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Yemeni PM Quits, Houthi Rebels Advance in Sanaa Despite Accord
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

SANAA (Reuters) - Yemen's prime minister submitted his resignation to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Sunday amid chaos over reported advances by Shi'ite Muslim Houthi rebels on some military buildings and government offices in the capital.

The move by Mohammed Salem Basindwa added to the confusion in Sanaa, where Houthi rebels were due to sign a deal, brokered by U.N. special envoy Jamal Benomar, intended to end the fighting and pave the way for a new government within two weeks.

Sanaa residents said the Houthis had taken over several government sites including the prime minister's buildings, an army command center and the state television compound after security forces withdrew - although TV broadcasts continued.

The fighting in Sanaa threatens a U.N.-backed transition to democracy that began after veteran President Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced to step down in 2012 after months of protests against his 30 years in office.

"I have decided to tender my resignation from the government (of national reconciliation) out of my concern to pave the way for any agreement reached between the brother leaders of Ansarullah (the Houthis) and brother Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the president of the republic," Basindwa wrote in the letter, a copy of which was seen by Reuters.

There was no immediate word from Hadi's office about the resignation. Basindwa took office as head of a national unity government in 2011 under a Gulf-brokered power transfer deal that saw Saleh agree to step down.

The Houthis, who stayed out of Basindwa's government, have pressed for a new administration. Last month, they began a wave of demonstrations in Sanaa to protest against a raise in fuel prices, a move that had been taken to curb the rising budget deficit. The protests later escalated into armed clashes.

Yemeni Parties and Houthi Rebels Sign Deal to End Fighting, Form New Government
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

SANAA (Reuters) - Yemen's Shi'ite Muslim rebels on Sunday signed an agreement with other political parties to form a more inclusive government and end days of fighting on the streets of the capital.

Prime Minister Mohammed Basindwa had earlier submitted his resignation to President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to pave the way for the deal, as rebel Houthi forces advanced on government buildings in the capital Sanaa to little resistance from the troops and security forces guarding them.

Sanaa residents said the Houthis had taken over several government sites including the prime minister's complex, an army command center and the state television compound after security forces withdrew - although TV broadcasts continued.

More than 100 people have been killed in four days of clashes between the northern Houthis, who have been fighting the Sanaa government on and off for a decade, and troops loyal to an army general whom they have long accused of following a militant Islamist school of thought that brands Shi'ites as heretics.

Hadi presided over the signing ceremony at the presidential palace in which representatives of the main political parties, including a wing of the southern separatist Herak group, the Houthis and the Islamist Islah party signed the accord.

U.N. special envoy Jamal Benomar, who held talks with Houthi leader Abdulmalek al-Houthi in his home province of Saada on Wednesday and Thursday, announced late on Saturday that an agreement had been reached.

The Yemeni government press office said the agreement called for an immediate ceasefire and an end to all violence.

"It also calls for the formation of a technocrat national government that will work to enhance government transparency and implement economic reforms, in addition to continuing military and security reforms," its statement added.The fighting in Sanaa has threatened a U.N.-backed transition to democracy that began when protests broke out in 2011 against veteran president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was forced to step down after 30 years in power.

The cross you bear is yours ----not Christ's
Sep 21st, 2014
Thought For The WeekA.W. Tozer
Categories: Commentary;Exhortation

To go along with Christ step by step and point by point in identical suffering of Roman crucifixion is not possible for any of us, and certainly is not intended by our Lord.

An earnest Christian woman long ago sought help from Henry Suso concerning her spiritual life. She had been imposing austerities upon herself in an effort to feel the sufferings that Christ had felt on the cross. Things were not going so well with her and Suso knew why.

The old saint wrote his spiritual daughter and reminded her that our Lord had not said, "If any man will come after me let him deny himself, and take up MY cross." He had said, "let him take up his cross...." There is a difference of only one small pronoun; but that difference is vast and important.

Crosses are all alike, but no two are identical. Never before nor since has there been a cross experience just like that endured by the Saviour. The whole dreadful work of dying which Christ suffered was something unique in the experience of mankind. It has to be so if the cross was to mean life for the world. The sin-bearing, the darkness, the rejection by the Father were agonies peculiar to the Person of the holy sacrifice. For anyone to claim that experience of Christ would be sacrilege.

