Syria moves missiles closer to Israel
By HERB KEINON AND JPOST STAFF
The cabinet at its weekly meeting heard a dismal assessment of the regional situation, as Brig.-Gen. Yossi Baidatz informed the government that Syria, concerned by the possibility of an Israeli attack, has stepped up its production of long-range missiles and moved anti-aircraft missiles to the front with Israel.
"Everywhere you look, the extremists are on the rise, while those who want to bring about a new order in the Middle East are on the decline," Baidatz said, proceeding to paint a situation in the Gaza Strip in which Hamas was taking advantage of the cease-fire to strengthen itself and its military capabilities.
While for the most part, Baidatz said, the cease-fire has held, there have been 17 rocket attacks on southern Israel from Gaza.
In addition, he reported, Hamas was the main beneficiary of the current calm, shoring up its political position by moving into the area of the former Gush Katif hothouses and placing security guards at schools, a move which will likely bolter the group's popular support.
Turning to the West Bank, Baidatz reported that the security situation there had not changed.
Attempts were still being made to launch terror attacks, he said, mainly from northern Samaria.
Meanwhile, he said, Hamas was showing it can stand firm against all attempts to weaken it. The group won't flinch in the face of the growing financial crisis, he said, adding that there was a sense of relief within Hamas, which lessened their motivation to reach an agreement on a unity government with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin pointed out that thus far, between 40 and 50 percent of the PA government salaries have been paid since Hamas rose to power. Diskin agreed with Baidatz's assessment that Hamas was taking the opportunity presented by the cease-fire to consolidate money and build strength. The tension between Hamas and Fatah was still escalating, Diskin, cautioned, with each side preparing to face off with the other, as well as with Israel.
Hamas, Diskin said, would not make any effort to stop the Kassam rocket attacks on Israel, despite the cease-fire.
Diskin also addressed the problem of an identity shift among Israeli Arabs, who are increasingly defining themselves as an "oppressed local minority," challenging the Jewish democratic nature of the State of Israel, and adopting the Palestinian narrative [of displacement].
Turning to Lebanon, Baidatz said that Hizbullah was taking a three-stage approach to toppling Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Saniora's government: first, mass protests; second, a tent city; and third, discussing nonviolent means of bringing about Saniora's downfall. Baidatz said Hizbullah appeared to be at the third stage, and was looking to win a third of the seats in Lebanon's cabinet in order to be a blocking faction.
Baidatz said that despite reports to the contrary, Hizbullah was having difficulty establishing a presence in the villages.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert spoke at the meeting in praise of former US ambassador to the UN Jeane Kirkpatrick, who died Thursday, calling her a close personal friend and a "good friend to Israel."
Olmert advised government to avoid commenting on the Baker-Hamilton report released last week, saying that Israel should refrain from interfering in "internal" US policy issues.
The prime minister said that US President George W. Bush had told him that the US does not intend to alter its policy on Iran and Syria.
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Israel Prepares to Fight Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran
Israel Prepares to Fight Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran
Early Warning: Israel is preparing for war against its implacable, Iranian-backed, Islamist foes, Hamas and Hezbollah, and their secular ally, Syria.
Preparations are also underway for possible preemptive strikes against Iran itself in order to end its nuclear weapons program.
Israeli military commanders and intelligence analysts are increasingly convinced that Iran is masterminding a plan for a multifront assault on the Jewish state, which could commence early next year.
A sense of deadly encirclement grows stronger by the day in Israel, following its failure to defeat Hezbollah in the summer war and deepening ties between Hamas, which refuses to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and Shiite non-Arab Iran. Formidable military buildups by the Sunni Palestinian movement, which now boasts a 10,000-man army in Gaza, and Shiite Lebanese Hezbollah, which is steadily receiving Iranian arms through Syria, are considered clear indications of a coming conflict. Both groups are expected to hide behind civilian human shields and to use civilian homes and apartment buildings, and mosques, schools, and hospitals as operational bases and to increase the chances of civilian casualties for purposes of stimulating support and sympathy abroad.
Amid attempts to seize control of war-torn Lebanon, Iran’s proxy is likely to trigger hostilities by firing antiaircraft missiles–under United Nations cover–at overflying Israeli military planes.
Hostilities could escalate quickly and sharply once the shooting starts.
There is a growing consensus in Israel that the international community is ignoring the seriousness of the Iranian threat–to Israel and the West. The report by the Iraq Study Group, co-chaired by a notoriously anti-Israel former United States Secretary of State, James Baker, reinforces the impression. The bipartisan, Congressionally funded panel recommended direct talks with Iran and Syria to defuse the Arab/Palestinian-Israeli conflict and stabilize the rapidly deteriorating situation in Iraq. This is codespeak, say Israelis, for appeasing Iran and Syria by ramming a comprehensive land-for-peace pact down Israel’s throat. Israelis fear appeasement of Iran will lead not to peace, but, at best, to the piece-by-piece dismantling of their country, and, at worst, to falling victim to a surprise attack resulting in a catastrophic defeat.
We agree with the Israeli assessment. In fact, Western denial of the Iranian threat dates to the months preceding the overthrow of the pro-US Shah, when the Carter administration dumped America’s ally and old friend in a craven attempt to curry favor with his emboldened enemy, an Islamist-Left alliance led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Weeks before the January 1979 revolution, this reporter repeatedly predicted–on the front page of an influential American weekly publication–that the Ayatollah would establish a terribly repressive and fanatically anti-American, anti-Western, anti-Israel regime resembling a kind of clerical fascism.
Which, unfortunately, is exactly what happened.
But the nuclear issue–Iran’s development of nuclear weapons under the guise of civilian energy research–raises the Islamist threat to a new and terrifying level. Whereas the mullahocracy has from its inception used the Palestinian issue as a rallying flag and tool for spreading Iranian influence in the region, it now regards the liberation of Palestine–meaning, the annihilation of Israel–as a strategic objective. This is why the regime’s embrace of neo-Nazi Holocaust denial is so significant: Iran is preparing the ground, ideologically and philosophically, for Israel’s extinction.
Not to say that Iran necessarily intends to fire nuclear-tipped missiles at Tel Aviv. Tehran’s plot to wipe Israel off the map, in the words of Iranian monster-in-chief Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, could involve coordinated Hamas and Hezbollah assaults, augmented by Syrian conventional and chemical attacks and conventional long-range Iranian missile strikes. Use of nuclear weapons could be deemed too risky by Iran, inviting sure-fire retaliatory strikes from the Jewish state, which is assumed to have 200 or more nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them accurately to distant targets.
While direct Iranian nuclear attacks against Israel cannot be ruled out, it is quite possible that Tehran’s present nuclear program is aimed (a) at executing an indirect nuclear attack against the Jewish state, perhaps by using Palestinian terrorists to detonate a small nuclear device or so-called radioactive dirty bomb in the heart of the country’s main population center, and/or (b) at intimidating and neutralizing Europe through the threat of nuclear war.
The French understand this threat; hence, the unusually blunt warnings by French leaders that they will not hesitate to use their nuclear weapons if France is hit by a mega-terror strike.
The Iranians may even be instigating a new round of fighting in the Middle East in order to buy time for further nuclear development, as their standoff with the West is approaching the sanctions stage (though China and Russia will almost certainly prevent the imposition of truly tough sanctions involving possible use of force under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter).
Iran wants nuclear weapons for another reason: to deter the US from attacking and to drive the “Great Satan” out of the region for once and all. Iranian foreign policy is imperialist to the core in that it aims to alter the international status quo and permanently change the power relations among nations.
Iran could also be preparing for possible covert nuclear strikes against the US, as we have noted in the past, using cleverly concealed, nuclear-armed missiles atop seemingly civilian, foreign-flagged cargo ships. The US has no practical defense against an attack of this kind, which could be simultaneously launched against its coastal cities.
This entry was posted on Sunday, December 10th, 2006 at 8:36 p12 and is filed under Islam, Iran, Israel, hamas, Islamic Propaganda, Hezbollah, islam fundamentalist, Islamic lies, islamic recruiting, democrat muslim, Iranian threat, Israel Defense Forces, Islam unrest, Islam sympathizers, islam violating treaties, Islamic Imperialism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Early Warning: Israel is preparing for war against its implacable, Iranian-backed, Islamist foes, Hamas and Hezbollah, and their secular ally, Syria.
Preparations are also underway for possible preemptive strikes against Iran itself in order to end its nuclear weapons program.
Israeli military commanders and intelligence analysts are increasingly convinced that Iran is masterminding a plan for a multifront assault on the Jewish state, which could commence early next year.
A sense of deadly encirclement grows stronger by the day in Israel, following its failure to defeat Hezbollah in the summer war and deepening ties between Hamas, which refuses to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and Shiite non-Arab Iran. Formidable military buildups by the Sunni Palestinian movement, which now boasts a 10,000-man army in Gaza, and Shiite Lebanese Hezbollah, which is steadily receiving Iranian arms through Syria, are considered clear indications of a coming conflict. Both groups are expected to hide behind civilian human shields and to use civilian homes and apartment buildings, and mosques, schools, and hospitals as operational bases and to increase the chances of civilian casualties for purposes of stimulating support and sympathy abroad.
Amid attempts to seize control of war-torn Lebanon, Iran’s proxy is likely to trigger hostilities by firing antiaircraft missiles–under United Nations cover–at overflying Israeli military planes.
Hostilities could escalate quickly and sharply once the shooting starts.
There is a growing consensus in Israel that the international community is ignoring the seriousness of the Iranian threat–to Israel and the West. The report by the Iraq Study Group, co-chaired by a notoriously anti-Israel former United States Secretary of State, James Baker, reinforces the impression. The bipartisan, Congressionally funded panel recommended direct talks with Iran and Syria to defuse the Arab/Palestinian-Israeli conflict and stabilize the rapidly deteriorating situation in Iraq. This is codespeak, say Israelis, for appeasing Iran and Syria by ramming a comprehensive land-for-peace pact down Israel’s throat. Israelis fear appeasement of Iran will lead not to peace, but, at best, to the piece-by-piece dismantling of their country, and, at worst, to falling victim to a surprise attack resulting in a catastrophic defeat.
We agree with the Israeli assessment. In fact, Western denial of the Iranian threat dates to the months preceding the overthrow of the pro-US Shah, when the Carter administration dumped America’s ally and old friend in a craven attempt to curry favor with his emboldened enemy, an Islamist-Left alliance led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Weeks before the January 1979 revolution, this reporter repeatedly predicted–on the front page of an influential American weekly publication–that the Ayatollah would establish a terribly repressive and fanatically anti-American, anti-Western, anti-Israel regime resembling a kind of clerical fascism.
Which, unfortunately, is exactly what happened.
But the nuclear issue–Iran’s development of nuclear weapons under the guise of civilian energy research–raises the Islamist threat to a new and terrifying level. Whereas the mullahocracy has from its inception used the Palestinian issue as a rallying flag and tool for spreading Iranian influence in the region, it now regards the liberation of Palestine–meaning, the annihilation of Israel–as a strategic objective. This is why the regime’s embrace of neo-Nazi Holocaust denial is so significant: Iran is preparing the ground, ideologically and philosophically, for Israel’s extinction.
