to ease pressures on border sites hosting thousands of Syrian refugees. The camp, located in northern Jordan, can accommodate 113,000 if required. Local Jordanian communities are also aiding the refugees but are now stretched beyond capacity."The EU is providing some funding but we are in desperate need of more money. We hope they are able to provide support so we can help. We are basically running out of money as we get it," said Harper.Some 1,500 refugees are arriving daily in Jordan, crossing over at night from the Da'raa region in southern Syria. Reports are emerging refugees are being fired upon, the majority of whom are women and small children coming primarily from towns and cities near the border. Last week, a surge in refugees from Damascus also arrived in Jordan."We are trying to mitigate the costs of the camps and unless Jordan receives the money it is likely to close the border. The refugees will be forced back into Syria or elsewhere," said Harper. There is a need of an additional $12 million to keep the camps operational, he estimated.

200,000 flee Aleppo

Fierce violence over the weekend in Syria's largest city, Aleppo has forced an estimated 200,000 residents to flee, with many seeking refuge in Turkey.The past four days have also seen a daily exodus of around 2,000 Aleppo residents making their way up across the Hatay border and on into Turkey. Snipers and roadblocks may be hindering their way.So far, around 70,000 Syrian refugees have sought formal protection in Turkey. Turkey, which is managing eight camps, plans on erecting another two within the next three weeks, each with a capacity to house 10,000 refugees.Meanwhile, Greece has deployed an additional 1,800 border guards on the Turkish border. Greek public order minister Nikos Dendias told the Associated Press on Monday that Syria poses "a major concern" for Greece.Cyprus, which is located around 100km from the Syrian coast line, has not experienced any surge of refugees. The vast majority, said Corina Drousiotou of the NGO Future Worlds Center based in Nicosia, remain in Turkey.But the few Syrian refugees who have attempted to enter Cyprus do so first by landing in the Turkish Republic of Cyprus before walking across the green line that splits the island in two.The green line is not officially recognised as a border and is sparsely guarded."This makes it easy for smugglers to pass persons at various points. Cyprus is not facilitating Syrians in any way, either those already here or others who may have approached the Embassy in Damascus," said Drousitou in an email.The European Commission, for its part, has committed €40 million in humanitarian aid inside Syria and in support to the refugees.Of the EU's humanitarian aid, about 40 percent goes for the refugees from Syria in Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan. A number of EU member states have also mobilised more than €27.9 million, says the European Commission."Syria is sliding into a large scale humanitarian tragedy that brings back awful memories of Ex-Yugoslavia. For the sake of people subjected to daily violence and horrors, we must not let this happen," said EU aid commissioner Kristalina Georgieva.
Frontex, the EU's border agency, says some 715 Syrian refugees were detected attempting to enter the EU in the first three months of 2012; a five-fold increase compared to last year. Of those, the vast majority were crossing into Greece from Turkey.

FAMINE

REVELATION 6:5-6
5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.
6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine.(A DAYS WAGES FOR A LOAF OF BREAD)

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: 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.

