JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
LUKE 21:28-29
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
IDF attacks Syrian regime position after shell hits in buffer zone-Israeli army stresses it will insist on maintenance of 1974 ceasefire deal, which set up demilitarized zone between Israel, Syria-By Judah Ari Gross-JUL 8,18-TOI
The Israeli military attacked a Syrian position on Friday after a mortar shell exploded in the buffer zone between the two countries, in what the military said was a violation of a 1974 ceasefire agreement.“The IDF attacked a Syrian outpost from which a mortar shell was fired that landed in the buffer zone, east of and close to the fence,” the army said in a statement.The military said the mortar shell was fired during the ongoing battles between Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s forces and opposition groups in the area. The army would not say if it believed the shelling from Syria was intentionally directed at the buffer zone or if it was a stray shot from nearby fighting.The Israel Defense Forces said it would continue to hold Assad’s regime responsible for upholding the 1974 ceasefire agreement between the two countries, which ended the previous year’s Yom Kippur War.Under the armistice, a demilitarized zone was established between Israel and Syria.While Israel says this is not its primary goal, the area’s status as a demilitarized zone has made it a de facto safe haven for residents of southern Syria. As a result, tens of thousands of Syrians began fleeing toward this buffer zone to escape a renewed offensive by Assad’s forces, with help from Russia and Iran-backed Shiite militias.Bombing raids by the Russian and Syrian air forces, along with a ground offensive, have resulted in dozens of deaths and the displacement of more than 300,000 Syrians, according to UN assessments.“The IDF is not involved in the internal fighting in Syria. At the same time, it will continue to demand the implementation of the ceasefire agreements from 1974, including the preservation of the buffer zone,” the army said.The tens of thousands of displaced Syrians who have made their way toward the Israeli Golan Heights, have settled in overflowing, under-resourced tent cities near the border. In some cases, the displaced person camps are located a few hundred meters from the security fence, clearly visible from Israel.IDF officials have said they do not expect masses of Syrians to attempt to breach the security fence in search of refuge. Syrians in the area have called for both Israel and Jordan to open their borders or to establish safe zones where they can remain without fear of bombings by Syria or Russia.The Walla news site on Wednesday reported that Israel was quietly working with the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, which is meant to keep the peace between Israel and Syria, in order to set up such safe zones near the border.Israel, which has technically been at war with Syria since 1948, has offered humanitarian assistance to residents of the country’s southwest in the past two weeks, including taking in dozens of injured Syrians for medical treatment, but has repeatedly stated that it will not allow refugees to cross the border.“The IDF is tracking what is happening in Syria and is prepared for a variety of scenarios in order to protect the security situation along the border. The IDF will continue to provide humanitarian aid to residents of the area in Syrian territory, and will also prevent the entrance of refugees into the territory of the State of Israel,” the army said Wednesday.Since the start of Assad’s offensive, more than 30 towns in Daraa have surrendered, while others have rebuffed offers for so-called “reconciliation” and vowed to fight.More than 350,000 people have been killed since Syria’s brutal civil war began in 2011, with millions more displaced. All international calls to halt the offensive in Daraa have so far fallen on deaf ears.
Israel said to protest to Warsaw over PR campaign on Holocaust law deal-Diplomats reportedly tell Polish counterparts that ads reprinting controversial declaration 'violate' understanding reached to end spat over historical narrative-By TOI staff-JUL 8,18
Israeli officials have reportedly protested to the Polish government over Warsaw’s global media campaign to tout the joint Israeli-Polish declaration signed last week.An NGO linked to the Polish government took out full-page ads in newspapers in Israel, the US, Germany, Poland and elsewhere containing the text of the declaration, signed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki on June 27, which Poland sees as exonerating it of accusations that Poles had any meaningful role in the Holocaust.On Friday, Channel 10 reported that the Israeli government, reeling from criticism at home over the content of the joint declaration, has complained bitterly to Warsaw about the ad campaign over the last 24 hours.“The Polish campaign was a violation of the spirit of the understandings” reached between Israel and Poland, Israeli officials said Friday, according to Channel 10 news.Israel is also said to have complained to Poland that it had “used a diplomatic step intended to resolve a crisis between the two states for its public relations.”The declaration, which has been castigated by Yad Vashem, Netanyahu’s coalition partners, opposition MKs and others, is part of an agreement that ended the diplomatic spat between the two countries over a controversial Polish law that criminalized any accusation of the Polish nation being “responsible or co-responsible for Nazi crimes committed by the Third Reich.”The ads, which also appeared in Israeli newspapers with a Hebrew translation of the statement that differed slightly from the official Israeli version, have been interpreted by many in Israel as a sign that Poland sees Israel as having capitulated to the Polish narrative.The campaign “to prove that Israel is clearing the Poles of all responsibility is grave and embarrassing,” Zionist Union MK Itzik Shmuli said Thursday.After the ads came out, the declaration’s content was roundly condemned by Israel’s main Holocaust museum and memorial, Yad Vashem, which said Thursday it “contains highly problematic wording that contradicts existing and accepted historical knowledge in this field.” It was also slammed by politicians on the left and right.Netanyahu and his staff have yet to respond to concerns about the declaration’s content, though they defended the process that produced the declaration.Hours after Yad Vashem slammed the joint statement as “highly problematic,” Netanyahu’s negotiators insisted the national memorial itself had approved the text.In a statement, negotiators Joseph Ciechanover and Yaakov Nagel said that Dina Porat, Yad Vashem’s chief historian, “accompanied the process from its inception.”“Historical statements that appear in the declaration were approved by her,” they said.And they added: “The joint declaration signed by the Polish government includes an explicit reference to the fact that the ability to carry out research freely is preserved and that no law prevents or will prevent that in the future.”The Times of Israel reported this week that while Porat was involved in the secret negotiations with Warsaw, she did not see the final draft of the statement until it was released last week.The declaration was issued on June 27 just minutes after the Polish parliament passed legislation to remove troubling passages from its controversial Holocaust law, which President Anderzej Duda signed into law.The declaration says that the term “Polish death camps” is “blatantly erroneous” and that the wartime Polish government-in-exile “attempted to stop this Nazi activity [the killing of Jews] by trying to raise awareness among the Western allies to the systematic murder of the Polish Jews.”The statement also rejected anti-Semitism and “anti-Polonism.”It condemned “every single case of cruelty against Jews perpetrated by Poles during…World War II,” but noted “heroic acts of numerous Poles, especially the Righteous Among the Nations, who risked their lives to save Jewish people.”Historians argue that the statement whitewashes harsh treatment suffered by Jews at the hands of Poles, including many who collaborated with the Nazis. Over 3 million Polish Jews perished in the Holocaust after Germany invaded Poland in 1939.On Thursday, Yad Vashem issued a fierce critique of the text.“A thorough review by Yad Vashem historians shows that the historical assertions, presented as unchallenged facts, in the joint statement contain grave errors and deceptions,” the museum said.It pointed to the joint declaration’s assertion that “numerous Poles” had risked their lives to rescue Jews.“Poles’ assistance to Jews during the Holocaust was relatively rare, and attacks against and even the murder of Jews [by Poles] were widespread phenomena,” Yad Vashem said.It added that the amended law remained problematic, warning of “the possibility of real harm to researchers, unimpeded research, and the historical memory of the Holocaust.”Politicians were also quick to criticize the joint statement — and Netanyahu for signing it.On Thursday, Education Minister Naftali Bennett slammed the declaration as “a disgrace, saturated with lies, [and] a betrayal of the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust.” He said the statement, which “has no factual basis,” would not be included in Israeli school curricula.Yesh Atid chairman MK Yair Lapid, the son of a Holocaust survivor, said the joint statement was “a disgrace and a scandalous embarrassment to the memory of Holocaust victims,” and called on Netanyahu to cancel the agreement.Meretz head MK Tamar Zandberg said Netanyahu signed an agreement that the world’s prominent anti-Semites and Holocaust deniers would agree with. “He gives them legitimacy,” she charged.
Japanese cult leader, followers executed for 1995 Tokyo gas attack-Chizuo Matsumoto, founder of Aum Shinrikyo, or Supreme Truth, and six others put to death over subway nerve gas release that killed 13 and sickened over 6,000-By Mari Yamaguchi-TOI-JUL 8,18
TOKYO (AP) — Doomsday cult leader Shoko Asahara and six of his followers were executed Friday for their roles in a deadly 1995 gas attack on the Tokyo subways and other crimes, closing a chapter on one of Japan’s most shocking crimes in recent memory.During the morning rush hour of March 20, 1995, members of the Asahara’s Aum Shinrikyo cult punctured plastic bags to release sarin nerve gas inside subway cars, killing 13 people and sickening more than 6,000.Japan’s Justice Ministry announced the executions of Asahara, 63, and his followers. Two major Japanese newspapers issued extra editions about the executions and handed them out at train stations.“This gave me a peace of mind,” Kiyoe Iwata, who lost her daughter in the subway attack, told Japanese broadcaster NHK. “I have always been wondering why it had to be my daughter and why she had to be killed. Now, I can pay a visit to her grave and tell her of this.”Asahara and five of the six executed were implicated in the subway attack. The cult also carried out other crimes that together with the subway attack killed 27 people in total. Six other followers remain on death row.The others hanged Friday included two scientists who led the production of the sarin gas and one of the men who carried out the actual attack on the subway.Japan’s justice minister, who approved the hangings Tuesday, said she doesn’t take executions lightly but felt they were justified in this case because of the unprecedented seriousness of the crimes.“The fear, pain and sorrow of the victims, survivors and their families — because of the heinous cult crimes — must have been so severe, and that is beyond my imagination,” Justice Minister Yoko Kamikawa told a news conference.She said the crime affected not only Japan but also sowed fear abroad.Asahara, whose original name was Chizuo Matsumoto, founded Aum Shinrikyo, or Supreme Truth, in 1984. The cult attracted many young people, including graduates of top universities. Asahara hand-picked some as close aides.The group amassed an arsenal of chemical, biological and conventional weapons to carry out Asahara’s escalating criminal orders in anticipation of an apocalyptic showdown with the government.During his eight-year trial, Asahara talked incoherently, occasionally babbling in broken English, and never acknowledged his responsibility or offered meaningful explanations.He was on death row for about 14 years. His family has said he was a broken man, constantly wetting and soiling the floor of his prison cell and not communicating with his family or lawyers.Some survivors of the cult’s crimes opposed the executions, saying they would end hopes for a fuller explanation of the crimes.Shizue Takahashi, whose husband was a subway deputy station master who died in the attack, also expressed regret that six of Asahara’s followers had been killed.“I wanted the others to talk more about what they did as lessons for anti-terrorism measures in this country, and I wanted the authorities and experts to learn more from them,” she told a televised news conference.“I regret that is no longer possible.”-The cult claimed 10,000 members in Japan and 30,000 in Russia. It has disbanded, though nearly 2,000 people follow its rituals in three splinter groups, monitored by authorities.Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Friday authorities were taking precautionary measures in case of any retaliation by his followers.
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
North Sydney firefighters can cool off in special mobile trailer-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
The volunteer fire department in North Sydney, N.S., is taking steps to protect its members in extreme heat by using a special trailer to help them cool off and rehydrate.A humidex reading of close to 40 has blanketed much of the province this week. That temperature can be dangerous for a fully equipped firefighter.Last year, the department bought a mobile trailer designed to rehabilitate firefighters in extreme weather conditions. The five-metre unit is divided into two sections; one for storage and one equipped with both a 2,000-watt heater and an air conditioner.North Sydney Fire Chief Lloyd MacIntosh said the department has made some protocol changes during the heat wave."Firefighters are only going to get about five or 10 minutes of work before they start to sweat and feel the effects of the heat, so we've instructed our officers to call for help sooner rather than later to give our firefighters a break," said MacIntosh.Members can go in the mobile unit to cool down, take a break and rehydrate. MacIntosh said the unit is stocked with water and can seat up to six people at one time. There is also an awning and mist machine on the outside."Portable cooling fans and portable misting systems will drop the temperature on the outside of the trailer by 10 degrees," said MacIntosh.While the trailer was designed for firefighters, MacIntosh said it will go wherever needed."If we need to take it somewhere, to a seniors location or some place that needs our abilities or this trailer's capabilities, then we can certainly would take it there."
