1-WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS. 2-Winter wallop expected for southern Manitoba. 3-Schools, roads closed after snowfall. 4-Volcanic ash forces closing of airport. 5-Greater Vancouver boil-water advisory lifted. 6-NATO urged to whole-heartedly commit to Afghanistan. 7-EU meets Israel, Arab neighbors, hopes cease-fire is an opening for peace. 8-Olmert reaches out to Palestinians. 9-IDF Skeptical over Cease-Fire in Gaza, Says Hamas Rearming. 10-Stocks fall as investors take profits. 11-Terrorists Say Ceasefire Enables Arms Smuggling and Training. 12-It is the Zionist and Evangelistic Fundamentalists who threaten our nation, Not Islam, Arabs, or Muslims.
EARTHQUAKES
MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS (USGS)
Update time = Tue Nov 28 12:30 AM EDT
NOV 28,2006
MAP 3.3 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 3.1 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.1 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.4 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 3.5 ALASKA PENINSULA
NOV 27,2006
MAP 3.0 SOUTH OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.8 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.4 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 5.3 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 5.0 SEA OF JAPAN
MAP 4.7 MARTINIQUE REGION, WINDWARD ISLANDS
MAP 5.5 SOUTHERN PERU
MAP 4.9 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.8 MOUNT ST. HELENS AREA, WASHINGTON
MAP 3.5 OFFSHORE BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 5.1 NEW BRITAIN REGION, PAPUA NEW GUINEA
MAP 2.8 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.3 ANTOFAGASTA, CHILE
MAP 3.0 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 3.5 SOUTHEASTERN ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL ALASKA
MAP 2.5 SOUTHERN ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.4 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.7 PUERTO RICO REGION
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.6 OREGON
MAP 3.0 OFFSHORE BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 4.4 OFFSHORE EL SALVADOR
MAP 3.4 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 2.8 OFFSHORE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; 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, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
Winter wallop expected for southern Manitoba
Last Updated: Monday, November 27, 2006 | 5:20 PM CT ,CBC News
Folks, get out your shovels, snowblowers, plows and parkas: the first snowstorm of the season is expected to hit much of southern Manitoba late Monday and all day Tuesday.Environment Canada upgraded a winter storm watch to a warning for most of southern Manitoba on Monday morning, as well as for The Pas, Norway House and Island Lake in the north. Although southern Manitoba received its first snowfall of the year at the end of October, environment officials did not consider it to be a winter storm.
Environment Canada meterologist Dale Marciski said Monday afternoon that an expected snowfall of about 20 centimetres will begin overnight Monday, and continue through the day Tuesday. It seems to be more and more that it's going to be over the western portions of Manitoba, through Brandon, over the Riding Mountain Park, Dauphin, then into the Interlake, Marciski said.But he added that the incoming system, which he said is pretty extensive, will also hit eastern Manitoba.Further east, [there will be] somewhat less amounts [of snow]. But unfortunately, it doesn't mean that you're going to get away scot free either, because the places that don't get the heavy snow may have to deal with some freezing rain, he said.Because southeastern Manitoba is expected to see less snow, the weather watch remains in the Steinbach, Whiteshell and Sprague areas.
Flights delayed Monday
The snowstorm system was the same one that dumped 30 to 50 centimetres of snow in Vancouver on Sunday. The system tracked through Alberta and Saskatchewan on Monday, leaving behind 15 to 20 centimetres of snow in Saskatchewan.
Airlines have delayed or cancelled many flights Monday coming out of the Vancouver International Airport.We've seen a lot of delays on flights coming in from the west. Not only Vancouver, [but] we have some from, of course, Calgary, Victoria [and] Edmonton, Winnipeg Airports Authority spokeswoman Christine Alongi said Monday. Alongi suggested people expecting to pick up any eastbound travellers Monday to check with the airline for delays. They can also check the airport's website for real-time flight information.Snowplows are ready to clear the runways when the snow starts falling in Winnipeg, Alongi added.
City plows ready for action, officials say
Snowplows are also ready to clean Winnipeg streets, city officials said Monday, with about 300 plows, graders and other equipment standing by.Last year's first big snowstorm caught crews off guard because some plowing equipment, such as front-end loaders, was still being used outside the city for construction jobs.But Ken Allen, a spokesman with the city's public works department, said an equipment shortage won't be a problem this time around.The amount of snow that we get is hard to predict. Certainly we're preparing. We're monitoring the weather and we're making sure the equipment is ready when it's needed, Allen said.As for cost, Allen said Winnipeg can afford to clean up after a major snowfall. It estimates the city usually spends $2 million to clean up city streets from a snowstorm, and it has spent $13 million on snow removal so far this year. That leaves the city about $4.2 million remaining until the end of this year.
Province shows off new snowplows
As of Monday afternoon, there were already reports of poor visibility on highways in parts of southwestern Manitoba,including around Riding Mountain National Park.
Meanwhile, Infrastructure Minister Ron Lemieux chose Monday to show off 18 new
snowplows it has purchased to help replace more than 30 aging plows in the province's fleet.The province will spend $5 million on the new plow trucks, as well as about $2 million for 15 one-year-old trucks. The province currently has 249 snowplow trucks.
Schools, roads closed after snowfall
Last Updated: Monday, November 27, 2006 | 3:45 PM PT ,CBC News
The big weekend dump of snow on B.C.'s South Coast has made driving treacherous, knocked out power to thousands of people in Greater Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and Vancouver Island, and closed numerous schools and universities.
Public schools were closed Monday in Surrey, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Mission, Abbotsford, Chilliwack and the Gulf Islands after as much as 50 centimetres of snow fell.Five elementary schools in Vancouver closed University Hill, Southlands, Graham Bruce, Renfrew and Queen Elizabeth Annex because the power was out. However, the rest of the public schools in the city opened, as did those in Richmond, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Delta, New Westminster and Langley.In Burnaby two schools have been closed because they have no power Cascade Heights Elementary and Westridge Elementary.
Heavy snow kept many people off the roads.(CBC) A number of private schools are closed, including Crofton House, St. George's, York House, the Vancouver Waldorf School and all francophone schools in Vancouver. Most church-run schools are also closed across the Lower Mainland, as are Vancouver Montessori schools.Many post-secondary institutions closed their doors:University of British Columbia. Simon Fraser University's Burnaby and downtown Vancouver campuses. Emily Carr School of Art and Design. Vancouver Community College. Langara College. Douglas College. Kwantlen University College.Trinity Western University. All campuses of the University College of the Fraser Valley.Capilano College's Sunshine Coast campus The Justice Institute in New Westminster remained open.
Travel difficult
The snow has left roads and highways littered with cars, and is being blamed for at least one traffic death in Surrey when a vehicle crossed the centre line and struck an oncoming vehicle.The snow has tapered off to flurries on Monday, but temperatures are falling, which is expected to make roads even more treacherous as slush turns to ice.It is also slow going on Lower Mainland buses and on the SkyTrain. Trolley bus lines are down in many areas, and SkyTrain is running slowly, as each train requires an operator in this sort of weather.SkyTrain is running longer trains to compensate for the slowness and the wider gaps between trains.However, the WestCoast Express train is running normally.
Thousands lose power
B.C. Hydro reports that about 60,000 people remained without power on Monday, after the heavy snow snapped tree branches and took down power lines.
The hardest hit areas were the North Shore and Vancouver Island, said Hydro spokeswoman Elisha Moreno. There were also outages in Surrey, Vancouver and Burnaby.Hydro is working to get the power back on, but Moreno said that as the temperature drops, the work becomes more difficult for crews as roads ice up.Airline flights in and out of Vancouver International Airport have been delayed and cancelled since the heavy snowfall, but now that the snow has stopped, the airport is struggling to get back to normal.Many B.C. ferries between the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island are running behind schedule because of the winter weather.
Victoria overwhelmed
In Greater Victoria, the snow forced BC Transit to cancel much of its service early Monday, but bus service improved later in the day in the capital city.In the Victoria suburb of Saanich, residents are being asked to conserve water because power is out at local pumping stations. In nearby Langford, an emergency reception centre has been opened, so people who have no power can have a place to warm up, and a place to sleep. The University of Victoria was closed Monday, as were schools, recreation centres and many businesses across southern Vancouver Island.Meanwhile, Victoria is preparing for colder temperatures that are being forecast, by opening five more homeless shelters.
EARTH DESTROYED WITH THE EARTH
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)
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) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
Volcanic ash forces closing of airport NOV 27,2006
ROME /Clouds of volcanic ash billowing from Mount Etna forced authorities Monday to shut down the airport near the Sicilian city of Catania for a fourth straight night. Fontanarossa airport, the main one in eastern Sicily, will be shut down as a precaution from dusk Monday to dawn Tuesday, Italy's civil aviation authority said.
The airport is being closed only overnight since pilots during the day can avoid ash laden clouds, authority spokeswoman Loredana Rosati said.A number of flights have been canceled or diverted at Fontanarossa since a column of smoke and ash began pouring from Etna last week.Mount Etna, Europe's biggest and most active volcano, springs to life every few months. In 1669, a huge eruption destroyed Catania. Etna's last major eruption was in 1992.
POISONED WATERS
REVELATION 8:8-11
8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood:(bitter,Poisoned) and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.(poisoned)
Greater Vancouver boil-water advisory lifted
Last Updated: Monday, November 27, 2006 3:43 PM PT ,CBC News
About a million people who have been under a boil-water advisory in Greater Vancouver for 12 days have finally been told it's safe to drink from the taps.The Greater Vancouver Regional District issued the advisory on Nov. 16, following a major rainstorm that created unacceptable levels of silt in the Capilano and Seymour reservoirs on the North Shore.Tap water is now safe to drink in Vancouver, Burnaby, North Vancouver and West Vancouver.(CBC) It was lifted the following day for about a million residents of the Lower Mainland. However, the remaining million residents in Vancouver, Burnaby, North Vancouver and West Vancouver didn't get the all-clear until Monday.Medical health officer Dr. Patricia Daly said turbidity levels in the Seymour watershed have dropped low enough to allow people to drink unboiled, unbottled water.
With the continuing downward trends in turbidity, and with nearly 1,000 water tests for bacteriological results being negative, apart from one false positive, the medical health officers believe that the water is now safe for people to drink.So we're advising all our hospitals, our long-term care facilities, our day cares in schools that they no longer need to serve bottled water, and the public can resume drinking water from their taps.Last week, one sample taken at the University of B.C. showed positive for E. coli, but it turned out to be a sampling problem and not a problem with contaminated water coming out of the tap.The Capilano reservoir, which was closed off last week, is still too turbid to drink and remains closed.The boil-water advisory had created a run on bottled water at stores across the Lower Mainland.Daly advises people who have not been running their taps to do so for three minutes to flush out any residual murky water in their pipes.She also warns that the water coming out of the tap may not be as clear as it could be.It may still be cloudy for a period of time as the clear water starts to come through the system, but we still believe it's safe to drink.
EUROPEAN UNION ARMY
DANIEL 7:23-25
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them;(#11 SPAIN) and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.( BE HEAD OF 3 NATIONS)
25 And he (EU PRESIDENT) shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.(3 1/2 YRS)
DANIEL 8:23-25
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king (EU DICTATOR) of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences,(FROM THE OCCULT) shall stand up.
24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power:(SATANS POWER) and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes;(JESUS) but he shall be broken without hand.
DANIEL 11:36-39
36 And the king (EU DICTATOR) shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers,(THIS EU DICTATOR IS JEWISH) nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.(CLAIM TO BE GOD)
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces:(WAR) and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god,(DESTROY TERROR GROUPS) whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many,(HIS ARMY LEADERS) and shall divide the land for gain.
REVELATION 19:19
19 And I saw the beast,(EU LEADER) and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse,(JESUS) and against his army.(THE RAPTURED CHRISTIANS)
NATO urged to whole-heartedly commit to Afghanistan by Karin Zeitvogel
Mon Nov 27, 4:39 PM ET
RIGA (AFP) /Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga urged NATO countries to whole-heartedly commit their resources to strife-torn Afghanistan, as alliance leaders gathered in Riga for a summit. If NATO is engaged and has accepted being present in Afghanistan, it should do so whole-heartedly and engage in such a way as to ensure results, she told a news conference on the eve of the first-ever NATO summit in a former Soviet republic.The crucial question will be how to achieve that and what is needed, she said.
The summit of the 26-member military alliance, set up to counter the military might of the Soviet Union during the Cold War, formally opens late Tuesday, a day after a suicide attack in southern Afghanistan claimed the lives of two NATO soldiers from Canada.The resurgence of the Taliban, five years after they were driven from power in Afghanistan in 2001, has peaked this year with daily attacks and full-scale battles claiming scores of lives.NATO's military commander, US General James Jones, in early September called for some 2,500 extra military personnel for southern Afghanistan around 1,000 combat troops backed by about 1,500 logistical and other staff, plus equipment to tackle the revived insurgency.
But NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer confirmed Monday that the call for more troops had not yet been fully met. Being in Afghanistan as guests or tourists is far from the aim, Vike-Freiberga said.A half-hearted presence there doesn't seem to be worthwhile. We must either go there, get the job done or say we are unable to deal with it and leave that country to its fate, she said.At a gala dinner for summit participants at Riga's Small Guild house, US Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Dick Lugar warned that failure of member states to commit to Afghanistan could deal a serious blow to NATO's credibility.Afghanistan has become a test case for whether we can overcome the growing discrepancy between NATO's expanding missions and its lagging capabilities, he said.NATO commanders must have the resources to provide security, and they must have the flexibility to use troops to meet Afghanistan's critical security needs.If the most prominent alliance in modern history were to fail in its first operation outside of Europe due to a lack of will by its members, the efficacy of NATO and the ability to take joint action against a terrorist threat would be called into question, Lugar said.
