Shalom from Jerusalem THE MESSIANIC BIBLE PROJECT JULY 26,07
The signs are definitely pointing that we are in the end of days. Yesterday I was in Tel Aviv where the street light polls were still draped with the Rainbow Colored Flags representing the Gay Pride Parade in which 3000 Jewish gay and lesbian activists paraded through Israel 's largest city promoting Sodom and Gomorrah! Here in Israel , we are preparing for war! Most of my cousins have been called up by their IDF (Israel Defense Force) units telling them that they will have to serve in the army, as there might be a war with Syria and Iran this summer. Over the last month, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad the President of Iran has repeatedly stated: Israel will be destroyed in the near future. So please keep all of us in your prayers.Every day we are reaching the Jewish people with Yeshua, however it is not every day that we are in the presence of those who make the decisions for the nation of Israel .
Meeting with the Prime Minister and President of Israel
The Captain of all the guards and security at the Knesset ( Israel 's Parliament) was waiting to greet me at the front gate of the Knesset. (The Knesset is the highest protected infrastructure in Israel besides its nuclear facility in Dimona). He escorted me to meet with the General Manager of the Knesset who introduced me to a number of the Members of Parliament (MPs).
After a meeting in the office of the Speaker of the House, I was then escorted down the hall where I met with Shimon Peres ( Israel 's current President and past Prime Minister). As this former Israeli Prime Minister and Nobel Prize Winner reached out his hand with a warm smile to greet me, I was in awe of how God had brought me to a place of being in the presence of such a distinguished man. A few minutes later I met with Ehud Olmert ( Israel 's Prime Minister). The Prime Minister and I chatted about the family and his wife who is a distant relative of mine by marriage.
Due to security and privacy I can not discuss what our meetings entailed, however it was a privilege to meet the highest authorities of government and I can't wait until we have the Hebrew Messianic Prophecy Bible to give them and their families, and to discuss the prophecies in detail with them.
Helping the homeless, giving to the poor Our ministry is focused on sharing the Word of God, the Messianic Prophecies and doing evangelism, however we must also help Jewish people in their time of need.
This week one of our ministry workers, Svi, passed by Yochanan, a homeless man in his 30s who looked like he was in his 60s. His hair was long and straggly, he was filthy dirty, and wearing torn and dirty clothes (the only ones he owned). He had not washed in weeks and his stench was so bad, Svi felt like vomiting. Yochanan was not on drugs or alcohol but he had given up on life, and no one had reached out to him.
Svi showed him the love of God; bought him food, took him to a clothing store to buy new clothes, and offered Yochanan to stay at his home to help him get back on his feet (which he declined because he was so used to living on the streets). He then asked Svi to drive him to a drug store to buy him toiletries for washing and taking care of himself. After spending a few hours with Yochanan, Svi drove to an ATM bank machine and gave him 1000 Shekels ($250). I can not believe you are doing this, Yochanan said. Svi told him that it was the love of Yeshua, and he then prayed some more with Yochanan who asked if he could keep Svi's Tanakh (Bible). Of course Svi said, I was going to give you a Bible, but you can have my personal Bible.
Yeshua says in Luke 12:32-34 For your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor.For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.Through our ministry you can help save the people in Israel for Eternity.Whether we have opportunity to be with the highest of society such as Ehud Olmert the Prime Minister of Israel, or what is considered to be the lowest of society, homeless and poor people like Yochanan - to the new Ethiopian immigrants (read about them on the following pages of my newsletter) or the Chassidic ultra-orthodox religious Jews, YOU can help reach the 5.5 million Israeli Jewish people who do not know Yeshua.Paul says in Romans 10:14; How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
You have an amazing opportunity to make a difference in the nation of Israel and for the Jewish people's eternal salvation. The people of Israel need your help, and you can make a huge difference today by giving the best possible gift you can.
With all of my brotherly love in our Messiah Yeshua,
Zev Isaacs, Founder MESSIANIC BIBLE PROJECT
Putin orders boost in military, spying By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV, Associated Press Writer Wed Jul 25, 3:16 PM ET
MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin vowed Wednesday to strengthen Russia's military capability and step up spying abroad in response to U.S. plans to build missile defense sites and deploy troops in Eastern Europe. The situation in the world and internal political interests require the Foreign Intelligence Service to permanently increase its capabilities, primarily in the field of information and analytical support for the country's leadership, Putin said at a meeting with senior military and security officers in remarks that were posted on the Kremlin's Web site.The Foreign Intelligence Service is a successor agency to the KGB.
Putin did not identify specific nations as targets, but officials in the United States and Britain have said recently that Moscow has intensified its spying in those countries.Putin said U.S. plans to station troops in Eastern Europe and Washington's intention to base missile defense sites in Poland and the Czech Republic pose security challenges for Russia. Washington says the facilities are necessary to protect the U.S. and Europe from missiles launched by Iran or other rogue states.Putin has proposed that the U.S. use a Soviet-built radar base in Azerbaijan for missile defense. U.S. officials have questioned whether the facility is technically compatible with American systems.On Wednesday, Putin said Washington was stonewalling. Alternative ways of protection from hypothetical missile threats which we proposed have been left unanswered, he said.
All-round strengthening of our military forces is one of our indisputable priorities, Putin said, promising to continue equipping the military with new weapons.Putin also criticized the United States and other NATO members for failing to ratify an amended version of the 1990 Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty, which limits the deployment of tanks, aircraft and other heavy non-nuclear weapons around the continent.Earlier this month, Putin suspended Russia's participation in the treaty and threatened to withdraw from it completely if NATO nations do not ratify its amended version, which was signed in 1999, to reflect changes since the 1991 Soviet collapse.NATO members have refused to do that until Russia withdraws its troops from the former Soviet republics of Moldova and Georgia.
Putin said the old version of the CFE treaty counted arsenals of former Soviet satellites and republics which are now NATO members as part of the Soviet bloc. In particular, it counted weapons in the ex-Soviet Baltic nations of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as part of what was the Soviet Baltic Military District.Maybe I should appoint one of you as its commander? Putin said wryly.Russia's relations with the United States and other Western nations have grown increasingly acrimonious amid Western concerns that Russia is edging away from democracy and Kremlin suspicions about the West's intentions.
Israel authorises 1,000 guns for Palestinian Authority: report Thu Jul 26, 3:17 AM ET
JERUSALEM (AFP) - Israel recently authorised a shipment of 1,000 rifles from Jordan to the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank, a newspaper reported on Thursday. The largest ever arms transfer authorised by Israel to security forces loyal to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas in the West Bank, it is meant to help prevent a possible Hamas challenge or takeover as in Gaza, Haaretz said.A spokeswoman in Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office neither confirmed nor denied the report when questioned by AFP.
The weapons were delivered to security forces, whose Gaza colleagues were routed by Hamas fighters last month, under strict confidence to prevent any possible leak that could undermine Abbas' standing, the paper said.This year, several thousand rifles were delivered from Egypt and Jordan to Fatah forces in Gaza and the West Bank, but most have fallen into the hands of Hamas, which has controlled the Gaza Strip since mid-June, Haaretz said.
THE BIBLE SAYS THE SUN WILL SCORCH MEN 7XS OR 7 DEGREES MORE. IF NOT FOR ISRAELS SAKE ALL FLESH WOULD DIE FROM THE SUN (SCORCHING)
Ozone has 'strong climate effect'
By Paul Rincon
Science reporter, BBC News
Ozone is an important component of smog
Ozone could be a much more important driver of climate change than scientists had previously predicted, according to a study in Nature journal. The authors say the effects of this greenhouse gas - known by the formula O3 - have been largely overlooked. Ozone near the ground damages plants, reducing their ability to mop up carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. As a consequence, more CO2 will build up in the atmosphere instead of being taken up by plants. Arguably, we have been looking in the wrong place for the key impacts of ozone Peter Cox, University of Exeter This in turn will speed up climate change, say the Nature authors.
Ozone could be twice as important as we previously thought as a driver of climate change, co-author Peter Cox, from the University of Exeter, UK, told the BBC News website. Scientists already knew that ozone higher up in the atmosphere acted as a direct greenhouse gas, trapping infrared heat energy that would otherwise escape into space. Ozone closer to the ground is formed in a reaction between sunlight and other greenhouse gases such as nitrogen oxides, methane and carbon monoxide.
Greenhouse emissions stemming from human activities have led to elevated ozone levels across large tracts of the Earth's surface.
Carbon take-up
This study is described as significant because it shows that O3 also has a large, indirect effect in the lower part of the atmosphere. Research into ground-level ozone has tended to concentrate on its harmful effects on human lungs. But the gas also damages plants, reducing their effectiveness as a carbon sink to soak up excess CO2 from the atmosphere. Co-author Stephen Sitch, from the Met Office's Hadley Centre, said: Calculations of the efficiency of land ecosystems to take up carbon would be less efficient than we thought previously.Furthermore, Peter Cox said: The indirect effect is of a similar magnitude, or even larger, than the direct effect.
There are uncertainties, Professor Cox admits; but he added: Arguably, we have been looking in the wrong place for the key impacts of ozone.Ozone enters plants through pores, called stomata, in the leaves. Interfering with the reactions involved in photosynthesis, it leaves the plants weakened and undersized.
Complex interactions
However, efforts to determine how rising levels of ozone will affect global plant growth are complicated by other factors. High levels of both CO2 and O3 cause stomata to close. This means they take up less of the carbon dioxide they need for photosynthesis, but also absorb less of the harmful ozone. The researchers built a computer model to estimate the impact of predicted changes in ozone levels on the land carbon sink over a period running from 1900 to 2100. This model was designed to take into account the effect of ozone on plant photosynthesis and the interactions between O3 and CO2 through the closure of pores. They used two scenarios, depending on whether plants were deemed to have high or low sensitivity to ozone. Under the high scenario, ozone reduced plant productivity by 23%; under the low scenario, productivity was reduced by 14%.
It's an interesting effect, and I don't think it has been introduced into a coupled [computer] model before so that the overall effect can be seen, said Dr Nathan Gillett, from the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, UK, who was not involved in the study. The results may have implications for global food production, particularly in vulnerable areas. Paul.Rincon-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
EXTREME WEATHER IN THE WORLD
IN NEWS FROM TUESDAY JULY 24,07 - THOUSANDS OF GALLONS OF OIL WERE SENT TO THE HIGHWAY AND SEA IN BURNABY B.C AS A WORKER HIT A OIL LINE.
ELSEWHERE SEVERE RECORD HEAT TO SEVERE RECORD RAINFALL. PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD STRUGGLED WITH THE CRUELER SIDE OF WORLD EVENTS. IN HUNGRY 500 DEAD FROM HEAT WAVE, IN THE BALKANS 30 DEAD FROM HEAT WAVES. OTHER PARTS OF EUROPE FELT THE BURN AND HEAT OF FIRES FROM THE HOT DRY CONDITIONS. ENGLAND IS STILL FLOODED BADLY AND HERE IN CANADA ESPECIALLY IN THE PRAIRIES HEAT HOVERED AT SASKATOON 37, REGINA 35, EDMONTON 32, AND WINNEPEG 34 DEGREES.
FLOODING AND LANDSLIDES HAVE KILLED 500 IN CHINA. WAKE UP FOLKS THE TRIBULATION PERIOD IS NEAR. ALSO THE TSX DROPPED 400 POINTS AND THE DOW DROPPED 226 POINTS TUESDAY.
I'D SAY LUKE 21:25-26 IS COMING TO PASS GREATLY, NATIONS IN DISTRESS WITH MASS CONFUSION DUE TO THE SEA AND THE WAVES ROARING AND THE HEAVENS BEING SHAKING (WEATHER CONDITIONS). AND ONE LAST HAPPENING TODAY THE CANADIAN DOLLAR IS AT 96.36 TO THE US DOLLAR ALMOST AT PAR, THE FIRST TIME THE DOLLAR HAS BEEN THIS HIGH SINCE FEB 1977.
IN NEWS FOR WEDNESDAY JULY 25,07 - IN DALLAS AT I-35 A NUMBER OF GAS EXPLOSIONS OCCURED AS WELDING GAS EXPLODED. AS THEY EXPLODED IT LOOKED LIKE DOMINOES FALLING, AS FAR AS I HEARD 2 PEOPLE WERE INJURED. AND IN ATLANTA POLICE ARE LOOKING FOR A MURDERER WHO SHOT A 9 YEAR OLD GIRL.
Extreme weather conditions hit Europe
25.07.2007 - 09:29 CET | By Helena Spongenberg
Extreme weather conditions have hit Europe with record-high temperatures causing deaths in south-eastern Europe while heavy rainfall in northern Europe leads to major floods in some parts of the UK. Around 500 people have died in Hungary in the past week alone, which has seen a daily mean temperature of 30C across the country, while the temperature reached a record high of 41.9C in the southern city of Kiskunhalas. The deaths - from 15 to 22 July - were caused by heatstroke, cardiovascular problems and other illnesses aggravated by the heat – mainly among the older population, said Anna Paldy, from the Hungarian National Institute of Environmental Health, according to BBC News. The heat wave has also hit Austria, Romania - where at least 30 people have died – and has also been blamed for widespread forest fires in Greece, Italy, Macedonia and Serbia.
Temperatures hit a historic 43C in Belgrade, 44C in Bulgaria and 45C in Bosnia and Macedonia, according to press reports. The Greek government has urged people to restrict their movements and stay indoors.It is the second heat wave in the southeast European region this year where record temperatures in June have already ensured that this is the hottest summer in Greece for a century.In northwest Europe the extreme weather conditions are also creating chaos although with limited numbers of deaths.Heavy rainfall in the region where overflowing rivers have caused severe flooding in the UK and southern Germany.Days of rain have turned swathes of central and western England into lakes, flooding 4,500 houses, threatening many more and leaving cars submerged. Hundreds of thousands have been without drinking water and electricity.
We are coming to terms with some of the issues surrounding climate change, UK prime minister Gordon Brown said recently about his country's floods, which are the worst seen in the last 60 years.Last week, EU environment commissioner Stavros Dimas urged member states to treat water as a scarce commodity as the warming trend, and accompanying droughts, will rise in southeast Europe.Droughts have increased during the past 30 years and cost the European economy at least €100 billion, according to EU data.The European Commission on Tuesday (24 July) released its annual crop yield forecast for Europe, saying that the 2007 total cereal harvest will be 1,6 percent below the average of the last five years with Central and Eastern Europe losing out the most.Heat waves, droughts and excessive rain across Europe has been a great factor to this result, the EU executive said.
A 21st century catastrophe
By Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor
Published: 24 July 2007
Flood-ravaged Britain is suffering from a wholly new type of civil emergency, it is clear today: a disaster caused by 21st-century weather. This weather is different from anything that has gone before. The floods it has caused, which have left more than a third of a million people without drinking water, nearly 50,000 people without power, thousands more people homeless and caused more than £2bn worth of damage - and are still not over - have no precedent in modern British history.
Nothing in the past hundred years, in terms of flooding caused by rainfall, has been as bad. According to the Environment Agency, even the previous worst case, the extensive floods of spring 1947, which were aggravated by the vast snow melt that followed an exceptionally hard winter, has been surpassed.We have not seen flooding of this magnitude before, said the agency yesterday. The benchmark was 1947, and this has already exceeded it.And the 1947 floods were said to have been the worst for 200 years.Most remarkable of all is the fact that the astonishing picture the nation is now witnessing - whole towns cut off, gigantic areas underwater, mass evacuations, infrastructure paralysed and grotesquely swollen rivers, from the Severn and the Thames downwards not even at their peaks yet - has all been caused by a single day's rainfall. A month's worth and more in an hour. It is obvious that the Government and the civil powers, from Gordon Brown down to the emergency services, are struggling to cope, not only with the sheer physical scale of the disaster itself, but with the very concept of it. It is entirely unfamiliar. It is new. Yet it is exactly what has been forecast for the past decade and more.
No one can yet attribute the flood events of the past week, or indeed, those of June, when Yorkshire suffered what Gloucestershire and Worcestershire are suffering now - again from one single day's rainfall - directly to global warming. All climates have a natural variability which includes exceptional occurrences.But the catastrophic extreme rainfall events of the summer of 2007, on 24 June and 20 July, are entirely consistent with repeated predictions of what climate change will bring.
It is nearly 10 years since the scientists of the UK Climate Impacts Programme first gave their detailed forecast of what global warming had in store for Britain in the 21st century - and high up on the list was rainfall, increasing both in frequency and intensity.This was thought most likely to happen in winter, with summers predicted to be hotter and dryer. But yesterday Peter Stott of the Met Office's Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, an author of a new scientific paper linking increases in rainfall to climate change, commented: It is possible under climate change that there could be an increase of extreme rainfall even under general drying.The paper by Dr Stott and other authors, reported in The Independent yesterday, detects for the first time a human fingerprint in rainfall increases in recent decades in the mid-latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere - that is, it finds they were partly caused by global warming, itself caused by emissions of greenhouse gases.
The public as a whole appears not to have taken the extreme rainfall predictions on board, thinking of climate change in terms of hotter weather. But the science community has been fully aware of it, and has steadily reinforced the warnings.One of the most important came from a group of experts commissioned to look at the risks by the Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir David King, under the Government's Foresight Programme, in 2004. Their report, Future Flooding, said that unless precautions were taken, more severe floods brought about by climate change could massively increase the number of people and the amount of property at risk. Yet once again, this hardly penetrated the public consciousness.Amidst all the news of communities being overwhelmed by water yesterday, one very significant announcement, from Gordon Brown and the Secretary of State for the Environment, Hilary Benn, was that the Government is setting up an independent inquiry to look at the flood events of June and July.
Its report will be immensely important and may prove a milestone in terms of the British public's appreciation of the reality of climate change. It will doubtless focus on the key problem in terms of flood response - there is no one minister, or other person, in overall charge - but it may also take a view of the disaster in terms of global warming, and may well come to the conclusion that we are already witnessing the future. The floods of 2007 may eventually be regarded as a wake-up call to the warming climate's rapidly approaching effects.Nobody saw them coming. But that appears to be the way of a changing climate. In April 1989 Margaret Thatcher, then Prime Minister, gave her Cabinet a seminar on global warming at No 10 and one of the speakers was the scientist and green guru James Lovelock. A reporter asked him afterwards what would be the first signs of global warming. He replied: Surprises. Asked to explain, he said: The hurricane of October 1987 was a surprise, wasn't it? There'll be more.The floods of 2007 were a surprise as well, and if Dr Lovelock is right, there'll be more of them too. Welcome to the weather of the 21st century.
The flood of 1947
The Great Flood of 1947, the previous worst inundation caused by rainfall in Britain, swamped almost all of the rivers in the South, Midlands and the North-east, submerged 700,000 acres of land and caused an estimated £4bn worth of damage (in today's money).The deluge was predominantly caused by the rapid thaw of snow and ice that had covered much of England after a particularly long and cold winter. The weather patterns that caused the thaw also caused a number of torrential downpours, exacerbating the flooding.The timing could not have been worse; Britain was still recovering from the war. Rationing was harsh, deprivation widespread and the economy was teetering. What made the catastrophe even more unfortunate was that it occurred before the era of flood insurance.The flooding started across the South, from Somerset to Kent, as many rivers broke their banks. By 14 March, parts of west and north-east London had been submerged. The next day, the river Thames overflowed its banks at Caversham, near Reading, and around the Lea Valley to the east of London.
By the end of the month, an estimated 100 000 homes had been flooded, hundreds of thousands of people displaced and the year's crops largely wiped out.
EU unveils bulky new treaty draft
23.07.2007 - 17:39 CET | By Mark Beunderman
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU kicked off its procedural journey towards a new Treaty on Monday with 277 pages of draft Treaty text on the table, and Poland showing a fresh willingness to compromise on the sensitive issue of voting weights.
At the EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels, the Portuguese Presidency presented a full draft version of the new Treaty which is intended to replace the failed EU Constitution, rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005. The document has the cumbersome working title Draft Treaty Amending The Treaty On European Union And The Treaty Establishing The European Community - but it will most likely be called Reform Treaty, a term used by EU leaders in June.
The core of the text unveiled on Monday, has 145 pages, accompanied by almost as many pages (132) of protocols and declarations. There are total 12 protocols and 51 declarations. The rejected Constitution had 475 pages of text, but this document was intended to replace all EU Treaties from the past. The newly-proposed Reform Treaty merely amends the existing Maastricht and Rome Treaties, which will legally continue to exist under different names. The Portuguese draft forms the basis of member states' formal round of negotiations on the new Treaty in an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC), which was launched at Monday's meeting of foreign ministers.
Portuguese foreign minister Luis Amado says Lisbon is aiming to finalise the IGC talks as soon as possible and that it is sticking to the timetable to wrap up the talks at an informal EU leaders' meeting in Portugal in October. The presidency has received some encouragement from Poland, which indicated it would not insist on being able to block decisions in the EU Council - member states' decision-making body, for up to two years. Warsaw had made its claim under the so-called Ioaninna compromise, which enables an individual member state to delay a decision made by a majority of countries if the decision hurts the interests of that particular country.
But Ana Fotyga, Polish foreign minister, said during the IGC opening ceremony that her country would accept the existing Ioaninna period of blocking legislation of around three months. She added that in return, Warsaw would like to see the Ioaninna provisions included in the core treaty text instead of in the protocol in order to give it stronger legal status. Mrs Fotyga's intervention was explained by observers as a watering-down of Warsaw's tough stance on the issue so far. Andrew Duff, one of the three European Parliament representatives in the IGC talks, said, this is an improvement of the Polish position. But he added that Warsaw's wish to have the blocking clause included in the core treaty would likely run into fresh resistance from other delegations.
Portugal's Mr Amado said that Mrs Fotyga had given a positive and constructive intervention, adding that the issues that Mrs Fotyga raised will be dealt with at the technical level.Portugal is seeking to keep the IGC talks in the hands of legal experts and not politicians, for as long as possible, to avoid unravelling the detailed political deal on the treaty, which was clinched by EU leaders under the previous EU Presidency in June. I will not say there will not at the end be some political problems, but at the moment, that is premature, Mr Amado said. Czech Vice Prime-Minister Alexandr Vondra, also present at the Brussels meeting, said Prague would support Warsaw's new line on the voting issues, but would also seek further clarifications on several institutional technicalities itself.
Another source of political wrangling lies potentially in the UK's opt-out from the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights, amid an ongoing debate on the exact scope of the opt-out. In addition, Poland reaffirmed on Monday that it would like to keep its options open on opting out of the charter.
