"Am I therefore become your enemy,because I TELL YOU THE TRUTH...?"
(Galatians 4:16)

Call to Prayer for Canada

"I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."(1 Timothy 2:1-2)

Just seven weeks after its general election, Canada is experiencing tumultuous times.Wide-reaching actions and decisions concerning the government are going to be made in the near future.In light of the critical events transpiring in Canada right now, Christians everywhere will want to be praying. El Shafie Ministries in Canada urges prayer for the situation, citing Scripture and a couple ways to pray: The Bible encourages us to take an interest in and pray for our leadership, saying:"I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty."(I Tim. 2:1-2)
Prayer Points:
• for Prime Minister Harper, and the government, and for Governor-General Michaëlle Jean that they would have wisdom…in dealing with this crisis and pursuing the good of the country.
• that Canadians would come together in unity and intercession....
Join with the many who are praying at this critical time for the future of Canada.
by Aimee Herd
Source: Rev. Majed El-Shafie – One Free World International
http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=6110
As in the days of Noah...

Russian Patriarch Aleixy II dies

Russia prays after death of Patriarch Alexiy II

Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexiy II leads a service at Yelokhovsky cathedral in Moscow in this April 30, 2000 file picture.
REUTERS/Vladimir Suvorov

MOSCOW (Reuters)Russians prayed for Patriarch Alexiy II at services across the country on Saturday as the ruling body of the Russian Orthodox Church prepared to select an interim leader after his death.Alexiy, who forged close ties with the Kremlin under former President Vladimir Putin and helped revive the Church after the collapse of the Soviet Union, died on Friday at his residence outside Moscow.He died of heart failure after a long illness.At Orthodox church services across Russia's 11 time zones, people said prayers through the night for Alexiy, who helped heal an 80-year rift with a rival faction set up abroad by monarchists fleeing the atheist Bolsheviks.A Holy Synod will meet on Saturday to elect an interim Patriarch, known as the Patriarchal Locum Tenens. A wider synod will then convene to elect a new leader within six months."A session of the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church will take place on December 6 to elect Patriarchal Locum Tenens who will chair the Memorial Commission," a spokesman for the Moscow Patriarchy said.Alexiy will be laid in state on Saturday in the giant Christ the Saviour Cathedral in central Moscow, rebuilt during Alexiy's reign after its destruction under Stalin. His funeral will take place on Tuesday, the Patriarchy said.Believers laid hundreds of red and white roses at the Patriarch's office in central Moscow, a Reuters reporter said. White roses were said to be Alexiy's favorite.Alexiy, who criticized the Catholic Church for trying to steal converts, is credited by many Russians for helping to revive Orthodoxy and boost church attendance in the moral and spiritual vacuum created the collapse of the Soviet empire.Despite Soviet-era suppression of believers-and the destruction of hundreds of churches under Stalin-Orthodoxy remains a key part of life for millions of Russians.
ALEXIY'S LEGACY
Alexiy also steered a careful path for the Orthodox Church, which was riddled with divisions, especially during the upheavals of the 1990s."Alexiy's main achievement was to keep the Church together in this period of growth and turmoil," Andrei Zolotov, an expert on the Russian Orthodox Church, said by telephone from the United States."The Patriarch steered a very careful centrist path in the development of the church when it was threatened with being literally being torn apart politically, theologically and in many other regards too," Zolotov said.
Putin and President Dmitry Medvedev, who both attended major Orthodox Ceremonies with Alexiy, praised the Patriarch's role in helping form Russian statehood and for uniting the nation.
Supporters said Alexiy harnessed close ties with the state for the benefit of the Church, restoring hundreds of almost derelict churches...
By Guy Faulconbridge

Head of Russian Orthodox Church dies aged 79

The head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Partiarch Aleksy II, has died.He passed away at his home near Moscow. The Church leader, 79, had been ill in recent years and had undergone several operations....

Brown slams Mugabe "blood-stained regime"

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown branded the Zimbabwean government a "blood-stained regime" on Saturday and urged the international community to tell President Robert Mugabe "enough is enough."Brown said food shortages, and the cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe which has killed hundreds of people,had become an "international rather than a national emergency"that demanded a coordinated response."We must stand together to defend human rights and democracy, to say firmly to Mugabe that enough is enough," he said in a statement.Brown did not explicitly say Mugabe should step down, but in comments later on television he said the world should speak with one voice "to say that this must be brought to an end.""The whole world is angry because they see avoidable deaths-of children, mothers, and families affected by a disease that could have been avoided," he said."This is a humanitarian catastrophe. This is a breakdown in civil society. It is a blood-stained regime that is letting down its own people."U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Friday that Mugabe's departure from office was long overdue.Britain has long had tense ties with Zimbabwe, formerly a British colony. Mugabe, 84, in power since independence in 1980, has accused London of trying to retain influence in his country.Brown said he had had close contact with African leaders "to press for stronger action to give the Zimbabwean people the government they deserve."He also said he hoped the United Nations Security Council would meet "urgently" to consider the situation in Zimbabwe."The people of Zimbabwe voted for a better future," he said, "It is our duty to support that aspiration."Mugabe and the opposition MDC are deadlocked over the allocation of cabinet seats, the key element in forming a power-sharing government to break the impasse following flawed elections, and the 15-nation Southern African Development Community has been unable to push them into a deal.Zimbabwe's worsening economic collapse, and the spread of cholera to neighboring countries as Zimbabweans seek medical treatment and food abroad, may now force regional leaders to take a stronger stand against the veteran Zimbabwean leader.Brown said the immediate priority was to prevent more deaths by distributing rehydration packs and medical testing kits. He said a "command and control structure" should be put in place in the Zimbabwean capital, Harare, to coordinate aid efforts."Cholera is completely controllable and avoidable," he said. "The failure to do so...has got to be held as the responsibility of the Zimbabwean regime. That is why I want all the world's opinion to be heard saying that this cannot go on."
(Editing by Tim Pearce)
By Kate Kelland
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL621524620081206
As in the days of Noah.....

Hundreds protest Zimbabwe crisis

EU considering more Zimbabwe sanctions: envoys

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union plans more sanctions on Zimbabwe next week unless there is progress in ending political deadlock before a meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers, EU diplomats said.The 27-nation bloc has prepared a list of 11 Zimbabwean officials to be added next Monday or Tuesday to the list of over 100 officials, including President Robert Mugabe, who cannot travel to the EU, two diplomats said.One other official would be deleted from that blacklist, they said.One diplomat said the plan was for the EU Council to adopt the additional sanctions Monday, but that could be postponed if there was progress on the ground by then."All the documents are being prepared...pending a flash of light in Zimbabwe" a second diplomat said, adding that those to be added to the sanctions list were responsible for violence in the southern African country.On-off power-sharing talks between President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC have made little progress since they reached a deal in September seen as the best hope of pulling Zimbabwe back from economic collapse.A spreading cholera outbreak has added to Zimbabwe's woes.Critics blame the economic crisis on Mugabe's policies,such as seizing white-owned farms to give to black Zimbabweans.The 84-year-old leader, in power since independence from Britain, blames sanctions from Western countries.The diplomats said the final decision would be taken by EU foreign ministers Monday or Tuesday-and not by EU envoys ahead of the meeting, as is often the case-to allow the bloc to take account of any progress in Zimbabwe."If we have to put more pressure we will put more pressure," a third EU diplomat said.A draft statement prepared for Monday's EU foreign ministers' meeting also says that the EU is deeply concerned by the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe and urges full access to humanitarian aid for all of the country's population.
(Reporting by Ingrid Melander; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)
PS:Zimbabweans are made to live in the worst conditions human beings should be in...children to search for termites to eat with their families or as horrible as digging into cow dung to look for corn kernels that have been indigested to eat...while their government officials NEVER GO WITHOUT...Why hasnt AFRICA DONE SOMETHING about it already...?Does the UN really care or the EU....?Really do they care at all....?Sanctions wont do nothing for the people....
As in the days of Noah...

