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)
AMERICA (POLITICAL BABYLON)(NUKED BY SNEAK ATTACK FROM RUSSIA)
IN REVELATION 17 & 18 IS THE DESTRUCTION OF THE RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL BABYLONS.IF YOU CAN NOT DECERN BETWEEN THE 2 BABYLONS IN REV 17 & 18.YOU WILL JUST THINK THEIR BOTH THE SAME.BUT NO-THERES A RELIGIOUS BABYLON (THE VATICAN IN REV 17)(AND THE POLITICAL BABYLON IN REV 18 (AMERICA OR NEW YORK TO BE EXACT)
ISAIAH 34:10
10 It (AMERICA-POLITICAL BABYLON) shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
JEREMIAH 51:29-32 (CYBER ATTACK 1ST)
29 And the land shall tremble and sorrow: for every purpose of the LORD shall be performed against Babylon,(AMERICA-NEW YORK) to make the land of Babylon (AMERICA) a desolation without an inhabitant.
30 The mighty men of Babylon (AMERICA) have forborn to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned her dwellingplaces; her bars are broken.
31 One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to shew the king of Babylon (NEW YORK) that his city is taken at one end,
32 And that the passages are stopped,(THE WAR COMPUTERS HACKED OR EMP'D) and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are affrighted.(DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO)
COMPLETE SILENCE AFTER AN EMP GOES OFF
REVELATION 8:1
1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
JEREMIAH 50:3,24
3 For out of the north (RUSSIA) there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon,(AMERICA) and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. (RUSSIA A SNEAK CYBER,EMP ATTACK,THEN NUKE ATTACK ON AMERICA)
REVELATION 18:3-6,19-21
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication,(U.S.A) and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,(U.S.A) and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her,(AMERICA) my people,(CHRISTIANS,JEWS) that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
6 Reward her (AMERICA-NEW YORK) even as she rewarded you,(WITH FALSE FLAG TERRORISM) and double unto her double according to her works:(DOUBLE-EMP 1ST,THEN RUSSIA NUKE ATTACKS U.S.A) in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.(PROBABLY A RUSSIAN CYBER ATTACK WILL SET THE WHOLE SITUATION UP AS RUSSIA HACKS THE USA ARMY COMPUTERS.THEN THE EMP,THEN THE NUKE ATTACK)
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
Nuclear war with Russia possible by 2017: NATO’s ex-deputy head-MAY 21,16
NATO’s former deputy military chief in Europe says his book, a fictional story which describes a nuclear war with Russia over the Baltic nations taking place in 2017, is based on an “entirely plausible” scenario.General Sir Richard Shirreff, from Britain, served at the second-highest NATO military office in Europe between 2011 and 2014. He says his experience acquired in the alliance of war-gaming future conflicts helped him model the narrative for the book.According to his scenario, starting next year Russia would first occupy Ukraine to secure a land route to Crimea and then invade the three Baltic nations, all of which are members of NATO. The move, Shirreff argued, would be driven by the perception of NATO’s weakness and Russia’s opposition to what it sees as the alliance’s attempts to encircle it.“We need to judge President [Vladimir] Putin by his deeds not his words,” the retired general told BBC Radio 4’s Today program. “He has invaded Georgia, he has invaded the Crimea, he has invaded Ukraine. He has used force and got away with it.”The supposed invasion of Georgia in 2008 was Russia’s response to a Georgian attack on its breakaway region of South Ossetia, which started with the killings of Russian peacekeepers stationed there to prevent such hostilities. Russia responded by defeating the NATO-trained Georgian Army and withdrew. Moscow later recognized South Ossetia as a sovereign state, formalizing its de facto independence from Georgia that had been in place since the 1990s.The supposed invasion of Ukraine in 2014 was Russia’s use of its troops, which were legally deployed in Crimea under a treaty with Ukraine, to prevent hostilities after an armed coup in Kiev. The Crimean people, who overwhelmingly opposed the new Ukrainian government and its nationalistic leanings, voted in a referendum to part ways with Ukraine and rejoin Russia.If Russia used military force against any NATO members, the entire alliance would be obliged to declare war on Russia. The US is the most powerful member of NATO and has the world’s biggest military force. According to Shirreff, Russia would use its nuclear arsenal to counter NATO’s response.“Be under no illusion whatsoever – Russian use of nuclear weapons is hardwired into Moscow’s military strategy,” he said, omitting the fact that NATO’s nuclear nations – the US, Britain and France – have always kept a pre-emptive nuclear strike as a possible option. Russia dropped its pledge not to use nuclear weapons first in 1993.A scenario of conflict between Russia and NATO members over one of the Baltic states was earlier explored by the BBC in a film, which focused on decision-making at a British advisory body responding to the crisis. In the film, the stand-off escalated into a full-scale nuclear conflict and the advisers contemplating an option to destroy Russia’s biggest cities with Trident missiles.
IN REVELATION 17 & 18 IS THE DESTRUCTION OF THE RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL BABYLONS.IF YOU CAN NOT DECERN BETWEEN THE 2 BABYLONS IN REV 17 & 18.YOU WILL JUST THINK THEIR BOTH THE SAME.BUT NO-THERES A RELIGIOUS BABYLON (THE VATICAN IN REV 17)(AND THE POLITICAL BABYLON IN REV 18 (AMERICA OR NEW YORK TO BE EXACT)
ISAIAH 34:10
10 It (AMERICA-POLITICAL BABYLON) shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.
JEREMIAH 51:29-32 (CYBER ATTACK 1ST)
29 And the land shall tremble and sorrow: for every purpose of the LORD shall be performed against Babylon,(AMERICA-NEW YORK) to make the land of Babylon (AMERICA) a desolation without an inhabitant.
30 The mighty men of Babylon (AMERICA) have forborn to fight, they have remained in their holds: their might hath failed; they became as women: they have burned her dwellingplaces; her bars are broken.
31 One post shall run to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to shew the king of Babylon (NEW YORK) that his city is taken at one end,
32 And that the passages are stopped,(THE WAR COMPUTERS HACKED OR EMP'D) and the reeds they have burned with fire, and the men of war are affrighted.(DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO)
COMPLETE SILENCE AFTER AN EMP GOES OFF
REVELATION 8:1
1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
JEREMIAH 50:3,24
3 For out of the north (RUSSIA) there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon,(AMERICA) and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. (RUSSIA A SNEAK CYBER,EMP ATTACK,THEN NUKE ATTACK ON AMERICA)
REVELATION 18:3-6,19-21
3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication,(U.S.A) and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,(U.S.A) and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her,(AMERICA) my people,(CHRISTIANS,JEWS) that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.