Just like the constitution, say friends and foes of new EU treaty
24.07.2007 - 09:42 CET | By Lucia Kubosova
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Both advocates and critics of the complete draft of the new EU treaty highlight its similarity with the bloc's failed constitution. While advocates consider it the argument for a swift ratification through parliaments, critics maintain it should be decided by public referendum.Diplomats and legal experts from EU member states are gathering on Tuesday (24 July) to kick off the first round of talks over the bloc's Reform treaty, formally unveiled as a full 277-page version at a meeting of foreign ministers on Monday. According to EU officials, the launch of the Intergovernmental conference on the new treaty should be a smooth process of clearing away minor differences over technical details rather than serious political issues.
The draft is based on a detailed outline agreed by the bloc's leaders in late June. It stems from the legal text contained in the draft EU constitution, which was given a red light from French and Dutch citizens in 2005.Valery Giscard d'Estaing, former chairman of the European Convention which drafted the 2004 constitution, has pointed out that the changes transforming it into Reform treaty are purely cosmetic.But while the constitution was supposed to be adopted by referendum in several countries, the new document looks likely to be ratified predominantly by national MPs, with only Ireland openly signalling a popular vote.For some, the similarity in content between the two documents should be followed by the same ratification method previously envisaged for the constitution. I haven't found one single difference in legal obligations, argues a veteran Danish MEP Jens-Peter Bonde, from a eurosceptic Group for Independence and Democracy in the European Parliament.The form is different, but the content is the same. That is why I propose a referendum in all EU, he added in a statement.
Heated debate in the UK
The same message is expressed by UK conservative opposition and eurosceptic political activists, such as Open Europe which argues that its analysis has shown 96 percent of the new text is the same as the rejected constitution.If Brown now tries to carry on pretending that this is somehow a different document, it will be one of the most audacious political lies in the last couple of decades. It would be simply ludicrous, said the group's director Neil O'Brien.But while the British prime minister Gordon Brown has not yet openly ruled out a popular vote on the issue, his Europe minister Jim Murphy suggested the calls for a referendum were frankly absurd, in his speech to the UK's House of Commons on Monday (23 July), according to the UK Daily Telegraph.Similarly, the British foreign minister David Miliband argued in Brussels, The concept of a constitution has been abandoned. That is made clear in the new treaty. In that context we don't think there needs to be a constitutional referendum.The notion that popular votes should be avoided so as to prevent the 2005 French and Dutch scenario became part of the strategy following the decision by German chancellor Angela Merkel to revive the constitutional process, in a bid to save the institutional reforms the charter was to introduce.Advocates of a parliamentary ratification of the new treaty argue that national deputies are representatives of EU citizens and so their vote should not be played down as less significant to public opinion.
EU seeks balanced approach to the Middle East
25.07.2007 - 09:20 CET | By Renata Goldirova
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Tony Blair, the former UK premier and the newly-appointed envoy of the Mideast Quartet, has urged Israelis and the Palestinians to capitalize on a current moment of opportunity, while the European Union seeks a balanced approach to the region. I think there is a sense of possibility, but whether that sense of possibility can be translated into something that is something that needs to be worked at and thought about over time, Mr Blair said on Tuesday (24 July).
It was Mr Blair's first visit to Israel and the West Bank since his appointment by the international Quartet - the US, the EU, the United Nations and Russia - to bolster economic recovery and institution-building in the Palestinian territory.
The comment comes just a day after EU foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels, also spoke of a positive momentum and called on the parties to desist from any action that threatens the viability of a [two-state] solution.I sense a moderate optimism about a possibility of launching a political initiative", EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said. However, some diplomats indicated that ministerial debate had shown differences on what kind of message should be sent to the region, with some EU capitals – such as Berlin or Bratislava – pushing for more balanced wording. On the other hand, France, Sweden, Cyprus and Malta stressed that an EU message should reflect the Israeli occupation and settlements as being the core problem.
In their final statement, EU ministers welcome Israel's move to release 255 Palestinian prisoners and the partial transfer of withheld Palestinian tax and custom revenues. At the same time, however, they call for the immediate and complete release of remaining and future funds as well as for a removal of checkpoints and barriers in the West Bank. In addition, while recognizing Israel's legitimate right to self defence, the EU urged Israel to exercise utmost restraint and underlined that action should not be disproportionate or in contradiction to international humanitarian law.The Union should apply a balanced approach to maximum extend in order to seize a positive momentum and remain credible to both parties, Slovakia's foreign minister Jan Kubis stressed. Currently, all diplomatic efforts are channelled towards an international Middle East peace conference due in September – something expected to give new impetus to bilateral Israeli-Palestine dialog and the moribund peace process as such.
According to Germany's foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the meeting would be an opportunity to draw conclusions on how we can move ahead on the way to a two-state solution.An Arab peace initiative is seen as a major element in moving the Middle East peace process forward by the EU bloc. The proposal - to be also discussed by Israel, Egypt and Jordan later today (25 July) - foresees full Arab recognition of Israel in return for lands the Jewish state captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Secret memo: One-world agenda dominates SPP summit
Document reveals plan for meeting of U.S., Mexico, Canada leaders
July 24, 2007 - By Jerome R. Corsi - WorldNetDaily.com
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with her counterparts, Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay and Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa at February meeting
A multinational business agenda is driving the upcoming summit meeting of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, according to a document obtained through an Access to Information Act request in Canada. The memo shows a secondary focus of the leaders' meeting in Montebello, Quebec, Aug. 20-21, will be to prepare for a continental avian flu or human pandemic and establish a permanent continental emergency management coordinating body to deal not only with health emergencies but other unspecified emergencies as well.
As WND has reported, President Bush, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexico's President Felipe Calderon will attend the third SPP summit. The Security and Prosperity Partnership is unveiled in Jerome Corsi's book, The Late, Great USA.The document, obtained by Canadian private citizen Chris Harder, is a two-page heavily redacted summary of the ministerial meeting in Ottawa, held Feb. 23 between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her counterparts, Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay and Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. The purpose of the Feb. 23 meeting in Ottawa was to set the agenda for the August summit. The Access to Information Act-obtained memo noted the nation's leaders intend next month to pursue the five priorities set at their second summit meeting in Cancun in March 2005:
Strengthening Competitiveness
Avian and Pandemic Influenza
Emergency Management
Energy Security
Secure Borders
Of the five issues, the memo clearly states recommendations by the North American Competitiveness Council, or NACC, regarding competitiveness took centerpiece at the Feb. 23 meeting. Almost immediately, the memo says, governments will need to begin assessing the potential impact of adopting recommendations made by the NACC and coordinating their response to the authors of the report.The memo states the most dynamic element on the plenary agenda was a meeting with the NACC, the body created by the Leaders in 2006 to give the private sector a formal role in providing advice on how to enhance competitiveness in North America.The NACC consists of 30 multinational business corporations that advise SPP and set the action agenda for its 20 trilateral bureaucratic working groups. The memo notes the NACC was created by the leaders in 2006 to give the private sector a formal role in providing advice on how to enhance competitiveness in North America.
According to the memo, the NACC made recommendations in three areas: border-crossing facilitation, standards and regulatory cooperation, and energy integration. The memo suggested NACC members were getting impatient, charging the speed of SPP regulatory change was too slow. The members complained of the private sector's seeming inability to influence the pace of regulatory change from the bottom up.Some NACC representatives,the memo comments, felt that direct signals from ministers were required if work was to advance at a pace rapid enough to address challenges from more dynamic international competitors – particularly China. The subtext was clear: In the absence of ministerial endorsement, bureaucracies are unlikely to act on the more challenging recommendations.The memo noted the ministers agreed at their Feb. 23 meeting to finalize by June a plan to create a coordinating body to prepare for the North American response to an outbreak of avian or pandemic influenza. The leaders are expected to finalize the plan at the August summit.
The memo also reported ministers agreed to create a coordinating body on emergency management similar to that set up for avian or pandemic flu. The governance structure of coordinating body was also scheduled for completion in June, so it could be presented to the leaders for final approval at the August summit. A comment at the end of the memo said the ministers at their Feb. 23 meeting acknowledged that the SPP was largely unknown or misunderstood and needed to be better communicated beyond the officials and the business groups involved.WND has reported that as many as 10,000 protesters plan to assemble in Quebec to show opposition to the summit.
The Corbett Report, a Canadian blog that first reported on the memo obtained by Harder, noted the term Security and Prosperity was first used by the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, or CCOCE, in a Jan. 23, 2003, report entitled, Security and Prosperity: Toward a New Canada-United States Partnership in North America. CCOCE's membership consists of 150 of Canada's leading businesses. In the U.S., the Chamber of Commerce would be considered a counterpart. WND previously reported on National Security Presidential Directive No. 51 and Homeland Security Presidential Directive No. 20, which allocate to the office of the president the authority to direct all levels of government in the event he declares a national emergency.
WND also has previously reported that under SPP, the military of the U.S. and Canada are turning USNORTHCOM into a domestic military command structure, with authority extending to Mexico, even though Mexico has not formally joined with the current U.S.-Canadian USNORTHCOM command structure.
DEBKAfile reports: US Air Force B-2 Stealth bombers will soon be fitted with newly-developed 15-tonne Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs
July 23, 2007, 10:05 AM (GMT+02:00)
New Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb
American military sources say the gigantic new bunker-blaster is designed to hit fortified underground targets such as Iran’s uranium-enrichment facility at Natanz.
It will be capable of drilling through many meters of earth or concrete. When it falls from a high altitude, the MOP – composed of 20% explosives, 80% hardened metal - will punch a hole in the toughest protective casing before exploding in depth. It is GPS guided.DEBKAfile’s military sources reveal that Israel’s RAFAEL has upgraded its US-made SPICE air-to-ground missile, adding a stand-off precision guidance kit.
This kit has been cleared for the US-made BLU-109 penetrator warhead, carried by Israeli warplanes, which is rated one of the top-line US weapons capable of hitting fortified targets from the air or warship.Its effective drop range has been extended from 60km to 90km enabling Israeli warplanes to release the missile to target from outside enemy territory without being exposed to air defense fire.The Israel-made PGM cannot be jammed since it does not depend on coordinates which can be falsified. After the targets are loaded into the bomb’s computer and dropped, it navigates and guides itself without pilot intervention and cannot therefore be diverted in mid-flight. The unveiling of these super-weapons comes shortly after satellite pictures showed new digging efforts in the mountains just outside Iran’s Natanz facility. Analysts worldwide believe a tunnel complex is under development.
Tisha B'Av (July 24): Next Year in Jerusalem!
Israel is braced for trouble. Why not? The calendar is relentlessly ticking down to the Ninth of Av (Tisha B’Av) that falls on July 24 this year. Jewish people around the world fasted on Tuesday [July 3]. This marked the beginning of their annual three-week mourning period commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples. During this three-week observance, weddings and other party celebrations are not permitted, and people refrain from cutting their hair. They avoid eating meat, and wine is only served as part of the Sabbath. Jews will not wear new clothes during the fast on the Ninth of Av.
“Five misfortunes befell our fathers…on the ninth of Av…it was decreed that our fathers should not enter the (Promised) Land, the Temple was destroyed the first and second time, Bethar was captured, and the city (Jerusalem) was ploughed up (Mishnah Ta’anit 4:6). The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC, and the Second Temple by the Romans in AD 70. Bethar was the last fortress to hold out against the Romans during the Bar Kochba revolt in AD 135. It fell, thereby sealing the fate of the Jewish people of that day. The sorrow of Tisha B’Av has continued for the Jews. In 1492, King Ferdinand of Spain issued the expulsion decree, setting Tisha B’Av as the final date by which not one, solitary Jew would be allowed to walk on Spanish soil. World War I, which started the merciless march toward the Holocaust, began on Tisha B’Av.
The prohibitions applied for the remembrance of the Jewish pain and sorrow connected with Tisha B’Av is more stringent than for Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Jews are not permitted to wash, be anointed, or wear leather shoes during this time. The last meal before the 21-day observance usually consists of one hard-boiled egg and bread. It should be eaten alone so as to avoid a quorum, which would provide a blessing. It is customary to eat this meal while sitting on a stool, indicating its loneliness. This custom is to remind the Jewish observer of sitting shiva (grieving for a lost loved one). This year, the Chief Rabbis Yonah Metger and Shlomo Amar have emphasized the situation facing Israel today. “It is a time of trouble for Israel: Israel's enemies sound off and lift their heads in arrogance and conceit, opening their mouths wide with threats...They boast of their desire to destroy the Jews, read a portion of the letter carried by Israel National News.
But as always, the Jew has hope. It is taught that Tisha B’Av is a love story. It is when observers express the hope that the Messiah, who according to Jewish tradition will be born on this day, is indeed already in the world. They look to the next Tisha B’Av, hoping and praying that it will be celebrated next year in His Presence which will be in joy-filled Jerusalem and in the Third Temple. The rabbis wrote in their article: Let us cry out with all our strength, and call to our God and the God of our fathers from the depths of our heart—for 'God is close to all who call upon Him in truth' (Psalm 145). They observed: God's salvation can come in the blink of an eye, and urged the nation of Israel to be ready. (By Ron Ross, Bridges for Peace Israel Mosaic Radio, July 5, 2007)
Prayer Focus
Many Christian groups are designating this time period to intercede for Israel. Pray that God will be merciful to Israel as they possibly face more conflict in the days ahead.
Scripture
Come, and let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up (Hosea 6:1).
Microchips mulled for HIV carriers in Indonesia's Papua
Jul 24 03:57 AM US/Eastern AFP
Lawmakers in Indonesia's Papua are mulling the selective use of chip implants in HIV carriers to monitor their behaviour in a bid to keep them from infecting others, a doctor said Tuesday. John Manangsang, a doctor who is helping to prepare a new healthcare regulation bill for Papua's provincial parliament, said that unusual measures were needed to combat the virus. We in the government in Papua have to think hard on ways to provide protection to people from the spread of the disease, Manangsang told AFP. Some of the infected people experience a change of behaviour and can turn more aggressive and would not think twice of infecting others, he alleged, saying lawmakers were considering various sanctions for these people.
Among one of the means being considered is the monitoring of those infected people who can pose a danger to others,Manangsang said. The use of chip implants is one of the ways to do so, but only for those few who turn aggressive and clearly continue to disregard what they know about the disease and spread the virus to others, he said. A decision was still a long way off, he added. The head of the Papua chapter of the National AIDS Commission, Constant Karma, reportedly slammed the proposal as a violation of human rights. People with HIV/AIDS are not like sharks under observation so that they have to be implanted with microchips to monitor their movements, he told the Jakarta Post on Tuesday. Any form of identification of people with HIV/AIDS violates human rights.According to data from Papua's health office cited by the Post, the province has just over 3,000 people living with HIV/AIDS. Some 356 deaths have been reported. Papua has a population of about 2.5 million.
Evangelist says Bible speaks to Potter series white magic
Ed Thomas - OneNewsNow.com - July 24, 2007
It is no coincidence that a Christian ministry has updated its comic book parody of the Harry Potter series in time for the latest Potter movie and book releases. Evangelist Tim Todd, who heads up Revival Fires International, says both the church and the secular world need to understand the danger for children and teens in embracing occult literature.Todd acknowledges that no book series in recent years has achieved the success of the Harry Potter series, which he describes as well-written -- but whose spiritual nature and philosophy is in opposition to scripture, he points out. Many young readers, he surmises, are often simply drawn to the drama and fantasy of the Potter series, without realizing the spiritual nature of the books.The Harry Potter books present a Godless universe -- one in which the most powerful wizard wins, says the evangelist. And in these books, the hero is a wizard who shows no evidence of belief in God and does not use the power of prayer to combat evil.Todd contends the church has not looked closely enough at the phenomenon of the wizard's saga and the danger of it from a biblical standpoint. The Harry Potter series -- it promotes sacrificing animals; it's emphasizing power regardless of good or evil; offering up blood sacrifices, he explains. In Deuteronomy chapter 18, it says that sorcery and witchcraft is wrong, it's sin .... This is not something that we want to be promoting to our children as being a good thing, Todd emphasizes.
The ministry leader shares a story related the Potter series. [T]his past week, in a children's [Bible] camp, there was a little girl who was just absolutely sold out on Harry Potter, he says. According to Todd, the girl repented of her obsession with the characters, but only after reading the Harry Polarity and the Sinister Sorcery Satire comic -- which is contained in his ministry's Truth for Youth Bibles.Because of cases like the girl in the Bible camp, he urges parents to realize that Satan is trying to reach even their children in church. We need to keep our children as far away from the things of the devil as we possibly can, Todd urges.American Family News Network.
Nerve gas antidote made by goats JULY 24,07
The goats produce the enzyme in their milk
Scientists have genetically modified goats to make a drug in their milk that protects against deadly nerve agents such as sarin and VX. These poisons are known collectively as organophosphates - a group of chemicals that also includes some pesticides used in farming. So far, the GM goats have made almost 15kg of a drug which binds to and neutralises organophosphate molecules. Details appear in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.
The drug, called recombinant butyrylcholinesterase, could be used as a protective prophylactic drug and also to treat people after exposure to nerve gas. None of them have been able to produce anything beyond milligramme amounts. In the goat, we can make two or three grams per litre Solomon Langermann, PharmAthene The US Department of Defense is funding the development effort by biotech firm PharmAthene to the tune of $213m (£105m).
It regards the drug as a promising way to protect its troops against exposure to nerve agents on the battlefield. Butyrylcholinesterase could also be stockpiled for use in the event of a terrorist attack on a city with chemical weapons. It is an enzyme that is made in small quantities by the human body. The compound can be purified from blood, but the yields are poor. However, the team at PharmAthene has been able to produce butyrylcholinesterase in large, commercial quantities and, the company says, at a reasonable cost.
Tough task
It is a very difficult molecule to produce. There is a long history of people trying to produce this in everything from insects to yeast to bacteria and mammalian cells, said Dr Solomon Langermann of PharmAthene, a co-author on the PNAS paper. None of them has been able to produce anything beyond milligram amounts. In the goat, we can make two or three grams per litre.The researchers inserted DNA for making the human form of butyrylcholinesterase into a vector molecule. This vector is then introduced into a goat embryo. This allows the human gene to be incorporated into the goat's DNA sequence. The resulting female animals, all healthy, produced large quantities of butyrylcholinesterase in their milk. The high yields are partly down to control elements - stretches of DNA added, along with the human gene, to the vector molecule. These control elements regulate how much of the enzyme the goat produces and ensure that most of it is produced in the milk, rather than in other tissues.
Safety trial
Once the enzyme was purified from milk, the scientists injected it into guinea pigs, and saw that it remained active in the bloodstream. The commercial name given to the butyrylcholinesterase enzyme is Protexia. Dr Langermann said that Protexia was more effective than the combination of the drugs atropine and 2-PAM currently carried by soldiers for protection against nerve agents. Those (older) drugs get cleared from the blood very rapidly. Even if the soldier were to survive, they would have very severe neurological damage, he told BBC News. With Protexia, you would survive and be able to go back on the battlefield.It is also effective against a variety of different organophosphate poisons. The product is still several years from entering use; it needs to pass a safety trial and seek approvals from the US government.
Arab ministers in Israel for land-for-peace talks By Adam Entous
Wed Jul 25, 9:23 AM ET
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Egyptian and Jordanian envoys from the Arab League, on their first visit to Israel to present an Arab land-for-peace plan, called on Wednesday for setting a rapid timetable for talks with the Palestinians over statehood. We need a precise timetable, a quick timetable and we urge Israel not to waste this historic opportunity. Time is not on our side, said Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdelelah al-Khatib, in Jerusalem with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he believed there was a chance in the near future for the process to ripen into talks that would, in effect, deal with the stages of establishing a Palestinian state.His comments were the clearest statement yet of Israel's intention to try to relaunch final-status talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose secular Fatah faction lost control of the Gaza Strip last month to Hamas Islamists.But Olmert said there were no precise timetables or stages established yet" for getting to discussions about permanent borders and the future of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees, all divisive issues in the Jewish state.
Neither Israel nor the visiting Arab envoys spelled out how significant progress could be made towards statehood with the Palestinian territories divided between Hamas-run Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where Fatah holds sway.The one-day visit to Israel by Gheit and Khatib, who both spoke at a news conference with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, was the first by Arab League representatives to promote the group's peace plan, stalled since 2002.The initiative offers Israel normal ties with all Arab states in return for a full withdrawal from the lands it seized in the 1967 Middle East war, creation of a Palestinian state and a just solution for Palestinian refugees.We want to hear your ideas and want to express our ideas, so that we'll be able to carry on, Olmert, who has said the plan had positive elements, told the envoys at his office.But citing demographic and security concerns, Israel opposes the return of Palestinian refugees to their former homes in what is now the Jewish state and wants to hold on to major settlement blocs in the West Bank.
TURNING POINT
Israel sought to cast the envoys' arrival as a potential turning point in relations with the Arab League, which has long shunned it. Livni described the visit as historic.Arab diplomats played down the gesture. Egypt and Jordan already have full relations with Israel, and despite U.S. and Israeli appeals to expand the number of Arab participants in the talks, Saudi Arabia and other Arab League members with no formal ties to the Jewish state have refused to take part.I will be more than happy that next time you come, you'll bring with you ministers from more Arab countries, Olmert said in his welcoming remarks to Gheit and Khatib.
The United States has been pushing Olmert to move ahead to serious negotiations over border issues with Abbas, who dismissed a unity coalition with Hamas last month after the Islamists seized control of Gaza.Olmert described his current talks with Abbas as serious and said the goal was to advance a process in a natural way towards discussion of central issues.Former British prime minister Tony Blair ended his first visit as international envoy to the Middle East on Wednesday after saying he saw a moment of opportunity for peace. But he offered no specifics in public.(Additional reporting by Allyn Fisher-Ilan)
July 25, 2007 - Danger - ARLENE KUSHNER
Ehud Olmert continues to be inordinately eager to promote a Palestinian state. Yesterday I wrote about the refusal of the leaders of the international community to recognize who the Palestinians really are and how unlikely is the possibility that they can put together a viable state. But I was remiss: I should have included the leaders of Israel.
Olmert is offering to hold negotiations on an Agreement of Principles for the establishment of a Palestinian state. What this means, and it makes me sick in the pit of my stomach, is that Olmert wants to push aside the difficult issues and yet negotiate on some of the factors that would be involved in establishment of a state -- such as the characteristics of the state, official institutions and customs arrangements.
What this does is provide tacit acknowledgement on our side of acceptance in principle of a state (that's what hits me in the stomach) even before there has been resolution of such issues as borders, refugees and the capital in Jerusalem. Olmert is assuming this will strengthen Abbas, who can show what he has achieved, and strengthen himself with the Israeli populace at the same time, as he will say that he is the one who can bring peace.What he is trying to do is restart the peace process even though he knows that the PA is weak and will not fulfill its obligations regarding security. Rather blows the mind, does it not?
