Huckabee Praises Buckley
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Huckabee_Praises_Buckley/2008/02/27/76093.html
Former Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee has issued the following comment in response to the death of William F. Buckley:
"Janet and I were sad to hear the news of William F. Buckley's passing. As one of the founders of the modern conservative movement, William Buckley helped turn the intellectual and political tide, shifting America from liberalism to conservatism. Our country, and our world, are better for his 82 years on this earth.
"Bill Buckley was also one of a kind-a scholar, an activist, a wit, a harpsichord player. As a young man, he wrote God and Man at Yale, an enduring critique of secular liberalism. In 1955, his National Review burst into prominence, influencing many millions of young conservatives, including one youngster from a little town in Arkansas.
To this day, his magazine stands as one of the most important voices of conservative opinion. In addition, he produced a seemingly endless quantity of books, novels, articles, columns, and TV shows.
"So all conservatives owe Bill Buckley a great debt. Today, while our thoughts and prayers are with the Buckley family, we conservatives continue to draw inspiration from his life and work. But there is more to be done. It is up to us to carry on, fulfilling his enormous legacy."
Huckabee Demands McCain Debate
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Huckabee_Demands_McCain_D/2008/02/27/76130.html
Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee has sent an e-mail asking supporters to sign a letter to rival John McCain asking him to agree to debate Huckabee before the March 4 primaries.
“Now that the race for the Republican nomination is down to just two candidates, I believe this is the time for a real discussion about our vision for the future of this great country,” Huckabee writes.
“I believe a Lincoln Douglas-style debate so that voters can better understand our views on critical issues such as health care, education, energy independence, terrorism and national security is just what we need.”
Noting that Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have recently had opportunities to “underscore the differences in their positions,” Huckabee declares: “It seems only fitting to me that Republican primary voters are offered the same.”
Pastor Hagee Endorses McCain
http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Pastor_Hagee_Endorses_McC/2008/02/27/76232.html
SAN ANTONIO -- Republican presidential candidate John McCain won the endorsement of Texas evangelical leader John Hagee on Wednesday, which could boost his standing among religious conservatives who have been reluctant to embrace the likely nominee.
Hagee, who heads a 19,000-member church in San Antonio, is best known for his outspoken support of Israel and writings on the Middle East, where he envisions a blood-soaked clash between East and West leading to the return of Jesus Christ.
"I'm very honored by Pastor John Hagee's endorsement today," McCain said at a news conference. "He has been the staunchest leader of our Christian evangelical movement in many areas, but especially, most especially, his close ties and advocacy for the freedom and independence of the state of Israel."
Hagee, standing beside the candidate, said he admired McCain's pro-Israel stance, commitment to nominate conservative judges and opposition to abortion.
"Victory is within our grasp because John McCain knows it's never wrong to do the right thing," Hagee said.
Christian conservatives are an important part of the Republican base, but many have so far been reluctant to support the Arizona senator.
Coast-to-coast primary victories on February 5 made McCain the all-but-certain Republican nominee, but many evangelicals continue to support rival Mike Huckabee, a Baptist preacher and former Arkansas governor. Several conservative Christian leaders have said they will not vote for McCain in November if he is the nominee.
McCain's support for the Iraq war and fierce criticism of Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won praise from Hagee, who has brought thousands of evangelical Christians to Washington to lobby on Israel's behalf.
Hagee has written that events in the Middle East point to an imminent apocalypse Christians should welcome.
In his book "Jerusalem Countdown: A Warning to the World," Hagee predicts Russian and Arab armies will invade Israel and be destroyed by God. Israel will then be the site of a battle between China and the West, which will be led by the anti-Christ in his role as head of the European Union. Jesus Christ will return to Earth in the final battle, he writes.
The book also claims Adolph Hitler and the Roman Catholic Church joined in a conspiracy to destroy the Jews.
"Our support of Israel has absolutely nothing to do with an end times prophetic scenario," Hagee told reporters. "They are a democracy in the Middle East that deserves the support of America and the Christian people of America."
McCain said on his campaign plane that he was not familiar with Hagee's writings. "I think he's a fine leader and I appreciate his commitment to Israel," McCain said.
Obama to Israeli paper: I'm a committed Christian, not a Muslim
http://www.jnewswire.com/article/2355
United States Democrat and presidential hopeful Barak Hussein Obama told the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot in comments published Wednesday that he is "a committed Christian" and has "never been" a Muslim.
The newspaper, which enjoys the widest readership in Israel, said it had put a number of questions to Obama because "his political rivals [had] attempted to paint him as a pro-Arab Muslim [and] have spread rumors that Obama attended a madrasa (Islamic religious school) in Indonesia, which served as a terrorist training camp."
One of the questions read: Some people in Israel and some Jewish American leaders have expressed concern that you would be more sympathetic to the Arab side because of your Muslim background. How do you respond?
Obama replied:
"First it is important to establish the facts. Here are the facts: I am not a Muslim and I never have been. I never attended a madrasa. I did not take my oath of office on a Koran. I am a committed Christian. I lived in Indonesia for four years as a child, where I attended secular schools. I took my oath of office on our family Bible."
If he is elected President, Obama said, "I will carry with me to the White House an unshakeable commitment to the security of Israel and the friendship between the United States and Israel."
A friend he might call himself, but on January 20 the website israelinsider.com reported that, "as Obama struggled to articulate his stance on key Mideast issues in dispute," he stated that he supported cutting the land of Israel in half.
"The Palestinians have a legitimate concern that a state have a contiguous coherent mass that would allow the state to function effectively," he said.
Commented israelinsider: A land corridor between Gaza and the West Bank [sic] would effectively cut Israel in half, making it incoherent and non-contiguous, divided into northern and southern portions by the Palestinian land-mass Obama supports.
The Democratic candidate had not explained why he believed it was legitimate for the "Palestinians" to have a coherent and contiguous territory at Israel's expense.
