24.8.08

Watchman Report 8/24/08

New Jersey Right to Life Holds Counter Protest of Planned Parenthood During August 12, 2008 Visit by Presidential Candidate John McCain
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07507.shtml


TEANECK, NJ, (christiansunite.com) -- Pro-life leaders participated in a large counter protest of Planned Parenthood during Presidential Candidate John McCain's visit to the Marriott at Glenpointe at Teaneck, NJ. The group called on state and federal officials to defund Planned Parenthood now. The event was organized by New Jersey Right to Life after learning that the presidential campaign of Barack Obama orchestrated the protest of Senator McCain with the Planned Parenthood Action Fund and other groups.

One of Planned Parenthood's federally funded Title X affiliates recently started a website, www.takecaredownthere.org. The pro-life leaders called on Barack Obama to denounce Planned Parenthood's crass and offensive website as well as their recent endorsement of his candidacy for President.

According to its 2006-2007 Annual Financial Report, Planned Parenthood Federation of America reported a record $1B in annual revenue with over $300 Million (one- third) of it coming from state and federal tax dollars. Planned Parenthood's annual report illustrates that they are the largest abortion chain in America, having performed nearly 300,000 prenatal killings by abortion last year, while providing prenatal care to only 11,058 patients.

In NJ, Planned Parenthood affiliates are scheduled to receive $7,749,000 from Governor Corzine's FY '09 state budget, which includes an increase of $240,000 from last year's budget. "NJ has the highest property taxes in the nation and is the fourth most indebted state in the nation, yet Governor Corzine saw fit to use our hard earned tax dollars to increase funding to Planned Parenthood, even though it has failed miserably in its stated goal of reducing abortions. According to Planned Parenthood's own research arm, NJ has one of the highest abortion rates in the country and, shamefully, has the dubious distinction of being the state with the highest number of black teen abortions," said Marie Tasy.

"Planned Parenthood must be defunded now. That is truly 'Change We Can Believe In,'" said Marie Tasy.

Among the pro-life groups present were New Jersey Right to Life and its chapters, LEARN Northeast (Black Genocide.org), Lifenet, New Creations Drama Ministry, Rabbi Yehuda Levin and other pro-life ministries, help groups and individuals.



Huckabee on Divided Jerusalem, Election
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/431638.aspx


CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - During his visit to Israel this week, former governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee talked with CBN News about a number of issues.

They included the division of Jerusalem and how the presidential race could affect U.S. policy in the Middle East.


A Divided Jerusalem

Huckabee took a whirlwind two-day tour of Jerusalem and its neighborhoods. Overlooking the city, he stressed Israel's capital should not be divided.

"You cannot have a divided Jerusalem and expect to have the kind of peace that I think everybody would long for," he said.

In the view of some Israeli officials, Huckabee's visit was timely.

"The fact that he's coming here, it's very important for us and the true nature of the man and his belief in a united Jerusalem and the unbreakable connection of the Jews to the Holy Land," said Danny Ayalon, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S.

Huckabee also addressed Senator John McCain's promise that if elected he would move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, a promise President Bush didn't fulfill.

"I wish he would do it," Huckabee said. "I think the embassy should be where the people whose country it's located would ask for it to be. This is the Israeli capital. Tel Aviv is not."

He added, "How would we feel if the Israelis said, 'We don't recognize Washington D.C., we're going to put our embassy in Denver. We'd say, 'Excuse us, that's not your choice to make.' And I think we frankly owe it to the Israelis to respect where their capital is."


Huckabee on Obama, McCain

Huckabee drew a distinction between the Middle East policies of the presidential candidates, especially in Barack Obama's approach toward Iran.

"Some of the comments he's made regarding Iran, [such as] 'I'd sit down and talk with them.' I'm not sure if he realizes Iran has stuff pointed right at Israel and would love to use it. And I just don't know if he fully grasps how serious the security issue is for Israel," Huckabee said.

Currently, Iran poses Israel's greatest security concern. How does Huckabee think Israel should respond to Iranian threats to destroy the Jewish state while it pursues nuclear weapons?

"Israel … has every right to protect itself under those circumstances and the United States has a responsibility to stand by them if they do or to help them," he said. "Because if Iran were to weaponize its nuclear capacity and to use it, it's not just Israel that needs to be worried, the whole world needs to be worried."

Finally, CBN News questioned Huckabee on the possibility of being chosen as McCain's running mate. Although he might not be the favorite, he's still one of the names listed as a potential running mate for McCain.

He said simply, "I don't think I have to worry about that."



Obama Campaign Continues Effort to Obscure Opposition to Born Alive Infants Protection Act
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07525.shtml


WASHINGTON, (christiansunite.com) -- The Barack Obama for President Campaign has responded to new documentation revealing that Obama has misrepresented his position with regard to opposing the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. The Susan B. Anthony List offered a response and facts on Obama's record:

"The Obama campaign thinks if they continue to repeat their flimsy story about Barack Obama's opposition to the common sense Born Alive Infant Protection Act that their thin explanation will become true. The reality is that actual legislative records directly contradict their story," commented Marjorie Dannenfelser, Susan B. Anthony List President.

"Here's the truth: Barack Obama killed the commonsense Born Alive Infant Protection Act in the Illinois Senate, and his campaign continues its game of hide and seek. That's because his position is heartless. There is no baby at any stage - even born accidentally - that he finds worth protecting. Where is his heart for the downtrodden when it comes to the most vulnerable human beings? It is no wonder he cannot admit to the truth of his 'leadership' as a State Senator."

Barack Obama opposed the Born-Alive Infant Protection Act as an Illinois State Senator. He spoke against the bill, calling it an "unnecessary burden" for women and voted against it three times. Despite that opposition, he has since declared support for the federal version of the same legislation that aims to protect newborn babies who survive abortions. Obama has publicly stated he opposed the legislation due to its lack of a "neutrality clause" - language expressing that the bill had no bearing on the legal status of unborn children with regard to abortion. Legislative documents released this week contradict that claim.

Obama Campaign Claim: "There are major differences in the state and federal bills, including the fact that the federal bill included a 'neutrality clause.'" FACT: Official legislative documents released this week show that Obama in fact presided over a committee hearing where "neutrality clause" language - identical to the federal language - was added to the Illinois version of the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. Barack Obama joined his colleagues in a vote of 10-0 to add the "neutrality clause" to the legislation. After the language was added, Obama then joined fellow Democrats to oppose the bill, killing it by a vote of 6-4. The bill Obama killed is virtually identical to the federal bill, which can be seen here.

The Susan B. Anthony List is a nationwide network of Americans, over 147,000 residing in all 50 states, dedicated to mobilizing, advancing, and representing pro-life women in politics. Its connected Candidate Fund increases the percentage of pro-life women in the political process. www.sba-list.org



Mom's true-life abortion horror story hits big screen
http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=72811


A movie has just been finished based on the true story reported by WND of a woman trapped in the bathroom of an abortion clinic who watched helplessly as her baby, who was born alive, died.

The film, "22weeks," made by a young, Puerto Rican filmmaker, Ángel Manuel Soto Vázquez, will soon be released in private screenings in select cities as it ramps up for hopeful showings at the Toronto and Cannes Film Festivals.

The film, with promotional pages on MySpace and Facebook, describes the movie on its homepage as follows:

A young woman is locked in the bathroom of an abortion clinic after her aborted baby was born alive.

A film about decisions, their effects and the echos they leave behind. Based on the shocking WorldNetDaily article by Ron Strom, on victim's testimonies, and real 911 calls about one of the most controversial subjects of our time, "22weeks" achieves to confront both sides of the spectrum and their perspective to the on going question: "what would you do?"

The film's MySpace page adds, "This is the shocking true story about the reality behind abortion and the heroic struggle of a mother willing to do anything to save her child."

Viewers should be aware the movie trailer contains graphic images and disturbing content.

The mother in the true story, identified only as Angele, since she has asked her last name not be used, was scheduled to have her 22-week pregnancy ended at the EPOC Clinic of Orlando Women's Center in Orlando, Fla. Instead, Angele told WND, she delivered the baby alive in a restroom at the clinic and said her cries for help went unheeded by the medical staff, even when an employee saw that the tiny boy was moving.

Angele said she ran to a phone outside the clinic to call a friend for help, then curled up with her son for the full 11 minutes of his short life after birth. She bathed the baby, whom she named Rowan, and cut his umbilical cord. After medical staff demanded she surrender her son's body, she blocked the door to keep them away and stayed trapped in the bathroom, praying and weeping, until the police arrived, she said.

Angele described her son:

He was perfect, slightly pale and a little translucent. His eyebrows were pale but wide and well-defined. You could see little hairs on his face and head. He had the tiniest little fingernails and toenails. I noticed they already had a little bit of growth. His mouth was lovely. He was this perfectly formed one pound, one ounce human being. He was beautiful. He had been so strong.

I wrapped him in a blue pad instead of one of the wet blankets. I just kept kissing him and telling him I loved him so much. I told him I was sorry I couldn't get anyone to help us and I was so sorry for ever coming here.

Now, with the help of supportive movie industry artists and the makers of the award-winning movie "Bella," a film about a single mother's struggle with choosing between abortion and adoption, Soto Vázquez is bringing Angele's story to the big screen.

Soto Vázquez told WND the film isn't a pro-choice or pro-life agenda film, but rather the telling of a true story that allows audiences to reach their own conclusions.

"Even though the movie doesn't take any side, the way I show it, I show both sides of the spectrum on the issue of abortion," Soto Vázquez said. "I just let the spectator decide which side he's going to take from the story, because it's based on a true story."

He said it's a move "about a woman who decides to get an abortion, and she gets an abortion. But it's also the story of a woman who, after she gets the abortion, realizes what she has done when she has that mother-son connection."

The movie is scheduled to premiere at a private screening in Puerto Rico in early October, with invitations sent to the press and to the artists who have supported it, including the makers of "Bella" and actor George Clooney.

After the premiere, screenings are planned in Kansas City, Dallas, and Los Angeles.

"We want to do private screenings for our target audience, then branch out from there so viewers can recommend the movie to more people," Soto Vázquez said. "We're doing it that way because we don't have the money to distribute it nationwide yet, but we do have access to viral marketing so we can get our main niche to follow the movie and recommend it and create enough noise to get media attention. Eventually, we'd like it to go all over the country."

WND asked Soto Vázquez how people who want to see the film can get access to it.

"I know a lot of people who support the pro-life movement would like to see this film excel," he said. "The main ways to do that are to help us make connections with media, help us find places to do screenings and help us financially make those screenings happen.

"If we found a spot do a private screening, I'm more than willing to try to make it happen. Right now, our connections are in those cities where we have screenings planned. But, for example, I don't know people in, say, Chicago."

WND asked Soto Vázquez if private theater owners who wanted to invite the movie to be shown at their facility should contact him.

"Oh, totally," Soto Vázquez answered, "that would be a blessing."

The movie's official website, 22weeksthemovie.com, has both contact information and an address for donations to increase the movie's potential distribution.

Following the death of baby Rowan three years ago, Angele told WND she chose to go public with her story and take legal action "so this doesn't happen to anybody else." As WND reported, a pro-life law organization called Liberty Counsel filed complaints on Angele's behalf against the clinic that performed the abortion.

Mathew Staver, president of Liberty Counsel, has since told WND Florida authorities chose not to act on the complaints but that the lead doctor at the clinic, Dr. James S. Pendergraft, just last year had his medical license revoked for violating the state's late-term abortion laws and prescribing medication without a license.

Pendergraft, as WND reported, is known in pro-life communities as the "Tiller of Florida," after George Tiller, a well-known late-term abortion doctor in Wichita, Kan., referred to by some activists as "Tiller the Killer."

Staver suggested the attention Pendergraft received after baby Rowan's death couldn't have helped the doctor's reputation and confirmed that though Pendergraft has applied for reinstatement, it has not yet been granted.

Angele's story is a case that would likely fall under the 2002 federal Born-Alive Infant Protection Act, which requires doctors to attempt to keep alive a baby that survives an abortion. The act has been thrust into the national spotlight recently as Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has been steeped in controversy for allegedly lying to cover up his opposition to a similar bill that would have protected babies like Rowan.



U.S. Supreme Court is Right: 'Abortion Does Cause Severe Depression and Loss of Esteem' Says 100 American Scientists, Medical and Mental Health Professionals
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07523.shtml


MEDIA ADVISORY, (christiansunite.com) -- Allan Parker, President of The Justice Foundation, announced today that 100 scientists, medical and mental health professionals, based on their training and experience, have released a joint statement today saying abortion hurts women. They agree with the following statements:

"As a scientist, medical or mental health professional, I agree with the following conclusions about abortion:

THE FACTS

1. It is common for women to experience feelings of anger, fear, sadness, anxiety, grief, or guilt after abortion. The United States Supreme Court is correct that "some women come to regret their choice to abort the infant life they once created and sustained... Severe depression and loss of esteem can follow."

2. Women's reaction to these feelings vary considerably with their emotional coping abilities and pre-existing functioning. It is undeniable that significant numbers of women are injured by abortion and should not be ignored by the medical profession and that significant numbers of women suffer serious physical, mental or psychological trauma as a result of abortion.

3. The conclusion that there is a causal connection between abortion and negative problems is supported by three independent lines of evidence: (a) the self- attribution of women themselves, (b) mental health professionals who have successfully diagnosed and treated post-abortion reactions, and (c) statistically validated studies controlling for a large number of confounding factors which have been published in peer reviewed journals.

The Justice Foundation's president, Allan Parker, also stated that the women of Operation Outcry, who have been personally hurt by abortion, also confirm that abortion hurts women. Women themselves offer the best evidence of how abortion affected them. The Justice Foundation has now collected over 3,000 testimonies from women and men hurt by abortion. It is the largest body in the world of legally admissible evidence on the harm of abortion.

Lisa Dudley, Director of Outreach for Operation Outcry said: "It is time for the world to hear the truth about our pain. Abortion hurts women and we will be silent no more."

Women who have been hurt by abortions and some of the professionals are available to discuss the issues. Contact Tracy Reynolds at 210-614-7157 or info@txjf.org.

The testimony of these women has now influenced two major court decisions, the Supreme Court (April 18, 2007 partial birth abortion decision) and the 8th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals opinion (June 27, 2008) upholding the South Dakota law requiring women be informed before abortion that abortion terminates the "life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being" and a "description of all known medical risks of the procedure and statistically significant risk factors to which the pregnant woman would be subjected, including: (i) Depression and related psychological distress; (ii) Increased risk of suicide ideation and suicide."

A full copy of the Statement of Medical and Mental Health Professionals can be read at: www.operationoutcry.org.

In addition, on March 14, 2008, the British Royal Academy of Psychiatrists stated:
"Healthcare professionals who assess or refer women who are requesting an abortion should assess for mental disorder and for risk factors that may be associated with its subsequent development. If a mental disorder or risk factors are identified, there should be a clearly identified care pathway whereby the mental health needs of the woman and her significant others may be met.

"The Royal College of Psychiatrists recognizes that good practice in relation to abortion will include informed consent. Consent cannot be informed without the provision of adequate and appropriate information regarding the possible risks and benefits to physical and mental health."

Clayton Trotter, General Counsel of The Justice Foundation said: "Given that the Supreme Court, the 8th Circuit, the British Royal Academy of Psychiatrists, 100 American Scientists, Medical and Mental Health Professionals and 3000 post-abortive women, and men agree that abortion can potentially severely hurt women we want that truth to be recognized by the American Psychological Association."



