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Weinstein: Arrest Hezbollah, Hamas Flag Flyers; Plo Flags Ok
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Israeli citizens who wave the flags or display other symbols associated with ISIS, Hamas, Hezbollah, or other terror organizations, will be subject to arrest and prosecution, Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein has decided. A report in Yisrael Hayom quoted a letter sent by Weinstein's aides to members of the Justice Ministry staff.

The letter says that, according to Weinstein's opinion, the state is on clear legal grounds to persecute such actions. “The Palestine Liberation Organization was declared a terror organization many years ago, and that designation has never been changed. Technically, flying the PLO flag is a crime, as that was legislated when the PLO was declared a terror group.

“Given the new relationship between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which represents the PLO, the Attorney General has for many years overlooked the criminal aspects of flying the PLO flag, and no one is persecuted for this anymore,” the letter said. “With that, there is no overall protection for flying the flag of terror groups, which is still a crime.” That law, the letter said, needed to be enforced against groups that practice terrorism, including ISIS, Hezbollah, and Hamas.

“When such flags and symbols are displayed police must judge if there is a possibility of public disorder or disturbance, or of danger to the public. If there is, police should take steps to remove the flags. In appropriate cases, charges may be made against perpetrators,” the letter added.

While the PLO flag could fly, the letter said, action should be taken as quickly and forcefully as possible against the flags of other terror groups, the letter said. “We have recently distributed these instructions to police and security officials and expect them to act according to these principles,” it added.

Flags of Hezbollah and Hamas are often seen at protests in Arab towns and especially on the Temple Mount. Such displays, said Jewish residents and visitors in areas where these protests occur, are often accompanied by rock throwing and other attacks.

U.S. to Further UN Decision Against Foreigners Joining the IS
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

American Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, said on Wednesday night that in Washington there are hopes that the UN will unanimously approve of a proposal for international cooperation against the phenomenon of foreigners joining terrorist organizations in the Middle East.

U.S. Scientists Working on Mind - Controlled Drones for Military Use
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsRT
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

University researchers in Texas say they are designing a new type of drone – one that could be controlled simply and only with a soldier’s mind.

If successful, the project would allow soldiers to command future drones in ways beyond simple navigational commands. While troops would be able to order a drone to “move left” and “move right,” it would potentially enable them to command the vehicles to travel over specific geographic installations and send critical data back to their operators.

According to My San Antonio, the project is currently underway at the University of Texas at San Antonio, where graduate students recently demonstrated a hovering drone operated via a cell phone app while one researcher sat – his head covered in sensors – and focused intently on the unnamed aerial vehicles’ activity.

While the goal of controlling vehicles by way of the mind is still ways off, the hope is that by studying the brain signals and magnetic waves captured from graduate student Mauricio Merino, the researchers will be able link the activity to specific commands that can eventually be received by an advanced drone.

These commands would be relayed by sophisticated electroencephalogram systems (EEG) that can process brain signals.

Once developed, mind-controlled drones would significantly reduce the amount of supplies that troops have to carry into combat zones, the chairman of the university’s electrical and computer engineering department, Daniel Pack, believes.

“It becomes more burdensome to ask them to carry more things,” he told My San Antonio. “You have to have a computer or a mechanism that you use to control the UAVs. But if you can do this without having them actually carry additional equipment ... then you are helping our soldiers.”

While the project is primarily funded by the Department of Defense and the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the researchers also think the technology will have important uses for those with disabilities.

“For people who don’t have motor skills, for people in wheelchairs, this could be so helpful,” graduate Prasanna Kolar said to the outlet.

U.S. Regulators Adopt Tighter Rules for Banks' Cash Needs
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

The rules, adopted by the three main bank regulators, are a new building block in a global effort to make big banks such as JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) and Citigroup (C.N) sturdier and head off a future meltdown of the financial system.

"Liquidity squeezes were the agents of contagion in the financial crisis," Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo said. "The (new rule) makes such squeezes less likely by limiting large banks from taking on excessive liquidity risk."

The Federal Reserve said big U.S. banks would need to hold a total of about $2.5 trillion in highly liquid assets by 2017, and that they would have a shortfall of about $100 billion if that threshold applied today.

The regulators also proposed rules determining how much money - or margin - swaps buyers and sellers must set aside when they do trades outside central clearing houses, which makes them more risky than cleared derivatives trades.

The liquidity rules, which were first proposed in October 2013, will force banks to hold enough liquid assets such as cash, treasury bonds and other securities to fund themselves over a 30-day period during a crisis.

In the wake of the last crisis, regulators have told banks to rely less on borrowed money, and to raise more shareholder equity. But they had yet to address problems with everyday cash needs that came to light during the crisis.

The final rule provided some relief from the proposed version, allowing smaller banks to make their liquidity calculations on a monthly basis rather than every day.

It also exempted companies regulated by the Fed that are deemed to be of systemic financial importance but that are not banks - such as insurer Prudential Financial Inc (PRU.N).

Banks with more than $250 billion in assets will still have to tabulate their daily liquidity needs.

The Fed's estimate of the current shortfall is half of what it foresaw in its proposed rule. Bank of New York Mellon (BK.N), PNC Financial Services (PNC.N) and U.S. Bancorp (USB.N) are examples of banks that currently do not meet the ratio, according to a note by KBW research analysts.

"Banks have started to narrow the gap," said David Wright, a regulation expert at consultancy firm Deloitte. "Some were waiting to find out exactly how the buffer would be defined ... but now ... banks will be able to go ahead and close the final $100 billion gap."

Fed staff said they want to work on a plan to eventually include the most liquid municipal bonds in the asset buffer, although for now they will not count, something that has frustrated local government officials, who have argued banks will buy fewer of their bonds, and taxpayers will shoulder more costs for projects such as new roads.

U.S. cities and states criticized the regulators' tightening of the rules on Wednesday, saying it would raise their borrowing costs and hamper vital infrastructure projects.

MORE RULES

Tarullo, the Fed's top official on financial regulation, said more rules were forthcoming. He said the Fed would write separate liquidity rules for foreign banks that are exempted from the rule that was finalized on Wednesday.

Liquidity standards for the handful of non-banks overseen by the Fed would be issued by order, he said.

Separately, the Fed is working on rules to rein in banks that heavily rely on short-term funding tools, and it will also need to implement forthcoming global requirements that would force banks to calculate their liquidity needs over a full year, the so-called net stable funding ratio.

The Fed also reproposed margin requirements for swap trades conducted outside clearing houses, which function as middlemen by taking on the risk that trading partners cannot deliver on their promises to make them less risky.

Swaps, a form of derivatives, mushroomed during the pre-crisis boom when they were only lightly regulated. Now, they must be routed through clearing houses, but some are so complex that they still won't be cleared, and the new rules set out how much money trading partners need to set aside.

Trading counterparties must post enough buffers to give themselves 10 days to unwind any deal going awry, the rules say. For cleared swaps, that period is one to five days.

That makes cleared swaps far cheaper to use, and market parties have said that the margin rules could have a direct impact on how popular these swaps are with clients.

The reproposal largely followed a global agreement released in 2013, and superseded an initial Fed proposal from 2011. The new U.S. proposal was somewhat stricter in its definition of large financial end users, agency staff said.

The three agencies adopting both sets of rules are the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Top Adviser to Canada's Liberals Under Fire for Israel Comments
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Retired general Andrew Leslie, one of the Canadian Liberal Party leader Justin Trudeau's top advisers, has accused Israel of firing "indiscriminately onto Palestinian women and children" during the recent operation in Gaza.

According to The Toronto Sun, Leslie's remarks were made August 19 but only surfaced this week when transcripts of his remarks, including a transcript made by Leslie himself, were provided to the local QMI Agency.

At a roundtable on veterans' issues that Leslie hosted he was asked for his "professional opinion" on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

In the course of his answer, Leslie, said, "Casualties are caused by the Israelis using very heavy weapons systems, firing indiscriminately onto Palestinian women and children."

“The Palestinian people are not the enemy. Hamas, absolutely,” Leslie said, according to the published transcript.

“You’re talking to a guy who has hunted terrorists for quite some time. You gotta kill them, you gotta kill them. Hey, I’ve got no problems with that. But Palestinian women and children who are taking refuge in a UN-designated compounds?”

