Because they are seperate personages.

It goes without saying that "so would I."

Very strategic.

 

Ok, Lets say the Golan is given away.. What part could this play in Prophecy? I would like some ideas!!

 

In short, it would give Syria an incredible ego boost thinking that they took back something so important from Israel. With tension at the current high level, and a view of Israel being weaker than ever before, Syria and other may think a war with Israel would be winnable. So Syria starts a major attack and Israel responds by turning Damascus into a ruinous heap. According to prophecy Damascus will be completely destroyed.

 

Redeemed sorry it took so long for me to get back on here, I have been busy, and by the time I get un-busy I am to tired!

Is this prophecy the one where Israel gets attacked and the Lord rains down Hail Fire.. Like in the Left behind series?

Could you find that for me?

 

Hey Slim,

Check out Isaiah Ch 17.

Isaiah 17
An Oracle Against Damascus
1 An oracle concerning Damascus:
"See, Damascus will no longer be a city
but will become a heap of ruins.

From what I have been told is that Damascus has been a continuous inhabited city far back into history and has never been destroyed or abandoned. This leaves one to think that this prophecy has yet to be fulfilled.

Don't worry about the time lapse in posting. I am working alot too and know how you feel about being tired.

 

I will check this out Redeemed and get back with ya.. and I will do a little history search also..

 

Ok Redeemed it is time for you to come out of your hiding place, here is some food for thought that needs well your thought! You too Twilight..

1. Where is the United States in Prophecy?

Calls in Canada for Amero - euro-style currency to avoid exchange problems with US

Stephen Jarislowsky, a billionaire money manager and investor the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail bills as the Canadian Warren Buffet, has told a parliamentary committee Canada and the United States both should abandon their national dollar currencies and move to a regional North American currency as soon as possible. "I think we have to really seriously start thinking of the model of a continental currency just like Europe," Jarislowsky told the Canadian House of Commons' finance committee, according to the Globe and Mail in Toronto. "The idea would be a European Union-type set-up," Jarislowsky said, "with a North American Central Bank that would issue the new currency and sit over the Bank of Canada and the Federal Reserve Bank in the United States." Jarislowsky insisted Canada was going to be forced to do something because the increased value of the Canadian dollar vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar was likely to depress business activity in Canada and cause a recession. "Two-thirds of the Canadian economy is tied to the U.S. economy," Jarislowsky pointed out. "Some 85 percent of our exports are headed for the U.S. market. Our economy is tied to the U.S. dollar, whether we like it or not." Jarislowsky told the House of Commons finance committee that a regional North American currency would reduce the adverse currency exchange risk being experienced in Canada since the Canadian dollar has risen more than 20 percent against the U.S. dollar this year.

Poll finds more Americans believe in devil than Darwin

More Americans believe in a literal hell and the devil than Darwin's theory of evolution, according to a new Harris poll released on Thursday. It is the latest survey to highlight America's deep level of religiosity, a cultural trait that sets it apart from much of the developed world. It also helps explain many of its political battles which Europeans find bewildering, such as efforts to have "Intelligent Design" theory -- which holds life is too complex to have evolved by chance -- taught in schools alongside evolution. The poll of 2,455 U.S. adults from Nov 7 to 13 found that 82 percent of those surveyed believed in God, a figure unchanged since the question was asked in 2005. It further found that 79 percent believed in miracles, 75 percent in heaven, while 72 percent believed that Jesus is God or the Son of God. Belief in hell and the devil was expressed by 62 percent. Darwin's theory of evolution met a far more skeptical audience which might surprise some outsiders as the United States is renowned for its excellence in scientific research. Only 42 percent of those surveyed said they believed in Darwin's theory which largely informs how biology and related sciences are approached. While often referred to as evolution it is in fact the 19th century British intellectual's theory of "natural selection." There are unsurprising differences among religious groups. "Born-again Christians are more likely to believe in the traditional elements of Christianity than are Catholics or Protestants. For example, 95 percent believe in miracles, compared to 87 percent and 89 percent among Catholics and Protestants," according to the poll. "On the other hand only 16 percent of born-again Christians, compared to 43 percent of Catholics and 30 percent of Protestants, believe in Darwin's theory of evolution." What is perhaps surprising is that substantial minorities in America apparently believe in ghosts, UFOs, witches, astrology and reincarnation. The survey, which has a sampling error of plus or minus two percent, found that 35 percent of the respondents believed in UFOs and 31 percent in witches.