U.S. Court of Appeals Upholds First-Amendment Right to Distribute Religious Materials
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07503.shtml


CHICAGO, Ill., (christiansunite.com) -- On Thursday, August 7, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Chicago handed down a decision upholding a federal trial court ruling that an ordinance in Granite City, Ill., regulating the manner in which individuals could distribute religious and other types of handbills was unconstitutional.

By 2-1 vote, the three-judge panel upheld an earlier decision by Federal District Judge Michael Reagan, sitting in East St. Louis. Reagan had ruled that the city violated the First Amendment when it prosecuted Donald Horina, a retired teacher and "born-again" Christian from St. Charles, Mo., for distributing pro-life literature and Gospel tracts near the Hope Clinic for Women, an outpatient surgical treatment center that provides abortions, and in other locations in Granite City.

In July 2003, Horina had placed his literature on windshields of cars parked near Hope Clinic, and was cited for violating the city ordinance prohibiting the "indiscriminate" distribution of "cards, circulars, handbills, samples of merchandise or any advertising matter whatsoever on any public street or sidewalk."

Jason Craddock, a Sauk Village, Ill. lawyer who has worked on many pro-life cases with Thomas More Society and as an affiliated lawyer with Alliance Defense Fund, filed a civil rights suit in response, and won an injunction against the city. The city then adopted a new ordinance with more specific restrictions, which also was found to be an unreasonable restriction on First-Amendment rights.

The city appealed, and the Thomas More Society, based in Chicago, joined with Alliance Defense Fund to help Craddock defend the appeal, lending him aid in briefing as well as financial support.

"This is a great victory for free speech and we are proud to be a part of it," said Tom Brejcha, president and chief counsel at Thomas More Society. "We congratulate Jason Craddock on his hard work to protect our fundamental rights."



Worst of financial crisis is still to come?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/08/19/bcnken119.xml


Banking shares across the world were hit after a stark warning from the IMF's former chief economist Kenneth Rogoff that the worst of the credit crisis is yet to come.

Kenneth Rogoff, chief economist to the International Monetary Fund between 2001 and 2004, told an audience in Singapore that "the financial crisis is at the halfway point, perhaps."

Now an economics professor at Harvard University, Mr Rogoff said. "We're not just going to see mid-sized banks go under in the next few months, we're going to see a whopper, we're going to see a big one, one of the big investment banks or big banks."

He added that efforts by Asian sovereign wealth funds to bail out US banks were not the solution. "The financial system has become very bloated in size and needed to shrink," he said.

Mr Rogoff also touched on the spectre of global inflation, warning that the need to cut interest rates and stimulate the US economy is "going to lead to a lot of inflation in the next few years".

Mr Rogoff's comments came as fears that the global economic slowdown and persistent inflation has infected Asia increased, sending stock markets in Japan and Hong Kong tumbling.



U.S. at risk of cyberattacks, experts say
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/08/18/cyber.warfare/index.html


The next large-scale military or terrorist attack on the United States, if and when it happens, may not involve airplanes or bombs or even intruders breaching American borders.

Instead, such an assault may be carried out in cyberspace by shadowy hackers half a world away. And Internet security experts believe that it could be just as devastating to the U.S.'s economy and infrastructure as a deadly bombing.

Experts say last week's attack on the former Soviet republic of Georgia, in which a Russian military offensive was preceded by an Internet assault that overwhelmed Georgian government Web sites, signals a new kind of cyberwar, one for which the United States is not fully prepared.

"Nobody's come up with a way to prevent this from happening, even here in the U.S.," said Tom Burling, acting chief executive of Tulip Systems, an Atlanta, Georgia, Web-hosting firm that volunteered its Internet servers to protect the nation of Georgia's Web sites from malicious traffic.

"The U.S. is probably more Internet-dependent than any place in the world. So to that extent, we're more vulnerable than any place in the world to this kind of attack," Burling added. "So much of what we're doing [in the United States] is out there on the Internet, and all of that can be taken down at once." Video Watch experts discuss threat »

"This is such a crucial issue. At every level, our security now is dependent on computers," said Scott Borg, director of the United States Cyber Consequences Unit, a nonprofit research institute. "It's a whole new era. Political and military conflicts now will almost always have a cyber component. The chief targets will be critical infrastructure, and the attacks will emerge from within our own computer systems."

Hackers mounted coordinated assaults on Georgian government, media, banking and transportation sites in the weeks before Russian troops invaded. Known as distributed denial of service, the attacks employ multiple computers to flood networks with millions of simultaneous requests, overwhelming servers and crippling Web sites.

Hackers shut down the Web site of the Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili, for 24 hours and defaced the Georgian parliament site with images of Adolf Hitler. Saakashvili blamed Russia for the attacks, although the Russian government said it was not involved.

Web sites and computer networks have been targeted by hackers for decades, although large-scale, coordinated cyberattacks are still a relatively new phenomenon. Some Internet-security experts believe that the Georgia conflict marks the first time a known cyberattack has coincided with a ground war, but others said that similar computer attacks have accompanied military operations in the Middle East and elsewhere.

The challenge to U.S. security experts is that such attacks can be mounted anonymously, and relatively cheaply, from anywhere in the world. Georgia's attackers employed "botnets," or malicious automated programs that take root undetected in far-flung computers and barrage their targets with useless data. By last Friday, some of those botnets were originating from Comcast Internet addresses in the United States, Burling said.

"It only takes a couple of experts; it doesn't take a whole cyber infantry division to pull something like this off," said Don Jackson, director of threat intelligence for SecureWorks, an Atlanta-based computer security firm. "For a very small investment in resources, you can have a huge impact."

In the United States, government computer networks parry millions of attempted intrusions every day, Internet-security experts say. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security created a National Cybersecurity Center this year to coordinate federal cyberdefense efforts and quicken responsiveness. However, a recent Homeland Security Department intelligence report, obtained by The Associated Press, concluded that there are no effective means to prevent a coordinated attack on U.S. Web sites.

"When it comes to our government IT security, we're pretty strong in protecting against [attacks]," Homeland Security spokesman William R. Knocke told CNN. "But I wouldn't say ... we're 100 percent impenetrable."

So what would a cyberattack on the United States look like? And where is the U.S. most vulnerable? It depends on who you talk to.

Borg does not believe that the U.S. is susceptible to the kind of attacks launched at Georgia.

"We can command so much bandwidth that it's hard to overwhelm our servers," he said. "We are vulnerable to more sophisticated attacks, but right now most of the people who want to do us harm don't have those capabilities."

The Web sites of key government security agencies, such as the Pentagon and the Central Intelligence Agency, are difficult to bring down, experts said. So are the computer networks of large American banks. But experts say a successful, large-scale attack on U.S. computer systems could hobble electric-power grids, transportation networks and industrial-supply chains.

"You'd see some disruption of essential services, like electricity. You'd definitely see espionage," said James A. Lewis, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "Would it be decisive? No. Nobody's going to win a conflict with the United States in cyberspace. But would it be disruptive and irritating? Yes."

Federal researchers who launched an experimental cyberattack last year in Idaho caused a generator to self-destruct, prompting fears about the effect of a real attack on the nation's electrical supply.

And a May report by the Government Accountability Office found that the Tennessee Valley Authority, which supplies power to almost 9 million people in the southeastern U.S., had not installed sufficient cybersecurity measures. Spokesman Jim Allen said the TVA, the nation's largest publicly owned utility company, is "on track" to correct the problems.

What frustrates computer-security experts is that the features that make the Internet such an invaluable resource -- its openness and interconnectedness -- also make it easier for hackers to do harm. As a staple of 21st-century warfare, cyberattacks will become increasingly sophisticated, forcing governments and private industry to build ever-stronger firewalls and other defenses, experts said.
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Also, vague international laws and a lack of accountability will continue to make tracking down and prosecuting cyberattackers difficult.

"We don't know quite what the rules are for this kind of conflict. If it's spying, it's illegal. But is it an act of war? And who do you arrest?" Lewis asked. "We're much safer in the U.S. than we were a year ago. But we still have a long way to go."



Homeschoolers Threaten Our Cultural Comfort
http://www.homeeducator.com/FamilyTimes/articles08/86-12.html


You see them at the grocery, or in a discount store.

It's a big family by today's standards - "just like stair steps," as the old folks say. Freshly scrubbed boys with neatly trimmed hair and girls with braids, in clean but unfashionable clothes follow mom through the store as she fills her no-frills
shopping list.

There's no begging for gimcracks, no fretting, and no threats from mom. The older watch the younger, freeing mom to go peacefully about her task.

You are looking at some of the estimated 2 million children being home schooled in the U.S., and the number is growing. Their reputation for academic achievement has caused colleges to begin aggressively recruiting them. Savings to the taxpayers in instructional costs are conservatively estimated at $4 billion, and some place the figure as high as $9 billion. When you consider that these families pay taxes to
support public schools, but demand nothing from them, it seems quite a deal for the public.

Home schooling parents are usually better educated than the norm, and are more likely to attend worship services. Their motives are many and varied. Some fear contagion from the anti-clericalism, coarse speech, suggestive behavior and hedonistic values that characterize secular schools. Others are concerned for their children's safety. Some want their children to be challenged beyond the minimal competencies of the public schools. Concern for a theistic world view largely permeates the movement.

Indications are that home schooling is working well for the kids, and the parents are pleased with their choice, but the practice is coming under increasing suspicion, and even official attack, as in California.

Why do we hate (or at least distrust) these people so much?

Methinks American middle-class people are uncomfortable around the homeschooled for the same reason the alcoholic is uneasy around the teetotaler.

Their very existence represents a rejection of our values, and an indictment of our lifestyles. Those families are willing to render unto Caesar the things that Caesar's be, but they draw the line at their children. Those of us who have put our trust in the secular state (and effectively surrendered our children to it) recognize this act of defiance as a rejection of our values, and we reject them in return.

Just as the jealous Chaldeans schemed to bring the wrath of the king upon the Hebrew eunuchs, we are happy to sic the state's bureaucrats on these "trouble makers." Their implicit rejection of America's most venerated idol, Materialism, (a.k.a. "Individualism") spurs us to heat the furnace and feed the lions.

Young families must make the decision: Will junior go to day care and day school, or will mom stay home and raise him? The rationalizations begin. "A family just can't make it on one income." (Our parents did.) "It just costs so much to raise a child nowadays." (Yeah, if you buy brand-name clothing, pre-prepared food, join every club and activity, and spend half the cost of a house on the daughter's wedding, it does.) And so, the decision is made. We give up the bulk of our waking hours
with our children, as well as the formation of their minds, philosophies, and attitudes, to strangers. We compensate by getting a boat to take them to the river, a van to carry them to Little League, a 2,800-square-foot house, an ATV, a zero-turn Cub Cadet, and a fund to finance a brand-name college education. And most significantly, we claim "our right" to pursue a career for our own "self-fulfillment."

Deep down, however, we know that our generation has eaten its seed corn. We lack the discipline and the vision to deny ourselves in the hope of something enduring and worthy for our posterity. We are tired from working extra jobs, and the looming depression threatens our 401k's. Credit cards are nearly maxed, and it costs a $100 to fuel the Suburban.

Now the kid is raising h... again, demanding the latest Play Station as his price for doing his school work ... and there goes that modest young woman in the home-made dress with her four bright-eyed, well-behaved home-schooled children in tow. Wouldn't you just love to wipe that serene look right off her smug face?

Is it any wonder we hate her so?



Faith healer Todd Bentley separates from wife, draws criticism from charismatics
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=28727&ref=BPNews-RSSFeed0819


With controversial faith healer Todd Bentley announcing that he is separating from his wife, charismatic leaders J. Lee Grady and Stephen Strang have reacted by saying someone should have raised questions about Bentley earlier.

Grady, editor of the popular charismatic magazine Charisma, said the way thousands celebrated Bentley despite his moral and theological shortcomings demonstrated a lack of discernment that pervades the charismatic movement.

"We're spiritually hungry -- which can be a good thing," Grady wrote in an Aug. 13 column. "But sometimes hungry people will eat anything."

Bentley, who led a heavily publicized revival in Lakeland, Fla., beginning this spring, announced in a statement Aug. 12 that he and his wife Shonnah were separating. The staff of Bentley's Fresh Fire Ministries said "an atmosphere of fatigue and stress" created by the daily revival meetings "exacerbated existing issues in [his marriage]," according to Charisma. On Aug. 15, the board of Fresh Fire released a statement saying it had learned Bentley had been involved in "an unhealthy relationship on an emotional level with a female member of his staff." The statement said Bentley had agreed to "to refrain from all public ministry for a season to receive counsel in his personal life."

Bentley and his wife had been attending counseling for the past three years, but the counseling was suspended for the last four months while Bentley was away from his home in Abbottsford, British Columbia, Charisma reported. The Bentleys have three children.

Bentley is known for his multiple body piercings and tattoos, his violent healing techniques, his claims of angelic visions and "holy" laughter and "holy" vibrating shakes. He even claims to have raised dozens of people from the dead.

Bentley claims to be visited regularly by angels, including a 20-foot-tall angel in his apartment on one occasion and on another occasion an angel that knocked him out of his body. One angel's name supposedly is Emma. Bentley also says that Jesus Himself appears to him.

Charismatic leaders who endorsed Bentley, Grady wrote, should have known better than to thrust him into the spotlight prematurely and owe the public an apology.

"Many of us would rather watch a noisy demonstration of miracles, signs and wonders than have a quiet Bible study," Grady wrote. "Yet we are faced today with the sad reality that our untempered zeal is a sign of immaturity. Our adolescent craving for the wild and crazy makes us do stupid things. It's way past time for us to grow up."

God TV, the network that televised the Lakeland revival meetings, is particularly blameworthy because it told viewers in a pre-revival segment that "any criticism of Todd Bentley is demonic," Grady wrote, adding that the network's hosts also warned listeners that if they listened to criticism of Bentley, they could lose their healings.

"This is cultic manipulation at its worst," Grady wrote.

Though America needs true revival, any leaders who wholeheartedly endorsed Bentley promoted heresy rather than revival, according to Grady.

"Godly leaders are supposed to protect the sheep from heresy," he wrote, "not spoon feed deception to them. Only God knows how far this poison traveled from Lakeland to take root elsewhere. May God forgive us for allowing His Word to be so flippantly contaminated."

Charisma publisher Stephen Strang also took aim in a column at Bentley and those who supported him. Strang said the charismatic leaders to whom Bentley submitted himself in an accountability relationship -- John Arnott, Ché Ahn and Bill Johnson -- "should have seen it coming." He listed several indications that Bentley's ministry was not of God.

"Anyone who is in services 4 to 6 hours a day, 7 days a week for weeks on end is bound to have some type of breakdown," Strang wrote. "Anyone who covers himself with tattoos while in the ministry raises questions about his stability.

"Anyone who talks about the 'Angel of the Healing Revival' that ministered to A.A. Allen and William Branham must have overlooked the fact that Allen and Branham both were discredited with moral shortcomings. Anyone who baptizes people in the name of the Father, the Son 'and BAM' is playing lightly with the Holy Spirit and is bordering on blasphemy."

While God uses flawed men to do his work, Christians must hold spiritual leaders to the highest standards of conduct, Strang wrote.

"Perhaps some of the problems would have been prevented if men had spoken into Bentley's life several months ago," he wrote. "As good as it is to have an ambulance at the bottom of the cliff to help the injured, it is much better to have a fence at the top of the cliff to prevent someone from going over."