Not to say that Iran necessarily intends to fire nuclear-tipped missiles at Tel Aviv. Tehran’s plot to wipe Israel off the map, in the words of Iranian monster-in-chief Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, could involve coordinated Hamas and Hezbollah assaults, augmented by Syrian conventional and chemical attacks and conventional long-range Iranian missile strikes. Use of nuclear weapons could be deemed too risky by Iran, inviting sure-fire retaliatory strikes from the Jewish state, which is assumed to have 200 or more nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them accurately to distant targets.
While direct Iranian nuclear attacks against Israel cannot be ruled out, it is quite possible that Tehran’s present nuclear program is aimed (a) at executing an indirect nuclear attack against the Jewish state, perhaps by using Palestinian terrorists to detonate a small nuclear device or so-called radioactive dirty bomb in the heart of the country’s main population center, and/or (b) at intimidating and neutralizing Europe through the threat of nuclear war.
The French understand this threat; hence, the unusually blunt warnings by French leaders that they will not hesitate to use their nuclear weapons if France is hit by a mega-terror strike.
The Iranians may even be instigating a new round of fighting in the Middle East in order to buy time for further nuclear development, as their standoff with the West is approaching the sanctions stage (though China and Russia will almost certainly prevent the imposition of truly tough sanctions involving possible use of force under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter).
Iran wants nuclear weapons for another reason: to deter the US from attacking and to drive the “Great Satan” out of the region for once and all. Iranian foreign policy is imperialist to the core in that it aims to alter the international status quo and permanently change the power relations among nations.
Iran could also be preparing for possible covert nuclear strikes against the US, as we have noted in the past, using cleverly concealed, nuclear-armed missiles atop seemingly civilian, foreign-flagged cargo ships. The US has no practical defense against an attack of this kind, which could be simultaneously launched against its coastal cities.
This entry was posted on Sunday, December 10th, 2006 at 8:36 p12 and is filed under Islam, Iran, Israel, hamas, Islamic Propaganda, Hezbollah, islam fundamentalist, Islamic lies, islamic recruiting, democrat muslim, Iranian threat, Israel Defense Forces, Islam unrest, Islam sympathizers, islam violating treaties, Islamic Imperialism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Defense calls for mistrial after Bible left in jury room
Defense calls for mistrial after Bible left in jury room
By Earl Descant
Dispatch Starkville Bureau
edescant@cdispatch.com
STARKVILLE - Maybe it was solace she was looking for, or perhaps guidance.But whatever the reason a juror asked Oktibbeha County Circuit Court Bailiff James Austin to leave his Bible in the jury room during jury deliberations - and the request was granted - this one small act is sure to be a leading cause in Kristi Leigh Fulgham's appeal of a death penalty handed down Saturday.
Fulgham, 30, was convicted Thursday for the May 2003 capital murder of her husband Joey Fulgham. The jury began deliberations Friday on the sentencing portion of the trial. Jurors were faced with two options - life without the possibility of parole or death.
The jury of eight women and four men ultimately returned a sentence of “death,” after a little more than an hour of deliberation Friday evening and just under an hour of deliberation Saturday morning.
But before this, the defense, led by attorney Jim Lappan, immediately called for a mistrial when it was learned that Austin had left his Bible in one of the jury rooms at a juror's request Friday evening as the jury deliberated Fulgham's life or death sentence. The Bible was only in the room for about 15 minutes when Circuit Court Judge Lee Howard recessed the court until the next day. Howard learned of the incident late in the day Friday.
“Religion may not play a role in sentencing,” Lappan told the court. “Leaving a Bible in a jury room must cast a bona fide doubt on what instructions the jury is consulting other than the judge's instructions on the law.”
Lappan went on to cite more than a half-dozen cases regarding due process, and instances when legal process has been violated by outside materials such as a Bible, newspaper articles and other outside sources.
“The death penalty can only be a result from the deliberation of aggravating and mitigating evidence, and the Holy Bible cannot be cited,” added Lappan.“She (Kristi Fulgham) has no idea now what this jury is considering,” continued Lappan.
“We oppose this mistrial,” said assistant district attorney Frank Clark. “It's based on pure speculation as to what happened in that room.”
Howard, after consulting with the jury on their ability to only consider the evidence and legal instructions issued by the court, and after hearing no objections, overruled the defense's request for a mistrial and allowed the jury to consider its deliberations.
But the request for a Bible, and having the request granted, will almost without a doubt lay the groundwork for an appeals process which could stretch years.
“I know that I'm going to be revisiting these issues anyway,” said Howard.And seeing the error in his judgment, Austin, a minister, later regretted his actions.
“I'm hurting on the inside,” said Austin.
By Earl Descant
Dispatch Starkville Bureau
edescant@cdispatch.com
STARKVILLE - Maybe it was solace she was looking for, or perhaps guidance.But whatever the reason a juror asked Oktibbeha County Circuit Court Bailiff James Austin to leave his Bible in the jury room during jury deliberations - and the request was granted - this one small act is sure to be a leading cause in Kristi Leigh Fulgham's appeal of a death penalty handed down Saturday.
Fulgham, 30, was convicted Thursday for the May 2003 capital murder of her husband Joey Fulgham. The jury began deliberations Friday on the sentencing portion of the trial. Jurors were faced with two options - life without the possibility of parole or death.
The jury of eight women and four men ultimately returned a sentence of “death,” after a little more than an hour of deliberation Friday evening and just under an hour of deliberation Saturday morning.
But before this, the defense, led by attorney Jim Lappan, immediately called for a mistrial when it was learned that Austin had left his Bible in one of the jury rooms at a juror's request Friday evening as the jury deliberated Fulgham's life or death sentence. The Bible was only in the room for about 15 minutes when Circuit Court Judge Lee Howard recessed the court until the next day. Howard learned of the incident late in the day Friday.
“Religion may not play a role in sentencing,” Lappan told the court. “Leaving a Bible in a jury room must cast a bona fide doubt on what instructions the jury is consulting other than the judge's instructions on the law.”
Lappan went on to cite more than a half-dozen cases regarding due process, and instances when legal process has been violated by outside materials such as a Bible, newspaper articles and other outside sources.
“The death penalty can only be a result from the deliberation of aggravating and mitigating evidence, and the Holy Bible cannot be cited,” added Lappan.“She (Kristi Fulgham) has no idea now what this jury is considering,” continued Lappan.
“We oppose this mistrial,” said assistant district attorney Frank Clark. “It's based on pure speculation as to what happened in that room.”
Howard, after consulting with the jury on their ability to only consider the evidence and legal instructions issued by the court, and after hearing no objections, overruled the defense's request for a mistrial and allowed the jury to consider its deliberations.
But the request for a Bible, and having the request granted, will almost without a doubt lay the groundwork for an appeals process which could stretch years.
“I know that I'm going to be revisiting these issues anyway,” said Howard.And seeing the error in his judgment, Austin, a minister, later regretted his actions.
“I'm hurting on the inside,” said Austin.
How God Gets Our Attention
December 10, 2006
How God Gets Our Attention
1 Samuel 3:1-10
God uses a variety of methods to get our attention. Sometimes He’ll give us a restless spirit. At other times He can get our attention through a word from a fellow believer, through tragedy, through unanswered prayer, through disappointment, and through financial difficulty, among other ways.
Whatever method God chooses to bring you within His will is perfect and is born of His love. He can see not only your present but also your future. He has plans for you and will keep you in precise accordance with those plans if you obey Him.
It is when we cease traveling on the path He has chosen for us that God has to get our attention. He may use one method today, another next week, another next year. Yet He always acts out of love and never out of whim, anger, or vindication.
Our response, then, should be to examine every single area and circumstance of our lives and ask the Lord to clarify what He is trying to show us and how He wants us to proceed.
God got Samuel’s attention through someone else, his mentor Eli. When finally Samuel understood who was calling him, he told God that he was “listening.” This particular Hebrew word means “to hear with a view to obeying.” Samuel answered with clear intentions to obey though he had no idea what God would say next. May his response be our model.
Romans 1:16
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of GOD unto salvation for all who will believe........"
How God Gets Our Attention
1 Samuel 3:1-10
God uses a variety of methods to get our attention. Sometimes He’ll give us a restless spirit. At other times He can get our attention through a word from a fellow believer, through tragedy, through unanswered prayer, through disappointment, and through financial difficulty, among other ways.
Whatever method God chooses to bring you within His will is perfect and is born of His love. He can see not only your present but also your future. He has plans for you and will keep you in precise accordance with those plans if you obey Him.
It is when we cease traveling on the path He has chosen for us that God has to get our attention. He may use one method today, another next week, another next year. Yet He always acts out of love and never out of whim, anger, or vindication.
Our response, then, should be to examine every single area and circumstance of our lives and ask the Lord to clarify what He is trying to show us and how He wants us to proceed.
God got Samuel’s attention through someone else, his mentor Eli. When finally Samuel understood who was calling him, he told God that he was “listening.” This particular Hebrew word means “to hear with a view to obeying.” Samuel answered with clear intentions to obey though he had no idea what God would say next. May his response be our model.
Romans 1:16
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of GOD unto salvation for all who will believe........"
Muslim boys urinated on Bible
Muslim boys urinated on Bible
Cameron Stewart
TWO Muslim students have been expelled from an Islamic school in Melbourne for urinating and spitting on a Bible and setting it on fire.The explosive incident has forced the East Preston Islamic College to call in a senior imam to tell its 650 Muslim students that the Bible and Christianity must be respected.
Anxious teachers at the school have also petitioned principal Shaheem Doutie, expressing "grave concern" about an "inculcation of hatred and radical attitudes towards non-Muslims" at the school, including towards non-Muslim teachers.
The Bible desecration took place last week at a school camp held near Bacchus Marsh, about 50km west of Melbourne, attended by 33 teenage Muslim boys ranging in age from Year7 to Year 10.
A school report of the incident, obtained by The Australian, says it happened late at night and involved three students and another two watching.
"The main perpetrator (a Year 7 student) urinated on the Holy Bible, tore some pages from the Holy Book and burnt them then finally spat on the Holy Book," the report says.
The second boy, from Year 9, "tore pages from the Holy Book and burnt them", while a third student, from Year 7, "tore pages from the Holy Bible and then he rolled it up like a cigarette and pretended to smoke it".
The boys come from a variety of ethnic Muslim backgrounds -- one is believed to be an Albanian/Malaysian, another Lebanese and another Indonesian.
Mr Doutie, whose school receives about $3.9 million in state and federal government funding each year, told The Australian yesterday that both he and the school community were appalled by the Bible desecration and that he had expelled the first two boys and suspended the third.
In a letter to all staff on Monday, Mr Doutie wrote: "The school unconditionally apologises for this horrible act as conducted by some illiterate and ignorant students while under the care of EPIC teachers.
"We regard the desecration of the Bible in a very serious light and therefore we have taken serious action against the offenders.
