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.
1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
ISAIAH 33:8
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)
JERUSALEM DIVIDED
GENESIS 25:20-26
20 And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)
ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.
PA sources: No backtrack on joining international bodies-Ramallah vows to pursue its applications, but FM Liberman says move will have consequences-By Avi Issacharoff, Times of Israel staff and AP April 8, 2014, 2:09 pm 1-The Times of Israel
Discussions between Israel, the Palestinians and the US over extending negotiations are serious and positive, sources in Ramallah told The Times of Israel Tuesday, even while vowing to hold fast to applications to 15 international treaty organizations.At the same time, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said no Arab prisoners would be released if the Palestinian Authority did not back down from its applications, which Israel has characterized as a unilateral move in breach of an agreement governing the talks.Sources in the Palestinian Authority told The Times of Israel that both sides were seeking to keep the stalled negotiations alive, but one added that “the distance between the sides is significant, primarily around the one issue of a settlement building freeze.” One of the Palestinian officials said the issue of prisoners who were to have been set free by Israel in the fourth round of releases remains problematic, but he hinted that solutions were emerging, including the release of a large number of prisoners.However, the source said Israeli settlement building remained a problem and an offer of a partial freeze that would not cover East Jerusalem or existing projects was unacceptable to the PA.“We are not prepared for [Israeli Housing] Minister Uri Ariel to continue to run roughshod and keep building with excuses such as ‘tenders were already issued’ or that they ‘already received building permits.’ Building in East Jerusalem is also not acceptable,” the source said. “We are already familiar with all the excuses of the Israeli government. The freeze must be a complete freeze, in order for negotiations to continue past the end of the month.”The official said the PA had not insisted on a settlement freeze before talks began in July, and in the meantime Israel had built in isolated settlements as well as West Bank communities within blocs that many see remaining under Israeli sovereignty under a peace deal.Another official added that the Palestinian Authority won’t, under any circumstances, withdraw from its applications to 15 international organizations.“It’s finished. Leave it alone, that won’t happen. What happened happened. We applied and we won’t retract; we crossed the line and it’s impossible to go back,” he said.The official praised the positive atmosphere around the negotiating table and hinted that the sense of crisis presented by the media was a bit exaggerated. “Yes, the situation is difficult and problematic, but we do not, and you do not, want to see the talks fail.”On Monday night, the sides held the second meeting in 24 hours. US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said efforts were ongoing to save the talks.“Gaps remain but both sides are committed to narrow the gaps,” she told reporters.However Liberman said Tuesday morning that Israel would not negotiate if it risked being seen as a “sucker.”
He said the Palestinian prisoner release would not happen as long as Palestinians pursue their bid to join UN agencies, and accused Ramallah of breaking the terms of the US-brokered peace talks.“We are in favor of negotiations but the previous offer of releasing prisoners doesn’t exist anymore,” Lieberman told Israel Radio on Tuesday. “Whoever broke the rules has to bear responsibility… therefore the previous offer is not relevant anymore.”Mohammed Ishtayeh, an aide to Abbas, said on Monday that the letters of accession will not be withdrawn and that the step is irreversible. He said the Palestinians were ready to widen their bid.Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad Malki said Arab foreign ministers would convene in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the breakdown in talks and Abbas would ask them for political and financial support.Under the terms of renewed talks, Israel had promised to release 104 long-held Palestinian prisoners in four groups, while the Palestinians said they would suspend a campaign to apply for membership as a state to various UN agencies.But as the talks stalled last month, Israel failed to release the fourth group of prisoners on time.The Palestinians then signed letters of accession for 15 international conventions.In the interview, Liberman argued that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s decision was responsible for the failure of talks, calling it “provocative,” but reiterated that Israel is ready to discuss all issues in the framework of negotiations and will not accept conditions that would restrict negotiations to the issue of borders alone.On the suggestion that the coalition could fall apart over the peace negotiations, Liberman said he preferred that negotiations continue and that all talk of parties potentially quitting the coalition was irresponsible.On Sunday, Liberman said he preferred calling new elections to releasing more prisoners.Aron Dónzis contributed to this report.
Israel, Palestinians press on with peace talks rescue bid
By Jeffrey Heller 4 hours ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli and Palestinian negotiators ended another U.S.-mediated session on Tuesday with no sign of a breakthrough in efforts to save peace talks from collapse, but an Israeli official said they had agreed to meet again.In a statement about the latest discussions, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said: "Gaps remain but both sides are committed to narrow the gaps."The U.S.- brokered negotiations, which began in July, plunged into crisis last week after Israel, demanding a Palestinian commitment to continue talking beyond an April 29 deadline for a peace deal, failed to carry out a promised release of about two dozen Palestinian prisoners.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responded by signing 15 global treaties, including the Geneva Conventions on the conduct of war and occupations, on behalf of the State of Palestine, a defiant move that surprised Washington and angered Israel.Israeli Foreign Minister Avidgor Lieberman, speaking on Israel Radio on Tuesday, said Abbas would have to reverse that step in order for the prisoner release to be re-addressed.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened unspecified retaliation in response to what Israel views as a unilateral statehood move by Abbas. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad al-Malki said Abbas would appeal at an Arab League meeting in Cairo on Wednesday for political and economic support in the event of Israeli punitive measures. As part of the U.S.-led bid to salvage the talks, Israeli chief negotiator Tzipi Livni and Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erekat, along with U.S. mediator Martin Indyk, reconvened late on Monday after what the United States had described as a "serious and constructive" meeting on Sunday."The atmosphere was business-like and the sides agreed to meet again to try to find a solution to the crisis," said an Israeli official, who asked not to be identified, after the latest talks wrapped up in the early hours of Tuesday.The official did not say when the next meeting would be held. There was no immediate Palestinian comment about any future session.
STUMBLING BLOCKS
Expectations among the Israeli and Palestinian public of a peace deal have been low from the start. The talks have stalled over Palestinian opposition to Israel's demand that it be recognized as a Jewish state, and over settlements built on occupied land Palestinians seek for a country of their own.Looking ahead to possible Israeli economic sanctions, Malki said that at the Arab League session, Abbas would voice concern Israel might again withhold tax revenues it transfers to the Palestinian Authority (PA).Interim peace deals task Israel with collecting taxes and customs duties for the PA amounting to around $100 million a month, on goods imported into the Palestinian territories. Israel has previously frozen the payments during times of heightened security and diplomatic tensions.Secretary of State John Kerry, who has signaled he may scale back his mediating efforts due to "unhelpful actions" by both sides, was due to meet President Barack Obama on Tuesday, with the state of the peace negotiations high on the agenda.A senior official in Abbas' Fatah party said that in order for the talks to continue, Palestinians would need a written commitment from Israel recognizing a Palestinian state within all of the territory in the West Bank and Gaza Strip captured in the 1967 Middle East war, with East Jerusalem as its capital.Israel has described those West Bank borders as indefensible and considers East Jerusalem as part of its capital, a claim not recognized internationally. Israel pulled out of the Gaza Strip, now ruled by Hamas Islamists, in 2005.The Fatah official said Palestinians were also demanding a cessation of settlement activity and a prisoner release.Palestinians fear settlements, viewed as illegal by most countries, will deny them a viable state and have condemned a series of Israeli construction projects announced while talks have been under way.(Additional reporting by Noah Browning in Ramallah; editing by Ralph Boulton)
87% of Leftists Don't Believe In Peace Talks-Unprecedented new poll results from before talks collapsed; 92% don't foresee peace from talks, nearly half say no urgent need for talks.-By Ari Yashar-First Publish: 4/8/2014, 4:35 PM-Israelnationalnews
A new survey released Tuesday has revealed some unprecedented statistics regarding the opinions of Israeli Jews regarding the peace talks. The wide consensus among 92% of respondents, from across the political spectrum, is that the talks won't bring peace.The poll, known as the "peace index," was conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute's Guttman Center and Tel Aviv University's Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution. It was carried out among 600 respondents last Sunday and Monday, right before Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas torpedoed negotiations last Tuesday by requesting to join 15 UN agencies against the conditions of the talks.When asked if the peace talks will bring peace, an overwhelming 92% answered in the negative. 95% of those identifying themselves as belonging to the political right answered the talks were pointless, along with 88.5% of "centrists," and a shocking 87% of self-identifying leftists, reports Walla!.Arab respondents similarly held low hopes for the talks, with 62% saying they would not bring peace. Last June, a 58% majority of Arab citizens of Israel expressed support for an intifada (violent uprising) against Israel if the talks did not advance, and 82% called the founding of modern Israel a "nakba" (catastrophe).
Peace talks 'not urgent'
Another insightful finding of the survey was that only a slim majority of 52% among Israeli Jews felt it was urgent to reach a peace agreement with the PA. 45.5% of respondents said reaching an agreement was not urgent.In terms of urgency, there was a much higher variation along the lines of political orientation; 37% of self-defined right-wingers felt an agreement was urgent, as opposed to 68% of centrists, and a whopping 87% of leftists.Other questions addressed the issue of international involvement in the talks. Regarding Europe's involvement to push forward the talks, 76% felt that Europe was not acting towards Israel fairly. Reports in January revealed US Secretary of State John Kerry was behind European boycotts to pressure Israel into agreements.While roughly 90% felt that Europe was important to Israel, 42% responded that Europe's offer last December of an unprecedented aid package to spur an agreement would not influence their position regarding a peace treaty.
Lapid last in the list of public satisfaction
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's criticism last month of "soft" and "weak" American foreign policy towards Iran's nuclear program was also questioned; 65% felt that Ya'alon was correct in his assessment, even while 72% felt it wasn't smart of Ya'alon to voice his criticism publicly. Nevertheless, Ya'alon led the index of satisfaction from among governmental ministers, topping the charts at a score of 6.29 in scores ranging on a 1-10 scale.At the other end of the spectrum, Finance Minister Yair Lapid managed a pitiful score of 4.12, rounding out the bottom of the chart just behind Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman at 5.07.
All Talk and No Action in Peace Negotiations-PA demands full construction freeze to continue negotiations, says ready for 'Israel's tricks.' Defense Minister: 'I told you so.'-By Tova Dvorin-First Publish: 4/8/2014, 2:28 PM-IsraelnationalNews
Palestinian Authority (PA) sources told Walla! News Tuesday that the peace talks - which have not yet ceased, per se', but are in danger of folding - are not as dire and dramatic as the media makes it out to be."It is evident that both sides don't want the peace process to collapse," a source told the daily, explaining that the media has over-hyped the drama unfolding during meetings between representatives. According to the source, a construction freeze in Judea and Samaria is the real sticking point; while "controversy" continues over the PA's bid to international organizations for legitimacy, terrorist releases, and extending negotiations beyond the April deadline, he hinted that solutions are being discussed. The construction freeze, however, is "problematic," and the source explained that "a partial freeze is unacceptable" to the PA. "We will not allow Minister Uri Ariel to continue to run wild and build [Jewish] homes under excuses like 'the tenders have already been approved,'" the PA official snapped. "We're ready for all of the Israeli government's tricks. If we are to continue negotiations, a complete freeze needs to be introduced by the end of the months." Meanwhile, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon has declared that peace talks are dead, according to Ma'ariv, and lamented that negotiations have seen Israel blamed once again. "On Passover, we should free ourselves from irrelevant concepts in regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Ya'alon stated Tuesday. "It became clear in recent months, unsurprisingly, that the Palestinian side is interested in getting, not in giving. They told us clearly over the past several months: 'I will not talk to you about the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, or giving up the Right of Return."""I am not a doomsayer; I am a realist," Ya'alon continued. "Unfortunately, on these issues, I find myself repeating over and over again, 'I told you so.' I wish it could have been different. I learned that this was so when I was the head of intelligence and now I've been shouting it for the past 20 years. Every time, the Palestinians run away [from talks] and then blame us." After a dramatic series of negotiations, Israel officially cancelled the fourth release of convicted Arab terrorists on Thursday and issued harsh sanctions on the PA over its unilateral diplomatic moves to apply for 15 UN-linked agencies.In response, the PA issued a number of extreme demands against Israel, including the release of over 1,000 terrorists and a withdrawal to 1949 Armistice lines - essentially demanding concessions on all key issues before negotiations even continue.The PA also continues to blame Israel over talks failing, claiming the release was pre-planned and that Israel merely wanted to stall for time. Ramallah has also blamed "settlement building" for the failure - especially after far-left group Peace Now ran to international media claiming that 700 building tenders had been submitted for Jerusalem housing after peace talks folded.
FALSE POPE FROM THE VATICAN
REVELATION 13:11-13
11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth;(FALSE VATICAN POPE) and he had two horns like a lamb,(JESUS IS THE LAMB OF GOD) and he spake as a dragon.(HES SATANICALLY INSPIRED,HES A CHRISTIAN DEFECTOR FROM THE FAITH)
12 And he (FALSE RELIGIOUS LEADER) exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him,(WORLD DICTATOR) and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.(THE WORLD DICTATOR CREATES A FALSE RESURRECTION AND IS CROWNED LEADER OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER).
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
REVELATION 17:1-5,9,15-18
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication,(VATICAN IN POLITICS) and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
4 And the woman (FALSE CHURCH) was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour,(VATICAN COLOURS)(ANOTHER REASON WE KNOW THE FALSE POPE COMES FROM THE VATICAN) and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.(THE VATICAN IS BUILT ON 7 HILLS OR MOUNTAINS)
15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.(VATICAN-CATHOLICS ALL AROUND THE WORLD OVER 1 BILLION)
16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast,(WORLD DICTATOR) these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
04/ 7/2014 - THE VATICAN INSIDER-The Pope drinks tea with the King of Jordan-King Abdullah of Giordania with Pope Francis-King Abdullah II of Jordan attended a 45-minute audience with Francis ahead of the Pope’s visit to the Holy Land. The King assured the Pope of Jordan’s commitment to peace and interreligious dialogue-iacopo scaramuzzi
Rome-This afternoon’s 45-minute meeting between Pope Francis and King Abdullah II of Jordan was “cordial and informal” and took place in St. Martha’s House in the Vatican. The issues the two discussed over a cup of tea included Francis’ forthcoming trip to the Holy Land (24-26 May) and their commitment to peace and interreligious dialogue.” The Hashemite king was accompanied by Prince Ghazi bin Hussein, who advises the king on Christian-Muslim dialogue. The prince was dressed in western-style clothing.This is the Argentinean Pope’s second meeting with the King of Jordan. Francis received him for the first time on 29 August 2013, in the Apostolic Palace. The meeting was particularly memorable because of the bow the Pope gave when he said goodbye to Queen Rania. The queen was not present this afternoon. King Abdullah II, who is visiting the Vatican as part of a European tour was instead accompanied by Prince Ghazi, the royal household representative who signed a letter written by 38 Muslim scholars, politely protesting Benedict XVI’s Regensburg speech back in 2006. Then, on 9 May 2009, after the German Pope had set the record straight on what he had intended to say in his speech, the Prince took him on a guided tour of the King Hussein of Amman mosque.“His Majesty Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein of Jordan arrived in the Vatican just before 4 pm,” the Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi said after today’s meeting. “Upon his arrival at St. Martha’s House he was greeted by the Prefect of the Papal Household, HE Mgr. Georg Gänswein and the Vatican’s head of protocol, Mgr. José Avelino Bettencourt. At the entrance of St. Martha’s House, he was then greeted by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, accompanied by HE Mgr. Dominique Mamberti. The Holy Father received His Majesty the King in the sitting room on the ground floor where the meeting took place. The meeting was attended by Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad and an English interpreter from the Vatican.” Mgr. Mike Miles from the Secretariat of State was also present. He sat behind the Pope to help with the simultaneous translation. “The conversation, which took place over tea, lasted just over forty minutes and was cordial and informal.” The King’s visit took place in the context of Pope Francis’ much-awaited trip to the Holy Land, which also includes a visit to Jordan. His Majesty reaffirmed the sentiment of the Jordanian people who are preparing to welcome the Pope in a spirit of collaboration that is open peace and interreligious dialogue, Fr. Lombardi informed. At the end of the audience, the Holy Father also greeted the other members of the King’s entourage. The Pope’s illustrious guests left the Vatican at around 4:45 pm. The Pope was all smiles as he accompanied them to the door and waved goodbye to them as the car pulled away. Gifts will be exchanged via diplomatic representatives at a later date. The Pope and King Abdullah II will meet again when Francis visits the Holy Land between 24 and 16 May, stopping off in Jordan, Israel and Palestine.