Obama also confirmed, in his response to Yediot, that he wants to "talk" to the Middle East's leading terrorists, including Iranian megalomaniac and antisemite Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - a man who repeatedly calls for, and is pursuing weapons to achieve, Israel's destruction.
Interestingly, Fox News reported Wednesday that one of Obama's favorite films is "Lawrence of Arabia" - the epic story that, perhaps more than any other work, established the century-long love affair that persists between western nations and the Arab world.
IRS Investigates Obama's Denomination
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/329481.aspx
NEW YORK -- The IRS is investigating the United Church of Christ over a speech Sen. Barack Obama gave at its national meeting last year after he became a candidate for President, the denomination said Tuesday.
Obama, an Illinois Democrat, belongs to the 1.2 million-member Protestant group through his Chicago congregation.
In a letter the denomination received Monday, the IRS said "reasonable belief exists" that the circumstances surrounding the speech violated restrictions on political activity for tax-exempt organizations. The denomination has denied any wrongdoing.
Obama, a member of Trinity United Church of Christ, spoke about faith and public life at the denomination's June 2007 General Synod in Hartford, Conn.
The IRS said in the letter that it was concerned about articles posted on the church's Web site and on other sites stating that Obama had addressed nearly 10,000 people at the event. The agency also said Obama volunteers had staffed campaign tables "outside the center to promote his campaign."
The Rev. J. Bennett Guess, a spokesman for the Cleveland-based denomination, said a group of Obama volunteers was outside the Hartford Civic Center, where the event took place, but that they were told they could not enter the meeting.
The UCC had invited Obama to speak a year before he announced he was running for President because of his involvement in the denomination, Guess said.
Church leaders consulted with lawyers before the event on following IRS rules. Before Obama spoke, a top church official told the crowd that the senator's talk was not a campaign-related event and that no leaflets or other signs of political support would be allowed.
Nonprofits are barred from endorsing candidates or providing support for campaigns, although groups are allowed to invite candidates to address them and many do so. Guess said no other presidential candidates were invited because Obama was the only one active in the UCC.
The Rev. John H. Thomas, president of the denomination, called the inquiry "disturbing."
"When the invitation to an elected public official to speak to the national meeting of his own church family is called into question, it has a chilling effect on every religious community," Thomas said in a statement.
Amy Brundage, an Obama spokeswoman, insisted the speech was not a campaign event. In the address, Obama spoke about his personal spiritual journey and had said that faith had been misused in the past to divide Americans, partly because of the Christian right.
The IRS has stepped up its monitoring of the political activity of nonprofit groups during the 2008 election. It is more common for individual congregations to be targeted, not entire denominations, but very large ministries have been investigated in the past.
The inquiries can take years. Punishments can range from a financial penalty to loss of tax-exempt status - an outcome that church attorneys call the "death penalty" for nonprofits.
The IRS does not comment on investigations because tax information is confidential.
J. Brent Walker, executive director of the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, which defends religious groups against government interference, called the timing of the investigation "peculiar." But he said he generally has found the IRS to be nonpartisan.
"They have not gone after the left or the right or one party over another," Walker said. "Both sides have accused the service of doing that, but my impression is that they've done a pretty good job being nonpartisan."
Anti-Obama Attacks Zero In on Farrakhan Support, Israel Policy
http://youdecide08.foxnews.com/2008/02/27/anti-obama-attacks-zero-in-on-farrakhan-support-israel-policy/
Barack Obama’s detractors are trying to make hay out of an unsought endorsement by Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan, adding to the rumors and innuendo about the Democratic presidential candidate’s religious affiliations and casting Obama as a threat to Israel.
Farrakhan, who has drawn attention for calling Judaism a “gutter religion,” dubbed the Illinois senator the “hope of the entire world” on Sunday.
Obama was asked during a debate with Hillary Clinton Tuesday night if he would reject that support — but the Illinois senator at first hedged.
“I can’t say to somebody that he can’t say that he thinks I’m a good guy,” Obama said. “You know, I have been very clear in my denunciations of him and his past statements.”
Clinton then chimed in to say she rejected support from an anti-Israel group during her 2000 Senate run, and that Obama’s denunciation of Farrakhan is not as strong as a rejection.
Obama relented: “I have to say I don’t see a difference between denouncing and rejecting. There’s no formal offer of help from Minister Farrakhan that would involve me rejecting it. But if the word ‘reject’ Senator Clinton feels is stronger than the word ‘denounce,’ then I’m happy to concede the point, and I would reject and denounce.”
He earned the crowd’s applause, but his handling of the question could spell trouble.
An article in the latest edition of Newsweek reported that Clinton’s surrogates are already floating the word that Obama has a shaky commitment to Israel, despite accounts to the contrary from liberal American Jewish leaders.
The article recounted a conference call a Clinton adviser had with Jewish leaders in January, where she contrasted Clinton’s Israel credentials with Obama’s, noting that Zbigniew Brzezinski was Obama’s foreign policy adviser. Brzezinski, Jimmy Carter’s former national security adviser, told the magazine he only advises Obama on occasion — but he is controversial because of his defense of a recently published book about the power of the “Israel lobby” in Washington.
The article said Clinton operatives are also circulating e-mails questioning his relationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, the recently retired pastor at Obama’s Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. The church magazine gave Farrakhan the 2007 lifetime achievement award for social justice (though Obama said he disagreed with the decision).
The Tennessee Republican Party also popped up with a brazen line of attack this week, releasing a statement titled “Anti-Semites for Obama” claiming Obama could pose a danger to Israel if he wins the White House.
Tennessee GOP Chairwoman Robin Smith said, “It’s time to set the record straight about Barack Obama and where he really stands on vital issues such as national security and the security of Israel.”
She invoked the Farrakhan remarks as evidence that “strongly” suggests “an Obama presidency will view Israel as a problem rather than a partner for peace in the Middle East.”
The Tennessee Democratic Party blasted the statement as “fear mongering.”
Obama is a Christian, but rumors about his Muslim background have persisted throughout the campaign, and have been used to suggest he won’t put America first or offer meaningful support to its ally Israel.