"The Bible is an important book both for non-Muslims and Muslims and should be treated as a holy book by all religions."
Mr Doutie said he did not believe that the boys realised the significance of their act.
But to ensure it did not happen again he had called in the assistant imam of the Newport Mosque, Oman Haouli, to tell the students that the Bible was a sacred book. "My lesson to them was to respect their neighbours and respect all religions," Mr Haouli said yesterday.
But the desecration incident has shaken the nerves of the school's teachers, about half of whom are non-Muslim.
A petition signed by 22 teachers expressed "anguish and dismay at the grave incident of the desecration of the Holy Bible".
"This whole incident implies a deep hatred inculcated in the students towards the Christians/non-Muslim teachers," it says.
The petition said there had been "previous incidents of students misbehaving towards non-Muslim teachers".
It called on the school to "take steps to rectify this explosive situation" to ensure the safety of teachers.
Mr Doutie said the school had tried to contact the parents of the expelled boys to find out why they had desecrated the Bible. But he said the school had not received a response.
EPIC is an eight-year-old primary and secondary school in Melbourne's north that caters mostly to the children of working-class immigrant Somali and Lebanese families.
The Bible desecration comes at a time of heightened tension among Australia's 300,000-member Islamic community, many of whom believe their religion is being unfairly discriminated against because of terrorism fears.
Many Muslims remain angry about the public humiliation suffered by their spiritual leader, the mufti Taj Din al-Hilali, after the Sheik likened female rape victims to pieces of meat who brought the attacks on themselves.
Cameron Stewart
TWO Muslim students have been expelled from an Islamic school in Melbourne for urinating and spitting on a Bible and setting it on fire.The explosive incident has forced the East Preston Islamic College to call in a senior imam to tell its 650 Muslim students that the Bible and Christianity must be respected.
Anxious teachers at the school have also petitioned principal Shaheem Doutie, expressing "grave concern" about an "inculcation of hatred and radical attitudes towards non-Muslims" at the school, including towards non-Muslim teachers.
The Bible desecration took place last week at a school camp held near Bacchus Marsh, about 50km west of Melbourne, attended by 33 teenage Muslim boys ranging in age from Year7 to Year 10.
A school report of the incident, obtained by The Australian, says it happened late at night and involved three students and another two watching.
"The main perpetrator (a Year 7 student) urinated on the Holy Bible, tore some pages from the Holy Book and burnt them then finally spat on the Holy Book," the report says.
The second boy, from Year 9, "tore pages from the Holy Book and burnt them", while a third student, from Year 7, "tore pages from the Holy Bible and then he rolled it up like a cigarette and pretended to smoke it".
The boys come from a variety of ethnic Muslim backgrounds -- one is believed to be an Albanian/Malaysian, another Lebanese and another Indonesian.
Mr Doutie, whose school receives about $3.9 million in state and federal government funding each year, told The Australian yesterday that both he and the school community were appalled by the Bible desecration and that he had expelled the first two boys and suspended the third.
In a letter to all staff on Monday, Mr Doutie wrote: "The school unconditionally apologises for this horrible act as conducted by some illiterate and ignorant students while under the care of EPIC teachers.
"We regard the desecration of the Bible in a very serious light and therefore we have taken serious action against the offenders.
"The Bible is an important book both for non-Muslims and Muslims and should be treated as a holy book by all religions."
Mr Doutie said he did not believe that the boys realised the significance of their act.
But to ensure it did not happen again he had called in the assistant imam of the Newport Mosque, Oman Haouli, to tell the students that the Bible was a sacred book. "My lesson to them was to respect their neighbours and respect all religions," Mr Haouli said yesterday.
But the desecration incident has shaken the nerves of the school's teachers, about half of whom are non-Muslim.
A petition signed by 22 teachers expressed "anguish and dismay at the grave incident of the desecration of the Holy Bible".
"This whole incident implies a deep hatred inculcated in the students towards the Christians/non-Muslim teachers," it says.
The petition said there had been "previous incidents of students misbehaving towards non-Muslim teachers".
It called on the school to "take steps to rectify this explosive situation" to ensure the safety of teachers.
Mr Doutie said the school had tried to contact the parents of the expelled boys to find out why they had desecrated the Bible. But he said the school had not received a response.
EPIC is an eight-year-old primary and secondary school in Melbourne's north that caters mostly to the children of working-class immigrant Somali and Lebanese families.
The Bible desecration comes at a time of heightened tension among Australia's 300,000-member Islamic community, many of whom believe their religion is being unfairly discriminated against because of terrorism fears.
Many Muslims remain angry about the public humiliation suffered by their spiritual leader, the mufti Taj Din al-Hilali, after the Sheik likened female rape victims to pieces of meat who brought the attacks on themselves.
Israeli bill reversing ruling passes, but still may fail
MARRIAGE DIGEST: Israeli bill reversing ruling passes, but still may fail; top travel destinations for homosexuals charted
By Michael Foust
Baptist Press
JERUSALEM (BP)--An Israeli bill that would reverse a pro-"gay marriage" ruling by that nation's highest court passed the legislature Dec. 6, although it still must pass twice more and apparently faces an uphill climb.
The legislation passed by a vote of 33-31, although several legislators who oppose the bill were absent and pledged to be there during the next vote, The Jerusalem Post reported. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert voted against the bill, which would prevent the government from recognizing "gay marriages" from other countries, The Post said. It passed in mid-day during a time when many legislators leave for lunch.
The bill would trump a 6-1 decision by the Israeli High Court of Justice, which in November ruled that the government must recognize "gay marriages" from Canada, Spain and other countries. The ruling put Israel to the left of Great Britain and the United States, neither of which recognizes "gay marriages" conducted elsewhere. The U.S. government doesn't even recognize "gay marriages" from the state of Massachusetts.
"Clearly this is a disappointment for us," Itai Pinkas, an Israeli homosexual man who was "married" in Canada, told The Post. "We are nearly sure that this will not pass a second and third vote."
The bill is sponsored by legislator Mickey Eitan.
Canada, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and South Africa are the only countries worldwide to recognize "gay marriage."
CONFUSION IN CALIF. -- Despite the fact his side won at the appellate level, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, a Democrat, asked the state Supreme Court in legal briefs Dec. 4 to hear a lawsuit seeking the legalization of "gay marriage."
Lockyer's office is responsible for defending the current law, which defines marriage as between one man and one woman. In October a state appeals court panel sided with Lockyer and voted 2-1 to uphold the current law. "Gay marriage" supporters appealed that ruling to the state Supreme Court, and Lockyer, too, asked the justices to take the case.
"The legality of same-sex marriage remains an issue of direct, personal importance to same-sex couples and their families," Lockyer's brief states, according to the San Jose Mercury News. "Like all Californians, these couples rightly expect the final resolution of this controversy to come from the state's highest court."
Meanwhile, pro-family legal groups are asking the court not to take the case. That would allow the appellate ruling to stand. In a legal brief Liberty Counsel asserted that "gay marriage" supporters "are now asking this court to assume the role of social engineer and to override the expressed will of the people of California that marriage is to continue to be defined as the union of one man and one woman."
In 2000 a California initiative defining marriage in the natural, traditional sense passed with 61 percent of the vote.
The same day that Lockyer filed his legal briefs, California state Assemblyman Mark Leno, a Democrat, reintroduced a bill that would legalize "gay marriage." Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed an identical bill previously, but Leno, who is homosexual, said he hopes Schwarzenegger changes his mind, the Associated Press reported.
POLLS GAUGE HOMOSEXUAL TOURISM -- "Gay marriage" has been legal throughout Canada for more than a year, and not surprisingly, America's neighbor to the north is quite popular among U.S. homosexual tourists. In an online annual survey by Community Marketing Inc., Canada ranked No. 1 among American homosexuals in international destinations, The Globe and Mail newspaper reported. Vancouver was ranked as the top Canadian city, while Montreal and Toronto were second and third, respectively.
The article interviewed Karen Wetzel of Louisiana, who traveled to Vancouver with her lesbian partner. After landing at the airport, they told a customs officer they were visiting the city to get "married," The Globe and Mail reported.
"Well, congratulations and welcome to Vancouver," he responded.
Vancouver's tourism department has made a concerted effort to reach out to the homosexual community. Its website features prominently a banner reading, "Gay-friendly Vancouver." Just below that a description reads, "Restaurants, coffee shops, nightclubs and boutiques catering to gays and lesbians."
It's the second year in a row Canada has been No. 1 on the list. Last year it beat Europe for the first time, the newspaper said. This year Mexico is second, the United Kingdom third.
Meanwhile, a new study conducted for the Travel Industry Association found that on average homosexual men spend 33 more than other travelers, the Detroit Free Press reported. Lesbian travelers, the study said, are more in line with heterosexual travelers. The Harris Interactive study surveyed 2,020 homosexual men and women. Homosexual men, the study said, also are significantly more likely to travel alone, the Free Press reported.
The Harris Interactive study also found that the top "gay-friendly" U.S. destination for American homosexuals is San Francisco. Key West, Fla., was second, followed by New York City; Fire Island, N.Y.; Provincetown, Mass.; Los Angeles; Miami; Las Vegas; New Orleans; Palm Springs/Palm Desert, Calif; and Boston, Chicago, San Diego and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (four-way tie).
Two prominent travel websites -- Orbitz.com and Travelocity.com -- feature links on their homepage for homosexual travelers.
--30--
For more information about the national debate over "gay marriage," visit http://www.bpnews.net/samesexmarriage
Copyright © 2001 - 2006 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press
By Michael Foust
Baptist Press
JERUSALEM (BP)--An Israeli bill that would reverse a pro-"gay marriage" ruling by that nation's highest court passed the legislature Dec. 6, although it still must pass twice more and apparently faces an uphill climb.
The legislation passed by a vote of 33-31, although several legislators who oppose the bill were absent and pledged to be there during the next vote, The Jerusalem Post reported. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert voted against the bill, which would prevent the government from recognizing "gay marriages" from other countries, The Post said. It passed in mid-day during a time when many legislators leave for lunch.
The bill would trump a 6-1 decision by the Israeli High Court of Justice, which in November ruled that the government must recognize "gay marriages" from Canada, Spain and other countries. The ruling put Israel to the left of Great Britain and the United States, neither of which recognizes "gay marriages" conducted elsewhere. The U.S. government doesn't even recognize "gay marriages" from the state of Massachusetts.
"Clearly this is a disappointment for us," Itai Pinkas, an Israeli homosexual man who was "married" in Canada, told The Post. "We are nearly sure that this will not pass a second and third vote."
The bill is sponsored by legislator Mickey Eitan.
Canada, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands and South Africa are the only countries worldwide to recognize "gay marriage."
CONFUSION IN CALIF. -- Despite the fact his side won at the appellate level, California Attorney General Bill Lockyer, a Democrat, asked the state Supreme Court in legal briefs Dec. 4 to hear a lawsuit seeking the legalization of "gay marriage."