Chad Brand, professor of Christian theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said that while all denominations within Christianity have been touched by divorce, the charismatic movement is particularly susceptible to overlooking its leaders' moral failures.

Brand is the editor of "Perspectives on Spirit Baptism," a book detailing the charismatic and non-charismatic views of baptism in the Holy Spirit. He published several additional papers and articles on issues related to the charismatic movement.

"There is a dynamic that makes charismatic leader situations sometimes treated differently, and it is partly tied to the very term, 'charismatic,'" Brand said. "Because this person is perceived to have charismatic power or anointing, his or her failure in marriage is often easily forgiven and overlooked. So, while in many traditions, a divorce for a pastor or key leader means a loss of prestige or influence, it is not necessarily the case in charismatic circles.

"John Hagee of Cornerstone Church in San Antonio divorced his wife of 15 years in 1975 and the next year remarried, but his ministry and influence only grew in the years after that. Richard Roberts, son of Oral Roberts, also divorced his first wife after 11 years of marriage, and 10 months later remarried. Paula White and her husband Randy divorced last year. It was Paula White's second marriage. While these divorces have had ramifications for their ministries, in every case the ministry only flourished afterwards. In most other evangelical traditions, the impact of divorce has been more deeply felt by the ministers in question."

More important than focusing on Bentley's marital difficulties is noting the fact that he is a false teacher, Brand said.

"We do not know all the details of Bentley's marital situation, and so we should withhold judgment on that matter," he said. "What is plain is that he is teaching false doctrine and that the claims to his ministry's 'successes' seem pretty spurious."

Brand speculated that, like William Branham in the mid-20th century, Bentley relies on hype to promote his meetings but has few real healings.

"I spoke with a very influential Swiss Pentecostal theologian and pastor a few years ago, Walter Hollenweger, who had invited Branham to Zurich to hold meetings in the early 1960s," Brand said. "He said Branham pronounced scores of people to be 'healed' of their ailments, but a half year later not a single one of those persons was actually healed, and many had died. Branham's personal charisma had carried him, and I suspect something similar is happening with Bentley."



20 Muslim nations ban U.S. religious workers
http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=72446


A new congressional study has found that more than 20 Muslim nations deny entry to American and other foreign religious workers, WND has learned, even as the U.S. State Department grants entry to hundreds of clerics from their countries each year.

The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and most other Middle Eastern countries still refuse to offer religious visas, they and deny entry to U.S. clergy as official policy, according to a report by the Law Library of Congress, the foreign legal research arm of the U.S. Congress. In a shocker, U.S. allies Afghanistan and Iraq also made the list of religious refuseniks.

"Of this group, the vast majority constitute Arab or Muslim states," said Wendy Zeldin, senior legal research analyst for the Library of Congress.

"Since Islam prohibits proselytism by other religions, foreign religious workers will in effect be denied entry to conduct religious work," Zeldin wrote in the three-page report, a copy of which was obtained by WND.

At the same time, Washington routinely issues R-1 religious visas to clerics from the Middle East, including jihadi hotbeds Saudi Arabia and Egypt, even though an alarming number of foreign imams have been suspects in terrorism investigations since 9/11.

The Department of Homeland Security, in fact, considers visiting imams as nonthreatening as Buddhist monks. Screening procedures call for both visitors to be treated as the same level of security risk at the border.

Also, R-2 visas are routinely granted to relatives of foreign imams.

By comparison, Saudi religious police recently accused more than a dozen foreign Christians living in the kingdom of worshipping in their homes and ordered them deported.

The deportation conflicts with the message stated just weeks earlier by Saudi King Abdullah, who called for interfaith dialogue and held a summit in Spain with a representatives from several major religions.

"Deporting Christians for worshipping in their private homes shows that King Abdullah's speech is mere rhetoric and his country is deceiving the international community about their desire for change and reconciliation," International Christian Concern President Jeff King said.

King Abdullah's meetings – which drew about 200 representatives of Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Taoism and other religions – had to be held outside of Saudi Arabia, because, as one journalist observed, "the mere fact that rabbis would be openly invited to the kingdom, a country where in principle Jews are not permitted to visit, would have constituted a turning point."

Some U.S. lawmakers say the long list of Muslim nations denying non-Muslim religious workers is eye-opening.

"This gives us a better picture of what countries discriminate against us based on religion," said Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., who instructed the Congressional Research Service to compile the list (see below).

Myrick, who co-chairs of the House Anti-Terrorism/Jihad Caucus, said she is troubled by the one-sided exchange of religious visitors, and plans to introduce a bill to restrict R-1/R-2 religious visas for imams who come from countries that do not allow reciprocal visits by non-Muslim clergy.

Nations not offering religious visas & denying or restricting entry to religious workers:

I. No religious visas, entry denied to foreign religious workers:

Afghanistan
Algeria
Bahrain
Bhutan
Brunei
Egypt
Iran
Iraq
Jordan
Kuwait
Libya
Maldives
Morocco
North Korea
Oman
Palestine
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Syria
Turkmenistan
United Arab Emirates
Uzbekistan
Yemen



Smart cards overtaking the human race - more cards than people by end of 2009
http://www.securitydocumentworld.com/public/news.cfm?&m1=c_10&m2=c_5&m3=e_0&m4=e_0&subItemID=1407


New research has found that by the end of next year there will be more smart cards than people occupying this planet.

IMS Research’s latest report on the smart card market projects that the installed base of smart cards is forecast to surpass the world’s population during 2009, meaning that on average each person on the planet will be in possession of more than one smart card.

From relatively humble beginnings in 1983, it has taken 25 years for the smart card installed base to approach the level where, on average, everyone has at least one, IMS said. By the end of 2009 the installed base is projected to have passed the 7 billion level, a level the global population won’t reach until 2011. Furthermore, whereas previously smart card use was concentrated in specific markets and countries, the growing breadth of applications the market now addresses means that the use of smart cards is more widespread geographically than ever before.

“By far, for most of us, the most likely reason we own a smart card is for use within our cellular handsets, in the form of a SIM card. Not all handsets require them, but an estimated 2.7 billion did at the end of last year,” stated Alex Green, the author of IMS Research’s annual Smart Card and Semiconductors in Smart Cards report.

“The other two sectors that are forecast to aid the cellular market in driving the card installed base past 7 billion are the banking sector and the government/health sector, the installed bases of which are both projected to pass the 1 billion level this year. Additionally both are forecast to continue growing significantly, as banks look to improve security and reduce fraud and as governments roll out large national infrastructure projects that utilise smart cards. Typical examples of the latter are biometric passports, driver’s licenses, national ID card schemes and healthcare applications,” continued Green.

Along with retail loyalty cards, pay TV conditional access, payphone cards, transportation and physical access cards the next big mile stone of 10 billion is in fact less than five years away.



Citizens' U.S. Border Crossings Tracked
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/19/AR2008081902811_pf.html


The federal government has been using its system of border checkpoints to greatly expand a database on travelers entering the country by collecting information on all U.S. citizens crossing by land, compiling data that will be stored for 15 years and may be used in criminal and intelligence investigations.

Officials say the Border Crossing Information system, disclosed last month by the Department of Homeland Security in a Federal Register notice, is part of a broader effort to guard against terrorist threats. It also reflects the growing number of government systems containing personal information on Americans that can be shared for a broad range of law enforcement and intelligence purposes, some of which are exempt from some Privacy Act protections.

While international air passenger data has long been captured this way, Customs and Border Protection agents only this year began to log the arrivals of all U.S. citizens across land borders, through which about three-quarters of border entries occur.

The volume of people entering the country by land prevented compiling such a database until recently. But the advent of machine-readable identification documents, which the government mandates eventually for everyone crossing the border, has made gathering the information more feasible. By June, all travelers crossing land borders will need to present a machine-readable document, such as a passport or a driver's license with a radio frequency identification chip.

In January, border agents began manually entering into the database the personal information of travelers who did not have such documents.

The disclosure of the database is among a series of notices, officials say, to make DHS's data gathering more transparent. Critics say the moves exemplify efforts by the Bush administration in its final months to cement an unprecedented expansion of data gathering for national security and intelligence purposes.

The data could be used beyond determining whether a person may enter the United States. For instance, information may be shared with foreign agencies when relevant to their hiring or contracting decisions.

Public comments are being taken until Monday, when the "new system of records will be effective," the notice states.

"People expect to be checked when they enter the country and for the government to determine if they're admissible or not," said Greg Nojeim, senior counsel at the Center for Democracy & Technology. "What they don't expect is for the government to keep a record for 15 years of their comings into the country."

But DHS spokesman Russ Knocke said the retention period is justified.

"History has shown, whether you are talking about criminal or terrorist activity, that plotting, planning or even relationships among conspirators can go on for years," he said. "Basic travel records can, quite literally, help frontline officers to connect the dots."

The government states in its notice that the system was authorized by post-Sept. 11 laws, including the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Reform Act of 2002, the Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001, and the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004.

Nojeim said that though the statutes authorize the government to issue travel documents and check immigration status, he does not believe they explicitly authorize creation of the database.

"This database is, in a sense, worse than a watch list," he said. "At least in the watch-list scenario, there's some reason why the name got on the list. Here, the only thing a person does to come to the attention of DHS is to lawfully cross the border. The theory of this data collection is: Track everyone -- just in case."

Under the system, officials record name, birth date, gender, date and time of crossing, and a photo, where available, for U.S. travelers returning to the country by land, sea or air. The same information is gathered about foreign travelers, but it is held for 75 years.

DHS and other agencies are amassing more and more data that they subject to sophisticated analysis. A customs document issued last month stated that the agency does not perform data mining on border crossings to glean relationships and patterns that could signify a terrorist or law enforcement threat. But the Federal Register notice states that information may be shared with federal, state and local governments to test "new technology and systems designed to enhance border security or identify other violations of law." And the Homeland Security Act establishing the department calls for the development of data-mining tools to further the department's objectives.

That raises concerns, privacy advocates say, that analyses can be undertaken that could implicate innocent people if appropriate safeguards are not used.

The border information system will link to a new database, the Non-Federal Entity Data System, which is being set up to hold personal information about all drivers in a state's database. States that do not agree to allow customs to have such large amounts of information may allow the agency to query their databases in real time for information on a traveler.

Because of privacy concerns, Washington state earlier this year opted for the queries-only approach. The Canadian government made the same decision. "There was absolutely no way they should have the entire database," said Ann Cavoukian, Ontario's privacy commissioner, who learned about the Canadian government's decision in April.

"Once you have data in a database you don't need, it lends itself to unauthorized use," she said. "You have no idea of the data creep."

Vermont opted to allow access to its driver's licenses because the state could not guarantee the "nanoseconds" response time DHS required, said Bonnie L. Rutledge, the state's commissioner of motor vehicles. She said drivers are informed up front of the data sharing.

"A person opts to go over the border, their information is going to be collected and held anyway," she said. "If you don't want to go over the border, you don't have to."

The notice states that the government may share border records with federal, state, local, tribal or foreign government agencies in cases where customs believes the information would assist enforcement of civil or criminal laws or regulations, or if the information is relevant to a hiring decision.

They may be shared with a court or attorney in civil litigation, which could include divorce cases; with federal contractors or consultants "to accomplish an agency function related to this system of records"; with federal and foreign intelligence or counterterrorism agencies if there is a threat to national or international security or to assist in anti-terrorism efforts; or with the news media and the public "when there exists a legitimate public interest in the disclosure of the information."

Homeland Security is proposing to exempt the database from some provisions of the 1974 Privacy Act, including the right of a citizen to know whether a law enforcement or intelligence agency has requested his or her records and the right to sue for access and correction in those disclosures.

A traveler may, however, request access to records based on documents he or she presented at the border.



Gay Rights Activist Look To Shut Down Christian Publications In Canada
http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=72467


A Christian publication already cleared by the Canadian Human Rights Commission on claims its reporting on issues involving homosexuality stem from "bigotry, discrimination and hate" will have to defend itself – again – from the same charges.

Officials with Catholic Insight have confirmed homosexual activist Rob Wells, whose earlier allegations against the publication were rejected, has appealed to the Federal Court in Canada.

"On Aug. 12, Toronto-based Catholic Insight and its editor Father Alphonse de Valk received notification that Wells had filed an appeal … with the Federal Court of Canada. Wells is requesting that the appeal be heard in Edmonton," the magazine said in an announcement.

It had been only a month earlier that the Canadian Human Rights Commission notified Catholic lnsight the charges of "bigotry, discrimination and hate" raised by Wells had been dismissed.

The reason given was that Catholic Insight's reporting was determined not "likely to expose a person or persons to hatred or contempt based on sexual orientation."

"Catholic Insight and its editor will be required to defend themselves in yet another proceeding. We will be obliged, once again, to engage more of our time and finances to defend against what can be seen as harassment by a person or persons unhappy with Catholic Insight's editorial stance in opposition to same-sex 'marriage' and the resulting drive for equality of the homosexual lifestyle in schools and elsewhere. It is frankly astonishing that more Canadians do not recognize the negative impact such complainants have on what should be the expression of ideas in our current culture," the magazine said in its announcement.

"We are forced, once more, to appeal to the generosity of our supporters for assistance," the magazine said.

De Valk, the editor, said earlier, "It is chilling to think that a publication can be hauled before a government tribunal simply for reporting to interested citizens developments in these [homosexual rights] areas of controversy."

WND reported earlier on the Canadian procedures that give human rights commissions virtually unlimited power to "hear" allegations of "hate crimes" and issue orders in those cases.

Already, a Knights of Columbus council was fined more than $1,000 for refusing to allow its facility to be used for a lesbian "wedding," and before that printer Scott Brockie was fined $5,000 for declining to print homosexual-themed stationery. In another case Hugh Owens was fined thousands of dollars for quoting Bible verses in a newspaper and London, Ontario, mayor Diane Haskett was fined $10,000 for refusing to proclaim a homosexual pride day.

Officials noted the United States is not immune to such cases, either, after a New Mexico photographer was fined $6,600 for refusing to meet the demands of a lesbian to take pictures at a "wedding."

Canada Family Action Coalition has blamed the situation on "bastardized courts" because activists who claim "hurt feelings" are demanding and getting penalties imposed against those who oppose homosexuality.

Wells has alleged he was offended by the Catholic Insight. Its editor, de Valk, said the claims are unfounded and the publication simply follows the teaching of the Catholic Church on homosexuality.

Catholic Insight reported that Wells' attack on the publication is not his first. In 2006 he tried to close down several websites including concernedchristians.ca because of their Christian content.



How Big Brother watches your every move
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2571041/How-Big-Brother-watches-your-every-move.html


With every telephone call, swipe of a card and click of a mouse, information is being recorded, compiled and stored about Britain's citizens.

An investigation by The Sunday Telegraph has now uncovered just how much personal data is being collected about individuals by the Government, law enforcement agencies and private companies each day.

In one week, the average person living in Britain has 3,254 pieces of personal information stored about him or her, most of which is kept in databases for years and in some cases indefinitely.

The data include details about shopping habits, mobile phone use, emails, locations during the day, journeys and internet searches.

In many cases this information is kept by companies such as banks and shops, but in certain circumstances they can be asked to hand it over to a range of legal authorities.

Britain's information watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office, has called for tighter regulation of the amount of data held about citizens and urged the public to restrict the information they allow organisations to hold on them.

This newspaper's findings come days after the Government published plans to grant local authorities and other public bodies access to the email and internet records of millions. Phone companies already retain data about their customers and give it to 650 public bodies on request.

