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.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)
JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people(ISRAEL) and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.(UPROOTED ISRAELIS AND DIVIDED JERUSALEM)(THIS BRINGS ON WW3 BECAUSE JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED,WARNING TO ARABS-MUSLIMS AND THE WORLD).
THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS
Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week:(7 YEARS) and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.
DANIEL 11:21-23
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.
DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he ( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant (PEACE TREATY) with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE ANIMAL SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
JEREMIAH 6:14
14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
JEREMIAH 8:11
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
ISAIAH 33:8
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)
JERUSALEM DIVIDED
GENESIS 25:20-26
20 And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)
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.
Paris summit communiqué in full-Half-day international meet ends with statement calling for conference by year’s end, assertion that two-state solution ‘is the only way’-By Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 4:00 pm
A half-day international conference in Paris on kick-starting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process ended Friday with a reaffirmation of a “negotiated two-state solution,” the announcement of a planned summit between the two parties by year’s end, and a warning that “the status quo is not sustainable.”The communiqué in full:“The Participants met in Paris on June 3, 2016 to reaffirm their support for a just, lasting and comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.“They reaffirmed that a negotiated two-state solution is the only way to achieve an enduring peace, with two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security. They are alarmed that actions on the ground, in particular continued acts of violence and ongoing settlement activity, are dangerously imperiling the prospects for a two-state solution.“The Participants underscored that the status quo is not sustainable, and stressed the importance of both sides demonstrating, with policies and actions, a genuine commitment to the two-state solution in order to rebuild trust and create the conditions for fully ending the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and resolving all permanent status issues through direct negotiations based on resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and also recalling relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and highlighting the importance of the implementation of the Arab Peace Initiative.“The Participants discussed possible ways in which the international community could help advance the prospects for peace, including by providing meaningful incentives to the parties to make peace. The Participants also highlighted the potential for regional peace and security as envisioned by the Arab Peace Initiative.“The Participants highlighted the key role of the Quartet and key regional stakeholders. They welcomed the interested countries’ offer to contribute to this effort. They also welcomed France’s offer to coordinate it, and the prospect of convening before the end of the year an international conference.”
EU foreign policy chief at Paris summit: Status quo threatens Oslo Accords-Mogherini says EU wants to facilitate talks not impose terms; Hamas condemns summit, says it infringes ‘national principles of Palestinians’-By Times of Israel staff and AFP June 3, 2016, 3:22 pm
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini exhorted world powers Friday to revive moribund peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians, saying the status quo endangers the 1993 Oslo Accords.Speaking in Paris at a peace summit organized by France, Mogherini said the European Union would help lay the groundwork for bringing the two sides back to the negotiating table, but had no intention of dictating an imposed solution.The aim of the summit was not to impose terms, she said. But the EU was aiming to create conditions in which substantive negotiations could resume. Without peace talks, she said, the existing arrangements between Israel and the Palestinian Authority could be undermined.“The policy of settlement expansion and demolitions, violence, and incitement tells us very clearly that the perspective that Oslo opened up is seriously at risk of fading away,” she told reporters.Meanwhile, Hamas and three other Palestinian groups on Friday condemned Paris talks aimed at kickstarting peace negotiations with Israel.Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement have thrown their weight firmly behind the French initiative, which hosts representatives of some 25 countries, the United Nations, European Union and Arab League, on Friday.Israel has rejected the initiative, calling for direct talks with the Palestinian Authority, while the Hamas terror group, which rules the Gaza Strip, condemned all talk of a negotiated settlement.“We stress our rejection of this initiative and of every move which aims to return to futile negotiations,” Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups said in a statement Friday.“The ideas presented by France in the form of an initiative represent a serious infringement on the shared national principles of Palestinians, especially the right of return,” read a joint statement from Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine.Several million Palestinians live in the nations surrounding Israel, and Palestinians demand that they be allowed to return to their former land.For Israelis, such a move poses an existential question to a Jewish state. Nonetheless, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he seeks a two-state solution, with a demilitarized Palestine that recognize Israel as the Jewish state.Palestinians and Israelis are not represented in the Paris talks, which aim to lay the ground for a full-fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.Speaking at the opening of the conference, French President Francois Hollande urged Israel and the Palestinians to make a “courageous choice” for peace.After decades of failed negotiations, few believe the climate is right to bring together Israelis and Palestinians for another shot at solving one of the world’s longest-running conflicts.But senior Palestinian official Saeb Erakat said France’s bid offered “a flicker of hope” for a resolution to the conflict.
Israel: Paris summit was a ‘missed opportunity,’ distances peace-Foreign Ministry accuses international community of caving to Abbas’s demands, and thus hardening the Palestinians’ stance-By Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 5:41 pm
Israel on Friday blasted an international summit in Paris aimed at reviving the stalled Middle East peace process as a “missed opportunity.” It said international leaders’ willingness to yield to the demands of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas only served to make his position more obdurate and extreme.“The conference in Paris was a missed opportunity,” the Foreign Ministry said Friday, shortly after the half-day summit of officials from 28 countries ended with a call for an international peace conference by the end of the year and a reaffirmation of the two-state solution as the sole means to resolve the conflict.“Instead of urging Abu Mazen [Abbas] to respond to calls from the prime minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] to start direct negotiations immediately and without preconditions, the international community responded to Abu Mazen’s demands and allowed him to keep avoiding direct bilateral negotiations without preconditions. It will go down in history that the conference in Paris simply resulted in hardened Palestinian positions and distances peace,” the ministry said.Neither Israel nor the Palestinians were invited to the summit.The Palestinian leadership, by contrast, hailed the summit as a “significant step” on the path to peace. “The Paris meeting is a very significant step and its message is clear: If Israel is allowed to continue its colonization and apartheid policies in occupied Palestine, the future will be for more extremism and bloodshed rather than for coexistence and peace,” PLO secretary general Saeb Erekat said in a statement. “We negotiated bilaterally with Israel, the occupying power, for over two decades, but they continue to violate all the agreements that we had signed. In fact the number of illegal Israeli settlers in Occupied Palestine has grown from nearly 200,000 to over 600,000 during the past 20 years of bilateral talks.”Israel consistently opposed the Paris summit, and has called instead for direct talks between Netanyahu and Abbas.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan Friday, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”The director general of the Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that France’s push to restart talks, which began with the Friday meeting in the French capital, was doomed to failure.“The only way to get a stable regional arrangement that will allow us to create real peace in the Middle East is if the parties of the region come to understandings between them,” Gold said.“We believe the Arab states would give backing to direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,” he added. “Therefore we prefer a Middle Eastern process and not a process that somebody is trying to create in Paris.”Gold compared the French peace push to a 1916 British-French effort to carve up the Middle East following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The effort by British diplomat Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot of France “was at the apex of the era of colonialism in our area,” Gold said. “Their effort failed as we see today in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.”
