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)
Trump steps up bid to highlight Clinton's 'deplorables' remark-[Reuters]-By James Oliphant and Amanda Becker-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
DES MOINES, Iowa/WESTCHESTER, N.Y. (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped up efforts to wring maximum advantage from Democratic rival Hillary Clinton’s comment that his supporters are “deplorables” as he seeks to portray her as out of touch with ordinary Americans Clinton said in a speech last week that half of Trump's supporters belong "in a basket of deplorables" and accused them of being racist and homophobic. She later said she regretted the remark.Trump hammered Clinton over the comment, in a post on Facebook on Tuesday: "What a disgraceful thing to say about fellow- hard working Americans! Vote Trump on November 8th -- keep Hillary's HATE away from Washington, D.C."Trump will bring up the comment again at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, his aides say, as he campaigns in the Midwestern swing state for votes at the Nov. 8 election.Controversy over the remark came at a bad time for Clinton, who was forced to cancel a West Coast swing due to a bout of pneumonia that she kept secret until she nearly collapsed after a ceremony in New York on Sunday marking the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.Trump himself has come under fire for rhetoric against minorities during his campaign, including describing Mexican immigrants as criminals and rapists, suggesting a judge could not be fair because of his Mexican-American heritage, and proposing a temporary ban on Muslim immigration to the United States.After struggling in opinion polls in August, the real estate magnate has erased most of Clinton's lead in national surveys and is competitive again in many battleground states where the White House race is likely to be decided.In Washington, Trump's vice presidential running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, used Clinton's comment to try to build more unity among Republicans, appearing at a news conference with Paul Ryan, the speaker of the House of Representatives, the top U.S. elected Republican."I think millions of Americans were shocked and saddened to see Hillary Clinton refer to people across this country as a basket of deplorables in a prepared speech before wealthy donors in New York City on Friday night," Pence said.-RALLY TROUBLE-The "deplorables" comment featured at a Trump rally in Asheville, North Carolina on Monday which saw a resumption of some of the violence that disrupted his events earlier this year."Never in history has a major party presidential candidate so viciously demonized the American voter," Trump told the crowd just before a small protest against him broke out.An apparent Trump supporter grabbed a male protester's neck then clenched his fist and punched him, video from NBC and ABC showed. The protesters were then escorted out.Asheville's Citizen-Times newspaper said four people were arrested at the rally. The Buncombe County clerk's office confirmed the names of three arrested adults in the article but could not confirm the location of the arrests.Clinton was resting at her home in Chappaqua, New York on Tuesday. She is expected to return to the campaign trail later this week. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, is to campaign in Philadelphia on behalf of Clinton on Tuesday.Trump will propose in a speech on Tuesday night allowing families to deduct the cost of childcare expenses from income taxes, his campaign said, a move aimed at bolstering his support among women voters.It was formulated with the aid of Trump's daughter, Ivanka Trump, an influential voice in his campaign.(Additional reporting by Emily Stephenson and Eric Walsh in Washington and Laila Kearney in New York; Writing by Steve Holland and Susan Heavey; Editing by Alistair Bell)
Obama, Bill step in for pneumonia-hit Clinton-[AFP]-Michael Mathes-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Washington (AFP) - Former and current US presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama join the campaign trail Tuesday for Hillary Clinton, standing in for the Democratic White House hopeful while she recovers from pneumonia.Clinton is set to return to the fray on Friday after several days of rest when she attends a Black Women's Agenda symposium Friday in Washington, with less than eight weeks to go before the election, the campaign announced.With Republican rival Donald Trump in striking distance in national polls and some battleground states, Clinton has suffered perhaps the worst week of her 15-month quest to become America's first female president.On Friday, she sparked a firestorm when she called half of Trump's supporters as "deplorables" and then her campaign failed to be transparent when she fell ill at the weekend.Clinton, 68, sought to draw a line under the health scare rocking her campaign."I just didn't think it was going to be that big a deal," Clinton told CNN late Monday when asked why she kept her Friday pneumonia diagnosis under wraps until Sunday, when she fell ill at a 9/11 memorial event at Ground Zero in New York."It's just the kind of thing that if it happens to you and you're a busy, active person, you keep moving forward."She has expressed a desire to swiftly rejoin the race and said she will resume campaigning within the "next couple of days."In the meantime, her husband Bill takes over for her in California, attending a fundraiser in Los Angeles while his wife rests at their home in Chappaqua, New York per her doctor's orders.He also will campaign for her Wednesday in Las Vegas.She gets a further boost when Obama hits the campaign trail for her in Philadelphia on Tuesday.- We 'take responsibility' -Facing intensifying scrutiny about her health, the Democrat will also release more medical records, as her team acknowledged it stumbled when it failed to alert the press and public about Clinton's condition in a timely way over the weekend.Discussing the event itself, Clinton explained: "I felt dizzy and I did lose my balance for a minute."The incident -- captured on amateur video -- gave Trump, 70, a new opening to question the former secretary of state's fitness for the nation's highest office as the race intensifies.Trump and his team have wished Clinton a rapid recovery. But his campaign manager Kellyanne Conway directed stinging criticism at Clinton Tuesday."I think she had a terrible week. She certainly had a terrible weekend. Not because she's sick," Conway told CNN. "We're glad she said she's feeling better."She stressed instead that "transparency and trustworthiness are her two pillar problems," and that Clinton suffered "the worst 48 hours of her campaign."Clinton admitted: "If we weren't fast enough, you know, I've talked to my staff. We, you know, take responsibility for that."But she quickly insisted she has been far more transparent than Trump."The information is out there. You can't say the same thing about Donald Trump," she said, adding that Americans "deserve to know what he's up to and what he is hiding."Trump has promised to release medical records as early as this week, once test results are back.- 'Catastrophic insult' -Meanwhile, his running mate Mike Pence, the Indiana governor and a former congressman, met with House Republicans on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and said he and Trump were "grateful" for the support from GOP lawmakers.But he also turned to Clinton's Friday remark that "half" of Trump's supporters were in a so-called "basket of deplorables" because they were racist, misogynistic and xenophobic."This was a catastrophic insult to the American people," Pence told reporters as he again demanded Clinton "retract those offensive statements and apologize."Clinton has expressed regret for saying "half" but also said she would not back down from calling out "racist rhetoric" on the campaign trail.Pence also rejected accusations that Trump's campaign was courting white supremacists including former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, who has endorsed Trump."Donald Trump and I have denounced David Duke repeatedly," Pence said. "We have said that we do not want his support, and we do not want the support of people who think like him."The brash billionaire's campaign has courted controversy from the start, and sporadic clashes have erupted at his rallies between supporters and anti-Trump protesters.An altercation erupted Monday night at a Trump rally in Asheville, North Carolina, where video shows a Trump supporter, his fists raised, yelling at and pushing a protester before slapping his face.
U.S. bombers fly over South Korea in show of force after nuclear test-[Reuters]-By James Pearson and Ju-min Park-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
SEOUL (Reuters) - Two U.S. B-1 bombers flew over South Korea on Tuesday in a show of force and solidarity with its ally after North Korea's nuclear test last week, while a U.S. envoy called for a swift and strong response to Pyongyang from the United Nations.Speaking in the South Korean capital on Tuesday, Sung Kim, the U.S. envoy on North Korea, added that the United States remained open to meaningful dialogue with Pyongyang on ending its pursuit of nuclear weapons."Our intention is to secure the strongest possible (U.N. Security Council) resolution that includes new sanctions as quickly as possible," Kim told a news briefing after meeting his South Korean counterpart.He said the United States would work with China, North Korea's major diplomatic ally, to close loopholes in existing resolutions, which were tightened with Beijing's backing in March."China has been very clear that they understand the need for a new U.N. security council resolution in response to the latest North Korean nuclear test," Kim said.However, China and Russia, which strongly oppose a recent decision by the United States and South Korea to deploy an advanced anti-missile system in the South to counter the North's missile threat, have shown reluctance to back further sanctions."Both sides think that North Korea's nuclear test is not beneficial to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula," China's official People's Daily newspaper said on Tuesday following a high-level China-Russia security meeting in Beijing."At present, we must work hard to prevent the situation on the peninsula continuing to escalate, and put the issue of the nuclearization of the peninsula back on the track of dialogue and consultation," it said.-FORCE AND SOLIDARITY-The pair of U.S. supersonic B-1B Lancer strategic bombers took off from their base in Guam and flew with two Japan Air Self Defense Force aircraft before a "hand-off" to South Korean fighters, according to the U.S. military.The B-1Bs were then escorted by South Korean and U.S. fighter jets in a low-altitude flight over Osan Air Base, which is 77 km (48 miles) from the Demilitarised Zone border with the North and about 40 km (25 miles) from the South's capital Seoul."These flights demonstrate the solidarity between South Korea, the United States, and Japan to defend against North Korea's provocative and destabilizing actions," said Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command.North Korea's official KCNA news agency said public anger was "exploding like a volcano" over Washington's dispatch of bombers to South Korea."Any sanction, provocation and pressure cannot ruin our status as a nuclear state and evil political and military provocations will only result in a flood of reckless nuclear attacks that will bring a final destruction," KCNA said.China urged restraint among all parties. "If there is a vicious cycle of tensions continuing to rise and mutual provocations, this is not in anyone's interests," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily briefing.North Korea's weapons enhancements, including the testing of various types of missiles this year at an unprecedented rate, have alarmed neighbors South Korea and Japan.South Korean President Park Geun-hye maintained her tough stance against the North.The two Koreas remain technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty."I want our government and military to stay fully ready to retaliate, determined to end North Korea's regime once North Korea fires even one missile nuclear-armed missile toward our territory," Park told a cabinet meeting.A group of lawmakers in South Korea said on Monday the country should have a nuclear force of its own, either by acquiring weapons or asking the United States to redeploy tactical nuclear weapons withdrawn under a 1991 pact for denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.Kim, the U.S. envoy, said there was no need to reintroduce nuclear weapons in South Korea.North Korea has refused the U.S. demand that it accept denuclearization as a condition for holding dialogue."It's a question of North Korean intentions and commitment. If North Korea is ready to talk to us sincerely, I think we can work with that within the six party process," Kim said.The six party talks aimed at ending the North's nuclear program involve the United States, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China, and North Korea but have been stalled since 2008.South Korea said on Monday the North is ready to conduct an additional nuclear test at any time after setting off its most powerful blast to date on Friday.(Additional reporting by Kim Do-gyun in Osan, Ben Blanchard in Beijing and Linda Sieg in Tokyo; Writing by Jack Kim and Tony Munroe; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Iranians mark Feast of Sacrifice as day of charity rooted in history-[Christian Science Monitor]-Scott Peterson-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Marking one of Islam’s holiest days, Fatameh Saee left a communal abattoir with her family, a freshly butchered leg of a lamb wrapped neatly in plastic, and her thoughts on what Eid al-Adha, or Feast of the Sacrifice, means to her.“This Eid is very significant for me, it’s important for my religion,” says Ms. Saee. “It is all rooted in history, and the fact of Abraham’s sacrifice,” she says.In the legend common to Christians, Muslims, Jews, and other Abrahamic religions, God tested the patriarch’s faith, ordering him to make the ultimate sacrifice by killing his beloved only son, Isaac.Recommended: How much do you know about Iran? Take our quiz to find out.That epic test is being marked across the Islamic world. In Tehran that means celebrating hope and charity – and the slaughter of thousands of sheep, a traditional act to commemorate God’s decision, when he saw Abraham’s willingness to give up his son, to allow a ram to be killed instead.That the legendary event is held to have taken place centuries ago “means the eternity of Islam, and its timelessness,” says Saee, who comes back year after year for the communal observance. This year she donated one sheep and was buying a token portion. Tradition holds that the sacrificial sheep is divided into three, with even portions to the family, relatives and neighbors, and the poor.As dawn broke south of Tehran on Monday, the sun lit up pens of sheep ready for slaughter at the Kahrizak Charity Foundation, a sprawling complex for the disabled and elderly with an abattoir built-in to host the annual ritual.“It is a holiday rooted in our principles and values, a holiday when people offer their donations,” says Mohammad Reza Sufinejad, director of the private foundation, as squads of butchers in the abattoir nearby dispatched, skinned, and prepared for distribution hundreds of donated sheep.-DAY OF CHARITY-Some 2,000 sheep were donated this year to this center alone, with one-quarter slaughtered on site and the rest sent to the needy elsewhere. In Persian, the holiday is called Eid-e Ghorban.“This is a day of charity,” says Mr. Sufinejad, noting that the volume of meat will help feed the complex’s 1,750 residents for two to three months.On the Eid, the rate at which sheep are slaughtered jumps 10-fold in Tehran, from a daily average of 5,700 sheep up to 60,000, according to official statistics for 2014. That year nearly 9.2 million sheep were butchered nationwide. Little goes to waste: even the heads and feet are used in a rich delicacy called kalle pache. Yet the Eid tradition has drawn some controversy, with animal-rights activists on social media calling for Iranians to plant trees instead. Some responded online, asking whether the critics did not ever like eating lamb or meat kabob, staples of Iranian cooking.Noting the debate in October 2013, the hard-line website Raja News asked a cleric for a religious interpretation, about whether it was better to plant trees or to kill sheep for the Eid.Planting trees was also a virtue, but “God’s verdict is not changeable,” said Hojj. Vahid Babadaei, head of Applied Teaching and Preaching for the Tehran provincial seminary. Sacrificing sheep “is a divine tradition which has many positive outcomes.”-FEELING 'GOD'S PRESENCE'-Such concerns were not part of the feel-good factor this Eid at the south Tehran charity foundation, which put on an open house for donors – many of them well-heeled north Tehranis – selling handicrafts made by residents and showing their activities.The foundation mounts events on each religious day of the Shiite calendar, and on Monday dozens of children and others in a wheelchair procession circled a makeshift Kaaba, with a faux black stone edifice, to reenact one of the events of the five-day Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia that began this week.One mother fussed over her wheelchair-bound son, as she put on his religious skullcap; another dispensed a hug to her daughter, who beamed. Charity staffers say donors feel good when they give money or their time, with volunteers doing everything from providing daily baths to helping maintain a garden. One volunteer who lives in the Netherlands brings seeds.“Our people believe they can feel God’s presence in such places,” says Maryam Abbasnejad, a staff member of the Kahrizak Charity Foundation, which relies on private donors.“Despite economic problems and inflation, our people are so generous,” says Ms. Abbasnejad. “Even with 1,750 people here, we never have a problem with food or feeding them breakfast…. A person who steps here will feel God’s presence and come back next year.”
DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(EITHER THE EUROPEAN UNION DICTATOR BOOTS 3 COUNTRIES FROM THE EU OR THE DICTATOR TAKES OVER THE WORLD ECONOMY BY CONTROLLING 3 WORLD TRADE BLOCS)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
EU should kick out Hungary, says Luxembourg minister By Eric Maurice-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 08:53-Hungary should be excluded from the EU, Luxembourg's foreign minister Jean Asselborn has said.Ejecting Hungary is "the only possibility to preserve the cohesion and the values" of the EU, he said in an interview to German daily Die Welt, published on Tuesday (13 September), three days before a EU leaders summit about the bloc's future without the UK."We cannot accept that the basic values of the European Union are massively violated," he said.He said any state that "builds fences against war refugees, or who hurts press freedom and independence of judiciary, must be excluded for the EU temporarily or for ever if needed".In Hungary, he said, refugees are "treated as wild animals".He added that Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister, has "put the EU in trouble" by showing the world it cannot apply at home the values it defends abroad.Asselborn, a Social Democrat and the longest-serving foreign minister in the EU, said the bloc could not accept "such misconduct".He said it would be "helpful" if EU rules could be changed to allow the suspension of a member state without unanimity.Currently there is no clause that allows the expulsion of a member state.A country's voting rights can be suspended in case of "serious and persistent breach" of EU values. The decision requires unanimity from other member states.Asselborn said that today, Hungary would "have no chance" of joining the EU.At the end of August, Orban announced that Hungry would erect a "more massive" fence at its borders to stop migrants coming in. A first one was built last year at the borders with Serbia and Croatia. Orban, a strong critic of EU migration policies, has warned many times that migration will destroy Europe's identity.-Referendum-"Europe will no longer be recognisable" if it lets in many Muslim migrants with a higher birth rate, he said again to Hungarian MPs on Monday.Orban has organised a referendum on migration that will be held on 2 October. Voters will be asked if they "want the European Union to be entitled to prescribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary without the consent of parliament”.On Monday, the leader of Hungary's far-right Jobbik party, which in the past has supported his government, said Orban would have to resign if turnout to the referendum is low.A 50 percent turnout is necessary to validate the vote."You hope to score political points with this game of hazard which could end up hurting the entire country," Gabor Vona told Orban in parliament."If the referendum is invalid, you have to resign because you led Hungary into a battle you lost."
EU prepares to let commissioner go to UN By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 09:15-Bulgaria's government meets on Tuesday (13 September) amid rumours it may nominate the Bulgarian EU commissioner, Kristalina Georgieva, as its official candidate for the next UN chief.The country’s current choice, Unesco boss Irina Bokova, reportedly faces opposition among some permanent members of the UN security council (Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States).The speculation that Sofia could replace her with Georgieva emerged over the weekend, but has not been confirmed.Martin Selmayr, the influential head of cabinet of the EU commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, fuelled debate on Twitter last Saturday by saying that Georgieva "would make strong UNSG [UN secretary general], and many Europeans proud".But a commission spokesman explained on Monday the tweet was not an official endorsement, adding: "I don't think one conclusion [her candidacy] follows from the other [Selmayr's praise]".Meanwhile, the outgoing UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, would like to see a female successor. Civil society groups and nearly a third of the 193 UN member states have rallied behind his call. The UN has never had a female leader in its 70 years of history.Amid the swirl of rumour, one EU official told this website that many people in Brussels would be delighted to see Georgieva take the helm in New York.”It would be a great loss for us, but it would be fantastic for the UN. She could do a great job", he said.”The question is whether she would be acceptable to Russia,” he added.Moscow had previously championed Bokova.But according to Russia’s state-run agency Tass, German chancellor Angela Merkel recently tried to make Georgieva's case to president Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in China.Sofia has not officially included the Bulgarian candidacy for the UN post in the cabinet’s agenda.One source in Sofia also told the Reuters news agency that it is ”odd” for others to try to sway its choice of nominee."The Bulgarian prime minister is in a very difficult situation … Seems he has not decided yet," the source said.The next secretary general will be chosen by the UN general assembly and the security council later this month.
EP negotiator wants Brexit talks to end by 2019 By Eszter Zalan-sept 13,16-euobserver
STRASBOURG, Today, 14:03-The chief negotiator for the European Parliament (EP) urged the UK to trigger the exit talks as soon as possible and said negotiations should reach an end by 2019.Liberal MEP Guy Verhofstadt told journalists Tuesday that he "cannot not imagine that we start a new legislative cycle without an agreement, and that we enter a new legislative cycle with no solution".The next EP elections will take place in 2019."The UK should trigger the Article 50 as soon as possible so that we can finalise these negotiations by 2019," Verhofstadt told a news conference in Strasbourg.The liberal leader recalled that the EP needs to give its consent to the final exit agreement with the UK, that is why it is important that the EP is already part of the negotiations.He said the EP's red lines in negotiations will be decided by the conference of presidents – group leaders and the EP president – and the EP's plenary.The former Belgian prime minister warned London that the EP's position is that the UK could only keep access to the single market by accepting the free movement of all European Union citizens into Britain.Verhofstadt was appointed last week as the EP's negotiator, and joins the EU Commission's Michel Barnier, and the Council's Didier Seeuws, who are the point men for the Brexit talks.British prime minister Theresa May has said she will not trigger Article 50 until early 2017 at the earliest.On the EU's part, the negotiations will be led by the member states, despite the EU Commission's efforts to play the main role in the talks.
UK parliament may have to ratify Brexit legislation - minister-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's parliament may well have to ratify part of the legislation needed for the country to exit the European Union, Brexit minister David Davis told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday."There has to be some legislation (to enact Brexit), no doubt about that," said Davis, whose formal title is Secretary of State for exiting the European Union."There are various stages, firstly some legislation to deal with the European Communities Act 1972 ... There may well have to be at least parliamentary ratification under the relevant 2010 legislation, the so-called CRAG legislation, but that's the absolute minimum I can see," he said.He was referring to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. The issue of parliamentary ratification is sensitive because a majority of lawmakers voted for Britain to remain in the European Union.The United Kingdom as a whole voted to leave in a referendum on June 23, and Prime Minister Theresa May has said the will of the people must be respected.(Reporting by William James and Estelle Shirbon; editing by Michael Holden)
Morocco deals don't cover Western Sahara, EU lawyer says By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 19:39-EU-Morocco relations risk hitting another rough patch after a senior lawyer said that their trade treaties do not apply to Western Sahara, a disputed territory.Advocate-general Melchior Wathelet set out his opinion to EU judges in Luxembourg on Tuesday (13 September).He said that “neither the EU-Morocco association agreement nor the EU-Morocco agreement on the liberalisation of trade in agricultural and fishery products apply to Western Sahara” because “Western Sahara is not part of Moroccan territory”.His opinion is not binding, but judges follow advocates general in most cases.If their verdict, expected in November, echoes Wathelet then the EU could see a repeat of last year’s fiasco, when Morocco severed diplomatic ties with EU institutions after an unfavourable ruling.Western Sahara is a territory in north-west Africa, known as its last colony.Morocco occupies most of the land and claims it as its own after a war in 1976, but according to the UN it is a “non-self-governing territory” whose people, the Sahrawi, have the “right to self-determination”.Wathelet had been asked to pronounce on a case originally filed at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in 2013 by the Polisario Front, the Sahrawi national liberation movement, against an annex on fish products in EU-Morocco agreements.The Polisario Front won in December 2015, prompting the Moroccan outcry and an EU appeal.In Wathelet’s opinion, the Polisario Front’s case and the EU appeal are no longer relevant, because the broader EU-Morocco treaties, which govern the annex, do not apply to Western Sahara.The issue is politically explosive.But its financial implications were, on Tuesday, also highlighted when a ship full of fish oil from Western Sahara, the Key Bay Key Bay, rounded Spain en route to France.The vessel can be followed online.French customs have decided that the shipment is not liable for tariffs, in line with the EU-Morocco trade treaties, because, the EU says, those accords remain in force despite the December 2015 ECJ ruling.Morocco’s interior minister, Mohamed Hassad, told EUobserver last week that the EU deal, to his knowledge, has not been suspended in any part.He also recalled Morocco's role in stemming migration to the EU and in helping Europe on counter-terrorism, in what appeared to be a veiled threat over Western Sahara’s status.An European Commission spokesperson also said on Tuesday that the trade arrangements remained in place."The court [in December] had annulled the EU legal act (the decision to conclude) and not the agreement as such," the spokesperson said.Polisario’s lawyer, Gilles Devers, told EUobserver that this was the wrong interpretation, adding that EU institutions are in “defiance” of the ECJ by continuing to enforce the trade treaties in the disputed territory.The EU’s zealous support of Morocco has raised eyebrows among some MEPs.Morocco and the EU said to be working together on the ECJ appeal, and three EU states have spoken out in Rabat’s favour in court (Germany withdrew at last minute, and Belgium didn't send a representative to the hearing in Luxembourg).A group of pro-Morocco MEPs last week also joined the anti-Polisario front.Jose Bove, a French green MEP who was the EU parliament’s rapporteur on the EU-Morocco agreements, welcomed the advocate-general's opinion, and hoped the final ruling would put an end to "EU hypocrisy"."The EU should immediately take measures to ensure that no product from Western Sahara illegally enter the EU market as Moroccan products. The EU's complicity in the illegal occupation of the territory has lasted too long," Bove, who in his time voted against the EU-Morocco accords, said.
Opinion-How to save the EU By Civis Europaeus-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 15:26-Ideas on "how to save the EU" following the Brexit referendum have proliferated since 23 June.These range from new political visions, through transferring power back to national capitals, and to launching ground-breaking initiatives to improve solidarity between member states.There seems to be a widespread belief that the main reason why citizens in some member states are turning away from the EU is that the EU did not take specific action in the migration crisis, and that it acted when it should not have, for instance by overregulating the economy.Yet the main reason for declining trust in the EU is not the idleness of its institutions or that barmy Brussels bureaucrats are banning olive oil jugs.The real reasons are (1) the near total absence of a genuine EU perspective from discussions in national and local media and (2) unabated Brussels-bashing by the national political elite, with a clear link between the two.It was a major mistake of the past years of the European Commission to deliberately stay out of national and local debates on the EU - most recently on Brexit.Experience shows that the Commission's "let's avoid communication conflicts" policy did not lead to a more EU-friendly public opinion.To the contrary, it allowed national politicians hand-in-hand with part of the media to step up their anti-Brussels rhetoric.As a first step, the Commission must get out of its virtual reality of midday briefings, colourful brochures and elitist conferences.It needs two or three highly professional, native speaking spokespersons in each member state.Their role is not to stand behind a podium in the Commission's local office, but to participate day and night in radio talk shows, television news programmes and online media, finally giving that much needed face to the EU.These local spokespeople must explain the facts, debunk the lies, and defend the EU position. Politely and firmly. Let's not be naive: the so-called "citizens dialogues" events with European commissioners and press statements read out by the heads of representations will not do the trick.At the same time, there is a need for a new and loud commitment to the EU by the moderate national political elites.As a previous president of the Commission has said: "If you spend all week blaming Europe, you can't ask people to vote for Europe on Sunday”.That is especially true if ministers are making Brussels a scapegoat for decisions they themselves took in the EU Council or for Brussels not doing something for which member states did not give it the powers to act.National politicians must stop blaming Brussels for their own failings for the sake of pursuing short-term (political party) objectives.They have to start acting like statesmen and stateswomen and explain where and why the EU benefits their citizens.Otherwise, people’s anti-elitist sentiment - the very feeling that some national leaders are now happy to feed in their anti-EU communications - risks wiping them off the map also, once there is no more EU to blame.The author is currently working for an EU institution and asked to use a pen name.