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Aaron Lerner of IMRA points out today that what Olmert seeks to do is dangerous because within the context of the Road Map a sovereign Palestinian state can be created before the difficult final status issues are resolved, so that it would be possible for us to find ourselves with a Palestinian state adjacent to our nation without the Palestinians even signing off on end of conflict. And indeed, Lerner is correct. The Road Map (see http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/am/old/printer_982.shtml ) states:
In the second phase, efforts are focused on the option of creating an independent Palestinian state with provisional borders and attributes of sovereignty...as a way station to a permanent status settlement.It is not until phase three, that there is a permanent status agreement and an end to the conflict.
However... The very first phase of the plan calls for the Palestinians to immediately undertake an unconditional cessation of violence.This includes sustained, targeted, and effective operations aimed at confronting all those engaged in terror and dismantlement of terrorist capabilities and infrastructure.Also all official Palestinian institutions end incitement against Israel.If the Palestinians were held to this, there would be no progress. But once again the bar is being lowered and obligations are being waived: They can't do this? Let's move on.The stuff of nightmares.
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I note that in the report on this, released by Haaretz, one of the subjects on the table would be a tunnel between Judea and Samaria and Gaza, to provide contiguity. I am fascinated, as Hamas controls Gaza and is supposed to be excluded at present. Olmert is supposed to be supporting Abbas in his stand against Hamas.
And so I remain alert as to what will happen with regard to this. My take is that no one knows how this is going to play out. This provides some measure of comfort: the Palestinians have in the past messed up opportunities to have a state and their situation today is considerably less stable than it was previously.
While we must be on guard, stay informed, and fight what he plans with all our energy, the fact is that from Olmert's malign intentions to fulfillment of the reality is still a large step. There are many experts who see the PA as so unstable that it is incapable of actually achieving the status of a state.
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Ephraim Inbar has written an analytic piece for the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Bush Cannot Succeed in the Holy Land. He advances several reasons why Bush's attempt to form a Palestinian state is bound to fail:
-- Palestinian society cannot be reformed by outsiders. Middle Eastern societies have already proven their resistance to attempts by Western powers to change their old habits of doing business. It is naïve to believe that political and social dynamics rooted in centuries-old traditions can be easily manipulated by well-intentioned, but presumptuous Westerners. If ever reform is to occur it will be from within.
-- It is a fallacy to assume that economic assistance to the Palestinians can alleviate political problems.Since the Oslo Accords (September 1993), the Palestinian Authority (PA) has received the highest amount of economic aid per capita in the world. Yet, billions of euros transferred to the PA have been squandered and misused. The PA, like other Third World countries, was quite ingenious in siphoning parts of the aid to those members least in need of outside support.
Inbar speaks of the philosophy of Maimonides, who said that in the hierarchy of philanthropy helping someone become self-sufficient ranks first. ...the history of humanitarian aid in the last century...shows that outside economic aid is only as good as the ability of a recipient's economy and government to use it prudently and productively. Therefore, it is doubtful whether sending more money to the dysfunctional Palestinian economy, as President Bush proposes, will do any good.
-- It is a mistake to think that Abbas can be an agent of change and thus deserves support. [His] record as leader is dismal. He failed to unite the security services under one organ as pledged and has not followed through with his anti-corruption election campaign promises. The chaos within the PA increased under his presidency...The Palestinians have suffered from bad leadership for almost a century, and are in need of a strong leader...to rescue them from the crisis they have brought upon themselves. Unfortunately, such a courageous and visionary leader does not appear to be in sight.
-- It is a fallacy to assume that Palestinian society can be quickly transformed into a good neighbor of Israel and that a stable settlement is within reach. Since the Oslo Accords, the PA's education system, media, and dramatic militarization process has done great damage to the collective Palestinian psyche. A society mesmerized by the use of force and accustomed to the shaheed (martyr) ready to blow himself up among the hated Israelis will not change overnight. Numerous facets of Palestinian society have been radicalized and the widespread influence and popularity of Hamas is a clear indication of such a process.
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This last point is perhaps the most ignored, and it is critical. People are aware of corruption and a host of other problems in the PA. They tend to forget about the radicalization of the population that has taken place because of the incitement that has been engendered since Oslo started. This is the greatest irony: When Arafat gained control of the educational system and the media, instead of educating for peace, he educated for war and hatred. This has continued with Abbas, in particular with regard to textbooks. The lessons have been well learned.
The fact is that there was more hatred of Israel in the PA in the years when we were withdrawing from Arab population centers and trying to give them autonomy (1994-2000) than there had been when we administered all systems. When we were in control, we simply didn't permit that sort of incitement. Here is an example of trying to be nice and having it backfire totally. The hatred, the attitude that Israel is illegitimate and that Allah praises jihad, has all become entrenched.
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If this isn't game-playing, I do not know what it is: Envoys from Egypt and Jordan, originally charged by the Arab League with coming to Israel to do persuasion regarding the Arab League peace initiative, are finally here after a postponement in their visit. They were charged by the League, truly -- selected because they already have diplomatic ties with Israel. But these envoys are now insisting they don't represent the League but only their own nations. In fact, Egypt has gone to the trouble of specifically putting out a communiqué saying that their envoy, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, would be representing only his country.
What is this about? Israel had made note of the fact that this visit would be historic -- the first time that representatives of the Arab League would be visiting Israel. And, as I noted before, the Arabs weren't having it. Horrors! This might suggest that the various nations of the League recognize Israel, and they cannot allow that. And so, an about-face. Silly beyond words. They are ostensibly promoting a plan that would provide Israel with 'normal relations' with all these nations (if Israel pulled back to '67 lines, allowed refugees to return,etc.) You can tell how eager they are about this.
To make it sillier still: Saudi Arabia, as I have written, has backed off from the plan, even though this Arab League plan is really a Saudi plan. So it seems the normal relations with Israel wouldn't include the Saudis anyway.
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see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info
ELSEWHERE SEVERE RECORD HEAT TO SEVERE RECORD RAINFALL. PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD STRUGGLED WITH THE CRUELER SIDE OF WORLD EVENTS. IN HUNGRY 500 DEAD FROM HEAT WAVE, IN THE BALKANS 30 DEAD FROM HEAT WAVES. OTHER PARTS OF EUROPE FELT THE BURN AND HEAT OF FIRES FROM THE HOT DRY CONDITIONS. ENGLAND IS STILL FLOODED BADLY AND HERE IN CANADA ESPECIALLY IN THE PRAIRIES HEAT HOVERED AT SASKATOON 37, REGINA 35, EDMONTON 32, AND WINNEPEG 34 DEGREES.
FLOODING AND LANDSLIDES HAVE KILLED 500 IN CHINA. WAKE UP FOLKS THE TRIBULATION PERIOD IS NEAR. ALSO THE TSX DROPPED 400 POINTS AND THE DOW DROPPED 226 POINTS TUESDAY.
I'D SAY LUKE 21:25-26 IS COMING TO PASS GREATLY, NATIONS IN DISTRESS WITH MASS CONFUSION DUE TO THE SEA AND THE WAVES ROARING AND THE HEAVENS BEING SHAKING (WEATHER CONDITIONS). AND ONE LAST HAPPENING TODAY THE CANADIAN DOLLAR IS AT 96.36 TO THE US DOLLAR ALMOST AT PAR, THE FIRST TIME THE DOLLAR HAS BEEN THIS HIGH SINCE FEB 1977.
IN NEWS FOR WEDNESDAY JULY 25,07 - IN DALLAS AT I-35 A NUMBER OF GAS EXPLOSIONS OCCURED AS WELDING GAS EXPLODED. AS THEY EXPLODED IT LOOKED LIKE DOMINOES FALLING, AS FAR AS I HEARD 2 PEOPLE WERE INJURED. AND IN ATLANTA POLICE ARE LOOKING FOR A MURDERER WHO SHOT A 9 YEAR OLD GIRL.
Extreme weather conditions hit Europe
25.07.2007 - 09:29 CET | By Helena Spongenberg
Extreme weather conditions have hit Europe with record-high temperatures causing deaths in south-eastern Europe while heavy rainfall in northern Europe leads to major floods in some parts of the UK. Around 500 people have died in Hungary in the past week alone, which has seen a daily mean temperature of 30C across the country, while the temperature reached a record high of 41.9C in the southern city of Kiskunhalas. The deaths - from 15 to 22 July - were caused by heatstroke, cardiovascular problems and other illnesses aggravated by the heat – mainly among the older population, said Anna Paldy, from the Hungarian National Institute of Environmental Health, according to BBC News. The heat wave has also hit Austria, Romania - where at least 30 people have died – and has also been blamed for widespread forest fires in Greece, Italy, Macedonia and Serbia.
Temperatures hit a historic 43C in Belgrade, 44C in Bulgaria and 45C in Bosnia and Macedonia, according to press reports. The Greek government has urged people to restrict their movements and stay indoors.It is the second heat wave in the southeast European region this year where record temperatures in June have already ensured that this is the hottest summer in Greece for a century.In northwest Europe the extreme weather conditions are also creating chaos although with limited numbers of deaths.Heavy rainfall in the region where overflowing rivers have caused severe flooding in the UK and southern Germany.Days of rain have turned swathes of central and western England into lakes, flooding 4,500 houses, threatening many more and leaving cars submerged. Hundreds of thousands have been without drinking water and electricity.
We are coming to terms with some of the issues surrounding climate change, UK prime minister Gordon Brown said recently about his country's floods, which are the worst seen in the last 60 years.Last week, EU environment commissioner Stavros Dimas urged member states to treat water as a scarce commodity as the warming trend, and accompanying droughts, will rise in southeast Europe.Droughts have increased during the past 30 years and cost the European economy at least €100 billion, according to EU data.The European Commission on Tuesday (24 July) released its annual crop yield forecast for Europe, saying that the 2007 total cereal harvest will be 1,6 percent below the average of the last five years with Central and Eastern Europe losing out the most.Heat waves, droughts and excessive rain across Europe has been a great factor to this result, the EU executive said.
A 21st century catastrophe
By Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor
Published: 24 July 2007
Flood-ravaged Britain is suffering from a wholly new type of civil emergency, it is clear today: a disaster caused by 21st-century weather. This weather is different from anything that has gone before. The floods it has caused, which have left more than a third of a million people without drinking water, nearly 50,000 people without power, thousands more people homeless and caused more than £2bn worth of damage - and are still not over - have no precedent in modern British history.
Nothing in the past hundred years, in terms of flooding caused by rainfall, has been as bad. According to the Environment Agency, even the previous worst case, the extensive floods of spring 1947, which were aggravated by the vast snow melt that followed an exceptionally hard winter, has been surpassed.We have not seen flooding of this magnitude before, said the agency yesterday. The benchmark was 1947, and this has already exceeded it.And the 1947 floods were said to have been the worst for 200 years.Most remarkable of all is the fact that the astonishing picture the nation is now witnessing - whole towns cut off, gigantic areas underwater, mass evacuations, infrastructure paralysed and grotesquely swollen rivers, from the Severn and the Thames downwards not even at their peaks yet - has all been caused by a single day's rainfall. A month's worth and more in an hour. It is obvious that the Government and the civil powers, from Gordon Brown down to the emergency services, are struggling to cope, not only with the sheer physical scale of the disaster itself, but with the very concept of it. It is entirely unfamiliar. It is new. Yet it is exactly what has been forecast for the past decade and more.
No one can yet attribute the flood events of the past week, or indeed, those of June, when Yorkshire suffered what Gloucestershire and Worcestershire are suffering now - again from one single day's rainfall - directly to global warming. All climates have a natural variability which includes exceptional occurrences.But the catastrophic extreme rainfall events of the summer of 2007, on 24 June and 20 July, are entirely consistent with repeated predictions of what climate change will bring.
It is nearly 10 years since the scientists of the UK Climate Impacts Programme first gave their detailed forecast of what global warming had in store for Britain in the 21st century - and high up on the list was rainfall, increasing both in frequency and intensity.This was thought most likely to happen in winter, with summers predicted to be hotter and dryer. But yesterday Peter Stott of the Met Office's Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research, an author of a new scientific paper linking increases in rainfall to climate change, commented: It is possible under climate change that there could be an increase of extreme rainfall even under general drying.The paper by Dr Stott and other authors, reported in The Independent yesterday, detects for the first time a human fingerprint in rainfall increases in recent decades in the mid-latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere - that is, it finds they were partly caused by global warming, itself caused by emissions of greenhouse gases.
The public as a whole appears not to have taken the extreme rainfall predictions on board, thinking of climate change in terms of hotter weather. But the science community has been fully aware of it, and has steadily reinforced the warnings.One of the most important came from a group of experts commissioned to look at the risks by the Chief Scientific Adviser, Sir David King, under the Government's Foresight Programme, in 2004. Their report, Future Flooding, said that unless precautions were taken, more severe floods brought about by climate change could massively increase the number of people and the amount of property at risk. Yet once again, this hardly penetrated the public consciousness.Amidst all the news of communities being overwhelmed by water yesterday, one very significant announcement, from Gordon Brown and the Secretary of State for the Environment, Hilary Benn, was that the Government is setting up an independent inquiry to look at the flood events of June and July.
Its report will be immensely important and may prove a milestone in terms of the British public's appreciation of the reality of climate change. It will doubtless focus on the key problem in terms of flood response - there is no one minister, or other person, in overall charge - but it may also take a view of the disaster in terms of global warming, and may well come to the conclusion that we are already witnessing the future. The floods of 2007 may eventually be regarded as a wake-up call to the warming climate's rapidly approaching effects.Nobody saw them coming. But that appears to be the way of a changing climate. In April 1989 Margaret Thatcher, then Prime Minister, gave her Cabinet a seminar on global warming at No 10 and one of the speakers was the scientist and green guru James Lovelock. A reporter asked him afterwards what would be the first signs of global warming. He replied: Surprises. Asked to explain, he said: The hurricane of October 1987 was a surprise, wasn't it? There'll be more.The floods of 2007 were a surprise as well, and if Dr Lovelock is right, there'll be more of them too. Welcome to the weather of the 21st century.
The flood of 1947
The Great Flood of 1947, the previous worst inundation caused by rainfall in Britain, swamped almost all of the rivers in the South, Midlands and the North-east, submerged 700,000 acres of land and caused an estimated £4bn worth of damage (in today's money).The deluge was predominantly caused by the rapid thaw of snow and ice that had covered much of England after a particularly long and cold winter. The weather patterns that caused the thaw also caused a number of torrential downpours, exacerbating the flooding.The timing could not have been worse; Britain was still recovering from the war. Rationing was harsh, deprivation widespread and the economy was teetering. What made the catastrophe even more unfortunate was that it occurred before the era of flood insurance.The flooding started across the South, from Somerset to Kent, as many rivers broke their banks. By 14 March, parts of west and north-east London had been submerged. The next day, the river Thames overflowed its banks at Caversham, near Reading, and around the Lea Valley to the east of London.
By the end of the month, an estimated 100 000 homes had been flooded, hundreds of thousands of people displaced and the year's crops largely wiped out.
EU unveils bulky new treaty draft
23.07.2007 - 17:39 CET | By Mark Beunderman
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The EU kicked off its procedural journey towards a new Treaty on Monday with 277 pages of draft Treaty text on the table, and Poland showing a fresh willingness to compromise on the sensitive issue of voting weights.
At the EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels, the Portuguese Presidency presented a full draft version of the new Treaty which is intended to replace the failed EU Constitution, rejected by French and Dutch voters in 2005. The document has the cumbersome working title Draft Treaty Amending The Treaty On European Union And The Treaty Establishing The European Community - but it will most likely be called Reform Treaty, a term used by EU leaders in June.
The core of the text unveiled on Monday, has 145 pages, accompanied by almost as many pages (132) of protocols and declarations. There are total 12 protocols and 51 declarations. The rejected Constitution had 475 pages of text, but this document was intended to replace all EU Treaties from the past. The newly-proposed Reform Treaty merely amends the existing Maastricht and Rome Treaties, which will legally continue to exist under different names. The Portuguese draft forms the basis of member states' formal round of negotiations on the new Treaty in an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC), which was launched at Monday's meeting of foreign ministers.
Portuguese foreign minister Luis Amado says Lisbon is aiming to finalise the IGC talks as soon as possible and that it is sticking to the timetable to wrap up the talks at an informal EU leaders' meeting in Portugal in October. The presidency has received some encouragement from Poland, which indicated it would not insist on being able to block decisions in the EU Council - member states' decision-making body, for up to two years. Warsaw had made its claim under the so-called Ioaninna compromise, which enables an individual member state to delay a decision made by a majority of countries if the decision hurts the interests of that particular country.
But Ana Fotyga, Polish foreign minister, said during the IGC opening ceremony that her country would accept the existing Ioaninna period of blocking legislation of around three months. She added that in return, Warsaw would like to see the Ioaninna provisions included in the core treaty text instead of in the protocol in order to give it stronger legal status. Mrs Fotyga's intervention was explained by observers as a watering-down of Warsaw's tough stance on the issue so far. Andrew Duff, one of the three European Parliament representatives in the IGC talks, said, this is an improvement of the Polish position. But he added that Warsaw's wish to have the blocking clause included in the core treaty would likely run into fresh resistance from other delegations.
Portugal's Mr Amado said that Mrs Fotyga had given a positive and constructive intervention, adding that the issues that Mrs Fotyga raised will be dealt with at the technical level.Portugal is seeking to keep the IGC talks in the hands of legal experts and not politicians, for as long as possible, to avoid unravelling the detailed political deal on the treaty, which was clinched by EU leaders under the previous EU Presidency in June. I will not say there will not at the end be some political problems, but at the moment, that is premature, Mr Amado said. Czech Vice Prime-Minister Alexandr Vondra, also present at the Brussels meeting, said Prague would support Warsaw's new line on the voting issues, but would also seek further clarifications on several institutional technicalities itself.
Another source of political wrangling lies potentially in the UK's opt-out from the EU's Charter of Fundamental Rights, amid an ongoing debate on the exact scope of the opt-out. In addition, Poland reaffirmed on Monday that it would like to keep its options open on opting out of the charter.
Just like the constitution, say friends and foes of new EU treaty
24.07.2007 - 09:42 CET | By Lucia Kubosova
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Both advocates and critics of the complete draft of the new EU treaty highlight its similarity with the bloc's failed constitution. While advocates consider it the argument for a swift ratification through parliaments, critics maintain it should be decided by public referendum.Diplomats and legal experts from EU member states are gathering on Tuesday (24 July) to kick off the first round of talks over the bloc's Reform treaty, formally unveiled as a full 277-page version at a meeting of foreign ministers on Monday. According to EU officials, the launch of the Intergovernmental conference on the new treaty should be a smooth process of clearing away minor differences over technical details rather than serious political issues.
The draft is based on a detailed outline agreed by the bloc's leaders in late June. It stems from the legal text contained in the draft EU constitution, which was given a red light from French and Dutch citizens in 2005.Valery Giscard d'Estaing, former chairman of the European Convention which drafted the 2004 constitution, has pointed out that the changes transforming it into Reform treaty are purely cosmetic.But while the constitution was supposed to be adopted by referendum in several countries, the new document looks likely to be ratified predominantly by national MPs, with only Ireland openly signalling a popular vote.For some, the similarity in content between the two documents should be followed by the same ratification method previously envisaged for the constitution. I haven't found one single difference in legal obligations, argues a veteran Danish MEP Jens-Peter Bonde, from a eurosceptic Group for Independence and Democracy in the European Parliament.The form is different, but the content is the same. That is why I propose a referendum in all EU, he added in a statement.
Heated debate in the UK
The same message is expressed by UK conservative opposition and eurosceptic political activists, such as Open Europe which argues that its analysis has shown 96 percent of the new text is the same as the rejected constitution.If Brown now tries to carry on pretending that this is somehow a different document, it will be one of the most audacious political lies in the last couple of decades. It would be simply ludicrous, said the group's director Neil O'Brien.But while the British prime minister Gordon Brown has not yet openly ruled out a popular vote on the issue, his Europe minister Jim Murphy suggested the calls for a referendum were frankly absurd, in his speech to the UK's House of Commons on Monday (23 July), according to the UK Daily Telegraph.Similarly, the British foreign minister David Miliband argued in Brussels, The concept of a constitution has been abandoned. That is made clear in the new treaty. In that context we don't think there needs to be a constitutional referendum.The notion that popular votes should be avoided so as to prevent the 2005 French and Dutch scenario became part of the strategy following the decision by German chancellor Angela Merkel to revive the constitutional process, in a bid to save the institutional reforms the charter was to introduce.Advocates of a parliamentary ratification of the new treaty argue that national deputies are representatives of EU citizens and so their vote should not be played down as less significant to public opinion.
EU seeks balanced approach to the Middle East
25.07.2007 - 09:20 CET | By Renata Goldirova
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS – Tony Blair, the former UK premier and the newly-appointed envoy of the Mideast Quartet, has urged Israelis and the Palestinians to capitalize on a current moment of opportunity, while the European Union seeks a balanced approach to the region. I think there is a sense of possibility, but whether that sense of possibility can be translated into something that is something that needs to be worked at and thought about over time, Mr Blair said on Tuesday (24 July).
It was Mr Blair's first visit to Israel and the West Bank since his appointment by the international Quartet - the US, the EU, the United Nations and Russia - to bolster economic recovery and institution-building in the Palestinian territory.
The comment comes just a day after EU foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels, also spoke of a positive momentum and called on the parties to desist from any action that threatens the viability of a [two-state] solution.I sense a moderate optimism about a possibility of launching a political initiative", EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said. However, some diplomats indicated that ministerial debate had shown differences on what kind of message should be sent to the region, with some EU capitals – such as Berlin or Bratislava – pushing for more balanced wording. On the other hand, France, Sweden, Cyprus and Malta stressed that an EU message should reflect the Israeli occupation and settlements as being the core problem.
In their final statement, EU ministers welcome Israel's move to release 255 Palestinian prisoners and the partial transfer of withheld Palestinian tax and custom revenues. At the same time, however, they call for the immediate and complete release of remaining and future funds as well as for a removal of checkpoints and barriers in the West Bank. In addition, while recognizing Israel's legitimate right to self defence, the EU urged Israel to exercise utmost restraint and underlined that action should not be disproportionate or in contradiction to international humanitarian law.The Union should apply a balanced approach to maximum extend in order to seize a positive momentum and remain credible to both parties, Slovakia's foreign minister Jan Kubis stressed. Currently, all diplomatic efforts are channelled towards an international Middle East peace conference due in September – something expected to give new impetus to bilateral Israeli-Palestine dialog and the moribund peace process as such.
