SADDAM ORDERED CHEMICAL WEAPONS AGAINST ISRAEL IF TOPPED

JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.

1 THESSALONIANS 5:3
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

ISAIAH 33:8
8  The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant,(7 YR TREATY) he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.(THE WORLD LEADER-WAR MONGER CALLS HIMSELF GOD)

JERUSALEM DIVIDED

GENESIS 25:20-26
20  And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21  And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22  And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23  And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24  And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25  And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26  And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

Kerry: Peace ultimately requires full IDF pullout from Palestinian areas

US secretary of state tells Davos conference that benefits of talks’ success, dangers of their failure, are enormous for whole world

By Ilan Ben Zion January 24, 2014, 9:01 pm 16-The Times of Israel

US Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday that a permanent peace agreement must ultimately involve the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian territories, and warned that the failure of the current round of talks to yield an accord would be catastrophic for both parties.In a far-ranging speech to participants at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Kerry dismissed claims that the US was withdrawing from the Middle East, called for Syrian President Bashar Assad’s removal from power, and said Iran must back up its words with actions if it truly seeks better relations with the world. “If you are serious about a peaceful [nuclear] program,” he said of Iran, “it is not hard to prove to the world that your intentions are peaceful.”

The bulk of his address, however, focused on the US commitment to resolving ”this intractable conflict [that] has confounded administration after administration,” and the “unprecedented” efforts made by the US in the past year toward reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord.Everyone knows what the endgame to the conflict looks like, Kerry said, hinting at the outline of a possible framework agreement: “An independent state for Palestinians wherever they may be; security arrangements for Israel that leave it more secure, not less; a full, phased, final withdrawal of the Israeli army; a just and agreed solution to the Palestinian refugee problem; an end to the conflict and all claims and mutual recognition of the nation-state of the Palestinian people and the nation-state of the Jewish people.”For their part, Kerry said, the Palestinians need assurances ”that at the end of the day their territory is going to be free of Israeli troops, that occupation ends.”“But the Israelis rightfully will not withdraw unless they know the West Bank will not become a new Gaza, and nobody can blame any leader of Israel for being concerned about that reality,” he said. Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in 2007, two years after Israel withdrew unilaterally from the Strip.While the top American diplomat did not detail the content of the current negotiations between the two sides, which he has been brokering since last July, he said that a central obstacle in the way of an accord was the resolution of security issues. US President Barack Obama shared his view, Kerry said, “that there cannot be peace unless Israel’s security and its needs are met.”“Security is a priority, because we understand that Israel has to be strong to make peace. But we also believe that peace will make Israel stronger,” he said.Kerry mentioned that the US, Israel, Jordan and the Palestinians have discussed the creation of a high-tech “security structure that meets the highest standards anywhere in the world” along the border with Jordan, capable of thwarting “an individual terrorist or a conventional armed force.”But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that an agreement with the Palestinians must involve Israeli security forces stationed along the strategically critical Jordan Valley even after Palestinian statehood; Netanyahu said earlier Friday that he would not dismantle settlements either. And Israel’s Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon has derided Kerry’s high-tech security package as inadequate to fight terrorism on the ground.Critical to an agreement, said Kerry on Friday, was managing to get the leaders on either side to make the “courageous decisions necessary to embrace what would be fair and what would work.”Kerry warned that a breakdown in talks would be catastrophic. According to recent reports, the Palestinian leadership has already decided in principle to reject Kerry’s framework proposals for a deal and instead launch a global diplomatic and legal assault on Israel.

“The benefits of success and the dangers of failure are enormous for the United States, for the world, for the region and, most importantly of all, for the Israeli and Palestinian people,” he said.Kerry lauded Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas’s commitment to nonviolence and negotiations, and warned that failure “will only embolden extremists and empower hardliners at the expense of the moderates.” He said a deterioration in security would jeopardize Israel’s economic juggernaut and increase isolation, and bring the Palestinians no closer to the independence they seek.“If they fail to achieve statehood now, there’s no guarantee another opportunity will follow anytime soon,” he said.Kerry added that “this issue cannot be resolved at the United Nations,” a path the Palestinians have attempted previously by seeking international recognition of statehood. “It can only be resolved between the parties.” He warned that unilateral acts by either side would precipitate a spiraling return to conflict.The secretary of state emphasized the benefits both sides stood to gain through a peace agreement, pointing out that the Palestinians would achieve statehood and economic prosperity.“For Israel, the benefits of peace are enormous as well, perhaps even more significant,” he said, stating that Israel would have immediate diplomatic recognition and economic ties with the Arab and Muslim world. It would potentially see a six percent increase in GDP per year, he argued.

“There are some people that assert this may be the last shot,” Kerry said of the current talks. “I don’t know the answer to that. I don’t want to find out the hard way.”

JEREMEIAH 49:35-37 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR OR ARAK NUKE SITE SOME BELIEVE)
35  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRAN/BUSHEHR NUCLEAR SITE) the chief of their might.(MOST DANGEROUS NUKE SITE IN IRAN)
36  And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven,(IRANIANS SCATTERED OR MASS IMIGARATION) and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(WORLD IMMIGRATION)
37  For I will cause Elam (IRAN-BUSHEHR NUKE SITE) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger,(ISRAELS NUKES POSSIBLY) saith the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:(IRAN AND ITS NUKE SITES DESTROYED)

EZEKIEL 35:3-6,11-15
3  And say unto it, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O mount Seir,(ARABS) I am against thee, and I will stretch out mine hand against thee, and I will make thee most desolate.
4  I will lay thy cities waste, and thou shalt be desolate, and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
5  Because thou hast had a perpetual hatred,(AGAINST ISRAEL) and hast shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time that their iniquity had an end:
6  Therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will prepare thee unto blood, and blood shall pursue thee: sith thou hast not hated blood, even blood shall pursue thee.
11  Therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will even do according to thine anger, and according to thine envy which thou hast used out of thy hatred against them; and I will make myself known among them, when I have judged thee.
12  And thou shalt know that I am the LORD, and that I have heard all thy blasphemies which thou hast spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are laid desolate, they are given us to consume.
13  Thus with your mouth ye have boasted against me, and have multiplied your words against me: I have heard them.
14  Thus saith the Lord GOD; When the whole earth rejoiceth, I will make thee desolate.(ARAB,MUSLIMS)
15  As thou didst rejoice at the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do unto thee: thou shalt be desolate, O mount Seir,(ARABS) and all Idumea,(ARAB,MUSLIMS) even all of it: and they shall know that I am the LORD.

ISAIAH 17:1,11-14
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
11  In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.
12  Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations,(USELESS U.N) that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13  The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14  And behold at evening tide trouble; and before the morning he is not.(ASSAD KILLED IN OVERNIGHT RAID) This is the portion of them that spoil us,(ISRAEL) and the lot of them that rob us.

AMOS 1:5
5  I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden:(IRAQ) and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir,(JORDAN) saith the LORD.

JEREMEIAH 49:23-27
23  Concerning Damascus.(SYRIA) Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea;(WAR SHIPS WITH NUKES COMING ON SYRIA) it cannot be quiet.
24  Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25  How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26  Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
27  And I will kindle a fire (NUKES OR BOMBS) in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(ASSADS PALACES POSSIBLY IN DAMASCUS)

PSALMS 83:3-7
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 fears it is next target of al-Qaeda-linked jihadis in Syria

Concern at spillover terrorism from 30,000 fighters is prompting Jerusalem to re-evaluate its neutrality on Syrian war

By Aron Heller January 25, 2014, 3:11 am 2-The Times of Israel

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — A sharp increase in the number of al-Qaeda linked fighters joining the fight against President Bashar Assad in Syria is threatening to spill over the borders and prompting the Jewish state to re-evaluate its policy of neutrality in the civil war next door, a senior Israeli intelligence official warned on Friday.The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because military regulations prevent him from releasing the information, claimed more than 30,000 al-Qaeda linked fighters are active in Syria, a huge increase over previous Western estimates. He did not disclose how Israel reached the figure or specify which groups were included in the count, only defining the fighters as believers in “global jihad,” which he said meant a mix of those linked to al-Qaeda or inspired by the terror network.The Israeli official estimated that just two years ago there were only about 2,000 jihadis in Syria but claimed the number has mushroomed to more than 30,000 as the conflict has dragged on, presenting the Middle East with a far more dangerous threat. He claimed that the Islamic rebel groups in Syria currently focused on toppling Assad intend to turn their sites on Israel after dispatching the Syrian government.“After Assad and after establishing or strengthening their foothold in Syria they are going to move and deflect their effort and attack Israel,” he told The Associated Press.Israeli officials cite at least two cases of recent rocket fire from Lebanon they attribute to the al-Qaeda-linked groups — although independent observers widely interpreted those as an attempt by extremist groups to prompt Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, where the Assad-allied Lebanese Hezbollah militant group has a strong presence.Aside from a few airstrikes against what were believed to be advanced weapons shipments from Syria into Lebanon, Israel has kept a low profile since the uprising against Assad began in March 2011, hoping to avoid being dragged into the conflict.With the absence of any potential ally and any hope that a good resolution could come from the fighting, Israeli conventional wisdom has held that it was better off with it continuing and having the rival forces stay busy butchering each other rather than noticing Israel.But that may not be the case anymore. “The longer the war in Syria continues, the more jihadists and radicals are coming to this territory,” the official said.Israel, which borders southwestern Syria, has periodically called for Assad’s ouster, particularly after reports of his use of chemical weapons and other atrocities against civilians. But at the same time it has been wary of saying or doing anything more fearing that any group that supplants him would be a far more dangerous adversary.“Formally it hasn’t changed,” the high-ranking officer said of Israel’s policy. But, he said, many discussions are taking place behind closed doors about the possibility of rethinking that strategy.The jihadis currently control most of the Syrian territory that directly borders Israel, although they have not fired rockets or missiles at Israeli territory.Two al-Qaeda-linked groups are known to operate in Syria — Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as Nusra Front, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The groups, which have both been designated terrorist organizations by the United States, have been bolstered by the influx of thousands of foreign fighters from across the Muslim world as well as Europe and North America who have flocked to Syria to take up arms against Assad.

Other rebel groups that are generally included in Israel’s definition, including Ahrar al-Sham and Jaish al-Islam, follow an ultraconservative ideology and call for the creation of an Islamic state, but have a more nationalist bent than the al-Qaeda-affiliated factions and are not proponents of so-called “global jihad.”

Aron Lund, editor of the Carnegie Endowment’s “Syria in Crisis” website, said the home-grown rebel groups such as Arhar al-Sham and Jaish al-Islam are focused on fighting in Syria and toppling Assad, not staging global attacks.Lund was also wary of any figures for al-Qaeda-linked fighters in Syria, noting the difficulty in accurately determining such numbers amid the blurry lines of the country’s chaotic conflict.