Obama’s mother was a white woman from Kansas, his father was Kenyan and he spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, a largely Muslim country. Obama has said his father did not practice though his grandfather converted to Islam.
Obama stood by his commitment to Israel Tuesday night, saying the reason he has strong support from the Jewish community in his hometown of Chicago is “because I have been a stalwart friend of Israel’s.
“I think they are one of our most important allies in the region, and I think that their security is sacrosanct, and that the United States is in a special relationship with them, as is true with my relationship with the Jewish community,” he said.
He said he “would not tolerate anti-Semitism in any form” and that he wants to rebuild a “historic relationship” between the black and Jewish communities.
Obama’s critics have cast the candidate as weak on terrorism, and as a means of impugning him, have taken to freely using his full name — Barack Hussein Obama — even though GOP front-runner John McCain has advised against it.
Smith used Obama’s full name in her statement, and radio talk show host Bill Cunningham used it three times while introducing McCain at a Cincinnati event Tuesday. During the vitriolic introduction, Cunningham called Obama a “hack, Chicago-style” politician and said the Illinois senator would “saddle up next to Hezbollah,” Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and North Korean leader Kim Jong Il if elected president.
McCain later apologized for Cunningham’s remarks. He said Wednesday that he has no control over outside groups who want to help him, but that he will pursue a “respectful debate” for the general election.
“I am not excusing anything that anybody does but that is not frankly something I can do (anything) about at this moment,” McCain said of the Tennessee Republican Party release.
The Tennessee GOP also posted a now-infamous picture on its Web site showing Obama wearing a white turban and robe presented to him by elders in Wajir, Kenya. That photo was posted Monday on The Drudge Report, which said the picture was being circulated by “Clinton staffers.”
Clinton denied that at Tuesday’s debate, and Obama said he’d take her at her word.
But Obama’s campaign beforehand blasted Clinton for engaging in “the most shameful, offensive, fear-mongering we’ve seen from either party in this election.”
FOX News contributor Kirsten Powers said Obama will be able to distance himself from Farrakhan.
“I don’t think he has problems with Jewish groups. He has humongous Jewish support,” she said. “He’s not Louis Farrakhan, he’s pro-Israel. He said that last night that Israel is a very important ally of the United States and he understands that.”
Father of four killed by Kassam
http://www.jnewswire.com/article/2354
An 47-year-old Israeli, father of four, was killed Wednesday when Gaza's Palestinian Arabs launched a barrage of Kassam rockets at the Negev town of Sderot.
Roni Yehieh was sitting in his car in a college parking lot when one of more than 22 rockets that were fired in salvoes through the morning exploded nearby, lethally peppering his chest with shrapnel.
Several other people were wounded in the attacks, with one missile scoring a direct hit on a house and another slamming into a factory shortly after the area had been vacated.
Later in the day, after seven casualties had been evacuated to Ashkelon's Barzilai Hospital a Kassam hit the grounds of the medical facility.
By early Wednesday evening, more than 30 rockets had been fired from the Strip, which has been turned into a massive terrorist training and launching camp since Israel abandoned Gaza in 2005.
Hamas claimed credit for the attacks, which came shortly after the Israeli Air Force attacked and killed five members of an Iranian-trained terrorist gang in Gaza.
According to Israel's internal security service or Shin Bet, the men had been preparing to murder as many Israelis as possible in a massive terrorist attack.
The intensity of the Kassam attacks, the service said, probably indicated that those killed were important Hamas members.
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is in Japan on a state visit, responded to the news saying: "There is a war in the South and it will continue to rage. We regret that once again it has taken a bloody toll, this time a life has been lost."
A Knesset Member in Olmert's Kadima Party, David Tal, said Israel had to respond to the rocket barrage.
"I think we're nearing the limit of the IDF's patience, the army is obligated to defend the citizens of this country. I call on the defense minister and prime minister to strike back, otherwise more Israelis will be killed in the near future," Tal said, according to Ynetnews.
But arch-leftist lawmaker Yossi Beilin said Israel should talk to Hamas.
"The Israeli government can no longer depend on luck, hoping that the Kassams won't kill," he said.
Rice Warns Hamas about Rocket Attacks
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/329859.aspx
TOKYO - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that Hamas rocket attacks against Israel "need to stop," demanding an end to the escalating violence that has rocked the Gaza Strip and set back U.S. efforts to promote a Mideast peace deal.
Her comments came after she met for an hour with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who also was visiting Japan.
"I am concerned about the humanitarian conditions there and innocent people in Gaza who are being hurt," Rice told reporters following her meeting with Olmert. "We have to remember that the Hamas activities there are responsible for what has happened in Gaza - the illegal coup that they led against the legitimate institutions of the Palestinian Authority. It is very clear where this started."
The Rice-Olmert meeting came just hours after Israeli aircraft blasted Hamas government offices and metal shops in the Gaza Strip late Wednesday, killing a baby and wounding more than 30 people in a retaliatory strike after a militant rocket killed an Israeli college student.
The bloodshed fed worries about a new outbreak of heavy fighting between the Israeli army and militants in the Gaza Strip.
Despite the violence, Rice is planning to visit the region next week to meet with Palestinian and Israeli leaders to discuss the push to negotiate a peace accord, which could lead to a Palestinian state one day.
Rice said she assured Olmert of U.S. support, but she also called for more attention to be paid to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
"We were all sorry about the death of the Israeli university student and affirmed to him that we will continue to state clearly that the rocket attacks against Israel need to stop," Rice said. "I again reiterated our concerns for the humanitarian circumstances there and the need to find a more durable solution to the question of the passages," she added, referring to the inability of everyday Palestinians to leave the Gaza Strip.
Hamas overran Gaza in June, expelling forces loyal to moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. While Hamas controls Gaza, Abbas rules the West Bank. Hamas has done nothing to stop militants from using the tiny, densely populated territory to launch rocket attacks into Israel, and Israel responded with a near-total security seal that has prevented Gazans from leaving and has crippled cross-border commerce.