Rice says well past time for Mugabe to go

COPENHAGEN (Reuters)U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Friday said it was well past time for Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to leave and nations in the region must take the lead on pressuring him to quit."It's well past time for Robert Mugabe to leave," said Rice, who was in Copenhagen as part of a European tour to say farewell to other top diplomats before the Bush administration's term ends on January 20, 2009."The fact is there was a sham election, there has been a sham process of power-sharing talks and now we are seeing not only political and economic total devastation...but a humanitarian toll of the cholera epidemic,"Rice told a news conference.Nobel laureate and South Africa's Archbishop Desmond Tutu said late Thursday Mugabe must step down or be removed by force and that the Zimbabwean leader faced indictment for war crimes in the Hague unless he quit."If this is not evidence to the international community that it's time to stand up for what is right I don't know what will be. And frankly the nations of the region have to lead it," Rice said.She added the United States and Europe could not lift the burden alone and that without help from countries in Southern Africa it would be very difficult to find a just resolution in Zimbabwe."Many African states have spoken out about the need for change in Zimbabwe and many others have been silent,"Rice said. Zimbabwe has declared a national emergency and appealed for international help as it battles a cholera outbreak that has killed at least 565 people.

(Reporting by Sue Pleming; Editing by Louise Ireland)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4B41U420081205
As in the days of Noah...

Five killed in blast in Thailand's Muslim south

BANGKOK (Reuters)Five people were killed by an improvised bomb that exploded in a market in southern Thailand Friday, police said.They said suspected Muslim rebels robbed and beat up a store owner in Chana district of Narathiwat province. When police arrived to investigate, the bomb was detonated.Police said five people were killed and more than 10 injured by the bomb, which was fashioned out of a gas canister.The rubber-producing provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, abutting predominantly Muslim Malaysia to the south, were an independent Muslim sultanate until their annexation by Buddhist Thailand a century ago.No group has claimed responsibility for any of the almost daily bombings, shooting and arson attacks which have ravaged the local economy since January 2004 and driven out many in the 20 percent Buddhist minority.
(Writing by David Fox; Editing by Paul Tait)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4B417C20081205
As in the days of Noah...

Three million Muslims gather in Mecca for Hajj

Almost three million Muslim pilgrims from around the world have gathered in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia to perform the annual Hajj. The country's authorities have deployed up to 100,000 security personnel to keep order during the five-day event which begins on Saturday...

Muslim pilgrims retrace prophet's path

Muslim Pilgrims circle the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Mecca December 5, 2008.
REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah
MECCA, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands of Muslims began the haj pilgrimage on Saturday, heading to a tent camp outside the holy city of Mecca in an itinerary retracing the route Prophet Mohammad took 14 centuries ago.Over two million Muslim pilgrims arrived in the holy city of Mecca this week for the haj pilgrimage amid a vast security operation to avert any militant attacks, deadly stampedes or political activities that could embarrass Saudi Arabia.
Some pilgrims walked, carrying their bags, while others took buses moving slowly through the crowds as they headed to the Mina area east of Mecca. Men were dressed in simple white robes, marking a state of ihram, or ritual purity.The pilgrims will all have arrived by Sunday morning at Mount Arafat, about 15 km (10 miles) east of Mecca. The Eid al-Adha, or feast of the sacrifice, begins on Monday, when pilgrims begin three days of casting stones at walls in a symbolic renunciation of the devil.The government warned pilgrims not to politicize the haj."Saudi Arabia is above any party or political intentions behind haj. Pilgrims should not raise any slogans other than that of Islam," Islamic Affairs Minister Saleh bin Abdul-Aziz Al al-Sheikh said in comments published in Saudi newspapers. There have been deadly clashes between police and Iranian pilgrims in the past over political slogans. Sectarian tensions have arisen recently in the Arab world after Shi'ite Muslims came to power in Iraq, emboldening Iran and its Shi'ite allies. Disputes between Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah delayed and prevented some Palestinian pilgrims from arriving, adding another potential flashpoint for protest.The Saudi government is wary of militancy. Despite an al Qaeda campaign to destabilize Saudi Arabia from 2003 to 2006, the haj has never been targeted by al Qaeda militants.Islamist militants rampaged through the Indian financial capital of Mumbai last month, killing 171 people, focusing world attention on al Qaeda-linked groups in Pakistan.Authorities have made renovations over the past year to ease the flow of pilgrims inside the Grand Mosque and the disaster-prone Jamarat Bridge. In January 2006, 362 people were crushed to death there, the worst haj tragedy since 1990.An extra level has been added to the bridge so pilgrims have four platforms from which to throw stones each day, according to the rites set by the Prophet Mohammad some 1,400 years ago.The government says it will stop Saudis and residents in the country taking part without official haj permits, another cause of overcrowding. Over 1.75 million haj visas have been granted to Muslims abroad, and at least 500,000 locals receive permits.The haj, one of the world's biggest displays of mass religious devotion and a duty for able-bodied Muslims, has been marred in the past by fires and hotel collapses, as well clashes over demonstrations and fatal overcrowding.
(Editing by Charles Dick)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4B50XK20081206

As in the days of Noah....

Raw Video: Muslims Prepare for Annual Hajj

Draped in white robes, millions of Muslims from all over the world gathered in Mecca, to begin the rituals of the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Every able-bodied Muslim who can financially afford to must perform it at least once in his or her lifetime...

Explosives found in Indian hospital: police

MUMBAI (Reuters)Police on Saturday said they found explosives in a hospital in the western Indian city of Nagpur after doctors there said they had received a call warning a bomb had been left in the building."We rushed the bomb disposal squad and the sniffer dog and they found some explosives in a plastic bag. We have removed it," Nagpur Joint Commissioner of Police Babasaheb Kangale told Reuters.Nagpur is home to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh organization, a Hindu nationalist group.
(Editing by Louise Ireland)http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE4B512R20081206
PS:Now...you truly have to be SICK to leave explosives IN A HOSPITAL...of all places...what's wrong with these people,whether hindus or whoever placed that device there....???
As in the days of Noah...

India police arrest two in Mumbai attacks probe

KOLKATA (Reuters) - Indian police said on Saturday that they had arrested two men who helped the Mumbai attackers get mobile phone cards they used to stay in touch during the three-day rampage.Police in the eastern city of Kolkata identified the men as Tausif Rehman and Mukhtar Ahmed, who were picked up on Friday after investigators traced some of the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards recovered from the gunmen."We are questioning them about procurement of SIM cards used in Mumbai," Jawed Shamim, the deputy commissioner of detectives in Kolkata, told Reuters.The arrests are further evidence of Indian complicity in the three-day rampage New Delhi has blamed on Islamic militants from neighboring Pakistan, which has raised tensions between South Asia's longtime foes, both of which have nuclear weapons.Airports in New Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai remained on high alert for a fourth day on Saturday, with extra security personnel deployed after India's civil aviation authority said it had received intelligence that attacks could be planned.Security was also high in the north Indian town of Ayodhya on Saturday, the 16th anniversary of the razing of the Babri mosque by a Hindu extremist mob which set off Hindu-Muslim riots that killed thousands. A makeshift Hindu temple is still on the site.At least 700 extra officers were protecting the site, District police chief R.K.S. Rathore told Reuters.Fifteen Hindu activists demanding a permanent temple be built were arrested in nearby Faizabad while Muslim activists who ordinarily fly a black flag on the anniversary opted not to."We are not making any public protest this time in view of the large-scale carnage by terrorists in Mumbai," activist leader Yunus Siddiqui told Reuters.Hindu nationalists burned five Pakistani flags in front of the temple site on Saturday to shouts of "Down with Pakistan!""We decided to also condemn the terror unleashed by Pakistan on our country," a spokesman for the group, Sharad Sharma, said. "And what could have been a better way to condemn than setting ablaze the flags of that country?"At least 171 people were killed in the attacks last week in which 10 gunmen struck two luxury hotels and other landmarks in India's financial capital.
ZARDARI HOAXED
Police said new details of local Indian help were being pursued after the arrests of Rehman and Ahmed.Rehman, a clerk, used a dead relative's identity documents to acquire the 22 SIM cards, which he later sold to Ahmed, Shamim later said. Both men were charged with conspiracy and forgery....
By Tamajit Pain
To read more go to:

As in the days of Noah...

