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)
LUKE 21:28-29
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Shin Bet accuses Turkey of allowing Hamas to raise, launder money-Allegations follow arrest of Turkish citizen, Arab Israeli man, who the security service says were recruited by the terror group's top money-man-By Judah Ari Gross-TOI-14 February 2018
The Shin Bet security service on Monday accused Turkey of aiding the Gaza-based Hamas terrorist organization raise and launder funds for its military activities against Israel, following the investigation of a Turkish national and an Arab Israeli citizen who were arrested in January.“During the investigation, it became clear that Hamas is in direct contact with Turkish authorities,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.Cemil Tekeli, the Turkish national, was recruited by Zaher Jabarin, a senior figure in Hamas responsible for its finances, who lives in Turkey, the security service said.According to the security service, Tekeli is suspected of helping Hamas members set up businesses in Turkey, obtain visas to stay in the country, and acquire commercial properties, houses and cars.The Arab Israeli suspect, Durgham Jabarin, a resident of the northern town of Umm al-Fahm, is suspected of transporting large sums of money — hundreds of thousands of euros — from Turkey to the West Bank on Hamas’s behalf, the Shin Bet said.When Jabarin was arrested on January 21, security forces found 91,000 euros in his home, which the service said was due to be transfered to the West Bank.He is due to be charged in the coming days, the Shin Bet said on Monday.The security service said a number of other residents of the Arab Israeli town of Umm al-Fahm wre also detained in the case on the suspicion that they assisted Durgham.According to the Shin Bet, the aforementioned activities “took place unhindered as Turkish officials turn a blind eye and — on occasion — encourage it, and with the assistance of Turkish nationals, some of whom are close to the government.”The security service also said that Tekeli revealed in his interrogation that money and materiel was given to Hamas through the SADAT company, which was established by Adnan Basha, who is closely connected to Turkish administration officials.“One of its employees even helped senior Hamas officials to visit a 2015 weapons show in Turkey, during which they expressed interest in UAVs,” the Shin Bet said.Zaher Jabarin, who recruited both Tekeli and Durgham Jabarin, was one of over a thousand convicted Palestinian terrorists released from Israeli prisons as part of a 2011 deal to secure the return of captured soldier Gilad Shalit. Along with several other Shalit releasees, he later resettled in Turkey.(Zaher and Durgham do not appear to be related. Jabarin is a common last name.) “Investigation findings have revealed wide-ranging Hamas activity in money laundering in Turkey on instruction from Zaher Jabarin,” the Shin Bet said.According to the security service, aspects of this operation were conducted through the IMES company, a real estate and tourism firm — not to be confused with the dried fruit and nut retailer of the same name.“The investigation showed that Hamas members owned the IMES company, which served as a cover for the laundering of millions of US dollars that were transferred to the Gaza Strip and various countries,” the Shin Bet said.Israel has a strained relationship with Turkey, owing to its vocal opposition to Israeli policies and apparent support for Palestinian terrorist groups.The two countries cut ties in 2010 after Israeli forces raided a Turkish boat that was attempting to break the naval blockade Israel set up around the Gaza Strip to prevent Hamas, which has called for Israel’s destruction, from importing weapons. In the ensuing melee, nine Turkish activists were killed and a number of Israeli soldiers were injured.Israel and Turkey restored ties in June 2016, though tensions between the two remain.
How to spot a gay’ list in Malaysian newspaper sparks outrage-Gay men 'wear tight clothes and sport beards' and lesbians 'hate men,' says article, which activists warn could endanger lives in Muslim-majority nation-By AFP-TOI-FEB 14,18
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A stereotype-laden checklist for spotting gay men and lesbian women published by a popular Malaysian newspaper has sparked outrage in the Muslim-majority nation, with activists warning it could endanger lives.The Malay-language tabloid Sinar Harian claimed gay men love to go to the gym — just to check out other men — wear tight clothes to show off their physiques and tend to sport beards, while their eyes widen when they see handsome men.Lesbians, the paper said, “hate men” and enjoy hugging.The list, published Friday, was swiftly met with derision online, while campaigners warned it could further stoke animosity against LGBTQ groups, who have been increasingly targeted with violence and discrimination in recent years.“It exposes these people to bullying, which could lead to violent hate crimes towards them,” Eric Paulsen, Lawyers for Liberty executive director, told AFP Tuesday.Malaysia has experienced growing religious fundamentalism in recent years, sparking friction between conservative forces and those campaigning for greater rights.The country retains its colonial-era criminal ban on sodomy, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, caning or a fine.Human Rights Watch said in a 2017 report that discrimination against LGBT people was “pervasive” in Malaysia.One of the country’s biggest social media stars, Arwind Kumar, railed against the list in a video posted on YouTube.“How the hell does a gay person endanger your life? With an article like this you are only going to take away lives,” he said.“Are you dumb? How can having facial hair make someone gay?” Kumar said in the video, pointing out that religious leaders were also known for their abundant facial hair.The clip has been viewed tens of thousands of times.Sinar Harian has not yet issued any response to the controversy.Malaysia hit the headlines in March 2017 over its attitudes to homosexuality when the country’s film censorship board demanded cuts to Disney’s hit movie “Beauty and the Beast” because of a “gay moment.”But the entertainment giant refused and the film was released in full.In June, Malaysian health authorities were forced to backpedal on plans for a contest to “prevent” homosexuality, but in December the state of Terengganu sparked alarm by announcing plans for a conversion therapy course aimed at transgender women.Malaysian Muslims hold placards protesting against gay rights in Kuala Lumpur in country where sexual identity remains a divisive issue. Reuters Popular Malay language daily newspaper Sinar Harian provoked public ire and incited outrage on social media … https://t.co/sdpOgBeKi2 pic.twitter.com/fUPdmjyIfp— Business Insider MY (@BizInsiderMY) February 13, 2018.