Every cross was and is an instrument of death, but no man could die on the cross of another; hence Jesus said, "Let him....take up his cross, and follow me!"

And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Galations 5:24.

Report: Refugees Flood Turkey As ISIS Increases Stranglehold on Syrian Town
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

As the “Islamic State” (ISIS) closed in on a northern Syrian border town of Ein al-Arab today (Sunday), the UN said that more than 100,000 refugees had already fled into Turkey,the numbers were expected to rise much higher.

The Kurds have appealed to to the young to help their ethnic brothers to help push back the ISIS, which has seized huge sections of Iraq and Syria in the past months and have proclaimed a caliphate in this heart of the Middle East.

“The ‘Islamic State’ is continuing its advance, and everywhere they pass through they leave dead, wounded. There are many who are simply missing that we believe to have been kidnapped,” Dr. Welat Avar told to Reuters via telephone from the town.

Report: Iran Considering New Proposal on Nuclear Program
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Bushehr nuclear reactor
Bushehr nuclear reactor
Reuters

With Iran refusing U.S. demands that it gut its uranium enrichment program, the two sides are now discussing a new proposal that would leave much of Tehran's enriching machines in place but disconnected from feeds of uranium, diplomats told The Associated Press (AP) Saturday.

The talks have been stalled for months over Iran's opposition to sharply reducing the size and output of centrifuges that can enrich uranium to levels needed for reactor fuel or weapons-grade material used in the core of nuclear warheads. Iran says its enrichment program is only for peaceful purposes, but Washington fears it could be used to make a bomb.

Iran and the powers failed to meet a July 20 target date for an agreement and have extended the deadline to November 24.

Ahead of the resumption of talks Friday, the New York Times reported that Washington was considering putting a new plan on the table that would focus on removing piping connecting the centrifuges.

That would allow the U.S. leeway on modifying demands that Iran cut the number of centrifuge machines from 19,000 to no more than 1,500.

Two diplomats told AP that Tehran, which would gain an end to sanctions as part of any deal, was initially non-committal at a bilateral meeting in August. But they say the proposal has now moved to being discussed at the talks Tehran is holding with the U.S. and five other powers, and that the Islamic Republic was listening closely.

Both diplomats demanded anonymity because their information is confidential.

While only a proposal, the plan would allow the Iranians to claim that they did not compromise on vows that they would never emasculate their enrichment capabilities, while keeping intact American demands that the program be downgraded to a point where it could not be quickly turned to making bombs.

Last week, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said his country and world powers remain far apart over Tehran's nuclear program and a "difficult road" lies ahead.

Asked how big the differences were, Araqchi told reporters, "Still big." He added, "We are always optimistic ... but we have a difficult road to go."

These comments appeared to be backed by U.S. negotiator Wendy Sherman, who said this week that Iran cannot convince the world that its current ability to enrich uranium is acceptable.

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.

Netanyahu: Israel not Short of Challenges, But Our Strength is in Our Unity
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsThe Jerusalem Post
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu posed population numbers released Sunday as a triumph over the Holocaust and other tragedies which have befallen the Jewish people.  "I can say that there are more than six million Jews in Israel, in light of the course our people has taken in the last century," he said at the opening of the weekly cabinet meeting.

The prime minister said that Israel "is not short of challenges, but our strength is unifying the nation and repelling our enemies."

Netanyahu wished the nation a happy holiday ahead of Rosh Hashana and wished a speedy recovery to those still suffering from injuries sustained during the recent fighting on the Gaza front.

Let the Headlines Speak
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsFrom the internet
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Dominican Republic Earthquake Today 2014:
USGS indicates to news that a 4.6 magnitude Dominican Republic earthquake today September 21, 2014 began in the morning hours, just after 10:05 am local time. The quake was shallow. It struck only five miles below ground level. As a result the quake could be felt across the region.  