According to Germany's foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the meeting would be an opportunity to draw conclusions on how we can move ahead on the way to a two-state solution.An Arab peace initiative is seen as a major element in moving the Middle East peace process forward by the EU bloc. The proposal - to be also discussed by Israel, Egypt and Jordan later today (25 July) - foresees full Arab recognition of Israel in return for lands the Jewish state captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Secret memo: One-world agenda dominates SPP summit
Document reveals plan for meeting of U.S., Mexico, Canada leaders
July 24, 2007 - By Jerome R. Corsi - WorldNetDaily.com
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with her counterparts, Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay and Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa at February meeting
A multinational business agenda is driving the upcoming summit meeting of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, according to a document obtained through an Access to Information Act request in Canada. The memo shows a secondary focus of the leaders' meeting in Montebello, Quebec, Aug. 20-21, will be to prepare for a continental avian flu or human pandemic and establish a permanent continental emergency management coordinating body to deal not only with health emergencies but other unspecified emergencies as well.
As WND has reported, President Bush, Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexico's President Felipe Calderon will attend the third SPP summit. The Security and Prosperity Partnership is unveiled in Jerome Corsi's book, The Late, Great USA.The document, obtained by Canadian private citizen Chris Harder, is a two-page heavily redacted summary of the ministerial meeting in Ottawa, held Feb. 23 between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her counterparts, Canadian Foreign Minister Peter MacKay and Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. The purpose of the Feb. 23 meeting in Ottawa was to set the agenda for the August summit. The Access to Information Act-obtained memo noted the nation's leaders intend next month to pursue the five priorities set at their second summit meeting in Cancun in March 2005:
Strengthening Competitiveness
Avian and Pandemic Influenza
Emergency Management
Energy Security
Secure Borders
Of the five issues, the memo clearly states recommendations by the North American Competitiveness Council, or NACC, regarding competitiveness took centerpiece at the Feb. 23 meeting. Almost immediately, the memo says, governments will need to begin assessing the potential impact of adopting recommendations made by the NACC and coordinating their response to the authors of the report.The memo states the most dynamic element on the plenary agenda was a meeting with the NACC, the body created by the Leaders in 2006 to give the private sector a formal role in providing advice on how to enhance competitiveness in North America.The NACC consists of 30 multinational business corporations that advise SPP and set the action agenda for its 20 trilateral bureaucratic working groups. The memo notes the NACC was created by the leaders in 2006 to give the private sector a formal role in providing advice on how to enhance competitiveness in North America.
According to the memo, the NACC made recommendations in three areas: border-crossing facilitation, standards and regulatory cooperation, and energy integration. The memo suggested NACC members were getting impatient, charging the speed of SPP regulatory change was too slow. The members complained of the private sector's seeming inability to influence the pace of regulatory change from the bottom up.Some NACC representatives,the memo comments, felt that direct signals from ministers were required if work was to advance at a pace rapid enough to address challenges from more dynamic international competitors – particularly China. The subtext was clear: In the absence of ministerial endorsement, bureaucracies are unlikely to act on the more challenging recommendations.The memo noted the ministers agreed at their Feb. 23 meeting to finalize by June a plan to create a coordinating body to prepare for the North American response to an outbreak of avian or pandemic influenza. The leaders are expected to finalize the plan at the August summit.
The memo also reported ministers agreed to create a coordinating body on emergency management similar to that set up for avian or pandemic flu. The governance structure of coordinating body was also scheduled for completion in June, so it could be presented to the leaders for final approval at the August summit. A comment at the end of the memo said the ministers at their Feb. 23 meeting acknowledged that the SPP was largely unknown or misunderstood and needed to be better communicated beyond the officials and the business groups involved.WND has reported that as many as 10,000 protesters plan to assemble in Quebec to show opposition to the summit.
The Corbett Report, a Canadian blog that first reported on the memo obtained by Harder, noted the term Security and Prosperity was first used by the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, or CCOCE, in a Jan. 23, 2003, report entitled, Security and Prosperity: Toward a New Canada-United States Partnership in North America. CCOCE's membership consists of 150 of Canada's leading businesses. In the U.S., the Chamber of Commerce would be considered a counterpart. WND previously reported on National Security Presidential Directive No. 51 and Homeland Security Presidential Directive No. 20, which allocate to the office of the president the authority to direct all levels of government in the event he declares a national emergency.
WND also has previously reported that under SPP, the military of the U.S. and Canada are turning USNORTHCOM into a domestic military command structure, with authority extending to Mexico, even though Mexico has not formally joined with the current U.S.-Canadian USNORTHCOM command structure.
DEBKAfile reports: US Air Force B-2 Stealth bombers will soon be fitted with newly-developed 15-tonne Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs
July 23, 2007, 10:05 AM (GMT+02:00)
New Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb
American military sources say the gigantic new bunker-blaster is designed to hit fortified underground targets such as Iran’s uranium-enrichment facility at Natanz.
It will be capable of drilling through many meters of earth or concrete. When it falls from a high altitude, the MOP – composed of 20% explosives, 80% hardened metal - will punch a hole in the toughest protective casing before exploding in depth. It is GPS guided.DEBKAfile’s military sources reveal that Israel’s RAFAEL has upgraded its US-made SPICE air-to-ground missile, adding a stand-off precision guidance kit.
This kit has been cleared for the US-made BLU-109 penetrator warhead, carried by Israeli warplanes, which is rated one of the top-line US weapons capable of hitting fortified targets from the air or warship.Its effective drop range has been extended from 60km to 90km enabling Israeli warplanes to release the missile to target from outside enemy territory without being exposed to air defense fire.The Israel-made PGM cannot be jammed since it does not depend on coordinates which can be falsified. After the targets are loaded into the bomb’s computer and dropped, it navigates and guides itself without pilot intervention and cannot therefore be diverted in mid-flight. The unveiling of these super-weapons comes shortly after satellite pictures showed new digging efforts in the mountains just outside Iran’s Natanz facility. Analysts worldwide believe a tunnel complex is under development.
Tisha B'Av (July 24): Next Year in Jerusalem!
Israel is braced for trouble. Why not? The calendar is relentlessly ticking down to the Ninth of Av (Tisha B’Av) that falls on July 24 this year. Jewish people around the world fasted on Tuesday [July 3]. This marked the beginning of their annual three-week mourning period commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples. During this three-week observance, weddings and other party celebrations are not permitted, and people refrain from cutting their hair. They avoid eating meat, and wine is only served as part of the Sabbath. Jews will not wear new clothes during the fast on the Ninth of Av.
“Five misfortunes befell our fathers…on the ninth of Av…it was decreed that our fathers should not enter the (Promised) Land, the Temple was destroyed the first and second time, Bethar was captured, and the city (Jerusalem) was ploughed up (Mishnah Ta’anit 4:6). The First Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC, and the Second Temple by the Romans in AD 70. Bethar was the last fortress to hold out against the Romans during the Bar Kochba revolt in AD 135. It fell, thereby sealing the fate of the Jewish people of that day. The sorrow of Tisha B’Av has continued for the Jews. In 1492, King Ferdinand of Spain issued the expulsion decree, setting Tisha B’Av as the final date by which not one, solitary Jew would be allowed to walk on Spanish soil. World War I, which started the merciless march toward the Holocaust, began on Tisha B’Av.
The prohibitions applied for the remembrance of the Jewish pain and sorrow connected with Tisha B’Av is more stringent than for Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement). Jews are not permitted to wash, be anointed, or wear leather shoes during this time. The last meal before the 21-day observance usually consists of one hard-boiled egg and bread. It should be eaten alone so as to avoid a quorum, which would provide a blessing. It is customary to eat this meal while sitting on a stool, indicating its loneliness. This custom is to remind the Jewish observer of sitting shiva (grieving for a lost loved one). This year, the Chief Rabbis Yonah Metger and Shlomo Amar have emphasized the situation facing Israel today. “It is a time of trouble for Israel: Israel's enemies sound off and lift their heads in arrogance and conceit, opening their mouths wide with threats...They boast of their desire to destroy the Jews, read a portion of the letter carried by Israel National News.
But as always, the Jew has hope. It is taught that Tisha B’Av is a love story. It is when observers express the hope that the Messiah, who according to Jewish tradition will be born on this day, is indeed already in the world. They look to the next Tisha B’Av, hoping and praying that it will be celebrated next year in His Presence which will be in joy-filled Jerusalem and in the Third Temple. The rabbis wrote in their article: Let us cry out with all our strength, and call to our God and the God of our fathers from the depths of our heart—for 'God is close to all who call upon Him in truth' (Psalm 145). They observed: God's salvation can come in the blink of an eye, and urged the nation of Israel to be ready. (By Ron Ross, Bridges for Peace Israel Mosaic Radio, July 5, 2007)
Prayer Focus
Many Christian groups are designating this time period to intercede for Israel. Pray that God will be merciful to Israel as they possibly face more conflict in the days ahead.
Scripture
Come, and let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up (Hosea 6:1).
Microchips mulled for HIV carriers in Indonesia's Papua
Jul 24 03:57 AM US/Eastern AFP
Lawmakers in Indonesia's Papua are mulling the selective use of chip implants in HIV carriers to monitor their behaviour in a bid to keep them from infecting others, a doctor said Tuesday. John Manangsang, a doctor who is helping to prepare a new healthcare regulation bill for Papua's provincial parliament, said that unusual measures were needed to combat the virus. We in the government in Papua have to think hard on ways to provide protection to people from the spread of the disease, Manangsang told AFP. Some of the infected people experience a change of behaviour and can turn more aggressive and would not think twice of infecting others, he alleged, saying lawmakers were considering various sanctions for these people.
Among one of the means being considered is the monitoring of those infected people who can pose a danger to others,Manangsang said. The use of chip implants is one of the ways to do so, but only for those few who turn aggressive and clearly continue to disregard what they know about the disease and spread the virus to others, he said. A decision was still a long way off, he added. The head of the Papua chapter of the National AIDS Commission, Constant Karma, reportedly slammed the proposal as a violation of human rights. People with HIV/AIDS are not like sharks under observation so that they have to be implanted with microchips to monitor their movements, he told the Jakarta Post on Tuesday. Any form of identification of people with HIV/AIDS violates human rights.According to data from Papua's health office cited by the Post, the province has just over 3,000 people living with HIV/AIDS. Some 356 deaths have been reported. Papua has a population of about 2.5 million.
Evangelist says Bible speaks to Potter series white magic
Ed Thomas - OneNewsNow.com - July 24, 2007
It is no coincidence that a Christian ministry has updated its comic book parody of the Harry Potter series in time for the latest Potter movie and book releases. Evangelist Tim Todd, who heads up Revival Fires International, says both the church and the secular world need to understand the danger for children and teens in embracing occult literature.Todd acknowledges that no book series in recent years has achieved the success of the Harry Potter series, which he describes as well-written -- but whose spiritual nature and philosophy is in opposition to scripture, he points out. Many young readers, he surmises, are often simply drawn to the drama and fantasy of the Potter series, without realizing the spiritual nature of the books.The Harry Potter books present a Godless universe -- one in which the most powerful wizard wins, says the evangelist. And in these books, the hero is a wizard who shows no evidence of belief in God and does not use the power of prayer to combat evil.Todd contends the church has not looked closely enough at the phenomenon of the wizard's saga and the danger of it from a biblical standpoint. The Harry Potter series -- it promotes sacrificing animals; it's emphasizing power regardless of good or evil; offering up blood sacrifices, he explains. In Deuteronomy chapter 18, it says that sorcery and witchcraft is wrong, it's sin .... This is not something that we want to be promoting to our children as being a good thing, Todd emphasizes.
The ministry leader shares a story related the Potter series. [T]his past week, in a children's [Bible] camp, there was a little girl who was just absolutely sold out on Harry Potter, he says. According to Todd, the girl repented of her obsession with the characters, but only after reading the Harry Polarity and the Sinister Sorcery Satire comic -- which is contained in his ministry's Truth for Youth Bibles.Because of cases like the girl in the Bible camp, he urges parents to realize that Satan is trying to reach even their children in church. We need to keep our children as far away from the things of the devil as we possibly can, Todd urges.American Family News Network.
Nerve gas antidote made by goats JULY 24,07
The goats produce the enzyme in their milk
Scientists have genetically modified goats to make a drug in their milk that protects against deadly nerve agents such as sarin and VX. These poisons are known collectively as organophosphates - a group of chemicals that also includes some pesticides used in farming. So far, the GM goats have made almost 15kg of a drug which binds to and neutralises organophosphate molecules. Details appear in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences journal.
The drug, called recombinant butyrylcholinesterase, could be used as a protective prophylactic drug and also to treat people after exposure to nerve gas. None of them have been able to produce anything beyond milligramme amounts. In the goat, we can make two or three grams per litre Solomon Langermann, PharmAthene The US Department of Defense is funding the development effort by biotech firm PharmAthene to the tune of $213m (£105m).
It regards the drug as a promising way to protect its troops against exposure to nerve agents on the battlefield. Butyrylcholinesterase could also be stockpiled for use in the event of a terrorist attack on a city with chemical weapons. It is an enzyme that is made in small quantities by the human body. The compound can be purified from blood, but the yields are poor. However, the team at PharmAthene has been able to produce butyrylcholinesterase in large, commercial quantities and, the company says, at a reasonable cost.
Tough task
It is a very difficult molecule to produce. There is a long history of people trying to produce this in everything from insects to yeast to bacteria and mammalian cells, said Dr Solomon Langermann of PharmAthene, a co-author on the PNAS paper. None of them has been able to produce anything beyond milligram amounts. In the goat, we can make two or three grams per litre.The researchers inserted DNA for making the human form of butyrylcholinesterase into a vector molecule. This vector is then introduced into a goat embryo. This allows the human gene to be incorporated into the goat's DNA sequence. The resulting female animals, all healthy, produced large quantities of butyrylcholinesterase in their milk. The high yields are partly down to control elements - stretches of DNA added, along with the human gene, to the vector molecule. These control elements regulate how much of the enzyme the goat produces and ensure that most of it is produced in the milk, rather than in other tissues.
Safety trial
Once the enzyme was purified from milk, the scientists injected it into guinea pigs, and saw that it remained active in the bloodstream. The commercial name given to the butyrylcholinesterase enzyme is Protexia. Dr Langermann said that Protexia was more effective than the combination of the drugs atropine and 2-PAM currently carried by soldiers for protection against nerve agents. Those (older) drugs get cleared from the blood very rapidly. Even if the soldier were to survive, they would have very severe neurological damage, he told BBC News. With Protexia, you would survive and be able to go back on the battlefield.It is also effective against a variety of different organophosphate poisons. The product is still several years from entering use; it needs to pass a safety trial and seek approvals from the US government.
Arab ministers in Israel for land-for-peace talks By Adam Entous
Wed Jul 25, 9:23 AM ET
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Egyptian and Jordanian envoys from the Arab League, on their first visit to Israel to present an Arab land-for-peace plan, called on Wednesday for setting a rapid timetable for talks with the Palestinians over statehood. We need a precise timetable, a quick timetable and we urge Israel not to waste this historic opportunity. Time is not on our side, said Jordanian Foreign Minister Abdelelah al-Khatib, in Jerusalem with Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he believed there was a chance in the near future for the process to ripen into talks that would, in effect, deal with the stages of establishing a Palestinian state.His comments were the clearest statement yet of Israel's intention to try to relaunch final-status talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, whose secular Fatah faction lost control of the Gaza Strip last month to Hamas Islamists.But Olmert said there were no precise timetables or stages established yet" for getting to discussions about permanent borders and the future of Jerusalem and Palestinian refugees, all divisive issues in the Jewish state.
Neither Israel nor the visiting Arab envoys spelled out how significant progress could be made towards statehood with the Palestinian territories divided between Hamas-run Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where Fatah holds sway.The one-day visit to Israel by Gheit and Khatib, who both spoke at a news conference with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, was the first by Arab League representatives to promote the group's peace plan, stalled since 2002.The initiative offers Israel normal ties with all Arab states in return for a full withdrawal from the lands it seized in the 1967 Middle East war, creation of a Palestinian state and a just solution for Palestinian refugees.We want to hear your ideas and want to express our ideas, so that we'll be able to carry on, Olmert, who has said the plan had positive elements, told the envoys at his office.But citing demographic and security concerns, Israel opposes the return of Palestinian refugees to their former homes in what is now the Jewish state and wants to hold on to major settlement blocs in the West Bank.
TURNING POINT
Israel sought to cast the envoys' arrival as a potential turning point in relations with the Arab League, which has long shunned it. Livni described the visit as historic.Arab diplomats played down the gesture. Egypt and Jordan already have full relations with Israel, and despite U.S. and Israeli appeals to expand the number of Arab participants in the talks, Saudi Arabia and other Arab League members with no formal ties to the Jewish state have refused to take part.I will be more than happy that next time you come, you'll bring with you ministers from more Arab countries, Olmert said in his welcoming remarks to Gheit and Khatib.
The United States has been pushing Olmert to move ahead to serious negotiations over border issues with Abbas, who dismissed a unity coalition with Hamas last month after the Islamists seized control of Gaza.Olmert described his current talks with Abbas as serious and said the goal was to advance a process in a natural way towards discussion of central issues.Former British prime minister Tony Blair ended his first visit as international envoy to the Middle East on Wednesday after saying he saw a moment of opportunity for peace. But he offered no specifics in public.(Additional reporting by Allyn Fisher-Ilan)
July 25, 2007 - Danger - ARLENE KUSHNER
Ehud Olmert continues to be inordinately eager to promote a Palestinian state. Yesterday I wrote about the refusal of the leaders of the international community to recognize who the Palestinians really are and how unlikely is the possibility that they can put together a viable state. But I was remiss: I should have included the leaders of Israel.
Olmert is offering to hold negotiations on an Agreement of Principles for the establishment of a Palestinian state. What this means, and it makes me sick in the pit of my stomach, is that Olmert wants to push aside the difficult issues and yet negotiate on some of the factors that would be involved in establishment of a state -- such as the characteristics of the state, official institutions and customs arrangements.
What this does is provide tacit acknowledgement on our side of acceptance in principle of a state (that's what hits me in the stomach) even before there has been resolution of such issues as borders, refugees and the capital in Jerusalem. Olmert is assuming this will strengthen Abbas, who can show what he has achieved, and strengthen himself with the Israeli populace at the same time, as he will say that he is the one who can bring peace.What he is trying to do is restart the peace process even though he knows that the PA is weak and will not fulfill its obligations regarding security. Rather blows the mind, does it not?
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Aaron Lerner of IMRA points out today that what Olmert seeks to do is dangerous because within the context of the Road Map a sovereign Palestinian state can be created before the difficult final status issues are resolved, so that it would be possible for us to find ourselves with a Palestinian state adjacent to our nation without the Palestinians even signing off on end of conflict. And indeed, Lerner is correct. The Road Map (see http://www.palestine-info.co.uk/am/old/printer_982.shtml ) states:
In the second phase, efforts are focused on the option of creating an independent Palestinian state with provisional borders and attributes of sovereignty...as a way station to a permanent status settlement.It is not until phase three, that there is a permanent status agreement and an end to the conflict.
However... The very first phase of the plan calls for the Palestinians to immediately undertake an unconditional cessation of violence.This includes sustained, targeted, and effective operations aimed at confronting all those engaged in terror and dismantlement of terrorist capabilities and infrastructure.Also all official Palestinian institutions end incitement against Israel.If the Palestinians were held to this, there would be no progress. But once again the bar is being lowered and obligations are being waived: They can't do this? Let's move on.The stuff of nightmares.
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I note that in the report on this, released by Haaretz, one of the subjects on the table would be a tunnel between Judea and Samaria and Gaza, to provide contiguity. I am fascinated, as Hamas controls Gaza and is supposed to be excluded at present. Olmert is supposed to be supporting Abbas in his stand against Hamas.
And so I remain alert as to what will happen with regard to this. My take is that no one knows how this is going to play out. This provides some measure of comfort: the Palestinians have in the past messed up opportunities to have a state and their situation today is considerably less stable than it was previously.
While we must be on guard, stay informed, and fight what he plans with all our energy, the fact is that from Olmert's malign intentions to fulfillment of the reality is still a large step. There are many experts who see the PA as so unstable that it is incapable of actually achieving the status of a state.
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Ephraim Inbar has written an analytic piece for the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, Bush Cannot Succeed in the Holy Land. He advances several reasons why Bush's attempt to form a Palestinian state is bound to fail:
-- Palestinian society cannot be reformed by outsiders. Middle Eastern societies have already proven their resistance to attempts by Western powers to change their old habits of doing business. It is naïve to believe that political and social dynamics rooted in centuries-old traditions can be easily manipulated by well-intentioned, but presumptuous Westerners. If ever reform is to occur it will be from within.
-- It is a fallacy to assume that economic assistance to the Palestinians can alleviate political problems.Since the Oslo Accords (September 1993), the Palestinian Authority (PA) has received the highest amount of economic aid per capita in the world. Yet, billions of euros transferred to the PA have been squandered and misused. The PA, like other Third World countries, was quite ingenious in siphoning parts of the aid to those members least in need of outside support.
Inbar speaks of the philosophy of Maimonides, who said that in the hierarchy of philanthropy helping someone become self-sufficient ranks first. ...the history of humanitarian aid in the last century...shows that outside economic aid is only as good as the ability of a recipient's economy and government to use it prudently and productively. Therefore, it is doubtful whether sending more money to the dysfunctional Palestinian economy, as President Bush proposes, will do any good.
-- It is a mistake to think that Abbas can be an agent of change and thus deserves support. [His] record as leader is dismal. He failed to unite the security services under one organ as pledged and has not followed through with his anti-corruption election campaign promises. The chaos within the PA increased under his presidency...The Palestinians have suffered from bad leadership for almost a century, and are in need of a strong leader...to rescue them from the crisis they have brought upon themselves. Unfortunately, such a courageous and visionary leader does not appear to be in sight.
-- It is a fallacy to assume that Palestinian society can be quickly transformed into a good neighbor of Israel and that a stable settlement is within reach. Since the Oslo Accords, the PA's education system, media, and dramatic militarization process has done great damage to the collective Palestinian psyche. A society mesmerized by the use of force and accustomed to the shaheed (martyr) ready to blow himself up among the hated Israelis will not change overnight. Numerous facets of Palestinian society have been radicalized and the widespread influence and popularity of Hamas is a clear indication of such a process.