Car Bomb Rips Through Pakistan Street, Killing Dozens; 'External Forces' Blamed

PESHAWAR, Pakistan-The death toll from an overnight car bombing rose to 29 in northwest Pakistan, unnerving a region already dangerously on edge following the attacks on India's commercial capital, police and doctors said Saturday.About 100 people were also wounded Friday when the bomb went off near Peshawar's famed Storytellers Bazaar, wrecking a Shiite Muslim mosque and a hotel and setting a string of vehicles and shops ablaze, said Mohammed Khan, a local police official.Television footage showed survivors frantically carrying bloodied victims through the rubble to private cars and ambulances as fire crews sought to douse the flames.Neither the motive nor the culprits behind the blast were clear. But provincial government chief Haider Khan Hoti said "external forces" could be to blame-a comment understood in Pakistan to mean India.Sahib Khan, a doctor at a main hospital said Saturday that they received 20 bodies after the blast, while another nine injured died overnight. He said some of the injured were still in critical condition.Further adding to the tension, a suspected U.S. missile strike reportedly killed three people in a stronghold of the Taliban and Al Qaeda near the border with Afghanistan.Escalating violence is destabilizing Pakistan's northwest just as the country faces accusations from archrival India that the gunmen behind the carnage in Mumbai last week were trained in Pakistan and steered by militants based there.The provincial police chief, Malik Naveed Khan, said the bomb seemed to contain chemicals designed to spread fire.
Pakistan and the United States have stepped up operations against Taliban and Al Qaeda strongholds in the northwest to curb mounting attacks launched from there on targets in Afghanistan and Pakistan.There have been more than 30 suspected U.S. missile strikes since August, including one on Friday in the North Waziristan region, part of Pakistan's wild tribal belt viewed as possible hiding place for Usama bin Laden.Three Pakistani intelligence officials told The Associated Press that one missile hit a house in the village of Khushali Turikhel and another landed in a field.The officials, who cited reports from agents and informants in the area, said three people were killed and two others injured, however the identity of the victims was not known.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak on the record to media.The missiles are apparently fired from drone aircraft that take off from Afghanistan. U.S. officials rarely confirm or deny responsibility though American leaders have said the attacks have killed several militant leaders this year.Insurgents have responded with an onslaught of gun and bomb attacks that have sparked concern about the possible disruption of a key supply line for NATO and U.S. troops that cuts through Peshawar and the Khyber Pass into Afghanistan.


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,462607,00.html

As in the days of Noah....

Pentagon Downs Missile in Simulated Attack to Test Proposed Shield

WASHINGTON-The Defense Department said Friday it shot down a missile in a simulated attack designed to test a proposed shield against strikes by long-range ballistic missiles from nations such as North Korea.The Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency used an interceptor missile launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California to knock down a missile meant to simulate the speed and trajectory of a North Korean attack. It struck the target missile around 3:30 p.m., shortly after the target was launched from a location in Alaska.The military has conducted a series of tests in the past several years of the different components of the defensive shield, which is slated to include Patriot air defense batteries, anti-ballistic missiles launched from Navy ships and lasers mounted in planes designed to shoot down incoming missiles.Friday's test, which cost between $120 million to $150 million, incorporated many of the network's multiple systems. For example, the Navy tracked the target from one of its ballistic missile ships but did not fire."It was the largest, most complex test we have ever done," said Lt. Gen. Patrick O'Reilly, head of the Missile Defense Agency.O'Reilly characterized the test as a success, but the target did not release planned countermeasures designed to try to confuse the interceptor missile. O'Reilly did not say what those countermeasures were, but they often include decoys or chaff to throw off shoot-down attempts.Roughly $10 billion is spent per year on the program, which is run by defense contractor Boeing Co. but includes work by most of the nation's largest weapons makers. It is spread across three branches of the military and is composed of missiles, radar and satellites designed to intercept missiles during different stages of flight.The military argues the network is needed to protect the United States and its allies against growing threats from nations such as Iran and North Korea, both of which have tested long-range missiles. But President-elect Barack Obama expressed skepticism about the capabilities of the system during his campaign, leading to speculation he may reduce the program's scope. Russia has strongly objected to plans to install missile interceptors in Eastern Europe.Brian Green, a deputy assistant secretary of defense, said the successful test should help bolster the missile defense program."Successful tests always help reinforce confidence in the system," he said.Friday's test covered ground-based missile interceptors located at military bases located in California and Alaska meant to shoot down incoming missiles mid-flight. A ground-based missile successfully shot down a target during a similar test in 2007, but the Pentagon was forced to scale back plans for a test last summer because of a technical glitch.



http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2008/12/05/pentagon-downs-missile-simulated-attack-test-proposed-shield/
As in the days of Noah....

UN ME envoy slams settler violence

The United Nations Middle East envoy on Friday praised Israeli security forces for evacuating the Beit Hashalom house in Hebron, but condemned the violence which followed, and promised that the UN would "closely monitor" the developments. "I welcome the evacuation by Israeli security forces of approximately 200 settlers from a house in Hebron yesterday," Robert Serry, UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process said. "I condemn the ensuing violence and attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians and the destruction and desecration of Palestinian property, mosques and graves, as well as settler attacks on Israeli security forces.""As the occupying power, the government of Israel is under obligation to protect Palestinian civilians, property and holy sites," he continued. "I remain concerned about the potential for a further escalation of a tense situation. I call for an immediate end to settler attacks and restraint and calm from all parties, and urge vigilance from the Israeli authorities to ensure that the events of yesterday are not repeated." "Actions of extremists continue to pose a threat to the peace process, and further underline the need for action to fulfill Road Map commitments," Serry said. "The United Nations will continue to closely monitor developments."The comments follwed Israeli security forces going on high alert across the West Bank Thursday night, as Jewish extremists embarked on an unprecedented rampage through Hebron in response to the afternoon's unexpected and speedy evacuation of the city's disputed Beit Hashalom.Defense officials were concerned that Israeli-Palestinian violence would spread to other parts of the West Bank and even to the Temple Mount, where thousands of Muslims were due to gather Friday morning for weekly prayers. As a consequence, Jerusalem police announced late Thursday that they would restrict entry at the Mount: Only men over 45 with Israeli ID cards, and women of any age were allowed to the enter the compound for midday prayers.Prayers ended on Friday without incident, but the high alert was not lifted....
By YAAKOV KATZ, YAAKOV LAPPIN, TOVAH LAZAROFF, AND JPOST STAFF
To read more go to:

As in the days of Noah...