“I don’t even know how you calculate that. Who’s a fighter? Is it anyone with a gun, or is it anyone fighting at the front lines? Is it anyone helping out doing media work and medical work and organization?” he said. “I’m very skeptical of the comparisons that the uprising is X percent this and X percent that.”To Israel, Assad is a bitter enemy, an ally of Iran and a major backer of Lebanese Hezbollah guerrilla attacks against it. But like his father whom he succeeded as president, he has faithfully observed U.S.-brokered accords that ended the 1973 war with Israel. The Golan Heights frontier has remained quiet for the past 40 years, with only recent instances of cross-border fire disturbing the peace. To this point Israel believes most of the fire against it has been accidental, spillover from internal battles.The officer said 1,200 fighters belonging to five radical Islamic groups, including three with direct links to al-Qaeda and the Nusra Front, were already in the Gaza Strip and have fired rockets at Israel from the Palestinian territory.He said the infiltration has thus far been largely kept out of Israel and the West Bank, thanks to joint Israeli and Palestinian efforts. But dangers loom on that front too.Just this week, Israel said it had broken up an al-Qaeda plot to bomb the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv and major convention center in Jerusalem — the first time Israel explicitly accused the group of being behind an attempted attack. Palestinian security forces recently arrested about 20 young men who allegedly tried to set up an organization of ultraconservative Salafis.Last November, Israeli forces killed three members of that group in a shootout in the city of Hebron. Israeli security officials say there is some cooperation with their Palestinian counterparts in the West Bank to keep the Salafis under watch.Associated Press writer Ryan Lucas in Beirut contributed to this report.

Israeli PM states Rouhani engaged in ‘campaign of fraud’; also says his government won’t dismantle settlements

By Times of Israel staff January 24, 2014, 5:47 pm 14

Israel estimates that Iran has spent at least $160 billion on its drive to nuclear weapons, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday.At a press conference in Davos, where he is attending the World Economic Forum, Netanyahu dismissed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s claim that Iran is not seeking the bomb, and said Iran was engaged in a “campaign of fraud” to mislead the world about its nuclear weapons aspirations.Referring to Rouhani’s speech in Davos on Thursday, Netanyahu was witheringly critical: “He said they have no intention to develop nuclear weapons. Come on. Does anybody really believe that? Does anybody really think that? They’re investing these tens of billions. By our estimation, they have invested $160-170 billion dollars. What for? To develop medical isotopes to despatch on ballistic missiles to sick Iranians orbiting the Earth? Of course they intend to develop nuclear weapons.”Iran’s national budget for 2013 was a reported $453 billion.Netanyahu, who also met in Davos with US Secretary of State John Kerry, said the principles of a future potential agreement with the Palestinians would become clear in the next few days — a reference to a “framework” agreement which Kerry is finalizing to guide the ongoing peace talks. Once those principles were made clear, Netanyahu said, it would be possible to assess whether the Palestinian leadership is truly seeking a breakthrough.He stressed that Kerry’s “framework” agreement was not a binding peace deal, but rather that “the Americans are speaking about their proposal” — a path forward for further negotiations, he said.Kerry and Netanyahu met for 90 minutes. Netanyahu told the secretary he had no intention of evacuating any Israeli settlements in the Jordan Valley or uprooting Israelis who live there. “I’ve said in the past and I repeat today: I do not intend to evacuate any settlements, I don’t intend to uproot any Israeli,” he said. He was responding to a question about the Jordan Valley, and it was not clear whether he was speaking only in that context or about settlements in general.Israel’s insistence on maintaining a security presence in the Jordan Valley, the area of the West Bank bordering the Hashemite Kingdom, has been a sticking point for the two sides in the six months of negotiations that began at the end of July.Last month, the Palestinians reportedly rejected a proposal by Kerry for an Israeli security presence to remain in the Jordan Valley for the first 10 years after the signing of a peace deal.Netanyahu added that international economic pressure on Israel over settlements would not advance the peace process but, rather, harm it by encouraging the Palestinians to toughen their stance.Kerry, earlier, told Saudi news outlet Al Arabiya that he was skeptical as to whether such a framework accord could be finalized in the coming month.“I’m not sure when it will be,” Kerry said. “It will be when we’re finished with the work we have to do to get there. We’re still negotiating. We’re working in good faith with both of the parties. The leaders have been very, very committed to this process. My hope is we can achieve the framework for final status negotiations. But it’s very, very difficult and we have a lot of work to do.”The secretary of state said that if a peace agreement was not reached soon, “the risks for everybody are much greater — the risk of confrontation, the risk of violence, the risk of continued conflict.”Last week London-based Arabic daily al-Hayat reported that Kerry was to present a memorandum of understanding between Israel and the Palestinians at a conference in Jordan at the end of the month.Later Friday, Kerry was to deliver a speech in which US officials said he would counter criticism that the United States is pulling back from the Mideast.

Kerry would argue it’s a “myth” that Washington has disengaged from the region, pointing out major diplomatic initiatives with the Israelis and Palestinians, Syria and Iran, they said.Kerry came to Davos after attending a Syria peace conference in Montreux, Switzerland on Wednesday.AP contributed to this report.

Saddam gave orders to fire chemical weapons at Tel Aviv if he was toppled in First Gulf War’

Tapes reveal Iraqi dictator told generals to launch missiles with WMD warheads at Jewish state should he be cut off from his military staff

By Times of Israel staff January 25, 2014, 12:14 am 11

Saddam Hussein gave orders to his subordinates to launch missiles with chemical warheads at Israel should he start to lose power during the First Gulf War, Israel’s Channel 2 reported Friday, citing tapes from the late Iraqi president’s archives.According to the report, Hussein dispersed missiles armed with chemical weapons at bases across the country and gave orders to have them launched at the Jewish state should his regime collapse or he be cut off from his general staff. The list of strategic Israeli targets was drawn up and included, curiously, Haifa’s leading high-tech university, The Technion.A professor from the university recounted in the report that a Jordanian official who visited the school told him that Saddam insisted the Technion be added to the list of strategic targets because a teacher at the school had spoken ill of him.Hussein tape-recorded many of his meetings with senior Iraqi officials and foreign dignitaries. The trove of audio archives was captured by the United States in 2003 and some were analyzed by Avner Golov of the Institute of National Security Studies, a think tank at Tel Aviv University.According to Golov, Hussein ultimately never launched biological or chemical weapons at Israel “because he never thought he had reached the point that he felt his regime was under threat.”Hussein did fire 39 Scud missiles armed with conventional warheads at Israel during the First Gulf War, killing one Israeli. Fears that he might use chemical warheads on the Scuds led to the Israeli authorities distributing gas masks, and ordering the populace into sealed rooms when the Scuds were heading toward Israel.On one of the tapes broadcast on Friday night, the Iraqi dictator told the visiting Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in April 1990 — four months before Saddam invaded Kuwait — that “Iraq has chemical weapons it successfully used against the Iranians” during the eight-year Iran-Iraq War, “and Iraq won’t hesitate to use them against Tel Aviv.”In another recording from 1991 broadcast by the news outlet, Hussein orders Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, his vice president, to launch missile strikes at Israel at night. When al-Douri asks whether he means military targets, Hussein replies, “I consider every city in Israel a target.”Analysis of Hussein’s tapes showed that he considered chemical weapons a trump card, “to be held in reserve to deter American or Israeli use of chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons and to prevent coalition forces from marching on Baghdad” in 1991, according to Foreign Policy.

In Geneva, Syria’s warring sides meet face-to-face

For the first time since negotiations began, rival delegations sit silently in same room as UN envoy lays groundwork for talks

By AFP and AP January 25, 2014, 1:09 pm 1-The times of Israel

GENEVA — The first face-to-face meeting between Syria’s government and the opposition hoping to overthrow Bashar Assad started and ended after barely a half-hour Saturday, with the two sides facing each other silently as a UN mediator split the distance between them and laid the groundwork for talks intended to lead Syria out of civil war.After tense days spent avoiding each other and meeting separately with the mediator, Assad’s handpicked delegation and representatives of the Syrian National Coalition gathered briefly at a single U-shaped table, then emerged and went separate ways, using different doors to avert contact.Only the mediator, Lakhdar Brahimi, spoke, according to Anas al-Abdeh, who was among the coalition’s representatives.The two sides were distant going into the meeting, with the Damascus delegation denying it had accepted the premise of a transitional leadership, and the opposition saying it would accept nothing less. Diplomats have said even getting them to the same table can be considered an accomplishment three years into the uprising that left 130,000 people dead.“Today we shall start with modest ideas and we will build on them to achieve something and we move gradually to bigger and bigger issues,” Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Mikdad said going into the meeting.Al-Abdeh said the antagonists would face each other again later Saturday but would only address Brahimi, not each other. First on the agenda was a cease-fire in the city of Homs, which has been under government siege for more than a year and where reports of starvation deaths have emerged.It was very difficult to “sit at the table with the killers,” al-Abdeh said.The first day of peace talks in Geneva stumbled, with the regime threatening to walk out. However, after meeting with both sides, UN-Arab League Syria envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said Friday they had agreed to “meet in the same room”.Pulled together by the United Nations, Russia and the United States, the delegations had been due to sit down early Friday at UN headquarters in Geneva for their first direct talks.

But that plan fell apart after the opposition insisted the regime must be prepared to discuss Assad leaving power.“We never expected this to be easy,” Brahimi told reporters, adding that “I think the two parties understand what is at stake.”Foreign Minister Walid Muallem had earlier warned Brahimi that the Syrian delegation would leave Geneva if no “serious sessions” took place Saturday.Still, Brahimi appeared confident no one would be immediately quitting the talks, insisting that “both parties are going to be here tomorrow and they will be meeting.”The talks have yet to touch on concrete issues.“We have not discussed the core matters yet,” Brahimi said, adding: “we hope that both parties will give concessions that will be to the benefit of the process.”Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Muqdad blamed the opposition for obstructing Friday’s talks.Nazir al-Hakim, a member of the opposition National Coalition’s delegation, told AFP it would only accept negotiations based on the agreement reached at the “Geneva I” peace conference in 2012, which called for the creation of a transitional government.“We need guarantees that Geneva I will be discussed,” he said.The regime has said it supports Geneva I, but rejects the opposition’s contention that the agreement requires Assad to go.Brahimi admitted there were “some differences on the interpretation” of parts of the document, saying he hoped the talks would help “clarify the ambiguity.”Talks to touch on ‘siege of Homs’

Expectations are very low for a breakthrough at the Geneva II discussions, which are expected to last about a week.At the World Economic Forum in the Swiss town of Davos, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki described the agreement on Saturday’s meeting as “a positive step forward in what we expect will be a long and complicated process.”With no one appearing ready for serious concessions, mediators will be focusing on short-term deals to keep the process moving forward, including on localised ceasefires, freer humanitarian access and prisoner exchanges.Opposition Coalition official Ahmad Ramadan told AFP talks on Saturday and Sunday would focus on the central city of Homs, where hundreds of families are living under siege with near-daily shelling and the barest of supplies.“We will talk exclusively about… how to put an end to the siege of Homs, ensuring humanitarian corridors to besieged areas and stopping the regime’s bombing and killing,” Ramadan said.The start of the conference in the Swiss town of Montreux on Wednesday was marked by fiery exchanges, with Muallem labelling the opposition “traitors” and agents of foreign governments.Erupting after the regime cracked down on protests inspired by the Arab Spring, Syria’s civil war has claimed more than 130,000 lives and forced millions from their homes.Pitting Assad’s regime, dominated by the Alawite offshoot of Shi’ite Islam, against largely Sunni Muslim rebels, the war has unsettled large parts of the Middle East.

