JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
UN Fails to Agree on Condemnation of Israel-U.S. Ambassador Power says directly criticizing Israel is "a red line", as Security Council can't agree on statement against Jewish State.By Elad Benari-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 4:16 AM-IsraelNationalNews
The United Nations Security Council on Monday failed to agree on a statement that would have condemned Israel over the deaths of Palestinian Arabs as part of its security operation in Judea and Samaria, following the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers by Hamas.Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, the current Security Council president, was quoted by The Associated Press (AP) as having said he proposed the press statement after listening to a Palestinian appeal for council action.He added that one council member wanted stronger language and one didn't want any reference to Israel, so unfortunately the council was not able to find "common ground."Diplomats said Jordan insisted that "deploring" wasn't strong enough and U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said any language directly criticizing Israel would be "a red line" for the Americans.The diplomats spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority (PA) UN ambassador, said he had delivered a letter to Churkin from the PA leadership demanding that the Security Council "shoulder its responsibility" by "condemning this onslaught against our people and demanding a complete cessation immediately."UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman told the Security Council at an earlier open meeting that the situation on the ground had turned highly volatile following the suspension of peace negotiations in late April and despite initial restraint on both sides.He expressed alarm at the increasing Palestinian Arab death toll in Israeli security operations, saying more than 350 have reportedly been arrested, many injured and four killed."We condemn all killings of civilians and call for an investigation into any such deaths," Feltman said, according to AP.He also criticized Israel for tightened restrictions on Palestinian Arab movements, the hunger strike by terrorist prisoners, and for "illegal settlement building”, the report said.Feltman urged Israel to exercise restraint and not to “punish Palestinians for offenses they have not personally committed.”The debate in the Security Council was held one day after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed “solidarity” with the families of the three kidnapped Israeli teenagers, but also hit out at Israel for arresting Hamas terrorists as part of its operation to locate the three teens.In a statement Sunday outlining Ban’s conversation with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu the day before, the UN chief stressed “the need to avoid an escalation of tensions in the wake of the recent abduction of three Israeli teenagers and the increased violence and mass arrests in the West Bank.”According to the statement, in Saturday’s phone call with Netanyahu, Ban “conveyed his sympathy for the abducted teenagers and deep solidarity with their families” but also “voiced concern over the increased violence, mass arrests, and restrictions on movement in the West Bank.”The conversation between Ban and Netanyahu was held several days after a spokesperson for Ban claimed that the UN has no "concrete evidence" that Eyal Yifrah, 19, Naftali Frenkel, 16, and Gilad Sha'ar, 16, were "actually" kidnapped by Hamas terrorists.The timing of the spokesperson’s comments was odd, as they were made after Ban had already condemned the kidnapping, noting particularly that two of the kidnapped Israeli students are minors.
Israel detains 37 more Palestinians in West Bank crackdown
By Ali Sawafta 7 hours ago-JUNE 23,14-YahooNews
RAMALLAH West Bank (Reuters) - Israel's army said on Monday it had detained another 37 Palestinians overnight as it searched for three missing teenagers and extended a crackdown on the Hamas Islamist group it accuses of kidnapping them.There were no reports of clashes between the soldiers and Palestinians in the raids in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where the military says it has detained 361 people since the Israeli students went missing on June 12.The crisis has aggravated tensions in the West Bank which, along with East Jerusalem and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, the Palestinians want as part of a future state.An Israeli military spokeswoman said the latest operations took place in Jenin, a militant stronghold, and in the Hebron area, close to where the three disappeared while hitchhiking."As part of ongoing operations, (Israeli) forces detained 37 suspects and searched 80 locations," the spokeswoman said.Palestinian officials said Israeli soldiers also entered Bethlehem and Nablus.The disappearance of the students - Gil-Ad Shaer and U.S.-Israeli dual national Naftali Fraenkel, both aged 16, and Eyal Yifrah, 19 - after they left a Jewish settlement where they were studying has been celebrated by Hamas. But it has stopped short of taking credit."We don't have any information about the missing three soldier-settlers," Hamas supreme leader Khaled Meshaal was quoted as saying by Palimes, a website aligned with the group."If indeed there was a capture, those who did it must be saluted."Hospital officials in the West Bank said four Palestinians have been killed during clashes with Israeli forces since the search for the teenagers began.
HOME DEMOLITION ORDERED
Announcing an arrest made last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that security forces detained a Hamas member suspected of killing an Israeli police officer in an April 14 shooting attack on his car in the West Bank."I have ordered the destruction of the house of the terrorist who did this," Netanyahu told reporters.Razing the dwelling would mark a return to a punitive practice, discontinued in 2005 as a Palestinian uprising waned, of destroying the homes of Palestinians involved in attacks against Israelis.Israeli officials said at the time that Palestinian hatred stirred by such demolitions - Israel's B'tselem rights group lists 664 during fighting between 2001 and 2005 - outweighed any deterrent effect. An Israeli court would have to approve the razing of the Hamas suspect's home before it could go ahead.Separately, Israel has continued its internationally criticised demolitions of Palestinian dwellings and other structures built without hard-to-obtain permits in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. According to B'tselem, 175 housing units in the West Bank and 72 in East Jerusalem were razed last year.The kidnapping of the three teens and subsequent arrests have also put pressure on a unity pact between Hamas and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Israel has urged the Western-backed leader to scrap the agreement.Abbas has condemned the kidnappings and his security forces have been helping in the search - cooperation that has stirred anger among Palestinians."The security coordination is a catastrophe," Meshaal said.But Abbas has also called the Israeli sweeps "collective punishment" and his Palestinian Authority has sought to convene the U.N. Security Council to try to end the incursions.Hamas has called for Israel's destruction, although various officials have at times indicated a willingness to negotiate a long-term ceasefire.The United States and the European Union classify Hamas as a terrorist group and shun contact with it unless it recognises Israel, renounces violence and accepts past interim peace accords.(Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan; Editing by Jeffrey Heller and Mark Heinrich)
Hamas Leader: Bless Whoever Kidnapped the Youths-Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal denies his group is behind the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers, but welcomes the abduction.By Dalit Halevi and Elad Benari-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 12:13 AM-IsraelNationalNews
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal on Monday denied that his group had any connection to the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers, but said he welcomed the abduction.Speaking with the Al Jazeera network, Mashaal claimed that Hamas had no information regarding the three, but said that if it turns out they were indeed kidnapped, "then blessed be the kidnappers, since it is a Palestinian obligation to release prisoners and make the occupation pay the price of the Palestinian suffering."In a direct appeal to the families of the three teenagers, Mashaal accused Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was responsible for the kidnapping, claiming his “disregard for Palestinian suffering” is the reason for the abduction."If Netanyahu had listened to the suffering of the (hunger) striking prisoners and had not opposed the national reconciliation agreement, the situation in the Palestinian arena would not have been so serious,” he claimed.Mashaal noted that the reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas emphasizes taking action for the release of prisoners as a sacred national duty and devotion to using any means to realize this goal.In addition, he said, the agreement calls for the establishment of a unified leadership in the struggle against the "occupation", the establishment of a new political authority and the end of the security coordination with Israel.The comments come hours after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh stated that a third intifada (terror war against Israel) had started, citing ongoing unrest in the Palestinian Authority (PA) as the IDF cracks down on Hamas in Judea and Samaria.Despite Mashaal’s denial that Hamas is involved in the kidnapping, both Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and other security officials have confirmed again and again that the terror organization is behind the abduction. Operation Brothers' Keeper to find the boys, as well as to subdue Hamas in the PA over the abduction, is well into its tenth day. At least 360 Hamas terrorists have been arrested and 1400 sites scoured in the search. On Sunday, an underground terror tunnel system was uncovered in Hevron.