Reports: Russian contractors killed by US strike in Syria-Moscow and Washington remain tight-lipped about what happened during clash for control of oil-rich Deir el-Zour province-By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV-TOI-FEB 14,18
MOSCOW (AP) — An unknown number of private Russian military contractors were killed by a US strike in Syria, Russian media reported Tuesday in a development that could further inflame Russia-US tensions.Officials in both Moscow and Washington remained coy about the deaths, which would be an embarrassment for both countries if it turns out that Russian fighters were part of a unit that attacked a military force with American troops.President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, refrained from commenting on reports about the incident last week, saying they need to be verified.Asked during a conference call with reporters if Putin raised the episode during a phone conversation Monday with US President Donald Trump, Peskov said the situation in Syria wasn’t discussed during the call.Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday that Russia has told the US there were no Russians in the area of the strike. Mattis said he saw the news reports about Russian contractors possibly being casualties of the bombing.“I don’t have any reporting that some non-Russian Federation soldiers, but Russian contractors were among the casualties,” Mattis told reporters traveling with him in Europe. “I can’t give you anything on that. We have not received that word at Central Command or the Pentagon.”Russian media said the Russian private contractors were part of pro-government forces that advanced on oil fields in the eastern Deir el-Zour province and were targeted by the United States. The reports cited activists who confirmed that at least four Russian citizens were killed in Syria on Wednesday.During the war in Syria, Russia and the United States have maintained a communications channel to avoid collisions between their warplanes and soldiers in the chaotic battlefield. If Russian deaths from the US strike are confirmed, it would mean the two countries were on the verge of a direct military confrontation in Syria.The episode could further strain ties between the two countries, which have plummeted to the lowest levels since the Cold War over the Ukrainian conflict, the war in Syria and the alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.The US military said last week it unleashed air and artillery barrages on Syrian government-backed troops after some 300 attackers launched what appeared to be a coordinated assault on Syrian opposition forces accompanied by US advisers in the province of Deir el-Zour. It said it was in regular communication with Russian counterparts before, during and after the attack, and Russian officials assured coalition officials they would not strike coalition forces.It said the US strikes, which reportedly killed about 100 of the attackers, were in self-defense.The Russian Defense Ministry has insisted that its troops weren’t involved in the incident, saying 25 Syrian volunteers were wounded in the US strike.It also noted pro-government forces that advanced toward the area under control of the US-supported forces had failed to coordinate their action with the Russian military in Syria.Mattis last week dismissed any suggestion that Russia had any control over the attacking force, whose nationalities, motives and makeup he could not identify.The US strike came as US-backed Kurdish-led forces were vying with Russian-backed Syrian troops that are reinforced by Iranian-supported militias for control of the oil-rich Deir el-Zour province.The Russian Defense Ministry charged that the February 7 incident reflected a US push to grab Syria’s economic assets under the cover of fighting the Islamic State group.Without mentioning the US strike, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted Tuesday that “Americans have taken dangerous unilateral steps.”“Those steps look increasingly as part of efforts to create a quasi-state on a large part of Syrian territory — from the eastern bank of the Euphrates River all the way to the border with Iraq,” he said.The state Tass news agency on Tuesday cited Natalya Krylova, a municipal lawmaker in the town of Asbestos in the Urals, as saying local residents Igor Kosoturov and Stanislav Matveyev were killed in Syria Wednesday.The Interfax news agency said that the Cossack group in the westernmost Kalningrad region said a member named Vladimir Loginov was killed in combat in the province of Deir el-Zour. It also quoted Alexander Averin, leader of extreme leftist group Another Russia, as saying that one of its activists, Kirill Ananyev, was killed by the US strike near Khusham.Russian media also cited unconfirmed claims that overall casualties could have been as high as 200 and Russians could have accounted for the bulk of them. Those claims couldn’t be verified.Liberal politician Grigory Yavlinsky, who is running for president in Russia’s March 18 presidential election, urged Putin to come into the open regarding the deaths of Russians in Syria, saying that official silence on the subject was “unacceptable.”“If many Russian citizens were killed, officials, including the commander-in-chief, must tell the nation about it and determine who is responsible for that,” he said.Russia has waged a military campaign in Syria since September 2015, helping Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government seize large chunks of territory and turn the tide of war into its favor.Russian media have reported that in addition to Russian servicemen deployed to Syria, thousands of Russians also fought there as private contractors, most serving with the so-called Wagner group. The private fighters allowed the Kremlin to keep the official death toll from its campaign in Syria low and avoid the negative public perception of its involvement in Syria as Putin is running for re-election in the March 18 vote.The Kremlin and the Russian Defense Ministry refused to comment on media reports on Russian private contractors in Syria.While the US has used private contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan for years, Russian law forbids the hiring of mercenaries or working as one even though Russia has used proxies in eastern Ukraine, where it has backed pro-Moscow separatists since 2014. Some Russian lawmakers have called for legislation that would set rules for private military contractors.
US intel chiefs say Russia meddling threatens 2018 vote-Senate Intelligence Committee hears that Moscow has been encouraged by what it sees as successful influence during 2016 presidential election-By Paul Handley-TOI-FEB 18,18
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US intelligence chiefs said Tuesday that Russian attempts to meddle in US politics are continuing unabated — and pose a threat to mid-term congressional elections in November.They also said North Korea’s nuclear program poses a potential “existential threat” to the United States, and that the time is nearing for Washington to respond to that danger.In a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the most urgent threats facing the country, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and the heads of the CIA, FBI, NSA and two other spy agencies were unanimous in saying that Moscow’s efforts to disrupt US politics are as intense now as they were in the 2016 presidential election.“Throughout the entire community, we have not seen any evidence of any significant change” in Russian behavior, said Coats.“There should be no doubt that Russia perceived its past efforts as successful and sees the 2018 US midterms elections as a potential target for Russian influence operations.”Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo said: “We have seen Russian activity and intentions to have an impact on the next election cycle here.”National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers warned that “this is not going to change or stop.”America’s leading intelligence agencies concluded last year that Russian President Vladimir Putin had directed a broad intelligence effort to influence the 2016 presidential election to undermine the campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton and boost Donald Trump’s chances.That effort included hacking and releasing emails and documents from the Clinton campaign, filling social media with posts and “news” items aimed at discrediting her, as well as targeting voter-registration operations and election databases.Trump has repeatedly dismissed the idea that Moscow helped him — and all allegations of collusion — as “fake news,” and criticized the intelligence agencies for repeating it.-Countering Russian interference-But a large volume of information has surfaced on Russian use of social media to influence public opinion in US public policy debates.As a result, leading online media companies like Twitter, Facebook and Google have been forced to begin policing their pages for fake news reports and fake accounts.“The Russians utilize this tool because it’s relatively cheap, it’s low risk, it offers what they perceive as plausible deniability, and it is proven to be effective at sowing division,” Coats told the Senate panel.“We expect Russia to continue using propaganda, social media, false-flag personas, sympathetic spokesmen and other means of influence to try to build on its wide range of operations and exacerbate social and political fissures in the United States.”But more than a year after Russian interference became widely known, the intelligence community (IC) chiefs were unable to detail how the United States was countering it or punishing Moscow.Democratic Senator Jack Reed asked the officials whether Trump had ordered them to take action. But none of the six said the president had specifically done so.Pompeo said the CIA was acting but could not make the details public.“We have a significant effort” to rebuff Moscow, he said. “It is not just our effort, it is a certainly all-of-IC effort. There may be others participating as well, to do our best to push back against this threat.”-‘Existential threat’-On North Korea, Coats said its leader Kim Jong Un continues to demonstrate a “provocative nature” and “instability” that makes Pyongyang’s nuclear capability more threatening.“This is an existential threat, potentially to the United States, but also to North Korea,” Coats said.“Kim Jong Un views this as — any kind of a kinetic attack or effort to force him to give up his nuclear weapons — is an existential threat to his nation and to his leadership in particular,” he said.“Our goal is a peaceful settlement,” he added. “We’re using maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways.”Separately, Coats stressed that the US government’s repeated failure to craft a full-year’s budget, and the large fiscal deficits, constitute another important security threat.“I’m concerned that our increasing fractious political process, particularly with respect to federal spending, is threatening our ability to properly defend our nation both in the short term and especially in the long term,” he said.The mounting US debt, now over $20 trillion, is “unsustainable and represents a dire threat to our economic and national security.”