Divided Egypt marks 3rd anniversary of uprising

Shots ring out in Cairo city center as riot police target Islamist protesters; meanwhile, army supporters celebrate with traditional music, horses

By MAGGIE MICHAEL and Sarah El Deeb January 25, 2014, 2:16 pm Updated: January 25, 2014, 3:28 pm 1-The times of Israel

CAIRO (AP) — With dancing horses and traditional folklore music, supporters of the military-backed government celebrated and called on the army chief to run for president in rallies marking the third anniversary of the country’s 2011 uprising, as security forces firing tear gas battled rival demonstrations, both by supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi and by secular activists opposed to both camps.The starkly contrasting scenes reflected the three years of turmoil that have split Egyptians into polarized camps since the revolt that began on Jan. 25, 2011, ousting autocratic leader Hosni Mubarak — followed by last summer’s millions-strong demonstrations against Mubarak’s elected successor, Morsi, that led to the coup removing himMorsi’s supporters were using Saturday’s anniversary for building up a new momentum in defiance to the military and its political transition plan, despite months of a fierce crackdown that has crippled their ranks and rising public resentment against the group.Pro-military demonstrators, meanwhile, were turning out in state-backed rallies to show their support for army chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, the man who ousted Morsi and whom many of those in the rallies want to now run for president.

Security forces also moved to shut down rallies marking the anniversary by secular youth activists who led the 2011 anti-Mubarak uprising and who are critical of both the Islamists and the military. A number of their most prominent figures have been in prison for months amid a campaign to silence even secular voices of dissent.Police used tear gas to disperse one small gathering by activists in the Cairo district of Mohandessin, blogger Wael Khalil said. One prominent activist, Nazli Hussein, was detained by police on the subway as she headed from her home to join one such rally downtown, her mother, Ghada Shahbendar said.

“The only thing allowed is el-Sissi revolutionaries,” Khalil said, with an ironic laugh. “This was supposed to be day to mark the revolution … I don’t get it. Do they think that there will be working democracy this way?”The days’ rallies are taking place in an atmosphere of fear, a day after four bombs exploded in Cairo targeting police and killing six people, believed to be an escalation of a campaign of attacks by Islamic militants. Another 15 people were killed around the country Friday when Morsi’s supporters armed with gasoline bombs and firearms loaded with birdshot clashed with security forces. The Interior Ministry said that 237 people were arrested during the protests.In the northern Sinai Peninsula, where the military has been battling militants for months, an army helicopter crashed Saturday and its crew was missing, a military spokesman said. There was no immediate word on the cause or whether it had been shot down.Islamists held protests in several neighborhoods of Cairo and in other cities, quickly turning into clashes with security forces. Protesters burned pictures of el-Sissi. Riot police fired tear gas and shot into the air, chasing protesters down side streets in Cairo. Two protesters were killed on Saturday in the southern city of Minya in police clashes, a security official said.One protest group, Students Against the Coup, led by supporters of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood, called for unity with other youth groups to “struggle against a fascist and oppressive military dictatorship.” Secular youth groups, which deeply opposed Morsi during his year as president, have shunned Islamist groups, however.The pro-military rallies appeared carefully designed, with marches of demonstrators converging on several locations, particularly Cairo’s central Tahrir Square — the symbolic heart of the 2011 uprising — and outside the presidential palace in Cairo’s Heliopolis district.

The marchers waved Egyptian flags and touted posters, banners and badges with pictures of el-Sissi. A folklore band with dancers in colorful swirling skirts sang and danced their way across bridges over the Nile River into Tahrir, where a dancing horse performed.“Come down (nominate yourself), oh Sissi,” a crowd in Tahrir chanted. Soldiers manning armored personnel carriers at the square’s entrances joined demonstrators in chanting, “The people want the execution of the Brotherhood.” A military Chinook helicopter circled over Tahrir to cheers from the crowd. Huge loudspeakers blared pro-military songs in the streets.A large motorcade of security vehicles paraded down a main boulevard in Alexandria. TVs showed celebrations— no more than hundreds yet in every location— in cities and squares around Egypt.In midafternoon, the crowds from both the military and Islamist camps appeared relatively modest — though they often expand in the evening. Streets remained empty elsewhere in Cairo, on edge after the previous day’s bombings.The al-Qaida-inspired group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, or the Champions of Jerusalem, claimed responsibility for Friday’s bombings, warned of more and told citizens to stay away from police stations.“We tell our dear nation that these attacks were only the first drops of rain, so wait for what is coming,” read the statement, posted on militant websites.The group, based in Sinai peninsula, claimed responsibility for one of the worst bombings that hit Egypt over the past months, including the assassination attempt of the Interior Minister in September and suicide bombing in Nile Delta city in Mansoura killing 16 mostly policemen. The group says it is avenging the killings of pro-Morsi supporters and military offensive in Sinai.Early Saturday, a bomb exploded next to a police training institute in eastern Cairo, said Hani Abdel-Latif, a spokesman for Egypt’s Interior Ministry. He said it only damaged the facility’s walls and caused no casualties.Ahmed Mahmoud, an engineering student living close by, said that the blast shook his building and caused a brief power outage. Mahmoud said that angry residents quickly blamed the Brotherhood and vowed to attack any Islamist rallies in their neighborhood.“People were saying they will carry arms and kill all Muslim Brothers who dare to pass by this place,” he said.The interim government has blamed the Brotherhood for violence after the coup and has designated it as a terrorist organization. The Brotherhood, which denounced violence in the 1970s, has denied any links to the terrorist attacks. However, the near-daily protests carried out by the group since the July coup often devolve into violence.In Sinai, Spokesman of Egypt’s military Col. Ahmed Mohammed Ali said that an army helicopter crashed and its crew is missing in the northern Sinai Peninsula early Saturday, where troops are battling Islamic militants.In a statement posted on his official Facebook page, he said that the accident took place near the village of el-Kharouba village. He provided no further details on the cause of the crash.The Egyptian military has been waging operations for months in the northern Sinai to uproot Islamic militants who took hold of several towns and villages in the aftermath of 2011 uprising.

EARTHQUAKES

ISAIAH 42:15
15  I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools.

MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places,(DIFFERNT PLACES AT THE SAME TIME) and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

1 Day, Magnitude 2.5+ Worldwide

27 earthquakes - DownloadUpdated: 2014-01-25 09:51:16 UTC-05:00Showing event times using Local System Time (UTC-05:00)27 earthquakes in map area

1. 2.6 93km NW of San Antonio, Puerto Rico 2014-01-25 07:21:15 UTC-05:00 29.0 km
2. 3.4 132km N of Road Town, British Virgin Islands 2014-01-25 06:16:42 UTC-05:00 54.0 km
3. 4.3 62km SW of Champerico, Guatemala 2014-01-25 05:18:24 UTC-05:00 36.7 km
4. 3.1 115km N of Road Town, British Virgin Islands 2014-01-25 05:15:24 UTC-05:00 36.0 km
5. 4.6 56km WSW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2014-01-25 03:02:19 UTC-05:00 40.3 km
6. 2.9 71km N of Brenas, Puerto Rico 2014-01-25 02:34:45 UTC-05:00 41.0 km
7. 4.5 61km NNW of Manado, Indonesia 2014-01-25 00:41:35 UTC-05:00 233.5 km
8. 6.1 36km SSE of Adipala, Indonesia 2014-01-25 00:14:21 UTC-05:00 89.1 km
9. 3.2 63km NNE of Isabela, Puerto Rico 2014-01-25 00:08:27 UTC-05:00 79.0 km
10. 3.1 98km N of Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands 2014-01-24 23:46:12 UTC-05:00 15.0 km
11. 3.0 92km NNW of Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands 2014-01-24 23:44:40 45.0 km
12. 2.8 66km N of Brenas, Puerto Rico 2014-01-24 22:27:08 UTC-05:00 50.0 km
13. 4.4 23km SSW of Hualian, Taiwan 2014-01-24 22:16:10 UTC-05:00 11.2 km
14. 4.6 230km NNW of Saumlaki, Indonesia 2014-01-24 20:15:41 UTC-05:00 141.9 km
15. 2.6 5km S of Perkins, Oklahoma 2014-01-24 20:01:10 UTC-05:00 5.0 km
16. 2.6 15km ESE of Anza, California 2014-01-24 19:58:12 UTC-05:00 14.4 km
17. 2.9 77km N of Tierras Nuevas Poniente, Puerto Rico 2014-01-24 19:12:27 UTC-05:00 17.0 km
18. 4.3 140km NE of Tobelo, Indonesia 2014-01-24 19:06:04 UTC-05:00 220.9 km
19. 4.0 25km SSE of Sary-Tash, Kyrgyzstan 2014-01-24 18:49:06 UTC-05:00 76.0 km
20. 4.3 8km WSW of Shwebo, Burma 2014-01-24 18:25:26 UTC-05:00 25.6 km
21. 4.5 1km NNW of Selianitika, Greece 2014-01-24 17:08:48 UTC-05:00 1.6 km
22. 4.6 Kuril Islands 2014-01-24 16:42:01 UTC-05:00 42.8 km
23. 2.6 16km NNE of Isabela, Puerto Rico 2014-01-24 14:34:34 UTC-05:00 17.0 km
24. 2.7 14km NNE of Virginia City, Nevada 2014-01-24 13:39:41 UTC-05:00 9.2 km
25. 4.5 28km SW of Ashkasham, Afghanistan 2014-01-24 13:22:42 UTC-05:00 215.4 km
26. 5.0 100km E of `Ohonua, Tonga 2014-01-24 13:06:34 UTC-05:00 5.8 km
27. 4.7 224km SW of Sarangani, Philippines 2014-01-24 13:00:05 UTC-05:00 64.3 km

5 CONFIRMED DEAD - 30 STILL LOOKING FOR IN MONTREAL SENIORS FIRE-FROZEN COLLAPSE - STILL SIZZLING DISASTER

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.