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2. Israel - God's Timepiece

Analyzing a a Mideast nuclear war

Anthony Cordesman may be the most influential man in Washington that most people have never heard of. A former director of intelligence assessment for the secretary of defense and director of policy and planning in the Department of Energy, he is now the top strategic guru at the Center for Strategic & International Studies. Most serious politicians and journalists have for some years based their analyses of the Iraq war and its aftermath on his universally respected research. Cordesman is a facts man who likes and reveres good data and cool, clinical analysis as the keystones of policymaking. He has now turned his laser-like research and forensic intelligence skills to studying the real implication of the endless diplomatic minuet at the United Nations over Iran's nuclear ambitions. In the real world, this matters mainly because an Iranian nuclear capability would transform the power balance in the wider Middle East, and leave the region and the rest of us living under the constant prospect of a nuclear exchange between Iran and Israel. This would mean, Cordesman suggests, some 16 million to 28 million Iranians dead within 21 days, and between 200,000 and 800,000 Israelis dead within the same time frame. The total of deaths beyond 21 days could rise very much higher, depending on civil defense and public health facilities, where Israel has a major advantage. It is theoretically possible that the Israeli state, economy and organized society might just survive such an almost-mortal blow. Iran would not survive as an organized society. "Iranian recovery is not possible in the normal sense of the term," Cordesman notes. The difference in the death tolls is largely because Israel is believed to have more nuclear weapons of very much higher yield (some of 1 megaton), and Israel is deploying the Arrow advanced anti-missile system in addition to its Patriot batteries. Fewer Iranian weapons would get through. The difference in yield matters. The biggest bomb that Iran is expected to have is 100 kilotons, which can inflict third-degree burns on exposed flesh at 8 miles; Israel's 1-megaton bombs can inflict third-degree burns at 24 miles. Moreover, the radiation fallout from an airburst of such a 1-megaton bomb can kill unsheltered people at up to 80 miles within 18 hours as the radiation plume drifts. (Jordan, by the way, would suffer severe radiation damage from an Iranian strike on Tel Aviv.) Cordesman assumes that Iran, with less than 30 nuclear warheads in the period after 2010, would aim for the main population centers of Tel Aviv and Haifa, while Israel would have more than 200 warheads and far better delivery systems, including cruise missiles launched from its 3 Dolphin-class submarines. But it does not end there. Cordesman points out that Israel would need to keep a "reserve strike capability to ensure no other power can capitalize on Iranian strike." This means Israel would have to target "key Arab neighbors" -- in particular Syria and Egypt. Cordesman notes that Israel would have various options, including a limited nuclear strike on the region mainly inhabited by the Alawite minority from which come the ruling Assad dynasty. A full-scale Israeli attack on Syria would kill up to 18 million people within 21 days; Syrian recovery would not be possible. A Syrian attack with all its reputed chemical and biological warfare assets could kill up to 800,000 Israelis, but Israeli society would recover. An Israeli attack on Egypt would likely strike at the main population centers of Cairo, Alexandria, Damietta, Port Said, Suez, Luxor and Aswan. Cordesman does not give a death toll here, but it would certainly be in the tens of millions. It would also destroy the Suez Canal and almost certainly destroy the Aswan dam, sending monstrous floods down the Nile to sweep away the glowing rubble. It would mean the end of Egypt as a functioning society.Cordesman also lists the oil wells, refineries and ports along the Gulf that could also be targets in the event of a mass nuclear response by an Israel convinced that it was being dealt a potentially mortal blow. Being contained within the region, such a nuclear exchange might not be Armageddon for the human race; it would certainly be Armageddon for the global economy. So in clear, concise and chillingly forensic style, Cordesman spells out that the real stakes in the crisis that is building over Iran's nuclear ambitions would certainly include the end of Persian civilization, quite probably the end of Egyptian civilization, and the end of the Oil Age. This would also mean the end of globalization and the extraordinary accretions in world trade and growth and prosperity that are hauling hundreds of millions of Chinese and Indians and others out of poverty. Cordesman concludes his chilling but dismayingly logical survey with the warning: "The only way to win is not to play."

Israel marks 60 years since Palestine split

It was one of the most dramatic moments in the modern history of the Middle East — the world's nations voting one by one in the U.N. General Assembly to partition the Holy Land into separate Jewish and Arab states. Exactly 60 years later, the concept remains at the heart of renewed attempts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. At this week's U.S.-sponsored peace conference outside Washington, Israel and the Palestinians again pledged efforts to wrap up a peace treaty that would set up the two states envisioned in 1947. The day of the vote is legendary in Israel. Its 600,000 Jewish inhabitants huddled around their radios to listen to the live broadcast from the United Nations. Many kept score nervously in "yes" and "no" columns as the representatives called out their votes on the partition resolution.It was no done deal, participants recalled in an Israel TV documentary that aired Wednesday. Israeli delegates scampered from room to room trying to garner enough support, while avoiding the British, who considered their very presence in the building illegal as long as they ruled Palestine under a U.N. mandate. Suzy Eban, widow of legendary Israeli diplomat Abba Eban, Israel's first ambassador to the U.N., described the tension. With a two-thirds vote required, the key, she said, was persuading France to back the partition — swaying the votes of its allies in Africa and elsewhere. In the end, the partition was approved, 33 to 13, with 10 abstentions. That set off wild Jewish celebrations in the streets of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, though their leaders were preparing for the war they knew would follow. With the end of the British mandate on May 14, 1948, Israel declared its independence, and Arab armies invaded from three directions. The two-year war that followed cost Israel 10 percent of its population in war dead, but its ragtag forces beat back the invaders, expanding the territory allotted to it under the U.N. partition plan. The 1949 cease-fire lines held until the 1967 Middle East war, when Israel captured additional territory — the West Bank, Gaza Strip, east Jerusalem, the Golan Heights and Sinai desert, which was returned to Egypt under a 1979 peace treaty. Today, some regret the Arab rejection of the partition. "If they had accepted the partition plan, it seems to me that long ago there would have been two states for two peoples," an unidentified resident of the Israeli Arab town of Um el-Fahm told Israel Army Radio. "We would have been spared all the wars and the mess since then."

Of all the obstacles to a peace deal, none looms larger than Jerusalem

If Israelis and Palestinians have any hope of achieving their stated goal of signing a final peace treaty within a year, they may have to slice Jerusalem in half with a wall, come up with $85 billion for Palestinian refugees and figure out how to wrest control of the Gaza Strip from Hamas. They'll also have to agree on which territory Israel should give to a future Palestine in exchange for being allowed to keep major settlement blocs in the West Bank. And if they decide not to divide Jerusalem, they'll have to determine how to share it while avoiding the potential security nightmare of an open border. These are just some of the excruciating challenges faced by Israeli and Palestinian negotiators as they begin discussions Dec. 12 on how to end their century-old conflict — as agreed upon Tuesday at a U.S.-hosted Mideast peace summit in Annapolis, Md. The Palestinians want to establish an independent state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem — areas that Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war. Of all the obstacles to a peace deal, none looms larger than Jerusalem — the city at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with its holy sites of such enormous importance to Muslims, Jews and Christians. Past peace negotiations have made it clear that the city will have to serve as the capital of both Israel and a future Palestine. But that raises more questions than it answers. How can you transfer east Jerusalem to Palestinian sovereignty without stripping its residents of Israeli social security benefits, for instance, or how can Israelis and Palestinians each have access to the city but not the other's country? "The Palestinian vision of Jerusalem is what they call an 'open city,' with access to all parts," said Yitzhak Reiter, head of the Truman Institute think tank in Jerusalem. "From an Israeli perspective, this is a problem, because there would be no 'hard borders' between Palestine and Israel." Most Israelis and Palestinians do not want to divide the city, like the way it was before Israel captured its eastern sector in 1967. However, security concerns may require just that — unless the sides can come up with an alternative such as erecting checkpoints at all roads leading out of Jerusalem to keep Palestinian militants from entering Israeli cities. But there's an even thornier issue — how to share the emotionally charged Jerusalem holy site known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount. As the site contains a Muslim shrine built on the remains of a Jewish one, a solution will almost certainly require an international presence to administer jurisdiction.