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This last point is perhaps the most ignored, and it is critical. People are aware of corruption and a host of other problems in the PA. They tend to forget about the radicalization of the population that has taken place because of the incitement that has been engendered since Oslo started. This is the greatest irony: When Arafat gained control of the educational system and the media, instead of educating for peace, he educated for war and hatred. This has continued with Abbas, in particular with regard to textbooks. The lessons have been well learned.
The fact is that there was more hatred of Israel in the PA in the years when we were withdrawing from Arab population centers and trying to give them autonomy (1994-2000) than there had been when we administered all systems. When we were in control, we simply didn't permit that sort of incitement. Here is an example of trying to be nice and having it backfire totally. The hatred, the attitude that Israel is illegitimate and that Allah praises jihad, has all become entrenched.
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If this isn't game-playing, I do not know what it is: Envoys from Egypt and Jordan, originally charged by the Arab League with coming to Israel to do persuasion regarding the Arab League peace initiative, are finally here after a postponement in their visit. They were charged by the League, truly -- selected because they already have diplomatic ties with Israel. But these envoys are now insisting they don't represent the League but only their own nations. In fact, Egypt has gone to the trouble of specifically putting out a communiqué saying that their envoy, Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, would be representing only his country.
What is this about? Israel had made note of the fact that this visit would be historic -- the first time that representatives of the Arab League would be visiting Israel. And, as I noted before, the Arabs weren't having it. Horrors! This might suggest that the various nations of the League recognize Israel, and they cannot allow that. And so, an about-face. Silly beyond words. They are ostensibly promoting a plan that would provide Israel with 'normal relations' with all these nations (if Israel pulled back to '67 lines, allowed refugees to return,etc.) You can tell how eager they are about this.
To make it sillier still: Saudi Arabia, as I have written, has backed off from the plan, even though this Arab League plan is really a Saudi plan. So it seems the normal relations with Israel wouldn't include the Saudis anyway.
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see my website www.ArlenefromIsrael.info
Monday, July 23, 2007
BLAIRS FIRST TRIP AS ENVOY
Floods swamp central Britain, thousands flee
Total chaos, says one evacuee, cars floating past and even goldfish
Stephen Hird / Reuters
MSNBC News Services JULY 23,07
LONDON - Emergency workers battled rising waters Monday to rescue people trapped by floods that swallowed large swaths of central Britain. Roads were submerged, and tens of thousands of people were left without electricity and drinking water.Among the hardest hit was the medieval market town of Tewkesbury, 110 miles northwest of London, where the cathedral and a few blocks of nearby houses stood like an atoll amid a vast stretch of muddy water.It was just devastation — total chaos, cars floating past, rubbish, all kinds, said John King, a 68-year-old retired firefighter from Tewkesbury who said the flood sounded like a train. "You just can't stop water of that power.He said he saw goldfish swimming in his driveway.
Torrential rains have plagued Britain over the past month — nearly 5 inches fell in some areas on Friday alone — and more downpours were expected until at least Tuesday. Officials warned that the western section of the River Thames — some 80 miles from London — was on the verge of bursting its banks.London itself is protected from flooding in the east by the Thames Barrier, the world's largest moveable flood defense. The barrier closes to seal off part of the upper Thames from the sea. To the west, London is protected by several flood defense measures including the Jubilee River, a 7-mile-long flood diversion channel.People look at me and say I look fine, but inside I'm all churned up, said Sylvia Williams, a 69-year-old widow who was among about 50 elderly people evacuated to a stadium from a retirement community overlooking the River Ock on the outskirts of Oxford.The stadium was stocked with blankets, food and bedding for up to 1,500 people.
The Thames water levels in Oxford were expected to peak at midnight, which could make flooding worse in areas, Britain's Environment Agency said.The agency warned water levels could rise to a critical level, and issued nine severe flood warnings across the country.Cars were submerged and streets turned into canals in flood affected areas. Thousands were forced to leave their homes and businesses.Insurers estimate claims for flood damage from this round of flooding and an earlier round in June could top $4 billion.
350,000 homes see water cut off
The Severn Trent Water company said at least 350,000 homes in Gloucestershire would be without water after flood waters shut down a water treatment plant.The last time Britain saw similar flooding was in 1947, according to the Environment Agency.No deaths have been reported.Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced increased funding for flood and coastal defenses across the country during a tour of the flooded Gloucestershire region, in the west of England.Much of Britain's infrastructure dates back to Victorian times.
It is pretty clear that some of the 19th century structures and infrastructure and where they were sited is something we will have to review, said Brown, who succeeded Tony Blair as prime minister less than a month ago.The monsoon-like rainfall over the past month has severely affected transport and threatened water supplies.In Gloucestershire, some 70,000 people were left without clean drinking water as a result of flooding at water treatment plants and rainwater seeping into treated supplies. Tens of thousands more were at risk of losing fresh water supplies.Some residents lined up for free water at local grocery stores. Others waited for water trucks to distribute water.More than 100 Royal Navy sailors were helping build flood defenses with sandbags and trying to improve the drainage by wading into the water and lifting the manhole covers.More than 2,000 people spent Sunday night in emergency shelters and the Royal Air Force and coast guard helicopters were called in over the weekend to airlift hundreds to safety in one of Britain's largest peacetime rescue operations.
Putin expects quick end to mini-crisis
MOSCOW, July 20 (UPI) -- Russia President Vladimir Putin predicted relations with Britain will develop normally in spite of recent expulsions of diplomats. Putin's tone Thursday night in his first public statement on the diplomatic crisis was far milder than that used by the Russian Foreign Ministry. The British ambassador, Anthony Brenton, was told abruptly that four embassy staff members had 10 days to get out of Russia, the Times of London reported. Russia also banned British officials from visiting and said it won't cooperate in anti-terrorism efforts.
I think that Russian-British relations will develop normally, Putin said in The Times article. On both the Russian side and the British side we are interested in the development of these relations. I'm sure we will overcome this mini-crisis.The crisis stems from the killing of Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB agent living in London who was poisoned with polonium. Russia has refused to extradite the suspect identified by Scotland Yard, Andrei Lugovoy, also a former KGB officer. Britain responded by expelling Russian diplomats.
MK HaNegbi Stops Short of Calling for War on Hamas
by Hillel Fendel (JULY 22,07 INN)
Two years after Israel withdrew unilaterally from Gaza, the Chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee says war, or something near it, is inevitable.
MK Tzachi HaNegbi (Kadima), a former Public Security Minister, was responding to the words of a widely-quoted senior IDF officer who said that Hamas has become a small army with strong military capabilities. HaNegbi stopped short of calling upon Israel to attack Hamas, but merely said that it was an inevitable development. It's just a matter of time, he said. It will occur sooner or later, either as an Israeli initiative, or following a deterioration of the situation unwanted by both sides.
Hamas Army Growing
The quoted senior officer said on Thursday that Hamas had advanced a generation of late in its military capabilities. He told reporters that the Hamas army now numbers 13,000 fighters, and that it had imported 20 tons of explosives through the Rafiah crossing in the past several weeks. The Hamas arsenal contains Strella shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, which are liable to make air actions difficult, as well as the best weapons there are, the officer said.Nationalist Members of Knesset warned the 2005 Sharon-Mofaz-Olmert government that removing the IDF from the Rafiah crossing would lead to a mass influx of arms into Gaza, but the warnings went unheeded.
The officer said that at least 400 Hamas fighters had left Gaza via Rafiah for training in Iran in recent weeks. On the other hand, since Hamas took over Gaza six weeks ago, Israeli forces had carried out some 50 actions to prevent terrorists from entering Israel; 110 terrorists were killed in these actions, 198 were wounded, and 766 were arrested, including 47 on the wanted list.MK HaNegbi, who has also served as Minister of Justice, Health and the Environment, said that Hamas's strengthening is no secret. He noted that the relative quiet being maintained by Hamas against Israel is designed only to serve its own interests, in order that Israel not respond in kind. He said that Hamas is using this period to train and arm, though he noted that the IDF is also preparing and studying the mistakes it made last year in Lebanon.
Eygpt Ignoring Obligations
HaNegbi said that Egypt has no interest in fulfilling its obligations to prevent smuggling from the Sinai into Gaza via Rafiah, despite the agreement it signed with Israel to this effect when Israel withdrew. Some fears have been raised that war with Hamas could exact heavy IDF casualties and many Kassam rockets at the Negev. Despite the dangers inherent in delayed action against the Hamas military build-up, at least one high-placed military officer says that the most he can recommend at present is an intense attack on various Hamas headquarters and top officials.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Friday that he cannot promise that Israel's border with Gaza will not soon look like Israel's border with Lebanon prior to last summer's war. Despite this, he has no intention of ordering a major ground assault in Gaza. It is felt that the shadow of the Winograd Commission, expected to release a scathing report criticizing Olmert's haste in going to war last year, is a factor in Olmert's hesitation to take the offensive.On Sunday morning, IDF forces shot and killed two Hamas terrorists near a former Jewish community in the northern Gaza Strip. The terrorists were approaching the security border fence and were carrying grenades and guns.
Iran and Syria Forge Military Alliance Against Common Enemies
by Alex Traiman (JULY 22,07 INN)
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad held a joint press conference in Damascus Thursday confirming the formation of a new regional military alliance.The enemies of this region should drop their plans to strike the interests of this region, for these enemies will burn by the fire of the people, Ahmadinejad stated. Both countries are united in a frontier facing common enemies to the region.Ahmadinejad warned the unnamed enemies to abandon their hostile plans, stating, Syria and Iran are aspiring for this summer to be hot by virtue of the victories that will be attained by the peoples of the region... and the enemies of the peoples of the region are on their way to perdition and defeat.
As part of the new military alliance, the London-based Arabic paper A-Sharq al-Aussat states, Iran will fund over $1 billion in new defense equipment for Syria including: 400 Russian tanks, 8 Mikoyan helicopters, 8 Sukhoi fighter jets, 18 MiG-31s, Iranian armoured vehicles and tanks, and Chinese C-801/802 missiles.Israel is reportedly skeptical about the deal, though sources say the very meeting itself is of great concern and shows that Assad is not interested in peace.Ahmadinejad reportedly also pledged to help Syria overthrow Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and to aid in the restoration of pro-Syrian influence within the Lebanese parliament. In addition, Iran will fund Syrian research towards the respective establishment and improvement of nuclear and biological weapons programs.
In return, Syria has reportedly pledged not to enter into any diplomatic negotiations with Israel. Tehran will also be permitted to keep Iranian warplanes stationed in Syria.While in Damascus, the two heads of state also reportedly met with Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah.
History Repeats Itself
Knesset Member Aryeh Eldad (National Union) said the military alliance forged between Iran and Syria is reminiscent of the pacts that were signed on the eve of the Six Day and Yom Kippur wars.The Iranian decision will lead to the launching of an attack on Israel from Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Iran, Eldad stated.
For some reason, the government of Israel chooses to ignore not only intelligence information, but even information that is published for all to see, he added.
Olmert Still Prepared to Negotiate
In an interview with Channel 10 Saturday night, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (Kadima) said that Israel was still prepared to negotiate with Syria and abandon the Golan Heights. I don't know what will be at the end of negotiations with Syria. Of course we will have to make concessions, but can I make commitments even before the beginning of negotiations and promise that I will withdraw from the entire Golan Heights? Previously, Syria demanded that Israel commit to a complete withdrawal from the Golan Heights as a precondition to opening talks with Jerusalem.In a separate interview Thursday, when asked how Nasrallah was able to sneak into a meeting between Ahmadinejad and Assad, Olmert responded, No reply I could give would sound the way I'd want it to.
Strategic Alliance Minister: Form Unity Government
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beiteinu) called for Olmert and Opposition Leader Benyamin Netanyahu (Likud) to form a unity government to deal with the growing Iranian-Syrian threat.The strengthening of the relationship between Assad and Ahmadinejad demands that Israel reorganize its political and military preparations, said Lieberman. The Iranian threat remains outside of politics, and therefore I call on the Prime Minister and the head of the opposition to reconsider forming a national emergency government.
Olmert Reiterates Stance to Give Away Judea and Samaria
by Alex Traiman (JULY 22,07 INN)
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reiterated his belief that Israel needs to withdraw from the biblical Jewish provinces of Judea and Samaria.Speaking at a gathering of farmers in the Jezreel Valley, Olmert maintained that Israel would have to make tough decisions with regard to territorial compromise.According to the Prime Minister, anyone who thinks Israel can continue to hold onto the provinces captured in the defensive Six Day War of 1967 is living in a dream.Everyone understands that the State of Israel can't exist without a guarantee of a Jewish majority, Olmert added.
Although many in Israel believe the question of Jewish majority to be a fundamental problem, recent research suggests otherwise. A major demographic study published in 2005 by Bennett Zimmerman, Roberta Seid and Michael L. Wise revealed that the status of a Jewish majority between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea is much more stable than previously reported, with Jews representing at least 60 percent of the total population.The data further suggests that the numbers of Arabs living in Judea and Samaria (commonly referred to as the West Bank) in particular have been grossly overstated.Olmert added in his address that any territorial compromise to giveaway all or parts of Judea and Samaria would not occur unilaterally—as was the withdrawal from Gaza 2005—but rather through a negotiated solution with the Palestinian Authority.
The statements came on the eve following Olmert's release of 255 convicted terrorists serving terms in Israeli prisons, back into the general population of Judea and Samaria, a move which drew the criticism of many throughout the country. Olmert did not demand any information on the whereabouts of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for the release of the terrorists, but rather said that letting the terrorists out of jail was a goodwill gesture.
According to the Council of Jewish Communities in Judea and Samaria, there are over 260,000 tax paying Jewish residents living in the region. When including the outlying neighborhoods of Jerusalem, the Jewish population of Judea and Samaria reaches close to half a million.The provinces of Judea and Samaria are also home to many of Judaism's holiest cities including Hevron, Shechem, Beit El, Beit Lechem, and Shiloh. Each of these cities (and others) play key roles in Jewish History as chronicled by the Jewish Bible.On Saturday, Olmert stated his intention to run for a second term as chairman of the Kadima party, despite numerous calls for his resignation, allegations of criminal activity, and public approval ratings in single digits.
Israel, Syria boost military presence along border
Escalating moves from both sides amid war warnings from Damascus' officials
July 23, 200 - By Aaron Klein - WorldNetDaily.com
GOLAN HEIGHTS – Israel has visibly beefed up its military presence here in the Golan Heights while neighboring Syria reportedly has placed its army on high alert and – for the first time in 30 years – has opened a strategic border road to civilian traffic in a move some Israeli security officials worry could help facilitate guerilla attacks against Golani Jewish communities. The escalating military moves on both sides come as a top official from Syrian President Bashar Assad's Baath party warned in an interview if Israel doesn't vacate the strategic Golan Heights by August or September, Syrian guerrillas will launch resistance operations against the Golan's Jewish communities. The Golan Heights is strategic mountainous territory looking down on Israeli population centers captured by Israel after Syria twice used the territory to attack the Jewish state.
A tour of the Golan Heights yesterday found multiple Israeli army positions local residents and soldiers stationed here say were established within the past few weeks. More tanks have been patrolling the area, with several tanks setting up shop in strategic positions looking down on Syria. Makeshift military outposts have been erected and Golan checkpoints fortified. Several old Israeli Defense Forces military installations in the Golan were reopened the last two months. According to local soldiers, the installations have been largely unused since the 1980s. In several Golan positions near the Syrian border, IDF tractors cleared the way in recent weeks so that tanks can amass in the area if needed, said soldiers stationed here. On the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, multiple moves have been made Israeli security officials say are concerning.
The security officials confirmed the stepped-up military presence of Syrian troops deployed near the Syrian side of the Golan Heights with strengthened forces after carrying out increased training the past few months. The security officials said Syria recently increased production of rockets and acquired missiles capable of hitting central Israeli population centers. Last month, Syria removed a series of military checkpoints blocking off a main Damascus-Golan road to the border town of Quneitra, opening the road to civilian traffic for the first time since the 1967 Six Day War. The road, visible from the Israeli side of the border, remained open to civilians yesterday with no presence of the Syrian military. Syrian road leading to Golan now open for civilian traffic (WND photo)
At a ceremony at which the road was reopened for civilians, Quneitra's governor, Nawaf al-Faris, a member of Assad's Baath party, gave a speech explaining resistance works to restore land. The resistance is the guarantee to restore land, rights and facing challenges and pressures to which the Arab nation is exposed, al-Faris stated, according to Syria's SANA news agency. Israeli security officials say they are concerned the road can be used by militants seeking to attack the border area. One tank yesterday was positioned on a hilltop directly facing the road. Speaking to WND on condition of anonymity, a top Baath official said a new purported guerrilla group called the Committees for the Liberation of the Golan Heights has been training and is ready to attacks against Jewish communities in the Golan in August or September.
The official said the Quneitra road is one of many routes in which the Committees can infiltrate the Golan. In an interview last week, the Baath official warned Syria was preparing for war: More and more of our units have undergone intensive trainings starting at 6 a.m. and finishing late into the evening. If the need arises, we are ready for a war, said the official. The official said Syria learned from the Hezbollah experience last summer and we can have hundreds of missiles hitting Tel Aviv that will overwhelm Israel's anti-missile batteries.He claimed Syria has proof Israel is also readying for a war. We hear about special Israeli trainings to take Damascus. We see that Israel is re-establishing bases of the Israeli army in the Golan that are unusual and not needed except for war. We believe the Israeli government has an interest in confronting Syria to rehabilitate its image of losing to Hezbollah, he said.
He said Syrian war preparations are so specific, the Syrian government has given its officials and top contacts alternative phone numbers to key government ministries in case the Damascus phone system is knocked out during an Israeli aerial bombardment.
He warned Syria may launch eminent resistance.
Syria passed repeated messages to the U.S. that we demand the return of the Golan either through negotiations or through war. If the Golan is not in our hands by August or September, we will be poised to launch resistance, including raids and attacks against Jewish positions (in the Golan Heights)," the Baath official said.
Israel: Syrian war preparations serious
Israeli security officials confirmed Syria has been strengthening its forces and noted the movement of Syrian Scud missiles near the border with Israel. The Syrian army has improved its fortifications, according to the Israeli security officials, and has received modern, Russian-made anti-tank missiles similar to the missiles that devastated Israeli tanks during the last Lebanon war, causing the highest number of Israeli troop casualties during the 34 days of military confrontations. Syria also received from Russia advanced anti-aircraft missiles. The security officials said any conflict with Syria could degenerate into a larger war involving Hezbollah along Israel's northern border and Palestinian terror groups launching attacks from Gaza in the south and the West Bank toward the center of Israel.
The officials noted Syria stepped up the pace of weapons, including rockets, being shipped from the Syrian border to the Lebanese Hezbollah militia. The security officials said the greatest threats Syria poses to the Jewish state are the country's missiles and rockets. They noted Syria recently test-fired two Scud-D surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of about 250 miles, covering most Israeli territory. The officials said the Syrian missile test was coordinated with Iran and is believed to have been successful. It is not known what type of warhead the missiles had. In addition to longer-range Scuds, Syria is in possession of shorter-range missiles such as 220 millimeter and 305 millimeter rockets, some of which have been passed on to Hezbollah.
Israel also has information Syria recently acquired and deployed Chinese-made C-802 missiles, which were successfully used against the Israeli navy during Israel's war against Hezbollah one year ago. The missiles were passed to Syria by Iran, Israeli security officials told WND. Israeli security officials said Syria is indeed preparing for a summer war. But they said there was an argument within the Israeli intelligence community whether the military buildup is for an attack or is meant by Syria to pressure Israel into vacating the Golan Heights. Some officials said Syria estimates the U.S. or Israel will attack Iran, and Syria will be drawn into a larger military confrontation by opening up a front against northern Israel. Also, the officials said, Syria may believe Israel will attack first and its preparations are defensive in nature. The Israeli army is not taking any chances. The Israel Defense Forces last month reportedly carried out a mock attack on a Syrian village during a major exercise in the Negev. The Israeli soldiers besieged and occupied the village, designed to be similar to towns on the Syrian side of the Golan. Similar war exercises were carried out in Israel the past few months, including a mock attack on Damascus.
According to security officials, recent U.S. intelligence estimates also predict a strong possibility of war between Israel and Syria in the coming months.
Ahmadinejad: It's going to be a hot summer
The reports of preparations for possible confrontations also come as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned during a rare visit to Syria last week that this summer will be hot and will bring defeat for the region's enemies.We hope that the hot weather of this summer would coincide with similar victories for the region's peoples, and with consequent defeat for the region‘s enemies, Ahmadinejad said, standing alongside Assad. Ahmadinejad claimed unspecified enemies of the region have plans to attack the interests of this region. He urges those enemies to abandon their war plans or they would be burned by the wrath of the region's peoples.
He described Syrian-Iranian relations as amicable, excellent and extremely deep, stating the two countries have common stands on regional issues and face common enemies.
Blair on First Trip As Mideast Envoy
Jul 23 08:28 AM US/Eastern
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
Associated Press Writer
JERUSALEM (AP) - Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Monday kicked off his first visit to the Middle East as the international community's new envoy to the region, hoping to add new momentum to fledgling peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians. The newly appointed envoy for the Quartet of Mideast mediators—the United States, European Union, U.N. and Russia—arrived in Israel for his first visit in the new post. During the two-day visit, Blair planned to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other top officials.
Blair arrives at a promising time. The Palestinian uprising has fizzled and Israel says it's ready to work with the new Palestinian leadership after seven years of stalemate. But limits on Blair's responsibilities—he has no authority to negotiate a final peace deal—have already raised questions about his ability to forge a breakthrough, and Israeli and Palestinian officials played down expectations for the visit. Blair touched down in Tel Aviv in a white, unmarked private jet and immediate exited Ben Gurion International Airport in a heavily guarded motorcade through the Gate of Shalom terminal. He traveled to the upscale King David Hotel in Jerusalem, where he was met by a horde of photographers. Blair made no comment as he pushed through the crowd into an elevator.
Blair arrived from neighboring Jordan, where he met with Foreign Minister Abdul-Ilah al-Khatib. Jordanian officials said Blair listened to Jordan's perspective on restarting the Mideast peace process. Jordan and Egypt are the only Arab countries that have made peace with Israel. The visit comes amid a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at bring Israel and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table.
President Bush called last week for an international peace conference on the Middle East in the autumn. On Wednesday, the Jordanian foreign minister and his Egyptian counterpart, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, are due in Israel to formally present an Arab peace initiative that envisions full Arab recognition of Israel in return for lands the Jewish state captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Israeli and Palestinian officials have welcomed the involvement of Blair, who brings a high-profile and well-respected figure to Mideast diplomacy. He is known for his powers of persuasion and track record in forging Northern Ireland's peace accord.
