This Week's Top 7 News Items
February 18, 2012
1. ATTACKS ON GAZA HAVE NOT CEASED - Rocket and missile fire from Gaza put the IDF on high alert on Friday. According to the report, an IDF force on patrol near the border with Gaza heard an explosion heard near the border fence. An IDF statement said the explosion was from an RPG anti-tank missile that was fired at the soldiers. As additional forces arrived on the scene, the statement said, an explosion was heard from within Gaza. No soldiers were hurt. The IDF responded using tank fire. Earlier on Friday evening, terrorists from Gaza fired two rockets towards Israeli territory, one at the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council and the other at the Eshkol Regional Council. There were no reports of physical injuries or damages. A spokesperson for IDF's Southern Command told Channel 10 that following the attacks, IDF forces have been instructed to maintain maximum vigilance.
Scriptures/Prayers for this topic
2. UN SILENT AS IRAN ORCHESTRATES MULTI PRONGED ATTACK - Israel lodged a complaint with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon over a terror campaign that Iran has mounted against the Jewish state. This week a terror attack seriously wounded the wife of an Israeli diplomat in India, while authorities in Georgia disarmed a bomb on an Israeli diplomatic vehicle, and three Iranian nationals botched a bombing attempt targeting Israeli diplomats in Bangkok. "This campaign bears the unmistakable fingerprints of the Iranian regime and the highest echelons of the Hizbullah leadership," Israel's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ron Proser, said in a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. "Their actions constitute a clear threat to security and stability of Lebanon, to the Middle East, and to many countries that have been targeted," Prosor wrote. In each of these instances, the letter said, Iran and Hizbullah have "sought to harm innocent civilians and have flagrantly violated the sovereignty of member states. Iran has long employed international terrorism as a pillar of its foreign policy, often using Hizbullah as a proxy to stage attacks," the letter said. Prosor's letter came on the same day that the Mossad and authorities in Singapore thwarted a terror attack targeting Defense Minister Ehud Barak. In the letter, Prosor chastised the United Nations for failing to immediately condemn this week's attacks in Bangkok, Delhi, and Tsbili. He also noted terror attacks on Israeli diplomats in Azerbaijan and Bulgaria were also thwarted in recent months. "Israel expects it to issue a clear condemnation...without any further delay or equivocation. The Council must also address this threat by considering active steps against Iran, Hizbullah and their terrorist infrastructure worldwide."
Scriptures and Prayers for this topic
3. PALESTINIAN UNITY DEAL FACES PROBLEMS - There is a mounting rebellion by Hamas leaders in Gaza against a power-sharing agreement with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Hamas strongman in Gaza, Mahmoud Zahar, complained that Khaled Mashaal, Hamas' top leader in exile, did not consult with other leaders in the movement before signing the deal and that the decision-making Shura Council should meet to correct what he termed a mistake. The deal contravenes existent Palestinian law as well as gives Abbas almost absolute power over the Palestinian people. For Gazans, there are other complications. In the nearly five years it has ruled in Gaza, Hamas hired some 40,000 civil servants and security forces, while 62,000 troops and civil servants forced out by the 2007 takeover - many of them pro-Abbas - are waiting to return to their old government jobs. This situation is rife with problems that could explode into a civil war. Another problem arose this week when electricity was intermittent. Western media sources have reported that it occurred due to Israeli restrictions in the blockade. However, this was not due to Israeli restrictions at all; Hamas refused to buy fuel from Israel to power their generators even though Israel had the fuel waiting in trucks to be delivered. To complicate any further peace negotiations with Israel, the state run Palestinian television station has been running programs, advertising and music which claims all Israel belongs to the Palestinians.
Scriptures/Prayers for this topic
4. MIGRON MAY HAVE SOLUTION - Residents of Migron say they have reached an agreement with the Israeli government on relocating the illegal West Bank outpost. The residents reportedly have agreed to have the community relocated to government land on a nearby hill. In return, they have requested that the current homes not be razed until their new homes are built and that the land remain under Israeli civilian control. They also have called for a court ruling on the status of the land, which is claimed by Palestinian landowners. Migron is slated under an Israeli Supreme Court order to be razed by the end of March. The residents and the state reportedly have agreed to an 18-month timeline to evacuate the outpost. About 50 families live in the outpost, which is located some 14 miles north of Jerusalem.
Read MoreScriptures/Prayers for this topic
5. ISRAEL AND USA COMPETE IMPORTANT MILITARY DRILL - The Israel Missile Defense Organization and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency recently completed a successful test of the joint U.S.-Israel Arrow Weapon System (AWS) over the Mediterranean Sea. This test was a target-only tracking exercise with radar tracking a Blue Sparrow 2 target missile representing a potential ballistic missile threat to Israel. The radar transferred information to the battle management controller which prepared a simulated intercept solution. Elements of the U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense System successfully performed interoperability with the AWS. This was the final test prior to delivery of the Block 4 Arrow Weapons System. It was a major milestone in the development of the system and provides confidence in Israeli operational capabilities to counter the developing ballistic missile threat. (Israel Ministry of Defense)
Scriptures/Prayers for this topic
6. IRAN SENDS LETTER TO START TALKS - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton say letter shows "potential possibility" that Iran is ready for talks, accentuate primacy of nuclear issue, sustained negotiations. The United States and European Union expressed cautious optimism over prospects that Iran may be willing to engage major powers in new talks, but underscored any new negotiations must be sustained and focus on the nuclear issue. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, told reporters that Iran's recent letter to Ashton might mark a step forward. "We think this is an important step and we welcome the letter," Clinton said in a joint meeting with Ashton. She stressed that the major powers were still reviewing their formal response to Tehran's offer. Ashton, who handles contact with Iran on behalf of the "P5+1" group comprised of the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China and Germany, said the letter showed "a potential possibility that Iran may be ready to start talks." These talks may be totally useless a Iran makes new pacts with Al Qaeda to attack western targets to avenge the death of Osama Bin
Scriptures/Prayers for this topic
7. UN SENDS LETTER TO SYRIA - The UN General Assembly on Thursday overwhelmingly condemned the Syrian government's "systematic violations of human rights" and backed a plan calling for President Bashar Assad to relinquish power. But the move seemed unlikely to make much difference on the ground in Syria, where opposition activists reported that at least 63 people were killed the same day, including 38 in the northwestern province of Idlib. The non-binding UN vote was 137 in favor and 12 against, with 17 abstentions. The elite in Syria are leaving in droves with their money. Assad has been accused of using chemical weapons in his battle against Homs, which has been mercilessly bombed for over two weeks. The death count is over 7000 and the disappearances are over 20,000. In the meantime, Syria uses public relations companies to spin wonderful stories of life in Syria, "the safest nation in the Middle East."
Scriptures/Prayers for this topic