Vike-Freiberga said the heads of state and government would talk about enlargement and relations with Russia, which saw its former republics and satellites joining NATO in a bad light, but added "there are no burning issues on the table concerning relations with Russia or enlargement.The stated aim of the summit was to discuss NATO's transformation, to deal with modern-day security threats.This summit will prove that NATO is alive and well and adjusting to an ever-changing world. NATO, when it was created, was faced with a Europe divided in two. It lived for many decades through the Cold War. When the Cold War ended, a new world arose and NATO adapted,Vike-Freiberga said.The transformation of NATO and its readiness to assume new roles while keeping its ability to collaborate in an enlarged format of 26 members is a challenge in itself that NATO must to rise to, she said.The United States believes that the alliance's operation in Afghanistan, its most ambitious mission ever, is evidence that NATO must be able to work outside of its classic transatlantic area of operations.
But countries like France, Belgium, Greece, Spain and Italy believe that turning NATO into a coalition of democracies with global ambitions could spark concern in Asia, particularly in China. Scheffer on Monday urged NATO members to engage in frank political dialogue to ensure that the alliance remains strong and vibrant. He also assured critics that the alliance would not become the world's policeman, although he added that with missions and operations on three continents involving more than 50,000 troops with new capabilities and with new global partners NATO is providing security in new ways and new places.
LAND FOR PEACE (THE FUTURE 7 YEARS OF HELL ON EARTH)
JOEL 3:2
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
DANIEL 9:26-27
26 And after threescore and two weeks(62X7=434 YEARS+7X7=49 YEARS=TOTAL OF 69 WEEKS OR 483 YRS) shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary;(ROMAN LEADERS DESTROYED THE 2ND TEMPLE) and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.(THERE HAS TO BE 70 WEEKS OR 490 YRS TO FUFILL THE VISION AND PROPHECY OF DAN 9:24).(THE NEXT VERSE IS THAT 7 YR WEEK OR (70TH FINAL WEEK).
27 And he( THE ROMAN,EU PRESIDENT) shall confirm the covenant with many for one week:(1X7=7 YEARS) and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,(3 1/2 yrs in TEMPLE SACRIFICES STOPPED) and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.
ISAIAH 28:14-19 (THIS IS THE 7 YR TREATY COVENANT OF DANIEL 9:27)
14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scornful men, that rule this people which is in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
17 Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.
19 From the time that it goeth forth it shall take you: for morning by morning shall it pass over, by day and by night: and it shall be a vexation only to understand the report.
DANIEL 8:23-25
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king (EU DICTATOR) of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences,(FROM THE OCCULT) shall stand up.
24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power:(SATANS POWER) and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people.
25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes;(JESUS) but he shall be broken without hand.
DANIEL 11:36-40
36 And the king shall do according to his will;(EU PRESIDENT) and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done.
37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers,(THIS EU DICTATOR IS A EUROPEAN JEW) nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.
38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces:(HES A MILITARY GINIUS) and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things.
39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds (CONTROL HEZBOLLAH,AL-QUAIDA MURDERERS ETC) with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many,(HIS ARMY LEADERS) and shall divide the land for gain.
40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south(EGYPT) push at him:(EU DICTATOR PROTECTING ISRAELS SECURITY) and the king of the north(RUSSIA) shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships;
and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.
ISAIAH 26:21
21 For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.(WW3,1/2 earths population die).
ISAIAH 13:6-13 KJV
6 Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man's heart shall melt:(FROM FRIGHT)
8 And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.
9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.
11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
ISAIAH 24:17-23 KJV
17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows from on high are open, and the foundations of the earth do shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly.
20 The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.
22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited.
23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.
EU meets Israel, Arab neighbors, hopes cease-fire is an opening for peace
By ROBERT WIELAARD (Associated Press Writer) 11/27/2006
TAMPERE, Finland /Seeing a glimmer of hope in the Gaza Strip cease-fire, the EU opened two days of talks with Israel and its Arab neighbors Monday, trying to rescue the frayed Middle East peace process.
Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, whose country holds the EU presidency, said the cease-fire provided rays of hope for peace and reiterated the EU will restore relations with the Palestinians once they have a national unity government. It is important the Palestinians have a credible, representative government which no one will have any excuse not to engage with seriously,Tuomioja told reporters.He also said peace between Israel and the Palestinians was crucial for stability in Lebanon.No cease-fire will hold forever unless there is also a political process that in the long-held view of the international community must lead to a two-state solution, he added.
Tuomioja chaired a meeting between EU foreign ministers and their counterparts from Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, the Palestinian Authority, Syria, Turkey and Tunisia.
The meeting capped a year marked by nine chaotic months of a Hamas-led Palestinian government that does not recognize Israel and an July-August war between Israel and Hezbollah militants based in southern Lebanon. Disagreements at the meeting focused on the future of the peace process and conditions for both sides to return to the negotiating table. The Palestinians are trying to form a national unity government which could allow donors to restore direct aid to Palestinians but first, Hamas would have to recognize Israel, renounce violence and honor existing agreements with Israel. As delegations arrived in this southern Finnish town, the Gaza Strip cease-fire stoked hopes that Israel and the Palestinians would be able to restart long-stalled peace efforts after five months of deadly clashes. Palestinian militants in Gaza fired two rockets at Israel on Monday, despite the two day-old cease-fire.
On Sunday, Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip as part of the cease-fire, but two major Palestinian militant groups continued to fire homemade rockets into Israel. Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal said his group was willing to give peace talks six months, but threatened a new uprising if the talks do not lead to a Palestinian state in Gaza and the West Bank. The violence and suffering ... in the Palestinian territories, Lebanon and northern Israel in the summer of 2006 have underlined the importance of reinvigorating the peace process, the European Commission said in a report to the foreign ministers. The emergence of a Hamas-led Palestinian government has forced the EU, the United States and other donors to stop direct aid - and Israel to withhold tax revenues on imports - to the Palestinian government. The EU has crafted a financing formula that bypasses official Palestinian channels and pays those Palestinians hardest hit by the financial crisis.
The EU's Euro-Mediterranean aid program aims to shore up peace efforts by bringing Israel and its neighbors together in a partnership meant to lead to a free trade zone. To make that possible, the EU has since 1995 funneled €21 billion in grants, aid and soft loans mostly to Arab nations. The EU's main goal is to engage countries on the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean in a zone of peace, security and prosperity by extending cooperation in areas including energy, tourism, environmental protection, education, law enforcement, migration, trade promotion and investments. This has produced mixed results. There is no peace and it is debatable if the EU has raised its standing in a region where the United States remains the key to the peace process. At a 2005 summit, marking the 10th anniversary of the EU's economic aid for Israel and its neighbors, only one Arab head of state showed up and the EU failed to get its southern neighbors to agree on a definition of terrorism.
Olmert reaches out to Palestinians By AMY TEIBEL, Associated Press Writer NOV 27,06
JERUSALEM - Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reached out to the Palestinians on Monday in one of his most conciliatory speeches yet, saying he was prepared to grant them a state, release desperately needed funds and free prisoners if they choose the path of peace.Olmert's remarks sealed a dramatic policy shift and built on a day-old truce meant to end five months of violence in the Gaza Strip, but new rocket attacks by Palestinian militants threatened the latest rapprochement.I hold out my hand in peace to our Palestinian neighbors in the hope that it won't be returned empty, Olmert said.We cannot change the past and we will not be able to bring back the victims on both sides of the borders, he said. All that we can do today is stop additional tragedies.
Olmert appealed to the Palestinians to form a new, moderate Cabinet committed to carrying out a U.S.-backed peace plan and securing the release of a captured Israeli soldier.
Once such a government was established, Olmert said, he would call for an immediate meeting with the moderate Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, to have a real, open, honest, serious dialogue between us.Palestinian legislator Saeb Erekat, a top Abbas aide, said the Palestinians were ready to negotiate a final peace deal.
I believe Mr. Olmert knows he has a partner, and that is President Abbas. He knows that to achieve peace and security for all, we need to shoot for the end game, Erekat said.But the Palestinian Cabinet, led by Hamas militants who reject Israel's right to exist, accused Olmert of posturing.This is a conspiracy. This is a new maneuver. Olmert is speaking about the Palestinian state without giving details about the borders, said Ghazi Hamad, a government spokesman.
Olmert's speech raised the diplomatic stakes ahead of President Bush's scheduled trip to neighboring Jordan this week for talks with Iraqi leaders.Erekat said it was possible Abbas would meet with Bush there, but Israeli officials denied that Abbas and Olmert might meet on the sidelines of the Bush visit.Olmert was elected in March promising to set Israel's final borders with the Palestinians by uprooting isolated communities dotted all over the West Bank while holding on to major settlement blocs. Israel, Olmert said, would act unilaterally without a Palestinian peace partner something it appeared inclined to conclude because of Hamas violently anti-Israel ideology.But a summer war with Lebanese guerrillas, which many Israelis blamed on their unilateral pullout from southern Lebanon six years ago, left Israelis cool to ceding more territory, and Olmert shelved that plan.
His speech Monday signaled a final break with that program and an attempt to entice the Palestinians back to the negotiating table by outlining likely Israeli concessions under a future peace deal.We, the state of Israel, will agree to the evacuation of many territories and the settlements that we built there. This is extremely difficult for us, like the splitting of the Red Sea. We will do it for
real peace, he said.Israel would pull out of West Bank land and uproot settlements under a peace deal, Olmert said.In return for a serious Palestinian push for peace, he said, Israel would be prepared to reduce checkpoints that have severely restricted movement in the West Bank; release hundreds of millions of dollars in funds frozen after Hamas took power in March; and free some of the thousands of Palestinian prisoners Israel holds if Hamas-linked militants release alive and healthy an Israeli soldier they captured in June. The freezing of funds has created great hardship in the Palestinian territories by rendering the Hamas government unable to pay full salaries to its civil servants, who provide for one-third of the Palestinian people.
A significant prisoner release would be a major confidence-building gesture because prisoners hold great weight in Palestinian society. Israeli government officials said they had not ruled out releasing Palestinian uprising leader Marwan Barghouti, who is serving five life sentences for masterminding deadly attacks. In exchange for Israeli concessions, Olmert said, Palestinians would have to renounce violence, recognize Israel's right to live in peace and security and give up their demands to allow refugees from the 1948 Mideast War to return to their homes in what is now Israel. The uncompromising extremism of your terror organizations ... hasn't brought you closer to achieving the goal that I'm convinced many of you share to establish a Palestinian state, he said.
Hamad, the Palestinian government spokesman, said Palestinians would not abandon the fight for refugees. It is a main part of the Palestinian cause, he said. Olmert's offer to revive stalled peace talks came a day after the two sides began observing a cease-fire in Gaza, raising hopes new peace efforts would follow. Palestinian militants violated the cease-fire by launching two rockets at Israel on Monday. No one was injured, but Israel has threatened to strike back if rocket attacks increase. Erekat said he was working with the Israelis to expand the cease-fire to the West Bank and hoped to have an agreement within days. Israeli officials said they would wait to see what happens in Gaza first. If the cease-fire in Gaza works, I hope it will be possible to transfer that more positive reality to the West Bank as well, Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said.
IDF Skeptical over Cease-Fire in Gaza, Says Hamas Rearming
By Amihai Zippor,(IHC News, 27 November 2006)
The IDF is skeptical about the cease-fire struck by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday morning, 26 November 2006.
In the past, most cease-fire attempts have been periods for the Palestinians to regroup and replenish their arms supplies following large IDF counterterrorism operations such as the ones that have been going on for the past several months.The army’s southern command believes that even if the Qassam rocket attacks stop Hamas will continue smuggling weapons into Gaza, which it has been doing vigorously for months, in preparation for the next round of fighting.Several MKs agreed with the army’s assessment and also criticized the cease-fire, saying the government doesn’t have much to celebrate regarding its accomplishment.Olmert and [Defense Minister Amir] Peretz are serial failures, MK Arye Eldad (National Union-NRP) said from the Knesset.These weak people couldn't stop the attacks on Israel, and are therefore ready to allow Hamas the necessary time to turn Gaza into southern Lebanon, he said.
Former Foreign Minister and current Likud MK Sivan Shalom said the cease-fire reminded him of UN Resolution 1701 that ended this past summer’s Lebanon war but left Hizbullah intact and able to restock its missiles.We are playing make-believe. The cease-fire is imaginary and it will give Hamas time to get reorganized, Shalom said.Meanwhile, several Palestinian terrorist groups are expressing anger that the cease-fire doesn’t extend to Judea and Samaria as well and are threatening new attacks if the IDF does not stop its counterterrorism operations there.On Monday morning, IDF forces in Jenin killed a top Palestinian Resistance Committee leader and a 50-year-old woman who took his gun running away from the scene. Soldiers thought she was a second terrorist due to the fact she was wearing pants and there was not a lot of light in the early morning hours when the operation was conducted. Source: Original text contributed by the author, IHC reporter. Israel Hasbara Committee, 27 November 2006.
HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER (A COLLAPSE)
JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
Stocks fall as investors take profits
By Walter Hamilton, Times Staff Writer
6:38 PM PST, November 27, 2006
Stocks fell sharply on Monday, with a weakening U.S. dollar and tepid sales at retail giant Wal-Mart Stores giving investors the opening they were looking for to cash out some of the profits they've booked during the market's four-month surge.The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 index each sank more than 1% for the first time since July 13. The losses were spread across many sectors, including technology and financial services, that had been strong performers in recent months.
Overseas markets also retreated.Investment pros said the decline was not surprising given Wall Street's strength this year, especially through its seasonally weak period in September and October. They attributed the sell-off largely to profit taking by big institutional investors that are sitting on sizable recent gains.
This is more of an excuse to sell rather than a real reason to sell, said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald. This isn't the start of something big.The Dow sank 158.46 points, or 1.3%, to 12121.71, its biggest decline since a 1.5% slide on July 13.The S&P 500 was off 19.05 points, or 1.4%, to 1381.90. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index skidded 2.21%, tumbling 54.34 points to 2405.92.Smaller stocks, which have rallied sharply in the last month, fell more than blue chips. The Russell 2,000 small-stock index was down 20.18 points, or 2.6%, to 772.10. It was the biggest loss since the index dropped 2.7% on July 20.