Small farmers struggle as drought kills vegetables

By DINESH RAMDE | Associated Press – 17 hours ago AUG 1,12

WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) — Chris Covelli planted 1,000 zucchini seeds on his farm in southern Wisconsin this spring. Only a quarter sprouted in the parched soil. A few weeks later, he planted 1,000 more seeds and doubled his irrigation. This time, nothing came up.Covelli also lost his broccoli and green beans to the drought that now covers two-thirds of the nation. Under pressure to fill the boxes he delivers weekly to families who buy annual subscriptions of produce, he recently threw in purslane, which he describes as a vitamin-rich, "delicious weed" that tastes like lettuce.Small fruit and vegetable farmers throughout the Midwest are struggling with unusual heat and a once-in-decades drought. Some have lost crops, while others are paying more to irrigate. Most aren't growing enough to sell profitably to wholesalers, and sales at farmers markets are down. Those with community supported agriculture programs, or CSAs, are looking for ways to keep members happy, or at least satisfied enough that they'll sign up again next year.Covelli said he and his crew have spent every day in the field, often in 100-degree heat, in an effort to deliver the vegetables promised to families who pay $14 to $45 per week. So far, he said, they've delivered most of what they promised, although they've had to get creative with the addition of drought-hardy items like purslane.
"There's no secret," said Covelli, who owns Tomato Mountain Farms in Brooklyn, Wis. "You just do what you have to do. If that means doing more plantings, trying different crops, waking up at 2 a.m. to move the irrigation pipe, we do it. That's what hard work is."Other farmers have not fared as well. Bob Borchardt, who co-owns Harvest Moon Farms in Viroqua, Wis., lost most of his greens, including chard and kale. He also runs a CSA, but said thus far, he's only been able to deliver about 20 percent of what he planned. He hopes to make it up to members when his heirloom tomatoes come in next month.Meanwhile, he's been in dire need of cash. To tide him over, he sold "sponsorships" of two fields for a total of $5,000. The Illinois family who bought the sponsorships will be able to pick from the field, be treated to a home-cooked meal on the land and have a corporate logo or family portrait posted among the plants."We're not out of the woods yet, but we are optimistic," Borchardt said. "All we're thinking about now is getting through this year and staying in business."Unlike farmers who grow corn, soybeans and other crops sold as commodities, vegetable farmers don't have insurance to cover them in case of drought or flooding.But even those who have vegetables to sell say it has been a bad year.Anna Ertl, whose family runs a farm in Raymond, Wis., near the Illinois border, shook her head as she watched a trickle of customers meander through a farmers market in the Milwaukee suburb of West Allis. In front of her was a table with pickles, sweet onions and several dozen zucchinis."You hear so much bad stuff in the media (about harvests), but people need to come down here and see what we have," Ertl said. "This is our livelihood. This is how we survive."Dan Koralewski, who oversees operations at the West Allis Farmers Market, said 5,000 to 6,000 customers generally show up during peak season in mid-July, but attendance seemed to be about half that this year. He blamed a combination of customer skepticism and hot weather that kept many people in the cooler indoors.
Farmers markets in other Midwestern states also reported fewer sales. In Plainfield, an Indiana town of about 27,000 residents, attendance at the local farmers market is down an estimated 20 to 30 percent, said Brad DuBois, the executive director of the Plainfield Chamber of Commerce Farmers Market.Bryan Robbins, who runs the Greensburg Decatur County farmers market in Indiana, said it experienced a similar drop in attendance in recent weeks, so he started a new program for elderly customers who may be leery of the heat.Seniors can now pull up to a designated lane in the parking lot and hand over their shopping lists. Robbins or someone else will then fetch the products, allowing the customers to remain in their air-conditioned cars."That's one advantage of being a small market in a small community," said Robbins, whose market typically draws 700 to 800 people. "Not everyone else can do that."___Dinesh Ramde can be reached at dramde(at)ap.org.

 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.

THE FIRST JUDGEMENT OF THE EARTH STARTED WITH WATER-IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THE LAST GENERATION WILL BE HAVING FLOODING
GENESIS 7:6-12
6 And Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth.
7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons’ wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood.
8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of every thing that creepeth upon the earth,
9 There went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, the male and the female, as God had commanded Noah.
10 And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was upon the earth forty days and forty nights.
GOD PROMISED BY A RAINBOW-THE EARTH WOULD NEVER BE DESTROYED TOTALLY WITH A FLOOD AGAIN.BUT FLOODIING IS A SIGN OF JUDGEMENT.

Taiwan, China on alert as typhoons approach

Reuters – 1 hr 23 mins ago AUG 1,12

TAIPEI/BEIJING (Reuters) - Taiwan issued torrential rain and strong wind warnings for most of the island on Wednesday as slow-moving Typhoon Saola approached, while in China, Premier Wen Jiabao told authorities to be on the highest alert to prevent deaths.The typhoon has winds of about 119 km per hour (74 mph) and could bring up to 1,000 mm (39 inches) of rain to parts of Taiwan over the rest of the week, the Central Weather Bureau said.The storm is likely to skirt the northern tip of the island on Thursday, though there was also a chance it could make landfall, it said.Heavy rain was falling in the capital Taipei on Wednesday and city authorities will decide later in the day whether to order businesses and financial markets to close on Thursday.The typhoon is expected to hit the southeastern Chinese provinces of Fujian and Zhejiang, China's official Xinhua news agency reported.A separate system, Typhoon Damrey, is expected to pass just north of China's financial hub of Shanghai on its way inland from Thursday.Wen, who usually leaves more junior leaders to oversee arrangements before storms, told authorities to step up preparations and "put people's lives first", Xinhua said.The ruling Communist Party, which values stability above all else, has been rattled by public criticism of its poor handling of floods in Beijing last month that killed 77 people.

