Frank DiMora P.O. Box 732, Lompoc Ca. 93436 fjdimora@gmail.com
Bible prophecy documentary book download proving our generation will see the return of the Lord. Do you want to know what is going to happen in the future before it actually takes place? The Word of God provides you with specific details about our future and all of these things are coming to pass in this generation. If you aren’t saved yet this is a must read! Please don’t forget to subscribe to receive my daily prophecy up-dates. The Last Chronicles of Planet Earth August 19, 2014 Edition written by Frank DiMora.
I must also caution you: there are links used to report events below that you should use extreme caution in viewing- they are anti-Israel sites and Arabic media sites. If you do NOT see a link to correspond with a headline, it is for viewer protection (This means you can get a computer virus or have your information ‘hacked’ by visiting). Please email me privately for any links if desired.
“Do not keep silent, O God! Do not hold Your peace, And do not be still, O God! 2 For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; And those who hate You have lifted up their head. 3 They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, And consulted together against Your sheltered ones. 4 They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
The Islamic flag flown over the Quneitra crossing
Headline: Fijian UN troops in Golan used as hostages
Negotiations are going on for the release of 43 United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) peacekeepers in the Golan Heights who are being held hostage by Syrian rebels, the UN said Friday. The UN said the captured soldiers are from Fiji and another 81 peacekeepers who are trapped in their positions are from the Philippines. A UN press office said in a statement on Friday that the peacekeepers were seized “during a period of increased fighting beginning yesterday between armed elements and Syrian Arab Armed Forces within the area of separation in the Golan Heights.” “The United Nations is making every effort to secure the release of the detained peacekeepers, and to restore the full freedom of movement of the force throughout its area of operation,” it said. In Suva, Fijian Commander Brig. Gen. Mosese Tikoitoga said three vehicles filled with about 150 armed rebels had converged on the soldiers’ post at about 7:30 a.m. Thursday. He said the rebels demanded the soldiers leave within 10 minutes and insisted they go in rebel vehicles. He said they were then taken by the rebels to an unknown location. He said he’s been told they were later transported back to their original post. In Manila, the Philippine military said in a statement that militants had surrounded the Philippine contingent’s encampments with Fijian hostages in tow and demanded that the Filipino troops surrender their firearms. “The Philippine peacekeepers held their ground and demonstrated their resolve to defend their positions,” it said. “They did not surrender their firearms as they may in turn be held hostage themselves.” The Security Council issued a statement strongly condemning the seizure of the peacekeepers and calling for their immediate release. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon echoed the council word’s in his own statement of condemnation. Reporters asked UN spokesman Dujarric if the United Nations was in contact with the group holding the Fijians. He declined to specify who the world body was in contact with but said there was communication under way.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.arabnews.com/featured/news/622121
Headline: New Video Surfaces of Syrian Jihadists Seizing Golan Heights Border Crossing (VIDEO)
New video footage has emerged of the Syrian jihadist group Al-Nusra Front’s assault on an Israel-Syria border crossing in the Golan Heights. The group seized control of the Quenitra border crossing from the Syrian government amid heavy fighting in the region just a few hundred yards from Israel. “We are Al-Nusra fighters,” one of the jihadists says in the video. “We’ve just liberated the Syrian-Zionist crossing of Quneitra.” The video shows the heavy fighting between Al-Nusra and the Syrian government, with several buildings destroyed in the area. Later, the video shows the black flag of the Al-Nusra Front flying above the town, replacing the Syrian flag. Israel has raised its alert level in the area and deployed additional forces there. “We’re not doing anything, we’re just watching,” an Israeli officer told the Jerusalem Post.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Report: Assad Partially Recaptures Syrian Golan Heights
Reports Friday indicate that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces have partially recaptured the Quneitra region just east of the Israeli-Syrian Golan Heights border, which rebel forces captured in intense fighting on Wednesday. According to the reports from the Iranian Fars news agency as cited by Walla!, the Syrian army has regained control over several Quneitra villages, including Jaba, Tel Krum and Al Ruachi. The fighting continues on Friday morning in an attempt to take back full control after rebels seized the Quneitra crossing to Israel from the Syrian side.Senior IDF sources predicted Assad’s move, projecting that he would try to reconquer the vital area over the course of Thursday night. One source defined the security situation as “troubling,” while adding “it’s clear to us that the Syrian army doesn’t want to deteriorate the situation and is being very careful about errant fire towards the Israeli side.”
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/184549#.VADISGNWV8E
Headline: France’s Hollande calls for Gaza demilitarization, end of Israeli blockade
French President Francois Hollande called for the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip and the easing of Gaza’s blockade. Hollande’s speech Thursday to the French diplomatic corps was the latest sign that the international community plans to press for demilitarization after the latest war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Reports emerged in Lebanese media on Friday that the United States is pressing for the UN Security Council to call for such steps. The terms of this week’s cease-fire “must be strictly, precisely and rigorously implemented, because Gaza must not remain an armed base for Hamas, nor should it be an open prison for its residents” Hollande said. “We must advance toward a progressive lifting of the blockade and a demilitarization of the territory.” He outlined French proposals that included international supervision of the destruction of tunnels from Gaza into Israel, reopening crossings between Israel and Gaza and Egypt and giving Hamas’ rival, the Palestinian Authority, the means of rebuilding Gaza. Hamas officials have said they would resist any steps to demilitarize and have said they planned to re-arm.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/1.613133
Headline: Netanyahu: I Hope Abbas will ‘Divorce’ Hamas
Headline: PA Officials: Hamas Preventing Abbas from Governing in Gaza
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu says that if Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas “gives Hamas a divorce”, he would be willing to resume peace negotiations with him. Speaking to Channel 10 News in an interview to air Saturday night and of which excerpts were published on Friday, Netanyahu said that Operation Protective Edge in Gaza brought with it a new diplomatic opportunity. “Today there may be a reality that allows us to act on the one hand to promote our security interests and on the one hand start a responsible diplomatic process based on the new reality,” said the Prime Minister. However, he stressed that it is “early to say this, but not early to look into it and I am.” Netanyahu reiterated, as he has many times in the past, that Abbas would need to choose between peace with Israel and Hamas, but hinted that if Abbas chooses not to go with Hamas, he will be ready to work towards a peace agreement. “If Abu Mazen will choose the path of peace, and I think he realizes now that he should choose to do so with Hamas not only calling for our destruction, but also calling for his overthrow, in fact they actually tried to overthrow him,” Netanyahu said, referring to Hamas’s plan for a large-scale coup of Abbas’s new PA government that was foiled by Israel. Asked whether the 50 days of Operation Protective Edge convinced him that Abbas is the only possible partner for peace in the region, Netanyahu said that he hopes to cooperate with Abbas. “I hope that we can also cooperate with Abbas in the diplomatic process,” the Prime Minister told Channel 10. “If I had to choose whether I want Hamas in Judea and Samaria or Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian Authority in Gaza, I would choose the latter,” he added.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/184563#.VADHfWNWV8E
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/184562#.VADIGWNWV8E
Headline: Islamic Jihad Stages Defiant March After Gaza Ceasefire
Thousands of Islamic Jihad fighters paraded in Gaza City Friday, in a defiant show of force three days after a ceasefire ended Israel’s self-defense operation, Operation Protective Edge, in Gaza. Terrorists at the march wore military fatigues and carried assault rifles and other light weaponry, with some holding aloft different types of rockets fired at Israel during the 50-day conflict that ended on Tuesday. The spokesman for Islamic Jihad’s “armed wing,” the Al-Quds Brigades, delivered a speech, praising backers Iran, allies Hezbollah and declaring that the group would “redouble efforts” to rearm. Israel “cannot win in Gaza,” said the spokesman, known as Abu Hamza. “It is a state ready for extinction and defeat in the face of any army of our ummah (Muslim nation).” “We confirm the sanctity of the weapon of resistance, and our adherence to it,” Abu Hamza added. “We have not stopped making weapons, even during the battle, and we will redouble our efforts… to prepare for the next stage, which we hope will be the battle for freedom.”