But in his new job, Blair has been given a relatively limited assignment: to prepare the ground for a Palestinian state by encouraging reform, economic development and institution-building. There is no mention of trying to help broker a final peace deal, a role the United States appears reluctant to cede. Such constraints could quickly turn Blair into the latest of a long succession of well- meaning, yet ultimately ineffective mediators. Ahead of the visit, Israeli and Palestinian officials acknowledged Blair's limitations and said a final peace deal could only come through direct talks.
What I do with the Israelis, what the Israelis do with me, is the main ingredient, said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. The decisions required for peace are not going to come from the envoys.Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk to the media, said expectations were low for Blair's first visit. They said the talks would be introductory, and they did not expect major pressure from him. A word of caution also came from James Wolfensohn, Blair's predecessor as envoy of the diplomatic Quartet. In 2005, Wolfensohn, a former World Bank president, was asked to oversee the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip after Israel's pullout from the area. Wolfensohn accomplished less than he hoped and saw the last of his achievements—creating a gateway to the world for fenced-in Gazans—unravel after the Islamic militant Hamas' violent takeover of Gaza last month.
Wolfensohn told the Israeli daily Haaretz that while he made some mistakes, his main problem was lack of authority. The U.S. dominates the Quartet, he noted. There was never a desire on the part of the Americans to give up control of the (peace) negotiations,Haaretz quoted him as saying. Even in his limited role, Blair will have to confine his work to the West Bank, since the international community continues to shun Hamas, now in control of Gaza. Following the Hamas takeover, Abbas formed a new moderate government in the West Bank. Chances of transforming the West Bank are perhaps better than any time since the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in 2000, following failed peace talks.
The violence, which left nearly 4,400 Palestinians and more than 1,100 Israelis dead, blocked any progress in peacemaking, but the uprising has run out of steam.
Hamas, responsible for scores of deadly attacks, is largely contained behind Gaza's border fences and on the defensive in the West Bank, while scores of gunmen from Abbas' Fatah movement have surrendered their weapons in exchange for an Israeli amnesty. In Gaza, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said Blair could not ignore Hamas, which swept Palestinian parliamentary elections last year. It will lead to nothing but failure, he said.
Abbas' government is eager to resume negotiations on a final peace deal, but Israel says it's too soon. Israel is willing to talk about general outlines of an agreement, but argues that negotiations can only begin once Abbas has disarmed militants and restored order in areas under his control.
Southern Baptist seminary leader: Evangelicals must assert the marks of a true church Allie Martin - OneNewsNow.com - July 21, 2007
It’s a debate as old as Martin Luther himself. Who is the true Christian church?
The debate gained new life earlier this month when, in a document released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Pope Benedict XVI said Christian communities outside Catholicism were not full churches. The 16-page document described Christian Orthodox churches as true churches, but said they suffered from a wound since they do not recognize the primacy of the pope.In response, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. Albert Mohler, says evangelicals must proclaim, without apology, that any church, which defines itself in terms of the papacy, is not the true church. In his daily Internet blog, Mohler writes that he was not surprised at the statement issued by the papacy. He says the pope's statement actually provides Evangelicals an opportunity to defend the gospel. And Mohler also states that both Roman Catholics and Evangelicals alike should realize this issue is worthy of division.
He also says Evangelicals should be concerned that Catholics are in spiritual danger for submission to the papacy. Drawing from church history, the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president and radio host says the same issue was a defining issue of the Reformation. Mohler says that both Reformers and Roman Catholics staked their claim to be the true church, pointing out that Martin Luther and John Calvin both asserted that the first mark of a true Church is the ministry of the Word and the preaching of the gospel -- and not submission to a pope or other earthly authority.American Family News Network.
Total chaos, says one evacuee, cars floating past and even goldfish
Stephen Hird / Reuters
MSNBC News Services JULY 23,07
LONDON - Emergency workers battled rising waters Monday to rescue people trapped by floods that swallowed large swaths of central Britain. Roads were submerged, and tens of thousands of people were left without electricity and drinking water.Among the hardest hit was the medieval market town of Tewkesbury, 110 miles northwest of London, where the cathedral and a few blocks of nearby houses stood like an atoll amid a vast stretch of muddy water.It was just devastation — total chaos, cars floating past, rubbish, all kinds, said John King, a 68-year-old retired firefighter from Tewkesbury who said the flood sounded like a train. "You just can't stop water of that power.He said he saw goldfish swimming in his driveway.
Torrential rains have plagued Britain over the past month — nearly 5 inches fell in some areas on Friday alone — and more downpours were expected until at least Tuesday. Officials warned that the western section of the River Thames — some 80 miles from London — was on the verge of bursting its banks.London itself is protected from flooding in the east by the Thames Barrier, the world's largest moveable flood defense. The barrier closes to seal off part of the upper Thames from the sea. To the west, London is protected by several flood defense measures including the Jubilee River, a 7-mile-long flood diversion channel.People look at me and say I look fine, but inside I'm all churned up, said Sylvia Williams, a 69-year-old widow who was among about 50 elderly people evacuated to a stadium from a retirement community overlooking the River Ock on the outskirts of Oxford.The stadium was stocked with blankets, food and bedding for up to 1,500 people.
The Thames water levels in Oxford were expected to peak at midnight, which could make flooding worse in areas, Britain's Environment Agency said.The agency warned water levels could rise to a critical level, and issued nine severe flood warnings across the country.Cars were submerged and streets turned into canals in flood affected areas. Thousands were forced to leave their homes and businesses.Insurers estimate claims for flood damage from this round of flooding and an earlier round in June could top $4 billion.
350,000 homes see water cut off
The Severn Trent Water company said at least 350,000 homes in Gloucestershire would be without water after flood waters shut down a water treatment plant.The last time Britain saw similar flooding was in 1947, according to the Environment Agency.No deaths have been reported.Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced increased funding for flood and coastal defenses across the country during a tour of the flooded Gloucestershire region, in the west of England.Much of Britain's infrastructure dates back to Victorian times.
It is pretty clear that some of the 19th century structures and infrastructure and where they were sited is something we will have to review, said Brown, who succeeded Tony Blair as prime minister less than a month ago.The monsoon-like rainfall over the past month has severely affected transport and threatened water supplies.In Gloucestershire, some 70,000 people were left without clean drinking water as a result of flooding at water treatment plants and rainwater seeping into treated supplies. Tens of thousands more were at risk of losing fresh water supplies.Some residents lined up for free water at local grocery stores. Others waited for water trucks to distribute water.More than 100 Royal Navy sailors were helping build flood defenses with sandbags and trying to improve the drainage by wading into the water and lifting the manhole covers.More than 2,000 people spent Sunday night in emergency shelters and the Royal Air Force and coast guard helicopters were called in over the weekend to airlift hundreds to safety in one of Britain's largest peacetime rescue operations.
Putin expects quick end to mini-crisis
MOSCOW, July 20 (UPI) -- Russia President Vladimir Putin predicted relations with Britain will develop normally in spite of recent expulsions of diplomats. Putin's tone Thursday night in his first public statement on the diplomatic crisis was far milder than that used by the Russian Foreign Ministry. The British ambassador, Anthony Brenton, was told abruptly that four embassy staff members had 10 days to get out of Russia, the Times of London reported. Russia also banned British officials from visiting and said it won't cooperate in anti-terrorism efforts.
I think that Russian-British relations will develop normally, Putin said in The Times article. On both the Russian side and the British side we are interested in the development of these relations. I'm sure we will overcome this mini-crisis.The crisis stems from the killing of Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB agent living in London who was poisoned with polonium. Russia has refused to extradite the suspect identified by Scotland Yard, Andrei Lugovoy, also a former KGB officer. Britain responded by expelling Russian diplomats.
MK HaNegbi Stops Short of Calling for War on Hamas
by Hillel Fendel (JULY 22,07 INN)
Two years after Israel withdrew unilaterally from Gaza, the Chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee says war, or something near it, is inevitable.
MK Tzachi HaNegbi (Kadima), a former Public Security Minister, was responding to the words of a widely-quoted senior IDF officer who said that Hamas has become a small army with strong military capabilities. HaNegbi stopped short of calling upon Israel to attack Hamas, but merely said that it was an inevitable development. It's just a matter of time, he said. It will occur sooner or later, either as an Israeli initiative, or following a deterioration of the situation unwanted by both sides.
Hamas Army Growing
The quoted senior officer said on Thursday that Hamas had advanced a generation of late in its military capabilities. He told reporters that the Hamas army now numbers 13,000 fighters, and that it had imported 20 tons of explosives through the Rafiah crossing in the past several weeks. The Hamas arsenal contains Strella shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, which are liable to make air actions difficult, as well as the best weapons there are, the officer said.Nationalist Members of Knesset warned the 2005 Sharon-Mofaz-Olmert government that removing the IDF from the Rafiah crossing would lead to a mass influx of arms into Gaza, but the warnings went unheeded.
The officer said that at least 400 Hamas fighters had left Gaza via Rafiah for training in Iran in recent weeks. On the other hand, since Hamas took over Gaza six weeks ago, Israeli forces had carried out some 50 actions to prevent terrorists from entering Israel; 110 terrorists were killed in these actions, 198 were wounded, and 766 were arrested, including 47 on the wanted list.MK HaNegbi, who has also served as Minister of Justice, Health and the Environment, said that Hamas's strengthening is no secret. He noted that the relative quiet being maintained by Hamas against Israel is designed only to serve its own interests, in order that Israel not respond in kind. He said that Hamas is using this period to train and arm, though he noted that the IDF is also preparing and studying the mistakes it made last year in Lebanon.
Eygpt Ignoring Obligations
HaNegbi said that Egypt has no interest in fulfilling its obligations to prevent smuggling from the Sinai into Gaza via Rafiah, despite the agreement it signed with Israel to this effect when Israel withdrew. Some fears have been raised that war with Hamas could exact heavy IDF casualties and many Kassam rockets at the Negev. Despite the dangers inherent in delayed action against the Hamas military build-up, at least one high-placed military officer says that the most he can recommend at present is an intense attack on various Hamas headquarters and top officials.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Friday that he cannot promise that Israel's border with Gaza will not soon look like Israel's border with Lebanon prior to last summer's war. Despite this, he has no intention of ordering a major ground assault in Gaza. It is felt that the shadow of the Winograd Commission, expected to release a scathing report criticizing Olmert's haste in going to war last year, is a factor in Olmert's hesitation to take the offensive.On Sunday morning, IDF forces shot and killed two Hamas terrorists near a former Jewish community in the northern Gaza Strip. The terrorists were approaching the security border fence and were carrying grenades and guns.
Iran and Syria Forge Military Alliance Against Common Enemies
by Alex Traiman (JULY 22,07 INN)
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Syrian President Bashar Assad held a joint press conference in Damascus Thursday confirming the formation of a new regional military alliance.The enemies of this region should drop their plans to strike the interests of this region, for these enemies will burn by the fire of the people, Ahmadinejad stated. Both countries are united in a frontier facing common enemies to the region.Ahmadinejad warned the unnamed enemies to abandon their hostile plans, stating, Syria and Iran are aspiring for this summer to be hot by virtue of the victories that will be attained by the peoples of the region... and the enemies of the peoples of the region are on their way to perdition and defeat.
As part of the new military alliance, the London-based Arabic paper A-Sharq al-Aussat states, Iran will fund over $1 billion in new defense equipment for Syria including: 400 Russian tanks, 8 Mikoyan helicopters, 8 Sukhoi fighter jets, 18 MiG-31s, Iranian armoured vehicles and tanks, and Chinese C-801/802 missiles.Israel is reportedly skeptical about the deal, though sources say the very meeting itself is of great concern and shows that Assad is not interested in peace.Ahmadinejad reportedly also pledged to help Syria overthrow Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and to aid in the restoration of pro-Syrian influence within the Lebanese parliament. In addition, Iran will fund Syrian research towards the respective establishment and improvement of nuclear and biological weapons programs.
In return, Syria has reportedly pledged not to enter into any diplomatic negotiations with Israel. Tehran will also be permitted to keep Iranian warplanes stationed in Syria.While in Damascus, the two heads of state also reportedly met with Hizbullah chief Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah.
History Repeats Itself
Knesset Member Aryeh Eldad (National Union) said the military alliance forged between Iran and Syria is reminiscent of the pacts that were signed on the eve of the Six Day and Yom Kippur wars.The Iranian decision will lead to the launching of an attack on Israel from Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Iran, Eldad stated.
For some reason, the government of Israel chooses to ignore not only intelligence information, but even information that is published for all to see, he added.
Olmert Still Prepared to Negotiate
In an interview with Channel 10 Saturday night, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (Kadima) said that Israel was still prepared to negotiate with Syria and abandon the Golan Heights. I don't know what will be at the end of negotiations with Syria. Of course we will have to make concessions, but can I make commitments even before the beginning of negotiations and promise that I will withdraw from the entire Golan Heights? Previously, Syria demanded that Israel commit to a complete withdrawal from the Golan Heights as a precondition to opening talks with Jerusalem.In a separate interview Thursday, when asked how Nasrallah was able to sneak into a meeting between Ahmadinejad and Assad, Olmert responded, No reply I could give would sound the way I'd want it to.
Strategic Alliance Minister: Form Unity Government
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman (Yisrael Beiteinu) called for Olmert and Opposition Leader Benyamin Netanyahu (Likud) to form a unity government to deal with the growing Iranian-Syrian threat.The strengthening of the relationship between Assad and Ahmadinejad demands that Israel reorganize its political and military preparations, said Lieberman. The Iranian threat remains outside of politics, and therefore I call on the Prime Minister and the head of the opposition to reconsider forming a national emergency government.
Olmert Reiterates Stance to Give Away Judea and Samaria
by Alex Traiman (JULY 22,07 INN)
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reiterated his belief that Israel needs to withdraw from the biblical Jewish provinces of Judea and Samaria.Speaking at a gathering of farmers in the Jezreel Valley, Olmert maintained that Israel would have to make tough decisions with regard to territorial compromise.According to the Prime Minister, anyone who thinks Israel can continue to hold onto the provinces captured in the defensive Six Day War of 1967 is living in a dream.Everyone understands that the State of Israel can't exist without a guarantee of a Jewish majority, Olmert added.
Although many in Israel believe the question of Jewish majority to be a fundamental problem, recent research suggests otherwise. A major demographic study published in 2005 by Bennett Zimmerman, Roberta Seid and Michael L. Wise revealed that the status of a Jewish majority between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea is much more stable than previously reported, with Jews representing at least 60 percent of the total population.The data further suggests that the numbers of Arabs living in Judea and Samaria (commonly referred to as the West Bank) in particular have been grossly overstated.Olmert added in his address that any territorial compromise to giveaway all or parts of Judea and Samaria would not occur unilaterally—as was the withdrawal from Gaza 2005—but rather through a negotiated solution with the Palestinian Authority.
The statements came on the eve following Olmert's release of 255 convicted terrorists serving terms in Israeli prisons, back into the general population of Judea and Samaria, a move which drew the criticism of many throughout the country. Olmert did not demand any information on the whereabouts of kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for the release of the terrorists, but rather said that letting the terrorists out of jail was a goodwill gesture.
According to the Council of Jewish Communities in Judea and Samaria, there are over 260,000 tax paying Jewish residents living in the region. When including the outlying neighborhoods of Jerusalem, the Jewish population of Judea and Samaria reaches close to half a million.The provinces of Judea and Samaria are also home to many of Judaism's holiest cities including Hevron, Shechem, Beit El, Beit Lechem, and Shiloh. Each of these cities (and others) play key roles in Jewish History as chronicled by the Jewish Bible.On Saturday, Olmert stated his intention to run for a second term as chairman of the Kadima party, despite numerous calls for his resignation, allegations of criminal activity, and public approval ratings in single digits.
Israel, Syria boost military presence along border
Escalating moves from both sides amid war warnings from Damascus' officials
July 23, 200 - By Aaron Klein - WorldNetDaily.com
GOLAN HEIGHTS – Israel has visibly beefed up its military presence here in the Golan Heights while neighboring Syria reportedly has placed its army on high alert and – for the first time in 30 years – has opened a strategic border road to civilian traffic in a move some Israeli security officials worry could help facilitate guerilla attacks against Golani Jewish communities. The escalating military moves on both sides come as a top official from Syrian President Bashar Assad's Baath party warned in an interview if Israel doesn't vacate the strategic Golan Heights by August or September, Syrian guerrillas will launch resistance operations against the Golan's Jewish communities. The Golan Heights is strategic mountainous territory looking down on Israeli population centers captured by Israel after Syria twice used the territory to attack the Jewish state.
A tour of the Golan Heights yesterday found multiple Israeli army positions local residents and soldiers stationed here say were established within the past few weeks. More tanks have been patrolling the area, with several tanks setting up shop in strategic positions looking down on Syria. Makeshift military outposts have been erected and Golan checkpoints fortified. Several old Israeli Defense Forces military installations in the Golan were reopened the last two months. According to local soldiers, the installations have been largely unused since the 1980s. In several Golan positions near the Syrian border, IDF tractors cleared the way in recent weeks so that tanks can amass in the area if needed, said soldiers stationed here. On the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, multiple moves have been made Israeli security officials say are concerning.
The security officials confirmed the stepped-up military presence of Syrian troops deployed near the Syrian side of the Golan Heights with strengthened forces after carrying out increased training the past few months. The security officials said Syria recently increased production of rockets and acquired missiles capable of hitting central Israeli population centers. Last month, Syria removed a series of military checkpoints blocking off a main Damascus-Golan road to the border town of Quneitra, opening the road to civilian traffic for the first time since the 1967 Six Day War. The road, visible from the Israeli side of the border, remained open to civilians yesterday with no presence of the Syrian military. Syrian road leading to Golan now open for civilian traffic (WND photo)
At a ceremony at which the road was reopened for civilians, Quneitra's governor, Nawaf al-Faris, a member of Assad's Baath party, gave a speech explaining resistance works to restore land. The resistance is the guarantee to restore land, rights and facing challenges and pressures to which the Arab nation is exposed, al-Faris stated, according to Syria's SANA news agency. Israeli security officials say they are concerned the road can be used by militants seeking to attack the border area. One tank yesterday was positioned on a hilltop directly facing the road. Speaking to WND on condition of anonymity, a top Baath official said a new purported guerrilla group called the Committees for the Liberation of the Golan Heights has been training and is ready to attacks against Jewish communities in the Golan in August or September.
The official said the Quneitra road is one of many routes in which the Committees can infiltrate the Golan. In an interview last week, the Baath official warned Syria was preparing for war: More and more of our units have undergone intensive trainings starting at 6 a.m. and finishing late into the evening. If the need arises, we are ready for a war, said the official. The official said Syria learned from the Hezbollah experience last summer and we can have hundreds of missiles hitting Tel Aviv that will overwhelm Israel's anti-missile batteries.He claimed Syria has proof Israel is also readying for a war. We hear about special Israeli trainings to take Damascus. We see that Israel is re-establishing bases of the Israeli army in the Golan that are unusual and not needed except for war. We believe the Israeli government has an interest in confronting Syria to rehabilitate its image of losing to Hezbollah, he said.
He said Syrian war preparations are so specific, the Syrian government has given its officials and top contacts alternative phone numbers to key government ministries in case the Damascus phone system is knocked out during an Israeli aerial bombardment.
He warned Syria may launch eminent resistance.
Syria passed repeated messages to the U.S. that we demand the return of the Golan either through negotiations or through war. If the Golan is not in our hands by August or September, we will be poised to launch resistance, including raids and attacks against Jewish positions (in the Golan Heights)," the Baath official said.
Israel: Syrian war preparations serious
Israeli security officials confirmed Syria has been strengthening its forces and noted the movement of Syrian Scud missiles near the border with Israel. The Syrian army has improved its fortifications, according to the Israeli security officials, and has received modern, Russian-made anti-tank missiles similar to the missiles that devastated Israeli tanks during the last Lebanon war, causing the highest number of Israeli troop casualties during the 34 days of military confrontations. Syria also received from Russia advanced anti-aircraft missiles. The security officials said any conflict with Syria could degenerate into a larger war involving Hezbollah along Israel's northern border and Palestinian terror groups launching attacks from Gaza in the south and the West Bank toward the center of Israel.
The officials noted Syria stepped up the pace of weapons, including rockets, being shipped from the Syrian border to the Lebanese Hezbollah militia. The security officials said the greatest threats Syria poses to the Jewish state are the country's missiles and rockets. They noted Syria recently test-fired two Scud-D surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of about 250 miles, covering most Israeli territory. The officials said the Syrian missile test was coordinated with Iran and is believed to have been successful. It is not known what type of warhead the missiles had. In addition to longer-range Scuds, Syria is in possession of shorter-range missiles such as 220 millimeter and 305 millimeter rockets, some of which have been passed on to Hezbollah.
Israel also has information Syria recently acquired and deployed Chinese-made C-802 missiles, which were successfully used against the Israeli navy during Israel's war against Hezbollah one year ago. The missiles were passed to Syria by Iran, Israeli security officials told WND. Israeli security officials said Syria is indeed preparing for a summer war. But they said there was an argument within the Israeli intelligence community whether the military buildup is for an attack or is meant by Syria to pressure Israel into vacating the Golan Heights. Some officials said Syria estimates the U.S. or Israel will attack Iran, and Syria will be drawn into a larger military confrontation by opening up a front against northern Israel. Also, the officials said, Syria may believe Israel will attack first and its preparations are defensive in nature. The Israeli army is not taking any chances. The Israel Defense Forces last month reportedly carried out a mock attack on a Syrian village during a major exercise in the Negev. The Israeli soldiers besieged and occupied the village, designed to be similar to towns on the Syrian side of the Golan. Similar war exercises were carried out in Israel the past few months, including a mock attack on Damascus.
According to security officials, recent U.S. intelligence estimates also predict a strong possibility of war between Israel and Syria in the coming months.
Ahmadinejad: It's going to be a hot summer
The reports of preparations for possible confrontations also come as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned during a rare visit to Syria last week that this summer will be hot and will bring defeat for the region's enemies.We hope that the hot weather of this summer would coincide with similar victories for the region's peoples, and with consequent defeat for the region‘s enemies, Ahmadinejad said, standing alongside Assad. Ahmadinejad claimed unspecified enemies of the region have plans to attack the interests of this region. He urges those enemies to abandon their war plans or they would be burned by the wrath of the region's peoples.
He described Syrian-Iranian relations as amicable, excellent and extremely deep, stating the two countries have common stands on regional issues and face common enemies.
Blair on First Trip As Mideast Envoy
Jul 23 08:28 AM US/Eastern
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
Associated Press Writer
JERUSALEM (AP) - Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Monday kicked off his first visit to the Middle East as the international community's new envoy to the region, hoping to add new momentum to fledgling peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians. The newly appointed envoy for the Quartet of Mideast mediators—the United States, European Union, U.N. and Russia—arrived in Israel for his first visit in the new post. During the two-day visit, Blair planned to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other top officials.
Blair arrives at a promising time. The Palestinian uprising has fizzled and Israel says it's ready to work with the new Palestinian leadership after seven years of stalemate. But limits on Blair's responsibilities—he has no authority to negotiate a final peace deal—have already raised questions about his ability to forge a breakthrough, and Israeli and Palestinian officials played down expectations for the visit. Blair touched down in Tel Aviv in a white, unmarked private jet and immediate exited Ben Gurion International Airport in a heavily guarded motorcade through the Gate of Shalom terminal. He traveled to the upscale King David Hotel in Jerusalem, where he was met by a horde of photographers. Blair made no comment as he pushed through the crowd into an elevator.
Blair arrived from neighboring Jordan, where he met with Foreign Minister Abdul-Ilah al-Khatib. Jordanian officials said Blair listened to Jordan's perspective on restarting the Mideast peace process. Jordan and Egypt are the only Arab countries that have made peace with Israel. The visit comes amid a flurry of diplomatic activity aimed at bring Israel and the Palestinians back to the negotiating table.
President Bush called last week for an international peace conference on the Middle East in the autumn. On Wednesday, the Jordanian foreign minister and his Egyptian counterpart, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, are due in Israel to formally present an Arab peace initiative that envisions full Arab recognition of Israel in return for lands the Jewish state captured in the 1967 Middle East war.
Israeli and Palestinian officials have welcomed the involvement of Blair, who brings a high-profile and well-respected figure to Mideast diplomacy. He is known for his powers of persuasion and track record in forging Northern Ireland's peace accord.
But in his new job, Blair has been given a relatively limited assignment: to prepare the ground for a Palestinian state by encouraging reform, economic development and institution-building. There is no mention of trying to help broker a final peace deal, a role the United States appears reluctant to cede. Such constraints could quickly turn Blair into the latest of a long succession of well- meaning, yet ultimately ineffective mediators. Ahead of the visit, Israeli and Palestinian officials acknowledged Blair's limitations and said a final peace deal could only come through direct talks.
What I do with the Israelis, what the Israelis do with me, is the main ingredient, said Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat. The decisions required for peace are not going to come from the envoys.Israeli officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to talk to the media, said expectations were low for Blair's first visit. They said the talks would be introductory, and they did not expect major pressure from him. A word of caution also came from James Wolfensohn, Blair's predecessor as envoy of the diplomatic Quartet. In 2005, Wolfensohn, a former World Bank president, was asked to oversee the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip after Israel's pullout from the area. Wolfensohn accomplished less than he hoped and saw the last of his achievements—creating a gateway to the world for fenced-in Gazans—unravel after the Islamic militant Hamas' violent takeover of Gaza last month.
Wolfensohn told the Israeli daily Haaretz that while he made some mistakes, his main problem was lack of authority. The U.S. dominates the Quartet, he noted. There was never a desire on the part of the Americans to give up control of the (peace) negotiations,Haaretz quoted him as saying. Even in his limited role, Blair will have to confine his work to the West Bank, since the international community continues to shun Hamas, now in control of Gaza. Following the Hamas takeover, Abbas formed a new moderate government in the West Bank. Chances of transforming the West Bank are perhaps better than any time since the outbreak of Israeli-Palestinian fighting in 2000, following failed peace talks.
The violence, which left nearly 4,400 Palestinians and more than 1,100 Israelis dead, blocked any progress in peacemaking, but the uprising has run out of steam.
Hamas, responsible for scores of deadly attacks, is largely contained behind Gaza's border fences and on the defensive in the West Bank, while scores of gunmen from Abbas' Fatah movement have surrendered their weapons in exchange for an Israeli amnesty. In Gaza, Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said Blair could not ignore Hamas, which swept Palestinian parliamentary elections last year. It will lead to nothing but failure, he said.
Abbas' government is eager to resume negotiations on a final peace deal, but Israel says it's too soon. Israel is willing to talk about general outlines of an agreement, but argues that negotiations can only begin once Abbas has disarmed militants and restored order in areas under his control.
Southern Baptist seminary leader: Evangelicals must assert the marks of a true church Allie Martin - OneNewsNow.com - July 21, 2007
It’s a debate as old as Martin Luther himself. Who is the true Christian church?
The debate gained new life earlier this month when, in a document released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Pope Benedict XVI said Christian communities outside Catholicism were not full churches. The 16-page document described Christian Orthodox churches as true churches, but said they suffered from a wound since they do not recognize the primacy of the pope.In response, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Dr. Albert Mohler, says evangelicals must proclaim, without apology, that any church, which defines itself in terms of the papacy, is not the true church. In his daily Internet blog, Mohler writes that he was not surprised at the statement issued by the papacy. He says the pope's statement actually provides Evangelicals an opportunity to defend the gospel. And Mohler also states that both Roman Catholics and Evangelicals alike should realize this issue is worthy of division.
He also says Evangelicals should be concerned that Catholics are in spiritual danger for submission to the papacy. Drawing from church history, the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president and radio host says the same issue was a defining issue of the Reformation. Mohler says that both Reformers and Roman Catholics staked their claim to be the true church, pointing out that Martin Luther and John Calvin both asserted that the first mark of a true Church is the ministry of the Word and the preaching of the gospel -- and not submission to a pope or other earthly authority.American Family News Network.
Friday, July 20, 2007
QUIT FORCING - PUSHING ISRAEL U.S.A
HERE WE GO THE RIFT BETWEEN THE EU AND RUSSIA IS STARTING TO HAPPEN. SINCE RUSSIA WILL LEAD THE MUSLIM HORDE AGAINST ISRAEL IN THE FUTURE AND THE EU IS PROTECTING ISRAELS SECURITY, THERE HAS TO BE A RIFT WITH RUSSIA AGAINST THE WEST.
EU sides with UK in diplomatic clash with Russia
19.07.2007 - 09:32 CET | By Lucia Kubosova
Despite warnings from Moscow against EU involvement in its diplomatic clash with the UK, the bloc's Portuguese presidency has voiced disappointment over Russia's stance on the probe into the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.The former KGB agent died of exposure to radioactive polonium-210 in London last year. British prosecutors want the chief suspect Andrei Lugovoi, whom Mr Litvinenko met shortly before he fell ill, to face trial in the UK but Russia is refusing to hand him over.Referring to the murder as a grave and reckless crime, the EU stressed that urgent and constructive cooperation by the Russian Federation is crucial, in a statement issued on Wednesday (18 July).The presidency declaration is being viewed as an important signal of support for the UK, in a row that Moscow has tried to keep exclusively between itself and London.
It also comes despite Portugal earlier indicating that it does not want to increase tensions with Russia during its term at the EU helm, running until the end of the year. Earlier this week, Alexander Grushko, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, was reported in British media as saying: We hope that common sense will prevail and its members will not yield to more attempts to turn relations between Russia and the EU into an instrument for one-sided political goals that have nothing to do with the real interests of co-operation.But Portugal insisted the matter raises important questions of common interest to EU Member States and called for its satisfactory solution. The issue is expected to be raised next Monday (23 July) when EU foreign ministers gather in Brussels.
The diplomatic row has so far resulted in Britain expelling four Russian embassy staff in reaction to Moscow's reluctance to extradite Mr Lugovoi.Russia argues that it is against the country's constitution to hand over its citizens for trials in other countries. The UK counters that an international accord signed by Moscow, paves the way for the hand-over.The case is sensitive due to a statement by Mr Litvinenko, unveiled a day after his death, accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of involvement in his poisoning. The Kremlin strongly rejects any involvement in the murder.
New Ethiopian Synagogue in Jerusalem & Other Local Jewish News
by Hillel Fendel(JULY 20,07 INN)
A first-ever Ethiopian synagogue has been dedicated in Jerusalem, a missionary center was closed down in Kiryat Yam, and a synagogue dispute in Haifa will be mediated by MKs - three news items of local Jewish interest culled from HaTzofeh newspaper.
Missionary Center X-ed
In Kiryat Yam, the Yad L'Achim anti-missionary organization has succeeded, after a long struggle, in closing down a Jehova's Witnesses missionary center. Yad L'Achim had marked the Kiryat Yam office building as one of four main Jehova's Witnesses centers in the country, learning that the cult held twice-weekly lectures there for dozens of people. Pressure by Yad L'Achim and other tenants in the building finally became unbearable, and the missionary center closed down.
First Ethiopian Synagogue
Earlier this month, in the northern Jerusalem neighborhood of N'vei Yaakov, the capitals' first Ethiopian synagogue was dedicated, in the presence of Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky. The New Jerusalem Foundation and members of the Ohel Nechama synagogue helped pay for the synagogue.
The synagogue, which will serve more than 170 families of Ethiopian extraction in N'vei Yaakov, is located in a previously unused section of the Bernadette public-religious school. The dedication ceremony included an emotional afternoon prayer service, replete with the customs of the Ethiopian liturgy.
The new synagogue will improve the image of the Ethiopian immigrants, it was said at the ceremony, and will alleviate the sense of frustration, neglect and estrangement, replacing it with feelings of pride and unity of a vital community integrating with the city and its many groups.
MKs Gafni and Beilin
In Haifa, a squabble over a synagogue between two Jewish groups has led to a Knesset committee debate and mediation by two Knesset Members: Yossi Beilin of the far-left and very secular Meretz party, and Moshe Gafni of the hareidi United Torah Judaism party.
Beilin came from the side of the neighborhood residents, who claimed that Breslover Hassidim had taken over a neighborhood synagogue and turned it into a yeshiva. Gafni and the Breslovers, on the other hand, said they were asked to help bolster synagogue attendance following the death of the local rabbi and a resulting drop in general attendance.
MKs Beilin and Gafni met on Tuesday, and plan to visit the site within the coming days.
MIDDLE EAST QUARTET SUPPORTS US PRESIDENT’S CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL MEETING
New York, Jul 19 2007 7:00PM
The diplomatic Quartet on the Middle East – comprising the United Nations, European Union, Russian Federation and the United States – today supported US President Bush’s call for an international meeting in the fall. The Quartet’s backing came in a
communiqué released following a meeting in Lisbon that was attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, High Representative for European Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana, Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, and European Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner.They were joined by Quartet Representative Tony Blair.
The Quartet welcomed President Bush’s July 16 statement renewing US commitment to a negotiated two-State solution, and supported President Bush’s call for an international meeting in the fall, stated the communiqué. The Quartet agreed that such a meeting should provide diplomatic support for the parties in their bilateral discussions and negotiations in order to move forward on a successful path to a Palestinian State. The Quartet welcomed Mr. Blair’s agreement to be its Representative and discussed with him “the urgent work that lies ahead, according to the communiqué.
Noting the centrality of reform, economic development, and institutional capacity building to the establishment of a stable and prosperous Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza that will unite all Palestinians, and live in peace and security with Israel and its other neighbours, the Quartet urged the parties and all states in the region to work closely with Mr. Blair, and encouraged robust international support for his efforts. The Quartet expressed support for the Palestinian Authority Government headed by Salam Fayyad, which is committed to the political platform of
President Abbas. It also encouraged direct and rapid financial assistance and other aid to the Palestinian Authority government to help reform, preserve, and strengthen vital Palestinian institutions and infrastructure, and to support the rule of law.
The Quartet welcomed the resumption of bilateral talks between Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas, and expressed support for steps taken by the Israeli Government, including the resumption of tax and customs revenue transfers and the decision to release Palestinian prisoners. The communiqué also encouraged continued bilateral dialogue and further cooperation and urged both parties to work without delay to fulfil their previous commitments and to build confidence. Recognizing the continuing importance of the Arab Peace Initiative, the Quartet looked forward to the planned visit to Israel by representatives of the Arab League to discuss the Initiative. The Quartet emphasized the need to find ways to sustain Palestinian
economic activity and the importance of creating circumstances that would allow for full implementation of the Agreement on Movement and Access,particularly in view of the impact of crossings on the Palestinian economy and daily life, the communiqu̩ said, encouraging parties to address their obligations under the Roadmap Рan outline plan envisaging a two-State solution Рincluding an end to settlement expansion and the removal of unauthorized outposts, and an end to violence and terror.
The Quartet expressed its deep concern over the humanitarian conditions in Gaza and agreed on the importance of continued emergency and humanitarian assistance. The communiqué also reaffirmed the Quartet’s its commitment to bring about an end to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and to work to lay the foundation for the establishment of an independent, democratic and viable Palestinian state living side by side with Israel in peace and security, as a step towards a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, consistent with the Roadmap and UN Security Council
resolutions.The next meeting of the Quartet will take place in September, the
communiqué says, noting that members will continue to consult regularly on
developments in the meantime.
Blair takes up role as peace envoy - THE HERALD
CATHERINE MacLEOD, Political Editor July 20 2007
Tony Blair was anointed as Middle East envoy in Lisbon yesterday only hours after the polls opened to elect his successor in the Sedgefield constituency.The former prime minister met representatives of the Mideast Quartet - the US, United Nations, the European Union and Russia - aware that the scale of the task facing him cannot be overestimated.The first visit he will make in his new role will be to meet Shimon Peres, the Israeli President, on Tuesday but no details of the talks have been released. He will also visit Ramallah next week before returning for at least a week per month from September. He is expected to stay in Government House, once the home of the old British Mandate, and now a base for the UN.While Mr Blair will try hard to avoid a confrontation with Israel, he is expected to risk their wrath by talking to Hamas at some point. Israel has already said it would not talk to international figures engaging with Hamas but there are several figures in Europe, including David Miliband, the UK's Foreign Secretary, who believe the present policy needs to be revisited. Mr Miliband, amongst others, is thought to wonder if it is at all sensible to maintain a policy that to date has obviously failed.
The talks in Portugal, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, will bring together UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Mr Solana said the primary task for the Quartet was to help build up Palestinian institutions.Speaking to the BBC, he said: What is very important is to have the Palestinians better organised, the structure of the Palestinian Authority today, a state tomorrow.Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Human Rights Centre in Gaza, said the focus should be on basic requirements before talking about institution building.There are what we call basic needs: the right to food; the right to life; the right to freedom of movement; the right to communicate with the other side of our nation,he said.
A priority for Mr Blair will be trying to improve movement and access which is diplomatic speak for dismantling some of the checkpoints and roadblocks which the World Bank has blamed for the collapse in the West Bank's economy.In another development yesterday Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Egypt's Foreign Minister, said that a Mideast peace conference called for by US President George W Bush will likely be held in September on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
Mr Gheit said that ahead of the conference, Ms Rice will discuss its agenda with Arab foreign ministers on July 31 in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Sharm el Sheik.Contacts that took place between the Egyptians and Americans indicate that this (Mideast peace) conference will be held in September on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly but not necessarily in New York.Egypt's vision is that the meeting should handle a wide number of issues, including launching the peace process in active negotiations between the Israeli and Palestinian parties, he added.
THE USA WILL BE MOURNING BIGTIME IF THEY INSIST ON FORCING ISRAEL INTO THE DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL AND JERUSALEM LIKE THE USA IS DOING NOW.
This Week with Rabbi Eckstein
July 19, 2007
Dear Friend of The Fellowship,
The Jewish fast of Tisha B’Av, which falls on the ninth day of the month of Av on the Jewish calendar, begins at sundown on Monday, July 23. On this day throughout history, many catastrophes have befallen the Jewish people, with the worst of these the destruction in the years 586 B.C.E. and 70 C.E., respectively, of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem – the holiest places in all Judaism – and the exile of the Jewish people from Israel.
Tisha B’Av is a day of solemnity and mourning, the culmination of a period of mourning known as The Three Weeks that began on the 19 th of the Jewish month of Tammuz (which this year fell on July 2). It is a day when Jews are to deny themselves ordinary pleasures and indulgences, especially eating and drinking. In fact, the events remembered on this day are so grave that Tisha B’Av is one of only two full fast days on the Jewish calendar (Yom Kippur is the other). Thus, Jews abstain from food and drink – even water – from sunset until darkness the following day.
Other customs on this day are geared toward promoting the avoidance of enjoyment. There is to be no washing, bathing or wearing cosmetics. We are to avoid wearing leather shoes, and are told to sit on low chairs to minimize our comfort. Even Torah study, which is considered to be a joyful activity, is restricted to passages describing the laws of mourning, the destruction of the Temple, and other tragic events.
There are those who say that the best thing to do would be to forget the suffering and move on. But, in fact, Jews are exhorted by the Bible itself not to forget. If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you (Psalm 137:5-6). And so we continue to commemorate past tragedies, not wallow in our grief, but to strengthen our memory of history, in order to ensure that such things may never happen again. And, perhaps, our remembering will help us realize that our survival of these many trials is indeed a miracle, a gift from God.
On this solemn day, Jews will remember those who have died defending the Jewish people and the Jewish State, and those whose lives were cruelly taken away through terrorism. We will remember that Israel is never completely free of the threat of war and destruction, as the world saw last year during the Second Lebanon War. We will remember and pray for the return of the three Israeli soldiers captured last year and still held by terrorists.
And yet, all the while, we will resist succumbing to despair, because we remember that the Bible tells us The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid … The Lord is with me; He is my helper (Psalm 118: 5-6). We will continue to do our work to support Israel and strengthen her people, and to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
As we approach Tisha B’Av, I hope you will join me in a show of solidarity with Israel and her people by recommitting yourself to pray for Israel’s peace and security. My deepest thanks for your faithful support – may God bless you, even as you have blessed His people, Israel.
With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein
President INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIANS AND JEWS.
Mideast expert says Israel a strategic asset, not a liability
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow.com - July 19, 2007
Who's fault is it? Israel's or the U.S.? Neither, according to a leading Middle East expert. Robert Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute, a Mideast think tank, is bound and determined to expose the root cause for the Islamic terrorist threat facing both nations.In an effort to achieve his objective, Satloff asks some important questions: Is the problem with our values, or with theirs? With our culture, or with theirs? With our way of life that we need to change, amend, accommodate, appease -- or with theirs? Satloff believes that to be successful in the war against terror, the U.S. must first defeat the mindset that it brought this war upon itself through the American way of life and through its alliance with Israel. This mindset, which Satloff calls a lie [and] a canard, is being fueled by a forthcoming book by professors Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer, and by the latest anti-Israel book written by former President Jimmy Carter.
Speaking at the Christians United for Israel summit in Washington, DC, Satloff argued that too many people in the halls of power in Washington secretly take seriously the arguments put forth by Carter, Walt, and Mearshimer. It is a mindset, he says, that has infected too many of the foreign policy elite in Washington who view Israel as a liability. Be armed, be warned, be prepared to make the argument in the other way -- that Israel a powerful strategic asset to the United States, he told his audience. The real enemy, he said, are the Muslims who want to impose Sharia law through the gun and the ballot box.In his address, Satloff remarked that the U.S. and Israel actually share common moral values and common strategic interests as well as adversaries. He argued that the U.S. and Israel need to partner with what he calls anti-Islamist Middle East allies in the war on terror.American Family News Network.
World Bank's Zoellick backs WTO proposals to spur trade talks
JULY 20,07
WASHINGTON (AFP) - World Bank president Robert Zoellick backed Friday fresh proposals to drive the deadlocked round of World Trade Organization negotiations to a conclusion this year. A major final push will be needed to close the gaps but, with the right spirit, there is now a deal on the table to be seized, said Zoellick, a former chief US trade negotiator.Negotiators at the WTO issued Tuesday proposals on agricultural and industrial trade to revive the Doha Development Round, dedicated to reducing global trade barriers and encouraging development.
Under the proposals, the US would cut farm subsidies to below 16.2 billion dollars a year, compared with a current ceiling of 19 billion dollars, and 27 developing nations would reduce industrial import tariffs to less than 23 percent.The proposals came one month after the failure of a meeting between representatives of the United States, the European Union, Brazil and India to unblock the Doha Round, which was launched in the Qatari capital in 2001.Representatives of the WTO's 150 members are due to meet in negotiating groups next week in Geneva, Switzerland, to give their initial reactions to the proposals.
I CAN NOT BELIEVE AMERICA IS FORCING ISRAEL TO GIVE THE ARABS PRISONERS THAT TRYED TO KILL ISRAELIS. AND STILL I CAN NOT BELIEVE OLMERT AND THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT IS ALLOWING ISRAEL TO LET THESE ATTEMPTED MURDERS TO BE FREED TO KILL ISRAELIS AGAIN. THE WORLD IS RIPE FOR THE EU DICTATOR TO COME ON THE SCENE ANYTIME NOW AS THE WORLD IS GONE TO ASH AND GOD WILL NOT ALLOW THE US AND WORLD TO DESTROY ISRAEL LIKE THE WORLD IS DOING FOR VERY LONG. THE TRIBULATION 7 YEAR PERIOD IS AT THE DOOR WORLD GET READY.
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth.
13 Then God said to Noah, The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.
I BELIEVE HABAKKUK IS SPEAKING OF MUSLIMS IN THESE VERSES. BECAUSE IN 1:9 IN HEBREW THE WORD HAMAS IS RIGHT IN THEIR BIBLE TO THE WORD VIOLENCE. AND IN HEBREW IN GENESIS 6:11 THE WORD FOR VIOLENCE IS YOU GUESSED IT HAMAS.
HABAKKUK 1:2-17,2:1-4
2 O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!
3 Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention.
4 Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.
5 Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you.
6 For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not their's.
7 They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves.
8 Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.
9 They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand.
10 And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.
11 Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god.
12 Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction.
13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
14 And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them?
15 They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad.
16 Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous.
17 Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?
1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Israel frees more than 250 Palestinian prisoners by Nasser Abu Bakr
Fri Jul 20, 10:28 AM ET
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AFP) - Israel on Friday freed more than 250 Palestinian prisoners, who flashed victory signs to a West Bank heroes' welcome, in a move promoted to bolster moderate president Mahmud Abbas. In the biggest such release in two years, Israeli prison officials drove the 255 prisoners to the Beitunya checkpoint where they were handed over to the Palestinian Authority and bused to the West Bank capital Ramallah.I thank God that we are honoured by the return of heroes of freedom to their home and the bosom of their homeland, Abbas told the thousands who thronged the courtyard of his leadership compound to welcome the prisoners.We must continue to work for the return of all Palestinian prisoners, he added, of the nearly 11,000 Palestinians who remain in Israeli custody, in one of the thorniest issues separating the two sides.