The loss of data by Government departments, including an incident where HM Revenue and Customs mislaid computer disks containing the personal details of 25 million people, has heightened concerns about the amount of information being stored.

David Smith, deputy information commissioner, said: "As more and more information is collected and kept on all of us, we are very concerned that appropriate safeguards go along with that.

"People should know what is happening with their information and have a choice.

"Our concern is that what is kept with the justification of preventing and detecting terrorism, can then be used for minor purposes such as pursuing people for parking fines."

Earlier this year the Commons home affairs select committee recommended new controls and regulations on the accumulation of information by the state.
Mobile phones

Every day the average person makes three mobile phone calls and sends at least two text messages.

Each time the network provider logs information about who was called as well as the caller's location and direction of travel, worked out by triangulation from phone masts.

Customers can also have their locations tracked even when they are not using their phones, as the devices send out unique identifying signals at regular intervals.

All of this information can be accessed by police and other public authorities investigating crimes.

The internet

Internet service providers (ISPs) compile information about their customers when they go online, including name, address, the unique identification number for the connection, known as an IP address, any browser used and location.

They also keep details of emails, such as whom they were sent to, together with the date and time they were sent. An average of 50 websites are visited and 32 emails sent per person in Britain every day.

Privacy campaigners have expressed concern that the country's three biggest ISPs – BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk – now provide this data to a digital advertising company called Phorm so that it can analyse web surfing habits.

ISPs are already voluntarily providing information they hold about their customers if requested by law enforcement agencies and public authorities. A consultation published last week by the Government would make it a legal requirement for ISPs to provide a customer's personal information when requested. A total of 520,000 requests were made by public officials for telephone and internet details last year, an increase from around 350,000 the previous year.

Internet search engines also compile data about their users, including the IP address and what was searched for. Google receives around 68 searches from the average person each day and stores this data for 18 months.

Dr Ian Brown, a research fellow on privacy at Oxford University, said: "Companies such as Google and internet service providers are building up huge databases of data about internet users.

"These companies may be compelled, through a legal action, to hand over this information to third parties or the Government, or the companies may lose the data and it can then be misused."

Loyalty cards

Store "loyalty" cards also retain large amounts of information about individuals who have signed up to use them. They link a person's personal details to the outlets used, the transaction times and how much is spent.

In the case of Nectar cards, which are used by more than 10 million people in Britain once a week, information from dozens of shops is compiled, giving a detailed picture of a cardholder's shopping habits.

A spokesman for Loyalty Management UK, which runs the Nectar programme, insisted that information about the items bought was not compiled, but some partners in the scheme, such as Sainsbury's, use their till records to compile that information.

She admitted that the personal information that is compiled under the Nectar scheme is kept indefinitely until individuals close their account and ask for their information to be destroyed. In criminal inquiries, police can request the details held by Nectar.

Banks

Banks can also be required to hand over personal account information to the authorities if requested as part of an investigation.

They also provide personal data to credit reference agencies, debt collectors and fraud prevention organisations.

Debit and credit card transactions can give information about where and on what people are spending their money.

CCTV

The biggest source of surveillance in Britain is through the network of CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras. On average, an individual will appear on 300 CCTV cameras during a day and those tapes are kept by many organisations for indefinite lengths of time.

On the London Underground network, Transport for London (TfL) keeps footage for a minimum of 14 days. TfL operates more than 8,500 CCTV cameras in its underground stations, 1,550 cameras on tube trains and up to 60,000 cameras on buses.

Network Rail refused to say how many CCTV cameras it operates or for how long the footage is kept.

Britain now has more CCTV cameras in public spaces than any other country in the world. A study in 2002 estimated that there were around 4.2 million cameras, but that number is likely to now be far higher.

Number plate recognition

The latest development in CCTV is the increased use of automatic number plate recognition systems, which read number-plates and search databases for signs that a vehicle has been used in crime.

A national automatic number plate recognition system is maintained by the Association of Chief Police Officers along motorways and main roads. Every number plate picked up by the system is stored in a database with date, time and location for two years.
Public transport

Travel passes such as the Oyster Card used in London and the Key card, in Oxford, can also reveal remarkable amounts of information about an individual. When they are registered to a person's name, they record journey history, dates, times and fares.

A spokesman for TfL, which runs the Oyster Card system, insisted that access to this information was restricted to its customer services agents.

Police, however, can also obtain this information and have used Oyster Card journey records as evidence in criminal cases.

The workplace

Employers are increasingly using radio-tagged security passes for employees, providing them with information about when staff enter and leave the office.



Ancient Bible to Be Reconstructed Online
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,388182,00.html?sPage=fnc/scitech/archaeology


LONDON — The oldest surviving copy of the New Testament, a 4th century version that had its Gospels and epistles spread across the world, is being made whole again — online.

The British Library says the full text of the Codex Sinaiticus will be available to Web users by next July, digitally reconnecting parts that are held in Britain, Russia, Germany and a monastery in Egypt's Sinai Desert.

A preview of the Codex, which also has some parts of the Old Testament, will hit the Web on Thursday — the Book of Psalms and the Gospel of Mark.

"Only a few people have ever had the opportunity to see more than a couple of pages of the [Codex]," said Scot McKendrick, the British Library's head of Western manuscripts.

The Web site will give everyone access to a "unique treasure," he said.

Discovered at the Monastery of Saint Catherine at Mount Sinai by German Bible scholar Constantine Tischendorf in the mid-19th century, much of the Codex eventually wound up in Russia — just how exactly the British Library won't say, citing lingering sensitivity over the circumstances surrounding its removal from the monastery.

The British Library bought 347 pages from Soviet authorities in 1933. Forty-three pages are at the University Library in Leipzig, Germany, and six fragments are at the National Library of Russia in St. Petersburg. And in 1975, monks stumbled on 12 more pages and 40 fragments stashed in a hidden room at the monastery.

Biblical scholars are thrilled at the news that the Codex Sinaiticus — divided since Tischendorf's trip to the monastery in 1844 — is finally being put back together, albeit virtually.

In the past, anyone wishing to examine the document first hand would have had to approach the British Library "on bended knee," said Christopher Tuckett, a professor of New Testament studies at Oxford University.

"To have it available just at the click of a button is fantastic," he said. "You could do in two seconds what would take hours and hours of flicking through the leaves."

Handwritten in Greek more than 1,600 years ago — it isn't exactly clear where — the surviving 400 or so pages carry a version of the New Testament that has a few interesting differences from the Bible used by Christians today.

The Gospel of Mark ends abruptly after Jesus' disciples discover his empty tomb, for example. Mark's last line has them leaving in fear.

"It cuts out the post-resurrection stories," said Juan Garces, curator of the Codex Sinaiticus Project. "That's a very odd way of ending a Gospel."

James Davila, a professor of early Jewish studies at St. Andrews University in Scotland, said the Codex also includes religious works foreign to the Roman Catholic and Protestant canons — such as the "Epistle of Barnabas" and the "Shepherd of Hermas," a book packed with visions and parables.

Davila stressed that did not mean the works were necessarily considered Scripture by early Christians: They could have been bound with the Bible to save money.

The Codex itself is a fascinating artifact, representing the best of Western bookmaking, Garces said. The parchment was arranged in little multipage booklets called quires, which were then numbered in sequence.

"It was the cutting edge of technology in the 4th century," he said.

The British Library bound its quires into two volumes after their purchase from the Soviets, one of which is kept on show in a climate-controlled, bulletproof display case. Visitors can peer at the ancient book, but only see two pages at a time.

By next July, the entire Codex will be available for free — along with transcription, translation and search functions — on the Internet.



Dead Sea Scrolls Link Past and Present
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/431829.aspx


CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - Just over 60 years ago, a Bedouin boy stumbled on one of the greatest treasures in history. He discovered the first of the Dead Sea Scrolls, which constitute the oldest evidence for the Hebrew Bible.

On the edge of the Dead Sea, deep in the heart of the Judean wilderness in a place called Qumran, came some of the most significant artifacts of modern times: the Dead Sea Scrolls.

For two millennia, the scrolls lay hidden in 11 caves throughout the Qumran area. Their discovery marked the most important archaeological finds of the 20th century.

To learn more about the Dead Sea Scrolls, CBN News hiked up to one of those 11 caves with Stephen Pfann, founder of the University of the Holy Land and an expert on the Dead Sea Scrolls.

When asked why the Dead Sea Scrolls were so important to us today, Pfann said, "because they confirm the Bible that we have. There's variants, but basically it's [that] you can barely tell the difference between the two texts, [the one] that we have in Qumran and in our Bibles."

The Dead Sea Scrolls provide a 2,000-year-old link between the Scriptures during the time of Jesus and today.

"[It's also important] because we can hold the same scrolls in our hands that they held in their hands 2,000 years ago. And when somebody sits there with their New Testament and their Bibles in the United States and they're listening to their favorite sermon, they can know that this Bible was based upon manuscripts that people held in their hands from 2,000 years ago."

Now for the first time since 1967, curators at the Israel Museum put on display the most significant Dead Sea Scroll of all: the original scroll of Isaiah to mark Israel's 60th birthday.

"We are celebrating the 60th anniversary of the State of Israel and by chance or not, also the 60th anniversary of the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. We thought that the best way to honor the State of Israel is to bring back these major treasures of the Jewish nation for the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the country," said Adolfo Roitman, curator of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

"I think a strong case could be made for anyone of faith that this is a tremendous act of God -- to make this available to people at the same time that the State of Israel, as a people, has actually been restored. And I'm not sure and we don't want to overstate the rather amazing [timing]," he said

"It's hard to overstate the amazing coincidence that the massive scrolls were discovered around the same time, in the same months, that the State of Israel was proclaimed and was founded here in the land again."

Roitman says the scroll of Isaiah holds a special significance for Christians.

"But also I have to remind [you of] the fact that it's the oft-quoted prophet in the New Testament and all the major prophecies concerning the Messiah, which in the Christian interpretation was Jesus, [they're] also they're coming from the book of Isaiah.

"And there is a specific event and we have only one instance in all the Gospels where we actually have Jesus reading from a scroll, as [it is] in the Gospel Luke, chapter 4, that on Shabbat [Sabbath], on Saturday in Nazareth, he was given the book of Isaiah and he read from the book, the famous passage in Isaiah chapter 61," he said.

"It means that for Jesus, for John the Baptist and for the first Christians -- all of them also Jews -- the book of Isaiah was very central for them."

Jesus quoted these verses from Isaiah 61: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

Two thousand years ago, the Isaiah scroll and many others were hidden in the caves near Qumran. Two thousand years later, the scrolls still speak to us.



Israeli editorial call for third party peace gurantee or foreshadowing of Daniel 9:27?
http://www.israelenews.com/view.asp?ID=2857


Last week Haaretz newspaper reported on the Olmert offer to the Palestinians. According to the report Israel has offered the Palestinians 93% of the West Bank, a territorial swap of 5.5% making the total Israeli withdraw from territories 98.5% of the 100% of the 22% of West Bank Palestinian land between the River and the Sea.

The Israeli offer includes a corridor between the West Bank and Gaza that would remain under Israeli sovereignty but Palestinians would enjoy free passage without Israeli security checks. The main parcels of land to be swapped would be in the Negev and would enlarge the land area of Gaza.

The report also mentions a deal on the refugee issue that “rejects a Palestinian "right of return" and states that the refugees may only return to the Palestinian state, other than exceptional cases in which refugees would be allowed into Israel for family reunification. Nevertheless, the proposal includes a detailed and complex formula for solving the refugee problem.”

Apparently the detailed and complex formula resembles the Clinton parameters which were borrowed from the discussions on refugees at Taba in early 2001.

Absent from the plan is any mention of Jerusalem. The report does not mention if the total land area in question include the Jerusalem area. In the past, Israel played with the percentages of land to be withdrawn from by excluding the greater Jerusalem area from the map. It is quite clear to me that the negotiators have been discussing Jerusalem, however, internal Israeli domestic politics do not allow for admitting that Jerusalem is on the table. Of course without Jerusalem, there is no possibility of a deal. Did Olmert already agree to Palestinian or Muslim sovereignty over Haram al Sharif/Temple Mount?

Or have Olmert and Abbas agreed to deposit the sovereignty over the Holy place to God? Will Palestinians have sovereignty over the Palestinian areas of East Jerusalem including within the Old City (as the Clinton parameters proposed?). Without answering these questions there is no peace treaty, no end of conflict and no change in the status quo.

The territories that Israel plans to hold onto includes Gush Etzion, Maaleh Adumim, the settlements surrounding Jerusalem and the settlements in western Samaria – more or less according to the route of the separation barrier. Again it is not clear if the figures include all of the Israeli settlements/neighborhoods in Jerusalem such as French Hill, Ramot, Gilo, etc. The Haaretz report mentions that once Palestinian agreement is achieved on the plan, Israel plans to continue settlement expansion in those settelements that will remain under Israeli sovereignty. Is this Olmert’s way of removing US pressure on Israel concerning the settlement expansion already taking place under Olmert’s reign?

So far, there has been no official response from President Abbas. From the Israeli side, this may very be as far as any Israeli government can go. This plan would include an Israeli commitment to remove some 100 settlements which are east of the areas to be withdrawn from with an estimated population of about 80,000.

The report makes mention that the government would sponsor the legislation for voluntary withdrawal and resettlement tabled in the Knesset by Colette Avital (Labour) and Avshalom Vilan (Meretz). The Israeli government has not been capable of removing even a single unauthorized outpost, how will it remove so many settlements and so many settlers? The only way for that to be possible is to have a clear majority of Israeli public support for the whole plan.

This is a good basis for moving forward but there needs to be a lot of clarifications. What is the status of the land between Maaleh Adumim and Jerusalem? Is it possible for the Palestinians to purchase Maaleh Adumim and to remove that large Israeli island in the middle of the West Bank? Would the Palestinians allow Israeli settlers to remain the West Bank as citizens of Palestine living under Palestinian law? Regarding the link to Gaza, Olmert has mentioned in the past that his preferred option for the Gaza-West Bank link is a tunnel of 40 kilometers from Tarqumia to Gaza, if there will be a tunnel, clearly, it does not have to remain under Israeli sovereignty.

What will happen to the Jewish settlers in Hebron and to Jewish religious rights in Hebron? How long is the proposed period of implementation? When with the first Israeli withdrawals be made? What will be the future of Gaza? What will be the status of the coastal waters of Gaza? Will there be a Gaza seaport? Will the Palestinians have freedom to control their external borders? Will Palestine have an international airport? Do the sides agree to international peacekeeping forces on the ground? Who will monitor and verify implementation?

In addition to these questions there are the internal domestic political questions that need to be resolved: Will Hamas allow for the Palestinian elections based on a peace proposal? Could there be a referendum in Palestine on the plan? Would a majority of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza support the plan? What about the Palestinians in the diaspora – will they be counted as well? Will the plan gain the support of a majority of Israelis?

It seems that the negotiations are continuing despite the difficult internal domestic political situation on both sides. Secretary Rice will be in the region next week. It has been reported that the Americans would like to see a draft of what has been agreed to. The Haaretz reports mentions Olmert’s objection to having a partial document that would/could serve as a point of reference in future negotiations after there is a new government in Israel. Olmert’s objection to such a document might be because it would expose the fact that Jerusalem has also been negotiated.

Recently, the negotiators have been confronting Israel’s security demands and these have caused significant frustrations on both sides. Those demands include (according to rumors) Israeli refusal to the seaport in Gaza and the airports in the West Bank (Calandia in Jerusalem and the north of the West Bank in the Jenin area).