PA praises evacuation of Hebron home

The Palestinian Authority on Thursday welcomed the evacuation of the settlers from Hebron's Beit Hashalom building, but expressed deep concern over the increased attacks on Palestinian residents of the city.Meanwhile, a number of armed Palestinian factions threatened to launch attacks on settlers in the West Bank in response to the violence in Hebron.The PA issued strong condemnations against the settler violence and urged the international community to intervene with the Israeli government to stop the attacks.The PA also called on the government to evacuate all the settlers from Hebron and warned that their continued presence in the city would trigger more violence.PA officials in Ramallah said the swift evacuation had caught them by surprise. They said the Israeli authorities had not notified the PA of the operation in advance, thus denying the Palestinian security forces the chance to take measures to defend Palestinian families against settler violence."The Israeli government made a huge mistake by failing to coordinate the evacuation of the settlers with the Palestinian Authority," said a senior PA official. "Now the Israeli authorities bear the responsibility for the aggression against dozens of Palestinian families."The official warned that unless the IDF took immediate measures to halt the settler attacks, "the Palestinians would be entitled to use all available methods to defend themselves." Another PA official said that the settler attacks "played into the hands of Hamas" and undermined the PA's standing among the Palestinians.Many Arab residents of Hebron criticized the PA security forces for failing to use their weapons to stop the settlers.Ahmed Qurei, head of the PA negotiating team, warned that the violence in Hebron could spill over to the rest of the West Bank. He called on the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting to discuss ways of protecting the Palestinians against the "crimes" of the settlers.Qurei also launched a scathing attack on the Israeli government and the IDF for failing to take tough measures against the settlers.Hussein al-A'araj, the PA governor of Hebron, strongly condemned the attacks on the homes of Palestinians following the evacuation. He said the IDF was responsible for the deterioration because of its "failure" to stop the assailants."The Palestinian families living in the area of the Rajabi [Beit Hashalom] house are under Israeli control," he noted. "The Israeli army is responsible for their safety and security."PA security officials warned that the attacks by the settlers could ignite a "new intifada" in the city and other parts of the West Bank."The situation in Hebron is on the verge of an explosion," said a PA security commander. "All our efforts to restore law and order in the city are now at stake because of the Israeli army's failure to stop the settlers."
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
As in the days of Noah...

Israel's military on alert for settler violence

Palestinian children look at a car owned by Palestinians that was set on fire overnight during clashes between Jewish settlers and Palestinians in the West Bank town of Hebron, Friday, Dec. 5, 2008. After the eviction of a disputed house in Hebron Thursday, settler youths rampaged in the town, attacking Palestinians and setting fire to property. Israeli defense officials say the military has been placed on alert in the West Bank to head off settler violence in wake of the evacuation of the building. (AP Photo/Tara Todras-Whitehill)
JERUSALEM (AP) - Israel beefed up security throughout Jerusalem and the West Bank on Friday, bracing for new violence after the evacuation of a disputed West Bank building set off a rampage by Jewish settlers.Police said they had placed a larger-than-usual deployment of 500 officers in and around the West Bank city of Hebron, the center of Thursday's unrest, and taken up positions elsewhere in the West Bank.Police and soldiers also were on heightened alert throughout the West Bank, defense officials said.The moves followed Israel's eviction Thursday of dozens of extremist Jewish settlers from a Hebron house claimed by both Jews and Palestinians.The settlers had holed up in the four-story building in defiance of a Supreme Court order to get out while ownership is determined.The eviction set off rampages by settler youths who attacked Israeli policemen and Palestinians and set fire to Palestinian homes and cars. Some 35 Israelis and 17 Palestinians were wounded, including five Palestinians who were shot. Tensions were still high on Friday.In Jerusalem's Old City, police briefly clashed with Palestinian youths. In central Hebron, several dozen Palestinians protesting the settler attacks clashed with soldiers, who dispersed the crowd with tear gas. No injuries were reported in either incident.
Worried about possible Palestinian disturbances in retaliation for the settler attacks, police also restricted the entrance of Muslim worshippers to Friday's communal prayers at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque. Palestinian men under 45 were barred, said Micky Rosenfeld, police spokesman.
Palestinian residents near the disputed building, who spent much of Thursday cowering in their homes, emerged Friday to inspect the damage and sweep up stones thrown by settlers.The building was empty and under military guard, its metal doors chained shut and padlocked by soldiers. The troops briefly allowed settlers back into the building to collect their belongings.
Despite the relatively quiet day, both police and the army said security would remain heightened at least through the end of the Jewish sabbath at sundown Saturday.Hebron, a biblical city holy to both Muslims and Jews, is one of the most volatile flash points between Israelis and Palestinians. About 600 hardline settlers live in heavily guarded enclaves in the city, which is home to 170,000 Palestinians, and there is frequent friction between the sides.Israeli army commanders also met Friday with their Palestinian counterparts in the West Bank. Officials discussed the incidents in Hebron and "agreed to work together to prevent violence and to keep the public order," the army said.The U.N.'s Mideast envoy, Robert Serry, welcomed Israel's eviction of the settlers but condemned the ensuing violence. "I remain concerned about the potential for a further escalation of a tense situation," he said.
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
Associated Press Writer
As in the days of Noah...

Israeli soldiers drag settlers out of Hebron house

HEBRON, West Bank-Israeli soldiers and police stormed a disputed building in the biblical city of Hebron on Thursday, dragging out 250 young settlers in a raid meant to send a warning to Jewish extremists fighting to keep what they see as God-promised land.But activists responded with a wave of attacks on Israeli forces and Palestinians in the West Bank, even as Israeli politicians and some settler leaders denounced them.This city of 170,000 Palestinians, with about 600 of the most extreme Jewish settlers living among them in small enclaves, is the traditional burial site of Abraham, the shared patriarch of both Jews and Muslims, and has been a focal point of Israeli-Arab violence for decades.Extremist settlers say they want to expel all Palestinians from the city and have sought to expand their footholds here as part of a militant campaign to pressure Israel to hold on to all of the West Bank.Settlers moved in to the four-story building in March 2007 claiming they bought it from a Palestinian. The man denied selling it, and Israeli authorities did not recognize the sale as legal. Israel's Supreme Court ordered the house vacated last month, but settlers refused.In the surprise raid, some 600 soldiers and officers police rushed into the house and quickly began dragging out people one by one, their hands and legs held by teams of two or four officers.Settlers, including young girls, punched and hit soldiers. Others threw acid, police said. Security officers in full riot gear fired stun grenades and tear gas.Extremists tried to force their way back inside, but soldiers, who cleared the structure in just 20 minutes, formed a human chain to keep them out.After losing the battle, the mostly teenage settlers rioted, setting fires near at least three Palestinian houses and burning nine cars, the Palestinian fire chief said....
By AMY TEIBEL, Associated Press Writer Amy Teibel, Associated Press Writer
To read more go to:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081204/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_disputed_house;_ylt=Aoywh0pK2T1Cp2JixYGZYFdw24cA


As in the days of Noah...

Israeli Troops Evict Settlers by Force

Israeli security forces stormed a disputed house in the city of Hebron, dragging out some 250 settlers who had barricaded themselves inside...

Amid Hebron tensions,U.S. tells nationals:"Keep out of Jerusalem"

U.S. citizens and staff workers at its embassy in Tel Aviv received an advisory on Friday to avoid traveling to Jerusalem in the wake of Thursday's evacuation of a Jewish squatters from a disputed house in the West Bank town of Hebron. The government is also advising Americans to refrain from driving on the main highway connecting Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, Highway 1, due to heavy traffic delays and "ongoing police activity." The advisory does not specify the reason behind the recommendations, though it would be reasonable to assume that it stems from the settler riots that followed the Hebron house evacuation on Thursday.The notice, which was disseminated by the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem, reads:"Based upon past events, Americans should be alert to the possibility of demonstrations and other actions throughout Israel. American citizens should stay current with media coverage of local events and be aware of their surroundings at all times." Earlier Friday morning, clashes erupted in Jerusalem's Old City between Arab youths and police forces who were deployed in the area. Two Arab youths were arrested near the Temple Mount after trying to force their way into the Old City. Israel Police on Friday restricted the entry of male Muslim worshippers to the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, fearing disruptances in the wake of the evacuation of settlers from a disputed house in Hebron a day earlier. Only men over the age of 45 with a valid Israeli identification card will be allowed to enter the Muslim holy site. Woman will not be restricted from entering/ The Jordanian government Thursday strongly condemned Israel for "violating" international law by allowing 70 Jews to enter the yard of mosque, which Israel captured from Jordan in the 1967 Six-Day War. "The Jordanian government strongly condemns the Israeli police's permission of 70 ultranationalist Jews to enter the Islamic shrine under their protection, and consider it a provocation for Muslim feelings," Minister of State for Information Affairs and Communication Nasser Judeh said. "Jordan considers Israel, as an occupation power, directly responsible for such violations of international law and their dangerous repercussions." Judeh urged the world community and parties concerned with the peace process to "move promptly to force Israel to stop these violations and provocations, which could negatively affect the ongoing peace negotiations" between Israel and the Palestinians. Under the peace treaty that the two countries concluded in 1994, Israel recognized Jordan's right to look after all Muslim and Christian holy places in East Jerusalem.
By Yossi Melman, Haaretz Correspondent, and News Agencies

As in the days of Noah...