Geologist's prophecy: Holy Land overdue for a major earthquake

Based on 400-year historical cycles the pattern of recent tremors, the Middle East should be expecting a major earthquake in the near future, a geologist said. A leading Israeli geologist has assessed that the Middle East, particularly, the Levant, was ripe for a major earthquake. The geologist based his forecast on seismological data as well as historical patterns. "All of us in the region should be worried," Shmuel Marco, a geologist at Tel Aviv University, said. Seismologists have often warned of the prospect of a major earthquake in the Middle East. The Levant has undergone a series of serious tremors on the magnitude of five on the Richter Scale, but without causing significant damage. On Nov. 20, an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter Scale shook Israel and Jordan. The earthquake, whose epicenter was in the area of the Dead Sea, did not cause major damage. Marcos a member of Tel Aviv University's Department of Geophysics and Planetary Sciences, has sought to predict the next major earthquake in the Levant through historical examination. The geologist has examined ancient records from the Vatican and other religious sources in his research. The major earthquakes in the Levant took place along the Jordan Valley. Earthquakes were reported in 31 BCE, 363 CE, 749 CE and 1033 CE. "So roughly, we are talking about an interval of every 400 years," Marcos said. "If we follow the patterns of nature, a major quake should be expected any time because almost a whole millennium has passed since the last strong earthquake of 1033." Based on history, Marcos predicts a major earthquake that would affect Israel, Jordan, Palestinian Authority and Syria. He said the sites important to Christianity, Islam and Judaism could be particularly vulnerable. "I am looking for patterns and I can say that based on ancient records, the pattern in Israel around the Dead Sea region is the most disturbing to us," Marcos said. "When it strikes and it will this quake will affect Amman, Jordan as well as Ramallah, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem. Earthquakes don't care about religion or political boundaries."


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3. A Revived Roman Empire?

EU defence ministers give boost to military spending

EU defence ministers have increased the European Defence Agency's annual budget by one third in a bid to improve the bloc's military performance. According to a deal reached on Monday (19 November), the EDA budget will see a significant jump from €22 million in 2007 to €32 million in 2008 - something that should also help fill the "existing gaps" in three areas: strategic transport, force protection and intelligence. In addition, EU ministers set a series of "collective", but "voluntary" benchmarks designed to boost technologies that are crucial for future military capabilities. One of the benchmarks foresees 20 percent of defence spending going to new equipment purchases, compared to the current 19.4 percent. The other suggests that two percent of the overall budget should be invested in defence research and technology - at the moment it is 1.2 percent. "Investing in the right technology is critical for the future of European defence and the Strategy is exactly in line with the absolute requirement for us to spend more, spend better and spend more together", EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said after Monday's ministerial meeting. According to EDA chief executive Alexander Weis, "the decisions have put in place further building blocks for our common work of making Europe's armed forces and military budgets fit for the challenges of the 21st century which we must face together".

EU warnings ahead of treaty signing

The controversial EU Reform Treaty has come under renewed attack from senior MPs concerned that Gordon Brown is set to sign away crucial powers to Brussels. The cross-party European Scrutiny Committee warned that the sovereignty of the British Parliament was being put at risk by the document's "ambiguous" wording. Its Labour chairman, Michael Connarty, predicted a steady transfer of control over criminal justice matters to the European Commission and the European Court of Justice. The committee has previously described the treaty as being largely similar to the EU Constitution dumped by French and Dutch voters in 2005. In a new report, it stepped up criticism that the development of the treaty to overhaul the EU's structures had been shrouded in secrecy and excluded the public. "The process could not have been better designed to marginalise the role of national parliaments and to curtail public debate, until it has become too late for such debate to have any effect on the agreements which have been reached," the committee said. It went on to say that MPs had not been convinced by Foreign Secretary David Miliband's assurances that the final draft would contain no obligations on Westminster to the EU. And it expressed alarm that ministers had failed to secure an opt-out from the new Charter of Fundamental Rights, saying that a UK Protocol would not excuse Britain from the need to comply with rulings by the European Court of Justice. Mr Connarty added that Britain's "opt-ins" on justice and home affairs matters would also surrender jurisdiction from the UK courts, while choosing not to opt-in would present "new and unquantifiable risks". The report comes two weeks before the Prime Minister is due to sign the treaty, after which it faces lengthy and heated debate in Parliament before ratification. Mr Brown is resisting intense pressure from the Conservatives for a referendum on the treaty to fulfil Labour's manifesto commitment to giving the public a say on the Constitution. Ministers insist that there is no need for a referendum as the treaty is substantially different from the Constitution.


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4. The Gog/Magog War

Russia seeks to host Mideast conference

A Mideast summit in Moscow could bolster Russia's prestige and please Arab nations such as Syria, but progress would depend heavily on the actions of Israel and the Palestinians, analysts said Thursday. Moscow has offered to host a follow-up to the peace conference held this week in Annapolis, Md. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the idea "received support" during the summit, but stopped short of saying it was definite. He said the timing was not yet clear. An official with the European Commission, the executive body of the EU, said a Moscow meeting "could happen as early as February." The official spoke in Israel on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the subject. A conference in Moscow would fit in with President Vladimir Putin's efforts to restore Russia's global clout and further burnish his image at home — particularly before March 2 presidential elections in which he is barred from seeking a third term. "Putin has been doing everything possible to prove to the world — and not least to his own people — that Russia is a great power that has risen up from its knees" and opposes U.S. dominance, said Georgy Mirsky, a Mideast expert and professor at Moscow's Institute of World Economy and International Relations. Putin has sought to strengthen Russia's role in Mideast peacemaking, visiting both Israel and the West Bank in 2005. Russia, whose close ties with Syria go back to the Soviet era, has long called for a broad conference including Israel's neighboring Arab states, whose support is considered vital to any peace agreement. A meeting in Moscow would likely train a sharper focus on Syria. But it is far from clear whether such a gathering would take peace efforts further than the meetings in the United States, where Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reiterated their desire to reach a peace settlement by the end of next year. "I don't see any real leverage" in Moscow, Mirsky said. "I can't imagine what card could be played here that wasn't played in Annapolis. "A heck of a lot of effort will be needed from both sides" to make progress toward a settlement, he said. Galia Golan-Gild, an Israeli expert on Soviet and Russian policy in the Middle East, said Putin has nothing to offer to further the peace process and is pushing the conference to appear influential in the region. "Putin very clearly wants to be considered a superpower like the Americans," she said. The Russian daily Nezavisimaya Gazeta quoted Hamas deputy leader Moussa Abu Marzouk as saying that "any attempts to solve Mideast problems outside the region, whether in Annapolis or Moscow, cannot bring real progress."