04/ 7/2014 - THE VATICAN INSIDER-Francis has decided IOR is to stay-Cardinal Pell-The Institute for the Works of Religion “will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialised financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide." The Secretariat for the Economy will be given more powers, over the “Vatican bank” as well-ANDREA TORNIELLI
vatican city-The IOR will not be abolished but “will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialized financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide,” the Holy See informed in a communiqué published by the Holy See Press Office. The communiqué presents “a proposal on the future of the Istituto per le Opere di Religione (IOR) reaffirming the importance of the IOR’s mission for the good of the Catholic Church, the Holy See and the Vatican City State,” but does not specify what this proposal is.“The proposal,” the communiqué informs, “has been jointly developed by representatives of the Pontifical Referring Commission to the IOR (CRIOR), the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic- Administrative Structure of the Holy See (COSEA), the IOR’s Commission of Cardinals and the IOR Board of Superintendence and presented to the Holy Father by the Cardinal-Prefect for the Secretariat for the Economy with the consent of Cardinal Santos Abril Y Castelló, President of the IOR’s Commission of Cardinals. It is drawn from information on the legal status of the IOR and its operations gathered by and presented to the Holy Father and his Council of Cardinals by CRIOR in February 2014.” The proposal does not specify the kinds of transformations the IOR may eventually undergo but the Institute will nevertheless remain operative. “The IOR will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialized financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide. The valuable services that can be offered by the Institute assist the Holy Father in his mission as universal pastor and also aid those institutions and individuals who collaborate with him in his ministry,” the communiqué adds. The decision is in line with the course of action adopted by the Institute’s President Ernst von Freyberg, who is against radical transformations. It is also now in tune with the line taken by the Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Pell. Relations between Pell and Von Freyberg are now excellent.“With the confirmation of the IOR’s mission and at the request of Cardinal-Prefect Pell, the President of the Board of Superintendence, Ernst von Freyberg, and the management of the IOR, will finalize their plan to ensure that the IOR can fulfil its mission as part of the new financial structures of the Holy See/Vatican City State,” the communiqué reads. This latter step is key and highlights the fact that the IOR will now form “part” of the “new financial structures”, that is, the recently established Secretariat and Council for the Economy. Cardinal Pell has essentially told the IOR’s president to carry on the work he has been doing over the past year.“The plan will be presented to the Holy Father’s Council of Cardinals (the C8 Ed.) and the Council for the Economy. The activities of the IOR will continue to fall under the regulatory supervision of AIF (Autorità di Informazione Finanziaria), the competent authority within the Holy See and Vatican City State.”“In compliance with Motu Proprios of August 8th, 2013 and November 15th, 2013, as well as Law No XVIII on transparency, supervision and financial information which came into force on October 8th, 2013, a comprehensive legal and institutional framework has been introduced to regulate financial activities within the Holy See and Vatican City State. In that respect, the Cardinal-Prefect Pell has confirmed the importance of a sustainable systematic alignment of the legal and regulatory framework of the Holy See/Vatican City State with regulatory international best practice. Strict regulatory supervision and improvements in compliance, transparency and operations initiated in 2012 and substantially accelerated in 2013 are critical for the Institute’s future,” the communiqué ends by saying. The text makes no reference to the future of the Referring Commission to the IOR (CRIOR) or to the other commission that deals with Economic- Administrative problems of the Holy See (COSEA). Both commissions are temporary as the Vatican Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin stressed in a recent interview published by Avvenire newspaper. It also remains to be seen whether there will be changes to CRIOR’S role and powers.
A statement issued by the IOR’s press office confirms that Von Freyberg’s approach is the chosen one. It says the Pope’s approval "represents for us a strong accreditation, a great recognition of the importance of our mission and service work done in the last 12 months.” The IOR informed that it plans to finish analysing bank clients and registry data by the summer and announced operational improvements. The plan will be presented to the C8 and the Council for the Economy.
EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:TOBOLSK)
4 And I 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)
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
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, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages;(ISRAEL) 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,(OIL IS IN 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.
EZEKIEL 39:1-8,11-21
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.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers (EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN JORDAN VALLEY) on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog (RUSSIAN) and all his multitude:(ARAB/MUSLIM HORDE) and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.(BURIEL SITE OF THE 300 MILLION,RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS)
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.(OF ISRAEL)
13 Yea, all the people of the land (OF ISRAEL) shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I (GOD-JESUS) shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD.
14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB EXPERTS) passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.
15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall he set up a sign by it,(WON'T TOUCH IT) till the buriers have buried it (PROPERLY) in the valley of Hamongog.(RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS NEW BURIEL SITE)(EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN THE JORDAN VALLEY)
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.(OF THE ISRAEL-GOD HATERS)
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl,(500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS THREW ISRAEL EVERY SPRING,FALL) and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.(OF THE RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIM ARMIES)
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye (MIGRATING BIRDS IN ISRAEL) shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.(RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS)
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I (GOD-JESUS) will set my glory among the heathen,(WORLD NATIONS) and all the heathen (WORLD NATIONS) shall see my judgment that I have executed,(AGAINST ISRAELS ENEMIES) and my (GODS) hand that I have laid upon them.(ISRAELS HATER ENEMIES)
JEREMEIAH 49:35-37 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR OR ARAK NUKE SITE SOME BELIEVE)
35 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN/BUSHEHR NUCLEAR SITE) the chief of their might.(MOST DANGEROUS NUKE SITE IN IRAN)
36 And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven,(IRANIANS SCATTERED OR MASS IMIGARATION) and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(WORLD IMMIGRATION)
37 For I will cause Elam (IRAN-BUSHEHR NUKE SITE) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(ISRAELS NUKES POSSIBLY) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(IRAN AND ITS NUKE SITES DESTROYED)
Russia and Iran said to be in talks for major oil deal-An agreement to export oil to Russia would mean billions for Tehran, and likely trigger US sanctions against Moscow-By Bradley Klapper April 8, 2014, 1:00 pm 1-The Times of Israel
WASHINGTON (AP) — Reports of multi-billion dollar oil talks between Iran and Russia are emerging as the latest obstacle to a comprehensive pact eliminating the threat of an Iranian nuclear arsenal. The Obama administration is weighing potentially deal-breaking sanctions if a contract is completed.
The Russian business daily Kommersant has reported Russia plans to buy 500,000 barrels of Iranian oil a day, shattering an export limit under the interim nuclear agreement world powers and Iran reached last year. Moscow and Tehran are far from finalizing the contract, the newspaper said, but the US has expressed alarm.A senior US official said the administration had no information to suggest the oil-for-goods contract had been reached.The arrangement would break the interim agreement reached in November in Geneva and “potentially trigger US sanctions,” said the official, who was not authorized to be quoted by name and briefed reporters on condition of anonymity. But the official didn’t say the deal would force the US to slap new economic sanctions on Iran — a move that would likely wreck the entire diplomatic process with Tehran.Critics of the Obama administration’s outreach to Iran want a clear marker outlined.In a letter to the president Monday, Congress’ leading sanctions drafters said the US must re-impose all penalties on Iran suspended under the interim pact if Russia and Iran move forward. “We urge you to put Iran on notice,” said Senators Bob Menendez, a Democrat, and Mark Kirk, a Republican.Senator Bob Corker, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s top Republican, said Iran and Russia were testing America’s resolve. “The administration must be prepared to restore all sanctions if Iran cheats,” he said.The six-month interim agreement, which went into effect in January and expires in July, allows Iran to continue exporting a total of 1 million barrels a day of oil to six countries: China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey. Washington pledged no financial penalties against them as long as they weren’t boosting purchases.But the promise didn’t apply to Russia, which wasn’t an existing customer of Iran’s petroleum industry. And the Obama administration has been raising its concern with Moscow for months about any moves that would lessen the economic pressure on Iran, including in discussions between Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.Any concrete progress on the oil-for-goods proposal would put President Barack Obama in a bind. If he publicly threatens too forceful a response, he risks opening up a new rift with Russia at a time the two countries are trying to maintain cooperation on nuclear and other matters even as they go through one of the worst crises in decades related to Russia’s takeover of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.But if the president and his administration fail to dissuade Russia and Iran from moving forward, the interim agreement that forms the basis of America’s ongoing diplomacy with Iran would be undermined. The US and the United Nations say Iran is living up to its commitments thus far, and officials have expressed increased belief a final deal may be taking shape, averting the possibility of a future military confrontation.The Russian-Iranian oil deal could provide Tehran with billions of dollars, according to experts, softening the blow of years of US and international sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy and helped end more than a decade of deadlock in nuclear negotiations. Iran insists its program is solely for peaceful power production.Mark Dubowitz, a leading sanctions proponent with the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the barter should trigger immediate US sanctions against Russia and Iran.Dubowitz said his understanding was that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed earlier this year not to move on the deal until August, after the interim agreement would in theory be replaced by a final accord. But he said Putin’s assurance came before the Crimean crisis and may no longer hold.If the Obama administration were to unblock suspended sanctions or adopt new ones, nuclear diplomacy with Iran likely would fall apart. For that reason it opposed an effort earlier this year by Menendez, Kirk and other senators to adopt new, conditional sanctions on Iran to go into effect if Iran violated the interim agreement or let it expire without a follow-up accord.US, Iranian and international negotiators will start drafting a final agreement next month, the senior US official said last week in a surprisingly optimistic assessment. The official said negotiators hoped to clinch the pact before July 20, without need for a further six-month extension of the interim agreement, as many had envisioned.Citing unidentified sources close to the Russian government, Kommersant said a Russian-registered oil trader without an international presence would be tasked with purchasing the Iranian oil. The objective would be to limit Russia’s exposure to US economic pressure that could be applied to a global player like state-controlled oil giant Rosneft.Still, it would be difficult for Russia to gain immediate access to the petroleum since most Iranian oilfields are far from the Caspian Sea through which the oil could be shipped, and lack the infrastructure to ensure deliveries.
US holds military exercise in Romania
Today @ 08:59-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
US and Romanian air forces will hold a joint exercise, focusing on the "readiness to conduct combined air operations," the US government said it a statement. It added that the "exercise was planned prior to the current situation in Ukraine." Romania, an EU and Nato member, borders Ukraine.
Gazprom may block EU plans to help Ukraine with gas
Today @ 08:59-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
Gazprom may deal a blow to EU plans to supply Ukraine with gas via "reverse flows" - Russian gas arriving to Hungary and Slovakia being sent back to Ukraine. Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller told NTV that reverse flows without Gazprom's permission would be illegal, as the gas comes from Russia.
Swedish intelligence agency concerned by Russia actions
Today @ 10:32-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
Sweden's intelligence agency has said "war preparations" by Russia are currently the most serious threat it sees in its regular security assessments, report the WSJ. "We see increased Russian intelligence activity at the moment because of what is happening in Ukraine and in Crimea," analsyt Wilhelm Unge told Swedish radio.
Ukraine ends one pro-Russia occupation but others persist
By Thomas Grove and Lina Kuschch 10 minutes ago-APR 8,14-Yahoonews
LUHANSK/DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Ukrainian police cleared pro-Moscow protesters from a regional administration building in a lightning night-time operation, but others held out in two more eastern cities on Tuesday in what Kiev says is a Russian-led plan to dismember the country.Shots were fired, a grenade thrown and 70 people detained as officers ended the occupation in the city of Kharkiv during an 18 minute "anti-terrorism" action, the interior ministry said.But elsewhere in Ukraine's mainly Russian-speaking industrial heartland, activists armed with Kalashnikov rifles and protected by barbed wire barricades vowed there was no going back on their demand - a vote on returning to Moscow rule.In the city of Luhansk, a man dressed in camouflage told a crowd outside an occupied state security building: "We want a referendum on the status of Luhansk and we want Russian returned as an official language.""We will not let fascism pass," he shouted, leading the crowd in chants of "Russia! Russia!".Ukraine says the seizure of public buildings in eastern regions on Sunday night is a replay of events in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula Moscow annexed last month after a referendum staged when Russian troops were already in control.Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed Western accusations that Moscow was destabilising Ukraine, saying the situation could improve only if Kiev took into account the interests of Russian-speaking regions.But Britain expressed fears that Russia wanted to disrupt the run-up to presidential elections next month in Ukraine, which has been ruled by an interim government since the overthrow of Moscow-backed president Viktor Yanukovich in February.Ukraine, which was controlled by Moscow until the Soviet Union collapsed more than two decades ago, has been in turmoil since late last year when Yanukovich rejected closer relations with the European Union and tilted the country back towards Russia. That provoked mass protests in which more than 100 people were killed by police and which drove Yanukovich from office, leading to Kiev's loss of control in Crimea.In Kiev, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov partly pinned responsibility for the Kharkiv occupation on Russian President Vladimir Putin. "All this was inspired and financed by the Putin-Yanukovich group," he said.An aide said police went in when the protesters failed to give themselves up and surrender their arms. Officers did not open fire, despite shooting and the grenade attack from the other side, he said. One police officer was badly wounded and some others less seriously hurt.