Tracking site Tropical Storm Risk rated Saola a category two, the second-lowest on its scale of five, but forecast it could strengthen to a category three in 36 hours, when it will cross into China. http://www.tropicalstormrisk.com/(Reporting by Jonathan Standing in TAIPEI and Ben Blanchard in BEIJING; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Storms knock out power to thousands in Michigan

Associated Press – 17 hours ago AUG 1,12

ALLEGAN, Mich. (AP) — Consumers Energy says about 24,500 of its customers statewide are without electrical service following severe thunderstorms that moved across Michigan.The subsidiary of CMS Energy Corp. says the west side of the state was hit the hardest. Nearly 9,000 homes and businesses remained blacked out in Allegan County on Tuesday. More than 4,500 remained without power in Newaygo County.
The utility says more than 500 employees and more than 120 contractors are working to restore power, and hope to have most service returned by day's end.DTE Energy Co. says Tuesday it had no major outages to report.

And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.

Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.

12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE

Israeli threats against Iran, Syrian violence top Panetta's agenda in Jerusalem visit

By Robert Burns, The Associated Press | Associated Press – 1 hr 49 mins ago AUG 1,12

JERUSALEM - Israel's threats to attack Iran and the violence convulsing Syria top the agenda of U.S. Defence Secretary Leon Panetta's meetings Wednesday with Israeli government leaders.Panetta arrived in Israel on Tuesday after meeting in Cairo with Egypt's new president and its military chief.In Cairo, Panetta denied Israeli press reports that he planned to share with the Israelis any U.S. plans for military action against Iran. He said the reports gave a "wrong characterization" of what he and the Israeli leaders were expected to discuss.Panetta said his talks in Jerusalem with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Ehud Barak will be "more about what is the threat we are confronting" in Iran's nuclear program and about sharing intelligence information.In greeting Panetta Wednesday at Israeli defence headquarters, Barak said, "The defence ties between Israel and the United States are stronger and tighter than they have ever been and the credit now has to go, most of it, to you, Leon."Panetta responded: "We are a friend, we are a partner, we have, as the defence minister has pointed out, probably the strongest U.S.-Israel defence relationship that we have had in history. What we are doing, working together, is an indication not only of our friendship but of our alliance to work together to try to preserve peace in the future."Iran says its nuclear work is for civilian energy uses, but suspicions that the Islamic republic will use enriched uranium for nuclear weapons has resulted in international sanctions and saber-rattling from Israel, which perceives a nuclear Iran as an existential threat. The United States has discouraged Israel from a unilateral, pre-emptive military strike on Iran, but has said it would keep all options available."What we are discussing are various contingencies and how we would respond," Panetta said. Asked whether any such contingencies include plans for potential military action against Iran, he said, "We obviously continue to work on a number of options in that area."

The Panetta visit comes just days after U.S. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney met with top Israeli officials about Iran and other issues. Romney has accused the Obama administration of being too soft on Iran and not providing sufficient support to Israel.Netanyahu told Israeli Channel 2 TV on Tuesday that despite reservations about an Iranian attack among former Israeli security officials and Israel's current army chief, the country's political leadership would make the final decision on any attack."I see an ayatollah regime that declares what it has championed: to destroy us," Netanyahu said. "It's working to destroy us, it's preparing nuclear weapons to destroy us. ... If it is up to me, I won't let that happen."With "matters that have to do with our destiny, with our very existence, we do not put our faith in the hands of others, even our best of friends," Netanyahu said, hinting that Israel might act alone despite American misgivings.Netanyahu said both Romney and Obama have said "Israel has the right to defend itself."On Monday, while in Tunisia on the first leg of his trip, Panetta argued for giving international economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure more time to persuade Iran to change course on the nuclear issue.While in Israel Panetta also planned to inspect and get briefed on an air defence system known as Iron Dome, which is designed to shoot down short-range rockets and artillery shells such as those that have been fired into the Jewish state in recent years from Islamic militants linked to Iran and based in southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.Obama last week announced he was releasing an additional $70 million in military aid for Israel, a previously announced move that appeared timed to upstage Romney's trip to Israel. The stepped-up U.S. aid, first announced in May, will go to help Israel expand production of the Iron Dome system.The Panetta visit to Israel comes at a critical time, with the U.S. considering more direct involvement in Syria's civil war and weighing its course on Iran.Panetta acknowledged Monday that international sanctions have not pressured Tehran to give up its nuclear ambitions. But the Obama administration thinks tougher sanctions eventually will compel Iran to submit and it doesn't want Israel to attack prematurely.___Associated Press writers Amy Teibel and Daniel Estrin in contributed to this report.___Follow Robert Burns on Twitter: http://twitter.com/robertburnsAP