Palestinians have indicated a willingness to meet all of Israel’s reasonable security demands, but without third party troops on the ground this will not be possible. Is Israel willing to have foreign troops stationed in Palestine to provide for Israel’s security demands?

There are many other questions, one important one who is leaked the document and why?

Haaretz correspondent Aluf Benn is known for his good contacts in the Prime Minister’s office – was his source Olmert himself?

Is leaking the plan a “test balloon” of Israeli public opinion?

Did Abass know that Olmert was planning to leak the plan?

Did leaking the plan have anything to do with the Kadima primaries?

Was it an attempt by Olmert to embarrass Tzipi Livni who is associated with the negotiations?

Certainly some of these questions will become clearer in the coming days, others will remain without answers.

There are two main observations that I would like to point to:

1 is that significant progress has been made and Olmert has come a long way since his days in the Likud; and

2, this same deal could have been reached years ago without all of the pain, suffering, death and destruction that we have seen since September 2000. An agreement is possible, the gaps have been significantly narrowed.

There is now a need for a credible third party mediator to step in with bridging proposals to close the deal and to provide the guarantees that are required.



Cutting out US role, new Egyptian-Saudi plan proposes inter-Arab force for Gaza
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5529


DEBKAfile’s military sources report that a new 11-point scheme, just developed by Saudi King Abdullah and Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, provides for the bulk of the 3,000-strong force to be Egyptian. The plan would effectively restore Egypt’s pre-1967 domination of the Gaza Strip.

It will be presented to Israeli defense minister Ehud Barak when he visits Mubarak’s summer palace in Alexandria, Tuesday, Aug. 26.

Hamas is offered a political comeback on the West Bank and a seat on the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)’s ruling institutions.

When Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s arrives in Jerusalem and Ramallah, Sunday, Aug. 24, she will find this plan already on the table for Egypt (speaking also for Saudi Arabia), Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

If Israel accepted the Egyptian-Saudi blueprint, its 1979 peace treaty with Cairo would have to be revised, especially the demilitarization provisions. A parallel proposal would appoint Jordan as overseer of Palestinian government institutions and security forces on the West Bank.

According to DEBKAfile’s sources, Saudi King Abdullah this week discussed the plan with the Jordanian king and the Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

They note that this is the most far-reaching Arab regional plan since the Saudi peace initiative was put forward in 2000. If carried by all the parties involved, it would restore certain key elements of their pre-1967 War status to the Gaza Strip and West Bank.

DEBKAfile’s sources reveal here the 11 points of the new plan:

1. The rival Palestinian Hamas and Fatah must end their vendetta.

2. They will both release prisoners.

3. Fatah fugitives from the Gaza Strip will be allowed to return home.

4. The tit-for-tat bans on Fatah and Hamas institutions in the Gaza Strip and West Bank must be lifted.

5. Hamas must hand Gaza’s ruling institutions back seized two years ago to the Palestinian Authority.

The last six clauses present the toughest challenges.

6. Hamas must suspend the operations of its militia and police forces.

7. Inter-Arab monitors, headed by Egyptian officers, will supervise the Gaza police force.

8. Another panel headed by Egyptian officers will compile a reform program for the Palestinian security bodies in Gaza, effectively removing them from Hamas’ hands.

9. In the interim, until the reform program is implemented, an inter-Arab force of 3,000, commanded by Egyptian security officers, will be in charge of security matters.

10. A provisional Palestinian government will be installed in Ramallah in place of the Salam Fayad administration. It will consist of nonpartisan technocrats acceptable to Fatah and Hamas alike.

11. The PLO’s governing institutions will be overhauled to make room for Hamas representation for the first time.



Last of "lost tribe" in India to move to Israel
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/127270


In a decision that is being called "historic," the government has resolved to allow the remaining 7,232 members of the Bnei Menashe Jewish community in India to immigrate to Israel.

The decision comes ten months after another Cabinet decision demanding Cabinet approval each time a group of ten or more Bnei Menashe wished to immigrate to Israel. That decision was called "immoral" and "post-Zionist" by Bnei Menashe supporters.

The welcoming decision was made over the past few days by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, after Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit was finally convinced to remove his objections. It was Sheetrit who led the original decision of last October, voluntarily transferring to the Cabinet his authority to approve immigration - and thus essentially preventing Bnei Menashe from arriving.

Background

The Bnei Menashe claim descent from the tribe of Menashe, one of the Ten Tribes exiled from the Land of Israel by the Assyrian empire over 2,700 years ago. They reside primarily in the Indian states of Mizoram and Manipur, along India's border with Burma and Bangladesh. In recent years, over 800 members of the community have made Aliyah, thanks largely to the efforts of Shavei Israel, a Jerusalem-based organization that assists “lost Jews” seeking to return to the Jewish people.

The Bnei Menashe in Israel reside mainly in Kiryat Arba, Beit El and Ofrah.

300 Each Month

With the new government decision, it is hoped that all the remaining Bnei Menashe will be brought to Israel within a two-year period, at a rate of some 300 per month. This, in order not to antagonize the Indian government, and apparently to ease the immigration process as well.

Community is Jewish, Individuals Must Convert

Michael Freund, head of Shavei Israel, has been working for over 15 years to provide Jewish and general education to the Bnei Menashe in Israel, and to persuade the Israeli government that they should be allowed to immigrate. Their aliyah [immigration to Israel] is complicated by the fact that though the Jewishness of the community is now a recognized historical and religious fact, each individual must formally convert to Judaism on his own.

Approximately 100 Bnei Menashe used to arrive in Israel each year, until approximately 2003, when then-Interior Minister Avraham Poraz, of the extreme-secularist Shinui party, ordered a freeze on further immigration to Israel from India, Ethiopia and Peru. He explained openly that immigrants from those countries undergo only Orthodox conversions, and that many of them choose to live in Judea and Samaria.

Freund countered at the time that the reason why most of the Bnei Menashe live in Yesha (Judea, Samaria and Gaza) was because those localities actively welcomed them, while others did not.

Rabbi Amar Rules

Freund later achieved a breakthrough in the matter when he succeeded in having Israel's Chief Sephardic Rabbi Shlomo Amar send two rabbinical court judges to visit northeastern India. Based on the findings of that visit, the Rabbi ruled in March 2005 that the Bnei Menashe were, in fact, “descendants of Israel.”

The remaining 7,232 Bnei Menashe members in India comprise an exact list of those whose immigration to Israel the government will allow. The government and the Jewish Agency wish to avoid a situation, such as in Ethiopia, where apparent non-Jews "jump on the bandwagon" and demand to be brought to Israel as well.

Post-Zionist Decision Replaced by Welcoming Hand

Regarding last year's decision, Freund told Arutz-7 at the time, "The Chief Rabbinate is willing to convert them, but the government is saying it does not wish to allow these people to be candidates for conversion. This is an unconscionable act... Requiring full cabinet approval every time a group of people wishes to move here and undergo conversion is a recipe for bureaucratic inertia, as there is little chance of getting such an item onto the busy agenda of the entire government. Hence, by creating a virtually insurmountable obstacle to approval, [Sheetrit] hopes to bury the issue once and for all."

"Why, you might be wondering, would Sheetrit and his cabinet colleagues do such a thing?" Freund wrote at the time. "The answer is really quite simple. It is post-Zionism of the ugliest sort, tinged by prejudice and sheer ignorance."

If so, the government's latest decision has replaced its "ugly post-Zionism" with a warm and welcoming hand to Jews the world over.



Israel to be first in world to create biometric database for all citizens
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3577046,00.html


The government approved Sunday a motion calling for the establishment of a biometric database by the Ministry of Interior and the Public Security Ministry.

The motion, dubbed the "identification card, travel papers and biometrics database bill," will now be referred back to the various Knesset committees, which would ready it for its Knesset votes.

The new bill called for embedding biometric data, such as fingerprints and computerized tags of facial features, in Israeli IDs and passports; as well as for the establishment of a database which would include biometric data on all Israeli citizens.

The data would be used by the Ministry of Interior in its future plans to create "smart", forgery-proof identification papers and passports; and would also allow authorities to identify people who are not carrying any means of identification, especially in cases of a mass disaster, should the need to identify fatalities arise.

Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter told the government that the "need to create a unique (physical) bond between the person carrying an ID and the data which appears on it, is essential in order to fight the worldwide forgeries… Should we succeed we would be able to create a nationwide database controlled, as it should be, by the State."

'Database detrimental to civil rights'

The motion was carried despite the fierce objections of ministers who claim creating a biometrics database would be detrimental to civil rights, such as the right to privacy.

The Israeli Bar Association sent Justice Minister Daniel Friedmann a letter to that effect last week, in which it asked him to postpone the decision on the bill, pending the Bar's further studying of the subject.

"Forming such a database would harm the citizens' basic right to privacy," read the letter; adding that such a database would be at constant risk of being hacked into by hostile elements, and would make "potential criminals out of every law-abiding citizen."

The existence of such a database – which includes every citizen – has yet to be sanctioned in any Western country, added the Bar. The Israeli Association for the Protection of Privacy and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel have also expressed their objection to the bill.



Israelis: War With Hezbollah Inevitable
http://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/israel_hezbollah/2008/08/18/122916.html


The Israeli army says Hezbollah has re-armed with 40,000 rockets — triple the number it had at the start of the Lebanon War two years ago. Therefore, many Israelis believe another war with Hezbollah is inevitable.

"The war set the stage for a more comprehensive Middle East conflict," said Israeli analyst Michael Oren. "It set into motion a dynamic in the Arab world, where much of the Arab street believes that Hezbollah won that war, and there is tremendous expectation on Hezbollah to continue the struggle."

Hezbollah fired 4,000 rockets into Israel during the 34-day conflict. But a massive Israeli air and ground assault failed to deal a knockout blow to 5,000 Hezbollah guerrillas in South Lebanon, prompting an official Israeli inquiry to describe the government's and army's handling of the war as a failure.

Oren says there were failures, but also achievements.

"Israel wreaked tremendous havoc in Lebanon in 2006," Oren said. "We destroyed all of Hezbollah's infrastructure, much of its civilian headquarters, we killed about a quarter of their fighters, that is a prohibitive number of casualties for any modern fighting force, and yet perception is everything in the Middle East and the perception was, in the Arab world at least, that Israel was bested in that conflict."

Under the U.N. ceasefire resolution that ended the war, about 13,000 international peacekeepers have deployed in South Lebanon. But Israel charges that they have failed to fulfill their mandate of preventing weapons smuggling to Hezbollah from Syria and Iran.

With a bristling new arsenal of rockets, Oren believes a Hezbollah attack on Israel is just a matter of time.

"Israel would then have to reply into Lebanon, possibly drawing in the Syrians and ultimately the Iranians," Oren said.

And with the possible involvement of regional superpowers, the next war could be much worse than the last one.



Israel prepares for possible Syrian-Lebanese-Iranian missile strike with extended missile ranges
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2008/eu_russia0447_08_20.asp


The military released classified information confirming that Israel has been monitoring recent Syrian missile tests. Included in the arsenal the Syrians are said to be testing are long-range missiles based on the Scud missile, of which Damascus has approximately 1,000, as well as shorter-range rockets.

IDF officials revealed that the Syrian tests were detected by Israeli radar and missile defense systems. The Syrian missile batteries can target most key locations in Israel, either with the inaccurate Scuds or with more precise smaller surface-to-surface medium-range rockets and missiles.

The Scud missile, with a range of 300 to 700 kilometers (186-435 miles), can hit within Israel as far south from Syria as the Negev and Eilat. One version of the Iraqi Scuds fired at Israel during the first Gulf War in 1991, the Al-Hussein, had a maximum range of about 630 kilometers (391 miles); however, Iraq had reportedly developed a modified Scud called the Al-Abbas with a range of 800 kilometers (497 miles), if not more.

The Syrian arsenal is also believed to include chemical and biological warheads of Syria's own manufacture. In addition, there have been persistent, although unverified, reports that the late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein sent his army's weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) to Syria for safekeeping ahead of the American invasion of Iraq in 2003. United Nations inspection teams regularly reported in the 1990s that the Iraqi regime had developed chemical and biological warheads for the Al-Hussein missiles, but these have not been definitively located.

In recent years, Syria has been improving and expanding its armed forces, including its missile arsenal, with Iranian, North Korean and Russian assistance. As part of its regional aspirations, Syria has also been assuring a steady flow of missiles and other materiel to the Lebanon-based Hizbullah terrorist organization. In 2006, Hizbullah waged a missile war against Israel with rockets reaching as far south as Jenin, in Samaria.

Last month Defense Minister Ehud Barak told US Vice President Dick Cheney that "the number of missiles in the hands of Hizbullah has doubled, if not tripled, and that the range of the missiles has been extended. And this has been accomplished with the close assistance of the Syrians." In March, an anonymous source told the Associated Press that Hizbullah held new Iranian rockets capable of striking as far south as Dimona, Israel's nuclear facility in the Negev.

In response to the Syrian missile threat, the IDF has conducted exercises simulating a combined, multi-level Syrian-Lebanese-Iranian strike on the Israeli homefront.



Big Russian flotilla led by Admiral Kuznetsov carrier heads for Syrian port
http://www.debka.com/headline.php?hid=5526


As the West awaits Moscow’s threatened reprisal for the treaty installing American missile interceptors at Redzikowo, on Poland’s Baltic coast – signed in Warsaw Wednesday - the Kremlin is striking back in the Middle East – hence Russian president Dimitry Medvedev’s honeyed words of reassurance to Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert in a call he made to Jerusalem Wednesday, Aug. 20.

DEBKAfile’s military sources disclose that a powerful Russian naval contingent, led by the aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov , left Murmansk on the Barents Sea Aug. 18 to dock at the Syrian Mediterranean port of Tartus Saturday, Aug. 23. It includes the Russian Navy’s biggest missile cruiser Moskva and at least four nuclear missile submarines.

At the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Syrian president Bashar Assad told reporters Thursday, Aug. 21, that he is considering a Russian request to deploy missiles in his country in view of Russian-Western tensions over the Georgian conflict, which he said had polarized East and West anew.

Assad signaled he would also be representing Tehran’s interests in his talks with Russian leaders. Jordan’s King Abdullah is on his way to join them later in the day.

Before the Russian flotilla departed Murmansk, Assad is reported by our sources as having given the nod for Tartus port’s conversion into a permanent Middle East base for Russia’s nuclear-armed warships.

Assad’s arrival coincided with a visit by a large Syrian military delegation Thursday at the Russian weapons manufacturing giant, the Kalinin Machines Plant, east of Moscow. DEBKAfile’s military sources report that this plant makes sophisticated anti-air missile systems, including the S-300 and the BUK M, for which Damascus is bidding.

The Syrian ruler has said he is seeking closer military cooperation with Russia. The deal emerging from his visit is expected to cover the Russian Navy’s use of Tartus in return for a mutual defense accord providing Syria with a Russian nuclear umbrella and generous terms for his arms purchases.

Aug. 17, DEBKAfile first revealed Russia’s planned nuclear military deployments in the Middle East and Baltic to punish America for its missile deal with Poland and Georgia's attack in South Ossetia. They would included the installation of Iskandar surface missiles in Syria and Kaliningrad.



Russia threatens retaliation against Israel for involvement in Georgia
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2008/eu_russia0447_08_20.asp


Russian security officials threatened retaliation against Israel for its weapons exports to Georgia including eight different aerial drones.