NO TURNING BACK
In Luhansk, a city of around 450,000 people, protesters have blocked streets leading to the state security building with barbed wire, piles of tyres, wooden crates, metal police barriers and sandbags. Protesters at the entrance to the building blocked the entrance with metal shields.Andrei, who said he had stormed the building on Sunday but would not give his family name, said the protesters had 200-300 Kalashnikovs and some stun grenades, but there had been no shooting so far."I'll stay here until the end, until victory. Once you've taken up arms, there's no turning back. We will stay until the authorities agree to hold a referendum on the status of Luhansk," he said.Andrei said he had sent his family to Russia after Yanukovich fled. "They couldn't stay here. I knew what would happen after the bandits took over, I knew it would only lead to war. And war is what we're getting," he said.A standoff also continued in the mining center of Donetsk, Yanukovich's home base, where a group of pro-Russian deputies inside the main regional authority building on Monday declared a separatist republic.Unlike in Kharkiv, there was no clear sign that further police operations were imminent in the other two cities. "We hope the buildings occupied in Donetsk and Luhansk will soon be freed," acting president Oleksander Turchinov said.Russia has warned Kiev against using force to end the occupations but authorities may anyway have decided not to give Moscow an excuse to intervene, holding back in the hope that the protests will fizzle out.
MASS DISORDER
In London, Foreign Secretary William Hague said the occupations bore "all the hallmarks of a Russian strategy to destabilise Ukraine".The West has expressed concern about what it says has been a buildup of Russian forces along the border with Ukraine. Moscow has said the troops are merely taking part in exercises but NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen urged caution."If Russia were to intervene further in Ukraine it would be a historic mistake," he told a news conference in Paris. "It would have grave consequences for our relationship with Russia and would further isolate Russia internationally."Lavrov denied responsibility for the trouble in Russian-speaking areas of Ukraine. "One should not seek to put the blame on someone else," he told a new conference in Moscow.Turchinov said on Monday that Moscow was attempting to repeat "the Crimea scenario" in which pro-Russian forces seized the local parliament and bulldozed through the referendum, clearing the way for Russia to annex the peninsula.Unlike in Crimea, where ethnic Russians form a majority, most people in the east and south are ethnically Ukrainian, although they speak Russian as a first language.The dispute has raised fears that Russia might restrict its gas supplies to Ukraine's crippled economy. Russian producer Gazprom confirmed Ukraine had failed to pay for its March supplies but did not say whether it would take any action against Kiev.Gazprom cut off supplies to Kiev during price disputes in the winters of 2008/2009 and 2005/2006, disrupting the flow of Russian gas to the EU that is carried via Ukraine. Gazprom said gas transit via Ukraine to Europe remained stable on Tuesday.So far the United States and EU have imposed only mild economic sanctions over the Crimean annexation. However, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Russian companies listed on foreign stock exchanges should consider re-listing in Moscow. "This is a question of economic security for them," Interfax news agency quoted him as telling reporters.(Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, Jason Bush, Vladimir Soldatkin and Denis Pinchuk in Moscow; William James and Kylie MacLellan in London; John Irish in Paris; Writing By Richard Balmforth and David Stamp; Editing by Giles Elgood)
Donetsk seizure raises concern of Ukraine escalation
07.04.14 @ 09:29-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - A Crimea-type operation in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, on Sunday (6 April) has raised concerns Russia is about to escalate the crisis.Some 200 masked men from a group calling itself the “Rossiyskiy Sektor” used stun grenades to force their way into the local government building in the city, before erecting barricades outside and calling for a referendum on the Donetsk region’s independence.Pro-Russian separatists the same day attacked local government buildings in Kharkiv and Luhansk.The actions come amid Russia’s ongoing military build-up on Ukraine’s eastern and northern borders. The Russian foreign ministry on Sunday also claimed it has “sacks of letters” from Russian speakers in Ukraine asking for protection.Meanwhile, on the economic front, Russia has threatened to cut off Ukraine’s gas on Monday unless it agrees to almost double the price and to start paying an $11 billion debt.“[Russian leader] Putin and [Ukraine’s former leader] Yanukovych ordered and paid for the latest wave of separatist disorder in the east of the country. The people who have gathered are not many but they are very aggressive," Ukraine’s acting interior minister, Arsen Avakov, said.“This seems to be a repeat of the Crimean scenario,” Oleksandr Lytvynenko, Ukraine’s deputy national security chief, noted, referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s Crimea region in February.Sunday’s developments come after EU foreign ministers at a meeting in Athens on Friday and Saturday urged Russia not to go further."It is really important that Russia shows that it is serious about the de-escalation by moving troops back," EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said.She noted that “work is ongoing” on economic sanctions against Russia in the worst case scenario. But the EU ministers also held out an olive branch.German FM Frank-Walter Steinmeier reassured Moscow the EU-Ukraine association pact is “not a pre-stage for [EU] membership talks.” He said the EU and Russia should create a “contact group” to defuse the situation.Ashton and Greek FM Evangelos Venizelos, who hosted the event, also underlined the need to keep open “channels of communication” with Moscow.The tone changed on Sunday, however.Commenting on Donetsk, Swedish FM Carl Bildt corroborated Avakov and Lytvynenko’s account. “Sunday pattern that pro-Russian thugs try to stir up trouble in eastern Ukraine. Heavily supported by Kremlin propaganda machine. And more,” he said on Twitter.The Czech President, Miloz Zeman, told Czech Radio: “The moment Russia decides to widen its territorial expansion to the eastern part of Ukraine … I would plead not only for the strictest EU sanctions, but even for military readiness of the North Atlantic Alliance, like for example Nato forces entering Ukrainian territory.”From the other side of the Atlantic, the US’ former ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, noted: “New violence in eastern Ukraine shows that Putin has no interest in a stable Ukraine. This struggle will be a long one.”The new US ambassador to the EU, Anthony Luzzatto Gardner, said earlier on Friday: “It [Russia’s annexation of Crimea] is just the beginning of the story.”
Iran, powers seek to narrow gaps in new round of nuclear talks
By Justyna Pawlak and Parisa Hafezi 3 hours ago-APR 8,14-Yahoonews
VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran and six world powers began a new round of talks on Tuesday aimed at settling the dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme by late July, despite wide differences on how to attain that goal.The powers want Iran to scale back its uranium enrichment activity to deny it any capability to quickly produce an atomic bomb, if it decided on such a course. Iran says its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and wants them to lift sanctions.Chief negotiators from Iran, the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia started a two-day meeting around 9:45 a.m. at the U.N. complex in Vienna, where they have held two previous such sessions since February."We are involved in very detailed and substantial negotiations and we are trying as hard as we can to drive the process forward," the spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who coordinates the discussions on behalf of the powers, told reporters.Both sides say they want to start drafting a comprehensive agreement in May, some two months before a July 20 deadline for finalising the accord. Western official say, however, that the parties are still far apart on key issues."What matters most to us is that there is a good agreement. Clearly we want to make progress as fast as possible but the most important thing is the quality of the agreement," Ashton's spokesman, Michael Mann, said."It has to be a good agreement that everyone is happy with. So we will work as hard was we can to achieve that."Iranian and U.S. negotiators are wary that any deal will face criticism from conservative hardliners at home wedded to confrontation since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. The six nations have agreed internally to have a draft text of an accord by the end of May or early June, one diplomat from the powers said, adding however: "We're still in an exploratory phase ... In the end, things will happen in July."Tuesday's opening session was chaired by Ashton and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, but their deputies later took over.
ENRICHMENT, ARAK
The Islamic Republic says its enrichment programme is a peaceful bid to generate electricity and has ruled out shutting any of its nuclear facilities.The United States and some other Western countries have accused it of working on developing a nuclear bomb capability. Israel has threatened to attack its long-time foe Iran if diplomatic efforts fail. Iran says it is Israel's assumed atomic arsenal that threatens peace and stability in the Middle East.The diplomat said issues to be discussed at the April 8-9 meeting included how the United Nations nuclear watchdog would verify whether Iran was meeting its end of any deal, suspected past atomic bomb research by Tehran, and how to deal with U.N. Security Council resolutions on Iran adopted since 2006.A senior Iranian negotiator, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, said major issues discussed in previous meetings - Iran's level of uranium enrichment and a heavy-water nuclear reactor project at Arak - would also be debated.Refined uranium can be used to fuel nuclear power plants, Iran's stated purpose, but can also provide material for a bomb, which the West suspects may be Tehran's ultimate aim. The Arak reactor, once operational, can yield plutonium - another weapons-usable fissile material - but Iran says it only intends to use it for medical and agricultural research ends.The goal of the negotiations begun almost two months ago is to hammer out a long-term deal to define the permissible scope of Iran's nuclear programme in return for an end to sanctions that have hobbled the OPEC country's economy.In November, the two sides agreed an interim accord curbing some Iranian enrichment activities in exchange for some easing of sanctions. This six-month deal, which took effect on January 20, was designed to buy time for talks on a final accord. The talks can be extended by another half-year if both sides agree to do so, and negotiate the content of an extension deal.(Additional reporting by Fredrik Dahl and Louis Charbonneau, Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Syria: Iran sends 30,000 tons of food supplies
27 minutes ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian state media say Iran has sent 30,000 tons of food supplies to help President Bashar Assad's government deal with shortages amid civil war.State TV said Tuesday that the massive shipment has arrived at a port on the Mediterranean Sea.The aid is part of Iran's broader support for Assad as he prepares to run for a third presidential term while his troops fight rebels trying to oust him.Iran has been Assad's major backer, lending Damascus military support through its proxy Hezbollah group and advising the government on strategy to fight the opposition. Tehran has also been pumping funds into Syria to save the country's battered economy from collapsing.Last May, Iran opened a credit line of $3.6 billion for Syria, enabling Assad's government to buy oil products.
Turkey's Erdogan vows to 'liquidate' treachery at home and abroad
By Jonny Hogg and Gulsen Solaker 23 minutes ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday local elections had given him a mandate to "liquidate" the enemies he sees as contriving a corruption scandal and would go after their international activities and sources of funding.In his first parliamentary speech since his ruling AK Party dominated March 30 municipal polls, Erdogan said "traitors" responsible for a stream of graft allegations and the illegal tapping of thousands of phones would be brought to account.Erdogan accuses Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former ally now based in the United States, of orchestrating the graft scandal to undermine him. Gulen's Hizmet network claims millions of followers and holds influence in the police and judiciary. Erdogan has accused the movement of running a "parallel state", spying on thousands of government officials over years and leaking manipulated recordings in a bid to unseat him ahead of last month's elections."March 30 is the day when the page was turned on tutelage, when the monuments of hubris were felled, and the privileges (of an elite) were lost forever," Erdogan said."The nation gave us a mandate for the liquidation of the parallel state. We will not have the slightest hesitation. We shall never forget the betrayal," he said.He said the government would follow up on what he called the network's international links and investigate all "illegally collected monies and donations".The movement, also known as Cemaat (JEH-maat), "The Community", has for decades been a spearhead of Turkish cultural influence and commerce overseas, especially in the assertive moves into Africa, the Middle East and Asia in the years after the AK Party took power in 2002.Cemaat says the Turkish government is already putting pressure on governments to close down its global network of schools which have been a major source of influence and revenue. Government officials say Turkish embassies have stopped backing schools and business linked to Gulen.Hizmet denies using followers in the police and judiciary to launch a graft inquiry targeting Erdogan family members, ministers and businessmen, or any involvement in the illicit recording of top officials. Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party relied on Hizmet to break the grip on politics of the army, which carried out three coups between 1960 and 1980 and forced an Islamist-led government from power in 1997. But he now casts the fight with Hizmet as a continuation of that struggle against tutelage in any form, the final chapter in a battle for democracy and justice."They will answer before the courts. But not in front of their parallel courts; they will answer before the court of the nation," Erdogan said.
PRESIDENTIAL AMBITION
Erdogan has made little secret of his ambition to take up a powerful presidency, but such is his determination to finish the battle with Gulen that it remains unclear whether he will run in the first direct elections for the post in August.He is barred by AK Party rules from standing for a fourth term as prime minister, currently a more powerful role than the largely ceremonial presidency; but the party could amend those rules with relative ease if it feels his leadership is needed to see out the feud with Gulen, senior officials have said.Erdogan would seek to shape the presidency as a more powerful role than that played by incumbent Abdullah Gul. Erdogan was quoted on Tuesday as saying the direct election of the next president would automatically bestow the role with greater powers."The responsibilities will be different after these elections. It will not be a president of protocol, but one that sweats, runs around, works hard," he was quoted as saying by the pro-government Sabah newspaper.Until now, Turkey's parliament has elected the head of state. Gul is a close Erdogan ally and co-founder of the AK Party, tipped as a possible prime minister if Erdogan were to run for what he would shape as the top job.Erdogan had long wanted to change the constitution and create an executive presidency, but political opposition to such a move has checked those plans for now.There are also some doubts that Erdogan, for all his popularity among conservative AK Party voters, could win the 50 percent plus he would need in a second round as he is a divisive figure who would struggle to pick up opposition support.Erdogan's opponents fear that his election to the presidency could exacerbate what they see as his authoritarian tendencies.The government has already dismissed or reassigned thousands of police officers and tightened control over the Internet and judiciary in response to the corruption scandal.It also blocked access to Twitter and YouTube after audio recordings, purportedly showing corruption in Erdogan's inner circle, were leaked on social media. Reuters has not been able to verify their authenticity.The block on Twitter was lifted after the constitutional court ruled that it breached freedom of expression - a decision Erdogan said on Tuesday was wrong and should be overturned - while YouTube still remains largely blocked.(Additional reporting by Ayse Sarioglu in Ankara, Ece Toksabay and Seda Sezer in Istanbul; Writing by Nick Tattersall; editing by Ralph Boulton)
In Egypt, women still have a long way to go-Despite gains on paper thanks to a new constitution, women’s right’s activists say there has been little progress-By Laura Dean April 8, 2014, 12:29 pm-The Times of Israel
CAIRO (AP) — Women activists say they won a major step forward with Egypt’s new constitution, which enshrined greater rights for women. But months after its passage, they’re worrying whether those rights will be implemented or will turn out to be merely ink on paper.The causes for concern are many. Men hold an overwhelming near-lock on decision-making in politics, and activists say they are doing little to bring about equality. Violence against women in public space has grown over the past three years of turmoil since the 2011 ouster of autocrat Hosni Mubarak. And some activists say the increasingly repressive political climate is stifling chances for democratic reforms that would bring women’s rights.An incident in March underlined how far activists say they still need to go to change public attitudes. After a female student at Cairo University came under mass sexual assault by male students, the university’s president, Gaber Nassar, criticized her for the way she was dressed. A well-known TV presenter, Tamir Amin, went on a tirade on his show, saying the student was “dressed like a belly dancer.” She was wearing black pants, a long-sleeved pink shirt and a head-scarf.Amid an uproar on social media, both Nassar and Amin apologized for their comments. But Amin still went on to say women should wear “appropriate” clothing when they go out.The following week, a law criminalizing sexual harassment was referred to the presidency for review, though the text has yet to be released.There have been multiple mass sexual assaults on women during protests the past three years. In one notorious incident in 2011, security forces dragged a female protester to the ground, pulled up her top to reveal her blue bra and stomped on her chest. Other female protesters at the time were forced to undergo humiliating “virginity tests” when detained by the military.Women have also been caught up in the violence since the military ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last summer and security forces launched a heavy crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists. Last weekend, a 22-year-old female journalist, Mayada Ashraf, with the newspaper Al-Dustour, was shot to death while she covered clashes between police and Morsi supporters in the Cairo district of Ein Shams. Police have arrested 20 protesters, accusing them of shooting her — but witnesses have raised questions whether it was actually security forces who killed her.Around 50 other women were among hundreds killed during clashes since the violent dispersal of the pro-Morsi protest camps on August 14, and around 240 are among the 16,000 people arrested in the crackdown on Morsi’s followers, according to security officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to journalists.Violence is a “very intimidating weapon” against women participating in public life, said Dalia Abdel-Hameed, gender rights researcher with the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, an independent rights group.More broadly, the crackdown has fueled at atmosphere where criticism is not tolerated. Secular pro-democracy activists and prominent figures critical of the military-backed interim government have been jailed and are on trial for breaking laws barring unlicensed protests. In the media, critics of the government are muted, which has an impact on calls in general for democratic reform, including for women’s rights.“If there is no democratic climate, how would you benefit from these beautiful laws?” said Abdel-Hameed. “It will be the same as under Mubarak: you have a beautiful law but it’s not implemented.”Women activists fought hard for gains in the constitution passed in a January referendum, which was a rewrite of a 2012 constitution largely drafted by Islamists during Morsi’s one-year presidency.The document explicitly enshrines equality between the sexes and women’s rights to education, work and high political office. It criminalizes violence against women and discrimination on any basis, including gender. It allows women to confer nationality on their children and holds Egypt’s government responsible for international obligations under treaties it has ratified, including the Convention to Eliminate all forms of Discrimination Against Women.“It’s not just more progressive than the 2012 constitution, it’s more progressive than the 1971 constitution from the gender perspective,” said Salma el-Naqqash, a member of the Nazra Institute for Feminist Studies.