Russia pulls out of arms treaty - effective Dec 12

President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Friday suspending Russia's participation in a key post-cold war arms treaty, triggering an angry reaction from the US, which declared the move a "mistake". In a significant new indication of the worsening diplomatic relationship between Moscow and Washington, Mr Putin personally ratified a law that means Moscow will suspend the Conventional Forces in Europe treaty (CFE) in a little under two weeks. Western military experts believe the CFE, first signed in 1990, is a significant treaty that limits the number of battle tanks, heavy artillery, combat aircraft and attack helicopters deployed and stored between the Atlantic and Russia's Ural mountains. It also contains a significant array of confidence-building measures, requiring all signatories to give other states advance notice of troop movements and missile launches. Senior officials from the US and other Nato states said Russia was now all but certain to suspend the treaty from December 12, a deadline it gave earlier this year unless an agreement could be forged with Nato *countries. "Russia has made a mistake in this unilateral behaviour of walking out of a major arms control treaty in Europe," said Nicholas Burns, the US under*secretary of state for political affairs. Senior officials from other Nato states said Washington and its allies now needed to decide when they would themselves suspend the treaty provisions. "From December 12, Russia will not be giving notification of its troop movements or allow external inspections," said a senior official from a Nato *government. "We will therefore see a gradual degradation in the application of the treaty. By March or April of next year we will have to decide whether we start to suspend the application of the treaty to our own forces."

5. Apostate Christianity

Christian Bookstores Refuse to Sell Gay Study Bible

Conservative Christian bookstores are refusing to sell copies of a new Bible study guide that challenges standard New Testament translations that teach gay sex is sin. U.S. distributor God’s Word to Women has banned the Australian publication and withdrawn another Bible translation by the same publishing company, Smith and Stirling, for promoting a lifestyle contradictory to scriptures, according to the Australian newspaper The Age. Moreover, Australia’s largest Christian retailer, Koorong, said it is unlikely to carry Ann Nyland’s Study New Testament for Gay, Lesbian, Bi, and Transgender if the version proves controversial. In the study guide, Nyland contends that the word “arsenokoites” has been wrongly interpreted to mean homosexual. According to the classical Greek lexicographer, the word’s meaning is one who anally penetrates another and does not exclusively apply to males, according to The Age. She further claims that most New Testament translations are based on a lack of understanding of Greek word meaning, context, and disregard for academic research. Because of Nyland’s authorship of the gay study Bible, two American scholars have withdrawn their endorsements from her other works.

More churches preaching 'environmental gospel'

In a growing number of churches, salvation means saving the Earth. A movement called Interfaith Power and Light offers ministers sermon tips on how to convert churchgoers into environmental activists. One program encourages people to switch to energy efficient light bulbs on each night they light a holiday candle for Advent or Hanukkah. Virginia's chapter has focused on developing a three-hour training program for congregations that asks members to calculate their carbon footprints and pledge a 10 percent reduction. A movement called "Cool Congregations" is afoot in Tennessee, where members of different congregations meet to discuss the connection between faith and environment and then spread the green gospel to their houses of worship.


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6. The Rise of Islam

Calls in Sudan for Execution of Briton who named teddy bear "Muhammad"

Thousands of Sudanese, many armed with clubs and knives, rallied Friday in a central square and demanded the execution of a British teacher convicted of insulting Islam for allowing her students to name a teddy bear "Muhammad." In response to the demonstration, teacher Gillian Gibbons was moved from the women's prison near Khartoum to a secret location for her safety, her lawyer said. The protesters streamed out of mosques after Friday sermons, as pickup trucks with loudspeakers blared messages against Gibbons, who was sentenced Thursday to 15 days in prison and deportation. She avoided the more serious punishment of 40 lashes. They massed in central Martyrs Square outside the presidential palace, where hundreds of riot police were deployed. They did not try to stop the rally, which lasted about an hour. They called for Gibbons' execution, saying, "No tolerance: Execution," and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad." A Muslim cleric at Khartoum's main Martyrs Mosque denounced Gibbons during one sermon, saying she intentionally insulted Islam. He did not call for protests, however. "Imprisoning this lady does not satisfy the thirst of Muslims in Sudan. But we welcome imprisonment and expulsion," the cleric, Abdul- Jalil Nazeer al-Karouri, a well-known hard-liner, told worshippers. "This an arrogant woman who came to our country, cashing her salary in dollars, teaching our children hatred of our Prophet Muhammad," he said. Most Britons expressed shock at the verdict by a court in Khartoum, alongside hope it would not raise tensions between Muslims and non- Muslims in Britain. Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, spiritual leader of the world's 77 million Anglicans, said Gibbons' prosecution and conviction was "an absurdly disproportionate response to what is at worst a cultural faux pas." Gibbons was arrested Sunday after another staff member at the school complained that she had allowed her 7-year-old students to name a teddy bear Muhammad. Giving the name of the Muslim prophet to an animal or a toy could be considered insulting. The case put Sudan's government in an embarrassing position—facing the anger of Britain on one side and potential trouble from powerful Islamic hard-liners on the other. Many saw the 15-day sentence as an attempt to appease both sides. In The Times, columnist Bronwen Maddox said the verdict was "something of a fudge ... designed to give a nod to British reproof but also to appease the street." Britain's response—applying diplomatic pressure while extolling ties with Sudan and affirming respect for Islam—had produced mixed results, British commentators concluded. In an editorial, The Daily Telegraph said Miliband "has tiptoed around the case, avoiding a threat to cut aid and asserting that respect for Islam runs deep in Britain. Given that much of the government's financial support goes to the wretched refugees in Darfur and neighboring Chad, Mr. Miliband's caution is understandable." Now, however, the newspaper said, Britain should recall its ambassador in Khartoum and impose sanctions on the Sudanese regime.