I only have three words to say: freedom, freedom, freedom. There is nothing more beautiful than freedom, said Abdelrahim Malluh, deputy leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the most prominent to be freed.Including six women and 11 minors, Friday's release comes three weeks after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised, at a Middle East summit in Egypt, to release 250 prisoners as part of efforts to bolster Abbas against Hamas.It was Israel's biggest single release of Palestinian prisoners since 2005, when 900 were freed in two batches following an earlier Middle East summit.Sporting fresh haircuts and grinning from ear to ear, the prisoners craned their necks to lean out of buses waving flags and keffiyehs, flashing victory signs and kissing loved ones, en route to the festivities in Ramallah.After being welcomed individually as heroes by Abbas, they went in homage to the grave of the late historic leader Yasser Arafat and took part in a special, collective Friday Muslim prayers under a tent.
The prisoner who served the longest sentence is Muhannad Jaradat, detained in 1989 and sentenced to 20 years. His sentence was due to end in 2009.Today I'm reborn. Unfortunately my father, who I dreamt of seeing again, died while I was in prison, the 40-year-old told AFP.Now my priority is to enroll at university to continue my studies and continue efforts to release the other prisoners, he said.Israel agreed to the releases as part of a series of goodwill gestures designed to bolster Abbas in his struggle for power with the Islamist Hamas, following the group's bloody takeover of the Gaza Strip last month.The prisoners largely belong to Abbas's pragmatic Fatah party that has been locked in a power struggle, and at times deadly combat, with Hamas and since losing a general election to the Islamist movement in 2006.While welcoming the release, the Palestinians have said that freeing 250 prisoners out of the more than 11,000 held in Israeli jails, the majority of them on security charges, was not enough.
None of those bused to freedom on Friday have blood on their hands, meaning involvement in attacks that have killed Israelis, and all had to sign a commitment not to be involved in terror prior to their release.Wearing traditional dress, Halima Jomhur, 60, was waiting for her son Imad who served four years of a six-and-a-half year sentence in Israel.He was arrested 10 days before his wedding. His fiancee is still waiting for him and the first thing we're going to do is marry them, she said. This is a huge joy but it will only be complete when all our prisoners are released, she said, from the village of Beit Annan in the Ramallah area.
Israel has recently pledged to remove from wanted lists nearly 190 militants who promised not to carry out attacks, and released some Palestinian customs duties it has withheld for more than a year after Hamas came to power. But Ismail Haniya, prime minister of the Hamas-led government that Abbas sacked last month, expressed scepticism about Israel's real intentions. We are happy when Palestinian prisoners are released but we warn against using them as political bribery because Israel's so-called good intentions are a trap intended to undermine Palestinian unity, he told worshippers in Gaza. Since Hamas routed forces loyal to Abbas in Gaza on June 15 in ferocious street battles, the Palestinians have been split into two entities, with the moderate president controlling the West Bank and Hamas ruling over Gaza.
EU sides with UK in diplomatic clash with Russia
19.07.2007 - 09:32 CET | By Lucia Kubosova
Despite warnings from Moscow against EU involvement in its diplomatic clash with the UK, the bloc's Portuguese presidency has voiced disappointment over Russia's stance on the probe into the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.The former KGB agent died of exposure to radioactive polonium-210 in London last year. British prosecutors want the chief suspect Andrei Lugovoi, whom Mr Litvinenko met shortly before he fell ill, to face trial in the UK but Russia is refusing to hand him over.Referring to the murder as a grave and reckless crime, the EU stressed that urgent and constructive cooperation by the Russian Federation is crucial, in a statement issued on Wednesday (18 July).The presidency declaration is being viewed as an important signal of support for the UK, in a row that Moscow has tried to keep exclusively between itself and London.
It also comes despite Portugal earlier indicating that it does not want to increase tensions with Russia during its term at the EU helm, running until the end of the year. Earlier this week, Alexander Grushko, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, was reported in British media as saying: We hope that common sense will prevail and its members will not yield to more attempts to turn relations between Russia and the EU into an instrument for one-sided political goals that have nothing to do with the real interests of co-operation.But Portugal insisted the matter raises important questions of common interest to EU Member States and called for its satisfactory solution. The issue is expected to be raised next Monday (23 July) when EU foreign ministers gather in Brussels.
The diplomatic row has so far resulted in Britain expelling four Russian embassy staff in reaction to Moscow's reluctance to extradite Mr Lugovoi.Russia argues that it is against the country's constitution to hand over its citizens for trials in other countries. The UK counters that an international accord signed by Moscow, paves the way for the hand-over.The case is sensitive due to a statement by Mr Litvinenko, unveiled a day after his death, accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of involvement in his poisoning. The Kremlin strongly rejects any involvement in the murder.
New Ethiopian Synagogue in Jerusalem & Other Local Jewish News
by Hillel Fendel(JULY 20,07 INN)
A first-ever Ethiopian synagogue has been dedicated in Jerusalem, a missionary center was closed down in Kiryat Yam, and a synagogue dispute in Haifa will be mediated by MKs - three news items of local Jewish interest culled from HaTzofeh newspaper.
Missionary Center X-ed
In Kiryat Yam, the Yad L'Achim anti-missionary organization has succeeded, after a long struggle, in closing down a Jehova's Witnesses missionary center. Yad L'Achim had marked the Kiryat Yam office building as one of four main Jehova's Witnesses centers in the country, learning that the cult held twice-weekly lectures there for dozens of people. Pressure by Yad L'Achim and other tenants in the building finally became unbearable, and the missionary center closed down.
First Ethiopian Synagogue
Earlier this month, in the northern Jerusalem neighborhood of N'vei Yaakov, the capitals' first Ethiopian synagogue was dedicated, in the presence of Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky. The New Jerusalem Foundation and members of the Ohel Nechama synagogue helped pay for the synagogue.
The synagogue, which will serve more than 170 families of Ethiopian extraction in N'vei Yaakov, is located in a previously unused section of the Bernadette public-religious school. The dedication ceremony included an emotional afternoon prayer service, replete with the customs of the Ethiopian liturgy.
The new synagogue will improve the image of the Ethiopian immigrants, it was said at the ceremony, and will alleviate the sense of frustration, neglect and estrangement, replacing it with feelings of pride and unity of a vital community integrating with the city and its many groups.
MKs Gafni and Beilin
In Haifa, a squabble over a synagogue between two Jewish groups has led to a Knesset committee debate and mediation by two Knesset Members: Yossi Beilin of the far-left and very secular Meretz party, and Moshe Gafni of the hareidi United Torah Judaism party.
Beilin came from the side of the neighborhood residents, who claimed that Breslover Hassidim had taken over a neighborhood synagogue and turned it into a yeshiva. Gafni and the Breslovers, on the other hand, said they were asked to help bolster synagogue attendance following the death of the local rabbi and a resulting drop in general attendance.
MKs Beilin and Gafni met on Tuesday, and plan to visit the site within the coming days.
MIDDLE EAST QUARTET SUPPORTS US PRESIDENT’S CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL MEETING
New York, Jul 19 2007 7:00PM
The diplomatic Quartet on the Middle East – comprising the United Nations, European Union, Russian Federation and the United States – today supported US President Bush’s call for an international meeting in the fall. The Quartet’s backing came in a
communiqué released following a meeting in Lisbon that was attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, High Representative for European Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana, Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, and European Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner.They were joined by Quartet Representative Tony Blair.
The Quartet welcomed President Bush’s July 16 statement renewing US commitment to a negotiated two-State solution, and supported President Bush’s call for an international meeting in the fall, stated the communiqué. The Quartet agreed that such a meeting should provide diplomatic support for the parties in their bilateral discussions and negotiations in order to move forward on a successful path to a Palestinian State. The Quartet welcomed Mr. Blair’s agreement to be its Representative and discussed with him “the urgent work that lies ahead, according to the communiqué.
Noting the centrality of reform, economic development, and institutional capacity building to the establishment of a stable and prosperous Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza that will unite all Palestinians, and live in peace and security with Israel and its other neighbours, the Quartet urged the parties and all states in the region to work closely with Mr. Blair, and encouraged robust international support for his efforts. The Quartet expressed support for the Palestinian Authority Government headed by Salam Fayyad, which is committed to the political platform of
President Abbas. It also encouraged direct and rapid financial assistance and other aid to the Palestinian Authority government to help reform, preserve, and strengthen vital Palestinian institutions and infrastructure, and to support the rule of law.
The Quartet welcomed the resumption of bilateral talks between Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas, and expressed support for steps taken by the Israeli Government, including the resumption of tax and customs revenue transfers and the decision to release Palestinian prisoners. The communiqué also encouraged continued bilateral dialogue and further cooperation and urged both parties to work without delay to fulfil their previous commitments and to build confidence. Recognizing the continuing importance of the Arab Peace Initiative, the Quartet looked forward to the planned visit to Israel by representatives of the Arab League to discuss the Initiative. The Quartet emphasized the need to find ways to sustain Palestinian
economic activity and the importance of creating circumstances that would allow for full implementation of the Agreement on Movement and Access,particularly in view of the impact of crossings on the Palestinian economy and daily life, the communiqu̩ said, encouraging parties to address their obligations under the Roadmap Рan outline plan envisaging a two-State solution Рincluding an end to settlement expansion and the removal of unauthorized outposts, and an end to violence and terror.
The Quartet expressed its deep concern over the humanitarian conditions in Gaza and agreed on the importance of continued emergency and humanitarian assistance. The communiqué also reaffirmed the Quartet’s its commitment to bring about an end to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and to work to lay the foundation for the establishment of an independent, democratic and viable Palestinian state living side by side with Israel in peace and security, as a step towards a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East, consistent with the Roadmap and UN Security Council
resolutions.The next meeting of the Quartet will take place in September, the
communiqué says, noting that members will continue to consult regularly on
developments in the meantime.
Blair takes up role as peace envoy - THE HERALD
CATHERINE MacLEOD, Political Editor July 20 2007
Tony Blair was anointed as Middle East envoy in Lisbon yesterday only hours after the polls opened to elect his successor in the Sedgefield constituency.The former prime minister met representatives of the Mideast Quartet - the US, United Nations, the European Union and Russia - aware that the scale of the task facing him cannot be overestimated.The first visit he will make in his new role will be to meet Shimon Peres, the Israeli President, on Tuesday but no details of the talks have been released. He will also visit Ramallah next week before returning for at least a week per month from September. He is expected to stay in Government House, once the home of the old British Mandate, and now a base for the UN.While Mr Blair will try hard to avoid a confrontation with Israel, he is expected to risk their wrath by talking to Hamas at some point. Israel has already said it would not talk to international figures engaging with Hamas but there are several figures in Europe, including David Miliband, the UK's Foreign Secretary, who believe the present policy needs to be revisited. Mr Miliband, amongst others, is thought to wonder if it is at all sensible to maintain a policy that to date has obviously failed.
The talks in Portugal, which currently holds the EU's rotating presidency, will bring together UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Mr Solana said the primary task for the Quartet was to help build up Palestinian institutions.Speaking to the BBC, he said: What is very important is to have the Palestinians better organised, the structure of the Palestinian Authority today, a state tomorrow.Raji Sourani, director of the Palestinian Human Rights Centre in Gaza, said the focus should be on basic requirements before talking about institution building.There are what we call basic needs: the right to food; the right to life; the right to freedom of movement; the right to communicate with the other side of our nation,he said.
A priority for Mr Blair will be trying to improve movement and access which is diplomatic speak for dismantling some of the checkpoints and roadblocks which the World Bank has blamed for the collapse in the West Bank's economy.In another development yesterday Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Egypt's Foreign Minister, said that a Mideast peace conference called for by US President George W Bush will likely be held in September on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York.
Mr Gheit said that ahead of the conference, Ms Rice will discuss its agenda with Arab foreign ministers on July 31 in the Egyptian Red Sea resort town of Sharm el Sheik.Contacts that took place between the Egyptians and Americans indicate that this (Mideast peace) conference will be held in September on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly but not necessarily in New York.Egypt's vision is that the meeting should handle a wide number of issues, including launching the peace process in active negotiations between the Israeli and Palestinian parties, he added.
THE USA WILL BE MOURNING BIGTIME IF THEY INSIST ON FORCING ISRAEL INTO THE DESTRUCTION OF ISRAEL AND JERUSALEM LIKE THE USA IS DOING NOW.
This Week with Rabbi Eckstein
July 19, 2007
Dear Friend of The Fellowship,
The Jewish fast of Tisha B’Av, which falls on the ninth day of the month of Av on the Jewish calendar, begins at sundown on Monday, July 23. On this day throughout history, many catastrophes have befallen the Jewish people, with the worst of these the destruction in the years 586 B.C.E. and 70 C.E., respectively, of the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem – the holiest places in all Judaism – and the exile of the Jewish people from Israel.
Tisha B’Av is a day of solemnity and mourning, the culmination of a period of mourning known as The Three Weeks that began on the 19 th of the Jewish month of Tammuz (which this year fell on July 2). It is a day when Jews are to deny themselves ordinary pleasures and indulgences, especially eating and drinking. In fact, the events remembered on this day are so grave that Tisha B’Av is one of only two full fast days on the Jewish calendar (Yom Kippur is the other). Thus, Jews abstain from food and drink – even water – from sunset until darkness the following day.
Other customs on this day are geared toward promoting the avoidance of enjoyment. There is to be no washing, bathing or wearing cosmetics. We are to avoid wearing leather shoes, and are told to sit on low chairs to minimize our comfort. Even Torah study, which is considered to be a joyful activity, is restricted to passages describing the laws of mourning, the destruction of the Temple, and other tragic events.
There are those who say that the best thing to do would be to forget the suffering and move on. But, in fact, Jews are exhorted by the Bible itself not to forget. If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you (Psalm 137:5-6). And so we continue to commemorate past tragedies, not wallow in our grief, but to strengthen our memory of history, in order to ensure that such things may never happen again. And, perhaps, our remembering will help us realize that our survival of these many trials is indeed a miracle, a gift from God.
On this solemn day, Jews will remember those who have died defending the Jewish people and the Jewish State, and those whose lives were cruelly taken away through terrorism. We will remember that Israel is never completely free of the threat of war and destruction, as the world saw last year during the Second Lebanon War. We will remember and pray for the return of the three Israeli soldiers captured last year and still held by terrorists.
And yet, all the while, we will resist succumbing to despair, because we remember that the Bible tells us The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid … The Lord is with me; He is my helper (Psalm 118: 5-6). We will continue to do our work to support Israel and strengthen her people, and to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
As we approach Tisha B’Av, I hope you will join me in a show of solidarity with Israel and her people by recommitting yourself to pray for Israel’s peace and security. My deepest thanks for your faithful support – may God bless you, even as you have blessed His people, Israel.
With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein
President INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIANS AND JEWS.
Mideast expert says Israel a strategic asset, not a liability
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow.com - July 19, 2007
Who's fault is it? Israel's or the U.S.? Neither, according to a leading Middle East expert. Robert Satloff, executive director of the Washington Institute, a Mideast think tank, is bound and determined to expose the root cause for the Islamic terrorist threat facing both nations.In an effort to achieve his objective, Satloff asks some important questions: Is the problem with our values, or with theirs? With our culture, or with theirs? With our way of life that we need to change, amend, accommodate, appease -- or with theirs? Satloff believes that to be successful in the war against terror, the U.S. must first defeat the mindset that it brought this war upon itself through the American way of life and through its alliance with Israel. This mindset, which Satloff calls a lie [and] a canard, is being fueled by a forthcoming book by professors Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer, and by the latest anti-Israel book written by former President Jimmy Carter.
Speaking at the Christians United for Israel summit in Washington, DC, Satloff argued that too many people in the halls of power in Washington secretly take seriously the arguments put forth by Carter, Walt, and Mearshimer. It is a mindset, he says, that has infected too many of the foreign policy elite in Washington who view Israel as a liability. Be armed, be warned, be prepared to make the argument in the other way -- that Israel a powerful strategic asset to the United States, he told his audience. The real enemy, he said, are the Muslims who want to impose Sharia law through the gun and the ballot box.In his address, Satloff remarked that the U.S. and Israel actually share common moral values and common strategic interests as well as adversaries. He argued that the U.S. and Israel need to partner with what he calls anti-Islamist Middle East allies in the war on terror.American Family News Network.
World Bank's Zoellick backs WTO proposals to spur trade talks
JULY 20,07
WASHINGTON (AFP) - World Bank president Robert Zoellick backed Friday fresh proposals to drive the deadlocked round of World Trade Organization negotiations to a conclusion this year. A major final push will be needed to close the gaps but, with the right spirit, there is now a deal on the table to be seized, said Zoellick, a former chief US trade negotiator.Negotiators at the WTO issued Tuesday proposals on agricultural and industrial trade to revive the Doha Development Round, dedicated to reducing global trade barriers and encouraging development.
Under the proposals, the US would cut farm subsidies to below 16.2 billion dollars a year, compared with a current ceiling of 19 billion dollars, and 27 developing nations would reduce industrial import tariffs to less than 23 percent.The proposals came one month after the failure of a meeting between representatives of the United States, the European Union, Brazil and India to unblock the Doha Round, which was launched in the Qatari capital in 2001.Representatives of the WTO's 150 members are due to meet in negotiating groups next week in Geneva, Switzerland, to give their initial reactions to the proposals.
I CAN NOT BELIEVE AMERICA IS FORCING ISRAEL TO GIVE THE ARABS PRISONERS THAT TRYED TO KILL ISRAELIS. AND STILL I CAN NOT BELIEVE OLMERT AND THE ISRAELI GOVERNMENT IS ALLOWING ISRAEL TO LET THESE ATTEMPTED MURDERS TO BE FREED TO KILL ISRAELIS AGAIN. THE WORLD IS RIPE FOR THE EU DICTATOR TO COME ON THE SCENE ANYTIME NOW AS THE WORLD IS GONE TO ASH AND GOD WILL NOT ALLOW THE US AND WORLD TO DESTROY ISRAEL LIKE THE WORLD IS DOING FOR VERY LONG. THE TRIBULATION 7 YEAR PERIOD IS AT THE DOOR WORLD GET READY.
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the earth was filled with violence. 12 God looked on the earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way upon the earth.
13 Then God said to Noah, The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth.
I BELIEVE HABAKKUK IS SPEAKING OF MUSLIMS IN THESE VERSES. BECAUSE IN 1:9 IN HEBREW THE WORD HAMAS IS RIGHT IN THEIR BIBLE TO THE WORD VIOLENCE. AND IN HEBREW IN GENESIS 6:11 THE WORD FOR VIOLENCE IS YOU GUESSED IT HAMAS.
HABAKKUK 1:2-17,2:1-4
2 O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!
3 Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention.
4 Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth.
5 Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you.
6 For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not their's.
7 They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves.
8 Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.
9 They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand.
10 And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.
11 Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god.
12 Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction.
13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
14 And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them?
15 They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad.
16 Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous.
17 Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?
1 I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Israel frees more than 250 Palestinian prisoners by Nasser Abu Bakr
Fri Jul 20, 10:28 AM ET
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AFP) - Israel on Friday freed more than 250 Palestinian prisoners, who flashed victory signs to a West Bank heroes' welcome, in a move promoted to bolster moderate president Mahmud Abbas. In the biggest such release in two years, Israeli prison officials drove the 255 prisoners to the Beitunya checkpoint where they were handed over to the Palestinian Authority and bused to the West Bank capital Ramallah.I thank God that we are honoured by the return of heroes of freedom to their home and the bosom of their homeland, Abbas told the thousands who thronged the courtyard of his leadership compound to welcome the prisoners.We must continue to work for the return of all Palestinian prisoners, he added, of the nearly 11,000 Palestinians who remain in Israeli custody, in one of the thorniest issues separating the two sides.
I only have three words to say: freedom, freedom, freedom. There is nothing more beautiful than freedom, said Abdelrahim Malluh, deputy leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the most prominent to be freed.Including six women and 11 minors, Friday's release comes three weeks after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised, at a Middle East summit in Egypt, to release 250 prisoners as part of efforts to bolster Abbas against Hamas.It was Israel's biggest single release of Palestinian prisoners since 2005, when 900 were freed in two batches following an earlier Middle East summit.Sporting fresh haircuts and grinning from ear to ear, the prisoners craned their necks to lean out of buses waving flags and keffiyehs, flashing victory signs and kissing loved ones, en route to the festivities in Ramallah.After being welcomed individually as heroes by Abbas, they went in homage to the grave of the late historic leader Yasser Arafat and took part in a special, collective Friday Muslim prayers under a tent.
The prisoner who served the longest sentence is Muhannad Jaradat, detained in 1989 and sentenced to 20 years. His sentence was due to end in 2009.Today I'm reborn. Unfortunately my father, who I dreamt of seeing again, died while I was in prison, the 40-year-old told AFP.Now my priority is to enroll at university to continue my studies and continue efforts to release the other prisoners, he said.Israel agreed to the releases as part of a series of goodwill gestures designed to bolster Abbas in his struggle for power with the Islamist Hamas, following the group's bloody takeover of the Gaza Strip last month.The prisoners largely belong to Abbas's pragmatic Fatah party that has been locked in a power struggle, and at times deadly combat, with Hamas and since losing a general election to the Islamist movement in 2006.While welcoming the release, the Palestinians have said that freeing 250 prisoners out of the more than 11,000 held in Israeli jails, the majority of them on security charges, was not enough.
None of those bused to freedom on Friday have blood on their hands, meaning involvement in attacks that have killed Israelis, and all had to sign a commitment not to be involved in terror prior to their release.Wearing traditional dress, Halima Jomhur, 60, was waiting for her son Imad who served four years of a six-and-a-half year sentence in Israel.He was arrested 10 days before his wedding. His fiancee is still waiting for him and the first thing we're going to do is marry them, she said. This is a huge joy but it will only be complete when all our prisoners are released, she said, from the village of Beit Annan in the Ramallah area.
Israel has recently pledged to remove from wanted lists nearly 190 militants who promised not to carry out attacks, and released some Palestinian customs duties it has withheld for more than a year after Hamas came to power. But Ismail Haniya, prime minister of the Hamas-led government that Abbas sacked last month, expressed scepticism about Israel's real intentions. We are happy when Palestinian prisoners are released but we warn against using them as political bribery because Israel's so-called good intentions are a trap intended to undermine Palestinian unity, he told worshippers in Gaza. Since Hamas routed forces loyal to Abbas in Gaza on June 15 in ferocious street battles, the Palestinians have been split into two entities, with the moderate president controlling the West Bank and Hamas ruling over Gaza.
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