The provisions are already being tested.
Women have only been allowed to be judges since 2007, and the new constitution guarantees their right to hold high positions in the judiciary. Yet a 2010 court decision barred women judges from the State Council, a powerful judicial body that regulates disputes between individuals and the state and reviews legislation.After several women were rejected for membership on the council, Mervat Tallawy, head of the state’s National Council for Women, said that in January she wrote to the State Council demanding it take on women judges in light of the constitution.The Council replied by saying her letter “violated appropriateness and manners” and it sought criminal action against the National Council for Women.Speaking to a conference last month, Tallawy said the “the mentality of the decision-makers . in the current government and the future government as well” is the main obstacle to the carrying out the promises of the constitution.She pointed to the low representation of women in government. Women, for example, held only two percent of the seats in the last parliament, the lowest in the Arab world. Past parliaments as well have usually seen single-digit percentages of women lawmakers.“We are angry with the government, with legislators, with the parties, with all officials. We want 150 women in parliament,” she said. “We’re tired of the government and officials . we’ll go to the street,” she said.El-Naqqash said there is a series of concrete steps she wants to see in the near future — the creation of a Commission on Discrimination with real judicial power, particularly to hold the state accountable, as called for under the constitution; more women judges; an electoral law that guarantees the presence of women in parliament and local council, through a party list system with alternating men and women on the list; and the nullification of the draconian protest law, which bars all political gatherings without prior police permission.She also says gender issues should be mainstreamed across all government bodies. For example, the Interior Ministry should activate a unit specialized in fighting violence against women and “the health sector should take into account reproductive rights. Health clinics should provide contraception and treatment for STDs (sexually transmitted diseases).”But, she adds, “women’s issues are never a priority for anyone.”She noted that parts of the constitution may make enforcing the women’s rights provisions harder. For example, the charter increases the power of the judiciary over its own affairs, protecting it from political interference but also isolating it from any criticism or reform.“They are giving a lot of immunity to the judiciary to the point that it will make it very hard to realize these rights and freedoms,” she said. “You cannot hold them accountable for enforcing these rights.”
Hagel, Chang air differences over disputed islands
By LOLITA C. BALDOR 1 hour ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
BEIJING (AP) — The defense chiefs of China and the U.S. faced off Tuesday over Beijing's escalating territorial disputes in the region, with U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and telling his Chinese counterparts they do not have the right to unilaterally establish an air defense zone over disputed islands, with no consultation.And he said America will protect Japan, the Philippines and other allies locked in disputes with China, as laid out in U.S. treaty obligations.Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan said his country will not take the initiative to stir up troubles with Japan, but warned that Beijing is ready to use its military if needed to safeguard its territory. And he said the U.S. must "stay vigilant" against Japan's actions and "not be permissive and supportive" of Tokyo.Washington has criticized Beijing's recent declaration of an air defense zone over a large swath of the East China Sea, including disputed remote islands controlled by Japan but also claimed by China. Hagel was in Japan earlier this week, reassuring its leaders of ongoing U.S. support.In their remarks Tuesday, Hagel and Chang largely aired their countries' well-known positions about the territorial disputes, although doing it for the first time in China, shoulder to shoulder, after nearly two hours of meetings."Every nation has a right to establish an air defense zone, but not a right to do it unilaterally with no collaboration, no consultation. That adds to tensions, misunderstandings, and could eventually add to, and eventually get to, dangerous conflict," said Hagel, pointing his finger toward television cameras and photographers at the back of the room, as shutters clicked.For his part, Chang said China stands ready to resolve the disputes diplomatically. But he made it clear that China is always ready to respond militarily to threats.Chang also complained that the Philippines illegally occupies part of China's islands and reefs in the South China Sea..He told Hagel, "We will make no compromise, no concession, no trading, not even a tiny ... violation is allowed."On a broader scale, the meeting focused on how the U.S. and China can build stronger ties, in the wake of years of frosty relations over Beijing's military buildup, persistent cyber-attacks against U.S. government agencies and private industry, and the aggressive Chinese territorial claims.Washington says it takes no side on the sovereignty issue of the islands but will defend Japan and the Philippines. But it also has refused to recognize the air defense zone or follow China's demands that its aircraft file flight plans with Beijing's Defense Ministry and heed Chinese instructions.The Pentagon chief also pressed China on North Korea, saying that Washington and Beijing have a shared interest "in achieving a verifiable, irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."North Korea has been escalating its rhetoric lately, threatening additional missile and nuclear tests and conducting a series of ballistic missile launches.Later Tuesday, at the People's Liberation Army's National Defense University, Hagel gave a speech to about 120 colonels and other staff officers, and was more direct, challenging China to play a more constructive role in North Korea.Continuing to support the Pyongyang regime, he said, "will only hurt China's international standing" and it's position in the region.In the defense university speech, Hagel also pointed to cybersecurity as an area where the U.S. wants the Chinese to be more transparent.As proof that the U.S. has tried to be more open, he revealed publicly for the first time that the Pentagon gave Chinese government officials a briefing on the doctrine that governs the use of the military's cyber capabilities. And he urged China to do the same.It has not. And Chang, when asked about the issue, said the PLA abides by the law in its cyber operations and will not pose a threat to others. He added that China "stands ready to deepen the communication with the U.S." on cyber.While the disagreements between the U.S. and China were starkly evident during the day's events, there also was an underlying current of slowly growing cooperation.The two countries interests outweigh their differences, said Chang, adding that "The Pacific is huge enough to hold both China and the U.S."They also outlined several new agreements."Our vision is a future where our militaries can work closely together on a range of challenges, such as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions. However, to reach this objective, we must be candid about issues where we disagree," Hagel said.He said the two countries have agreed to conduct a joint military medical exercise, although no date was set.And Hagel said that Washington and Beijing will establish formal procedures that will allow their armies to better communicate and also set up an Asia-Pacific Security Dialogue between the assistant defense secretary for the Asia Pacific and China's director of the Ministry of National Defense Foreign Affairs Office, so they also can more easily exchange views.The United States' campaign to encourage China to be more open about its military growth and intentions got a symbolic boost Monday as Hagel received a rare tour of the country's first aircraft carrier. But efforts to get the Asian giant to be more transparent about cyber attacks and other defense operations have been less successful.
EU court scraps data surveillance law
Today @ 11:31-APR 8,14-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - The EU court in Luxembourg has struck down a law on internet and phone surveillance, saying its loose wording opens the door to untoward snooping on private lives.It said in its verdict on Tuesday (8 April) the “data retention directive” constitutes a “particularly serious interference with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to the protection of personal data” in Europe.It also said Europeans are likely to feel “their private lives are the subject of constant surveillance” if the bill is left intact.The directive, passed in 2006, has already been transcribed into national law in most member states.It obliges internet and phone companies to store data on who contacts whom, when, how often, and from which locations, for between six months and two years so that government agencies can use it to hunt down “serious crime”.The ruling means the EU directive is null and void. Individual EU countries can still keep the national measures in place if they want, but they are likely to see a flood of legal challenges if they do.Tuesday’s verdict comes after Austria and Ireland asked the EU tribunal to intervene following challenges by rights groups, local governments, and, in Austria, by 11,130 private applicants.The court said the definition of “serious crime” is too “general.”It criticised the indiscriminate nature of surveillance targets because it “applies even to persons for whom there is no evidence capable of suggesting that their conduct might have a link, even an indirect or remote one, with serious crime”.It complained that access to the information is “not made dependent on the prior review by a court or by an independent administrative body”.It also complained that the law “does not ensure the irreversible destruction of the data at the end of the retention period” and “does not require that the data be retained within the EU,” opening the door to security breaches from outside Europe.Jan Philip Albrecht, a German Green MEP at the heart of European Parliament law-making on data issues, described the verdict as “a major victory for civil rights in Europe”. “Today's ruling is even more embarrassing for the German federal government and the EU commission, who continue to advocate in favour of data retention and other types of unfounded, unjustified blanket surveillance, for example through the air passenger data system,” he added.Joe McNamee, the director of European Digital Rights, a Brussels-based NGO, noted: "After eight years, this affront to the fundamental rights of European citizens has finally been declared illegal.”The European Commission was not available for comment on Tuesday morning amid a crisis meeting in its press service.An EU official told EUobserver one option is to table a new version of the directive taking into account the court’s objections. But any new bill will take years to put together, and any work is unlikely to begin before the summer recess.The contact added: “The commission has fined some member states for not transposing the measures quickly enough. So does this mean they will have to give the money back?”Meanwhile, EU justice commissioner Viviane Reding did not wait for the executive to draft a common line.“Glad #CJEU confirmed: we need independent #DataProtection authorities to uphold fundamental rights,” she tweeted.“#CJEU confirms: #security not a 'super right' overruling the protection of personal data,” she added.
EARTHQUAKES
ISAIAH 42:15
15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools.
MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places,(DIFFERNT PLACES AT THE SAME TIME) and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
1 Day, Magnitude 2.5+ Worldwide
39 earthquakes - DownloadUpdated: 2014-04-08 09:08:37 UTC-04:00Showing event times using Local System Time (UTC-04:00)39 earthquakes in map area
4.5 Kuril Islands 2014-04-08 08:41:21 UTC-04:00 79.6 km
4.5 106km S of Taron, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-08 07:18:07 UTC-04:00 41.5 km
4.4 100km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 06:30:42 UTC-04:00 14.6 km
5.7 87km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 06:14:32 UTC-04:00 7.0 km
3.3 140km NNE of Vieques, Puerto Rico 2014-04-08 05:09:58 UTC-04:00 77.0 km
4.5 3km E of Sayula de Aleman, Mexico 2014-04-08 05:08:17 UTC-04:00 58.3 km
4.5 78km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 03:55:22 UTC-04:00 15.1 km
2.8 71km WSW of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska 2014-04-08 02:25:40 UTC-04:00 100.0 km
5.2 61km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:43:56 UTC-04:00 17.1 km
5.0 65km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:40:47 UTC-04:00 16.2 km
5.0 82km WNW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:20:21 UTC-04:00 17.3 km
3.2 39km E of Ensenada, Mexico 2014-04-07 21:59:13 UTC-04:00 13.1 km
4.6 65km NW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 21:03:02 UTC-04:00 26.8 km
2.6 2km SSE of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 18:45:49 UTC-04:00 6.0 km
4.2 135km S of Taron, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-07 18:40:06 UTC-04:00 40.0 km
4.6 109km NNW of Kampungbajo, Indonesia 2014-04-07 18:19:07 UTC-04:00 439.7 km
2.8 4km SSW of Finley, Washington 2014-04-07 17:55:00 UTC-04:00 0.1 km
2.9 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 17:19:24 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
4.7 6km NNW of Ojiya, Japan 2014-04-07 16:07:56 UTC-04:00 13.4 km
4.7 9km ESE of Guillestre, France 2014-04-07 15:27:01 UTC-04:00 10.0 km
2.5 18km S of Aguanga, California 2014-04-07 14:56:07 UTC-04:00 8.4 km
2.7 50km ENE of Alturas, California 2014-04-07 14:50:40 UTC-04:00 16.1 km
2.6 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 14:40:36 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
3.1 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 14:01:42 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
4.9 31km WNW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 13:46:32 UTC-04:00 29.4 km
4.7 211km SSW of `Ohonua, Tonga 2014-04-07 13:36:36 UTC-04:00 78.4 km
2.8 105km W of Talkeetna, Alaska 2014-04-07 13:28:00 UTC-04:00 100.0 km
4.8 8km NE of Tuban, Philippines 2014-04-07 13:18:44 UTC-04:00 53.8 km
2.8 32km NW of Road Town, British Virgin Islands 2014-04-07 13:12:06 UTC-04:00 31.0 km
2.5 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:52:27 UTC-04:00 5.0 km
2.6 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:41:06 UTC-04:00 5.0 km
4.2 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:03:03 UTC-04:00 5.2 km
5.1 89km W of Tarauaca, Brazil 2014-04-07 11:27:32 UTC-04:00 559.6 km
4.8 87km WSW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-07 10:30:01 UTC-04:00 82.6 km
5.1 81km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 10:03:43 UTC-04:00 10.0 km
5.4 72km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 09:47:33 UTC-04:00 11.3 km
5.8 76km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 09:43:20 UTC-04:00 7.9 km
4.7 25km SW of Puerto Madero, Mexico 2014-04-07 09:32:03 UTC-04:00 73.2 km
4.5 39km SSE of Hidalgotitlan, Mexico 2014-04-07 09:22:06 UTC-04:00 142.4 km
1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
ISAIAH 33:8
8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)
JERUSALEM DIVIDED
GENESIS 25:20-26
20 And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21 And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22 And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23 And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25 And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26 And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)
ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.