45 liters of live Polio virus released into Belgian rivers
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) in its Communicable disease threats report from September 11, 2014 reported about an accidental release of 45 litres of concentrated live polio virus solution into the environment. On September 2, 2014, following a human error, 45 liters of concentrated live polio virus solution were released into the environment in Rixensart city, Belgium by the pharmaceutical company, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).  

Huge Northern California Wildfire Keeps Growing
The fire some 60 miles east of Sacramento grew to more than 128 square miles Saturday, and gathering thunderstorms could either help or harm the firefight with moisture or wind, authorities said.  

5.3-Magnitude Earthquake Registered in Western Greece
The epicenter of the earthquake was in the region of the town of Nafpaktos and it occurred at a depth of 20 kilometers, according to reports of the Focus news agency. Nafpaktos, which has a population of over 18 000, is situated on a bay on the north coast of the Gulf of Corinth.  

Senior Iranian official: Ready to work with US to fight IS, but wants nuclear flexibility
According to a recent interview, Iran is ready to work with the United States and its allies to stop Islamic State militants, but would like to see more flexibility on Iran's uranium enrichment program, senior Iranian officials told Reuters.  

Israel, Hamas to resume indirect cease-fire talks in Cairo
Israel and Hamas will resume indirect negotiations in Cairo Tuesday discussing a long-term cease-fire following seven weeks of deadly Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, Israeli media reported on Saturday. An Israeli official told the Walla! news website that the Israeli and Palestinian delegations will resume indirect talks through Egyptian mediators, to discuss core topics on the agenda to reach a permanent truce between Israel and the Palestinian militant factions in the Gaza Strip, headed by Hamas.  

Syria crisis: 66,000 flee Islamic State into Turkey
Some 66,000 refugees - mainly Syrian Kurds - have crossed into Turkey in 24 hours, officials say, as Islamic State militants advance in northern Syria. Turkey opened its border on Friday to Syrians fleeing the Kurdish town of Kobane in fear of an IS attack.  

Ukraine conflict: Ceasefire 'in name only' - Nato
A ceasefire in eastern Ukraine between government forces and pro-Russian rebels exists "in name only", Nato's most senior military commander has warned. General Philip Breedlove, the organisation's supreme allied commander in Europe, was speaking after a meeting of Nato military chiefs in Vilnius, Lithuania.  

Boko Haram 'kill several' as they loot Nigeria market
Boko Haram gunmen stormed a crowded market in Nigeria's restive northeastern state of Borno, killing several people and carting away food, witnesses said Saturday.  

China Is Trying To Build A New World Order
The clue is in the name. The Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) groups six countries--China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan--and aims to be the dominant security institution in its region; but its origin and purposes are largely Chinese.  

Ebola Worst-Case Scenario Has More Than 500,000 Cases
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa could spread to hundreds of thousands more people by the end of January, according to an estimate under development by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that puts one worst-case scenario at 550,000 or more infections.  

Earthquake rattles SC town; no report of damage
The U.S. Geological Survey reports a weak earthquake has shaken the Aiken area.  

Magnitude 4.7 quake jolts North Cotabato
A magnitude 4.7 earthquake jolted North Cotabato early morning Saturday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. According to its latest bulletin, the epicenter of the quake which struck at 7:09 a.m. was plotted 14 kilometers southeast of Kidapawan.  

Earthquake hits southern Iran
An earthquake measuring 4.3 on the Richter scale jolted the city of Farshband in the southern province of Fars on Sept. 20. The tremor occurred at 09:01 (GMT +4:30 hours), according to a report from the seismography center affiliated with Tehran University Geophysics Institute, Iran's IRNA news agency reported.  

Magnitude 4.8 earthquake hits eastern Taiwan
Taipei, Sept. 21 (CNA) A magnitude 4.8 earthquake rocked eastern Taiwan at 5:14 a.m. Sunday, according to the Central Weather Bureau. The earthquake's epicenter was located at sea about 44.8 kilometers southwest of Hualien County Hall at a depth of 24.1 km, bureau officials said.  

Kurds Issue New Call to Arms Against Islamic State in Syria
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

SURUC Turkey (Reuters) - Kurdish militants in Turkey have issued a new call to arms to defend a border town in northern Syria from advancing Islamic State fighters, and the Turkish authorities and United Nations prepared on Sunday for a surge in refugees.