New wildfire in northern California kills one, spurs evacuation-[Reuters]-By Dan Whitcomb and Keith Coffman-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
LOS ANGELES/DENVER (Reuters) - A wildfire in northern California killed one person, destroyed buildings, forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from nearby communities and prompted the governor to declare a state of emergency.The Klamathon Fire broke out on Thursday and, within hours, spread from an initial 1,000 acres to 8,000 acres (3,237 hectares), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in an advisory.One person has died due to the fire, a spokeswoman for the agency said on Friday, without providing any details.The blaze destroyed an unknown number of structures and forced residents in the small communities of Hornbrook, Hilt and Colestein Valley to flee as flames crossed Interstate 5 near the California and Oregon border, local media reported.California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for the area, allowing state resources to be devoted to fighting the wildfire and keeping people safe.The Klamathon Fire was one of more than three dozen wildfires that firefighters were battling in California and across the U.S. West during an unusually active fire season.Fires have razed through more than 2.8 million acres in the United States this year through Thursday, above the average of about 2.4 million acres for the same period over the last 10 years, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.Firefighting efforts across the region have been hampered by blistering temperatures, low humidity and erratic winds.CONTAINMENT-Crews in Northern California tried on Thursday to cut containment lines around the County Fire, which has already burned across some 135 square miles. Nine structures have been destroyed and some 100 homes were said to be in danger.That blaze, which broke out on Saturday in steep, inaccessible terrain about 45 miles northwest of Sacramento and spans more than 88,000 acres, has so far largely burned away from populated areas. It was 37 percent contained early on Friday, officials said.The weather will become hotter and drier into the weekend, Cal Fire warned.In Colorado, nine major wildfires have razed through more than 216,000 acres, according to the Rocky Mountain Coordination Center.Crews battling the Spring Fire got a respite from hot temperatures on Thursday, with rain forecast for the region, although heavy downpours could trigger flash flooding over the burn scar, according to InciWeb, a federal wildfire website.Near Aspen, the Lake Christine fire has enveloped more than 5,000 acres and destroyed three homes in the town of EL Jebel, the Eagle County Sheriff's Office said. The fire has not been contained and some 500 people have been ordered to evacuate.(Additional reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee and Makini Brice in Washington; Editing by Larry King and Bernadette Baum)
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Lions eat rhino poachers on South African game reserve-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - At least two rhino poachers were eaten by lions on a South African game reserve, the owner of the lodge said on Thursday.A ranger taking guests at the Sibuya Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape on a safari drive on Tuesday afternoon discovered human remains close to a pride of lions."We suspect two were killed, possibly three," Sibuya owner Nick Fox said.An axe and three pairs of shoes and gloves were found later when police and an anti-poaching unit arrived. The lions had been heard making a commotion in the early hours of Monday."We thought they must have been rhino poachers but the axe confirmed it," Fox said. "They use the rifle to shoot the animal and the axe to remove the horn."South Africa is home to more than 80 percent of the world's rhinos, whose population has been depleted by poaching for buyers in Vietnam and China where rhino horn is coveted as an ingredient in traditional medicine.More than 1,000 rhinos were killed in South Africa last year.(Reporting by Joe Brock; Editing by Catherine Evans)
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
OH BY THE WAY WHEN THE MEDIA SAYS ALLU-AK-BAR MEANS GOD IS GREAT LIE. IN ISLAM ALLU-AK-BAR MEANS OUR GOD IS GREATER OR GREATEST. THIS IS HOW THE MEDIA SUCK HOLES UP TO ISLAMIC-QURANIC-MUSLIMS. BY WATERING DOWN THE REAL MEANING OF THE SEX FOR MURDER DEATH CULT ISLAM. TO MAKE IT SOUND LIKE A PEACEFUL RELIGION (CULT OF DEATH AND WORLD DOMINATION).
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
As war edges toward end, Iran faces hard fight to keep its influence in Syria-Israel and the US are actively trying to force Tehran out, and even its allies Russia and the Assad regime don't seem eager for the Islamic Republic to stay-By Avi Issacharoff-JUL 8,18
The civil war in Syria is far from over. Syria’s citizens, certainly in Daraa in the south and Idlib in the north, could be in for long months of hardship before it’s over. And news of more battles, from Daraa to the Jordanian frontier, come on a regular basis now, as the Syrian army continues its advance southwards.According to the Syrian army’s top spokesperson, its troops seized nine objectives along the Jordanian border this week in areas that had been under the control of rebels for the past few years.“Syrian troops advanced toward the village of al-Mataiya,” the military said, “and from there toward Nasib on the Jordanian border.”It’s important to note that the Syrian army has not yet completed its takeover of Daraa, nor has it begun to deal with the Quneitra region next to Israel on the Golan Heights. Similarly, the largest concentration of opposition troops are now in Idlib, and Bashar Assad’s forces have not even begun to address it.Still, all the parties involved in some way in the Syrian conflict — Assad’s regime, Iran, Hezbollah, Israel, the United States, Russia, the Kurds, the rebels — already feel that “the day after” the civil war in Syria has arrived. Everyone is busy with the battle to shape the new Syria. Perhaps that should be the title of the planned summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin scheduled for July 16, a day after the end of the World Cup soccer finals in Moscow.A quick checklist of each side’s accomplishments in Syria should satisfy both leaders. The US succeeded, with the help of quite a few of its friends, in removing the Islamic State group from the scene as a political entity; IS has ceased to exist as it once did.Russia succeeded in forging a decisive victory for its client Assad. Now, both powers are looking to shape the Syria that survives the war in a way that will benefit them in the future. And while they haven’t said as much publicly, both leaders seem, finally, to have found common ground. Both want Assad to survive, and neither wants too much Iranian involvement in Syria.For Iran, the Syrian issue is only the tip of the iceberg in the long list of troubles it faces because of the Trump administration’s policies — not only from the US backing out of the nuclear agreement, but also the very real blow to Iran’s economy delivered by new and restored US sanctions, even before many have had a chance to go into effect. These shifts have undermined Iran’s internal stability, at least to some extent, and reduced its influence in the region. One clear sign of the times: the American and Israeli actions in Syria against Iranian-backed forces and interests, as well as the persistent attacks of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.It seems that Iran and the ayatollahs’ regime will have to deal with one of the most difficult and problematic periods that they have known in recent decades. This includes external pressures from the US and Sunni Arab states together with growing hardship at home in the form of demonstrations and strikes. All this creates a feeling that the ground is burning beneath the feet of Iran’s rulers.It is no wonder that after the American statements regarding the wish to restrict the export of crude oil from Iran to the lowest amount possible, Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Ismail Kowsari threatened (yet again) to close the Straits of Hormuz.-Iran in Syria? Not necessarily-The amounts that Iran has spent in recent years on establishing itself in the region range have been huge. For a country suffering from inflation, unemployment, severe poverty and drugs, it is hard to understand how the authorities could decide to spend approximately $30 billion over the past seven years on the project known as “exporting the revolution.”It is no wonder that the slogans “Death to Syria” and “Death to the Palestinians” were heard in demonstrations that took place in Iran over the past two weeks. If we look at Iranian policy in Syria and Yemen over the past several years, it seems that Tehran’s officials made an unequivocal strategic decision that Iran would do anything necessary to increase its regional influence.Yet the combination of the Trump administration’s desire to put a stop to this trend, together with severe economic problems, decisive actions carried out by Israel (according to the foreign press) in Syrian territory, and mainly a change in direction from Russia are making the entire assessment of the situation, which had been so clear for Iran, much more vague.In other words, it suddenly seems that the price of the policy of “exporting the revolution” could turn out to be too high for the regime. If priorities are at issue, then with all due respect from Iran to Syria, Yemen and even Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the survival of Assad’s regime will take priority over the many other considerations.On the eve of the Trump–Putin summit, the critical question regarding the Syrian issue is, of course, Russia’s position. The US strongly opposes any sort of Iranian presence in Syria on the day after. Russia wants to make sure that there is no Iranian presence 80 kilometers away from the Israeli border. But does Russia really want an Iranian presence beyond that? Not necessarily. It is true that Russia cooperated with Iran and Hezbollah during the civil war in order to ensure the survival of Bashar Assad’s regime. But now that its survival is assured, do the Russians still see a continued Iranian presence there as a positive thing? The answer seems to be no, and the signs of that are evident even now.The Russians did not agree to an Iranian presence near their port in Tartus. They also want Russian companies, not Iran, to benefit from the reconstruction of Syria. In the end, even officials in Moscow realize that a permanent Iranian presence in the new Syria will be a burden, not a blessing, for Assad.It may well be that Assad himself, whom the Russians and the Iranians rescued, realizes that too much influence from Tehran over what goes on in his country will interfere with his efforts to rebuild Syria. He also has come to understand that an ever-increasing Iranian military presence that will lead to Israeli and American actions will be an obstacle to any possibility of rebuilding Syria, and certainly keep investors away.These developments pose a complex problem for Iran. Any celebration would be premature. At least at this stage, Iran is strongly determined to act on its policy of establishing itself in Syria. It will also be quite some time before Syria goes back to being the country that it once was.While the Islamic State may have vanished from the earth as a state, it still exists as a concept, and it and similar organizations are responsible for quite a few terror attacks. The Kurdish enclaves, together with those of the opposition in the Idlib region, will not be disappearing from the Syrian map anytime soon. At present, the road to redemption still seems long.
Firebrand Arab Israeli Islamic cleric released to house arrest--Court rejects state's appeal against release of Raed Salah, who is awaiting trial on charges of incitement to terror for praising attackers who killed policemen at Temple Mount-By TOI staff-JUL 8,18
A leading Arab Israeli Islamist cleric, who has repeatedly been arrested for fomenting violence, was released to house arrest Friday after nearly a year in jail on charges of incitement to terror.Sheikh Raed Salah’s release came after the Haifa District Court rejected an appeal by the state for his continued detention. As a condition of his release, Salah will be subject to electronic monitoring and other restrictions.Salah, a leader of the banned Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, was greeted by chants of “Allahu akbar” — Arabic for God is great — from supporters as he exited the court.The cleric, a resident of the northern city of Umm al-Fahm, will stay in the Arab town of Kafr Kanna during his house arrest. Residents of the town waved green Islamist flags to celebrate his release.Salah was ordered released Thursday by the Haifa Magistrate’s Court, a decision the state appealed but was upheld Friday by the district court.Salah was arrested and charged in August for praising three Arab Israelis who shot dead two police officers in an attack at the Old City of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount compound last July. The attack, and Israel’s ensuing decision to beef up security at the holy site, significantly ramped up tensions between Israel and the Arab world.As part of the indictment, prosecutors also charged Salah with an additional two counts of incitement to terror for speeches he gave encouraging the violent clashes surrounding the Temple Mount.He has previously been convicted on a number of occasions for terror charges and last January was released from prison after serving a nine-month sentence for incitement to violence and racism.
Number of terrorist attacks in Jerusalem drops to 3-year low-Shin Bet records only 6 attacks in capital during June despite Ramadan holiday, which usually sees a spike in violence-By JTA-JUL 8,18
Israeli security services documented only six terrorist attacks in Jerusalem in June — the lowest figure on record for any given month in at least three years.The tally constitutes a sharp drop in attacks in Jerusalem from May, when security forces documented 34 such incidents in the capital. The decrease was part of an overall drop of 40 percent in the number of terrorist attacks documented in June, when 220 such incidents were registered, the Shin Bet said in its monthly report published this week.The figure for May was 365, the highest number in over two years of terrorist attacks on Israelis.The first half of June was Ramadan, a Muslim month-long holiday when observant worshipers fast from sunrise to sundown. Ramadan usually features a spike, not a decrease in terrorist activity. Israeli security services massively increased their presence in Jerusalem in June to prevent disturbances.Five people were wounded in the terrorist attacks in May, one of them moderately and the rest lightly.May also saw heavy clashes on the Gaza border, as part of the Hamas-led “March of Return” protests that began on May 30. The largest such riots were on May 14, the day the United States opened its embassy in Jerusalem in a move denounced by the Palestinians.Since the weekly clashes broke out along the Gaza border, 135 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, dozens of them acknowledged members of terror groups.Israel says it is defending its border and nearby communities and accuses Hamas of using the protests as cover for attempts to breach the fence and carry out attacks. The army says it has fired on those who have attacked and endangered troops, sabotaged the border fence and tried to breach the border.Additionally, Palestinians have burned hundreds of acres of land near the Gaza border by sending over kites and balloons carrying incendiary devices.Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Syrian regime troops reach key border crossing with Jordan-Advance comes after deal close to being agreed between rebels and Russian mediators to end the violence in southern Syria-By Agencies-JUL 8,18
Syrian state media said Friday that government forces have reached a vital border crossing with Jordan and raised the national flag for the first time in years.State news agency SANA said the capture of the Naseeb border crossing happened Friday afternoon after a deal was close to being reached between rebels and Russian mediators to end the violence in southern Syria.The capture of the Naseeb border crossing is another victory for President Bashar Assad’s forces, who have regained control of most of the area’s key cities from insurgents.Rebels seized control of the crossing in 2015, cutting a major lifeline for Syrian exports and disrupting a major trade route between Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and oil-rich gulf counties.Syrian government forces launched a wide offensive on June 19 to retake Daraa and the nearby Quneitra region that borders the Israeli Golan Heights. The attack has displaced some 330,000 people and left dozens dead.Rebels in southern Syria said on Friday they were close to reaching a deal with regime ally Russia including a ceasefire and the handover of some territory.A meeting between rebel and Russian negotiators was still continuing on Friday afternoon with no confirmation of a final agreement.But its broad outlines were described to AFP by two spokesmen for the joint opposition command in the south.Hussein Abazeed said a ceasefire would take hold in the southern province of Daraa, known as the “cradle” of Syria’s uprising.“Rebels will hand over their heavy-duty weapons in stages in exchange for the regime withdrawing from four towns” it had recently recaptured, said Abazeed.Government forces would then take control of a key route running along the border with Jordan, up to the Nassib border crossing.“The Nassib crossing will come under a Syrian civil administration, with Russian supervision,” said Abazeed.The border point was one of the key targets of the government’s more than two-week offensive in southern Syria.Abazeed said the preliminary deal also provided for the safe transfer of at least 6,000 people, including rebels and civilians, to the northwestern province of Idlib.According to rebel sources, Moscow had previously rejected a phased surrender of heavy arms and any population transfers.Ibrahim Jabbawi, another spokesman for the rebels’ southern operations, confirmed the agreement on a ceasefire, the surrender of heavy weapons, and the rebel handover of the frontier road with Jordan.A key ally of Damascus, Moscow has been brokering talks for the negotiated surrender of rebels in areas of southern Syria bordering Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.The negotiations collapsed on Wednesday, ushering in a day-long volley of air strikes, barrel bombs and missiles that ultimately pressured rebels to return to the table.They resumed talks at around midday on Friday. Rebels have walked away from negotiations in the past if they deem the terms too tough.