ITS 8:30AM JAN 24,2014.AFTER 32 HOURS AFTER THE MONTREAL SENIOR HOME FIRE HAS OCCURRED.THE CONFIRMED DEAD IS 5 AND 30 SENIORS STILL MISSING.AS WE SEEN IN THE PICTURES I GOT FROM THEIR WEBSITE-THERE DEFINATELY WAS NO SPRINKLERS ANYWHERE IN THE BURNT OUT-COLLAPSED- NOW ICE ENCLOSED DISASTER.THE WORKERS ARE JUST NOW TRYING TO RECOVER THE 30 OR LESS BODIES MISSING.I JUST NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS-AS THEY CAN NOT RECOVER THE BODIES DUE TO THE ICE BUILDUP FROM TRYING TO SAVE THE BUILDING 32 HOURS AGO.THEN THE COLLAPSE OF THE 3 STORY 52 APARTMENT BUILDING.SO FAR THERE IS 5 DEAD-11 INJURED AND 2 FIREMAN WERE INJURED.AND NOW I JUST HEARD THERES STILL LITTLE FIRES BURNING IN THE FROZEN DISASTER.

I WILL KEEP UP WITH THE STORY.

IF ANYBODY TOOK PICTURES OR VIDEO OF THE BEGINING OF THE FIRE.PLEASE PHONE THIS NUMBER.SO THE AUTHORITIES MIGHT HAVE AN IDEA OF HOW THE FIRE STARTED.  
1-800-659-4264 THANK YOU

YESTERDAYS STORY I PUT ON MY SITE
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2014/01/possible-33-dead-in-montreal-senoirs.html

ITS 36 HOURS SINCE THE START OF THE FIRE HERE AT 12:30PM DEC 24,14.I'M GOING TO MAKE A PREDICTION HERE.IT WOULD NOT SURPRISE ME IF JEWISH KING JESUS OUR CREATOR-GOD AND SAVIOR WOULD LET AT LEAST ONE OF THE AGED IN THE FROZEN BUILDING SURVIVE TO SHOW HIS LOVE-MERCY AND GLORY.AFTER 36 HOURS AND FREEZING COLD AND FIRE AND COLLAPSE.THIS WOULD TRUELY BE A MIRACLE BY GOD IF AT LEAST ONE SURVIVED THE DISASTER.PROOF GOD IS IN CONTROL.AND WE SHOULD GIVE HIM ALL THE GLORY AND PRAISE.AND PROOF JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO SALVATION-NO OTHER.

ITS 4:50PM DEC 24,14-AND ITS NOW CONFIRMED 8 PEOPLE ARE DEAD AND STILL THE 30 ARE MISSING.THE RECOVERY WILL CONTINUE ON TILL 7PM TONIGHT.THEN AT 7AM TOMORROW MORNING THE RECOVERY WILL CONTINUE.

Eight confirmed dead and 30 others missing in fire at Quebec seniors' home

By The Canadian Press | 4:48PM JAN 24,14-yahoonews

• Grim search for victims of seniors' home fire continues despite biting cold

L'ISLE-VERTE, Qc - Authorities now say eight people are confirmed dead and about another 30 are missing after fire tore through a seniors' residence in eastern Quebec.The blaze destroyed the residence in L'Isle-Verte, about 240 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.Police and a coroner's official announced the increased death toll at a news conference late this afternoon.There were five confirmed fatalities as of Thursday night.None of the victims have been publicly identified. 

L'Isle Verte seniors' home owners may not rebuild after fire

Building was in line with security regulations, says provincial government

CBC News Posted: Jan 24, 2014 6:54 AM ET Last Updated: Jan 24, 2014 4:52 PM ET

The owners of the L'Isle Verte, Que., seniors' residence that burned down early Thursday morning said they may not rebuild in the aftermath of the tragedy that killed at least five people and caused the disappearance of at least 30 more.Résidence du Havre owners Roch Bernier and Irene Plante issued a statement late Friday afternoon extending their sincere condolences to the victims' families. They have owned the residence since 1999."Although they loved their job, their residents and their employees, Mr. Bernier and Ms. Plante would like to mention that it is still too early to say if they have or not to rebuild the residence Le Havre," the release said.They said they wanted to focus their energies on relocating and assuring the well-being of the displaced residents for the time being.

Residence respected security regulations

The seniors' residence that burned down in L'Isle-Verte was in line with security regulations, Quebec's minister for social services says as the search for 30 missing in the fatal fire continues.
"We don't know what happened," Véronique Hivon told reporters on Friday morning. 

• 

1 of 16

​
Five people have been confirmed dead and 30 are missing after Thursday's fire, which ravaged the seniors' home in the rural Quebec town, about 28 kilometres northeast of Rivière-du-Loup.Hivon said the most recent safety drill at the residence was carried out in under eight minutes.The older part of the Résidence du Havre was built in 1997, and had no sprinkler system, although a newer wing built in 2002 was equipped with sprinklers.

• L'Isle-Verte seniors' home fire raises ire over sprinkler regulation

Hivon said the government must do "everything possible to make sure that ... such tragedies don't happen again."Meanwhile, police are not speculating on what may have caused the fire.Quebec provincial police Lt. Guy Lapointe said investigators have not ruled out anything yet.

'We will not give up'

As the search for the missing continues, Lapointe said many members of the emergency crews are suffering from loss as well. "We will not give up," he said. He said police officers and firefighters worked overnight to bring the fire under control. Workers are dealing with extreme cold and a thick coating of ice over the rubble. Lapointe said as crews search through the building's remains, they are using steam to melt the ice.He said the steam will help ensure the scene isn't damaged. The tragedy has been designated as a Fourth Level response, meaning that local officials, the Quebec coroners’ office and the Quebec forensic laboratory are involved in the operation. Police are reminding members of the public to stay outside marked-off perimeters. There is a red zone set up around the remaining rubble, and police are asking the public not to go inside that zone.

A total of 52 people were listed as living in the building, but provincial police are still trying to pin down how many of them were inside at the time of the fire. 

Memorial mass

As the close-knit town of 1,500 people wait for news of their loved ones, a memorial service has been planned for Sunday. The mass will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Church of St-Jean-Baptiste-de-l'Isle-Verte.Priest Gilles Frigon said the service will be open to everyone. Several guests have been invited to come and speak, including a representative for the firefighters and MNA Jean D'Amour.

Red Cross asks for donations

The Red Cross launched a collection for donations, asking the public to give to those affected by the tragedy. The fund will be used to help victims' families and evacuees pay for essential needs.According to the Red Cross, there is a need for at least $50,000 in donations. Volunteers with the Red Cross have been on the scene since 3 a.m. Thursday, meeting with survivors. Financial donations are expected to cover the cost of housing, clothing and food, but the Red Cross says there is also a need for dentures, hearing aids, mobility aids and glasses.To make a donation, click here.

Search in Quebec fire to continue today as tragedy sinks in

By The Canadian Press-JAN 24,2014-Yahoonews

L'ISLE-VERTE, Qc - Investigators will continue sifting through icy rubble today to try to identify more victims of a fire that destroyed a seniors' residence in Quebec.Freezing temperatures will probably hamper the efforts in the eastern Quebec town of L'Isle-Verte.Five people are confirmed dead, while another 30 are reported missing.The cause of Thursday morning's blaze is unclear.Most of the residents probably never had a chance — many of them were over 85, had little or no mobility and were confined to wheelchairs or walkers.A common theme in conversations in the town of 1,500 was the parallel between the fire and the train derailment which devastated Lac-Megantic last summer.Both tragedies occurred shortly after midnight and left the two communities reeling.Witnesses told horrific tales on Thursday of seeing people die in the blaze.Pascal Fillion said he saw an attempt to use a ladder to rescue a man cornered on his third-floor balcony.The man was screaming and crying out for help before he fell to the ground engulfed by the fire.
A Quebec Health Department document indicates the residence, which has operated since 1997, had only a partial sprinkler system.The facility expanded around 2002 and the sprinklers in the new part of the building triggered the alarm.Fire chief Yvan Charron said his colleagues were able to get to the third of the building that remained standing, while the rest was inaccessible.Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Premier Pauline Marois were among a raft of politicians to offer their condolences.

PM HARPER ENDS MIDEAST TRIP TO ISRAEL

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.

Prime Minister Harper ends Mideast visit with tour of refugee camp in Jordan

AMMAN, Jordan - Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced more funding initiatives Friday to assist Syrian refugees and to aid in the destruction of Syrian chemical weapons.Harper, on the final day of his visit to Israel and Jordan, made the announcement during a tour of the Za’atari refugee camp in Jordan, some 12 kilometres from the Syrian border.Harper, who was in Amman Thursday to meet with King Abdullah at his opulent presidential palace, said an additional $15 million would be spent to support the international effort to destroy the weapons.The bulk of the money, $10 million, will go to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which is overseeing the program.That’s on top of the $2 million Canada gave the OPCW in early 2013 to help the organization investigate the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria.
The remaining $5 million announced Friday will assist the U.S. Department of Defence in the destruction of chemicals aboard an American ship.“The use of chemical weapons against Syrian civilians was an atrocity that cannot be allowed to happen again,” said Harper.Harper also announced additional support for 6.5 million internally displaced people in Syria and the 2.3 million refugees who have fled the civil war.
He said $150 million would be disbursed this year for humanitarian needs in Syria and to help Syrians who have taken refuge in Jordan and other countries.The third Canadian-funded project is designed to help Syrian refugee children rediscover what many kids around the world take for granted — the joy of play.
Funding will be provided to enable more than 1,500 teachers and coaches to use a play-based learning method in partnership with an organization called Right To Play."Canada’s support will help ensure that children living in Jordanian communities hosting Syrian refugees have the opportunity to learn, play and succeed despite difficult circumstances," said Harper.The prime minister added that Canada will do its best to ensure Syrian children "do not become a lost generation."All told, Canada has so far committed more than $630 million in humanitarian, development and security assistance in response to the Syrian crisis.
The prime minister and his wife, Laureen, were welcomed at the camp by a UN official who thanked Canada for its strong support of Jordan.The official filled them in on the size of the camp and the number of Syrian refugees there, now estimated to number about 125,000.The camp has grown to more than eight square kilometres since it was created in July 2012.Time Magazine has described it as the size of nearly 1,000 American football fields.Harper says camp represents just the tip of the iceberg in regards to the Syrian crisis."This is only one small piece of the refugee crisis." he said."We sometimes forget these are all individual lives ... We are touched by this."After touring the camp, Harper and his wife, Laureen, visited Petra, a historical and archeological city famous for its rock-cut architecture and water system.UNESCO says Petra, between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea, has been inhabited since prehistoric times. It is half-built, half-carved into rock, and is surrounded by mountains riddled with passages and gorges.
The Harpers stopped and posed for photos on edge of the spectacular valley."We need a geologist," Laureen said with a laugh.One of the prominent features carved into the rock called Al Khazneh, or the Facade of the Treasury, was used to depict the front of a temple housing the Holy Grail in the film "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."Harper and his entourage hiked through the stunning crevasse to take in the Facade of the Treasury and the prime minister and his wife posed for more photos.