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7. Increase in Knowledge/New Technologies

Sharing too much online - Facebook Retreats on Online Tracking

Faced with its second mass protest by members in its short life span, Facebook, the enormously popular social networking Web site, is reining in some aspects of a controversial new advertising program. Within the last 10 days, more than 50,000 Facebook members have signed a petition objecting to the new program, which sends messages to users’ friends about what they are buying on Web sites like Travelocity.com, TheKnot.com and Fandango. The members want to be able to opt out of the program completely with one click, but Facebook won’t let them. Late yesterday the company made an important change, saying that it would not send messages about users’ Internet activities without getting explicit approval each time.Facebook, which is run by Mark Zuckerberg, 23, who created it while an undergraduate at Harvard, has built a highly successful service that is free to its more than 50 million active members. But now the company is trying to figure out how to translate this popularity into profit. Like so many Internet ventures, it is counting heavily on advertising revenue. The system Facebook introduced this month, called Beacon, is viewed as an important test of online tracking, a popular advertising tactic that usually takes place behind the scenes, where consumers do not notice it. Companies like Google, AOL and Microsoft routinely track where people are going online and send them ads based on the sites they have visited and the searches they have conducted. But Facebook is taking a far more transparent and personal approach, sending news alerts to users’ friends about the goods and services they buy and view online. Charlene Li, an analyst at Forrester Research, said she was surprised to find that her purchase of a table on Overstock.com was added to her News Feed, a Facebook feature that broadcasts users’ activities to their friends on the site. She says she did not see an opt-out box. “Beacon crosses the line to being Big Brother,” she said, “It’s a very, very thin line.” “Isn’t this community getting a little hypocritical?” said Chad Stoller, director of emerging platforms at Organic, a digital advertising agency. “Now, all of a sudden, they don’t want to share something?” Facebook users each get a home page where they can volunteer information like their age, hometown, college and religion. People can post photos and write messages on their pages and on their friends’ pages. Under Beacon, when Facebook members purchase movie tickets on Fandango.com, for example, Facebook sends a notice about what movie they are seeing in the News Feed on all of their friends’ pages. If a user saves a recipe on Epicurious.com or rates travel venues on NYTimes.com, friends are also notified. There is an opt-out box that appears for a few seconds, but users complain that it is hard to find. Mr. Palihapitiya said Facebook is making the boxes larger and holding them on the Web pages longer. The whole purpose of Beacon is to allow advertisers to run ads next to these purchase messages. A message about someone’s purchase on Travelocity might run alongside an airline or hotel ad, for example. Mr. Zuckerberg has heralded the new ads as being like a “recommendation from a trusted friend.” But Facebook users say they do not want to endorse products. “Just because I use a Web site, doesn’t mean I want to tell my friends about it,” said Annie Kadala, a 23-year old student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “Maybe I used that Web site because it was cheaper.” Ms. Kadala found out about Beacon on Thanksgiving day when her News Feed told her that her sister had purchased the Harry Potter “Scene It?” game. “I said, ‘Susan, did you buy me this game for Christmas?’” Ms. Kadala recalled. “I don’t want to know what people are getting me for Christmas.”

Cyberwar - 120 countries developing ways to use the Internet as a weapon

A "cyber cold war" waged over the world's computers threatens to become one of the biggest threats to security in the next decade, according to a report published on Thursday. About 120 countries are developing ways to use the Internet as a weapon to target financial markets, government computer systems and utilities, Internet security company McAfee said in an annual report. Intelligence agencies already routinely test other states' networks looking for weaknesses and their techniques are growing more sophisticated every year, it said. Governments must urgently shore up their defences against industrial espionage and attacks on infrastructure. "Cybercrime is now a global issue," said Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs. "It has evolved significantly and is no longer just a threat to industry and individuals but increasingly to national security." The report said China is at the forefront of the cyber war. It said China has been blamed for attacks in the United States, India and Germany. China has repeatedly denied such claims. "The Chinese were first to use cyber-attacks for political and military goals," James Mulvenon, director of the Center for Intelligence and Research in Washington, was quoted as saying in the report. Cyber-attacks on private and government Web sites in Estonia in April and May this year were "just the tip of the iceberg", the report warns. Estonia said thousands of sites were affected in attacks aimed at crippling key infrastructure in a country heavily dependent on the Internet. The attacks appeared to have stemmed initially from Russia although the Kremlin denied any wrongdoing. "The complexity and coordination seen was new," the report quotes an unnamed NATO source as saying. "There were a series of attacks with careful timing using different techniques and specific targets." EU Information Society commissioner Viviane Reding said in June that what happened in Estonia was a wake-up call. NATO said "urgent work" was needed to improve defences. The McAfee report predicted that future attacks will be even more sophisticated. "Attacks have progressed from initial curiosity probes to well-funded and well-organised operations for political, military, economic and technical espionage," it says.

High-tech drones as law enforcement tools beginning next year

The Miami-Dade police department will begin experimenting with high-tech drones as law enforcement tools beginning next year. Although the military has been using unmanned aircraft systems for years, this will be the first time they are used in law enforcement. "We are aware it is a great responsibility. The FAA is looking at us to see if we can professionally manage this program," said Lt. Cliff Nelson of the police department's aviation unit. The flying camera is called a Micro Air Vehicle made by Honeywell. The MAV is remote controlled, unarmed and unmanned and can soar over 10,000 feet. Miami-Dade police said only licensed pilots with the aviation unit will operate the devices because the airspace in the county is so busy.Only the Miami-Dade police department and the Houston police department were given permission by the FAA to experiment with the drones. "The capability of the unit is phenomenal," said Miami-Dade Detective Juan Villalba. The unmanned aircraft will be used during SWAT team and tactical operations, especially when officers need video of a heavily armed suspect.


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8. Christian Worldview/Issues