6 Reward her (AMERICA-NEW YORK) even as she rewarded you,(WITH FALSE FLAG TERRORISM) and double unto her double according to her works:(DOUBLE-EMP 1ST,THEN RUSSIA NUKE ATTACKS U.S.A) in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double.(PROBABLY A RUSSIAN CYBER ATTACK WILL SET THE WHOLE SITUATION UP AS RUSSIA HACKS THE USA ARMY COMPUTERS.THEN THE EMP,THEN THE NUKE ATTACK)
19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
Nuclear war with Russia possible by 2017: NATO’s ex-deputy head-MAY 21,16
NATO’s former deputy military chief in Europe says his book, a fictional story which describes a nuclear war with Russia over the Baltic nations taking place in 2017, is based on an “entirely plausible” scenario.General Sir Richard Shirreff, from Britain, served at the second-highest NATO military office in Europe between 2011 and 2014. He says his experience acquired in the alliance of war-gaming future conflicts helped him model the narrative for the book.According to his scenario, starting next year Russia would first occupy Ukraine to secure a land route to Crimea and then invade the three Baltic nations, all of which are members of NATO. The move, Shirreff argued, would be driven by the perception of NATO’s weakness and Russia’s opposition to what it sees as the alliance’s attempts to encircle it.“We need to judge President [Vladimir] Putin by his deeds not his words,” the retired general told BBC Radio 4’s Today program. “He has invaded Georgia, he has invaded the Crimea, he has invaded Ukraine. He has used force and got away with it.”The supposed invasion of Georgia in 2008 was Russia’s response to a Georgian attack on its breakaway region of South Ossetia, which started with the killings of Russian peacekeepers stationed there to prevent such hostilities. Russia responded by defeating the NATO-trained Georgian Army and withdrew. Moscow later recognized South Ossetia as a sovereign state, formalizing its de facto independence from Georgia that had been in place since the 1990s.The supposed invasion of Ukraine in 2014 was Russia’s use of its troops, which were legally deployed in Crimea under a treaty with Ukraine, to prevent hostilities after an armed coup in Kiev. The Crimean people, who overwhelmingly opposed the new Ukrainian government and its nationalistic leanings, voted in a referendum to part ways with Ukraine and rejoin Russia.If Russia used military force against any NATO members, the entire alliance would be obliged to declare war on Russia. The US is the most powerful member of NATO and has the world’s biggest military force. According to Shirreff, Russia would use its nuclear arsenal to counter NATO’s response.“Be under no illusion whatsoever – Russian use of nuclear weapons is hardwired into Moscow’s military strategy,” he said, omitting the fact that NATO’s nuclear nations – the US, Britain and France – have always kept a pre-emptive nuclear strike as a possible option. Russia dropped its pledge not to use nuclear weapons first in 1993.A scenario of conflict between Russia and NATO members over one of the Baltic states was earlier explored by the BBC in a film, which focused on decision-making at a British advisory body responding to the crisis. In the film, the stand-off escalated into a full-scale nuclear conflict and the advisers contemplating an option to destroy Russia’s biggest cities with Trident missiles.
DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
G7 warns over global economy as currency row flares-[AFP]-Hiroshi Hiyama-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Sendai (Japan) (AFP) - G7 finance ministers on Saturday voiced concern about the sputtering global economy as they looked for a plan to stoke growth, while a currency policy clash overshadowed their meetings.The club of rich nations also pledged to tackle tax avoidance in the wake of the Panama Papers investigation and beef up efforts to disrupt the murky world of terrorism financing.Two days of talks at a hot spring resort in northern Japan focused on how to stoke global growth which they said was under threat from myriad challenges, including terrorism, refugee flows and the threat of Britain's exit from the European Union.The ministers were unanimous in opposing the prospect of a "Brexit", saying it would inflict a "shock" on the global economy that would only worsen the outlook at a time of geopolitical instability.Host Japan was keen to get its G7 counterparts on board with the view that fiscal stimulus is the best way to kickstart global growth, but Germany and Britain were cool on the idea.On Saturday, the group suggested a go-your-own-way approach."(We) discussed how to employ a balanced policy mix -- monetary, fiscal, and structural -- taking into account country-specific circumstances," they said in concluding remarks.Japan's determination to tame the resurgent yen was another sensitive topic, after its repeated threats to intervene in forex markets put it on a collision course with its G7 counterparts.The yen has seen several steep jumps since the start of the year, soaring more than 10 percent against the greenback at one stage, in a blow to Japan's exporters just as the economy slowed.US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew kept up the pressure Saturday with a fresh warning, reminding Japan that previous commitments to "refrain from competitive devaluation and communicate closely have helped to contribute to confidence in the global economy".- Yen clash -In a statement which presented a clear rebuff to Japan, the group "underscored the importance of all countries refraining from competitive devaluation".In response, Japanese finance minister Taro Aso said Saturday that he told his US counterpart Tokyo was merely reacting to "one-sided, abrupt, and speculative moves" in forex trading.A softer currency has been one of the pillars of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's bid to revitalise the world’s number-three economy since he swept to power in late 2012.Japan last intervened in currency markets around November 2011, when it tried to stem the yen's rise to keep an economic recovery on track after the quake-tsunami disaster earlier that year.The G7 finance chiefs also vowed to escalate efforts to disrupt the financing of global terrorist networks.An action plan that their leaders are to sign at a summit in Japan next week set out measures to step up intelligence-sharing, freeze assets and tighten reporting rules on international transfers."Countering violent extremism and bringing perpetrators to justice remain top priorities for the whole international community," said the group which takes in the US, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Britain."The G7 commits to working together to strengthen the global fight against terrorist financing," they added.As the vote on Britain's future in the EU draws closer, finance minister George Osborne said his meetings with G7 counterparts underscored the gravity of the in-out decision.If voters opt to quit the bloc in a June 23 referendum, Britain would find it "extremely difficult" to conclude trade deals with EU nations while also trying to reach new agreements with non-EU countries, he told the BBC.During that difficult process, businesses would have "no certainty" about the future and would not take on new workers or invest, he said."It hits people's incomes, it hits the value of houses, it hits businesses and jobs. People are beginning to understand that," Osborne said, winning firm backing from German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble."We were all of the opinion that it would be the wrong decision for the UK," Schaeuble said Saturday."But it's a decision to be taken by the British voters. We're concerned that it could have negative consequences for the European and the world economy."
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
India records its hottest temperature ever — a blistering 51 degrees Celsius — amid punishing drought-Muneeza Naqvi, The Associated Press | May 20, 2016 11:36 AM ET
NEW DELHI — A city in western India has suffered through the country’s highest temperature in history — a scorching 51 degrees Celsius.The record was set Thursday in the city of Phalodi, in the western state of Rajasthan. India’s meteorological department said the previous high was 50.6 Celsius, reached in 1956 in the city of Alwar, also in Rajasthan.Authorities have issued a severe heat wave alert for the next two days in the western states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and parts of the central state of Madhya Pradesh. That means the areas can expect temperatures as high as 47 degrees Celsius or more.Phalodi in Rajasthan, India recorded 51.0 Deg C Temperature on 19 May, 2016, which is the highest ever recorded temperature in India.— India Met. Dept. (@Indiametdept) May 19, 2016-The main summer months — April, May and June — are always excruciatingly hot across most parts of India before monsoon rains and cool temperatures arrive.The monsoon hits southern India in the first week of June and covers the rest of the country within a month.This year — as temperatures hit new highs — the monsoon is especially eagerly awaited as several parts of the country are reeling under a drought brought on by two years of weak rains.The prolonged heat wave this year has already killed hundreds and destroyed crops in more than 13 states, impacting hundreds of millions of Indians.Hundreds of farmers are reported to have killed themselves across the country and tens of thousands of small farmers have been forced to abandon their farmland and live in squalor in urban slums in order to earn a living.Rivers, lakes and dams have dried up in many parts of the western states of Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat, and overall officials say that groundwater reservoirs are severely depleted.In some areas, the situation is so bad the government has sent in water by train for emergency relief.
Brutal heatwave in India kills 300, forces ban on daytime cooking-May 2, 2016-SKYMET
heat main2Blistering heat in India that left drought-stricken country reel under severe water scarcity and accidental fires in Uttarakhand has claimed more than 300 lives since mid-April.With sizzling temperatures claiming more than 300 lives in April in India, officials have banned daytime cooking in some parts of the country.The eastern state of Bihar this week took the unprecedented step of forbidding any cooking between 9am and 6pm, after accidental fires exacerbated by dry, hot and windy weather swept thatched-roof houses in villages and killed 79 people. People were instead told to cook to night.Rivers and dams have dried up due to severe heatwave that has swept almost entire Maharashtra where reservoirs have come down to just 23 percent capacity.Latur, for instance, has to rely on water trains to meet the daily demand of water.At least 300 people have died of heat-related illness this month, including 110 in the state of Odisha, 137 in Telangana and another 45 in Andhra Pradesh where temperatures since the start of April have been hovering around 45°C.Though Monsoon is not expected to hit the country before June, pre-Monsoon showers expected this week and during this month are likely to bring brief respite from the deadly heatwave.