The declines seemed muted compared to the extended rally of recent months. Even after its decline on Monday, for example, the Nasdaq is up 19% since July 21 and 9.1% for the year.
The Dow is up 13.1% since Jan. 1, and the S&P 500 has gained 10.7%. Stocks historically sag after Labor Day before recovering at Thanksgiving and rallying into Christmas.But the post-Labor Day slump didn't happen this year. Stocks moved higher after the Federal Reserve paused in its string of interest-rate hikes as hopes grew that it could slow economic growth without triggering a recession.Market pros say institutional investors knew a downdraft would eventually come, and were prepared to sell at the first whiff of bad news.That opportunity came Friday, when the dollar fell to a 20-month low against the euro amid concerns about a weakening U.S. economy. Stocks declined in light trading Friday, but absorbed a bigger hit Monday when most traders returned from the holiday weekend.Stocks can actually go down as well as up, joked Phil Roth, a technical analyst at New York brokerage Miller Tabak & Co. I'll be darned.The dollar continued to lose ground Monday, with the euro trading at $1.313, from $1.309 Friday.
As stocks declined, some investors looked to the U.S. Treasury bond market as a safe haven. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to a nine-month low of 4.53%, from 4.55% on Friday. Yields decline as bond prices rise.Also adding to Wall Street's unease was the news out of Wal-Mart. The retail behemoth disclosed Friday that sales at stores open at least one year fell 0.1% this month, its first such drop in a decade.On Monday, shares of Wal-Mart fell $1.29, or 2.7%, to $46.61.Wal-Mart's sales slump overshadowed more upbeat reports from the long Thanksgiving weekend, the first big weekend for holiday sales. The National Retail Federation said Sunday that spending this past weekend was up 18.9% over last year, boosted in part by sales of big-ticket items such as high-definition televisions.But Wal-Mart is considered a retailing bellwether, and other merchants also posted declines Monday.Federated Department Stores, which owns big chain stores including Macy's and Bloomingdale's, subtracted $1.27, to $41.84. Electronics retailer Best Buy dropped 71 cents, to $54.37. Discounter Target dipped 64 cents, to $57.07, while Big Lots fell 76 cents, to $22.42.
In other markets highlights:
Technology and financial issues, which have been among the market leaders this year, took some of the hardest falls Monday.
Among tech firms, Google lost $20.25 to $484.75 and Cisco Systems fell $1.04, to $25.80.Among banking concerns, Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs slid $8.49, to $193.11, while rival Merrill Lynch sank $3.38, to $89.21.Airline stocks descended as crude oil prices rose to $60.32 a barrel, from $59.24 Friday. UAL, the parent of United Airlines, sank $2.81, to $41.63. AMR, which owns American Airlines, declined $1.90, to $32.20. Among the discounters, Jet Blue dropped 92 cents, to $13.79 and Southwest fell 44 cents, to $15.81.An AG Edwards & Sons analyst lowered his from buy to hold on several major hotel chains, sending their shares lower. Hilton Hotels $1.70 to $32.10, Marriott International gave up $1.54 to $44.91 and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide subtracted $1.92, to $63.46.walter.hamilton@latimes.com
MUSLIM NATIONS
EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) 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.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
Terrorists Say Ceasefire Enables Arms Smuggling and Training
By Hana Levi Julian (INN)
Leaders of major terrorist groups in Gaza said Sunday they either do not recognize the ceasefire agreement or plan to use it to re-arm and improve terrorist training. Two Kassams were fired Monday.
Abu Abir, spokesman for the Hamas-linked Popular Resistance Committees terrorist organization in Gaza, said Sunday, The ceasefire offers a period of calm for our fighters to recover and prepare for our final goal of evacuating Palestine. Israel and the Palestinian Authority agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza on Sunday morning, calling for an end to all Palestinian terrorist activities and Israeli counter-terrorist activities. Israel has pulled most of its ground troops out of Gaza.Two Kassam rockets were fired from Gaza at western Negev areas this afternoon (Monday). No one was physically hurt in this latest ceasefire violation.In a series of exclusive interviews with Aaron Klein of WorldNetDaily, terrorist leaders said the ceasefire which was broken within two hours after it officially went into effect at 6:00 Sunday morning will be used to smuggle weapons into Gaza, reinforce and train fighter units, and produce rockets for a future confrontation with the Jewish State.
Abu Abdullah, a senior leader of Hamas military wing, told WorldNetDaily that Hamas agreed to the ceasefire because we need a period of calm to recuperate. This lull in fighting will not bring us to speak about peace. Abu Abdullah is consider one of the most important operational members of Hamas' Iz-Addin al-Kassam Martyrs Brigades, the declared military wing of Hamas.Abu Luay, a leader of Islamic Jihad in Gaza, said Israel's weak stance proves that our rocket attacks work. The Zionists know there is no remedy for our rockets. The Islamic Jihad leader said rocket attacks against Israel would resume at a time of our choosing.IDF military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin and General Security Service (Shin Bet) director Yuval Diskin both recently warned the Knesset that PA terrorists will soon achieve military capability similar to that of the Hizbullah guerilla terrorist organization in Lebanon.
Both security chiefs urged Knesset Members to allow the IDF to launch a major offensive into Gaza to prevent PA terrorists from upgrading their military preparedness, in order to avoid a scenario similar to the debacle that took place during the Lebanon war this summer. After that war, numerous IDF reservists and other groups charged that Israel badly underestimated the military capability of
Hizbullah. They said Hizbullah had used the time following Israel’s pullout from southern Lebanon in 2000 in order to re-arm and upgrade its military skills.Security officials are now saying that a similar situation is on the horizon in Gaza if the government does not heed its warnings.Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, however, told reporters on Sunday he had faith that the ceasefire could lead to a comprehensive peace deal with the PA. Olmert said Israel would show patience and restraint despite the violations.
Several terror organizations said they did not recognize and would not be bound by the ceasefire agreement. Six Kassam rockets were fired at Israel within the four hours following the onset of the truce, though the skies have been empty of rockets since then.
Hamas-led PA officials announced that some 13,000 PA troops have been deployed in northern Gaza along the border with Israel as a deterrent force to prevent Kassam rockets being fired at Israel from the area of Beit Hanoun, a favorite terrorist launching site.The PA forces are spread out along the entire northern Gaza border, said officials, in an effort to ensure that the rocket attacks are halted completely.
It is the Zionist and Evangelistic Fundamentalists who threaten our nation, Not Islam, Arabs, or Muslims by Mohamed Khodr (Monday November 27 2006) Media monitors network
Israel’s policies toward the Arabs since its foundation has been divide and conquer while serving as the arsonist to ensure a weakened destabilized region.
The Honorable Senator Chuck Hagel U.S. Senate Washington D.C.
Dear Senator Hagel:
I have long admired your courage of heart and mind, your wise independence, and rational approach to our national interest first and foremost. Our nation needs your foresight and thus my hope that you'd run for President.
Sir; you’re thoroughly familiar with the history of our MidEast Policy that for domestic purposes has implanted and supported an artificially created Jewish only state in Palestine. To create a Jewish only state necessitated expelling the native Palestinians who for 60 years have lived as marginalized refugees neglected by the world out of deference to Jewish suffering and the Holocaust in Europe; although recently the intimidating label of Anti-Semitism has become the weapon of mass destruction, ironically the same label utilized brilliantly by Zionists to establish Israel. With our unlimited political, financial, military, and Veto support, Israel has ensured that Palestinian suffering, lives and livelihood are taboo subjects in the West even when massacred, expelled, homes and farms demolished, imprisoned by the thousands, movement restricted, living under curfews and bombs, starved from food, water, health services and an education, thereby creating a hopeless, helpless, angry and frustrated generations, living under Apartheid conditions as President Carter recently wrote.
The entire world is against our blind support of Israel's policies and against Israel's inhumane treatment of an entire population to achieve Zionistic goals unrelated to Judaism. Since the Kingdoms of David and Solomon, Israelites never had a state or owned a majority of Palestine’s land until 1949 when by war they conquered 78% of Palestine despite U.N. and U.S. protests.
Throughout their Diaspora Jews preferred living outside of the Promised Land, even till this day. Between 1880 -1920, over 2 Million Russian and East European Jews preferred migrating to the U.S. rather than join the few thousand who went to Palestine. Under 1,300 years of Muslim rule in Palestine Jews were always welcome to come to Palestine, though few ever did. The famed Jewish theologian Moses Maimonides preferred living in Egypt as Saladin’s Counselor and Physician than going to Palestine. America's support of Israel, especially by Congress, has allowed Israel to dismiss all peace plans, including many American plans like the latest Quartet Plan proclaimed dead by Sharon, Bush’s man of peace. (You may wish to read Ambassador Mark Etheridge's account of the 1949 Lausanne Conference where Israel thumbed its nose at President Truman and refused to relinquish conquered land or allow return of Palestinian refugees. Israel’s rejection of U.N. Resolution 273 that demanded Israel accept the U.N. Partition Plan and allow return of refugees as a pre-condition of its admittance to the U.N. legally means Israel is not an accepted member of the U.N.).
Now America, following the Pro Israel Neocons, is akin to Israel, an occupying force in Iraq guilty of similar abusive Israeli policies against the Palestinians. Both Israel and America are in denial of their disastrous occupations and failed policies. Bush and Cheney's trip to the MidEast this week prompted Olmert to accept a ceasefire with the Palestinians to give both men some breathing room to enlist moderate Arab-American dictators to save our skin and give us a face saving way out of Iraq. They're sharing a preview of the Baker-Hamilton report and indirectly negotiating with Syria and Iran for assistance. Ironic, isn't it, that Bush who dismissed the world with such arrogance and planned to change the Middle East to suit Israel and American hegemony and reform its violent, primitive religion Islam, now humbly requests the Arab/Muslim world to extricate his legacy of war and destruction.
The Arabs are right when they paint America as a great Zionist conspiracy -- Professor Doughlas Rushkoff, N.Y.U. Wrestling with Zion (Grove Press, 2003).
America has avoided an honest debate on Israel for decades out of fear, intimidation, generous campaign donations and selective media support. The entire world is against Israeli policies and our blind support of such a state. Only in America does one find a simple majority supporting Israel; more out of ignorance and media indoctrination than true belief and understanding.
Sir, for how long must we and the world suffer from such a foreign domination of our foreign policy? How many Americans must die and trillions spent from our children’s future before America screams for its independence from Israel's and its Beltway influence? Who, Sir, benefits from a clash of civilizations between the West and the Muslim world? Prior to Israel's creation there was no such clash, only arelationship of mutual advantage according to Former Secretary of State John Foster Dulles. Israel has succeeded in demonizing Islam, Arabs, and Muslims in our psyche and brilliantly built a separation wall between us and one fourth of the world's population. Sir, the core issue, the issue that tears at every Muslim’s heart are Jerusalem and Palestine, a nation that lived in peace for 1,300 years under Islamic rule where all three Abrahamic faiths lived in harmony.
Only Palestinian independence can ensure Arab/Muslim support and involvement in Iraq to extricate America's youth from the Bush-Cheney-Neocon disaster.
Only Muslims can influence other Muslims, but only after America finds its courage to stand up to the small nation of Israel with powerful long tentacles into all our branches of government, especially Congress. Bush demands the world to fight his war on terrorism; yet he’s oblivious that his support of Israel, right or wrong, as evidenced in the latest Israeli devastation of Lebanon is the underlying root for such terrorism. He once stated he wouldn’t like to be occupied but yet he supports
Israel’s occupation and now occupies Iraq. I can assure you that every Arab and Muslim will pour into the streets with joy, tears of happiness and enormous relief if Israel ends its illegal occupation of Palestinians according to the U.S. supported 1967 UNSCR 242 (2 nations 4 two peoples). America can have it all, cheap oil, a large Muslim market, friendly governments and populace, freedom from fear and terrorism, regain its world credibility and save its economic future if ever it can tell Israel to abandon its occupation that serves no purpose for Israel or America. Muslims desire good relations with America, but Israel's domination of our foreign policy chokes their hearts and gives support to further militancy.
Ending Israel's brutal occupation of an entire people, now surrounded and starved, serving as a shooting gallery for Israeli soldiers experimenting with America's latest weaponry, will bring permanent peace to the MidEast, our most vital strategic region. The Israel lobby has long denied this fact and tragically they’ve not been challenged. That’s why they fear the appearance of Al Jazeera English in the U.S. Americans are a fair people and once they see and understand injustice they react justly. If America avoids confronting Israel's militancy and expansionism, America will leave an Iraq in anarchy and civil war with many American dead and costly debts, our moderate friends will be overthrown, Iran will dominate the Persian Gulf, militants will burn the oil pipes rather than allow us access thereby also hurting Europe, Japan, China, and India (giving Russia more oil politics), Israel will re-occupy Lebanon (for water and revenge); more central banks will adopt the Euro; the dollar will collapse; Latin America will continue its leftward politics; and our future will indeed be jeopardized. Why? Because our government fears the A.D.L.’s Abraham Foxman, AIPAC, Z.O.A; Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations; and most importantly, the mainstream media, the same media that cheered for our current failure in Iraq. Sharon once said: The Arabs may have the oil, but we have the matches.