Ethics drive at EU parliament hits a wall-By Nikolaj Nielsen-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 19:28-Transparency at the European Parliament hit a wall when centre-right MEPs postponed a report designed to make lawmakers more accountable and lawmaking more traceable.The report, drafted by German Green Sven Giegold, had demanded a number of changes to the EU parliament law making process as part of a larger EU institutional transparency drive.But MEPs, led by the EPP group, on Monday (12 September) in the constitutional affairs committee, managed to postpone the vote in a move that will likely keep EU lawmaking in the dark."The vote was called off on the demand of the largest group, the EPP, supported by Liberals and Social Democrats," Giegold told reporters.The issue also points to broader concerns over possible insider legislative bargaining between the parliament's two largest groups, the EPP and Social Democrat S&D.The EPP is the European Parliament's biggest political group. The parliament's chief, Martin Schulz, is a socialist and the group's former political master. Last April, the two masterminded a move not to ban side jobs for MEPs.Giegold's report requested a legislative footprint to trace outsider influence on lawmaking.He had also asked for a ban on second jobs, greater disclosure on money earned outside normal parliamentary duties, and a stronger internal oversight committee on MEPs who break code of conduct rules.-Deadlines and headaches-The postponement presents a whole host of procedural headaches for MEPs who back the transparency measures proposed by Giegold. Those issues are now likely to be offloaded onto another MEP who is drafting a separate report on parliament rules."The whole battle of transparency gets shifted from the Giegold report to my report, I'm not happy with that," British socialist MEP Richard Corbett told EUobserver. Corbett has been drafting a new rules of procedure report that is set to be adopted in December. It is now unclear if his report will also meet its intended deadline.Transparency was not discussed in Corbett's report because it had been delegated to Giegold.Giegold says the EPP had also negotiated compromises with the other political groups to weaken the measures he had proposed.An EU parliament source said the decision from the lead socialist MEP on the committee, Mercedes Bresso, to postpone the vote had been decided "from above".Her office denied the allegation, noting that the main issue was that they wanted a majority when it goes to vote in the plenary."It was discussed inside the political group but she did not take any orders," said her office.-EPP short on details-Getting a majority requires EPP backing and is likely to result in much weaker rules on transparency than those proposed by Giegold.Bresso also said upcoming legislation by the EU commission on transparency had factored into her decision.The EPP, for its part, also says it backs transparency but then refused to speculate when pressed on details.Hungarian centre-right MEP Gyorgy Schopflin told this website that his group simply wanted to improve on Giegold's report.But when asked if the EPP backed the specific measures in Giegold's report like the legislative footprint and a ban on second jobs, Schopflin drew a blank."I can't give you a direct answer to any of those questions because the EPP is in the midst of considering its exact position and I don't want to mislead you," he said.He said Giegold's report is likely to be voted on in three months, after the rules of procedure report.-Toothless code of conduct-Other efforts to enforce internal ethic rules in the European Parliament have also stumbled into problems.An internal committee to oversee code of conduct was set up following a cash-for-amendments scandal.The committee has no power. Whenever it finds fault, it reports to Schulz who is empowered to act, which he has never done, said Giegold.Its former chair, Gerald Hafner, an ex-Green MEP from Germany, said in 2014 Schulz never followed up on complaints.“Not a single one of these cases has had any conclusion or has had any consequences and if that is the end result of the tougher rules adopted by the European Parliament, then I think that we have not done the European Parliament, nor the citizens, nor European democracy any favours," he had said.EUobserver asked Schulz's office if the president had acted on any of the committee's recommendations, but received no response.
EU to launch Ukraine anti-corruption scheme By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 12:47-The European Union is about to unveil a comprehensive anti-corruption programme for Ukraine in a last effort to fight back against graft.According to one EU source involved in the planning, EU commissioner for enlargement Johannes Hahn will make the announcement on Friday (16 September), during the Yalta European Strategy Annual Meeting (YES) in Kyiv.A commission spokesperson confirmed that Mr Hahn will attend the conference, but wouldn't go into details."Commissioner Hahn will meet a number of ministers during the course of his two-day visit in order to discuss progress across a range of reform commitments made by Ukraine. He will visit EU funded projects and will attend the YES conference," the spokesperson said.The anti-corruption scheme is worth €16 million, will take off on 1 January 2017 and span three years.It will be based on four pillars: building and developing institutions to fight corruption; strengthening parliamentary oversight; working with local governments; and supporting civil society organisations and investigative journalists, who are already at the forefront of the battle.The programme will operate from an EU office in Kiev and it will be implemented by Denmark. The world’s least corrupt country, according to Transparency International’s index, hopes to lend credibility to the project. The same ranking puts Ukraine at 130th position of 168 - making it the most corrupt country in Europe.The Baltic states, Poland and Romania may also contribute, the EU source said, by sharing their experiences of transition from post-communist to democratic states.This winter will mark three years since the Maidan revolution, which ousted Ukraine's corrupt president Viktor Yanukovych.But corruption still permeates everyday life, bureaucracy and politics, according to the official.That has stalled a deal for Ukrainians to get visa-free travel in the EU.The EU’s move comes as the Netherlands is likely to relaunch the debate on Ukraine’s trade-association deal with the EU.The pact was voted down earlier this year in a referendum, and the Dutch government has since ignored the issue.But one EU official told this website the Dutch were likely to seek to settle the matter soon so that it doesn’t interfere with the next general elections, which will take place no later than 15 March.
Fort McMurray resident frustrated by steep rebuild fees-[CBC]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Janene Whenham says the steep fees involved with rebuilding her home after it was destroyed by the Fort McMurray wildfire are like a "slap in the face."She returned to the northern Alberta city on June 3 to sift through what little remained of her family home.Heartened by the outpouring of support and promise of assistance from the municipality, she was determined to rebuild.But her optimism soon gave way to frustration, as the cost of permits and licences piled up.In the end, she expects to pay more than $20,000 in direct and indirect municipal fees to rebuild on the same property."If the demolition permit and the tipping fees would have been waived from the beginning, at least the members of this community might have thought maybe they have their backs," Whenham said during an interview with CBC Edmonton's Radio Active. "But right off the bat, you're making money off me losing everything. I shouldn't have to pay to dump that waste."It's disgusting."Whenham is not alone in her frustration. A growing number of complaints has prompted the municipality to re-evaluate its fee structure during the rebuild. A motion to re-evaluate the fee structure will be up for debate at Tuesday evening's municipal council meeting."Through a variety of informal and formal interactions with Wood Buffalo residents, the Wood Buffalo Recovery Committee and councillors from the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo understand that fees related to the cleanup and rebuild have been a concern," RMWB press secretary Russell Baker said in an emailed statement. "Given the nature of this situation, it is too early to say whether the municipality will be waiving fees for residents who lost their home to fire and are trying to rebuild."-'The second slap in the face'-After confirming her worst fear — that her home in Saprae Creek had been lost in the fire — Whenham applied for a demolition permit.After three weeks of waiting, frantic phone calls and a letter of complaint to the mayor and city council, her demolition permit was finally approved at a cost of $200."This wasn't a surprise, we didn't go on vacation and come back to nothing. The city knew there was nothing ... so I figured they should have had this figured out," Whenham said. "We could have had this demolition permit waived. My home was already demolished."Whenham scraped the six inches of ash that had filled the burned out hull of her basement, and hauled the charred remains of her property to the dump.The cost of tipping fees? $3,800.Though the municipality waived tipping fees at the landfill for residential vehicles after the wildfires, Whenham was charged the commercial rate, because she arrived in her work truck.Her personal vehicle had burned along with her home."That was the second slap in the face," she said."I'm not opposed to getting permits. I think we need to follow the rules and the bylaws to make sure everything is done to code and safely. But why do I need to pay that?"-'A frustrating process'-The property then had to pass a final inspection, at an additional cost of $100.The property passed inspection. But as soon as the papers were handed over, the workers began tearing down the safety fence that had been installed by the municipality in the days following the city-wide evacuation. "They did the final inspection and took the fence away, and said, 'Oh, by the way, you need a fence,' " Whenham said."I said, leave the fence. And they said,' No, no, now it's your responsibility to buy one.' They're about $14,000. As soon as you get your final inspection, the city was no longer responsible for the fence."Whenham said the rules and bylaws existed before the wildfire, but she's frustrated and feels like the municipality is asking money "every time you turned around."The municipality has since issued a bulletin, saying that any property owners who fail to install safety fences by Oct. 31 will have one installed for them, and the costs will be applied to their taxes."I've told them I'm not paying for a fence," Whenham said. "They can go ahead and fine me if they want."Here are some of the permit costs associated with Whenham's rebuild: - Demolition permit: $200- Tipping fees: $3,800- Final utilities inspection: $100- Building permit: $5,000- Development permit: $75- Utility Connect permit: $100- Water meter connect permit: $260- Electrical permit: $230-After the property was cleaned and passed inspection, Whenham was issued an unsightly premises notice by the municipality, demanding that she "remedy dangers and unsightly property.""We got our demolition permit on Friday, had our property cleaned right away," Whenham said. "A couple weeks later, I get a letter from the city that our property was unsightly, unsafe and it was a mess, and if it wasn't cleaned up they were doing it for us and they were going to charge us for it."-'I've lost everything'-The demolition order letters were sent to all owners of properties destroyed by the wildfire as part of the municipality's effort to quicken the rebuilding process. But Whenham said it was just another affront to evacuees struggling to rebuild.Though she has insurance, any permit costs she incurs will cut into the insurance payout she's been provided for rebuilding her home. She estimates these costs are around $20,000 per homeowner. "The municipality has costs associated with this too. I get that. But just for the houses that are burned, [the municipality's] revenues are $24 million, money they hadn't accounted for in the previous budget," Whenham said."Why should I sacrifice something out of a house that I didn't want to build? I've lost everything, and some of it I'll never get back."