UN names special envoys for El Nino and climate-[AFP]-May 20, 2016-yahoonews
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appointed former Irish president Mary Robinson and Kenyan diplomat Macharia Kamau as special envoys for El Nino and climate.The El Nino weather phenomenon, which occurs every two to seven years, affects rainfall patterns and causes both drought and flooding.Its effects can be seen in places like Sudan, where the UN estimates 400,000 people will need food aid due to El Nino-related drought. Neighboring Ethiopia is experiencing its worst drought in 50 years.The phenomenon has "created massive needs across the world," the UN said in a statement, particularly in east Africa, southern Africa, Central America and the Pacific."This year’s El Nino is taking place in a world already dramatically affected by climate change. More extreme weather events are expected in the future, and these hit the poorest communities -- those least responsible for climate change -- first and hardest," the statement said."Aid is not enough; a longer term approach is required in order to build the resilience of the most vulnerable."The new special envoys will be responsible for "raising the profile and sounding the alarm," Ban said in the statement."It is vital that we scale up our humanitarian response urgently. To do that we need the full support and attention of the international community," he was quoted as saying.Robinson had previously served as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and as Ban's special envoy for climate change.Kamau is Kenya's ambassador to the United Nations and former president of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Board. He was co-chair of the UN General Assembly working group on sustainable development goals, which includes the fight against climate change.
Pacific Ocean swallows five Solomon Islands and human-caused climate change is to blame, study says-Ben Guarino, Washington Post | May 9, 2016 10:55 AM ET
As the ocean rose, they had to flee.“The sea has started to come inland, it forced us to move up to the hilltop and rebuild our village there away from the sea,” said Sirilo Sutaroti, 94, a leader of the Paurata tribe, to a group of Australian environmental scientists. The scene of this rising sea is an archipelago of upthrust volcanoes and coral atolls, which dots the Pacific to the northeast of Australia: the Solomon Islands. There, a swollen sea is claiming the shoreline — and even, researchers say, entire masses of land.In a recent paper in the journal Environmental Research Letters, the scientists link the destructive sea level rise to anthropogenic — that is, human-caused — climate change. The study is the first time anyone has concretely analyzed the loss of Solomon Island shoreline in the context of global warming, they say.Such work comes at a time when coastal villages — where a few hundred people like Sutaroti might live, whose familial roots could stretch back a century — have scattered, re-forming in smaller clusters where there is suitable higher ground. On the island of Nuatambu, the sea has claimed 11 houses. “Another 12 remain,” wrote Simon Albert, one of the study authors and a civil engineer at the University of Queensland, Australia, in an email to The Washington Post.“The families that have left have moved to the nearby large island of Choiseul.” What was once a single community has fractured into five smaller hamlets.Taro Island, a populated atoll in northwest Solomon Islands, may become the first capital city on the planet that people desert due to climate change, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. When Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary-general, visited the Solomon Islands and nearby Kiribati, he witnessed an entire population of a Taro Island town preparing to move. (His hotel room, he said in the same 2014 speech, came equipped with life preservers.)-The Solomon Islands, which consists of six main islands and nearly a thousand others, is one of the least densely populated Pacific island nations. Across 26,000 square kilmometres live just over half a million people. Despite the low population density, finding a safe place to call home has become a challenge for some Solomon Islanders.The rates we have recently seen in the Solomons will be experienced globally in the second half of this century-“There are large volcanic islands where people can relocate to,” wrote Albert. But such relocations can be fraught with tension.“The majority of land is tightly controlled by traditional owners – so moving one group of people onto other peoples’ lands has been the source of ethnic conflict.” Many who remain on Nuatambu would like to leave but cannot afford to.Prior research indicated that although rising seas threaten shorelines, atolls and other islands appeared to resilient, at least in the short term. So-called dynamic atolls are in constant flux, according to one 2014 paper, able to keep their sandy tops above water. But Albert and his colleagues cataloged 11 drowned Solomon Islands — six that had “severe erosion” and five that sunk completely.When it comes to island erosion, several factors can mask or overpower the effects of climate change; Albert mentioned plate tectonics, hurricanes, waves, and human disturbances like seawalls or reclamation projects. In the new paper, the researchers attempted to home in on the effects of climate change as much as possible. “The study we conducted in the Solomon Islands is unique as the islands do not have human habitation,” Albert said, with Nuatambu Island being the one notable exception. (Those still living on Nuatambu are building basic stone walls by hand, the scientist said, which are “unlikely to help slow the erosion.”)-What’s more, the sea-level rise observed in this study — at about a fourth to two-fifths of an inch a year — is triple the global average. In most places, the added water from melting polar glaciers raise the sea level just slivers of an inch annually. But if the ice sheets that cover Greenland and Antarctica were to dissolve into the ocean, by 2100 the oceans could rise by as much as 15 metres.Using historical evidence and satellite images of the Solomon Islands, the environmental scientists mapped the changes of a subset of 33 coral atolls over the years between 1947 and 2015. In the north, where the waves were strongest, islands were most likely to succumb to the sea. And these islands at risk, the researchers found, were far more than sterile humps of sand.
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
Volcano erupts in western Indonesia, killing 3 villagers-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A volcano in western Indonesian unleashed hot clouds of ash on Saturday, killing three villagers and injuring four others, an official said.Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province blasted volcanic ash as high as 3 kilometers (2 miles) into the sky, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho. He said ash tumbled down the slopes as far as 4.5 kilometers (3 miles) westward into a river.The 2,600-meter (8,530-foot) -high mountain in Karo District had been dormant for four centuries before springing to life in August 2010, killing two people and forcing 30,000 to flee. An eruption in February 2014 killed 16 people.All the victims of Saturday's eruption were working on their farms in the village of Gamber in Simpang Empat subdistrict, about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) away from the slope, or within the danger area.Mount Sinabung is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
Costa Rican volcano Turrialba erupts spewing ash over capital San Jose-AFP-ABC
A volcano has erupted near the capital of Costa Rica, choking surrounding communities with smoke and ash.In the capital San Jose, 30 kilometres from the Turrialba volcano, the air reeked of sulphur as dust and ash coated buildings and vehicles."It seems to me to be the strongest (Turrialba) eruption in the past six years," volcanologist Gino Gonzalez said.He spoke to media near the site of the eruption, where a vast cloud of grey smoke was billowing from the 3,340-metre volcano.Television channels showed footage of shuttered schools and hundreds of people flocking to hospitals with breathing and skin problems.The National Emergencies Commission in a statement advised people to wear masks and tight clothing to protect their lungs and skin from the ash.Dr Gonzalez said the wind was blowing the ash and smoke westward, toward the country's most populated areas.Costa Rica is home to five active volcanos.AFP
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Cyclone kills 5 in Bangladesh, forces thousands from homes-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A cyclone unleashed heavy rain and strong winds on Bangladesh's southern coastal region on Saturday, killing at least five people and forcing hundreds of thousands from their homes.Local media say the deaths were caused by the collapse of houses in Bhola, Chittagong and Patuakhali districts. Cyclone Roanu crossed the southern coastal district of Cox's Bazar and weakened after triggering rains.The meteorological office said in a statement that dozens of villages had been submerged by floodwaters.Mohammed Ali Hossain, a government administrator, said nearly 100,000 people were forced from their homes on Moheshkhali island. "Our teams are working there. We are arranging dry food for them and other resources they need urgently," he said.Mohammed Ullah, a local council chief, said the island was flooded in no time by the impact of the cyclone. "The islanders were preparing to go to cyclone shelters following a forecast that the cyclone was expected to hit in the afternoon or in the evening, but suddenly waters started coming. Most islanders have moved to safety," he said.Bangladesh, a delta nation, is prone to deadly cyclones.
Strong storm kills 8, leaves 4 missing in southern China-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
BEIJING (AP) — At least eight people were killed and another four went missing in a strong storm that hammered a southern Chinese city, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday.All deaths and the missing people were reported in the city of Xinyi, which was hit the hardest by Friday's storm, which drenched houses, broke levees, flooded farmland and destroyed roads.The Xinyi government said the storm brought the heaviest rainfall since 1954, when authorities started to collect weather data.The accumulative precipitation was 46.3 centimeters (18.2 inches) from Thursday evening to Friday afternoon, and authorities recorded 13.3 centimeters (5.2 inches) in rainfall in one hour, the Xinyi government said.More 540,000 people from 131 villages were affected by the storm, it said.All 2,250 local cadres were called in to help with the rescue work this weekend, and school will be suspended, the Xinyi government said.Xinhua said a nearby town was also affected, but to a much lesser degree.