Lockyer's office is responsible for defending the current law, which defines marriage as between one man and one woman. In October a state appeals court panel sided with Lockyer and voted 2-1 to uphold the current law. "Gay marriage" supporters appealed that ruling to the state Supreme Court, and Lockyer, too, asked the justices to take the case.
"The legality of same-sex marriage remains an issue of direct, personal importance to same-sex couples and their families," Lockyer's brief states, according to the San Jose Mercury News. "Like all Californians, these couples rightly expect the final resolution of this controversy to come from the state's highest court."
Meanwhile, pro-family legal groups are asking the court not to take the case. That would allow the appellate ruling to stand. In a legal brief Liberty Counsel asserted that "gay marriage" supporters "are now asking this court to assume the role of social engineer and to override the expressed will of the people of California that marriage is to continue to be defined as the union of one man and one woman."
In 2000 a California initiative defining marriage in the natural, traditional sense passed with 61 percent of the vote.
The same day that Lockyer filed his legal briefs, California state Assemblyman Mark Leno, a Democrat, reintroduced a bill that would legalize "gay marriage." Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed an identical bill previously, but Leno, who is homosexual, said he hopes Schwarzenegger changes his mind, the Associated Press reported.
POLLS GAUGE HOMOSEXUAL TOURISM -- "Gay marriage" has been legal throughout Canada for more than a year, and not surprisingly, America's neighbor to the north is quite popular among U.S. homosexual tourists. In an online annual survey by Community Marketing Inc., Canada ranked No. 1 among American homosexuals in international destinations, The Globe and Mail newspaper reported. Vancouver was ranked as the top Canadian city, while Montreal and Toronto were second and third, respectively.
The article interviewed Karen Wetzel of Louisiana, who traveled to Vancouver with her lesbian partner. After landing at the airport, they told a customs officer they were visiting the city to get "married," The Globe and Mail reported.
"Well, congratulations and welcome to Vancouver," he responded.
Vancouver's tourism department has made a concerted effort to reach out to the homosexual community. Its website features prominently a banner reading, "Gay-friendly Vancouver." Just below that a description reads, "Restaurants, coffee shops, nightclubs and boutiques catering to gays and lesbians."
It's the second year in a row Canada has been No. 1 on the list. Last year it beat Europe for the first time, the newspaper said. This year Mexico is second, the United Kingdom third.
Meanwhile, a new study conducted for the Travel Industry Association found that on average homosexual men spend 33 more than other travelers, the Detroit Free Press reported. Lesbian travelers, the study said, are more in line with heterosexual travelers. The Harris Interactive study surveyed 2,020 homosexual men and women. Homosexual men, the study said, also are significantly more likely to travel alone, the Free Press reported.
The Harris Interactive study also found that the top "gay-friendly" U.S. destination for American homosexuals is San Francisco. Key West, Fla., was second, followed by New York City; Fire Island, N.Y.; Provincetown, Mass.; Los Angeles; Miami; Las Vegas; New Orleans; Palm Springs/Palm Desert, Calif; and Boston, Chicago, San Diego and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (four-way tie).
Two prominent travel websites -- Orbitz.com and Travelocity.com -- feature links on their homepage for homosexual travelers.
--30--
For more information about the national debate over "gay marriage," visit http://www.bpnews.net/samesexmarriage
Copyright © 2001 - 2006 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press
Canadian Parliament affirms 'gay marriage,' votes to allows current law to stand
Canadian Parliament affirms 'gay marriage,' votes to allows current law to stand
By StaffBaptist Press
OTTAWA, Ontario (BP)--Canada's Parliament affirmed the nation's "gay marriage" law Dec. 7, easily voting down a motion by the Conservative government that would have reopened debate on the issue and likely ended up reversing the law.
The motion lost, 175-123, with most of the Conservatives supporting the motion and nearly all the Liberal and Bloc Quebecois members voting against it. The motion, although unsuccessful, fulfilled a campaign promise by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Canada legalized "gay marriage" in 2005 when the Liberals and then-Prime Minister Paul Martin controlled Parliament. But they lost in January to the Conservatives, who took a plurality of seats to form a minority government. But because the Conservative government doesn't have a majority of seats, they must rely on the other two parties to pass any legislation. Both the Liberals and the Bloc are significantly more liberal on social issues.
The motion's defeat means "gay marriage" may be legal in Canada permanently.
"We made a promise to have a free vote on this issue, we kept that promise, and obviously the vote was decisive and obviously we’ll accept the democratic result of the people’s representatives,” Harper said, according to Canadian Press, referring to the fact that members of Parliament could vote "freely" according to their conscience and not be forced to follow the party lead.
“I don’t see reopening this question in the future,” Harper said.
Thirteen Conservatives voted against the motion, including Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay. Among the other two parties, 13 Liberals voted for the motion, while two Bloc MPs didn't vote at all, Canadian Press reported.
The vote showed that support in Parliament for "gay marriage" actually increased by 17 votes, despite the fact that Conservatives had picked up seats. The law to legalize "gay marriage" passed in the summer of 2005 by a vote of 158-133. Back then, 32 Liberals voted against legalization while only three Conservatives voted for it.
Although some media outlets had reported in previous weeks that the Conservative government wanted to pass legislation protecting public officials who opposed "gay marriage" from being forced to perform such ceremonies, Harper said there in fact were no plans to do that.
"If there were any time in the future when fundamental freedoms were threatened, of course the government would respond to protect them," he said. "The government has no plans at this time."
Conservative MP Bill Casey voted against the motion to reopen debate. The motion asked if MPs wanted "to call on government to introduce legislation to restore the traditional definition of marriage without affecting civil unions and while respecting existing same-sex marriages."
“If the vote had gone the other way, we would have spent the next several years with this as the main motivator here … so I just voted to move on,” Casey said.
Christian groups expressed disappointment. The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada released a statement affirming the natural definition of marriage and requesting tolerance from Canadians for those holding traditional views.
“In a plural and democratic society, faith communities must have language to communicate their principles and beliefs and the freedom to promote a distinctive relationship that has stood the test of time and been accepted into common use,” Bruce J. Clemenger, president of the fellowship, said in a statement. “In the wake of today’s vote, we call on Parliament and all Canadians to respect the diversity of views on the nature and meaning of marriage and to affirm the legitimacy of faith communities to abide by an understanding of marriage that has served the public good.”
The EFC statement said "marriage has historically been concerned with the common good of the couple, their children and society as a whole."
"By turning the focus to a matter solely of individual rights, other valid concerns are not being addressed," the statement noted. "These issues include religious freedom, the impact on children and the benefits society gains from a stable environment in which future generations are conceived and raised."
Canada is a good example of how the "gay marriage" movement has advanced worldwide. In 1999, Parliament passed a motion affirming marriage as between one man and one woman, 216-55. But in 2003 a similar motion failed, 137-132. Then-Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chretien voted for the 1999 motion but against the 2003 one. Asked to explain his reversal, Chretien said society "has evolved."
--30--
Compiled by Michael Foust. For information about the national debate over "gay marriage," visit http://www.bpnews.net/samesexmarriage
By StaffBaptist Press
OTTAWA, Ontario (BP)--Canada's Parliament affirmed the nation's "gay marriage" law Dec. 7, easily voting down a motion by the Conservative government that would have reopened debate on the issue and likely ended up reversing the law.
The motion lost, 175-123, with most of the Conservatives supporting the motion and nearly all the Liberal and Bloc Quebecois members voting against it. The motion, although unsuccessful, fulfilled a campaign promise by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
Canada legalized "gay marriage" in 2005 when the Liberals and then-Prime Minister Paul Martin controlled Parliament. But they lost in January to the Conservatives, who took a plurality of seats to form a minority government. But because the Conservative government doesn't have a majority of seats, they must rely on the other two parties to pass any legislation. Both the Liberals and the Bloc are significantly more liberal on social issues.
The motion's defeat means "gay marriage" may be legal in Canada permanently.
"We made a promise to have a free vote on this issue, we kept that promise, and obviously the vote was decisive and obviously we’ll accept the democratic result of the people’s representatives,” Harper said, according to Canadian Press, referring to the fact that members of Parliament could vote "freely" according to their conscience and not be forced to follow the party lead.
“I don’t see reopening this question in the future,” Harper said.
Thirteen Conservatives voted against the motion, including Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay. Among the other two parties, 13 Liberals voted for the motion, while two Bloc MPs didn't vote at all, Canadian Press reported.
The vote showed that support in Parliament for "gay marriage" actually increased by 17 votes, despite the fact that Conservatives had picked up seats. The law to legalize "gay marriage" passed in the summer of 2005 by a vote of 158-133. Back then, 32 Liberals voted against legalization while only three Conservatives voted for it.
Although some media outlets had reported in previous weeks that the Conservative government wanted to pass legislation protecting public officials who opposed "gay marriage" from being forced to perform such ceremonies, Harper said there in fact were no plans to do that.
"If there were any time in the future when fundamental freedoms were threatened, of course the government would respond to protect them," he said. "The government has no plans at this time."
Conservative MP Bill Casey voted against the motion to reopen debate. The motion asked if MPs wanted "to call on government to introduce legislation to restore the traditional definition of marriage without affecting civil unions and while respecting existing same-sex marriages."
“If the vote had gone the other way, we would have spent the next several years with this as the main motivator here … so I just voted to move on,” Casey said.
Christian groups expressed disappointment. The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada released a statement affirming the natural definition of marriage and requesting tolerance from Canadians for those holding traditional views.
“In a plural and democratic society, faith communities must have language to communicate their principles and beliefs and the freedom to promote a distinctive relationship that has stood the test of time and been accepted into common use,” Bruce J. Clemenger, president of the fellowship, said in a statement. “In the wake of today’s vote, we call on Parliament and all Canadians to respect the diversity of views on the nature and meaning of marriage and to affirm the legitimacy of faith communities to abide by an understanding of marriage that has served the public good.”
The EFC statement said "marriage has historically been concerned with the common good of the couple, their children and society as a whole."
"By turning the focus to a matter solely of individual rights, other valid concerns are not being addressed," the statement noted. "These issues include religious freedom, the impact on children and the benefits society gains from a stable environment in which future generations are conceived and raised."
Canada is a good example of how the "gay marriage" movement has advanced worldwide. In 1999, Parliament passed a motion affirming marriage as between one man and one woman, 216-55. But in 2003 a similar motion failed, 137-132. Then-Liberal Prime Minister Jean Chretien voted for the 1999 motion but against the 2003 one. Asked to explain his reversal, Chretien said society "has evolved."
--30--
Compiled by Michael Foust. For information about the national debate over "gay marriage," visit http://www.bpnews.net/samesexmarriage
Egyptian Pastor: Pray That God Will Reach Many in Arab World
Egyptian Pastor: Pray That God Will Reach Many in Arab World
By James L. Lambert
SAN DIEGO, CA (AgapePress) - An Egyptian doctor-turned-pastor shares that he is witnessing a different kind of healing in his church and his country -- a healing of people's lives brought about through the knowledge of and salvation through Jesus Christ.