“Come on. ‘Oh, it was an accident.’ Sorry, doesn’t matter to anyone. Shooting dumb artillery close to children is dumb,” he said.

The Toronto Sun further reported that two ministers in the cabinet of Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, a staunch supporter of Israel who continued to stand up for the Jewish state during the conflict in Gaza, condemned Leslie’s remarks.

Finance Minister Joe Oliver said in a statement those comments "are deeply disturbing."

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney called it "an inappropriate remark" and, speaking to reporters, said "it reflects profound misunderstanding of the situation, a skewed perspective on the part of Mr. Leslie."

"Israel takes great precautions to protect civilians while in contrast, Hamas deliberately puts innocent Palestinians in harm's way and has hurled thousands of rockets at Israeli civilians," Oliver said. "Nevertheless, Mr. Leslie places blame on Israel for defending itself."

Leslie told the QMI Agency Tuesday that "the totality of my comments are balanced."

Russian General Calls for Preemptive Nuclear Strike Doctrine Against NATO
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsThe Moscow Times
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Russia Planning Major Nuclear Military Exercises
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsThe Moscow Times
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Rise of the Machines: How Robots are Taking Over All Aspects of Our Lives
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsMirror
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

One man and his dog? Old hat. It could soon be one man and his ’droid after scientists say they can program a robot to round up a flock of sheep.

Researchers at the University of Swansea found that sheepdogs use only two simple tactics to herd wandering woollies and have come up with a way to mimic them.

Similar tactics could even create robots that rescue us from burning buildings or clean up an oil spill.

But sheepdogs are not the only ones with jobs in danger...

Delivery drivers

 

Delivery man: Amazon's Octocopter

Online shopping giant Amazon is developing unmanned drones to deliver their packages.

These “Octocopters” could get goodies weighing up to 2.3kg to eager customers within 30 minutes of an order and Amazon has already posted a video online of the drone in action.

However, chief executive Jeff Bezos says it could be five years before the service is ready.

Butlers

The world’s first robot butler is already on duty at Californian hotel Aloft.

He is 3ft tall with a snazzy bow-tie and uses the lifts to move between floors and delivers toiletries and phone chargers to guests.

Vice-president Brian McGuinness says there are no plans to replace human staff with the ’bots.

Birds of prey

Remote-controlled eagles and falcons that scare birds away from airports and city centres are being tested in the Netherlands.

Smaller birds flee from a bird of prey, but hiring real ones is expensive. Smartphone-controlled robots get the job done by mimicking a bird’s complex movements.

Nico Nijenhuis, founder of Clear Flight Solutions, said: “If it doesn’t look like a predator or move like a predator the prey don’t care.”

Jockeys

Get the hump: Robot camel racer

First dreamed up in the 1940s as a way of replacing the corrupt real jockeys that were rife at the time, robots have been used in Dubai camel races in Dubai after a ban on using children as jockeys.

Each £15,000 robot weighs less than 3kgs and has GPS tracking systems and shock absorbers. Owners control them from their speeding 4x4s.

Security staff

Bob became the first metal minder in the UK when he spent three weeks patrolling the Gloucestershire headquarters of security firm G4S in June.

When he spots something out of place he reports it. He can speak to staff, ask for help if he gets stuck and plug himself in for a recharge.

Hospital porter

Swiss scientists have created a Robocourier that uses lasers to find its way around hospital wards with supplies.

It has a lockable container to keep drugs safe.

Bosses at Swisslog say the robot can cut waiting times and costs, as well as freeing staff to focus on patient care.

Burger flipper

 

Food for thought: Robots can be butlers, waiters and burger flippers

The sight of spotty teens flipping beef patties could be a thing of the past.

US firm Momentum Machines says its fast-food robot can churn out 360 burgers an hour (one every 10 seconds), slicing toppings and pickles then placing them on freshly ground burgers.

Boss Alexandros Vardakostas claims they can replace human staff entirely.

Astronaut

A NASA Robonaut has been on the International Space Station since February 2011 and according to project manager Ron Diftler, it helps with “dull, dangerous or dirty tasks” including spacewalks.

The extra-terrestrial android even has its own Twitter account.

Plans to replace astronauts with robots, allowing longer missions into space, took a giant leap forward in April when Robonaut was fitted with 4ft 8in legs.

Hitchhikers

So it’s not a job and this robot may not look particularly hi-tech with his wellies and a bin-lid for a hat, but that hasn’t stopped him hitchhiking 3,700miles across Canada from Nova Scotia to British Columbia.

Hitchbot even stopped at a wedding and an aboriginal pow-wow on the way, updating Dr Frauke Zeller and Professor David Smith on his progress via GPS, 3G and a camera.

He has an artificial intelligence system to chat to drivers and asks to be plugged it if his battery runs low. By journey’s end last week he had 35,000 Twitter followers.

Cabbies

Hi-tech taxis with no driver and a 25mph speed limit have been developed by Google.

They navigate using GPS and use radar, lasers and roof cameras to recognise people, other vehicles and road signs.

Business Secretary Vince Cable says they can be trialled on Britain’s roads from January 2015.

Soldiers

Did The Terminator teach us nothing? The US is considering replacing thousands of soldiers with robots.

Unmanned drones already spy on and kill the enemy and now the US Army could replace manned convoys with robot vehicles.

General Robert Cone even suggests military machines could be on the battlefield by 2030 or 2040.

A “Stop the Killer Robots” has already been launched.

Surgeons

The Da Vinci robot is already used by surgeons in the UK to fight prostate cancer.

This cutting tool is carefully inserted through small holes in the abdomen and guided to the prostate gland using a tiny camera.

Using the robot to cut out a tumour avoids the risk of human hand tremors.

And studies suggest robotic surgery has fewer side effects, so patients can recover faster and are at less risk from infection.

Prison wardens

Jail bosses in Pohang, South Korea, have tried out three robotic guards.

The 5ft-tall Roboscrews use 3D cameras to monitor inmates and spot violent or suicidal behaviour, easing the burden on staff at the crowded prison.

But they don’t step in with a warning laser blast. They call in human prison warders who “run and arrive at the scene it time”, says Lee Baik-Chul, chairman of the Asian Forum for Correction.

Guide dogs

Japanese experts are developing a robotic guide dog for the blind.

It will respond to voice commands, monitor its surroundings and guide its owner to locations using GPS.

It has wheels for flat surfaces and hinged legs for climbing steps.

It still lags far behind a real guide dog – but creators NKS believe an ageing population will create a huge market.

Rabbinical Support for Prime Minister Netanyahu
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu (Likud) met with rabbis from the Tzohar rabbinical organization Wednesday night, to thank them for their work during Operation Protective Edge. 

"We passed trying times," Netanyahu began. "An important part of this test was safeguarding the strength of the people and the great unity of the nation."

"It is good to hear messages of strength from the leaders of the community supporting our activities [against terror - ed.] and steadfastness," he added. 

The Tzohar Rabbinical Association Co-Chair, Rabbi Rafi Feuerstein, also expressed appreciation.

"The Tzohar organization's rabbinical staff want to express our appreciation for your leadership, and strengthen you at this time," he said. 

"We came here to pray for your success, to strengthen the security forces and the army," he continued. "Go with your strength and protect Israel' (Judges 6:14 - ed.) - this very simple statement says to me that the Creator of the Universe will give you strength." 

Tzohar, which works regularly with rabbis from around the world to protect the Jewish future of Israel, announced during the operation that they opened a special Operations Center to assist diaspora rabbis in all logistical and operational support to leading their communities to Israel during the war.

PA TV Feeds Into 9/11 Conspiracy: 'Israel Did It'
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

In its latest canard against Israel, Palestinian Authority television has compared the demolition of a 12-story building in Gaza that was a Hamas headquarters outpost to the destruction of the World Trade Center. A video clip from PA television, released by Palestine Media Watch (PMW), places the two attacks side by side, and implies that Israel was responsible for not only the Gaza attack, but the New York one as well.