POWER OUTAGE

REVELATION 16:10-11
10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,
11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds. 

Power grids in India fail in massive, cascading blackout affecting more than 600 million

By Ravi Nessman, The Associated Press | Associated Press – 12 hrs ago AUG 1,12

NEW DELHI - Electric crematoria were snuffed out with bodies inside, New Delhi's Metro shut down and hundreds of coal miners were trapped underground after three Indian electric grids collapsed in a cascade Tuesday, cutting power to 620 million people in the world's biggest blackout.While Indians were furious and embarrassed, many took the crisis in stride, inured by the constant — though far less widespread — outages triggered by the huge electricity deficit stymieing the development of this would-be Asian power.Hospitals, factories and the airports switched automatically to their diesel generators during the hours-long cut across half of India. Many homes relied on backup systems powered by truck batteries. And hundreds of millions of India's poorest had no electricity to lose."The blackout might have been huge, but it wasn't unbearably long," said Satish, the owner of a coffee and juice shop in central Delhi who uses only one name. "It was just as bad as any other five-hour power cut. We just used a generator while the light was out, and it was work as usual."The crisis was the second record-breaking outage in two days. India's northern grid failed Monday, leaving 370 million people powerless for much of the day, in a collapse blamed on states that drew more than their allotment of power.At 1:05 p.m. Tuesday, the northern grid collapsed again, energy officials said. This time, it took the eastern grid and the northeastern grid with it. In all, 20 of India's 28 states — with double the population of the United States — were hit in a region stretching from the border with Myanmar in the northeast to the Pakistani border about 3,000 kilometres (1,870 miles) away.Hundreds of trains stalled across the country and traffic lights went out, causing widespread jams in New Delhi. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee asked office workers to go home and rushed generators to coal mines to rescue trapped miners.Sahiba Narang, 17, was taking the Metro home because school bus drivers were on strike, "but this power failure's messed up everything."S.K. Jain said he was on his way to file his income tax return when the Metro closed. The 54-year-old held his head, distraught that he would almost certainly miss the deadline. Hours later, the government announced it was giving taxpayers an extra month to file because of the chaos.By evening, power had been restored to New Delhi and the remote northeast, and much of the northern and eastern grids were back on line. Electricity officials said the system would not be back to 100 per cent until Wednesday.Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said the new crisis had the same root as Monday's collapse."Everyone overdraws from the grid. Just this morning I held a meeting with power officials from the states and I gave directions that states that overdraw should be punished. We have given instructions that their power supply could be cut," he said.But others were skeptical of Shinde's explanation, saying that if overdrawing power from the grid caused this kind of collapse, it would happen all the time.
"I just can't believe that there is no system in place to check whether the states are drawing more than their limit or not," said Samiran Chakraborty, head of research at Standard Chartered, a financial services company. "There has to be a much more technical answer to that question."At a contentious news conference, R.N. Nayak, chairman of Power Grid Corp., which runs the nation's power system, said his staff was searching for the cause of the problem and pleaded for patience."We have been running this grid for decades. ... Please trust us," he said.The blackouts came amid consumer anger with the recent increase in power fees, including a 26 per cent hike in Delhi, that government officials said were needed to pay for the steep rise in fuel costs.The Confederation of Indian Industry said the two outages cost business hundreds of millions of dollars, though they did not affect the financial centre of Mumbai and the global outsourcing powerhouses of Bangalore and Hyderabad in the south. Like many, the group demanded a widespread reform of India's power sector, which has been unable to keep up with the soaring demand for electricity as the economy expanded and Indians grew more affluent and energy hungry."India has outgrown its own infrastructure," said Jagannadham Thunuguntla, a strategist at SMC Global Securities.India's Central Electricity Authority reported power deficits of more than 8 per cent in recent months, and many economists said the power deficit is dragging down India's economy."Without power we cannot run an economy at 8 per cent, 9 per cent growth or whatever your ambition is," Chakraborty said.Part of the problem is that India relies on coal for more than half its power generation and the coal supply is controlled by a near state monopoly that is widely considered a shambles.A recent survey showed nearly all the coal-fueled plants had less than seven days of coal stock, a critical level, said Chakraborty, and many of the country's power plants were running below capacity. Government bureaucracy has made it difficult to bring more plants online.
In addition, vast amounts of power bleeds out of India's antiquated distribution system or is pirated through unauthorized wiring. Farmers, with a guarantee of free electricity that is driving many state electric boards to bankruptcy, have no incentive to conserve energy.The power deficit was worsened this year by a weak monsoon that lowered hydroelectric generation, spurred farmers to use pumps to irrigate their fields long after the rains would normally have come and kept temperatures higher, keeping air conditioners and fans running longer.The opposition said officials should have located the first fault and fixed it before getting the whole system back on line Monday."The power minister owes an answer to the prime minister, owes an answer to the nation why this is happening," Bharatiya Janata Party spokesman Prakash Javadekar said.