Iran deploys 60-ship armada for massive war readiness maneuver

Wednesday, Dec. 3, the Iranian navy and air force began a six-day maneuver of marine and air might which Tehran radio said would cover an area of 50,000 square miles of the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran has threatened to block the narrow strait if attacked. Admiral Qasem Rostamabadi said its aim is to "increase the level of readiness of Iran's naval forces and test domestically-made naval weaponry."This is stage two of a larger exercise dubbed Unity-87, DEBKAfile's military sources report.Air strikes against "which sank big enemy vessels" were said to be part of the war game, a clear reference to American air carriers, three of which are now present in waters opposite Iran. Iranian Navy chief Adm. Habibollah Sayyari boasted Wednesday: "Iran has pushed back the frontiers of naval capabilities to become the decisive maritime force in the region."DEBKAfile's Iranian sources report that the exercise is part of Tehran's preparations for a US and/or Israeli attack on its nuclear installations and Revolutionary Guards bases which its political, military and intelligence strategists are convinced is on the way ahead of Barak Obama's January 21 inauguration as US president.Tuesday, Chairman of Iran's Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani called the United States "the main enemy of the Islamic Republic of Iran." He was speaking on the thirtieth anniversary of Iran's post-revolutionary parliament (Majlis).A senior Iranian official visiting Abu Dhabi at the end of November said that Obama's decision to retain Robert Gates at the Pentagon was taken in Tehran as further confirmation of the coming attack in view of which he had resolved not to change war horses. Naming Hillary Clinton as secretary of state and Gen. James Jones as national security adviser was also interpreted as the harnessing of backers for an open military option. Every effort made to persuade the Iranians that Washington was not about to exercise this option has fallen on deaf ears.
PS:I think Iran knows that at some point in time they will be hit,that's why all this readiness in preparations for what it seems now to be inevitable...We'll see...
As in the days of Noah...

Covert marine operation uncovers Syria's return to plutonium production

In the face of Damascus' refusal to allow UN inspectors access to three suspect "research laboratories, Western agents recently carried out a daring covert operation to collect water samples from the Orontes river in Syria where it drains into the Mediterranean, DEBKAfile's intelligence sources reveal. Their discoveries were presented to a closed session of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency's board on Nov. 27-28.Situated on the river bank near Homs is one of the three research institutes where Syrian, Iranian and North Korean technicians and scientists are suspected of reprocessing plutonium for Syria's clandestine military nuclear program. The Orentes samples confirmed the suspicion that Syria has gone back to the plutonium project which was cut short when Israeli destroyed its reactor at Al Kibar in September 2007.The Orontes rises at Tal al Musa north of Damascus and south of Homs. It flows into the sea near Antakya, which is north of Latakiya and west of Aleppo, not far from the Turkish border.The IAEA board meeting was told in general teams how the tainted river samples were obtained. DEBKAfile's military sources add that western nuclear technicians collected them from a boat which sailed surreptitiously up to the river mouth in Syria. To make sure of their finding, they collected river water on three different dates in the last two months.
Their discovery tied in with a separate report reaching the nuclear watchdog board that Iran and North Korea were frantically drafting in nuclear specialists to help Syria revive its plutonium reprocessing project. The product is to be stored in protected hideouts
.It was the view of some board members that Tehran and Pyongyang had determined to prove that the Israeli attack had not put Syria off its nuclear program. Both were even more insistent on showing the world that the Iranian nuclear program of which the Syrian project was a part was unstoppable.Syria and North Korea accordingly renewed their clandestine nuclear cooperation accord on Oct. 22, so making sure of an uninterrupted flow from Pyongyang of nuclear materials, technology and experts for Syria's covert nuclear facilities.
PS:Typical Syria move....hiding proofs and lying to the IAEA...Well that they lied is a fact now.Who can trust Syrian authorities in almost anything anymore...?Well in one thing Assad told the truth when he expressed his desire for the Golan a week ago or so....He would love to see Israel destroyed as much as Ahmadinejad does...
As in the days of Noah...

Russia and India strike nuclear deal

An agreement for Russian supplies of $U.S. 700 million worth of nuclear fuel for Indian power plants has been sealed in New Delhi. The deal was struck during Russian President Dmitry Medvedevs first-ever visit to India....

Medvedev on India nuclear mission

India and Russia sign deal for new nuclear plants

NEW DELHI (Reuters)Russia President Dmitry Medvedev Friday signed agreements to develop new nuclear plants in India as the countries sought to deepen ties beyond their historic defense and weapon sales relationship.The deal will allow Russia to build more reactors at the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu and plants in other parts of the country, the Indian government said in statement.The deal comes after India signed earlier this year a nuclear pact with the United States, giving New Delhi access to civilian nuclear fuel and technology on the international market for the first time in three decades.Overturning a U.S. ban on nuclear trade instituted after India first tested an atomic device in 1974, the U.S. pact provides India with access to nuclear fuel, reactors and technology to generate power for its 1.1 billion plus people. "The signing of the agreement on civil nuclear cooperation with Russia marks a new milestone in the history of our cooperation with Russia in the field of nuclear energy," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at a news conference with Medvedev in New Delhi.Russia is competing with the United States for influence in India, a Cold War ally of Moscow which the Kremlin sees as a growing partner in Asia."The cooperation in the energy sector remains a priority for us," Medvedev said. "We are very interested in developing cooperation in the nuclear sector. It is especially important now that various energy sectors are being developed."But India, which wants to buy billions of dollars of weapons as it rearms, has been unhappy with holdups on major Russian arms contracts, including a delay to a $1.5 billion aircraft carrier modernization.India, along with China, is one of Russia's biggest clients for arms sales.
(Reporting by Oleg Scchedrov; Editing by Alistair Scrutton and Sanjeev Miglani)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4B42BF20081205
PS:It is clear that Russia is playing his game well:this past week Medvedev and russian fleet in Venezuela for "conjoined war games",a visit to Cuba and now a nuclear deal with India...The "Cold War Rhetoric" is being revived full force...We even have a russian ship crossing the Panama Canal and Artic claims by Russia among other things...Let's watch how this unfolds in days to come....
As in the days of Noah....

Mumbai carnage: India's 9/11?