OPEN LETTER TO HARPER ON ISRAELI SETTLEMENTS
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2014/01/open-letter-to-stephen-harper-of-canada.html 

Letter writers express anger, shame towards Harper, Baird on Palestine

By Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press |-JAN 24,14-yahoonews

OTTAWA - The Harper government was flooded with angry letters from Canadians after it opposed the Palestinian bid for statehood at the United Nations, newly disclosed documents show.More than 1,000 letters arrived over several weeks in late 2012 and early 2013 at the offices of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and several other Conservative MPs, the vast majority of them complaining that the government was not representing the balanced and fair-minded views of Canadian citizens on the divisive Middle East issue.More than 80 per cent of the correspondence expressed clear opposition to the Conservative government's own vocal attempts to block the Palestinian bid for greater recognition at the UN.The letters, released recently under the Access to Information Act, emerge just as Harper and a large delegation of Conservative MPs, cabinet ministers and Canadian business, religious and cultural leaders prepare to wrap up a week-long visit to Israel and Jordan.Some of the writers — their identities were excised before the documents were released — expressed shame and anger, while others described themselves as Tory voters who would be voting differently in 2015 because of their stand.
Many expressed embarrassment for their country on the world stage because of the Conservatives' stance — notably Baird's November 2012 speech to the UN General Assembly that passionately opposed the Palestinian bid.In one January 2013 letter, a writer expressed dismay at "the unconditional support given to Israel by the prime minister and his party. I believe this stance contradicts the opinions of the vast majority of Canadians."Another noted, "I know that courting the Jewish vote is important to you. But the Palestinians have had a tough time in the last half-century. Couldn't you be a little nicer to them?"Many criticized the Harper government for refusing to publicly denounce Israel for building illegal settlements on Palestinian territory — something the prime minister pointedly told reporters travelling to Israel with him this week that he had no intention of doing.Indeed, the settlement issue was mentioned repeatedly in the more than 1,360 pages of correspondence that was reviewed by The Canadian Press.In all, the pages contained more than 1,030 letters, with more than 830 expressing condemnation of the government's Middle East policy. More than 180 wrote in support of the government.This flurry of letter writing mainly took place in the days leading up to and the weeks following the UN General Assembly vote on Nov. 29, 2012, in which the Palestinian Authority overwhelmingly won greater recognition.Only a handful of countries — Canada, the United States, Israel, and six smaller nations — voted against the Palestinians. Baird's speech to the General Assembly that day was a lightning rod for letter writers.Baird was flooded with letters in the days leading up to his speech — his opposition to the Palestinian bid was publicly known — urging him to change his position, or deriding him for a stance and rhetoric that many realized could not be swayed.Some letters writers hurled angry, personal insults. Others wrote to Harper; one demanded to know whether the prime minister knew what his foreign minister was up to and whether he had "spoken up against John Baird's dreadful stance."All of the letters eventually passed through Baird's office; the PMO appeared to copy him on everything sent to Harper."Shameful — shameful — shameful. What a disgusting Canadian you are, making us all ashamed of your biased and hypocritical position," one writer told Baird the day before his UN speech.Another urged him to "stop spitting your venom at the United Nations."One writer, having voted for Baird in the past, pledged never to do so again. "The current Conservative view will be on the wrong side of history and does not reflect the views of the majority of Canadians," the letter read.Another added: "Canada is becoming a joke to the rest of the world."Several Conservative MPs who received critical letters forwarded them to Baird, asking for an answer they could provide their angry constituents.On the day of Baird's speech, then-Alberta Conservative MP Ted Menzies, who retired late last year, forwarded a series of letters from an angry constituent that he had been corresponding with."I no longer consider myself a PC voter at the federal level," the writer told Menzies. "I will not be voting PC next election!!!"At various times, the writers said they were "mortified" or "ashamed" or "disappointed" at a government that was "out of touch" on the issue.
Baird was called a "spoiled child" by one, while another called the government a "Zionist lapdog.""Your government sickens me," said another.Despite a preponderance of negative sentiment, there is nonetheless a trickle of support for the Conservatives."It is to Canada's credit, yourself, and your government that you took a moral position at the United Nations, a body that sadly lacks any integrity when it comes to dealing with Israel, and is challenged in many other areas too," one writer told Harper and Baird four days after the UN vote.Another supportive constituent of Baird's fondly recalled him knocking on their door nine years earlier, when he was a member of the Ontario legislature."At the door, you asked for my vote, I remember asking you what your opinion was on the subject of Israel. You wowed me with your historical knowledge of the Middle East conflict, and your appreciation of Israel," the letter said."You told me you believed in the Jewish state."Several others, some of whom described themselves as Jewish, offered sincere thanks to the prime minister for siding with Israel."God bless Canada and Israel forever!!" said one.Some correspondents offered thoughtful anecdotes, and a small number of others offered no position, but asked Harper or Baird for more information on theirs.In a handwritten note, Harper was asked if he had ever travelled without a delegation "to the Palestine occupied area of Israel?" The woman, who said she travelled there with husband in 2010, found "deplorable" living conditions. She Canada should be standing up for the "underprivileged."
"Our Parliament and you, Mr. prime minister, have shirked your humanitarian duty by voting with the United States. I am ashamed of this action."Harper departed Israel on Wednesday after becoming the first Canadian prime minister to speak to the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. He returns home Saturday after visiting neighbouring Jordan, capping his first trip to the Middle East.Harper was feted by the Israelis during his visit with an honorary university degree, as well as a tour of a bird sanctuary that will bear his name.He also visited the West Bank, pledging $66 million in new aid to help the Palestinians build their battered economy.
Follow @mblanchfield on Twitter

And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.

Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.

12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE

Australian FM’s settlement empathy prompts furious dispute

Julie Bishop’s refusal in Times of Israel interview to brand settlements as illegal provokes bitter row between PLO and Australian Jewish leaders

By Raphael Ahren January 24, 2014, 3:13 pm 0-The times of Israel

A bitter verbal battle has erupted in Australia over the legal status of Israeli settlements, with Jewish leaders and top Palestinian officials sparring over pro-settlement comments Foreign Minister Julie Bishop made last week to The Times of Israel. The argument reached its peak on Friday, with conflicting op-eds and comments flying back and forth from Palestinian leaders and Australian Jewish officials.Bishop “wants to reinvent international law and call Israeli settlements legal. Or what else was Bishop trying to accomplish by showing her support to Israeli settlements?” Palestinian chief peace negotiator Saeb Erekat wrote Friday in the Sydney Morning Herald. “If Bishop wanted to show solidarity with an occupation that harms the rights of an occupied population, she did well. I would be unsurprised if her next step was a cup of coffee with her Israeli counterpart, Avigdor Lieberman, in the illegal settlement of Nokdim, where he lives, in land stolen from Bethlehem.”Australia is now the only country, besides Israel, that considers the settlements legal, wrote Erekat, who is also a senior member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization’s executive committee. “If Bishop wanted to support the negotiations process, she did the opposite… The terms of reference for negotiations do not include legitimising illegal Israeli settlements, but ending the Israeli occupation that began in 1967.”In an immediate response to Erekat’s article, Peter Wertheim, the executive director of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, accused him of making “false and inflammatory accusations against Israel..“This manner of conduct is unbecoming of the representative of an aspiring state which seeks to take its place among the family of peace-loving nations,” Wertheim told The Times of Israel. “We sincerely hope that the PLO and its negotiating team will focus on the enormous and grave tasks before them instead of slandering those with whom they are negotiating and diverting themselves with clumsy forays into Australian politics.”In an exclusive interview with The Times of Israel on January 15, Bishop appeared to contest the view that Israeli settlements anywhere beyond the 1967 lines are illegal under international law. “I would like to see which international law has declared them illegal,” she said, adding that she did not want to “prejudge the fundamental issues,” which should instead be discussed in the peace negotiations.Bishop, who made her comments during a short visit in Israel, also defended her government’s decision to abstain or vote against anti-Israel resolutions at the United Nations as “balanced” and “not one-sided.”The position that settlements breach international law — adopted by the UN Security Council, the European Union and many other states and international bodies, but rejected by Israel — is based on an interpretation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Article 49, paragraph 6, states that an occupying power “shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.” Violations of the convention are considered war crimes under international law. Israel is a party to the convention and therefore bound by it.Bishop’s unwillingness to condemn Israel’s settlements immediately caused a stir among Palestinians and some Australian Jews. PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi on Sunday released a first statement saying the foreign minister’s position represents “dangerous shifts in Australian foreign policy” and called for an official clarification of Australian policy on the issue.“I would like to remind the Australian government that in accordance with international human rights law and international humanitarian law, all settlements are illegal,” Ashrawi wrote, citing the Geneva Convention and other legal sources purportedly proving the settlements’ illegality. Bishop’s comments are a “willful defiance of international consensus,” Ashrawi stated.Some Australian Jews joined the chorus of protest. “For Australia to refrain from any criticism in the UN, or to cast doubt on the agreement in the international community that the occupation is illegal, and cruel, is a highly irresponsible and damaging act by this country, the heads of the Australian Jewish Democratic Society, Larry Stillman and Jordy Silverstein, wrote in a January 17 letter to Bishop.Next, Australia’s former foreign minister Bob Carr — Bishop’s immediate predecessor, who is now in the opposition — said her position showed “an ignorance of international law,” adding that considering Israeli settlements illegal was a “commonplace and commonsense opinion.”‘Bishop’s actual statement was reasonable, indeed innocuous’