Jesus 'Everything Skit' Draws Millions

Forget the billions of dollars spent on producing Hollywood films and all-star lineups. Multi-tiered movie theaters and box office ads weren't needed to promote and draw more than 6 million views of a five-minute skit on GodTube and YouTube. It's the second-most viewed video on GodTube, having nearly seven times more looks than its third-place competitor. The "Lifehouse Everything Skit," performed by Mission Baltimore with music by Lifehouse, has deeply moved the hearts and souls of America, and the only "hook" pulling people toward it is a yearning to draw closer to a forgiving and embracing Savior. The skit was originally performed at the 2006 Smoky Mountain Winterfest in Knoxville, Tenn. It packed 30,000 into the Tennessee Volunteers' Thompson-Boling arena each night, and has deeply impacted God's Kingdom ever since. In a society caught up with Oscars and Golden Globes, those involved in the production of the "Everything Skit" received a much greater reward than any golden figurine could ever deliver -- witnessing changed lives. Numerous testimonies of people receiving Christ have been reported to Winterfest staff through e-mails and GodTube postings, providing eternal blessings far greater than most had ever anticipated. The huge response to the skit has driven youth leaders from across the nation to request the video and use it to teach their own drama teams. The drama focuses on the spiritual warfare being fought for our souls. At the beginning of the skit, the young woman indulges in the pure joy and innocence of finding her first love in Jesus, as He shows her all the wonderful things He has done and has in store for her. But this blissful moment becomes tarnished by seemingly harmless distractions, which turn into temptations and ultimately into deadly sins. The fallen spiritual forces at work begin their relentless attack on the young woman, who takes her eyes off Jesus and sets them on the world. She finds herself overcome by all the vices made to look so attractive in life: sexual impurity, greed for money, drinking, bulimia, and cutting. The lies that she has been told about her worthlessness and inability to measure up lead her into depression, attempted suicide, and ultimately into a desperation that spurs her to once again seek her first love. Only after the woman hits rock bottom does she remember the true source of her joy -- a relationship with Christ. But she's not alone as she battles to regain the abundant life Jesus has given her. Unable to fend off the enemy's spiritual attack on her own, she puts her eyes back on Jesus, who is waiting for her call for help. Eager to step in and fight the battle for His bride, Jesus fends off and defeats the demonic attackers who are after her very soul and life. We are reminded that Christ already won the battle for our souls on the cross, and that we have victory over our sins through our hope and redemption in Jesus. It affirms I John 4:4: "You dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." Since the video was introduced by a student to GodTube on May 31, 2007, the "Everything Skit" has been viewed more than 4 million times. It has also been visited more than 2.3 million times on YouTube since it was posted there on February 2 of this year. The evangelistic opportunities of this skit are enormous. "Sixty-four percent of Americans seek spirituality on the Internet, and as Christians, we need to be there for them," said CBN.com's Director of Ministries Craig von Buseck. "I love watching this video," said one GodTube viewer. "This put me at peace because I have been there and see that God is there looking over me. I just wanted to let everyone know that I almost committed suicide. Thank you so much for the reality that this skit showed me and for its impact on me... It pointed me back to God." The drama helps all who watch it take II Corinthians 5:21 to heart, "God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God."

You can view the video skit at: http://www.godtube.com/view_video.ph...3418003b47d7d5

Sunday School for Atheists

On Sunday mornings, most parents who don't believe in the Christian God, or any god at all, are probably making brunch or cheering at their kids' soccer game, or running errands or, with luck, sleeping in. Without religion, there's no need for church, right? Maybe. But some nonbelievers are beginning to think they might need something for their children. "When you have kids," says Julie Willey, a design engineer, "you start to notice that your co-workers or friends have church groups to help teach their kids values and to be able to lean on." So every week, Willey, who was raised Buddhist and says she has never believed in God, and her husband pack their four kids into their blue minivan and head to the Humanist Community Center in Palo Alto, Calif., for atheist Sunday school. An estimated 14% of Americans profess to have no religion, and among 18-to-25-year-olds, the proportion rises to 20%, according to the Institute for Humanist Studies. The lives of these young people would be much easier, adult nonbelievers say, if they learned at an early age how to respond to the God-fearing majority in the U.S. "It's important for kids not to look weird," says Peter Bishop, who leads the preteen class at the Humanist center in Palo Alto. Others say the weekly instruction supports their position that it's O.K. to not believe in God and gives them a place to reinforce the morals and values they want their children to have. The pioneering Palo Alto program began three years ago, and like-minded communities in Phoenix, Albuquerque, N.M., and Portland, Ore., plan to start similar classes next spring. The growing movement of institutions for kids in atheist families also includes Camp Quest, a group of sleep-away summer camps in five states plus Ontario, and the Carl Sagan Academy in Tampa, Fla., the country's first Humanism-influenced public charter school, which opened with 55 kids in the fall of 2005. Bri Kneisley, who sent her son Damian, 10, to Camp Quest Ohio this past summer, welcomes the sense of community these new choices offer him: "He's a child of atheist parents, and he's not the only one in the world." Kneisley, 26, a graduate student at the University of Missouri, says she realized Damian needed to learn about secularism after a neighbor showed him the Bible. "Damian was quite certain this guy was right and was telling him this amazing truth that I had never shared," says Kneisley. In most ways a traditional sleep-away camp--her son loved canoeing--Camp Quest also taught Damian critical thinking, world religions and tales of famous freethinkers (an umbrella term for atheists, agnostics and other rationalists) like the black abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The Palo Alto Sunday family program uses music, art and discussion to encourage personal expression, intellectual curiosity and collaboration. One Sunday this fall found a dozen children up to age 6 and several parents playing percussion instruments and singing empowering anthems like I'm Unique and Unrepeatable, set to the tune of Ten Little Indians, instead of traditional Sunday-school songs like Jesus Loves Me. Rather than listen to a Bible story, the class read Stone Soup, a secular parable of a traveler who feeds a village by making a stew using one ingredient from each home. Down the hall in the kitchen, older kids engaged in a Socratic conversation with class leader Bishop about the role persuasion plays in decision-making. He tried to get them to see that people who are coerced into renouncing their beliefs might not actually change their minds but could be acting out of self-preservation--an important lesson for young atheists who may feel pressure to say they believe in God.

Israeli Says Elusive Biblical Wall of Nehemiah Found

A wall mentioned in the Bible's Book of Nehemiah and long sought by archaeologists apparently has been found, an Israeli archaeologist says. A team of archaeologists discovered the wall in Jerusalem's ancient City of David during a rescue attempt on a tower that was in danger of collapse, said Eilat Mazar, head of the Institute of Archaeology at the Shalem Center, a Jerusalem-based research and educational institute, and leader of the dig. Artifacts including pottery shards and arrowheads found under the tower suggested that both the tower and the nearby wall are from the 5th century B.C., the time of Nehemiah, Mazar said this week. Scholars previously thought the wall dated to the Hasmonean period from about 142 B.C. to 37 B.C. .The findings suggest that the structure was actually part of the same city wall the Bible says Nehemiah rebuilt, Mazar said. The Book of Nehemiah gives a detailed description of construction of the walls, destroyed earlier by the Babylonians. "We were amazed," she said, noting that the discovery was made at a time when many scholars argued that the wall did not exist. "This was a great surprise. It was something we didn't plan," Mazar said. The first phase of the dig, completed in 2005, uncovered what Mazar believes to be the remains of King David's palace, built by King Hiram of Tyre, and also mentioned in the Bible. Ephraim Stern, professor emeritus of archaeology at Hebrew University and chairman of the state of Israel archaeological council, offered support for Mazar's claim. "The material she showed me is from the Persian period," the period of Nehemiah, he said. "I can sign on the date of the material she found."