Canada can lead process of global economic recovery: IMF's Lagarde-Reuters-By By Matt Scuffham and Fergal Smith | sept 13,16
TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada can lead the process of global economic recovery by setting standards for other countries to aspire to, the International Monetary Fund's Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday.Speaking at an event organized by the C.D.Howe Institute think tank, Lagarde praised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for adopting the IMF's three-pronged approach of taking monetary, fiscal and structural action to avert the risk of recession"There's nothing like setting standards. There is nothing that I would hope for more than Canada succeeding in that three-pronged approach. It seems to me that Canada can actually lead that process," Lagarde said."The prime minister's enthusiasm, passion and very articulate indication at the G20, for instance, of what the policy mix is going to be is a good step in that direction," she added.Trudeau has committed to doubling federal infrastructure spending to C$120 billion over the next 10 years to stimulate Canada's sluggish economic growth. However, the country's economy still faces serious challenges.The Bank of Canada warned this month that Canada's economic performance could be weaker than it anticipated just two months ago with exports disappointing, but the central bank stuck to a forecast that growth will bounce back in the second half.Lagarde also addressed a growing public backlash against free trade and globalization, calling on Tuesday for more inclusive growth which reduces economic inequality and benefits workers from all economic sectors.(Editing by David Gregorio)
Somalia hosts first summit of African leaders since war began in 1991-[By Abdi Sheikh]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia hosted regional African heads of state on Tuesday for a summit that was the first of its kind in the Somali capital since the Horn of Africa nation plunged into conflict in 1991.Streets were shut down to traffic in Mogadishu, which regularly faces attacks from the Islamist al Shabaab militants, for the one-day meeting of IGAD, a grouping that includes Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Djibouti, Sudan, Uganda and Somalia.The regional leaders discussed Somalia's upcoming vote for a new parliament and president, as well the situation in South Sudan, where fighting in July has further destabilised the five-year-old nation.The presidents of Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti, and the prime minister of Ethiopia, were in Mogadishu for the summit meeting of IGAD, or the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, officials said."It symbolises the reconstruction of Somalia and Somalia coming back to the (family of) nations," Foreign Minister Abdusalam Omer told Reuters as heads of state flew in. "It signifies that we are defeating international terrorism."Somalia has hosted visits of individual heads of state, but Omer said this was the first summit gathering for about four decades, since the rule of President Siad Barre, whose toppling in 1991 was followed by two decades of conflict.Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, chair of IGAD, said Somalia had made progress but more was needed. "IGAD is confident that its efforts will succeed in the complete restoration of peace and stability," he said, according to statements released after the meeting.Many senior visitors to Mogadishu stay in the airport area, a compound surrounded by high blast walls with barbed wire and patrolled by the African Union AMISOM force. Tuesday's summit was held just outside the perimeter at a nearby hotel."The presence of the heads of state in Somalia is a clear dividend of returning stability in the country," AMISOM said in a statement.Ordinary Somalis were forced to walk around the capital as traffic was blocked from many streets. Al Shabaab has often used vehicles packed with explosives to launch attacks on sites in Mogadishu, blowing up security posts so fighters can storm in.Mogadishu still bears the scars of war, with many buildings little more than bombed out shells. But there has been a construction boom in recent years, that has seen new buildings erected, often financed by Somalis returning from abroad.Al Shabaab, which once ruled most of Somalia, has been waging an insurgency to topple the Western-backed government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who seeks re-election later this year.Security concerns mean that only a fraction of Somalia's 11 million people will vote in the election, with 14,000 people gathered from the federal states choosing the 275 members of parliament, before the lawmakers then pick the president.But that is still an improvement on the 135 elders who chose parliament in 2012, and which in turn picked Mohamud. (Writing and additional reporting by Edmund Blair; Editing by Alison Williams)
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
All-seeing 'eye' watches over Mecca pilgrims-[AFP]-Sarah Benhaida-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Mina (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) - Under a bank of monitors broadcasting live footage from more than 5,000 cameras, Saudi officers have kept their eyes on every route and gathering spot at this year's hajj pilgrimage.As custodians of the most sacred sites in Islam, the authorities have been at pains to assure the world that every possible measure has been taken to prevent a repeat of last year's disaster at the hajj that cost the lives of around 2,300 pilgrims in a stampede.An "eye" which never closes forms the heart of the command and control centre located in Mina, near Mecca, said Colonel Saad al-Dosari, its planning chief.Another officer, Captain Tareq al-Azam, told AFP that his dozens-strong team has been on duty around the clock monitoring this year's 1.8 million pilgrims who have converged on the desert kingdom from across the globe.More than 5,000 cameras have been installed in the entire Mecca sector covering a radius of around 10 kilometres (six miles) around its Grand Mosque, the single holiest place in Islam.From his vantage point, the captain can direct the cameras and is able to zoom in to investigate any suspicious-looking or potentially dangerous activity.The job of the security team was "to survey the screens to detect any problem or any blockage" in the constant stream of pilgrims navigating the holy sites, explained Dosari.If any anomaly is detected, "they inform the operations centre to prevent any problem before it can even happen".Dozens of soldiers are posted at the centre, located a few metres (yards) away, with headphones on and microphones at the ready to pass on information to the tens of thousands of members of the security forces on the ground.They also redirect any complaints from the pilgrims on a special number provided by Saudi authorities, who have said this year's hajj which started last Saturday and ends on Thursday has been free of any major incident.
Kurdish militants claim car bombing in southeast Turkey-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Kurdish militants claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a car bombing in Turkey's southeastern city of Van a day earlier and said it was partly a response to the removal from office of two dozen mayors from Kurdish-run municipalities.The blast, close to local government offices, wounded around 50 people, including four police officers and four Iranian citizens thought to have been visiting during the Muslim Eid holiday, officials said.The bombing came a day after Turkey appointed new administrators in 24 Kurdish-run municipalities, most of them in the largely-Kurdish southeast, after removing their mayors over suspected militant links, triggering protests.Southeastern Turkey has suffered numerous bombings since the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, which has waged a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy in the region, abandoned a ceasefire in 2015.The claim of responsibility, on a website close to the PKK, said the attack in Van was a retaliation for the killing by security forces of Kurdish youths and the removal of the mayors "in disregard of the Kurdish people's will."The PKK is considered a terrorist group by the United States and European Union, as well as by Ankara.President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that Turkey had evidence the mayors had sent support to Kurdish militants and that they should have been stripped of their roles sooner.Four towns in Van province were affected by the removals.(Reporting by Seda Sezer; Writing by Nick Tattersall)
Russia calls on U.S. 'to influence' ceasefire violators in Syria-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia called on the United States on Tuesday to influence some of the armed groups in Syria refusing to stop fighting government troops, saying their actions hamper joint efforts by Moscow and Washington to launch a peace process in this country."We strongly call on all those who have influence on these ceasefire violators, first and foremost the American side, to finally deal with their clients," Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement."One should not allow their expected provocative actions to derail a chance for a turn to a political resolution of the Syrian crisis."Some of these groups openly say they do not want to dissociate themselves from Jabhat Fatah al Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front, the ministry said.(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov)
Second aid convoy crosses into Syria from Turkish border town witness-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A second aid convoy around 20 trucks carrying aid crossed into northern Syria on Tuesday from the Turkish border town of Cilvegozu, as a ceasefire across Syria largely held for a second day, a Reuters witness said.Turkey had said it aimed, with the United Nations, to send trucks of food, children's clothes and toys to the northern Syrian city of Aleppo after the truce, which was brokered by the United States and Russia, took effect late on Monday.(Reporting by Yesim Dikmen,; Writing by Seda Sezer; Editing by Alison Williams)
DISEASES
REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
WHO says Angola, Congo yellow fever outbreak under control-[By Tom Miles]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
GENEVA (Reuters) - A yellow fever outbreak in Angola and Congo has been brought under control by a major vaccination campaign, the World Health Organization's director of infectious hazard management Sylvie Briand said on Tuesday."One (piece of) good news is that this outbreak is under control now. We haven't had any new cases in Angola since June 23, and since July 12 in DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo)," Briand told a regular U.N. briefing in Geneva.The entire Congolese capital of Kinshasa, 7.7 million people, had been vaccinated in less than 10 days, as well as 3 million in border areas to prevent transmission from Angola, and another 3 million on the Angolan side of the border, where a second phase of vaccinations would be carried out soon."So far in Angola more than 15 million people (have been vaccinated), this represents 65 percent of the population. So we still have to protect certain districts and provinces but the risk of a major outbreak I think is now over," she said.But there were still 32 endemic countries in Africa, so further outbreaks could not be ruled out, including in the parts of Congo that had not been vaccinated recently, she said.At the end of August the WHO said the trend was "extremely positive" but it was too early to say the outbreak had been stopped completely, with 1,000 confirmed cases and up to 6,000 suspected cases of the mosquito-borne disease.The outbreak is the worst in decades among unprotected African populations and has killed more than 400 people.The vaccination campaigns have depleted the global stockpile of 6 million doses twice this year, forcing doctors to switch to administering one-fifth of the normal dose, a tactic that the WHO says gives at least temporary protection from the disease.On Monday experts from WHO and other health agencies met in Geneva to discuss a long-term strategy to prevent future large outbreaks of yellow fever.The risk of such outbreaks has risen due to urbanisation and increasing mobility of the population, and this year it was especially acute because of the El Nino weather phenomenon which multiplied mosquito numbers, she said.The recent mass vaccination campaign aimed not only to stop the transmission of the virus but also to preempt transmission during the rainy season, which is already starting in some areas, Briand said.(Reporting by Tom Miles; editing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Dominic Evans)
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
NHC says 40 percent chance of cyclone formation for system near Florida-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
(Reuters) - An area of low pressure located just inland near Daytona Beach, Florida has a 40 percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Tuesday."The system is very close to having the organization required of a tropical cyclone, and advisories could be initiated later this afternoon," the Miami-based weather forecaster said. (Reporting by Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)
Food aid reaches 140,000 hit by floods in North Korea - WFP-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Food aid has reached more than 140,000 people hit by recent floods in North Korea, but more is needed to help them through the country's upcoming severe winter, the U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.The floods in the country's north were caused by heavy rainfall in late August and early September.More than 140,000 were affected, but this number is likely to rise as more of the affected areas are accessed, WFP said. Flood-hit families urgently need shelter, clean water and health care, as well as food, the U.N. agency said."Whole villages have been washed away by flash floods. Families have lost everything, including their kitchen gardens and livestock, which many households depend upon to supplement their diets," Darlene Tymo, WFP's representative and country director in North Korea, said in a statement."The floods came just before the harvest period, when the crops were still in the ground," Tymo added. More than 70 percent of the country's population experiences food shortages, with many lacking essential proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, WFP said.Flood-hit provinces North Hamgyong and Ryanggang have the worst levels of hunger in the country, the agency said.WFP said the families will need help through the winter when temperatures can plunge to below minus 25 degrees Celsius (minus 13 degrees Fahrenheit)."These families need continued support to get through the worst of the winter," Tymo said. More than 35,500 homes had been damaged, two-thirds of them completely destroyed, and 107,000 people had been displaced by the floods, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Monday.Some 133 people were killed and 395 are missing, OCHA said. The agency said these figures were based on government data.North Korea's state media reported heavy rain in late August and early September caused extensive damage near the Tumen river. It did not give a death toll from the flooding in its latest report.The North's KCNA news agency said on Sunday the worst "climatic phenomenon" in more than 70 years hit the northern part of the country causing "huge losses," and recovery work was under way.Widespread deforestation for fuel and farming makes the impoverished state prone to natural disasters, especially floods.(Reporting by Alex Whiting, Editing by Katie Nguyen.; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
Britain records warmest September day since 1911-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain recorded its warmest September day in more than 100 years on Tuesday with temperatures rising to over 34 degrees Celsius in the southern county of Kent.The Met Office said on its Twitter page the town of Gravesend recorded a temperature of 34.4 degrees Celsius (93.92°Fahrenheit), making it the hottest day of the year. "This makes it the warmest September day since 1911," it said.London's Heathrow airport and Kew Gardens recorded temperatures of 32.8 Celsius, The Met said earlier.Londoners took to the city's numerous parks to make the most of the sunshine while in the southern city of Brighton, swimmers headed to the beach.At London Zoo, keepers sought to cool animals down from the heat, such as giving ice cubes packed with tasty morsels to the meerkats."They come from the Kalahari desert in southern Africa so it can get very warm during the day but they weren't born in the Kalahari desert so they are quite acclimatised to the UK weather," zookeeper Grant Kother said."So although they are quite hardy when it comes to warm weather, it is always nice to give them an option to cool down."Worldwide, this year is set to be the hottest since records began in the late 19th century, due to a build-up of man-made greenhouse gases and an El Nino event that has warmed the Pacific Ocean, the U.N. weather agency says. [nL8N1A74BG]-And NASA said on Monday that last month was the warmest August on record. Last year, world leaders meeting in Paris agreed a sweeping plan to shift from fossil fuels this century to limit climate change. [nL8N1410F]-(Reporting By Georgina Cooper and Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
Greenland sets record temperatures, ice melts early-[AFP]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Copenhagen (AFP) - Temperature records were broken in Greenland this year after parts of the territory's vast ice sheet began melting unusually early, the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) said Tuesday."These new results give us new and robust evidence of the tendency of warmer temperatures in the Arctic continuing," John Cappelen, a climatologist at the institute, said in a statement.The average summer temperature was 8.2 degrees Celsius (46.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in Tasiilaq on Greenland's southeast coast, the highest since records began in 1895 and 2.3 degrees Celsius above the average between 1981 and 2010.New highs were also recorded in the south and in the northeast this summer, after a balmy spring that broke records at six out of 14 weather stations in the territory.In April, DMI said that the seasonal melting of Greenland's vast ice sheet had reached record levels, prompting it to check that its "models were still working properly."Around 12 percent of the ice sheet was found to be melting almost one month earlier than the previous top three dates for when more than 10 percent of the ice had begun to melt, it said.The Greenland ice sheet, a potentially massive contributor to rising sea levels, lost mass twice as fast between 2003 and 2010 as during the entire 20th century, researchers said in December.
DES MOINES, Iowa/WESTCHESTER, N.Y. (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped up efforts to wring maximum advantage from Democratic rival Hillary Clinton’s comment that his supporters are “deplorables” as he seeks to portray her as out of touch with ordinary Americans Clinton said in a speech last week that half of Trump's supporters belong "in a basket of deplorables" and accused them of being racist and homophobic. She later said she regretted the remark.Trump hammered Clinton over the comment, in a post on Facebook on Tuesday: "What a disgraceful thing to say about fellow- hard working Americans! Vote Trump on November 8th -- keep Hillary's HATE away from Washington, D.C."Trump will bring up the comment again at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday, his aides say, as he campaigns in the Midwestern swing state for votes at the Nov. 8 election.Controversy over the remark came at a bad time for Clinton, who was forced to cancel a West Coast swing due to a bout of pneumonia that she kept secret until she nearly collapsed after a ceremony in New York on Sunday marking the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.Trump himself has come under fire for rhetoric against minorities during his campaign, including describing Mexican immigrants as criminals and rapists, suggesting a judge could not be fair because of his Mexican-American heritage, and proposing a temporary ban on Muslim immigration to the United States.After struggling in opinion polls in August, the real estate magnate has erased most of Clinton's lead in national surveys and is competitive again in many battleground states where the White House race is likely to be decided.In Washington, Trump's vice presidential running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, used Clinton's comment to try to build more unity among Republicans, appearing at a news conference with Paul Ryan, the speaker of the House of Representatives, the top U.S. elected Republican."I think millions of Americans were shocked and saddened to see Hillary Clinton refer to people across this country as a basket of deplorables in a prepared speech before wealthy donors in New York City on Friday night," Pence said.-RALLY TROUBLE-The "deplorables" comment featured at a Trump rally in Asheville, North Carolina on Monday which saw a resumption of some of the violence that disrupted his events earlier this year."Never in history has a major party presidential candidate so viciously demonized the American voter," Trump told the crowd just before a small protest against him broke out.An apparent Trump supporter grabbed a male protester's neck then clenched his fist and punched him, video from NBC and ABC showed. The protesters were then escorted out.Asheville's Citizen-Times newspaper said four people were arrested at the rally. The Buncombe County clerk's office confirmed the names of three arrested adults in the article but could not confirm the location of the arrests.Clinton was resting at her home in Chappaqua, New York on Tuesday. She is expected to return to the campaign trail later this week. President Barack Obama, a Democrat, is to campaign in Philadelphia on behalf of Clinton on Tuesday.Trump will propose in a speech on Tuesday night allowing families to deduct the cost of childcare expenses from income taxes, his campaign said, a move aimed at bolstering his support among women voters.It was formulated with the aid of Trump's daughter, Ivanka Trump, an influential voice in his campaign.(Additional reporting by Emily Stephenson and Eric Walsh in Washington and Laila Kearney in New York; Writing by Steve Holland and Susan Heavey; Editing by Alistair Bell)
Obama, Bill step in for pneumonia-hit Clinton-[AFP]-Michael Mathes-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Washington (AFP) - Former and current US presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama join the campaign trail Tuesday for Hillary Clinton, standing in for the Democratic White House hopeful while she recovers from pneumonia.Clinton is set to return to the fray on Friday after several days of rest when she attends a Black Women's Agenda symposium Friday in Washington, with less than eight weeks to go before the election, the campaign announced.With Republican rival Donald Trump in striking distance in national polls and some battleground states, Clinton has suffered perhaps the worst week of her 15-month quest to become America's first female president.On Friday, she sparked a firestorm when she called half of Trump's supporters as "deplorables" and then her campaign failed to be transparent when she fell ill at the weekend.Clinton, 68, sought to draw a line under the health scare rocking her campaign."I just didn't think it was going to be that big a deal," Clinton told CNN late Monday when asked why she kept her Friday pneumonia diagnosis under wraps until Sunday, when she fell ill at a 9/11 memorial event at Ground Zero in New York."It's just the kind of thing that if it happens to you and you're a busy, active person, you keep moving forward."She has expressed a desire to swiftly rejoin the race and said she will resume campaigning within the "next couple of days."In the meantime, her husband Bill takes over for her in California, attending a fundraiser in Los Angeles while his wife rests at their home in Chappaqua, New York per her doctor's orders.He also will campaign for her Wednesday in Las Vegas.She gets a further boost when Obama hits the campaign trail for her in Philadelphia on Tuesday.- We 'take responsibility' -Facing intensifying scrutiny about her health, the Democrat will also release more medical records, as her team acknowledged it stumbled when it failed to alert the press and public about Clinton's condition in a timely way over the weekend.Discussing the event itself, Clinton explained: "I felt dizzy and I did lose my balance for a minute."The incident -- captured on amateur video -- gave Trump, 70, a new opening to question the former secretary of state's fitness for the nation's highest office as the race intensifies.Trump and his team have wished Clinton a rapid recovery. But his campaign manager Kellyanne Conway directed stinging criticism at Clinton Tuesday."I think she had a terrible week. She certainly had a terrible weekend. Not because she's sick," Conway told CNN. "We're glad she said she's feeling better."She stressed instead that "transparency and trustworthiness are her two pillar problems," and that Clinton suffered "the worst 48 hours of her campaign."Clinton admitted: "If we weren't fast enough, you know, I've talked to my staff. We, you know, take responsibility for that."But she quickly insisted she has been far more transparent than Trump."The information is out there. You can't say the same thing about Donald Trump," she said, adding that Americans "deserve to know what he's up to and what he is hiding."Trump has promised to release medical records as early as this week, once test results are back.- 'Catastrophic insult' -Meanwhile, his running mate Mike Pence, the Indiana governor and a former congressman, met with House Republicans on Capitol Hill on Tuesday and said he and Trump were "grateful" for the support from GOP lawmakers.But he also turned to Clinton's Friday remark that "half" of Trump's supporters were in a so-called "basket of deplorables" because they were racist, misogynistic and xenophobic."This was a catastrophic insult to the American people," Pence told reporters as he again demanded Clinton "retract those offensive statements and apologize."Clinton has expressed regret for saying "half" but also said she would not back down from calling out "racist rhetoric" on the campaign trail.Pence also rejected accusations that Trump's campaign was courting white supremacists including former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, who has endorsed Trump."Donald Trump and I have denounced David Duke repeatedly," Pence said. "We have said that we do not want his support, and we do not want the support of people who think like him."The brash billionaire's campaign has courted controversy from the start, and sporadic clashes have erupted at his rallies between supporters and anti-Trump protesters.An altercation erupted Monday night at a Trump rally in Asheville, North Carolina, where video shows a Trump supporter, his fists raised, yelling at and pushing a protester before slapping his face.
U.S. bombers fly over South Korea in show of force after nuclear test-[Reuters]-By James Pearson and Ju-min Park-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
SEOUL (Reuters) - Two U.S. B-1 bombers flew over South Korea on Tuesday in a show of force and solidarity with its ally after North Korea's nuclear test last week, while a U.S. envoy called for a swift and strong response to Pyongyang from the United Nations.Speaking in the South Korean capital on Tuesday, Sung Kim, the U.S. envoy on North Korea, added that the United States remained open to meaningful dialogue with Pyongyang on ending its pursuit of nuclear weapons."Our intention is to secure the strongest possible (U.N. Security Council) resolution that includes new sanctions as quickly as possible," Kim told a news briefing after meeting his South Korean counterpart.He said the United States would work with China, North Korea's major diplomatic ally, to close loopholes in existing resolutions, which were tightened with Beijing's backing in March."China has been very clear that they understand the need for a new U.N. security council resolution in response to the latest North Korean nuclear test," Kim said.However, China and Russia, which strongly oppose a recent decision by the United States and South Korea to deploy an advanced anti-missile system in the South to counter the North's missile threat, have shown reluctance to back further sanctions."Both sides think that North Korea's nuclear test is not beneficial to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula," China's official People's Daily newspaper said on Tuesday following a high-level China-Russia security meeting in Beijing."At present, we must work hard to prevent the situation on the peninsula continuing to escalate, and put the issue of the nuclearization of the peninsula back on the track of dialogue and consultation," it said.-FORCE AND SOLIDARITY-The pair of U.S. supersonic B-1B Lancer strategic bombers took off from their base in Guam and flew with two Japan Air Self Defense Force aircraft before a "hand-off" to South Korean fighters, according to the U.S. military.The B-1Bs were then escorted by South Korean and U.S. fighter jets in a low-altitude flight over Osan Air Base, which is 77 km (48 miles) from the Demilitarised Zone border with the North and about 40 km (25 miles) from the South's capital Seoul."These flights demonstrate the solidarity between South Korea, the United States, and Japan to defend against North Korea's provocative and destabilizing actions," said Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command.North Korea's official KCNA news agency said public anger was "exploding like a volcano" over Washington's dispatch of bombers to South Korea."Any sanction, provocation and pressure cannot ruin our status as a nuclear state and evil political and military provocations will only result in a flood of reckless nuclear attacks that will bring a final destruction," KCNA said.China urged restraint among all parties. "If there is a vicious cycle of tensions continuing to rise and mutual provocations, this is not in anyone's interests," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily briefing.North Korea's weapons enhancements, including the testing of various types of missiles this year at an unprecedented rate, have alarmed neighbors South Korea and Japan.South Korean President Park Geun-hye maintained her tough stance against the North.The two Koreas remain technically at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty."I want our government and military to stay fully ready to retaliate, determined to end North Korea's regime once North Korea fires even one missile nuclear-armed missile toward our territory," Park told a cabinet meeting.A group of lawmakers in South Korea said on Monday the country should have a nuclear force of its own, either by acquiring weapons or asking the United States to redeploy tactical nuclear weapons withdrawn under a 1991 pact for denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.Kim, the U.S. envoy, said there was no need to reintroduce nuclear weapons in South Korea.North Korea has refused the U.S. demand that it accept denuclearization as a condition for holding dialogue."It's a question of North Korean intentions and commitment. If North Korea is ready to talk to us sincerely, I think we can work with that within the six party process," Kim said.The six party talks aimed at ending the North's nuclear program involve the United States, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China, and North Korea but have been stalled since 2008.South Korea said on Monday the North is ready to conduct an additional nuclear test at any time after setting off its most powerful blast to date on Friday.(Additional reporting by Kim Do-gyun in Osan, Ben Blanchard in Beijing and Linda Sieg in Tokyo; Writing by Jack Kim and Tony Munroe; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
Iranians mark Feast of Sacrifice as day of charity rooted in history-[Christian Science Monitor]-Scott Peterson-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Marking one of Islam’s holiest days, Fatameh Saee left a communal abattoir with her family, a freshly butchered leg of a lamb wrapped neatly in plastic, and her thoughts on what Eid al-Adha, or Feast of the Sacrifice, means to her.“This Eid is very significant for me, it’s important for my religion,” says Ms. Saee. “It is all rooted in history, and the fact of Abraham’s sacrifice,” she says.In the legend common to Christians, Muslims, Jews, and other Abrahamic religions, God tested the patriarch’s faith, ordering him to make the ultimate sacrifice by killing his beloved only son, Isaac.Recommended: How much do you know about Iran? Take our quiz to find out.That epic test is being marked across the Islamic world. In Tehran that means celebrating hope and charity – and the slaughter of thousands of sheep, a traditional act to commemorate God’s decision, when he saw Abraham’s willingness to give up his son, to allow a ram to be killed instead.That the legendary event is held to have taken place centuries ago “means the eternity of Islam, and its timelessness,” says Saee, who comes back year after year for the communal observance. This year she donated one sheep and was buying a token portion. Tradition holds that the sacrificial sheep is divided into three, with even portions to the family, relatives and neighbors, and the poor.As dawn broke south of Tehran on Monday, the sun lit up pens of sheep ready for slaughter at the Kahrizak Charity Foundation, a sprawling complex for the disabled and elderly with an abattoir built-in to host the annual ritual.“It is a holiday rooted in our principles and values, a holiday when people offer their donations,” says Mohammad Reza Sufinejad, director of the private foundation, as squads of butchers in the abattoir nearby dispatched, skinned, and prepared for distribution hundreds of donated sheep.-DAY OF CHARITY-Some 2,000 sheep were donated this year to this center alone, with one-quarter slaughtered on site and the rest sent to the needy elsewhere. In Persian, the holiday is called Eid-e Ghorban.“This is a day of charity,” says Mr. Sufinejad, noting that the volume of meat will help feed the complex’s 1,750 residents for two to three months.On the Eid, the rate at which sheep are slaughtered jumps 10-fold in Tehran, from a daily average of 5,700 sheep up to 60,000, according to official statistics for 2014. That year nearly 9.2 million sheep were butchered nationwide. Little goes to waste: even the heads and feet are used in a rich delicacy called kalle pache. Yet the Eid tradition has drawn some controversy, with animal-rights activists on social media calling for Iranians to plant trees instead. Some responded online, asking whether the critics did not ever like eating lamb or meat kabob, staples of Iranian cooking.Noting the debate in October 2013, the hard-line website Raja News asked a cleric for a religious interpretation, about whether it was better to plant trees or to kill sheep for the Eid.Planting trees was also a virtue, but “God’s verdict is not changeable,” said Hojj. Vahid Babadaei, head of Applied Teaching and Preaching for the Tehran provincial seminary. Sacrificing sheep “is a divine tradition which has many positive outcomes.”-FEELING 'GOD'S PRESENCE'-Such concerns were not part of the feel-good factor this Eid at the south Tehran charity foundation, which put on an open house for donors – many of them well-heeled north Tehranis – selling handicrafts made by residents and showing their activities.The foundation mounts events on each religious day of the Shiite calendar, and on Monday dozens of children and others in a wheelchair procession circled a makeshift Kaaba, with a faux black stone edifice, to reenact one of the events of the five-day Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia that began this week.One mother fussed over her wheelchair-bound son, as she put on his religious skullcap; another dispensed a hug to her daughter, who beamed. Charity staffers say donors feel good when they give money or their time, with volunteers doing everything from providing daily baths to helping maintain a garden. One volunteer who lives in the Netherlands brings seeds.“Our people believe they can feel God’s presence in such places,” says Maryam Abbasnejad, a staff member of the Kahrizak Charity Foundation, which relies on private donors.“Despite economic problems and inflation, our people are so generous,” says Ms. Abbasnejad. “Even with 1,750 people here, we never have a problem with food or feeding them breakfast…. A person who steps here will feel God’s presence and come back next year.”
DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(EITHER THE EUROPEAN UNION DICTATOR BOOTS 3 COUNTRIES FROM THE EU OR THE DICTATOR TAKES OVER THE WORLD ECONOMY BY CONTROLLING 3 WORLD TRADE BLOCS)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
EU should kick out Hungary, says Luxembourg minister By Eric Maurice-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 08:53-Hungary should be excluded from the EU, Luxembourg's foreign minister Jean Asselborn has said.Ejecting Hungary is "the only possibility to preserve the cohesion and the values" of the EU, he said in an interview to German daily Die Welt, published on Tuesday (13 September), three days before a EU leaders summit about the bloc's future without the UK."We cannot accept that the basic values of the European Union are massively violated," he said.He said any state that "builds fences against war refugees, or who hurts press freedom and independence of judiciary, must be excluded for the EU temporarily or for ever if needed".In Hungary, he said, refugees are "treated as wild animals".He added that Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister, has "put the EU in trouble" by showing the world it cannot apply at home the values it defends abroad.Asselborn, a Social Democrat and the longest-serving foreign minister in the EU, said the bloc could not accept "such misconduct".He said it would be "helpful" if EU rules could be changed to allow the suspension of a member state without unanimity.Currently there is no clause that allows the expulsion of a member state.A country's voting rights can be suspended in case of "serious and persistent breach" of EU values. The decision requires unanimity from other member states.Asselborn said that today, Hungary would "have no chance" of joining the EU.At the end of August, Orban announced that Hungry would erect a "more massive" fence at its borders to stop migrants coming in. A first one was built last year at the borders with Serbia and Croatia. Orban, a strong critic of EU migration policies, has warned many times that migration will destroy Europe's identity.-Referendum-"Europe will no longer be recognisable" if it lets in many Muslim migrants with a higher birth rate, he said again to Hungarian MPs on Monday.Orban has organised a referendum on migration that will be held on 2 October. Voters will be asked if they "want the European Union to be entitled to prescribe the mandatory settlement of non-Hungarian citizens in Hungary without the consent of parliament”.On Monday, the leader of Hungary's far-right Jobbik party, which in the past has supported his government, said Orban would have to resign if turnout to the referendum is low.A 50 percent turnout is necessary to validate the vote."You hope to score political points with this game of hazard which could end up hurting the entire country," Gabor Vona told Orban in parliament."If the referendum is invalid, you have to resign because you led Hungary into a battle you lost."
EU prepares to let commissioner go to UN By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 09:15-Bulgaria's government meets on Tuesday (13 September) amid rumours it may nominate the Bulgarian EU commissioner, Kristalina Georgieva, as its official candidate for the next UN chief.The country’s current choice, Unesco boss Irina Bokova, reportedly faces opposition among some permanent members of the UN security council (Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States).The speculation that Sofia could replace her with Georgieva emerged over the weekend, but has not been confirmed.Martin Selmayr, the influential head of cabinet of the EU commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, fuelled debate on Twitter last Saturday by saying that Georgieva "would make strong UNSG [UN secretary general], and many Europeans proud".But a commission spokesman explained on Monday the tweet was not an official endorsement, adding: "I don't think one conclusion [her candidacy] follows from the other [Selmayr's praise]".Meanwhile, the outgoing UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, would like to see a female successor. Civil society groups and nearly a third of the 193 UN member states have rallied behind his call. The UN has never had a female leader in its 70 years of history.Amid the swirl of rumour, one EU official told this website that many people in Brussels would be delighted to see Georgieva take the helm in New York.”It would be a great loss for us, but it would be fantastic for the UN. She could do a great job", he said.”The question is whether she would be acceptable to Russia,” he added.Moscow had previously championed Bokova.But according to Russia’s state-run agency Tass, German chancellor Angela Merkel recently tried to make Georgieva's case to president Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in China.Sofia has not officially included the Bulgarian candidacy for the UN post in the cabinet’s agenda.One source in Sofia also told the Reuters news agency that it is ”odd” for others to try to sway its choice of nominee."The Bulgarian prime minister is in a very difficult situation … Seems he has not decided yet," the source said.The next secretary general will be chosen by the UN general assembly and the security council later this month.
EP negotiator wants Brexit talks to end by 2019 By Eszter Zalan-sept 13,16-euobserver
STRASBOURG, Today, 14:03-The chief negotiator for the European Parliament (EP) urged the UK to trigger the exit talks as soon as possible and said negotiations should reach an end by 2019.Liberal MEP Guy Verhofstadt told journalists Tuesday that he "cannot not imagine that we start a new legislative cycle without an agreement, and that we enter a new legislative cycle with no solution".The next EP elections will take place in 2019."The UK should trigger the Article 50 as soon as possible so that we can finalise these negotiations by 2019," Verhofstadt told a news conference in Strasbourg.The liberal leader recalled that the EP needs to give its consent to the final exit agreement with the UK, that is why it is important that the EP is already part of the negotiations.He said the EP's red lines in negotiations will be decided by the conference of presidents – group leaders and the EP president – and the EP's plenary.The former Belgian prime minister warned London that the EP's position is that the UK could only keep access to the single market by accepting the free movement of all European Union citizens into Britain.Verhofstadt was appointed last week as the EP's negotiator, and joins the EU Commission's Michel Barnier, and the Council's Didier Seeuws, who are the point men for the Brexit talks.British prime minister Theresa May has said she will not trigger Article 50 until early 2017 at the earliest.On the EU's part, the negotiations will be led by the member states, despite the EU Commission's efforts to play the main role in the talks.
UK parliament may have to ratify Brexit legislation - minister-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's parliament may well have to ratify part of the legislation needed for the country to exit the European Union, Brexit minister David Davis told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday."There has to be some legislation (to enact Brexit), no doubt about that," said Davis, whose formal title is Secretary of State for exiting the European Union."There are various stages, firstly some legislation to deal with the European Communities Act 1972 ... There may well have to be at least parliamentary ratification under the relevant 2010 legislation, the so-called CRAG legislation, but that's the absolute minimum I can see," he said.He was referring to the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. The issue of parliamentary ratification is sensitive because a majority of lawmakers voted for Britain to remain in the European Union.The United Kingdom as a whole voted to leave in a referendum on June 23, and Prime Minister Theresa May has said the will of the people must be respected.(Reporting by William James and Estelle Shirbon; editing by Michael Holden)
Morocco deals don't cover Western Sahara, EU lawyer says By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 19:39-EU-Morocco relations risk hitting another rough patch after a senior lawyer said that their trade treaties do not apply to Western Sahara, a disputed territory.Advocate-general Melchior Wathelet set out his opinion to EU judges in Luxembourg on Tuesday (13 September).He said that “neither the EU-Morocco association agreement nor the EU-Morocco agreement on the liberalisation of trade in agricultural and fishery products apply to Western Sahara” because “Western Sahara is not part of Moroccan territory”.His opinion is not binding, but judges follow advocates general in most cases.If their verdict, expected in November, echoes Wathelet then the EU could see a repeat of last year’s fiasco, when Morocco severed diplomatic ties with EU institutions after an unfavourable ruling.Western Sahara is a territory in north-west Africa, known as its last colony.Morocco occupies most of the land and claims it as its own after a war in 1976, but according to the UN it is a “non-self-governing territory” whose people, the Sahrawi, have the “right to self-determination”.Wathelet had been asked to pronounce on a case originally filed at the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in 2013 by the Polisario Front, the Sahrawi national liberation movement, against an annex on fish products in EU-Morocco agreements.The Polisario Front won in December 2015, prompting the Moroccan outcry and an EU appeal.In Wathelet’s opinion, the Polisario Front’s case and the EU appeal are no longer relevant, because the broader EU-Morocco treaties, which govern the annex, do not apply to Western Sahara.The issue is politically explosive.But its financial implications were, on Tuesday, also highlighted when a ship full of fish oil from Western Sahara, the Key Bay Key Bay, rounded Spain en route to France.The vessel can be followed online.French customs have decided that the shipment is not liable for tariffs, in line with the EU-Morocco trade treaties, because, the EU says, those accords remain in force despite the December 2015 ECJ ruling.Morocco’s interior minister, Mohamed Hassad, told EUobserver last week that the EU deal, to his knowledge, has not been suspended in any part.He also recalled Morocco's role in stemming migration to the EU and in helping Europe on counter-terrorism, in what appeared to be a veiled threat over Western Sahara’s status.An European Commission spokesperson also said on Tuesday that the trade arrangements remained in place."The court [in December] had annulled the EU legal act (the decision to conclude) and not the agreement as such," the spokesperson said.Polisario’s lawyer, Gilles Devers, told EUobserver that this was the wrong interpretation, adding that EU institutions are in “defiance” of the ECJ by continuing to enforce the trade treaties in the disputed territory.The EU’s zealous support of Morocco has raised eyebrows among some MEPs.Morocco and the EU said to be working together on the ECJ appeal, and three EU states have spoken out in Rabat’s favour in court (Germany withdrew at last minute, and Belgium didn't send a representative to the hearing in Luxembourg).A group of pro-Morocco MEPs last week also joined the anti-Polisario front.Jose Bove, a French green MEP who was the EU parliament’s rapporteur on the EU-Morocco agreements, welcomed the advocate-general's opinion, and hoped the final ruling would put an end to "EU hypocrisy"."The EU should immediately take measures to ensure that no product from Western Sahara illegally enter the EU market as Moroccan products. The EU's complicity in the illegal occupation of the territory has lasted too long," Bove, who in his time voted against the EU-Morocco accords, said.
Opinion-How to save the EU By Civis Europaeus-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 15:26-Ideas on "how to save the EU" following the Brexit referendum have proliferated since 23 June.These range from new political visions, through transferring power back to national capitals, and to launching ground-breaking initiatives to improve solidarity between member states.There seems to be a widespread belief that the main reason why citizens in some member states are turning away from the EU is that the EU did not take specific action in the migration crisis, and that it acted when it should not have, for instance by overregulating the economy.Yet the main reason for declining trust in the EU is not the idleness of its institutions or that barmy Brussels bureaucrats are banning olive oil jugs.The real reasons are (1) the near total absence of a genuine EU perspective from discussions in national and local media and (2) unabated Brussels-bashing by the national political elite, with a clear link between the two.It was a major mistake of the past years of the European Commission to deliberately stay out of national and local debates on the EU - most recently on Brexit.Experience shows that the Commission's "let's avoid communication conflicts" policy did not lead to a more EU-friendly public opinion.To the contrary, it allowed national politicians hand-in-hand with part of the media to step up their anti-Brussels rhetoric.As a first step, the Commission must get out of its virtual reality of midday briefings, colourful brochures and elitist conferences.It needs two or three highly professional, native speaking spokespersons in each member state.Their role is not to stand behind a podium in the Commission's local office, but to participate day and night in radio talk shows, television news programmes and online media, finally giving that much needed face to the EU.These local spokespeople must explain the facts, debunk the lies, and defend the EU position. Politely and firmly. Let's not be naive: the so-called "citizens dialogues" events with European commissioners and press statements read out by the heads of representations will not do the trick.At the same time, there is a need for a new and loud commitment to the EU by the moderate national political elites.As a previous president of the Commission has said: "If you spend all week blaming Europe, you can't ask people to vote for Europe on Sunday”.That is especially true if ministers are making Brussels a scapegoat for decisions they themselves took in the EU Council or for Brussels not doing something for which member states did not give it the powers to act.National politicians must stop blaming Brussels for their own failings for the sake of pursuing short-term (political party) objectives.They have to start acting like statesmen and stateswomen and explain where and why the EU benefits their citizens.Otherwise, people’s anti-elitist sentiment - the very feeling that some national leaders are now happy to feed in their anti-EU communications - risks wiping them off the map also, once there is no more EU to blame.The author is currently working for an EU institution and asked to use a pen name.