PA sources: No backtrack on joining international bodies-Ramallah vows to pursue its applications, but FM Liberman says move will have consequences-By Avi Issacharoff, Times of Israel staff and AP April 8, 2014, 2:09 pm 1-The Times of Israel
Discussions between Israel, the Palestinians and the US over extending negotiations are serious and positive, sources in Ramallah told The Times of Israel Tuesday, even while vowing to hold fast to applications to 15 international treaty organizations.At the same time, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said no Arab prisoners would be released if the Palestinian Authority did not back down from its applications, which Israel has characterized as a unilateral move in breach of an agreement governing the talks.Sources in the Palestinian Authority told The Times of Israel that both sides were seeking to keep the stalled negotiations alive, but one added that “the distance between the sides is significant, primarily around the one issue of a settlement building freeze.” One of the Palestinian officials said the issue of prisoners who were to have been set free by Israel in the fourth round of releases remains problematic, but he hinted that solutions were emerging, including the release of a large number of prisoners.However, the source said Israeli settlement building remained a problem and an offer of a partial freeze that would not cover East Jerusalem or existing projects was unacceptable to the PA.“We are not prepared for [Israeli Housing] Minister Uri Ariel to continue to run roughshod and keep building with excuses such as ‘tenders were already issued’ or that they ‘already received building permits.’ Building in East Jerusalem is also not acceptable,” the source said. “We are already familiar with all the excuses of the Israeli government. The freeze must be a complete freeze, in order for negotiations to continue past the end of the month.”The official said the PA had not insisted on a settlement freeze before talks began in July, and in the meantime Israel had built in isolated settlements as well as West Bank communities within blocs that many see remaining under Israeli sovereignty under a peace deal.Another official added that the Palestinian Authority won’t, under any circumstances, withdraw from its applications to 15 international organizations.“It’s finished. Leave it alone, that won’t happen. What happened happened. We applied and we won’t retract; we crossed the line and it’s impossible to go back,” he said.The official praised the positive atmosphere around the negotiating table and hinted that the sense of crisis presented by the media was a bit exaggerated. “Yes, the situation is difficult and problematic, but we do not, and you do not, want to see the talks fail.”On Monday night, the sides held the second meeting in 24 hours. US State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said efforts were ongoing to save the talks.“Gaps remain but both sides are committed to narrow the gaps,” she told reporters.However Liberman said Tuesday morning that Israel would not negotiate if it risked being seen as a “sucker.”
He said the Palestinian prisoner release would not happen as long as Palestinians pursue their bid to join UN agencies, and accused Ramallah of breaking the terms of the US-brokered peace talks.“We are in favor of negotiations but the previous offer of releasing prisoners doesn’t exist anymore,” Lieberman told Israel Radio on Tuesday. “Whoever broke the rules has to bear responsibility… therefore the previous offer is not relevant anymore.”Mohammed Ishtayeh, an aide to Abbas, said on Monday that the letters of accession will not be withdrawn and that the step is irreversible. He said the Palestinians were ready to widen their bid.Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad Malki said Arab foreign ministers would convene in Cairo on Wednesday to discuss the breakdown in talks and Abbas would ask them for political and financial support.Under the terms of renewed talks, Israel had promised to release 104 long-held Palestinian prisoners in four groups, while the Palestinians said they would suspend a campaign to apply for membership as a state to various UN agencies.But as the talks stalled last month, Israel failed to release the fourth group of prisoners on time.The Palestinians then signed letters of accession for 15 international conventions.In the interview, Liberman argued that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s decision was responsible for the failure of talks, calling it “provocative,” but reiterated that Israel is ready to discuss all issues in the framework of negotiations and will not accept conditions that would restrict negotiations to the issue of borders alone.On the suggestion that the coalition could fall apart over the peace negotiations, Liberman said he preferred that negotiations continue and that all talk of parties potentially quitting the coalition was irresponsible.On Sunday, Liberman said he preferred calling new elections to releasing more prisoners.Aron Dónzis contributed to this report.
Israel, Palestinians press on with peace talks rescue bid
By Jeffrey Heller 4 hours ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli and Palestinian negotiators ended another U.S.-mediated session on Tuesday with no sign of a breakthrough in efforts to save peace talks from collapse, but an Israeli official said they had agreed to meet again.In a statement about the latest discussions, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said: "Gaps remain but both sides are committed to narrow the gaps."The U.S.- brokered negotiations, which began in July, plunged into crisis last week after Israel, demanding a Palestinian commitment to continue talking beyond an April 29 deadline for a peace deal, failed to carry out a promised release of about two dozen Palestinian prisoners.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responded by signing 15 global treaties, including the Geneva Conventions on the conduct of war and occupations, on behalf of the State of Palestine, a defiant move that surprised Washington and angered Israel.Israeli Foreign Minister Avidgor Lieberman, speaking on Israel Radio on Tuesday, said Abbas would have to reverse that step in order for the prisoner release to be re-addressed.Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened unspecified retaliation in response to what Israel views as a unilateral statehood move by Abbas. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad al-Malki said Abbas would appeal at an Arab League meeting in Cairo on Wednesday for political and economic support in the event of Israeli punitive measures. As part of the U.S.-led bid to salvage the talks, Israeli chief negotiator Tzipi Livni and Palestinian counterpart Saeb Erekat, along with U.S. mediator Martin Indyk, reconvened late on Monday after what the United States had described as a "serious and constructive" meeting on Sunday."The atmosphere was business-like and the sides agreed to meet again to try to find a solution to the crisis," said an Israeli official, who asked not to be identified, after the latest talks wrapped up in the early hours of Tuesday.The official did not say when the next meeting would be held. There was no immediate Palestinian comment about any future session.
STUMBLING BLOCKS
Expectations among the Israeli and Palestinian public of a peace deal have been low from the start. The talks have stalled over Palestinian opposition to Israel's demand that it be recognized as a Jewish state, and over settlements built on occupied land Palestinians seek for a country of their own.Looking ahead to possible Israeli economic sanctions, Malki said that at the Arab League session, Abbas would voice concern Israel might again withhold tax revenues it transfers to the Palestinian Authority (PA).Interim peace deals task Israel with collecting taxes and customs duties for the PA amounting to around $100 million a month, on goods imported into the Palestinian territories. Israel has previously frozen the payments during times of heightened security and diplomatic tensions.Secretary of State John Kerry, who has signaled he may scale back his mediating efforts due to "unhelpful actions" by both sides, was due to meet President Barack Obama on Tuesday, with the state of the peace negotiations high on the agenda.A senior official in Abbas' Fatah party said that in order for the talks to continue, Palestinians would need a written commitment from Israel recognizing a Palestinian state within all of the territory in the West Bank and Gaza Strip captured in the 1967 Middle East war, with East Jerusalem as its capital.Israel has described those West Bank borders as indefensible and considers East Jerusalem as part of its capital, a claim not recognized internationally. Israel pulled out of the Gaza Strip, now ruled by Hamas Islamists, in 2005.The Fatah official said Palestinians were also demanding a cessation of settlement activity and a prisoner release.Palestinians fear settlements, viewed as illegal by most countries, will deny them a viable state and have condemned a series of Israeli construction projects announced while talks have been under way.(Additional reporting by Noah Browning in Ramallah; editing by Ralph Boulton)
87% of Leftists Don't Believe In Peace Talks-Unprecedented new poll results from before talks collapsed; 92% don't foresee peace from talks, nearly half say no urgent need for talks.-By Ari Yashar-First Publish: 4/8/2014, 4:35 PM-Israelnationalnews
A new survey released Tuesday has revealed some unprecedented statistics regarding the opinions of Israeli Jews regarding the peace talks. The wide consensus among 92% of respondents, from across the political spectrum, is that the talks won't bring peace.The poll, known as the "peace index," was conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute's Guttman Center and Tel Aviv University's Evens Program in Mediation and Conflict Resolution. It was carried out among 600 respondents last Sunday and Monday, right before Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas torpedoed negotiations last Tuesday by requesting to join 15 UN agencies against the conditions of the talks.When asked if the peace talks will bring peace, an overwhelming 92% answered in the negative. 95% of those identifying themselves as belonging to the political right answered the talks were pointless, along with 88.5% of "centrists," and a shocking 87% of self-identifying leftists, reports Walla!.Arab respondents similarly held low hopes for the talks, with 62% saying they would not bring peace. Last June, a 58% majority of Arab citizens of Israel expressed support for an intifada (violent uprising) against Israel if the talks did not advance, and 82% called the founding of modern Israel a "nakba" (catastrophe).
Peace talks 'not urgent'
Another insightful finding of the survey was that only a slim majority of 52% among Israeli Jews felt it was urgent to reach a peace agreement with the PA. 45.5% of respondents said reaching an agreement was not urgent.In terms of urgency, there was a much higher variation along the lines of political orientation; 37% of self-defined right-wingers felt an agreement was urgent, as opposed to 68% of centrists, and a whopping 87% of leftists.Other questions addressed the issue of international involvement in the talks. Regarding Europe's involvement to push forward the talks, 76% felt that Europe was not acting towards Israel fairly. Reports in January revealed US Secretary of State John Kerry was behind European boycotts to pressure Israel into agreements.While roughly 90% felt that Europe was important to Israel, 42% responded that Europe's offer last December of an unprecedented aid package to spur an agreement would not influence their position regarding a peace treaty.
Lapid last in the list of public satisfaction
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's criticism last month of "soft" and "weak" American foreign policy towards Iran's nuclear program was also questioned; 65% felt that Ya'alon was correct in his assessment, even while 72% felt it wasn't smart of Ya'alon to voice his criticism publicly. Nevertheless, Ya'alon led the index of satisfaction from among governmental ministers, topping the charts at a score of 6.29 in scores ranging on a 1-10 scale.At the other end of the spectrum, Finance Minister Yair Lapid managed a pitiful score of 4.12, rounding out the bottom of the chart just behind Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman at 5.07.
All Talk and No Action in Peace Negotiations-PA demands full construction freeze to continue negotiations, says ready for 'Israel's tricks.' Defense Minister: 'I told you so.'-By Tova Dvorin-First Publish: 4/8/2014, 2:28 PM-IsraelnationalNews
Palestinian Authority (PA) sources told Walla! News Tuesday that the peace talks - which have not yet ceased, per se', but are in danger of folding - are not as dire and dramatic as the media makes it out to be."It is evident that both sides don't want the peace process to collapse," a source told the daily, explaining that the media has over-hyped the drama unfolding during meetings between representatives. According to the source, a construction freeze in Judea and Samaria is the real sticking point; while "controversy" continues over the PA's bid to international organizations for legitimacy, terrorist releases, and extending negotiations beyond the April deadline, he hinted that solutions are being discussed. The construction freeze, however, is "problematic," and the source explained that "a partial freeze is unacceptable" to the PA. "We will not allow Minister Uri Ariel to continue to run wild and build [Jewish] homes under excuses like 'the tenders have already been approved,'" the PA official snapped. "We're ready for all of the Israeli government's tricks. If we are to continue negotiations, a complete freeze needs to be introduced by the end of the months." Meanwhile, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon has declared that peace talks are dead, according to Ma'ariv, and lamented that negotiations have seen Israel blamed once again. "On Passover, we should free ourselves from irrelevant concepts in regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," Ya'alon stated Tuesday. "It became clear in recent months, unsurprisingly, that the Palestinian side is interested in getting, not in giving. They told us clearly over the past several months: 'I will not talk to you about the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, or giving up the Right of Return."""I am not a doomsayer; I am a realist," Ya'alon continued. "Unfortunately, on these issues, I find myself repeating over and over again, 'I told you so.' I wish it could have been different. I learned that this was so when I was the head of intelligence and now I've been shouting it for the past 20 years. Every time, the Palestinians run away [from talks] and then blame us." After a dramatic series of negotiations, Israel officially cancelled the fourth release of convicted Arab terrorists on Thursday and issued harsh sanctions on the PA over its unilateral diplomatic moves to apply for 15 UN-linked agencies.In response, the PA issued a number of extreme demands against Israel, including the release of over 1,000 terrorists and a withdrawal to 1949 Armistice lines - essentially demanding concessions on all key issues before negotiations even continue.The PA also continues to blame Israel over talks failing, claiming the release was pre-planned and that Israel merely wanted to stall for time. Ramallah has also blamed "settlement building" for the failure - especially after far-left group Peace Now ran to international media claiming that 700 building tenders had been submitted for Jerusalem housing after peace talks folded.
FALSE POPE FROM THE VATICAN
REVELATION 13:11-13
11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth;(FALSE VATICAN POPE) and he had two horns like a lamb,(JESUS IS THE LAMB OF GOD) and he spake as a dragon.(HES SATANICALLY INSPIRED,HES A CHRISTIAN DEFECTOR FROM THE FAITH)
12 And he (FALSE RELIGIOUS LEADER) exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him,(WORLD DICTATOR) and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.(THE WORLD DICTATOR CREATES A FALSE RESURRECTION AND IS CROWNED LEADER OF THE NEW WORLD ORDER).
13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,
REVELATION 17:1-5,9,15-18
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication,(VATICAN IN POLITICS) and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
4 And the woman (FALSE CHURCH) was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour,(VATICAN COLOURS)(ANOTHER REASON WE KNOW THE FALSE POPE COMES FROM THE VATICAN) and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.(THE VATICAN IS BUILT ON 7 HILLS OR MOUNTAINS)
15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.(VATICAN-CATHOLICS ALL AROUND THE WORLD OVER 1 BILLION)
16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast,(WORLD DICTATOR) these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
04/ 7/2014 - THE VATICAN INSIDER-The Pope drinks tea with the King of Jordan-King Abdullah of Giordania with Pope Francis-King Abdullah II of Jordan attended a 45-minute audience with Francis ahead of the Pope’s visit to the Holy Land. The King assured the Pope of Jordan’s commitment to peace and interreligious dialogue-iacopo scaramuzzi
Rome-This afternoon’s 45-minute meeting between Pope Francis and King Abdullah II of Jordan was “cordial and informal” and took place in St. Martha’s House in the Vatican. The issues the two discussed over a cup of tea included Francis’ forthcoming trip to the Holy Land (24-26 May) and their commitment to peace and interreligious dialogue.” The Hashemite king was accompanied by Prince Ghazi bin Hussein, who advises the king on Christian-Muslim dialogue. The prince was dressed in western-style clothing.This is the Argentinean Pope’s second meeting with the King of Jordan. Francis received him for the first time on 29 August 2013, in the Apostolic Palace. The meeting was particularly memorable because of the bow the Pope gave when he said goodbye to Queen Rania. The queen was not present this afternoon. King Abdullah II, who is visiting the Vatican as part of a European tour was instead accompanied by Prince Ghazi, the royal household representative who signed a letter written by 38 Muslim scholars, politely protesting Benedict XVI’s Regensburg speech back in 2006. Then, on 9 May 2009, after the German Pope had set the record straight on what he had intended to say in his speech, the Prince took him on a guided tour of the King Hussein of Amman mosque.“His Majesty Abdullah II ibn al-Hussein of Jordan arrived in the Vatican just before 4 pm,” the Vatican spokesman Fr. Federico Lombardi said after today’s meeting. “Upon his arrival at St. Martha’s House he was greeted by the Prefect of the Papal Household, HE Mgr. Georg Gänswein and the Vatican’s head of protocol, Mgr. José Avelino Bettencourt. At the entrance of St. Martha’s House, he was then greeted by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, accompanied by HE Mgr. Dominique Mamberti. The Holy Father received His Majesty the King in the sitting room on the ground floor where the meeting took place. The meeting was attended by Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad and an English interpreter from the Vatican.” Mgr. Mike Miles from the Secretariat of State was also present. He sat behind the Pope to help with the simultaneous translation. “The conversation, which took place over tea, lasted just over forty minutes and was cordial and informal.” The King’s visit took place in the context of Pope Francis’ much-awaited trip to the Holy Land, which also includes a visit to Jordan. His Majesty reaffirmed the sentiment of the Jordanian people who are preparing to welcome the Pope in a spirit of collaboration that is open peace and interreligious dialogue, Fr. Lombardi informed. At the end of the audience, the Holy Father also greeted the other members of the King’s entourage. The Pope’s illustrious guests left the Vatican at around 4:45 pm. The Pope was all smiles as he accompanied them to the door and waved goodbye to them as the car pulled away. Gifts will be exchanged via diplomatic representatives at a later date. The Pope and King Abdullah II will meet again when Francis visits the Holy Land between 24 and 16 May, stopping off in Jordan, Israel and Palestine.