Hamas claimed responsibility for the deadly rocket attack on the college in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, which came a few hours after two Israeli airstrikes killed seven people in Gaza, including two senior commanders in the Hamas rocket operation.
The fatal attack on Sderot intensified calls in Israel for a large-scale ground offensive in Gaza aimed at clearing the border area of rocket squads, though previous incursions have halted such attacks only briefly.
So far, Olmert has ruled out such an invasion.
But during a visit to Sderot late Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak vowed to "get those responsible" for the rocket attack. In a statement to Associated Press Television News, he dismissed arguments that Israel "cannot or will not a wide-ranging operation in Gaza."
Rice, asked whether she told Olmert not to use disproportionate force in Gaza, dismissed the question.
"I think that's not a good way to address this issue," she said, then repeated her call for calm on both sides. "The issue is that the rocket attacks need to stop, there needs to be due concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza, there needs to be a durable way to deal with crossing."
In the end, Rice said that the only long-term solution is for Israel and the Palestinians to negotiate a peace deal to end the cycle of violence, although chances of that happening anytime soon appear to be diminishing despite President Bush's goal of reaching agreement by the time he leaves office.
"The most important thing that can be done, of course, is to use the opportunity before the parties to have this vision of a Palestinian state become one that is concrete," Rice said. "That is what will ultimately give Palestinians and Israelis the confidence that they have a future of peace and security and not one of continuing conflict."
Docs Try Saving Boy's Hand After Rocket Hit
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/329174.aspx
JERUSALEM, Israel - Surgeons worked for three hours Monday to save 10-year-old Yossi Haimov arm and shoulder.
According to doctors at Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, though blood vessels and nerves in his hand are intact, the boy would most likely be left with a serious disability in his hand. His shoulder will require several more reconstructive surgeries.
The 10-year-old Sderot resident was injured Monday by shrapnel from a Kassam rocket attack.
"We were on the way to see a friend," said his sister, Maria, "and suddenly the alarm started and we ran toward a building. We heard the whistle and then the explosion came. One of the fragments struck the wall and then hit Yossi in the shoulder. He didn't cry. I saw his bone jutting out, broken and I took him to the local grocery store nearby and asked them to call an ambulance," she said.
But when he saw his mother, Rima, Yossi's tears flowed.
"I was on my way back from work when they informed me he was injured," she said. "I spoke with him a little, but when he sees me he begins to cry. This is difficult for a child," she said adding that the situation in general in Sderot is difficult.
"I don't know how we can continue, how we can stay in the city," his mother said.
On Tuesday, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Health Minister Yaacov Ben-Yizri visited Yossi, who though conscious, is heavily sedated because of the pain.
"The injuries to the child in Sderot is only one example of the fact that beyond the media spin of Hamas and the attempt to give an impression of civil and democratic protest, it is a terrorist organization that repeatedly targets innocents, including children," said a senior Israel official Tuesday.
Premature Blast Kills Philippine Bomber
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PHILIPPINES_GRENADE_BLAST?SITE=ILROR&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
MANILA, Philippines -- A grenade exploded during a town fiesta in the southern Philippines, killing a would-be bomber and wounding four people, police said Thursday.
The police chief in General Santos city, Senior Superintendent Robert Po, said the grenade held by the bomber went off before he managed to penetrate crowds celebrating the city's foundation anniversary late Wednesday.
The blast caused panic among hundreds of people, and Radio DZBB reported that police were questioning some of the injured.
Po said investigators were working to determine the bomber's identity and affiliation, but suspected he may have been linked to a notorious extortion gang, the Al-Khobar group.
The group, which authorities believe has ties to Muslim extremists operating in the southern Philippines, has been blamed for at least a dozen explosions in the region targeting bus companies and business establishments.
More than two dozen people have been killed in bomb attacks last year. In January, a bomb blast outside a tuna factory in the city killed four and wounded 28 in what investigators suspect was the work of Al-Khobar.
Sudanese President Urges Muslim Boycott of Denmark Over Reprinted Muhammad Cartoon
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,332970,00.html
KHARTOUM, Sudan — Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said Wednesday he would bar Danes from Sudan and told tens of thousands of people at a government-backed rally that the Muslim world should boycott Denmark because of a reprinted cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad.
"We urge all Muslims around the world to boycott Danish commodities, goods, companies, institutions, organizations and personalities," al-Bashir told the crowd outside the Republic Palace in downtown Khartoum.
"Down, down, Denmark!" shouted the protesters. Al-Bashir vowed that "not a single Danish foot will from now on desecrate the land of Sudan."
It was not clear whether al-Bashir would carry out his rhetoric and expel over two dozen Danes who work in Sudan, mostly in aid organizations and as peacekeepers in southern Sudan and Darfur. Danish diplomats in Khartoum said they were not told of a new trade boycott and that Sudanese authorities had not notified them about expelling the Danes. In Copenhagen, Foreign Ministry officials declined to comment.
Seventeen Danish newspapers reprinted the cartoon showing Muhammad wearing a bomb-shaped turban this month in a gesture of solidarity after police in the Scandinavian country said they uncovered a plot to kill the cartoon's artist.
Sudan was one of the nations where large protests were held against Denmark in 2006 when the cartoon and 11 others depicting Muhammad and Islam were first published. In riots that followed around the Muslim world, dozens of people were killed and several Danish embassies were attacked, while Danish goods were boycotted.
But unlike the 2006 violence, Khartoum's rally Wednesday passed peacefully. The rally failed to reach the 1 million participants called for by the organizers, the Popular Front for the Defense of Faith and Religion which backs al-Bashir's ruling National Congress party.
Protests against this month's reprinting of the cartoon elsewhere have also been low-key, mostly restricted to diplomatic condemnations. But in Pakistan, hundreds set fire to Danish flags and demanded the Danish ambassador's expulsion. Palestinians protested in the Gaza Strip, ruled by the militant Islamic Hamas, calling the reprint a heresy.