Students find it's cool to be Christian on campus

The students piling into a house near the University of Cincinnati are laughing, sending text messages, and lining up for plates of pizza -- then they all bow their heads in prayer. This weekly pizza lunch at Wesley House, a ministry of the United Methodist Church, is just one of a half-dozen Christian events Nick George, 19, will attend this week with friends from the Navigators, a thriving campus evangelical group. For while public colleges in America were once considered hostile territory for religious students, a revival among both evangelical and traditional churches on campus has made it safe -- and even cool -- to be a college Christian. "I'm absolutely more involved in Christianity than before I came to college," said George, an engineering student. Most of his friends are fellow believers who, like thousands of young Christians, have eschewed private religious colleges in favor of large secular U.S. universities in a sign of a wider shift in the United States towards acceptance of religion in all areas of life. Eight of 10 college students attend religious services, 80 percent discuss religion or spirituality with friends and 69 percent pray, according to a 2004 University of California, Los Angeles, survey of 112,232 freshmen at 236 universities. "The American university system is not so aggressively asking kids to question their religion as it might have been in past years, in the 60s," said Mark Regnerus, a sociology professor at the University of Texas. The most visible faith group on most campuses remain evangelical or conservative Christian organizations like the Navigators or Campus Crusade for Christ, founded in 1951. Campus Crusade spokesman Tony Arnold said the group has grown from 18,000 students on 225 campuses in 1992 to 50,000 on 1,100 campuses, which he attributes to the uncertainty of modern life. "Life in the 21st century seems increasingly fraught with danger, whether it's a crazy with a gun in a classroom or at the seat of a plane headed into a skyscraper," Arnold said. "This generation is hungry for community and connection."

9. Other Events To Watch

Natural disasters have quadrupled in two decades: study

More than four times the number of natural disasters are occurring now than did two decades ago, British charity Oxfam said in a study Sunday that largely blamed global warming. The world suffered about 120 natural disasters per year in the early 1980s, which compared with the current figure of about 500 per year, according to the report. "This year we have seen floods in South Asia, across the breadth of Africa and Mexico that have affected more than 250 million people," noted Oxfam director Barbara Stocking. "This is no freak year. It follows a pattern of more frequent, more erratic, more unpredictable and more extreme weather events that are affecting more people." She added: "Action is needed now to prepare for more disasters otherwise humanitarian assistance will be overwhelmed and recent advances in human development will go into reverse." The number of people affected by extreme natural disasters, meanwhile, has surged by almost 70 percent, from 174 million a year between 1985 to 1994, to 254 million people a year between 1995 to 2004, Oxfam said. Floods and wind-storms have increased from 60 events in 1980 to 240 last year, with flooding itself up six-fold.



1. Where is the United States in Prophecy?

FBI prepares to build the world's largest database of peoples' physical characteristics

The FBI is embarking on a $1 billion effort to build the world's largest computer database of peoples' physical characteristics, a project that would give the government unprecedented abilities to identify individuals in the United States and abroad. Digital images of faces, fingerprints and palm patterns are already flowing into FBI systems in a climate-controlled, secure basement here. Next month, the FBI intends to award a 10-year contract that would significantly expand the amount and kinds of biometric information it receives. And in the coming years, law enforcement authorities around the world will be able to rely on iris patterns, face-shape data, scars and perhaps even the unique ways people walk and talk, to solve crimes and identify criminals and terrorists. The FBI will also retain, upon request by employers, the fingerprints of employees who have undergone criminal background checks so the employers can be notified if employees have brushes with the law. The increasing use of biometrics for identification is raising questions about the ability of Americans to avoid unwanted scrutiny. It is drawing criticism from those who worry that people's bodies will become de facto national identification cards. Critics say that such government initiatives should not proceed without proof that the technology really can pick a criminal out of a crowd.


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2. Israel - God's Timepiece

Hamas setting up West Bank takeover

Security organizations affiliated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah organization were "astonished" to discover Hamas the past few months began setting up a so-called military wing in a West Bank city long dominated by Fatah, according to security sources speaking to WND. Hamas leaders in recent weeks vowed their organization would seize the West Bank if Israel hands the territory to Abbas, just as Hamas seized the Gaza Strip last June, overtaking all U.S.-backed Fatah security compounds in less than one week. At last month's U.S.-backed Annapolis summit, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert committed to aim at concluding an agreement to create a Palestinian state by the end of 2008, with Israel widely expected to evacuate most of the West Bank and eastern sections of Jerusalem. According to Palestinian security officials, a recent Fatah investigation discovered Hamas the past two months attempted with some success to establish a military wing in the northern West Bank city of Jenin, a longtime Fatah stronghold although the Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad terror group also has a presence there. Hamas gunmen in Jenin were thought to be numbered in the dozens, but the PA found out Hamas purchased over 600 high-powered assault rifles and distributed them to fighters in the city, the security officials said. The officials said Fatah raids confiscated about 100 rifles, but they believe 500 more were handed out by Hamas in Jenin. Fatah's investigation also found that members of its declared military wing, the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terror group, were recruited by Hamas in Jenin with higher paychecks, security officials said. The issue is significant since Hamas' infiltration of Fatah in the Gaza Strip was thought to have been the Achilles heel that led to the terror group's takeover last summer of the entire Gaza Strip. The investigation also found many Fatah Brigades gunmen granted amnesty last June by Olmert sold their weapons to Hamas, which stockpiled and distributed the rifles in Jenin, said the Palestinian security officials. The amnesty was granted as an Israeli gesture to bolster Abbas against Hamas and was conditioned on Brigades terrorists handing in their weapons to the PA for a fee. The investigation comes amid multiple signs Hamas is preparing for an eventual West Bank takeover.

Map of the Moderates? In Fatah map all of Israel is Palestine

Fatah is planning to mark its 43rd anniversary this year with a new poster that presents all of Israel as Palestine. Designed specifically for the occasion by Abdel Mun'em Ibrahim, the poster features a map of Israel that is entirely draped with a Palestinian keffiyeh scarf. It also carries a drawing of a rifle as a symbol of the "armed struggle" against Israel. The poster, which has been endorsed by the Fatah leadership, has already been posted on a number of Fatah-affiliated Web sites. The underlying message of the poster is that Fatah, like Hamas, does not recognize Israel's existence. The emblem is in violation of Fatah's declared policy, which envisions an independent Palestinian state alongside, and not instead of, Israel. By including a rifle in the poster, Fatah is sending a message to the Palestinian public that it has not abandoned the option of "armed resistance," despite current peace talks with Israel.