Foreign aid reaches flooded Sri Lankan capital, 71 dead-[AFP]-Amal Jayasinghe-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Colombo (AFP) - Foreign aid began arriving in Sri Lanka Saturday, bringing help to half a million people forced out of their homes by heavy rains and landslides that have killed at least 71 in a week of extreme weather wreaking havoc in South Asia.As the heaviest rains in a quarter of a century battered Sri Lanka, Cyclone Roanu barrelled into the Bangladesh coastline leaving six people dead and forcing the evacuation of 500,000 as it unleashed winds as strong as 88 kilometres (54 miles) per hour and heavy downpours.Torrential rains have deluged Sri Lanka since last weekend, triggering huge landslides that have buried victims in up to 50 feet (15 metres) of mud and left 127 people missing.As aid began to arrive Saturday on a military plane from India and a commercial flight from Japan, Sri Lankan authorities said their priority was now preventing diseases such as diarrhoea, with many areas still under water."We have sent a large number of doctors and nursing staff to ensure there is no outbreak of waterborne diseases," Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne told AFP.In Colombo, residents clung to ropes as they battled to cross torrents of water pulsing through the streets of the flooded capital, with some forced to take shelter in rickshaws.The Indian government has provided inflatable boats, outboard motors, diving equipment, medical supplies, electricity generators and sleeping bags, officials said.The first of two Indian naval ships arrived Saturday at the port in Colombo, while Australia and the United States have made cash donations to help victims.Floodwaters in parts of the capital subsided slightly overnight, officials said, but heavy downpours on Saturday prevented many from moving back to their homes on the banks of the Kelani river."Colombo did not receive any significant rain last night and the water levels of the Kelani went down slightly," Disaster Management Centre spokesman Pradeep Kodippili told AFP."But there were showers upstream and we are worried that the water levels can rise again in a day."- Buddhist holiday -Nearly 300,000 people were staying in about 500 state-run relief centres Saturday, which also marks the Buddhist holiday of Vesak, while a further 200,000 people were staying with friends or family.Officials said there was a fresh landslide in the worst-hit central district of Kegalle, but that no casualties were reported because the area had been evacuated.The country's influential Buddhist clergy urged the faithful to divert at least half of the money spent on holiday celebrations to help flood victims."There are lots of people who have lost their homes, some have only the clothes they are wearing," top Buddhist monk Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana said."Consider this your meritorious deed to celebrate Vesak."Vesak celebrations were muted Saturday in Colombo compared with previous years when the entire city was decorated with lanterns and coloured lights.President Maithripala Sirisena called on Sri Lankans to provide shelter and donate cash or food to flood victims as offers of assistance came in from overseas.The accommodation booking website airbnb.com listed at least 29 places offering free lodging for anyone affected by the floods in Sri Lanka.Disaster management officials said there had been a huge outpouring of sympathy for victims with donations of food, clothing and dry rations.The meteorological department says the rains were caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal, ahead of the arrival of the southwest monsoon.Around 22 of Sri Lanka's 25 districts have been affected by the rains, according to disaster officials.Almost a third of residents have been moved from the low-lying capital, which has a population of about 650,000.
DISEASES
REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
Zika strain from Americas outbreak spreads in Africa for first time: WHO-[AFP]-Agnes Pedrero-May 20, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Geneva (AFP) - The Zika virus strain linked to surging cases of neurological disorders and birth defects in Latin America has now been found in Africa, health officials said Friday, as the first fatality on French territory was reported on the Caribbean island of Martinique.The World Health Organization announced that the strain of Zika circulating in Cape Verde had been shown to be the same as the one behind an explosion of cases in the Americas."This is the first time that strain of Zika which has been showed to cause neurological disorders and microcephaly... has been detected in Africa," Matshidiso Moeti, WHO's Africa regional chief, told reporters in Geneva.The so-called Asian strain of the virus, which has infected some 1.5 million people in Brazil, the worst-affected country, was detected in Cape Verde through the sequencing of Zika cases in the island nation."It is the same genetic material as the virus in Brazil," WHO spokeswoman Marsha Vanderford told AFP."The findings are of concern because it is further proof that the outbreak is spreading beyond South America and is on the doorstep of Africa.""This information will help African countries to re-evaluate their level of risk and adapt and increase their levels of preparedness," she added.Experts agree that Zika is behind a surge in cases of the birth defect microcephaly -- babies born with abnormally small heads and brains -- after their mothers were infected with the virus.The virus, which also causes the rare but serious neurological disorder Guillain-Barre Syndrome, is mainly spread by two species of Aedes mosquito but has also been shown to transmit through sexual contact.Friday saw the French Caribbean island of Martinique suffer its first Zika virus-related death, the regional health agency said."The patient, aged 84, had been hospitalised for 10 days in intensive care with Guillain-Barre Syndrome," the agency said, before tests late last week showed up the Zika link.Some experts believe there is a link between Zika and Guillan-Barre -- in which the immune system attacks the nervous system.WHO believes the Asian Zika strain was imported to Cape Verde by a traveller coming from Brazil, before it began spreading locally last October.As of May 8, 7,557 suspected Zika cases had been registered in Cape Verde, as well as three microcephaly cases, WHO said.No cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome have been registered in the country so far.The African strain of the Zika virus, which takes its name from Uganda's tropical Zika forest where it was first discovered in 1947, has been widespread on the continent since then.But until recently, Zika caused little concern, as it usually leads only to mild, flu-like symptoms, and it appeared many Africans had built up immunity against the virus.- Worst-case scenario -But it remains unclear what impact the arrival of the new strain to the continent will have, said Bruce Aylward, WHO chief on outbreaks and health emergencies."We know that the African strain has circulated in part of Africa for decades now," he told reporters."What we don't know is the population immunity that may have been left behind on the way, and also whether or not that will mitigate some of the impact of this new... strain," he said.Aylward said WHO hoped blood tests would help rapidly establish "whether or not there is some degree of population immunity that will help reduce some of that vulnerability."But he stressed that for now it was important to move forward "against a worst-case scenario" and assume Africans would be as vulnerable as people in Latin America to the impact of the strain.Cape Verde and other African countries at risk should inform pregnant women especially about the risks associated with the Asian strain of the Zika virus, as well as about the best ways of protecting against infection, including avoiding mosquito bites, WHO said.The UN agency also urged countries to step up efforts to detect microcephaly, Guillain-Barre and other neurological disorders linked to Zika and their preparedness to deal with increases in cases.
After Ebola, World Bank creates pandemic insurance plan-[AFP]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Sendai (Japan) (AFP) - The World Bank announced Saturday a new program to mobilize funds quickly against virulent disease outbreaks after the world was caught unprepared in the 2014 Ebola disaster in West Africa.World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said the new Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) will accelerate global and national responses to disease outbreaks that threaten large populations and fragile economies.He said the PEF, a combination of catastrophe insurance and bonds, is a direct reaction to the sluggish donor response to the outbreak of Ebola, which eventually killed close to 11,000 in West Africa and shut down economic activity for months."Pandemics pose a serious threat to global health and economic security," said Kim."The recent Ebola crisis in West Africa was a tragedy that we were simply not prepared for. It was a wake-up call to the entire world.""There is no effective international system ready to respond quickly to a pandemic."Kim, a medical doctor and expert on health and disease in developing countries, put the World Bank in the lead of the response to Ebola at the time.But he acknowledged that it took months to bring together the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to pay for deploying health personnel, supplies, and other relief to Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.In the meantime, he said, the death toll rose ten-fold.Kim announced the creation of the PEF at the gathering of G7 finance ministers in Sendai, Japan.He said the group of global powers had pressed the World Bank last year to develop a quicker way for the world to respond to pandemics.Kim said Japan was the first to commit support for the PEF, with a $50 million contribution.The insurance will cover outbreaks of several classes of infectious diseases most at risk for epidemics: new orthomyxoviruses including influenza pandemic viruses A, B and C; coronaviruses like SARS and MERS; filoviruses like Ebola and Marburg; and other zoonotic diseases -- those that move between animals and humans -- including Crimean Congo, Rift Valley and Lassa fever.That list does not include Zika, the deadly mosquito-borne virus spreading through the Americas. But Kim said the bank is also putting together a separate emergency "cash window" to address that and other outbreaks not covered.Under the program the 77 least developed countries will be covered by the insurance.Unlike common insurance that repays losses after a disaster, the PEF insurance is designed to release funds as soon as a disease outbreak reaches a certain level as defined by specific criteria.Kim said the World Bank has worked with insurers on the product, which will total $500 million at first, and is confident the global financial markets will accept it."If we had had the PEF up and running in mid-2014, the Ebola outbreak would have looked very different," he said."The countries and the world, and the insurance industry, have the same incentives to prevent the spread of pandemics."