In Denmark, youth set hundreds of small fires for nearly two weeks in immigrant neighborhoods. The cause for the unrest was unclear but some said it was a protest against police harassment. Other observers say that the reprinting of the cartoon may have aggravated the situation.
The Khartoum protest came a day after Sudan enforced a ban called by al-Bashir on imports of Danish goods. The central square was closed for traffic since early morning as hundreds of buses and trucks brought in protesters, who included women and students, from far-flung areas around the capital to downtown Khartoum. Nearby roads were also blocked and traffic slowed elsewhere in the city.
The protesters carried banners reading: "We love you our dear Prophet," "Shame on the enemy of Islam," and "Boycott Danish commodities."
"There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is his messenger," they shouted. "We will protect our Prophet, we will not be intimidated by America!"
Al-Bashir also spoke in support of Palestinians and called for jihad, or holy war, to "liberate" Jerusalem.
Danish exports to Sudan are minimal, consisting mainly of dairy products. In 2006, they amounted to US$23 million, a drop of 26 percent over the previous year.
But Sudan is one of the largest recipients of Danish aid and Danish aid groups that operate there include the Danish Refugee Council and the Danish Red Cross, which runs large projects to alleviate suffering in the western Darfur region.
Danish exports, mainly dairy products, to Sudan are minimal, unlike to other Muslim markets such as Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. In 2006, they amounted to 116 million kroner (euro15.5 million; US$23 million), a drop of 26 percent compared to the previous year.
The African country received 130.2 million kroner (euro17.5 million; US$26 million) in Danish aid in 2006 and a 500 million kroner (euro67 million; US$100 million) humanitarian and reconstruction package is planned through 2009.
Al-Bashir came to power in an Islamist and military coup in 1989 and has since imposed Muslim Sharia law on the country's predominantly Arab north.
Khartoum governor, Abdul Halim al-Mutaafi, told the local Al Riyadiah radio station from the rally that Danes were no longer wanted. "We don't want them to come to our land nor will we like to go to their land."
Germany's interior minister expressed respect for the Danish newspapers' decision to reprint the cartoon and argued that all European newspapers should follow suit, according to comments released Wednesday.
"I have respect for the fact that Danish newspapers have now all printed the Muhammad caricatures, on the basis (that) we will not let ourselves be divided," Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble was quoted as saying by the weekly Die Zeit.
"Actually, all European newspapers should now print these caricatures, with the explanation: 'We also find them lousy, but the exercise of press freedom is no reason to practice violence,"' Schaeuble added, according to the report.
A Blow to Nuclear Bomb Making of Ayatollahs in Iran
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,333291,00.html
The bombshell revelations by Iran's parliament-in-exile, the National Council of Resistance (NCRI), about a working nuclear warhead development facility and a new command and control center for Iran's nuclear bomb-making only two days before the release of the report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) proved to be a major blow to the ruling Ayatollahs in Tehran.
In a news conference in Brussels on February 20, 2008, Mohammad Mohaddessin, the Chairman of the NCRI's Foreign Affairs Committee, announced that in April 2007, the Iranian regime's nuclear project entered a new phase. For the first time, a command and control center, known as Mojdeh site, was established to head up the drive to complete a nuclear bomb. A development facility called the "Field for Expansion of Deployment of Advanced Technologies" was set up in the Lavizan 2 site.
Mojdeh site is managed by a scientist named Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Mahabadi. A nuclear physicist attached to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), Mahabadi reports directly to the defense minister, Mostafa Mohammad Najar. Many of the activities at the site are disguised as part of the IRGC's Malek Ashtar University, which acts more as the support center doing research and development of weapons for the Mojdeh site than a university.
Working on and coordinating activities on a neutron initiator; producing Polunium-210 and Beryllium for the trigger for an atomic bomb; casting and machining of uranium metals; research on the fissile material needed for the production of a bomb; laser enrichment of uranium; and research on high explosives, radiation detection, and protection against radioactive materials are among the activities carried out at the Mojdeh site.
The secret facility to make nuclear warheads is located at Khojir, a Defense Ministry missile site southeast of Tehran. This is a vast, 120-square kilometer area southeast of Tehran. It is riddled with various facilities and tunnels dedicated to nuclear and missile projects.
Khojir is heavily secured military area. Construction of secret military sites in this location began in 1989. This location works primarily on the manufacturing of missiles such as Shahab 3. However, new, detailed information reveals that Tehran is building nuclear warheads at this site. The project was codenamed 8500 and nicknamed the Alireza Nori Industry (see satellite imagery). The warheads are being designed for installation on Shahab 3 missiles, the most advanced version of which has a range of 2,000 kilometers.
In its February 20 news conference, the NCRI announced that the full details of the latest information obtained by the Resistance network inside Iran had been provided to the IAEA.
The Tehran regime's reaction to last week's timely revelations demonstrated what a blow it had been dealt. Ahmadinejad's anguish was evident in his remarks to the state-run news agencies about this latest political defeat resulting from the opposition's devastating disclosures: “The nuclear issue in its new form began in the beginning of the summer of 2002, when [the Iranian Mojahedin (PMOI/MEK)], published a report on the Natanz and Arak nuclear sites. The International Atomic Energy Agency got involved… and resolutions were adopted one after the other.”
Then on Monday, Mohammad Khazee, the Ayatollahs' ambassador to the United Nations, dedicated almost his entire interview with journalists to complaints about the decisive role the main Iranian opposition has played in exposing the Ayatollahs' nuclear sites.
Simon Smith, the chief British delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency, said earlier this week that based on information presented by the IAEA to the IAEA's 35 board member nations, Iran may have continued work on nuclear weapons past 2003, the year U.S. intelligence reports indicated such activities had stopped. Earlier, Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell said there was no doubt that Iran had the scientific know-how, the technical capacity, and the industrial capability to develop nuclear weapons at some future point.