Israel fears clash with U.S. over peace talks' impasse

A senior adviser to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel may come into conflict with the United States over increased pressure by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to advance talks with the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, the Israeli and PA negotiating teams, headed by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Ahmed Qureia, respectively, are to meet Sunday ahead of Tuesday's meeting between Olmert and PA President Mahmoud Abbas. The U.S. might want to up the pressure on Israel to fulfil its obligations in the first stage of the road map, the adviser said in private conversations, particularly removing illegal outposts and freezing construction in the territories. "Their demands from Israel will only increase and it is not certain that we can meet them under the circumstances," he added. The adviser said that in Vice Premier Haim Ramon's talks with American officials, he had gone "too far in promising them things to please them." Another senior government official involved in the talks also warned of expected crises with the Palestinians and the Americans. "Israel has created a series of far-reaching expectations in the international arena," this official said, referring to the implementation of the first part of the road map, "but this is not going to happen." According to this official, the problem will be even greater when negotiations begin on the core issues. "There are detailed files that include Israel's position on the day negotiations came to a halt in 2001," he said. "What will happen when they open the Jerusalem file, for example? They'll find that Israel's final position at Taba is light-years away from Israel's opening position today."

Syrian MP threatens to hit Dimona

"If Syria feels threatened by Israel, it will be hard to stop our missile operators from responding to the Israeli aggression by attacking the Dimona nuclear reactor," Syrian legislator Muhammad Habash was quoted as saying Saturday. In an interview with Al-Quds Al-Arabi, Habash emphasized that the Dimona reactor is "within range" of the Syrian missiles. Habash told the London-based newspaper that Syria did not rule out a violation of its sovereignty by Israel and said Damascus was "prepared" for this eventuality. However, the Syrian legislator stressed that Damascus did not want to escalate the situation in the region. Habash, who coordinates with the Presidential Palace in Damascus, also claimed that international mediators were constantly making efforts to renew ties between Israel and Syria but underlined that at the moment, there was no contact between the two countries.


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3. A Revived Roman Empire?

European leaders hail 'historic' expansion of border free zone

European leaders on Friday hailed the expansion of the Schengen passport-free travel zone to nine mostly ex-East Bloc nations as a landmark moment for the continent's integration. "This is an historic moment for which we have been waiting for a long time," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in the small town of Zittau on the German-Polish-Czech border. Border controls were abolished at midnight as the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia joined 15 nations already in the Schengen Treaty. The huge expansion means that about 400 million Europeans can now travel from the Arctic Circle in Norway to Portugal without showing a passport. "To be able to move freely around 24 states ... those of us who are a little older know that such freedom is not something we could take for granted," said Merkel, who grew up behind the Iron Curtain in the former East Germany. "This is one further step towards European integration," said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose country's 646-kilometre border with Germany is one of the most bitterly-contested in Europe's history.

EU is increasingly perceived worldwide as a global player

The European Union is increasingly perceived all over the world as a global power, and is anticipated to play a major role on the international stage in 2020 after the US, China and Russia. The US's superpower image is fading, while China and Russia have risen enormously in stature. There was a spike in many parts of the world in people's awareness of the dangers of climate change and environmental devastation. Climate protection and poverty are currently seen as the most important tasks facing international policy makers. These are some of the findings of a worldwide opinion poll conducted by the German foundation, the Bertelsmann Stiftung. According to the poll, the European Union already enjoys the reputation of a global player, and was ranked fifth on average by all international respondents. This picture improves for the Europeans as time goes on. When asked which nations and organizations would be global powers in 2020, every third person mentioned the EU. On the other hand, the US lost its undisputed leadership position. While 81 percent of people would still call the US a world power today, only 61 percent expect it to retain this position into 2020. Once again, China, India and - more recently - Russia have greatly boosted their own profiles as global players. With a 57 percent response rate, China was mentioned almost as frequently as the US as a future superpower. They were followed further down by Russia with 37 percent, the EU with 33 percent, Japan with 33 percent and India with 29 percent. Compared to the United Nations, the EU is perceived as a very strong player in global politics. This applies in all countries surveyed except India, where the UN has a higher standing. And in China, the perception of the EU as a world power rose significantly - by 15 percentage points in the past two years. When asked if their own country should cooperate more closely with the EU, the vast majority of the international respondents - 74 percent on average - said yes. This desire is particularly strong in China and Russia, where stronger ties with the EU are favoured by 98 percent and 91 percent of respondents, respectively. In the US, these numbers were 78 percent, in Brazil 70 percent, in India 68 percent and in Japan 48 percent.


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4. The Gog/Magog War

Israel, Russia on collision course after Moscow fuels Iranian nuclear plant?

When, in an effort to stop Iran from reaching the status of nuclear military power, Israel attacks the sites housing that country's nuclear program, it could find itself on a collision course with Russia. This possibility emerged Monday amid reports that Russia had delivered what an unnamed Iranian official called a "first batch" of 82 tons of nuclear fuel to the Iranian plant at Bushehr. According to the Israeli daily Ha'aretz, Russia announced its intention to supply the fuel just days after the publication of a US National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) which concluded that Iran had stopped trying to build a nuclear bomb four years ago. Hailed as a victory by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the NIE report led to an immediate evaporation of the international pressure on Iran to end its quest for nuclear arms, leaving Israel standing alone against the threat. In a statement that might return to haunt him, US President George W. Bush said he supported Russia's supplying of the nuclear fuel because it removed any reason the Iranians might have for continuing to enrich its own uranium. But Israeli officials are deeply concerned. Strategic Affairs Minister Avigdor Liberman told the Knesset Monday afternoon that Iran needed only a few months to make the transition "from a civilian nuclear energy track to a military one." A day earlier, Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter had warned that the NIE report could pave the way for "another Yom Kippiur War." And Ynet quoted an unnamed senior political-defense source as saying that "Iran will do anything to continue (developing nuclear technology) while attempting to confound the Western World." Russian President Vladimir Putin has strategically aligned

 

I expect a report by morning!! :lol: :lol:

 

:shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock:

Thank God "I" wasn't "invited" to respond! :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

Oh I forgot and you Hobo! :lol: :lol: