JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Jewish schools among those in UK targeted by bomb threat-No explosive devices found by police after bomb threats called in to seven London locations-By JTA February 8, 2016, 11:59 pm-the times of israel
Jewish schools were among those targeted by bomb threats in the United Kingdom.Bomb threats were called in to seven schools shortly after 8 a.m. Monday. No explosive devices were found in the schools, and none were evacuated, according to reports.The Community Security Trust, Britain’s Jewish community security umbrella, in a tweet advised the Jewish schools to “fully enforce all security procedures.”Some 100 bomb threats have been called into schools throughout the United Kingdom, including many in the London area, in the past month. It is believed the calls are being made from abroad and the issue is being handled at the national level, the UK Jewish News website reported.A London Metropolitan Police spokesman told the Jewish Chronicle that police are not treating calls to Jewish schools differently from the rest. He said, however, “If it looks like it is focusing on faith schools or is inciting hate crime, then we will take a harder approach.”
Joint List slams ‘miserable, anti-democratic’ suspension of its MKs-3 lawmakers say Netanyahu behind their ban for meeting relatives of terrorists killed while attacking Israelis-By Times of Israel staff February 8, 2016, 11:56 pm
The Joint (Arab) List faction reacted furiously Monday to what it branded a “miserable, anti-democratic” decision after the Knesset’s Ethics Committee suspended three of its lawmakers for meeting with the relatives of terrorists killed while attacking Israelis.Hanin Zoabi and Basel Ghattas were suspended for four months, while Jamal Zahalka received a two-month ban. All three lawmakers are from the Balad party of the faction.The Joint List said in a statement that it rejects the Ethics Committee’s decision “through and through,” and “condemns the campaign of incitement orchestrated by [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu,” a campaign “which led to the miserable, anti-democratic and unethical decision by the committee.”The MKs met last Tuesday with Palestinians seeking the return of bodies of their relatives, which were still being held by Israeli authorities.“Even after this suspension, we continue to demand to release the bodies,” the party statement said.The MKs, the statement continued, “have paid a political price for a moral and humane stance, and we will continue to fight against a policy of racism and fascism and for real equality and real democracy, that Netanyahu is trying to destroy with all his might.”The three MKs also separately issued videotaped statements decrying the suspension.Zoabi said the committee’s decision had been predetermined and was the “fruit of Netanyahu’s incitement.” The firebrand lawmaker also accused the prime minister of leading “a wave of fascism and everyone is following in his path.”“There is a politicization of the [Ethics] committee, where colleagues of mine who are not supposed to judge me, judge me according to their ideology,” she said. “This time, the true face of the Zionist left was also exposed, the true face of Meretz was exposed.”Zoabi was apparently referring to the criticism of Tuesday’s meeting by Meretz MK Ilan Gilon, as well as that from lawmakers of the Zionist Union, an amalgamation of Hatnuah and Labor.Zahalka and Ghattas echoed the comments by Zoabi, also accusing the prime minister of driving the ban.“There are no ethics, just politics — politics in the worst sense of the word — by Netanyahu,” Zahalka said. “We will appeal to international courts over the return of the bodies, and also regarding our suspension from the Knesset.”Ghattas called Netanyahu “the high priest of incitement.”Dov Khenin, a Jewish MK from Hadash, another Joint List party, said the committee’s decision showed that “incitement against Arabs is Netanyahu’s strategy to remain in office.”Revital Sweid of the Zionist Union said the meeting with terrorists’ families “touched on the deepest emotions in Israeli society – bereavement and terrorism. With their actions they put wind in the sails of terrorism, especially when they observed a moment of silence for the terrorists.”But MK Avigdor Liberman, head of the hawkish opposition party Yisrael Beytenu, said the Ethics Committee’s penalty was “a joke.”“Instead of giving them the maximum penalty, which is removal from Knesset discussion for six months and withholding their pay, the Ethics Committee made this whole affair a parody. It decided on an non-serious punishment that only shows a flaccid powerlessness,” Liberman said.