Russian Deputy Chief of Staff Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn said Israel supplied at least eight different models of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to Georgia. Nogovitsyn said Israel has also sold a range of weapons and sought to export main battle tanks to Georgia.

Russian diplomatic sources said the government of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was furious over Israel's refusal to impose a military embargo on Georgia. The sources said Putin's aides had urged Israel several times to halt weapons exports.

"We asked Israel not to sell offensive weapons to a hostile neighboring state, but they said they're a sovereign state," a diplomatic source said.

"Well, Israel shouldn't be surprised if we sell offensive weapons to Israel's neighbors."

Already, Russia, in wake of its military victory over Georgia, has scheduled a summit with Syria to discuss offensive weapons sales, the sources said. Syrian President Bashar Assad was scheduled to meet Putin in Moscow on Aug. 20.

Tbilisi has asserted that Israel continued to ship weapons and platforms to Georgia throughout the Russian war. But Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili reported delays in the supply of Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles to his country.

"The Israeli weapons have proved very effective," Saakashvili told a news conference on Aug. 13.

So far, the diplomatic sources said, Putin has been careful to limit Russian military sales to Iran and Syria to defensive systems. In 2007, they said, Putin, who remains in charge of defense export policy, vetoed efforts by the Defense Ministry and the state-owned arms agency Rosoboronexport to sell the Iskander-E long-range rocket to Syria.

"Putin will now offer Iskander to Syria," another Russian source said. "Whether this will be a serious offer or something just to scare the Israelis we'll know in another few months."

In December 2007, Israel agreed not to sign new contracts for offensive weapons to Georgia. But the Israeli Defense Ministry, supported by the United States, maintained it would honor existing arms deals with Tbilisi.

"We told the Israelis that this was a very unwise move and that Russians were being killed because of Georgia's policy," the Russian source said. "They didn't take us seriously, probably because they were encouraged by the United States."

"In 2007, Israeli experts trained Georgian commandos in Georgia, and there were plans to supply heavy weaponry, electronic weapons, tanks and other arms at a later date," Nogovitsyn told a news conference on Aug. 19. "But the deal didn't work out."

Officials said Moscow's assertion was based on a review of weapons and military installations captured in Russia's invasion of Georgia. They said Israel also trained Georgia's military, particularly its special forces.

At the news conference, Nogovitsyn did not identify the Israeli UAVs. Israel has acknowledged the sale of UAVs to Tbilisi.

The Russian deputy chief said Israel also exported bombs, mines and mine-clearing systems to Georgia. He said the systems were comprised of munitions that could explode landmines.

In late 2007, Israel agreed to end the sale of offensive military systems to Georgia. The decision by the Israeli Defense Ministry did not affect weapons already ordered by Tbilisi.

On Aug. 20, Russia and Syria were scheduled to begin a two-day summit meant to focus on defense and military cooperation. Syrian President Bashar Assad was scheduled to meet Russian President Dmitri Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in what officials said could result in arms sales to Damascus.

"The significant military aid provided by Israel to Georgia in its war against Russia will affect in the future — probably in the near future — relations between Russia and Israel, as well as Russia's attitude toward Arab states," an unidentified Russian analyst said in an interview to Syrian state television on the eve of Assad's visit. "Russia will reassess its relations with Israel, and it is likely that Moscow will decide to increase its military aid to Arab countries in conflict with Israel, including Syria."



U.S. Navy Warship Brings Aid to Georgia
http://www.cbn.com/CBNnews/432923.aspx


CBNNews.com - ABOARD THE U.S.S. MCFAUL - A U.S. Navy warship carrying humanitarian aid anchored at the Georgian port of Batumi on Sunday, sending a strong signal of support to an embattled ally.

Meanwhile, in central Georgia, an oil train exploded and caught fire, sending plumes of black smoke into the air.

A Georgian official said the train hit a land mine and blamed the explosion on Russian forces, who withdrew from the area Friday. The Russian Defense Ministry declined to comment.

Russia pulled the bulk of its troops and tanks from its small southern neighbor Friday after a brief but intense war, but built up its forces in and around two separatist regions -- South Ossetia and Abkhazia -- and left other military posts deep inside Georgia.

First of Five U.S. Ships to Arrive

The guided missile destroyer USS McFaul, loaded with 72 pallets of humanitarian aid, is the first of five American ships scheduled to arrive this week.

The much-needed aid and the damaged train were a stark reminder that it will take substantial aid and many months of rebuilding before Georgia can recover from the war with Russia.

Five days of fighting damaged cities and towns across the country and displaced tens of thousands of Georgians.

West of Gori, an Associated Press reporter saw 12 derailed tanker cars, some askew on the railway line and others flipped onto their sides. Firefighters hosed down the wreckage.

Train Hit a Land Mine

Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili said the train hit a mine, as did the country's railway director. Utiashvili said there were no casualties, but the blast had also set off explosions at an abandoned munitions dump nearby.

Utiashvili blamed the incident on the Russians. Georgian officials say Russian forces have sabotaged infrastructure to weaken Georgia and accused them of blowing up a train bridge last week.

Georgian Public Television said another 20 train cars had been uncoupled and pulled away to prevent the fire from spreading.

Other Mines Found on the Tracks

The director of Georgia's railways, Irakli Ezugbaia, said an investigation was under way and other mines had been found on the tracks.

Georgian forces removed a large artillery shell that had been jammed under the tracks and covered with stones.

Ezugbaia said the train was carrying crude oil from Kazakhstan to a Georgian Black Sea port.

Georgia straddles a key westward route for oil from Azerbaijan and other Caspian Sea nations including Kazakhstan, giving it added strategic importance as the U.S. and the European Union seek to decrease Russia's dominance of oil and gas exports from the former Soviet Union.

The conflict between Russia and Georgia, a small ex-Soviet republic whose pro-Western leaders have tried to shed Moscow's influence and sought NATO membership, has brought Russian-U.S. relations to a post-Cold War low.

A U.S. official said the American ship anchored in Batumi, Georgia's main oil port on the Black Sea, because of concerns about the state of Georgian port of Poti.

Russian Troops Looting the Area

Russian troops still hold positions near Poti, and AP journalists there have reported on Russians looting the area.

Georgian port officials say radar, Coast Guard ships and other port facilities were extensively damaged by Russian troops.

At dockside in Batumi, with the McFaul anchored offshore, U.S. Navy officials in crisp white uniforms were met Sunday by Georgian officials, including Defense Minister David Kezerashvili.

Local children gave the Americans wine and flowers.

'Not Alone Facing Russian Aggression'

Speaking to The Associated Press on the aft missile deck of the McFaul, anchored a mile offshore, Kezerashvili said Georgians would feel safer now.

"They will feel safe not because the destroyer is here but because they will feel they are not alone facing the Russian aggression," he said.

The commander of the five-ship U.S. task force, Navy Capt. John Moore, downplayed the significance of a destroyer bringing aid.

"We really are here on a humanitarian mission," he said.

The McFaul, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, is also outfitted with an array of weaponry, including Tomahawk cruise missiles, which can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads, and a sophisticated radar system.

For security reasons the Navy does not say if ships are carrying nuclear weapons, but they usually do not.

Russia: NATO Members' Ships Increase Tension

The deputy chief of Russia's general staff suggested that the arrival of the McFaul and other NATO members ships would increase tensions in the Black Sea.

Russia shares the sea with NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria as well as Georgia and Ukraine, whose pro-Western president also is leading a drive for NATO membership.

"I don't think such a buildup will foster the stabilization of the atmosphere in the region," Russia's ITAR-Tass news agency quoted Col. Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn as saying Saturday.

Russian Troops Rough Up Cameraman, Driver

An Associated Press television cameraman and his Georgian driver were treated roughly and briefly detained by Russian troops outside Poti on Sunday as he shot video of Russian positions outside the port.

A soldier smashed his microphone with a rifle butt, shoved him to the ground, then marched him to an armored vehicle and detained him and his driver. They were later handed over to Georgian police, who released them.

Gori Residents Return to Devastion

Hundreds of Georgians flocked back to Gori on Saturday, one day after the Russians withdrew, to begin rebuilding their lives. Their homecoming was laced with despair, disbelief and anger.

"Barbarians, that's what they are. They kill innocent people here. how many kilometers outside the battlefield? They bombed all over Georgia," Zurab Gvarientashvili, a 31-year-old engineer, said as he viewed his apartment, destroyed by a Russian bomb.

Lomaia also said Russian forces were still holding 12 of 22 Georgian servicemen taken prisoner in Poti last week.

Next to one bomb crater in Gori, Merdiko Peredze's goats grazed on burnt grass.

Peredze said he was refugee twice over, once after fleeing his home amid fighting in the early 1990s in Abkhazia and now again, with his house in Gori in tatters.

"I'm an old man but I will return to Abkhazia," he vowed. "Russian, Georgians, Ossetians, we should all be living in peace together, like we did under Stalin."



Russia Threatens Military Response if U.S., Poland Follow Through With Missile Defense Deal
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,407262,00.html


MOSCOW — The United States and Poland signed a deal Wednesday to place a U.S. missile defense base just 115 miles from Russia — a move followed swiftly by a new warning from Moscow of a possible military response.

For many Poles — whose country has been a staunch U.S. ally in Iraq and Afghanistan — the accord represented what they believed would be a guarantee of safety for themselves in the face of a newly assertive Russia.

Negotiators sealed the deal last week against a backdrop of Russian military action in Georgia, a former Soviet republic turned U.S. ally, that has worried former Soviet satellites across eastern Europe. It prompted Moscow's sharpest rhetoric yet over the system, which it contends is aimed at Russia despite Washington's insistence the site is purely defensive.

After Wednesday's signing, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice dismissed any suggestion the 10 missile defense interceptors — which Washington says are intended to defend Europe and the U.S. from the possible threat of long-distance missiles from Iran — represent a threat to Russia.

"Missile defense, of course, is aimed at no one," Rice said. "It is in our defense that we do this."

She denounced an earlier threat from a Russian general to target NATO member Poland, possibly even with nuclear weapons, for accepting the facility.

Such comments "border on the bizarre, frankly," Rice told reporters in Warsaw. "The Russians are losing their credibility," she said, adding that Moscow would pay a price for its actions in Georgia, though she did not specify how.

"It's also the case that when you threaten Poland, you perhaps forget that it is not 1988," Rice said. "It's 2008 and the United States has a ... firm treaty guarantee to defend Poland's territory as if it was the territory of the United States. So it's probably not wise to throw these threats around."

Hours after the signing, Russia's Foreign Ministry warned that Moscow's response would go beyond diplomacy. The system to be based in Poland lacks "any target other than Russian intercontinental ballistic missiles," it said in a statement, contending the U.S. system "will be broadened and modernized."

"In this case Russia will be forced to react, and not only through diplomatic" channels, it said without elaborating.

The Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation in Washington criticized the deal, saying the U.S. missile interceptors are technologically unproven and will only confirm Russian suspicions the system is directed against Moscow and not at Iran.

The deal follows an earlier agreement to place the second component of the missile defense shield — a radar tracking system — in the neighboring Czech Republic, another formerly communist country now in NATO.

Norway: Russia Plans to Cut Military Ties With NATO

"We have achieved our main goals, which means that our country and the United States will be more secure," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told Rice after the signing.

Many Poles agreed. "After what happened in Georgia, I believe that this is good protection for us," said Kazimierz Dziuba, 49, a hospital worker in Warsaw.

The Georgian conflict "made the Americans agree to this deal sooner because the Russians are getting too bossy," Dziuba said.

Not all Poles were happy, however.

Alina Kesek, an 82-year-old retired office clerk who lived through World War II, when Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland between them, and then experienced four decades of Moscow-dominated communist rule, said the Patriot missiles were a "kind of provocation" toward Russia.

"This means a threat from the Russian side," said Kesek. "I am not very pleased with this deal."

Some residents in the northern Polish town of Redzikowo, where the missile defense facility will be located, fear it may expose them to retaliatory attacks or other dangers.

Along with the main deal, the two nations signed a so-called "declaration on strategic cooperation," which is to deepen their military and political partnership.

It includes a mutual commitment to come to each other's assistance immediately if one is under attack — enhancing existing obligations both have as NATO members.

The declaration also was accompanied by a promise from the U.S. to help modernize Poland's armed forces and to place a battery of Patriot missiles there by 2012.

Rice said the deal "will help both the alliance and Poland and the United States respond to the coming threats."

Poland and the United States spent a year and a half in formal talks, which snagged in the final phase on Poland's demands for the Patriot missiles and other points.

However, the deepening U.S.-Polish friendship dominated Wednesday's proceedings.

"In troubled times the most important thing is to have friends," Rice said. "But it is more important to have friends who share your values and your aspirations and your dreams. And Poland and the United States are those kind of friends."

Approval for the missile defense sites is still needed from the Czech and Polish parliaments. No date has been set for lawmakers in Warsaw to vote, but the deal enjoys the support of the largest opposition party as well as of the government.



Fear of new Mid East 'Cold War' as Syria strengthens military alliance with Russia
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article4573599.ece


Syria sought to revive its security alliance with Russia today, when President Bashar al-Assad arrived in Moscow to clinch a series of military agreements, raising fears that the new Cold War that has erupted in the Caucasus will spill over into the Middle East.

“Our position is that we are ready to co-operate with Russia in any project that can strengthen its security,” the Syrian leader told Russian newspapers at the start of his two-day trip. “I think Russia really has to think of the response it will make when it finds itself closed in a circle.”

Mr al-Assad said that he would be discussing the deployment of Russian missiles on Syrian territory, possibly the Iskander system. Syrians is also interested in buying Russian anti-aircraft and tanks missiles.

In return, Moscow is expected to propose a revival of its Cold War era naval base at the Syrian port of Tartus on the Mediterranean. Some Russian reports even suggest that Moscow is deepening the port it to accommodate a fleet of warships. Russia may have similar ambitions for Latakia. Either port would give the Russian Navy its foothold in the Mediterranean for two decades.

“In order to have a base you need a decent navy. Ours is weak,” said Alexei Malashenko, an expert at the Carnegie Centre in Moscow. “A base is expensive to keep. Is it just to have a flag there . . . a show of strength to scare.”

Damascus and Moscow were close allies during the Cold War but the Kremlin’s influence in the region waned after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today's rapprochement, in the middle of the crisis in Georgia, raised the possibility that Moscow intends to recreate a global anti-Western alliance with former Soviet bloc allies from Latin America, to Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Middle East.

“Georgia began the crisis and the West accuses Russia. Syria suffered the same thing; attempts to destabilise the country, distortion of the facts and double standards,” said Mr al-Assad, only the third world leader to visit Moscow since the crisis began.

Israel, like its main sponsor America, has developed close military ties with Georgia in recent years, with defence contractors supplying training and equipment to the small, US-backed state

As Syria renews its Soviet-era close ties with Moscow, many in Israel fear that the region could once again become a theatre for the two great powers to exert their spheres of influence, militarily and politically.

Already, Israeli observers worry that the chaos in the Caucasus may disrupt gas supplies to Europe and Turkey from the Caspian Sea region, creating a greater energy reliance on Iran and its vast reserves. The crisis could in turn allow Tehran to exploit splits in the international community and use Russia as a powerful backer to advance its controversial nuclear programme.

Russia has wooed Syria, internationally isolated and weakened after its withdrawal from Lebanon, in recent years as it has tried to increase its influence in the Middle East and increase arms sales.

