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.
UN chief to visit Israel, PA, Gaza to push peace efforts-Ban Ki-moon’s visit to coincide with Netanyahu-Kerry meet as efforts to jump-start talks gain steam-By Times of Israel staff June 21, 2016, 2:19 pm
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is reportedly slated to visit Israel and the Palestinian Authority next week for a two-day round of meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.The visit, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday next week, will take him to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Ramallah and the Gaza Strip, the Walla news site reported Tuesday.The visit comes amid renewed international diplomatic efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks stalled since 2014.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also slated to meet US Secretary of State John Kerry next week in Europe to discuss, among other issues, the recent French initiative to jumpstart talks.Channel 2 reported Sunday that Netanyahu plans to tell Kerry he backs potential Egyptian-led efforts to revive negotiations, rather than the international approach being pushed by France.Netanyahu has recently given mixed signals on the Saudi-drafted Arab Peace Initiative as a means to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, suggesting partial support for it but also calling for it to be amended.His Foreign Ministry director-general, Dore Gold, told The Times of Israel three weeks ago that Israel believes improved ties with certain Arab states could enable subsequent progress with the Palestinians.“The conventional wisdom for the last few decades has been that a solution to the Palestinian issues will result in improved ties between Israel and the Arab world,” Gold said. “But there is a serious basis for thinking that, actually, the sequence is exactly the opposite — that by improving ties with the Arab states, we set the stage for a future breakthrough with the Palestinians.”Ban is slated to pay a special visit to the Gaza Strip during his visit in order to inspect from up close UN agencies’ aid work in the coastal territory.
Israel blasts Europe’s ‘colonialist’ peace initiative-EU has ‘no credibility whatsoever’ to deal with the conflict as long as it cannot solve its own problems, official fumes-By Raphael Ahren June 21, 2016, 3:01 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Europe’s approach to Israel appears to be a resurrection of its past colonialism, a senior Israeli official said Tuesday. It was part of an unusually blistering attack on the EU and its Middle East policies, in which the official accused European leaders of cynically employing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to deflect criticism and to distract the public from their inability to solve the continent’s real pressing problems.“When I look at the sequence of the EU implementing labeling [for settlement products] and now the endorsement of an international conference, I feel that those are the ghosts of a colonial European past coming back to life,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon told The Times of Israel.The EU’s 28 foreign ministers on Tuesday endorsed France’s plan to hold an international peace conference in Paris to advance the stalled peace process. Israel has repeatedly rejected the French initiative, arguing that it hardens Palestinian negotiating positions and thus distances peace.Nahshon said the union was unqualified to deal with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as long as it struggled to properly address its own woes.“They have no credibility whatsoever if they deal with this conflict without dealing with the major issues that are far more important to Europe and the world, starting with the Syrian civil war, and challenges that Europe itself is facing, such as Brexit, immigration and Islamic terror,” he said.Jerusalem wonders “whether Israel is not being employed, whether we are not being used in a cynical and deliberate way as a kind of fig leaf, a universal panacea, for a continent that is obviously unwilling or unable to deal with its real issues,” the diplomat thundered.“Unfortunately, the conclusion is that this is probably the case,” he said. “Whenever you are in trouble, whenever you are a European leader unpopular at home, and whenever you face insurmountable challenges, then there’s nothing like organizing a conference on Israel to create a false agenda that will attract attention elsewhere.”Nahshon charged that while the EU was embroiled in its most urgent problems – such as mass waves of immigration from Africa and the Middle East and the possible British decision to leave the union – it “seems to invest a lot of energy” in a peace summit in Paris that is doomed to fail.If the EU was genuinely concerned about the stalled peace process, it would focus all its efforts on getting the Palestinians to agree to enter direct bilateral talks with Israel, the diplomat said. That is the only way to achieve progress, as evidenced by Israel’s peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, he added.During their monthly meeting in Brussels Monday, the EU foreign ministers pledged to make “a concrete and substantial contribution to a global set of incentives” for Israelis and Palestinians, urging EU institutions to “present proposals, including on economic incentives, without delay.” They reaffirmed their 2013 offer of an “unprecedented package of political, economic and security support to be offered to and developed with both parties in the context of a final status agreement.”Nahshon flatly rejected the European offer of incentives.“It is inconceivable and unacceptable that upgrading our relations with Europe should be conditioned on our participation in a misguided diplomatic effort,” he said. “This is tantamount to illegitimate pressure. Israel is an important member of the international community, a world leader in science and technology, which the EU benefits from. There is no reason why we should be subjected to such pressure.”EU officials insist that their offer of assistance to incentivize the peace process is unrelated to efforts to advance EU-Israel bilateral relations on other issues, but Nahshon refused to accept that argument.“If the EU really wants to promote the peace process it should invest all its energies to bring the Palestinians back to the negotiation table. Israel-EU relations should not be linked to misguided EU initiatives,” he concluded.Meanwhile Tuesday, a top European Union official said the bloc stands ready to provide Israel and the Palestinians with massive political, economic and security support as part of any peace agreement between them.European Council President Donald Tusk said that the EU will “back up a peace deal with an unprecedented package of cooperation and support to both Israel and the future state of Palestine.”Tusk said after talks in Brussels with President Reuven Rivlin that “a lasting peace in the region remains a top priority” for the EU.AP contributed to this report.