Next Thursday will mark the 13th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, in which some 3,000 people were killed when hijacked planes flown by Arab terrorists slammed into the New York skyscrapers. Although the identities of the hijackers are well-known and terror group Al Qaeda took responsibility for it, the conspiracy theory in much of the Arab world has Israel as the responsible party. The PA TV clip distributed by PMW highlights the efforts of the PA to encourage this belief.

In the clip, Israeli planes are seen destroying the Gaza building (dubbed the Al-Zafr tower) during Operation Protective Edge, with a clip of planes boring into the World Trade Center in the 9/11 attack. In Arabic and English, a subtitle states “Same Terrors,” implying that the party responsible for the one attack is responsible for the other.

Commenting on the clip, PMW said that “unfortunately the PA did not provide its viewers with all the facts. The Gaza building held a large Hamas command center, from which terrorists were dispatched. There were no terrorists at the World Trade Center, that attack was aimed at civilians. In addition, Israel warned those in the Gaza building that an attack was coming. Those in the WTC received no warning.”

Even more, said PMW, “no one was killed in the Gaza attack, unlike in the World Trade Center, where nearly 3,000 innocent civilians were killed.”

One in Six French People Say They Support ISIS
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsProphecy New Watch
Categories: Today's Headlines;Commentary

Two polls released this week both ask a question that you would hope wouldn't need asking: how many people support the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS)? Unfortunately, in all four countries surveyed, the answer is greater than zero, and by a lot.

Here is a chart of the results of the polls. The first, by ICM Research, asked people in Germany, France, and the UK whether they had a favorable or unfavorable view of ISIS. The second, by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, asked Gazans whether they support or oppose ISIS. Here are the results:

First, a caveat: while the polls of Gazans and Europeans are similar, they are not totally identical. They were conducted by different polling agencies using different methods, and the different question could skew responses, as "support" is stronger than "favor." So keep that in mind when comparing the Gaza results to the others, although it is hard to ignore that ISIS could have a higher approval rating in France than in Gaza.

In any case, the big, scary, surprising, number here is France: 16 percent of those surveyed say they support ISIS. That's an awful lot. And that number gets even larger as the demographics get younger, as shown in this by-age breakdown published by Russia Today (the poll was commissioned by Russian state media, almost certainly to tar and/or troll Western countries, but that doesn't make the findings any less disturbing):

This is alarming, in part because a growing number of Europeans, often from predominantly Muslim immigrant communities, are not just expressing their support for ISIS in polls: they are traveling to Syria and Iraq to join up. The ISIS fighter who killed American journalist James Foley on video last week spoke with a strong London accent. European governments are rightly worried about the implications of this for their own national security.

But there's more going on here. It's no secret that far-right politics have been on the rise in Western Europe, which includes a growing willingness to embrace extremism and greater intolerance of all kinds. It is ironic but by no means impossible that far-right Islamophobia would rise in Europe alongside a greater approval of the Islamist group ISIS. Extremism is often reactive and ideologically contradictory.

The growth of European intolerance has brought a rise in hate toward Jews in Europe, as well as Muslims. It's more complicated than extremism festering within predominantly Muslim immigrant communities. "There is no clear correlation in Europe between the level of popular anti-Semitism and the size of the Muslim population," the British writer Kenan Malik explained recently in the New York Times. He went on:

The rise of identity politics has helped create a more fragmented, tribal society, and made sectarian hatred more acceptable generally.

At the same time, the emergence of "anti-politics," the growing contempt for mainstream politics and politicians noticeable throughout Europe, has laid the groundwork for a melding of radicalism and bigotry. Many perceive a world out of control and driven by malign forces; conspiracy theories, once confined to the fringes of politics, have become mainstream.

The good news here may be the Gaza poll numbers. While 13 percent is exactly 13 more than what it should be, 85 percent of polled Gazans said they oppose ISIS. That's awfully high, especially considering that Europeans were much less likely to say they held an unfavorable view of the group:

Though Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been arguing that ISIS is indistinguishable from Hamas, the Palestinian group that rules Gaza, it turns out that at least Palestinians in Gaza see a strong distinction. While the Gaza poll did not ask for Hamas approval/disapproval, it did return favorable-sounding results on two questions: "Was the Palestinian resistance prepared for this aggression [by Israel against Gaza]," to which 58 percent said yes; and "do you support disarming the Palestinian resistance," to which 93 percent said no and 3 percent said yes.

Again, Gazans and Europeans were asked slightly different questions by different polling agencies, but it is still awfully striking that more Gazans gave the anti-ISIS response than did Western Europeans.

Obama, Cameron Seek International Front to Fight ISIS
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

US President Barack H Obama and UK Prime Minister David Cameron intend to build an international coalition against ISIS, the terror group that has conquered large portions of Iraq and Syria. In the wake of the revelation of a second video showing the beheading of a Western journalist by ISIS this week, Obama and Cameron intend to lobby for the coalition's assembly at a NATO summit Thursday.

“We will not be intimidated," Obama said in Estonia on his way to the summit. "Their horrific acts only unite us and stiffen our resolve to take the fight against these terrorists. And those who make the mistake of harming Americans will learn that we will not forget and that our reach is long and that justice will be served. It is going to take time for us to form the regional coalition that's going to be required so that we can reach out to Sunni tribes in some of the areas that Isis has occupied, and make sure that we have allies on the ground in combination with the air strikes that we've already conducted,” Obama said.

After releasing the video of the beheading of Steven Sotloff this week, which followed the beheading of James Foley several weeks ago, ISIS claimed that the next victim will be British. That victim is likely to be David Cawthorne Haines of the UK with death as well, who is threatened in the Sotloff beheading video as the next one to be killed.

Cameron said that the UK could join the US in its airstrikes against ISIS positions in Iraq. “We should do what we can to help those on the ground who want to build an Iraq for all Iraqis: Sunnis, Shias and Kurds. We've helped already with aid,” Cameron said. “We've helped with other military assets, and we'll always ask ourselves what is in our national interest. Not ruling things out, but going forward in a deliberate, sensible, resolute way."

France is likely to be on board with such a coalition. Speaking Thursday, French President Francois Hollande said that “there is a great deal of importance attached to humanitarian missions and attempts to solve this politically, but it is possible that a military response, in accordance with international law, will be necessary.”

Speaking Wednesday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden issued a sharp warning to the Islamic State group, saying after the United States is done grieving the death of two American journalists, their killers will have to answer for their actions. "They should know we will follow them to the gates of hell until they are brought to justice," he forcefully told an audience at an event on the New Hampshire-Maine border, according to CNN . "Because hell is where they will reside. Hell is where they will reside."

Meanwhile on Wednesday, Obama vowed that the United States would not be intimidated by the beheading of Sotloff, but acknowledged the fight against the IS would take time. Obama pledged that justice would be done to the IS murderers who brutally beheaded Sotloff, who was also an Israeli citizen, wherever they hid and however long it took. Obama said the whole world had been repulsed by the barbarism of Sotloff's murder, but "we will not be intimidated. Those who make the mistake of harming Americans will learn that we will not forget and that our reach is long and that justice will be served."

Obama Says U.S. will Destroy Islamic State
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsThe Jerusalem Post
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

WASHINGTON – The US seeks to destroy the metastasizing Islamic State, President Barack Obama said from Eastern Europe on Wednesday, reacting angrily to the murder of a second American citizen at its hands in two weeks.

The killers of journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff taking refuge in Syria will be held accountable, “no matter how long it takes,” US Secretary of State John Kerry echoed from Washington, calling Sotloff’s murder an act of evil.

The public comments from both Kerry and Obama suggest the scope of America’s mission against Islamic State, the terrorist Islamist group, has now been broadened, as the president warned that his objective is no longer limited to the protection of US assets and personnel in the Iraqi cities of Arbil and Baghdad.

“Our objective is clear, and that is to degrade and destroy ISIL [Islamic State] so that it’s no longer a threat, not just to Iraq but also the region and to the United States,” Obama told press during a visit to Estonia. “Those who make the mistake of harming Americans will learn that we will not forget, and that our reach is long and that justice will be served.”

Obama said he was “very confident” the US could achieve this objective, adding, “we will not be intimidated.”

The fundamentalist army, which calls itself a caliphate, has conquered territory throughout northern Iraq and has held court in Syria’s eastern provinces for over a year.