Instead, as part of a planned Cabinet shuffle, Shinde was promoted in the middle of the day to the powerful job of home minister, putting him in charge of the nation's internal security even as the power crisis dragged on.By contrast, the power chief in the state of Uttar Pradesh was summarily fired by his chief minister Monday for his handling of the first power crisis.___Associated Press writer Nasr ul Hadi contributed to this report from New Delhi and Prasanta Pal contributed from Kolkata.___Follow Ravi Nessman on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ravinessman.

Power restored across India after historic failure

By NIRMALA GEORGE | Associated Press – 1 hr 5 mins ago AUG 1,12

NEW DELHI (AP) — Factories and workshops across India were up and running again Wednesday, a day after a major system collapse led to a second day of power outages and the worst blackout in history.

An estimated 620 million people were left without electricity after India's northern, eastern and northeastern grids cascaded into failure Tuesday afternoon. It was the second massive outage in as many days, coming just after the country had recovered from Monday's failure of the northern grid, which had left 370 million people powerless.Electricity workers struggled throughout the day Tuesday to return power to the 20 affected states, restoring most of the system in the hours after the crash. India's new Power Minister Veerappa Moily told reporters that by Wednesday morning power had been fully restored across the country.Moily, who took over the top power position Tuesday, said an investigation into the crisis has been launched and he did not want to point fingers or speculate about the cause.Other officials said the blackout might have been the result of states drawing too much power from the grid. Some analysts dismissed that explanation, saying that if overdrawing power from the grid caused this kind of collapse, it would happen all the time.The Confederation of Indian Industry said the two outages cost business hundreds of millions of dollars, though they did not affect the financial center of Mumbai and the global outsourcing powerhouses of Bangalore and Hyderabad in the south.Like many, the group demanded the widespread reform of India's power sector, which has been unable to keep up with the soaring demand for electricity as the economy has expanded and Indians grow more affluent and energy hungry.The power minister cautioned that there would be no quick solution to the power crisis, saying the government was looking at immediate and longer term measures to address power scarcity.Part of the problem is that India relies on coal for more than half its power generation and the coal supply is controlled by a near state monopoly that is widely considered a shambles.A recent survey showed nearly all the coal-fueled plants had less than seven days of coal stock, a critical level, and many of the country's power plants were running below capacity, according to Samiran Chakraborty, head of research at Standard Chartered, a financial services company. Government bureaucracy has made it difficult to bring more plants online.In addition, vast amounts of power bleeds out of India's antiquated distribution system or is pirated through unauthorized wiring. Farmers, with a guarantee of free electricity that is driving many state electric boards to bankruptcy, have no incentive to conserve energy.