Cameron: We must stay in EU to influence Europe’s approach to Israel-The Prime Minister tells guests at Jewish Care dinner to reject ‘divisive and intolerant’ Leave campaign-By Justin Cohen June 21, 2016, 11:34 am-JEWISH TIMES
David Cameron has insisted Britain can only impact Europe’s approach to Israel by remaining inside the EU as he called on the community to roundly reject the “divisive and intolerant” campaign of Nigel Farage.The prime minister used his only address to Anglo-Jewry of the referendum to insist that the country’s influence is “enhanced” rather than diminished by being part of the Union on issues from the economy to climate change to preventing Iran getting the bomb.He told Jewish Care’s annual dinner: “When we’re fighting terrorism and Islamist extremism are we better doing that out on our own or fighting together with our European partners. When Europe is discussing its attitude towards Israel do you want Britain – Israel’s greatest friends – in there opposing boycotts or do you want us outside the room, powerless to affect the conversation.”Cameron spoke of his “love” of the country and described Jewish function as some of the most patriotic he’d attended. Invoking his predecessor Winston Churchill, he said the wartime leader chose to fight Hitler alongside allies, rather than operate alone, when he took the “greatest decision in our history”.He also launched a blistering attack on the UKIP leader over the ‘Breaking point’ poster he unveiled last week as part of the campaign to leave the EU. It featured a line of immigrants passing through Europe and was condemned as having echoes of 1930s imagery of George Osborne.“When I look at that poster which Nigel Farage stood in front of for the leave campaign I see the opposite of everything that makes our country great,” Cameron told the more than 1,000 guests at the Grosvenor House Hotel. “I’m proud that Britain is home to people who fled persecution – including those who fled the Nazis and from Russians pogroms. We should say to Farage and his campaign of division and intolerance ‘we don’t want your vision of Britain, we don’t want you’re selling, you’re not selling the kind of country we want for ourselves or our grandchildren – and I say we should vote decisively to reject it on Thursday.”.@Number10gov attacks @Nigel_Farage poster as 'opposite of everything makes Britain great' at @Jewish_Care dinner pic.twitter.com/DlwSTCYc7S— Justin Cohen (@CohenJust) June 20, 2016-While his diary was in a state of flux during the final build up to the referendum, Cameron drew huge applause for saying the dinner was one engagement he was “always going to keep”.On the day the House Of Commons was recalled to pay tribute to murdered MP Jo Cox, the prime minister reflected on her husband Brendan’s call to oppose hate in her memory.“Wherever we find hatred we should drive it out of our politics and drive it out of our communities. No one understands this better than our Jewish community.”Reflecting on the rise of anti-Semitism, he said: “I hate that this scourge has returned to this world and specifically to our country. I promise wherever we see antisemitism – from politicians who should know better to abusive graffiti daubed on synagogues and homes – I will do everything I can to drive it out of this country. For as long as I’m prime-Minister you’ve got that extra £10m I promised to CST every year for as long as necessary.”In a wide-ranging speech, he also hailed Israel’s transformation from “dessert to city” as “One of most remarkable stories of the modern democratic world” and reiterated that his commitment to her security is “non-negotiable”.“I will always stand up for right and obligation of Israel to defend its citizens – a right enshrined in international law, in natural justice and in fundamental morality. I’ll never stand by when people talk about boycotts or Israel comes under attack from rockets or terror tunnels.”Cameron heaped praise on the staff and volunteers of Jewish Care as the ‘best of Jewish and the best of British.‘I love you. All of you individually as I have a referendum to win. But I love Jewish Care and all you do. You don’t leave things to government. You help communities . You bring people together to play their part. That is the big society in action.”Ahead of a campaign video featuring three service users including 99-year-old Millie – who said a Jewish care club had given her a lifeline to get out and social aide – as a “complete inspiration”..@Number10gov to @Jewish_Care dinner: 'You are the best of Jewish and the best of British' pic.twitter.com/aT4NTYTWtL— Justin Cohen (@CohenJust) June 20, 2016-Jewish Care President and labour peer Lord Levy described the charity – hailed the PM as “a true friend to our community and our beloved state of Israel” and the charity – which helps 10,000 people weekly – as “the Backbone of our community”.Chairman Stephen Zimmerman announced that permission had been secured for a new care campus in Redbridge. He stressed that £15m must be raised annually to continue its work, with an additional £4m required by 2020.