Sotloff, 31, an Israeli-American journalist, was killed this week by Islamic State fighters seeking retribution against the US for its air campaign against their assets throughout northern Iraq. Asked whether the US had known of Sotloff’s Israeli citizenship, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that Washington was “made aware at some point in time” during his captivity.

“The videos were not shot at the same time, with the video of Mr. Sotloff shot after the Foley video,” Psaki told reporters, remarking that the US government learned of the video when it was made public.

A video of his killing shared online was authenticated by the US and UK intelligence communities overnight.

“We will follow them to the gates of hell until they are brought to justice,” Vice President Joe Biden said from New Hampshire, responding to the murders, “because hell is where they will reside.”

Despite his use of hardened words, Obama said that a strike against Islamic State targets in Syria “might require congressional approval,” a request far from guaranteed in a midterm election year.

In September 2013, the White House failed to secure enough votes in Congress to authorize the use of force in Syria after its embattled president, Bashar Assad, gassed more than 1,400 civilians with the chemical weapon sarin.

Members of Congress have remained largely quiet on whether the president would be required to seek authorization for targeted air strikes in Syrian territory.

The Obama administration still considers Assad an illegitimate leader, Psaki said on Wednesday, condemning his army for “de facto carpet bombing” a densely populated neighborhood in Damascus over the last several days with hundreds of rockets.

“The regime is targeting communities that are also confronting ISIL,” Psaki said.

In the video of Sotloff, the killer – a masked Londoner believed to have killed Foley in August – threatens to next kill David Cawthorne Haines, a Briton, should US air strikes continue.

British Prime Minister David Cameron responded angrily to the developments, threatening to join the US air campaign.

Obama seeks a broad coalition of partners that will provide military, humanitarian and financial aid for the fight, led not only by the US, but by Sunni states, in a unique position to claim moral authority over Islamic State, which claims to represent Sunni Islam.

State-run press in Saudi Arabia, the region’s largest Sunni power, published on Wednesday that the kingdom would participate in such a coalition and is seeking partners throughout the region to join the effort.

After a NATO meeting in Wales ends on Friday, Kerry will travel to the Middle East to shore up support for the Saudis and their neighbors.

Religious and government officials in Jordan, Turkey, Qatar and Egypt have condemned the group as un-Islamic.

In her daily briefing, Psaki declined to provide an exhaustive list of countries that the US would attempt to rally to its side. But when specifically asked about possible roles for the governments in Moscow and Tehran, Psaki suggested neither could provide constructive roles.

“They can play a role by encouraging inclusivity,” Psaki said. But “beyond that, no, we’re not working with Iran in this regard.”

Nigeria: Boko Haram Terrorists Seize City
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Armed terrorists belonging to the Boko Haram organization captured the city of Bara in northeastern Nigeria.

An eyewitness said that the gunmen “Began to spread out all over the city and asked the residents to leave their work in government offices and join them in the worship of Allah.”

NGO Calls NYT Bluff on 'Annexation of Occupied Land'
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

The legality of Israel's declaring about 4,000 dunams (close to 1,000 acres) of land as "state land" in Gush Etzion is undisputed, rights group Regavim noted Thursday - despite the actions of leftist groups, the media, and the international community to defame Israel as "annexing" land claimed to be "occupied territory." 

Sunday's announcement sparked widespread condemnation from Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, the US, and the European Union (EU). 

Meanwhile, several media sources - including the New York Times - labeled the move as 'annexation of occupied land,' or have accused Israel of violating property rights in the deal. 

But according to the Regavim bulletin, the plot of land in question is utterly unoccupied - by Palestinian Arabs or Israelis - despite false reports of it being privately owned by local Arabs. 

Moreover, the land has been Israel's since 1967, it says. 

"In 1967 all public lands including this piece in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria - ed.] came under Israeli control," the rights group stated. "As an extra precaution, to ensure the protection of private property rights, the authorities put in place an additional process to double and triple check that no private land was mistakenly included." 

"This process of investigation and final declaration is what the government announced recently," it added. "The declaration does not change the status of the land."

Like anything else, it says, the issue at hand is a matter of location - and the Gush Etzion region is a prime candidate for Israeli building.  

"The land is situated in the Eztion bloc which is acknowledged and widely accepted to be included on the Israeli side of a future land swap in any negotiated peace agreement," Regavim said. "The land straddles the 1949 Armistice lines and is in Area C under full Israeli administration and security control based on 1993 Oslo Accords."

As for the dedication of the land for Jewish communities, Regavim noted that the appropriation is fitting given the surrounding communities. 

"Despite being in the general vicinity of Bethlehem, the land is closest to a number of Jewish communities such as Beitar Illit, Alon Shvut and Kibbutz Kfar Etzion and does not infringe on any Palestinian communities or towns in the area."

Even before the establishment of the state of Israel, Jews lived in the land, the NGO added: "Pre-1948 there were Jewish communities in the Etzion bloc that were destroyed by the Jordanian Arab Legion and Egyptian Army in Israel’s Independence War."

Public vs. private property rights

The statement also noted that criticism over the land, whatever its legal status, is unprecedented - as is all criticism over land in Judea and Samaria on which Jews live. 

"As a general rule, in Western countries there is either public land or private land," it said. "Thus the concept of ownerless land is not familiar."

"As a rule, a sovereign power owns all land that is not privately owned," it continued. "This is based on Ottoman land law and British land law and is also enshrined in Israeli land law." 

Regavim's premise regarding 'ownerless land' still takes into account the issue of private property, however.

"The process of final declaration as proscribed by the authorities is in place as an extra protection of private property rights," it said. "As such, in the case where the sovereign power wants to advance building plans in an area where the land registry record is not complete it has to do an in-depth survey of the land by law, to ensure 1000% that the land is not privately owned."

"After decades of due process the land was surveyed and considered wasteland/ownerless (see above more info on issue of ownerless), yet even so a 45 day window of appeal is available by law," it continued, noting than an additional 175,000 acres across Judea and Samaria are still waiting to undergo the surveying process. 

Regavim concluded that, by all means, the appropriation is fully legal - and there is ample evidence of this in Israel's own documentation.

"The Israeli Supreme Court ruling of Alon Moreh 1979, makes illegal the expropriation of private land for the establishment of civilian communities," it declared. "However Israeli law is very clear about the rights of Israel to appropriate/register surveyed wasteland to be used for civilian use."

Missing Libyan Jetliners Raise Fears of Suicide Airliner Attacks on 9/11
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsProphecy New Watch
Categories: Today's Headlines;Commentary

Islamist militias in Libya took control of nearly a dozen commercial jetliners last month, and western intelligence agencies recently issued a warning that the jets could be used in terrorist attacks across North Africa.

Intelligence reports of the stolen jetliners were distributed within the U.S. government over the past two weeks and included a warning that one or more of the aircraft could be used in an attack later this month on the date marking the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against New York and Washington, said U.S. officials familiar with the reports.

“There are a number of commercial airliners in Libya that are missing,” said one official. “We found out on September 11 what can happen with hijacked planes.”

The official said the aircraft are a serious counterterrorism concern because reports of terrorist control over the Libyan airliners come three weeks before the 13th anniversary of 9/11 attacks and the second anniversary of the Libyan terrorist attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi.

Four Americans, including Ambassador Christopher Stevens, were killed in the Benghazi attack, which the Obama administration initially said was the result of a spontaneous demonstration against an anti-Muslim video.

A senior State Department counterterrorism official declined to comment on reports of the stolen jetliners.

A second State department official sought to downplay the reports. “We can’t confirm that,” he said.

Meanwhile, officials said Egyptian military forces appear to be preparing to intervene in Libya to prevent the country from becoming a failed state run by terrorists, many with ties to al Qaeda.

Libya remains an oil-rich state and if the country is taken over completely by Islamist extremists, U.S. counterterrorism officials believe it will become another terrorist safe haven in the region.

The officials said U.S. intelligence agencies have not confirmed the aircraft theft following the takeover of Tripoli International Airport in late August, and are attempting to locate all aircraft owned by two Libyan state-owned airline companies, as security in the country continued to deteriorate amid fighting between Islamists and anti-Islamist militias.