About 70,000 Syrian Kurds have fled into Turkey since Friday as Islamic State fighters seized dozens of villages close to the border and advanced on the frontier town of Ayn al-Arab, known as Kobani in Kurdish.

A Kurdish commander on the ground said Islamic State had advanced to within 15 km (9 miles) of Kobani, whose strategic location has been blocking the radical Sunni Muslim militants from consolidating their gains across northern Syria.

A Kurdish politician from Turkey who visited Kobani on Saturday said locals had told him that Islamic State fighters were beheading people as they went from village to village.

"Rather than a war this is a genocide operation ... They are going into the villages and cutting the heads of one or two people and showing them to the villagers," Ibrahim Binici, a deputy for Turkey's pro-Kurdish HDP, told Reuters.

"It is truly a shameful situation for humanity," he said, calling for international intervention. Five of his fellow MPs planned a hunger strike outside U.N. offices in Geneva to press for action, he said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors Syria's civil war, said clashes continued overnight, killing 10 insurgents and bringing the number of Islamic State fighters killed to at least 39. At least 27 Kurdish fighters have died.

Islamic State has seized at least 64 villages around Kobani since the onslaught started on Tuesday, using heavy arms and thousands of fighters. It executed at least 11 civilians on Saturday, including at least two boys, the Observatory said.

Islamic State Closes in on Syrian Town, Refugees Flood Into Turkey
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

SURUC Turkey/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State militants tightened their noose on a northern Syrian border town on Sunday as the United Nations said the number of Syrian Kurds fleeing into neighbouring Turkey may have topped 100,000 and was likely to go much higher.

Residents fleeing the frontier town of Ayn al-Arab, known in Kurdish as Kobani, and its surrounding villages said the militants were executing people of all ages in the areas they had seized to create a climate of fear and slavish obedience.

Kurdish politicians in Turkey renewed their appeal to young people in the country's mainly Kurdish southeast to head to Kobani to help their ethnic kin push back Islamic State, which has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria in recent months and proclaimed a caliphate in the heart of the Middle East.

"ISIL (Islamic State) are continuing to advance. Every place they pass through they kill, wound and kidnap people. Many people are missing and we believe they were kidnapped," Welat Avar, a doctor, told Reuters by telephone from Kobani.

"We now urgently need medicines and equipment for operations. We have many casualties ... ISIL killed many people in the villages. They cut off the heads of two people, I saw it with my own eyes," he said.

A Kurdish politician from Turkey who visited Kobani on Saturday gave a similar account of the Sunni militants' tactics.

"Rather than a war this is a genocide operation ... They are going into the villages and cutting off the heads of one or two people and showing them to the villagers," Ibrahim Binici, a deputy from Turkey's pro-Kurdish HDP party, told Reuters.

"It is truly a shameful situation for humanity," he said, calling for international intervention.

Exclusive: Iran Seeks Give and Take on Militants, Nuclear Program
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Iran is ready to work with the United States and its allies to stop Islamic State militants, but would like to see more flexibility on Iran's uranium enrichment program, senior Iranian officials told Reuters.

The comments from the officials, who asked not to be named, highlight how difficult it may be for the Western powers to keep the nuclear negotiations separate from other regional conflicts. Iran wields influence in the Syrian civil war and on the Iraqi government, which is fighting the advance of Islamic State fighters.

Iran has sent mixed signals about its willingness to cooperate on defeating Islamic State (IS), a hardline Sunni Islamist group that has seized large swaths of territory across Syria and Iraq and is blamed for a wave of sectarian violence, beheadings and massacres of civilians.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said recently that he vetoed a U.S. overture to the Islamic Republic to work together on defeating IS, but U.S. officials said there was no such offer. In public, both Washington and Tehran have ruled out cooperating militarily in tackling the IS threat.

But in private, Iranian officials have voiced a willingness to work with the United States on IS, though not necessarily on the battlefield. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday that Iran has a role to play in defeating Islamic State, indicating the U.S. position may also be shifting.