The NCRI's crucial revelations last week establish that the Ayatollahs' regime has indeed expedited its nuclear weapons activities, and that the IRGC has assumed command of a much larger segment of the nuclear drive. The United Nations Security Council should waste no time in adopting a decisive resolution to address Tehran's persistent violation of prior UN Security Resolutions. At the same time, a growing number of members of Congress from both sides of the isle believe that sanctions should be coupled with political pressure. The best option? Reach out to the Iranian opposition and remove all restrictions against them as they heighten their efforts to implement fundamental change in Iran.
Two Christian Women Detained and Harassed by Police in Yunnan, China
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06916.shtml
At approximately 1:00 p.m. on February 2, police detained two Christian women, Meng Xiu Lan (55) and Zhou Cheng Xiu (53), after they were found distributing Christian literature in the town of Moding, Yunnan province, according to reports received this week from China Aid Association.
The police accused the women of "disrupting society, endangering public security and violating the law" and threatened to imprison them if they did not tell who had given them the flyers.
The women refused to supply the information. Both were stripped naked and frisked by police. At approximately 4:30 p.m., after police warned Lan that she was allowed to believe in Jesus "in her heart" but would be imprisoned if she preached the gospel, they handcuffed her and escorted her to her brother's home.
Xiu was also handcuffed by police and escorted to her home. Police searched both homes and confiscated CDs, Bibles and other Christian material.
Ask God to heal and minister to these believers during their recovery. Pray that He will help them to heed His difficult call to exhibit love to their persecutors. Pray that they will continue to obey God regardless of what man says (Acts 5:29).
For more information on the persecution of Christians in China, go to www.persecution.net/country/china.htm.
The Nation's "Missing The 'Right' Babies" Author Misses Facts
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06915.shtml
FRONT ROYAL, VA -- Steven W. Mosher, President of the Population Research Institute (PRI), responded to a hit piece published by The Nation, America's largest-circulation leftwing publication, which accuses PRI of fomenting "race panic" by reporting on plummeting birthrates in Europe.
The lead article by Kathryn Joyce, who entitled her screed "Missing: the 'Right' Babies," falsely suggests that PRI is only concerned about maintaining white majorities in Europe and the United States in light of declining native birthrates and increasing immigration from North Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.
"This absurd charge completely misrepresents our work, which has been overwhelmingly focused on helping those that the Left would characterize as 'women of color,'" said Mosher. "Take our work on China, where we have exposed the forced abortions which young Chinese women are being subjected to under the brutal "one-child policy." Or consider Peru, where we stopped Alberto Fujimori's infamous sterilization campaign, which was primarily directed against the Quechua-speaking Indians of the Altiplano."
"Population control programs--which we oppose and the Left supports--overwhelmingly target religious and ethnic minorities," Mosher continued. "They invariably lead to human rights abuses. At the same time they undermine primary health care and thus raise infant and child mortality rates."
"As I note in my forthcoming book, Population Control: Real Costs and Illusory Benefits," birthrates are falling around the globe. This isn't a white vs. yellow vs. black problem, as The Nation suggests. It's a human problem. It poses serious challenges to the survival of economies, old-age pension funds, and to entire nations. And it has nothing to do with color."
"It may be that the largely white and sterile readers of The Nation are unworried about the decline of the human family--there is a good deal of misanthropic sentiment and self-loathing in leftist circles--but we at PRI believe that a candid debate on the reality of demographic decline is necessary."
Mosher concluded, "Before Joyce started imputing racist motivations, she should have asked me about my ancestry, which includes Native American blood, or about my children, who are half-Hispanic, and range in appearance from little Geronimos to little Bridgets. But apparently she couldn't see beyond the color of my blue eyes. Who's the racist here?"
The article by Kathryn Joyce ("Missing: The 'Right' Babies") will appear in the March 3 issue, but is now available online at The Nation's website.
For more information, go to www.pop.org
The Population Research Institute (PRI) was founded in 1989 by Fr. Paul Marx, OSB, PhD and is dedicated to: (1) ending human rights abuses committed in the name of "family planning", (2) opposing outdated social and economic paradigms premised on the myth of overpopulation, (3) informing the public about the social and economic benefits of moderate population growth, and (4) promoting pro-natal and pro-family attitudes and policies worldwide. Steven Mosher is the author of numerous books, including A Mother's Ordeal, available in 11 languages.
New Loveland, CO Facility Provides Help for those Suffering with Emotional Pain, Addictions, and Relationship Issues as a Result of a Past Abortion
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06917.shtml
LOVELAND, CO -- In Our Midst Ministries announces the opening of A Safe Place Abortion Recovery Center, a staffed facility established specifically to meet the needs of those struggling with issues resulting from a past abortion experience.
Mary Comm, President and Founder of In Our Midst and A Safe Place explains, "As more people begin dealing with issues - such as drug and alcohol addiction, depression, divorce, workaholism, pornography addiction, eating disorders, the need to control, cutting, inability to bond with their children and patterns of broken or abusive relationships - we are seeing undeniable connections to past unresolved abortion experiences. Because of the prevalence of these problems in our society, a growing number of men and women are seeking help with these emotional, spiritual, relational and even physical repercussions, many of whom are unaware they have been attempting to self-medicate the internal pain (or self-punish) due to an abortion in their past. As a result we are realizing a greater need for more specialized options to offer them."
Comm explains, "At A Safe Place Abortion Recovery Center we are committed to maintaining a safe, confidential, non-judgmental environment specifically for those experiencing the pain resulting from a past abortion. A Safe Place is for the mothers, fathers, grandparents, other family members, friends, medical personnel, clergy - anyone who is struggling with thoughts, feelings or behaviors related to an abortion that won't go away on their own." Comm continues, "A Safe Place exists so men and women can begin to heal and reclaim their lives along with the hope, peace and joy they lost because of a past abortion experience."
When asked why establish a stand-alone recovery center Comm says, "For many years the vital area of post-abortion ministry has been dutifully carried out by the pregnancy resource centers across the nation and around the world. They have been the true pioneers, bravely stepping forth into the deep, uncharted waters of post-abortion pain and trauma. As with all pioneering endeavors, however," Comm continues, "there comes a time when we begin to think outside the traditional box. In the world of post- abortion pain and lost fatherhood due to abortion that time is now."