Israel’s Airobotics raises $28.5m for operator-free drones-Investors include Noam Bardin, former chief executive of the Waze navigation app bought by Google-By Shoshanna Solomon June 21, 2016, 3:18 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israeli start-up Airobotics said today it has built a new kind of drone platform that will allow companies to operate drones without the need for expensive and skilled drone operators.The Petah Tikva, Israel-based company said it has raised $28.5 million in funding from investors including California’s BlueRun Ventures; Noam Bardin, the former chief executive of Waze, the navigation app that was bought by Google; and Richard Wooldridge, Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects chief operating officer.By taking the drone pilot and operator out of the equation, Airobotics removes the most expensive and hard-to-find component of industrial drone operations, the company said in a statement.The system is made up of three major parts: a drone, which can fly 30-minute missions at a time while carrying a one kilogram payload and using videos to provide customers with real time aerial insight; the airbase, a completely automated base station from which the drone launches and lands on its own, without needing human intervention, and software, which enables users “to control and manage missions with one click.”Airobotics is also creating an open ecosystem to allow other developers to come up with additional tools. Because the new drone has a payload mechanism design that can be swapped, partners can create new payloads that integrate new sensors and other tools into the drone. The Airobotics’ software is also both a complete operating system and an open platform, something that will allow third parties to build and customize the payloads and also provide the software apps to support and manage the various new missions. This will open up different and novel ways the drone can be used, the company said.Led by co-founders Ran Krauss, the chief executive officer, and Meir Kliner who is in charge of research and development, the entire Airobotics’ 70-person team is made up of people who have technological and practical drone knowledge. Airobotics is Krauss’s third drone startup, the statement said.Noam Bardin, now an executive at Google, was “immediately hooked” by the potential for Airobotics as it has “disruptive vision” and is “uniquely positioned to own the industrial drone space,” he said in the statement.Airobotics’ solution can be used by the mining, oil and gas industries, ports, and other industrial facilities which need areal views for surveys and mapping, inspection, security and emergency needs. Israel Chemicals Ltd., the fertilizer and potash manufacturer who was one of Airobotics’ first customers, ran beta trials to test, refine, and optimize the performance of the platform, the statement said.
More global cooperation needed to win cyber war, Israeli guru says-Head of team that set out Israel’s national cybersecurity policy says country sees up to 2 million attacks a day-By Shoshanna Solomon June 21, 2016, 2:19 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
More cooperation is needed globally among companies and governments to fight the ever changing threats to the cyber universe, Prof. Isaac Ben-Israel, who led a task force that set out Israel’s national cyber security policy, said in an interview.“There is not enough being done globally,” Ben-Israel, who heads the Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center at the Tel Aviv University, said on the sidelines of a cybersecurity conference.“Everyone agrees that international cooperation is very important in the war against cyber crime or attacks, but no one really knows what is the meaning of international cooperation in cyber space. There are small steps here and there but it is very difficult to get international cooperation. People say let’s share intelligence, but no one is sharing intelligence. We can say it, but no one is doing it, so we should find other ways.”Increasing mobile and web usage and social media are among the key factors contributing to the “explosive increase” in cyber threats, MarketsandMarkets, a Dallas, Texas-based market research firm said in a report. The global cyber security market will be worth more than $170 billion by 2020, according to an estimate by MarketsandMarkets, with companies globally focusing on security solutions but also services.Israel witnesses 200,000 to 2 million cyber attacks each day on critical infrastructures like water, electricity, and railways, Ben-Israel said.“Cyber security is the dark side of the computer,” Ben-Israel said. “We developed the computer, we made it ubiquitous and faster. But we have also created a huge dependence on it, and the bad guys could use this weak point to damage our security. Cybersecurity is about protecting the bright side from the dark side,” he said.There are some 400 private and public cybersecurity companies active in Israel today addressing these threats, and Israel’s start-up industry has been growing at a roughly 15 percent rate in recent years, according to data provided by Tel Aviv based IVC Research Center, which tracks Israel’s high-tech industry. More than $300 million were raised by cybersecurity companies in Israel in 2015, in 72 financing rounds, IVC said.Globally, investment in cybersecurity companies reached an all-time high in 2015, rising to $3.8 billion compared with $2.8 billion in 2014 and $1.1 billion in 2011, according to New York-based data company CB Insights.Computers have on average a generation life of 1.5 years, Ben-Israel said. As long as they evolve, so also cyber security technology needs to adapt, he said.“One cannot talk about trends in cyber security, the technology is always changing so fast,” Ben-Israel said. “We don’t know what the future threats will be. We know about past threats and the current threats but we don’t have enough knowledge about the future because it is changing all the time.”Ben-Israel studied mathematics, physics and philosophy at Tel Aviv university and received his PhD in 1988. During his service in the army in which he served until 2002, Ben-Israel served in several posts in operations, intelligence and weapon development units of the Israel Air Force and served as head of military research and development of the army and the Defense Ministry.In 2011 Ben-Israel led a task force that formulated Israel’s national cyber policy and founded the National Cyber Headquarters in the Prime Minister’s office. In February 2015 the government decided to set up a new national cyber authority.“During our work in the task force we asked ourselves what we need to have in order to create a living cyber ecosystem that will nave new ideas all the time, adapt itself quickly to the ever changing technology,” he said.The rise of cyber security studies at Israeli universities coupled with human capital coming out of the army and a market opportunity identified by the local high tech industry led to the growth of Israel’s cyber industry, he said. Israeli exports of cybersecurity products account today for roughly 8 to 10 percent of what is estimated to be a $60 billion global cybersecurity industry, he said.Israel’s flourishing cyber industry is very much part of the high-tech ecosystem that has made Israel known as the start-up nation, Ben-Israel said.“It is mainly about developing human capital,” he said. “Israelis argue all the time, we have a highly developed art of criticism. The people of Israel criticized Moses. It all started there. Criticism is good for innovation.”