04/ 7/2014 - THE VATICAN INSIDER-Francis has decided IOR is to stay-Cardinal Pell-The Institute for the Works of Religion “will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialised financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide." The Secretariat for the Economy will be given more powers, over the “Vatican bank” as well-ANDREA TORNIELLI
vatican city-The IOR will not be abolished but “will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialized financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide,” the Holy See informed in a communiqué published by the Holy See Press Office. The communiqué presents “a proposal on the future of the Istituto per le Opere di Religione (IOR) reaffirming the importance of the IOR’s mission for the good of the Catholic Church, the Holy See and the Vatican City State,” but does not specify what this proposal is.“The proposal,” the communiqué informs, “has been jointly developed by representatives of the Pontifical Referring Commission to the IOR (CRIOR), the Pontifical Commission for Reference on the Organization of the Economic- Administrative Structure of the Holy See (COSEA), the IOR’s Commission of Cardinals and the IOR Board of Superintendence and presented to the Holy Father by the Cardinal-Prefect for the Secretariat for the Economy with the consent of Cardinal Santos Abril Y Castelló, President of the IOR’s Commission of Cardinals. It is drawn from information on the legal status of the IOR and its operations gathered by and presented to the Holy Father and his Council of Cardinals by CRIOR in February 2014.” The proposal does not specify the kinds of transformations the IOR may eventually undergo but the Institute will nevertheless remain operative. “The IOR will continue to serve with prudence and provide specialized financial services to the Catholic Church worldwide. The valuable services that can be offered by the Institute assist the Holy Father in his mission as universal pastor and also aid those institutions and individuals who collaborate with him in his ministry,” the communiqué adds. The decision is in line with the course of action adopted by the Institute’s President Ernst von Freyberg, who is against radical transformations. It is also now in tune with the line taken by the Prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Pell. Relations between Pell and Von Freyberg are now excellent.“With the confirmation of the IOR’s mission and at the request of Cardinal-Prefect Pell, the President of the Board of Superintendence, Ernst von Freyberg, and the management of the IOR, will finalize their plan to ensure that the IOR can fulfil its mission as part of the new financial structures of the Holy See/Vatican City State,” the communiqué reads. This latter step is key and highlights the fact that the IOR will now form “part” of the “new financial structures”, that is, the recently established Secretariat and Council for the Economy. Cardinal Pell has essentially told the IOR’s president to carry on the work he has been doing over the past year.“The plan will be presented to the Holy Father’s Council of Cardinals (the C8 Ed.) and the Council for the Economy. The activities of the IOR will continue to fall under the regulatory supervision of AIF (Autorità di Informazione Finanziaria), the competent authority within the Holy See and Vatican City State.”“In compliance with Motu Proprios of August 8th, 2013 and November 15th, 2013, as well as Law No XVIII on transparency, supervision and financial information which came into force on October 8th, 2013, a comprehensive legal and institutional framework has been introduced to regulate financial activities within the Holy See and Vatican City State. In that respect, the Cardinal-Prefect Pell has confirmed the importance of a sustainable systematic alignment of the legal and regulatory framework of the Holy See/Vatican City State with regulatory international best practice. Strict regulatory supervision and improvements in compliance, transparency and operations initiated in 2012 and substantially accelerated in 2013 are critical for the Institute’s future,” the communiqué ends by saying. The text makes no reference to the future of the Referring Commission to the IOR (CRIOR) or to the other commission that deals with Economic- Administrative problems of the Holy See (COSEA). Both commissions are temporary as the Vatican Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin stressed in a recent interview published by Avvenire newspaper. It also remains to be seen whether there will be changes to CRIOR’S role and powers.
A statement issued by the IOR’s press office confirms that Von Freyberg’s approach is the chosen one. It says the Pope’s approval "represents for us a strong accreditation, a great recognition of the importance of our mission and service work done in the last 12 months.” The IOR informed that it plans to finish analysing bank clients and registry data by the summer and announced operational improvements. The plan will be presented to the C8 and the Council for the Economy.
EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:TOBOLSK)
4 And I 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)
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
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, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages;(ISRAEL) 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,(OIL IS IN 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.
EZEKIEL 39:1-8,11-21
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.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers (EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN JORDAN VALLEY) on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog (RUSSIAN) and all his multitude:(ARAB/MUSLIM HORDE) and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.(BURIEL SITE OF THE 300 MILLION,RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS)
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.(OF ISRAEL)
13 Yea, all the people of the land (OF ISRAEL) shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I (GOD-JESUS) shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD.
14 And they shall sever out men of continual employment,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB EXPERTS) passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.
15 And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall he set up a sign by it,(WON'T TOUCH IT) till the buriers have buried it (PROPERLY) in the valley of Hamongog.(RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS NEW BURIEL SITE)(EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN THE JORDAN VALLEY)
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.(OF THE ISRAEL-GOD HATERS)
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl,(500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS THREW ISRAEL EVERY SPRING,FALL) and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.(OF THE RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIM ARMIES)
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye (MIGRATING BIRDS IN ISRAEL) shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.(RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS)
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I (GOD-JESUS) will set my glory among the heathen,(WORLD NATIONS) and all the heathen (WORLD NATIONS) shall see my judgment that I have executed,(AGAINST ISRAELS ENEMIES) and my (GODS) hand that I have laid upon them.(ISRAELS HATER ENEMIES)
JEREMEIAH 49:35-37 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR OR ARAK NUKE SITE SOME BELIEVE)
35 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN/BUSHEHR NUCLEAR SITE) the chief of their might.(MOST DANGEROUS NUKE SITE IN IRAN)
36 And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven,(IRANIANS SCATTERED OR MASS IMIGARATION) and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(WORLD IMMIGRATION)
37 For I will cause Elam (IRAN-BUSHEHR NUKE SITE) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(ISRAELS NUKES POSSIBLY) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(IRAN AND ITS NUKE SITES DESTROYED)
Russia and Iran said to be in talks for major oil deal-An agreement to export oil to Russia would mean billions for Tehran, and likely trigger US sanctions against Moscow-By Bradley Klapper April 8, 2014, 1:00 pm 1-The Times of Israel
WASHINGTON (AP) — Reports of multi-billion dollar oil talks between Iran and Russia are emerging as the latest obstacle to a comprehensive pact eliminating the threat of an Iranian nuclear arsenal. The Obama administration is weighing potentially deal-breaking sanctions if a contract is completed.
The Russian business daily Kommersant has reported Russia plans to buy 500,000 barrels of Iranian oil a day, shattering an export limit under the interim nuclear agreement world powers and Iran reached last year. Moscow and Tehran are far from finalizing the contract, the newspaper said, but the US has expressed alarm.A senior US official said the administration had no information to suggest the oil-for-goods contract had been reached.The arrangement would break the interim agreement reached in November in Geneva and “potentially trigger US sanctions,” said the official, who was not authorized to be quoted by name and briefed reporters on condition of anonymity. But the official didn’t say the deal would force the US to slap new economic sanctions on Iran — a move that would likely wreck the entire diplomatic process with Tehran.Critics of the Obama administration’s outreach to Iran want a clear marker outlined.In a letter to the president Monday, Congress’ leading sanctions drafters said the US must re-impose all penalties on Iran suspended under the interim pact if Russia and Iran move forward. “We urge you to put Iran on notice,” said Senators Bob Menendez, a Democrat, and Mark Kirk, a Republican.Senator Bob Corker, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s top Republican, said Iran and Russia were testing America’s resolve. “The administration must be prepared to restore all sanctions if Iran cheats,” he said.The six-month interim agreement, which went into effect in January and expires in July, allows Iran to continue exporting a total of 1 million barrels a day of oil to six countries: China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Turkey. Washington pledged no financial penalties against them as long as they weren’t boosting purchases.But the promise didn’t apply to Russia, which wasn’t an existing customer of Iran’s petroleum industry. And the Obama administration has been raising its concern with Moscow for months about any moves that would lessen the economic pressure on Iran, including in discussions between Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.Any concrete progress on the oil-for-goods proposal would put President Barack Obama in a bind. If he publicly threatens too forceful a response, he risks opening up a new rift with Russia at a time the two countries are trying to maintain cooperation on nuclear and other matters even as they go through one of the worst crises in decades related to Russia’s takeover of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.But if the president and his administration fail to dissuade Russia and Iran from moving forward, the interim agreement that forms the basis of America’s ongoing diplomacy with Iran would be undermined. The US and the United Nations say Iran is living up to its commitments thus far, and officials have expressed increased belief a final deal may be taking shape, averting the possibility of a future military confrontation.The Russian-Iranian oil deal could provide Tehran with billions of dollars, according to experts, softening the blow of years of US and international sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy and helped end more than a decade of deadlock in nuclear negotiations. Iran insists its program is solely for peaceful power production.Mark Dubowitz, a leading sanctions proponent with the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the barter should trigger immediate US sanctions against Russia and Iran.Dubowitz said his understanding was that Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed earlier this year not to move on the deal until August, after the interim agreement would in theory be replaced by a final accord. But he said Putin’s assurance came before the Crimean crisis and may no longer hold.If the Obama administration were to unblock suspended sanctions or adopt new ones, nuclear diplomacy with Iran likely would fall apart. For that reason it opposed an effort earlier this year by Menendez, Kirk and other senators to adopt new, conditional sanctions on Iran to go into effect if Iran violated the interim agreement or let it expire without a follow-up accord.US, Iranian and international negotiators will start drafting a final agreement next month, the senior US official said last week in a surprisingly optimistic assessment. The official said negotiators hoped to clinch the pact before July 20, without need for a further six-month extension of the interim agreement, as many had envisioned.Citing unidentified sources close to the Russian government, Kommersant said a Russian-registered oil trader without an international presence would be tasked with purchasing the Iranian oil. The objective would be to limit Russia’s exposure to US economic pressure that could be applied to a global player like state-controlled oil giant Rosneft.Still, it would be difficult for Russia to gain immediate access to the petroleum since most Iranian oilfields are far from the Caspian Sea through which the oil could be shipped, and lack the infrastructure to ensure deliveries.
US holds military exercise in Romania
Today @ 08:59-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
US and Romanian air forces will hold a joint exercise, focusing on the "readiness to conduct combined air operations," the US government said it a statement. It added that the "exercise was planned prior to the current situation in Ukraine." Romania, an EU and Nato member, borders Ukraine.
Gazprom may block EU plans to help Ukraine with gas
Today @ 08:59-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
Gazprom may deal a blow to EU plans to supply Ukraine with gas via "reverse flows" - Russian gas arriving to Hungary and Slovakia being sent back to Ukraine. Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller told NTV that reverse flows without Gazprom's permission would be illegal, as the gas comes from Russia.
Swedish intelligence agency concerned by Russia actions
Today @ 10:32-APR 8,14-By EUOBSERVER
Sweden's intelligence agency has said "war preparations" by Russia are currently the most serious threat it sees in its regular security assessments, report the WSJ. "We see increased Russian intelligence activity at the moment because of what is happening in Ukraine and in Crimea," analsyt Wilhelm Unge told Swedish radio.
Ukraine ends one pro-Russia occupation but others persist
By Thomas Grove and Lina Kuschch 10 minutes ago-APR 8,14-Yahoonews
LUHANSK/DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Ukrainian police cleared pro-Moscow protesters from a regional administration building in a lightning night-time operation, but others held out in two more eastern cities on Tuesday in what Kiev says is a Russian-led plan to dismember the country.Shots were fired, a grenade thrown and 70 people detained as officers ended the occupation in the city of Kharkiv during an 18 minute "anti-terrorism" action, the interior ministry said.But elsewhere in Ukraine's mainly Russian-speaking industrial heartland, activists armed with Kalashnikov rifles and protected by barbed wire barricades vowed there was no going back on their demand - a vote on returning to Moscow rule.In the city of Luhansk, a man dressed in camouflage told a crowd outside an occupied state security building: "We want a referendum on the status of Luhansk and we want Russian returned as an official language.""We will not let fascism pass," he shouted, leading the crowd in chants of "Russia! Russia!".Ukraine says the seizure of public buildings in eastern regions on Sunday night is a replay of events in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula Moscow annexed last month after a referendum staged when Russian troops were already in control.Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed Western accusations that Moscow was destabilising Ukraine, saying the situation could improve only if Kiev took into account the interests of Russian-speaking regions.But Britain expressed fears that Russia wanted to disrupt the run-up to presidential elections next month in Ukraine, which has been ruled by an interim government since the overthrow of Moscow-backed president Viktor Yanukovich in February.Ukraine, which was controlled by Moscow until the Soviet Union collapsed more than two decades ago, has been in turmoil since late last year when Yanukovich rejected closer relations with the European Union and tilted the country back towards Russia. That provoked mass protests in which more than 100 people were killed by police and which drove Yanukovich from office, leading to Kiev's loss of control in Crimea.In Kiev, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov partly pinned responsibility for the Kharkiv occupation on Russian President Vladimir Putin. "All this was inspired and financed by the Putin-Yanukovich group," he said.An aide said police went in when the protesters failed to give themselves up and surrender their arms. Officers did not open fire, despite shooting and the grenade attack from the other side, he said. One police officer was badly wounded and some others less seriously hurt.
NO TURNING BACK
In Luhansk, a city of around 450,000 people, protesters have blocked streets leading to the state security building with barbed wire, piles of tyres, wooden crates, metal police barriers and sandbags. Protesters at the entrance to the building blocked the entrance with metal shields.Andrei, who said he had stormed the building on Sunday but would not give his family name, said the protesters had 200-300 Kalashnikovs and some stun grenades, but there had been no shooting so far."I'll stay here until the end, until victory. Once you've taken up arms, there's no turning back. We will stay until the authorities agree to hold a referendum on the status of Luhansk," he said.Andrei said he had sent his family to Russia after Yanukovich fled. "They couldn't stay here. I knew what would happen after the bandits took over, I knew it would only lead to war. And war is what we're getting," he said.A standoff also continued in the mining center of Donetsk, Yanukovich's home base, where a group of pro-Russian deputies inside the main regional authority building on Monday declared a separatist republic.Unlike in Kharkiv, there was no clear sign that further police operations were imminent in the other two cities. "We hope the buildings occupied in Donetsk and Luhansk will soon be freed," acting president Oleksander Turchinov said.Russia has warned Kiev against using force to end the occupations but authorities may anyway have decided not to give Moscow an excuse to intervene, holding back in the hope that the protests will fizzle out.
MASS DISORDER
In London, Foreign Secretary William Hague said the occupations bore "all the hallmarks of a Russian strategy to destabilise Ukraine".The West has expressed concern about what it says has been a buildup of Russian forces along the border with Ukraine. Moscow has said the troops are merely taking part in exercises but NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen urged caution."If Russia were to intervene further in Ukraine it would be a historic mistake," he told a news conference in Paris. "It would have grave consequences for our relationship with Russia and would further isolate Russia internationally."Lavrov denied responsibility for the trouble in Russian-speaking areas of Ukraine. "One should not seek to put the blame on someone else," he told a new conference in Moscow.Turchinov said on Monday that Moscow was attempting to repeat "the Crimea scenario" in which pro-Russian forces seized the local parliament and bulldozed through the referendum, clearing the way for Russia to annex the peninsula.Unlike in Crimea, where ethnic Russians form a majority, most people in the east and south are ethnically Ukrainian, although they speak Russian as a first language.The dispute has raised fears that Russia might restrict its gas supplies to Ukraine's crippled economy. Russian producer Gazprom confirmed Ukraine had failed to pay for its March supplies but did not say whether it would take any action against Kiev.Gazprom cut off supplies to Kiev during price disputes in the winters of 2008/2009 and 2005/2006, disrupting the flow of Russian gas to the EU that is carried via Ukraine. Gazprom said gas transit via Ukraine to Europe remained stable on Tuesday.So far the United States and EU have imposed only mild economic sanctions over the Crimean annexation. However, First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov said Russian companies listed on foreign stock exchanges should consider re-listing in Moscow. "This is a question of economic security for them," Interfax news agency quoted him as telling reporters.(Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska, Jason Bush, Vladimir Soldatkin and Denis Pinchuk in Moscow; William James and Kylie MacLellan in London; John Irish in Paris; Writing By Richard Balmforth and David Stamp; Editing by Giles Elgood)
Donetsk seizure raises concern of Ukraine escalation
07.04.14 @ 09:29-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - A Crimea-type operation in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, on Sunday (6 April) has raised concerns Russia is about to escalate the crisis.Some 200 masked men from a group calling itself the “Rossiyskiy Sektor” used stun grenades to force their way into the local government building in the city, before erecting barricades outside and calling for a referendum on the Donetsk region’s independence.Pro-Russian separatists the same day attacked local government buildings in Kharkiv and Luhansk.The actions come amid Russia’s ongoing military build-up on Ukraine’s eastern and northern borders. The Russian foreign ministry on Sunday also claimed it has “sacks of letters” from Russian speakers in Ukraine asking for protection.Meanwhile, on the economic front, Russia has threatened to cut off Ukraine’s gas on Monday unless it agrees to almost double the price and to start paying an $11 billion debt.“[Russian leader] Putin and [Ukraine’s former leader] Yanukovych ordered and paid for the latest wave of separatist disorder in the east of the country. The people who have gathered are not many but they are very aggressive," Ukraine’s acting interior minister, Arsen Avakov, said.“This seems to be a repeat of the Crimean scenario,” Oleksandr Lytvynenko, Ukraine’s deputy national security chief, noted, referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s Crimea region in February.Sunday’s developments come after EU foreign ministers at a meeting in Athens on Friday and Saturday urged Russia not to go further."It is really important that Russia shows that it is serious about the de-escalation by moving troops back," EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said.She noted that “work is ongoing” on economic sanctions against Russia in the worst case scenario. But the EU ministers also held out an olive branch.German FM Frank-Walter Steinmeier reassured Moscow the EU-Ukraine association pact is “not a pre-stage for [EU] membership talks.” He said the EU and Russia should create a “contact group” to defuse the situation.Ashton and Greek FM Evangelos Venizelos, who hosted the event, also underlined the need to keep open “channels of communication” with Moscow.The tone changed on Sunday, however.Commenting on Donetsk, Swedish FM Carl Bildt corroborated Avakov and Lytvynenko’s account. “Sunday pattern that pro-Russian thugs try to stir up trouble in eastern Ukraine. Heavily supported by Kremlin propaganda machine. And more,” he said on Twitter.The Czech President, Miloz Zeman, told Czech Radio: “The moment Russia decides to widen its territorial expansion to the eastern part of Ukraine … I would plead not only for the strictest EU sanctions, but even for military readiness of the North Atlantic Alliance, like for example Nato forces entering Ukrainian territory.”From the other side of the Atlantic, the US’ former ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, noted: “New violence in eastern Ukraine shows that Putin has no interest in a stable Ukraine. This struggle will be a long one.”The new US ambassador to the EU, Anthony Luzzatto Gardner, said earlier on Friday: “It [Russia’s annexation of Crimea] is just the beginning of the story.”
Iran, powers seek to narrow gaps in new round of nuclear talks
By Justyna Pawlak and Parisa Hafezi 3 hours ago-APR 8,14-Yahoonews
VIENNA (Reuters) - Iran and six world powers began a new round of talks on Tuesday aimed at settling the dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme by late July, despite wide differences on how to attain that goal.The powers want Iran to scale back its uranium enrichment activity to deny it any capability to quickly produce an atomic bomb, if it decided on such a course. Iran says its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and wants them to lift sanctions.Chief negotiators from Iran, the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia started a two-day meeting around 9:45 a.m. at the U.N. complex in Vienna, where they have held two previous such sessions since February."We are involved in very detailed and substantial negotiations and we are trying as hard as we can to drive the process forward," the spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, who coordinates the discussions on behalf of the powers, told reporters.Both sides say they want to start drafting a comprehensive agreement in May, some two months before a July 20 deadline for finalising the accord. Western official say, however, that the parties are still far apart on key issues."What matters most to us is that there is a good agreement. Clearly we want to make progress as fast as possible but the most important thing is the quality of the agreement," Ashton's spokesman, Michael Mann, said."It has to be a good agreement that everyone is happy with. So we will work as hard was we can to achieve that."Iranian and U.S. negotiators are wary that any deal will face criticism from conservative hardliners at home wedded to confrontation since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution. The six nations have agreed internally to have a draft text of an accord by the end of May or early June, one diplomat from the powers said, adding however: "We're still in an exploratory phase ... In the end, things will happen in July."Tuesday's opening session was chaired by Ashton and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, but their deputies later took over.
ENRICHMENT, ARAK
The Islamic Republic says its enrichment programme is a peaceful bid to generate electricity and has ruled out shutting any of its nuclear facilities.The United States and some other Western countries have accused it of working on developing a nuclear bomb capability. Israel has threatened to attack its long-time foe Iran if diplomatic efforts fail. Iran says it is Israel's assumed atomic arsenal that threatens peace and stability in the Middle East.The diplomat said issues to be discussed at the April 8-9 meeting included how the United Nations nuclear watchdog would verify whether Iran was meeting its end of any deal, suspected past atomic bomb research by Tehran, and how to deal with U.N. Security Council resolutions on Iran adopted since 2006.A senior Iranian negotiator, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, said major issues discussed in previous meetings - Iran's level of uranium enrichment and a heavy-water nuclear reactor project at Arak - would also be debated.Refined uranium can be used to fuel nuclear power plants, Iran's stated purpose, but can also provide material for a bomb, which the West suspects may be Tehran's ultimate aim. The Arak reactor, once operational, can yield plutonium - another weapons-usable fissile material - but Iran says it only intends to use it for medical and agricultural research ends.The goal of the negotiations begun almost two months ago is to hammer out a long-term deal to define the permissible scope of Iran's nuclear programme in return for an end to sanctions that have hobbled the OPEC country's economy.In November, the two sides agreed an interim accord curbing some Iranian enrichment activities in exchange for some easing of sanctions. This six-month deal, which took effect on January 20, was designed to buy time for talks on a final accord. The talks can be extended by another half-year if both sides agree to do so, and negotiate the content of an extension deal.(Additional reporting by Fredrik Dahl and Louis Charbonneau, Editing by Mark Heinrich)
Syria: Iran sends 30,000 tons of food supplies
27 minutes ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syrian state media say Iran has sent 30,000 tons of food supplies to help President Bashar Assad's government deal with shortages amid civil war.State TV said Tuesday that the massive shipment has arrived at a port on the Mediterranean Sea.The aid is part of Iran's broader support for Assad as he prepares to run for a third presidential term while his troops fight rebels trying to oust him.Iran has been Assad's major backer, lending Damascus military support through its proxy Hezbollah group and advising the government on strategy to fight the opposition. Tehran has also been pumping funds into Syria to save the country's battered economy from collapsing.Last May, Iran opened a credit line of $3.6 billion for Syria, enabling Assad's government to buy oil products.
Turkey's Erdogan vows to 'liquidate' treachery at home and abroad
By Jonny Hogg and Gulsen Solaker 23 minutes ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday local elections had given him a mandate to "liquidate" the enemies he sees as contriving a corruption scandal and would go after their international activities and sources of funding.In his first parliamentary speech since his ruling AK Party dominated March 30 municipal polls, Erdogan said "traitors" responsible for a stream of graft allegations and the illegal tapping of thousands of phones would be brought to account.Erdogan accuses Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former ally now based in the United States, of orchestrating the graft scandal to undermine him. Gulen's Hizmet network claims millions of followers and holds influence in the police and judiciary. Erdogan has accused the movement of running a "parallel state", spying on thousands of government officials over years and leaking manipulated recordings in a bid to unseat him ahead of last month's elections."March 30 is the day when the page was turned on tutelage, when the monuments of hubris were felled, and the privileges (of an elite) were lost forever," Erdogan said."The nation gave us a mandate for the liquidation of the parallel state. We will not have the slightest hesitation. We shall never forget the betrayal," he said.He said the government would follow up on what he called the network's international links and investigate all "illegally collected monies and donations".The movement, also known as Cemaat (JEH-maat), "The Community", has for decades been a spearhead of Turkish cultural influence and commerce overseas, especially in the assertive moves into Africa, the Middle East and Asia in the years after the AK Party took power in 2002.Cemaat says the Turkish government is already putting pressure on governments to close down its global network of schools which have been a major source of influence and revenue. Government officials say Turkish embassies have stopped backing schools and business linked to Gulen.Hizmet denies using followers in the police and judiciary to launch a graft inquiry targeting Erdogan family members, ministers and businessmen, or any involvement in the illicit recording of top officials. Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party relied on Hizmet to break the grip on politics of the army, which carried out three coups between 1960 and 1980 and forced an Islamist-led government from power in 1997. But he now casts the fight with Hizmet as a continuation of that struggle against tutelage in any form, the final chapter in a battle for democracy and justice."They will answer before the courts. But not in front of their parallel courts; they will answer before the court of the nation," Erdogan said.
PRESIDENTIAL AMBITION
Erdogan has made little secret of his ambition to take up a powerful presidency, but such is his determination to finish the battle with Gulen that it remains unclear whether he will run in the first direct elections for the post in August.He is barred by AK Party rules from standing for a fourth term as prime minister, currently a more powerful role than the largely ceremonial presidency; but the party could amend those rules with relative ease if it feels his leadership is needed to see out the feud with Gulen, senior officials have said.Erdogan would seek to shape the presidency as a more powerful role than that played by incumbent Abdullah Gul. Erdogan was quoted on Tuesday as saying the direct election of the next president would automatically bestow the role with greater powers."The responsibilities will be different after these elections. It will not be a president of protocol, but one that sweats, runs around, works hard," he was quoted as saying by the pro-government Sabah newspaper.Until now, Turkey's parliament has elected the head of state. Gul is a close Erdogan ally and co-founder of the AK Party, tipped as a possible prime minister if Erdogan were to run for what he would shape as the top job.Erdogan had long wanted to change the constitution and create an executive presidency, but political opposition to such a move has checked those plans for now.There are also some doubts that Erdogan, for all his popularity among conservative AK Party voters, could win the 50 percent plus he would need in a second round as he is a divisive figure who would struggle to pick up opposition support.Erdogan's opponents fear that his election to the presidency could exacerbate what they see as his authoritarian tendencies.The government has already dismissed or reassigned thousands of police officers and tightened control over the Internet and judiciary in response to the corruption scandal.It also blocked access to Twitter and YouTube after audio recordings, purportedly showing corruption in Erdogan's inner circle, were leaked on social media. Reuters has not been able to verify their authenticity.The block on Twitter was lifted after the constitutional court ruled that it breached freedom of expression - a decision Erdogan said on Tuesday was wrong and should be overturned - while YouTube still remains largely blocked.(Additional reporting by Ayse Sarioglu in Ankara, Ece Toksabay and Seda Sezer in Istanbul; Writing by Nick Tattersall; editing by Ralph Boulton)
In Egypt, women still have a long way to go-Despite gains on paper thanks to a new constitution, women’s right’s activists say there has been little progress-By Laura Dean April 8, 2014, 12:29 pm-The Times of Israel
CAIRO (AP) — Women activists say they won a major step forward with Egypt’s new constitution, which enshrined greater rights for women. But months after its passage, they’re worrying whether those rights will be implemented or will turn out to be merely ink on paper.The causes for concern are many. Men hold an overwhelming near-lock on decision-making in politics, and activists say they are doing little to bring about equality. Violence against women in public space has grown over the past three years of turmoil since the 2011 ouster of autocrat Hosni Mubarak. And some activists say the increasingly repressive political climate is stifling chances for democratic reforms that would bring women’s rights.An incident in March underlined how far activists say they still need to go to change public attitudes. After a female student at Cairo University came under mass sexual assault by male students, the university’s president, Gaber Nassar, criticized her for the way she was dressed. A well-known TV presenter, Tamir Amin, went on a tirade on his show, saying the student was “dressed like a belly dancer.” She was wearing black pants, a long-sleeved pink shirt and a head-scarf.Amid an uproar on social media, both Nassar and Amin apologized for their comments. But Amin still went on to say women should wear “appropriate” clothing when they go out.The following week, a law criminalizing sexual harassment was referred to the presidency for review, though the text has yet to be released.There have been multiple mass sexual assaults on women during protests the past three years. In one notorious incident in 2011, security forces dragged a female protester to the ground, pulled up her top to reveal her blue bra and stomped on her chest. Other female protesters at the time were forced to undergo humiliating “virginity tests” when detained by the military.Women have also been caught up in the violence since the military ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi last summer and security forces launched a heavy crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamists. Last weekend, a 22-year-old female journalist, Mayada Ashraf, with the newspaper Al-Dustour, was shot to death while she covered clashes between police and Morsi supporters in the Cairo district of Ein Shams. Police have arrested 20 protesters, accusing them of shooting her — but witnesses have raised questions whether it was actually security forces who killed her.Around 50 other women were among hundreds killed during clashes since the violent dispersal of the pro-Morsi protest camps on August 14, and around 240 are among the 16,000 people arrested in the crackdown on Morsi’s followers, according to security officials. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to journalists.Violence is a “very intimidating weapon” against women participating in public life, said Dalia Abdel-Hameed, gender rights researcher with the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, an independent rights group.More broadly, the crackdown has fueled at atmosphere where criticism is not tolerated. Secular pro-democracy activists and prominent figures critical of the military-backed interim government have been jailed and are on trial for breaking laws barring unlicensed protests. In the media, critics of the government are muted, which has an impact on calls in general for democratic reform, including for women’s rights.“If there is no democratic climate, how would you benefit from these beautiful laws?” said Abdel-Hameed. “It will be the same as under Mubarak: you have a beautiful law but it’s not implemented.”Women activists fought hard for gains in the constitution passed in a January referendum, which was a rewrite of a 2012 constitution largely drafted by Islamists during Morsi’s one-year presidency.The document explicitly enshrines equality between the sexes and women’s rights to education, work and high political office. It criminalizes violence against women and discrimination on any basis, including gender. It allows women to confer nationality on their children and holds Egypt’s government responsible for international obligations under treaties it has ratified, including the Convention to Eliminate all forms of Discrimination Against Women.“It’s not just more progressive than the 2012 constitution, it’s more progressive than the 1971 constitution from the gender perspective,” said Salma el-Naqqash, a member of the Nazra Institute for Feminist Studies.
The provisions are already being tested.
Women have only been allowed to be judges since 2007, and the new constitution guarantees their right to hold high positions in the judiciary. Yet a 2010 court decision barred women judges from the State Council, a powerful judicial body that regulates disputes between individuals and the state and reviews legislation.After several women were rejected for membership on the council, Mervat Tallawy, head of the state’s National Council for Women, said that in January she wrote to the State Council demanding it take on women judges in light of the constitution.The Council replied by saying her letter “violated appropriateness and manners” and it sought criminal action against the National Council for Women.Speaking to a conference last month, Tallawy said the “the mentality of the decision-makers . in the current government and the future government as well” is the main obstacle to the carrying out the promises of the constitution.She pointed to the low representation of women in government. Women, for example, held only two percent of the seats in the last parliament, the lowest in the Arab world. Past parliaments as well have usually seen single-digit percentages of women lawmakers.“We are angry with the government, with legislators, with the parties, with all officials. We want 150 women in parliament,” she said. “We’re tired of the government and officials . we’ll go to the street,” she said.El-Naqqash said there is a series of concrete steps she wants to see in the near future — the creation of a Commission on Discrimination with real judicial power, particularly to hold the state accountable, as called for under the constitution; more women judges; an electoral law that guarantees the presence of women in parliament and local council, through a party list system with alternating men and women on the list; and the nullification of the draconian protest law, which bars all political gatherings without prior police permission.She also says gender issues should be mainstreamed across all government bodies. For example, the Interior Ministry should activate a unit specialized in fighting violence against women and “the health sector should take into account reproductive rights. Health clinics should provide contraception and treatment for STDs (sexually transmitted diseases).”But, she adds, “women’s issues are never a priority for anyone.”She noted that parts of the constitution may make enforcing the women’s rights provisions harder. For example, the charter increases the power of the judiciary over its own affairs, protecting it from political interference but also isolating it from any criticism or reform.“They are giving a lot of immunity to the judiciary to the point that it will make it very hard to realize these rights and freedoms,” she said. “You cannot hold them accountable for enforcing these rights.”
Hagel, Chang air differences over disputed islands
By LOLITA C. BALDOR 1 hour ago-APR 8,14-YahooNews
BEIJING (AP) — The defense chiefs of China and the U.S. faced off Tuesday over Beijing's escalating territorial disputes in the region, with U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and telling his Chinese counterparts they do not have the right to unilaterally establish an air defense zone over disputed islands, with no consultation.And he said America will protect Japan, the Philippines and other allies locked in disputes with China, as laid out in U.S. treaty obligations.Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan said his country will not take the initiative to stir up troubles with Japan, but warned that Beijing is ready to use its military if needed to safeguard its territory. And he said the U.S. must "stay vigilant" against Japan's actions and "not be permissive and supportive" of Tokyo.Washington has criticized Beijing's recent declaration of an air defense zone over a large swath of the East China Sea, including disputed remote islands controlled by Japan but also claimed by China. Hagel was in Japan earlier this week, reassuring its leaders of ongoing U.S. support.In their remarks Tuesday, Hagel and Chang largely aired their countries' well-known positions about the territorial disputes, although doing it for the first time in China, shoulder to shoulder, after nearly two hours of meetings."Every nation has a right to establish an air defense zone, but not a right to do it unilaterally with no collaboration, no consultation. That adds to tensions, misunderstandings, and could eventually add to, and eventually get to, dangerous conflict," said Hagel, pointing his finger toward television cameras and photographers at the back of the room, as shutters clicked.For his part, Chang said China stands ready to resolve the disputes diplomatically. But he made it clear that China is always ready to respond militarily to threats.Chang also complained that the Philippines illegally occupies part of China's islands and reefs in the South China Sea..He told Hagel, "We will make no compromise, no concession, no trading, not even a tiny ... violation is allowed."On a broader scale, the meeting focused on how the U.S. and China can build stronger ties, in the wake of years of frosty relations over Beijing's military buildup, persistent cyber-attacks against U.S. government agencies and private industry, and the aggressive Chinese territorial claims.Washington says it takes no side on the sovereignty issue of the islands but will defend Japan and the Philippines. But it also has refused to recognize the air defense zone or follow China's demands that its aircraft file flight plans with Beijing's Defense Ministry and heed Chinese instructions.The Pentagon chief also pressed China on North Korea, saying that Washington and Beijing have a shared interest "in achieving a verifiable, irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."North Korea has been escalating its rhetoric lately, threatening additional missile and nuclear tests and conducting a series of ballistic missile launches.Later Tuesday, at the People's Liberation Army's National Defense University, Hagel gave a speech to about 120 colonels and other staff officers, and was more direct, challenging China to play a more constructive role in North Korea.Continuing to support the Pyongyang regime, he said, "will only hurt China's international standing" and it's position in the region.In the defense university speech, Hagel also pointed to cybersecurity as an area where the U.S. wants the Chinese to be more transparent.As proof that the U.S. has tried to be more open, he revealed publicly for the first time that the Pentagon gave Chinese government officials a briefing on the doctrine that governs the use of the military's cyber capabilities. And he urged China to do the same.It has not. And Chang, when asked about the issue, said the PLA abides by the law in its cyber operations and will not pose a threat to others. He added that China "stands ready to deepen the communication with the U.S." on cyber.While the disagreements between the U.S. and China were starkly evident during the day's events, there also was an underlying current of slowly growing cooperation.The two countries interests outweigh their differences, said Chang, adding that "The Pacific is huge enough to hold both China and the U.S."They also outlined several new agreements."Our vision is a future where our militaries can work closely together on a range of challenges, such as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions. However, to reach this objective, we must be candid about issues where we disagree," Hagel said.He said the two countries have agreed to conduct a joint military medical exercise, although no date was set.And Hagel said that Washington and Beijing will establish formal procedures that will allow their armies to better communicate and also set up an Asia-Pacific Security Dialogue between the assistant defense secretary for the Asia Pacific and China's director of the Ministry of National Defense Foreign Affairs Office, so they also can more easily exchange views.The United States' campaign to encourage China to be more open about its military growth and intentions got a symbolic boost Monday as Hagel received a rare tour of the country's first aircraft carrier. But efforts to get the Asian giant to be more transparent about cyber attacks and other defense operations have been less successful.
EU court scraps data surveillance law
Today @ 11:31-APR 8,14-EUOBSERVER-By Andrew Rettman
BRUSSELS - The EU court in Luxembourg has struck down a law on internet and phone surveillance, saying its loose wording opens the door to untoward snooping on private lives.It said in its verdict on Tuesday (8 April) the “data retention directive” constitutes a “particularly serious interference with the fundamental rights to respect for private life and to the protection of personal data” in Europe.It also said Europeans are likely to feel “their private lives are the subject of constant surveillance” if the bill is left intact.The directive, passed in 2006, has already been transcribed into national law in most member states.It obliges internet and phone companies to store data on who contacts whom, when, how often, and from which locations, for between six months and two years so that government agencies can use it to hunt down “serious crime”.The ruling means the EU directive is null and void. Individual EU countries can still keep the national measures in place if they want, but they are likely to see a flood of legal challenges if they do.Tuesday’s verdict comes after Austria and Ireland asked the EU tribunal to intervene following challenges by rights groups, local governments, and, in Austria, by 11,130 private applicants.The court said the definition of “serious crime” is too “general.”It criticised the indiscriminate nature of surveillance targets because it “applies even to persons for whom there is no evidence capable of suggesting that their conduct might have a link, even an indirect or remote one, with serious crime”.It complained that access to the information is “not made dependent on the prior review by a court or by an independent administrative body”.It also complained that the law “does not ensure the irreversible destruction of the data at the end of the retention period” and “does not require that the data be retained within the EU,” opening the door to security breaches from outside Europe.Jan Philip Albrecht, a German Green MEP at the heart of European Parliament law-making on data issues, described the verdict as “a major victory for civil rights in Europe”. “Today's ruling is even more embarrassing for the German federal government and the EU commission, who continue to advocate in favour of data retention and other types of unfounded, unjustified blanket surveillance, for example through the air passenger data system,” he added.Joe McNamee, the director of European Digital Rights, a Brussels-based NGO, noted: "After eight years, this affront to the fundamental rights of European citizens has finally been declared illegal.”The European Commission was not available for comment on Tuesday morning amid a crisis meeting in its press service.An EU official told EUobserver one option is to table a new version of the directive taking into account the court’s objections. But any new bill will take years to put together, and any work is unlikely to begin before the summer recess.The contact added: “The commission has fined some member states for not transposing the measures quickly enough. So does this mean they will have to give the money back?”Meanwhile, EU justice commissioner Viviane Reding did not wait for the executive to draft a common line.“Glad #CJEU confirmed: we need independent #DataProtection authorities to uphold fundamental rights,” she tweeted.“#CJEU confirms: #security not a 'super right' overruling the protection of personal data,” she added.
EARTHQUAKES
ISAIAH 42:15
15 I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools.
MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places,(DIFFERNT PLACES AT THE SAME TIME) and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
1 Day, Magnitude 2.5+ Worldwide
39 earthquakes - DownloadUpdated: 2014-04-08 09:08:37 UTC-04:00Showing event times using Local System Time (UTC-04:00)39 earthquakes in map area
4.5 Kuril Islands 2014-04-08 08:41:21 UTC-04:00 79.6 km
4.5 106km S of Taron, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-08 07:18:07 UTC-04:00 41.5 km
4.4 100km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 06:30:42 UTC-04:00 14.6 km
5.7 87km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 06:14:32 UTC-04:00 7.0 km
3.3 140km NNE of Vieques, Puerto Rico 2014-04-08 05:09:58 UTC-04:00 77.0 km
4.5 3km E of Sayula de Aleman, Mexico 2014-04-08 05:08:17 UTC-04:00 58.3 km
4.5 78km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 03:55:22 UTC-04:00 15.1 km
2.8 71km WSW of Redoubt Volcano, Alaska 2014-04-08 02:25:40 UTC-04:00 100.0 km
5.2 61km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:43:56 UTC-04:00 17.1 km
5.0 65km WSW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:40:47 UTC-04:00 16.2 km
5.0 82km WNW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-08 01:20:21 UTC-04:00 17.3 km
3.2 39km E of Ensenada, Mexico 2014-04-07 21:59:13 UTC-04:00 13.1 km
4.6 65km NW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 21:03:02 UTC-04:00 26.8 km
2.6 2km SSE of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 18:45:49 UTC-04:00 6.0 km
4.2 135km S of Taron, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-07 18:40:06 UTC-04:00 40.0 km
4.6 109km NNW of Kampungbajo, Indonesia 2014-04-07 18:19:07 UTC-04:00 439.7 km
2.8 4km SSW of Finley, Washington 2014-04-07 17:55:00 UTC-04:00 0.1 km
2.9 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 17:19:24 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
4.7 6km NNW of Ojiya, Japan 2014-04-07 16:07:56 UTC-04:00 13.4 km
4.7 9km ESE of Guillestre, France 2014-04-07 15:27:01 UTC-04:00 10.0 km
2.5 18km S of Aguanga, California 2014-04-07 14:56:07 UTC-04:00 8.4 km
2.7 50km ENE of Alturas, California 2014-04-07 14:50:40 UTC-04:00 16.1 km
2.6 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 14:40:36 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
3.1 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 14:01:42 UTC-04:00 5.3 km
4.9 31km WNW of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 13:46:32 UTC-04:00 29.4 km
4.7 211km SSW of `Ohonua, Tonga 2014-04-07 13:36:36 UTC-04:00 78.4 km
2.8 105km W of Talkeetna, Alaska 2014-04-07 13:28:00 UTC-04:00 100.0 km
4.8 8km NE of Tuban, Philippines 2014-04-07 13:18:44 UTC-04:00 53.8 km
2.8 32km NW of Road Town, British Virgin Islands 2014-04-07 13:12:06 UTC-04:00 31.0 km
2.5 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:52:27 UTC-04:00 5.0 km
2.6 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:41:06 UTC-04:00 5.0 km
4.2 6km SSW of Langston, Oklahoma 2014-04-07 12:03:03 UTC-04:00 5.2 km
5.1 89km W of Tarauaca, Brazil 2014-04-07 11:27:32 UTC-04:00 559.6 km
4.8 87km WSW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2014-04-07 10:30:01 UTC-04:00 82.6 km
5.1 81km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 10:03:43 UTC-04:00 10.0 km
5.4 72km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 09:47:33 UTC-04:00 11.3 km
5.8 76km W of Iquique, Chile 2014-04-07 09:43:20 UTC-04:00 7.9 km
4.7 25km SW of Puerto Madero, Mexico 2014-04-07 09:32:03 UTC-04:00 73.2 km
4.5 39km SSE of Hidalgotitlan, Mexico 2014-04-07 09:22:06 UTC-04:00 142.4 km