Pope under fire for meeting French cardinal accused of sex abuse cover-up-[AFP]-Angus MacKinnon-May 20, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis came under fire Friday after meeting Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the Lyon archbishop suspected of covering up for a paedophile priest in a scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church in France."There was a meeting, nothing out of the ordinary," Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said, adding that he expected the two men had discussed the crisis in the French church, as well as regular business.After meeting the pontiff, Barbarin said he would be staying in his post with Francis' blessing."If the law showed up a serious negligent behaviour in my mission then (resignation) would be a course of action to envisage," the archbishop told French daily Le Figaro."For the moment, that would not be responsible, it would indeed be contrary to my duty. You do not leave the ship at the height of the storm," said Barbarin, one of France's most senior clergymen.He added that "not a single child" had "suffered from decisions that (he had) taken as a bishop" and said he would await "serenely" the outcome of investigations into whether he knew of wrongdoing and failed to blow the whistle.A support group for the alleged victims in the French scandal voiced regret that Francis had met Barbarin while magistrates are still mulling whether the cardinal should face criminal charges."We would have liked to have been received instead of the cardinal, we note that once again it's the victims who are sidelined," Bertrand Virieux, a co-founder of Lyon-based group "La Parole Liberee", told AFP.Virieux said he had written to the pope in March seeking an audience.The surprise meeting with Barbarin came three days after the pope was quoted as saying it would be "nonsensical and imprudent" to seek the archbishop's resignation at this stage, arguing that would be to imply he was guilty of potential criminal charges against him.French examining magistrates are currently carrying out two preliminary investigations to decide whether to pursue charges against the archbishop for his handling of the allegations against Bernard Preynat, a priest in his diocese who has been charged with sex abuse.Preynat was charged in January after admitting sexual assaults on four boy scouts between 1986 and 1991 -- crimes which his lawyers say he can no longer be convicted of.La Parole Liberee says it has identified more than 50 victims.According to the Lyon diocese, Barbarin first received testimony from an alleged victim in mid-2014 and relieved Preynat of his duties in May 2015.Francis said in an interview with French Catholic newspaper La Croix this week that he believed Barbarin had "taken the necessary measures", and had the situation in hand.- Old wounds reopened -Victims groups reacted angrily, saying Francis could not possibly know all the details of a case they say highlights the reluctance of the Church to hand paedophile priests over to criminal authorities.Virieux also expressed regret at Francis meeting the cardinal on the same day as an important court hearing in the charged priest's case.Lyon's appeal court on Friday held a a pre-trial hearing on Preynat's appeal against an earlier ruling that the alleged abuse is no longer subject to prosecution on statute of limitations grounds.Barbarin admitted last month to "errors in the management and nomination of certain priests," but vehemently denied any cover-up.Pope Francis came to power promising a crackdown on cover-ups and a zero tolerance approach to abuse itself, which he famously described as being akin to taking part in a Satanic mass.But the Barbarin case, the recent Royal Commission hearing on Australia's Cardinal George Pell's alleged involvement in cover-ups and the lenient treatment of abusive Italian priest Mauro Inzoli have reopened old wounds.After decades of scandals that have badly damaged the Church's standing in many countries, victims complain they are still not being listened to, that bishops will not hand priests over to police and that a conspiracy of silence remains in place.Francis had put in place legal structures enabling paedophile clerics to be tried by the Vatican's criminal court.
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(THE EU (EUROPEAN UNION) TAKES OVER IRAQ WHICH HAS SPLIT INTO 3-SUNNI-KURD-SHIA PARTS-AND THE REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE IS BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER-THE TWO LEGS OF DANIEL WESTERN LEG AND THE ISLAMIC LEG COMBINED AS 1)
LUKE 2:1-3
1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
G7 warns over global economy as currency row flares-[AFP]-Hiroshi Hiyama-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Sendai (Japan) (AFP) - G7 finance ministers on Saturday voiced concern about the sputtering global economy as they looked for a plan to stoke growth, while a currency policy clash overshadowed their meetings.The club of rich nations also pledged to tackle tax avoidance in the wake of the Panama Papers investigation and beef up efforts to disrupt the murky world of terrorism financing.Two days of talks at a hot spring resort in northern Japan focused on how to stoke global growth which they said was under threat from myriad challenges, including terrorism, refugee flows and the threat of Britain's exit from the European Union.The ministers were unanimous in opposing the prospect of a "Brexit", saying it would inflict a "shock" on the global economy that would only worsen the outlook at a time of geopolitical instability.Host Japan was keen to get its G7 counterparts on board with the view that fiscal stimulus is the best way to kickstart global growth, but Germany and Britain were cool on the idea.On Saturday, the group suggested a go-your-own-way approach."(We) discussed how to employ a balanced policy mix -- monetary, fiscal, and structural -- taking into account country-specific circumstances," they said in concluding remarks.Japan's determination to tame the resurgent yen was another sensitive topic, after its repeated threats to intervene in forex markets put it on a collision course with its G7 counterparts.The yen has seen several steep jumps since the start of the year, soaring more than 10 percent against the greenback at one stage, in a blow to Japan's exporters just as the economy slowed.US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew kept up the pressure Saturday with a fresh warning, reminding Japan that previous commitments to "refrain from competitive devaluation and communicate closely have helped to contribute to confidence in the global economy".- Yen clash -In a statement which presented a clear rebuff to Japan, the group "underscored the importance of all countries refraining from competitive devaluation".In response, Japanese finance minister Taro Aso said Saturday that he told his US counterpart Tokyo was merely reacting to "one-sided, abrupt, and speculative moves" in forex trading.A softer currency has been one of the pillars of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's bid to revitalise the world’s number-three economy since he swept to power in late 2012.Japan last intervened in currency markets around November 2011, when it tried to stem the yen's rise to keep an economic recovery on track after the quake-tsunami disaster earlier that year.The G7 finance chiefs also vowed to escalate efforts to disrupt the financing of global terrorist networks.An action plan that their leaders are to sign at a summit in Japan next week set out measures to step up intelligence-sharing, freeze assets and tighten reporting rules on international transfers."Countering violent extremism and bringing perpetrators to justice remain top priorities for the whole international community," said the group which takes in the US, Japan, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Britain."The G7 commits to working together to strengthen the global fight against terrorist financing," they added.As the vote on Britain's future in the EU draws closer, finance minister George Osborne said his meetings with G7 counterparts underscored the gravity of the in-out decision.If voters opt to quit the bloc in a June 23 referendum, Britain would find it "extremely difficult" to conclude trade deals with EU nations while also trying to reach new agreements with non-EU countries, he told the BBC.During that difficult process, businesses would have "no certainty" about the future and would not take on new workers or invest, he said."It hits people's incomes, it hits the value of houses, it hits businesses and jobs. People are beginning to understand that," Osborne said, winning firm backing from German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble."We were all of the opinion that it would be the wrong decision for the UK," Schaeuble said Saturday."But it's a decision to be taken by the British voters. We're concerned that it could have negative consequences for the European and the world economy."