Comm has recently established A Safe Place as a way of providing hope and healing to a larger percentage of the population affected by post-abortion pain and trauma. "In order to reach a greater percentage of abortion-wounded men and women we have tailored our center in such a way that both validates their pain and meets their individual needs in a gender-neutral setting without the probability of encountering pregnant women or newborn babies-- common fears of those struggling with a past abortion experience," says Comm. "Our center is male-friendly, completely safe, confidential and inconspicuous. Only those calling for appointments will be given the address of our center. There are no signs or placards depicting our offices as an abortion recovery center."
When asked whether she believed the future of abortion recovery would continue to include pregnancy resource centers, Comm replied, "Absolutely! The work the pregnancy resource centers has done and continues to do remains a crucial aspect in the restoration of lives wounded by abortion. Our goal is not to be the only place for safe, confidential recovery from abortion, but another place. It is our hope that abortion recovery will expand into more venues, including more pregnancy centers, churches, mental health practices, etc. With almost 50 million legal abortions in the US alone since 1973, there are more than enough people needing to reclaim their lives from the pain of a past abortion. This job is too big for one venue. Its impact is too important."
The staff and volunteers of A Safe Place Abortion Recovery Center include both male and female peer counselors trained in abortion recovery from a biblical perspective. A Safe Place offers individual and group recovery options for post-abortion women, fathers that have lost children to abortion, and others similarly struggling with the guilt, grief or loss from an abortion, such as grandparents, other family members, friends, medical personnel and clergy. Ongoing monthly support groups are also provided for those that have completed the recovery program. For more information or to schedule interviews, contact Mary Comm by phone at (970) 663-9596 or by email at marycomm@gmail.com. Visit A Safe Place online at www.aSafePlaceARC.com.
Mailing Address: A Safe Place Abortion Recovery Center
1151 Eagle Drive, #325
Loveland, CO 80537
Donors Needed to Send Four Million Bibles to Africa
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06914.shtml
COLDWATER, MI -- In October 2006, on a trip to Africa, church leaders shared with Dwight Hall, president of Remnant Publications, a request for printed Bible study guides for the southern countries of Africa. Dwight pointed out that a person gets more out of a study guide when they can look the Bible verses up and see for themselves what the Word of God says. The church leaders told him that the study guides need to have the Bible verses printed right below the questions because the people don't own Bibles.
In fact, Dwight was personally told of "several persons who had gone for 3 or 4 days without food, only water, so they could save enough money to buy a Bible." Barely able to believe what his ears were hearing, Dwight instantly formulated a plan to facilitate the spreading of the Gospel by printing, collecting, and shipping four million Bibles to the people in Africa. The ambitious project was really launched in April when Dwight was interviewed on 3ABN, one of the largest Christian satellite networks in the world, and people began calling in to find out how they could help.
Operating a Christian publishing house located in Coldwater, Michigan; Dwight further stretched his faith and ordered the printing of 300,000 King James Holy Bibles before the Lord had provided the funds. With such a large printing, Dwight tells us he was able "to secure an almost unbelievably low price of $2.00 which includes shipping to Africa as well."
Cash donations and used Bibles account for an amazing 487,056 Bibles with this number increasing daily. Remnant Publications has also donated over 125,000 Christ-centered books and 750,000 individual Bible study guides. More shipments are scheduled, and more new Bibles will be printed, so check the web-site for weekly up-dates.
The motto adopted by dedicated Christians throughout southern Africa is "One Member--One Soul." Bibles for Africa has adopted the motto: "One Donation--One Bible." For a mere $2.00, Remnant Publications can provide a new Bible. In Africa, at least 20 people will be blessed by one shared Bible. So a ten dollar donation will provide five Bibles and reach an estimated 100 people. One thousand dollars will provide 500 Bibles and reach 10,000 people.
While there, this health conscious corporate president also discovered that 70 percent of the people infected with AIDS in the world live in Africa. Dwight saw the ravages of the disease first hand and also learned there are more orphans on the continent of Africa than any other place in the world. Mr. Hall stated, "Many of these men, and women, and children will go to Christless graves unless reached with the truth of God's Word--and quickly."
One pastor e-mailed us from Africa and said, "The harvest here is plenty but we do not have enough materials to use or distribute to the saints. We are 168 members in our church only we share 3 Bibles-the whole church. We really get a big problem during Bible studies."
Since learning of the project, literally thousands of people, some as far away as Australia, Great Britain, the Netherlands and the Caribbean Islands have started collecting cash donations to meet the need of their brothers and sisters in Africa. Most received the Free DVD and shared it with their churches to help them realize the severe shortage of something we take for granted--Bibles in the household. To ship the used and new $2.00 Bibles, in large, cost-effective containers, all we need to do is mail Bibles and cash donations to BIBLES for AFRICA. But, so far even more people will need to get involved to make a dent in the huge need for one of the most populated continents in the world. Dwight Hall urges, "The people are desperate for Bibles, please don't put this off!"
For his ninth birthday, Caleb raised money for a special project and wrote," I am sending $263 to Bibles for Africa." A fifteen-year-old hard worker is sending "$50 of my sugar money" from processing maple syrup in New Hampshire. Only seventeen and the recipient of a heart and kidney transplant, Brigetta from West Virginia has found a way to be a missionary without the health hazards of traveling personally.
US and Canadian churches are currently collecting cash donations and Bibles in very good condition and shipping them by media mail to BIBLES FOR AFRICA, 649 East Chicago Road, Coldwater, MI 49036.
Visit the website at www.YourBibleSaves.com to view or order the free DVD. Call 1-800-423-1319, and ask about Bibles for Africa. Equip yourself for a missionary project without leaving home.
TBN's Commitment to New High Quality Programs for the Whole Family Kicks Off Second 'INNOVATE! Program Challenge'
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion06913.shtml
LOS ANGELES -- Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), the world's largest religious network and America's most-watched faith channel, announced its second annual INNOVATE! Program Challenge.