Syria and Israel recently confirmed that they had been holding indirect talks to reach a peace deal after decades of hostility. Part of Syria’s motivation was to break the international isolation that it has suffered for its strategic alliance with Tehran, and which has wrought serious damage on its economy.

A closer alliance with a resurgent Russia, flush with petro-dollars, could afford Mr al-Assad a way out of any binding commitment. Some Israeli analysts even fear it could encourage Syria to try to take back the Golan Heights, captured by Israel in 1967, by force.

The conflict in Georgia has already sparked a mocking speech by Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, over the performance of Israeli-trained Georgian forces. One of the main Israeli military advisers there was reserve Brigadier-General Gal Hirsch, who commanded a division in Israel’s inconclusive war with Hezbollah in 2006 and later resigned his commission.

“The entire front line of the army’s brass stepped down because of the war. Gal Hirsch, who was defeated in Lebanon, went to Georgia and they too lost because of him,” taunted the Shia leader. “Relying on Israeli experts and weapons, Georgia learnt why the Israeli generals failed . . . what happened in Georgia is a message to all those the Americans are seeking to entangle in dangerous adventures.”

That Cold War rhetoric was echoed by Mr al-Assad, who also used the Georgian crisis as a stick to beat Israel. “I think that in Russia and in the world everyone is now aware of Israel’s role and its military consultants in the Georgian crisis,” he told the Russian newspaper Kommersant. “And if before in Russia there were people who thought these forces can be friendly then now I think no one thinks that way.”



Sign of things to come? - Arab Sentiment Backs Russia Over Georgia
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/Content/Article.aspx?rsrcid=34267


Russia’s military intervention in Georgia in the face of Western protests is being viewed by some in the Arab world as evidence of American weakness, with media commentators voicing barely-disguised delight at what they see as a defeat for Washington.

At the same time, some voices are cautioning the Islamic Middle East not to throw its lot behind Moscow as many of the region’s leading countries did at times during the Cold War.

Russia on Aug. 8 sent troops and tanks across its southern border after Georgia’s pro-Western government mounted an offensive against separatists in the Russian-backed breakaway region of South Ossetia. Russia, saying it was forced to act to protect its citizens and peacekeepers in South Ossetia, drove Georgian forces from the rebel province and then pressed into other parts of Georgian territory.

A European Union-brokered ceasefire is now in operation and Moscow on Monday claimed to have begun pulling back.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was Tuesday attending an emergency meeting of NATO’s North Atlantic Council, called at Washington’s request to discuss a response to the crisis. En route to Brussels, she said NATO must reaffirm membership process bids for both Georgian and fellow former Soviet republic Ukraine, despite strong Russian objections.

“We are also going to send the message that we are not going to allow Russia to draw a new line at those states that are not yet integrated into the transatlantic structures like Georgia and Ukraine,” she said. NATO was determined to deny the Russians the strategic objectives of weakening the Georgian state and undermine its democracy.

In the opinion of some in the Arab world, however, the crisis was a clear victory for Moscow – and some thought this was a good thing.

A Gulf News editor, Abdul-Hadi Al-Timimi, wrote in an op-ed Sunday that Russia’s willingness to use its military might to reassert its influence in the former Soviet space was “long overdue,” and “most urgently needed at a time when the U.S. and its allies are targeting two of the last few Russian allies in the Middle East: Iran and Syria."

The United Arab Emirates’ daily Khaleej Times in an editorial predicted that there would now be changes in the international order.

“America will remain the biggest economy and military, yet its diplomatic authority will continually trim till it finally rests at a more acceptable level to the rest of the world,” it said.

“From its handling of Iran to its desire to play a more effective role in the Middle East and world affairs, it is apparent that the new Russia is not prepared to be thrown around like a lightweight any more as it was after the end of Soviet Union,” the same paper opined Monday.

“The return of Russia portends a shift in the balance of political forces in the Middle East that for the moment at least appears to weaken the American and pro-Western side of the balance and to strengthen the Iranian side,” said Cairo’s Middle East Times in an editorial.

It noted that Russia supplies Iran with weapons, is completing its new nuclear reactor and “ensuring the U.N. sanctions are not too burdensome."

Some commentators saw an opportunity to criticize the U.S.

Saudi Arabia’s Arab Times in a Saturday editorial sought to put the blame for the crisis on what it called the “inept belligerence” of the Bush administration, and said the Western Europe was being drawn into a U.S. face-off with Moscow.

Qatar’s Gulf Times, meanwhile, scoffed at the American and British criticism of Russia’s actions in Georgia.

“One would think, in light of the Iraq debacle and the continuing disgrace of detention without charge, that these two world ‘powers’ would have been among the last to plant their flags in the shifting soil of moral high ground."

‘Back to the worst years of the Cold War'

Pundits also wondered what the Russia-Georgia war meant for small, U.S.-backed countries.

An editorial in Dubai’s Gulf News said the conflict “has shown that Washington will not always come to the rescue of its allies in their time of need.”

The son of Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi, Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, said the crisis had sent a warning to other countries that rely on America and think that “closeness to the United States will allow them to do anything they want."

“It’s not so,” he said an interview with the Russian daily, Kommersant

Gaddafi took issue with Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili’s charge that parts of Georgia were “occupied” by Russia.

“How can you talk about occupation, when you are occupiers yourself? The Georgians along with the Americans occupy Iraq! And now they are trying to portray themselves as fighters for freedom and democracy.”

As the crisis unfolded, the U.S. flew 2,000 Georgian troops back home from Iraq, where they had constituted the third-largest foreign contingent in the U.S.-led coalition.

Gaddafi said the Arab world welcomed their pullout.

“All Arabs are mad at Georgia because it sent its troops to Iraq and took part in the occupation of that Arab land,” he said. “If it weren’t for Russia, Georgian forces would still be in Iraq."

Amid the pro-Russia sentiment, a warning came from the Middle East Times, which in an editorial Monday urged Arabs to think with their heads rather than their hearts.

“There is a potential danger of countries in the Arab world to take Russia’s re-entry into the global political scene as a major power broker as a signal to openly side with Moscow,” it said.

Rallying to the Russians would take Arabs “back to the worst years of the Cold War where the Arab world stagnated economically, forever indebted to the Soviets for arms and munitions that were always a step or two behind those of the West.”

Writing in the independent Arab daily Al Hayat, columnist and political analyst Raghida Dergham cautioned the Islamic world against a rush to embrace the Russian use of force.

“Today, and merely to spite the U.S., many Muslims forget that [Russian prime minister and former president] Vladimir Putin has repeatedly taken violent military stances against Muslims in Chechnya and elsewhere, and celebrate his violence to compensate for their constant failure,” she wrote.

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union had close ties at times with a number of countries, including Egypt, Syria, Iraq, South Yemen, Algeria and Libya. It was also a key ally of the terrorist Palestine Liberation Organization.



The Russian-Georgian War: Implications for the Middle East
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2008/eu_russia0439_08_18.asp


Russia's invasion of Georgia demonstrated Moscow's growing power and is making waves in the Middle East, a report by a leading U.S. analyst said.

The report by the Institute for Contemporary Affairs asserted that Iran would be emboldened by Moscow's successful military campaign.

"The long-term outcomes of the current Russian-Georgian war will be felt far and wide, from Afghanistan to Iran, and from the Caspian to the Mediterranean," the report, titled "The Russian-Georgian War: Implications for the Middle East," said.

"The war is a mid-sized earthquake which indicates that the geopolitical tectonic plates are shifting, and nations in the Middle East, including Israel, need to take notice."

Authored by Ariel Cohen, the report said Russia's strategic goals included increasing control of energy pipelines to Turkey. Cohen also warned Israel not to provoke Moscow or rely on U.S. support against Iran.

"U.S. expressions of support of the kind provided to Georgia — short of an explicit mutual defense pact — may or may not result in military assistance if/when Israel is under attack, especially when the attacker has an effective deterrent, such as nuclear arms deliverable against U.S. targets," the report said. "In the future, such an attacker could be Iran or an Arab country armed with atomic weapons. Israel can and should rely on its own deterrent — a massive survivable second-strike capability."

The report criticized the U.S. intelligence community, which failed to detect Russian efforts to annex Georgia's Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Cohen, who warned that Ukraine was Moscow's next target, said the Bush administration did not prepare the Georgian military for a Russian attack.

"This is something to remember when looking at recent American intelligence assessments of the Iranian nuclear threat or the unsuccessful training of Palestinian Authority security forces against Hamas," Cohen said.

Cohen said a pro-Russian regime in Georgia would result in Moscow's full control of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Baku-Erzurum natural gas pipeline, both of which reach Turkey. Israel has been receiving some of its oil from Ceyhan and has a "stake in the smooth flow of oil from the Caspian."

The report said Russia financed and armed the Russian ethnic community in Georgia to foment unrest. Cohen compared this to Iran's use of proxies to attack Israel from Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.

"This use of small, ethnically-based proxies is similar to Iran's use of Hizbullah and Hamas to continuously attack Israel," the report said. "Tbilisi tried for years to deal with these militias by offering a negotiated solution, including full autonomy within Georgia."

Cohen, a senior researcher at the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, said Russia plans to extend its influence throughout the Middle East. He cited Russian Navy bases in the Syrian ports of Latakia and Tartous and plans to establish a presence in Libya.

"Clearly, with the renewal of East-West tensions as a result of Russia's moves against Georgia, it will be much more difficult to obtain Moscow's agreement to enhance sanctions and international pressures on Iran," the report said. "The struggle to diplomatically halt its [Iran's] nuclear program will become far more difficult."



Foreshadowing of Ezekiel 38 as Libya Positions Itself in Russia’s Corner
http://www.cnsnews.com/public/Content/Article.aspx?rsrcid=34269


At a time when the U.S. is moving towards full normalization of relations with Libya, Muammar Gaddafi’s son has made it clear that the North African nation is looking to Russia as its strategic partner.

In a little-noticed interview with Russia’s Kommersant business daily, Seif al-Islam Gaddafi said Moscow’s resurgence, demonstrated by this month’s military incursion into Georgia, was a positive development for the Arab world.

“What happened in Georgia is a good sign, which means America is no longer the sole world power setting the rules of the game,” Gaddafi said.

“Now there is balance in the world. Russia is being reborn, and we value that. It is very good for us, for all of the Middle East,” he said.

Gaddafi, who runs a charity called the Gaddafi Foundation, has frequently undertaken diplomatic missions on behalf of his father. The second oldest of seven sons, the 35-year-old is sometimes named as a possible successor to the unpredictable Libyan leader but has denied ambitions to rule the north African country – a position he reiterated in the Kommersant interview.

The published interview appeared on the same day that the U.S. government announced a breakthrough agreement with Libya on compensation for terror victims, paving the way for the full normalization of bilateral ties.

David Welch, the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs who negotiated the claims settlement agreement, said it was “designed to resolve the last major historical issue that has stood in the way of developing a proper relationship with Libya.”

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday she hoped to visit to Tripoli soon. The U.S. and Libya have not had formal diplomatic relations since 1980, and it will be the first visit by a secretary of state since 1953.

Asked whether his strong statements were not risking Libya’s newly-improved ties with the U.S., Gaddafi told the Russian paper that although his country has good relations with both the West and Russia, “Libya chose Russia as its strategic partner.”

“Of course, Russia is our strategic partner, and we cannot compare it with any other country for closeness. That’s obvious.”

Gaddafi said Libya backed Moscow’s position that Georgia had initiated the recent conflict – by mounting an offensive against separatists in a Russian-backed breakaway province – and forced a Russian military response.

Libya would back Russia in the U.N. Security Council, he said. Libya, which has been improving relations with the West since pledging to stop supporting terrorism and shutting down its non-conventional weapons programs, in January began a two-year stint on the council. Its conduct there has at times drawn strong criticism.

A key reason cited for some European countries’ reluctance to antagonize Russia – for instance, by supporting the further eastward expansion of NATO – is the E.U.’s reliance on Russian energy supplies, and Russia’s willingness to use its oil and gas for political leverage. Instability in Georgia, a critical transit route for Central Asian energy supplies bypassing Russia, has added to the concerns.

Italy and other European nations look increasingly to Libya – with Africa’s largest oil reserves and fourth-largest natural gas reserves – to help ease its dependence on Russian supplies.

But Tripoli’s deepening alliance with Moscow raises doubts about whether Libya will be the answer to attempts to break the Russian stranglehold, particularly as Russian energy monopoly Gazprom recently signed agreements to invest in Libya’s operations.

Asked in the interview whether he thought Russia faced a threat of economic isolation over its actions in Georgia, Gaddafi said he doubted it.

“The whole world needs Russian gas, Russian oil. It is not expedient for Europe to let relations with Russia worsen. And then we, the Libyans, will do everything possible to work in Russia and invest in its economy. Because Russia is a great country.”

Tightening relations with Libya appears to be a Kremlin priority. During a visit to Libya in April, then President Vladimir Putin agreed to write off billions of dollars worth of Soviet-era debt, in exchange for lucrative contracts with Russian companies.

When Libya’s prime minister Baghdadi Mahmudi visited Moscow late last month, Putin – now prime minister under his handpicked successor, President Dmitry Medvedev – discussed cooperation in the oil and gas sectors and said Tripoli was also keen to buy Russian weaponry.

The Interfax news agency quoted a defense ministry source in Moscow as saying Libya was interested in fighter planes, helicopters and surface-to-air missiles.



Sources: Iran tried but failed to launch satellite
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26294174/


Last weekend's launch of an Iranian rocket sparked days of debate over what its intended mission was — and although officials in Tehran are characterizing it as merely a test of the launch vehicle, U.S. military intelligence officials now see it as a failed attempt to put a satellite in orbit.

A defense official confirmed to NBC News on Tuesday that the Iranian attempt was being viewed as a failure, and that Iran's claims about the missile test were seen as a cover story to conceal this.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak publicly about the assessment, but his views echo other reports emerging from Western intelligence sources.

According to the Pentagon source, the Safir ("Messenger") rocket was launched just before 3 p.m. ET on Saturday from a base near Semnan in northern Iran, carrying what he called a "crude communications satellite" with only "limited capability."

Soon after reaching an altitude above 500,000 feet, the missile failed and broke apart, the source said. The missile broke up when the second stage was firing, and the resulting debris was scattered across Iran and the Gulf of Oman, he said. The rocket was apparently aiming for an orbit about 400 miles (650 kilometers) high, inclined to the equator about 62 degrees.

The source explained that a U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Russell, monitored the launch from the Persian Gulf. The North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, reportedly confirmed that the attempt was unsuccessful, but the U.S. Strategic Command has declined repeated requests to release a public assessment.

Iranian news agencies waited 18 hours to announce the launch on Sunday afternoon — an early indication that the mission did not proceed according to plan. The first reports, apparently written before liftoff with the assumption of success, described the launch of a satellite into orbit. Several hours later, corrected versions appeared, claiming that the launch was a missile test that would pave the way for launching a real satellite “soon.”

Other features of the launch raised suspicions, including the odd fact that it occurred at night. This runs counter to the long-established practice of launching test missions in full daylight so that cameras and visual observers can notice any anomalies during the early ascent into space.


Copying the North Koreans

The two-stage Safir launch vehicle is similar to the Shahab 3 missile with an upper stage added. The first stage, when used as a military missile, has a range of about 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers). With a second stage, it can place small payloads — 100 to 200 pounds (50 to 100 kilograms) — in low Earth orbit.