Persecution of Christians today in Muslim countries is well documented. Many Arab countries prohibit Christians from evangelizing among their predominantly Islamic populations. Open display of Bibles and Christian tracts is forbidden. Muslim converts to Christianity are often castigated and ostracized from family members, acquaintances, and friends; in extreme cases, they are even subject to death. In addition, because of U.S. oil interests in the Middle East, religious persecution in that area of the world is frequently ignored by State Department officials.
Yet, within the Arab world, there are Christian pastors who operate daily within these parameters. One such pastor is Rev. Dr. Sameh Maurice Tawfik. Tawfik gave up his practice as a prominent medical doctor in his native Egypt to become a pastor of a thriving church in Cairo -- Kasr el-Dobara Evangelical Church. Pastor Mark Foreman of North Coast Calvary Chapel (NCCC) in Carlsbad, California, reports that Tawfik's church continues to grow despite the persecution.
Foreman disclosed that recently the Kasr el-Dobara Evangelical Church has seen its membership increase from four to seven thousand. NCCC is one of a number of sponsor churches of this unusual ministry located in the heart of Egypt's capital city.
Tawfik is a strong but soft-spoken man who is dedicated to his beliefs. He left a prosperous medical profession in Egypt to become a pastor. Tawfik explained last week at NCCC that members of his church cannot evangelize "outside the walls of the church [because] it is not allowed." However, he explains that they can share the gospel with Muslims who request to hear about the salvation message that is central to the Bible.
For years Tawfik's church has implemented creative ways to reach people in his native city of Cairo. Several years ago this Egyptian church participated in distributing video tapes -- a sermon by Evangelist Luis Palau -- to over 500 churches in the region. Organizers estimated that the video was viewed by more than 150,000 Egyptians.
Pastor Tawfik is asking Christians in America pray for his fellow Egyptians. Tawfik and his congregation have been praying for years that God would supernaturally reach people of the Islamic faith. The pastor reports that he knows, from firsthand knowledge, of multitudes of Muslims who have had dreams about Jesus Christ. He says Muslims give high regard to dreams, believing it is yet another way for God to communicate with his people. Tawfik believes these dreams have led large numbers of Egyptians to faith in Christ. The pastor speaks of whole communities that have dreams about Jesus Christ.
On other occasions, Tawfik tells of Muslim families who, after coming to faith in Christ, find their modest apartments filled with a heavenly light for up to 45 minutes at a time. Palua said shortly after his visit to the Kasr el-Dobara church several years ago that he has "seldom seen such an overwhelming hunger to hear the Good News."
While much media attention is given to the political problems facing the region, Pastor Tawfik continues to ask his friends in America to pray for his people. He is convinced that the best hope for the people of the Middle East is the good news that only the Prince of Peace can offer.
James L. Lambert, a frequent contributor to AgapePress, is a licensed real-estate mortgage loan sales agent in Southern California and can be contacted through his website.
© 2006 AgapePress all rights reserved.
By James L. Lambert
SAN DIEGO, CA (AgapePress) - An Egyptian doctor-turned-pastor shares that he is witnessing a different kind of healing in his church and his country -- a healing of people's lives brought about through the knowledge of and salvation through Jesus Christ.
Persecution of Christians today in Muslim countries is well documented. Many Arab countries prohibit Christians from evangelizing among their predominantly Islamic populations. Open display of Bibles and Christian tracts is forbidden. Muslim converts to Christianity are often castigated and ostracized from family members, acquaintances, and friends; in extreme cases, they are even subject to death. In addition, because of U.S. oil interests in the Middle East, religious persecution in that area of the world is frequently ignored by State Department officials.
Yet, within the Arab world, there are Christian pastors who operate daily within these parameters. One such pastor is Rev. Dr. Sameh Maurice Tawfik. Tawfik gave up his practice as a prominent medical doctor in his native Egypt to become a pastor of a thriving church in Cairo -- Kasr el-Dobara Evangelical Church. Pastor Mark Foreman of North Coast Calvary Chapel (NCCC) in Carlsbad, California, reports that Tawfik's church continues to grow despite the persecution.
Foreman disclosed that recently the Kasr el-Dobara Evangelical Church has seen its membership increase from four to seven thousand. NCCC is one of a number of sponsor churches of this unusual ministry located in the heart of Egypt's capital city.
Tawfik is a strong but soft-spoken man who is dedicated to his beliefs. He left a prosperous medical profession in Egypt to become a pastor. Tawfik explained last week at NCCC that members of his church cannot evangelize "outside the walls of the church [because] it is not allowed." However, he explains that they can share the gospel with Muslims who request to hear about the salvation message that is central to the Bible.
For years Tawfik's church has implemented creative ways to reach people in his native city of Cairo. Several years ago this Egyptian church participated in distributing video tapes -- a sermon by Evangelist Luis Palau -- to over 500 churches in the region. Organizers estimated that the video was viewed by more than 150,000 Egyptians.
Pastor Tawfik is asking Christians in America pray for his fellow Egyptians. Tawfik and his congregation have been praying for years that God would supernaturally reach people of the Islamic faith. The pastor reports that he knows, from firsthand knowledge, of multitudes of Muslims who have had dreams about Jesus Christ. He says Muslims give high regard to dreams, believing it is yet another way for God to communicate with his people. Tawfik believes these dreams have led large numbers of Egyptians to faith in Christ. The pastor speaks of whole communities that have dreams about Jesus Christ.
On other occasions, Tawfik tells of Muslim families who, after coming to faith in Christ, find their modest apartments filled with a heavenly light for up to 45 minutes at a time. Palua said shortly after his visit to the Kasr el-Dobara church several years ago that he has "seldom seen such an overwhelming hunger to hear the Good News."
While much media attention is given to the political problems facing the region, Pastor Tawfik continues to ask his friends in America to pray for his people. He is convinced that the best hope for the people of the Middle East is the good news that only the Prince of Peace can offer.
James L. Lambert, a frequent contributor to AgapePress, is a licensed real-estate mortgage loan sales agent in Southern California and can be contacted through his website.
© 2006 AgapePress all rights reserved.
Outreach Shows Evangelism 'the Old Way' Still Most Effective
Outreach Shows Evangelism 'the Old Way' Still Most Effective
By Ed Thomas
(AgapePress) - An official with the Assemblies of God (AG) says his denomination's latest large-scale outreach helped to provide convincing evidence that one-on-one evangelism still belongs in a vital first-place role ahead of the use of electronic media.
The AG's "God Gives Hope" outreach campaign ran for two weeks in New York City's Time Square, back by ads on a jumbo electronic screen which featured the 1-800-4-PRAYER counseling line number. But Scott Temple, director of intercultural ministries with the denomination, says more importantly, more than 90,000 people received gospel booklets from teams of students, missionaries, and lay leader volunteers. He explains that was an outworking of the teams' desire to reach a city with Jesus' example of the woman at the well, told in the fourth chapter of John in the Bible.
"And that strategy is seen in Jesus having meaningful conversation with one woman at the well," Temple shares. "And by [Jesus] taking time to have that conversation, that was the key that unlocked the gospel reaching an entire city."
According to the AG spokesman, when people were able to know exactly who the soul-winners were -- as a result of the personal contact -- they were open to receiving gospel booklets, magnets, and balloons. They could then follow up with the prayer-line number displayed on the huge video screen. Temple explains that beforehand, teams prayed that the conversations revealed the key people who were ready for the gospel.
"[W]e didn't make it our goal to give out as much literature as quickly as we possibly could," he testifies. " We made it our goal to share with everybody, and to ask the Lord to help us especially reach those key people."
The combination of the video screen display and the booklets helped send an estimated 1,000-plus calls a day to the AG's National Prayer Center, says Temple. But he says it was only after people were assured in person that they were not dealing with a cult, but with believers who offered help and hope for financial, spiritual, and physical problems. Then, he says, their "floodgates of need" opened up.
Ed Thomas, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
© 2006 AgapePress all rights reserved.
By Ed Thomas
(AgapePress) - An official with the Assemblies of God (AG) says his denomination's latest large-scale outreach helped to provide convincing evidence that one-on-one evangelism still belongs in a vital first-place role ahead of the use of electronic media.
The AG's "God Gives Hope" outreach campaign ran for two weeks in New York City's Time Square, back by ads on a jumbo electronic screen which featured the 1-800-4-PRAYER counseling line number. But Scott Temple, director of intercultural ministries with the denomination, says more importantly, more than 90,000 people received gospel booklets from teams of students, missionaries, and lay leader volunteers. He explains that was an outworking of the teams' desire to reach a city with Jesus' example of the woman at the well, told in the fourth chapter of John in the Bible.
"And that strategy is seen in Jesus having meaningful conversation with one woman at the well," Temple shares. "And by [Jesus] taking time to have that conversation, that was the key that unlocked the gospel reaching an entire city."
According to the AG spokesman, when people were able to know exactly who the soul-winners were -- as a result of the personal contact -- they were open to receiving gospel booklets, magnets, and balloons. They could then follow up with the prayer-line number displayed on the huge video screen. Temple explains that beforehand, teams prayed that the conversations revealed the key people who were ready for the gospel.
"[W]e didn't make it our goal to give out as much literature as quickly as we possibly could," he testifies. " We made it our goal to share with everybody, and to ask the Lord to help us especially reach those key people."
The combination of the video screen display and the booklets helped send an estimated 1,000-plus calls a day to the AG's National Prayer Center, says Temple. But he says it was only after people were assured in person that they were not dealing with a cult, but with believers who offered help and hope for financial, spiritual, and physical problems. Then, he says, their "floodgates of need" opened up.
Ed Thomas, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
© 2006 AgapePress all rights reserved.
Article 301: Thou Shall Not Share Christ
Article 301: Thou Shall Not Share Christ
By George Thomas
CBN News
CWNews.com – - ISTANBUL, Turkey - For Hakan Tastan and Turan Topal, two best friends, enjoying a casual walk along the streets of Istanbul has taken on new meaning. In the next couple of months, the two converts from Islam to Christianity could face the prospect of pending up three years behind bars.
"But we are not afraid because we know that our love for Jesus Christ takes away all of our fears," Topal said. "Even if we die, we will be rewarded in heaven with eternal life."
On Nov. 23, a criminal court charged the men under Article 301 of the Turkish penal code for allegedly insulting "Turkishness" and inciting hate while "trying to convert other Turks to Christianity." "We are not guilty but, yes, we do share our faith because the Bible tells us that we are free to talk about the love of Christ to anyone who asks for it," Tastan said.
Article 301 has been widely criticized by human rights groups for restricting freedom of speech. European officials have demanded that Turkey amend the article if it hopes to join the European Union. Tastan and Topal's case goes to trial in January.
The status of Christians in Turkey has long been difficult. Converts are often viewed here as spies for America. Those caught sharing the Gospel are often detained. And those who convert to Christianity are accused of betraying Turkish heritage.
"We are all Turks and proud of it," Topal said. "God created humans in His likeness, including the Turkish people."
Turkey is a secular republic and the constitution provides for freedom of religion. Still, Christians face discrimination. Non-Muslims are barred from joining the police force or the military. Top government positions are off limits to them.