The INNOVATE! contest inspires producers to rise to the top of their craft by submitting fresh, original ideas for high quality programming to air on TBN's four specialized networks - Smile of a Child, for viewers age 2 to 12; JCTV, for teens and young adults age 13 through 29; the Church Channel, for viewers who enjoy worship, teaching, and preaching; and TBN Enlace USA, for Hispanic viewers.
"TBN viewers have come to expect thought-provoking, well-written, and spiritually-charged programming that entertains and positively influences their lives," says Paul Crouch, Jr., Chief of Staff at TBN. "Last year's INNOVATE! contest confirmed to us just how much hidden talent is out there, just waiting to be uncovered," said Crouch.
Last year's INNOVATE! winners, Tim and Carla White of Touch Studios, produced a powerful, funny, and engaging, thirty-minute animated video about friendship and forgiveness. The program, We Stick Together Like Glue, brought joy to TBN's Smile of a Child viewers.
The overwhelming response to INNOVATE! 2007 inspired TBN to give plenty of advance notice for this year's contest, in order to afford prospective producers the time to submit their programs by mail or in person.
INNOVATE! Program Challenge 2008 contest winner(s) will be unveiled by Crouch on TBN's popular Behind the Scenes program (date to be announced). The winning program(s) will première on TBN and then begin airing on one or more of TBN's digital networks, which are picked up around the globe and seen by millions.
"TBN's unique brand of inspirational programming continues to fill an ever-increasing world-wide demand for powerful, engaging, faith and family-friendly content," says Crouch. "The TBN family of networks is continuously on the lookout for programs that will capture the imagination of our viewers, who have come to expect the very best offerings in faith and family-friendly fair."
"Producers wishing to submit programs can do so in two ways," says Amy Fihn, TBN's Cable Affiliate Promotion Manager. "Attendees of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention in Las Vegas, which runs April 14th through 17th, are invited to submit DVDs of their programs in person at the Technologies for Worship Pavilion in the Central Hall at the TBN Networks booth, C11445."
Those who bring their programs in person to NAB will have a unique opportunity to discuss their pre-produced show with a TBN program executive. NAB attendees are encouraged to set up meetings with TBN program executives in advance by emailing Joan Higley at jhigley@tbn.org.&nb sp;
Producers not attending the NAB can submit their program on DVD to The Ultimate TBN Networks Program Challenge, 2442 Michelle Drive, Tustin, CA 92780, by April 30th. For more information visit www.tbnnetworks.com/innovate
"In association with the INNOVATE! Program Challenge, Technologies for Worship Pavilion and Conferences is offering a free subscription to Technologies for Worship Magazine," says Fihn. "TBN viewers wishing to sign up for a complimentary issue may do so by visiting http://www.tfwm.com/subscribepromocode, and entering the word INNOVATE! in the promotional code box."
About TBN
TBN is the world's largest religious network and America's most watched faith network. Each day TBN offers 24 hours of commercial-free inspirational programming that appeals to people in a wide variety of denominations. Beginning in 1973 as a single UHF station in southern California, TBN now reaches every major continent via 65 satellites and more than 12,500 television and cable affiliates worldwide. In the United States, TBN is available to 92 percent of the total households. Its website receives more than 27 million visitors monthly. For more information on TBN, visit www.tbn.org.
Christians celebrate after Government axes supercasino plans
http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christians.celebrate.after.government.axes.supercasino.plans/17085.htm
Christians have expressed their delight at the Government’s announcement on Tuesday that it is abandoning plans for the UK’s first Las Vegas-style supercasino.
Gordon Brown indicated not long after he became Prime Minister last July that plans for a supercasino in Manchester would be scrapped.
The Secretary for Culture, Media and Sport, Andy Burnham, put an end to almost a year of flip-flopping on the issue in a statement to Parliament on Tuesday, although plans for 16 new casinos will still go ahead.
The Evangelical Alliance said the announcement was a “victory for local communities” and that it was delighted that its repeated calls for more stringent safeguards on casinos and gambling to protect children and the vulnerable had been heeded by Parliament. These include restrictions on credit cards, alcohol and cash machines in casinos, as well as the provision of non-gambling chill out zones.
Gareth Wallace, Parliamentary Officer for the Evangelical Alliance, said: “Over the last four years the Government’s proposals on super casinos have gone from an unlimited number, down to one and now today, down to none.
“This is a victory for local communities and the vulnerable in society and is a tribute to the pressure placed on the Government by campaigning journalists and concerned church groups.”
The Government has now pledged £10 million to regenerate Manchester, while Blackpool will receive £300 million. It also reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that the gambling industry contribute £4 million out of its £10 billion-a-year turnover towards the support of problem gamblers, a commitment Mr Wallace welcomed.
“However, the minister failed to address the elephant in the room, the liberalisation of gambling advertising that runs entirely contrary to this welcome statement abandoning super casinos,” he added.
Dr Marijke Hoek, from the Evangelical Alliance’s Greater Manchester City Fellowship, said: “Andy Burnham said that many in Manchester will be disappointed with this decision, but I for one, and many of my friends and colleagues in Manchester, are delighted.”
The Salvation Army said, meanwhile, that it was pleased that the Government had U-turned on its supercasino plans.
“We hope this will lead ultimately to creative thinking around community regeneration. Hard gambling is not the answer,” the Church said in a statement.
The Salvation Army remains concerned over the 16 new casinos, however, which are substantially larger than existing casinos in the UK.
“The alleged 'regenerative benefits' of these new casinos are yet to be proved and the onus is on local authorities and operators to ensure they have taken all necessary steps to identify and address the social consequences in their communities,” it said.
The Salvation Army has led a lengthy campaign against the new generation of casinos, warning that gambling may have a long-term detrimental effect on individuals and communities that far outweigh the possible financial benefits.
"We remain concerned about a normalisation of gambling in our society, which could negatively affect many vulnerable people and draw them into serious debt. Problem gambling already has a negative impact on the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in this country and as a society we should be doing all we can to reduce not increase that number,” The Salvation Army said.
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