The Shahab is believed to be closely based on the North Korean Taepodong 1 missile. A Japanese weapons expert told Asahi TV in Tokyo on Monday that in return for North Korean missile technology, Iran provides North Korea with uranium-enrichment technology.

Iranian officials deny any such reliance on foreign technology. They have used missile launches as opportunities to hail their own expertise. Thus, they can be expected to reject outside claims that their new source of nationalistic pride was actually a failure.

Under these circumstances, they may be tempted to borrow another North Korean space trick. In 1998, that country claimed to have launched a small satellite into orbit. Nobody outside the country saw it, detected it on radar, or heard its radio beacon. Nevertheless, North Koreans were lined up in public squares at dusk for months afterward, told the satellite was passing overhead, and obediently oohed and aahed in admiration.


The religious angle

If any Iranian leader has his fate tied to the satellite program, it’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. During a visit to Turkey last month, he predicted the satellite launch would occur this month.

Ahmadinejad was present at this launch on Saturday, and offered a prayer before liftoff: "In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. O God! We beseech you to hasten the lofty advent of your heir [the hidden Shiite imam]. O God! Present him with good health and your assistance; and grant us the honor of being his best companions and to testify before him."

After the launch, the initial (and later corrected) Iranian press reports echoed this theme: "The satellite was sent into orbit today on the occasion of the birthday anniversary of Shiites' 12th Imam (May God Hasten His Reappearance), thus illustrating the auspicious name of the Imam in the space."

The references to a hidden religious leader relate to Ahmadinejad's claims that a messianic Muslim ruler known as the Imam Mahdi, foretold by Shiite texts, would soon make himself known. Some have even speculated that the name of the rocket and satellite, Safir-e Omid, or “Messenger of Hope,” refers to Ahmadinejad’s world view.

Other influential figures in Iran, including supreme religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have been critical of efforts to exploit the prophecies about the Imam Mahdi. Former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of Ahmadinejad's political rivals, has been quoted as saying the obsession over the Imam Mahdi "misled millions of people."

If it turns out that the launch was timed specifically to occur on the Imam Mahdi's birthday, the rocket team may have had to take shortcuts in their preparations. Any perceived cause-and-effect between the rushed launch and the subsequent failure could play into the hands of Iranian officials opposed to Ahmadinezhad’s governing style.

Perhaps the best way out of this fate is for the Iranians to press on and launch another rocket, carrying another satellite, and hope it reaches orbit successfully. If this occurs in a few weeks, the first embarrassment may be overlooked. If it takes significantly longer to make the next attempt, last weekend's failure may have bigger internal consequences.



Senior Iran official predicts imminent demise of Gulf state royals
http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2008/me_iran0434_08_15.asp


Iran expects the Gulf states to undergo a major crisis in 2009.

A senior official said the states would face what he termed a crisis in "legitimacy." He said both Sunni and Shi'ite nationals would challenge the pro-Western Gulf Arab monarchies.

"Soon another crisis will grip the Persian Gulf area, and that is the legitimacy crisis of the monarchies and traditional systems in the region," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mohammadi said.

Mohammadi's remarks were reported by Iran's semi-official Mehr news agency amid rising GCC criticism of Teheran's policy in the Gulf. This was the first time in years that Iran raised the prospect of the downfall of the GCC.

In a June 26 address to a conference of the Basij paramilitary force, Mohammadi predicted a rapid decline of the six GCC member states, several of which have large Shi'ite populations. The deputy foreign minister said he doubted whether the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) could quell rising domestic unrest fueled by a U.S. military presence.

"The next crisis, predicted to cover mainly the Persian Gulf, is the crisis of legitimacy of the monarchies and traditional systems, which considering current circumstances cannot survive," Mohammadi, responsible for the ministry's research department, said.

"Such suspicious comments do not at all help build trust among states of the region," GCC secretary-general Abdul Rahman Al Attiyah said on Aug. 7. "They can only stoke conflicts and drag the region into a cycle of dangerous crises."

In 2007, a senior pro-regime Iranian cleric asserted that Bahrain was part of Iran. Bahrain, rocked by rising unrest over the last two years, contains a Shi'ite majority.

Al Attiyah warned that GCC members would resist any Iranian attack in the Gulf. He did not elaborate.

"Those who believe that the current circumstances enable them to expand and exercise control at the expense of the interests of others are mistaken," Al Attiyah said.



Iraq to Sign $1.2B Oil Service Deal with China
http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=65630


Iraq will sign a $1.2 billion oil service contract with China to replace a production-sharing deal agreed under Saddam Hussein, an Iraqi newspaper quoted oil minister Hussain al-Shahristani as saying on Tuesday.

The oil minister is travelling to China at the end of this month to discuss the deal, which was orginally signed in 1997 between Iraq and the China National Petrolium Company (CNPC).

"We have held talks with (the Chinese) for a year, and the terms of the deal were changed to a service contract. The Chinese have agreed on that, with a value of $1.2 billion," Shahristani told the an-Noor newspaper.

If finalised, the revised deal would be the first oil service contract signed by the new Iraqi government since the fall of Saddam in 2003.

Iraq has said in the past that it would honour the original Saddam-era deal in principle but wanted to renegotiate terms.

The original deal, valued at $670 million at a time when oil prices were much lower than today, would have given the Chinese a long term production-sharing stake in the Ahdab oil field, a small field projected to produce 90,000 barrels per day.

Foreign oil companies are seen as much keener on production sharing deals, which would give them a stake in future oil profits, rather than service contracts in which they are paid a fee for carrying out work on behalf of Iraq.

But with prices high, Iraq -- an OPEC member with the world's third largest oil reserves -- has been negotiating from a position of strength.

Iraq is negotiating six short-term oil service contracts worth about $500 million each with foreign firms or consortiums, but those deals have been long delayed. A U.S. diplomat said this week he expected most or all of them would be scrapped.

Shahristani also repudiated a Saddam Hussein-era deal with Russia's largest private oil company LUKOIL , saying the contract was political and its terms "totally unfair".

"Relating to the Russian contract, it was signed with the former regime for political reasons and scrapped by the former regime also for political reasons," he said. "It is a totally unfair contract."



Bangladesh Christians flee after attack on house church
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07526.shtml


(christiansunite.com) - Muslim militants attacked the pastor of a recently established house church in the village of Bagulagari, Bangladesh on August 1, according to reports from Open Doors. The militants used violence to pressure Pastor Majid into giving up the names of local mission workers and damaged his home.

Pastor Majid along with other believers have fled to a safe area due to the growing pressure Christians have been facing to reconvert back to Islam. According to another pastor in the area, Muslim villagers have petitioned local authorities to ban Christian activities and threatened to take action against believers themselves if their demands are not met.

Pray for the pastors and church leaders in Bangladesh. Pray that the Lord will give them strength as they face persecution. Pray also that the Muslim villagers may come to know the Good News.

For more information on the persecution of Christians in Bangladesh, go to www.persecution.net/bangladesh.htm.



Pastor and believers attacked in Karnataka, India
http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion07522.shtml


(christiansunite.com) - On August 10, Hindu militants attacked a group of Christians gathered for worship in Rona, Gadag district, Karnataka. Pastor Samuel Philip (30) was forewarned about a possible attack and, as a result, police protection was provided.

However, when the police returned to their station, the militants attacked the believers present. Six people have been arrested for attacking the congregation.

On August 11, approximately twenty members of the Shivasainya Youth Association Hindu militant group attacked a prayer meeting in the village of Emmanabettur and beat the believers present. Pastor Rajendra Gowda and Pastor Kumara were stripped, placed in a van and taken to a local police station. On route, they were also assaulted by the militants. They have been charged with deliberately and maliciously intending to outrage the religious feelings of others.

Pray for healing for those injured in these attacks. Pray that increased persecution will result in increased boldness among the believers (Acts 4:29-31). Ask God to work in the hearts of militants in India, drawing them to Himself.

For more information on the challenges facing India's Christians, go to www.persecution.net/india.htm.



Eritrean Christian students imprisoned in shipping containers
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(christiansunite.com) - On August 5, authorities locked up eight Christian students of the Sawa Defense Training Centre in metal shipping containers for objecting to the burning of hundreds of Bibles that had been confiscated from new students, according to an August 11 report from Compass Direct.

While setting the books on fire, a chief commander warned the students that the centre was a place of patriotism, not a place for "Pentes" (Pentecostals). When the eight male students protested the burning, they were taken into custody and imprisoned in the metal containers that authorities often use to imprison Christians found practicing their faith.

Pray that these students will be released. Pray that they will come into a deeper relationship with Christ as they embrace the fellowship of His sufferings (Philippians 3:7-10). Pray for other Christians suffering for Christ's sake in Eritrean prisons.

For more information on the persecution facing Christians in Eritrea, go to www.persecution.net/eritrea.htm.



Christians detained in Laos
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(christiansunite.com) - At least 90 Christians were arrested throughout Laos in recent weeks, according to an August 8 report from Compass Direct.

On July 21, residents of Katin village in Saravan province killed a Christian man by pouring rice wine down his throat. Eighty local Christians were then arrested by authorities. On July 25, officials rounded up 17 Christian families in the village and detained them in a local school compound, denying them food for three days in an attempt to force the adults to sign documents renouncing their faith. Ten families eventually signed the documents and were allowed to return home. The remaining families were evicted from the village.

Six local Christians in Boukham village, Savannakhet province were arrested in the first week of August, including the pastor of a house church. On August 1, two believers were arrested and detained in a prison in Ad-Sapangthong district on the charge of "believing in Jesus and worshiping God." The next day, a Christian woman was also arrested and imprisoned on the same charge. The following day authorities arrested Pastor Sompong and two young believers during a worship service in his home.

Pray that those detained will be released. Pray that Christians in Laos will be strong and bold in the face of severe persecution (Revelations 2:9-10).

For more information on the persecution of Christians in Laos, go to www.persecution.net/laos.htm.



Two Missionaries Released from Detention in Inner Mongolia
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INNER MONGOLIA, (christiansunite.com) -- CAA has learned that two of the four missionaries detained in Inner Mongolia in early July have been released after serving 30 days adminstrative detention.

Yu Yongqing and Li Shusen were released on Aug. 6 and Aug 10, respectively. Yu Yongqing was released after paying an undisclosed amount of money to PSB officials for his release. Two of the four detained missionaries, Li Li and Wang Shuang remain in detention. Mr. Wang's wife and sister visited the PSB detention center where he was being held upon entering the station they were shown into Wang's cell where he was seen being hung by handcuffs. The two women left seriously distraught yet helpless to change the situation.

The other detainee, Li Li has been diagnosed by PSB officials as having a serious lung disease and possibly lung cancer. Detention guard officials fearful that Li will die under their watch have determined that Li will be placed under house detention with the condition that Li will promise not to escape while at home.



Chinese house church pastor escapes from police custody
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(christiansunite.com) - According to reports from China Aid Association, Pastor Hua Huiqi and his brother, Hua Huilin, were illegally arrested by the Chinese police at approximately 6:00 a.m. on August 10. The brothers were on their way to attend a service at the Kuanjie Church, which President Bush was scheduled to attend, when they were apprehended.

During a lapse in security, Hua Huiqi was able to escape police custody around noon. Hua Huilin was released later that afternoon.

Pray for guidance and wisdom for these believers. Pray that the spiritual leaders in China will remain faithful to the task God has given them, knowing that they will receive the crown of life (1 Peter 5:1-4).

For more information on the persecution of Christians in China, go to www.persecution.net/china.htm.



Four Americans Stuck in China Airport for Carrying Chinese Bibles
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(christiansunite.com) - Kunming, Yunnan Province, China, August 17 (christiansunite.com) -- China Aid Association learned that four Americans are stuck at Kunming International Airport for carrying a large number of Chinese bibles.

The four American Christians arrived at 3pm Beijing Time from the US via Thailand. Each carries about 75 to 80 Chinese version of the study bibles for Chinese pastors. The names of the four are Mr. Pat Klein( 46 years old from the State of Wyoming), Mr. Forrest Higginbotham(78 years old, from the State of Indiana), Mr. Higginbotham's grandson Mr. Stephen Constantinou(15 years old from the State of New Jersey) and Mr. Steve Nichols( 60 years old from the State of New York). According to Mr. Klein, each of them was fined for 400 US dollars for overweight luggage with the bibles. The Chinese customs officials told the four Americans that their all of their bibles are confiscated as 'illegal religious literatures. "The Chinese leaders keep telling the world the Chinese people have religious freedom. To even prevent them from receiving bibles certainly contradicts that claim." Mr. Klein told CAA president Bob Fu over the phone.

Chinese authority only allows limited numbers of bibles available at official sanctioned TSPM churches. Bibles are forbidden to be sold in any public bookstores while literatures of other religious faiths are available for sale for general public.

"I appeal to the Chinese government to release those confiscated bibles to the four individuals who deeply care about the Chinese believers," said CAA president Rev. Bob Fu, "I urge the international Christian community to pray for the four courageous fellow brothers for their safety in China."



IRD Urges Chinese Government: Stop 'Lip-Synching' Religious Freedom
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WASHINGTON, (christiansunite.com) -- The chief music director for the Beijing Olympics recently revealed that the young girl portrayed as singing during Friday night's ceremony was actually lip-synching another girl's voice. This revelation is unsurprising to critics of the Chinese government, who allege that such showmanship is also characteristic of the state's treatment of religion.

China has provided Bibles for athletes, officials and spectators. At the same time, the government has requested travelers to only take one Bible into China, ensuring that no mass distribution of Bibles takes place. It has imprisoned a Beijing book store owner for printing and selling Bibles and other Christian literature, charging him with "engaging in the printing and distribution of a large number of illegal publications." It has also cracked down on Christian Bible teachers and house church pastors.

Another example of staging is alleged with the service that President and Mrs. Bush attended at a registered Church in Beijing. The China Aid Association reports that in elaborate efforts to control the situation, officials prevented "ordinary believers" from entering the church and replaced them with "security people, political workers, and people trained by them to pose as believers."

IRD Director of Religious Liberty Programs Faith J.H. McDonnell commented,

"The revelation of the lip-synching young girl at the opening ceremonies should be no surprise to those familiar with the Chinese government's attempts to cover its repression of Christians and control of the churches by 'lip-synching' Christianity. Religious freedom in China is as much of a show as the Olympic opening ceremony has turned out to be.

"President Bush's message to Hu Jintao is exactly right. The Communists believe that by 'lip-synching' religious freedom over religious repression, they can create an image of freedom but still remain in control. They don't seem to understand, that as President Bush said, 'once religion takes hold in a society it can't be stopped.'

"Last year the official church-affiliated printing company produced 6.7 million Bibles. The paradox is that if you are willing to submit to government control in a state-sanctioned church, you are free to have a Bible. If you are a house church Christian, your Bible is contraband."



Christian funeral attacked in southern Ethiopia
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(christiansunite.com) - On July 30, a group of Muslims along with members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church attacked believers in the town of Metto, Selte region while they were arranging to bury a local Christian man.

The attackers also filled in the grave plot meant for Teshome Alyeleb (45). The believers fled in fear for their lives. Teshome's family members appealed to the local government but no action was taken to allow them to conduct a proper funeral and burial. Finally, after having to keep their loved one's body in their home for four days, the family laid Teshome to rest in a town 96 km from their home.

Pray that the Lord will give peace and comfort to Teshome's family. Pray for strength for Christians in this Muslim-majority region who are being harassed and mistreated for their faith in Christ.

For more information on the persecution facing Christians in Ethiopia, go to www.persecution.net/ethiopia.htm.

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