Video surfaced on Sunday showing armed fighters from the Islamist militia group Libyan Dawn partying inside a captured U.S. diplomatic compound in Tripoli. The footage showed one fighter diving into a pool from a second-story balcony at the facility.

Tripoli airport and at least seven aircraft were reported damaged during fighting that began in July. Photos of the airport in the aftermath showed a number of damaged aircraft. The airport has been closed since mid-July.

The state-owned Libyan Airlines fleet until this summer included 14 passenger and cargo jetliners, including seven Airbus 320s, one Airbus 330, two French ATR-42 turboprop aircraft, and four Bombardier CJR-900s. Libyan state-owned Afriqiyah Airways fleet is made up of 13 aircraft, including three Airbus 319s, seven Airbus 320s, two Airbus 330s, and one Airbus 340.

The aircraft were reportedly taken in late August following the takeover of Tripoli International Airport, located about 20 miles south of the capital, by Libyan Dawn.

Al Jazeera television reported in late August that western intelligence reports had warned of terror threats to the region from 11 stolen commercial jets.

In response, Tunisia stopped flights from other Libyan airports at Tripoli, Sirte, and Misrata over concerns that jets from those airports could be on suicide missions.

Egypt’s government also halted flights to and from Libya.

Military forces in North Africa, including those from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Egypt have been placed on heightened alert as a result of intelligence warning of the stolen aircraft.

Egyptian military jets reportedly have conducted strikes inside Libya against Libyan Dawn positions recently, and U.S. officials said there are signs a larger Egyptian military incursion is being planned.

Egyptian President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi was quoted as denying Egyptian air strikes into Libya have taken place but suggested that military action is being considered.

Secretary of State John Kerry last week told his Egyptian counterpart that the United States would speed up the delivery of Apache attack helicopters, although it is not clear the Apaches would be used in any Libyan operations.

Egypt’s military-backed government appears to be seeking a more significant role in regional security after the Obama administration helped engineer the ouster of Libyan strongman Moammar Qaddafi in 2011. Since then, the Obama administration, through its announced policy of “leading from behind,” has stood by while Libya gradually has spiraled into chaos.

The Libyan government announced Sunday that it no longer controlled the capital of Tripoli.

“We announce that the majority of the ministries, institutions, and associations in the capital Tripoli are no longer under its control,” a government statement said.

Libya’s parliament in August declared both Ansar al Sharia and Libyan Dawn as terrorist organizations working to overthrow the government.

Ansar al Sharia, which is based in Benghazi, recently publicized on social media that it has obtained large numbers of more sophisticated weapons, including SA-6 surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft guns, rocket-propelled grenades, shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles, assault rifles, and armored vehicles. The group is closely aligned with al Qaeda-linked rebels in Syria.

Abderrahmane Mekkaoui, a Moroccan military expert, told Al Jazeera television, which first reported the airline theft Aug. 21, the alert regarding the stolen jetliners was preventive and covers the region from Cairo to Lagos Nigeria.

Mekkaoui said the jets are being held by the Libyan group called Masked Men Brigade, which was designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the State Department in December.

The Masked Men Brigade is linked to al Qaeda and Ansar al Sharia—the group behind the Benghazi terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2012.

Until the Libya Dawn takeover of the airport, announced Aug. 24, two other militia groups, known as Al Qaqa and Al Sawa controlled the airport and all aircraft belonging to Libyan Airlines and Afriqiyah Airways.

Mekkaoui said “credible intelligence” reports given to states in the region indicated the Masked Men Brigade “is plotting to use the planes in attacks on a Maghreb state” on the 9/11 anniversary.

Counterterrorism expert Sebastian Gorka said that if the theft is confirmed, the stolen aircraft could be used in at least two ways.

“The first would be how commercial airliners were used on Sept. 11, 2001, literally turning an innocent mode of mass transit into a super-high precision guided missile of immense potency,” said Gorka, who holds the Maj. Gen. Charles Horner chair at Marine Corps University in Quantico, Va.

“The second tactic could be to use the airframe with its civilian markings as a tool of deception to insert a full payload of armed terrorists into a locale that otherwise is always open to commercial carriers,” he said.

Michael Rubin, a counterterrorism specialist with the American Enterprise Institute, said commercial jetliners in the hands of terrorists could be formidable weapons.

“Who needs ballistic missiles when you have passenger planes? Even empty, but loaded up with fuel they can be as devastating,” Rubin said.

“Each plane could, if deployed by terrorists to maximum devastating effect, represent 1,000 civilian casualties.”

Among the potential targets are urban areas and economic targets, like Saudi Arabia’s oil fields.

“Anyone who has ever flown over Saudi Arabia at night can see refineries like Yanbu lit up like Christmas trees against the blackness of the desert,” Rubin said. “One Saudi security officer once told me that they would only have about 90 seconds to shoot down a hijacked plane from the time it left international airspace to impact in one of the region’s most important refineries.”

Rubin said in 2003 a Boeing 727 went missing in Africa fueling concerns about a terror attack on the U.S. consulate in Karachi.

“What is striking is that more than a decade later, the United States hasn’t taken the need to safeguard what are effectively giant guided missiles seriously,” he said.

A former Libyan general, Khalifa Haftar, has been leading anti-Islamist forces. His group has access to Libyan air force MiG jets that have conducted strikes on Libyan Dawn positions in recent days. Haftar also has conducted military raids in Benghazi.

The United Nations Security Council on Aug. 27 announced plans for new sanctions on Libyan militias and terrorists. In a resolution the U.N. warned of the “growing presence of al Qaeda-linked terrorist groups and individuals operating in Libya.”

Let the Headlines Speak
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsFrom the internet
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Gallup poll shows support for right-to-work laws — even from Democrats
When asked if they would vote for right-to-work laws, 71 percent of Americans in the national survey said they would. That number included 65 percent of Democrats. What’s more, the national figure is 9 percent higher than in 1957, when the U.S. economy was riding a post-war wave that saw union participation at record numbers:

Draghi Says ECB To Purchase Asset-Backed Securities
European Central Bank president Mario Draghi is holding a press conference latest monetary policy decision from the ECB saw the bank unexpectedly cut interest rates. Draghi just announced that the ECB will begin a quantitative easing program in October, comprised of asset-backed securities and Euro-denominated covered bonds.  

Atheist Group Gets All Religious Expression Banned From HS Football Games
Starting this season, team chaplains, fan signs with Bible verses and praying before games will all be banned from Orange County public schools in Florida, thanks to an atheist activist group who sent a threatening letter to the district’s superintendent.  

The Only Answer to the Evil of ISIS: Eliminate it By Force
the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria which, like the evil leaders of Nazi Germany, will not respond to reason, diplomacy or logic, and they are accompanied by a large swath of fundamentalist Islamists who support and sympathize with this group. Despite the denial of the Left that there is evil and that radical Islam is evil, the evidence speaks for itself.  

2.9 earthquake hits Ladera
A magnitude 2.9 earthquake hit Ladera along the San Andreas Fault Wednesday evening around 8:24 p.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey.  

Al-Qaeda chief Zawahiri launches al-Qaeda in South Asia
Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri has announced in a video message the creation of an Indian branch of his militant group to "raise the flag of jihad" across South Asia. In the 55-minute video posted online, Zawahiri pledged renewed loyalty to Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar. Correspondents say his stated allegiance is an apparent snub to Islamic State (IS) militants.  

Islamic State action 'not ruled out' by David Cameron
David Cameron has said he will not rule anything out in relation to military action against Islamic State, which is holding a Briton hostage. But speaking ahead of a Nato summit in Wales, the prime minister told the BBC any action, including air strikes, must not be "Western intervention over the heads of neighbouring states". He and Barack Obama warned against an "isolationist approach" in the Times.  

Municipality approves massive expansion for Palestinians in east Jerusalem
The Jerusalem Municipality’s Local Planning and Construction Committee on Wednesday approved a large development for the Jebl Mukaber neighborhood. The plan will feature 2,200 housing units and 130 hectares for the development of infrastructure, including parks, roads, schools, cultural institutions and businesses.  