Angry India admits security lapses in Mumbai attacks

India's new home minister Palaniappan Chidambaram (3rd R) is briefed by officials during his visit in Mumbai, December 5, 2008.
REUTERS/Stringer
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The Indian government said on Friday the militant attacks on Mumbai had uncovered lapses in security and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the strike originated on a neighbor's soil, a clear reference to Pakistan.The ruling Congress party-led coalition is under renewed criticism from the opposition that it is weak on security after the three-day rampage by 10 Islamist gunmen in India's financial capital last week capped a series of bomb blasts this year. "I would be less than truthful if I said there were no lapses," new Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram told reporters in Mumbai. "These are being looked into. We will address the causes that led to the lapses."Chidambaram took the post on Sunday after his predecessor quit amid public fury at the government's failure to prevent the attacks. Elections are due by May and analysts say Singh must demonstrate decisive action to counter criticism over security.Singh, speaking at a media conference, said the territory of a neighboring country has been used for the crime.Pakistan has condemned the assault, denied state involvement and promised to help the Indian probe. But it wants to see proof first.Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said on Friday the Mumbai attackers must not be allowed to derail the peace process between India and Pakistan. He reiterated Islamabad's offer to work with India to find out who was behind the "ghastly acts of terrorism.""We should not allow them to succeed in their nefarious designs," he said in a speech to European ambassadors.Mumbai police have said the gunmen were controlled by the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) group, blamed for earlier attacks in India. LeT is on U.S. and Indian terrorist lists.
INDIAN ACCOMPLICE?
There was evidence of some Indian complicity in the attacks, police in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh said.In February, police arrested an LeT-linked Indian named Faim Ansari after an attack on a police station. He was carrying maps of Mumbai, Special Task Force chief Brij Lal said."Ansari, who was later handed over to the Maharashtra police, carried some road maps highlighting several important landmarks of south Mumbai that became the target of last week's terrorist attack," he said.Mumbai Joint Commissioner of Police Rakesh Maria said Ansari was in jail in Uttar Pradesh.The violence in Mumbai killed at least 171 people. India has said nine militants were killed and one captured alive. U.S. analysts said as many as 23 gunmen could have been involved.
By C. Bryson Hull
To read more go to:
PS:JIHADIST MILITANTS are UNRELIANT in their efforts to bring chaos and death to a region....Sometimes I think they really believe that thru CHAOS they will help USHER the MAHDI's apparition on earth to solve ALL of humankind problems....Their move was well thought to try to bring India and Pakistan to the brink of a regional war.These two nations have nuclear weapons,so it would be a MESS if this would happen.
The trend that I see that is unsettling to me is that IT SEEMS that Pakistan is RADICALIZING by the minute....preying on simple people with fear,lies,religious inflamed speeches and --as we saw in the Mumbai Attack case--being offered huge amounts of money for the families involved in JIHAD,these islamic terrorists seem to easily recruit material for their holy war by the hundreds.
It is appalling how they use illiterate,poor and needy people for this Bloody War of Hatred to EXPAND their CALIPHATE on earth.
Let's pray that militants won't have their way in Pakistan.It would be a DISASTER...A bloody one for sure....
As in the days of Noah...

Venezuela's Chavez puts old allies back in cabinet

CARACAS (Reuters)Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has brought back to his Cabinet two close allies after they lost elections for important regional posts, a sign of the socialist leader's reliance on his most trusted collaborators.Former Vice President Diosdado Cabello was named infrastructure minister in the government gazette on Friday, while former Interior Minister Jesse Chacon was named information minister. Cabello last served as governor in the heavily populated state of Miranda which includes much of the capital Caracas, but lost the post in elections in November. Chacon ran for mayor of an important Chavez stronghold, but lost.Like former paratrooper Chavez, both men are retired soldiers and they helped him in his first bid for power-a failed coup in 1992. They have held several key Cabinet jobs.Most of Chavez's inner circle are trusted long-term collaborators who have proved their loyalty over the years. He rarely brings new blood into his Cabinet, preferring to shuffle a handful of officials between key posts.The practice of selecting allies based on loyalty has been especially noticeable since a coup pushed Chavez from power for two days in 2002. Cabello, who was vice president at the time, was sworn in as temporary president for a few hours as the coup collapsed and Chavez was being brought back from custody.Chavez supporters consider Cabello to be on the right of the movement. One radical former Chavez ally was sidelined after publicly accusing Cabello of corruption.
(Reporting by Patricia Rondon; Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Jackie Frank)
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4B45FH20081205?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&rpc=22&sp=true
PS:Looney Tunes Chavez is PARANOID...and he has reasons to be....he's destroying Venezuela from the inside....Hopefully Venezuela won't end up like Zimbabwe...
As in the days of Noah....

JIHAD WATCH:Treasury sanctions accused Islamist militants

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department has announced sanctions on financial dealings with three men who are being held in Germany on charges of plotting bomb attacks on places frequented by Americans.The department barred Americans from conducting business with the three men, who were arrested in September 2007, or handling their financial affairs, it said in a statement on Thursday.German officials have said the men, two German nationals and a Turk, had scouted out sites frequented by Americans including discos, bars and airports and acquired bomb-making chemicals. They were members of a little-known militant Islamist group called the Islamic Jihad Union, officials said.The U.S. Treasury Department routinely issues financial sanctions against individuals and groups it says espouse terrorist tactics or target U.S. citizens. Often those targeted do not have resources within the Treasury's reach but the program is part of a global effort to disrupt terrorism financing.The Treasury Department statement named the three men, who were charged earlier this year, as Fritz Martin Gelowicz, Daniel Martin Schneider, and Adem Yilmaz."In concert with this important law enforcement action, United Nations global sanctions provide a tool of unparalleled scope to disrupt the support lines of this and other al Qaida-affiliated cells," said Adam Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, in a statement.
(Reporting by Patrick Rucker; Editing by Frances Kerry)

As in the days of Noah....

Fidel Castro says Cuba could talk with Obama...

HAVANA (Reuters)-Cuba's former leader Fidel Castro said on Thursday his country could talk to U.S. President-elect Barack Obama, in Havana's latest overture to the incoming Democratic administration in Washington.His remarks followed comments from his brother, President Raul Castro, who told a U.S. magazine he could meet Obama in a "neutral place" to try to end the Communist-run island's four-decade conflict with the United States."With Obama, talks could happen anywhere he wants," Fidel Castro, America's longtime Cold War enemy, wrote in the latest of a series of columns he has published in state-run media since falling ill in 2006."He should remember the carrot-and-stick approach will not work with our country," Castro wrote of Obama. "The sovereign rights of the Cuban people are not negotiable."Fidel Castro, who took power nearly 50 years ago after an armed revolution, has not been seen in public since undergoing surgery for an undisclosed illness in July 2006. But he has met several state leaders and appeared in photographs. Obama, who takes office on January 20, has raised hopes of improved U.S.-Cuba ties by saying he was open to talks with the Cuban government and has favored easing some U.S. sanctions.He has said he will reverse the U.S. administration's policies restricting Cuban Americans from visiting Cuba and sending cash to their families. He is willing to talk to Castro but would keep the four-decade-old U.S. trade embargo as leverage to influence changes in the one-party state.Raul Castro formally took over the Cuban presidency in February and has said several times Havana is willing to talk to the United States.Before the U.S. presidential election last month, Fidel Castro praised Obama as intelligent and humanitarian in the columns that have become his main form of communication.Raul suggested in the interview he could meet Obama in Guantanamo Bay, where the United States maintains a naval base, which Cuba considers a violation of its sovereignty.
(Reporting by Patrick Markey; editing by Todd Eastham)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081205/ts_nm/us_cuba_usa_obama
PS: "The sovereign rights of the Cuban people are not negotiable....."
Hmmmm...I wonder...I just wonder IF COMMUNISM and the WAY cuban people IS MADE TO LIVE is what he calls "sovereign rights"...Isn't it a contradiction?Stripping people of their freedom and puttting them under submission of "socialism"--communism is more accurate...-is that the way CUBANS want to live...?IF IT IS SO,why in the world so many escaped the island in home made boats and WHy are still many even TRYING to ESCAPE....?
I personally dont think any change in policies regarding Cuba will be made by Obama at all...BTW,he just says what he is given in a paper written by somebody else-less he would know how to face a US-Cuba diplomatic relations...
My heart goes out to cubans and their families here in the US and all over the world....
As in the days of Noah...