Cracks form in bid to save nuke deal as Iran spurns European economic package-Rouhani tells Merkel offer is 'disappointing'; Berlin says it cannot compensate for all of new US sanctions as remaining signatories meet in attempt to keep Tehran in pact-By AFP and TOI staff-JUL 8,18
VIENNA, Austria — Three European nations along with Russia and China met with Iran Friday to offer it economic benefits that would lessen the blow of sweeping US sanctions, but the meeting was quickly overshadowed by Iran expressing disappointment and Germany saying it could not offer full compensation for new sanctions.Their foreign ministers were holding talks in Vienna, where the accord was signed in 2015 with the aim of stopping Iran from building the atomic bomb in return for sanctions relief that promised greater trade and investment for the country.“We are meeting here today to make sure the nuclear agreement with Iran has a future,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said as he arrived for talks with counterparts from Iran and the other signatories Britain, China, France and Russia.“After the withdrawal of the United States, which we can’t understand, we face a difficult situation,” he said. “We want to make clear to Iran that it will still gain economic benefits through this agreement.”In Iran, though, President Hassan Rouhani told German Chancellor over the phone that he was “disappointed” with the deal, according to Iranian state run media.“Unfortunately, there was no clear method or operational solution for the continuation of cooperation, and the package only contained a series of general commitments like in the EU’s previous statements,” Rouhani told Merkel, according to the Tasnim news agency.Rouhani told French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday that the European economic measures on the table did not go far enough.Rouhani, who visited Switzerland and Austria this week to rally support for the nuclear deal’s survival, said in a phone call with Macron that the package “does not meet all our demands,” Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported.Speaking on French radio before the meeting, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Iran was making it more difficult to salvage the accord.“They (Iran) must stop threatening to break their commitments to the nuclear deal,” he said, according to Reuters. “We are trying to do an [economic package] before sanctions are imposed at the start of August and then the next set of sanctions in November.”-Companies pulling out-Since Trump’s shock move in May, which dismayed all other signatories, Washington has warned other countries to end trade and investment in Iran and stop buying its oil from early November or face punitive measures.The other partners so far appear powerless to stop their countries’ companies pulling out of Iran for fear of US penalties. Several major firms — including France’s Total and Peugeot, and Russia’s Lukoil — have said they are preparing to leave.Iran is also worried about continuing its oil exports to other markets and about being shut out of international bank payments systems.Maas called the European offer “attractive” but conceded that “we won’t be able to compensate for all the effects of enterprises withdrawing from Iran because they see their American business interests threatened by the sanctions.”“We advise businesses that want to keep investing (in Iran), we want to keep payment systems open, and we want to build security through widening the mandate of the European Investment Bank,” he said.Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said both Moscow and Beijing were committed to keeping the nuclear deal going.“Just like our Chinese counterparts, we are interested in preserving and fully implementing the JCPOA. The situation is complex, but, just like China and other parties to the deal, we are committed to international law and the UN Security Council’s decision this plan was enshrined in thus becoming part of international law,” he said according to the TASS state news agency.Iranians have complained that the hoped-for rise in foreign investment and trade after the deal has not materialized.Since Trump’s announcement, Iran’s rial currency has fallen, prices have risen and the country has been hit by street protests and strikes.Rouhani, who signed the nuclear deal, has been attacked at home by ultra-conservatives, who have denounced his willingness to talk to the West and accused him of hurting the economy.Trump in May slammed the nuclear accord signed under his predecessor Barack Obama as “horrible” and “defective at its core,” earning applause from Iran’s regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Israel.Iran, which strongly denies ever seeking to build a nuclear bomb, has warned it could resume uranium enrichment for civilian purposes if the deal collapses.Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed that Iran “will never tolerate both suffering from sanctions and nuclear restrictions.”US-Iran relations have been hostile since the 1979 overthrow of the US-backed shah and the US embassy hostage crisis.Washington considers Iran a state sponsor of terrorism, with links to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Hamas in the Palestinian territories and networks in Iraq and Yemen, and demands it stop supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad.The new round of diplomacy has been clouded after security services said they had foiled an alleged plot to bomb a Paris rally by an exiled Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran.The large rally last Saturday attracted several US politicians, including former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, now Trump’s personal lawyer.Six people were arrested — a diplomat attached to the Iranian embassy in Austria — in Belgium, France and Germany, while the opposition group blamed the Iranian regime for the alleged plot.Tehran dismissed it is an orchestrated “false flag ploy,” designed to discredit Iran and overshadow Rouhani’s trip to Europe.On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu derided Europe for holding nuke talks with Iran after European officials alleged they uncovered Tehran’s Paris attack plot, and urged the P4 members to cancel their discussions.Adopting a mocking tone, in remarks at an American Independence Day celebration hosted by US Ambassador David Friedman at an event hall near Ben-Gurion airport, Netanyahu expressed incredulity that other nations would still try to deal with Iran, and praised US Trump for pulling out of the accord.“There is a meeting this week by the P4 without the United States…” and “the P4 invited Iran’s President Rouhani to attend,” Netanyahu said derisively. “At the same time, in recent days, this same regime dispatched a terrorist cell to carry out a major terrorist action in France. The commander of this terrorism cell was an Iranian diplomat in Austria… This Iranian terror plot was planned on the soil of Europe on the same week that the European leaders are supposed to meet the president of Iran about circumventing the sanctions on Iran.”“Stop funding the very regime that is sponsoring terrorism against you and against so many others. Stop appeasing Iran,” he urged.
Israeli diver warns effort to extract Thai boys from cave could end in disaster-As authorities say window for rescuing team narrowing, Raphael Aroush, who drove to site to aid operation, says death of navy seal underscores dangers of swimming through cavern-By TOI staff and AP-JUL 8,18
An Israeli father-son team aiding in the effort to rescue a Thai soccer team trapped in a flooded cave are casting doubts over the viability of extracting the group through the water, saying it could end in a “catastrophe.”Thai authorities are racing to pump out water from a flooded cave where 12 boys and their soccer coach have been trapped since June 23, before more rains are forecast to hit the northern region. Officials have also said they are considering trying to bring the boys out by having them dive and swim through the flooded cave.The gargantuan extraction effort hit a setback Thursday night when a former navy seal, volunteering at the site, died after he ran out of oxygen during a dive in the labyrinthine cave.Rafael Aroush, who has lived in Thailand for decades, said the death underscored the difficulty that the boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach, will face in trying to swim out of the cave.“It’s very risky [diving out]. Think about it, a Navy Seal just passed away last night, so how about a 12-year-old kid,” said Aroush.Aroush on Thursday drove with his son Shlomi from his home in Udan Thani province to the Tham Luang Nang Non cave to help with the rescue effort, joining other Israelis also providing support at the site.“There’s water everywhere, it’s very, very, very tight, you’re going between narrow passages with a lot of water,” he told reporters standing outside the cave Friday.“Many things could go wrong … it could be a catastrophe,” he said. “The conditions are really hard. Bad visibility. Dangerous for the most experienced divers to go through.”A former navy SEAL working to rescue boys trapped in a Thai cave has died from lack of oxygen. "The conditions are really harsh. Bad visibility. Dangerous for the most experienced divers…A navy SEAL died last night, that says a lot about it" – Rafael Aroush – Volunteer diver. pic.twitter.com/u254h8qgnu— 7 News Perth (@7NewsPerth) July 6, 2018-Rafael, 53, said he had visited the cave 25 years ago and found it especially difficult to navigate, according to Reuters.“It’s very narrow. The way divers have to work is not a normal way of diving. The visibility is also really bad. You’re diving blindly,” Aroush told the news agency.Compounding the difficulties is the fact that the boys have no experience swimming and are atrophied after some two weeks in the cavern, where they became trapped after going exploring following a soccer practice.On Thursday, Chiang Rai provincial Governor Narongsak Osatanakorn said he asked the SEALs in charge of extraction plans to estimate what level of risk would be involved to bring out the boys and their coach even though they weren’t 100 percent ready for a perilous hours-long dive.Officials prefer to get the boys out as soon as possible because heavy rain expected by Saturday almost surely will raise water levels again in the cave, making passage in some areas even more difficult, if not impossible. They are hoping that an upgraded draining effort can lower the water in an area where it is still at or near the ceiling. The idea is to get some headroom so the boys would not be reliant on scuba apparatus for a long stretch and could keep their heads above water.“We can no longer wait for all conditions (to be ready) because the circumstance is pressuring us,” Arpakorn said. “We originally thought the boys can stay safe inside the cave for quite some time but circumstances have changed. We have a limited amount of time.”The governor has said the 13 may not be extracted at the same time, depending on their condition. They’ve practiced wearing diving masks and breathing, in preparation for the diving possibility.Cave rescue experts have said it could be safest to simply supply the boys where they are, and wait for the flooding to subside. That could take months, however, given that Thailand’s rainy season typically lasts through October.A sombre mood has clouded the elation from earlier in the week, when the boys were found disheveled and hungry but alive on a ledge kilometres inside the cave.The navy seal who died in the cave, identified as Saman Kunont, had been part of a team trying to establish an oxygen line to the chamber where the children are awaiting rescue.The complexity of the cave was underscored by the need for a special communications system, which an Israeli team from the firm Maxtech rushed out to set up earlier this week.In the system, a string of small devices, similar to handheld radios, pass wireless communications between each other, enabling a link in places regular radios won’t work, such as where there are major obstacles blocking the line-of-sight between the two ends of the line.It took 19 of the devices to complete the link to the boys in the cave. They have enough battery power for 10 hours’ use at a time.“It is like a daisy-chain,” Uzi Hanuni, CEO of Maxtech told The Times of Israel on Thursday. “It is a very complex scenario inside the cave.”Stuart Winer and AFP contributed to this report.