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/184559#.VADH4GNWV8E
Headline: West Bank leaders pledge unity, resistance after Gaza
Headline: Palestinians Demand ‘Clear’ Timetable for Israeli Withdrawal From West Bank
Twenty-four hours after a ceasefire over Gaza was agreed upon, Hamas Spokesperson, Abu Ubaydah addressed the crowd with the flags of all other factions – Hamas, Fatah, DFLP – waving behind him. It was a display of unity, a demonstration that after years of fighting the divided political movements were looking to the future as the Palestinian resistance, not warring factions. Delivered at the mangled landscape of Shejaya – the neighbourhood where some of the past month’s most terrible destruction and bloodshed took place – it was a message, too, that it is a unity built on struggle and sacrifice.In the West Bank, as in Gaza, there were celebrations in the streets in the hours following the ceasefire. And here, too, unity among movements is the chief demand for many Palestinians in the weeks and months ahead. In the West Bank, events, and the changing public mood, have pushed the leadership to present a plan for action. On Wednesday, senior Fatah official Nabil Shaath told Maan News that the PLO had developed a diplomatic strategy for the months following the ceasefire. This will comprise an application to the UN Security Council to demand a “timetable” for Israeli withdrawal from the occupied Palestinian territories. If the request is denied, he said, the PLO will turn to the International Criminal Court to hold Israeli officials to account for the destruction and death in Gaza. The PLO executive committee, Fatah Central Committee and other PLO organisations such as the Popular Front and the Democratic Front have all signed the Rome Statute which will allow Palestine to join the ICC as a full member. Only Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has yet to sign the document, something that Hamas has put pressure on him to do even though the militant movement could be subject to prosecution as a result. Shaath also told Maan that Hamas will be a “full partner” in a permanent unity government working to rebuild the Gaza Strip, where nearly 450,000 Palestinians are estimated to be homeless and more than 10,200 have been injured.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/west-bank-leaders-pledge-unity-resistance-after-gaza-2143795796
Headline: Arab youth throw stones at police force in Temple mount
Arab youth threw stones at a police force at the Gate of the Moors during dispersal of Muslim worshippers at the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Waqf officials prevented the rioters from continuing the stone-throwing and took them inside the mosque. Jerusalem District police arrested two Arab minors suspected of throwing the stones. No injuries or damage reported.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4565571,00.html
Headline: Eastern Jerusalem Church Forced to Close After Years of Islamist Harassment
An Evangelical Christian church in eastern Jerusalem was forced to close following years of harassment and intimidation by Islamists, a Palestinian pastor said. The Calvary Baptist Church—which is affiliated with the Evangelical Christian Holy Land Missions organization—was forced to move out of its building in July after Islamists threatened its landlord. The congregation is currently looking for a new building. The church, which was located in the predominantly Muslim eastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Shuafat, is trying to raise $3.5 million to purchase a new building. “We can’t get a loan because we don’t own anything in Israel,” Holy Land Missions’ Pastor Steven Khoury told Morning Star News. “By faith we are asking the Lord to help us raise $3.5 million. We’ve been able to raise about $700,000 so far.” According to Khoury, the persecution of Calvary Baptist congregants started shortly after the church opened in 2007. Among the attacks were a congregant being threatened with a knife, a Molotov cocktail being tossed at the building, and vehicles and even children being harassed at church functions. “These were all spread out over a two- or three-year period, to let us know that we were not welcome there,” Khoury said.
Aug. 29, 2014
Lebanon
Headline: US delivers military aid to Lebanese army
The United States has delivered its first emergency shipment of weapons to Lebanon, officials said Friday, to help bolster military forces as part of a broader regional response to combat the growing threat posed by Islamic extremists. The delivery is in response to a request by the Lebanese government after a sudden cross-border attack by militants from Syria into the Lebanese town of Arsal earlier this month, where soldiers were killed and kidnapped in the most serious spillover of violence into the tiny country from the neighboring civil war. The new weapons were displayed at the Beirut military air base on Friday after arriving overnight. A sample of the weapons — mortars, M16-A4 assault rifles and anti-tank missiles — were placed on a white satin-covered table with camouflage netting. “This is just the latest in a series of deliveries that have arrived in the last 36 hours,” said US ambassador David Hale at the air base. Hale said the US had so far delivered 480 anti-tank guided missiles, over 1,500 M16-A4 rifles, and mortars. “More mortars, grenade launchers, machine guns, and anti-tank weapons will be arriving,” he said.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.timesofisrael.com/us-delivers-military-aid-to-lebanese-army/
Headline: Lebanon’s Army arrests militants after brief clash in Arsal
Headline: Fear grips towns bordering Arsal
Two militants were arrested Friday after soldiers briefly clashed with gunmen on the outskirts of the northeastern border region of Arsal, the Army said. According to the Army statement, soldiers spotted three militants on board a four-wheel drive Chevrolet in Wadi Hmeid, prompting an unit to pursue them. Clashes ensued and while the Army was able to arrest two of the militants, identified as Lebanese Khaled Ammoun and Mohammad Ezzedine, a third gunman fled. The military said the two arrested were in possession of two Kalashnikovs, a number of hand grenades and ammunition, as well as communication devices. A security source told The Daily Star that the Army shot and killed the third militant who was identified as Rakan Ammoun. Al-Manar Television said Ammoun was part of a terrorist ring tasked with rigging vehicles with explosives. He was allegedly behind one of the two car bombings in Harek Hreik, a neighborhood in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Residents in Arsal said they heard sounds of gun and mortar fire on the outskirts, a day after an Army unit was ambushed in Al-Rahwe, a remote border village in the region.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Hezbollah calls for resistance against IS
Headline: Can Islamic State win a foothold in Lebanon’s Tripoli?
Hezbollah’s military predictions, according to internal Hezbollah sources who wish to remain anonymous, indicate two areas in Lebanon likely to be the next battlefields of the expected war with the Islamic State (IS). The first is in the northern Bekaa Valley and includes a vast area of barren land with rugged tracts, extending from the desolate area of the Lebanese Sunni town of Arsal, running south to the arid lands around the Shiite city of Baalbek and back into Syrian territory. On a parallel line to the area, there are seven Shiite towns — al-Nabi Othman, Al-Ain, Labwe, Nahla, Younnine, Maqneh and Nabi Chit, the most prominent of which is the village of Labwe, neighboring Arsal. The second expected battlefield is also in north Lebanon, which includes Tripoli and its surrounding cities, as well as the Bekaa Valley. It’s possible that the first flame of this war in Lebanon might break out when IS fighters leave their positions. At the exit of the Bekaa Valley, there is an area suitable for IS’ potential project: the Lebanese Shiite city of Hermel, one of Hezbollah’s strongholds, and the north Lebanese regions of Akkar and Donnieh. These areas have a high density of poor Sunni communities where conditions are favorable as an incubator for IS. IS’ potential objective in attacking this area would be to set up an emirate in north Lebanon within the Sunni population. Moreover, the port area in the capital of north Lebanon, Tripoli, which opens onto the Mediterranean Sea, will have the same function for IS as the city of Misrata for Ansar al-Sharia in Libya — to smuggle and receive weapons for radical Islamist groups. Misrata became a weapons store for many extremist groups. According to the same sources within Hezbollah and official security circles, the IS attack that took place this month on the town of Arsal, from the barren lands (of Jroud Arsal, between Lebanon and Syria) is not the end of IS’ war on Lebanon, but rather the beginning.
***Please don’t mistake this as a ‘good’ sign from Hezbollah; remember ISIS is Sunni- Hezbollah is Shiite
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/can-islamic-state-win-foothold-lebanons-tripoli-34143114
Saudi Arabia
Headline: Saudi Arabia sets condition for Iran cooperation
Saudi Arabia would advance cooperation with Iran if Tehran agrees to end interference in Arab states’ interior affairs, the kingdom’s Ambassador to the U.N. Abdallah al-Mouallimi told Al Arabiya’s Diplomatic Avenue with Talal al-Haj on Friday. “Iran is welcome if it has a positive role (to play) in the region, without interference in the interior affairs of Arab countries,” Mouallimi said. Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is expected to visit Saudi Arabia, Iran’s envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Hamidreza Dehghani has revealed. No date for the planned visit was revealed. If the visit takes place any time soon, it would be the second meeting between Iranian and Saudi officials in recent weeks. Iran’s deputy foreign minister Hussein Amir Abdullahian met with the kingdom’s Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal earlier this week. Dehghani said the meeting was “positive and constructive.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Egypt
Headline: US flip flops on statement about Egypt, UAE role in Libya air strikes
The US State Department has backtracked on earlier claims that Egypt and the UAE carried out air raids on militia-allied Islamist targets in conflict-hit Libya. Two days ago, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Washignton was aware of “air strikes undertaken in recent days by the UAE and Egypt” in Libya. But on Thursday she told a regular press briefing that such information was imprecise. “I had inaccurate information just two days ago, I believe, when I spoke to this,” she told reporters in Washington. “My comments were intended to refer to countries that have been reportedly involved and not to speak to whether they were involved or their kind of involvement,” Psaki added, without giving details. “So I would point you to any of the countries that have been reportedly involved and speak to them about what they’d like to say.” The Pentagon also said the two Mideast countries were believed to be responsible for the recent series of bombing raids in Libya’s capital, Tripoli, but had no recent comments on the matter. Egypt has repeatedly denied it had a hand in the raids, and the UAE remained largely silent, giving no direct comments on the allegations. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said reiterated on Thursday that his country had no role in the bombing raids.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Egypt evicting Rafah residents to create a buffer zone
Concern has spread among residents of the border areas in the northern Sinai Peninsula following the Egyptian army’s planned establishment of a buffer zone on the Egyptian side of Rafah along the border with the Gaza Strip. The undeclared move prompted local concern that a new reality is being secretly shaped, and that the government has adopted a policy of strategic patience to draw the map of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at the expense of the people in Sinai. The Egyptian army has stated its military operations in Sinai are part of the war on terrorism, yet residents believe the operations are designed to forcibly displace them. Informed authority sources told Al-Monitor that the army’s plan to establish a buffer zone will take two years to implement and will necessitate the razing of homes located about a kilometer (0.6 miles) inside the Rafah border. The plan also necessitates building a large barrier equipped with surveillance cameras and lights, and deploying ground sensors to abort any Palestinian attempts to dig tunnels or smuggle arms. An official source explained that several countries seek to achieve stability in the area and will help the Egyptian authorities fund the project. The source refused to name these countries. On the reasons behind the establishment of the buffer zone, the source said, “Every country has the right to preserve its borders as it deems fit. No country in the world accepts that its rights be violated the way they are violated on the border with the Gaza Strip.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Syria
Iraq
Syria Iraq ISIS- the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (the Levant) ISIS=ISIL=IS=Daash
Syria Headline: Syrian refugees top 3 million, according to UN
The civil war in Syria has forced a record 3 million people out of the country as more than a million people fled in the past year, the United Nations refugee agency said Friday. The tragic milestone means that about one of every eight Syrians has fled across the border, and 6.5 million others have been displaced within Syria since the conflict began in March 2011, the Geneva-based agency said. More than half of all those uprooted are children, it said. “The Syria crisis has become the biggest humanitarian emergency of our era, yet the world is failing to meet the needs of refugees and the countries hosting them,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres. The recent surge in fighting appears to be worsening the already desperate situation for Syrian refugees, the agency said, as the extremist Islamic State group expands its control of broad areas straddling the Syria-Iraq border and terrorizes rivals and civilians in both countries. According to the agency, many of the new arrivals in Jordan come from the northern province of Aleppo and the northeastern region of Raqqa, a stronghold of the group. An independent UN commission says the group is systematically carrying out widespread bombings, beheadings and mass killings that amount to crimes against humanity in both areas. The commission investigating potential war crimes in Syria said on Wednesday that the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad likely used chlorine gas to attack civilians, who are bearing the brunt of a civil war that has killed more than 190,000 people and destabilized the region. The massive numbers of Syrians fleeing the civil war has stretched the resources of neighboring countries and raised fears of violence spreading in the region. The UN estimates there are nearly 35,000 people awaiting registration as refugees, and hundreds of thousands who are not registered. International Rescue Committee President David Miliband said the Syrian refugee crisis represents “3 million indictments of government brutality, opposition violence and international failure.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Syria Headline: Moscow Alarmed by US Possible US Reconnaissance Flights Above Syria
Syria Headline: Putin warns Russia could come to Syria’s aid over US strike
Moscow is concerned by the possibility of US reconnaissance flights above the territory of Syria, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday. “Moscow is alarmed by the US decision to hold reconnaissance flights above the territory of Syria,” the ministry said. ‘We expect Washington to observe the norms of the international law while making its further steps concerning Syria. These norms explicitly state that if a state does not agree to a [foreign] military operation on its territory, it can be authorized only by the UN Security Council,” the statement reads. On Tuesday, several media outlets reported citing unnamed US officials that US President Barack Obama approved surveillance flights over Syria. The flights are intended to collect intelligence on Islamic State (IS) militants and could be a precursor to US military strikes inside of Syria. The White House said Monday it would not comment on Obama’s decision.