Business is Booming for Psychics as Struggling Citizens Seek Economic Answers

"People come to me for insight and guidance....."
To watch the video click on the URL below:
http://www.breitbart.tv/?p=234873
PS:I wish people would turn to God for answers instead.....
As in the days of Noah...

More online journalists than print journalists behind bars: CPJ

In a reflection of the digital age, more online journalists are jailed around the world than journalists from any other medium, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported on Thursday.The New York-based media watchdog group, in its annual census of imprisoned journalists, said that as of December 1, a total of 125 journalists were behind bars, two fewer than at the same point in 2007.It said 56 of the imprisoned journalists were considered online journalists-bloggers, Web-based reporters, or online editors-surpassing the number of print journalists for the first time.Print reporters, editors, and photographers are the next largest category of jailed journalists, with 53 cases, the CPJ said, adding that television and radio journalists and documentary filmmakers constitute the rest.For the 10th consecutive year, China was the leading jailer of journalists, the CPJ said, followed by Cuba, Myanmar, Eritrea and Uzbekistan.It said 24 of the 28 jailed journalists in China worked online including Hu Jia, a prominent human rights activist and blogger serving a three-and-a-half year prison term.Cuba holds 21 writers and editors in prison, the CPJ said, while Myanmar is detaining 14 journalists including five arrested while trying to spread news about Cyclone Nargis.There are 13 journalists in prisons in Eritrea, the CPJ said, and the Eritrean authorities "have refused to disclose the whereabouts, legal status, or health of any of the journalists they have imprisoned."
Six journalists are being detained in Uzbekistan, the CPJ said, including Dzhamshid Karimov, a nephew of the country's president who was a reporter for independent news websites."Online journalism has changed the media landscape and the way we communicate with each other," said CPJ executive director Joel Simon."But the power and influence of this new generation of online journalists has captured the attention of repressive governments around the world, and they have accelerated their counterattack."The future of journalism is online and we are now in a battle with the enemies of press freedom who are using imprisonment to define the limits of public discourse," he said.The CPJ noted that 45 of the imprisoned journalists are freelancers, most of them working online, who "often do not have the legal resources or political connections that might help them gain their freedom."The CPJ, in the report available at cpj.org, said anti-state allegations such as subversion, divulging state secrets, and acting against national interests were the most common charges used to imprison journalists.Other countries on the list besides the top five are: Afghanistan (1), Armenia (1), Azerbaijan (5), Bangladesh (1), Burundi (1), Cameroon (2), Democratic Republic of Congo (2), Ecuador (1), Egypt (1), Ethiopia (2), Gambia (1), Iran (5), Iraq (1, in US custody), Iraq (1, in Iraqi Kurdistan custody), Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (4), Ivory Coast (1), Maldives (1), Peru (2), the Philippines (1), Russia (2), Senegal (1), Singapore (1), Sri Lanka (3) and Vietnam (2).
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=081204201804.od96w4n0&show_article=1

World economy 'weakest since 30s'

The United Nations says the world economy faces its worst downturn since the Great Depression.It expects world economic output to shrink by as much as 0.4% in 2009, due to a slump among developed countries-particularly the US and in Europe.This would mark the world economy's first year of contraction since the 1930s, the UN said.The report added there had been complacency about the impact of the financial crisis on poorer countries."It seems inevitable that the major countries will see significant contraction in the immediate period ahead and that recovery may not materialise any time soon, even if the bail-out and stimulus package succeed," it says.The UN expects developed economies to shrink by up to 1.5%, while developing nations should expand by at least 2.7%.But because of higher population growth in developing countries, income per capita for the world as a whole is expected to fall in 2009.And the slowing of growth in the poorest countries "suggests a significant setback in the progress made in poverty reduction in many developing countries over the past few years."
Pessimistic
The UN's World Economic Situation and Prospects 2009 report gives three forecasts for growth next year - a baseline forecast of 1% growth, a pessimistic scenario of a 0.4% contraction and an optimistic scenario of 1.6% growth.This compares with growth of 2.5% in 2008 and 3.8% in 2007.Rob Vos, chief economist at the UN Secretariat and co-author of the report, told BBC News that the gloomy forecast was a distinct possibility unless financial markets calmed down and bank lending quickly returned to normal levels."Day by day, we are getting closer to the pessimistic scenario," he said.The world economy last contracted in the 1930s amid the Great Depression, he added.
Reform
The report said that developed economies have led the downturn, but that the global nature of trade and finance meant that economic weakness had spread rapidly to developing countries.
It warned that the international community had been complacent about the impact of the global financial crisis on poorer countries.They are facing higher borrowing costs and lower export growth.The UN also says that the downturn highlights key failures in the international financial system.The reliance on the dollar as the sole reserve currency poses risks for developing countries, since a collapse in the value of the dollar could have severe effects on their earnings.
The report also calls for increased funding for the IMF and World Bank, greater international policy coordination, particularly in relation to exchange rates, and fundamental reform of the system of financial regulation.And it says that developing countries need mechanisms to "mitigate the damaging effects of volatile capital flows and commodity prices" including additional funds during downturns when private flows tend to dry up.The UN usually publishes its annual economic report in January but it brought forward the release of the main chapter to coincide with the UN Conference on Financing for Development in Doha, Qatar.The conference aims to track progress on development aid given fears that rich countries will cut back on aid as a result of the looming recession.

As in the days of Noah....

China 'faces massive social unrest'...

Rising unemployment and the economic slowdown could cause massive social turmoil in China, a leading scholar in the Communist Party has said."The redistribution of wealth through theft and robbery could dramatically increase and menaces to social stability will grow," Zhou Tianyong, a researcher at the Central Party School in Beijing, wrote in the China Economic Times."This is extremely likely to create a reactive situation of mass-scale social turmoil," he wrote.His views do not reflect leadership policy but highlight worries in elite circles about the impact of the economic slowdown.Mr Zhou warned that the real rate of urban joblessness reached 12% this year and could reach 14% next year as the economy slows.China's annual GDP growth has already slowed to 9% in the third quarter, from 10.1% in the second. Some forecasters see growth slowing to 7.5% next year.The government has launched a stimulus package and cut interest rates to boost the economy.
Unrest warning
Last month, China's top planner warned that the economic slowdown in China could fuel social unrest.Zhang Ping, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, said the impact of the global crisis on China's economy was deepening."Excessive bankruptcies and production cuts will lead to massive unemployment and stir social unrest," he said. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7766921.stm
PS:We are facing international unrest....as it was prophesied in the bible thousands of years ago...Everything must be this way for such a need of peace amidst the int'l chaos,that will help usher the manifestation of the Antichrist that will bring"peace"as it is written...We live in exciting end times,where Bible Prophecy is unfolding before our very eyes....
As in the days of Noah...

China Lectures USA on Economy....

The US was lectured about its economic fragilities on Thursday as senior Chinese officials urged the administration to stabilise its economy, boost its savings rate and protect Chinese investments.The message went to Hank Paulson, the US Treasury secretary, in Beijing for the strategic economic dialogue he helped launch to discuss long-term issues between the two countries.As expected, Mr Paulson urged Beijing not to abandon efforts to let the renminbi appreciate, said US officials, amid fears China might want to let its currency weaken to help local exporters weather the global slowdown.But Mr Paulson also found himself facing calls for the US to address its own economic problems. Wang Qishan, a vice-premier and leader of the Chinese delegation at the two-day talks, called on the US to take swift action to address the crisis.“We hope the US side will take the necessary measures to stabilise the economy and financial markets as well as guarantee the safety of China’s assets and investments in the US,” he said. The dialogue was dominated by the global crisis. Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the Chinese central bank, urged the US to rebalance its economy. “Over-consumption and a high reliance on credit is the cause of the US financial crisis,” he said. “As the largest and most important economy in the world, the US should take the initiative to adjust its policies, raise its savings ratio appropriately and reduce its trade and fiscal deficits.”Although China also faces a rapidly slowing economy and rising unemployment, the tone of the comments reflected an underlying shift in power.Eswar Prasad, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said: “One result of the crisis is that the US no longer holds the high ground to lecture China on financial or macroeconomic policies.”
By Geoff Dyer in Beijing
PS:China at this moment almost owns the US....is the largest shares holder we have I think...and of course takes this opportunity to lecture us against capitalism and socialism.....Has it really worked in China,I wonder....?Communism didn't....
As in the days of Noah...