Saudi FM in Paris: Arab Initiative is best way to end Mideast conflict-Adel al-Jubeir tells reporters Arab League-backed plan has ‘all the elements needed for a final resolution’-By Suha Halifa June 3, 2016, 4:31 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The Arab Peace Initiative is “still on the table,” and is the best way to reach a solution to the decades-long Israeli-Arab conflict, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Friday in Paris, where diplomats and officials from 28 countries gathered to discuss ways to kick-start the long moribund Middle East peace process.“The initiative has all the elements needed for a final resolution,” al-Jubeir said, adding that it could not be “diluted” and that he hoped “Israel will wise-up” to the opportunity it constitutes.Responding to a question in Arabic, al-Jubeir said that the API, first drafted by Riyadh in 2002 and subsequently backed by the Arab League, has not been and would not be amended. Israel has raised objections to elements of the initiative, which calls for an Israeli withdrawal from all territories captured in the 1967 Six Day War and an agreed resolution to the issue of Palestinian refugees, in return for normalized relations with the Arab world.“The Arab Peace Initiative does not need changing or adjusting, it is on the table as is,” al-Jubeir said, repeating that the essence of the plan is Israel’s return to the “1967 lines” and the establishment of East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.The Saudi foreign minister also said that the issue of natural resources such as water needed resolving, and called for Israel to halt settlement construction.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday partially endorsed the initiative, offering to negotiate with the Arab world the parameters of the plan.“I take this opportunity to make clear that I remain committed to making peace with the Palestinians and with all our neighbors. The Arab Peace Initiative contains positive elements that could help revive constructive negotiations with the Palestinians,” Netanyahu declared in the Knesset.“We are willing to negotiate with the Arab states revisions to that initiative so that it reflects the dramatic changes in our region since 2002, but maintains the agreed goal of two states for two peoples,” Netanyahu said, making his statement first in Hebrew and then repeating it in English.Raphael Ahren contributed to this report
Paris summit ends with vague call for international conference by year’s end-Participants warn time is running out on two-state solution, blame violence and settlement activity, but don’t set timeline for progress-By Times of Israel staff, Raphael Ahren and Agencies June 3, 2016, 4:03 pm
A one-day Israeli-Palestinian peace summit in Paris — to which the Israelis and Palestinians were not invited — concluded Friday with a warning that violence and settlement activity are imperiling a two-state solution, and a call for an international conference on the issue before the end of the year.“We must act, urgently, to preserve the two-state solution, revive it before it is too late,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said after the meeting.The closing communique did not set a firm timetable for further efforts, however. And while France portrayed Friday’s meeting as a first step by the international community to weigh different options, the Americans have been chilly towards the talks, although Secretary of State John Kerry attended, and Israel has flatly opposed to French efforts, calling instead on the Palestinians to enter direct peace talks without conditions.The closing communique was less harsh toward Israel than members of the Arab League had sought, and its general emphasis on the two-state solution represented a compromise in which the United States and the European Union tempered an effort by the Arab League to make a statement that was more critical of Israel’s policies, Western diplomats told Haaretz.“We have chosen to extend a hand to the Israelis and the Palestinians. We hope that they accept it,” Ayrault said. He warned that a solution which would see Israelis and Palestinians living side by side was “getting further away each day.”Israel quickly dismissed the gathering as a “missed opportunity,” claiming its participants had caved to Palestinian demands. The Palestinians, by contrast, welcomed what they called a “significant step” against Israel’s “apartheid policies in occupied Palestine.”In their closing communique, the more than two dozen participating nations reaffirmed that “a negotiated two-state solution is the only way to achieve an enduring peace, with two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.” They expressed alarm that “actions on the ground, in particular continued acts of violence and ongoing settlement activity, are dangerously imperiling the prospects for a two-state solution.”Calling for an end to the “Israeli occupation that begin in 1967,” the participants said they had “discussed possible ways in which the international community could help advance the prospects for peace, including by providing meaningful incentives” and “highlighted the potential for regional peace and security as envisioned by the Arab Peace Initiative.”EU Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini stressed that the aim of the summit was not to impose terms, but rather to create conditions in which substantive negotiations could resume. “The policy of settlement expansion and demolitions, violence, and incitement tells us very clearly that the perspective that Oslo opened up is seriously at risk of fading away,” she told reporters.The closing communique also highlighted the key role of the Quartet and key regional stakeholders. “They welcomed the interested countries’ offer to contribute to this effort. They also welcomed France’s offer to coordinate it, and the prospect of convening before the end of the year an international conference.”The foreign ministers of the United States, European nations, and several Arab states were among those attending the meeting. No Israeli or Palestinian officials were invited.French President Francois Hollande kicked off the summit by calling on both sides to make the “courageous choice” to advance peace. “This initiative has only one goal, peace in Middle East. It was desirable and became necessary,” Hollande said at the opening session of the conference. “We can’t take the place of the parties,” he said, acknowledging the absence of both Israeli and Palestinian officials. “We can only make sure that peace will be solid, lasting and internationally safeguarded.”Ahead of the summit, an internal document sent by the French Foreign Ministry to participating nations had anticipated that “ministers will agree on the principle that a clear timetable will need to be established for the negotiations when they restart, and that some interim review might be necessary to gauge the seriousness of the process.”The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.”Israel has been adamant in its utter rejection of the French initiative, arguing that only bilateral talks can lead to progress. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he seeks a two-state solution, with a demilitarized Palestine that recognize Israel as the Jewish state.Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail. “We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”“The way to peace does not go through international conferences that seek to impose agreements, make the Palestinians’ demands more extreme and thereby make peace more remote,” Netanyahu said Wednesday. “The way to peace is via direct negotiations without preconditions between the sides. This is how peace was achieved in the past with Egypt and Jordan and this is what needs to be with the Palestinians.”If the countries gathering in Paris really wanted to promote peace, they should urge Abbas to enter direct bilateral talks with Israel, Netanyahu added. “This is the way to peace — there is no other.”Kerry “looks forward to being a participant” in the conference, State Department spokesperson John Kirby had said Wednesday. America’s top diplomat is “not going to turn up his nose at any good ideas that could get us closer to seeing a two-state solution in place.Kerry remains keenly interested in the Middle East peace process and will “talk to anybody that might be able to come up with viable alternatives and solutions to get us there,” Kirby added. “Ultimately, though, it’s going to take leadership there on all sides to take the kinds of affirmative steps that are necessary to ease the tensions and to get us closer to a two-state solution. It has to start there.”
French FM warns of impending disaster if Israeli-Palestinian deadlock not broken-Day ahead of Paris peace summit, Jean-Marc Ayrault says there is genuine concern for Israel amid changing Mideast context-By AFP and Raphael Ahren June 3, 2016, 2:04 am-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jumpstart the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”In an interview with the French paper Le Monde a day ahead of a Paris summit on restarting peace talks, Ayrault said that disagreements with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly said that the only way forward was through direct negotiations, “can be overcome” and that at the moment no such negotiations exist anyway.“If we cannot break the current deadlock, we are heading for disaster. The context has changed: increased terrorism is having an impact, including in this part of the region. This is a danger for Israel. France is a friend of Israel’s and there is currently genuine concern over its security and its future,” Ayrault said.Asked what the French had to offer after a US-brokered attempt for talks failed in 2014, Ayrault said that “a new environment must be created on an international scale to tell the two parties: we are not going to negotiate on your behalf, as that is your responsibility as Israelis and Palestinians, but we do want to help you.”“The last international conference on this issue was in Annapolis nine years ago. Our ambition is thus to once again mobilize the international community,” he said.While the Palestinians have welcomed the Paris effort, Israel has rejected it.Earlier Thursday, the director-general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that France’s bid to revive Israel-Palestinian peace talks was doomed, and compared it to a 1916 colonial effort to carve up the Middle East.“This effort utterly failed then and will completely fail today,” Dore Gold told journalists in Jerusalem, referring to the Sykes-Picot agreement to draw up the region’s borders.“The only way to get a stable regional arrangement that will allow us to create real peace in the Middle East is if the parties of the region come to understandings between them,” Gold said.“We believe the Arab states would give backing to direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,” he added. “Therefore we prefer a Middle Eastern process and not a process that somebody is trying to create in Paris.”British diplomat Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot of France drew the borders of a new Middle East in May 1916 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.“It was at the apex of the era of colonialism in our area,” Gold said. “Their effort failed as we see today in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.”Neither Israel nor the Palestinians will be represented in Paris at Friday’s talks, which aim to lay the ground for a fully-fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.
France urges Israel, Palestinians to make ‘courageous’ step toward peace-At Paris summit, Hollande says world community ‘can’t take place of parties,’ but wants to help build ‘solid, lasting, safeguarded’ peace-By Times of Israel staff, AP and AFP June 3, 2016, 11:16 am
French President Francois Hollande kicked off Friday’s Israel-Palestinian peace summit in Paris by calling on both sides to make the “courageous choice” to advance peace.“This initiative has only one goal, peace in Middle East. It was desirable and became necessary,” Hollande said at the opening session of the conference, speaking shortly before foreign ministers from around the world were meeting behind closed doors.Hollande said a solution had to involve the “whole region,” but in the end it was up to the Israelis and Palestinians.“We can’t take the place of the parties,” he said, acknowledging the absence of both Israeli and Palestinian officials at the conference. “We can only make sure that peace will be solid, lasting and internationally safeguarded.”Neither Israel nor the Palestinians are represented at Friday’s talks, which aim to lay the ground for a fully fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.Hollande warned that the status quo threatened to fan the flames of terrorism. “Violence is growing and hope is fading — that’s why we want to try and revive the peace process. We must work to realize that in the regional context and diplomatic vacuum will be filled by extremism and terror,” Haaretz quoted him saying.“Considerable progress has been made, but there is still no peace,” Hollande said. “France doesn’t seek anything for itself. Its sole purpose is to foster peace.”The conference, which has been embraced by the Palestinian Authority but fiercely rejected by the Israeli government, aims to formulate a “framework” for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and to discuss ways in which the international community can provide incentives for the two sides to reach an agreement.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail.“We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off in the French capital.Direct negotiation “doesn’t work,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault countered ahead of the conference.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”France persuaded US Secretary of State John Kerry, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and foreign ministers and officials from close to 30 other countries and international organizations to join Friday’s meeting.The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.” Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah welcomed it.The half-day conference was expected to end with a universal vote of confidence in the two-state solution, and an urgent appeal to establish a “clear timetable” for the resumption of peace talks.Hollande said in a statement Thursday that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict faces a “dangerous deadlock.” The meeting will allow participants to “reaffirm their commitment to the two-state solution and their determination to create the conditions for resumption of direct talks,” he said.Netanyahu, on the other hand, prefers a regional summit with Arab states, who have more sway with the Palestinians than France, PMO sources told Army Radio.A day before the meeting, Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jump-start the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”Ayrault envisioned two outcomes for Friday’s conference.First, the prospect of another peace conference that would include the Israelis and the Palestinians by the end of the year, he told Le Monde newspaper Thursday. Second, the creation of working groups to prepare for potential direct talks. One would focus on economic incentives, another on security guarantees that could help convince the two parties to come back to the negotiation table.The core issues of the conflict will not be discussed during Friday’s conference.France hopes to start a “pragmatic” process in hopes of make progress “step by step,” a French diplomat said, praising a “modest approach.”Another French diplomat added: “We know the path is difficult, the goal will be hard to reach. But we considered it’s worth trying.”The most recent round of talks broke down two years ago. The Palestinians, along with much of the international community, have accused Netanyahu of undermining peace talks by continued settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — territories where they hope to establish an independent state. Netanyahu has said he will open talks with Abbas without preconditions at any time, and that he seeks a two-state solution under which a demilitarized Palestinian state recognizes Israel as a Jewish state.
Diplomats hold Paris peace summit, but Israel dismissive-As Friday meeting starts, Prime Minister’s Office reiterates need for direct negotiations with Palestinians to end conflict-By AP, AFP and Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 8:25 am
US, European and Arab diplomats were meeting in Paris on Friday for a French-led effort to revive the Mideast peace process, despite Israel’s dismissal of the proceedings.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail.“We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off in the French capital.Direct negotiation “doesn’t work,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault insisted ahead of the conference.“Currently everything is blocked. We don’t want to act in the place of the Israelis and Palestinians, but we want to help them,” he told France Info radio.France persuaded US Secretary of State John Kerry, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and foreign ministers and officials from close to 30 other countries and international organizations to join Friday’s meeting to try to prevent an escalation of Mideast violence.Israel and the Palestinians are not taking part, but the French hope this meeting could lead to eventual direct talks.The conference, which has been embraced by the Palestinian Authority but fiercely rejected by the Israeli government, aims to formulate a “framework” for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and discuss ways in which the international community can provide incentives for the two sides to reach an agreement.The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.” Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah welcomed it.The half-day conference is expected to end with a universal vote of confidence in the two-state solution, and an urgent appeal to establish a “clear timetable” for the resumption of peace talks.France’s President Francois Hollande, who was opening the conference, said in a statement Thursday that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict faces a “dangerous deadlock.” The meeting will allow participants to “reaffirm their commitment to the two-state solution and their determination to create the conditions for resumption of direct talks,” he said.Netanyahu, on the other hand, prefers a regional summit with Arab states, who have more sway with the Palestinians than France, PMO sources told Army Radio.A day before the meeting, Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jump-start the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”France’s Ayrault envisioned two outcomes for Friday’s conference.First, the prospect of another peace conference that would include the Israelis and the Palestinians by the end of the year, he told Le Monde newspaper Thursday. Second, the creation of working groups to prepare for potential direct talks. One would focus on economic incentives, another on security guarantees that could help convince the two parties to come back to the negotiation table.The core issues of the conflict will not be discussed during Friday’s conference.France hopes to start a “pragmatic” process in hopes of make progress “step by step”, a French diplomat said, praising a “modest approach”.Another French diplomat added: “We know the path is difficult, the goal will be hard to reach. But we considered it’s worth trying”.Both officials were speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to disclose content of talks ahead of the conference.The most recent round of talks broke down two years ago. The Palestinians, along with much of the international community, have accused Netanyahu of undermining peace talks by continued settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — territories where they hope to establish an independent state. Netanyahu has said he will open talks with PA President Mahmoud Abbas without preconditions at any time, and that he seeks a two-state solution under which a demilitarized Palestinian state recognizes Israel as a Jewish state.