Israel’s policies toward the Arabs since its foundation has been divide and conquer while serving as the arsonist to ensure a weakened destabilized region. I have learned that the state of Israel cannot be ruled in our generation without deceit and adventurism. These are historical facts that cannot be altered. -- Former Israeli P.M. Moshe Sharett, (Simha Flapan, p. 52-53)
It's not nice to challenge the Israel Lobby with its Armageddon loving Evangelists who seek the annihilation of Jews, Muslims, Hindus, others, and all Christians unlike themselves, who prefer life, peace, and harmony in this world. It is the Zionist and Evangelistic Fundamentalists who threaten our nation, not Islam, Arabs, or Muslims. Senator Hagel, you will find that many Congressmen share this view in private but are too intimidated to speak publicly. In numbers, our Congress (not Israel's) can save our nation from what the late Undersecretary of State George Ball called our Passionate Attachment to Israel, quoting President George Washington’s warning that such a foreign attachment is detrimental to our national interests. America needs you and our leaders. It's the Occupation, Sir, that's the core of our MidEast quagmire and failed policies. Solve that and America's future of peace and prosperity is assured. God Bless: Peace, Shalom, and Salaam,Source:Mohamed Khodr
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Monday, November 27, 2006
SO CALLED TRUCE BROKE ALREADY
1-WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS. 2-Cold snap leaves 1 dead in Calgary. 3-Floods kill seven in Somalia, death toll climbs to 96. 4-Flood warnings issued. 5-Boat capsizes in Philippines, 14 dead, 65 rescued. 6-They've taken Christ out of our Christmas. 7-Thousands of Muslims urge Pope not to visit Turkey. 8-Ray Flynn former US Ambassador to the VATICAN talks with Jennifer from CTVNEWSNET about the POPES visit to TURKEY on Tuesday. 9-Turkey's Christians await pope's visit. 10-West must prepare for Chinese, Indian dominance: Wolfensohn. 11-Jordan's king sees possibility of three civil wars in Mideast. 12-Stormy end to November may spell disaster for the dollar. 13-Despite truce, Palestinian attacks go on.
EARTHQUAKES
MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS (USGS)
Update time = Mon Nov 27 12:10 AM EDT
NOV 27,2006
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.5 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.6 OREGON
MAP 3.0 OFFSHORE BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 3.5 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 2.8 OFFSHORE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
NOV 26,2006
MAP 5.0 AREA OF THE FIJI ISLANDS
MAP 2.6 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.3 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.9 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 2.5 BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 5.3 SOUTH OF THE KERMADEC ISLANDS
MAP 3.3 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.7 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 5.1 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 2.5 SOUTHERN ALASKA
MAP 2.7 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.7 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 2.6 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
MAP 4.5 OFFSHORE EL SALVADOR
MAP 4.2 NEAR THE SOUTH COAST OF CHUKOTKA, RUSSIA
MAP 3.0 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.8 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; 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, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
Cold snap leaves 1 dead in Calgary
Updated Sun. Nov. 26 2006 3:39 PM ET,CTV.ca News Staff
The bitter cold that has swept across the prairies has claimed one life, despite a last-minute crunch to provide emergency shelter. Some of Calgary's homeless made their way to a temporary shelter at the Calgary Saddle Dome to escape the frigid temperatures. But the body of a man was found lying in a Calgary street Saturday. The cause of death has not been determined, but police believe the extreme cold could have been a factor. Shelters around the province have been adding extra beds, and the city says it will keep the Saddle Dome open as an emergency shelter as the cold spell continues. Sunday's temperature in Calgary was expected to be -21 and it's not going to get much warmer until Wednesday. The forecast for the city for the next few days is -20. The city's shelters are overflowing and with a planned shelter stalled by appeals from area residents, the city is short on beds. The city has turned the grandstand at Exhibition and Stampede Park into a temporary shelter.
In order to use the grandstand building, the city of Calgary had to determine that this was an emergency situation and required an immediate response, said city spokesman Chris Branch. Housing is a premium in Calgary, which has experienced an economic boom that has attracted workers from all over Canada. Gary Smith, one of hundreds of workers who have jobs in Calgary but have been unable to find housing, stayed at a drop-in centre Friday night, but it was full when he got off work at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Most of the people staying in shelters who don't have a home right now are workers who have come to Calgary to help work ... during the (construction) boom, Smith said. Calgary firefighters struggled to stay warm as they fought a blaze Saturday afternoon that resulted in the evacuation of three adjacent apartment buildings.
In Edmonton, where temperatures hovered at -15 degrees Celsius on Saturday afternoon and fell to -22 by the evening, homeless people were doing what they could to stay warm on the weekend. Most Edmonton shelters are open from Monday through Friday.
I go into malls, go onto transit, go anywhere that's warm, Gerry Lalonde, who doesn't have a home, told CTV Edmonton. The Mustard Seed Church ministry in Edmonton has put out an appeal for clothing, blankets and gloves to help keep people warm.
There's no other resource for some of them so it's important all the agencies work together and make sure people keep warm, said Mariam Leslie, the church's volunteer coordinator. Elsewhere on the Prairiees, overnight lows in the -20 range are expected in Regina, with Saskatoon a bit colder. Winnipeg should be slightly milder, with overnight lows in the -15 range. Meanwhile, Toronto was expected to stay above freezing overnight and experience a daytime high of +11 on Sunday. Temperatures in Atlantic Canada are also expected to be relatively mild on Sunday.
Vancouver's snow troubles
Winter arrived a little early in B.C., where a snow fall warning remains in effect. The snow storm, which is is expected to leave as many as 30 centimetres on the Lower Mainland by Monday, is expected to taper off Sunday night.An estimated 17 centimetres had already fallen in certain parts of the Lower Mainland by Sunday afternoon. Once it does, Environment Canada said the temperature is expected to drop below freezing. Any water or slush on the roads will turn into ice, leaving them slippery. Vancouver engineer Murray Wightman told CTV Newsnet that the city spent all day Saturday getting the snowplows and snow removal trucks ready to roll. We started our first shift last night at 7 and we had a shift change at 7 this morning and we're just going to keep going, said Wightman. Except for a short period around 4 a.m. Sunday, the snow has been falling steadily, he said.
Travellers were being warned to expect flight delays and cancellations at Vancouver International Airport on Sunday. Air Canada said passengers should check on the status of their flights on the Air Canada or Vancouver International Airport websites before heading to the airport.
Snowfall elsewhere in B.C. resulted in the provincial government issuing travel advisories, warning drivers to be aware of snowy conditions in areas west of both Glacier and Yoho national parks in eastern B.C. In the North Central Interior of B.C., temperatures are expected to be in the -25 range.There have been power outages reported in the communities of Mission, Hope, Coquitlam, Langley, Tsawwassen, Delta and most of Bowen Island. Poor weather conditions forced a 14-passenger plane to make an emergency landing at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Vancouver on Saturday. No one was hurt.
With a pre-Christmas cold snap on the way in Vancouver, where temperatures are more often moderate, social service agencies in Vancouver were on a quest for more shelter beds. The Salvation Army on the city's Downtown Eastside, which has 237 beds, said it was gathering bedding in advance of an increased demand. We anticipate we're going to be full to overflowing, Capt. John Murray told The Canadian Press.Sleeping mats have been spread on the floor in a large multi-purpose room and a dining area, he said.Murray said the organization is grateful to the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, which bought the Army and Navy department store's entire stock of blankets about 400 and donated them. With reports from CTV's Kevin Green in Calgary and Nashiha Naqvi in Edmonton, and files from The Canadian Press
Floods kill seven in Somalia, death toll climbs to 96 Sun Nov 26, 11:05 AM ET
MOGADISHU (AFP) Floods have killed at least seven people, including five children, as the fourth week of heavy rains pounded Somalia, bringing the death toll to at least 96. Three people drowned in Middle Shabelle region when a wooden dhow capsized as they were fleeing to safety, officials said Sunday.We buried three people two of them children near Kunyabarow area this afternoon after they died from drowning, said Abdullahi Moalim Gesey, a local elder, told AFP.Health officials said a 72-year-old man and his one-year-old grandson were killed and swept for several kilometres when their hut collapsed under heavy flooding in Mukayka village in Middle Shabelle region.The were sleeping in their small cottage when heavy floods swept the area. The old man and his grandson were discovered about seven kilometres away from their home, added Hussein Nur Ahmed, a community health official.
And in Buulo-Barde district in Somalia's central Hiraan region, two children drowned after water swept through their house, according to officials from Somalia's powerful Islamic movement.
Two more children from the same family died, but problems associated to floods are still continuing and the toll is still rising, said Sheikh Hussein Barre Raghe, head of Buulo-Barde Islamic courts.Raghe said the affected civilians may die if humanitarian aid was delayed.Sunday's casualties brings the death toll to 96 since torrential rains started pounding the region in October, mainly flooding the main Shabelle and Juba rivers that have their source at the Ethiopian highlands.Around one million Somalis are estimated to be affected by the flooding, of which at least 336,000 have been forced from their homes, according to the United Nations.
Health officials have also sounded the alarm for outbreaks of waterborne diseases, particularly cholera, which has already been confirmed in two areas.The rains have destroyed farmlands, disrupted food supplies, cut off villages and washed away roads, complicating the delivery of aid to the most vulnerable and impoverished in remote areas.The Horn of Africa country is also on the brink of all-out war between the Islamic movement and government troops, backed by Ethiopian forces.
Flood warnings issued (Norwaypost) NOV 25,2006
Flood warnings have been issued for South Eastern Norway this weekend. Heavy rainfall has caused local rivers and lakes to overflow their banks in many places.The floodwaters are expected to peak on Sunday, and people are warned to look out for flooding in basements. Roger Melby of the Oslo Fire and Rescue Squad says to Aftenposten that they are on high alert, and Frode Sandersen of the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute says they are considering the danger for local landslides.The ground is saturated, and floodwaters from local rivers and brooks may undermine banks and cause slides. The situation is special, Sandersen says to the newspaper. (NRK/Aftenposten)
1/3RD OF SHIPS DESTROYED
REVELATION 8:8-9
8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
Boat capsizes in Philippines, 14 dead, 65 rescued
26 Nov 2006 07:58:59 GMT
MANILA, Nov 26 (Reuters) Rescue teams were searching on Sunday for at least 15 people still missing after a ferry carrying 300 sacks of cement capsized off the southern Philippines killing 14 people and forcing dozens overboard.The Leonida II sank on Saturday afternoon when it ran into rough waters after leaving Surigao City en route to Siargao Island, a tear-drop shaped surfing haven about 800 kilometers (497 miles) southeast of Manila, disaster officials said.Passing boats plucked 65 survivors from the sea but there was confusion over how many more people had been on board. A passenger list showed only 48 names, including a local mayor, who was still unaccounted for, and a group of high school pupils.
The wooden-hulled vessel had capacity for 150 people.
We have no idea how many people were actually on the boat, said Blance Gobenchiong, a regional director of the office of civil defence, adding that many travellers jump on board after inspection by the coast guard.Ferries of all descriptions ply the waters between the Philippines 7,000-plus islands and safety standards are often lax. Overcrowding is a common problem.Our search and rescue operations were still ongoing but we need more volunteers to look for survivors and equipment to reach the wreckage at 300 metres under water, Surigao City mayor Alfonso Casurra said.One survivor told local radio that the boat's captain lost control when large waves snapped one of the vessel's wooden outriggers. People started jumping as water flooded the deck.
THE WORLD NATIONS ARE TRYING TO TAKE GOD OUT OF CHRISTMAS TO WALES. SAD BUT TRUE.
They've taken Christ out of our Christmas Nov 26 2006
Rachel Mainwaring, Wales on Sunday
CHRIST is being left out of Christmas across Wales with just one council featuring the nativity story in their official public celebrations.Figures from the Office of National Statistics show 72 per cent of Welsh people call ourselves Christian but our poll of Wales 22 local authorities reveals Wrexham is the only one to stage an event which tells the story of the birth of the baby Jesus. Its Camels and Carols parade on December 21 will see the Three Kings ride camels through the town, accompanied by shepherds and carol singers, to St Giles Church live crib, including people playing Mary and Joseph.A council spokesman explained: Social cohesion is high on our agenda. We wouldn't back down from anything Christian, or anything Muslim, Hindu or otherwise.We recognise the importance that all communities make to our area but also feel it important to share our cultural heritage and identity.
By comparison, Cardiff council's Christmas centrepiece is the Winter Wonderland ice rink, big wheel and hot tubs. Swansea has followed suit with its Waterfront Winterland, complete with ice skating and fairground rides. Caerphilly council's celebrations are inspired by the Caribbean with samba and carnival dance workshops.
All three have denied excluding Christianity.
Caerphilly's spokesman said: We haven't taken any measures to lessen the Christian side of events.Cardiff council said it had no active policy of avoiding any religious factors and Swansea council said we are making the Christmas period as inclusive as possible while maintaining strong religious elements to our organised events including carol singing at the Waterfront Winterland.
The results of our survey echo a national trend away from celebrations of Christian festivals. The Royal Mail has come under fire for issuing Christmas stamps free of religious images.This week Dr John Sentamu, the Archbishop of York who recently criticised the systematic erosion of Christianity from public life, appealed for BA to reconsider its decision to refuse an appeal by check-in worker Nadia Eweida, who was told she could not openly wear a cross to work.
And a further example, critics say, of political correctness overriding religion was seen when Plymouth council ended free parking on Sundays so as not to offend non-Christians.Religious leaders in Wales are appalled the story of Christmas has been detached from festivities here.The Reverend Aled Edwards, who is chief executive of the Christian umbrella group Churches Together in Wales, said: What we would ask people to remember is that while they are playing piggyback on this holiday, they should remember its Christian heritage.I think it's disingenuous if a Christian event excludes its Christian origins.
It is important for people not to presume that making the Christian message clear will offend other religions. If you were recognising Ramadan you'd recognise it as a Muslim event, so people should not seek to hide the fact that it's a Christian celebration.Canon Robert Reardon, of the Catholic archdiocese in Wales, blamed society's shift away from religion, saying the lack of religious themes are simply a reflection of where we're at.Saleem Kiowai, secretary of the Muslim Council of Wales, added: Christmas is a religious festival and it does not need to be neutralised. If you believe in a faith then you should keep to that faith.Politician Nick Bourne, leader of the Welsh Assembly Conservatives, added his disbelief.I've heard about changes taking place and I think it's ridiculous. It's important people are aware of the Christian element, and I think Wrexham should be applauded, he said.Other council-run Christmas events in Wales include Santa and Shrek parades and farmers markets in Rhondda, Cynon Taf; a Jack Frost parade in Newport; fancy dress in Neath Port Talbot; and a craft fair, with carols, in Pembrokeshire.