Erekat pushes Palestinian statehood case with Kerry
Chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat met with US Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday and presented the top American diplomat with a plan for establishing an independent Palestinian state within a specific timeline. The initiative delivered by Erekat...reiterated the Palestinian call to to "end the Israeli occupation" and establish a state based on the pre-1967 lines with a capital in east Jerusalem...  

Venezuelan Socialist Party swaps God for Chavez in new prayer
A member of Venezuela's Socialist Party has rolled out a variation of the classic Christian "Lord's Prayer" to implore beloved late leader Hugo Chavez for protection from the evils of capitalism.  

Rogue ‘Cell Towers’ Can Intercept Your Data; At Least One Found In Chicago
So-called rogue cell phone towers, the type that can intercept your mobile calls and data, are cropping up all over the United States, including here in Chicago, according to a company that specializes in developing highly secure mobile phones.  

Saudi court sentences an American and 23 others to prison on terrorism charges
A court in Saudi Arabia has sentenced an American and 23 other people to prison on charges they created a terrorist cell and planned attacks on foreigners and oil pipelines. The official Saudi Press Agency says their sentences range from two to 27 years in prison. The state report on Wednesday said the U.S. national was sentenced to 17 years prison, six of those years for cyber-crimes. He was ordered deported after completing his sentencing.  

UN says $600 million needed to tackle Ebola as deaths top 1,900
The United Nations said $600 million in supplies would be needed to fight West Africa's Ebola outbreak, as the death toll from the worst ever epidemic of the virus topped 1,900 and Guinea warned it had penetrated a new part of the country.  

Beheaded journalist Sotloff had kept his Jewish roots hidden
As long as there was a chance Steven Sotloff was alive, there was fear that exposure of his Jewish roots and Israeli past could put him in further danger.  

Justice Department to investigate Ferguson police
Attorney General Eric Holder this week will launch a broad civil rights investigation of the police department in Ferguson, Mo., according to two federal law enforcement officials. The investigation, which could be announced as early as Thursday afternoon, will be conducted by the Justice Department’s civil rights division. It will follow a process similar to that used to investigate complaints of profiling and the use of excessive force in other police departments across the country, the officials said.  

Nato faces up to crises on its borders
Nato leaders meet for their summit in Wales amidst the most serious security crisis in Europe since the end of the Cold War. Russia is back at the top of Nato's agenda. And this summit must seek to respond to the long-term challenge from Moscow while managing the evolving drama on the alliance's borders.  

Britain will not be ‘cowed’ by terrorist threats as IS threaten to kill British hostage
British Prime Minister David Cameron has reiterated his determination not to bow to terrorist threats. Islamic State militants, responsible for the beheading of two US journalists, say a British hostage will be the next to die.  

Jordanian MPs Demand: Let's Stay Out of Fight With IS
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

A group of Jordanian deputies demanded on Wednesday that the kingdom stay out of any war against Islamic State jihadists who have captured swathes of territory in neighboring Iraq and Syria, AFP reports.

21 MPs, who represent various factions in the 150-seat parliament, sent a memorandum to speaker Atef al-Tarawneh demanding "the government not involve Jordan (in the fight) against the Islamic State", the report said.

"This war is not our war. Accordingly, we reject categorically any Jordanian contribution in a battle that is not ours," they said in the document seen by AFP.

"We do not want to be dragged into an international coalition," said Khalil Attia, one of the deputies who signed the memorandum.

Jordan's King Abdullah is to attend a NATO summit on Thursday of Western leaders including U.S. President Barack Obama, according to the report.

The summit in Newport, Wales is expected to focus on the threat of the Islamic State, as well as the conflict in Ukraine.

Ahead of the gathering, Obama called for an international front against the jihadists after they beheaded a second American journalist, with Britain and France weighing military action.

In June, former National Security Council director Yaakov Amidror warned against the Islamic State moving in on Jordan and posing a threat to Israel, adding that if Jordan requested Israeli assistance in preventing its border with Iraq from being overrun by the group, Israel would have little choice but to help.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu later asked the international community to support Jordan in the fight against Islamic extremism and to back the independence of Iraq's Kurds.

Japan Develops Robot Wheelchairs to Read Minds
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsThe Sydney Morning Herald
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Israel Outlaws Islamic State of Iraq and Levant
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsDebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon Wednesday signed a formal decree outlawing the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant aka as ISIS, ISIL or IS. Association with the group is illegal and its meetings banned anywhere in Israel. Activists, associates and fundraisers for IS will be subject to criminal prosecution under the decree.

It was signed the day after Islamist terrorists in Iraq beheaded a Jewish-American Journalist, Steven Sotloff, who also held Israeli citizenship. On the recommendation of the Shin Bet, Ya’alon also signed a decree banning the Abdullah al-Azzam Brigades, a Sunni jihadist group linked to al-Qaeda which is based in Lebanon and has been responsible for launching rockets into Israel.
DEBKAfile: The defense minister took this step after a rash of black al Qaeda flags began appearing over Israeli-Arab buildings in different parts of the country.

Islamic State Says Vladimir Putin's Throne is 'Under Threat and will Fall When We Come to You'
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsThe Age
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Can air strikes break IS?

India Uneasy Over New Al Qaeda Branch in South Asia
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsDebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

IAEA to Report 'Little Progress' in Iran Investigation
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

The United Nations nuclear watchdog is expected to issue a report this week showing little progress is being made in its long-running investigation into suspected atomic bomb research by Iran, diplomats told the Reuters news agency on Wednesday.

The unnamed diplomats said the quarterly International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report on Iran was likely to confirm that Tehran failed to meet a late August deadline for answering questions about its atomic activities.

Western officials may see the lack of movement as a setback for broader efforts to end a decade-old dispute over a nuclear program which Iran says is peaceful but which they fear may be aimed at developing a nuclear weapons capability.

The IAEA is expected to issue its confidential report to member states on Thursday or Friday, ahead of a September 15-19 meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors.

There was no comment from the Vienna-based UN agency to the diplomats’ remarks.

Iran has promised to cooperate with the IAEA since Hassan Rouhani was elected president in 2013.

It agreed in May to carry out five specific steps by Aug. 25 to help allay international concerns, noted Reuters.

Iran promised to provide information on two issues that are part of the IAEA's inquiry into the possible military dimensions of the country's nuclear program: alleged experiments on explosives that could be used for an atomic device, and studies related to calculating nuclear explosive yields.

The diplomats said, however, that while Iran and the IAEA may have started discussing the two issues, there was as yet no sign that Tehran had provided the requested information.

The comments come hours after Israel’s Minister of Intelligence, Yuval Steinitz, warned that Iran “is closer than ever to nuclear capabilities”.

"What we see today is a very troubling picture. While Iran has agreed to several small concession, on all the issues touching the heart of the (nuclear) program, like uranium enrichment in the centrifuges, Iran hasn't agreed to budge even a millimeter," said Steinitz, who will head an Israeli delegation to Washington DC next week to petition U.S. officials to take stronger stance in renewed talks between major world powers and Iran.

"We oppose not only the possibility that Iran will be a nuclear-armed military state, but also to the very possibility that Iran will be a nuclear-threshold state," continued Steinitz.

The US and other world powers reached a controversial interim deal with Iran over its nuclear program last November, leading to the current negotiations over a comprehensive agreement. During the talks Iran agreed to limit some of its nuclear activities in order to receive sanctions relief.

However, Iran has been taking an increasingly aggressive line in demanding its "right" to enrich uranium, with Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently saying Iran "needs" 19 times more nuclear centrifuges than the amount being offered by world powers.

Negotiations have been leading to a July 20 target date, but they were recently extended until November 24, giving Iran more time to slowly advance its nuclear program. Talks are to open in New York ahead of the UN General Assembly opening on September 16.

Have Plans for the Antichrist Confederacy Just Been Announced in Turkey?
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsProphecy New Watch
Categories: Today's Headlines;Commentary

In an amazing announcement that just came out today and was published throughout the Muslim world, including even CNN Arabic Version, The Chairman of the International Union for Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi whose union represents the largest body of Muslim scholars worldwide and on their behalf just announced in Turkey that: 

“The Caliphate in today’s age must be established through a number of several states that are governed by Shariah and supported by both, the rulers and the people in the form of a federation or confederation and not as it was in the past.”