Khamenei: US, Britain, Israel still Iran’s ‘main enemies’-Trusting the United States is ‘a big mistake,’ says supreme leader, discussing nuclear deal on anniversary of Khomenei’s death-By AFP June 3, 2016, 1:48 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lashed out Friday at the United States, Britain and Israel as the Islamic republic’s “main enemies,” accusing Washington of procrastinating over Tehran’s landmark nuclear deal.“It’s the US, the evil Britain, and the damned and cancerous Zionist regime. These are the main enemies,” Khamenei said in a televised speech marking the 27th anniversary of the death of his revolutionary predecessor Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.The supreme leader mentioned the nuclear deal with world powers that came into force in January, and accused Washington of breaking its promises.“We sat down and negotiated with the P5+1 group and even separately with the Americans over the nuclear issue,” he said during a televised speech to thousands gathered at Khomeini’s extravagant mausoleum in southern Tehran. “The other side, the Americans, made some commitments. The Islamic republic completed its commitments but the other unfaithful side is procrastinating.”“Whoever trusts in the United States is committing a big mistake and will be hit with a slap” by them, he added.After the nuclear deal entered into force in mid-January, some international sanctions on Iran were lifted by the United Nations, the US and the European Union.But the US and EU have kept sanctions related to Iran’s missile program, its human rights situation and support for groups like the Lebanese Hezbollah, which Washington categorizes as a “terrorist” organization.Khamenei said it was “impossible” that Iran would enter into negotiations with the US over such issues.“First they enter with a smile and (soft) language but later in practice they will not do what they should do and will not keep their commitment,” he said.Iran particularly accuses President Barack Obama’s administration of not taking the required steps to reassure big international banks who are reluctant to do business with Iran for fear of punitive measures.More than a decade of nuclear-related sanctions hampered Tehran’s economy.President Hassan Rouhani told Tehran’s newly elected parliament last week that Iran needed $30-50 billion (27-45 billion euros) each year in foreign investment in order for it to hit its 8 percent growth target.Khamenei went on to emphasize the importance of a domestic “resistance economy,” rather than reliance on foreign investment.“To think that the economic boom of the country can be merely reached through foreign investment is a mistake,” he said.“More important than foreign investment is activating domestic potential. We have great deal of potential still not activated.”The supreme leader also said that Iran re-joining the global economy would represent a “loss and defeat” and accused Iran’s “enemies” of seeking to undermine Iran’s finances.
LETS SEE - THERES NO MORE JESUS SAVES DAY PARADES AROUND THE WORLD ANY MORE. BUT SODOMITE RAINBOW GROUPERS GAYS NOW HAVE WEEK LONG CELEBARTIONS AROUND THE WORLD. THE WORLD LOVES ABOMINATIONS SODOMITES AND SUCH. AND JESUS AND CHRISTIANITY GETS THROWN IN THE TRASH. AND THE WEST CALLS THEMSELVES CHRISTIAN COUNTRIES. GET REAL WEST-AND COME TO REALITY. GET RID OF THESE ABOMINATION PARADES. AND GET JESUS SAVES WEEK LONG EVENTS INSTEAD.
200,000 crowd Tel Aviv streets for annual pride parade-Hundreds of police on site, security tightened around openly gay Likud MK at festivities who received threats-By Melanie Lidman and Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 1:00 pm
Under arches of rainbow balloons and flags, more than 200,000 people thronged through the streets of Tel Aviv Friday for the annual Gay Pride Parade.Hundreds of police officers and volunteers were dispatched to help secure the march. Cars were banned from parking along the route of the parade, and traffic was redirected.Knesset security also beefed up protection for Likud MK Amir Ohana, an openly gay member of Israel’s parliament, following threats to harm him during the event.Sources close to Ohana blamed the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer (LGBTQ) community, telling Army Radio that it was unfortunate that such an open and accepting community would do to “the only gay MK in the coalition just because he’s right wing.”Fellow Likud politician Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev told participants she “loves” the gay community and was happy to see so many participating in the event. She said the government “needs to do more for you because you deserve it like everyone else.”“Everyone should be able to live as they want to live,” said 80-year-old Miriam Yitzhaki, a veteran resident of Tel Aviv who sat watching the colorful parade march down Bograshav Street, including a man wearing nothing but a speedo gyrating on top of an electricity box. “It started out as just a thing for the gays, but now you can see so many groups, including political groups like Meretz and Peace Now, that’s nice to see people getting involved.”Meretz party chairwoman Zehava Galon called on the government to take greater action for the LGBTQ community, criticizing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “pinkwashing” Israel’s policies.“This government needs to provide the gay community with what it deserves — equal rights under the law, funding and recognition,” Galon said.According to a Channel 2 report on Thursday, police warned right-wing extremists not to come near the Tel Aviv celebration.On Wednesday police requested restraining orders to keep a group of right-wing extremists away from the event, but judges rejected the move, saying there was not enough evidence to support it.Last year during the Jerusalem pride parade radical ultra-Orthodox Jew Yishai Schlissel stabbed several participants, killing 16-year-old Shira Banki and injuring several others. Friday’s parade included a minute’s silence in Banki’s memory.More than 180,000 people, including 30,000 tourists, were expected at the annual event, according to the Foreign Ministry, a number surpassed by midday estimates. Among the participants were male and female reservists from the Israeli army’s artillery regiment, marching in support of battalion colleagues from LGBT community, Ynet reported.The theme of this year’s parade is “Women for a Change.” Last year the theme honored transgender people.“It’s really nice that they decided to make it about women, because sometimes gay pride events can be really male dominated,” said Miriam Fine, a 25-year-old lawyer from London who came with a group of five friends especially for the week’s events.“It’s the most fun in the world to come to this, and to see this in the Middle East is really cool,” she said. This is the first time the group came to Israel during Gay Pride week.Eighteen-year-old Lien Ben Haim came with a group of friends from a high school in Bat Yam. “My friends are gay, so we said, why not? We’re here to support them,” she said.With the bass line thumping from Europop and “Ya Habibi Tel Aviv,” marchers danced down the streets as neighbors threw buckets of water from their balconies. The march started at the Gan Meir Park and ends with a party at Charles Clore Park in South Tel Aviv, after moseying down the Tayelet with dozens of sponsored floats.A number of organizations in the LGBTQ community joined the march, including Hoshen, which brings LGBT adults to Israeli high schools to talk about their life stories. Other marching organizations included gay sports teams, Beit Meir, the gay community center in Tel Aviv, and political parties Meretz, Labor and Likud.Rotem Nimkovsky, 40, has been marching as a member of the Likud Pride group since they founded in 2011. “When I went to political conventions and came out of the closet to tell people that I am gay, they right away sent me to Meretz,” said Nimkovsky. “I said, no, I don’t identify with Meretz. I’ve been right-wing my whole life.”“There is no connection between political opinions and sexual orientation,” Nimkovsky continued. “We are everywhere, and it doesn’t matter your political opinion, LGBT rights are for everyone.”
JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people(ISRAEL) and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.(UPROOTED ISRAELIS AND DIVIDED JERUSALEM)(THIS BRINGS ON WW3 BECAUSE JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED,WARNING TO ARABS-MUSLIMS AND THE WORLD).
THE WEEK OF DANIEL 9:27 WE KNOW ITS 7 YRS
Heres the scripture 1 week = 7 yrs Genesis 29:27-29
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week:(7 YEARS) and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.
DANIEL 11:21-23
21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully: for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.
24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil, and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong holds, even for a time.
DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he ( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant (PEACE TREATY) with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE ANIMAL SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
JEREMIAH 6:14
14 They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
JEREMIAH 8:11
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
ISAIAH 33:8
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)
JERUSALEM DIVIDED
GENESIS 25:20-26
20 And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)
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.
Paris summit communiqué in full-Half-day international meet ends with statement calling for conference by year’s end, assertion that two-state solution ‘is the only way’-By Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 4:00 pm
A half-day international conference in Paris on kick-starting the Israeli-Palestinian peace process ended Friday with a reaffirmation of a “negotiated two-state solution,” the announcement of a planned summit between the two parties by year’s end, and a warning that “the status quo is not sustainable.”The communiqué in full:“The Participants met in Paris on June 3, 2016 to reaffirm their support for a just, lasting and comprehensive solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.“They reaffirmed that a negotiated two-state solution is the only way to achieve an enduring peace, with two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security. They are alarmed that actions on the ground, in particular continued acts of violence and ongoing settlement activity, are dangerously imperiling the prospects for a two-state solution.“The Participants underscored that the status quo is not sustainable, and stressed the importance of both sides demonstrating, with policies and actions, a genuine commitment to the two-state solution in order to rebuild trust and create the conditions for fully ending the Israeli occupation that began in 1967 and resolving all permanent status issues through direct negotiations based on resolutions 242 (1967), 338 (1973), and also recalling relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and highlighting the importance of the implementation of the Arab Peace Initiative.“The Participants discussed possible ways in which the international community could help advance the prospects for peace, including by providing meaningful incentives to the parties to make peace. The Participants also highlighted the potential for regional peace and security as envisioned by the Arab Peace Initiative.“The Participants highlighted the key role of the Quartet and key regional stakeholders. They welcomed the interested countries’ offer to contribute to this effort. They also welcomed France’s offer to coordinate it, and the prospect of convening before the end of the year an international conference.”
EU foreign policy chief at Paris summit: Status quo threatens Oslo Accords-Mogherini says EU wants to facilitate talks not impose terms; Hamas condemns summit, says it infringes ‘national principles of Palestinians’-By Times of Israel staff and AFP June 3, 2016, 3:22 pm
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini exhorted world powers Friday to revive moribund peace talks between the Israelis and Palestinians, saying the status quo endangers the 1993 Oslo Accords.Speaking in Paris at a peace summit organized by France, Mogherini said the European Union would help lay the groundwork for bringing the two sides back to the negotiating table, but had no intention of dictating an imposed solution.The aim of the summit was not to impose terms, she said. But the EU was aiming to create conditions in which substantive negotiations could resume. Without peace talks, she said, the existing arrangements between Israel and the Palestinian Authority could be undermined.“The policy of settlement expansion and demolitions, violence, and incitement tells us very clearly that the perspective that Oslo opened up is seriously at risk of fading away,” she told reporters.Meanwhile, Hamas and three other Palestinian groups on Friday condemned Paris talks aimed at kickstarting peace negotiations with Israel.Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement have thrown their weight firmly behind the French initiative, which hosts representatives of some 25 countries, the United Nations, European Union and Arab League, on Friday.Israel has rejected the initiative, calling for direct talks with the Palestinian Authority, while the Hamas terror group, which rules the Gaza Strip, condemned all talk of a negotiated settlement.“We stress our rejection of this initiative and of every move which aims to return to futile negotiations,” Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups said in a statement Friday.“The ideas presented by France in the form of an initiative represent a serious infringement on the shared national principles of Palestinians, especially the right of return,” read a joint statement from Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine.Several million Palestinians live in the nations surrounding Israel, and Palestinians demand that they be allowed to return to their former land.For Israelis, such a move poses an existential question to a Jewish state. Nonetheless, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he seeks a two-state solution, with a demilitarized Palestine that recognize Israel as the Jewish state.Palestinians and Israelis are not represented in the Paris talks, which aim to lay the ground for a full-fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.Speaking at the opening of the conference, French President Francois Hollande urged Israel and the Palestinians to make a “courageous choice” for peace.After decades of failed negotiations, few believe the climate is right to bring together Israelis and Palestinians for another shot at solving one of the world’s longest-running conflicts.But senior Palestinian official Saeb Erakat said France’s bid offered “a flicker of hope” for a resolution to the conflict.
Israel: Paris summit was a ‘missed opportunity,’ distances peace-Foreign Ministry accuses international community of caving to Abbas’s demands, and thus hardening the Palestinians’ stance-By Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 5:41 pm
Israel on Friday blasted an international summit in Paris aimed at reviving the stalled Middle East peace process as a “missed opportunity.” It said international leaders’ willingness to yield to the demands of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas only served to make his position more obdurate and extreme.“The conference in Paris was a missed opportunity,” the Foreign Ministry said Friday, shortly after the half-day summit of officials from 28 countries ended with a call for an international peace conference by the end of the year and a reaffirmation of the two-state solution as the sole means to resolve the conflict.“Instead of urging Abu Mazen [Abbas] to respond to calls from the prime minister [Benjamin Netanyahu] to start direct negotiations immediately and without preconditions, the international community responded to Abu Mazen’s demands and allowed him to keep avoiding direct bilateral negotiations without preconditions. It will go down in history that the conference in Paris simply resulted in hardened Palestinian positions and distances peace,” the ministry said.Neither Israel nor the Palestinians were invited to the summit.The Palestinian leadership, by contrast, hailed the summit as a “significant step” on the path to peace. “The Paris meeting is a very significant step and its message is clear: If Israel is allowed to continue its colonization and apartheid policies in occupied Palestine, the future will be for more extremism and bloodshed rather than for coexistence and peace,” PLO secretary general Saeb Erekat said in a statement. “We negotiated bilaterally with Israel, the occupying power, for over two decades, but they continue to violate all the agreements that we had signed. In fact the number of illegal Israeli settlers in Occupied Palestine has grown from nearly 200,000 to over 600,000 during the past 20 years of bilateral talks.”Israel consistently opposed the Paris summit, and has called instead for direct talks between Netanyahu and Abbas.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan Friday, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”The director general of the Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that France’s push to restart talks, which began with the Friday meeting in the French capital, was doomed to failure.“The only way to get a stable regional arrangement that will allow us to create real peace in the Middle East is if the parties of the region come to understandings between them,” Gold said.“We believe the Arab states would give backing to direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,” he added. “Therefore we prefer a Middle Eastern process and not a process that somebody is trying to create in Paris.”Gold compared the French peace push to a 1916 British-French effort to carve up the Middle East following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The effort by British diplomat Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot of France “was at the apex of the era of colonialism in our area,” Gold said. “Their effort failed as we see today in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.”