Bomber gets life in prison for New York, New Jersey attacks-Ahmad Khan Rahimi does not show remorse for attacks that injured 30, portrays himself as a victim-By Larry Neumeister-TOI-FEB 14,18
NEW YORK (AP) — A New Jersey man who set off small bombs in two states, including a pressure cooker device that blasted shrapnel across a New York City block, was sentenced Tuesday to multiple terms of life in prison by a judge who repeatedly called it a miracle nobody was killed.Ahmad Khan Rahimi, a naturalized US citizen born in Afghanistan, was criticized by a prosecutor for failing to show remorse and was scolded by a victim for not apologizing to the 30 people he injured.US District Judge Richard M. Berman in Manhattan said it was hard to reconcile the “reasonable enough” man he saw in court with the terrorist who tried to kill as many people as he could when he left his home early the morning of Sept. 17, 2016, with two pressure-cooker explosives and a bag full of smaller bombs.“You sound like most people and yet your actions are totally at odds with your voice,” Berman said.“We saw videos,” he said, referencing multiple videos at his fall trial that showed Rahimi dragging bombs in two suitcases and a backpack through Manhattan streets, setting one down a half hour before it exploded in the upscale Chelsea neighborhood and another a few blocks away that was discovered and disabled before it could explode.“It’s really hard to square the way you appear in court to that other behavior,” Berman said.Regardless, the judge said, Rahimi deserved multiple life prison terms. One life term was mandatory but the judge exercised his discretion by imposing life sentences for counts that Rahimi’s defense lawyer said deserved only a 15-year sentence. He also ordered $562,803 in restitution.Berman called Rahimi, 30, a “clear and present danger” and said it was too big a risk not to impose a life sentence, especially after Rahimi offered “not an ounce of justification” for his crimes.The Chelsea explosion happened just hours after a small pipe bomb exploded along a Marine Corps road race in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, frightening participants but injuring no one.The bombings triggered a two-day manhunt that ended in a shootout with police in Linden, New Jersey. Rahimi was shot several times but survived. Police officers also were injured.Given a chance to speak, Rahimi, shackled at the ankles, portrayed himself as a victim, saying he came to America as a 7-year-old boy with no hatred for anyone and was raised by a father in a household where there was no mention of what his father experienced during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.He described how his father went to law enforcement on multiple occasions to report suspicious behavior he had seen in his son, but ultimately felt let down.“I don’t harbor hate for anyone,” Rahimi said before describing how he believed law enforcement targeted him once he became a practicing Muslim.Assistant US Attorney Shawn Crowley immediately followed Rahimi, saying he had just “blamed everyone else” after causing so much destruction through crimes “fueled by hate.”“He has shown no remorse,” Crowley said. “He’s proud of what he has done.”She described Rahimi’s efforts to radicalize fellow prisoners at the federal jail in New York where he has been imprisoned since his arrest.Rahimi, prosecutors said, gave inmates copies of terrorist propaganda and jihadist materials, including speeches and lectures by al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki, a US-born cleric who inspired attacks on America and was killed in a US airstrike in September 2011.Rahimi also allowed some inmates to view materials on his laptop or provided electronic copies as he spread “The Book of Jihad,” bomb-making instructions and various issues of a propaganda magazine.Defense attorney Xavier Donaldson called it ironic that his client had once aspired to be a police officer and worked as a security guard after studying criminal justice at a community college.He urged a sentence not based on what people think terrorists might inspire or the fear they may cause.After the sentence was announced, Berman invited several victims watching the proceedings to speak.Pauline Nelson, 48, of Brooklyn, stepped to the podium. She was hospitalized when the car she was driving was jolted by the explosion. She’s still being treated for muscle spasms in her back.“You never apologized to anyone in the courtroom,” she said, staring at the bearded Rahimi, who sat at the defense table, shackles on his ankles. “You have no remorse for what you did.”
CHINA AND KINGS OF THE EAST MARCH TO ISRAEL 2ND WAVE OF WW3 (200 MILLION MAN ARMY)
REVELATION 16:12-16
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates;(WERE WW3 STARTS IN IRAQ OR SYRIA OR TURKEY) and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.(THE TURKEY ATATURK DAM ON THE EUPHRATES CAN BE SHUT AND DRIED UP ALREADY BY TURKEY)
13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon,(SATAN) and out of the mouth of the beast,(WORLD DICTATOR) and out of the mouth of the false prophet.(FALSE POPE)
14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.(WERE 2 BILLION DIE FROM NUKE WAR)
15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.(ITS AT THIS TIME I BELIEVE WHEN AMERICA GETS NUKED BY RUSSIA ON THE WAY TO THE MIDEAST)
DANIEL 11:44 (2ND WAVE OF WW3)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
REVELATION 9:12-18
12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.(WORLDWIDE WAR)(TURKEY-IRAQ-SYRIA)(EUPHRATES RIVER CONSISTS OF 760 MILES IN TURKEY,440 MILES IN SYRIA AND 660 MILES IN IRAQ)
15 And the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels were loosed,(WORLDWIDE WAR) which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.(1/3 Earths Population die in WW 3 2ND WAVE-2 billion)
16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand:(200 MILLION MAN ARMY FROM CHINA AND THE KINGS OF THE EAST) and I heard the number of them.
17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
COUNTRIES WITH ISRAEL AND THE ENEMIES OF THE WEST
EZEKIEL 38:10-19
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say,(RUSSIA,ARAB,MUSLIMS) I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 Sheba, and Dedan,(SAUDIA ARABIA)(JORDAN) and the merchants of Tarshish,(ENGLAND) with all the young lions thereof,(USA,CANADA,AUSTRALIA,NEW ZEALAND,EU,ENGLAND,ENGLISH SPEAKING shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
PSALMS 83:3-7 (COUNTRIES AGAINST ISRAEL)(EXCEPT JORDAN)
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
ISRAEL-WEST ENEMIES EZEK 38:4-6,15-19
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts,(RUSSIA-ARAB/MUSLIMS) thou, and many people with thee,(AFRICAN ISLAMIC COUNTRIES) all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?
18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.
19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
DANIEL 11:44 (CHINA WITH RUSSIA-MUSLIMS)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
EZEKIEL 39:1-6 ISRAELS ENEMIES DESTROYED
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
US set to boost aid to Jordan despite Trump threats of cuts-Although kingdom slammed recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, as a key ally it will still receive $1.275 billion a year until 2022, an annual increase of $275 million-By AP-TOI-FEB 14,18
AMMAN, Jordan — Despite repeated threats to punish countries that don’t agree with US policy in the Middle East, the Trump administration is set to boost aid to Jordan by more than $1 billion over the next five years.US President Donald Trump has vowed to cut aid to nations that oppose the US, yet rhetoric appears to have hit reality with Jordan, a critical American partner in the volatile Middle East that has opposed the administration’s Mideast approach.Jordan voted in December to condemn the US for recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and has criticized the US for withholding millions in funding for Palestinian refugees, many of whom live in Jordan.Nonetheless, US officials say the administration has decided to give Jordan $1.275 billion annually until 2022. That’s $275 million more per year than the current level.US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Jordan’s foreign minister will sign the aid agreement in Amman on Wednesday, according to officials, who were not authorized to preview the announcement and spoke on condition of anonymity.The expected announcement appears to represent a victory of sorts for Tillerson and US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, both of whom have been lobbying the administration to continue such assistance on national security grounds. But Trump and his US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, have been pressing for aid cuts.Jordan, a longtime partner of the US and one of only two Arab nations to have full diplomatic relations with Israel, is especially critical as an American ally, given its large Palestinian population along with the influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees from Syria.
North Korean nukes ‘existential threat’ to US — intel chief-US using 'maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways,' says Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats. 'Our goal is a peaceful settlement'-By AFP-TOI-14 February 2018
WASHINGTON — North Korea’s nuclear program poses a potential “existential threat” to the United States, US Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said Tuesday.“The decision time is becoming ever closer in terms of how we respond to this,” Coats said, in remarks to the Senate Intelligence Committee.“Our goal is a peaceful settlement,” he added. “We’re using maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways.”Asked about Pyongyang’s nuclear program, Coats said, “This is an existential threat, potentially to the United States, but also to North Korea.”North Korean leader “Kim Jong Un views this as — any kind of a kinetic attack or effort to force him to give up his nuclear weapons — is an existential threat to his nation and to his leadership in particular,” Coats said.“The provocative nature and the instability that Kim has demonstrated potentially is a significant threat to the United States,” he said.
France threatens Syria strikes if chemical attacks proven-Macron says Assad regime will eventually face international justice-By AFP-FEB 14,18-TOI
PARIS, France — France will launch strikes if proof emerges that the Syrian regime has used banned chemical weapons against its civilians, President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday.“We will strike the place where these launches are made or where they are organized,” Macron told the presidential press corps.“But today our services have not established proof that proscribed chemical weapons have been used against civilian populations,” he added.“As soon as such proof is established, I will do what I said,” Macron warned, while adding that “the priority is the fight against the terrorists, the jihadists.”Regarding the Syrian regime itself, either during or after the conflict, he added, “It will be answerable to international justice.”Macron also called for an international meeting on Syria, in the region if possible.In a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, Macron said he was “worried about indications suggesting the possible use of chlorine on several occasions against the civilian population in Syria these last few weeks.”Russia has intervened alongside Syrian regime forces in the seven-year civil war and Putin is seen as the foreign leader with the most influence over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.Receiving Putin at Versailles in May 2017, Macron had declared that France would respond immediately to any use of chemical weapons in Syria.“A very clear red line exists on our side: the use of chemical weapons by anyone,” Macron said, promising “retaliation and an immediate response from France.”According to Washington, at least six chlorine attacks have been reported since early January in rebel areas, with dozens injured.The Syrian government in late January denied carrying out chemical weapons attacks and its ally Moscow denounced the charges as a “propaganda campaign,” stressing that the perpetrators had not been identified.While France, like the United States, suspects the Syrian regime, it says it does not yet have concrete evidence on the nature and origin of the attacks.On Wednesday last week, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said “all indications” suggest that Assad’s forces were using chlorine weapons in the civil war against rebel forces, but being cautious said “we haven’t completely documented this.”But Defense Minister Florence Parly was more reserved on Friday when asked if Damascus had crossed the “red line.”“At the moment because we don’t know what happened and the consequences of what happened, we can’t say we are where you say we are,” she told France Inter radio when asked about the “red line” Macron had set out in May.“We have some indications of the use of chlorine, but we do not have absolute confirmation, so it is this confirmation work that we are doing with others because obviously we have to establish the facts,” she said.Damascus has repeatedly been accused of using chemical weapons, with the United Nations among those blaming government forces for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun that left scores dead.
Hamas calls on PA government to lift sanctions or disband-Terror group accuses the Palestinian Authority of a 'policy of misinformation, instigating tensions, and deliberate neglect' of Gazans-By Khaled Abu Toameh-TOI-FEB 14,18
Hamas on Tuesday called on the Palestinian Authority government to either lift its sanctions imposed on the Gaza Strip or resign.The terrorist organization also accused the PA government of continuing with its “policy of misinformation, instigating tensions, and deliberate neglect” toward the Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip.The PA government is ignoring the needs of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum charged.Barhoum further accused the PA government of seeking to “solidify and justify” the penalties it imposed last year on the Gaza Strip.“The policy of the government has led to tragic and difficult conditions that have affected all walks of life, specifically with regards to the disastrous health situation,” the Hamas official said.“The government must stop tampering with the feelings of our people in the Gaza Strip.”Last year, PA President Mahmoud Abbas vowed to take “painful and unprecedented” measures against Hamas to force the terror group to dismantle its de facto government in the Gaza Strip, known as the Administrative Committee.Abbas’s threat was followed by a series of sanctions that included drastic cuts in the salaries of PA employees in the Gaza Strip, the suspension of social assistance to hundreds of families, and the forced retirement of thousands of civil servants.In addition, the PA stopped paying Israel for electricity and fuel supplies to the coastal enclave.Hamas had hoped Abbas would lift the sanctions after the signing of the Hamas-Fatah “reconciliation” agreement in Cairo in November 2017, which has since faltered.Hamas maintains that although it has complied with the terms of the agreement by dismantling its Administrative Committee and allowing the PA government to resume its responsibilities in the Gaza Strip, Abbas has failed to ease the sanctions.Earlier this year, Abbas, in a move that has further enraged Hamas, issued a “presidential decree” to reinstate the collection of taxes in the Gaza Strip. After Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, the PA government decided that Palestinians living in the coastal enclave were exempt from paying taxes to the Hamas government.The PA government, for its part, on Tuesday accused Hamas of obstructing the implementation of the reconciliation deal.The government said in a statement after its weekly meeting in Ramallah that Hamas must stop “imposing conditions and ignoring the conditions of our people in the Gaza Strip.”The PA government called on Hamas to facilitate its work in the Gaza Strip so that it would be able to assume its responsibilities in accordance with the agreement.“Empowering the [PA] government means that the ministers would be permitted to assume their duties in the Gaza Strip, as they do in the West Bank, without any obstacles,” the statement said. The PA government will pursue its efforts to end the division between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, it added.The latest war of words between Hamas and the PA comes amid renewed attempts by the Egyptians to persuade the two parties to end their differences and comply with the accord.A Hamas delegation headed by Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo last Friday to discuss the obstacles facing the agreement with Fatah and the mounting humanitarian and economic crisis in the Gaza Strip.The Hamas delegation is also discussing with Egyptian intelligence officials ways of enhancing security coordination to foil terror attacks against Egyptian troops and civilians in Sinai.
Turkey denies Israeli accusation it provides military aid to Hamas-Ankara says allegation by Shin Bet 'incompatible with reality and lacking in seriousness'-By AFP and TOI staff-14 February 2018
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey on Tuesday blasted as “incompatible with reality” accusations by Israel it had helped the Palestinian terror group Hamas to gain in military strength, following the arrest and deportation of a Turkish citizen.According to the Israeli authorities, Turkish national Cemil Tekeli was arrested in January, on suspicion of aiding Hamas through business platforms that launder funds, and later deported.The Shin Bet intelligence agency said the investigation into Tekeli had shown that Turkey contributes to the military strengthening of Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip.But the Turkish foreign ministry said it rejected the allegations, describing the claim as “incompatible with reality and lacking in seriousness.”Alluding to the Israeli investigation into Tekeli, it said that Israel made the claims based on “statements obtained from our detained citizen under ambiguous circumstances.”It added: “It is out of the question for Turkey to permit an activity on its soil that can jeopardize the security of another country.”The Shin Bet said that Hamas had laundered millions of dollars through Turkey.Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency, which said that Tekeli was a lecturer at Medeniyet University in Istanbul, reported he had now returned to Turkey after being freed by Israel on February 11.Shin Bet said his alleged accomplice, Dharam Jabarin, an Arab Israeli, had also been arrested and is to be put on trial.Turkey delivers humanitarian aid to Gaza and this month bitterly denounced a US decision to put the head of Hamas Ismail Haniyeh on its terror blacklist.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Shin Bet accuses Turkey of allowing Hamas to raise, launder money-Allegations follow arrest of Turkish citizen, Arab Israeli man, who the security service says were recruited by the terror group's top money-man-By Judah Ari Gross-TOI-14 February 2018
The Shin Bet security service on Monday accused Turkey of aiding the Gaza-based Hamas terrorist organization raise and launder funds for its military activities against Israel, following the investigation of a Turkish national and an Arab Israeli citizen who were arrested in January.“During the investigation, it became clear that Hamas is in direct contact with Turkish authorities,” the Shin Bet said in a statement.Cemil Tekeli, the Turkish national, was recruited by Zaher Jabarin, a senior figure in Hamas responsible for its finances, who lives in Turkey, the security service said.According to the security service, Tekeli is suspected of helping Hamas members set up businesses in Turkey, obtain visas to stay in the country, and acquire commercial properties, houses and cars.The Arab Israeli suspect, Durgham Jabarin, a resident of the northern town of Umm al-Fahm, is suspected of transporting large sums of money — hundreds of thousands of euros — from Turkey to the West Bank on Hamas’s behalf, the Shin Bet said.When Jabarin was arrested on January 21, security forces found 91,000 euros in his home, which the service said was due to be transfered to the West Bank.He is due to be charged in the coming days, the Shin Bet said on Monday.The security service said a number of other residents of the Arab Israeli town of Umm al-Fahm wre also detained in the case on the suspicion that they assisted Durgham.According to the Shin Bet, the aforementioned activities “took place unhindered as Turkish officials turn a blind eye and — on occasion — encourage it, and with the assistance of Turkish nationals, some of whom are close to the government.”The security service also said that Tekeli revealed in his interrogation that money and materiel was given to Hamas through the SADAT company, which was established by Adnan Basha, who is closely connected to Turkish administration officials.“One of its employees even helped senior Hamas officials to visit a 2015 weapons show in Turkey, during which they expressed interest in UAVs,” the Shin Bet said.Zaher Jabarin, who recruited both Tekeli and Durgham Jabarin, was one of over a thousand convicted Palestinian terrorists released from Israeli prisons as part of a 2011 deal to secure the return of captured soldier Gilad Shalit. Along with several other Shalit releasees, he later resettled in Turkey.(Zaher and Durgham do not appear to be related. Jabarin is a common last name.) “Investigation findings have revealed wide-ranging Hamas activity in money laundering in Turkey on instruction from Zaher Jabarin,” the Shin Bet said.According to the security service, aspects of this operation were conducted through the IMES company, a real estate and tourism firm — not to be confused with the dried fruit and nut retailer of the same name.“The investigation showed that Hamas members owned the IMES company, which served as a cover for the laundering of millions of US dollars that were transferred to the Gaza Strip and various countries,” the Shin Bet said.Israel has a strained relationship with Turkey, owing to its vocal opposition to Israeli policies and apparent support for Palestinian terrorist groups.The two countries cut ties in 2010 after Israeli forces raided a Turkish boat that was attempting to break the naval blockade Israel set up around the Gaza Strip to prevent Hamas, which has called for Israel’s destruction, from importing weapons. In the ensuing melee, nine Turkish activists were killed and a number of Israeli soldiers were injured.Israel and Turkey restored ties in June 2016, though tensions between the two remain.
How to spot a gay’ list in Malaysian newspaper sparks outrage-Gay men 'wear tight clothes and sport beards' and lesbians 'hate men,' says article, which activists warn could endanger lives in Muslim-majority nation-By AFP-TOI-FEB 14,18
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A stereotype-laden checklist for spotting gay men and lesbian women published by a popular Malaysian newspaper has sparked outrage in the Muslim-majority nation, with activists warning it could endanger lives.The Malay-language tabloid Sinar Harian claimed gay men love to go to the gym — just to check out other men — wear tight clothes to show off their physiques and tend to sport beards, while their eyes widen when they see handsome men.Lesbians, the paper said, “hate men” and enjoy hugging.The list, published Friday, was swiftly met with derision online, while campaigners warned it could further stoke animosity against LGBTQ groups, who have been increasingly targeted with violence and discrimination in recent years.“It exposes these people to bullying, which could lead to violent hate crimes towards them,” Eric Paulsen, Lawyers for Liberty executive director, told AFP Tuesday.Malaysia has experienced growing religious fundamentalism in recent years, sparking friction between conservative forces and those campaigning for greater rights.The country retains its colonial-era criminal ban on sodomy, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, caning or a fine.Human Rights Watch said in a 2017 report that discrimination against LGBT people was “pervasive” in Malaysia.One of the country’s biggest social media stars, Arwind Kumar, railed against the list in a video posted on YouTube.“How the hell does a gay person endanger your life? With an article like this you are only going to take away lives,” he said.“Are you dumb? How can having facial hair make someone gay?” Kumar said in the video, pointing out that religious leaders were also known for their abundant facial hair.The clip has been viewed tens of thousands of times.Sinar Harian has not yet issued any response to the controversy.Malaysia hit the headlines in March 2017 over its attitudes to homosexuality when the country’s film censorship board demanded cuts to Disney’s hit movie “Beauty and the Beast” because of a “gay moment.”But the entertainment giant refused and the film was released in full.In June, Malaysian health authorities were forced to backpedal on plans for a contest to “prevent” homosexuality, but in December the state of Terengganu sparked alarm by announcing plans for a conversion therapy course aimed at transgender women.Malaysian Muslims hold placards protesting against gay rights in Kuala Lumpur in country where sexual identity remains a divisive issue. Reuters Popular Malay language daily newspaper Sinar Harian provoked public ire and incited outrage on social media … https://t.co/sdpOgBeKi2 pic.twitter.com/fUPdmjyIfp— Business Insider MY (@BizInsiderMY) February 13, 2018.
Reports: Russian contractors killed by US strike in Syria-Moscow and Washington remain tight-lipped about what happened during clash for control of oil-rich Deir el-Zour province-By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV-TOI-FEB 14,18
MOSCOW (AP) — An unknown number of private Russian military contractors were killed by a US strike in Syria, Russian media reported Tuesday in a development that could further inflame Russia-US tensions.Officials in both Moscow and Washington remained coy about the deaths, which would be an embarrassment for both countries if it turns out that Russian fighters were part of a unit that attacked a military force with American troops.President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, refrained from commenting on reports about the incident last week, saying they need to be verified.Asked during a conference call with reporters if Putin raised the episode during a phone conversation Monday with US President Donald Trump, Peskov said the situation in Syria wasn’t discussed during the call.Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday that Russia has told the US there were no Russians in the area of the strike. Mattis said he saw the news reports about Russian contractors possibly being casualties of the bombing.“I don’t have any reporting that some non-Russian Federation soldiers, but Russian contractors were among the casualties,” Mattis told reporters traveling with him in Europe. “I can’t give you anything on that. We have not received that word at Central Command or the Pentagon.”Russian media said the Russian private contractors were part of pro-government forces that advanced on oil fields in the eastern Deir el-Zour province and were targeted by the United States. The reports cited activists who confirmed that at least four Russian citizens were killed in Syria on Wednesday.During the war in Syria, Russia and the United States have maintained a communications channel to avoid collisions between their warplanes and soldiers in the chaotic battlefield. If Russian deaths from the US strike are confirmed, it would mean the two countries were on the verge of a direct military confrontation in Syria.The episode could further strain ties between the two countries, which have plummeted to the lowest levels since the Cold War over the Ukrainian conflict, the war in Syria and the alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.The US military said last week it unleashed air and artillery barrages on Syrian government-backed troops after some 300 attackers launched what appeared to be a coordinated assault on Syrian opposition forces accompanied by US advisers in the province of Deir el-Zour. It said it was in regular communication with Russian counterparts before, during and after the attack, and Russian officials assured coalition officials they would not strike coalition forces.It said the US strikes, which reportedly killed about 100 of the attackers, were in self-defense.The Russian Defense Ministry has insisted that its troops weren’t involved in the incident, saying 25 Syrian volunteers were wounded in the US strike.It also noted pro-government forces that advanced toward the area under control of the US-supported forces had failed to coordinate their action with the Russian military in Syria.Mattis last week dismissed any suggestion that Russia had any control over the attacking force, whose nationalities, motives and makeup he could not identify.The US strike came as US-backed Kurdish-led forces were vying with Russian-backed Syrian troops that are reinforced by Iranian-supported militias for control of the oil-rich Deir el-Zour province.The Russian Defense Ministry charged that the February 7 incident reflected a US push to grab Syria’s economic assets under the cover of fighting the Islamic State group.Without mentioning the US strike, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted Tuesday that “Americans have taken dangerous unilateral steps.”“Those steps look increasingly as part of efforts to create a quasi-state on a large part of Syrian territory — from the eastern bank of the Euphrates River all the way to the border with Iraq,” he said.The state Tass news agency on Tuesday cited Natalya Krylova, a municipal lawmaker in the town of Asbestos in the Urals, as saying local residents Igor Kosoturov and Stanislav Matveyev were killed in Syria Wednesday.The Interfax news agency said that the Cossack group in the westernmost Kalningrad region said a member named Vladimir Loginov was killed in combat in the province of Deir el-Zour. It also quoted Alexander Averin, leader of extreme leftist group Another Russia, as saying that one of its activists, Kirill Ananyev, was killed by the US strike near Khusham.Russian media also cited unconfirmed claims that overall casualties could have been as high as 200 and Russians could have accounted for the bulk of them. Those claims couldn’t be verified.Liberal politician Grigory Yavlinsky, who is running for president in Russia’s March 18 presidential election, urged Putin to come into the open regarding the deaths of Russians in Syria, saying that official silence on the subject was “unacceptable.”“If many Russian citizens were killed, officials, including the commander-in-chief, must tell the nation about it and determine who is responsible for that,” he said.Russia has waged a military campaign in Syria since September 2015, helping Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government seize large chunks of territory and turn the tide of war into its favor.Russian media have reported that in addition to Russian servicemen deployed to Syria, thousands of Russians also fought there as private contractors, most serving with the so-called Wagner group. The private fighters allowed the Kremlin to keep the official death toll from its campaign in Syria low and avoid the negative public perception of its involvement in Syria as Putin is running for re-election in the March 18 vote.The Kremlin and the Russian Defense Ministry refused to comment on media reports on Russian private contractors in Syria.While the US has used private contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan for years, Russian law forbids the hiring of mercenaries or working as one even though Russia has used proxies in eastern Ukraine, where it has backed pro-Moscow separatists since 2014. Some Russian lawmakers have called for legislation that would set rules for private military contractors.
US intel chiefs say Russia meddling threatens 2018 vote-Senate Intelligence Committee hears that Moscow has been encouraged by what it sees as successful influence during 2016 presidential election-By Paul Handley-TOI-FEB 18,18
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US intelligence chiefs said Tuesday that Russian attempts to meddle in US politics are continuing unabated — and pose a threat to mid-term congressional elections in November.They also said North Korea’s nuclear program poses a potential “existential threat” to the United States, and that the time is nearing for Washington to respond to that danger.In a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on the most urgent threats facing the country, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and the heads of the CIA, FBI, NSA and two other spy agencies were unanimous in saying that Moscow’s efforts to disrupt US politics are as intense now as they were in the 2016 presidential election.“Throughout the entire community, we have not seen any evidence of any significant change” in Russian behavior, said Coats.“There should be no doubt that Russia perceived its past efforts as successful and sees the 2018 US midterms elections as a potential target for Russian influence operations.”Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo said: “We have seen Russian activity and intentions to have an impact on the next election cycle here.”National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers warned that “this is not going to change or stop.”America’s leading intelligence agencies concluded last year that Russian President Vladimir Putin had directed a broad intelligence effort to influence the 2016 presidential election to undermine the campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton and boost Donald Trump’s chances.That effort included hacking and releasing emails and documents from the Clinton campaign, filling social media with posts and “news” items aimed at discrediting her, as well as targeting voter-registration operations and election databases.Trump has repeatedly dismissed the idea that Moscow helped him — and all allegations of collusion — as “fake news,” and criticized the intelligence agencies for repeating it.-Countering Russian interference-But a large volume of information has surfaced on Russian use of social media to influence public opinion in US public policy debates.As a result, leading online media companies like Twitter, Facebook and Google have been forced to begin policing their pages for fake news reports and fake accounts.“The Russians utilize this tool because it’s relatively cheap, it’s low risk, it offers what they perceive as plausible deniability, and it is proven to be effective at sowing division,” Coats told the Senate panel.“We expect Russia to continue using propaganda, social media, false-flag personas, sympathetic spokesmen and other means of influence to try to build on its wide range of operations and exacerbate social and political fissures in the United States.”But more than a year after Russian interference became widely known, the intelligence community (IC) chiefs were unable to detail how the United States was countering it or punishing Moscow.Democratic Senator Jack Reed asked the officials whether Trump had ordered them to take action. But none of the six said the president had specifically done so.Pompeo said the CIA was acting but could not make the details public.“We have a significant effort” to rebuff Moscow, he said. “It is not just our effort, it is a certainly all-of-IC effort. There may be others participating as well, to do our best to push back against this threat.”-‘Existential threat’-On North Korea, Coats said its leader Kim Jong Un continues to demonstrate a “provocative nature” and “instability” that makes Pyongyang’s nuclear capability more threatening.“This is an existential threat, potentially to the United States, but also to North Korea,” Coats said.“Kim Jong Un views this as — any kind of a kinetic attack or effort to force him to give up his nuclear weapons — is an existential threat to his nation and to his leadership in particular,” he said.“Our goal is a peaceful settlement,” he added. “We’re using maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways.”Separately, Coats stressed that the US government’s repeated failure to craft a full-year’s budget, and the large fiscal deficits, constitute another important security threat.“I’m concerned that our increasing fractious political process, particularly with respect to federal spending, is threatening our ability to properly defend our nation both in the short term and especially in the long term,” he said.The mounting US debt, now over $20 trillion, is “unsustainable and represents a dire threat to our economic and national security.”
Bomber gets life in prison for New York, New Jersey attacks-Ahmad Khan Rahimi does not show remorse for attacks that injured 30, portrays himself as a victim-By Larry Neumeister-TOI-FEB 14,18
NEW YORK (AP) — A New Jersey man who set off small bombs in two states, including a pressure cooker device that blasted shrapnel across a New York City block, was sentenced Tuesday to multiple terms of life in prison by a judge who repeatedly called it a miracle nobody was killed.Ahmad Khan Rahimi, a naturalized US citizen born in Afghanistan, was criticized by a prosecutor for failing to show remorse and was scolded by a victim for not apologizing to the 30 people he injured.US District Judge Richard M. Berman in Manhattan said it was hard to reconcile the “reasonable enough” man he saw in court with the terrorist who tried to kill as many people as he could when he left his home early the morning of Sept. 17, 2016, with two pressure-cooker explosives and a bag full of smaller bombs.“You sound like most people and yet your actions are totally at odds with your voice,” Berman said.“We saw videos,” he said, referencing multiple videos at his fall trial that showed Rahimi dragging bombs in two suitcases and a backpack through Manhattan streets, setting one down a half hour before it exploded in the upscale Chelsea neighborhood and another a few blocks away that was discovered and disabled before it could explode.“It’s really hard to square the way you appear in court to that other behavior,” Berman said.Regardless, the judge said, Rahimi deserved multiple life prison terms. One life term was mandatory but the judge exercised his discretion by imposing life sentences for counts that Rahimi’s defense lawyer said deserved only a 15-year sentence. He also ordered $562,803 in restitution.Berman called Rahimi, 30, a “clear and present danger” and said it was too big a risk not to impose a life sentence, especially after Rahimi offered “not an ounce of justification” for his crimes.The Chelsea explosion happened just hours after a small pipe bomb exploded along a Marine Corps road race in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, frightening participants but injuring no one.The bombings triggered a two-day manhunt that ended in a shootout with police in Linden, New Jersey. Rahimi was shot several times but survived. Police officers also were injured.Given a chance to speak, Rahimi, shackled at the ankles, portrayed himself as a victim, saying he came to America as a 7-year-old boy with no hatred for anyone and was raised by a father in a household where there was no mention of what his father experienced during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.He described how his father went to law enforcement on multiple occasions to report suspicious behavior he had seen in his son, but ultimately felt let down.“I don’t harbor hate for anyone,” Rahimi said before describing how he believed law enforcement targeted him once he became a practicing Muslim.Assistant US Attorney Shawn Crowley immediately followed Rahimi, saying he had just “blamed everyone else” after causing so much destruction through crimes “fueled by hate.”“He has shown no remorse,” Crowley said. “He’s proud of what he has done.”She described Rahimi’s efforts to radicalize fellow prisoners at the federal jail in New York where he has been imprisoned since his arrest.Rahimi, prosecutors said, gave inmates copies of terrorist propaganda and jihadist materials, including speeches and lectures by al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and Anwar al-Awlaki, a US-born cleric who inspired attacks on America and was killed in a US airstrike in September 2011.Rahimi also allowed some inmates to view materials on his laptop or provided electronic copies as he spread “The Book of Jihad,” bomb-making instructions and various issues of a propaganda magazine.Defense attorney Xavier Donaldson called it ironic that his client had once aspired to be a police officer and worked as a security guard after studying criminal justice at a community college.He urged a sentence not based on what people think terrorists might inspire or the fear they may cause.After the sentence was announced, Berman invited several victims watching the proceedings to speak.Pauline Nelson, 48, of Brooklyn, stepped to the podium. She was hospitalized when the car she was driving was jolted by the explosion. She’s still being treated for muscle spasms in her back.“You never apologized to anyone in the courtroom,” she said, staring at the bearded Rahimi, who sat at the defense table, shackles on his ankles. “You have no remorse for what you did.”
CHINA AND KINGS OF THE EAST MARCH TO ISRAEL 2ND WAVE OF WW3 (200 MILLION MAN ARMY)
REVELATION 16:12-16
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates;(WERE WW3 STARTS IN IRAQ OR SYRIA OR TURKEY) and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.(THE TURKEY ATATURK DAM ON THE EUPHRATES CAN BE SHUT AND DRIED UP ALREADY BY TURKEY)
13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon,(SATAN) and out of the mouth of the beast,(WORLD DICTATOR) and out of the mouth of the false prophet.(FALSE POPE)
14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.(WERE 2 BILLION DIE FROM NUKE WAR)
15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.(ITS AT THIS TIME I BELIEVE WHEN AMERICA GETS NUKED BY RUSSIA ON THE WAY TO THE MIDEAST)
DANIEL 11:44 (2ND WAVE OF WW3)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
REVELATION 9:12-18
12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.
13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.(WORLDWIDE WAR)(TURKEY-IRAQ-SYRIA)(EUPHRATES RIVER CONSISTS OF 760 MILES IN TURKEY,440 MILES IN SYRIA AND 660 MILES IN IRAQ)
15 And the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels were loosed,(WORLDWIDE WAR) which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.(1/3 Earths Population die in WW 3 2ND WAVE-2 billion)
16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand:(200 MILLION MAN ARMY FROM CHINA AND THE KINGS OF THE EAST) and I heard the number of them.
17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR BOMBS)
COUNTRIES WITH ISRAEL AND THE ENEMIES OF THE WEST
EZEKIEL 38:10-19
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say,(RUSSIA,ARAB,MUSLIMS) I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 Sheba, and Dedan,(SAUDIA ARABIA)(JORDAN) and the merchants of Tarshish,(ENGLAND) with all the young lions thereof,(USA,CANADA,AUSTRALIA,NEW ZEALAND,EU,ENGLAND,ENGLISH SPEAKING shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
PSALMS 83:3-7 (COUNTRIES AGAINST ISRAEL)(EXCEPT JORDAN)
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
ISRAEL-WEST ENEMIES EZEK 38:4-6,15-19
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts,(RUSSIA-ARAB/MUSLIMS) thou, and many people with thee,(AFRICAN ISLAMIC COUNTRIES) all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?
18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.
19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
DANIEL 11:44 (CHINA WITH RUSSIA-MUSLIMS)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
EZEKIEL 39:1-6 ISRAELS ENEMIES DESTROYED
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
US set to boost aid to Jordan despite Trump threats of cuts-Although kingdom slammed recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel, as a key ally it will still receive $1.275 billion a year until 2022, an annual increase of $275 million-By AP-TOI-FEB 14,18
AMMAN, Jordan — Despite repeated threats to punish countries that don’t agree with US policy in the Middle East, the Trump administration is set to boost aid to Jordan by more than $1 billion over the next five years.US President Donald Trump has vowed to cut aid to nations that oppose the US, yet rhetoric appears to have hit reality with Jordan, a critical American partner in the volatile Middle East that has opposed the administration’s Mideast approach.Jordan voted in December to condemn the US for recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and has criticized the US for withholding millions in funding for Palestinian refugees, many of whom live in Jordan.Nonetheless, US officials say the administration has decided to give Jordan $1.275 billion annually until 2022. That’s $275 million more per year than the current level.US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Jordan’s foreign minister will sign the aid agreement in Amman on Wednesday, according to officials, who were not authorized to preview the announcement and spoke on condition of anonymity.The expected announcement appears to represent a victory of sorts for Tillerson and US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, both of whom have been lobbying the administration to continue such assistance on national security grounds. But Trump and his US ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, have been pressing for aid cuts.Jordan, a longtime partner of the US and one of only two Arab nations to have full diplomatic relations with Israel, is especially critical as an American ally, given its large Palestinian population along with the influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees from Syria.
North Korean nukes ‘existential threat’ to US — intel chief-US using 'maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways,' says Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats. 'Our goal is a peaceful settlement'-By AFP-TOI-14 February 2018
WASHINGTON — North Korea’s nuclear program poses a potential “existential threat” to the United States, US Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said Tuesday.“The decision time is becoming ever closer in terms of how we respond to this,” Coats said, in remarks to the Senate Intelligence Committee.“Our goal is a peaceful settlement,” he added. “We’re using maximum pressure on North Korea in various ways.”Asked about Pyongyang’s nuclear program, Coats said, “This is an existential threat, potentially to the United States, but also to North Korea.”North Korean leader “Kim Jong Un views this as — any kind of a kinetic attack or effort to force him to give up his nuclear weapons — is an existential threat to his nation and to his leadership in particular,” Coats said.“The provocative nature and the instability that Kim has demonstrated potentially is a significant threat to the United States,” he said.
France threatens Syria strikes if chemical attacks proven-Macron says Assad regime will eventually face international justice-By AFP-FEB 14,18-TOI
PARIS, France — France will launch strikes if proof emerges that the Syrian regime has used banned chemical weapons against its civilians, President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday.“We will strike the place where these launches are made or where they are organized,” Macron told the presidential press corps.“But today our services have not established proof that proscribed chemical weapons have been used against civilian populations,” he added.“As soon as such proof is established, I will do what I said,” Macron warned, while adding that “the priority is the fight against the terrorists, the jihadists.”Regarding the Syrian regime itself, either during or after the conflict, he added, “It will be answerable to international justice.”Macron also called for an international meeting on Syria, in the region if possible.In a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, Macron said he was “worried about indications suggesting the possible use of chlorine on several occasions against the civilian population in Syria these last few weeks.”Russia has intervened alongside Syrian regime forces in the seven-year civil war and Putin is seen as the foreign leader with the most influence over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.Receiving Putin at Versailles in May 2017, Macron had declared that France would respond immediately to any use of chemical weapons in Syria.“A very clear red line exists on our side: the use of chemical weapons by anyone,” Macron said, promising “retaliation and an immediate response from France.”According to Washington, at least six chlorine attacks have been reported since early January in rebel areas, with dozens injured.The Syrian government in late January denied carrying out chemical weapons attacks and its ally Moscow denounced the charges as a “propaganda campaign,” stressing that the perpetrators had not been identified.While France, like the United States, suspects the Syrian regime, it says it does not yet have concrete evidence on the nature and origin of the attacks.On Wednesday last week, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said “all indications” suggest that Assad’s forces were using chlorine weapons in the civil war against rebel forces, but being cautious said “we haven’t completely documented this.”But Defense Minister Florence Parly was more reserved on Friday when asked if Damascus had crossed the “red line.”“At the moment because we don’t know what happened and the consequences of what happened, we can’t say we are where you say we are,” she told France Inter radio when asked about the “red line” Macron had set out in May.“We have some indications of the use of chlorine, but we do not have absolute confirmation, so it is this confirmation work that we are doing with others because obviously we have to establish the facts,” she said.Damascus has repeatedly been accused of using chemical weapons, with the United Nations among those blaming government forces for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun that left scores dead.
Hamas calls on PA government to lift sanctions or disband-Terror group accuses the Palestinian Authority of a 'policy of misinformation, instigating tensions, and deliberate neglect' of Gazans-By Khaled Abu Toameh-TOI-FEB 14,18
Hamas on Tuesday called on the Palestinian Authority government to either lift its sanctions imposed on the Gaza Strip or resign.The terrorist organization also accused the PA government of continuing with its “policy of misinformation, instigating tensions, and deliberate neglect” toward the Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip.The PA government is ignoring the needs of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum charged.Barhoum further accused the PA government of seeking to “solidify and justify” the penalties it imposed last year on the Gaza Strip.“The policy of the government has led to tragic and difficult conditions that have affected all walks of life, specifically with regards to the disastrous health situation,” the Hamas official said.“The government must stop tampering with the feelings of our people in the Gaza Strip.”Last year, PA President Mahmoud Abbas vowed to take “painful and unprecedented” measures against Hamas to force the terror group to dismantle its de facto government in the Gaza Strip, known as the Administrative Committee.Abbas’s threat was followed by a series of sanctions that included drastic cuts in the salaries of PA employees in the Gaza Strip, the suspension of social assistance to hundreds of families, and the forced retirement of thousands of civil servants.In addition, the PA stopped paying Israel for electricity and fuel supplies to the coastal enclave.Hamas had hoped Abbas would lift the sanctions after the signing of the Hamas-Fatah “reconciliation” agreement in Cairo in November 2017, which has since faltered.Hamas maintains that although it has complied with the terms of the agreement by dismantling its Administrative Committee and allowing the PA government to resume its responsibilities in the Gaza Strip, Abbas has failed to ease the sanctions.Earlier this year, Abbas, in a move that has further enraged Hamas, issued a “presidential decree” to reinstate the collection of taxes in the Gaza Strip. After Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, the PA government decided that Palestinians living in the coastal enclave were exempt from paying taxes to the Hamas government.The PA government, for its part, on Tuesday accused Hamas of obstructing the implementation of the reconciliation deal.The government said in a statement after its weekly meeting in Ramallah that Hamas must stop “imposing conditions and ignoring the conditions of our people in the Gaza Strip.”The PA government called on Hamas to facilitate its work in the Gaza Strip so that it would be able to assume its responsibilities in accordance with the agreement.“Empowering the [PA] government means that the ministers would be permitted to assume their duties in the Gaza Strip, as they do in the West Bank, without any obstacles,” the statement said. The PA government will pursue its efforts to end the division between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, it added.The latest war of words between Hamas and the PA comes amid renewed attempts by the Egyptians to persuade the two parties to end their differences and comply with the accord.A Hamas delegation headed by Ismail Haniyeh arrived in Cairo last Friday to discuss the obstacles facing the agreement with Fatah and the mounting humanitarian and economic crisis in the Gaza Strip.The Hamas delegation is also discussing with Egyptian intelligence officials ways of enhancing security coordination to foil terror attacks against Egyptian troops and civilians in Sinai.
Turkey denies Israeli accusation it provides military aid to Hamas-Ankara says allegation by Shin Bet 'incompatible with reality and lacking in seriousness'-By AFP and TOI staff-14 February 2018
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey on Tuesday blasted as “incompatible with reality” accusations by Israel it had helped the Palestinian terror group Hamas to gain in military strength, following the arrest and deportation of a Turkish citizen.According to the Israeli authorities, Turkish national Cemil Tekeli was arrested in January, on suspicion of aiding Hamas through business platforms that launder funds, and later deported.The Shin Bet intelligence agency said the investigation into Tekeli had shown that Turkey contributes to the military strengthening of Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip.But the Turkish foreign ministry said it rejected the allegations, describing the claim as “incompatible with reality and lacking in seriousness.”Alluding to the Israeli investigation into Tekeli, it said that Israel made the claims based on “statements obtained from our detained citizen under ambiguous circumstances.”It added: “It is out of the question for Turkey to permit an activity on its soil that can jeopardize the security of another country.”The Shin Bet said that Hamas had laundered millions of dollars through Turkey.Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency, which said that Tekeli was a lecturer at Medeniyet University in Istanbul, reported he had now returned to Turkey after being freed by Israel on February 11.Shin Bet said his alleged accomplice, Dharam Jabarin, an Arab Israeli, had also been arrested and is to be put on trial.Turkey delivers humanitarian aid to Gaza and this month bitterly denounced a US decision to put the head of Hamas Ismail Haniyeh on its terror blacklist.