MUSLIM NATIONS
EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) 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.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
PERSECUSSION,BEHEADINGS
JESUS PERSECUTED BIGTIME
ISAIAH 53:4
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
MATTHEW 9:34
34 But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.
JOHN 8:41
41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
JOHN 10:20
20 And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him?
PHILIPPIANS 2:10-11(JESUS GETS REVENGE)
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.(JUDGEMENT SEAT OF CHRIST AND FOR SINNERS, THE GREAT WHITE THRONE FINAL JUDGEMENT).
WE ARE CHRISTIANS WE WILL BE TREATED THE SAME.
2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5 (WHY WE ARE PERSECUTED BY THE WORLD)
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous (DANGEROUS) times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
MATTHEW 5:10-12
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
MATTHEW 24:9
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
JOHN 15:18-20
18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me (JESUS) before it hated you.
19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
REVELATION 6:9-11
9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain(BEHEADED) for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
REVELATION 20:4
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Thousands of Muslims urge Pope not to visit Turkey By Daren Butler and Paul de Bendern NOV 26,06
ISTANBUL (Reuters) More than 20,000 Muslims in Istanbul on Sunday held the biggest protest so far against Pope Benedict's controversial visit to Turkey this week.The Pope, due to begin his first official visit to a Muslim country on Tuesday, angered many Muslims in September with a speech they took as an insult to their religion.Youths wearing headbands with Islamic slogans, beating drums and waving red-and-white Turkish flags chanted Allahu Akbar (God is greatest) and Pope don't come at the peaceful rally.I cannot remain silent when the Prophet Mohammad is insulted. I love him more than myself, said Husamettin Aycan Alp, 25, a science student from Izmir in western Turkey.
He said Roman Catholic cardinals chose this Pope last year because he is against Islam and (they) are concerned Islam is spreading in Europe.
The four-day visit is billed as an opportunity to heal rifts with the Muslim world after the Pope quoted a Byzantine emperor saying Islam was violent and irrational. He has said he does not share that view.It will be closely followed by the Islamic world and is the most challenging of Pope Benedict's papacy so far.Speaking in the Vatican on Sunday, he said he wanted the visit to show his friendship for Turkey and its people.Starting right now, I want to send a cordial greeting to the dear Turkish people, rich in history and culture. To these people and their representatives I express feelings of esteem and sincere friendship, he said in his noon address.A visit to Istanbul's famous Sultanahmet, or Blue Mosque was added to the Pope's itinerary at the last minute, a move seen as a further attempt at reconciliation with the Muslim world.His predecessor, Pope John Paul II, made the first visit by a pontiff to a mosque during a trip to Damascus in 2001. Pope John Paul paid the last papal visit to Turkey in 1979.
PROTEST AGAINST CRUSADERS
The Islamist Felicity party that organised the protest under the banner against the crusader alliance a reference to the crusaders who crossed Anatolia 1,000 years ago on their way to Jerusalem had expected an attendance of at least 75,000.Muslims don't want the Pope in their lands. Look at the suffering which they spread in Palestine, Iraq and Chechnya. I link this to Christianity, said Ferdi Borekci, a 28-year-old architect.
Before becoming Pope, Benedict annoyed Turks by speaking out against Turkey's move to join the European Union, saying it did not belong there because of its religion and culture.Turkey's ruling AK Party government has kept a low profile in preparations for this visit, with talks still in progress as to whether Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, a pious Muslim, will meet him before leaving for a NATO summit in Riga.With a general election due next year the AK Party, which has roots in political Islam, must balance a rise in nationalism as well as their support base among conservative Muslims.Turkey is officially a rigidly secular country, but predominantly Muslim.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, who will be absent during the Pope's visit, played down the controversy. We will of course show hospitality and we hope that this visit will be a way of ending misunderstandings between Muslims and Christians, Gul told a news conference. His message will be very important. The main purpose of Benedict's visit is to meet the Istanbul-based leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, whom Turkish nationalists see as a tool of their ancient rival Greece.Turkey plans tight security measures for the Pope, whose trip will include the capital Ankara, Istanbul formerly Constantinople and the site where the Virgin Mary is believed to have lived and died near Izmir on the Aegean coast. (Additional reporting by Philip Pullella in Vatican City)
Ray Flynn former US Ambassador to the VATICAN talks with Jennifer from CTVNEWSNET about the POPES visit to TURKEY on Tuesday. NOV 25,2006
Jen-lets talk about the signifigance of this visit.
Ray-Well Pope benedict 16s challenging, his up coming visit to Turkey is daunting. Hes going to face hate propaganda against the West, by Islamic Radicals in the name of Religion. And I believe its the greatest threat to peace and freedom, not only in that area of the World but throughout the World.
Jen-Why is he going?
Ray-Well, the world community has failed lets be direct. UN is impotant (useless), American foreign policy is arrogant, World diplomacy does not exist. Religious Extremism is on the rise, and the world Dollar has really collapsed. And the world is morally and Politically bankrupt. And I think the biggest mistake Jennifer was when Pope John Paul 2ND and the Catholic Church opposed the war in Iraq.They were ignored. And I think that was the biggest mistake, and I think that Pope Benedict 16th is going back into that region. I m not to optomistic about it to be honest with you. But I think he is probably the last Religion itself, moral voice,
remains, or probably is the last hope for future stability in the world.
Jen-Why are you not optomistic about this visit?
Ray-Well I mean, there is certain things that could resolve this issue Jennifer. You know,Diplomacy between the US, UN,UK, with Iran, Iraq and syria. How serious is that. A permanent Peace between Israel and the Palestinians, how long have we been hearing about that. A stable and free Lebanon, how long have we been hearing about that. A collition building with Arabs and Muslims in the West, how likely is that. So Jennifer, We really need a greater moral and Religious role in unity in the middle east between Muslims, Christians and Jews. We take the Politics and the Politicians out of the picture entierly No US, maybe UN Arab troops, maybe let Benedict 16th be that voice of reason in peace in mutual respect, for all religious faiths in the World.
WELL RAY IS CALLING FOR RELIGIOUS LEADERS TO LEAD THE WAY AND THE POPE TO BE THE LEADER OF IT,EXACTLY WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THE VATICAN WILL BE ACTIVE IN THE WORLD EVENTS AND POLITICS.
REVELATION 17:2
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Turkey's Christians await pope's visit By SUZAN FRASER, Associated Press Writer NOV 26,06
ANKARA, Turkey /Next door to a store selling artificial limbs in a run-down area of Turkey's capital, the Protestant church sits on the ground floor of a dreary apartment block, with barred windows and kitchen chairs for pews. The 100-strong congregation of the Kurtulus Church, which is linked to the U.S.-based International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, rents the space because authorities have not responded to its request for land and a permit to build a proper chapel.When Pope Benedict XVI visits Turkey for four days starting Tuesday, he will try to ease anger over his recent remarks linking Islam and violence. But he is also expected to press the 99 percent Muslim country to give its Christian community more rights. Some of those Christians are forced to worship in so-called apartment churches, and suffer prejudice, discrimination, even assault.The pope will discuss the rights of the religious minority with Turkish officials, said Monsignor Luigi Padovese, the pope's vicar in Anatolia. In a secular country, people must have the right to believe in whatever faith they choose to believe.
The pastor of Kurtulus Church, the Rev. Ihsan Ozbek, sees an opening for dialogue. We face serious problems. Turkish citizens who converted to Christianity, especially, face serious discrimination and violence, he said.The windows of his makeshift chapel have twice been smashed by suspected Turkish nationalists, reflecting a widely held conviction that conversion is treason and that Christian clergy are missionaries or spies for Western powers.Of Turkey's 70 million people, some 65,000 are Armenian Orthodox Christians, 20,000 are Roman Catholic, and 3,500 are Protestant, mostly converts from Islam. Another 2,000 are Greek Orthodox and 23,000 are Jewish.
The shrunken Christian presence belies the church's deep roots in latter-day Turkey.
Constantinople modern-day Istanbul was the Christian Byzantine capital for more than 1,000 years until it fell to Muslim forces in 1453 and became the seat of the Muslim Ottoman Empire.St. John the Apostle is said to have brought the Virgin Mary to Ephesus, 400 miles southeast of Istanbul, where she is believed to have spent her final years, while St. Paul traveled through much of modern-day Turkey on his missionary journeys.Iznik is the former Nicea, where early Christian doctrine was formulated in 325 A.D.
All seven major churches of early Christianity, mentioned in The New Testament, are in present-day Turkey. The pope will make a pilgrimage to one of them at Ephesus, 400 miles south of Istanbul.Today, Istanbul remains the center of Orthodoxy and the seat of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, considered the first among equals among the Orthodox leadership.
But membership is dwindling. The sole seminary training Orthodox monks was ordered closed in 1971, and no alternative site has been granted. Turkish law also makes it impossible to import non-Turkish seminarians, and requires that the patriarchs be Turkish citizens, severely reducing the pool of candidates to succeed 66-year-old Bartholomew.The Armenian Orthodox community's seminary is also closed, confronting it with the same challenge, while Greek and Armenian communities are struggling to recover property that the state confiscated in the 1970s.Turkey wants to join the European Union, which is pressing it for greater tolerance.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamic-rooted government has taken some steps toward change, amending laws to allow religious minorities to recover some property. The government has also indicated willingness to reopen the minority seminaries, but
has failed to find a formula that conforms with the country's secular laws.
Even though Turkey is secular and Turks are considered moderately religious, authorities often report students who attend Christian meetings to their families to prevent possible conversions, and proselytizers are detained and extradited.The distrust is so deep that non-Muslims are barred from the police force andmilitary.In February, a Turkish teenager shot dead a Catholic priest, Rev. Andrea Santoro, as he knelt in prayer in his church in the Black Sea port of Trabzon. The attack was believed linked to widespread anger in the Islamic world over the publication in European newspapers of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. Two other Catholic priests were attacked this year.
West must prepare for Chinese, Indian dominance: Wolfensohn Sun Nov 26, 3:39 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) Western nations must prepare for a future dominated by China and India, whose rapid economic rise will soon fundamentally alter the balance of power, former World Bank chief James Wolfensohn has warned.
Wealthy countries were failing to understand the impact of the invevitable growth of the two Asian powerhouses, Wolfensohn said in the 2006 Wallace Wurth Memorial Lecture at the University of New South Wales at the weekend.It's a world that is going to be in the hands of these countries which we now call developing, said Australian-born Wolfensohn, who held the top job at the global development bank for a decade until last year.Rich nations needed to try to capitalise on the inevitable emergence of what would become the engine of the world's economic activity before it was too late, he said.Most people in the rich countries don't really look at what's happening in these large developing countries, said Wolfensohn, who is now chairman of Citigroup International Advisory Board and his own investment and advisory firm.
Within 25 years, the combined gross domestic products of China and India would exceed those of the Group of Seven wealthy nations, he said.This is not a trivial advance, this is a monumental advance.Wolfensohn said that somewhere between 2030 and 2040, China would become the largest economy in the world, leaving the United States behind.By 2050, China's current two trillion US dollar GDP was set to balloon to 48.6 trillion, while that of India, whose economy weighs in at under a trillion dollars, would hit 27 trillion, he said, citing projections by investment bank Goldman Sachs.
In comparison, the US's 13 trillion dollar income would expand to only 37 trillion 10 trillion behind China.You will have in the growth of these countries a 22 times growth between now and the year 2050 and the current rich countries will grow maybe 2.5 times.In light of these forecasts, it was clear that Western nations and Australia were not investing enough in educating the next generation to be able to take advantage of the coming realignment, he said.
The fact that not enough of our young people are preparing themselves with knowledge, experience, residence and language to deal certainly with China, although India has the benefit of an English language, it does seem to me that it presents a formidable challenge.Wolfensohn pointed to both China's and India's recent substantial investments in Africa as an example of how the two emerging giants were exercising their increasing clout on the global stage.Within the last two weeks the world has been put on notice that Africa is no longer the basket case that everybody had historically thought it was but is now front and centre in terms of development by India and China.The phenomenal rally by the two countries was a return to form rather than a novelty, he said, as they together had accounted for 50 percent of global GDP from the 1500s until the industrial revolution reduced that to between five and seven percent.
Jordan's king sees possibility of three civil wars in Mideast
The Associated PressPublished: November 26, 2006
WASHINGTON: Jordan's King Abdullah said Sunday the problems in the Middle East go beyond the war in Iraq and that much of the region soon could become engulfed in violence unless the central issues are addressed quickly.
We could possibly imagine going into 2007 and having three civil wars on our hands, he said, citing conflicts in Iraq, Lebanon and the decades-long strife between the Palestinians and Israelis.Therefore, it is time that we really take a strong step forward as part of the international community and make sure we avert the Middle East from a tremendous crisis that I fear, and I see could possibly happen in 2007, he said.Speaking on ABC's This Week, Abdullah said he remained hopeful a summit he will host this week in Amman with President George W. Bush and the Iraqi prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, will somehow lower the sectarian violence that threatens to push Iraq into all-out civil war.
Today in Americas
Letter From Washington: Pelosi needs better advice Bush faces uncertain path in a changed Washington U.S.building ties with Assad opponents in Syria We hope there will be something dramatic.
The challenges, obviously, in front of both of them are immense, the king said.We have to make sure that all parties in Iraq understand the dangers of the ongoing escalation. I hope Prime Minister Maliki will have some ideas ... on how he can be inclusive in bringing all the different sects inside of Iraq together.
They need to do it now, he said, because, obviously, as we're seeing, things are beginning to spiral out of control.The king spoke of the urgent for a change in course in Iraq.There needs to be some very strong action taken on the ground there today, he said. I don't think we're in a position where we can come back and revisit the problem in early 2007. There needs to be a strategy. There needs to be a plan that brings all the parties together, and bring them today and not tomorrow.
Bush plans to fly to Jordan after attending a NATO summit in Latvia. Vice President Dick Cheney made a quick trip to Saudi Arabia for talks on Saturday as part of the administration's effort to bring peace to the region.The Iraqi prime minister is under pressure from Shiite politicians loyal to the radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr who have threatened to boycott parliament and the Cabinet if al-Maliki meets with Bush. Sadr and his followers are a mainstay of his political support.This is all political posturing. It's all red herring. It's an anti-threat. This is a very stable government, responded Iraq's national security adviser, Mouwafak al-Rubaie,in an interview Sunday on Late Edition on CNN. He said he had no doubt the prime minister would meet with Bush in Jordan.