Pompeo arrives in North Korea to hammer out details on nukes-Top US diplomat looks to dispel skepticism over Kim's intentions; if leader isn't seeking a 'different future,' Trump says, 'then we go back to the other way'-By ANDREW HARNIK-TOI-JUL 8,18
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began his first trip to Pyongyang since US President Donald Trump’s summit with leader Kim Jong Un last month with a vow to nail down the specifics of the commitments Kim made on denuclearization.Pompeo has the crucial task of dispelling growing skepticism over how seriously Kim is about giving up his nuclear arsenal and working to translate the upbeat rhetoric following the first meeting between leaders of the US and North Korea into concrete action.He was met at the Pyongyang airport by Kim Yong Chol, a senior ruling party official and former intelligence chief, and Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho to begin his third visit since April and first since the June 12 summit.“Our leaders made commitments at the Singapore summit on the complete denuclearization of North Korea and outlined what a transformed US-DPRK relationship could look like,” he said while still en route, according to comments relayed to reporters on his plane by spokeswoman Heather Nauert.DPRK is the abbreviation of the authoritarian nation’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.“On this trip, I’m seeking to fill in some details on these commitments and continue the momentum towards implementation of what the two leaders promised each other and the world. I expect that the DPRK is ready to do the same,” Pompeo said.One hoped-for breakthrough during his visit would be the return of the remains of US GIs killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. Both sides have suggested Pyongyang is willing to turn over dozens if not hundreds of sets of remains.But just before Pompeo’s arrival, the North’s state-run media lobbed a warning shot at Washington over its criticism of the North’s human rights record.The criticism, published on North Korea’s government-run Uriminzokkiri website, said Washington should stop provoking the North with an “anachronistic human rights racket” at a time of diplomatic attempts to improve ties.What position it will take on the nuclear issue appears to be anything but a done deal.Over the past quarter-century, North Korea has frustrated or outfoxed US administrations that have attempted to stop and reverse its weapons development through diplomacy and sanctions. Since the summit, doubts over the North’s intentions have grown again, amid reports that it is continuing to expand facilities related to its nuclear and missile programs and that US intelligence is skeptical about its intentions to give up its weapons.Asked Thursday if North Korea was hiding nuclear facilities the president said: “We’ll see. All I can tell you is this. You haven’t had one missile launch and you haven’t had one rocket launch or you haven’t had any nuclear tests.”Speaking aboard Air Force One on a trip to Montana, Trump said he believed he forged a personal connection with the young autocrat he once pilloried as “Little Rocket Man.”“I had a very good feeling about him. … I shook his hand, I felt we got along very well,” Trump told reporters. “I think we understand each other. I really believe that he sees a different future for North Korea. … I hope that’s true. If it’s not true, then we go back to the other way, but I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”Pompeo will put that proposition to the test and help lay to rest doubts over whether the president, who has already ordered a suspension of large-scale US military drills with South Korea, is overeager to claim a success.National security adviser John Bolton, a hawk when it comes to US policy toward North Korea, said Sunday that Pompeo will present Pyongyang with a plan to complete the dismantling of the North’s nuclear and missile programs in one year. On Tuesday, Nauert walked that back, declining to give a timeline.This will be Pompeo’s third trip to North Korea in three months. He last visited in May ahead of the Trump-Kim summit and traveled there secretly in early April while he was director of the CIA.Pyongyang is the first stop on his first around-the-world trip as America’s top diplomat. He will then travel to Japan, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates before heading to Belgium, where he will accompany Trump at the NATO summit in Brussels.
Freshly empowered Erdogan set to flex muscles as Turkey enters new era-With smaller cabinet and no PM, new presidential system 'creates a lot of space for a president to act alone and rule the country as one person,' critics say-By Luana Sarmini-Buonaccorsi and Raziye AKKOC-TOI-JUL 8,18
ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be sworn in for a second term with expanded powers Monday, marking a new era as Turkey shifts to a presidential system denounced by opponents as autocratic.Fresh from his outright victory in June’s presidential elections, and following the scrapping of the office of Prime Minister, Erdogan will take on greater powers than any Turkish politician since World War II, including the capacity to appoint and dismiss ministers.But Erdogan — who has transformed the NATO member during his one-and-a half-decades of rule — will face significant and immediate challenges posed by a rickety economy and foreign policy tensions with the West.And while his Islamic-rooted ruling party came out of the simultaneously-held parliamentary elections as the largest faction, it will be reliant for an overall majority on nationalists who may prove awkward bedfellows.In a tightly-choreographed sequence of events, Erdogan will be sworn in at the parliament on Monday followed by a lavish ceremony at his Ankara presidential palace marking the transition to the new system.The new cabinet will be announced in the evening.“He will have a very strong powerful system and I’m sure he will use it,” Ayse Ayata, professor of political science at Middle East Technical University, told AFP.-Scope for one-man rule-The new system was agreed in a contentious 2017 referendum won by Erdogan’s camp but the changes have been bitterly denounced by the opposition.Erdogan will sit at the top of a vertical power structure marked by a slimmed-down government with 16 ministries instead of 26.The president and parliament will together be able to choose four members of a key judicial council that appoints and removes personnel in the judiciary.Erdogan, also leader of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), will then enjoy control of the executive, judicial and legislative branches, said Emre Erdogan, professor of political science at Istanbul’s Bilgi University.“Such a system creates a lot of space for a president to act alone and rule the country as one person,” he added.In a key change, the EU affairs ministry, set up in 2011 to oversee Turkey’s faltering bid to join the bloc, is to be subsumed into the foreign ministry.-No more PM-Prime Minister Binali Yildirim will on Monday go down in history as the 27th and final holder of a post that has existed since Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded modern Turkey, and whose origins date back to the Ottoman Empire.The cabinet is expected to have a different look, with speculation raging over who will be responsible for foreign policy and the economy.Current Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is an MP and under the new system, lawmakers cannot be ministers.Cavusoglu could still resign as an MP or Erdogan may choose his spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, or even spy chief Hakan Fidan as the new foreign minister, reports say.The markets will be closely watching the economic appointments, keen to see a steady hand reining in a fast-growing economy dogged by high inflation and a widening current account deficit.-‘We won’t stop’-Erdogan has savored his electoral triumph after some 52.6 percent of Turkish voters cast their ballots for him in June, higher than the 51.79% in the 2014 polls.His nearest rival, Muharrem Ince of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was left trailing on 30.6%, with the party now locked in internal feuding as it seeks a way forward.But the AKP failed to win a majority in parliament, taking 295 of the 600 seats, meaning it will need its allies in the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and its 49 seats to ensure a majority.The MHP’s chief Devlet Bahceli, an enigmatic figure who has led his party since the 1990s, takes a hard line on key issues, advocating an uncompromising foreign policy towards the West and no concessions in the fight against Kurdish separatists.Ayata said the MHP could end up “in a bargaining situation with AKP. So it isn’t a safe position.”Erdogan, who has won over a dozen elections, has vowed to listen to the “message” from the parliamentary polls, and vowed no-let up before local elections in March 2019.“We will not stop because we have come out of the election atmosphere. In fact, it’s the opposite. Since there is a ready election atmosphere, we will prepare for the local elections,” Erdogan told AKP officials, according to the Hurriyet daily.
The more we dig, the more we're finding': The ongoing uncertainty of the McArthur investigation-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
The ongoing police excavation at a north Toronto property where alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur worked has introduced more uncertainty about when the investigation might end, the lead detective said Friday.For the second consecutive day, police uncovered more human remains at the Mallory Crescent home where McArthur landscaped before his arrest in January. Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga said the body parts were buried about one metre beneath the surface soil in a forested ravine that butts up against the back of the property. Cadaver dogs identified multiple spots within the ravine that police will need to dig through."There could be more remains found, whether there are more victims out of those remains is another question. The remains that we're finding, they may belong to the seven victims whose remains we've already uncovered," Idsinga said in an interview on CBC Radio's Metro Morning.Earlier this year, police discovered body parts belonging to seven men believed to have been killed by McArthur. He has been charged with eight counts of first-degree murder, however."We have an eighth victim whose remains we have not uncovered. They may belong to him, they may belong to completely new victims, we just don't know yet," Idsinga said. Police searched some 100 different properties tied to McArthur's landscaping business with canine units, but only the Mallory Crescent property was excavated. The most recent dig is technically the fourth search of the site, Idsinga said.In a rare move on Thursday, Idsinga invited media cameras into the ravine to get a look at the ongoing police operation. The decision was made in part to prevent camera crews from attempting to shoot the dig site from a CN Rail track at the base of the ravine.It was also an attempt to show the public the kind of work police are doing to "unravel some answers" about McArthur and his victims."It's painstaking work, and it's very labour intensive and it is actually fascinating to watch," Idsinga said."The more we dig, the more we're finding. We'll see where we end up."Until the work at the site at Mallory is finished, it's impossible to project when the investigation might wrap up."We're not going to leave any stone unturned," Idsinga said. "It may end in the ravine at Mallory if we don't find any further remains. It may end with cold case investigations."And once we clear all of those, we will get on with the court process."
Trudeau, Ford clash over asylum seekers in first official meeting-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
TORONTO — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's first official meeting with Ontario's newly elected premier started with a friendly handshake Thursday, but it was clear the two leaders were miles apart when it comes to Ottawa's handling of the recent surge in asylum seekers.Moments before the meeting, Premier Doug Ford blamed the federal government's immigration policies for putting a strain on local and provincial resources, saying Trudeau's administration has encouraged people to cross into Canada illegally."This has resulted in a housing crisis and threats to the services that Ontario families depend on," Ford's office said in the statement. "This mess was 100 per cent the result of the federal government, and the federal government should foot 100 per cent of the bills."The move drew swift backlash from the provincial Opposition and prompted the federal government to pledge ongoing efforts to alleviate the burden on provinces, while urging Ontario to participate in the process.Emerging from the meeting alone, Trudeau suggested Ford may not fully understand Canada's international obligations when it comes to asylum seekers."I spent a little time explaining how the asylum-seeking system works and how our system is supposed to operate," he said."At the same time I agreed that it would be good for our officials to sit down and get clarity on how we can actually work together to ensure that we are holding true to our values but making sure that our immigration and refugee system is being applied in its integrity."Lisa MacLeod, the provincial minister overseeing the immigration file, said Trudeau's comments were "disrespectful" and argued neither the province nor its municipalities should be on the hook for commitments made by the prime minister."(Trudeau) was the one who tweeted out that everyone was welcome here and as a result of that we've had thousands of people cross the border illegally and it's putting a strain on many of our public resources," she said."If he wants to welcome them in, that's fine, but he should make sure he's paying for them and compensating the municipalities as well as the provincial government."The federal government recently pledged to give Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba $50 million to help offset some of the costs incurred due to the influx of asylum seekers illegally crossing the Canada-U.S. border.The provinces, however, have asked for much more support.Quebec, which has seen the bulk of asylum seekers arrive this year, has said its costs are closer to $146 million, though that tally includes projections for future expenses. The province is set to receive $36 million from Ottawa.Ontario has been promised $11 million by the federal government but Toronto Mayor John Tory has said the city alone needs $64 million to recoup costs. The number of refugees and asylum claimants using the city's shelter system went from 459 in 2016 to 3,209 as of last month, according to a city report.Hundreds currently being housed in college dormitories will be forced out in early August as schools prepare for students to return, the report said."The City of Toronto has been clear that we need assistance to deal with unprecedented numbers of refugee claimants and asylum seekers. The province has made its initial position clear," Tory said in a statement Thursday."I will continue to urge the Canadian government to take immediate action and I am optimistic that the federal government will work with us to fulfil its responsibility to help cities deal with these families."Federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen has said the money already allocated is meant to help address some of the immediate temporary housing needs in those provinces.A spokesman for the minister said Thursday the department is committed to working with the provinces on this issue."Over the past year, we have also worked closely with Quebec to ensure that adequate resources are in place and that every action is taken to reduce the impacts on provincial social services. We are ready to recreate this model in Ontario, and we need the collaboration of the provincial government."Ontario's former Liberal government signed an immigration agreement with Ottawa in November of last year.Under the deal, Ontario agreed to resettle a share of refugees "recognizing the need for flexibility in responding to emerging humanitarian needs," while Ottawa agreed to take into account the potential financial impact on the province and consider the need for additional supports.- With files from Shawn Jeffords-Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press.