Ironically, Christianity has deep roots in what is today Turkey. When it was built in 530 A.D., the Hagia Sophia stood as the largest church in all of the Christian world. In fact, it was so for almost a thousand years. But that lasted only untill about the 15th century, when the Ottoman rule came into power and Ottoman rulers converted the church into a mosque. Today you see surrounding the Hagia Sophia four, five huge Muslim pillars.
In 1935 it was turned into a museum. Some radical Muslims are demanding that the building be declared a mosque and opened for Islamic prayers. Some also see the Pope's visit to the Hagia Sophia today as a sign of Christian ambitions to reclaim the structure as a church.
During the 20th century Christians made up about 20 percent of the Turkish population. Today, however, Christians make up 0.6 percent of the nearly 66 million people who belong to this nation.
There are an estimated 3,500 evangelical Christians here in Turkey. The majority of Turks are Muslims and their houses of worship are mushrooming all over the place, often paid for by Saudi Arabia. At last count, there were 70,000 mosques dotting the Turkish landscape. But the government rarely allows the building of new churches.
Just ask Ahmet Guvener, a Turkish pastor, what happened when he tried to build a small church in southeastern region of Turkey.
"I was tried in criminal court and given a sentence of six months to two years in prison," he said. "The case was eventually dismissed."
But the hardships continued.
"There was so much press about my case," he said. "People were accusing us of all sorts of things. This wore us out as a family."
Many Christians are forced to worship in so-called "apartment churches." Despite these challenges, the church is experience some growth.
"We see more young people who are becoming Christians," said Fatima, a Christian leader. "Internet evangelism, Bible distribution, showing the Jesus film and Christian programs on satellite television are exposing people to the Gospel."
On Tuesday, the Pope met with Turkey's highest ranking Muslim leader and appealed for greater religious freedom and protection for minority faith groups. The pontiff said guaranteeing such rights are needed for building a just society.
Tastan and Topal say their case will test Turkey's commitment to building such a society. "We'll see what happens during our trial in January and whether this nation really believes in the principles of human rights and religious freedom," Tastan said.
The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc. © 2006
By George Thomas
CBN News
CWNews.com – - ISTANBUL, Turkey - For Hakan Tastan and Turan Topal, two best friends, enjoying a casual walk along the streets of Istanbul has taken on new meaning. In the next couple of months, the two converts from Islam to Christianity could face the prospect of pending up three years behind bars."But we are not afraid because we know that our love for Jesus Christ takes away all of our fears," Topal said. "Even if we die, we will be rewarded in heaven with eternal life."
On Nov. 23, a criminal court charged the men under Article 301 of the Turkish penal code for allegedly insulting "Turkishness" and inciting hate while "trying to convert other Turks to Christianity." "We are not guilty but, yes, we do share our faith because the Bible tells us that we are free to talk about the love of Christ to anyone who asks for it," Tastan said.
Article 301 has been widely criticized by human rights groups for restricting freedom of speech. European officials have demanded that Turkey amend the article if it hopes to join the European Union. Tastan and Topal's case goes to trial in January.
The status of Christians in Turkey has long been difficult. Converts are often viewed here as spies for America. Those caught sharing the Gospel are often detained. And those who convert to Christianity are accused of betraying Turkish heritage.
"We are all Turks and proud of it," Topal said. "God created humans in His likeness, including the Turkish people."
Turkey is a secular republic and the constitution provides for freedom of religion. Still, Christians face discrimination. Non-Muslims are barred from joining the police force or the military. Top government positions are off limits to them.
Ironically, Christianity has deep roots in what is today Turkey. When it was built in 530 A.D., the Hagia Sophia stood as the largest church in all of the Christian world. In fact, it was so for almost a thousand years. But that lasted only untill about the 15th century, when the Ottoman rule came into power and Ottoman rulers converted the church into a mosque. Today you see surrounding the Hagia Sophia four, five huge Muslim pillars.
In 1935 it was turned into a museum. Some radical Muslims are demanding that the building be declared a mosque and opened for Islamic prayers. Some also see the Pope's visit to the Hagia Sophia today as a sign of Christian ambitions to reclaim the structure as a church.
During the 20th century Christians made up about 20 percent of the Turkish population. Today, however, Christians make up 0.6 percent of the nearly 66 million people who belong to this nation.
There are an estimated 3,500 evangelical Christians here in Turkey. The majority of Turks are Muslims and their houses of worship are mushrooming all over the place, often paid for by Saudi Arabia. At last count, there were 70,000 mosques dotting the Turkish landscape. But the government rarely allows the building of new churches.
Just ask Ahmet Guvener, a Turkish pastor, what happened when he tried to build a small church in southeastern region of Turkey.
"I was tried in criminal court and given a sentence of six months to two years in prison," he said. "The case was eventually dismissed."
But the hardships continued.
"There was so much press about my case," he said. "People were accusing us of all sorts of things. This wore us out as a family."
Many Christians are forced to worship in so-called "apartment churches." Despite these challenges, the church is experience some growth.
"We see more young people who are becoming Christians," said Fatima, a Christian leader. "Internet evangelism, Bible distribution, showing the Jesus film and Christian programs on satellite television are exposing people to the Gospel."
On Tuesday, the Pope met with Turkey's highest ranking Muslim leader and appealed for greater religious freedom and protection for minority faith groups. The pontiff said guaranteeing such rights are needed for building a just society.
Tastan and Topal say their case will test Turkey's commitment to building such a society. "We'll see what happens during our trial in January and whether this nation really believes in the principles of human rights and religious freedom," Tastan said.
The Christian Broadcasting Network, Inc. © 2006
Saddam's Nephew Escapes from Prison
Saddam's Nephew Escapes from Prison
Associated Press
December 9, 2006
CBNNews.com - BAGHDAD, Iraq - A nephew of Saddam Hussein serving a life sentence for making bombs for Iraq's insurgency escaped from prison Saturday in northern Iraq, authorities said.
Ayman Sabawi, the son of Saddam's half brother Sabawi Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti, fled the prison some 45 miles west of Mosul in the afternoon with the help of a police officer, according to local police Brig. Abdul Karim al-Jubouri.
Interior Ministry spokesman Brig. Abdul-Karim Khalaf confirmed the escape but declined to elaborate.
Sabawi was convicted of illegally crossing the border from Syria and sentenced to 15 years in prison late last year by an Iraqi court. He was sentenced to life in prison in an earlier case for possession of illegal weapons and manufacture of explosive devices.
He was captured in May 2005 by security forces during a raid on Tikrit, the former leader's hometown. His father, who served as a presidential adviser before the U.S.-led invasion, was captured there two months earlier.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Associated Press
December 9, 2006
CBNNews.com - BAGHDAD, Iraq - A nephew of Saddam Hussein serving a life sentence for making bombs for Iraq's insurgency escaped from prison Saturday in northern Iraq, authorities said.
Ayman Sabawi, the son of Saddam's half brother Sabawi Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti, fled the prison some 45 miles west of Mosul in the afternoon with the help of a police officer, according to local police Brig. Abdul Karim al-Jubouri.
Interior Ministry spokesman Brig. Abdul-Karim Khalaf confirmed the escape but declined to elaborate.
Sabawi was convicted of illegally crossing the border from Syria and sentenced to 15 years in prison late last year by an Iraqi court. He was sentenced to life in prison in an earlier case for possession of illegal weapons and manufacture of explosive devices.
He was captured in May 2005 by security forces during a raid on Tikrit, the former leader's hometown. His father, who served as a presidential adviser before the U.S.-led invasion, was captured there two months earlier.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Scope of Second Amendment Questioned
Scope of Second Amendment Questioned
Associated Press
CBNnews.com -- WASHINGTON - In a case that could shape firearms laws nationwide, attorneys for the District of Columbia argued Thursday that the Second Amendment right to bear arms applies only to militias, not individuals.
The city defended as constitutional its long-standing ban on handguns, a law that some gun opponents have advocated elsewhere.
Civil liberties groups and pro-gun organizations say the ban in unconstitutional.
At issue in the case before a federal appeals court is whether the Second Amendment right to "keep and bear arms" applies to all people or only to "a well regulated militia." The Bush administration has endorsed individual gun-ownership rights but the Supreme Court has never settled the issue.
If the dispute makes it to the high court, it would be the first case in nearly 70 years to address the amendment's scope.
The court disappointed gun owner groups in 2003 when it refused to take up a challenge to California's ban on assault weapons.
In the Washington, D.C., case, a lower-court judge told six city residents in 2004 that they did not have a constitutional right to own handguns.
The plaintiffs include residents of high-crime neighborhoods who want guns for protection.
Courts have upheld bans on automatic weapons and sawed-off shotguns but this case is unusual because it involves a prohibition on all pistols.
Voters passed a similar ban in San Francisco last year but a judge ruled it violated state law.
The Washington case is not clouded by state law and hinges directly on the Constitution.
"We interpret the Second Amendment in military terms," said Todd Kim, the District's solicitor general, who told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that the city would also have had the authority to ban all weapons.
"Show me anybody in the 19th century who interprets the Second Amendment the way you do," Judge Laurence Silberman said. "It doesn't appear until much later, the middle of the 20th century."
Of the three judges, Silberman was the most critical of Kim's argument and noted that, despite the law, handguns were common in the District. Silberman and Judge Thomas B. Griffith seemed to wrestle, however, with the meaning of the amendment's language about militias.
If a well-regulated militia is no longer needed, they asked, is the right to bear arms still necessary?
"That's quite a task for any court to decide that a right is no longer necessary," Alan Gura, an attorney for the plaintiffs, replied. "If we decide that it's no longer necessary, can we erase any part of the Constitution?"
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press
Associated Press
CBNnews.com -- WASHINGTON - In a case that could shape firearms laws nationwide, attorneys for the District of Columbia argued Thursday that the Second Amendment right to bear arms applies only to militias, not individuals.The city defended as constitutional its long-standing ban on handguns, a law that some gun opponents have advocated elsewhere.
Civil liberties groups and pro-gun organizations say the ban in unconstitutional.
At issue in the case before a federal appeals court is whether the Second Amendment right to "keep and bear arms" applies to all people or only to "a well regulated militia." The Bush administration has endorsed individual gun-ownership rights but the Supreme Court has never settled the issue.
If the dispute makes it to the high court, it would be the first case in nearly 70 years to address the amendment's scope.
The court disappointed gun owner groups in 2003 when it refused to take up a challenge to California's ban on assault weapons.
In the Washington, D.C., case, a lower-court judge told six city residents in 2004 that they did not have a constitutional right to own handguns.
The plaintiffs include residents of high-crime neighborhoods who want guns for protection.
Courts have upheld bans on automatic weapons and sawed-off shotguns but this case is unusual because it involves a prohibition on all pistols.
Voters passed a similar ban in San Francisco last year but a judge ruled it violated state law.
The Washington case is not clouded by state law and hinges directly on the Constitution.
"We interpret the Second Amendment in military terms," said Todd Kim, the District's solicitor general, who told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit that the city would also have had the authority to ban all weapons.
"Show me anybody in the 19th century who interprets the Second Amendment the way you do," Judge Laurence Silberman said. "It doesn't appear until much later, the middle of the 20th century."
Of the three judges, Silberman was the most critical of Kim's argument and noted that, despite the law, handguns were common in the District. Silberman and Judge Thomas B. Griffith seemed to wrestle, however, with the meaning of the amendment's language about militias.
If a well-regulated militia is no longer needed, they asked, is the right to bear arms still necessary?
"That's quite a task for any court to decide that a right is no longer necessary," Alan Gura, an attorney for the plaintiffs, replied. "If we decide that it's no longer necessary, can we erase any part of the Constitution?"
Copyright 2006 The Associated Press
Hamas leader vows not to recognize Israel
Haniyya vows not to recognize israel
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyya told Iranians on Friday that his people would never bow to pressure to recognize Israel and would keep fighting - thanks in part to support from Tehran.
Addressing worshippers at Friday prayers in Tehran, where he arrived on Thursday for a four-day official visit, Haniyya said Israeli attacks against Palestinians had increased since his Hamas government took power in March.
Iran, like Hamas, refuses to recognize the state of Israel and has sent $120 million so far this year to the Palestinian Authority toward a shortfall caused by a Western financial blockade.
"We will never recognize the occupier of the Palestinian lands and will continue the resistance until we liberate Jerusalem ... and allow the displaced Palestinians to return to their homeland," Haniyya said.
Western nations and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have pressured Hamas to recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept existing interim peace accords. Hamas' refusal has been partly to blame for the collapse of unity government talks with Abbas.
The US Congress approved a bill Thursday barring US aid to the Palestinian Authority as long as the Islamist movement refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist and renounce violence.
The legislation also calls on Hamas, which won control of the Parliament in January elections, to recognize past peace agreements with Israel.
Prayer leader Ahmad Khatami reiterated Iran's support for the Hamas government and criticized the Western sanctions.
"Those liars, instead of supporting and approving it [the Hamas government], have taken their swords aloft from the beginning against a government that was appointed by the people's votes," he said.
Haniyya will also meet Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as part of his first official trip to Iran.
Tens of thousands of Hamas supporters demanded Friday that Haniyya head any Palestinian unity government, despite a proposed deal for him to step aside as a means of restoring Western aid. The public show of support across Gaza for the senior Hamas member put pressure on the ruling militant movement to retain him as their candidate to lead a possible new cabinet. That would further complicate unity government talks that Abbas has said are at a dead end.http://www.dailystar.com.lb
"We want you [Haniyya] to be the prime minister. We will not abandon your leadership of the cabinet," Ismail Rudwan, a Hamas spokesman, told one rally of thousands of people.
A similar call was made at other rallies that followed Friday prayers.
Hamas and Fatah had agreed last month Haniyya would not be premier in of any unity government. That job was expected to go to a Gaza academic.
Unity talks have since foundered, partly over disputes over control of key ministries. Abbas' aides say the president might decide to sack the government or call fresh elections if no solution is found.
Earlier, Israeli troops shot and wounded two Palestinians in Gaza, rescue workers said, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he could order renewed assaults to prevent militant factions posing a threat to a shaky truce.
The Israeli army said while warning shots had been fired at a number of Palestinians who had approached the border fence with northern Gaza, it was not aware of anyone being hit.
The rescue workers said the two men were unarmed.
Israeli forces have shot and wounded several Palestinians this week whom they said were acting suspiciously along the fence. Militants launched a rocket at Israel from the Gaza Strip early Friday, the army said, in the latest setbacks to a fragile two-week-old truce.
The army said it was not clear the rocket landed in Israel. No Palestinian group immediately took responsibility.
Palestinian militants have fired 18 rockets at Israel, by the army's count, since the November 26 cease-fire.
A Palestinian child was shot and wounded by Israeli soldiers near the West Bank town of Bethlehem Friday, medical and security sources said.
Miras al-Azza, 12, was shot in the stomach when Israel soldiers opened fire on a group of children playing with a plastic rifle in the Aydah refugee camp.
An army spokesman said soldiers operating in the camp had fired in the direction of a group of armed men. - Agencies
Copyright © 2006, The Daily Star. All rights reserved.
Compiled by Daily Star staff
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyya told Iranians on Friday that his people would never bow to pressure to recognize Israel and would keep fighting - thanks in part to support from Tehran.
Addressing worshippers at Friday prayers in Tehran, where he arrived on Thursday for a four-day official visit, Haniyya said Israeli attacks against Palestinians had increased since his Hamas government took power in March.
Iran, like Hamas, refuses to recognize the state of Israel and has sent $120 million so far this year to the Palestinian Authority toward a shortfall caused by a Western financial blockade.
"We will never recognize the occupier of the Palestinian lands and will continue the resistance until we liberate Jerusalem ... and allow the displaced Palestinians to return to their homeland," Haniyya said.
Western nations and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have pressured Hamas to recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept existing interim peace accords. Hamas' refusal has been partly to blame for the collapse of unity government talks with Abbas.
The US Congress approved a bill Thursday barring US aid to the Palestinian Authority as long as the Islamist movement refuses to recognize Israel's right to exist and renounce violence.
The legislation also calls on Hamas, which won control of the Parliament in January elections, to recognize past peace agreements with Israel.
Prayer leader Ahmad Khatami reiterated Iran's support for the Hamas government and criticized the Western sanctions.
"Those liars, instead of supporting and approving it [the Hamas government], have taken their swords aloft from the beginning against a government that was appointed by the people's votes," he said.
Haniyya will also meet Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as part of his first official trip to Iran.
Tens of thousands of Hamas supporters demanded Friday that Haniyya head any Palestinian unity government, despite a proposed deal for him to step aside as a means of restoring Western aid. The public show of support across Gaza for the senior Hamas member put pressure on the ruling militant movement to retain him as their candidate to lead a possible new cabinet. That would further complicate unity government talks that Abbas has said are at a dead end.http://www.dailystar.com.lb
"We want you [Haniyya] to be the prime minister. We will not abandon your leadership of the cabinet," Ismail Rudwan, a Hamas spokesman, told one rally of thousands of people.
A similar call was made at other rallies that followed Friday prayers.
Hamas and Fatah had agreed last month Haniyya would not be premier in of any unity government. That job was expected to go to a Gaza academic.
Unity talks have since foundered, partly over disputes over control of key ministries. Abbas' aides say the president might decide to sack the government or call fresh elections if no solution is found.
Earlier, Israeli troops shot and wounded two Palestinians in Gaza, rescue workers said, a day after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he could order renewed assaults to prevent militant factions posing a threat to a shaky truce.
The Israeli army said while warning shots had been fired at a number of Palestinians who had approached the border fence with northern Gaza, it was not aware of anyone being hit.
The rescue workers said the two men were unarmed.
Israeli forces have shot and wounded several Palestinians this week whom they said were acting suspiciously along the fence. Militants launched a rocket at Israel from the Gaza Strip early Friday, the army said, in the latest setbacks to a fragile two-week-old truce.
The army said it was not clear the rocket landed in Israel. No Palestinian group immediately took responsibility.
Palestinian militants have fired 18 rockets at Israel, by the army's count, since the November 26 cease-fire.
A Palestinian child was shot and wounded by Israeli soldiers near the West Bank town of Bethlehem Friday, medical and security sources said.
Miras al-Azza, 12, was shot in the stomach when Israel soldiers opened fire on a group of children playing with a plastic rifle in the Aydah refugee camp.
An army spokesman said soldiers operating in the camp had fired in the direction of a group of armed men. - Agencies
Copyright © 2006, The Daily Star. All rights reserved.
Jerry Falwell wallops network for negatively portraying Christian character on 'ER'
NBC sermonizes against chastity
Posted: December 9, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
Thursday night on NBC's "ER," the character of Hope Bobeck, who is defined as a Christian, abruptly decides that she should enter a sexual relationship with an atheist character.
"Chastity has always been overrated," she states as she tells Dr. Archie Morris that they should meet for dinner and drinks and then "see what happens." The doctor did determine not to join her for this tryst, but who knows what will happen in future episodes? The point here is that the portrayal is of a Christian young lady who suddenly determines that the Bible's plan for sexuality is wrong.
Earlier this year, when NBC announced that "ER" would incorporate a Christian character into the series, many Christians held out hope that maybe just once we would see an honest depiction of someone who chooses to walk with Christ.
Instead, we get an often-bungling character whose Christian faith is easily challenged and defeated.
This is typical of the so-called mainstream media.
The storyline reminds me of a "Will and Grace" episode a few years ago in which a gathering of ex-gays (people who have walked away from homosexuality) suddenly run off with each other, overcome by their sexual urges.
The message here is clear: Christianity is a feeble crutch that cannot – and should not – stand against reckless sexuality.
Christians who turn from homosexuality are depicted as jokes, even though multiple thousands of these individuals are wonderfully living out their faith today. And Christian singles who determine that they will remain chaste until marriage are similarly mocked.
I continue to insist that Christians are the only group in America that is routinely demeaned in the media. Strikingly, the major networks do not see a double standard.
Earlier this year on "ER," a homosexual female impersonator was in the series' hospital caring for his "partner." So moved by their love was one of the attending doctors, he states, "You make me wish I was a drag queen."
Imagine one of the "ER" doctors making that statement to a Christian character.
Exactly. There's no way.
So passionate is the sentiment on these shows, they might as well hang a sign for viewers to see on their TV screens: "Gay is good. Christianity is bad."
I believe these negative media portrayals of Christians and Christianity go hand-in-hand with the accelerating effort to purge our nation of its Judeo-Christian symbols.
It's a one-two punch: The media depict Christians as either mean-spirited ogres or easily influenced simpletons, while civil libertarians attempt to convince our fellow citizens that America should be free of religious symbols, specifically Christian ones.
This is why I believe our current battle to protect Christmas in the public square is so important. If representations of Christmas are outlawed, even informally, it is another nail in the coffin of public religious expression.
Working closely with Liberty Counsel, which this year launched its fourth annual "Friend or Foe Campaign," we have convinced many retailers to return to utilizing expressions of Christmas in their advertising, store displays and employee conversations. (Readers can visit the Liberty Counsel website to see this year's "Naughty and Nice" list, which shows which retailers have Christmas-friendly (and unfriendly) policies.
We have also worked with pastors and churches across the country in placing local newspaper ads that inform readers on the legalities of public Christmas expressions.
I believe this is an important campaign. It is just one of the ways we must work together to preserve our nation's Judeo-Christian heritage against those whose deceptive campaign seeks to ignore and defy our history. It is fully apparent that Christianity is in the crosshairs, so we must work harder than ever to preserve our religious freedoms.
Rev. Jerry Falwell, a nationally recognized Christian minister and television show host, is the founder of Jerry Falwell Ministries and is chancellor of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.
Copyright 1997-2006
All Rights Reserved. WorldNetDaily.com Inc.