By this, the Muslim union of scholars lead by Qaradawi is setting up the theological precedence by announcing that a future confederacy of Muslim nations must and will be established and centered in the land of the Muslim Caliphate in Turkey.

What Qaradawi is speaking of should be seriously noted since the interpretation of the prophecy of a future confederacy of ten-nations is found in four major passages of Scripture and is a determinative issue in any system of prophetic interpretation and are the key to the total prophetic outlook regarding this emerging Antichrist confederacy of different states mentioned in at least four major Scripture passages (Dan 2:31-35, 40-45; 7:7-8, 19-24; Rev 13:1-2; 17:3, 7, 12-16).

These passages either directly or by implication prophesy a ten-kingdom confederation, which will be an important aspect of the end-time political situation.

What we see here is the beginning embryo and birth of a grand idea set by between Erdogan and the spiritual head of the Sunni Muslim world in which its declared that such confederacy for the Caliphate will be established in Istanbul, Turkey as the center for all these different states.

Qaradawi is pointing to the problem that since Muslims are scattered in so many different states, that it would be impossible to include the coming Caliphate as one state as in the times of old.

 He gave an example:

“There are big countries such as China, which has a population of about 1.5 billion, according to the statistics, in a time when the number of Muslims in the world about 1.7 billion, and thus could meet in the form of the Union.”

During the interview with the Turkish media agency “Anatolia” in Istanbul, Qaradawi believed that the “militant groups like ISIS that appear among the Muslims is the result of the corruption by secular rulers in which caused Muslim youth to follow some militants, believing that they are simply fighting for the sake of God and disbelieve, yet such movements still represent is a major problem which the new Caliphate from Turkey will resolve” adding that: “the succession announced by the organization of Islamic state (ISIS) in both Iraq and Syria have no meaning and do not meet the required conditions to be a Caliphate”.

As Shoebat.com noted last week, Qaradawi is speaking of a sign of the end of the world when he declared that the “angelic host will soon descend on earth” after this establishment of the coming Caliphate in Turkey since from a Christian perspective this is the casting of the fallen angels which Daniel the prophet spoke about the minions of the Luminous One, Lucifer are finally cast out. This is also declared as a holy event in the Qur’ân’s Night of Vision (Muhammad’s visitation):

“The angelic hosts descend [to earth] in it with the spirit by command of the their Lord. Peace shall it be until the rising of the Dawn (Morning star).” (Q 97)

Who is this ‘spirit’ and how is Allah the lord of angels and spirits? According to Muslims this ‘spirit’ or ‘the holy spirit’ is an Arch Angel. In the ends of days, angels will also descend on earth.

We have written of this decades ago, when I was a Muslim this is a holy moment much hoped for and is prophetically proclaimed from the inception of the Quran, but when I became Christian, this Islamic prophecy confirmed to me what the Bible prophesied about God casting the devil out unto earth:

“And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down.” (Revelation 12:17)

At this heavenly incident, when the fallen angles (demons) are finally cast out, that Lucifer will possess the Antichrist and the fallen angels will possess the minions of Antichrist (see Isaiah 14, Ezekiel 28) in which his confederacy of nations that are all specifically mentioned by name (read Ezekiel 28-31) are finally thrown into the pit. These are Sudan (Cush) and North African states(Phut) Lydia (Turkey) and all Arabia and Egypt (see Ezekiel 30:5). They also include Asshur (Iraq – Syria), (see Ezekiel 32:22-23) and Elam (Iran) (see Ezekiel 32:24-25) and Meshech & Tubal (Asia minor which includes the Southern Russian Muslim states) (see Ezekiel 32:26) and the harlot (Arabia) (see Ezekiel 32:29, also see Ezekiel 25).

Qaradawi is currently paving the way for Turkey to ultimately invade Egypt:

“He will extend his power over many countries; Egypt will not escape. He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Cushitese in submission.” (Daniel 11:42)

As we stated decades ago in our book Why I Left Jihad and after that in God’s War on Terror that the new emerging Mediterranean confederacy will be the “bruised head,” the arising “sick man of Europe,” the “wounded beast” that is coming back to life under the Turkish Neo-Ottoman revival. It constitutes the Revival of the Roman Empire as well as the Grecian, Babylonian, Medo-Persian and Egyptian, altogether.

Let us be all be wrong and Christ alone be right when He said that Pergamum (Turkey) and not Rome, by this Christ was telling Turkey: “thou art the seat of Satan (Antichrist)”:

“To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword. I know where you live—where Satan has his throne.(Revelation 2:12-13)”

Hamas: We'll Demilitarize If Israel Does
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Hamas is not willing to discuss the possibility of demilitarizing weapons from its "military wing," the Al-Qassam Brigades, or other Palestinian terrorist organizations operating in the Gaza, one of its leaders announced Friday. 

In his first Friday sermon after the war, Ismail Haniyeh, the deputy head of Hamas's political bureau, said that Hamas does not intend to cooperate with any regional or international decision which would see its arsenal 'against the resistance' harmed. 

"Weapons are the holy light of the sanctity of the struggle and the land issue, and if they want to demilitarize its weapons, we will only agree if the occupier is also demilitarized and its leaves our land," Haniyeh said, likely referring to the entire state of Israel. 

"As long as there is an occupation, there will be a struggle," he added. 

Haniyeh also vehemently denied claims that one condition of Israel's ceasefire with Gaza forged last month was demilitarization, saying that the Al-Qassam Brigades' "military victory" will be "taught in military academies." Just last week, Haniyeh, similarly, made the "victory" sign in highly publicized photos while standing on his ruined home in Gaza. 

Commenting on his proposed agenda at this stage, Haniyeh said that the focus will be on assisting the Palestinian people, rehabilitation, lifting blockades once and for all, and strengthening Palestinian unity. 

He called on the Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman, Mahmoud Abbas to join the Rome agreement to enable the Palestinian people to prosecute the "leaders of the occupation" for war crimes, mentioning that the Palestinian organizations signed a document that supports it.

The call surfaces less than one day after rights group Shurat HaDin announced that it had filed its own indictment for war crimes against Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in the International Criminal Court (ICC), in response to the summary execution of 38 Palestinians in Gaza during the final days of Operation Protective Edge. 

Legal experts have noted that an indictment is likely to be filed against Hamas's leaders-in-exile over their conduct during the war as well, as they have facilitated, over and over again, the use of Gaza's civilians as human shields during the fifty-day long conflict, and then padded the "civilian" death count to include known terrorists killed in targeted airstrikes.

Former Head of IDF Intel: Israel Doesn't Need to Fear ISIS
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Former head of IDF Intelligence Amos Yadlin on Wednesday expressed a contrarian opinion on the dangers of the terrorist group ISIS, responsible for the beheadings of two journalists, as well as thousands of “infidels” in Iraq and Syria who do not subscribe to their particular brand of Islam. According to Yadlin, there's nothing to fear from ISIS.

Speaking at an Ashkelon college Wednesday, Yadlin said that despite the shocking videos the group released showing the beheadings of journalists Steve Sotloff and James Foley, “there is no real reason to fear. ISIS is very good at media relations, and using the media to frighten people. They murder their captives in a shocking manner in order to get media attention.”

With that, Yadlin said, “their only successes have been in areas that no one else is interested in, and hence where no one will fight them. These include the Sunni areas of northeast Syria and the less developed areas of Iraq. They cannot fight forces in large Shi'ite cities.” The residents and armies in places like Karbala and Baghdad are far more motivated to oppose ISIS than in a place like Tikrit, which ISIS does occupy, Yadlin said.

The IDF would have no problem taking on ISIS, Yadlin said. “Israel Air Force fighters would have an easy time targeting the trucks ISIS people are driving around the desert. It would be easy to eliminate them, much easier than it was to deal with Hamas terrorists hiding in Gaza hospitals.

“Until now, ISIS has not really caused anyone important any major damage,” Yadlin added. “The moment they do they will see that they are not undefeatable.”

Danish Mosque Declares Open Support for Islamic State
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

The Grimhøjmoskeen mosque in Aarhus, Denmark, has openly declared support for Islamic State (IS; formerly known as ISIS), claiming a state under Sharia law is a matter of national-religious pride. 