Interim OPCW report finds chlorine used in Syria's Douma-[Reuters]-By Anthony DeutschYAHOONEWS-July 6, 2018
THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Preliminary analysis by the world's chemical weapons watchdog found chlorine was used in an attack in Douma, Syria, in April that killed dozens of civilians and prompted air strikes by Britain, France and the United States, it said on Friday.The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) sent a fact-finding mission to Douma in mid-April, roughly a week after the April 7 attack in the enclave near Damascus."Various chlorinated organic chemicals were found in samples" from two locations, the report said. It said it had found no evidence of nerve agents.The OPCW has documented systematic use of banned munitions in Syria's civil war, including nerve agent sarin and sulfur mustard gas. It has not assigned blame for the attacks.In Douma, OPCW inspectors visited two sites where they interviewed witnesses and took samples, which were split at their laboratory in the Netherlands and forwarded to affiliated national labs for testing.Two samples recovered from gas cylinders at the scene tested positive for chlorine, the report said.Washington and other Western governments blamed Syrian government forces for the attack in Douma.The Syrian government denies using chemical weapons during the country's long civil war but a previous joint inquiry of the United Nations and the OPCW found the Syrian government used the nerve agent sarin in an April, 2017 attack and has also several times used chlorine as a weapon. It blamed Islamic State militants for mustard gas use.(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Catherine Evans)
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
IDF attacks Syrian regime position after shell hits in buffer zone-Israeli army stresses it will insist on maintenance of 1974 ceasefire deal, which set up demilitarized zone between Israel, Syria-By Judah Ari Gross-JUL 8,18-TOI
The Israeli military attacked a Syrian position on Friday after a mortar shell exploded in the buffer zone between the two countries, in what the military said was a violation of a 1974 ceasefire agreement.“The IDF attacked a Syrian outpost from which a mortar shell was fired that landed in the buffer zone, east of and close to the fence,” the army said in a statement.The military said the mortar shell was fired during the ongoing battles between Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s forces and opposition groups in the area. The army would not say if it believed the shelling from Syria was intentionally directed at the buffer zone or if it was a stray shot from nearby fighting.The Israel Defense Forces said it would continue to hold Assad’s regime responsible for upholding the 1974 ceasefire agreement between the two countries, which ended the previous year’s Yom Kippur War.Under the armistice, a demilitarized zone was established between Israel and Syria.While Israel says this is not its primary goal, the area’s status as a demilitarized zone has made it a de facto safe haven for residents of southern Syria. As a result, tens of thousands of Syrians began fleeing toward this buffer zone to escape a renewed offensive by Assad’s forces, with help from Russia and Iran-backed Shiite militias.Bombing raids by the Russian and Syrian air forces, along with a ground offensive, have resulted in dozens of deaths and the displacement of more than 300,000 Syrians, according to UN assessments.“The IDF is not involved in the internal fighting in Syria. At the same time, it will continue to demand the implementation of the ceasefire agreements from 1974, including the preservation of the buffer zone,” the army said.The tens of thousands of displaced Syrians who have made their way toward the Israeli Golan Heights, have settled in overflowing, under-resourced tent cities near the border. In some cases, the displaced person camps are located a few hundred meters from the security fence, clearly visible from Israel.IDF officials have said they do not expect masses of Syrians to attempt to breach the security fence in search of refuge. Syrians in the area have called for both Israel and Jordan to open their borders or to establish safe zones where they can remain without fear of bombings by Syria or Russia.The Walla news site on Wednesday reported that Israel was quietly working with the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, which is meant to keep the peace between Israel and Syria, in order to set up such safe zones near the border.Israel, which has technically been at war with Syria since 1948, has offered humanitarian assistance to residents of the country’s southwest in the past two weeks, including taking in dozens of injured Syrians for medical treatment, but has repeatedly stated that it will not allow refugees to cross the border.“The IDF is tracking what is happening in Syria and is prepared for a variety of scenarios in order to protect the security situation along the border. The IDF will continue to provide humanitarian aid to residents of the area in Syrian territory, and will also prevent the entrance of refugees into the territory of the State of Israel,” the army said Wednesday.Since the start of Assad’s offensive, more than 30 towns in Daraa have surrendered, while others have rebuffed offers for so-called “reconciliation” and vowed to fight.More than 350,000 people have been killed since Syria’s brutal civil war began in 2011, with millions more displaced. All international calls to halt the offensive in Daraa have so far fallen on deaf ears.
Israel said to protest to Warsaw over PR campaign on Holocaust law deal-Diplomats reportedly tell Polish counterparts that ads reprinting controversial declaration 'violate' understanding reached to end spat over historical narrative-By TOI staff-JUL 8,18
Israeli officials have reportedly protested to the Polish government over Warsaw’s global media campaign to tout the joint Israeli-Polish declaration signed last week.An NGO linked to the Polish government took out full-page ads in newspapers in Israel, the US, Germany, Poland and elsewhere containing the text of the declaration, signed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki on June 27, which Poland sees as exonerating it of accusations that Poles had any meaningful role in the Holocaust.On Friday, Channel 10 reported that the Israeli government, reeling from criticism at home over the content of the joint declaration, has complained bitterly to Warsaw about the ad campaign over the last 24 hours.“The Polish campaign was a violation of the spirit of the understandings” reached between Israel and Poland, Israeli officials said Friday, according to Channel 10 news.Israel is also said to have complained to Poland that it had “used a diplomatic step intended to resolve a crisis between the two states for its public relations.”The declaration, which has been castigated by Yad Vashem, Netanyahu’s coalition partners, opposition MKs and others, is part of an agreement that ended the diplomatic spat between the two countries over a controversial Polish law that criminalized any accusation of the Polish nation being “responsible or co-responsible for Nazi crimes committed by the Third Reich.”The ads, which also appeared in Israeli newspapers with a Hebrew translation of the statement that differed slightly from the official Israeli version, have been interpreted by many in Israel as a sign that Poland sees Israel as having capitulated to the Polish narrative.The campaign “to prove that Israel is clearing the Poles of all responsibility is grave and embarrassing,” Zionist Union MK Itzik Shmuli said Thursday.After the ads came out, the declaration’s content was roundly condemned by Israel’s main Holocaust museum and memorial, Yad Vashem, which said Thursday it “contains highly problematic wording that contradicts existing and accepted historical knowledge in this field.” It was also slammed by politicians on the left and right.Netanyahu and his staff have yet to respond to concerns about the declaration’s content, though they defended the process that produced the declaration.Hours after Yad Vashem slammed the joint statement as “highly problematic,” Netanyahu’s negotiators insisted the national memorial itself had approved the text.In a statement, negotiators Joseph Ciechanover and Yaakov Nagel said that Dina Porat, Yad Vashem’s chief historian, “accompanied the process from its inception.”“Historical statements that appear in the declaration were approved by her,” they said.And they added: “The joint declaration signed by the Polish government includes an explicit reference to the fact that the ability to carry out research freely is preserved and that no law prevents or will prevent that in the future.”The Times of Israel reported this week that while Porat was involved in the secret negotiations with Warsaw, she did not see the final draft of the statement until it was released last week.The declaration was issued on June 27 just minutes after the Polish parliament passed legislation to remove troubling passages from its controversial Holocaust law, which President Anderzej Duda signed into law.The declaration says that the term “Polish death camps” is “blatantly erroneous” and that the wartime Polish government-in-exile “attempted to stop this Nazi activity [the killing of Jews] by trying to raise awareness among the Western allies to the systematic murder of the Polish Jews.”The statement also rejected anti-Semitism and “anti-Polonism.”It condemned “every single case of cruelty against Jews perpetrated by Poles during…World War II,” but noted “heroic acts of numerous Poles, especially the Righteous Among the Nations, who risked their lives to save Jewish people.”Historians argue that the statement whitewashes harsh treatment suffered by Jews at the hands of Poles, including many who collaborated with the Nazis. Over 3 million Polish Jews perished in the Holocaust after Germany invaded Poland in 1939.On Thursday, Yad Vashem issued a fierce critique of the text.“A thorough review by Yad Vashem historians shows that the historical assertions, presented as unchallenged facts, in the joint statement contain grave errors and deceptions,” the museum said.It pointed to the joint declaration’s assertion that “numerous Poles” had risked their lives to rescue Jews.“Poles’ assistance to Jews during the Holocaust was relatively rare, and attacks against and even the murder of Jews [by Poles] were widespread phenomena,” Yad Vashem said.It added that the amended law remained problematic, warning of “the possibility of real harm to researchers, unimpeded research, and the historical memory of the Holocaust.”Politicians were also quick to criticize the joint statement — and Netanyahu for signing it.On Thursday, Education Minister Naftali Bennett slammed the declaration as “a disgrace, saturated with lies, [and] a betrayal of the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust.” He said the statement, which “has no factual basis,” would not be included in Israeli school curricula.Yesh Atid chairman MK Yair Lapid, the son of a Holocaust survivor, said the joint statement was “a disgrace and a scandalous embarrassment to the memory of Holocaust victims,” and called on Netanyahu to cancel the agreement.Meretz head MK Tamar Zandberg said Netanyahu signed an agreement that the world’s prominent anti-Semites and Holocaust deniers would agree with. “He gives them legitimacy,” she charged.
Japanese cult leader, followers executed for 1995 Tokyo gas attack-Chizuo Matsumoto, founder of Aum Shinrikyo, or Supreme Truth, and six others put to death over subway nerve gas release that killed 13 and sickened over 6,000-By Mari Yamaguchi-TOI-JUL 8,18
TOKYO (AP) — Doomsday cult leader Shoko Asahara and six of his followers were executed Friday for their roles in a deadly 1995 gas attack on the Tokyo subways and other crimes, closing a chapter on one of Japan’s most shocking crimes in recent memory.During the morning rush hour of March 20, 1995, members of the Asahara’s Aum Shinrikyo cult punctured plastic bags to release sarin nerve gas inside subway cars, killing 13 people and sickening more than 6,000.Japan’s Justice Ministry announced the executions of Asahara, 63, and his followers. Two major Japanese newspapers issued extra editions about the executions and handed them out at train stations.“This gave me a peace of mind,” Kiyoe Iwata, who lost her daughter in the subway attack, told Japanese broadcaster NHK. “I have always been wondering why it had to be my daughter and why she had to be killed. Now, I can pay a visit to her grave and tell her of this.”Asahara and five of the six executed were implicated in the subway attack. The cult also carried out other crimes that together with the subway attack killed 27 people in total. Six other followers remain on death row.The others hanged Friday included two scientists who led the production of the sarin gas and one of the men who carried out the actual attack on the subway.Japan’s justice minister, who approved the hangings Tuesday, said she doesn’t take executions lightly but felt they were justified in this case because of the unprecedented seriousness of the crimes.“The fear, pain and sorrow of the victims, survivors and their families — because of the heinous cult crimes — must have been so severe, and that is beyond my imagination,” Justice Minister Yoko Kamikawa told a news conference.She said the crime affected not only Japan but also sowed fear abroad.Asahara, whose original name was Chizuo Matsumoto, founded Aum Shinrikyo, or Supreme Truth, in 1984. The cult attracted many young people, including graduates of top universities. Asahara hand-picked some as close aides.The group amassed an arsenal of chemical, biological and conventional weapons to carry out Asahara’s escalating criminal orders in anticipation of an apocalyptic showdown with the government.During his eight-year trial, Asahara talked incoherently, occasionally babbling in broken English, and never acknowledged his responsibility or offered meaningful explanations.He was on death row for about 14 years. His family has said he was a broken man, constantly wetting and soiling the floor of his prison cell and not communicating with his family or lawyers.Some survivors of the cult’s crimes opposed the executions, saying they would end hopes for a fuller explanation of the crimes.Shizue Takahashi, whose husband was a subway deputy station master who died in the attack, also expressed regret that six of Asahara’s followers had been killed.“I wanted the others to talk more about what they did as lessons for anti-terrorism measures in this country, and I wanted the authorities and experts to learn more from them,” she told a televised news conference.“I regret that is no longer possible.”-The cult claimed 10,000 members in Japan and 30,000 in Russia. It has disbanded, though nearly 2,000 people follow its rituals in three splinter groups, monitored by authorities.Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Friday authorities were taking precautionary measures in case of any retaliation by his followers.
OZONE DEPLETION JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH DUE TO SIN
ISAIAH 30:26-27
26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold,(7X OR 7-DEGREES HOTTER) as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people,(ISRAEL) and healeth the stroke of their wound.
27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:
MATTHEW 24:21-22,29
21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.
22 And except those days should be shortened,(DAY LIGHT HOURS SHORTENED) there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake (ISRAELS SAKE) those days shall be shortened (Daylight hours shortened)(THE ASTEROID HITS EARTH HERE)
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
REVELATION 16:7-9
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
North Sydney firefighters can cool off in special mobile trailer-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
The volunteer fire department in North Sydney, N.S., is taking steps to protect its members in extreme heat by using a special trailer to help them cool off and rehydrate.A humidex reading of close to 40 has blanketed much of the province this week. That temperature can be dangerous for a fully equipped firefighter.Last year, the department bought a mobile trailer designed to rehabilitate firefighters in extreme weather conditions. The five-metre unit is divided into two sections; one for storage and one equipped with both a 2,000-watt heater and an air conditioner.North Sydney Fire Chief Lloyd MacIntosh said the department has made some protocol changes during the heat wave."Firefighters are only going to get about five or 10 minutes of work before they start to sweat and feel the effects of the heat, so we've instructed our officers to call for help sooner rather than later to give our firefighters a break," said MacIntosh.Members can go in the mobile unit to cool down, take a break and rehydrate. MacIntosh said the unit is stocked with water and can seat up to six people at one time. There is also an awning and mist machine on the outside."Portable cooling fans and portable misting systems will drop the temperature on the outside of the trailer by 10 degrees," said MacIntosh.While the trailer was designed for firefighters, MacIntosh said it will go wherever needed."If we need to take it somewhere, to a seniors location or some place that needs our abilities or this trailer's capabilities, then we can certainly would take it there."