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
India records its hottest temperature ever — a blistering 51 degrees Celsius — amid punishing drought-Muneeza Naqvi, The Associated Press | May 20, 2016 11:36 AM ET
NEW DELHI — A city in western India has suffered through the country’s highest temperature in history — a scorching 51 degrees Celsius.The record was set Thursday in the city of Phalodi, in the western state of Rajasthan. India’s meteorological department said the previous high was 50.6 Celsius, reached in 1956 in the city of Alwar, also in Rajasthan.Authorities have issued a severe heat wave alert for the next two days in the western states of Gujarat, Rajasthan and parts of the central state of Madhya Pradesh. That means the areas can expect temperatures as high as 47 degrees Celsius or more.Phalodi in Rajasthan, India recorded 51.0 Deg C Temperature on 19 May, 2016, which is the highest ever recorded temperature in India.— India Met. Dept. (@Indiametdept) May 19, 2016-The main summer months — April, May and June — are always excruciatingly hot across most parts of India before monsoon rains and cool temperatures arrive.The monsoon hits southern India in the first week of June and covers the rest of the country within a month.This year — as temperatures hit new highs — the monsoon is especially eagerly awaited as several parts of the country are reeling under a drought brought on by two years of weak rains.The prolonged heat wave this year has already killed hundreds and destroyed crops in more than 13 states, impacting hundreds of millions of Indians.Hundreds of farmers are reported to have killed themselves across the country and tens of thousands of small farmers have been forced to abandon their farmland and live in squalor in urban slums in order to earn a living.Rivers, lakes and dams have dried up in many parts of the western states of Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat, and overall officials say that groundwater reservoirs are severely depleted.In some areas, the situation is so bad the government has sent in water by train for emergency relief.
Brutal heatwave in India kills 300, forces ban on daytime cooking-May 2, 2016-SKYMET
heat main2Blistering heat in India that left drought-stricken country reel under severe water scarcity and accidental fires in Uttarakhand has claimed more than 300 lives since mid-April.With sizzling temperatures claiming more than 300 lives in April in India, officials have banned daytime cooking in some parts of the country.The eastern state of Bihar this week took the unprecedented step of forbidding any cooking between 9am and 6pm, after accidental fires exacerbated by dry, hot and windy weather swept thatched-roof houses in villages and killed 79 people. People were instead told to cook to night.Rivers and dams have dried up due to severe heatwave that has swept almost entire Maharashtra where reservoirs have come down to just 23 percent capacity.Latur, for instance, has to rely on water trains to meet the daily demand of water.At least 300 people have died of heat-related illness this month, including 110 in the state of Odisha, 137 in Telangana and another 45 in Andhra Pradesh where temperatures since the start of April have been hovering around 45°C.Though Monsoon is not expected to hit the country before June, pre-Monsoon showers expected this week and during this month are likely to bring brief respite from the deadly heatwave.
UN names special envoys for El Nino and climate-[AFP]-May 20, 2016-yahoonews
United Nations (United States) (AFP) - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appointed former Irish president Mary Robinson and Kenyan diplomat Macharia Kamau as special envoys for El Nino and climate.The El Nino weather phenomenon, which occurs every two to seven years, affects rainfall patterns and causes both drought and flooding.Its effects can be seen in places like Sudan, where the UN estimates 400,000 people will need food aid due to El Nino-related drought. Neighboring Ethiopia is experiencing its worst drought in 50 years.The phenomenon has "created massive needs across the world," the UN said in a statement, particularly in east Africa, southern Africa, Central America and the Pacific."This year’s El Nino is taking place in a world already dramatically affected by climate change. More extreme weather events are expected in the future, and these hit the poorest communities -- those least responsible for climate change -- first and hardest," the statement said."Aid is not enough; a longer term approach is required in order to build the resilience of the most vulnerable."The new special envoys will be responsible for "raising the profile and sounding the alarm," Ban said in the statement."It is vital that we scale up our humanitarian response urgently. To do that we need the full support and attention of the international community," he was quoted as saying.Robinson had previously served as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and as Ban's special envoy for climate change.Kamau is Kenya's ambassador to the United Nations and former president of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Board. He was co-chair of the UN General Assembly working group on sustainable development goals, which includes the fight against climate change.
Pacific Ocean swallows five Solomon Islands and human-caused climate change is to blame, study says-Ben Guarino, Washington Post | May 9, 2016 10:55 AM ET
As the ocean rose, they had to flee.“The sea has started to come inland, it forced us to move up to the hilltop and rebuild our village there away from the sea,” said Sirilo Sutaroti, 94, a leader of the Paurata tribe, to a group of Australian environmental scientists. The scene of this rising sea is an archipelago of upthrust volcanoes and coral atolls, which dots the Pacific to the northeast of Australia: the Solomon Islands. There, a swollen sea is claiming the shoreline — and even, researchers say, entire masses of land.In a recent paper in the journal Environmental Research Letters, the scientists link the destructive sea level rise to anthropogenic — that is, human-caused — climate change. The study is the first time anyone has concretely analyzed the loss of Solomon Island shoreline in the context of global warming, they say.Such work comes at a time when coastal villages — where a few hundred people like Sutaroti might live, whose familial roots could stretch back a century — have scattered, re-forming in smaller clusters where there is suitable higher ground. On the island of Nuatambu, the sea has claimed 11 houses. “Another 12 remain,” wrote Simon Albert, one of the study authors and a civil engineer at the University of Queensland, Australia, in an email to The Washington Post.“The families that have left have moved to the nearby large island of Choiseul.” What was once a single community has fractured into five smaller hamlets.Taro Island, a populated atoll in northwest Solomon Islands, may become the first capital city on the planet that people desert due to climate change, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. When Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary-general, visited the Solomon Islands and nearby Kiribati, he witnessed an entire population of a Taro Island town preparing to move. (His hotel room, he said in the same 2014 speech, came equipped with life preservers.)-The Solomon Islands, which consists of six main islands and nearly a thousand others, is one of the least densely populated Pacific island nations. Across 26,000 square kilmometres live just over half a million people. Despite the low population density, finding a safe place to call home has become a challenge for some Solomon Islanders.The rates we have recently seen in the Solomons will be experienced globally in the second half of this century-“There are large volcanic islands where people can relocate to,” wrote Albert. But such relocations can be fraught with tension.“The majority of land is tightly controlled by traditional owners – so moving one group of people onto other peoples’ lands has been the source of ethnic conflict.” Many who remain on Nuatambu would like to leave but cannot afford to.Prior research indicated that although rising seas threaten shorelines, atolls and other islands appeared to resilient, at least in the short term. So-called dynamic atolls are in constant flux, according to one 2014 paper, able to keep their sandy tops above water. But Albert and his colleagues cataloged 11 drowned Solomon Islands — six that had “severe erosion” and five that sunk completely.When it comes to island erosion, several factors can mask or overpower the effects of climate change; Albert mentioned plate tectonics, hurricanes, waves, and human disturbances like seawalls or reclamation projects. In the new paper, the researchers attempted to home in on the effects of climate change as much as possible. “The study we conducted in the Solomon Islands is unique as the islands do not have human habitation,” Albert said, with Nuatambu Island being the one notable exception. (Those still living on Nuatambu are building basic stone walls by hand, the scientist said, which are “unlikely to help slow the erosion.”)-What’s more, the sea-level rise observed in this study — at about a fourth to two-fifths of an inch a year — is triple the global average. In most places, the added water from melting polar glaciers raise the sea level just slivers of an inch annually. But if the ice sheets that cover Greenland and Antarctica were to dissolve into the ocean, by 2100 the oceans could rise by as much as 15 metres.Using historical evidence and satellite images of the Solomon Islands, the environmental scientists mapped the changes of a subset of 33 coral atolls over the years between 1947 and 2015. In the north, where the waves were strongest, islands were most likely to succumb to the sea. And these islands at risk, the researchers found, were far more than sterile humps of sand.