Bishop has so far been silent on the controversy. But Wertheim’s Executive Council of Australian Jewry has taken up her defense, weighing in on the legal debate about the correct interpretation of international law as it concerns Israeli settlements.“At a time when Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are ongoing and delicately poised, Bishop’s actual statement was reasonable, indeed innocuous,” Wertheim, and the Council’s public affairs officer, Alex Ryvchin, wrote Friday in an op-ed in The Age. “Bishop prudently sought to avoid acting as judge and jury on a bitterly contested and unresolved legal question. After all, Israel and the Palestinians have themselves agreed that the question of settlements is one of the core issues to be resolved by the delimitation of a final border in the course of final status negotiations between the parties.”Wertheim and Ryvchin rejected Ashrawi’s assertion that the settlements violate international law. The Geneva Convention and The Hague Regulations do not mention Israel specifically, and the often-cited 2004 International Court of Justice opinion, which claims settlements do contravene international law, is merely a non-binding advisory opinion and not legally determinative, they stated.Whether settlements are illegal under international law, they wrote, “is a serious legal question that is hotly disputed.” While they noted that there has never been a definitive ruling, they quoted a 2012 legal opinion issued by James Crawford, a prominent Australian international law expert, who stated that some settlements are “probably lawful.”In any event, they added, a “preponderance of opinion, one way or another, by legal experts does not decide the issue.” And Ashrawi’s claim that Bishop defied international consensus is “utterly baseless,” they posited, as there is no such consensus. “Australia is a sovereign nation with a democratically elected government which makes decisions according to its own assessment of Australia’s national interests, they went on. “Ashrawi’s crude attempt to bully Australia with the specter of a non-existent ‘international consensus’ should be ignored.”Ashrawi, in response later Friday, published a lengthy statement — her second on this issue — asserting,“It is incontrovertible that Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory have been established in contravention of international law.”“While the ICJ’s Advisory Opinion is not legally binding according to the ICJ Statute, the legal instruments and obligations to which it refers are,” read the statement, issued by the PLO Executive Committee’s Department of Culture and Information, which she heads. ”This includes binding resolutions of the UN Security Council and multilateral treaties to which Israel is a party, including international human rights treaties and the Fourth Geneva Convention.”The PLO’s statement also referred to Crawford’s legal opinion, arguing that it related to the Nahal settlements, which were established and populated by soldiers. While Crawford “is correct that these settlements were probably lawful under the law of occupation at the time they were established,” these settlements were “always intended to be converted into civilian settlements, which have no lawful military purpose.”Quoting a host of UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions, her statement concluded that there is a “wide consensus among nations that Israel’s settlements have been established in breach of international law.”‘We reject the PLO’s assertion that its legal claims about the settlements are incontrovertible truths’Responding to Ashrawi’s second pronouncement on this issue, Wertheim, the director of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told The Times of Israel that this time around, her words are “much more cautious and credible” than her first statement. “Ashrawi [initially] claimed not only that the Fourth Geneva Convention and Hague Regulations apply to the settlements, which is arguable, but also that these and other international conventions ‘explicitly’ refer to and condemn Israel, which is plainly false. We corrected this particular error and our correction has not been refuted,” he said.“We reject the PLO’s assertion that its legal claims about the settlements are ‘incontrovertible’ truths,” Wertheim continued. “International legal instruments are binding on states that are parties to them but the application of those instruments to particular fact situations is frequently a matter of dispute. The application of international law to the settlements is such a dispute.”The Geneva Convention article that outlaws the “deport or transfer” of settlers into occupied territory implies compulsion, “and Israel has never compelled anyone to be a settler. The settlers have made that choice themselves,” Wertheim continued. “The argument is whether the financial, tax and other material benefits which settlers have received from the state amount to a ‘transfer’ by Israel of parts of its own civilian population into the West Bank. This is not a straightforward question but clearly a matter for judicial interpretation.”Settlements also should not be considered a “land grab,” Wertheim contended. “In the past Israel has dismantled settlements in the Sinai and Gaza and vacated those areas in the pursuit of peace.”

JERUSALEM DIVIDED

GENESIS 25:20-26
20  And Isaac was forty years old (A BIBLE GENERATION NUMBER=1967 + 40=2007+) when he took Rebekah to wife, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Padanaram, the sister to Laban the Syrian.
21  And Isaac intreated the LORD for his wife, because she was barren: and the LORD was intreated of him, and Rebekah his wife conceived.
22  And the children (2 NATIONS IN HER-ISRAEL-ARABS) struggled together within her; and she said, If it be so, why am I thus? And she went to enquire of the LORD.
23  And the LORD said unto her, Two nations are in thy womb, and two manner of people shall be separated from thy bowels;(ISRAEL AND THE ARABS) and the one people shall be stronger than the other people;(ISRAEL STRONGER THAN ARABS) and the elder shall serve the younger.(LITERALLY ISRAEL THE YOUNGER RULES (ISSAC)(JACOB-LATER NAME CHANGED TO ISRAEL) OVER THE OLDER ARABS (ISHMAEL)(ESAU)
24  And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb.
25  And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau.(THE OLDER AN ARAB)
26  And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob:(THE YOUNGER-ISRAELI) and Isaac was threescore (60) years old when she bare them.(1967 + 60=2027)(COULD BE THE LAST GENERATION WHEN JERUSALEM IS DIVIDED AMOUNG THE 2 TWINS)(THE 2 TWINS WANT JERUSALEM-THE DIVISION OF JERUSALEM TODAY)(AND WHOS IN CONTROL OF JERUSALEM TODAY-THE YOUNGER ISSAC-JACOB-ISRAEL)(AND WHO WANTS JERUSALEM DIVIDED-THE OLDER,ESAU-ISHMAEL (THE ARABS)

ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.

Kerry, Netanyahu Discuss Peace Talks At Davos

US Secretary of State approaches Israeli Prime Minister at World Economic Forum to push US agenda for peace - even abroad.-By AFP and Arutz Sheva Staff-First Publish: 1/24/2014, 2:10 PM-INN

John Kerry and Binyamin Netanyahu-Flash 90

US Secretary of State John Kerry met Friday with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as he seeks to force the US's agenda for peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), according to AFP.
The two men held closed talks on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss mountain town of Davos, ahead of what Washington has billed as a major address by Kerry on the Middle East to the gathering later in the day.Amid turbulence and upheaval across many Arab countries, including the war in Syria, the US administration's foreign policy in the region has been heavily criticised at home and by key Gulf allies for lacking focus.But Kerry was expected to hit back at the accusations to "talk about our commitment to engagement in every region of the world and our commitment to diplomacy as a first resort," a senior State Department official said."He will make the argument that the myth of disengagement - and particularly the notion that the US is pulling back from the Middle East -- is not only false, but flies in the face of several major diplomatic initiatives in the region."Asking not to be named, the official pointed to the interim deal with Iran to rein in its nuclear weapons program and an agreement to rid Syria of its chemical weapons.The US has also been a prime mover behind efforts to bring together the Syrian opposition and the regime to end the three-year war in ongoing talks in Geneva.Kerry's talks with Netanyahu on Friday were expected to "be pretty lengthy," a US official said, after he met earlier in the week with Israel's top negotiator Tzipi Livni. The PA negotiating team is expected in Washington next week.The US-brokered peace talks that began in July, after a three-year hiatus in direct negotiations, have faltered over seemingly irreconcilable demands from both sides, failing to bring any glimpse of a final agreement that would end decades of conflict.Kerry, who has made 11 trips to Israel and the PA in his first year in office, is trying to hammer out a framework deal to chart the talks going forward, which would set down guidelines on the toughest issues such as the contours of a future Palestinian state and the fate of Jerusalem for the months ahead.The two sides have agreed to stay at the negotiating table for nine months, until some time in late April. But with the deadline looming, there has been mounting criticism by both Israelis and Palestinian Arabs as Kerry has pushed them to accept tough compromises.Kerry's push comes just hours after a report surfaced claiming that Kerry, as well as US President Barack Obama, have expressed "disappointment" in Jewish criticism over their policies on Israel, which analysts and Israeli officials have repeatedly noted place Israel at strategic risk. The report claims that both officials see a "Jewish lobby" in Congress; if true, both officials would be guilty of adhering to a myth which has deep anti-Semitic roots.

Israel Among Ten Most Powerful Nations In World

Recent study of National Power Index ranks Israel tenth; research is composite index of factors including military and economic capability.-By Ari Yashar-First Publish: 1/24/2014, 12:35 PM-INN

Israeli flag (file)-Flash 90

Israel, the tiny nation that defied history in coming back to life after 2,000 years of exile, is among the top 10 most powerful nations in the world according to a recent research study.Market Business News recently reported on the 2012 National Power Index (NPI), released by the Foundation for National Security Research (FNSR), a New Delhi-based think tank. The study is a comprehensively revised version of the previous indexes published in India's National Security Annual Review (INSAR) since 2002.According to the research, Israel achieved a 32.19 NPI ranking, placing it tenth on the list of the world's most powerful countries.The NPI is a quantification of a nation's power, meaning its ability to influence global events. The ranking is based on a composite of indexes of statistical analysis in terms of economy, military, diplomacy, technology and population. Each factor has a certain weight, and the composite index includes a detailed analysis of individual component.The research appraises Israel as a country of 8 million, with a GDP of $272.7 billion and 176,500 active military personnel.Israel stands out in military capability where it is ranked 6th in the world, and technological capability where it ranks 4th. Its capabilities ranked 25 in economy, 17 in population and 19 in foreign affairs.The index study notes that Israel has the strongest military in the Middle East, and is among the world's leaders in technology and science. It also notes that Israel ranks 15 on the UN development index, illustrating the high quality of life in the Jewish state.Unsurprisingly, The United States headed the list of most powerful nations, ranking in at 77.77 on the NPI. It was followed by China (58.66) and Russia (43.36). The remaining nations on the list were France, Japan, the UK, Germany, India and Canada in that order.A map by Maps of World displays the 10 leading powers in highlighted colors, including tiny Israel among its massive fellow powerful nations.Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu encouraged investment in Israel this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, touting Israel's innovation in developing "more conceptual products per capita than any nation on earth."

Peres: Boycott Iran like South Africa

Speaking at Davos conference, president insists Jerusalem and Tehran need not be enemies, but was unmoved by Rouhani’s speech

By Lazar Berman January 24, 2014, 12:37 pm 2-The times of Israel

The international community should boycott Iran beyond economic sanctions, as it did to South Africa, said President Shimon Peres, speaking Friday morning at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.“All of a sudden, they were boycotted by the rest of the world,” Peres said of Apartheid-era South Africa. “They weren’t invited to football games. They weren’t invited to the Olympics. They weren’t invited to anyplace. All of a sudden, they felt alone. If Iran will continue to do what they are doing, then automatically, I believe, in addition to the sanctions, they will see that the world doesn’t like these sorts of bluffs, which are so dangerous.”Peres was speaking at a Q&A session with WEF founder, Klaus Schwab.

The president said he was not impressed by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s Davos speech.“The declaration was so promising and the omission was so obvious,” Peres said, referring to Rouhani’s speech on Thursday in which he called for better relations with all countries in the world.“Do you include all countries?” Schwab had asked the Iranian leader after his speech, presumably referring to Israel. There was a hum of laughter and expectation from the audience.Rouhani paused for a moment and laughed. “There are no exceptions; we wish for a better future and to have beneficial relations with all that we recognize,” he then said with a smile.Rouhani’s statements on Thursday thus evidently excluded Israel, which is not recognized by the Islamic Republic.“You got a smile, it’s nice, but it’s not an answer…,” said Peres Friday. “For the time being, it is a happy story… The part that you omit is more important than the part that you announce.”