***I know the 2nd link is from last year, but it serves as a reminder what we’re looking at with increased strains between US and Russia over Syria, ISIS and the Ukraine
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/09/05/obama-to-engage-putin-on-syria-strike-at-g-20-summit/
Syria Headline: Rebel-held district of Syrian capital under heavy fire
Syrian government forces on Friday bombarded the Jubar eastern district of Damascus in a fierce offensive aimed at wresting control of the key sector back from rebels, multiple reports said. Jubar has been in insurgent hands for a year, and is strategic because it provides a gateway to the center of the capital. It is also opens onto the Eastern Ghouta region, a rebel stronghold in Damascus province. “A military operation has been under way since yesterday [Thursday]… to annihilate terrorist pockets,” a security source told AFP, using the regime term for rebels. “A large number of terrorists have been killed, and their hideouts and tunnels destroyed,” the source added. The official SANA news agency said the army had killed “dozens” of rebels “including a Jordanian and a Saudi”, and had taken control of various buildings. Residents of nearby areas reported Jubar under heavy bombardment since Thursday, with pillars of smoke rising above the area and warplanes overhead. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights called the current government offensive against Jubar the heaviest since rebels seized it in summer last year. At least 18 air raids on Thursday and 15 on Friday targeted the former middle-class district built in the 1960s, which most residents abandoned long ago.
Aug. 29, 2014
Syria Headline: Islamist gains in Syria alarm some Assad allies
A mounting death toll in President Bashar al-Assad’s armed forces is causing alarm among some government loyalists who are worried about Islamic State’s territorial gains and are turning their anger on the authorities in Damascus. The execution of scores of Syrian soldiers taken captive by Islamic State at an air base in Raqqa province has triggered unusually harsh social media criticism of the Damascus government by people who have taken its side in the civil war. Some, including one of Assad’s cousins, have called for the resignation of the defense minister, blaming him for the loss of the Tabqa air base that represented the government’s last foothold in a province otherwise controlled by Islamic State. With the flow of information from Syria greatly restricted, it is not possible to gauge how widely such sentiment is felt. And it is not the first time the Syrian government has faced criticism from its supporters during the three-year conflict. But it points to a potential pressure point for Assad, who draws support from minority groups including his own Alawite community for whom Islamic State is an existential threat. “I demand the resignation of the minister of defense, the chief of staff, the air force commander, the minister of information, and whoever is responsible for the fall of the Tabqa military airport,” Duraid al-Assad, the cousin of Bashar al-Assad, wrote on his Facebook page.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/29/us-syria-crisis-dissent-idUSKBN0GT1V720140829
Syria Headline: Syria Up To the Minute
https://www.facebook.com/syriahroe (Syrian Humans Rights Watch)
Syria Headline: Institute for the Study of War Syria Updates August 16-22, 2014
http://iswsyria.blogspot.com/2014/08/syria-update-august-16-22-2014.html
https://twitter.com/AFP/status/504967176462139392/photo/1
Iraq Headline: ISIS has 100,000 fighters, growing fast – Iraqi govt adviser
The number of Islamic State recruits is much higher than that estimated by foreign observers – around 100,000, says one of Iraq’s foremost security experts with unique access to intelligence. The terrorists are swallowing up other insurgent groups. Foreign estimates put the figure between 20,000 and 50,000. “[The] Islamic State didn’t come from nowhere,” according to Hisham al-Hashimi, who advises Iraq’s intelligence services and analyzes raw information gathered on the ground. He has studied the group’s progression for years. The organization “is an extension of groups that existed before – historically and ideologically,” al-Hashimi told Mashable. And with the capture of Iraq’s Mosul – a Sunni stronghold – in June, the group gained access to thousands of new recruits, among them former officers from Saddam Hussein’s army, vehemently opposed to the current Shiite-majority government. Those who didn’t join up voluntarily were forced to do so, al-Hashimi says. More worryingly still, its growth is being spurred along by American airstrikes.
Aug. 27, 2014
http://rt.com/news/183048-isis-grow-expand-jihadist/
Iraq Headline: US airstrikes destroy 8 ISIL vehicles N. Iraq
US military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in support of Iraqi security force operations, using fighter and attack aircraft to conduct four airstrikes in the vicinity of the Mosul Dam, north Iraq, on Friday. “The strikes destroyed four ISIL armed vehicles, severely damaged another armed vehicle, and destroyed three ISIL support vehicles. All aircraft exited the strike areas safely,” said a statement from the US Central Command (CENTCOM). The strikes were conducted under the authority to support Iraqi security force and Kurdish defense force operations, as well as to protect critical infrastructure, U.S. personnel and facilities, and support humanitarian efforts. Since August 8, the CENTCOM has conducted a total of 110 airstrikes across Iraq, according to the statement.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=2394155&language=en
Iraq Headline: Iraq officials: military clashes with Islamic State militants kill 4 soldiers and 14 militants
Iraqi police officials say that clashes between Iraqi soldiers and militants with the Islamic State group south of Baghdad have killed four soldiers. The hour-long clashes took place in Latifiyah, some 30 kilometers (20 miles) south of Baghdad. At least 14 militants were also killed in the clashes, and the rest were forced to retreat, the official said. Hospital officials confirmed the casualty figures. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity because they are not permitted to brief the media. Militants with the Islamic State group have waged a fierce offensive this year across large swaths of northern and western Iraq. The U.S. military launched airstrikes in northern Iraq on Aug. 8 to help Iraqi and Kurdish forces curb the militant threat.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.startribune.com/world/273165271.html
Iraq Headline: Iraq Situation Report August 27-28, 2014
http://iswiraq.blogspot.com/2014/08/iraq-situation-report-august-27-28-2014.html
Headline: Isil and the Mideast conundrum
***Please keep in mind this is an Arabic news opinion column, but it has interesting points and parrots quite a bit of what Glenn Beck has been saying for years
Earlier, the world had witnessed the brutal murder of US journalist James Foley, an act that was enough for the US to label Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi a wanted man and a “second Bin Laden”. This is not merely an act of vengeance simply based on the principle that if you murdered one American, you have murdered them all, but rather it utilises the brutality of the act as a justification for foreign military intervention that will achieve strategic interests. When will the US military intervention in the Arab world occur? This is the key question posed by political analysts and observers. Which Arab country will be the first? It is no longer strange for the world to be shocked every now and then by acts of an extreme religious character that suddenly appear to spread terror and horror across the world. Is there a reason behind the existential significance and timing for the appearance of such a terrifying phenomenon and its proclaimed mission? Did Isil suddenly spring into existence or are they the result of seeds sowed by the support and supervision of global powers using local/domestic tools? Had Isil not been present in Syria, the West would have been embroiled in a direct war that would have grinded on and on through its support for the various Syrian opposition factions, including the Free Syrian Army. The Damascus regime recorded political success by defaming the Syrian opposition, who allowed Isil to get involved in the crisis. The opposition failed to preserve the sanctity of its demands and also failed to preserve the integrity of its political movements, the unification of its ranks, and most importantly — it failed to snub the dubious sympathisers and stop them from sneaking into their ranks. The US and the West knew about Isil sneaking into the Syrian scene and assisted them in doing so due to various reasons. The most significant one was for the sectarian issue to take an extreme form and transform into a civil war. The Syrian regime is allied with Russia and Iran, whose arm in the Levant is Hezbollah. This alliance expands to include other countries such as China, India and a number of South American countries. The opposition, on the other hand, is allied with Turkey, the Gulf countries, the US and some European countries. It is easy for the West to use this situation to conceal its stance: It does not support the regime or the opposition. Rather, the West has left the two parties to drain the resources of one another until their weaknesses reach the peak. This will lead to the US having the final word on the crisis. The question is: Was Isil founded to justify military intervention by world powers anywhere and at any time? The answer is perhaps yes. Had Isil not been present in Iraq, for example, the US would not have been so quick to respond to Iraq’s call for support against what US President Barack Obama called a nihilistic ideology and UK Prime Minister David Cameron termed a “cancer”. The irony here is that while the US and UK are ready to wage a political, media and military war against Isil in Iraq, they are not willing to do so in Syria. Isil is present in both the countries as a symbol of brutal practice and geographic expansion. Where does Isil grow and what are the fertile environments in which such obscurantist ideology can grow? Historically, Isil and other similarly dangerous Islamic groups usually develop under tyrannical and repressive regimes such as Iraq and Syria. There are indications that a foreign military intervention will occur. Libya may be the launch point for an intervention by the US and the West, which will result in partitioning the country based on sects, minorities, geographic wealth and interests of the West, particularly the US. Obama’s presidential term will come to an end in two years or so and there are indications that the next president will be a Republican. The war and oil-loving Republicans are coming and upon the Republican president’s inauguration, he will find before him a map of the Middle East, indicating areas in which the US can wage new wars, starting from Libya, which was distributed among the tribes following the regime of Muammar Gaddafi. The voices of Libyans are on the rise as they cry out for the US and the West to come and rescue them. These voices serve as a pass for the Republicans to tamper with the demographic and geographic map of the Arab world. Other Arab countries will soon follow, especially those who are suffering from difficulties during their transitional periods on the economic and political level. Tunisia will probably be the next target. The situation in Tunisia may seem to be calm, but in reality, it is not so. There is fiery coal underneath the ash of the transitional period and things are prone to blaze up in the not-too-distant future. Libya, the neighbouring country, has always had a direct effect on Tunisia, both negative and positive. Tunisia is a country that suffers from a lack of sufficient resources and is surrounded by two massive countries: Algeria and Libya. Foreign aid is no longer easy to access due to the current international climate. Unemployment rates are on the rise in the Arab world, reaching 20 per cent, compared to the 6 per cent recorded worldwide. This means that there are 25 million unemployed Arabs. The only solution to this disastrous dilemma is creating five million jobs per year, which will help curb this issue’s escalation and ease any possible dangerous consequences that may impede sincere intentions for development in the region. This high rate of unemployment can lead to new revolutions similar to the Spartacus uprising, pushing countries back to square one. This means the draining of natural, human and financial resources, obstructing education and health care, slowing down the continued work of organisations that will in turn help speed-up the possibility of the collapse of nations — the way Somalia collapsed or Libya is currently collapsing.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://gulfnews.com/opinions/columnists/isil-and-the-mideast-conundrum-1.1378131
Headline: Muslim Activists Demand Overhaul of All U.S. Law Enforcement Training
Islamic activists that strong-armed the FBI to purge anti-terrorism training material considered “offensive” to Muslims have made their next wave of demands, which include an overhaul in the way all law enforcement officers are trained in the United States. The coalition of influential and politically-connected Muslim rights groups is demanding that the Obama administration implement a mandatory retraining program for all federal, state and local law enforcement officials who may have been subjected to materials they deem “biased and discriminatory” against Muslims. There must also be an audit of all federal law enforcement and intelligence gathering training and educational materials to identify and remove information that could exhibit bias against any race, ethnicity, religion or national origin, the groups demand. Additionally, the administration must pursue disciplinary action against agents and officials who engage in discriminatory conduct as well as those responsible for the anti-Muslim training materials. Finally, the coalition insists that all federal funding to local and state law enforcement agencies be withheld unless they ban all training materials considered to be biased against race, ethnicity, religion or national origin. In short, these empowered Muslim activists want to dictate how our nation’s law enforcement agencies operate at every level. The outrageous demands were made this month in a letter to Lisa O. Monaco, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism. Among the signatories is the terrorist front organization Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which has repeatedly proven that it wields tremendous power in the Obama administration. Founded in 1994 by three Middle Eastern extremists, CAIR got the FBI to purge anti-terrorism material determined to be offensive to Muslims. Judicial Watch uncovered that scandal last summer and obtained hundreds of pages of FBI documents with details of the arrangement. JW also published a special in-depth report on the subject in December.
****The letter is on the 2nd link
Aug. 26, 2014
http://www.muslimadvocates.org/files/FINALCoalitionLetterTrainings_8.14.14.pdf
Headline: Chicago Motorist With ISIS Flag Makes Bomb Threat Against Police
A man who had an ISIS flag waving from his vehicle is facing several charges after he threatened police with a bomb Wednesday morning when he was pulled over on the Southwest Side. Emad Karakrah, 49, was charged with felony counts of disorderly conduct and aggravated fleeing; and a misdemeanor count of driving on a never-issued license, according to Chicago police. He was also issued three traffic citations. Someone called police after seeing a “suspicious person” driving a silver Pontiac southbound in the 7700 block of South Kedzie at 9:18 a.m. with an ISIS flag waving out the window, according to a police report. Officers attempted to pull over the vehicle, but the driver took off, according to the report. The officers called for assistance, and another officer pulled the vehicle over after it went through several red lights. The man told police during his arrest that there was a bomb in the car and he would detonate it if they searched the vehicle, according to the report.
Aug. 28, 2014
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2014/08/28/motorist-with-isis-flag-makes-bomb-threat-against-police/
Headline: ‘Significant increase’ in terror chatter as haunting anniversary of 9/11 nears
Headline: UK terror threat level raised to ‘severe’
The U.S. intelligence community has observed a “significant increase” in chatter among terrorist organizations as the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks nears. “We’ve noticed a significant increase in chatter among Islamic terrorist organizations overseas both on the Internet and phone lines,” a U.S. government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Blaze. While the intelligence community can not pinpoint whether or not an attack is planned, the official said that agencies “did see this kind of increase in chatter before the September 11 attacks.” Deciphering chatter is more difficult than in previous years because of the rise of the Islamic State group, which threatens to drain al Qaeda of resources as it asserts dominance Iraq and Syria. Like al Qaeda, Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, has openly declared its intent to bring terror to American interests around the globe. “The threat is two-fold because ISIS is in war with core al Qaeda,” former CIA case officer Brian Fairchild told The Blaze. “ISIS was kicked out of al Qaeda in February and they’ve been fighting each other internally for leadership. ISIS is winning right now. They have captured the imagination of young Muslims from around the world and depriving al Qaeda of its own fighters. Al Qaeda is split down the middle and now you have 9/11 [anniversary approaching]. It would be beneficial to both camps that on 9/11, some great attack in the United States takes place,” he added.
Aug. 28, 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-28986271
Headline: Online posts show ISIS eyeing Mexican border, says law enforcement bulletin
Headline: Judicial Watch: Feds’ Bulletin Describes Threat of Imminent Terrorist Attack on Southern Border
Social media chatter shows Islamic State militants are keenly aware of the porous U.S.-Mexico border, and are “expressing an increased interest” in crossing over to carry out a terrorist attack, according to a Texas law enforcement bulletin sent out this week. “A review of ISIS social media messaging during the week ending August 26 shows that militants are expressing an increased interest in the notion that they could clandestinely infiltrate the southwest border of US, for terror attack,” warns the Texas Department of Public Safety “situational awareness” bulletin, obtained by FoxNews.com. The three-page bulletin, entitled “ISIS Interest on the US Southwest Border” and dated Aug. 28 was released to law enforcement on Thursday. “Social media account holders believed to be ISIS militants and propagandists have called for unspecified border operations, or they have sought to raise awareness that illegal entry through Mexico is a viable option,” states the law enforcement bulletin, which is not classified. It notes no known credible homeland threats or specific homeland attack plot has been identified. That assertion was underscored by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, who said Friday that DHS and the FBI are “unaware of any specific, credible threat to the U.S. homeland” from Islamic State. Despite assurances that no threat to American soil is imminent, the watchdog group Judicial Watch said Friday that Islamic State operatives are in Juarez, just across the border from Texas, and are planning to attack the United States with car bombs.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Laptop reportedly seized from ISIS hideout hints at bio weapons attack
A laptop reportedly recovered from an Islamic State jihadist contained a hidden trove of secret plans, including weaponizing the bubonic plague, and lessons on disguise, bomb-making and stealing cars. A man identified by ForeignPolicy.com as Abu Ali, a commander of a moderate Syrian rebel group in northern Syria, told the publication the black laptop was seized earlier this year in a raid on an ISIS hideout in the Syrian province of Idlib, close to the border with Turkey, and belonged to a Tunisian jihadist. “We found the laptop and the power cord in a room,” Ali told ForeignPolicy.com. “I took it with me.” Initially, it appeared the computer had been scrubbed, but on closer inspection, thousands of secret files were discovered on the hard drive, which was not password protected, Ali said. “The advantage of biological weapons is that they do not cost a lot of money, while the human casualties can be huge.” ForeignPolicy.com was permitted to copy of thousands of files, which were in French, English, and Arabic. The information included videos of Usama bin Laden, ideological justifications for jihad and tutorials on how to carry out the Islamic State’s deadly campaigns. But most chilling were files that indicated the computer’s owner, identified as a Tunisian national named Muhammed S. who joined ISIS in Syria after studying chemistry and physics at two universities in Tunisia, was teaching himself how to manufacture biological weapons, in preparation for a potential attack that could have been catastrophic on a global scale. A 19-page document in Arabic included instructions on how to develop biological weapons and how to weaponize the bubonic plague from infected animals. “The advantage of biological weapons is that they do not cost a lot of money, while the human casualties can be huge,” the document states. The document includes instructions for testing the weaponized plague before using it to attack. “When the microbe is injected in small mice, the symptoms of the disease should start to appear within 24 hours,” the document says. While some Islamic scholars have said the use of weapons of mass destruction is prohibited, the material on the seized computer included a fatwa, or Islamic ruling, permitting it. “If Muslims cannot defeat the kafir [unbelievers] in a different way, it is permissible to use weapons of mass destruction,” states the fatwa by Saudi jihadi cleric Nasir al-Fahd, who is currently imprisoned in Saudi Arabia. “Even if it kills all of them and wipes them and their descendants off the face of the Earth.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Report: Pope Francis Is ‘In The Crosshairs Of ISIS’
Headline: Italy Steps Up Security Over Alleged ISIS Plot to Kill The Pope
A new report claims that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria is targeting Pope Francis — a report that the Vatican says is simply not true. According to Il Tempo, Israeli sources reportedly told the Italian newspaper that the pope is “in the crosshairs of ISIS.” The report stated that Francis is being targeted because he is “the greatest exponent of the Christian religions” and the “bearer of false truth.” The Vatican, though, denounced the report. “There is nothing serious to this,” Father Federico Lombardi S.J., a Vatican spokesman, told Catholic News Agency. “There is no particular concern in the Vatican. This news has no foundation.” The Catholic News Agency reports that Italy has issued a nationwide terror alert, despite no imminent threats or specifics about a potential attack on the country.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/08/29/report-pope-francis-is-in-the-crosshairs-of-isis/
Listed below are the nations which will attack Israel from Ezekiel chapter 38 and their modern day names (see chart above).
Gog is the leader of the Russian invasion of Israel.
Magog, Meshech, and Tubal comprise modern day Russia.
Persia is Iran, parts of northern Iraq, and Afghanistan.
Cush is Ethiopia and Sudan.
Put is Libya and will most likely include Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco.
Gomer is Eastern Germany.
Beth Togarmah is Turkey and Armenia.
Russia
Headline: Russian armored columns said to capture key Ukrainian towns
Headline: Rasmussen: Ukraine free to seek Nato membership
Headline: UN: Death toll in Ukraine fighting hits 2,593
Russian soldiers, tanks and heavy artillery began rolling into southeastern Ukraine in earnest Thursday, the Ukrainian government said, as well-armed detachments captured key towns, burned buildings and sent the underequipped Ukrainian forces into full retreat — a show of military force that the United States now considers an invasion in all but name. U.S. officials began saying privately for the first time Thursday that they consider the escalation of recent days tantamount to a Russian invasion, but President Obama stopped short of using the term at a news conference late in the afternoon. He said the United States will continue to rely on sanctions in an effort to deter Russia. “Russia is responsible for the violence in eastern Ukraine,” he said. “Russia has deliberately and repeatedly violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.” But he said the problem will not be solved with U.S. or outside military action. “A military solution to this problem is not going to be forthcoming,” he said.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://euobserver.com/defence/125399
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4565524,00.html
Headline: Sweden raises military alert level due to Ukraine crisis
Sweden put its top military staff on higher alert on Friday as a result of the situation in Ukraine, the armed forces said. It is already participating in international manoeuvres in Finland, which borders Russia, and has moved its quick-response fighter jets to the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea, off Sweden’s southeast coast. “Given the serious nature of the development in Ukraine, the Swedish military is responding by among other things a higher alert status for the General Staff at headquarters and intensified intelligence gathering,” Forsvarsmakten, Sweden’s military authority, said in a statement. A spokesman for the military declined to give any more details of what Sweden was doing to prepare for any eventual spillover in the region from the conflict.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Putin Says Don’t Mess With Nuclear Russia
Headline: NATO to Russia: Stop ‘Illegal’ Military Operations in Ukraine
Headline: Why is Vladimir Putin Referring to Eastern Ukraine as ‘New Russia’?
President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Russia’s armed forces, backed by its nuclear arsenal, were ready to meet any aggression, declaring at a pro-Kremlin youth camp that foreign states should understand: “It’s best not to mess with us.” Putin told the assembly, on the banks of a lake near Moscow, the Russian takeover of Crimea in March was essential to save a largely Russian-speaking population from Ukrainian government violence. He said continued fighting in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists launched an uprising in April, was the result of a refusal by Kiev to negotiate. Ukraine and Western governments accuse Russia of sending troops and armor to back the separatists in a conflict that has already killed over 2,000 people. Russia denies the charge. “Russia is far from being involved in any large-scale conflicts,” he said at the camp on the banks of Lake Seliger. “We don’t want that and don’t plan on it. But naturally, we should always be ready to repel any aggression towards Russia.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.infowars.com/putin-dont-mess-with-nuclear-russia/
http://www.voanews.com/content/ukraine-russia-nato/2431903.html
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/why-vladimir-putin-referring-eastern-ukraine-new-russia-1463130
Iran
Headline: Iran Arming Terrorists in Judea and Samaria
Iranian military leaders have openly boasted that they have begun to send weapons to Palestinian Arab terrorists in Judea and Samaria and elsewhere in the region, the Washington Free Beacon reported Thursday. The report quoted a top Iranian military commander who confirmed that weapon shipments to Judea and Samaria have already begun and that more will be sent to other “Palestinian resistance groups.” “Arming the West Bank has started and weapons will be supplied to the people of this region,” Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the commander of Iran’s volunteer Basij force, told the state-run Fars news agency on Wednesday. The announcement was made after weeks of inflammatory statements from Iranian leaders threatening war on Israel and promising to rearm groups such as Hamas so that they can continue their war on the Jewish state. The military leader also confirmed what has long been suspected by Israeli intelligence agencies: That Iran is responsible for training and arming Hamas with highly advanced rockets that were used to penetrate deep into Israeli territory during the most recent conflict. Much of the arms Hamas deployed “were the products of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Fars reported Naqdi as having boasted. He further said that Iran is arming terrorists in Judea and Samaria as opposed to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip because attacks on Israel from this area will ensure “the annihilation of the Zionist regime.” “The Zionists should know that the next war won’t be confined to the present borders and the Mujahedeen will push them back,” Naqdi declared, according to the Free Beacon.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/184542#.VADIxWNWV8E
Headline: U.S. imposes new sanctions on Iran’s nuclear program
Headline: EU ministers call for new sanctions against Russia
Headline: Iran’s FM Hopes for Nuclear Accord by Deadline
The United States imposed new sanctions Friday on more than 25 people and companies linked to Iran, stepping up pressure over Tehran’s controversial nuclear program. The Treasury Department said the sanctions target individuals and entities under Iran-related authorities that are involved in Iran’s missile and nuclear programs, efforts to evade international sanctions and support for terrorism. The U.S. move comes as the United States and five other global powers are working with Iran to strike a comprehensive agreement under which Tehran would curb its nuclear activities in exchange for an easing of economic sanctions that have crippled its economy. The U.S. Treasury Department said it was targeting the people and firms, including Iran’s Asia Bank, Meraj Air and Lissom Marine Services LLC, a shipping firm, for a range of violations, including helping Iran’s missile and nuclear programs, evading prior sanctions, or supporting terrorism. In a parallel move, the U.S. Department of State imposed sanctions on four firms it said were helping Iran’s nuclear program, a UAE-based firm working with Iran’s shipping sector, Goldentex FZE, and an Italian firm, Dettin SpA, it said was working with Iran’s petrochemical industry.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.voanews.com/content/iran-fm-hopes-for-nuclear-accord-by-deadline/2431994.html
Headline:
***If you go to the link listed above it is in multiple languages, so I will provide all the links here; try as I might I could not get clear English copy; we’ll keep on the watch for latest developments
http://www.kurdpa.net/index.php?besh=dreje&id=16497&PageSpeed=noscript
http://www.kurdpa.net/english/?PageSpeed=noscript
Afghanistan
Headline: War News for Friday, August 29, 2014
Quetta, three journalists murdered as attacks on Pakistani press mount
Leader of Iran’s Baluchi rebels killed in Pakistan
Reported security incidents
#1: Gunmen have opened fire on worshippers at a shrine in southwest Pakistan, killing at least six members of a minority Islamic sect and wounding seven others, officials have said. The attack came at a shrine of the Zikri community in Awaran district, about 650km southwest of Quetta, the capital of restive Baluchistan province.
#2: Unknown gunmen shot dead the provincial high peace council committee chief in capital Kabul late Thursday. According to Nuristani high peace council committee members, Haji Abdul Halim was assassinated by gunmen riding motorcycle.
http://warnewstoday.blogspot.com/
Ethiopia
Headline: Turkey, Ethiopia should cooperate in African peace efforts
Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome said on Friday that Turkey and Ethiopia have a mutual understanding in their peace-building efforts in Africa, suggesting that the two countries should cooperate with each other. “Turkey and Ethiopia have established mutual understanding in peace efforts, and what we do in Africa is complementary to each other. It is not competition,” Teshome said in an exclusive interview with Today’s Zaman. Teshome stressed that Turkey and Ethiopia should conduct a joint effort to establish peace in Somalia. “Ethiopia’s main object is to bring peace and stability to Somalia and provide Somali people to live a decent life that is free of fear. What Turkey does in Somalia is definitely the same. So, in order to have a peaceful and stable Somalia, Turkey and Ethiopia need to consult each other to combine their peace efforts,” he explained. Turkey is a key ally of the Somali government. It places great importance on the integrity of Somalia and pledges to continue its support for the reconciliation, stability, prosperity and development of Somalia. It has led aid efforts to help Somalia, as the fragile country is attempting to rebuild itself after two decades of civil war and lawlessness. “What we do in Somalia really is not for Ethiopia. We aim to free Somali people from being victims of war and of chaotic social situations in their country. Turkey is also contributing a lot enormously in that regard so we are complementing each other,” Teshome added. Turkey and Ethiopia are also partners in trade and investment. The trade volume between the two countries was $421 million in 2013.
Aug. 29, 2014
Libya
Headline: Libyan militia in control of Tripoli accepts UN call for truce
The Islamist militia in control of Libya’s capital, Tripoli, says it agrees with a U.N. call for a cease-fire in this North African country but vows to resist any foreign interference in Libyan affairs. Senior commander Ahmed Hadiya from Dawn of Libya, an umbrella of Islamist militias, says his group will “cooperate with the world” unless this violates Libya’s sovereignty. The remarks, which came in a statement late Thursday, are seen as a rejection of a recent appeal by a group of Libyan lawmakers for United Nations to intervene to stop ongoing militia battles. Libya currently has two rival parliaments in different parts of the country, and two different governments. The divisions are rooted in rivalries between Islamists and non-Islamists, as well as powerful tribal and regional allegiances.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Libya Islamists say they shot down jet of rival forces
Libyan jihadists said Friday they downed a plane belonging to forces of a rogue general, but a source close to the officer said it crashed because of a technical fault. The military aircraft came down in Al-Baida in eastern Libya after carrying out air strikes targeting Islamists in Derna farther east, a spokespersonfor general Khalifa Haftar said. Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said the crash happened because of a “technical” glitch, and added that the pilot was killed. But the Ansar al-Sharia jihadist group, which Washington classifies as a “terrorist organization” said on social networks that its militants fired a missile at the plane. Neither claim could be independently confirmed.
Aug. 29, 2014
Tunisia
Headline: IMF approves $217 mln loan disbursement to Tunisia
The International Monetary Fund said on Friday it had completed a review of its loan program for Tunisia, clearing the way for disbursement of about $217.5 million. The latest disbursement brings the total funds released under the program to about $1.1 billion, the IMF said. The Fund agreed last year to support Tunisia with a two-year credit worth about $1.74 billion. In exchange, Tunisia agreed to follow certain economic polices, such as keeping its deficit under control and making the foreign exchange market more flexible. The IMF said Tunisia has complied with all the conditions of the program so far, including structural reforms, despite a difficult economic situation, with high unemployment and rising imbalances.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/29/tunisia-imf-idUSL1N0QZ0ZX20140829
Algeria
Headline: Algeria, US talk security collaboration
Algerian Army Chief of Staff Ahmed Gaïd Salah met with US Africa Command (AFRICOM) head General David Rodriguez on Wednesday (August 27th) in Algiers to discuss Sahel security and military co-operation. The talks were aimed at “researching the optimal approaches to co-ordinate efforts, especially regarding the exchange of intelligence and expertise in the fight against terrorism”, according to the Algerian defence ministry. Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal also met the AFRICOM commander. “The meeting allowed both parties to exchange views relating to the current situation in the region, and its repercussions on the security, humanitarian and economic sectors,” a government statement said. “Algeria is considered to be an important ally, and we share its commitment for a unified Libya, ruled by Libyans themselves, and also in relation to reconciliation and peace in Mali,” General Rodriguez said after meeting with Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra. He added that the US was “ready to work closely with the Algerian government in order to fight terrorism and promote regional security”. The American general explained that the two sides discussed current and future challenges. “These efforts are aimed at strengthening our commitment for a more secure and stable world, especially for a further prosperous Africa, with more security and democracy,” he said. “I consider that overcoming the terrorism threat requires joint collaboration in the security, economic, and diplomatic sectors, as it is not only an issue of security forces,” he added. As for the turmoil in Libya, Rodriguez said: “There is a congress that was formed recently, and there are efforts made by neighbouring countries to help the Libyans overcome their crisis, and we are supporting them.”
Aug. 29, 2014
http://magharebia.com/en_GB/articles/awi/features/2014/08/29/feature-02
Morocco
Headline: Polisario Front Attempts to Incite Chaos in Morocco
The Polisario Front is hoping to drag Morocco into an atmosphere of chaos and crisis through urging separatist students to escalate their struggles against the Moroccan government as well as increase their mobilization across universities in the country. Along with the Human Rights card it uses against Morocco in the Western Sahara conflicts, the Polisario Front strives to use separatist students to incite chaos in Morocco. According to Hespress, during a recent assembly of the Saharawi Students Union, attended by Polisario leader, Mohamed Abdelaziz, separatist students expressed their intention to “escalate their struggles against the Moroccan government,” in order to defend what they described “their national identity’’ after the Polisario leader urged them to do so. The Saharawi Students Union expressed its loyalty to the Polisario leader, Mohamed Abdelaziz, stressing that it is moving forward to promote the Polisario’s agenda and increase its propaganda against the Moroccan Autonomy Plan. Far from it, the Saharawi Students Union goes as far as to call upon all the separatist students to join the Polisario’s “Popular Army. “The final press statement on the assembly said that the Saharawi graduate students’ call to join the Popular Army has become necessary, in the current context,” the same source noted. As for the undergraduate Saharawi students, the Polisario Front urged them to specialize in the scientific and technical sectors so that they can develop the Polisario Front’s military later after graduating. The document also urged the separatist students to take into consideration violating the ceasefire agreement with Morocco in 1991, and resume the Polisario’s “armed resistance.”
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2014/08/137545/polisario-front-attempts-to-incite-chaos-in-morocco/
Turkey
Headline: New Cabinet, Full of Erdogan Holdovers, Is Announced in Turkey
Turkey’s prime minister-designate, Ahmet Davutoglu, announced a new cabinet on Friday that is dominated by holdovers from the administration of his predecessor, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mr. Erdogan is now Turkey’s president and seeking to maintain a grip on power after moving to what until now has been a largely ceremonial office. Mr. Davutoglu moved swiftly, announcing his cabinet less than a day after receiving the mandate from Mr. Erdogan to form the new government. There were changes to only three cabinet ministries out of 21, while two figures close to Mr. Erdogan were installed as new deputy prime ministers. Mr. Erdogan approved the list without delay. The continued presence of Mr. Erdogan’s appointees at the head of key ministries like finance, interior, defense and energy left little doubt that the president would retain strong influence over the government, despite constitutional provisions meant to distance the president from engaging in day-to-day politics.
Aug. 29, 2014
Luke 21:9 and Matthew 24:7 speak of nation against nation and kingdom against kingdom in the end times. Revelation 6:3-4 speaks of the fiery red horse given power to make men slay one another and Revelation 6:8 speaks again of this red horse in conjunction with the pale horse of Death and Hades, as the one that has the power to kill by sword. Luke 21:9: wars & commotions; the Greek word here is Akatastasia, meaning instability, a state of disorder, disturbance, confusion (revolutions) Matthew 24:7: the Greek word for nation is Ethnos & refers to various ethnic groups fighting among themselves, where the next sentence in the verse refers to kingdoms (basileiva) fighting one another (not to be confused with an actual kingdom but rather the right or authority to rule over a kingdom)
Headline: Houthis stage massive anti-government rallies in Yemen
Headline: Mass demonstrations in Yemen against Shiite rebels
A series of fresh protest rallies have been held across Yemen, where the government is under increasing pressure to step down. On Friday, thousands of supporters of the Shia Houthi group took to the streets of the northern city of Sa’ada, calling for the downfall of the transitional government. Reports say a similar massive rally by supporters of Yemen’s Houthi movement is underway in the capital city of Sana’a. The latest mass protests came after talks collapsed between the government and Houthi leaders. In a similar event on Wednesday, hundreds of thousands flooded the streets, demanding the downfall of the government after Houthi leader, Abd al-Malik al-Houthi, called for more anti-government protests. Houthis have been holding demonstrations since August 20 when they strengthened their positions in the Yemeni capital in an effort to press the government to quit. The Shia movement and its supporters are demanding the resignation of the government and the reversal of recent increases in fuel prices. Meanwhile, Hundreds of thousands of Yemenis rallied in the capital and across the country against an armed Shiite rebel group which has been holding its own sit-in demanding a new government and the reinstatement of fuel subsidies.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/08/29/376978/massive-antigovt-rallies-held-in-yemen/
Headline: Pakistan army chief mediating to end crisis: Opposition
Headline: Pakistan PM tries to distance himself from army as crisis drags on
Headline: Gunman kills three people in troubled Balochistan Province Pakistan
Pakistani opposition leaders say General Raheel Sharif, the army chief, is mediating to end the country’s current political crisis. Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, the Pakistani cleric leading mass anti-government rallies in the capital Islamabad, made the remarks during a rally on Thursday. “The Pakistan army chief has officially asked us if it will be acceptable to the Azadi (freedom) march if he becomes a mediator and guarantor,” Qadri told a gathering of his supporters outside the country’s parliament. “Do I have your consent?” the Pakistani cleric asked his supporters who answered affirmatively. Qadri and Imran Khan, the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, have been leading daily rallies in the capital since August 14. Imran Khan has confirmed the mediation effort, saying, “I want to tell you all that I will not disappoint you. The talks have already started.” The talks between the opposition and the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif are set to continue for 24 hours. Meanwhile, akistan’s prime minister, weakened by weeks of opposition protests calling for him to resign, distanced himself from an army move to intervene in the crisis on Friday, saying he was not turning to the military for help to defuse the stand-off. But in an embarrassing twist for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, the army quickly denied this, saying it had been specifically instructed by the government to step in to help mediate with the opposition. Despite the army’s intervention, the crisis appeared far from being resolved, with thousands of protesters still massing outside key government installations in centrail Islamabad late on Friday demanding Sharif’s resignation.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/08/29/376928/pakistan-army-chief-mediating-crisis/
http://newsdaily.com/2014/08/29/pakistan-pm-tries-to-distance-himself-from-army-as-crisis-drags-on/
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/08/29/377010/gunman-kills-three-people-in-pakistan/
Economic collapse Revelation 6:5-6 & Daniel 2:41-43- Decline of the Euro “ When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.” (Revelation) “Whereas you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; yet the strength of the iron shall be in it, just as you saw the iron mixed with ceramic clay. 42 And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly fragile. 43 As you saw iron mixed with ceramic clay, they will mingle with the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, just as iron does not mix with clay.” (Daniel 2:41-43)
Headline: Germany to Europe: Help Isn’t on the Way
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble has bad news for anyone hoping the European Central Bank will ride to the rescue of the ailing euro region: Monetary policy has come to the end of its instruments. I don’t think ECB monetary policy has the instruments to fight deflation, to be quite frank. What we urgently need is investments, regaining confidence by investors, by markets, by consumers. His comments, in an interview with Bloomberg Television today, coincide with figures showing annual inflation slowed to 0.3 percent in the euro zone this month. That was the weakest rate of growth since October 2009 and marks 11 consecutive months of prices growing by less than 1 percent. The deflationary danger policy makers have been denying for months may be upon them. This adds to the gloomy outlook in Europe. One-, two- and three-year yields are negative in Germany, meaning investors are paying for the privilege of the perceived safety of German debt. A critical money-market rate, the Effective Overnight Index Average — Eonia for short — dropped below zero for the first time yesterday, reaching -0.004 percent. Analysts are attributing that event to a combination of expectations for even lower ECB interest rates, and the start of yet another program designed to pump money into the economy. Next month, the ECB will start offering targeted longer-term refinancing operations, or TLTROs. Analysts estimate that banks will borrow 300 billion euros ($395 billion) in the initial TLTRO round, according to the Bloomberg Monthly Survey published on Aug 18. That’s a far cry from the 850 billion euros ECB President Mario Draghi touted as a possibility earlier this month, though future operations may increase the take. “Any treasurer who doesn’t make use of this offer is making a big mistake,” ECB policy maker Ewald Nowotny said yesterday. Whether the money will then make its way into the economy and revive growth remains to be seen.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2014-08-29/germany-to-europe-help-isn-t-on-the-way
Economic collapse Revelation 6:5-6 & James 5:1-3– Worldwide “ When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.” (Revelation) “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days.” (James)
Headline: Census figures show more than one-third of Americans receiving welfare benefits
Fifty years after the “war on poverty” was first waged, there are signs a new offensive is needed. Newly released Census data reveals nearly 110 million Americans – more than one-third of the country – are receiving government assistance of some kind. The number counts people receiving what are known as “means-tested” federal benefits, or subsidies based on income. This includes welfare programs ranging from food stamps to subsidized housing to the program most commonly referred to as “welfare,” Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. At the end of 2012, according to the stats, 51.5 million were on food stamps, while 83 million were collecting Medicaid – with some benefitting from multiple programs. Though the programs were created to help those in need, some analysts worry that the way they’re designed is, increasingly, incentivizing people not to work. They note that when recipients combine several government assistance programs, in many cases they pay better than going to work.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Brazil Goes Into Recession for First Time in Over 5 Years
Brazil’s economy slipped into recession for the first time in more than five years as investments contracted on lower confidence before the October presidential election. Gross domestic product shrank by 0.6 percent in the April-June period from the previous three months, after contracting a revised 0.2 percent in the first quarter, the national statistics agency said today in Rio de Janeiro. The contraction in the second quarter was bigger than the median estimate of 42 economists surveyed by Bloomberg, who expected a 0.4 percent drop. President Dilma Rousseff has attempted to revive growth with tax cuts, billions of dollars in credit and higher social spending. With inflation hovering around the upper limit of the target range, consumer and business confidence eroded in the run-up to the first round vote on Oct. 5. It’s the first time the economy contracted for two consecutive quarters since the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2008. “This is the last thing that Dilma would have wanted, today’s data is the worst-case outcome for her,” Neil Shearing, chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics Ltd, said by phone from London. “This is clearly going to put pressure on the central bank to loosen policy in order to support growth.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Ecuador heralds digital currency plans
Ecuador is planning to create the world’s first government-issued digital currency, which some analysts believe could be a first step toward abandoning the country’s existing currency, the U.S. dollar, which the government cannot control. The virtual currency, which Central Bank officials say they expect will start circulating in December, does not yet have a name and officials would not disclose technical details, though they said it would not be like Bitcoin. The amount of the new currency created would depend on demand. Deputy director Gustavo Solorzano said it is to exist in tandem with the greenback and, by law, be backed by liquid assets. It would be geared toward the 2.8 million Ecuadoreans – 40 percent of participants in the economy – too poor to afford traditional banking, officials say. Users initially will be able to make and receive payments at minimal cost using their cellphones, Solorzano said. Such mobile payments schemes are already popular in African nations including Kenya and Tanzania, where they are privately run. The new currency was approved, and stateless crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin simultaneously banned, by Ecuador’s National Assembly last month. Leftist President Rafael Correa has said the project’s only problem is that it has taken this long, defending it against `’pseudo-analysts who have appeared in the media trying to smear (it).” He denies any plan to replace the U.S. dollar, which Ecuador set as its currency in 2000 after a crippling banking crisis.
Aug. 29, 2014
Revelation 6:6- With the bees dying off, you will see a decrease in produce and an INCREASE in food prices!
Aug. 14, 2014- 48 Million bees have died (100% losses) in Pyrenees-Orientales, France
Aug. 28, 2014- Millions (130 Hives) of bees have died in Itatinga, Brazil
Wars & Rumors of Wars Matthew 24:6 , Revelation 6:3-4 & Revelation 6:8“ And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.” Revelation 6:3-4 speaks of the fiery red horse given power to make men slay one another and Revelation 6:8 speaks again of this red horse in conjunction with the pale horse of Death and Hades, as the one that has the power to kill by sword. Weapons of Mass Destruction Zechariah 14:12 “And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, Their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, And their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths.”
Headline: China warns U.S. to stops surveillance flights
China suggested the United States end its reconnaissance flights near Chinese territory, and denied Pentagon claims that a plane made dangerous passes at a U.S. Navy plane. A Chinese fighter plane intercepted a U.S. Navy Poseidon patrol plane and came within 20 feet, the U.S. Department of Defense said, on Aug. 19, as the U.S. plane was 135 miles east of the South China Sea island of Hainan. A Pentagon spokesman called the maneuver “pretty aggressive, very unprofessional,” and the fourth incident of its kind this year. Yang Yujun, a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman said Thursday the United States should take “concrete measures” to stop surveillance flights if relations between the two countries are to improve, adding, “On the one hand, the U.S. expressed their willingness to deepen a military-to-military relationship with China, but on the other hand, they are reluctant to give up these frequent close-in reconnaissance activities against China.” Yang accused the United States of spying on Chinese training exercises, saying: “These behaviors of U.S. military ships and aircraft could easily cause misperception and miscalculation or even air and sea accidents. Therefore we do urge the U.S. side to decrease these close-in reconnaissance activities against China towards a complete stop.”
Aug. 29, 2014
Pestilence & Plagues Luke 21:11 & Revelation 6:8 “And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven.” (Luke) “So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death (Thanatos in Greek meaning the death of the body whether natural or violent), and by the beasts of the earth” (Revelation)
Headline: Billions of locusts invade Madagascan capital
Billions of locusts swarmed Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo on Thursday, prompting residents and tourists to share photographs of the sudden insect invasion on Twitter, while experts worried about the effect on the country’s food supply. In the past five years, swarms of giant locusts have regularly swept in over the island nation off Africa’s southeastern coast, devastating crops and other food supplies within just a few hours. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations estimates that the ongoing locust plague in Madagascar threatens the livelihoods of some 13 million people, of which nine million earn their living from agriculture. Last year, the UN agency launched a three-year emergency program to try and control the locust infestations through aerial campaigns to protect crops. Out of the $44 million (€33 million) in donations the FAO has called for to fund the program, it has so far only received $28.2 million, meaning the funding gap exceeds the $15 million needed to implement two more campaigns in 2014/15 and in 2015/16. Since the spraying operations started in November 2013, locust populations on 1.2 million hectares of land have been controlled. In an interview with BBC Focus on Africa last year, FAO locust control expert Annie Monard said: “The last one (plague) was in the 1950’s and it had a duration of 17 years so if nothing is done it can last for five to 10 years, depending on the conditions.”
Aug. 28, 2014
http://www.france24.com/en/20140828-pictures-millions-locusts-swarm-madagascar-crisis-atananarivo/
Headline: Ebola Is Rapidly Mutating As It Spreads Across West Africa
Headline: Doctor dies of Ebola in Port Harcourt Nigeria
Headline: Death toll passes 1,550 as Ebola outbreak accelerates, officials say
Headline: Senegal becomes 5th African nation to confirm first case of Ebola
For the first time, scientists have been able to follow the spread of an Ebola outbreak almost in real time, by sequencing the virus’ genome from people in Sierra Leone. The findings, published Thursday in the journal Science, offer new insights into how the outbreak started in West Africa and how fast the virus is mutating. A international team of researchers sequenced 99 Ebola genomes, with extremely high accuracy, from 78 people diagnosed with Ebola in Sierra Leone in June. The Ebola genome is incredibly simple. It has just seven genes. By comparison, we humans have about 20,000 genes. “In general, these viruses are amazing because they are these tiny things that can do a lot of damage,” says Pardis Sabeti, a computational biologist at Harvard University and the lead author of the study.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.wbur.org/npr/343734184/ebola-is-rapidly-mutating-as-it-spreads-across-west-africa
http://www.thesundaily.my/news/1154876
http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/28/world/africa/ebola-outbreak/
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/08/29/376998/senegal-confirms-first-case-of-ebola/
Headline: HealthMap
Global leader in utilizing online informal sources for disease outbreak monitoring and real-time surveillance of emerging public health threats. The freely available Web site ‘healthmap.org’ and mobile app ‘Outbreaks Near Me’ deliver real-time intelligence on a broad range of emerging infectious diseases for a diverse audience including libraries, local health departments, governments, and international travelers.
http://healthmap.org/formobile/
August 27, 2014- 4 TONS of fish have died in a lagoon (4th time this year) in Jalisco, Mexico
August 28, 2014- Masses of fish washing up dead during past 2 weeks along coast of Devon and Cornwall, England
Isaiah30:26 , Revelation 16:8-9 & Revelation 7:16 “Moreover the light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, And the light of the sun will be sevenfold, As the light of seven days, In the day that the Lord binds up the bruise of His people And heals the stroke of their wound.” (Isaiah 30:26) “Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.” (Revelation 16:8-9) “Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.” ( Revelation 7: 16)
Drought Jeremiah 50:38 & Isaiah 42:15 “A drought is against her waters, and they will be dried up. For it is the land of carved images, And they are insane with their idols.” (Jeremiah)“I will lay waste the mountains and hills, And dry up all their vegetation; I will make the rivers coastlands, And I will dry up the pools.”(Isaiah)
Luke21:25 “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring”
Headline: NASA: Dangerous sunspot aligning with Earth
NASA is warning a new sunspot spewing powerful X-class flares is beginning to rotate to a position directly in line with Earth. A direct hit on Earth from an X-class flare could cause major disruptions – or even destruction – to the U.S. electrical grid, which already is very vulnerable, as well as to life-sustaining critical infrastructures dependent on the grid to function. NASA said the warning regarding the sunspot, AR 2151, could last for weeks. Eruptions that drew the attention of space experts began last Sunday with an M5.6 solar eruption, which is one tenth the strength of an X-class flare. X-class flares are the most power solar flare. The least intense flare is a C-class. M-class flares ranked as mid-range. “Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation,” explained NASA spokeswoman Karen Fox. “Harmful radiation from a flare cannot pass through Earth’s atmosphere to physically affect humans on the ground. However, when intense enough, they can disturb the atmosphere in the layer where GPS and communications signals travel.” Some of the flares spewing from the sun’s surface can be at least 14 times the size of Earth. NASA and the National Science Foundation has estimated that if the U.S. sustained a direct hit from an X-class flare, it would cost the nation upward of $2 trillion in the first year and kill up to 90 percent of the U.S. population due to the lack of services, starvation and disease.
Aug. 29, 2014
http://www.wnd.com/2014/08/nasa-dangerous-sunspot-aligning-with-earth/
Headline: Southwest’s Risk of 35-Year ‘Megadrought’ Raised in New Study
The U.S. Southwest faces a strong chance of a 35-year “megadrought” in this century, according to a new study that used paleoclimate and instrumental data to tweak climate models. The research, led by Toby Ault, a Cornell University assistant professor of earth and atmospheric sciences, found that the chance of a megadrought lasting at least 35 years in this century was 20 to 50 percent, depending on how much climate change was assumed — and that for some areas of the Southwest, the risk of decade-long drought was at least 80 percent and perhaps higher than 90 percent. The results were alarming, Cole told NBC News. She noted that Arizona is in the throes of a drought that’s already lasted 15 years, and the idea that a drought could last 15 or more years beyond that would require changes in how humans interact with their environment. “This kind of drought should change the way we think about water,” Cole said. Ault told NBC News that a next step would be using the research to estimate how much water might be available in these megadrought periods, giving policy makers another tool for planning for such risk. “Managing it is going to be very challenging,” said Ault, who lived in Tucson while working on his master’s degree and doctorate from the University of Arizona. “But even then I think we can do it. We’re a very clever, adaptable species. I’m optimistic that we can find ways to do this.”
Aug. 28, 2014
Matthew 24:7 “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. Luke 21:11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.” Luke21:25 “And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring”
Headline: Two tremors hit Egypt Friday morning
Egypt was hit by two successive minor earthquakes on Friday morning, a geophysical official has said. A 4.7–magnitude aftershock occurred at 6:49 am CLT followed by another slighter tremor, almost two hours later, measuring 2 on the Richter scale, Hatem Ouda, head of the National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, told state news agency MENA. With the epicenter in Greece–some 611km from Egypt’s northern border province of Marsa Matrouh and 958km from Helwan, south of Cairo, the shocks were largely unfelt in the early morning hours, Ouda said. No damage or casualties have been reported.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Papua New Guinea Mount Tavurvur volcano eruption sees international flights diverted
Some international flights were diverted and several communities evacuated in the early hours of Friday morning after a volcanic eruption on Papua New Guinea. Mount Tavurvur, on East New Britain Island, erupted hours before dawn, sending plumes of smoke and ash high above the nation and forcing local communities to evacuate. The Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said residents of Rabaul town, the provincial capital, have been advised to remain indoors to avoid falling ash. Local resident David Flinn told Australian Broadcasting Corp the volcano was emitting steam and occasionally boomed. Mr Flinn said about half an inch of ash covered surrounding areas. Qantas Airways said the ash cloud from the volcano had prompted minor alterations to flight paths between Sydney and Tokyo and between Sydney and the Chinese city of Shanghai.
Aug. 29, 2014
Headline: Scientists find evidence of underground eruption in Iceland
Teams monitoring Bardarbunga volcano have found evidence of a possible underground eruption as powerful earthquakes continue to shake the area, authorities said on Thursday. Scientists flying over the area on Wednesday discovered a 2.5-4 mile line of giant craters or cauldrons – 10 to 15 metres deep and 1km wide – on Vatnajokull glacier which covers the giant volcano. “The cauldrons have been formed as a result of melting, possibly a sub-glacial eruption,” the Icelandic Met Office said. The alert for Bardarbunga was downgraded from red to orange on Sunday when the Met Office retracted its claim of an eruption under the ice. Tremors continued on Thursday with an 5.0 magnitude earthquake, far weaker than an eruption of 5.7 recorded on Tuesday.
Aug. 28, 2014
Headline: What’s erupting? List & map of currently active volcanoes
http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/erupting_volcanoes.html
click the floating
F icon to go to Facebook or watch the new ETRM
Facebook live feed for any Weekend news updates
1 comments
Wanted to thank you again for all the news you worked so hard to put together for us to see @ learn. It is becoming like a book. there is so much news. THANK YOU