Lebanon: Suicide Bomber Hits Café in Beirut-Car bomb blows up outside a café in Beirut, where many gathered to watch a World Cup game. No one killed but several wounded.By Arutz Sheva Staff-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 1:15 AM-IsraelNationalNews
A suspected car bomb blew up outside a café near a Lebanese army checkpoint in Beirut late Monday, security sources told The Daily Star.The sources said a suicide bomber blew himself up near an army checkpoint in Tayyouneh, at one of the main entrances into the capital's southern suburbs.According to the sources, the car was moving against traffic when it exploded, thus confirming that a suicide bomber has carried out the attack. The sources said several people were wounded but no one was killed at the café, where many residents gathered to watch the Brazil vs. Cameroon game as part of World Cup 2014.The Lebanese Red Cross confirmed that the explosion did not result in deaths but several customers of the Abou Assaf café sustained “light wounds,” according to The Daily Star.The attack is the latest in a series of bombings that have hit Lebanon in recent months. A suicide bombing at a police checkpoint on the Beirut-Damascus highway last Friday fueled fears killed a police officer was and wounded 33 people.Hezbollah’s strongholds in Lebanon have been the targets of repeated attacks ever since the group acknowledged sending fighters into Syria to support President Bashar Al-Assad's troops as they battle rebels.Bombings have also hit the mainly Sunni northern city of Tripoli, and ongoing fighting in that city between rival militias supporting different sides in the Syrian civil war have killed scores more.
06/22/2014 -The courage to label mobsters “adorers of evil”-THE ARGENTINE PONTIFF IN CALABRIA-The words of Francis against the ‘ndrangheta and its affiliates: never before has a Pope said they are excommunicated-ANDREA TORNIELLI
VATICAN CITY-Never before has a Pope said publicly, without mincing words, that “the mafia is excommunicated”. Pope Francis made the declaration from the pulpit, in the land of the mafia. Following his visit to the frontier of Lampedusa, an island inundated by refugees and immigrants, and the journey amongst the unemployed of Sardinia, Francis’ current visit has taken him to the fringes of the country, in Calabria. It is the ‘geography’ of a pope who favours the less fortunate, as yesterday he visited Cassano allo Jonio to show that he is close to those who live in a land plagued by organised crime and encourage those in attendance with signs of hope and prospects. In the prison of Castrovillari, Bergoglio embraced the father and two grandmothers of Cocò Campolongo, the three-year-old burned alive in an ‘ndrangheta ambush, and during the mass held on the plains of the village of Sibari, he deviated from the text prepared for the homily and declared that “this evil must be fought and distanced”, inviting the Church to commit itself even more in this regard. He said, with potency, that as many as there are that follow this path, “the mafia is excommunicated”. Yet this is not the first time that Francis has spoken of the mafia. Last March he met two families, victims of the mafia, at a meeting promoted in Rome by “Libera”, with father Ciotti. On that occasion he asked the “men and women of the mafia” to convert and change their lives “so that they do not end up in hell”, “which is what awaits if they continue on this path… The power, the money you have now through illicit business, from many mafia crimes, is bloody money, it is bloody power and you cannot take it with you to the next life”. This time the appeal, clear and strong, and with reference to excommunication, was declared by the Pope from the altar in the land of the mafia. Resolved in his choice, the message echoes that famous address by John Paul II in the Valley of the Temples of Agrigento, in 1993.For Bergoglio, speaking out against organised crime is nothing new after his years at the episcopacy in Buenos Aires. In 2009, father Pepe di Paola, one of the priests he had assigned to the parish in the shanty town of Barracas, received death threats from drug traffickers. The future Pope told the priest: “If something is to happen to one of mine, I want them to kill me”. He removed the priest to protect him and defended him publicly saying that the appeals to fight crime and narcotics came from him, the archbishop.“The Gospel contains answers for us all, even against the ‘ndrangheta” said the bishop of Cassano and secretary of the CEI, Nunzio Galantino. Today Francis reiterated this not only to those fighting for change, but also to those “sleeping consciences”, which are complicit.
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 WORLD 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.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
Kerry promises 'intense and sustained' U.S. support for Iraq
By Lesley Wroughton and Ahmed Rasheed -JUNE 23,14-YahooNews
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday promised "intense and sustained" U.S. support for Iraq, but said the divided country would only survive if its leaders took urgent steps to bring it together.Hours before Kerry arrived in Baghdad, Sunni tribes who have joined a militant takeover of northern Iraq seized the only legal crossing point with Jordan, security sources said, leaving troops with no presence along the entire western frontier which includes some of the Middle East's most important trade routes.U.S. President Barack Obama has offered up to 300 American advisers to Iraq but held off granting a request by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ite Muslim-led government for air strikes to counter the two-week advance by Sunni militants.Officials have meanwhile called for Iraqis to form an inclusive government. The insurgency has been fuelled largely by a sense of materialization and persecution among Iraq's Sunnis."The support will be intense and sustained and if Iraq's leaders take the necessary steps to bring the country together, it will be effective," Kerry told reporters in Baghdad.He said Maliki had "on multiple occasions affirmed his commitment to July 1" as the date to start the formation of a new government bringing in more Sunnis and Kurds to share power, a move Washington is keen to see.Iraqi and Jordanian security sources said tribal leaders were negotiating to hand the Turabil desert border post to Sunni Islamists from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) who took two main crossings with Syria in recent days and have pushed Iraqi government forces back toward Baghdad.Iraq state television said late on Monday that the army had recaptured both the crossing with Jordan and the al-Waleed crossing with Syria. Reuters could not independently confirm reports due to security restrictions.Ethnic Kurdish forces control a third border post with Syria in the north, leaving government troops with no presence along Iraq's 800-km (500-mile) western border.For the insurgents, capturing the frontier is a dramatic step towards the goal of erasing the modern border altogether and building a caliphate across swaths of Syria and Iraq.Kerry said: "Iraq faces an existential threat and Iraq's leaders have to beat that threat with the incredible urgency that it demands. The very future of Iraq depends on choices that will be made in the next days and weeks." Washington, which withdrew its troops from Iraq in 2011 after an occupation that followed the 2003 invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, has been struggling to help Maliki's administration contain a Sunni insurgency led by ISIL, an al Qaeda offshoot which seized northern cities this month.
PRESSURE ON MALIKI
Washington is worried Maliki and fellow Shi'ites who have won U.S.-backed elections have worsened the insurgency by alienating moderate Sunnis who once fought al Qaeda but have now joined the ISIL revolt. While Washington has been careful not to say publicly it wants Maliki to step aside, Iraqi officials say such a message was delivered behind the scenes.There was little small talk when Kerry met Maliki, the two men seated in chairs in a room with other officials.The meeting lasted one hour and 40 minutes, after which Kerry was escorted to his car by Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari. As Kerry got in, he said: "That was good."In Washington, officials said Iraq has given assurances to the United States that the special operations forces Obama has ordered into the country will be shielded from possible prosecution in Iraqi courts.The Obama administration has said its decision not to leave a residual U.S. force in Iraq in 2011 stemmed from difficulty in getting a deal from Iraqi leaders to keep American troops from being tried in local courts.Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Washington on Sunday of trying to regain control of the country it once occupied - a charge Kerry denied.Iraqis are due to form a new government after an election in April. Maliki's list won the most seats in parliament but would still require allies to secure a majority.Senior Iraqi politicians, including at least one member of Maliki's own ruling list, have told Reuters that the message that Washington would be open to Maliki leaving power has been delivered in diplomatic language to Iraqi leaders.Recent meetings between Maliki and American officials have been described as tense. According to a Western diplomat briefed on the conversations by someone attending the meetings, U.S. diplomats have informed Maliki he should accept leaving if he cannot gather a majority in parliament for a third term. U.S. officials have contested that such a message was delivered.A close ally of Maliki has described him as having grown bitter toward the Americans in recent days over their failure to provide strong military support.The president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, which has seized on the chaos to expand its northern territory to include the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, blamed Maliki's "wrong policies" for the turn of events and joined calls for him to quit.Massoud Barzani said Iraq was falling apart and reiterated a threat to hold a referendum on independence from the rest of the country."The time is now for the Kurdish people to determine their future," Barzani said in an interview with CNN. "We are living in an Iraq that is completely different from the Iraq of two weeks ago."
IRANIAN ACCUSATION
Jordanian army sources said Jordan's troops had been put in a state of alert in recent days along the 181-km (112-mile) border with Iraq, redeploying in some areas as part of steps to ward off "any potential or perceived security threats".The Jordan border post was in the hands of Sunni tribesmen after government troops fled. An Iraqi tribal figure said there was a chance it would soon be passed to control of the militants, who seized the nearby crossing to Syria on the Damascus-Baghdad highway on Sunday.He said he was mediating with ISIL in a "bid to spare blood and make things safer for the employees of the crossing. We are receiving positive messages from the militants."The need to battle the Sunni insurgency has put the United States on the same side as its enemy of 35 years, Iran, which has close ties to the Shi'ite parties that came to power in Baghdad after U.S. forces toppled Saddam.However, Iran's supreme leader made clear on Sunday that a rapprochement would not be easy."We are strongly opposed to U.S. and other intervention in Iraq," IRNA news agency quoted Khamenei as saying. "We don’t approve of it as we believe the Iraqi government, nation and religious authorities are capable of ending the sedition."Some Iraqi analysts in Baghdad interpreted Khamenei's comments as a warning to the United States to stay out of the process of selecting any successor to Maliki.(Additional by Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman, Isabel Coles in Arbil and Phil Stewart in Washington; Writing by Oliver Holmes and Will Dunham; Editing by Peter Graff, Alastair Macdonald, Philippa Fletcher and Mohammad Zargham)
EU to urge more 'inclusive' Iraqi politics
Today @ 11:21-JUNE 23,14-By EUOBSERVER
EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg Monday are to call on Iraqi PM Maliki to be more "inclusive" in his politics, after his Shia Muslim faction helped cause the new crisis by locking Sunni Muslims out of power. Britain said the EU will seek new ways to help Lebanon and Jordan.
EU earmarks €5mn extra for Iraq aid
23.06.14 @ 18:22-By EUOBSERVER
EU ministers in Luxembourg earmarked a further €5mn for aid for refugees in Iraq. Amid fears the country is splitting into three parts along sectarian and ethnic lines, they voiced "firm commitment to Iraq's unity." They also urged the Shia Muslim-led government to take "an inclusive approach" to rule.
EU imposes new Syria sanctions
Today @ 11:35-JUNE 23,14-By EUOBSERVER
EU ministers in Luxembourg Monday added 12 Syrian minsters to a visa ban and asset freeze list for "serious human rights violations." The move brings the number of Syrians under EU sanctions to 191, plus 53 entities. The EU court last week annulled sanctions against Syria International Islamic Bank, however.
EU threatens more Russia sanctions, prepares to sign Ukraine pact
23.06.14 @ 18:00-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - EU countries have threatened to impose more sanctions on Russia if it does not help to stop violence in the run-up to the Ukraine treaty signature on Friday (27 June).Foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday endorsed Ukraine’s unilateral ceasefire and urged Russia to “adopt effective measures to stop the continued flow of illegal fighters, arms and equipment over the border into Ukraine, [and] to use its influence on the separatists to stop the violence and lay down their arms”.They said further “targeted measures … can be taken should events in eastern Ukraine so require”.Dutch FM Frans Timmermans and his British counterpart, William Hague, noted that EU leaders will decide on sanctions at the summit on Thursday and Friday.Hague said “the response of Russia to the peace plan that [Ukrainian] President Poroshenko has put forward will be instrumental to the calculations of the European Union”.French FM Laurent Fabius added the French and German leaders phoned Russia’s Vladimir Putin over the weekend to urge action “in the coming days”.EU countries on Monday completed legal preparations to sign a free trade treaty with Poroshenko in Brussels on Friday and to implement it without waiting for formal ratification in the 28 capitals.They said Ukraine can pass to the second stage of talks on visa-free travel.They agreed to launch a two-year long EU mission to train Ukrainian police and gendarmes this summer.They also banned imports from Crimea, a Ukrainian region annexed by Russia in March, unless they have Ukrainian customs stamps. The ban, which takes effect on 25 June, includes a prohibition on “financial and insurance services related to the import of such goods”.Ukraine’s new foreign minister, Pavlo Klimkin, attended the Luxembourg meeting.He said “it was very important for me, personally, to hear such complete support from the [EU] ministers”.With Russia threatening to impose trade restrictions on Ukraine after it signs the EU pact, he noted that access to the EU single market will mean “more jobs, not just in agriculture, or IT, but also in industry, where EU investment should come to Ukraine”.With Russia having also cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in a price dispute, Klimkin said Ukraine will continue to push for a market price and for contractual “guarantees” that any new price will stay in place.
Red carpet
It is unclear whether the EU’s “targeted measures” refer to more names on the Russia blacklist, or triggering so-called “stage three” economic sanctions against Russian high-tech, energy, and banking sectors.The European Commission has finalised the sanctions package, which include what one diplomat called "hard, medium, and soft" options in each of the three areas.Some countries, including Austria, Germany, Italy, and Spain, are wary of going ahead.For his part, Sweden’s Carl Bildt told press: “It doesn’t matter whether you call it stage 2.9, 3.2, or 2.2, the important thing is that if Russia continues with destabilisation measures, then we will continue with our measures”.The EU is currently considering whether to cancel a summit with Putin due in December. But in the meantime, Austria has opted to invite the Russian leader to Vienna on Wednesday to mend fences.Asked if the invitation is a sign of European disunity, Bildt said Sweden would not welcome Putin at this time because he “is trying to split the European Union … that’s what the Russians always do when they are in a cornered position”.In a further sign of Russia-wariness, a senior EU diplomat told EUobserver some EU states had wanted the police training mission to reform Ukraine’s military and intelligence services. But the idea did not fly because “we want to convey the message to Russia that we’re not getting mixed up in any military operations there ... to take military measures now would be seen as a bellicose act by Russia”.He added that some member states think the Crimea ban is a bad move.“I think we’re going to see it challenged in the EU court and I think there’s a good chance we’ll lose … If you are, say, a chocolate-maker in Crimea, you would be thinking: ‘Why am I being punished? None of this is my fault’.”Asked if he thinks Putin will escalate the Ukraine conflict this week as a price tag for the treaty signature, the diplomat said: “Nobody can predict Putin's actions. I think he had a plan in the beginning, but I’m pretty sure that he is improvising at this stage”.
Centre-right to strike deal with centre-left on Juncker, Schulz
Today @ 09:20-JUNE 23,14-EUOBSERVER-By Valentina Pop
BRUSSELS - A meeting of Socialist leaders in Paris on Saturday (21 June) has endorsed Juncker for the commission top job, with the expectation that Martin Schulz stays on as European Parliament chief and the Italian foreign minister, a woman, may get the foreign affairs post to succeed Catherine Ashton.French President Francois Hollande, the host of the meeting, said that left-wing leaders "respect" the right of the largest group in the European Parliament (EPP) to nominate a candidate for the EU commission presidency, "in this case Mr Juncker".Present at the meeting were the Prime Ministers of Italy, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Malta, Romania and Slovakia. The Paris mini-summit is a response to a similar meeting of centre-right leaders including Britain's David Cameron and Germany's Angela Merkel in Sweden earlier this month.Schulz, who also took part in the Paris meeting, told reporters he would formally present his candidature for the parliament presidency.He may be confirmed as Parliament chief in the first week of July in Strasbourg, if all the pieces fall into place later this week when EU leaders meet to discuss the top posts.Schulz said he was "quite optimistic" that EU leaders would reach a deal.Britain's David Cameron meanwhile has not backed down from his opposition to Juncker and said he will trigger a vote in the EU council where Juncker needs to gather a 'qualified majority'.Britain alone cannot block him and would need at least one other big state to oppose or abstain from the vote, along with Sweden, Netherlands and Hungary who have signalled scepticism in the past.Quick deal in the EP.Meanwhile, in the European Parliament, the centre-right European People's Party is willing to back a Socialist as head of the European Parliament for two and half years, followed by an EPP president for the remaining half of the mandate.A similar arrangement has been in place for the last eight years.This could clear the way for Schulz - the Spitzenkandidat who came in second - to head the EP while Juncker, the EPP top candidate, gets the commission.Speaking to EUobserver, Bavarian centre-right leader Manfred Weber, who is leading negotiations, said he wants a quick deal with the Socialists who are "our first choice as partners"."The European elections were at the end of May. We now have late June. We want to get to work as quickly as possible following the constitution of the new Parliament in the first week of July, to be able to deliver real solutions for our citizens," Weber said.He refused to use the term "grand coalition", but indicated that a "stable majority" with the Socialists is the only way to go forward after the result of the 25 May elections." The EPP Group wants to make sure the next European Commission is a commission of reform, working out a reform agenda for the next term. Based on these proposals we will seek a majority in parliament," Weber said.He indicated he is in favour of the commission's 28 portfolios being reshuffled, possibly into "clusters" focused on the main topics and junior commissioners underneath."The work of the European Commission has to be organised in an efficient manner, and it must be more coherent. We need to prevent a situation in which the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. It makes sense to work towards a better co-operation of different commission portfolios," Weber said.As for the German commissioner, Guenther Oettinger, a member of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, Weber said he is "doing an excellent job as commissioner for energy".The 41-year old Weber was elected chairman of the centre-right European People's Party 221-strong group in the European Parliament. His election was non-controversial, with his predecessor - Frenchman Joseph Daul - already nominating him before the elections, one source told this website."They needed a 'non-German' German," the source added, explaining that Weber is a member of the smaller Christian-Social Union, the Bavarian sister party of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats.The CSU only managed to send five MEPs the new Parliament, down from eight in 2009, while the CDU sent 29. Weber, a former justice and home affairs expert in the previous EP, is considered the most centrist of his colleagues.
Nato says Russia funding anti-shale NGOs
20.06.14 @ 09:29-By Andrew Rettman-EUOBSEVER
BRUSSELS - Nato chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen has accused Russia of funding NGOs which oppose shale gas.He made the controversial statement in a Q and A session at Chatham House, a London-based think tank, on Thursday (19 June).“I have met allies who can report that Russia, as part of their sophisticated information and disinformation operations, engaged actively with so-called non-governmental organisations – environmental organisations working against shale gas – to maintain European dependence on imported Russian gas. At least that’s my interpretation and it adds a new aspect to that information campaign,” he said.He noted the EU should support the construction of a new gas pipeline to the Caspian sea, bypassing Russia.He also said the EU should complete energy market liberalisation so that “no one single energy supplier can blackmail any one single nation” in future, alluding to Russian gas supplier Gazprom.Nato officials later told media the views on shale are Rasmussen’s own and do not reflect the alliance’s official position, but it published an audio file of his Chatham House remarks on its website.Rasmussen visited London in preparation for a Nato summit in Wales in September.He said in his Chatham House speech that Russia’s “aggression” against Ukraine is part of a “turning point in history” after the end of the Cold War.He urged EU countries to follow the example of Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states in boosting defence spending to 2 percent of national GDP.He also said in the Q and A portion there is “a new build-up” of Russian forces on the Ukraine border in what amounts to keeping “an option open to intervene further in Ukraine”.He noted that if Russia openly invades its neighbour, it would trigger “deeper, broader, more profound economic sanctions”, but he ruled out a Nato military response saying Nato is “focused on the defence of our allies [members].”Environmental groups ridiculed Rasmussen’s shale remarks.“The idea we’re puppets of [Russian leader] Putin is so preposterous that you have to wonder what they’re smoking over at Nato HQ,” a Greenpeace spokesman said.A Friends of the Earth spokesman noted, in an ironic reference to British reluctance to invest in renewable sources, that: “Perhaps the Russians are worried about our huge wind and solar potential, and have infiltrated the UK government.”Dedicated anti-shale groups, such as Frack Off and Rising Tide, said their “grassroots” movements depend on ordinary people’s concerns.The US is the global leader in shale oil and gas extraction, which relies on fracking - blasting a cocktail of water and chemicals into underground shale deposits.Green groups say fracking can cause ground subsidence and pollute groundwater.They also say shale development will “lock” industrialised states into fossil fuel use instead of cleaner energy.According to US statistics, the Baltic states, France, Germany, Poland, Sweden, and the UK have the largest shale reserves in Europe.Poland is leading the way in Europe. It has drilled more than 60 exploratory wells and its environment minister, Maciej Grabowski, recently said commercial extraction could begin in Pomerania, on the Baltic Sea coast, by the end of 2014.A 2013 US study into shale underlined the importance of local geology, however.The 2013 survey downgraded its 2011 estimate of available shale in Poland’s Lubmin basin from 44 trillion cubic feet to 9 trillion due to geological problems discovered on the road to extraction.It downgraded Norway’s available shale from 83 trillion cubic feet to zero.
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
UN Fails to Agree on Condemnation of Israel-U.S. Ambassador Power says directly criticizing Israel is "a red line", as Security Council can't agree on statement against Jewish State.By Elad Benari-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 4:16 AM-IsraelNationalNews
The United Nations Security Council on Monday failed to agree on a statement that would have condemned Israel over the deaths of Palestinian Arabs as part of its security operation in Judea and Samaria, following the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers by Hamas.Russia's UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin, the current Security Council president, was quoted by The Associated Press (AP) as having said he proposed the press statement after listening to a Palestinian appeal for council action.He added that one council member wanted stronger language and one didn't want any reference to Israel, so unfortunately the council was not able to find "common ground."Diplomats said Jordan insisted that "deploring" wasn't strong enough and U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power said any language directly criticizing Israel would be "a red line" for the Americans.The diplomats spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority (PA) UN ambassador, said he had delivered a letter to Churkin from the PA leadership demanding that the Security Council "shoulder its responsibility" by "condemning this onslaught against our people and demanding a complete cessation immediately."UN Undersecretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman told the Security Council at an earlier open meeting that the situation on the ground had turned highly volatile following the suspension of peace negotiations in late April and despite initial restraint on both sides.He expressed alarm at the increasing Palestinian Arab death toll in Israeli security operations, saying more than 350 have reportedly been arrested, many injured and four killed."We condemn all killings of civilians and call for an investigation into any such deaths," Feltman said, according to AP.He also criticized Israel for tightened restrictions on Palestinian Arab movements, the hunger strike by terrorist prisoners, and for "illegal settlement building”, the report said.Feltman urged Israel to exercise restraint and not to “punish Palestinians for offenses they have not personally committed.”The debate in the Security Council was held one day after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed “solidarity” with the families of the three kidnapped Israeli teenagers, but also hit out at Israel for arresting Hamas terrorists as part of its operation to locate the three teens.In a statement Sunday outlining Ban’s conversation with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu the day before, the UN chief stressed “the need to avoid an escalation of tensions in the wake of the recent abduction of three Israeli teenagers and the increased violence and mass arrests in the West Bank.”According to the statement, in Saturday’s phone call with Netanyahu, Ban “conveyed his sympathy for the abducted teenagers and deep solidarity with their families” but also “voiced concern over the increased violence, mass arrests, and restrictions on movement in the West Bank.”The conversation between Ban and Netanyahu was held several days after a spokesperson for Ban claimed that the UN has no "concrete evidence" that Eyal Yifrah, 19, Naftali Frenkel, 16, and Gilad Sha'ar, 16, were "actually" kidnapped by Hamas terrorists.The timing of the spokesperson’s comments was odd, as they were made after Ban had already condemned the kidnapping, noting particularly that two of the kidnapped Israeli students are minors.
Israel detains 37 more Palestinians in West Bank crackdown
By Ali Sawafta 7 hours ago-JUNE 23,14-YahooNews
RAMALLAH West Bank (Reuters) - Israel's army said on Monday it had detained another 37 Palestinians overnight as it searched for three missing teenagers and extended a crackdown on the Hamas Islamist group it accuses of kidnapping them.There were no reports of clashes between the soldiers and Palestinians in the raids in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, where the military says it has detained 361 people since the Israeli students went missing on June 12.The crisis has aggravated tensions in the West Bank which, along with East Jerusalem and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, the Palestinians want as part of a future state.An Israeli military spokeswoman said the latest operations took place in Jenin, a militant stronghold, and in the Hebron area, close to where the three disappeared while hitchhiking."As part of ongoing operations, (Israeli) forces detained 37 suspects and searched 80 locations," the spokeswoman said.Palestinian officials said Israeli soldiers also entered Bethlehem and Nablus.The disappearance of the students - Gil-Ad Shaer and U.S.-Israeli dual national Naftali Fraenkel, both aged 16, and Eyal Yifrah, 19 - after they left a Jewish settlement where they were studying has been celebrated by Hamas. But it has stopped short of taking credit."We don't have any information about the missing three soldier-settlers," Hamas supreme leader Khaled Meshaal was quoted as saying by Palimes, a website aligned with the group."If indeed there was a capture, those who did it must be saluted."Hospital officials in the West Bank said four Palestinians have been killed during clashes with Israeli forces since the search for the teenagers began.
HOME DEMOLITION ORDERED
Announcing an arrest made last month, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that security forces detained a Hamas member suspected of killing an Israeli police officer in an April 14 shooting attack on his car in the West Bank."I have ordered the destruction of the house of the terrorist who did this," Netanyahu told reporters.Razing the dwelling would mark a return to a punitive practice, discontinued in 2005 as a Palestinian uprising waned, of destroying the homes of Palestinians involved in attacks against Israelis.Israeli officials said at the time that Palestinian hatred stirred by such demolitions - Israel's B'tselem rights group lists 664 during fighting between 2001 and 2005 - outweighed any deterrent effect. An Israeli court would have to approve the razing of the Hamas suspect's home before it could go ahead.Separately, Israel has continued its internationally criticised demolitions of Palestinian dwellings and other structures built without hard-to-obtain permits in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. According to B'tselem, 175 housing units in the West Bank and 72 in East Jerusalem were razed last year.The kidnapping of the three teens and subsequent arrests have also put pressure on a unity pact between Hamas and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Israel has urged the Western-backed leader to scrap the agreement.Abbas has condemned the kidnappings and his security forces have been helping in the search - cooperation that has stirred anger among Palestinians."The security coordination is a catastrophe," Meshaal said.But Abbas has also called the Israeli sweeps "collective punishment" and his Palestinian Authority has sought to convene the U.N. Security Council to try to end the incursions.Hamas has called for Israel's destruction, although various officials have at times indicated a willingness to negotiate a long-term ceasefire.The United States and the European Union classify Hamas as a terrorist group and shun contact with it unless it recognises Israel, renounces violence and accepts past interim peace accords.(Additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza; Writing by Allyn Fisher-Ilan; Editing by Jeffrey Heller and Mark Heinrich)
Hamas Leader: Bless Whoever Kidnapped the Youths-Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal denies his group is behind the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers, but welcomes the abduction.By Dalit Halevi and Elad Benari-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 12:13 AM-IsraelNationalNews
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal on Monday denied that his group had any connection to the kidnapping of three Israeli teenagers, but said he welcomed the abduction.Speaking with the Al Jazeera network, Mashaal claimed that Hamas had no information regarding the three, but said that if it turns out they were indeed kidnapped, "then blessed be the kidnappers, since it is a Palestinian obligation to release prisoners and make the occupation pay the price of the Palestinian suffering."In a direct appeal to the families of the three teenagers, Mashaal accused Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was responsible for the kidnapping, claiming his “disregard for Palestinian suffering” is the reason for the abduction."If Netanyahu had listened to the suffering of the (hunger) striking prisoners and had not opposed the national reconciliation agreement, the situation in the Palestinian arena would not have been so serious,” he claimed.Mashaal noted that the reconciliation agreement between Fatah and Hamas emphasizes taking action for the release of prisoners as a sacred national duty and devotion to using any means to realize this goal.In addition, he said, the agreement calls for the establishment of a unified leadership in the struggle against the "occupation", the establishment of a new political authority and the end of the security coordination with Israel.The comments come hours after Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh stated that a third intifada (terror war against Israel) had started, citing ongoing unrest in the Palestinian Authority (PA) as the IDF cracks down on Hamas in Judea and Samaria.Despite Mashaal’s denial that Hamas is involved in the kidnapping, both Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and other security officials have confirmed again and again that the terror organization is behind the abduction. Operation Brothers' Keeper to find the boys, as well as to subdue Hamas in the PA over the abduction, is well into its tenth day. At least 360 Hamas terrorists have been arrested and 1400 sites scoured in the search. On Sunday, an underground terror tunnel system was uncovered in Hevron.
Lebanon: Suicide Bomber Hits Café in Beirut-Car bomb blows up outside a café in Beirut, where many gathered to watch a World Cup game. No one killed but several wounded.By Arutz Sheva Staff-First Publish: 6/24/2014, 1:15 AM-IsraelNationalNews
A suspected car bomb blew up outside a café near a Lebanese army checkpoint in Beirut late Monday, security sources told The Daily Star.The sources said a suicide bomber blew himself up near an army checkpoint in Tayyouneh, at one of the main entrances into the capital's southern suburbs.According to the sources, the car was moving against traffic when it exploded, thus confirming that a suicide bomber has carried out the attack. The sources said several people were wounded but no one was killed at the café, where many residents gathered to watch the Brazil vs. Cameroon game as part of World Cup 2014.The Lebanese Red Cross confirmed that the explosion did not result in deaths but several customers of the Abou Assaf café sustained “light wounds,” according to The Daily Star.The attack is the latest in a series of bombings that have hit Lebanon in recent months. A suicide bombing at a police checkpoint on the Beirut-Damascus highway last Friday fueled fears killed a police officer was and wounded 33 people.Hezbollah’s strongholds in Lebanon have been the targets of repeated attacks ever since the group acknowledged sending fighters into Syria to support President Bashar Al-Assad's troops as they battle rebels.Bombings have also hit the mainly Sunni northern city of Tripoli, and ongoing fighting in that city between rival militias supporting different sides in the Syrian civil war have killed scores more.
06/22/2014 -The courage to label mobsters “adorers of evil”-THE ARGENTINE PONTIFF IN CALABRIA-The words of Francis against the ‘ndrangheta and its affiliates: never before has a Pope said they are excommunicated-ANDREA TORNIELLI
VATICAN CITY-Never before has a Pope said publicly, without mincing words, that “the mafia is excommunicated”. Pope Francis made the declaration from the pulpit, in the land of the mafia. Following his visit to the frontier of Lampedusa, an island inundated by refugees and immigrants, and the journey amongst the unemployed of Sardinia, Francis’ current visit has taken him to the fringes of the country, in Calabria. It is the ‘geography’ of a pope who favours the less fortunate, as yesterday he visited Cassano allo Jonio to show that he is close to those who live in a land plagued by organised crime and encourage those in attendance with signs of hope and prospects. In the prison of Castrovillari, Bergoglio embraced the father and two grandmothers of Cocò Campolongo, the three-year-old burned alive in an ‘ndrangheta ambush, and during the mass held on the plains of the village of Sibari, he deviated from the text prepared for the homily and declared that “this evil must be fought and distanced”, inviting the Church to commit itself even more in this regard. He said, with potency, that as many as there are that follow this path, “the mafia is excommunicated”. Yet this is not the first time that Francis has spoken of the mafia. Last March he met two families, victims of the mafia, at a meeting promoted in Rome by “Libera”, with father Ciotti. On that occasion he asked the “men and women of the mafia” to convert and change their lives “so that they do not end up in hell”, “which is what awaits if they continue on this path… The power, the money you have now through illicit business, from many mafia crimes, is bloody money, it is bloody power and you cannot take it with you to the next life”. This time the appeal, clear and strong, and with reference to excommunication, was declared by the Pope from the altar in the land of the mafia. Resolved in his choice, the message echoes that famous address by John Paul II in the Valley of the Temples of Agrigento, in 1993.For Bergoglio, speaking out against organised crime is nothing new after his years at the episcopacy in Buenos Aires. In 2009, father Pepe di Paola, one of the priests he had assigned to the parish in the shanty town of Barracas, received death threats from drug traffickers. The future Pope told the priest: “If something is to happen to one of mine, I want them to kill me”. He removed the priest to protect him and defended him publicly saying that the appeals to fight crime and narcotics came from him, the archbishop.“The Gospel contains answers for us all, even against the ‘ndrangheta” said the bishop of Cassano and secretary of the CEI, Nunzio Galantino. Today Francis reiterated this not only to those fighting for change, but also to those “sleeping consciences”, which are complicit.
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 WORLD 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.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
Kerry promises 'intense and sustained' U.S. support for Iraq
By Lesley Wroughton and Ahmed Rasheed -JUNE 23,14-YahooNews
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry on Monday promised "intense and sustained" U.S. support for Iraq, but said the divided country would only survive if its leaders took urgent steps to bring it together.Hours before Kerry arrived in Baghdad, Sunni tribes who have joined a militant takeover of northern Iraq seized the only legal crossing point with Jordan, security sources said, leaving troops with no presence along the entire western frontier which includes some of the Middle East's most important trade routes.U.S. President Barack Obama has offered up to 300 American advisers to Iraq but held off granting a request by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ite Muslim-led government for air strikes to counter the two-week advance by Sunni militants.Officials have meanwhile called for Iraqis to form an inclusive government. The insurgency has been fuelled largely by a sense of materialization and persecution among Iraq's Sunnis."The support will be intense and sustained and if Iraq's leaders take the necessary steps to bring the country together, it will be effective," Kerry told reporters in Baghdad.He said Maliki had "on multiple occasions affirmed his commitment to July 1" as the date to start the formation of a new government bringing in more Sunnis and Kurds to share power, a move Washington is keen to see.Iraqi and Jordanian security sources said tribal leaders were negotiating to hand the Turabil desert border post to Sunni Islamists from the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) who took two main crossings with Syria in recent days and have pushed Iraqi government forces back toward Baghdad.Iraq state television said late on Monday that the army had recaptured both the crossing with Jordan and the al-Waleed crossing with Syria. Reuters could not independently confirm reports due to security restrictions.Ethnic Kurdish forces control a third border post with Syria in the north, leaving government troops with no presence along Iraq's 800-km (500-mile) western border.For the insurgents, capturing the frontier is a dramatic step towards the goal of erasing the modern border altogether and building a caliphate across swaths of Syria and Iraq.Kerry said: "Iraq faces an existential threat and Iraq's leaders have to beat that threat with the incredible urgency that it demands. The very future of Iraq depends on choices that will be made in the next days and weeks." Washington, which withdrew its troops from Iraq in 2011 after an occupation that followed the 2003 invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, has been struggling to help Maliki's administration contain a Sunni insurgency led by ISIL, an al Qaeda offshoot which seized northern cities this month.
PRESSURE ON MALIKI
Washington is worried Maliki and fellow Shi'ites who have won U.S.-backed elections have worsened the insurgency by alienating moderate Sunnis who once fought al Qaeda but have now joined the ISIL revolt. While Washington has been careful not to say publicly it wants Maliki to step aside, Iraqi officials say such a message was delivered behind the scenes.There was little small talk when Kerry met Maliki, the two men seated in chairs in a room with other officials.The meeting lasted one hour and 40 minutes, after which Kerry was escorted to his car by Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari. As Kerry got in, he said: "That was good."In Washington, officials said Iraq has given assurances to the United States that the special operations forces Obama has ordered into the country will be shielded from possible prosecution in Iraqi courts.The Obama administration has said its decision not to leave a residual U.S. force in Iraq in 2011 stemmed from difficulty in getting a deal from Iraqi leaders to keep American troops from being tried in local courts.Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Washington on Sunday of trying to regain control of the country it once occupied - a charge Kerry denied.Iraqis are due to form a new government after an election in April. Maliki's list won the most seats in parliament but would still require allies to secure a majority.Senior Iraqi politicians, including at least one member of Maliki's own ruling list, have told Reuters that the message that Washington would be open to Maliki leaving power has been delivered in diplomatic language to Iraqi leaders.Recent meetings between Maliki and American officials have been described as tense. According to a Western diplomat briefed on the conversations by someone attending the meetings, U.S. diplomats have informed Maliki he should accept leaving if he cannot gather a majority in parliament for a third term. U.S. officials have contested that such a message was delivered.A close ally of Maliki has described him as having grown bitter toward the Americans in recent days over their failure to provide strong military support.The president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, which has seized on the chaos to expand its northern territory to include the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, blamed Maliki's "wrong policies" for the turn of events and joined calls for him to quit.Massoud Barzani said Iraq was falling apart and reiterated a threat to hold a referendum on independence from the rest of the country."The time is now for the Kurdish people to determine their future," Barzani said in an interview with CNN. "We are living in an Iraq that is completely different from the Iraq of two weeks ago."
IRANIAN ACCUSATION
Jordanian army sources said Jordan's troops had been put in a state of alert in recent days along the 181-km (112-mile) border with Iraq, redeploying in some areas as part of steps to ward off "any potential or perceived security threats".The Jordan border post was in the hands of Sunni tribesmen after government troops fled. An Iraqi tribal figure said there was a chance it would soon be passed to control of the militants, who seized the nearby crossing to Syria on the Damascus-Baghdad highway on Sunday.He said he was mediating with ISIL in a "bid to spare blood and make things safer for the employees of the crossing. We are receiving positive messages from the militants."The need to battle the Sunni insurgency has put the United States on the same side as its enemy of 35 years, Iran, which has close ties to the Shi'ite parties that came to power in Baghdad after U.S. forces toppled Saddam.However, Iran's supreme leader made clear on Sunday that a rapprochement would not be easy."We are strongly opposed to U.S. and other intervention in Iraq," IRNA news agency quoted Khamenei as saying. "We don’t approve of it as we believe the Iraqi government, nation and religious authorities are capable of ending the sedition."Some Iraqi analysts in Baghdad interpreted Khamenei's comments as a warning to the United States to stay out of the process of selecting any successor to Maliki.(Additional by Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman, Isabel Coles in Arbil and Phil Stewart in Washington; Writing by Oliver Holmes and Will Dunham; Editing by Peter Graff, Alastair Macdonald, Philippa Fletcher and Mohammad Zargham)
EU to urge more 'inclusive' Iraqi politics
Today @ 11:21-JUNE 23,14-By EUOBSERVER
EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg Monday are to call on Iraqi PM Maliki to be more "inclusive" in his politics, after his Shia Muslim faction helped cause the new crisis by locking Sunni Muslims out of power. Britain said the EU will seek new ways to help Lebanon and Jordan.
EU earmarks €5mn extra for Iraq aid
23.06.14 @ 18:22-By EUOBSERVER
EU ministers in Luxembourg earmarked a further €5mn for aid for refugees in Iraq. Amid fears the country is splitting into three parts along sectarian and ethnic lines, they voiced "firm commitment to Iraq's unity." They also urged the Shia Muslim-led government to take "an inclusive approach" to rule.
EU imposes new Syria sanctions
Today @ 11:35-JUNE 23,14-By EUOBSERVER
EU ministers in Luxembourg Monday added 12 Syrian minsters to a visa ban and asset freeze list for "serious human rights violations." The move brings the number of Syrians under EU sanctions to 191, plus 53 entities. The EU court last week annulled sanctions against Syria International Islamic Bank, however.
EU threatens more Russia sanctions, prepares to sign Ukraine pact
23.06.14 @ 18:00-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - EU countries have threatened to impose more sanctions on Russia if it does not help to stop violence in the run-up to the Ukraine treaty signature on Friday (27 June).Foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday endorsed Ukraine’s unilateral ceasefire and urged Russia to “adopt effective measures to stop the continued flow of illegal fighters, arms and equipment over the border into Ukraine, [and] to use its influence on the separatists to stop the violence and lay down their arms”.They said further “targeted measures … can be taken should events in eastern Ukraine so require”.Dutch FM Frans Timmermans and his British counterpart, William Hague, noted that EU leaders will decide on sanctions at the summit on Thursday and Friday.Hague said “the response of Russia to the peace plan that [Ukrainian] President Poroshenko has put forward will be instrumental to the calculations of the European Union”.French FM Laurent Fabius added the French and German leaders phoned Russia’s Vladimir Putin over the weekend to urge action “in the coming days”.EU countries on Monday completed legal preparations to sign a free trade treaty with Poroshenko in Brussels on Friday and to implement it without waiting for formal ratification in the 28 capitals.They said Ukraine can pass to the second stage of talks on visa-free travel.They agreed to launch a two-year long EU mission to train Ukrainian police and gendarmes this summer.They also banned imports from Crimea, a Ukrainian region annexed by Russia in March, unless they have Ukrainian customs stamps. The ban, which takes effect on 25 June, includes a prohibition on “financial and insurance services related to the import of such goods”.Ukraine’s new foreign minister, Pavlo Klimkin, attended the Luxembourg meeting.He said “it was very important for me, personally, to hear such complete support from the [EU] ministers”.With Russia threatening to impose trade restrictions on Ukraine after it signs the EU pact, he noted that access to the EU single market will mean “more jobs, not just in agriculture, or IT, but also in industry, where EU investment should come to Ukraine”.With Russia having also cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in a price dispute, Klimkin said Ukraine will continue to push for a market price and for contractual “guarantees” that any new price will stay in place.
Red carpet
It is unclear whether the EU’s “targeted measures” refer to more names on the Russia blacklist, or triggering so-called “stage three” economic sanctions against Russian high-tech, energy, and banking sectors.The European Commission has finalised the sanctions package, which include what one diplomat called "hard, medium, and soft" options in each of the three areas.Some countries, including Austria, Germany, Italy, and Spain, are wary of going ahead.For his part, Sweden’s Carl Bildt told press: “It doesn’t matter whether you call it stage 2.9, 3.2, or 2.2, the important thing is that if Russia continues with destabilisation measures, then we will continue with our measures”.The EU is currently considering whether to cancel a summit with Putin due in December. But in the meantime, Austria has opted to invite the Russian leader to Vienna on Wednesday to mend fences.Asked if the invitation is a sign of European disunity, Bildt said Sweden would not welcome Putin at this time because he “is trying to split the European Union … that’s what the Russians always do when they are in a cornered position”.In a further sign of Russia-wariness, a senior EU diplomat told EUobserver some EU states had wanted the police training mission to reform Ukraine’s military and intelligence services. But the idea did not fly because “we want to convey the message to Russia that we’re not getting mixed up in any military operations there ... to take military measures now would be seen as a bellicose act by Russia”.He added that some member states think the Crimea ban is a bad move.“I think we’re going to see it challenged in the EU court and I think there’s a good chance we’ll lose … If you are, say, a chocolate-maker in Crimea, you would be thinking: ‘Why am I being punished? None of this is my fault’.”Asked if he thinks Putin will escalate the Ukraine conflict this week as a price tag for the treaty signature, the diplomat said: “Nobody can predict Putin's actions. I think he had a plan in the beginning, but I’m pretty sure that he is improvising at this stage”.
Centre-right to strike deal with centre-left on Juncker, Schulz
Today @ 09:20-JUNE 23,14-EUOBSERVER-By Valentina Pop
BRUSSELS - A meeting of Socialist leaders in Paris on Saturday (21 June) has endorsed Juncker for the commission top job, with the expectation that Martin Schulz stays on as European Parliament chief and the Italian foreign minister, a woman, may get the foreign affairs post to succeed Catherine Ashton.French President Francois Hollande, the host of the meeting, said that left-wing leaders "respect" the right of the largest group in the European Parliament (EPP) to nominate a candidate for the EU commission presidency, "in this case Mr Juncker".Present at the meeting were the Prime Ministers of Italy, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Malta, Romania and Slovakia. The Paris mini-summit is a response to a similar meeting of centre-right leaders including Britain's David Cameron and Germany's Angela Merkel in Sweden earlier this month.Schulz, who also took part in the Paris meeting, told reporters he would formally present his candidature for the parliament presidency.He may be confirmed as Parliament chief in the first week of July in Strasbourg, if all the pieces fall into place later this week when EU leaders meet to discuss the top posts.Schulz said he was "quite optimistic" that EU leaders would reach a deal.Britain's David Cameron meanwhile has not backed down from his opposition to Juncker and said he will trigger a vote in the EU council where Juncker needs to gather a 'qualified majority'.Britain alone cannot block him and would need at least one other big state to oppose or abstain from the vote, along with Sweden, Netherlands and Hungary who have signalled scepticism in the past.Quick deal in the EP.Meanwhile, in the European Parliament, the centre-right European People's Party is willing to back a Socialist as head of the European Parliament for two and half years, followed by an EPP president for the remaining half of the mandate.A similar arrangement has been in place for the last eight years.This could clear the way for Schulz - the Spitzenkandidat who came in second - to head the EP while Juncker, the EPP top candidate, gets the commission.Speaking to EUobserver, Bavarian centre-right leader Manfred Weber, who is leading negotiations, said he wants a quick deal with the Socialists who are "our first choice as partners"."The European elections were at the end of May. We now have late June. We want to get to work as quickly as possible following the constitution of the new Parliament in the first week of July, to be able to deliver real solutions for our citizens," Weber said.He refused to use the term "grand coalition", but indicated that a "stable majority" with the Socialists is the only way to go forward after the result of the 25 May elections." The EPP Group wants to make sure the next European Commission is a commission of reform, working out a reform agenda for the next term. Based on these proposals we will seek a majority in parliament," Weber said.He indicated he is in favour of the commission's 28 portfolios being reshuffled, possibly into "clusters" focused on the main topics and junior commissioners underneath."The work of the European Commission has to be organised in an efficient manner, and it must be more coherent. We need to prevent a situation in which the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. It makes sense to work towards a better co-operation of different commission portfolios," Weber said.As for the German commissioner, Guenther Oettinger, a member of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats, Weber said he is "doing an excellent job as commissioner for energy".The 41-year old Weber was elected chairman of the centre-right European People's Party 221-strong group in the European Parliament. His election was non-controversial, with his predecessor - Frenchman Joseph Daul - already nominating him before the elections, one source told this website."They needed a 'non-German' German," the source added, explaining that Weber is a member of the smaller Christian-Social Union, the Bavarian sister party of Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats.The CSU only managed to send five MEPs the new Parliament, down from eight in 2009, while the CDU sent 29. Weber, a former justice and home affairs expert in the previous EP, is considered the most centrist of his colleagues.
Nato says Russia funding anti-shale NGOs
20.06.14 @ 09:29-By Andrew Rettman-EUOBSEVER
BRUSSELS - Nato chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen has accused Russia of funding NGOs which oppose shale gas.He made the controversial statement in a Q and A session at Chatham House, a London-based think tank, on Thursday (19 June).“I have met allies who can report that Russia, as part of their sophisticated information and disinformation operations, engaged actively with so-called non-governmental organisations – environmental organisations working against shale gas – to maintain European dependence on imported Russian gas. At least that’s my interpretation and it adds a new aspect to that information campaign,” he said.He noted the EU should support the construction of a new gas pipeline to the Caspian sea, bypassing Russia.He also said the EU should complete energy market liberalisation so that “no one single energy supplier can blackmail any one single nation” in future, alluding to Russian gas supplier Gazprom.Nato officials later told media the views on shale are Rasmussen’s own and do not reflect the alliance’s official position, but it published an audio file of his Chatham House remarks on its website.Rasmussen visited London in preparation for a Nato summit in Wales in September.He said in his Chatham House speech that Russia’s “aggression” against Ukraine is part of a “turning point in history” after the end of the Cold War.He urged EU countries to follow the example of Poland, Romania, and the Baltic states in boosting defence spending to 2 percent of national GDP.He also said in the Q and A portion there is “a new build-up” of Russian forces on the Ukraine border in what amounts to keeping “an option open to intervene further in Ukraine”.He noted that if Russia openly invades its neighbour, it would trigger “deeper, broader, more profound economic sanctions”, but he ruled out a Nato military response saying Nato is “focused on the defence of our allies [members].”Environmental groups ridiculed Rasmussen’s shale remarks.“The idea we’re puppets of [Russian leader] Putin is so preposterous that you have to wonder what they’re smoking over at Nato HQ,” a Greenpeace spokesman said.A Friends of the Earth spokesman noted, in an ironic reference to British reluctance to invest in renewable sources, that: “Perhaps the Russians are worried about our huge wind and solar potential, and have infiltrated the UK government.”Dedicated anti-shale groups, such as Frack Off and Rising Tide, said their “grassroots” movements depend on ordinary people’s concerns.The US is the global leader in shale oil and gas extraction, which relies on fracking - blasting a cocktail of water and chemicals into underground shale deposits.Green groups say fracking can cause ground subsidence and pollute groundwater.They also say shale development will “lock” industrialised states into fossil fuel use instead of cleaner energy.According to US statistics, the Baltic states, France, Germany, Poland, Sweden, and the UK have the largest shale reserves in Europe.Poland is leading the way in Europe. It has drilled more than 60 exploratory wells and its environment minister, Maciej Grabowski, recently said commercial extraction could begin in Pomerania, on the Baltic Sea coast, by the end of 2014.A 2013 US study into shale underlined the importance of local geology, however.The 2013 survey downgraded its 2011 estimate of available shale in Poland’s Lubmin basin from 44 trillion cubic feet to 9 trillion due to geological problems discovered on the road to extraction.It downgraded Norway’s available shale from 83 trillion cubic feet to zero.