Saudi FM in Paris: Arab Initiative is best way to end Mideast conflict-Adel al-Jubeir tells reporters Arab League-backed plan has ‘all the elements needed for a final resolution’-By Suha Halifa June 3, 2016, 4:31 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The Arab Peace Initiative is “still on the table,” and is the best way to reach a solution to the decades-long Israeli-Arab conflict, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Friday in Paris, where diplomats and officials from 28 countries gathered to discuss ways to kick-start the long moribund Middle East peace process.“The initiative has all the elements needed for a final resolution,” al-Jubeir said, adding that it could not be “diluted” and that he hoped “Israel will wise-up” to the opportunity it constitutes.Responding to a question in Arabic, al-Jubeir said that the API, first drafted by Riyadh in 2002 and subsequently backed by the Arab League, has not been and would not be amended. Israel has raised objections to elements of the initiative, which calls for an Israeli withdrawal from all territories captured in the 1967 Six Day War and an agreed resolution to the issue of Palestinian refugees, in return for normalized relations with the Arab world.“The Arab Peace Initiative does not need changing or adjusting, it is on the table as is,” al-Jubeir said, repeating that the essence of the plan is Israel’s return to the “1967 lines” and the establishment of East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.The Saudi foreign minister also said that the issue of natural resources such as water needed resolving, and called for Israel to halt settlement construction.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday partially endorsed the initiative, offering to negotiate with the Arab world the parameters of the plan.“I take this opportunity to make clear that I remain committed to making peace with the Palestinians and with all our neighbors. The Arab Peace Initiative contains positive elements that could help revive constructive negotiations with the Palestinians,” Netanyahu declared in the Knesset.“We are willing to negotiate with the Arab states revisions to that initiative so that it reflects the dramatic changes in our region since 2002, but maintains the agreed goal of two states for two peoples,” Netanyahu said, making his statement first in Hebrew and then repeating it in English.Raphael Ahren contributed to this report
Paris summit ends with vague call for international conference by year’s end-Participants warn time is running out on two-state solution, blame violence and settlement activity, but don’t set timeline for progress-By Times of Israel staff, Raphael Ahren and Agencies June 3, 2016, 4:03 pm
A one-day Israeli-Palestinian peace summit in Paris — to which the Israelis and Palestinians were not invited — concluded Friday with a warning that violence and settlement activity are imperiling a two-state solution, and a call for an international conference on the issue before the end of the year.“We must act, urgently, to preserve the two-state solution, revive it before it is too late,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said after the meeting.The closing communique did not set a firm timetable for further efforts, however. And while France portrayed Friday’s meeting as a first step by the international community to weigh different options, the Americans have been chilly towards the talks, although Secretary of State John Kerry attended, and Israel has flatly opposed to French efforts, calling instead on the Palestinians to enter direct peace talks without conditions.The closing communique was less harsh toward Israel than members of the Arab League had sought, and its general emphasis on the two-state solution represented a compromise in which the United States and the European Union tempered an effort by the Arab League to make a statement that was more critical of Israel’s policies, Western diplomats told Haaretz.“We have chosen to extend a hand to the Israelis and the Palestinians. We hope that they accept it,” Ayrault said. He warned that a solution which would see Israelis and Palestinians living side by side was “getting further away each day.”Israel quickly dismissed the gathering as a “missed opportunity,” claiming its participants had caved to Palestinian demands. The Palestinians, by contrast, welcomed what they called a “significant step” against Israel’s “apartheid policies in occupied Palestine.”In their closing communique, the more than two dozen participating nations reaffirmed that “a negotiated two-state solution is the only way to achieve an enduring peace, with two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.” They expressed alarm that “actions on the ground, in particular continued acts of violence and ongoing settlement activity, are dangerously imperiling the prospects for a two-state solution.”Calling for an end to the “Israeli occupation that begin in 1967,” the participants said they had “discussed possible ways in which the international community could help advance the prospects for peace, including by providing meaningful incentives” and “highlighted the potential for regional peace and security as envisioned by the Arab Peace Initiative.”EU Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini stressed that the aim of the summit was not to impose terms, but rather to create conditions in which substantive negotiations could resume. “The policy of settlement expansion and demolitions, violence, and incitement tells us very clearly that the perspective that Oslo opened up is seriously at risk of fading away,” she told reporters.The closing communique also highlighted the key role of the Quartet and key regional stakeholders. “They welcomed the interested countries’ offer to contribute to this effort. They also welcomed France’s offer to coordinate it, and the prospect of convening before the end of the year an international conference.”The foreign ministers of the United States, European nations, and several Arab states were among those attending the meeting. No Israeli or Palestinian officials were invited.French President Francois Hollande kicked off the summit by calling on both sides to make the “courageous choice” to advance peace. “This initiative has only one goal, peace in Middle East. It was desirable and became necessary,” Hollande said at the opening session of the conference. “We can’t take the place of the parties,” he said, acknowledging the absence of both Israeli and Palestinian officials. “We can only make sure that peace will be solid, lasting and internationally safeguarded.”Ahead of the summit, an internal document sent by the French Foreign Ministry to participating nations had anticipated that “ministers will agree on the principle that a clear timetable will need to be established for the negotiations when they restart, and that some interim review might be necessary to gauge the seriousness of the process.”The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.”Israel has been adamant in its utter rejection of the French initiative, arguing that only bilateral talks can lead to progress. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he seeks a two-state solution, with a demilitarized Palestine that recognize Israel as the Jewish state.Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail. “We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”“The way to peace does not go through international conferences that seek to impose agreements, make the Palestinians’ demands more extreme and thereby make peace more remote,” Netanyahu said Wednesday. “The way to peace is via direct negotiations without preconditions between the sides. This is how peace was achieved in the past with Egypt and Jordan and this is what needs to be with the Palestinians.”If the countries gathering in Paris really wanted to promote peace, they should urge Abbas to enter direct bilateral talks with Israel, Netanyahu added. “This is the way to peace — there is no other.”Kerry “looks forward to being a participant” in the conference, State Department spokesperson John Kirby had said Wednesday. America’s top diplomat is “not going to turn up his nose at any good ideas that could get us closer to seeing a two-state solution in place.Kerry remains keenly interested in the Middle East peace process and will “talk to anybody that might be able to come up with viable alternatives and solutions to get us there,” Kirby added. “Ultimately, though, it’s going to take leadership there on all sides to take the kinds of affirmative steps that are necessary to ease the tensions and to get us closer to a two-state solution. It has to start there.”
French FM warns of impending disaster if Israeli-Palestinian deadlock not broken-Day ahead of Paris peace summit, Jean-Marc Ayrault says there is genuine concern for Israel amid changing Mideast context-By AFP and Raphael Ahren June 3, 2016, 2:04 am-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jumpstart the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”In an interview with the French paper Le Monde a day ahead of a Paris summit on restarting peace talks, Ayrault said that disagreements with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly said that the only way forward was through direct negotiations, “can be overcome” and that at the moment no such negotiations exist anyway.“If we cannot break the current deadlock, we are heading for disaster. The context has changed: increased terrorism is having an impact, including in this part of the region. This is a danger for Israel. France is a friend of Israel’s and there is currently genuine concern over its security and its future,” Ayrault said.Asked what the French had to offer after a US-brokered attempt for talks failed in 2014, Ayrault said that “a new environment must be created on an international scale to tell the two parties: we are not going to negotiate on your behalf, as that is your responsibility as Israelis and Palestinians, but we do want to help you.”“The last international conference on this issue was in Annapolis nine years ago. Our ambition is thus to once again mobilize the international community,” he said.While the Palestinians have welcomed the Paris effort, Israel has rejected it.Earlier Thursday, the director-general of Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that France’s bid to revive Israel-Palestinian peace talks was doomed, and compared it to a 1916 colonial effort to carve up the Middle East.“This effort utterly failed then and will completely fail today,” Dore Gold told journalists in Jerusalem, referring to the Sykes-Picot agreement to draw up the region’s borders.“The only way to get a stable regional arrangement that will allow us to create real peace in the Middle East is if the parties of the region come to understandings between them,” Gold said.“We believe the Arab states would give backing to direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians,” he added. “Therefore we prefer a Middle Eastern process and not a process that somebody is trying to create in Paris.”British diplomat Mark Sykes and Francois Georges-Picot of France drew the borders of a new Middle East in May 1916 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.“It was at the apex of the era of colonialism in our area,” Gold said. “Their effort failed as we see today in the deserts of Iraq and Syria.”Neither Israel nor the Palestinians will be represented in Paris at Friday’s talks, which aim to lay the ground for a fully-fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.
France urges Israel, Palestinians to make ‘courageous’ step toward peace-At Paris summit, Hollande says world community ‘can’t take place of parties,’ but wants to help build ‘solid, lasting, safeguarded’ peace-By Times of Israel staff, AP and AFP June 3, 2016, 11:16 am
French President Francois Hollande kicked off Friday’s Israel-Palestinian peace summit in Paris by calling on both sides to make the “courageous choice” to advance peace.“This initiative has only one goal, peace in Middle East. It was desirable and became necessary,” Hollande said at the opening session of the conference, speaking shortly before foreign ministers from around the world were meeting behind closed doors.Hollande said a solution had to involve the “whole region,” but in the end it was up to the Israelis and Palestinians.“We can’t take the place of the parties,” he said, acknowledging the absence of both Israeli and Palestinian officials at the conference. “We can only make sure that peace will be solid, lasting and internationally safeguarded.”Neither Israel nor the Palestinians are represented at Friday’s talks, which aim to lay the ground for a fully fledged peace conference to be held by the end of the year.Hollande warned that the status quo threatened to fan the flames of terrorism. “Violence is growing and hope is fading — that’s why we want to try and revive the peace process. We must work to realize that in the regional context and diplomatic vacuum will be filled by extremism and terror,” Haaretz quoted him saying.“Considerable progress has been made, but there is still no peace,” Hollande said. “France doesn’t seek anything for itself. Its sole purpose is to foster peace.”The conference, which has been embraced by the Palestinian Authority but fiercely rejected by the Israeli government, aims to formulate a “framework” for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and to discuss ways in which the international community can provide incentives for the two sides to reach an agreement.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail.“We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off in the French capital.Direct negotiation “doesn’t work,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault countered ahead of the conference.Israel’s Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan said what was happening in Paris was “surreal,” since it was entirely unrealistic to believe that anything said or done there could change things for the better on the ground. The only way to solve the conflict was via direct talks, but Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas “has been boycotting Israel for the past seven years,” said Erdan, and has decided to spend “the remainder of his days trying to damage Israel internationally.”France persuaded US Secretary of State John Kerry, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and foreign ministers and officials from close to 30 other countries and international organizations to join Friday’s meeting.The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.” Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah welcomed it.The half-day conference was expected to end with a universal vote of confidence in the two-state solution, and an urgent appeal to establish a “clear timetable” for the resumption of peace talks.Hollande said in a statement Thursday that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict faces a “dangerous deadlock.” The meeting will allow participants to “reaffirm their commitment to the two-state solution and their determination to create the conditions for resumption of direct talks,” he said.Netanyahu, on the other hand, prefers a regional summit with Arab states, who have more sway with the Palestinians than France, PMO sources told Army Radio.A day before the meeting, Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jump-start the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”Ayrault envisioned two outcomes for Friday’s conference.First, the prospect of another peace conference that would include the Israelis and the Palestinians by the end of the year, he told Le Monde newspaper Thursday. Second, the creation of working groups to prepare for potential direct talks. One would focus on economic incentives, another on security guarantees that could help convince the two parties to come back to the negotiation table.The core issues of the conflict will not be discussed during Friday’s conference.France hopes to start a “pragmatic” process in hopes of make progress “step by step,” a French diplomat said, praising a “modest approach.”Another French diplomat added: “We know the path is difficult, the goal will be hard to reach. But we considered it’s worth trying.”The most recent round of talks broke down two years ago. The Palestinians, along with much of the international community, have accused Netanyahu of undermining peace talks by continued settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — territories where they hope to establish an independent state. Netanyahu has said he will open talks with Abbas without preconditions at any time, and that he seeks a two-state solution under which a demilitarized Palestinian state recognizes Israel as a Jewish state.
Diplomats hold Paris peace summit, but Israel dismissive-As Friday meeting starts, Prime Minister’s Office reiterates need for direct negotiations with Palestinians to end conflict-By AP, AFP and Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 8:25 am
US, European and Arab diplomats were meeting in Paris on Friday for a French-led effort to revive the Mideast peace process, despite Israel’s dismissal of the proceedings.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday doubled down on its criticism of the summit, asserting that it was bound to fail.“We need direct negotiations, and for that we don’t need to go as far as Paris,” an official from the Prime Minister’s Office told Army Radio just a few hours before the conference kicked off in the French capital.Direct negotiation “doesn’t work,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault insisted ahead of the conference.“Currently everything is blocked. We don’t want to act in the place of the Israelis and Palestinians, but we want to help them,” he told France Info radio.France persuaded US Secretary of State John Kerry, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and foreign ministers and officials from close to 30 other countries and international organizations to join Friday’s meeting to try to prevent an escalation of Mideast violence.Israel and the Palestinians are not taking part, but the French hope this meeting could lead to eventual direct talks.The conference, which has been embraced by the Palestinian Authority but fiercely rejected by the Israeli government, aims to formulate a “framework” for the resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and discuss ways in which the international community can provide incentives for the two sides to reach an agreement.The head of Israel’s Foreign Ministry, Dore Gold, said Thursday that the French initiative was “doomed to failure.” Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah welcomed it.The half-day conference is expected to end with a universal vote of confidence in the two-state solution, and an urgent appeal to establish a “clear timetable” for the resumption of peace talks.France’s President Francois Hollande, who was opening the conference, said in a statement Thursday that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict faces a “dangerous deadlock.” The meeting will allow participants to “reaffirm their commitment to the two-state solution and their determination to create the conditions for resumption of direct talks,” he said.Netanyahu, on the other hand, prefers a regional summit with Arab states, who have more sway with the Palestinians than France, PMO sources told Army Radio.A day before the meeting, Ayrault warned that if upcoming French efforts to jump-start the Israeli-Palestinian peace process did not bear fruit, the region was “heading for disaster.”France’s Ayrault envisioned two outcomes for Friday’s conference.First, the prospect of another peace conference that would include the Israelis and the Palestinians by the end of the year, he told Le Monde newspaper Thursday. Second, the creation of working groups to prepare for potential direct talks. One would focus on economic incentives, another on security guarantees that could help convince the two parties to come back to the negotiation table.The core issues of the conflict will not be discussed during Friday’s conference.France hopes to start a “pragmatic” process in hopes of make progress “step by step”, a French diplomat said, praising a “modest approach”.Another French diplomat added: “We know the path is difficult, the goal will be hard to reach. But we considered it’s worth trying”.Both officials were speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not allowed to disclose content of talks ahead of the conference.The most recent round of talks broke down two years ago. The Palestinians, along with much of the international community, have accused Netanyahu of undermining peace talks by continued settlement construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem — territories where they hope to establish an independent state. Netanyahu has said he will open talks with PA President Mahmoud Abbas without preconditions at any time, and that he seeks a two-state solution under which a demilitarized Palestinian state recognizes Israel as a Jewish state.
Khamenei: US, Britain, Israel still Iran’s ‘main enemies’-Trusting the United States is ‘a big mistake,’ says supreme leader, discussing nuclear deal on anniversary of Khomenei’s death-By AFP June 3, 2016, 1:48 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei lashed out Friday at the United States, Britain and Israel as the Islamic republic’s “main enemies,” accusing Washington of procrastinating over Tehran’s landmark nuclear deal.“It’s the US, the evil Britain, and the damned and cancerous Zionist regime. These are the main enemies,” Khamenei said in a televised speech marking the 27th anniversary of the death of his revolutionary predecessor Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.The supreme leader mentioned the nuclear deal with world powers that came into force in January, and accused Washington of breaking its promises.“We sat down and negotiated with the P5+1 group and even separately with the Americans over the nuclear issue,” he said during a televised speech to thousands gathered at Khomeini’s extravagant mausoleum in southern Tehran. “The other side, the Americans, made some commitments. The Islamic republic completed its commitments but the other unfaithful side is procrastinating.”“Whoever trusts in the United States is committing a big mistake and will be hit with a slap” by them, he added.After the nuclear deal entered into force in mid-January, some international sanctions on Iran were lifted by the United Nations, the US and the European Union.But the US and EU have kept sanctions related to Iran’s missile program, its human rights situation and support for groups like the Lebanese Hezbollah, which Washington categorizes as a “terrorist” organization.Khamenei said it was “impossible” that Iran would enter into negotiations with the US over such issues.“First they enter with a smile and (soft) language but later in practice they will not do what they should do and will not keep their commitment,” he said.Iran particularly accuses President Barack Obama’s administration of not taking the required steps to reassure big international banks who are reluctant to do business with Iran for fear of punitive measures.More than a decade of nuclear-related sanctions hampered Tehran’s economy.President Hassan Rouhani told Tehran’s newly elected parliament last week that Iran needed $30-50 billion (27-45 billion euros) each year in foreign investment in order for it to hit its 8 percent growth target.Khamenei went on to emphasize the importance of a domestic “resistance economy,” rather than reliance on foreign investment.“To think that the economic boom of the country can be merely reached through foreign investment is a mistake,” he said.“More important than foreign investment is activating domestic potential. We have great deal of potential still not activated.”The supreme leader also said that Iran re-joining the global economy would represent a “loss and defeat” and accused Iran’s “enemies” of seeking to undermine Iran’s finances.
LETS SEE - THERES NO MORE JESUS SAVES DAY PARADES AROUND THE WORLD ANY MORE. BUT SODOMITE RAINBOW GROUPERS GAYS NOW HAVE WEEK LONG CELEBARTIONS AROUND THE WORLD. THE WORLD LOVES ABOMINATIONS SODOMITES AND SUCH. AND JESUS AND CHRISTIANITY GETS THROWN IN THE TRASH. AND THE WEST CALLS THEMSELVES CHRISTIAN COUNTRIES. GET REAL WEST-AND COME TO REALITY. GET RID OF THESE ABOMINATION PARADES. AND GET JESUS SAVES WEEK LONG EVENTS INSTEAD.
200,000 crowd Tel Aviv streets for annual pride parade-Hundreds of police on site, security tightened around openly gay Likud MK at festivities who received threats-By Melanie Lidman and Times of Israel staff June 3, 2016, 1:00 pm
Under arches of rainbow balloons and flags, more than 200,000 people thronged through the streets of Tel Aviv Friday for the annual Gay Pride Parade.Hundreds of police officers and volunteers were dispatched to help secure the march. Cars were banned from parking along the route of the parade, and traffic was redirected.Knesset security also beefed up protection for Likud MK Amir Ohana, an openly gay member of Israel’s parliament, following threats to harm him during the event.Sources close to Ohana blamed the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer (LGBTQ) community, telling Army Radio that it was unfortunate that such an open and accepting community would do to “the only gay MK in the coalition just because he’s right wing.”Fellow Likud politician Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev told participants she “loves” the gay community and was happy to see so many participating in the event. She said the government “needs to do more for you because you deserve it like everyone else.”“Everyone should be able to live as they want to live,” said 80-year-old Miriam Yitzhaki, a veteran resident of Tel Aviv who sat watching the colorful parade march down Bograshav Street, including a man wearing nothing but a speedo gyrating on top of an electricity box. “It started out as just a thing for the gays, but now you can see so many groups, including political groups like Meretz and Peace Now, that’s nice to see people getting involved.”Meretz party chairwoman Zehava Galon called on the government to take greater action for the LGBTQ community, criticizing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “pinkwashing” Israel’s policies.“This government needs to provide the gay community with what it deserves — equal rights under the law, funding and recognition,” Galon said.According to a Channel 2 report on Thursday, police warned right-wing extremists not to come near the Tel Aviv celebration.On Wednesday police requested restraining orders to keep a group of right-wing extremists away from the event, but judges rejected the move, saying there was not enough evidence to support it.Last year during the Jerusalem pride parade radical ultra-Orthodox Jew Yishai Schlissel stabbed several participants, killing 16-year-old Shira Banki and injuring several others. Friday’s parade included a minute’s silence in Banki’s memory.More than 180,000 people, including 30,000 tourists, were expected at the annual event, according to the Foreign Ministry, a number surpassed by midday estimates. Among the participants were male and female reservists from the Israeli army’s artillery regiment, marching in support of battalion colleagues from LGBT community, Ynet reported.The theme of this year’s parade is “Women for a Change.” Last year the theme honored transgender people.“It’s really nice that they decided to make it about women, because sometimes gay pride events can be really male dominated,” said Miriam Fine, a 25-year-old lawyer from London who came with a group of five friends especially for the week’s events.“It’s the most fun in the world to come to this, and to see this in the Middle East is really cool,” she said. This is the first time the group came to Israel during Gay Pride week.Eighteen-year-old Lien Ben Haim came with a group of friends from a high school in Bat Yam. “My friends are gay, so we said, why not? We’re here to support them,” she said.With the bass line thumping from Europop and “Ya Habibi Tel Aviv,” marchers danced down the streets as neighbors threw buckets of water from their balconies. The march started at the Gan Meir Park and ends with a party at Charles Clore Park in South Tel Aviv, after moseying down the Tayelet with dozens of sponsored floats.A number of organizations in the LGBTQ community joined the march, including Hoshen, which brings LGBT adults to Israeli high schools to talk about their life stories. Other marching organizations included gay sports teams, Beit Meir, the gay community center in Tel Aviv, and political parties Meretz, Labor and Likud.Rotem Nimkovsky, 40, has been marching as a member of the Likud Pride group since they founded in 2011. “When I went to political conventions and came out of the closet to tell people that I am gay, they right away sent me to Meretz,” said Nimkovsky. “I said, no, I don’t identify with Meretz. I’ve been right-wing my whole life.”“There is no connection between political opinions and sexual orientation,” Nimkovsky continued. “We are everywhere, and it doesn’t matter your political opinion, LGBT rights are for everyone.”