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
Volcano erupts in western Indonesia, killing 3 villagers-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-YAHOONEWS
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A volcano in western Indonesian unleashed hot clouds of ash on Saturday, killing three villagers and injuring four others, an official said.Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province blasted volcanic ash as high as 3 kilometers (2 miles) into the sky, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho. He said ash tumbled down the slopes as far as 4.5 kilometers (3 miles) westward into a river.The 2,600-meter (8,530-foot) -high mountain in Karo District had been dormant for four centuries before springing to life in August 2010, killing two people and forcing 30,000 to flee. An eruption in February 2014 killed 16 people.All the victims of Saturday's eruption were working on their farms in the village of Gamber in Simpang Empat subdistrict, about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) away from the slope, or within the danger area.Mount Sinabung is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
Costa Rican volcano Turrialba erupts spewing ash over capital San Jose-AFP-ABC
A volcano has erupted near the capital of Costa Rica, choking surrounding communities with smoke and ash.In the capital San Jose, 30 kilometres from the Turrialba volcano, the air reeked of sulphur as dust and ash coated buildings and vehicles."It seems to me to be the strongest (Turrialba) eruption in the past six years," volcanologist Gino Gonzalez said.He spoke to media near the site of the eruption, where a vast cloud of grey smoke was billowing from the 3,340-metre volcano.Television channels showed footage of shuttered schools and hundreds of people flocking to hospitals with breathing and skin problems.The National Emergencies Commission in a statement advised people to wear masks and tight clothing to protect their lungs and skin from the ash.Dr Gonzalez said the wind was blowing the ash and smoke westward, toward the country's most populated areas.Costa Rica is home to five active volcanos.AFP
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Cyclone kills 5 in Bangladesh, forces thousands from homes-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A cyclone unleashed heavy rain and strong winds on Bangladesh's southern coastal region on Saturday, killing at least five people and forcing hundreds of thousands from their homes.Local media say the deaths were caused by the collapse of houses in Bhola, Chittagong and Patuakhali districts. Cyclone Roanu crossed the southern coastal district of Cox's Bazar and weakened after triggering rains.The meteorological office said in a statement that dozens of villages had been submerged by floodwaters.Mohammed Ali Hossain, a government administrator, said nearly 100,000 people were forced from their homes on Moheshkhali island. "Our teams are working there. We are arranging dry food for them and other resources they need urgently," he said.Mohammed Ullah, a local council chief, said the island was flooded in no time by the impact of the cyclone. "The islanders were preparing to go to cyclone shelters following a forecast that the cyclone was expected to hit in the afternoon or in the evening, but suddenly waters started coming. Most islanders have moved to safety," he said.Bangladesh, a delta nation, is prone to deadly cyclones.
Strong storm kills 8, leaves 4 missing in southern China-[Associated Press]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
BEIJING (AP) — At least eight people were killed and another four went missing in a strong storm that hammered a southern Chinese city, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday.All deaths and the missing people were reported in the city of Xinyi, which was hit the hardest by Friday's storm, which drenched houses, broke levees, flooded farmland and destroyed roads.The Xinyi government said the storm brought the heaviest rainfall since 1954, when authorities started to collect weather data.The accumulative precipitation was 46.3 centimeters (18.2 inches) from Thursday evening to Friday afternoon, and authorities recorded 13.3 centimeters (5.2 inches) in rainfall in one hour, the Xinyi government said.More 540,000 people from 131 villages were affected by the storm, it said.All 2,250 local cadres were called in to help with the rescue work this weekend, and school will be suspended, the Xinyi government said.Xinhua said a nearby town was also affected, but to a much lesser degree.
Foreign aid reaches flooded Sri Lankan capital, 71 dead-[AFP]-Amal Jayasinghe-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Colombo (AFP) - Foreign aid began arriving in Sri Lanka Saturday, bringing help to half a million people forced out of their homes by heavy rains and landslides that have killed at least 71 in a week of extreme weather wreaking havoc in South Asia.As the heaviest rains in a quarter of a century battered Sri Lanka, Cyclone Roanu barrelled into the Bangladesh coastline leaving six people dead and forcing the evacuation of 500,000 as it unleashed winds as strong as 88 kilometres (54 miles) per hour and heavy downpours.Torrential rains have deluged Sri Lanka since last weekend, triggering huge landslides that have buried victims in up to 50 feet (15 metres) of mud and left 127 people missing.As aid began to arrive Saturday on a military plane from India and a commercial flight from Japan, Sri Lankan authorities said their priority was now preventing diseases such as diarrhoea, with many areas still under water."We have sent a large number of doctors and nursing staff to ensure there is no outbreak of waterborne diseases," Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne told AFP.In Colombo, residents clung to ropes as they battled to cross torrents of water pulsing through the streets of the flooded capital, with some forced to take shelter in rickshaws.The Indian government has provided inflatable boats, outboard motors, diving equipment, medical supplies, electricity generators and sleeping bags, officials said.The first of two Indian naval ships arrived Saturday at the port in Colombo, while Australia and the United States have made cash donations to help victims.Floodwaters in parts of the capital subsided slightly overnight, officials said, but heavy downpours on Saturday prevented many from moving back to their homes on the banks of the Kelani river."Colombo did not receive any significant rain last night and the water levels of the Kelani went down slightly," Disaster Management Centre spokesman Pradeep Kodippili told AFP."But there were showers upstream and we are worried that the water levels can rise again in a day."- Buddhist holiday -Nearly 300,000 people were staying in about 500 state-run relief centres Saturday, which also marks the Buddhist holiday of Vesak, while a further 200,000 people were staying with friends or family.Officials said there was a fresh landslide in the worst-hit central district of Kegalle, but that no casualties were reported because the area had been evacuated.The country's influential Buddhist clergy urged the faithful to divert at least half of the money spent on holiday celebrations to help flood victims."There are lots of people who have lost their homes, some have only the clothes they are wearing," top Buddhist monk Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana said."Consider this your meritorious deed to celebrate Vesak."Vesak celebrations were muted Saturday in Colombo compared with previous years when the entire city was decorated with lanterns and coloured lights.President Maithripala Sirisena called on Sri Lankans to provide shelter and donate cash or food to flood victims as offers of assistance came in from overseas.The accommodation booking website airbnb.com listed at least 29 places offering free lodging for anyone affected by the floods in Sri Lanka.Disaster management officials said there had been a huge outpouring of sympathy for victims with donations of food, clothing and dry rations.The meteorological department says the rains were caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal, ahead of the arrival of the southwest monsoon.Around 22 of Sri Lanka's 25 districts have been affected by the rains, according to disaster officials.Almost a third of residents have been moved from the low-lying capital, which has a population of about 650,000.