The power deficit was worsened this year by a weak monsoon that lowered hydroelectric generation, spurred farmers to use pumps to irrigate their fields long after the rains would normally have come, and kept temperatures higher, keeping air conditioners and fans running longer.The government faced criticism for promoting Sushil Kumar Shinde from power minister to home minister in the middle of the day Tuesday, even as the outages continued. The promotion had been planned as part of a Cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.The Times of India newspaper said moving Shinde "is like changing the captain of the Titanic when it's reeling after hitting a giant iceberg."Shinde, whatever his blame for the outage might be, at least would have more experience to deal with the fallout than a brand new minister, the paper said in a front-page editorial.

OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN

ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:

MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

2012: One of the hottest years on record for central Illinois

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DAVID ZALAZNIK/JOURNAL STAR

The Tuesday afternoon sun beats down on MacDonald Shell employee George Duncan as he trims a pair of trees at West Main Street and North Bourland Avenue. The high Tuesday reached 96. The rest of the week will see mstly sunny skies and highs in the mid-90s.

 Posted Jul 31, 2012 @ 11:18 PM

Data from the National Weather Service in Lincoln suggests that 2012 is one of the hottest years in central Illinois history - and August just began. Take a look at some of the scorching numbers for the summer so far and some idea on more hot weather to come in August.Tuesday marked the 26th day in July in which the temperature hit 90 degrees or higher. That number places the 2012 summer in a rarefied echelon, tying 1901 for the most days of 90-degree weather in July on record in Peoria history.July also posted seven days of 100-degree weather, bringing 2012's 100-degree grand total to eight days. The highest temperature of the year hit 104 degrees on July 7 and July 23. With the traditionally sizzling month of August under way, 2012 is expected to crack the top five of most 100-degree days within a year.
______
Most 100 or more-degree days within a year in Peoria history:
1936 - 23 days
1934 - 18 days
1887 - 11 days
1983 - 10 days
1912, 1930, 1931, 1988 - 9 days
2012 - 8 days

POISONED WATERS

HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land,(EARTH) because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2  By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3  Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.

ZEPHANIAH 1:2-3
2  I will utterly consume all things from off the land, saith the LORD.
3  I will consume man and beast; I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, and the stumblingblocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from off the land, saith the LORD.

REVELATION 8:8-11
8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood:(bitter,Poisoned) and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.(poisoned)

REVELATION 16:3-7
3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.(enviromentalists won't like this result)
4 And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.
6 For they(False World Church and Dictator) have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.

Fish suffocated in Manitoba canal

CBC News

Posted: Jul 31, 2012 11:50 AM CT

Last Updated: Jul 31, 2012 11:48 AM CT

Read 14 comments14

Dead carp are seen floating at the surface along the canal in June. (Gary Solilak/CBC)

Hundreds of dead fish found floating in a canal near Twin Lakes Beach in June likely died from suffocation.
Provincial experts say the carp — white suckers and freshwater drum — suffered from low oxygen levels in the water.They were also spawning at the time, further depleting oxygen in the channel, which runs several kilometres between Lake St. Francis and Lake Manitoba.
Testing found no water quality problems.
The phenomenon is being called a natural event.

DRUG PUSHERS AND ADDICTS

REVELATION 18:23
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries (DRUGS) were all nations deceived.

REVELATION 9:21
21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries (DRUGS), nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. 

Australia finds record drug haul among Thai terracotta pots

Reuters – Tue, Jul 31, 2012

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police on Tuesday seized a record half a tonne of the drug ice and heroin worth up to A$500 million ($525 million) hidden in a shipment of terracotta pots from Thailand.

Seven people, including four from Hong Kong, were arrested after a year-long investigation following a tip-off from U.S. authorities, police said.The 306 kg of methamphetamine, also known as ice, was Australia's biggest seizure of the drug, while the 252 kg of heroin was the nation's third largest-haul of heroin.