Abdullah said it is natural that Americans, with troops fighting in Iraq, view that war as the major problem in the Middle East.But, for the majority of us living in this part of the world, it has always been the Israeli-Palestinian, Israeli-Arab problem. I fear that if we do not use the next couple of months to really be able to push the process forward, I don't believe that there will be anything to talk about.Unless something is done soon to lower the tension, he said, the two-state solution of Israel and an independent Palestinian state existing side by side becomes less a possibility.If we don't solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem then how can we ever solve the Israeli-Arab problem? he said.Do we resign this whole region to another decade or two of violence?
The king said that he hoped in his discussions with Bush, the leaders can concentrate ourselves on the core issues, which we believe are the Palestinians and the Palestinian peace process, because that is a must today, as well as the tremendous concern we've had over the past several days, (with) what's happening in Lebanon.Lebanon's political crisis escalated last week with the assassination of an anti-Syrian politician, raising worries of more violence that could tear apart the country apart along its fragile sectarian lines.
HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER (A COLLAPSE)
JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
Stormy end to November may spell disaster for the dollar
By Edmund Conway and Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Last Updated: 2:05am GMT 27/11/2006
Markets worldwide are braced for a stormy week of trading, amid fears that the plunging dollar will cause stocks and shares to tumble.With the dollar expected to fall further, some are even forecasting that the pound could sail through the $2-mark in the days ahead.After the long Thanksgiving weekend, the US wakes up today to concerns that Europe and Asia may not be able to be engines of global growth if America slows next year.The Dow Jones has remained robust, recently hitting a high on hopes that the US housing slump would prove short-lived. However recent data has suggested that the plunge in new home sales could have serious knock-on effects for the wider economy. This has prompted fears that US corporate profits could disappoint next year.
Expectations that the Federal Reserve may soon start cutting interest rates, and hints from the Chinese central bank that it might diversify its currency reserves, have prompted funds to sell off dollars, causing the greenback to fall last week to an 18-month low against the euro and the pound.
Michael Metz, chief investment strategist at Oppenheimer & Co, said: We may be entering a period of trouble for stocks and a sharp drop in the dollar may provide more excuses to sell.America fears falling house prices will drive shoppers away from the high street. Retail giant Wal-Mart said its like-for-like sales dropped 0.1pc in November. However, a survey yesterday showed sales on so-called Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, rose by a healthy 6pc.Many market watchers had been anticipating the dollar's slide for months, none more so than Paul Volcker, former Fed chairman. He said: It's incredible people have gone on so long holding dollars.
Despite truce, Palestinian attacks go on By AMY TEIBEL and IBRAHIM BARZAK, Associated Press Writer NOV 26,06
JERUSALEM /Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip as an unexpected truce took hold Sunday, but two major Palestinian militant groups, saying they had no intention of stopping their attacks, fired volleys of homemade rockets into Israel.
The rocket attacks by Hamas and Islamic Jihad tempered hopes for a lasting cease-fire, which was meant to end five months of deadly clashes. The rockets landed in open fields and caused no injuries.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered his security chiefs to send their forces to the Gaza border area to prevent further rocket attacks, according to Palestinian security officials.
The instructions are clear. Anyone violating the national agreement will be considered to be breaking the law, said Lt. Gen. Abdel Razek Mejaidie.Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert ordered the army to show restraint in the face of the rockets.
Even though there are still violations of the cease-fire by the Palestinian side, I have instructed our defense officials not to respond, to show restraint, and to give this cease-fire a chance to take full effect, he said.A senior Israeli official said Israel would wait a few hours to see if the attacks were isolated breaches or a full-scale violation of the agreement before deciding whether to respond. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.The truce, if it holds, would be a coup for Abbas, who has been trying for months to end the violence in Gaza. He has also been working to end crippling international sanctions imposed on the Palestinian Authority when the militant Hamas group won January parliamentary elections and formed a Cabinet.Abbas, a moderate from the Fatah Party, was elected separately last year.
The two sides announced the truce late Saturday after Abbas telephoned Olmert with an agreement from Palestinian militant groups to halt rocket fire and other violence from Gaza.Olmert pledged to end the military offensive in Gaza, launched in June after Hamas militants in Gaza conducted a cross-border raid on a military outpost, killing two soldiers and capturing one other.The violence has claimed the lives of more than 300 Palestinians and five Israelis. Most of the Palestinians killed have been militants, but scores of civilians have been killed as well, including 19 members of an extended family killed earlier this month in a botched Israeli artillery attack.Ahead of the new agreement, which took effect at 6 a.m. Sunday, Israel pulled all its forces out of Gaza, the army said.
Dozens of tanks and armored vehicles were parked just over the border in a military staging ground in southern Israel early Sunday.
But Israeli police reported at least four rockets fired at the Israeli town of Sderot and an Associated Press photographer in the border town heard at least two more strikes. Another AP photographer in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun heard several rockets fired throughout the morning.Let's hope that's just the problems of the beginning, said Olmert's spokeswoman, Miri Eisin. But if Israel is attacked, we will respond. If there are Palestinian factions that are not part of the cease-fire, it's hard to see how the cease-fire will hold.Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas said he had contacted the leaders of all the Palestinian factions Sunday and they reassured him they were committed to the truce.There is a 100 percent effort to make this work, but there is no guarantee of 100 percent results, said Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for the Hamas-led government.Hamas own militants claimed responsibility for firing rockets into Israel after the truce took hold, clouding prospects for the truce's longevity. The Hamas militants said they continued their attacks because some Israeli troops remained inside Gaza, an accusation Israel denied. (We) reiterate that our attacks against the enemy continue, the group said in a statement posted on its Web site.
Islamic Jihad also claimed responsibility for firing rockets into Israel and a spokesman, Abu Hamza, denied his group had signed on to the truce, contradicting statements from Islamic Jihad leaders. Israeli forces originally entered Gaza to try to recover the soldier captured in a June 25 cross-border raid, but they soon widened their objectives to target militants firing rockets into Israel. The violence cut short efforts by Olmert and Abbas to restart peace talks.
A truce could help create momentum for new talks. We welcome the announcement and see this as a positive step forward, White House spokesman Alex Conant said Saturday evening in Washington. We hope it leads to less violence for the Israeli and Palestinian people. Israel has no ties with the Hamas government, which rejects the Jewish state's right to exist, but it considers Abbas an acceptable negotiating partner. He and Olmert agreed months ago to meet, but Abbas has balked at setting a date without assurances the meeting would yield real dividends for him, such as a release of Palestinian prisoners Israel holds. Olmert has said no prisoners would be released to Hamas before the captured soldier is freed. Associated Press reporter Ibrahim Barzak reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip.
EARTHQUAKES
MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS (USGS)
Update time = Mon Nov 27 12:10 AM EDT
NOV 27,2006
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.5 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.6 OREGON
MAP 3.0 OFFSHORE BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 3.5 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 2.8 OFFSHORE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
NOV 26,2006
MAP 5.0 AREA OF THE FIJI ISLANDS
MAP 2.6 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.3 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.9 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 2.5 BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
MAP 5.3 SOUTH OF THE KERMADEC ISLANDS
MAP 3.3 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 3.7 UNIMAK ISLAND REGION, ALASKA
MAP 5.1 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 2.5 SOUTHERN ALASKA
MAP 2.7 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.7 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS
MAP 2.6 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
MAP 4.5 OFFSHORE EL SALVADOR
MAP 4.2 NEAR THE SOUTH COAST OF CHUKOTKA, RUSSIA
MAP 3.0 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
MAP 2.8 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.5 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; 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, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
Cold snap leaves 1 dead in Calgary
Updated Sun. Nov. 26 2006 3:39 PM ET,CTV.ca News Staff
The bitter cold that has swept across the prairies has claimed one life, despite a last-minute crunch to provide emergency shelter. Some of Calgary's homeless made their way to a temporary shelter at the Calgary Saddle Dome to escape the frigid temperatures. But the body of a man was found lying in a Calgary street Saturday. The cause of death has not been determined, but police believe the extreme cold could have been a factor. Shelters around the province have been adding extra beds, and the city says it will keep the Saddle Dome open as an emergency shelter as the cold spell continues. Sunday's temperature in Calgary was expected to be -21 and it's not going to get much warmer until Wednesday. The forecast for the city for the next few days is -20. The city's shelters are overflowing and with a planned shelter stalled by appeals from area residents, the city is short on beds. The city has turned the grandstand at Exhibition and Stampede Park into a temporary shelter.
In order to use the grandstand building, the city of Calgary had to determine that this was an emergency situation and required an immediate response, said city spokesman Chris Branch. Housing is a premium in Calgary, which has experienced an economic boom that has attracted workers from all over Canada. Gary Smith, one of hundreds of workers who have jobs in Calgary but have been unable to find housing, stayed at a drop-in centre Friday night, but it was full when he got off work at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Most of the people staying in shelters who don't have a home right now are workers who have come to Calgary to help work ... during the (construction) boom, Smith said. Calgary firefighters struggled to stay warm as they fought a blaze Saturday afternoon that resulted in the evacuation of three adjacent apartment buildings.
In Edmonton, where temperatures hovered at -15 degrees Celsius on Saturday afternoon and fell to -22 by the evening, homeless people were doing what they could to stay warm on the weekend. Most Edmonton shelters are open from Monday through Friday.
I go into malls, go onto transit, go anywhere that's warm, Gerry Lalonde, who doesn't have a home, told CTV Edmonton. The Mustard Seed Church ministry in Edmonton has put out an appeal for clothing, blankets and gloves to help keep people warm.
There's no other resource for some of them so it's important all the agencies work together and make sure people keep warm, said Mariam Leslie, the church's volunteer coordinator. Elsewhere on the Prairiees, overnight lows in the -20 range are expected in Regina, with Saskatoon a bit colder. Winnipeg should be slightly milder, with overnight lows in the -15 range. Meanwhile, Toronto was expected to stay above freezing overnight and experience a daytime high of +11 on Sunday. Temperatures in Atlantic Canada are also expected to be relatively mild on Sunday.
Vancouver's snow troubles
Winter arrived a little early in B.C., where a snow fall warning remains in effect. The snow storm, which is is expected to leave as many as 30 centimetres on the Lower Mainland by Monday, is expected to taper off Sunday night.An estimated 17 centimetres had already fallen in certain parts of the Lower Mainland by Sunday afternoon. Once it does, Environment Canada said the temperature is expected to drop below freezing. Any water or slush on the roads will turn into ice, leaving them slippery. Vancouver engineer Murray Wightman told CTV Newsnet that the city spent all day Saturday getting the snowplows and snow removal trucks ready to roll. We started our first shift last night at 7 and we had a shift change at 7 this morning and we're just going to keep going, said Wightman. Except for a short period around 4 a.m. Sunday, the snow has been falling steadily, he said.
Travellers were being warned to expect flight delays and cancellations at Vancouver International Airport on Sunday. Air Canada said passengers should check on the status of their flights on the Air Canada or Vancouver International Airport websites before heading to the airport.
Snowfall elsewhere in B.C. resulted in the provincial government issuing travel advisories, warning drivers to be aware of snowy conditions in areas west of both Glacier and Yoho national parks in eastern B.C. In the North Central Interior of B.C., temperatures are expected to be in the -25 range.There have been power outages reported in the communities of Mission, Hope, Coquitlam, Langley, Tsawwassen, Delta and most of Bowen Island. Poor weather conditions forced a 14-passenger plane to make an emergency landing at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal in Vancouver on Saturday. No one was hurt.
With a pre-Christmas cold snap on the way in Vancouver, where temperatures are more often moderate, social service agencies in Vancouver were on a quest for more shelter beds. The Salvation Army on the city's Downtown Eastside, which has 237 beds, said it was gathering bedding in advance of an increased demand. We anticipate we're going to be full to overflowing, Capt. John Murray told The Canadian Press.Sleeping mats have been spread on the floor in a large multi-purpose room and a dining area, he said.Murray said the organization is grateful to the Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, which bought the Army and Navy department store's entire stock of blankets about 400 and donated them. With reports from CTV's Kevin Green in Calgary and Nashiha Naqvi in Edmonton, and files from The Canadian Press
Floods kill seven in Somalia, death toll climbs to 96 Sun Nov 26, 11:05 AM ET
MOGADISHU (AFP) Floods have killed at least seven people, including five children, as the fourth week of heavy rains pounded Somalia, bringing the death toll to at least 96. Three people drowned in Middle Shabelle region when a wooden dhow capsized as they were fleeing to safety, officials said Sunday.We buried three people two of them children near Kunyabarow area this afternoon after they died from drowning, said Abdullahi Moalim Gesey, a local elder, told AFP.Health officials said a 72-year-old man and his one-year-old grandson were killed and swept for several kilometres when their hut collapsed under heavy flooding in Mukayka village in Middle Shabelle region.The were sleeping in their small cottage when heavy floods swept the area. The old man and his grandson were discovered about seven kilometres away from their home, added Hussein Nur Ahmed, a community health official.
And in Buulo-Barde district in Somalia's central Hiraan region, two children drowned after water swept through their house, according to officials from Somalia's powerful Islamic movement.
Two more children from the same family died, but problems associated to floods are still continuing and the toll is still rising, said Sheikh Hussein Barre Raghe, head of Buulo-Barde Islamic courts.Raghe said the affected civilians may die if humanitarian aid was delayed.Sunday's casualties brings the death toll to 96 since torrential rains started pounding the region in October, mainly flooding the main Shabelle and Juba rivers that have their source at the Ethiopian highlands.Around one million Somalis are estimated to be affected by the flooding, of which at least 336,000 have been forced from their homes, according to the United Nations.
Health officials have also sounded the alarm for outbreaks of waterborne diseases, particularly cholera, which has already been confirmed in two areas.The rains have destroyed farmlands, disrupted food supplies, cut off villages and washed away roads, complicating the delivery of aid to the most vulnerable and impoverished in remote areas.The Horn of Africa country is also on the brink of all-out war between the Islamic movement and government troops, backed by Ethiopian forces.
Flood warnings issued (Norwaypost) NOV 25,2006
Flood warnings have been issued for South Eastern Norway this weekend. Heavy rainfall has caused local rivers and lakes to overflow their banks in many places.The floodwaters are expected to peak on Sunday, and people are warned to look out for flooding in basements. Roger Melby of the Oslo Fire and Rescue Squad says to Aftenposten that they are on high alert, and Frode Sandersen of the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute says they are considering the danger for local landslides.The ground is saturated, and floodwaters from local rivers and brooks may undermine banks and cause slides. The situation is special, Sandersen says to the newspaper. (NRK/Aftenposten)
1/3RD OF SHIPS DESTROYED
REVELATION 8:8-9
8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
Boat capsizes in Philippines, 14 dead, 65 rescued
26 Nov 2006 07:58:59 GMT
MANILA, Nov 26 (Reuters) Rescue teams were searching on Sunday for at least 15 people still missing after a ferry carrying 300 sacks of cement capsized off the southern Philippines killing 14 people and forcing dozens overboard.The Leonida II sank on Saturday afternoon when it ran into rough waters after leaving Surigao City en route to Siargao Island, a tear-drop shaped surfing haven about 800 kilometers (497 miles) southeast of Manila, disaster officials said.Passing boats plucked 65 survivors from the sea but there was confusion over how many more people had been on board. A passenger list showed only 48 names, including a local mayor, who was still unaccounted for, and a group of high school pupils.
The wooden-hulled vessel had capacity for 150 people.
We have no idea how many people were actually on the boat, said Blance Gobenchiong, a regional director of the office of civil defence, adding that many travellers jump on board after inspection by the coast guard.Ferries of all descriptions ply the waters between the Philippines 7,000-plus islands and safety standards are often lax. Overcrowding is a common problem.Our search and rescue operations were still ongoing but we need more volunteers to look for survivors and equipment to reach the wreckage at 300 metres under water, Surigao City mayor Alfonso Casurra said.One survivor told local radio that the boat's captain lost control when large waves snapped one of the vessel's wooden outriggers. People started jumping as water flooded the deck.
THE WORLD NATIONS ARE TRYING TO TAKE GOD OUT OF CHRISTMAS TO WALES. SAD BUT TRUE.
They've taken Christ out of our Christmas Nov 26 2006
Rachel Mainwaring, Wales on Sunday
CHRIST is being left out of Christmas across Wales with just one council featuring the nativity story in their official public celebrations.Figures from the Office of National Statistics show 72 per cent of Welsh people call ourselves Christian but our poll of Wales 22 local authorities reveals Wrexham is the only one to stage an event which tells the story of the birth of the baby Jesus. Its Camels and Carols parade on December 21 will see the Three Kings ride camels through the town, accompanied by shepherds and carol singers, to St Giles Church live crib, including people playing Mary and Joseph.A council spokesman explained: Social cohesion is high on our agenda. We wouldn't back down from anything Christian, or anything Muslim, Hindu or otherwise.We recognise the importance that all communities make to our area but also feel it important to share our cultural heritage and identity.
By comparison, Cardiff council's Christmas centrepiece is the Winter Wonderland ice rink, big wheel and hot tubs. Swansea has followed suit with its Waterfront Winterland, complete with ice skating and fairground rides. Caerphilly council's celebrations are inspired by the Caribbean with samba and carnival dance workshops.
All three have denied excluding Christianity.
Caerphilly's spokesman said: We haven't taken any measures to lessen the Christian side of events.Cardiff council said it had no active policy of avoiding any religious factors and Swansea council said we are making the Christmas period as inclusive as possible while maintaining strong religious elements to our organised events including carol singing at the Waterfront Winterland.
The results of our survey echo a national trend away from celebrations of Christian festivals. The Royal Mail has come under fire for issuing Christmas stamps free of religious images.This week Dr John Sentamu, the Archbishop of York who recently criticised the systematic erosion of Christianity from public life, appealed for BA to reconsider its decision to refuse an appeal by check-in worker Nadia Eweida, who was told she could not openly wear a cross to work.
And a further example, critics say, of political correctness overriding religion was seen when Plymouth council ended free parking on Sundays so as not to offend non-Christians.Religious leaders in Wales are appalled the story of Christmas has been detached from festivities here.The Reverend Aled Edwards, who is chief executive of the Christian umbrella group Churches Together in Wales, said: What we would ask people to remember is that while they are playing piggyback on this holiday, they should remember its Christian heritage.I think it's disingenuous if a Christian event excludes its Christian origins.
It is important for people not to presume that making the Christian message clear will offend other religions. If you were recognising Ramadan you'd recognise it as a Muslim event, so people should not seek to hide the fact that it's a Christian celebration.Canon Robert Reardon, of the Catholic archdiocese in Wales, blamed society's shift away from religion, saying the lack of religious themes are simply a reflection of where we're at.Saleem Kiowai, secretary of the Muslim Council of Wales, added: Christmas is a religious festival and it does not need to be neutralised. If you believe in a faith then you should keep to that faith.Politician Nick Bourne, leader of the Welsh Assembly Conservatives, added his disbelief.I've heard about changes taking place and I think it's ridiculous. It's important people are aware of the Christian element, and I think Wrexham should be applauded, he said.Other council-run Christmas events in Wales include Santa and Shrek parades and farmers markets in Rhondda, Cynon Taf; a Jack Frost parade in Newport; fancy dress in Neath Port Talbot; and a craft fair, with carols, in Pembrokeshire.
MUSLIM NATIONS
EZEKIEL 38:1-12
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW)and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:
4 And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY)of the north quarters, and all his bands:(SUDAN,AFRICA) and many people with thee.
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
9 Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.(RUSSIA-EGYPT AND MUSLIMS)
10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:
11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,
12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.
ISAIAH 17:1
1 The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
PSALMS 83:3-7
3 They (ARABS,MUSLIMS) have taken crafty counsel against thy people,(ISRAEL) and consulted against thy hidden ones.
4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
5 For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:(TREATIES)
6 The tabernacles of Edom,and the Ishmaelites;(ARABS) of Moab, and the Hagarenes;
7 Gebal, and Ammon,(JORDAN) and Amalek;(SYRIA) the Philistines (PALESTINIANS) with the inhabitants of Tyre;(LEBANON)
EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
JOEL 2:3,20,30-31
3 A fire(NUCLEAR BOMB) devoureth before them;(RUSSIA-ARABS) 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.
20 But I will remove far off from you the northern army,(RUSSIA,MUSLIMS) and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things.(SIBERIAN DESERT)
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(NUCLEAR BOMB)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
PERSECUSSION,BEHEADINGS
JESUS PERSECUTED BIGTIME
ISAIAH 53:4
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
MATTHEW 9:34
34 But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.
JOHN 8:41
41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
JOHN 10:20
20 And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him?
PHILIPPIANS 2:10-11(JESUS GETS REVENGE)
10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.(JUDGEMENT SEAT OF CHRIST AND FOR SINNERS, THE GREAT WHITE THRONE FINAL JUDGEMENT).
WE ARE CHRISTIANS WE WILL BE TREATED THE SAME.
2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5 (WHY WE ARE PERSECUTED BY THE WORLD)
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous (DANGEROUS) times shall come.
2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
MATTHEW 5:10-12
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
MATTHEW 24:9
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.
JOHN 15:18-20
18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me (JESUS) before it hated you.
19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
REVELATION 6:9-11
9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain(BEHEADED) for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
REVELATION 20:4
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Thousands of Muslims urge Pope not to visit Turkey By Daren Butler and Paul de Bendern NOV 26,06
ISTANBUL (Reuters) More than 20,000 Muslims in Istanbul on Sunday held the biggest protest so far against Pope Benedict's controversial visit to Turkey this week.The Pope, due to begin his first official visit to a Muslim country on Tuesday, angered many Muslims in September with a speech they took as an insult to their religion.Youths wearing headbands with Islamic slogans, beating drums and waving red-and-white Turkish flags chanted Allahu Akbar (God is greatest) and Pope don't come at the peaceful rally.I cannot remain silent when the Prophet Mohammad is insulted. I love him more than myself, said Husamettin Aycan Alp, 25, a science student from Izmir in western Turkey.
He said Roman Catholic cardinals chose this Pope last year because he is against Islam and (they) are concerned Islam is spreading in Europe.
The four-day visit is billed as an opportunity to heal rifts with the Muslim world after the Pope quoted a Byzantine emperor saying Islam was violent and irrational. He has said he does not share that view.It will be closely followed by the Islamic world and is the most challenging of Pope Benedict's papacy so far.Speaking in the Vatican on Sunday, he said he wanted the visit to show his friendship for Turkey and its people.Starting right now, I want to send a cordial greeting to the dear Turkish people, rich in history and culture. To these people and their representatives I express feelings of esteem and sincere friendship, he said in his noon address.A visit to Istanbul's famous Sultanahmet, or Blue Mosque was added to the Pope's itinerary at the last minute, a move seen as a further attempt at reconciliation with the Muslim world.His predecessor, Pope John Paul II, made the first visit by a pontiff to a mosque during a trip to Damascus in 2001. Pope John Paul paid the last papal visit to Turkey in 1979.
PROTEST AGAINST CRUSADERS
The Islamist Felicity party that organised the protest under the banner against the crusader alliance a reference to the crusaders who crossed Anatolia 1,000 years ago on their way to Jerusalem had expected an attendance of at least 75,000.Muslims don't want the Pope in their lands. Look at the suffering which they spread in Palestine, Iraq and Chechnya. I link this to Christianity, said Ferdi Borekci, a 28-year-old architect.
Before becoming Pope, Benedict annoyed Turks by speaking out against Turkey's move to join the European Union, saying it did not belong there because of its religion and culture.Turkey's ruling AK Party government has kept a low profile in preparations for this visit, with talks still in progress as to whether Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, a pious Muslim, will meet him before leaving for a NATO summit in Riga.With a general election due next year the AK Party, which has roots in political Islam, must balance a rise in nationalism as well as their support base among conservative Muslims.Turkey is officially a rigidly secular country, but predominantly Muslim.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, who will be absent during the Pope's visit, played down the controversy. We will of course show hospitality and we hope that this visit will be a way of ending misunderstandings between Muslims and Christians, Gul told a news conference. His message will be very important. The main purpose of Benedict's visit is to meet the Istanbul-based leader of the world's Orthodox Christians, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, whom Turkish nationalists see as a tool of their ancient rival Greece.Turkey plans tight security measures for the Pope, whose trip will include the capital Ankara, Istanbul formerly Constantinople and the site where the Virgin Mary is believed to have lived and died near Izmir on the Aegean coast. (Additional reporting by Philip Pullella in Vatican City)
Ray Flynn former US Ambassador to the VATICAN talks with Jennifer from CTVNEWSNET about the POPES visit to TURKEY on Tuesday. NOV 25,2006
Jen-lets talk about the signifigance of this visit.
Ray-Well Pope benedict 16s challenging, his up coming visit to Turkey is daunting. Hes going to face hate propaganda against the West, by Islamic Radicals in the name of Religion. And I believe its the greatest threat to peace and freedom, not only in that area of the World but throughout the World.
Jen-Why is he going?
Ray-Well, the world community has failed lets be direct. UN is impotant (useless), American foreign policy is arrogant, World diplomacy does not exist. Religious Extremism is on the rise, and the world Dollar has really collapsed. And the world is morally and Politically bankrupt. And I think the biggest mistake Jennifer was when Pope John Paul 2ND and the Catholic Church opposed the war in Iraq.They were ignored. And I think that was the biggest mistake, and I think that Pope Benedict 16th is going back into that region. I m not to optomistic about it to be honest with you. But I think he is probably the last Religion itself, moral voice,
remains, or probably is the last hope for future stability in the world.
Jen-Why are you not optomistic about this visit?
Ray-Well I mean, there is certain things that could resolve this issue Jennifer. You know,Diplomacy between the US, UN,UK, with Iran, Iraq and syria. How serious is that. A permanent Peace between Israel and the Palestinians, how long have we been hearing about that. A stable and free Lebanon, how long have we been hearing about that. A collition building with Arabs and Muslims in the West, how likely is that. So Jennifer, We really need a greater moral and Religious role in unity in the middle east between Muslims, Christians and Jews. We take the Politics and the Politicians out of the picture entierly No US, maybe UN Arab troops, maybe let Benedict 16th be that voice of reason in peace in mutual respect, for all religious faiths in the World.
WELL RAY IS CALLING FOR RELIGIOUS LEADERS TO LEAD THE WAY AND THE POPE TO BE THE LEADER OF IT,EXACTLY WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THE VATICAN WILL BE ACTIVE IN THE WORLD EVENTS AND POLITICS.
REVELATION 17:2
2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Turkey's Christians await pope's visit By SUZAN FRASER, Associated Press Writer NOV 26,06
ANKARA, Turkey /Next door to a store selling artificial limbs in a run-down area of Turkey's capital, the Protestant church sits on the ground floor of a dreary apartment block, with barred windows and kitchen chairs for pews. The 100-strong congregation of the Kurtulus Church, which is linked to the U.S.-based International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, rents the space because authorities have not responded to its request for land and a permit to build a proper chapel.When Pope Benedict XVI visits Turkey for four days starting Tuesday, he will try to ease anger over his recent remarks linking Islam and violence. But he is also expected to press the 99 percent Muslim country to give its Christian community more rights. Some of those Christians are forced to worship in so-called apartment churches, and suffer prejudice, discrimination, even assault.The pope will discuss the rights of the religious minority with Turkish officials, said Monsignor Luigi Padovese, the pope's vicar in Anatolia. In a secular country, people must have the right to believe in whatever faith they choose to believe.
The pastor of Kurtulus Church, the Rev. Ihsan Ozbek, sees an opening for dialogue. We face serious problems. Turkish citizens who converted to Christianity, especially, face serious discrimination and violence, he said.The windows of his makeshift chapel have twice been smashed by suspected Turkish nationalists, reflecting a widely held conviction that conversion is treason and that Christian clergy are missionaries or spies for Western powers.Of Turkey's 70 million people, some 65,000 are Armenian Orthodox Christians, 20,000 are Roman Catholic, and 3,500 are Protestant, mostly converts from Islam. Another 2,000 are Greek Orthodox and 23,000 are Jewish.
The shrunken Christian presence belies the church's deep roots in latter-day Turkey.
Constantinople modern-day Istanbul was the Christian Byzantine capital for more than 1,000 years until it fell to Muslim forces in 1453 and became the seat of the Muslim Ottoman Empire.St. John the Apostle is said to have brought the Virgin Mary to Ephesus, 400 miles southeast of Istanbul, where she is believed to have spent her final years, while St. Paul traveled through much of modern-day Turkey on his missionary journeys.Iznik is the former Nicea, where early Christian doctrine was formulated in 325 A.D.
All seven major churches of early Christianity, mentioned in The New Testament, are in present-day Turkey. The pope will make a pilgrimage to one of them at Ephesus, 400 miles south of Istanbul.Today, Istanbul remains the center of Orthodoxy and the seat of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, considered the first among equals among the Orthodox leadership.
But membership is dwindling. The sole seminary training Orthodox monks was ordered closed in 1971, and no alternative site has been granted. Turkish law also makes it impossible to import non-Turkish seminarians, and requires that the patriarchs be Turkish citizens, severely reducing the pool of candidates to succeed 66-year-old Bartholomew.The Armenian Orthodox community's seminary is also closed, confronting it with the same challenge, while Greek and Armenian communities are struggling to recover property that the state confiscated in the 1970s.Turkey wants to join the European Union, which is pressing it for greater tolerance.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Islamic-rooted government has taken some steps toward change, amending laws to allow religious minorities to recover some property. The government has also indicated willingness to reopen the minority seminaries, but
has failed to find a formula that conforms with the country's secular laws.
Even though Turkey is secular and Turks are considered moderately religious, authorities often report students who attend Christian meetings to their families to prevent possible conversions, and proselytizers are detained and extradited.The distrust is so deep that non-Muslims are barred from the police force andmilitary.In February, a Turkish teenager shot dead a Catholic priest, Rev. Andrea Santoro, as he knelt in prayer in his church in the Black Sea port of Trabzon. The attack was believed linked to widespread anger in the Islamic world over the publication in European newspapers of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. Two other Catholic priests were attacked this year.
West must prepare for Chinese, Indian dominance: Wolfensohn Sun Nov 26, 3:39 AM ET
SYDNEY (AFP) Western nations must prepare for a future dominated by China and India, whose rapid economic rise will soon fundamentally alter the balance of power, former World Bank chief James Wolfensohn has warned.
Wealthy countries were failing to understand the impact of the invevitable growth of the two Asian powerhouses, Wolfensohn said in the 2006 Wallace Wurth Memorial Lecture at the University of New South Wales at the weekend.It's a world that is going to be in the hands of these countries which we now call developing, said Australian-born Wolfensohn, who held the top job at the global development bank for a decade until last year.Rich nations needed to try to capitalise on the inevitable emergence of what would become the engine of the world's economic activity before it was too late, he said.Most people in the rich countries don't really look at what's happening in these large developing countries, said Wolfensohn, who is now chairman of Citigroup International Advisory Board and his own investment and advisory firm.
Within 25 years, the combined gross domestic products of China and India would exceed those of the Group of Seven wealthy nations, he said.This is not a trivial advance, this is a monumental advance.Wolfensohn said that somewhere between 2030 and 2040, China would become the largest economy in the world, leaving the United States behind.By 2050, China's current two trillion US dollar GDP was set to balloon to 48.6 trillion, while that of India, whose economy weighs in at under a trillion dollars, would hit 27 trillion, he said, citing projections by investment bank Goldman Sachs.
In comparison, the US's 13 trillion dollar income would expand to only 37 trillion 10 trillion behind China.You will have in the growth of these countries a 22 times growth between now and the year 2050 and the current rich countries will grow maybe 2.5 times.In light of these forecasts, it was clear that Western nations and Australia were not investing enough in educating the next generation to be able to take advantage of the coming realignment, he said.
The fact that not enough of our young people are preparing themselves with knowledge, experience, residence and language to deal certainly with China, although India has the benefit of an English language, it does seem to me that it presents a formidable challenge.Wolfensohn pointed to both China's and India's recent substantial investments in Africa as an example of how the two emerging giants were exercising their increasing clout on the global stage.Within the last two weeks the world has been put on notice that Africa is no longer the basket case that everybody had historically thought it was but is now front and centre in terms of development by India and China.The phenomenal rally by the two countries was a return to form rather than a novelty, he said, as they together had accounted for 50 percent of global GDP from the 1500s until the industrial revolution reduced that to between five and seven percent.
Jordan's king sees possibility of three civil wars in Mideast
The Associated PressPublished: November 26, 2006
WASHINGTON: Jordan's King Abdullah said Sunday the problems in the Middle East go beyond the war in Iraq and that much of the region soon could become engulfed in violence unless the central issues are addressed quickly.
We could possibly imagine going into 2007 and having three civil wars on our hands, he said, citing conflicts in Iraq, Lebanon and the decades-long strife between the Palestinians and Israelis.Therefore, it is time that we really take a strong step forward as part of the international community and make sure we avert the Middle East from a tremendous crisis that I fear, and I see could possibly happen in 2007, he said.Speaking on ABC's This Week, Abdullah said he remained hopeful a summit he will host this week in Amman with President George W. Bush and the Iraqi prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, will somehow lower the sectarian violence that threatens to push Iraq into all-out civil war.
Today in Americas
Letter From Washington: Pelosi needs better advice Bush faces uncertain path in a changed Washington U.S.building ties with Assad opponents in Syria We hope there will be something dramatic.
The challenges, obviously, in front of both of them are immense, the king said.We have to make sure that all parties in Iraq understand the dangers of the ongoing escalation. I hope Prime Minister Maliki will have some ideas ... on how he can be inclusive in bringing all the different sects inside of Iraq together.
They need to do it now, he said, because, obviously, as we're seeing, things are beginning to spiral out of control.The king spoke of the urgent for a change in course in Iraq.There needs to be some very strong action taken on the ground there today, he said. I don't think we're in a position where we can come back and revisit the problem in early 2007. There needs to be a strategy. There needs to be a plan that brings all the parties together, and bring them today and not tomorrow.
Bush plans to fly to Jordan after attending a NATO summit in Latvia. Vice President Dick Cheney made a quick trip to Saudi Arabia for talks on Saturday as part of the administration's effort to bring peace to the region.The Iraqi prime minister is under pressure from Shiite politicians loyal to the radical anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr who have threatened to boycott parliament and the Cabinet if al-Maliki meets with Bush. Sadr and his followers are a mainstay of his political support.This is all political posturing. It's all red herring. It's an anti-threat. This is a very stable government, responded Iraq's national security adviser, Mouwafak al-Rubaie,in an interview Sunday on Late Edition on CNN. He said he had no doubt the prime minister would meet with Bush in Jordan.
Abdullah said it is natural that Americans, with troops fighting in Iraq, view that war as the major problem in the Middle East.But, for the majority of us living in this part of the world, it has always been the Israeli-Palestinian, Israeli-Arab problem. I fear that if we do not use the next couple of months to really be able to push the process forward, I don't believe that there will be anything to talk about.Unless something is done soon to lower the tension, he said, the two-state solution of Israel and an independent Palestinian state existing side by side becomes less a possibility.If we don't solve the Israeli-Palestinian problem then how can we ever solve the Israeli-Arab problem? he said.Do we resign this whole region to another decade or two of violence?
The king said that he hoped in his discussions with Bush, the leaders can concentrate ourselves on the core issues, which we believe are the Palestinians and the Palestinian peace process, because that is a must today, as well as the tremendous concern we've had over the past several days, (with) what's happening in Lebanon.Lebanon's political crisis escalated last week with the assassination of an anti-Syrian politician, raising worries of more violence that could tear apart the country apart along its fragile sectarian lines.
HOARDING OF GOLD AND SILVER (A COLLAPSE)
JAMES 5:1-3
1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.
2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.
3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.
EZEKIEL 7:19
19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
Stormy end to November may spell disaster for the dollar
By Edmund Conway and Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Last Updated: 2:05am GMT 27/11/2006
Markets worldwide are braced for a stormy week of trading, amid fears that the plunging dollar will cause stocks and shares to tumble.With the dollar expected to fall further, some are even forecasting that the pound could sail through the $2-mark in the days ahead.After the long Thanksgiving weekend, the US wakes up today to concerns that Europe and Asia may not be able to be engines of global growth if America slows next year.The Dow Jones has remained robust, recently hitting a high on hopes that the US housing slump would prove short-lived. However recent data has suggested that the plunge in new home sales could have serious knock-on effects for the wider economy. This has prompted fears that US corporate profits could disappoint next year.
Expectations that the Federal Reserve may soon start cutting interest rates, and hints from the Chinese central bank that it might diversify its currency reserves, have prompted funds to sell off dollars, causing the greenback to fall last week to an 18-month low against the euro and the pound.
Michael Metz, chief investment strategist at Oppenheimer & Co, said: We may be entering a period of trouble for stocks and a sharp drop in the dollar may provide more excuses to sell.America fears falling house prices will drive shoppers away from the high street. Retail giant Wal-Mart said its like-for-like sales dropped 0.1pc in November. However, a survey yesterday showed sales on so-called Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, rose by a healthy 6pc.Many market watchers had been anticipating the dollar's slide for months, none more so than Paul Volcker, former Fed chairman. He said: It's incredible people have gone on so long holding dollars.
Despite truce, Palestinian attacks go on By AMY TEIBEL and IBRAHIM BARZAK, Associated Press Writer NOV 26,06
JERUSALEM /Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip as an unexpected truce took hold Sunday, but two major Palestinian militant groups, saying they had no intention of stopping their attacks, fired volleys of homemade rockets into Israel.
The rocket attacks by Hamas and Islamic Jihad tempered hopes for a lasting cease-fire, which was meant to end five months of deadly clashes. The rockets landed in open fields and caused no injuries.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered his security chiefs to send their forces to the Gaza border area to prevent further rocket attacks, according to Palestinian security officials.
The instructions are clear. Anyone violating the national agreement will be considered to be breaking the law, said Lt. Gen. Abdel Razek Mejaidie.Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert ordered the army to show restraint in the face of the rockets.
Even though there are still violations of the cease-fire by the Palestinian side, I have instructed our defense officials not to respond, to show restraint, and to give this cease-fire a chance to take full effect, he said.A senior Israeli official said Israel would wait a few hours to see if the attacks were isolated breaches or a full-scale violation of the agreement before deciding whether to respond. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.The truce, if it holds, would be a coup for Abbas, who has been trying for months to end the violence in Gaza. He has also been working to end crippling international sanctions imposed on the Palestinian Authority when the militant Hamas group won January parliamentary elections and formed a Cabinet.Abbas, a moderate from the Fatah Party, was elected separately last year.
The two sides announced the truce late Saturday after Abbas telephoned Olmert with an agreement from Palestinian militant groups to halt rocket fire and other violence from Gaza.Olmert pledged to end the military offensive in Gaza, launched in June after Hamas militants in Gaza conducted a cross-border raid on a military outpost, killing two soldiers and capturing one other.The violence has claimed the lives of more than 300 Palestinians and five Israelis. Most of the Palestinians killed have been militants, but scores of civilians have been killed as well, including 19 members of an extended family killed earlier this month in a botched Israeli artillery attack.Ahead of the new agreement, which took effect at 6 a.m. Sunday, Israel pulled all its forces out of Gaza, the army said.
Dozens of tanks and armored vehicles were parked just over the border in a military staging ground in southern Israel early Sunday.
But Israeli police reported at least four rockets fired at the Israeli town of Sderot and an Associated Press photographer in the border town heard at least two more strikes. Another AP photographer in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun heard several rockets fired throughout the morning.Let's hope that's just the problems of the beginning, said Olmert's spokeswoman, Miri Eisin. But if Israel is attacked, we will respond. If there are Palestinian factions that are not part of the cease-fire, it's hard to see how the cease-fire will hold.Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas said he had contacted the leaders of all the Palestinian factions Sunday and they reassured him they were committed to the truce.There is a 100 percent effort to make this work, but there is no guarantee of 100 percent results, said Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for the Hamas-led government.Hamas own militants claimed responsibility for firing rockets into Israel after the truce took hold, clouding prospects for the truce's longevity. The Hamas militants said they continued their attacks because some Israeli troops remained inside Gaza, an accusation Israel denied. (We) reiterate that our attacks against the enemy continue, the group said in a statement posted on its Web site.
Islamic Jihad also claimed responsibility for firing rockets into Israel and a spokesman, Abu Hamza, denied his group had signed on to the truce, contradicting statements from Islamic Jihad leaders. Israeli forces originally entered Gaza to try to recover the soldier captured in a June 25 cross-border raid, but they soon widened their objectives to target militants firing rockets into Israel. The violence cut short efforts by Olmert and Abbas to restart peace talks.
A truce could help create momentum for new talks. We welcome the announcement and see this as a positive step forward, White House spokesman Alex Conant said Saturday evening in Washington. We hope it leads to less violence for the Israeli and Palestinian people. Israel has no ties with the Hamas government, which rejects the Jewish state's right to exist, but it considers Abbas an acceptable negotiating partner. He and Olmert agreed months ago to meet, but Abbas has balked at setting a date without assurances the meeting would yield real dividends for him, such as a release of Palestinian prisoners Israel holds. Olmert has said no prisoners would be released to Hamas before the captured soldier is freed. Associated Press reporter Ibrahim Barzak reported from Gaza City, Gaza Strip.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)