New wildfire in northern California kills one, spurs evacuation-[Reuters]-By Dan Whitcomb and Keith Coffman-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
LOS ANGELES/DENVER (Reuters) - A wildfire in northern California killed one person, destroyed buildings, forced the evacuation of hundreds of people from nearby communities and prompted the governor to declare a state of emergency.The Klamathon Fire broke out on Thursday and, within hours, spread from an initial 1,000 acres to 8,000 acres (3,237 hectares), the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said in an advisory.One person has died due to the fire, a spokeswoman for the agency said on Friday, without providing any details.The blaze destroyed an unknown number of structures and forced residents in the small communities of Hornbrook, Hilt and Colestein Valley to flee as flames crossed Interstate 5 near the California and Oregon border, local media reported.California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for the area, allowing state resources to be devoted to fighting the wildfire and keeping people safe.The Klamathon Fire was one of more than three dozen wildfires that firefighters were battling in California and across the U.S. West during an unusually active fire season.Fires have razed through more than 2.8 million acres in the United States this year through Thursday, above the average of about 2.4 million acres for the same period over the last 10 years, according to the National Interagency Fire Center.Firefighting efforts across the region have been hampered by blistering temperatures, low humidity and erratic winds.CONTAINMENT-Crews in Northern California tried on Thursday to cut containment lines around the County Fire, which has already burned across some 135 square miles. Nine structures have been destroyed and some 100 homes were said to be in danger.That blaze, which broke out on Saturday in steep, inaccessible terrain about 45 miles northwest of Sacramento and spans more than 88,000 acres, has so far largely burned away from populated areas. It was 37 percent contained early on Friday, officials said.The weather will become hotter and drier into the weekend, Cal Fire warned.In Colorado, nine major wildfires have razed through more than 216,000 acres, according to the Rocky Mountain Coordination Center.Crews battling the Spring Fire got a respite from hot temperatures on Thursday, with rain forecast for the region, although heavy downpours could trigger flash flooding over the burn scar, according to InciWeb, a federal wildfire website.Near Aspen, the Lake Christine fire has enveloped more than 5,000 acres and destroyed three homes in the town of EL Jebel, the Eagle County Sheriff's Office said. The fire has not been contained and some 500 people have been ordered to evacuate.(Additional reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee and Makini Brice in Washington; Editing by Larry King and Bernadette Baum)
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH IN NOAHS DAY(BECAUSE OF SIN,VIOLENCE AND GODLESS PEOPLE)
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
HOSEA 4:1-3
1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
DEUTORONOMY 28:22-24
22 The LORD shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a fever, and with an inflammation, and with an extreme burning, and with the sword, and with blasting, and with mildew; and they shall pursue thee until thou perish.
23 And thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.
24 The LORD shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust: from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed.
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Lions eat rhino poachers on South African game reserve-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - At least two rhino poachers were eaten by lions on a South African game reserve, the owner of the lodge said on Thursday.A ranger taking guests at the Sibuya Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape on a safari drive on Tuesday afternoon discovered human remains close to a pride of lions."We suspect two were killed, possibly three," Sibuya owner Nick Fox said.An axe and three pairs of shoes and gloves were found later when police and an anti-poaching unit arrived. The lions had been heard making a commotion in the early hours of Monday."We thought they must have been rhino poachers but the axe confirmed it," Fox said. "They use the rifle to shoot the animal and the axe to remove the horn."South Africa is home to more than 80 percent of the world's rhinos, whose population has been depleted by poaching for buyers in Vietnam and China where rhino horn is coveted as an ingredient in traditional medicine.More than 1,000 rhinos were killed in South Africa last year.(Reporting by Joe Brock; Editing by Catherine Evans)
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
OH BY THE WAY WHEN THE MEDIA SAYS ALLU-AK-BAR MEANS GOD IS GREAT LIE. IN ISLAM ALLU-AK-BAR MEANS OUR GOD IS GREATER OR GREATEST. THIS IS HOW THE MEDIA SUCK HOLES UP TO ISLAMIC-QURANIC-MUSLIMS. BY WATERING DOWN THE REAL MEANING OF THE SEX FOR MURDER DEATH CULT ISLAM. TO MAKE IT SOUND LIKE A PEACEFUL RELIGION (CULT OF DEATH AND WORLD DOMINATION).
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
As war edges toward end, Iran faces hard fight to keep its influence in Syria-Israel and the US are actively trying to force Tehran out, and even its allies Russia and the Assad regime don't seem eager for the Islamic Republic to stay-By Avi Issacharoff-JUL 8,18
The civil war in Syria is far from over. Syria’s citizens, certainly in Daraa in the south and Idlib in the north, could be in for long months of hardship before it’s over. And news of more battles, from Daraa to the Jordanian frontier, come on a regular basis now, as the Syrian army continues its advance southwards.According to the Syrian army’s top spokesperson, its troops seized nine objectives along the Jordanian border this week in areas that had been under the control of rebels for the past few years.“Syrian troops advanced toward the village of al-Mataiya,” the military said, “and from there toward Nasib on the Jordanian border.”It’s important to note that the Syrian army has not yet completed its takeover of Daraa, nor has it begun to deal with the Quneitra region next to Israel on the Golan Heights. Similarly, the largest concentration of opposition troops are now in Idlib, and Bashar Assad’s forces have not even begun to address it.Still, all the parties involved in some way in the Syrian conflict — Assad’s regime, Iran, Hezbollah, Israel, the United States, Russia, the Kurds, the rebels — already feel that “the day after” the civil war in Syria has arrived. Everyone is busy with the battle to shape the new Syria. Perhaps that should be the title of the planned summit between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin scheduled for July 16, a day after the end of the World Cup soccer finals in Moscow.A quick checklist of each side’s accomplishments in Syria should satisfy both leaders. The US succeeded, with the help of quite a few of its friends, in removing the Islamic State group from the scene as a political entity; IS has ceased to exist as it once did.Russia succeeded in forging a decisive victory for its client Assad. Now, both powers are looking to shape the Syria that survives the war in a way that will benefit them in the future. And while they haven’t said as much publicly, both leaders seem, finally, to have found common ground. Both want Assad to survive, and neither wants too much Iranian involvement in Syria.For Iran, the Syrian issue is only the tip of the iceberg in the long list of troubles it faces because of the Trump administration’s policies — not only from the US backing out of the nuclear agreement, but also the very real blow to Iran’s economy delivered by new and restored US sanctions, even before many have had a chance to go into effect. These shifts have undermined Iran’s internal stability, at least to some extent, and reduced its influence in the region. One clear sign of the times: the American and Israeli actions in Syria against Iranian-backed forces and interests, as well as the persistent attacks of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen.It seems that Iran and the ayatollahs’ regime will have to deal with one of the most difficult and problematic periods that they have known in recent decades. This includes external pressures from the US and Sunni Arab states together with growing hardship at home in the form of demonstrations and strikes. All this creates a feeling that the ground is burning beneath the feet of Iran’s rulers.It is no wonder that after the American statements regarding the wish to restrict the export of crude oil from Iran to the lowest amount possible, Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Ismail Kowsari threatened (yet again) to close the Straits of Hormuz.-Iran in Syria? Not necessarily-The amounts that Iran has spent in recent years on establishing itself in the region range have been huge. For a country suffering from inflation, unemployment, severe poverty and drugs, it is hard to understand how the authorities could decide to spend approximately $30 billion over the past seven years on the project known as “exporting the revolution.”It is no wonder that the slogans “Death to Syria” and “Death to the Palestinians” were heard in demonstrations that took place in Iran over the past two weeks. If we look at Iranian policy in Syria and Yemen over the past several years, it seems that Tehran’s officials made an unequivocal strategic decision that Iran would do anything necessary to increase its regional influence.Yet the combination of the Trump administration’s desire to put a stop to this trend, together with severe economic problems, decisive actions carried out by Israel (according to the foreign press) in Syrian territory, and mainly a change in direction from Russia are making the entire assessment of the situation, which had been so clear for Iran, much more vague.In other words, it suddenly seems that the price of the policy of “exporting the revolution” could turn out to be too high for the regime. If priorities are at issue, then with all due respect from Iran to Syria, Yemen and even Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the survival of Assad’s regime will take priority over the many other considerations.On the eve of the Trump–Putin summit, the critical question regarding the Syrian issue is, of course, Russia’s position. The US strongly opposes any sort of Iranian presence in Syria on the day after. Russia wants to make sure that there is no Iranian presence 80 kilometers away from the Israeli border. But does Russia really want an Iranian presence beyond that? Not necessarily. It is true that Russia cooperated with Iran and Hezbollah during the civil war in order to ensure the survival of Bashar Assad’s regime. But now that its survival is assured, do the Russians still see a continued Iranian presence there as a positive thing? The answer seems to be no, and the signs of that are evident even now.The Russians did not agree to an Iranian presence near their port in Tartus. They also want Russian companies, not Iran, to benefit from the reconstruction of Syria. In the end, even officials in Moscow realize that a permanent Iranian presence in the new Syria will be a burden, not a blessing, for Assad.It may well be that Assad himself, whom the Russians and the Iranians rescued, realizes that too much influence from Tehran over what goes on in his country will interfere with his efforts to rebuild Syria. He also has come to understand that an ever-increasing Iranian military presence that will lead to Israeli and American actions will be an obstacle to any possibility of rebuilding Syria, and certainly keep investors away.These developments pose a complex problem for Iran. Any celebration would be premature. At least at this stage, Iran is strongly determined to act on its policy of establishing itself in Syria. It will also be quite some time before Syria goes back to being the country that it once was.While the Islamic State may have vanished from the earth as a state, it still exists as a concept, and it and similar organizations are responsible for quite a few terror attacks. The Kurdish enclaves, together with those of the opposition in the Idlib region, will not be disappearing from the Syrian map anytime soon. At present, the road to redemption still seems long.
Firebrand Arab Israeli Islamic cleric released to house arrest--Court rejects state's appeal against release of Raed Salah, who is awaiting trial on charges of incitement to terror for praising attackers who killed policemen at Temple Mount-By TOI staff-JUL 8,18
A leading Arab Israeli Islamist cleric, who has repeatedly been arrested for fomenting violence, was released to house arrest Friday after nearly a year in jail on charges of incitement to terror.Sheikh Raed Salah’s release came after the Haifa District Court rejected an appeal by the state for his continued detention. As a condition of his release, Salah will be subject to electronic monitoring and other restrictions.Salah, a leader of the banned Northern Branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel, was greeted by chants of “Allahu akbar” — Arabic for God is great — from supporters as he exited the court.The cleric, a resident of the northern city of Umm al-Fahm, will stay in the Arab town of Kafr Kanna during his house arrest. Residents of the town waved green Islamist flags to celebrate his release.Salah was ordered released Thursday by the Haifa Magistrate’s Court, a decision the state appealed but was upheld Friday by the district court.Salah was arrested and charged in August for praising three Arab Israelis who shot dead two police officers in an attack at the Old City of Jerusalem’s Temple Mount compound last July. The attack, and Israel’s ensuing decision to beef up security at the holy site, significantly ramped up tensions between Israel and the Arab world.As part of the indictment, prosecutors also charged Salah with an additional two counts of incitement to terror for speeches he gave encouraging the violent clashes surrounding the Temple Mount.He has previously been convicted on a number of occasions for terror charges and last January was released from prison after serving a nine-month sentence for incitement to violence and racism.
Number of terrorist attacks in Jerusalem drops to 3-year low-Shin Bet records only 6 attacks in capital during June despite Ramadan holiday, which usually sees a spike in violence-By JTA-JUL 8,18
Israeli security services documented only six terrorist attacks in Jerusalem in June — the lowest figure on record for any given month in at least three years.The tally constitutes a sharp drop in attacks in Jerusalem from May, when security forces documented 34 such incidents in the capital. The decrease was part of an overall drop of 40 percent in the number of terrorist attacks documented in June, when 220 such incidents were registered, the Shin Bet said in its monthly report published this week.The figure for May was 365, the highest number in over two years of terrorist attacks on Israelis.The first half of June was Ramadan, a Muslim month-long holiday when observant worshipers fast from sunrise to sundown. Ramadan usually features a spike, not a decrease in terrorist activity. Israeli security services massively increased their presence in Jerusalem in June to prevent disturbances.Five people were wounded in the terrorist attacks in May, one of them moderately and the rest lightly.May also saw heavy clashes on the Gaza border, as part of the Hamas-led “March of Return” protests that began on May 30. The largest such riots were on May 14, the day the United States opened its embassy in Jerusalem in a move denounced by the Palestinians.Since the weekly clashes broke out along the Gaza border, 135 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, dozens of them acknowledged members of terror groups.Israel says it is defending its border and nearby communities and accuses Hamas of using the protests as cover for attempts to breach the fence and carry out attacks. The army says it has fired on those who have attacked and endangered troops, sabotaged the border fence and tried to breach the border.Additionally, Palestinians have burned hundreds of acres of land near the Gaza border by sending over kites and balloons carrying incendiary devices.Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
Syrian regime troops reach key border crossing with Jordan-Advance comes after deal close to being agreed between rebels and Russian mediators to end the violence in southern Syria-By Agencies-JUL 8,18
Syrian state media said Friday that government forces have reached a vital border crossing with Jordan and raised the national flag for the first time in years.State news agency SANA said the capture of the Naseeb border crossing happened Friday afternoon after a deal was close to being reached between rebels and Russian mediators to end the violence in southern Syria.The capture of the Naseeb border crossing is another victory for President Bashar Assad’s forces, who have regained control of most of the area’s key cities from insurgents.Rebels seized control of the crossing in 2015, cutting a major lifeline for Syrian exports and disrupting a major trade route between Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and oil-rich gulf counties.Syrian government forces launched a wide offensive on June 19 to retake Daraa and the nearby Quneitra region that borders the Israeli Golan Heights. The attack has displaced some 330,000 people and left dozens dead.Rebels in southern Syria said on Friday they were close to reaching a deal with regime ally Russia including a ceasefire and the handover of some territory.A meeting between rebel and Russian negotiators was still continuing on Friday afternoon with no confirmation of a final agreement.But its broad outlines were described to AFP by two spokesmen for the joint opposition command in the south.Hussein Abazeed said a ceasefire would take hold in the southern province of Daraa, known as the “cradle” of Syria’s uprising.“Rebels will hand over their heavy-duty weapons in stages in exchange for the regime withdrawing from four towns” it had recently recaptured, said Abazeed.Government forces would then take control of a key route running along the border with Jordan, up to the Nassib border crossing.“The Nassib crossing will come under a Syrian civil administration, with Russian supervision,” said Abazeed.The border point was one of the key targets of the government’s more than two-week offensive in southern Syria.Abazeed said the preliminary deal also provided for the safe transfer of at least 6,000 people, including rebels and civilians, to the northwestern province of Idlib.According to rebel sources, Moscow had previously rejected a phased surrender of heavy arms and any population transfers.Ibrahim Jabbawi, another spokesman for the rebels’ southern operations, confirmed the agreement on a ceasefire, the surrender of heavy weapons, and the rebel handover of the frontier road with Jordan.A key ally of Damascus, Moscow has been brokering talks for the negotiated surrender of rebels in areas of southern Syria bordering Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.The negotiations collapsed on Wednesday, ushering in a day-long volley of air strikes, barrel bombs and missiles that ultimately pressured rebels to return to the table.They resumed talks at around midday on Friday. Rebels have walked away from negotiations in the past if they deem the terms too tough.
Cracks form in bid to save nuke deal as Iran spurns European economic package-Rouhani tells Merkel offer is 'disappointing'; Berlin says it cannot compensate for all of new US sanctions as remaining signatories meet in attempt to keep Tehran in pact-By AFP and TOI staff-JUL 8,18
VIENNA, Austria — Three European nations along with Russia and China met with Iran Friday to offer it economic benefits that would lessen the blow of sweeping US sanctions, but the meeting was quickly overshadowed by Iran expressing disappointment and Germany saying it could not offer full compensation for new sanctions.Their foreign ministers were holding talks in Vienna, where the accord was signed in 2015 with the aim of stopping Iran from building the atomic bomb in return for sanctions relief that promised greater trade and investment for the country.“We are meeting here today to make sure the nuclear agreement with Iran has a future,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said as he arrived for talks with counterparts from Iran and the other signatories Britain, China, France and Russia.“After the withdrawal of the United States, which we can’t understand, we face a difficult situation,” he said. “We want to make clear to Iran that it will still gain economic benefits through this agreement.”In Iran, though, President Hassan Rouhani told German Chancellor over the phone that he was “disappointed” with the deal, according to Iranian state run media.“Unfortunately, there was no clear method or operational solution for the continuation of cooperation, and the package only contained a series of general commitments like in the EU’s previous statements,” Rouhani told Merkel, according to the Tasnim news agency.Rouhani told French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday that the European economic measures on the table did not go far enough.Rouhani, who visited Switzerland and Austria this week to rally support for the nuclear deal’s survival, said in a phone call with Macron that the package “does not meet all our demands,” Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported.Speaking on French radio before the meeting, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Iran was making it more difficult to salvage the accord.“They (Iran) must stop threatening to break their commitments to the nuclear deal,” he said, according to Reuters. “We are trying to do an [economic package] before sanctions are imposed at the start of August and then the next set of sanctions in November.”-Companies pulling out-Since Trump’s shock move in May, which dismayed all other signatories, Washington has warned other countries to end trade and investment in Iran and stop buying its oil from early November or face punitive measures.The other partners so far appear powerless to stop their countries’ companies pulling out of Iran for fear of US penalties. Several major firms — including France’s Total and Peugeot, and Russia’s Lukoil — have said they are preparing to leave.Iran is also worried about continuing its oil exports to other markets and about being shut out of international bank payments systems.Maas called the European offer “attractive” but conceded that “we won’t be able to compensate for all the effects of enterprises withdrawing from Iran because they see their American business interests threatened by the sanctions.”“We advise businesses that want to keep investing (in Iran), we want to keep payment systems open, and we want to build security through widening the mandate of the European Investment Bank,” he said.Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said both Moscow and Beijing were committed to keeping the nuclear deal going.“Just like our Chinese counterparts, we are interested in preserving and fully implementing the JCPOA. The situation is complex, but, just like China and other parties to the deal, we are committed to international law and the UN Security Council’s decision this plan was enshrined in thus becoming part of international law,” he said according to the TASS state news agency.Iranians have complained that the hoped-for rise in foreign investment and trade after the deal has not materialized.Since Trump’s announcement, Iran’s rial currency has fallen, prices have risen and the country has been hit by street protests and strikes.Rouhani, who signed the nuclear deal, has been attacked at home by ultra-conservatives, who have denounced his willingness to talk to the West and accused him of hurting the economy.Trump in May slammed the nuclear accord signed under his predecessor Barack Obama as “horrible” and “defective at its core,” earning applause from Iran’s regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Israel.Iran, which strongly denies ever seeking to build a nuclear bomb, has warned it could resume uranium enrichment for civilian purposes if the deal collapses.Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed that Iran “will never tolerate both suffering from sanctions and nuclear restrictions.”US-Iran relations have been hostile since the 1979 overthrow of the US-backed shah and the US embassy hostage crisis.Washington considers Iran a state sponsor of terrorism, with links to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Hamas in the Palestinian territories and networks in Iraq and Yemen, and demands it stop supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad.The new round of diplomacy has been clouded after security services said they had foiled an alleged plot to bomb a Paris rally by an exiled Iranian opposition group, the People’s Mujahedeen of Iran.The large rally last Saturday attracted several US politicians, including former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, now Trump’s personal lawyer.Six people were arrested — a diplomat attached to the Iranian embassy in Austria — in Belgium, France and Germany, while the opposition group blamed the Iranian regime for the alleged plot.Tehran dismissed it is an orchestrated “false flag ploy,” designed to discredit Iran and overshadow Rouhani’s trip to Europe.On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu derided Europe for holding nuke talks with Iran after European officials alleged they uncovered Tehran’s Paris attack plot, and urged the P4 members to cancel their discussions.Adopting a mocking tone, in remarks at an American Independence Day celebration hosted by US Ambassador David Friedman at an event hall near Ben-Gurion airport, Netanyahu expressed incredulity that other nations would still try to deal with Iran, and praised US Trump for pulling out of the accord.“There is a meeting this week by the P4 without the United States…” and “the P4 invited Iran’s President Rouhani to attend,” Netanyahu said derisively. “At the same time, in recent days, this same regime dispatched a terrorist cell to carry out a major terrorist action in France. The commander of this terrorism cell was an Iranian diplomat in Austria… This Iranian terror plot was planned on the soil of Europe on the same week that the European leaders are supposed to meet the president of Iran about circumventing the sanctions on Iran.”“Stop funding the very regime that is sponsoring terrorism against you and against so many others. Stop appeasing Iran,” he urged.
Israeli diver warns effort to extract Thai boys from cave could end in disaster-As authorities say window for rescuing team narrowing, Raphael Aroush, who drove to site to aid operation, says death of navy seal underscores dangers of swimming through cavern-By TOI staff and AP-JUL 8,18
An Israeli father-son team aiding in the effort to rescue a Thai soccer team trapped in a flooded cave are casting doubts over the viability of extracting the group through the water, saying it could end in a “catastrophe.”Thai authorities are racing to pump out water from a flooded cave where 12 boys and their soccer coach have been trapped since June 23, before more rains are forecast to hit the northern region. Officials have also said they are considering trying to bring the boys out by having them dive and swim through the flooded cave.The gargantuan extraction effort hit a setback Thursday night when a former navy seal, volunteering at the site, died after he ran out of oxygen during a dive in the labyrinthine cave.Rafael Aroush, who has lived in Thailand for decades, said the death underscored the difficulty that the boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach, will face in trying to swim out of the cave.“It’s very risky [diving out]. Think about it, a Navy Seal just passed away last night, so how about a 12-year-old kid,” said Aroush.Aroush on Thursday drove with his son Shlomi from his home in Udan Thani province to the Tham Luang Nang Non cave to help with the rescue effort, joining other Israelis also providing support at the site.“There’s water everywhere, it’s very, very, very tight, you’re going between narrow passages with a lot of water,” he told reporters standing outside the cave Friday.“Many things could go wrong … it could be a catastrophe,” he said. “The conditions are really hard. Bad visibility. Dangerous for the most experienced divers to go through.”A former navy SEAL working to rescue boys trapped in a Thai cave has died from lack of oxygen. "The conditions are really harsh. Bad visibility. Dangerous for the most experienced divers…A navy SEAL died last night, that says a lot about it" – Rafael Aroush – Volunteer diver. pic.twitter.com/u254h8qgnu— 7 News Perth (@7NewsPerth) July 6, 2018-Rafael, 53, said he had visited the cave 25 years ago and found it especially difficult to navigate, according to Reuters.“It’s very narrow. The way divers have to work is not a normal way of diving. The visibility is also really bad. You’re diving blindly,” Aroush told the news agency.Compounding the difficulties is the fact that the boys have no experience swimming and are atrophied after some two weeks in the cavern, where they became trapped after going exploring following a soccer practice.On Thursday, Chiang Rai provincial Governor Narongsak Osatanakorn said he asked the SEALs in charge of extraction plans to estimate what level of risk would be involved to bring out the boys and their coach even though they weren’t 100 percent ready for a perilous hours-long dive.Officials prefer to get the boys out as soon as possible because heavy rain expected by Saturday almost surely will raise water levels again in the cave, making passage in some areas even more difficult, if not impossible. They are hoping that an upgraded draining effort can lower the water in an area where it is still at or near the ceiling. The idea is to get some headroom so the boys would not be reliant on scuba apparatus for a long stretch and could keep their heads above water.“We can no longer wait for all conditions (to be ready) because the circumstance is pressuring us,” Arpakorn said. “We originally thought the boys can stay safe inside the cave for quite some time but circumstances have changed. We have a limited amount of time.”The governor has said the 13 may not be extracted at the same time, depending on their condition. They’ve practiced wearing diving masks and breathing, in preparation for the diving possibility.Cave rescue experts have said it could be safest to simply supply the boys where they are, and wait for the flooding to subside. That could take months, however, given that Thailand’s rainy season typically lasts through October.A sombre mood has clouded the elation from earlier in the week, when the boys were found disheveled and hungry but alive on a ledge kilometres inside the cave.The navy seal who died in the cave, identified as Saman Kunont, had been part of a team trying to establish an oxygen line to the chamber where the children are awaiting rescue.The complexity of the cave was underscored by the need for a special communications system, which an Israeli team from the firm Maxtech rushed out to set up earlier this week.In the system, a string of small devices, similar to handheld radios, pass wireless communications between each other, enabling a link in places regular radios won’t work, such as where there are major obstacles blocking the line-of-sight between the two ends of the line.It took 19 of the devices to complete the link to the boys in the cave. They have enough battery power for 10 hours’ use at a time.“It is like a daisy-chain,” Uzi Hanuni, CEO of Maxtech told The Times of Israel on Thursday. “It is a very complex scenario inside the cave.”Stuart Winer and AFP contributed to this report.
Pompeo arrives in North Korea to hammer out details on nukes-Top US diplomat looks to dispel skepticism over Kim's intentions; if leader isn't seeking a 'different future,' Trump says, 'then we go back to the other way'-By ANDREW HARNIK-TOI-JUL 8,18
PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began his first trip to Pyongyang since US President Donald Trump’s summit with leader Kim Jong Un last month with a vow to nail down the specifics of the commitments Kim made on denuclearization.Pompeo has the crucial task of dispelling growing skepticism over how seriously Kim is about giving up his nuclear arsenal and working to translate the upbeat rhetoric following the first meeting between leaders of the US and North Korea into concrete action.He was met at the Pyongyang airport by Kim Yong Chol, a senior ruling party official and former intelligence chief, and Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho to begin his third visit since April and first since the June 12 summit.“Our leaders made commitments at the Singapore summit on the complete denuclearization of North Korea and outlined what a transformed US-DPRK relationship could look like,” he said while still en route, according to comments relayed to reporters on his plane by spokeswoman Heather Nauert.DPRK is the abbreviation of the authoritarian nation’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.“On this trip, I’m seeking to fill in some details on these commitments and continue the momentum towards implementation of what the two leaders promised each other and the world. I expect that the DPRK is ready to do the same,” Pompeo said.One hoped-for breakthrough during his visit would be the return of the remains of US GIs killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. Both sides have suggested Pyongyang is willing to turn over dozens if not hundreds of sets of remains.But just before Pompeo’s arrival, the North’s state-run media lobbed a warning shot at Washington over its criticism of the North’s human rights record.The criticism, published on North Korea’s government-run Uriminzokkiri website, said Washington should stop provoking the North with an “anachronistic human rights racket” at a time of diplomatic attempts to improve ties.What position it will take on the nuclear issue appears to be anything but a done deal.Over the past quarter-century, North Korea has frustrated or outfoxed US administrations that have attempted to stop and reverse its weapons development through diplomacy and sanctions. Since the summit, doubts over the North’s intentions have grown again, amid reports that it is continuing to expand facilities related to its nuclear and missile programs and that US intelligence is skeptical about its intentions to give up its weapons.Asked Thursday if North Korea was hiding nuclear facilities the president said: “We’ll see. All I can tell you is this. You haven’t had one missile launch and you haven’t had one rocket launch or you haven’t had any nuclear tests.”Speaking aboard Air Force One on a trip to Montana, Trump said he believed he forged a personal connection with the young autocrat he once pilloried as “Little Rocket Man.”“I had a very good feeling about him. … I shook his hand, I felt we got along very well,” Trump told reporters. “I think we understand each other. I really believe that he sees a different future for North Korea. … I hope that’s true. If it’s not true, then we go back to the other way, but I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”Pompeo will put that proposition to the test and help lay to rest doubts over whether the president, who has already ordered a suspension of large-scale US military drills with South Korea, is overeager to claim a success.National security adviser John Bolton, a hawk when it comes to US policy toward North Korea, said Sunday that Pompeo will present Pyongyang with a plan to complete the dismantling of the North’s nuclear and missile programs in one year. On Tuesday, Nauert walked that back, declining to give a timeline.This will be Pompeo’s third trip to North Korea in three months. He last visited in May ahead of the Trump-Kim summit and traveled there secretly in early April while he was director of the CIA.Pyongyang is the first stop on his first around-the-world trip as America’s top diplomat. He will then travel to Japan, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates before heading to Belgium, where he will accompany Trump at the NATO summit in Brussels.
Freshly empowered Erdogan set to flex muscles as Turkey enters new era-With smaller cabinet and no PM, new presidential system 'creates a lot of space for a president to act alone and rule the country as one person,' critics say-By Luana Sarmini-Buonaccorsi and Raziye AKKOC-TOI-JUL 8,18
ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be sworn in for a second term with expanded powers Monday, marking a new era as Turkey shifts to a presidential system denounced by opponents as autocratic.Fresh from his outright victory in June’s presidential elections, and following the scrapping of the office of Prime Minister, Erdogan will take on greater powers than any Turkish politician since World War II, including the capacity to appoint and dismiss ministers.But Erdogan — who has transformed the NATO member during his one-and-a half-decades of rule — will face significant and immediate challenges posed by a rickety economy and foreign policy tensions with the West.And while his Islamic-rooted ruling party came out of the simultaneously-held parliamentary elections as the largest faction, it will be reliant for an overall majority on nationalists who may prove awkward bedfellows.In a tightly-choreographed sequence of events, Erdogan will be sworn in at the parliament on Monday followed by a lavish ceremony at his Ankara presidential palace marking the transition to the new system.The new cabinet will be announced in the evening.“He will have a very strong powerful system and I’m sure he will use it,” Ayse Ayata, professor of political science at Middle East Technical University, told AFP.-Scope for one-man rule-The new system was agreed in a contentious 2017 referendum won by Erdogan’s camp but the changes have been bitterly denounced by the opposition.Erdogan will sit at the top of a vertical power structure marked by a slimmed-down government with 16 ministries instead of 26.The president and parliament will together be able to choose four members of a key judicial council that appoints and removes personnel in the judiciary.Erdogan, also leader of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), will then enjoy control of the executive, judicial and legislative branches, said Emre Erdogan, professor of political science at Istanbul’s Bilgi University.“Such a system creates a lot of space for a president to act alone and rule the country as one person,” he added.In a key change, the EU affairs ministry, set up in 2011 to oversee Turkey’s faltering bid to join the bloc, is to be subsumed into the foreign ministry.-No more PM-Prime Minister Binali Yildirim will on Monday go down in history as the 27th and final holder of a post that has existed since Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded modern Turkey, and whose origins date back to the Ottoman Empire.The cabinet is expected to have a different look, with speculation raging over who will be responsible for foreign policy and the economy.Current Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is an MP and under the new system, lawmakers cannot be ministers.Cavusoglu could still resign as an MP or Erdogan may choose his spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, or even spy chief Hakan Fidan as the new foreign minister, reports say.The markets will be closely watching the economic appointments, keen to see a steady hand reining in a fast-growing economy dogged by high inflation and a widening current account deficit.-‘We won’t stop’-Erdogan has savored his electoral triumph after some 52.6 percent of Turkish voters cast their ballots for him in June, higher than the 51.79% in the 2014 polls.His nearest rival, Muharrem Ince of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was left trailing on 30.6%, with the party now locked in internal feuding as it seeks a way forward.But the AKP failed to win a majority in parliament, taking 295 of the 600 seats, meaning it will need its allies in the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and its 49 seats to ensure a majority.The MHP’s chief Devlet Bahceli, an enigmatic figure who has led his party since the 1990s, takes a hard line on key issues, advocating an uncompromising foreign policy towards the West and no concessions in the fight against Kurdish separatists.Ayata said the MHP could end up “in a bargaining situation with AKP. So it isn’t a safe position.”Erdogan, who has won over a dozen elections, has vowed to listen to the “message” from the parliamentary polls, and vowed no-let up before local elections in March 2019.“We will not stop because we have come out of the election atmosphere. In fact, it’s the opposite. Since there is a ready election atmosphere, we will prepare for the local elections,” Erdogan told AKP officials, according to the Hurriyet daily.
The more we dig, the more we're finding': The ongoing uncertainty of the McArthur investigation-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
The ongoing police excavation at a north Toronto property where alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur worked has introduced more uncertainty about when the investigation might end, the lead detective said Friday.For the second consecutive day, police uncovered more human remains at the Mallory Crescent home where McArthur landscaped before his arrest in January. Det.-Sgt. Hank Idsinga said the body parts were buried about one metre beneath the surface soil in a forested ravine that butts up against the back of the property. Cadaver dogs identified multiple spots within the ravine that police will need to dig through."There could be more remains found, whether there are more victims out of those remains is another question. The remains that we're finding, they may belong to the seven victims whose remains we've already uncovered," Idsinga said in an interview on CBC Radio's Metro Morning.Earlier this year, police discovered body parts belonging to seven men believed to have been killed by McArthur. He has been charged with eight counts of first-degree murder, however."We have an eighth victim whose remains we have not uncovered. They may belong to him, they may belong to completely new victims, we just don't know yet," Idsinga said. Police searched some 100 different properties tied to McArthur's landscaping business with canine units, but only the Mallory Crescent property was excavated. The most recent dig is technically the fourth search of the site, Idsinga said.In a rare move on Thursday, Idsinga invited media cameras into the ravine to get a look at the ongoing police operation. The decision was made in part to prevent camera crews from attempting to shoot the dig site from a CN Rail track at the base of the ravine.It was also an attempt to show the public the kind of work police are doing to "unravel some answers" about McArthur and his victims."It's painstaking work, and it's very labour intensive and it is actually fascinating to watch," Idsinga said."The more we dig, the more we're finding. We'll see where we end up."Until the work at the site at Mallory is finished, it's impossible to project when the investigation might wrap up."We're not going to leave any stone unturned," Idsinga said. "It may end in the ravine at Mallory if we don't find any further remains. It may end with cold case investigations."And once we clear all of those, we will get on with the court process."
Trudeau, Ford clash over asylum seekers in first official meeting-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-July 8, 2018
TORONTO — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's first official meeting with Ontario's newly elected premier started with a friendly handshake Thursday, but it was clear the two leaders were miles apart when it comes to Ottawa's handling of the recent surge in asylum seekers.Moments before the meeting, Premier Doug Ford blamed the federal government's immigration policies for putting a strain on local and provincial resources, saying Trudeau's administration has encouraged people to cross into Canada illegally."This has resulted in a housing crisis and threats to the services that Ontario families depend on," Ford's office said in the statement. "This mess was 100 per cent the result of the federal government, and the federal government should foot 100 per cent of the bills."The move drew swift backlash from the provincial Opposition and prompted the federal government to pledge ongoing efforts to alleviate the burden on provinces, while urging Ontario to participate in the process.Emerging from the meeting alone, Trudeau suggested Ford may not fully understand Canada's international obligations when it comes to asylum seekers."I spent a little time explaining how the asylum-seeking system works and how our system is supposed to operate," he said."At the same time I agreed that it would be good for our officials to sit down and get clarity on how we can actually work together to ensure that we are holding true to our values but making sure that our immigration and refugee system is being applied in its integrity."Lisa MacLeod, the provincial minister overseeing the immigration file, said Trudeau's comments were "disrespectful" and argued neither the province nor its municipalities should be on the hook for commitments made by the prime minister."(Trudeau) was the one who tweeted out that everyone was welcome here and as a result of that we've had thousands of people cross the border illegally and it's putting a strain on many of our public resources," she said."If he wants to welcome them in, that's fine, but he should make sure he's paying for them and compensating the municipalities as well as the provincial government."The federal government recently pledged to give Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba $50 million to help offset some of the costs incurred due to the influx of asylum seekers illegally crossing the Canada-U.S. border.The provinces, however, have asked for much more support.Quebec, which has seen the bulk of asylum seekers arrive this year, has said its costs are closer to $146 million, though that tally includes projections for future expenses. The province is set to receive $36 million from Ottawa.Ontario has been promised $11 million by the federal government but Toronto Mayor John Tory has said the city alone needs $64 million to recoup costs. The number of refugees and asylum claimants using the city's shelter system went from 459 in 2016 to 3,209 as of last month, according to a city report.Hundreds currently being housed in college dormitories will be forced out in early August as schools prepare for students to return, the report said."The City of Toronto has been clear that we need assistance to deal with unprecedented numbers of refugee claimants and asylum seekers. The province has made its initial position clear," Tory said in a statement Thursday."I will continue to urge the Canadian government to take immediate action and I am optimistic that the federal government will work with us to fulfil its responsibility to help cities deal with these families."Federal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen has said the money already allocated is meant to help address some of the immediate temporary housing needs in those provinces.A spokesman for the minister said Thursday the department is committed to working with the provinces on this issue."Over the past year, we have also worked closely with Quebec to ensure that adequate resources are in place and that every action is taken to reduce the impacts on provincial social services. We are ready to recreate this model in Ontario, and we need the collaboration of the provincial government."Ontario's former Liberal government signed an immigration agreement with Ottawa in November of last year.Under the deal, Ontario agreed to resettle a share of refugees "recognizing the need for flexibility in responding to emerging humanitarian needs," while Ottawa agreed to take into account the potential financial impact on the province and consider the need for additional supports.- With files from Shawn Jeffords-Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press.
Interim OPCW report finds chlorine used in Syria's Douma-[Reuters]-By Anthony DeutschYAHOONEWS-July 6, 2018
THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Preliminary analysis by the world's chemical weapons watchdog found chlorine was used in an attack in Douma, Syria, in April that killed dozens of civilians and prompted air strikes by Britain, France and the United States, it said on Friday.The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) sent a fact-finding mission to Douma in mid-April, roughly a week after the April 7 attack in the enclave near Damascus."Various chlorinated organic chemicals were found in samples" from two locations, the report said. It said it had found no evidence of nerve agents.The OPCW has documented systematic use of banned munitions in Syria's civil war, including nerve agent sarin and sulfur mustard gas. It has not assigned blame for the attacks.In Douma, OPCW inspectors visited two sites where they interviewed witnesses and took samples, which were split at their laboratory in the Netherlands and forwarded to affiliated national labs for testing.Two samples recovered from gas cylinders at the scene tested positive for chlorine, the report said.Washington and other Western governments blamed Syrian government forces for the attack in Douma.The Syrian government denies using chemical weapons during the country's long civil war but a previous joint inquiry of the United Nations and the OPCW found the Syrian government used the nerve agent sarin in an April, 2017 attack and has also several times used chlorine as a weapon. It blamed Islamic State militants for mustard gas use.(Reporting by Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Catherine Evans)