Ethics drive at EU parliament hits a wall-By Nikolaj Nielsen-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 19:28-Transparency at the European Parliament hit a wall when centre-right MEPs postponed a report designed to make lawmakers more accountable and lawmaking more traceable.The report, drafted by German Green Sven Giegold, had demanded a number of changes to the EU parliament law making process as part of a larger EU institutional transparency drive.But MEPs, led by the EPP group, on Monday (12 September) in the constitutional affairs committee, managed to postpone the vote in a move that will likely keep EU lawmaking in the dark."The vote was called off on the demand of the largest group, the EPP, supported by Liberals and Social Democrats," Giegold told reporters.The issue also points to broader concerns over possible insider legislative bargaining between the parliament's two largest groups, the EPP and Social Democrat S&D.The EPP is the European Parliament's biggest political group. The parliament's chief, Martin Schulz, is a socialist and the group's former political master. Last April, the two masterminded a move not to ban side jobs for MEPs.Giegold's report requested a legislative footprint to trace outsider influence on lawmaking.He had also asked for a ban on second jobs, greater disclosure on money earned outside normal parliamentary duties, and a stronger internal oversight committee on MEPs who break code of conduct rules.-Deadlines and headaches-The postponement presents a whole host of procedural headaches for MEPs who back the transparency measures proposed by Giegold. Those issues are now likely to be offloaded onto another MEP who is drafting a separate report on parliament rules."The whole battle of transparency gets shifted from the Giegold report to my report, I'm not happy with that," British socialist MEP Richard Corbett told EUobserver. Corbett has been drafting a new rules of procedure report that is set to be adopted in December. It is now unclear if his report will also meet its intended deadline.Transparency was not discussed in Corbett's report because it had been delegated to Giegold.Giegold says the EPP had also negotiated compromises with the other political groups to weaken the measures he had proposed.An EU parliament source said the decision from the lead socialist MEP on the committee, Mercedes Bresso, to postpone the vote had been decided "from above".Her office denied the allegation, noting that the main issue was that they wanted a majority when it goes to vote in the plenary."It was discussed inside the political group but she did not take any orders," said her office.-EPP short on details-Getting a majority requires EPP backing and is likely to result in much weaker rules on transparency than those proposed by Giegold.Bresso also said upcoming legislation by the EU commission on transparency had factored into her decision.The EPP, for its part, also says it backs transparency but then refused to speculate when pressed on details.Hungarian centre-right MEP Gyorgy Schopflin told this website that his group simply wanted to improve on Giegold's report.But when asked if the EPP backed the specific measures in Giegold's report like the legislative footprint and a ban on second jobs, Schopflin drew a blank."I can't give you a direct answer to any of those questions because the EPP is in the midst of considering its exact position and I don't want to mislead you," he said.He said Giegold's report is likely to be voted on in three months, after the rules of procedure report.-Toothless code of conduct-Other efforts to enforce internal ethic rules in the European Parliament have also stumbled into problems.An internal committee to oversee code of conduct was set up following a cash-for-amendments scandal.The committee has no power. Whenever it finds fault, it reports to Schulz who is empowered to act, which he has never done, said Giegold.Its former chair, Gerald Hafner, an ex-Green MEP from Germany, said in 2014 Schulz never followed up on complaints.“Not a single one of these cases has had any conclusion or has had any consequences and if that is the end result of the tougher rules adopted by the European Parliament, then I think that we have not done the European Parliament, nor the citizens, nor European democracy any favours," he had said.EUobserver asked Schulz's office if the president had acted on any of the committee's recommendations, but received no response.
EU to launch Ukraine anti-corruption scheme By Aleksandra Eriksson-sept 13,16-euobserver
BRUSSELS, Today, 12:47-The European Union is about to unveil a comprehensive anti-corruption programme for Ukraine in a last effort to fight back against graft.According to one EU source involved in the planning, EU commissioner for enlargement Johannes Hahn will make the announcement on Friday (16 September), during the Yalta European Strategy Annual Meeting (YES) in Kyiv.A commission spokesperson confirmed that Mr Hahn will attend the conference, but wouldn't go into details."Commissioner Hahn will meet a number of ministers during the course of his two-day visit in order to discuss progress across a range of reform commitments made by Ukraine. He will visit EU funded projects and will attend the YES conference," the spokesperson said.The anti-corruption scheme is worth €16 million, will take off on 1 January 2017 and span three years.It will be based on four pillars: building and developing institutions to fight corruption; strengthening parliamentary oversight; working with local governments; and supporting civil society organisations and investigative journalists, who are already at the forefront of the battle.The programme will operate from an EU office in Kiev and it will be implemented by Denmark. The world’s least corrupt country, according to Transparency International’s index, hopes to lend credibility to the project. The same ranking puts Ukraine at 130th position of 168 - making it the most corrupt country in Europe.The Baltic states, Poland and Romania may also contribute, the EU source said, by sharing their experiences of transition from post-communist to democratic states.This winter will mark three years since the Maidan revolution, which ousted Ukraine's corrupt president Viktor Yanukovych.But corruption still permeates everyday life, bureaucracy and politics, according to the official.That has stalled a deal for Ukrainians to get visa-free travel in the EU.The EU’s move comes as the Netherlands is likely to relaunch the debate on Ukraine’s trade-association deal with the EU.The pact was voted down earlier this year in a referendum, and the Dutch government has since ignored the issue.But one EU official told this website the Dutch were likely to seek to settle the matter soon so that it doesn’t interfere with the next general elections, which will take place no later than 15 March.
Fort McMurray resident frustrated by steep rebuild fees-[CBC]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Janene Whenham says the steep fees involved with rebuilding her home after it was destroyed by the Fort McMurray wildfire are like a "slap in the face."She returned to the northern Alberta city on June 3 to sift through what little remained of her family home.Heartened by the outpouring of support and promise of assistance from the municipality, she was determined to rebuild.But her optimism soon gave way to frustration, as the cost of permits and licences piled up.In the end, she expects to pay more than $20,000 in direct and indirect municipal fees to rebuild on the same property."If the demolition permit and the tipping fees would have been waived from the beginning, at least the members of this community might have thought maybe they have their backs," Whenham said during an interview with CBC Edmonton's Radio Active. "But right off the bat, you're making money off me losing everything. I shouldn't have to pay to dump that waste."It's disgusting."Whenham is not alone in her frustration. A growing number of complaints has prompted the municipality to re-evaluate its fee structure during the rebuild. A motion to re-evaluate the fee structure will be up for debate at Tuesday evening's municipal council meeting."Through a variety of informal and formal interactions with Wood Buffalo residents, the Wood Buffalo Recovery Committee and councillors from the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo understand that fees related to the cleanup and rebuild have been a concern," RMWB press secretary Russell Baker said in an emailed statement. "Given the nature of this situation, it is too early to say whether the municipality will be waiving fees for residents who lost their home to fire and are trying to rebuild."-'The second slap in the face'-After confirming her worst fear — that her home in Saprae Creek had been lost in the fire — Whenham applied for a demolition permit.After three weeks of waiting, frantic phone calls and a letter of complaint to the mayor and city council, her demolition permit was finally approved at a cost of $200."This wasn't a surprise, we didn't go on vacation and come back to nothing. The city knew there was nothing ... so I figured they should have had this figured out," Whenham said. "We could have had this demolition permit waived. My home was already demolished."Whenham scraped the six inches of ash that had filled the burned out hull of her basement, and hauled the charred remains of her property to the dump.The cost of tipping fees? $3,800.Though the municipality waived tipping fees at the landfill for residential vehicles after the wildfires, Whenham was charged the commercial rate, because she arrived in her work truck.Her personal vehicle had burned along with her home."That was the second slap in the face," she said."I'm not opposed to getting permits. I think we need to follow the rules and the bylaws to make sure everything is done to code and safely. But why do I need to pay that?"-'A frustrating process'-The property then had to pass a final inspection, at an additional cost of $100.The property passed inspection. But as soon as the papers were handed over, the workers began tearing down the safety fence that had been installed by the municipality in the days following the city-wide evacuation. "They did the final inspection and took the fence away, and said, 'Oh, by the way, you need a fence,' " Whenham said."I said, leave the fence. And they said,' No, no, now it's your responsibility to buy one.' They're about $14,000. As soon as you get your final inspection, the city was no longer responsible for the fence."Whenham said the rules and bylaws existed before the wildfire, but she's frustrated and feels like the municipality is asking money "every time you turned around."The municipality has since issued a bulletin, saying that any property owners who fail to install safety fences by Oct. 31 will have one installed for them, and the costs will be applied to their taxes."I've told them I'm not paying for a fence," Whenham said. "They can go ahead and fine me if they want."Here are some of the permit costs associated with Whenham's rebuild: - Demolition permit: $200- Tipping fees: $3,800- Final utilities inspection: $100- Building permit: $5,000- Development permit: $75- Utility Connect permit: $100- Water meter connect permit: $260- Electrical permit: $230-After the property was cleaned and passed inspection, Whenham was issued an unsightly premises notice by the municipality, demanding that she "remedy dangers and unsightly property.""We got our demolition permit on Friday, had our property cleaned right away," Whenham said. "A couple weeks later, I get a letter from the city that our property was unsightly, unsafe and it was a mess, and if it wasn't cleaned up they were doing it for us and they were going to charge us for it."-'I've lost everything'-The demolition order letters were sent to all owners of properties destroyed by the wildfire as part of the municipality's effort to quicken the rebuilding process. But Whenham said it was just another affront to evacuees struggling to rebuild.Though she has insurance, any permit costs she incurs will cut into the insurance payout she's been provided for rebuilding her home. She estimates these costs are around $20,000 per homeowner. "The municipality has costs associated with this too. I get that. But just for the houses that are burned, [the municipality's] revenues are $24 million, money they hadn't accounted for in the previous budget," Whenham said."Why should I sacrifice something out of a house that I didn't want to build? I've lost everything, and some of it I'll never get back."