U.S. military sets high-stakes missile-shield test

WASHINGTON-The U.S. military is set to run a "realistic" test Friday of a system built to knock out long-range missiles that could be fired by North Korea or Iran, the Pentagon said.The drill, over the Pacific, will be the first since September 2007 involving an attempted intercept by the sole U.S. shield against long-range ballistic missiles.Boeing Co is prime contractor for the system, called the ground-based midcourse defense. It is part of an emerging, layered shield against missiles that could be tipped with chemical, biological or nuclear warheads."Target is representative of the type we would expect from a country like North Korea or Iran," said Richard Lehner, a spokesman for the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency."It is also realistic in terms of distance involved, trajectory, speed and timeframe, i.e., about 30 minute flight of threat missile," he said in an emailed reply to Reuters. President George W. Bush has been spending roughly $10 billion a year on all aspects of missile defense, the Pentagon's costliest annual outlay for an arms development program. The United States and Russia are at odds over a Bush administration plan to extend the Boeing-managed system into Eastern Europe, using 10 silo-based two-stage interceptors in Poland and a related radar system in the Czech Republic.President-elect Barack Obama, on his transition website, says he supports missile defense, but will avoid drawing resources from other national security priorities "until we are positive the technology will protect the American public."To date, the core ground-based defense system has destroyed its target in six of nine attempts, according to the Missile Defense Agency. Overall, there have been 36 intercepts in 46 tries across all elements of the evolving shield, including ship-based and intermediate-range systems, the agency reckons.Thomas Christie, the Pentagon's chief weapons tester for four years starting in 2001, said the stakes were high at a time when the U.S. defense budget could be constrained by U.S. economic problems."They have to have a success or the program is in deep trouble, both with Congress and the new administration," he said.Victoria Samson, an expert on missile defense at the private Center for Defense Information, said that, even if the test succeeded on Friday, it did not prove the United States had an effective or reliable shield."It has a long way to go before we could depend on it to work in a non-test environment," she said.The planned test on Friday is to use a long-range interceptor from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, against a missile with a dummy warhead fired from Kodiak, Alaska. The interceptor will be cued by four target-tracking sensors, the Pentagon said.Lehner, the spokesman, cautioned that weather at Kodiak was iffy, with rain forecast. "Range safety officials will make a determination as to whether or not it is safe to launch the target, but not until tomorrow during the test window" of 3 PM to 7 PM EST, he said.
By Jim Wolf
To read more go to:
As in the days of Noah...

The "Dad links son's suicide to 'The God Delusion'"Interesting Comments....

On past Friday Nov.21 st,I posted an article titled:
Dad links son's suicide to 'The God Delusion':Says atheism-promoting book hidden under mattress, last page bookmarked
Somebody "ANONYMOUS"left two bizarre--edging on the psychotic side comments,for all those of you that like psychology or psychiatry out there-- that I would like to address,cause prove what I always say...that people,read and neither understand nor pay attention to what they are reading and also they hear BUt they seem NOT TO LISTEN....
I think both thoughts apply to this "anonymous" that left the following comments:
1)Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own, you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
He committed suicide. He's in Hell now. You support him for committing suicide, even hold him up to be a figure in the Culture War.
Why do you dishonor God by promoting suicide as a way to become a celebrity?
It is evident that this person DID NOT READ NEITHER THE ENTIRE ARTICLE NOR MY COMMENT AT THE END IN GREEN....
Im very well acquainted with the scripture "anonymous"mentions here.And as well as anonymous I believe this young man is in hell NOW according to Scripture.
Now what follows about me "supporting him for committing suicide and even holding him up to be a figure in the Culture War" is simply WACKY.
It is almost as if the person writting the comment is talking about something else he or she read on the web....Really WACKY considering my final comments on the issue.....
Now...there is even more....he/she painfully continues....:
"Why do you dishonour God by promoting suicide as a way to become a celebrity?"
THIS IS THE PSYCHOTIC PART...when I read this I was like WOW...Am I in the twilight zone or I'm with a patient now....???
And with this I truly take issue.....!!!!!!
For all those that follow my blog,you all know that first of all that I am a born again christian and many times I have blogged about suicide before and my position is BIBLICAL.
If you take your life you end up in hell...Period....
And let me tell you I know about it PERSONALLY....
Before I got to know Jesus as my personal Lord and Saviour I tried to take my life 3 times.
The last time was a couple of months before I got saved.Miracleously I survived all three attempts with no brain damage...Jesus had ETERNAL LIFE PLANS for me.....
So for you ANONYMOUS to say that Im promoting suicide as a way to become a celebrity....Im here kinda scratching my head and thinking....Are we talking about the same article.....?
Then....
2)"Tou stole this from World Net Daily.
Copyright 1997-2008
All Rights Reserved. WorldNetDaily.com Inc.
Stealing is a sin. You are going to Hell."
My Oh My.....well this one is way too much for tonite,after a long day......
EVERYTIME I post a good article or piece of news from a website or blog or news source I always quote the author,their location--if it is provided--and the link or source from where this news come from or are generated.
Even more....sometimes I double check my sources and if Im not sure that it is a truthful story I restrain to post it till I can confirm that.
IF "ANONYMOUS"would have read the whole post would have found out that Bob Unruh with Worldnetdaily wrote it.I like the way he writes about different issues,that is why I quote him in my blog.
I dont go around "STEALING NEWS and STORIES" from journalists or writers and posting them in my blog like I AM THE AUTHOR...Please.....How stupid is that.!!!!!!!!!!

About the going to hell part....I had that taken care of on august 30th 1986,and since then by God's Grace Ive been walking this straight narrow way with the help of His Word,and the assistance of the Holy Ghost....
I DONT LIKE HELL....
Ive been there till Jesus RESCUED ME....
I was demon possessed as a result of me been involved in the occult for several years.
It took a deliverance team 7 days to help me be set free till the last demon left me.
It took me two years of intense discipleship,reading His Word,Fasting and Prayer to help me being established in Christ.
I KNOW HELL
I DONT WANT TO BE THERE...That is why I got out of there many years ago and I work every day my salvation with fear and trembling to STAY OUT of IT....
Satan would LOVE to pull me BACK to the FIRE...BELIEVE ME....
My heart is burdened when I hear stories like this young man's suicide....You cant imagine how it hits home....That is why I posted it...
Sorry It took such a long post to address that BUT I dont want ANYBODY to be CONFUSED about my stand on LIFE and SUICIDE.
I side with the BIBLE in every case...
And I dont go around posting articles,videos or news and signing them as MINE...please.....!
Read BETTER......!
People need to be MORE CAREFUL when they read something and also going around pointing out to people:"You and you and you...you're all going to hell...."
Anonymous....You had NO IDEA to whom you told that.....
Thank God for my Salvation,and for His Truth that now lives IN ME....!
May be anonymous has a lot of free time in his/her hands....Nevertheless has to work a little bit in the area of actually "reading-till-the-end-before-leaving-wacky-comments"

Thank you for reading till here....
God Bless You
As in the days of Noah.....