Knesset suspends Arab MKs for meeting Palestinian terrorists’ families-Ethics Committee boots Balad’s Zoabi and Ghattas for 4 months and Zahalka for 2 months, but they can still vote in plenum and Knesset panels-By Tamar Pileggi February 8, 2016, 10:21 pm-the times of israel
The Knesset Ethics Committee on Monday banned three Arab MKs from parliamentary activity for several months, following a controversial meeting thy held last week with families of terrorists killed while carrying out attacks on Israelis.Hanin Zoabi and Basel Ghattas were banned for four months, while Jamal Zahalka for two months, Channel 2 TV reported. All three are members of the Balad Party, which merged into the Joint (Arab) List before last year’s parliamentary election.The ban extends to Knesset committee meetings and plenum discussions, but the MKs can vote as usual in parliamentary committees and the plenum.The Ethics Committee said it had taken its decision, following numerous complaints about the three MKs’ behavior, “after receiving their responses in writing, as well as hearing directly from Zahalka.” It said it would publish its detailed reasoning separately.The ban, according to a statement released by the Joint (Arab) List Monday evening, was the result of a “campaign of incitement led by Netanyahu, who has spearheaded this unethical and undemocratic decision.”The faction slammed the disciplinary action as a “vindictive punishment” and said the three MKs had paid a “political price for taking a humane and moral stance.”The parliamentarians insisted they visited the families of the Palestinian assailants solely as part of efforts to secure the release of their bodies for burial. (Israel often delays returning the bodies of attackers until the families pledge to ensure that the funerals will not used as opportunities to incite further violence against Israel.) The three confirmed that they observed a moment of silence at the meeting, drawing ire from other Knesset members from across the political spectrum. Zahalka said subsequently it was a moment of respect “for all the Palestinian dead.”Meanwhile, the coalition on Monday approved legislation, promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the wake of the Arab MKs’ meeting with the families, that could see lawmakers suspended from the Knesset over ethical violations if 90 of the 120 MKs in parliament vote to censure their colleagues for “unseemly behavior.”Analysts said the bill, which must now make it way through a series of Knesset readings if it is to become law, might pass, but that it would prove unimplementable in the current parliament, in which Netanyahu’s coalition numbers just 61 MKs. Zionist Union, Yesh Atid and the Joint (Arab) List opposition parties oppose it, as do some members of the coalition.On Monday afternoon, the prime minister defended the proposed legislation in the Knesset plenum, and praised his coalition for unanimously backing it.Netanyahu said he strongly supports the integration of Arab Israelis into all fields of Israeli society, but it was intolerable that Israeli MKs had “stood in silence to honor terrorists.”“We are not prepared to accept a situation in which MKs support the families of those who murder Israeli citizens. There’s a limit. There’s something called national pride. I wonder what would happen in the British Parliament if a British MP stood for a minute’s silence to honor Jihadi John, or if members of the US Congress stood to honor the California murderer,” he said. “[Those parliaments] would not accept it, and neither will we.”Zahalka responded furiously to the speech, heckling the prime minister with calls of “fascist.” He was eventually ejected from the plenum.Several Arab lawmakers boycotted Monday’s debate on the new legislation, as well as the session in the Knesset Ethics Committee, saying the discussions were an effort to “delegitimize Arab Knesset members and restrict the scope of their political action.”A statement from the Ethics Committee highlighted that Zahalka, who received a more lenient sentence, showed up to Monday’s committee hearing over the case.The Joint List said the ban would not deter their campaign to return the terrorists’ bodies.All three MKs have maintained that the sole goal of their meeting with the families of the attackers, some of whom were terrorists who killed Israeli civilians, was to advance the release of their bodies, which have been held by Israeli authorities, and did not constitute support for terror. However, they acknowledged holding a moment’s silence at the meeting in honor of Palestinian dead, while Ghattas referred to the terrorists as “martyrs” in a subsequent TV interview.Netanyahu has asked the attorney-general to examine whether the three could face criminal prosecution for holding the meeting with the terrorists’ families.Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
PM, Ya’alon said to nix Bennett call to attack Hamas tunnels-Hamas leaders have bragged in recent days that attack tunnels, destroyed by the IDF in 2014, now again reach into Israel-By Times of Israel staff February 8, 2016, 9:46 pm
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon have rejected a call by Education Minister Naftali Bennett for a preemptive Israeli move to destroy Hamas’s tunnel network in Gaza, Channel 2 said Monday.Bennett, the head of the right-wing Jewish Home party and a member of the key decision-making security cabinet, said during a discussion in that forum several weeks ago that Israel should take action against the tunnels before the terror group launches another offensive.Bennett’s office declined to comment on the report, Channel 2 stated.A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday did not confirm or deny that a discussion on the matter took place, but contained a hint of criticism that the matter was leaked — and insinuated that the leak came from Bennett’s staff. “We do not want to comment on cabinet discussions in general and on operative plans by the IDF in particular. All ministers should act responsibly and not try to gain votes with superficial political briefings, which do not reflect the serious, responsible discussions taking place in the cabinet,” the statement said.Numerous reports in recent days have indicated that Hamas has reestablished much of its cross-border terror tunnel infrastructure, destroyed by the Israel Defense Forces in the 2014 war. Hamas leaders, who have seen several operatives killed in a series of tunnel collapses in the past month, have bragged that several tunnels now reach into Israel. Israeli residents living close to Gaza have reported hearing digging noises, and the IDF has sent heavy machinery to the border area to search for tunnels.Last week, IDF Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the coordinator of government activities in the territories, refused to say whether Israel was involved in the tunnel collapses when asked about this by the Palestinian Ma’an news agency. “God knows,” he answered. “I would suggest to the residents of the Gaza Strip not to occupy themselves with the tunnels and to get away from them, especially after seeing the results in recent days,” he added.The views of Ya’alon and Netanyahu on the question of whether to target the tunnels now could easily be gleaned from their public statements of the past few weeks, Channel 2 analyst Udi Segal noted Monday.In an interview with Israel Radio on February 1, the defense minister said: “I think the tunnel threat is well known to us — no one thought they would stop digging or stop arming themselves.” He said that since the end of Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, the army had been “investing greatly in capabilities that remain secret, in both defense and offense.”Two weeks ago, Ya’alon ridiculed a similar proposal made by opposition leader and Zionist Union head Isaac Herzog. Ya’alon said at the time that Israel was not planning to initiate a violent confrontation with Hamas, just as it was not planning to initiate an operation to destroy Hezbollah’s arsenal of missiles or Iran’s ballistic missile program.Bennett has a history of trying to outflank the government on security issues, even though he is a member of the key ministerial forum. Throughout the 2014 Israel-Hamas conflict, he urged harsher action against Gaza’s terrorist rulers.Three weeks ago, Bennett told a conference held by the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv that “the main threat to Israel’s security comes not from the north or south, not from the rockets of Hamas and Hezbollah, and not even from Iran. Nor is diplomatic deadlock our main threat, but a deadlock in our thinking.”A source close to Netanyahu slammed his comments at the time, saying: “It seems there are those who still don’t understand the difference between being a minister in the cabinet and an Internet commenter in the opposition.”“While the IDF, police and Shin Bet are battling terror every day and in every place, cabinet members are expected to take responsibility and contribute to the shared effort — instead of begging for votes by floating slogans and populistic attacks against a government they themselves sit in,” the source added.Times of Israel analyst Avi Issacharoff noted at the weekend, in an article assessing Hamas capabilities and intentions: “The prevailing assumption in Gaza and Israel alike is that Hamas does not want an escalation of conflict at present. Still, before the summer 2014 war, there were those in the Hamas military wing who pushed for a ‘preemptive strike’ via the tunnels; the leadership abroad, headed by Khaled Mashaal, stopped them. Mashaal and his colleagues probably lack the authority nowadays to stop the military wing, which has Muhammad Deif at the helm together with Yahya Sinwar, the meteor in Hamas’s skies.”
Bloomberg confirms he’s considering White House run-Billionaire ex-NY mayor says he’s ‘looking at all options,’ calls presidential race ‘discourse and discussion distressingly banal’-By AFP February 9, 2016, 1:51 am-the times of israel
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York mayor and billionaire media owner, has stated for the first time that he is considering launching a White House bid this year.The move would thoroughly upend a presidential race that has already kicked into high gear, as Republicans and Democrats battle it out for prominence in Tuesday’s crucial New Hampshire primary.Bloomberg, who mulled running in previous elections and has criticized the quality of debate in the 2016 race, told the Financial Times he was “looking at all options” when asked whether he was considering throwing his hat in the ring.“I find the level of discourse and discussion distressingly banal and an outrage and an insult to the voters,” he said, adding that Americans deserved “a lot better.”The comments came after The New York Times reported last month that Bloomberg had instructed advisers to draft plans for a potential independent presidential bid that could see him spend at least $1 billion of his estimated $40 billion fortune.Associates told the Times late last month that Bloomberg was alarmed by the rise of Donald Trump on the extreme right wing of the Republican Party and troubled by Hillary Clinton’s lurch to the left in a bid to contain self-described democratic socialist Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.Bloomberg, 73, is the founder of the eponymous financial news agency.His estimated net worth far exceeds that of Trump, a billionaire real estate magnate whose fortune Forbes puts at $4.5 billion.A pragmatist rather than an ideologue, Bloomberg is driven by results and wedded to statistics. He was a Democrat before turning Republican in 2001 and then switched his affiliation to independent in 2007.His entry could radically re-shape the race and in particular impact Democratic efforts to hold the White House, as experts see him drawing more Democrats than Republicans because of his liberal stance on gun control, abortion and the environment.Trump and Sanders have both said they would relish the opportunity to run against Bloomberg.“I think the American people do not want to see our nation move toward an oligarchy, where billionaires control the political process,” Sanders said last month.Clinton recently called Bloomberg “a good friend” and said she would “relieve him” of the need to enter the race by winning the nomination herself.Bloomberg has set a self-imposed deadline of early March to make a decision.
Controversial NGO transparency bill passes first vote-By 50-43, Knesset advances law which would require organizations to detail funding if over 50% comes from foreign governments-By Times of Israel staff February 9, 2016, 1:09 am
The Knesset on Monday passed the first reading of a controversial NGO transparency bill which seeks to force groups to declare foreign funding.The draft legislation passed with 50 lawmakers voting in favor and 43 against.During a fierce debate in the Knesset ahead of the vote, MK Hanin Zoabi was removed from the podium after exceeding her allotted time. Zoabi defended her decision to meet last week with the families of Palestinian terrorists, speaking just hours after the Knesset ethics committee voted to suspend her and two other Arab MKs.According to the draft legislation, any NGO receiving over 50% of its funding from a foreign government must publicize details of its funding in all official and promotional documents and online.Critics in Israel and overseas say it singles out left-wing groups, since right-wing organizations are primarily funded by private donors, and that it is a veiled effort to silence those organizations, which are often critical of Israeli government policies.Proponents of the bill say it merely improves transparency, and that while forcing the organizations to disclose their funding, it does not restrict their activities.“The proposed rule in Israel on disclosure of NGOs is not anti-democratic. It’s transparency, which is the heart of democracy,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month. “I think when you hear of the use and abuse of NGOs here, that’s the least that we want, transparency, and I think that it’s much warranted. I think it’s just common sense.”The bill’s first reading was postponed in January because of predicted snow storms, then pulled from the agenda on February 1 because of a Knesset schedule overload.
COUNTRIES WITH ISRAEL AND THE ENEMIES OF THE WEST
EZEKIEL 38:10-19
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say,(RUSSIA,ARAB,MUSLIMS) I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 Sheba, and Dedan,(SAUDIA ARABIA)(JORDAN) and the merchants of Tarshish,(ENGLAND) with all the young lions thereof,(USA,CANADA,AUSTRALIA,NEW ZEALAND,EU,ENGLAND,ENGLISH SPEAKING shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
PSALMS 83:3-7 (COUNTRIES AGAINST ISRAEL)(EXCEPT JORDAN)
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
ISRAEL-WEST ENEMIES EZEK 38:4-6,15-19
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts,(RUSSIA-ARAB/MUSLIMS) thou, and many people with thee,(AFRICAN ISLAMIC COUNTRIES) all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?
18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.
19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
DANIEL 11:44 (CHINA WITH RUSSIA-MUSLIMS)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
EZEKIEL 39:1-6 ISRAELS ENEMIES DESTROYED
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
Russian troops put on high alert as part of massive drills-Associated Press By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV-FEB 8,16-YAHOONEWS
MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin has scrambled thousands of troops and hundreds of warplanes across southwestern Russia for large-scale military drills intended to test the troops' readiness amid continuing tensions with the West.Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that military units were put on combat alert early Monday, marking the launch of the exercise that involves troops of the Southern Military District.The district includes troops stationed in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, as well as forces in the North Caucasus and southwestern regions near the border with Ukraine.Shoigu said the maneuvers will also engage airborne troops and military transport aviation, as well as the navy. He noted that the drills are intended to check the troops' ability to respond to extremist threats and other challenges.According to Shoigu, who spoke at a meeting with the top military brass, the war games would include redeployment of air force units to advance air bases and bombing runs at shooting ranges. The maneuvers will test the troops' mobility, with some being deployed to areas up to 3,000 kilometers (1,860 miles) away, the military said.Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said in a statement that up to 8,500 troops, 900 ground weapons, 200 warplanes and about 50 warships will be involved in the drills.The exercises are the latest in a series of major drills intended to strengthen the military's readiness. They have continued despite the nation's economic downturn.Even though a drop in global oil prices has drained the government's coffers and helped drive the economy into recessions, the Kremlin has continued to spend big on the military, funding the purchase of hundreds of new aircraft, tanks and missiles.Russia has demonstrated its resurgent military might with its air campaign in Syria, which helped President Bashar Assad's military win a series of victories in recent weeks. The military used the Syrian operation to test new types of weapons in actual combat for the first time, including long-range air- and sea-launched cruise missiles.The air blitz in Syria has badly strained Russia's relations with Turkey, which shot down a Russian warplane at the border with Syria in November. The latest drills could be part of muscle flexing amid the tensions with Ankara.They also come at a time when a peace deal intended to end fighting between Ukrainian government troops and Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine appears to be in jeopardy amid increasingly frequent clashes in recent weeks.
Moscow slams UN chief for Syria comments-AFP-FEB 8,16-YAHOONEWS
Moscow (AFP) - The Russian foreign ministry on Monday criticised UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon over his claim that Russian air strikes in Syria had undermined last week's peace talks to end the country's five-year war."We have always considered and continue to consider that comments from the chief administrator of an global organisation ... should remain impartial and objective," the ministry said in a statement.Ban had "practically" accused Russia of leading to the collapse of the talks, it added."This is clearly not what happened."UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura last week suspended attempts to begin a dialogue between President Bashar al-Assad's regime and the opposition, as Russia pressed its bombing campaign in the war-torn country.Ban told Britain's The Financial Times newspaper last week that "aerial bombing continued" when the talks began, making it "extremely difficult" for negotiations to take place.Washington had also accused Moscow of being "partly" responsible for torpedoing the Geneva peace talks.One day after the talks broke down, Russia's defence ministry said that air strikes had hit 875 "terrorist targets" in Syria since the start of the month.The strikes backed a major offensive by Syrian government forces and pro-regime fighters in the northern Aleppo region, the defence ministry said.Moscow launched a bombing campaign in Syria last year at Assad's request, saying it was targeting the Islamic State group and other jihadist organisations.The West has accused Russia of targeting more moderate factions that oppose Assad's regime, and Syrian activists say the strikes have killed civilians, allegations Moscow dismisses as "absurd".Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that Moscow would continue the bombing campaign until "terrorist organisations" in Syria are defeated.
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Jewish schools among those in UK targeted by bomb threat-No explosive devices found by police after bomb threats called in to seven London locations-By JTA February 8, 2016, 11:59 pm-the times of israel
Jewish schools were among those targeted by bomb threats in the United Kingdom.Bomb threats were called in to seven schools shortly after 8 a.m. Monday. No explosive devices were found in the schools, and none were evacuated, according to reports.The Community Security Trust, Britain’s Jewish community security umbrella, in a tweet advised the Jewish schools to “fully enforce all security procedures.”Some 100 bomb threats have been called into schools throughout the United Kingdom, including many in the London area, in the past month. It is believed the calls are being made from abroad and the issue is being handled at the national level, the UK Jewish News website reported.A London Metropolitan Police spokesman told the Jewish Chronicle that police are not treating calls to Jewish schools differently from the rest. He said, however, “If it looks like it is focusing on faith schools or is inciting hate crime, then we will take a harder approach.”
Joint List slams ‘miserable, anti-democratic’ suspension of its MKs-3 lawmakers say Netanyahu behind their ban for meeting relatives of terrorists killed while attacking Israelis-By Times of Israel staff February 8, 2016, 11:56 pm
The Joint (Arab) List faction reacted furiously Monday to what it branded a “miserable, anti-democratic” decision after the Knesset’s Ethics Committee suspended three of its lawmakers for meeting with the relatives of terrorists killed while attacking Israelis.Hanin Zoabi and Basel Ghattas were suspended for four months, while Jamal Zahalka received a two-month ban. All three lawmakers are from the Balad party of the faction.The Joint List said in a statement that it rejects the Ethics Committee’s decision “through and through,” and “condemns the campaign of incitement orchestrated by [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu,” a campaign “which led to the miserable, anti-democratic and unethical decision by the committee.”The MKs met last Tuesday with Palestinians seeking the return of bodies of their relatives, which were still being held by Israeli authorities.“Even after this suspension, we continue to demand to release the bodies,” the party statement said.The MKs, the statement continued, “have paid a political price for a moral and humane stance, and we will continue to fight against a policy of racism and fascism and for real equality and real democracy, that Netanyahu is trying to destroy with all his might.”The three MKs also separately issued videotaped statements decrying the suspension.Zoabi said the committee’s decision had been predetermined and was the “fruit of Netanyahu’s incitement.” The firebrand lawmaker also accused the prime minister of leading “a wave of fascism and everyone is following in his path.”“There is a politicization of the [Ethics] committee, where colleagues of mine who are not supposed to judge me, judge me according to their ideology,” she said. “This time, the true face of the Zionist left was also exposed, the true face of Meretz was exposed.”Zoabi was apparently referring to the criticism of Tuesday’s meeting by Meretz MK Ilan Gilon, as well as that from lawmakers of the Zionist Union, an amalgamation of Hatnuah and Labor.Zahalka and Ghattas echoed the comments by Zoabi, also accusing the prime minister of driving the ban.“There are no ethics, just politics — politics in the worst sense of the word — by Netanyahu,” Zahalka said. “We will appeal to international courts over the return of the bodies, and also regarding our suspension from the Knesset.”Ghattas called Netanyahu “the high priest of incitement.”Dov Khenin, a Jewish MK from Hadash, another Joint List party, said the committee’s decision showed that “incitement against Arabs is Netanyahu’s strategy to remain in office.”Revital Sweid of the Zionist Union said the meeting with terrorists’ families “touched on the deepest emotions in Israeli society – bereavement and terrorism. With their actions they put wind in the sails of terrorism, especially when they observed a moment of silence for the terrorists.”But MK Avigdor Liberman, head of the hawkish opposition party Yisrael Beytenu, said the Ethics Committee’s penalty was “a joke.”“Instead of giving them the maximum penalty, which is removal from Knesset discussion for six months and withholding their pay, the Ethics Committee made this whole affair a parody. It decided on an non-serious punishment that only shows a flaccid powerlessness,” Liberman said.
Knesset suspends Arab MKs for meeting Palestinian terrorists’ families-Ethics Committee boots Balad’s Zoabi and Ghattas for 4 months and Zahalka for 2 months, but they can still vote in plenum and Knesset panels-By Tamar Pileggi February 8, 2016, 10:21 pm-the times of israel
The Knesset Ethics Committee on Monday banned three Arab MKs from parliamentary activity for several months, following a controversial meeting thy held last week with families of terrorists killed while carrying out attacks on Israelis.Hanin Zoabi and Basel Ghattas were banned for four months, while Jamal Zahalka for two months, Channel 2 TV reported. All three are members of the Balad Party, which merged into the Joint (Arab) List before last year’s parliamentary election.The ban extends to Knesset committee meetings and plenum discussions, but the MKs can vote as usual in parliamentary committees and the plenum.The Ethics Committee said it had taken its decision, following numerous complaints about the three MKs’ behavior, “after receiving their responses in writing, as well as hearing directly from Zahalka.” It said it would publish its detailed reasoning separately.The ban, according to a statement released by the Joint (Arab) List Monday evening, was the result of a “campaign of incitement led by Netanyahu, who has spearheaded this unethical and undemocratic decision.”The faction slammed the disciplinary action as a “vindictive punishment” and said the three MKs had paid a “political price for taking a humane and moral stance.”The parliamentarians insisted they visited the families of the Palestinian assailants solely as part of efforts to secure the release of their bodies for burial. (Israel often delays returning the bodies of attackers until the families pledge to ensure that the funerals will not used as opportunities to incite further violence against Israel.) The three confirmed that they observed a moment of silence at the meeting, drawing ire from other Knesset members from across the political spectrum. Zahalka said subsequently it was a moment of respect “for all the Palestinian dead.”Meanwhile, the coalition on Monday approved legislation, promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the wake of the Arab MKs’ meeting with the families, that could see lawmakers suspended from the Knesset over ethical violations if 90 of the 120 MKs in parliament vote to censure their colleagues for “unseemly behavior.”Analysts said the bill, which must now make it way through a series of Knesset readings if it is to become law, might pass, but that it would prove unimplementable in the current parliament, in which Netanyahu’s coalition numbers just 61 MKs. Zionist Union, Yesh Atid and the Joint (Arab) List opposition parties oppose it, as do some members of the coalition.On Monday afternoon, the prime minister defended the proposed legislation in the Knesset plenum, and praised his coalition for unanimously backing it.Netanyahu said he strongly supports the integration of Arab Israelis into all fields of Israeli society, but it was intolerable that Israeli MKs had “stood in silence to honor terrorists.”“We are not prepared to accept a situation in which MKs support the families of those who murder Israeli citizens. There’s a limit. There’s something called national pride. I wonder what would happen in the British Parliament if a British MP stood for a minute’s silence to honor Jihadi John, or if members of the US Congress stood to honor the California murderer,” he said. “[Those parliaments] would not accept it, and neither will we.”Zahalka responded furiously to the speech, heckling the prime minister with calls of “fascist.” He was eventually ejected from the plenum.Several Arab lawmakers boycotted Monday’s debate on the new legislation, as well as the session in the Knesset Ethics Committee, saying the discussions were an effort to “delegitimize Arab Knesset members and restrict the scope of their political action.”A statement from the Ethics Committee highlighted that Zahalka, who received a more lenient sentence, showed up to Monday’s committee hearing over the case.The Joint List said the ban would not deter their campaign to return the terrorists’ bodies.All three MKs have maintained that the sole goal of their meeting with the families of the attackers, some of whom were terrorists who killed Israeli civilians, was to advance the release of their bodies, which have been held by Israeli authorities, and did not constitute support for terror. However, they acknowledged holding a moment’s silence at the meeting in honor of Palestinian dead, while Ghattas referred to the terrorists as “martyrs” in a subsequent TV interview.Netanyahu has asked the attorney-general to examine whether the three could face criminal prosecution for holding the meeting with the terrorists’ families.Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
PM, Ya’alon said to nix Bennett call to attack Hamas tunnels-Hamas leaders have bragged in recent days that attack tunnels, destroyed by the IDF in 2014, now again reach into Israel-By Times of Israel staff February 8, 2016, 9:46 pm
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon have rejected a call by Education Minister Naftali Bennett for a preemptive Israeli move to destroy Hamas’s tunnel network in Gaza, Channel 2 said Monday.Bennett, the head of the right-wing Jewish Home party and a member of the key decision-making security cabinet, said during a discussion in that forum several weeks ago that Israel should take action against the tunnels before the terror group launches another offensive.Bennett’s office declined to comment on the report, Channel 2 stated.A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday did not confirm or deny that a discussion on the matter took place, but contained a hint of criticism that the matter was leaked — and insinuated that the leak came from Bennett’s staff. “We do not want to comment on cabinet discussions in general and on operative plans by the IDF in particular. All ministers should act responsibly and not try to gain votes with superficial political briefings, which do not reflect the serious, responsible discussions taking place in the cabinet,” the statement said.Numerous reports in recent days have indicated that Hamas has reestablished much of its cross-border terror tunnel infrastructure, destroyed by the Israel Defense Forces in the 2014 war. Hamas leaders, who have seen several operatives killed in a series of tunnel collapses in the past month, have bragged that several tunnels now reach into Israel. Israeli residents living close to Gaza have reported hearing digging noises, and the IDF has sent heavy machinery to the border area to search for tunnels.Last week, IDF Maj. Gen. Yoav Mordechai, the coordinator of government activities in the territories, refused to say whether Israel was involved in the tunnel collapses when asked about this by the Palestinian Ma’an news agency. “God knows,” he answered. “I would suggest to the residents of the Gaza Strip not to occupy themselves with the tunnels and to get away from them, especially after seeing the results in recent days,” he added.The views of Ya’alon and Netanyahu on the question of whether to target the tunnels now could easily be gleaned from their public statements of the past few weeks, Channel 2 analyst Udi Segal noted Monday.In an interview with Israel Radio on February 1, the defense minister said: “I think the tunnel threat is well known to us — no one thought they would stop digging or stop arming themselves.” He said that since the end of Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, the army had been “investing greatly in capabilities that remain secret, in both defense and offense.”Two weeks ago, Ya’alon ridiculed a similar proposal made by opposition leader and Zionist Union head Isaac Herzog. Ya’alon said at the time that Israel was not planning to initiate a violent confrontation with Hamas, just as it was not planning to initiate an operation to destroy Hezbollah’s arsenal of missiles or Iran’s ballistic missile program.Bennett has a history of trying to outflank the government on security issues, even though he is a member of the key ministerial forum. Throughout the 2014 Israel-Hamas conflict, he urged harsher action against Gaza’s terrorist rulers.Three weeks ago, Bennett told a conference held by the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv that “the main threat to Israel’s security comes not from the north or south, not from the rockets of Hamas and Hezbollah, and not even from Iran. Nor is diplomatic deadlock our main threat, but a deadlock in our thinking.”A source close to Netanyahu slammed his comments at the time, saying: “It seems there are those who still don’t understand the difference between being a minister in the cabinet and an Internet commenter in the opposition.”“While the IDF, police and Shin Bet are battling terror every day and in every place, cabinet members are expected to take responsibility and contribute to the shared effort — instead of begging for votes by floating slogans and populistic attacks against a government they themselves sit in,” the source added.Times of Israel analyst Avi Issacharoff noted at the weekend, in an article assessing Hamas capabilities and intentions: “The prevailing assumption in Gaza and Israel alike is that Hamas does not want an escalation of conflict at present. Still, before the summer 2014 war, there were those in the Hamas military wing who pushed for a ‘preemptive strike’ via the tunnels; the leadership abroad, headed by Khaled Mashaal, stopped them. Mashaal and his colleagues probably lack the authority nowadays to stop the military wing, which has Muhammad Deif at the helm together with Yahya Sinwar, the meteor in Hamas’s skies.”
Bloomberg confirms he’s considering White House run-Billionaire ex-NY mayor says he’s ‘looking at all options,’ calls presidential race ‘discourse and discussion distressingly banal’-By AFP February 9, 2016, 1:51 am-the times of israel
Michael Bloomberg, the former New York mayor and billionaire media owner, has stated for the first time that he is considering launching a White House bid this year.The move would thoroughly upend a presidential race that has already kicked into high gear, as Republicans and Democrats battle it out for prominence in Tuesday’s crucial New Hampshire primary.Bloomberg, who mulled running in previous elections and has criticized the quality of debate in the 2016 race, told the Financial Times he was “looking at all options” when asked whether he was considering throwing his hat in the ring.“I find the level of discourse and discussion distressingly banal and an outrage and an insult to the voters,” he said, adding that Americans deserved “a lot better.”The comments came after The New York Times reported last month that Bloomberg had instructed advisers to draft plans for a potential independent presidential bid that could see him spend at least $1 billion of his estimated $40 billion fortune.Associates told the Times late last month that Bloomberg was alarmed by the rise of Donald Trump on the extreme right wing of the Republican Party and troubled by Hillary Clinton’s lurch to the left in a bid to contain self-described democratic socialist Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont.Bloomberg, 73, is the founder of the eponymous financial news agency.His estimated net worth far exceeds that of Trump, a billionaire real estate magnate whose fortune Forbes puts at $4.5 billion.A pragmatist rather than an ideologue, Bloomberg is driven by results and wedded to statistics. He was a Democrat before turning Republican in 2001 and then switched his affiliation to independent in 2007.His entry could radically re-shape the race and in particular impact Democratic efforts to hold the White House, as experts see him drawing more Democrats than Republicans because of his liberal stance on gun control, abortion and the environment.Trump and Sanders have both said they would relish the opportunity to run against Bloomberg.“I think the American people do not want to see our nation move toward an oligarchy, where billionaires control the political process,” Sanders said last month.Clinton recently called Bloomberg “a good friend” and said she would “relieve him” of the need to enter the race by winning the nomination herself.Bloomberg has set a self-imposed deadline of early March to make a decision.
Controversial NGO transparency bill passes first vote-By 50-43, Knesset advances law which would require organizations to detail funding if over 50% comes from foreign governments-By Times of Israel staff February 9, 2016, 1:09 am
The Knesset on Monday passed the first reading of a controversial NGO transparency bill which seeks to force groups to declare foreign funding.The draft legislation passed with 50 lawmakers voting in favor and 43 against.During a fierce debate in the Knesset ahead of the vote, MK Hanin Zoabi was removed from the podium after exceeding her allotted time. Zoabi defended her decision to meet last week with the families of Palestinian terrorists, speaking just hours after the Knesset ethics committee voted to suspend her and two other Arab MKs.According to the draft legislation, any NGO receiving over 50% of its funding from a foreign government must publicize details of its funding in all official and promotional documents and online.Critics in Israel and overseas say it singles out left-wing groups, since right-wing organizations are primarily funded by private donors, and that it is a veiled effort to silence those organizations, which are often critical of Israeli government policies.Proponents of the bill say it merely improves transparency, and that while forcing the organizations to disclose their funding, it does not restrict their activities.“The proposed rule in Israel on disclosure of NGOs is not anti-democratic. It’s transparency, which is the heart of democracy,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month. “I think when you hear of the use and abuse of NGOs here, that’s the least that we want, transparency, and I think that it’s much warranted. I think it’s just common sense.”The bill’s first reading was postponed in January because of predicted snow storms, then pulled from the agenda on February 1 because of a Knesset schedule overload.
COUNTRIES WITH ISRAEL AND THE ENEMIES OF THE WEST
EZEKIEL 38:10-19
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say,(RUSSIA,ARAB,MUSLIMS) I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
13 Sheba, and Dedan,(SAUDIA ARABIA)(JORDAN) and the merchants of Tarshish,(ENGLAND) with all the young lions thereof,(USA,CANADA,AUSTRALIA,NEW ZEALAND,EU,ENGLAND,ENGLISH SPEAKING shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?
PSALMS 83:3-7 (COUNTRIES AGAINST ISRAEL)(EXCEPT JORDAN)
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they (MUSLIMS) have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,(JORDAN) and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, PALESTINIANS,JORDAN) and the Hagarenes;(EGYPT)
7 Gebal,(HEZZBALLOH,LEBANON) and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA,ARABS,SINAI) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
ISRAEL-WEST ENEMIES EZEK 38:4-6,15-19
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts,(RUSSIA-ARAB/MUSLIMS) thou, and many people with thee,(AFRICAN ISLAMIC COUNTRIES) all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:
16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?
18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that my fury shall come up in my face.
19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
DANIEL 11:44 (CHINA WITH RUSSIA-MUSLIMS)
44 But tidings out of the east(CHINA) and out of the north(RUSSIA, MUSLIMS WHATS LEFT FROM WAVE 1) shall trouble him:(EU DICTATOR IN ISRAEL) therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many.( 1/3RD OF EARTHS POPULATION)
EZEKIEL 39:1-6 ISRAELS ENEMIES DESTROYED
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
Russian troops put on high alert as part of massive drills-Associated Press By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV-FEB 8,16-YAHOONEWS
MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin has scrambled thousands of troops and hundreds of warplanes across southwestern Russia for large-scale military drills intended to test the troops' readiness amid continuing tensions with the West.Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that military units were put on combat alert early Monday, marking the launch of the exercise that involves troops of the Southern Military District.The district includes troops stationed in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, as well as forces in the North Caucasus and southwestern regions near the border with Ukraine.Shoigu said the maneuvers will also engage airborne troops and military transport aviation, as well as the navy. He noted that the drills are intended to check the troops' ability to respond to extremist threats and other challenges.According to Shoigu, who spoke at a meeting with the top military brass, the war games would include redeployment of air force units to advance air bases and bombing runs at shooting ranges. The maneuvers will test the troops' mobility, with some being deployed to areas up to 3,000 kilometers (1,860 miles) away, the military said.Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said in a statement that up to 8,500 troops, 900 ground weapons, 200 warplanes and about 50 warships will be involved in the drills.The exercises are the latest in a series of major drills intended to strengthen the military's readiness. They have continued despite the nation's economic downturn.Even though a drop in global oil prices has drained the government's coffers and helped drive the economy into recessions, the Kremlin has continued to spend big on the military, funding the purchase of hundreds of new aircraft, tanks and missiles.Russia has demonstrated its resurgent military might with its air campaign in Syria, which helped President Bashar Assad's military win a series of victories in recent weeks. The military used the Syrian operation to test new types of weapons in actual combat for the first time, including long-range air- and sea-launched cruise missiles.The air blitz in Syria has badly strained Russia's relations with Turkey, which shot down a Russian warplane at the border with Syria in November. The latest drills could be part of muscle flexing amid the tensions with Ankara.They also come at a time when a peace deal intended to end fighting between Ukrainian government troops and Russia-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine appears to be in jeopardy amid increasingly frequent clashes in recent weeks.
Moscow slams UN chief for Syria comments-AFP-FEB 8,16-YAHOONEWS
Moscow (AFP) - The Russian foreign ministry on Monday criticised UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon over his claim that Russian air strikes in Syria had undermined last week's peace talks to end the country's five-year war."We have always considered and continue to consider that comments from the chief administrator of an global organisation ... should remain impartial and objective," the ministry said in a statement.Ban had "practically" accused Russia of leading to the collapse of the talks, it added."This is clearly not what happened."UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura last week suspended attempts to begin a dialogue between President Bashar al-Assad's regime and the opposition, as Russia pressed its bombing campaign in the war-torn country.Ban told Britain's The Financial Times newspaper last week that "aerial bombing continued" when the talks began, making it "extremely difficult" for negotiations to take place.Washington had also accused Moscow of being "partly" responsible for torpedoing the Geneva peace talks.One day after the talks broke down, Russia's defence ministry said that air strikes had hit 875 "terrorist targets" in Syria since the start of the month.The strikes backed a major offensive by Syrian government forces and pro-regime fighters in the northern Aleppo region, the defence ministry said.Moscow launched a bombing campaign in Syria last year at Assad's request, saying it was targeting the Islamic State group and other jihadist organisations.The West has accused Russia of targeting more moderate factions that oppose Assad's regime, and Syrian activists say the strikes have killed civilians, allegations Moscow dismisses as "absurd".Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said last week that Moscow would continue the bombing campaign until "terrorist organisations" in Syria are defeated.