North Korea fires another intermediate-range missile: South Korea-[Reuters]-June 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired a second missile on Wednesday that appears to be an intermediate-range Musudan, South Korea's military said, after South Korean and U.S. officials said an earlier launch had failed.The South Korean and U.S. officials said the earlier launch that failed was also likely a Musudan launched from North Korea's east coast. It was not clear if the second launch, about two hours later, was successful.(Reporting by Jack Kim and Ju-min Park)
SKorea military: NKorea fires 2 suspected midrange missiles-[Foster Klug And Hyung-Jin Kim, The Associated Press]-June 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
SEOUL, South Korea - In a remarkable show of persistence, North Korea on Wednesday fired two suspected powerful new Musudan mid-range missiles, U.S. and South Korean military officials said, but at least one of the launches apparently failed, Pyongyang's fifth such reported flop since April.Despite the repeated failures, the North's determination in testing the Musudan worries Washington and its allies, Tokyo and Seoul, because the missile's potential 3,500-kilometre (2,180-mile) range could target much of Asia and the Pacific, including U.S. military bases there.Each new test — apparently linked to a command from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un — also likely provides valuable insights to the North's scientists and military officials as they push toward their goal of a nuclear and missile program that can threaten the U.S. mainland. Pyongyang earlier this year conducted a nuclear test and launched a long-range rocket that outsiders say was a cover for a test of banned missile technology.A statement from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said a suspected first Musudan launch from the east coast city of Wonsan failed early Wednesday morning but gave few other details. Later Wednesday, the JCS said the North fired another suspected Musudan, but it wasn't immediately clear if it succeeded.A U.S. official also said the first launch appeared to be another failure, adding that the U.S. was assessing exactly what had happened. The official wasn't authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity. Another American official said the first launch was a suspected Musudan but initial indications were that it failed in flight over the Sea of Japan, which the Koreas call the East Sea.The United States had no immediate details on the reported second launch.In April, North Korea attempted unsuccessfully to launch three suspected Musudan missiles, but all exploded in midair or crashed, according to South Korean defence officials. Earlier this month, North Korea had another suspected Musudan failure, South Korean officials said.Before April's launches, North Korea had never flight-tested a Musudan missile, although one was displayed during a military parade in 2010 in Pyongyang, its capital.The launches appear to stem from Kim Jong Un's order in March for more nuclear and ballistic missile tests. The order was an apparent response to springtime U.S.-South Korean military drills, which North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal.Since the end of those military drills, Pyongyang has repeatedly called for the resumption of talks with rival Seoul, even as it pursues new missile development, but the South has rejected the overtures. It wants the North to first take steps toward nuclear disarmament. Pyongyang says its rivals must negotiate with it as an established nuclear power, something Washington and Seoul refuse to do.The string of recent launch attempts show the North is pushing hard to upgrade its missile capability in defiance of U.S.-led international pressure. The North was slapped with the strongest U.N. sanctions in two decades after it conducted a fourth nuclear test and a long-range rocket launch earlier this year.Earlier Tuesday, at a Washington briefing, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said that if North Korea were to conduct another missile test, it would violate U.N. resolutions and "be another provocative action. So we certainly would urge North Korea to refrain from doing that sort of thing."North Korea has recently claimed a series of breakthroughs in its push to build a long-range nuclear missile that can strike the American mainland. But South Korean officials have said the North doesn't yet possess such a weapon.The North, however, has already deployed a variety of missiles that can reach most targets in South Korea and Japan, including American military bases in the countries.The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 U.S. soldiers are stationed in South Korea to deter possible aggression from North Korea; tens of thousands more are stationed in Japan.___Associated Press writers Josh Lederman and Lolita C. Baldor in Washington contributed to this report.
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.
UN chief to visit Israel, PA, Gaza to push peace efforts-Ban Ki-moon’s visit to coincide with Netanyahu-Kerry meet as efforts to jump-start talks gain steam-By Times of Israel staff June 21, 2016, 2:19 pm
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is reportedly slated to visit Israel and the Palestinian Authority next week for a two-day round of meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.The visit, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday next week, will take him to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Ramallah and the Gaza Strip, the Walla news site reported Tuesday.The visit comes amid renewed international diplomatic efforts to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks stalled since 2014.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also slated to meet US Secretary of State John Kerry next week in Europe to discuss, among other issues, the recent French initiative to jumpstart talks.Channel 2 reported Sunday that Netanyahu plans to tell Kerry he backs potential Egyptian-led efforts to revive negotiations, rather than the international approach being pushed by France.Netanyahu has recently given mixed signals on the Saudi-drafted Arab Peace Initiative as a means to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, suggesting partial support for it but also calling for it to be amended.His Foreign Ministry director-general, Dore Gold, told The Times of Israel three weeks ago that Israel believes improved ties with certain Arab states could enable subsequent progress with the Palestinians.“The conventional wisdom for the last few decades has been that a solution to the Palestinian issues will result in improved ties between Israel and the Arab world,” Gold said. “But there is a serious basis for thinking that, actually, the sequence is exactly the opposite — that by improving ties with the Arab states, we set the stage for a future breakthrough with the Palestinians.”Ban is slated to pay a special visit to the Gaza Strip during his visit in order to inspect from up close UN agencies’ aid work in the coastal territory.
Israel blasts Europe’s ‘colonialist’ peace initiative-EU has ‘no credibility whatsoever’ to deal with the conflict as long as it cannot solve its own problems, official fumes-By Raphael Ahren June 21, 2016, 3:01 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Europe’s approach to Israel appears to be a resurrection of its past colonialism, a senior Israeli official said Tuesday. It was part of an unusually blistering attack on the EU and its Middle East policies, in which the official accused European leaders of cynically employing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to deflect criticism and to distract the public from their inability to solve the continent’s real pressing problems.“When I look at the sequence of the EU implementing labeling [for settlement products] and now the endorsement of an international conference, I feel that those are the ghosts of a colonial European past coming back to life,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon told The Times of Israel.The EU’s 28 foreign ministers on Tuesday endorsed France’s plan to hold an international peace conference in Paris to advance the stalled peace process. Israel has repeatedly rejected the French initiative, arguing that it hardens Palestinian negotiating positions and thus distances peace.Nahshon said the union was unqualified to deal with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as long as it struggled to properly address its own woes.“They have no credibility whatsoever if they deal with this conflict without dealing with the major issues that are far more important to Europe and the world, starting with the Syrian civil war, and challenges that Europe itself is facing, such as Brexit, immigration and Islamic terror,” he said.Jerusalem wonders “whether Israel is not being employed, whether we are not being used in a cynical and deliberate way as a kind of fig leaf, a universal panacea, for a continent that is obviously unwilling or unable to deal with its real issues,” the diplomat thundered.“Unfortunately, the conclusion is that this is probably the case,” he said. “Whenever you are in trouble, whenever you are a European leader unpopular at home, and whenever you face insurmountable challenges, then there’s nothing like organizing a conference on Israel to create a false agenda that will attract attention elsewhere.”Nahshon charged that while the EU was embroiled in its most urgent problems – such as mass waves of immigration from Africa and the Middle East and the possible British decision to leave the union – it “seems to invest a lot of energy” in a peace summit in Paris that is doomed to fail.If the EU was genuinely concerned about the stalled peace process, it would focus all its efforts on getting the Palestinians to agree to enter direct bilateral talks with Israel, the diplomat said. That is the only way to achieve progress, as evidenced by Israel’s peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, he added.During their monthly meeting in Brussels Monday, the EU foreign ministers pledged to make “a concrete and substantial contribution to a global set of incentives” for Israelis and Palestinians, urging EU institutions to “present proposals, including on economic incentives, without delay.” They reaffirmed their 2013 offer of an “unprecedented package of political, economic and security support to be offered to and developed with both parties in the context of a final status agreement.”Nahshon flatly rejected the European offer of incentives.“It is inconceivable and unacceptable that upgrading our relations with Europe should be conditioned on our participation in a misguided diplomatic effort,” he said. “This is tantamount to illegitimate pressure. Israel is an important member of the international community, a world leader in science and technology, which the EU benefits from. There is no reason why we should be subjected to such pressure.”EU officials insist that their offer of assistance to incentivize the peace process is unrelated to efforts to advance EU-Israel bilateral relations on other issues, but Nahshon refused to accept that argument.“If the EU really wants to promote the peace process it should invest all its energies to bring the Palestinians back to the negotiation table. Israel-EU relations should not be linked to misguided EU initiatives,” he concluded.Meanwhile Tuesday, a top European Union official said the bloc stands ready to provide Israel and the Palestinians with massive political, economic and security support as part of any peace agreement between them.European Council President Donald Tusk said that the EU will “back up a peace deal with an unprecedented package of cooperation and support to both Israel and the future state of Palestine.”Tusk said after talks in Brussels with President Reuven Rivlin that “a lasting peace in the region remains a top priority” for the EU.AP contributed to this report.
Cameron: We must stay in EU to influence Europe’s approach to Israel-The Prime Minister tells guests at Jewish Care dinner to reject ‘divisive and intolerant’ Leave campaign-By Justin Cohen June 21, 2016, 11:34 am-JEWISH TIMES
David Cameron has insisted Britain can only impact Europe’s approach to Israel by remaining inside the EU as he called on the community to roundly reject the “divisive and intolerant” campaign of Nigel Farage.The prime minister used his only address to Anglo-Jewry of the referendum to insist that the country’s influence is “enhanced” rather than diminished by being part of the Union on issues from the economy to climate change to preventing Iran getting the bomb.He told Jewish Care’s annual dinner: “When we’re fighting terrorism and Islamist extremism are we better doing that out on our own or fighting together with our European partners. When Europe is discussing its attitude towards Israel do you want Britain – Israel’s greatest friends – in there opposing boycotts or do you want us outside the room, powerless to affect the conversation.”Cameron spoke of his “love” of the country and described Jewish function as some of the most patriotic he’d attended. Invoking his predecessor Winston Churchill, he said the wartime leader chose to fight Hitler alongside allies, rather than operate alone, when he took the “greatest decision in our history”.He also launched a blistering attack on the UKIP leader over the ‘Breaking point’ poster he unveiled last week as part of the campaign to leave the EU. It featured a line of immigrants passing through Europe and was condemned as having echoes of 1930s imagery of George Osborne.“When I look at that poster which Nigel Farage stood in front of for the leave campaign I see the opposite of everything that makes our country great,” Cameron told the more than 1,000 guests at the Grosvenor House Hotel. “I’m proud that Britain is home to people who fled persecution – including those who fled the Nazis and from Russians pogroms. We should say to Farage and his campaign of division and intolerance ‘we don’t want your vision of Britain, we don’t want you’re selling, you’re not selling the kind of country we want for ourselves or our grandchildren – and I say we should vote decisively to reject it on Thursday.”.@Number10gov attacks @Nigel_Farage poster as 'opposite of everything makes Britain great' at @Jewish_Care dinner pic.twitter.com/DlwSTCYc7S— Justin Cohen (@CohenJust) June 20, 2016-While his diary was in a state of flux during the final build up to the referendum, Cameron drew huge applause for saying the dinner was one engagement he was “always going to keep”.On the day the House Of Commons was recalled to pay tribute to murdered MP Jo Cox, the prime minister reflected on her husband Brendan’s call to oppose hate in her memory.“Wherever we find hatred we should drive it out of our politics and drive it out of our communities. No one understands this better than our Jewish community.”Reflecting on the rise of anti-Semitism, he said: “I hate that this scourge has returned to this world and specifically to our country. I promise wherever we see antisemitism – from politicians who should know better to abusive graffiti daubed on synagogues and homes – I will do everything I can to drive it out of this country. For as long as I’m prime-Minister you’ve got that extra £10m I promised to CST every year for as long as necessary.”In a wide-ranging speech, he also hailed Israel’s transformation from “dessert to city” as “One of most remarkable stories of the modern democratic world” and reiterated that his commitment to her security is “non-negotiable”.“I will always stand up for right and obligation of Israel to defend its citizens – a right enshrined in international law, in natural justice and in fundamental morality. I’ll never stand by when people talk about boycotts or Israel comes under attack from rockets or terror tunnels.”Cameron heaped praise on the staff and volunteers of Jewish Care as the ‘best of Jewish and the best of British.‘I love you. All of you individually as I have a referendum to win. But I love Jewish Care and all you do. You don’t leave things to government. You help communities . You bring people together to play their part. That is the big society in action.”Ahead of a campaign video featuring three service users including 99-year-old Millie – who said a Jewish care club had given her a lifeline to get out and social aide – as a “complete inspiration”..@Number10gov to @Jewish_Care dinner: 'You are the best of Jewish and the best of British' pic.twitter.com/aT4NTYTWtL— Justin Cohen (@CohenJust) June 20, 2016-Jewish Care President and labour peer Lord Levy described the charity – hailed the PM as “a true friend to our community and our beloved state of Israel” and the charity – which helps 10,000 people weekly – as “the Backbone of our community”.Chairman Stephen Zimmerman announced that permission had been secured for a new care campus in Redbridge. He stressed that £15m must be raised annually to continue its work, with an additional £4m required by 2020.
Israel’s Airobotics raises $28.5m for operator-free drones-Investors include Noam Bardin, former chief executive of the Waze navigation app bought by Google-By Shoshanna Solomon June 21, 2016, 3:18 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israeli start-up Airobotics said today it has built a new kind of drone platform that will allow companies to operate drones without the need for expensive and skilled drone operators.The Petah Tikva, Israel-based company said it has raised $28.5 million in funding from investors including California’s BlueRun Ventures; Noam Bardin, the former chief executive of Waze, the navigation app that was bought by Google; and Richard Wooldridge, Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects chief operating officer.By taking the drone pilot and operator out of the equation, Airobotics removes the most expensive and hard-to-find component of industrial drone operations, the company said in a statement.The system is made up of three major parts: a drone, which can fly 30-minute missions at a time while carrying a one kilogram payload and using videos to provide customers with real time aerial insight; the airbase, a completely automated base station from which the drone launches and lands on its own, without needing human intervention, and software, which enables users “to control and manage missions with one click.”Airobotics is also creating an open ecosystem to allow other developers to come up with additional tools. Because the new drone has a payload mechanism design that can be swapped, partners can create new payloads that integrate new sensors and other tools into the drone. The Airobotics’ software is also both a complete operating system and an open platform, something that will allow third parties to build and customize the payloads and also provide the software apps to support and manage the various new missions. This will open up different and novel ways the drone can be used, the company said.Led by co-founders Ran Krauss, the chief executive officer, and Meir Kliner who is in charge of research and development, the entire Airobotics’ 70-person team is made up of people who have technological and practical drone knowledge. Airobotics is Krauss’s third drone startup, the statement said.Noam Bardin, now an executive at Google, was “immediately hooked” by the potential for Airobotics as it has “disruptive vision” and is “uniquely positioned to own the industrial drone space,” he said in the statement.Airobotics’ solution can be used by the mining, oil and gas industries, ports, and other industrial facilities which need areal views for surveys and mapping, inspection, security and emergency needs. Israel Chemicals Ltd., the fertilizer and potash manufacturer who was one of Airobotics’ first customers, ran beta trials to test, refine, and optimize the performance of the platform, the statement said.
More global cooperation needed to win cyber war, Israeli guru says-Head of team that set out Israel’s national cybersecurity policy says country sees up to 2 million attacks a day-By Shoshanna Solomon June 21, 2016, 2:19 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
More cooperation is needed globally among companies and governments to fight the ever changing threats to the cyber universe, Prof. Isaac Ben-Israel, who led a task force that set out Israel’s national cyber security policy, said in an interview.“There is not enough being done globally,” Ben-Israel, who heads the Blavatnik Interdisciplinary Cyber Research Center at the Tel Aviv University, said on the sidelines of a cybersecurity conference.“Everyone agrees that international cooperation is very important in the war against cyber crime or attacks, but no one really knows what is the meaning of international cooperation in cyber space. There are small steps here and there but it is very difficult to get international cooperation. People say let’s share intelligence, but no one is sharing intelligence. We can say it, but no one is doing it, so we should find other ways.”Increasing mobile and web usage and social media are among the key factors contributing to the “explosive increase” in cyber threats, MarketsandMarkets, a Dallas, Texas-based market research firm said in a report. The global cyber security market will be worth more than $170 billion by 2020, according to an estimate by MarketsandMarkets, with companies globally focusing on security solutions but also services.Israel witnesses 200,000 to 2 million cyber attacks each day on critical infrastructures like water, electricity, and railways, Ben-Israel said.“Cyber security is the dark side of the computer,” Ben-Israel said. “We developed the computer, we made it ubiquitous and faster. But we have also created a huge dependence on it, and the bad guys could use this weak point to damage our security. Cybersecurity is about protecting the bright side from the dark side,” he said.There are some 400 private and public cybersecurity companies active in Israel today addressing these threats, and Israel’s start-up industry has been growing at a roughly 15 percent rate in recent years, according to data provided by Tel Aviv based IVC Research Center, which tracks Israel’s high-tech industry. More than $300 million were raised by cybersecurity companies in Israel in 2015, in 72 financing rounds, IVC said.Globally, investment in cybersecurity companies reached an all-time high in 2015, rising to $3.8 billion compared with $2.8 billion in 2014 and $1.1 billion in 2011, according to New York-based data company CB Insights.Computers have on average a generation life of 1.5 years, Ben-Israel said. As long as they evolve, so also cyber security technology needs to adapt, he said.“One cannot talk about trends in cyber security, the technology is always changing so fast,” Ben-Israel said. “We don’t know what the future threats will be. We know about past threats and the current threats but we don’t have enough knowledge about the future because it is changing all the time.”Ben-Israel studied mathematics, physics and philosophy at Tel Aviv university and received his PhD in 1988. During his service in the army in which he served until 2002, Ben-Israel served in several posts in operations, intelligence and weapon development units of the Israel Air Force and served as head of military research and development of the army and the Defense Ministry.In 2011 Ben-Israel led a task force that formulated Israel’s national cyber policy and founded the National Cyber Headquarters in the Prime Minister’s office. In February 2015 the government decided to set up a new national cyber authority.“During our work in the task force we asked ourselves what we need to have in order to create a living cyber ecosystem that will nave new ideas all the time, adapt itself quickly to the ever changing technology,” he said.The rise of cyber security studies at Israeli universities coupled with human capital coming out of the army and a market opportunity identified by the local high tech industry led to the growth of Israel’s cyber industry, he said. Israeli exports of cybersecurity products account today for roughly 8 to 10 percent of what is estimated to be a $60 billion global cybersecurity industry, he said.Israel’s flourishing cyber industry is very much part of the high-tech ecosystem that has made Israel known as the start-up nation, Ben-Israel said.“It is mainly about developing human capital,” he said. “Israelis argue all the time, we have a highly developed art of criticism. The people of Israel criticized Moses. It all started there. Criticism is good for innovation.”
North Korea fires another intermediate-range missile: South Korea-[Reuters]-June 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea fired a second missile on Wednesday that appears to be an intermediate-range Musudan, South Korea's military said, after South Korean and U.S. officials said an earlier launch had failed.The South Korean and U.S. officials said the earlier launch that failed was also likely a Musudan launched from North Korea's east coast. It was not clear if the second launch, about two hours later, was successful.(Reporting by Jack Kim and Ju-min Park)
SKorea military: NKorea fires 2 suspected midrange missiles-[Foster Klug And Hyung-Jin Kim, The Associated Press]-June 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
SEOUL, South Korea - In a remarkable show of persistence, North Korea on Wednesday fired two suspected powerful new Musudan mid-range missiles, U.S. and South Korean military officials said, but at least one of the launches apparently failed, Pyongyang's fifth such reported flop since April.Despite the repeated failures, the North's determination in testing the Musudan worries Washington and its allies, Tokyo and Seoul, because the missile's potential 3,500-kilometre (2,180-mile) range could target much of Asia and the Pacific, including U.S. military bases there.Each new test — apparently linked to a command from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un — also likely provides valuable insights to the North's scientists and military officials as they push toward their goal of a nuclear and missile program that can threaten the U.S. mainland. Pyongyang earlier this year conducted a nuclear test and launched a long-range rocket that outsiders say was a cover for a test of banned missile technology.A statement from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said a suspected first Musudan launch from the east coast city of Wonsan failed early Wednesday morning but gave few other details. Later Wednesday, the JCS said the North fired another suspected Musudan, but it wasn't immediately clear if it succeeded.A U.S. official also said the first launch appeared to be another failure, adding that the U.S. was assessing exactly what had happened. The official wasn't authorized to comment publicly and requested anonymity. Another American official said the first launch was a suspected Musudan but initial indications were that it failed in flight over the Sea of Japan, which the Koreas call the East Sea.The United States had no immediate details on the reported second launch.In April, North Korea attempted unsuccessfully to launch three suspected Musudan missiles, but all exploded in midair or crashed, according to South Korean defence officials. Earlier this month, North Korea had another suspected Musudan failure, South Korean officials said.Before April's launches, North Korea had never flight-tested a Musudan missile, although one was displayed during a military parade in 2010 in Pyongyang, its capital.The launches appear to stem from Kim Jong Un's order in March for more nuclear and ballistic missile tests. The order was an apparent response to springtime U.S.-South Korean military drills, which North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal.Since the end of those military drills, Pyongyang has repeatedly called for the resumption of talks with rival Seoul, even as it pursues new missile development, but the South has rejected the overtures. It wants the North to first take steps toward nuclear disarmament. Pyongyang says its rivals must negotiate with it as an established nuclear power, something Washington and Seoul refuse to do.The string of recent launch attempts show the North is pushing hard to upgrade its missile capability in defiance of U.S.-led international pressure. The North was slapped with the strongest U.N. sanctions in two decades after it conducted a fourth nuclear test and a long-range rocket launch earlier this year.Earlier Tuesday, at a Washington briefing, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said that if North Korea were to conduct another missile test, it would violate U.N. resolutions and "be another provocative action. So we certainly would urge North Korea to refrain from doing that sort of thing."North Korea has recently claimed a series of breakthroughs in its push to build a long-range nuclear missile that can strike the American mainland. But South Korean officials have said the North doesn't yet possess such a weapon.The North, however, has already deployed a variety of missiles that can reach most targets in South Korea and Japan, including American military bases in the countries.The Korean Peninsula remains in a technical state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. About 28,500 U.S. soldiers are stationed in South Korea to deter possible aggression from North Korea; tens of thousands more are stationed in Japan.___Associated Press writers Josh Lederman and Lolita C. Baldor in Washington contributed to this report.