Canada can lead process of global economic recovery: IMF's Lagarde-Reuters-By By Matt Scuffham and Fergal Smith | sept 13,16
TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada can lead the process of global economic recovery by setting standards for other countries to aspire to, the International Monetary Fund's Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday.Speaking at an event organized by the C.D.Howe Institute think tank, Lagarde praised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for adopting the IMF's three-pronged approach of taking monetary, fiscal and structural action to avert the risk of recession"There's nothing like setting standards. There is nothing that I would hope for more than Canada succeeding in that three-pronged approach. It seems to me that Canada can actually lead that process," Lagarde said."The prime minister's enthusiasm, passion and very articulate indication at the G20, for instance, of what the policy mix is going to be is a good step in that direction," she added.Trudeau has committed to doubling federal infrastructure spending to C$120 billion over the next 10 years to stimulate Canada's sluggish economic growth. However, the country's economy still faces serious challenges.The Bank of Canada warned this month that Canada's economic performance could be weaker than it anticipated just two months ago with exports disappointing, but the central bank stuck to a forecast that growth will bounce back in the second half.Lagarde also addressed a growing public backlash against free trade and globalization, calling on Tuesday for more inclusive growth which reduces economic inequality and benefits workers from all economic sectors.(Editing by David Gregorio)
Somalia hosts first summit of African leaders since war began in 1991-[By Abdi Sheikh]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia hosted regional African heads of state on Tuesday for a summit that was the first of its kind in the Somali capital since the Horn of Africa nation plunged into conflict in 1991.Streets were shut down to traffic in Mogadishu, which regularly faces attacks from the Islamist al Shabaab militants, for the one-day meeting of IGAD, a grouping that includes Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Djibouti, Sudan, Uganda and Somalia.The regional leaders discussed Somalia's upcoming vote for a new parliament and president, as well the situation in South Sudan, where fighting in July has further destabilised the five-year-old nation.The presidents of Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti, and the prime minister of Ethiopia, were in Mogadishu for the summit meeting of IGAD, or the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, officials said."It symbolises the reconstruction of Somalia and Somalia coming back to the (family of) nations," Foreign Minister Abdusalam Omer told Reuters as heads of state flew in. "It signifies that we are defeating international terrorism."Somalia has hosted visits of individual heads of state, but Omer said this was the first summit gathering for about four decades, since the rule of President Siad Barre, whose toppling in 1991 was followed by two decades of conflict.Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, chair of IGAD, said Somalia had made progress but more was needed. "IGAD is confident that its efforts will succeed in the complete restoration of peace and stability," he said, according to statements released after the meeting.Many senior visitors to Mogadishu stay in the airport area, a compound surrounded by high blast walls with barbed wire and patrolled by the African Union AMISOM force. Tuesday's summit was held just outside the perimeter at a nearby hotel."The presence of the heads of state in Somalia is a clear dividend of returning stability in the country," AMISOM said in a statement.Ordinary Somalis were forced to walk around the capital as traffic was blocked from many streets. Al Shabaab has often used vehicles packed with explosives to launch attacks on sites in Mogadishu, blowing up security posts so fighters can storm in.Mogadishu still bears the scars of war, with many buildings little more than bombed out shells. But there has been a construction boom in recent years, that has seen new buildings erected, often financed by Somalis returning from abroad.Al Shabaab, which once ruled most of Somalia, has been waging an insurgency to topple the Western-backed government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who seeks re-election later this year.Security concerns mean that only a fraction of Somalia's 11 million people will vote in the election, with 14,000 people gathered from the federal states choosing the 275 members of parliament, before the lawmakers then pick the president.But that is still an improvement on the 135 elders who chose parliament in 2012, and which in turn picked Mohamud. (Writing and additional reporting by Edmund Blair; Editing by Alison Williams)
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
All-seeing 'eye' watches over Mecca pilgrims-[AFP]-Sarah Benhaida-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Mina (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) - Under a bank of monitors broadcasting live footage from more than 5,000 cameras, Saudi officers have kept their eyes on every route and gathering spot at this year's hajj pilgrimage.As custodians of the most sacred sites in Islam, the authorities have been at pains to assure the world that every possible measure has been taken to prevent a repeat of last year's disaster at the hajj that cost the lives of around 2,300 pilgrims in a stampede.An "eye" which never closes forms the heart of the command and control centre located in Mina, near Mecca, said Colonel Saad al-Dosari, its planning chief.Another officer, Captain Tareq al-Azam, told AFP that his dozens-strong team has been on duty around the clock monitoring this year's 1.8 million pilgrims who have converged on the desert kingdom from across the globe.More than 5,000 cameras have been installed in the entire Mecca sector covering a radius of around 10 kilometres (six miles) around its Grand Mosque, the single holiest place in Islam.From his vantage point, the captain can direct the cameras and is able to zoom in to investigate any suspicious-looking or potentially dangerous activity.The job of the security team was "to survey the screens to detect any problem or any blockage" in the constant stream of pilgrims navigating the holy sites, explained Dosari.If any anomaly is detected, "they inform the operations centre to prevent any problem before it can even happen".Dozens of soldiers are posted at the centre, located a few metres (yards) away, with headphones on and microphones at the ready to pass on information to the tens of thousands of members of the security forces on the ground.They also redirect any complaints from the pilgrims on a special number provided by Saudi authorities, who have said this year's hajj which started last Saturday and ends on Thursday has been free of any major incident.
Kurdish militants claim car bombing in southeast Turkey-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Kurdish militants claimed responsibility on Tuesday for a car bombing in Turkey's southeastern city of Van a day earlier and said it was partly a response to the removal from office of two dozen mayors from Kurdish-run municipalities.The blast, close to local government offices, wounded around 50 people, including four police officers and four Iranian citizens thought to have been visiting during the Muslim Eid holiday, officials said.The bombing came a day after Turkey appointed new administrators in 24 Kurdish-run municipalities, most of them in the largely-Kurdish southeast, after removing their mayors over suspected militant links, triggering protests.Southeastern Turkey has suffered numerous bombings since the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group, which has waged a three-decade insurgency for Kurdish autonomy in the region, abandoned a ceasefire in 2015.The claim of responsibility, on a website close to the PKK, said the attack in Van was a retaliation for the killing by security forces of Kurdish youths and the removal of the mayors "in disregard of the Kurdish people's will."The PKK is considered a terrorist group by the United States and European Union, as well as by Ankara.President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that Turkey had evidence the mayors had sent support to Kurdish militants and that they should have been stripped of their roles sooner.Four towns in Van province were affected by the removals.(Reporting by Seda Sezer; Writing by Nick Tattersall)
Russia calls on U.S. 'to influence' ceasefire violators in Syria-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia called on the United States on Tuesday to influence some of the armed groups in Syria refusing to stop fighting government troops, saying their actions hamper joint efforts by Moscow and Washington to launch a peace process in this country."We strongly call on all those who have influence on these ceasefire violators, first and foremost the American side, to finally deal with their clients," Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement."One should not allow their expected provocative actions to derail a chance for a turn to a political resolution of the Syrian crisis."Some of these groups openly say they do not want to dissociate themselves from Jabhat Fatah al Sham, formerly known as the Nusra Front, the ministry said.(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov)
Second aid convoy crosses into Syria from Turkish border town witness-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A second aid convoy around 20 trucks carrying aid crossed into northern Syria on Tuesday from the Turkish border town of Cilvegozu, as a ceasefire across Syria largely held for a second day, a Reuters witness said.Turkey had said it aimed, with the United Nations, to send trucks of food, children's clothes and toys to the northern Syrian city of Aleppo after the truce, which was brokered by the United States and Russia, took effect late on Monday.(Reporting by Yesim Dikmen,; Writing by Seda Sezer; Editing by Alison Williams)
DISEASES
REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
WHO says Angola, Congo yellow fever outbreak under control-[By Tom Miles]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
GENEVA (Reuters) - A yellow fever outbreak in Angola and Congo has been brought under control by a major vaccination campaign, the World Health Organization's director of infectious hazard management Sylvie Briand said on Tuesday."One (piece of) good news is that this outbreak is under control now. We haven't had any new cases in Angola since June 23, and since July 12 in DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo)," Briand told a regular U.N. briefing in Geneva.The entire Congolese capital of Kinshasa, 7.7 million people, had been vaccinated in less than 10 days, as well as 3 million in border areas to prevent transmission from Angola, and another 3 million on the Angolan side of the border, where a second phase of vaccinations would be carried out soon."So far in Angola more than 15 million people (have been vaccinated), this represents 65 percent of the population. So we still have to protect certain districts and provinces but the risk of a major outbreak I think is now over," she said.But there were still 32 endemic countries in Africa, so further outbreaks could not be ruled out, including in the parts of Congo that had not been vaccinated recently, she said.At the end of August the WHO said the trend was "extremely positive" but it was too early to say the outbreak had been stopped completely, with 1,000 confirmed cases and up to 6,000 suspected cases of the mosquito-borne disease.The outbreak is the worst in decades among unprotected African populations and has killed more than 400 people.The vaccination campaigns have depleted the global stockpile of 6 million doses twice this year, forcing doctors to switch to administering one-fifth of the normal dose, a tactic that the WHO says gives at least temporary protection from the disease.On Monday experts from WHO and other health agencies met in Geneva to discuss a long-term strategy to prevent future large outbreaks of yellow fever.The risk of such outbreaks has risen due to urbanisation and increasing mobility of the population, and this year it was especially acute because of the El Nino weather phenomenon which multiplied mosquito numbers, she said.The recent mass vaccination campaign aimed not only to stop the transmission of the virus but also to preempt transmission during the rainy season, which is already starting in some areas, Briand said.(Reporting by Tom Miles; editing by Ralph Boulton; Editing by Dominic Evans)
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
NHC says 40 percent chance of cyclone formation for system near Florida-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
(Reuters) - An area of low pressure located just inland near Daytona Beach, Florida has a 40 percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Tuesday."The system is very close to having the organization required of a tropical cyclone, and advisories could be initiated later this afternoon," the Miami-based weather forecaster said. (Reporting by Arpan Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli)
Food aid reaches 140,000 hit by floods in North Korea - WFP-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
ROME (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Food aid has reached more than 140,000 people hit by recent floods in North Korea, but more is needed to help them through the country's upcoming severe winter, the U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) said on Tuesday.The floods in the country's north were caused by heavy rainfall in late August and early September.More than 140,000 were affected, but this number is likely to rise as more of the affected areas are accessed, WFP said. Flood-hit families urgently need shelter, clean water and health care, as well as food, the U.N. agency said."Whole villages have been washed away by flash floods. Families have lost everything, including their kitchen gardens and livestock, which many households depend upon to supplement their diets," Darlene Tymo, WFP's representative and country director in North Korea, said in a statement."The floods came just before the harvest period, when the crops were still in the ground," Tymo added. More than 70 percent of the country's population experiences food shortages, with many lacking essential proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, WFP said.Flood-hit provinces North Hamgyong and Ryanggang have the worst levels of hunger in the country, the agency said.WFP said the families will need help through the winter when temperatures can plunge to below minus 25 degrees Celsius (minus 13 degrees Fahrenheit)."These families need continued support to get through the worst of the winter," Tymo said. More than 35,500 homes had been damaged, two-thirds of them completely destroyed, and 107,000 people had been displaced by the floods, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Monday.Some 133 people were killed and 395 are missing, OCHA said. The agency said these figures were based on government data.North Korea's state media reported heavy rain in late August and early September caused extensive damage near the Tumen river. It did not give a death toll from the flooding in its latest report.The North's KCNA news agency said on Sunday the worst "climatic phenomenon" in more than 70 years hit the northern part of the country causing "huge losses," and recovery work was under way.Widespread deforestation for fuel and farming makes the impoverished state prone to natural disasters, especially floods.(Reporting by Alex Whiting, Editing by Katie Nguyen.; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
Britain records warmest September day since 1911-[Reuters]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain recorded its warmest September day in more than 100 years on Tuesday with temperatures rising to over 34 degrees Celsius in the southern county of Kent.The Met Office said on its Twitter page the town of Gravesend recorded a temperature of 34.4 degrees Celsius (93.92°Fahrenheit), making it the hottest day of the year. "This makes it the warmest September day since 1911," it said.London's Heathrow airport and Kew Gardens recorded temperatures of 32.8 Celsius, The Met said earlier.Londoners took to the city's numerous parks to make the most of the sunshine while in the southern city of Brighton, swimmers headed to the beach.At London Zoo, keepers sought to cool animals down from the heat, such as giving ice cubes packed with tasty morsels to the meerkats."They come from the Kalahari desert in southern Africa so it can get very warm during the day but they weren't born in the Kalahari desert so they are quite acclimatised to the UK weather," zookeeper Grant Kother said."So although they are quite hardy when it comes to warm weather, it is always nice to give them an option to cool down."Worldwide, this year is set to be the hottest since records began in the late 19th century, due to a build-up of man-made greenhouse gases and an El Nino event that has warmed the Pacific Ocean, the U.N. weather agency says. [nL8N1A74BG]-And NASA said on Monday that last month was the warmest August on record. Last year, world leaders meeting in Paris agreed a sweeping plan to shift from fossil fuels this century to limit climate change. [nL8N1410F]-(Reporting By Georgina Cooper and Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
Greenland sets record temperatures, ice melts early-[AFP]-September 13, 2016-yahoonews
Copenhagen (AFP) - Temperature records were broken in Greenland this year after parts of the territory's vast ice sheet began melting unusually early, the Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) said Tuesday."These new results give us new and robust evidence of the tendency of warmer temperatures in the Arctic continuing," John Cappelen, a climatologist at the institute, said in a statement.The average summer temperature was 8.2 degrees Celsius (46.8 degrees Fahrenheit) in Tasiilaq on Greenland's southeast coast, the highest since records began in 1895 and 2.3 degrees Celsius above the average between 1981 and 2010.New highs were also recorded in the south and in the northeast this summer, after a balmy spring that broke records at six out of 14 weather stations in the territory.In April, DMI said that the seasonal melting of Greenland's vast ice sheet had reached record levels, prompting it to check that its "models were still working properly."Around 12 percent of the ice sheet was found to be melting almost one month earlier than the previous top three dates for when more than 10 percent of the ice had begun to melt, it said.The Greenland ice sheet, a potentially massive contributor to rising sea levels, lost mass twice as fast between 2003 and 2010 as during the entire 20th century, researchers said in December.