"Iran is a very influential country in the region and can help in the fight against the ISIL (IS) terrorists ... but it is a two-way street. You give something, you take something," said a senior Iranian official on condition of anonymity.

"ISIL is a threat to world security, not our (nuclear) program, which is a peaceful program," the official added.

Tehran rejects Western allegations that it is amassing the capability to produce atomic weapons under cover of a civilian nuclear energy program.

Clashes in Yemeni Capital Cast Doubt on Deal Signing
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

SANAA (Reuters) - Shi'ite Houthi rebels and government forces fought for a fourth straight day in the Yemeni capital, residents said, despite the announcement of a U.N.-brokered agreement due to be signed later on Sunday.

Residents reported sounds of heavy shelling throughout Saturday night in an area of the capital near the headquarters of the first armored division camp and close to the religious university of Iman.

The fighting, which intensified on Thursday after weeks of protests and clashes, appeared to be the biggest challenge yet to a U.N.-backed transition to democracy launched after veteran ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced to step down in 2012.

U.N. special envoy Jamal Benomar, who had held talks with Houthi leader Abdulmalek al-Houthi in their home province of Saada on Wednesday and Thursday, announced late on Saturday that an agreement had been reached and was to be signed on Sunday.

Despite the accord, one Houthi rebel leader told Reuters they had intensified the shelling of the army division camp and driven soldiers out.

"We controlled a military unit east of the first armored division .... and we continued heavy shelling of the division headquarters and the nearby Iman university in all directions," Ali al-Emad told Reuters late on Saturday.

Al Jazeera television reported sounds of two explosions to the north of the capital towards dawn.

Fighting raged on throughout Saturday on the outskirts of Sanaa, and rebels said they had taken control of the headquarters of state television. Yemen's Higher Security Committee announced a curfew in four areas of the capital from 9 p.m. until 6 a.m., and schools were shut until further notice.

Still, President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi expressed support for the U.N.-brokered deal on Saturday and Houthis said their representatives would reach the capital traveling from Saada on Sunday to sign it.

Afghanistan's Presidential Rivals Sign Deal for Power - Sharing Government
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsReuters
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan's rival presidential candidates signed a deal on Sunday to share power after months of turmoil over a disputed election that destabilized the nation at a crucial time as most foreign troops prepare to leave.

Ashraf Ghani, a former finance minister who will be named president under the deal reached on Saturday night, embraced rival Abdullah Abdullah after they signed the agreement in a ceremony broadcast live on television.

The new administration faces huge challenges in fighting an emboldened Taliban-led insurgency and paying its bills amid plummeting tax revenue.

It will also face significant difficulty in improving the lives of ordinary Afghans who face hard times as aid flows fall and as contracts with the NATO-led coalition dry up as most foreign troops leave by the end of the year.

The power-sharing deal was signed even though the final results of a hotly contested June 14 run-off vote have yet to be released. The signing ceremony took place at the presidential palace still occupied by outgoing leader Hamid Karzai.

Karzai's spokesman Aimal Faizi said Ghani is expected to be sworn in as president within a week. He said one of Ghani's first acts would be to sign a long-delayed bilateral security agreement with the United States to allow a small force of foreign troops to remain in Afghanistan after 2014.

The deal, brokered by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, was swiftly welcomed by Washington.

"This agreement marks an important opportunity for unity and increased stability in Afghanistan," said a statement issued by the office of the White House Press Secretary.

60,000 Kurds Flee Syria, Head to Turkey
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey, Numan Kurtulmuş, said that 60 thousand Kurdish refugees fled Syria and headed to Turkey, during the last 24 hours,

Kurtulmuş told a Turkish news agency that a giant wave of refugees arrived in Turkey following a decision made in Ankara to open the border to Syrian citizens seeking asylum from “Islamic State” (ISIS) terrorists.

'The World is United in the Fight Against ISIS'
Sep 21st, 2014
Daily NewsArutz Sheva
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

US President Barack Obama in his weekly address Saturday touted the size of the US-led coalition against Islamic State (ISIS), as well as America's air campaign, even while promising "I won't commit our troops to fighting another ground war in Iraq, or in Syria."

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