"At the end of the day, there's a lot of 'Mr Mediums' and 'Mr Littles' that work with 'Mr Big'," Deputy Commissioner Andrew Colvin told reporters. "I think we've got a good combination of the people responsible for this importation."The drugs were found hidden in a shipment of 3,200 terracotta pots at Sydney's Port Botany.Those arrested were charged with conspiracy to import illicit drugs and holding a commercial quantity of illicit drugs. The charges carry a maximum penalty of life in jail."We're talking about a significant quantity of two separate types of substances which generally have different source countries," Colvin said, adding the investigation was continuing and further arrests were possible.(Reporting By Maggie Lu Yueyang in Canberra and Stuat McDill in Sydney; Editing by Nick Macfie)

JEREMEIAH 49:35-37 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR NUKE SITE SOME BELIEVE)
35  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN/BUSHEHR NUCLEAR SITE) the chief of their might.(MOST DANGEROUS NUKE SITE IN IRAN)
36  And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven,(IRANIANS SCATTERED OR MASS IMIGARATION) and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(WORLD IMMIGRATION)
37  For I will cause Elam (IRAN-BUSHEHR NUKE SITE) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(ISRAELS NUKES POSSIBLY) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(IRAN AND ITS NUKE SITES DESTROYED) 

Iran's president mocks Romney visit to Israel

Associated Press – Tue, Jul 31, 2012

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is calling a visit to Israel by U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney as "kissing the foot" of the Jewish state to boost his bid for the White House.Ahmadinejad did not specifically name Romney, but his comments were an unmistakable jab at the Republican contender's stop this week in Israel. Romney strongly backed Israel's drive to stop Iran from possibly seeking nuclear weapons. Tehran denies the claims.Ahmadinejad questioned why Romney would make "concessions to get some pennies for (his) campaign?"Ahmadinejad made the comments during a speech Tuesday broadcast on state TV.

ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.

JEREMEIAH 49:23-27
23  Concerning Damascus.(SYRIA) Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea;(WAR SHIPS WITH NUKES COMING ON SYRIA) it cannot be quiet.
24  Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25  How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26  Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
27  And I will kindle a fire (NUKES OR BOMBS) in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(ASSADS PALACES POSSIBLY IN DAMASCUS) 

Syrian aircraft strike Aleppo, rebels claim successes

By Erika Solomon | Reuters – 1 hr 17 mins ago AUG 1,12

ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) - Syrian combat aircraft and artillery pounded Aleppo late into the night as the army battled for control of the country's biggest city, where rebel fighters said troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad had been forced to retreat.During the day on Tuesday large clouds of black smoke rose into the sky after attack helicopters turned their machineguns on eastern districts for the first time in the latest fighting and a MiG warplane later strafed the same area.After nightfall, Reuters journalists in Aleppo heard loud explosions somewhere near the city. At least 10 volleys of shells lit up the night sky and drowned out the sound of the Islamic call to prayer. Carloads of rebel fighters shouting "God is great" sped off towards the fighting.The battle for Aleppo, Syria's largest city, has become a crucial test for both sides in the 16-month-old rebellion. Neither Assad's forces nor the rag-tag rebels can afford to lose if they hope to prevail in the wider struggle for Syria.Syria's civil war has entered a far more violent phase since July 18 when a bomb killed four top members of President Bashar al-Assad's inner circle. Serious fighting reached Aleppo over the past week and rebels also launched an assault on the capital Damascus in July but were repulsed.Heavy gunfire echoed around the Salaheddine district in the southwest of the city, scene of some of the worst clashes, with shells raining in for most of the day.Reuters journalists have established that neither the Syrian army nor rebel fighters are in full control of the quarter, which the government said it had taken on Sunday.one journalist said Salaheddine resembled a "ghost town", its shops shuttered, with no sign of life.
Rebel fighters, some in balaclavas and others with scarves around their faces, fired machineguns and assault rifles around street corners at invisible enemies. Wounded civilians and fighters were carried to makeshift dressing stations.Syrian state television said on Tuesday troops were still pursuing remaining "terrorists" there - its usual way of describing rebel fighters.A rebel commander in Aleppo said his fighters' aim was to push towards the city centre, district by district, a goal he believed they could achieve "within days, not weeks".
The rebels say they now control an arc that covers eastern and southwestern districts."The regime has tried for three days to regain Salaheddine, but its attempts have failed and it has suffered heavy losses in human life, weapons and tanks, and it has been forced to withdraw," said Colonel Abdel-Jabbar al-Oqaidi, head of the Joint Military Council, one of several rebel groups in Aleppo.Oqaidi told Reuters that more than 3,000 rebel fighters were in Aleppo but would not give a precise number.
SURFACE-TO-AIR MISSILES

According to an NBC News report that a Western official did not dispute, the rebels have acquired nearly two dozens surface-to-air missiles, which were delivered to them via neighboring Turkey.It is not clear what kind of man-portable air-defense systems they are or whether the rebels have the training to use them, but the missiles could tilt the fighting field if the rebels were able to target the Syrian government's air operations.