“An Islamic state will always be what Muslims long for, therefore we cannot help but to support the Islamic State. Even if it makes mistakes, we will just have to wait and see,” mosque spokesman Fadi Abdallah told the online news source Den Korte Avis Thursday.

“The conditions aren’t the same down there [in Syria and Iraq, ed.] as they are here. I can fully understand why people are getting killed,” he continued. 

Abdallah later defended his remarks further, in a TV interview with TV2 Østjylland. 

"Muslims should have their own state and we support that. Muslims should be able to govern their own state and judge other Muslims without influence from the West," he said. 

He insisted that he condemns IS's violence, however.

"It is of course deplorable, and we are sorry that it has come to this," he said. 

The Grimhøjmoskeen mosque has made headlines before for its extremism, after its imam, Sheikh Abu Bilal Ismail, threatened to "kill the Zionist Jews" days after Operation Protective Edge in Gaza broke out while visiting in Berlin. 

“Gaza is the land of glory, the land of jihad, the land of honor, which is facing the strongest war machine, the Zionist Jews, these criminals, these slayers of prophets,” he said. 

“Oh Allah, destroy the Zionist Jews. They are no challenge for you,” he continued. “Count them and kill them to the very last one. Don’t spare a single one of them. Shake the ground beneath their feet. Make them suffer terribly. Deflect their bullets." 

Abdallah's statements also surface just days after IS in Syria killed Jewish-American journalist and Israeli citizen Steve Sotloff in a brutal decapitation taped for the Western world to see. 

The tape not only vows death on another journalist - British civilian David Haines - but also threatens the US over its action against the terrorists. 

The incident has sparked a worldwide scramble to suppress terrorism in Syria and Iraq, where IS has been taking large swaths of land over the past several months and committing genocide against thousands of ethnic minorities.

Dani Dayan: Building Must be Our Priority
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Former Judea and Samaria Council head Dani Dayan warned that those who opposed the designation of 4,000 dunams (988 acres) of land in Gush Etzion as state land, along with other plans such as the continued development of Jewish settlement in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria, are seeking to demoralize and eventually destroy the entire settlement movement.

Speaking to Arutz Sheva, Dayan said that the bureaucratic snafu that was holding up development of plans in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria was choking off the life-force of these communities. “For months the government committees and the Housing Ministry have not issued any tenders for construction. It's true that development plans made in the past are now bearing fruit, but without new tenders construction will soon dry up,” he said.

In the past, governments responded to world political pressure against construction in “a more courageous manner. We were told that building would not be allowed publicly, but behind the scenes they would tell us to build outposts, which would later be legalized. Today the government doesn't have the courage to do this.”

Dayan worries that a crisis is developing in the settlement movement. “We cannot be satisfied with what we have accomplished. Any area that is not growing will eventually be lost. Building and growing must be a priority, even if there are pressures. We must bring the settlement issue back into the center of priorities, even if it has to be done politically. If we can't accomplish this now, we are setting a precedent for the future as well.”

Barack Obama Talks Tough on Russian Aggression, Vows to Protect NATO Allies
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsPNT
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

TALLINN, Estonia — Lashing out аt Russia, U.S. President Barack Obama οn Wednesday cast Moscow’s aggression іn Ukraine аѕ a threat tο peace іn Europe. Hе vigorously vowed tο come tο thе defence οf NATO allies thаt drеаd thеу mау possibly bе Vladimir Putin’s next target.

“Yου lost уουr independence once before,” Mr. Obama ѕаіd following meetings wіth Baltic leaders іn thе Estonian capital οf Tallinn. “Wіth NATO, уου’ll never lose іt again.”

Mr. Obama, whο faces criticism іn thе U.S. fοr being tοο cautious іn confronting Russian President Putin, sharply condemned Moscow’s provocations. Hе declared іn blunt terms thаt Russian forces thаt hаνе stirred іntο Ukraine іn recent weeks аrе nοt οn a humanitarian οr international relations mission, аѕ thе Kremlin hаѕ insisted.

“Thеу аrе Russian combat forces wіth Russian weapons іn Russian tanks,” hе ѕаіd.

Mr. Obama аlѕο took aim аt one οf Russia’s main rationales fοr іtѕ provocations іn Ukraine: thе protection οf Russian speakers living outside іtѕ borders. Lіkе Ukraine, Estonia аnd οthеr Baltic nations hаνе sizeable Russian-speaking populations, compounding thеіr fears thаt Moscow mау possibly seek tο intervene inside thеіr borders.

“Wе reject thе lie thаt people саnnοt live аnd thrive together јυѕt bесаυѕе thеу hаνе different backgrounds οr speak a different language,” hе ѕаіd.

Despite thе president’s tough talk, thе U.S. аnd Europe hаνе bееn unable tο shift Mr. Putin’s calculus іn thе months-long crisis іn eastern Ukraine. Whіlе multiple rounds οf Western sanctions hаνе hυrt Russia’s economy, thе penalties hаνе nοt pushed Mr. Putin tο еnd whаt thе White House ѕауѕ іѕ unfettered support fοr pro-Moscow separatists whο hаνе stirred upheaval іn key cities.

On Wednesday, thеrе wаѕ a brief flicker οf hope fοr a resolution tο thе conflict whеn thе Ukrainian president’s office announced thаt іt hаd reached a ceasefire agreement wіth Mr. Putin. Bυt thе statement wаѕ ambiguous, аnd a top rebel map quickly ѕаіd nο ceasefire wаѕ possible without Ukraine withdrawing іtѕ forces.

Mr. Putin issued hіѕ οwn peace рlοt fοr eastern Ukraine, calling οn thе Russian-backed insurgents thеrе tο “ѕtοр advancing” аnd urging Ukraine tο withdraw іtѕ troops frοm thе region.

“Thе warring parties ѕhουld immediately co-ordinate аnd dο thе following things together,” Mr. Putin ѕаіd іn televised comments. “Thе first business іѕ fοr thе armed forces аnd insurgents οf thе south-east οf Ukraine tο ѕtοр active advancing іn thе Donetsk аnd Luhansk regions.

“Second іѕ fοr thе Ukrainian military tο withdraw thеіr troops аt a safe distance thаt wіll mаkе artillery аnd οthеr strikes οn populated areas impossible,” hе added.

Mr. Putin аlѕο urged аn unconditional exchange οf prisoners аnd ѕаіd hе expected a final agreement between Kyiv аnd thе rebels tο bе reached Friday аt peace talks іn Minsk, Belarus.

Al - Qaeda Declares New Branch in India
Sep 4th, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri on Wednesday announced the formation of an Indian branch of his terrorist group, Reuters reported.

The Al-Qaeda leader declared the new branch would spread Islamic rule and "raise the flag of jihad" across the subcontinent.

In a 55-minute video posted online, Zawahiri also renewed a longstanding vow of loyalty to Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, in an apparent snub to the Islamic State group.

Zawahiri described the formation of "Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent" as a glad tidings for Muslims "in Burma, Bangladesh, Assam, Gujurat, Ahmedabad, and Kashmir" and said the new wing would rescue Muslims there from injustice and oppression.

Counter-terrorism experts say Al-Qaeda's aging leaders are struggling to compete for recruits with Islamic State, which has galvanized young followers around the world by carving out tracts of territory across the Iraq-Syria border.

Islamic State leader Abu Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi calls himself a "caliph" or head of state and has demanded the loyalty of all Muslims.

The group fell out with Zawahiri in 2013 over its expansion into Syria, where Baghdadi's followers have carried out beheadings, crucifixions, and mass executions.

According to Reuters, Zawahiri’s statement on Wednesday warned Al-Qaeda's new wing against oppressing local populations - another complaint leveled against Islamic State by critics in Iraq and Syria.

"If you said that you are doing jihad to defend the sanctities of the Muslims, then you must not transgress against them or their money or honor, and not even transgress your mujahideen brothers by word and action," he said.

"Discord is a curse and torment, and disgrace for the believers and glory for the disbelievers," Zawahiri said. "If you say that by your jihad you do not want but the pleasure of Allah, then you must not race for governance and leadership at the first opportunity."