DISEASES
REVELATION 6:7-8
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
Zika strain from Americas outbreak spreads in Africa for first time: WHO-[AFP]-Agnes Pedrero-May 20, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Geneva (AFP) - The Zika virus strain linked to surging cases of neurological disorders and birth defects in Latin America has now been found in Africa, health officials said Friday, as the first fatality on French territory was reported on the Caribbean island of Martinique.The World Health Organization announced that the strain of Zika circulating in Cape Verde had been shown to be the same as the one behind an explosion of cases in the Americas."This is the first time that strain of Zika which has been showed to cause neurological disorders and microcephaly... has been detected in Africa," Matshidiso Moeti, WHO's Africa regional chief, told reporters in Geneva.The so-called Asian strain of the virus, which has infected some 1.5 million people in Brazil, the worst-affected country, was detected in Cape Verde through the sequencing of Zika cases in the island nation."It is the same genetic material as the virus in Brazil," WHO spokeswoman Marsha Vanderford told AFP."The findings are of concern because it is further proof that the outbreak is spreading beyond South America and is on the doorstep of Africa.""This information will help African countries to re-evaluate their level of risk and adapt and increase their levels of preparedness," she added.Experts agree that Zika is behind a surge in cases of the birth defect microcephaly -- babies born with abnormally small heads and brains -- after their mothers were infected with the virus.The virus, which also causes the rare but serious neurological disorder Guillain-Barre Syndrome, is mainly spread by two species of Aedes mosquito but has also been shown to transmit through sexual contact.Friday saw the French Caribbean island of Martinique suffer its first Zika virus-related death, the regional health agency said."The patient, aged 84, had been hospitalised for 10 days in intensive care with Guillain-Barre Syndrome," the agency said, before tests late last week showed up the Zika link.Some experts believe there is a link between Zika and Guillan-Barre -- in which the immune system attacks the nervous system.WHO believes the Asian Zika strain was imported to Cape Verde by a traveller coming from Brazil, before it began spreading locally last October.As of May 8, 7,557 suspected Zika cases had been registered in Cape Verde, as well as three microcephaly cases, WHO said.No cases of Guillain-Barre Syndrome have been registered in the country so far.The African strain of the Zika virus, which takes its name from Uganda's tropical Zika forest where it was first discovered in 1947, has been widespread on the continent since then.But until recently, Zika caused little concern, as it usually leads only to mild, flu-like symptoms, and it appeared many Africans had built up immunity against the virus.- Worst-case scenario -But it remains unclear what impact the arrival of the new strain to the continent will have, said Bruce Aylward, WHO chief on outbreaks and health emergencies."We know that the African strain has circulated in part of Africa for decades now," he told reporters."What we don't know is the population immunity that may have been left behind on the way, and also whether or not that will mitigate some of the impact of this new... strain," he said.Aylward said WHO hoped blood tests would help rapidly establish "whether or not there is some degree of population immunity that will help reduce some of that vulnerability."But he stressed that for now it was important to move forward "against a worst-case scenario" and assume Africans would be as vulnerable as people in Latin America to the impact of the strain.Cape Verde and other African countries at risk should inform pregnant women especially about the risks associated with the Asian strain of the Zika virus, as well as about the best ways of protecting against infection, including avoiding mosquito bites, WHO said.The UN agency also urged countries to step up efforts to detect microcephaly, Guillain-Barre and other neurological disorders linked to Zika and their preparedness to deal with increases in cases.
After Ebola, World Bank creates pandemic insurance plan-[AFP]-May 21, 2016-yahoonews
Sendai (Japan) (AFP) - The World Bank announced Saturday a new program to mobilize funds quickly against virulent disease outbreaks after the world was caught unprepared in the 2014 Ebola disaster in West Africa.World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said the new Pandemic Emergency Financing Facility (PEF) will accelerate global and national responses to disease outbreaks that threaten large populations and fragile economies.He said the PEF, a combination of catastrophe insurance and bonds, is a direct reaction to the sluggish donor response to the outbreak of Ebola, which eventually killed close to 11,000 in West Africa and shut down economic activity for months."Pandemics pose a serious threat to global health and economic security," said Kim."The recent Ebola crisis in West Africa was a tragedy that we were simply not prepared for. It was a wake-up call to the entire world.""There is no effective international system ready to respond quickly to a pandemic."Kim, a medical doctor and expert on health and disease in developing countries, put the World Bank in the lead of the response to Ebola at the time.But he acknowledged that it took months to bring together the hundreds of millions of dollars needed to pay for deploying health personnel, supplies, and other relief to Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.In the meantime, he said, the death toll rose ten-fold.Kim announced the creation of the PEF at the gathering of G7 finance ministers in Sendai, Japan.He said the group of global powers had pressed the World Bank last year to develop a quicker way for the world to respond to pandemics.Kim said Japan was the first to commit support for the PEF, with a $50 million contribution.The insurance will cover outbreaks of several classes of infectious diseases most at risk for epidemics: new orthomyxoviruses including influenza pandemic viruses A, B and C; coronaviruses like SARS and MERS; filoviruses like Ebola and Marburg; and other zoonotic diseases -- those that move between animals and humans -- including Crimean Congo, Rift Valley and Lassa fever.That list does not include Zika, the deadly mosquito-borne virus spreading through the Americas. But Kim said the bank is also putting together a separate emergency "cash window" to address that and other outbreaks not covered.Under the program the 77 least developed countries will be covered by the insurance.Unlike common insurance that repays losses after a disaster, the PEF insurance is designed to release funds as soon as a disease outbreak reaches a certain level as defined by specific criteria.Kim said the World Bank has worked with insurers on the product, which will total $500 million at first, and is confident the global financial markets will accept it."If we had had the PEF up and running in mid-2014, the Ebola outbreak would have looked very different," he said."The countries and the world, and the insurance industry, have the same incentives to prevent the spread of pandemics."
Pope under fire for meeting French cardinal accused of sex abuse cover-up-[AFP]-Angus MacKinnon-May 20, 2016-YAHOONEWS
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis came under fire Friday after meeting Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, the Lyon archbishop suspected of covering up for a paedophile priest in a scandal that has rocked the Catholic Church in France."There was a meeting, nothing out of the ordinary," Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said, adding that he expected the two men had discussed the crisis in the French church, as well as regular business.After meeting the pontiff, Barbarin said he would be staying in his post with Francis' blessing."If the law showed up a serious negligent behaviour in my mission then (resignation) would be a course of action to envisage," the archbishop told French daily Le Figaro."For the moment, that would not be responsible, it would indeed be contrary to my duty. You do not leave the ship at the height of the storm," said Barbarin, one of France's most senior clergymen.He added that "not a single child" had "suffered from decisions that (he had) taken as a bishop" and said he would await "serenely" the outcome of investigations into whether he knew of wrongdoing and failed to blow the whistle.A support group for the alleged victims in the French scandal voiced regret that Francis had met Barbarin while magistrates are still mulling whether the cardinal should face criminal charges."We would have liked to have been received instead of the cardinal, we note that once again it's the victims who are sidelined," Bertrand Virieux, a co-founder of Lyon-based group "La Parole Liberee", told AFP.Virieux said he had written to the pope in March seeking an audience.The surprise meeting with Barbarin came three days after the pope was quoted as saying it would be "nonsensical and imprudent" to seek the archbishop's resignation at this stage, arguing that would be to imply he was guilty of potential criminal charges against him.French examining magistrates are currently carrying out two preliminary investigations to decide whether to pursue charges against the archbishop for his handling of the allegations against Bernard Preynat, a priest in his diocese who has been charged with sex abuse.Preynat was charged in January after admitting sexual assaults on four boy scouts between 1986 and 1991 -- crimes which his lawyers say he can no longer be convicted of.La Parole Liberee says it has identified more than 50 victims.According to the Lyon diocese, Barbarin first received testimony from an alleged victim in mid-2014 and relieved Preynat of his duties in May 2015.Francis said in an interview with French Catholic newspaper La Croix this week that he believed Barbarin had "taken the necessary measures", and had the situation in hand.- Old wounds reopened -Victims groups reacted angrily, saying Francis could not possibly know all the details of a case they say highlights the reluctance of the Church to hand paedophile priests over to criminal authorities.Virieux also expressed regret at Francis meeting the cardinal on the same day as an important court hearing in the charged priest's case.Lyon's appeal court on Friday held a a pre-trial hearing on Preynat's appeal against an earlier ruling that the alleged abuse is no longer subject to prosecution on statute of limitations grounds.Barbarin admitted last month to "errors in the management and nomination of certain priests," but vehemently denied any cover-up.Pope Francis came to power promising a crackdown on cover-ups and a zero tolerance approach to abuse itself, which he famously described as being akin to taking part in a Satanic mass.But the Barbarin case, the recent Royal Commission hearing on Australia's Cardinal George Pell's alleged involvement in cover-ups and the lenient treatment of abusive Italian priest Mauro Inzoli have reopened old wounds.After decades of scandals that have badly damaged the Church's standing in many countries, victims complain they are still not being listened to, that bishops will not hand priests over to police and that a conspiracy of silence remains in place.Francis had put in place legal structures enabling paedophile clerics to be tried by the Vatican's criminal court.
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