Still, said Peres, the two countries are not fated to hostilities forever.“For us, Iran is not an enemy. We don’t want to fight. We are not historically hostile.”Earlier in a CNN interview, Peres said he stood by his previously declared readiness to meet with Rouhani. The problem with Iran’s president is “his positions, not his declarations,” Peres said.Turning to the ongoing peace talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians, Peres said that neither side has an alternative to peace.“All told, the present situation is killing the Arab world. The terror is tearing them to pieces… Israel offers, in real terms, a sincere peace.”Peres was pessimistic about this week’s conference in Switzerland, known as Geneva II, to find a solution to the brutal conflict in Syria.“All the elements which exist today in Syria are not elements for solutions, but elements for confrontation,” he said. “We have to discover a new element that may unite them.”Schwab asked Peres about his secret to staying young, noting, “You are the oldest participant on paper, but in your mind, you are one of the youngest participants.”“The greatest entertainment and interest is in working, and not resting,” Peres told the crowd, and urged them to focus more on the joys of work and less on vacationing.

Peres said he would continue working after he steps down from office this year. “I don’t need the official title to do anything,” he claimed.The discussion ended with Schwab presenting Peres with a bell, in recognition of his efforts at “tolling the bell of peace.”The president received a standing ovation from the crowd as he left the stage.Also Friday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a special conference called “Risk and Responsibility in a Hyperconnected World.” Justice Minister Tzipi Livni was also in attendance, according to a statement released by Netanyahu’s office.Netanyahu spoke about cybersecurity, noting Israel’s many leading companies in the field.

01/23/2014 VATICAN INSIDER

Bishop Farrell highlights importance of Pope’s meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem

Bishop Brian Farrell (Photo by: Catholic News Agency)

In an exclusive interview, Bishop Brian Farrell, Secretary of Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, talks about next May’s meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew, and the current state of the Catholic-Orthodox dialogue

gerard o'connell rome Pope Francis will go on “a pilgrimage of prayer” to the Holy Land, May 24-26. The main purpose of his visit is to commemorate the historic 1964 meeting in Jerusalem between Pope Paul VI and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Athenagoras, which significantly transformed relations between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Looking ahead to the May meeting in Jerusalem and the ongoing  Catholic-Orthodox dialogue, I interviewed Irish-born Bishop Brian Farrell, who worked  in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State from 1981 to 2002, when John Paul II appointed him as Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.  He has served in this role under three Popes, and has participated in the major Catholic-Orthodox meetings since then.The following is Part I of the extensive interview he granted me recently. Part II will appear in the coming days, and deals with Roman Catholic-Russian Orthodox relations, the fragmentation of Christian Churches, and the new horizons of ecumenism.

Q.  Pope Francis will go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in May and meet the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew 1 and other Christian leaders in Jerusalem for the 50th anniversary of the historic encounter of their predecessors -Paul VI and Athenagoras,  there on 5 January 1964.  How significant will the meeting in May be?
A. Well, as somebody once said, historical events can only happen once. Their anniversaries are never as effective as the first time; it’s impossible to repeat such an extraordinary event as happened in 1964. Fifty years later, however, it’s truly important that we have a public re-affirmation, on the part of the two Churches, of the intentions of Paul VI and Athenagoras at that time, and of the progress that has come as a result of that great meeting. So I think that what we have here is both an affirmation that we’ve been on the right track and a kind of intensification of the relationship so that we can move on now to further steps towards communion.

Q. Do you expect something particular to come out of the Jerusalem meeting?
A.  I would hope that the meeting would be well prepared and, in that sense, we are looking at the possibility of a small commission to work on it, just as happened before the 1964 meeting.  A commission of the then Secretariat for promoting Christian Unity with the Ecumenical Patriarchate worked on the details, not just of the protocol but also of the content.  In this case too, I think we could repeat that and have a commission that would work in the next few months to prepare a statement of both leaders that would take account of the growth in communion already achieved and would be inspiring for the continuation of this work.Now, the great thing that has happened (since then) is that so many prejudices have been overcome; so many misunderstandings have been clarified. But we are talking about moving together towards communion as Churches, so it’s not enough for the leaders to get together, it’s not enough for the theologians to sit in the commission and work on these questions, we have to move the whole body of the Church towards communion.  So a meeting like this is a hugely symbolic event that sends ripples throughout the People of God, and that’s essential, that’s necessary!

Q.  After the1964 meeting both sides the Catholic and Orthodox sides lifted their mutual excommunications. Obviously nothing so important can happen in May, so what can we expect then?
A.  We don’t have any more centuries-old excommunications to lift, so there wouldn’t be anything like that. But we have a dialogue that is looking very seriously, very deeply, at the fundamental question that still divides us:  the exercise of authority in the Church, teaching authority, governance in the Church.It's clear that after a thousand years of separation, East and West have gone their own ways, and it’s going to be very difficult to find the model of the exercise of authority that will be fully acceptable to both sides. But if, with the help of these kinds of meetings, we could take the edges off the memories and reach a kind of healing of memories, then specific issues can be dealt with more positively. For Catholics, I think it is necessary that we do not project into the first millennium what we understand now to be the exercise of the Petrine ministry. In other words, we have to learn to distinguish what is essential and what is not, and we don’t really make a big enough effort to do that.On the Orthodox side, we have to recognize that the Orthodox Churches, in general, are living in free societies for first time; some of them for the very first time, some for the first time in many centuries or decades.  Not only that, but they are also faced with the reality that they are no longer tied to a particular area or region or country or ethnicity.  Most of them now have emigrants all over the world, and therefore communities all over the world, and this is leading to an internal transformation that still needs to be assimilated within Orthodoxy.  And we have to give them time to do that. From being limited to their ethnic origins, they are now becoming global Churches; you have the Greek Orthodox all over, you have the Russian Orthodox all over, you have the Romanian Orthodox all over, you have the Serbian Orthodox all over, and the others too to some extent. So in this sense we have to be patient enough to understand how they are going to absorb the diaspora into their life, and the changes that this will bring.I think, therefore, that we should recognize that our dialogue at the present time cannot reach ultimate conclusions.  We are in a process; we are in one of those historical moments that change our perspective on things, on important things, and that therefore all our discussions about the Petrine ministry and synodality are a work in progress.  It’s not enough for the theologians to sit in the commissions and write down what they think should happen.  It’s out of the life of the Church, out of the life of a huge body of Christians, Catholics and Orthodox, that these processes will be clarified. And that needs time.

Q.  You had this discussion around the Ravenna document in October 2007, but the Russians were not present at the end, they didn’t sign on to it at the end. Would it be correct to say that you haven’t yet moved beyond that in this whole discussion?
A.  Well, in one sense we haven’t reached a clear, new position beyond that, but this does not mean that a lot of work hasn’t been done, is not being done, to move on from Ravenna to the next stage.That next stage revolves around the role of the Bishop of Rome and the exercise of synodality in the Church in the first millennium, East and West.    We’ve had two meetings of the plenary of the commission, in Paphos (2009) and Vienna (2010), and various meetings of the coordinating committee. What we have here are two different theological cultures in conversation:  it was clear in the discussion that the Latin and Catholic side tended, as we always do in our theological discussions, to start with the biblical basis and then do the history and then do the theology on the basis of the facts; whereas Eastern theological culture is marked much more by a kind of ideal image of the Church, from which you then develop the practical aspects, and it was not possible in a week to bridge the gap between these two very different perspectives.I remember sitting in the commission and listening to the discussion and suddenly realizing, very clearly in my own mind, that the narrative of the life of the Church in the first millennium as it’s told in the West and as it’s told in the East is very different.  Therefore we have to learn to see things from each other’s point of view, and we haven’t really got to the point where we can do that easily and sufficiently.Still, we now have a working document for a further meeting of the commission, which will be held in Serbia, next September.But both the Catholic and the Orthodox members of the coordinating commission are somewhat unhappy with the working document, so we are going there knowing that we have a defective basis. The discussion, therefore, will be difficult, and none of the members expect that there is going to be a conclusive document at the end of this next plenary.  We’ve just got to realize that it is going to take longer (than we had expected), because the subject matter is so central, so much in the life of the Church, it’s just going to take a lot more time and study.

Q. Given this situation, I’m sure you would agree that it was highly significant that Patriarch Bartholomew came for the inauguration of Pope Francis on March 19 who fom the beginning Francis described himself as “The Bishop of Rome”.A. The presence of the Patriarch was very significant.  It was the first time ever that such a thing happened.  It was a huge sign of how far we have moved since formal relations began after the Second Vatican Council. And I go back to an idea that I keep repeating: this meeting of the heads of the Churches is very important because it sets the pace, but these meetings will not produce their full fruit until the whole body of the faithful accepts their significance.  That’s why ecumenism at the local level is so important, that’s why it’s necessary for us to continue to explain the processes that are taking effect. 

EU data bill delayed until after May elections

Today @ 09:27-JAN 24,14-EUOBSERVER By Nikolaj Nielsen

BRUSSELS - The EU's revamped data protection law will not be adopted before the European Parliament elections with several member states seeking to weaken it.EU justice commissioner Viviane Reding, the European Parliament lead negotiators on the package, the Greek EU presidency and the incoming Italian EU presidency Wednesday (22 January) agreed to set the deadline until before the end of the year.“They have elaborated a road map and now they need to deliver on it basically but I think the political agreement to get this done before the end of the year is there,” Reding’s spokesperson Mina Andreeva told this website.
German Green MEP Jan Philipp Albrecht, who is steering the regulation through parliament, said the timetable aims at a mandate for negotiations in June and the beginning of inter-instutitional negotiations in July.
“If it will be possible to stick to this timetable, this would be good news and important,” he told this website in an email.But the deadline agreement does not guarantee the package, which includes a general data protection regulation and a directive on law enforcement, will be adopted.Member states still have to reach a general approach before kicking off negotiations with the European Parliament and the European Commission.The parliament and the commission had hoped to get the package adopted before the European elections in May.The civil liberties committee last October was given the mandate to start negotiations right away but member states at a summit in December failed to reach an agreement among themselves.The delay means deputies will now have to vote to start formal negotiations with member states at the plenary session either in March or in April.EU insiders are hoping the member states will at least reach a partial approach in March and then a full agreement over the summer.The delays are caused, in part, by a handful of member states that want to weaken the regulation, which aims at harmonising data protection rules across the bloc.
Among the core group is the UK, along with Denmark, Hungary, and Slovenia. All four are pushing to turn the regulation into a directive.Unlike a regulation, a directive gives member states room to manoeuvre and interpret the EU law to their advantage.Germany is also among the delaying camp of member states but for different reasons. The Germans support the regulation but do not want it applied to the public sector. “Obviously the German government is against European-wide common rules. This behaviour is irresponsible against the EU citizens,” said Albrecht.Support from Poland, seen a staunch ally of the reforms, is also waning, according to their data protection authority Wojciech Wiewiorowski.Wiewiorowsk, at a panel on data protection organised by the CPDP conference in Brussels on Wednesday, said the European commission had exhausted its political will to pressure member states to get the package adopted.He said support in Poland is dropping because the regulation, announced two years ago by the commission, is taking too long.Member states in October had agreed that the data protection package should be in place by the latest in 2015. 

EU sends mixed message on Ukraine, as death toll mounts

23.01.14 @ 18:32-EUOBSERVER By Andrew Rettman

European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso told him by phone on Thursday (23 January) that he risks EU sanctions, or, in his words, “possible consequences for bilateral relations,” if things do not get back to normal.Some EU countries have voiced similar views, including Lithuania, Poland and Sweden.But the same day, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told press in Berlin that: “Sanctions against Ukraine are not on the order of the day … What is important now is to stop the violence.”The lack of clarity at the top is reflected lower down.“I have no instructions from my capital on where I’m supposed to go or what I’m supposed to be doing,” a diplomatic source at one EU embassy in Kiev told this website.Meanwhile, two EU envoys, Stefan Fuele and Catherine Ashton, are to meet Yanukovych in Ukraine in the coming days.Leading opposition MPs also met him for a second time this week on Thursday.The talks come after two months of increasingly violent protests against his decision, last November, to opt for closer Russian ties instead of EU integration.But away from the negotiating table, Yanukovych’s security forces are suspected of killing six people and abducting up to 40 others in recent days in an attempt to terrorise the opposition movement.
Four of the victims were shot by “snipers” in Kiev city centre, while two were kidnapped and “assassinated,” according to Valentyn Nalyvaichenko, a former head of Ukraine’s internal intelligence service, the SBU, now an opposition MP.Suspicion surrounds special police units, such as Berkut, Sokol or Omega, as well as Alpha, a counter-terrorist squad in the SBU.But Nalyvaichenko told EUobserver no one will know who ordered the deaths unless there is an independent and international inquiry.He added that the killings, Berkut's beatings of protesters, and the work of hired “provocateurs” are the main threats to stability: “There are gangs, agents provocateurs, walking around at night in Kiev, beating up innocent people and setting cars on fire, with no reaction from local law enforcement officers. This has to stop.”There are several scenarios for how things could get worse.But few for how they might improve, short of Yanukovych giving in to demands to hold early elections, effectively ceding power and putting himself at risk of jail.If he opts to crush the opposition by force, he has plenty of resources at hand.Ukraine’s ordinary police has poor morale and training.But Oleg Martynenko, a Ukrainian security analyst, estimates there are currently 2,000 or so men from special police units in Kiev, as well as 3,000 interior ministry gendarmes from the so-called BBVV force.Up to 35,000 more could be bussed in from other cities if need be.Over the past few years, Yanukovych has surrounded himself with loyal security chiefs who are unlikely to hold him back.One group is linked to his home region of Donetsk, in Russophone eastern Ukraine, where many people feel little love for the EU or for Ukrainian speakers in the west of the country.It includes interior minister Vitaliy Zakharchenko, National Security Council chief Andriy Klyuyev, and Yanukovych’s head of personal security, Volodymyr Radchenko.A second group has direct links to Russia and includes the new head of the SBU, Oleksandr Yakymenko, who served in the Russian army.Zakharchenko and Klyuyev control the special police and the BBVV, which has access to military-grade weapons and armoured vehicles.In the worst case scenario, analysts say that if Yanukovych gives an order to open fire on crowds it will probably be carried out by Berkut from east Ukraine, because other officers might refuse to do it.“One never knows what will happen until such an order is actually issued,” Mark Galeotti, a US expert on security forces in former Soviet countries, told this website.“But if a regime is willing to be brutal, it usually wins: That’s the psychology of public order. Most people are not heroes.”Alongside the Berkut and the BBVV, the main role of the SBU is to snoop on the opposition and to advise Yanukovych how to handle the situation.Given that further bloodshed is likely to sever Ukraine’s ties with the EU, serving Russian interests, its advisory role could be significant.The former SBU chief, Nalyvaichenko, says that he tried to reform the service by weeding out Russian infiltrators and increasing parliamentary oversight “but the reforms were totally stopped three and a half years ago” when Yanukovych came to power.Galeotti described the SBU as “Russia’s trojan horse in Ukraine.”For his part, Eerik Kross, a former director of Estonia’s intelligence service, told EUobserver: “I don’t think Yanukovych takes orders from Moscow, but Moscow has plenty of channels of influence in Kiev.”Looking at the wider picture, Kross noted that Russia sees EU and Nato efforts to build closer ties with Ukraine, as well as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia and Moldova, as a “fight for a zone of influence.”“Ukraine is on the brink. Russia already has Armenia. Belarus is gone. Georgia is a big question mark and Azerbaijan, for other reasons, is not so interested in the EU,” he said.“Right now, the West has only Moldova, and even here 20 percent is occupied by Russian troops,” he added, referring to Russian “peacekeepers” in Moldova’s breakaway region of Transniestria.   

ISAIAH 17:1,11-14
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
11  In the day shalt thou make thy plant to grow, and in the morning shalt thou make thy seed to flourish: but the harvest shall be a heap in the day of grief and of desperate sorrow.
12  Woe to the multitude of many people, which make a noise like the noise of the seas; and to the rushing of nations,(USELESS U.N) that make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13  The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off, and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind, and like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14  And behold at evening tide trouble; and before the morning he is not.(ASSAD KILLED IN OVERNIGHT RAID) This is the portion of them that spoil us,(ISRAEL) and the lot of them that rob us.

AMOS 1:5
5  I will break also the bar of Damascus, and cut off the inhabitant from the plain of Aven, and him that holdeth the sceptre from the house of Eden:(IRAQ) and the people of Syria shall go into captivity unto Kir,(JORDAN) saith the LORD.

JEREMEIAH 49:23-27
23  Concerning Damascus.(SYRIA) Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea;(WAR SHIPS WITH NUKES COMING ON SYRIA) it cannot be quiet.
24  Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25  How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26  Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
27  And I will kindle a fire (NUKES OR BOMBS) in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(ASSADS PALACES POSSIBLY IN DAMASCUS)

PSALMS 83:3-7
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)

JEREMIAH 47:1-7
1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Philistines,(PALESTINIAN/ARABS) before that Pharaoh smote Gaza.
2  Thus saith the LORD; Behold, waters rise up out of the north,(NORTHERN TSUNAMI POSSIBLY) and shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the city, and them that dwell therein: then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl.
3  At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses,(ISRAELS ARMY) at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands;(ISRAEL POSSIBLY NUKES GAZA)
4  Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines,(PALESTINIAN FAKE ARABS) and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor.
5  Baldness is come upon Gaza;(NUKED POSSIBLY) Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their valley: how long wilt thou cut thyself?
6  O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still.
7  How can it be quiet, seeing the LORD hath given it a charge against Ashkelon, and against the sea shore? (MEDITTERANEAN SEA) there hath he appointed it.

UN: More than 140,000 Iraqis flee Anbar province as clashes with al-Qaida militants intensify

By Sameer N. Yacoub, The Associated Press -JAN 24,14-yahoonews

BAGHDAD - A United Nations official says more than 140,000 Iraqis have fled parts of Anbar province over clashes between security forces and al-Qaida militants.The spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Peter Kessler, described it as "the largest" displacement witnessed in the country since the sectarian violence of 2006-2008.He added that more than 65,000 people fled the conflict in the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah just in the past week alone.Since late December, members of Iraq's al-Qaida branch — known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant — have taken over parts of Ramadi, the capital of the largely Sunni province of Anbar. They also control the centre of the nearby city of Fallujah.

Syrian govt threatens to walk out of peace talks if 'serious' discussions don't start soon

By Zeina Karam And Lori Hinnant, The Associated Press -JAN 24,14-yahoonews

GENEVA - Syria's government handed an ultimatum to a U.N. mediator hoping to broker peace in the country's civil war, vowing to leave if "serious talks" do not begin by Saturday.The delegation chosen by President Bashar Assad met for less than 90 minutes Friday with U.N. mediator Lakhdar Brahimi as part of a peace conference with the Western-backed opposition. The meeting has been on the verge of falling apart ever since it was conceived.In Geneva, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem told Brahimi that if "serious talks don't begin Saturday, the official Syrian delegation will have to leave because the other party is not serious or ready," according to Syrian state television.Direct talks planned for Friday between the Syrian government and the Syrian National Coalition were scrapped, and the opposition was to meet separately with Brahimi later at the U.N. European headquarters.The Syrian government blamed the coalition for the lack of direct negotiations, which were seen as the best hope for an eventual end to the three-year civil war that has killed at least 130,000 people.The bloodshed has destabilized the entire region and turned Syria into a magnet for al-Qaida-inspired militants. The two sides blame each other for the descent into chaos.
"Transition to a free Syria is the key to fighting terror," said Oubai Shahbandar, a senior adviser to the Syrian opposition, which has demanded Assad's departure.As the peace conference faltered, fighting raged throughout parts of Syria, including near Damascus. Government forces bombed rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and local activists.Underscoring the extent of foreign involvement in the conflict, Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah fighters fought alongside forces loyal to Assad around the area of eastern Ghuta, the British-based Syrian Observatory said. The rebels clashing against them included extremists from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, a hardline group dominated by foreign jihadis, the Observatory reported.In Switzerland, Bouthaina Shaaban, an adviser to Assad who travelled to Geneva for the talks, questioned whether the opposition coalition — made up largely of exiles based in Turkey — was prepared to negotiate an end to the violence.
"We came here with Syria and the Syrian people on our mind, only while they came here with positions and posts on their mind," she said.The coalition's head, Ahmad al-Jarba, said late Thursday that he was committed to the talks and would give his negotiators full authority on their pace and scope. But on Friday, his chief of staff said the negotiations were never expected to be easy or quick, insisting that the coalition was simply not yet prepared to meet directly with the government."Everyone knows that these are proximity negotiations," said the aide, Monzer Akbik. "And for the time being, that's the way it is going to be."Both sides have spent their time so far in Switzerland affirming positions hardened after nearly three years of fighting. They blamed each other for turning a once-thriving country into ruin and called each other terrorists.
But their willingness to meet with Brahimi — even separately — gave the first sense that the negotiations might bear some fruit. Brahimi himself has said both sides had shown willingness to bend on humanitarian corridors, prisoner exchanges and local cease-fires — even if the terms were still murky.A senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the talks are sensitive, said the peace conference had not collapsed and that Brahimi "still plans to meet with the regime and the opposition together."Haitham al-Maleh, a senior member of the opposition, told The Associated Press there was not enough common ground for direct talks on Friday.The Syrian National Coalition, which is made up largely of exiles, lacks influence with an increasingly radicalized rebellion, which has been pulled apart by an influx of militants. Infighting among rebels has left 1,400 people dead in the past 20 days, according to activists, who have counted more than 130,000 deaths since the rebellion began in 2011.___Associated Press reporters Desmond Butler in Istanbul, Turkey; Bassem Mroue in Beirut, Lebanon; and Matthew Lee in Davos, Switzerland, contributed.___Follow Zeina Karam at: https://twitter.com/zkaram -Follow Lori Hinnant at: https://twitter.com/lhinnant