The fighting has proved costly for the 2.5 million residents of Aleppo, a commercial hub that was slow to join the anti-Assad revolt that has rocked the capital, Damascus, and other cities.Rebels say they will turn Aleppo into the "grave" of the Assad government. Thousands of residents have fled and those who remain face shortages of food and fuel and the ever-present risk of injury or death."We have hardly any power or water, our wives and kids have left us here to watch the house and have gone somewhere safer," said Jumaa, a 45-year-old construction worker, who complained it was nearly impossible to observe the fasting month of Ramadan.Makeshift clinics in rebel-held areas struggle to deal with dozens of casualties after more than a week of fighting.Up to 18,000 people have been forced to leave their homes in Aleppo and many frightened residents were seeking shelter in schools, mosques and public buildings, according to figures given by the U.N. refugee agency in Geneva.Rebel fighters, patrolling parts of Aleppo in pick-up trucks flying green-white-and-black "independence" flags, face a daunting task in taking on the well-equipped Syrian army, even if the loyalty of some of its troops is in doubt.Armed with Kalashnikov assault rifles, machineguns and rocket-propelled grenades, they are up against a military that can deploy fighter jets, helicopter gunships, tanks, armored fighting vehicles, artillery and mortars.The most powerful military in the region, NATO member Turkey, has been moving armored columns towards the border, although it has given no indication they will cross over.Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, once a friend of Assad, has become one of his most vocal opponents. Erdogan spoke by phone to U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday.

"God willing, the brotherly Syrian people and the Middle East will soon be freed from this dictator with blood on his hands, and his regime, which was built on blood," Erdogan said late on Tuesday in a monthly television address."Assad and his bloodstained comrades know well that they have reached the end, and that their fates will not be different from those of previous dictators."Western and Arab states have for months been urging the Syrian opposition to unite. On Tuesday, they appeared further fractured when a group of exiled Syrian activists announced a new opposition alliance to form a transitional government - a challenge to the Syrian National Council, a long established group they said had failed.The head of the Free Syrian Army attacked the new political coalition, calling its leaders opportunists who seek to divide the opposition and benefit from the rebels' gains.Assad, a member of the Alawite minority sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, is now opposed by the leaders of other Arab states, nearly all of which are led by Sunni Muslims, as well as by Turkey and the West.Within the region he retains the support of Shi'ite-led Iran, and in the U.N. Security Council he has been protected by China and Russia.The U.N. General Assembly said on Tuesday it would hold a meeting on the crisis in Syria this week and diplomats say it will likely vote on a Saudi-drafted resolution that condemns the Security Council for failing to take action against Damascus.(Additional reporting by Yara Bayoumy in Beirut, Jonathon Burch in Ankara, Yasmine Saleh in Cairo, Mark Hosenball and Tabassum Zakaria in Washington and Louis Charbonneau at the United Nations; Writing by Giles Elgood; Editing by Peter Graff, Michael Roddy and Mohammad Zargham)

DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(TAKE OVER 3 WORLD REGIONS)

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report. 

Palestinian PM discusses economic issues with Israel

AFP – 12 hrs ago AUG 1,12

Israel Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz met with Palestinian prime minister Salam Fayyad on Tuesday to discuss economic issues, a statement said."The meeting focused on the arrangements concerning the transfer of goods and the taxes between Israel and the Palestinian Authority," the statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said.It quoted Netanyahu as saying that steps had been taken to support and strengthen the Palestinian economy."We hope these arrangements will help advance our relations with the Palestinians in other areas," the statement added.Israeli public radio said the arrangements would come into force at the start of 2013 and are aimed at developing trade relations and combatting tax evasion and smuggling.Under the 1994 Paris Accords, Israel transfers Palestinian tax and tariff funds to the Palestinians.The funds total about 700 million to one billion euros ($862 million to $1.2 billion) a year, representing two thirds of the Palestinian Authority's annual budget.