Posted: December 9, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
Thursday night on NBC's "ER," the character of Hope Bobeck, who is defined as a Christian, abruptly decides that she should enter a sexual relationship with an atheist character."Chastity has always been overrated," she states as she tells Dr. Archie Morris that they should meet for dinner and drinks and then "see what happens." The doctor did determine not to join her for this tryst, but who knows what will happen in future episodes? The point here is that the portrayal is of a Christian young lady who suddenly determines that the Bible's plan for sexuality is wrong.
Earlier this year, when NBC announced that "ER" would incorporate a Christian character into the series, many Christians held out hope that maybe just once we would see an honest depiction of someone who chooses to walk with Christ.
Instead, we get an often-bungling character whose Christian faith is easily challenged and defeated.
This is typical of the so-called mainstream media.
The storyline reminds me of a "Will and Grace" episode a few years ago in which a gathering of ex-gays (people who have walked away from homosexuality) suddenly run off with each other, overcome by their sexual urges.
The message here is clear: Christianity is a feeble crutch that cannot – and should not – stand against reckless sexuality.
Christians who turn from homosexuality are depicted as jokes, even though multiple thousands of these individuals are wonderfully living out their faith today. And Christian singles who determine that they will remain chaste until marriage are similarly mocked.
I continue to insist that Christians are the only group in America that is routinely demeaned in the media. Strikingly, the major networks do not see a double standard.
Earlier this year on "ER," a homosexual female impersonator was in the series' hospital caring for his "partner." So moved by their love was one of the attending doctors, he states, "You make me wish I was a drag queen."
Imagine one of the "ER" doctors making that statement to a Christian character.
Exactly. There's no way.
So passionate is the sentiment on these shows, they might as well hang a sign for viewers to see on their TV screens: "Gay is good. Christianity is bad."
I believe these negative media portrayals of Christians and Christianity go hand-in-hand with the accelerating effort to purge our nation of its Judeo-Christian symbols.
It's a one-two punch: The media depict Christians as either mean-spirited ogres or easily influenced simpletons, while civil libertarians attempt to convince our fellow citizens that America should be free of religious symbols, specifically Christian ones.
This is why I believe our current battle to protect Christmas in the public square is so important. If representations of Christmas are outlawed, even informally, it is another nail in the coffin of public religious expression.
Working closely with Liberty Counsel, which this year launched its fourth annual "Friend or Foe Campaign," we have convinced many retailers to return to utilizing expressions of Christmas in their advertising, store displays and employee conversations. (Readers can visit the Liberty Counsel website to see this year's "Naughty and Nice" list, which shows which retailers have Christmas-friendly (and unfriendly) policies.
We have also worked with pastors and churches across the country in placing local newspaper ads that inform readers on the legalities of public Christmas expressions.
I believe this is an important campaign. It is just one of the ways we must work together to preserve our nation's Judeo-Christian heritage against those whose deceptive campaign seeks to ignore and defy our history. It is fully apparent that Christianity is in the crosshairs, so we must work harder than ever to preserve our religious freedoms.
Rev. Jerry Falwell, a nationally recognized Christian minister and television show host, is the founder of Jerry Falwell Ministries and is chancellor of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.
Copyright 1997-2006
All Rights Reserved. WorldNetDaily.com Inc.
Ahmadinejad: Iran expands uranium enrichment program
Ahmadinejad: Iran expands uranium enrichment program
By Ali Akbar Dareini
ASSOCIATED PRESS
4:44 a.m. December 9, 2006
TEHRAN, Iran – Iran has begun installing 3,000 centrifuges in an expansion of its uranium enrichment program that brings the Islamic nation significantly closer to large-scale production of nuclear fuel, the president said Saturday.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also claimed that the international community was caving in to Tehran's demands to continue its nuclear program.
“Resistance of the Iranian nation in the past year forced them to retreat tens of steps over the Iran's nuclear issue,” the semi-official Fars agency quoted Ahmadinejad as saying. Fars is considered to be close to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.
Iran has been locked in a standoff with the West over its nuclear program. The U.S. alleges that Tehran is secretly trying to develop atomic weapons, but Iran contends its program is for peaceful purposes including generating electricity.
Iran said earlier this year that it intends to move toward large-scale uranium enrichment involving 3,000 centrifuges by late 2006, and then expand the program to 54,000 centrifuges, which spin uranium gas into enriched material to produce nuclear fuel.
Uranium enrichment at low levels can be used to produce fuel to generate electricity but at higher levels can be use to make atomic bombs.
“We have started installing 3,000 centrifuges” at a plant in central Iran, Ahmadinejad told a group of students in Tehran on Saturday, according to Fars. He said the move, at a plant in central Iran, marks the “first step toward industrial production.
“We will be able to produce our nuclear fuel once we install 60,000 centrifuges,” he said.
Iranian nuclear officials say 54,000 centrifuges would produce enough enriched uranium to fuel a 1,000-megawatt reactor, such as the one Iran has built with Russian assistance at Bushehr, southern Iran. The reactor is due to come on stream next year.
The United States and its European allies have been seeking a U.N. Security Council resolution to impose sanctions on Tehran for refusing to suspend enrichment. But Russia and China have opposed tough action advocated by the U.S., Britain, Germany and France and the Security Council appears to have reached a standstill on the issue.
Iran announced for the first time in February that it had enriched uranium using 164 centrifuges, and it confirmed last month that it has stepped up uranium enrichment by injecting gas into a second network of centrifuges.
“When we built these centrifuges, they (the U.S. and its European allies) said Iran won't be able to assemble them. ... Now, a month has passed since we launched the second cascade,” Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.issue.
Ahmadinejad boasted last month that Iran would soon celebrate, probably in February, the completion of its nuclear fuel cycle program – from mining uranium ore to enriching it.
On Friday, key European nations circulated a revised U.N. resolution that narrowed the proposed sanctions on Iran in a bid to win Russian and Chinese support. The new draft would ban the supply of materials and technology that could contribute to Iran's program, but it gave much greater detail on what items would be prohibited.
Iran has said it will never give up its right under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to enrich uranium and produce nuclear fuel. Officials have said they plan to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity through nuclear energy in the next two decade
© Copyright 2006 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. • A Copley Newspaper Site
By Ali Akbar Dareini
ASSOCIATED PRESS
4:44 a.m. December 9, 2006
TEHRAN, Iran – Iran has begun installing 3,000 centrifuges in an expansion of its uranium enrichment program that brings the Islamic nation significantly closer to large-scale production of nuclear fuel, the president said Saturday.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also claimed that the international community was caving in to Tehran's demands to continue its nuclear program.
“Resistance of the Iranian nation in the past year forced them to retreat tens of steps over the Iran's nuclear issue,” the semi-official Fars agency quoted Ahmadinejad as saying. Fars is considered to be close to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards.
Iran has been locked in a standoff with the West over its nuclear program. The U.S. alleges that Tehran is secretly trying to develop atomic weapons, but Iran contends its program is for peaceful purposes including generating electricity.
Iran said earlier this year that it intends to move toward large-scale uranium enrichment involving 3,000 centrifuges by late 2006, and then expand the program to 54,000 centrifuges, which spin uranium gas into enriched material to produce nuclear fuel.
Uranium enrichment at low levels can be used to produce fuel to generate electricity but at higher levels can be use to make atomic bombs.
“We have started installing 3,000 centrifuges” at a plant in central Iran, Ahmadinejad told a group of students in Tehran on Saturday, according to Fars. He said the move, at a plant in central Iran, marks the “first step toward industrial production.
“We will be able to produce our nuclear fuel once we install 60,000 centrifuges,” he said.
Iranian nuclear officials say 54,000 centrifuges would produce enough enriched uranium to fuel a 1,000-megawatt reactor, such as the one Iran has built with Russian assistance at Bushehr, southern Iran. The reactor is due to come on stream next year.
The United States and its European allies have been seeking a U.N. Security Council resolution to impose sanctions on Tehran for refusing to suspend enrichment. But Russia and China have opposed tough action advocated by the U.S., Britain, Germany and France and the Security Council appears to have reached a standstill on the issue.
Iran announced for the first time in February that it had enriched uranium using 164 centrifuges, and it confirmed last month that it has stepped up uranium enrichment by injecting gas into a second network of centrifuges.
“When we built these centrifuges, they (the U.S. and its European allies) said Iran won't be able to assemble them. ... Now, a month has passed since we launched the second cascade,” Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.issue.
Ahmadinejad boasted last month that Iran would soon celebrate, probably in February, the completion of its nuclear fuel cycle program – from mining uranium ore to enriching it.
On Friday, key European nations circulated a revised U.N. resolution that narrowed the proposed sanctions on Iran in a bid to win Russian and Chinese support. The new draft would ban the supply of materials and technology that could contribute to Iran's program, but it gave much greater detail on what items would be prohibited.
Iran has said it will never give up its right under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to enrich uranium and produce nuclear fuel. Officials have said they plan to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity through nuclear energy in the next two decade
© Copyright 2006 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. • A Copley Newspaper Site
US bugged Diana's phone on night of death crash
US bugged Diana's phone on night of death crash
Mark Townsend and Peter Allen in Paris
Sunday December 10, 2006
The Observer
The American secret service was bugging Princess Diana's telephone conversations without the approval of the British security services on the night she died, according to the most comprehensive report on her death, to be published this week.
Among extraordinary details due to emerge in the report by former Metropolitan police commissioner Lord Stevens is the revelation that the US security service was bugging her calls in the hours before she was killed in a car crash in Paris.
In a move that raises fresh questions over transatlantic agreements on intelligence-sharing, the surveillance arm of the US has admitted listening to her conversations as she stayed at the Ritz hotel, but failed to notify MI6. Stevens is understood to have been assured that the 39 classified documents detailing Diana's final conversations did not reveal anything sinister or contain material that might help explain her death.
Scotland Yard's inquiry, published this Thursday, also throws up further intelligence links with the Princess of Wales on the night she died. The driver of the Mercedes, Henri Paul, was in the pay of the French equivalent of M15. Stevens traced £100,000 he had amassed in 14 French bank accounts though no payments have been linked to Diana's death.
Stevens's conclusion is that Diana, her companion Dodi Fayed, and Paul himself died in an accident caused by Paul driving too fast through the Pont de l'Alma underpass in Paris while under the influence of drink. The car was being pursued by photographers at the time.
Tests have confirmed that Paul was more than three times over the French drink-drive limit and was travelling at 'excessive' speed. The inquiry will quash a number of conspiracy theories that have circulated since 31 August 1997, among them that Diana was pregnant. It also found no evidence that the princess was planning to get engaged to Dodi, son of Mohamed Fayed.
The Harrods tycoon believes that Paul's blood samples were swapped to portray him as a drunk in an elaborate cover-up by the establishment to stop Diana marrying Dodi, a Muslim.
Stevens is expected to concede that while there was a mix-up it was an accident and that the original French post-mortem which found that Paul was three-times over the French drink-drive limit was correct.
He is also expected to discount the role of the white Fiat Uno which struck Diana's car shortly before the crash, even though British police officers have failed to track down the vehicle which left paintwork on the black Mercedes.
The inquiry will support the findings of the original French accident inquiry in criticising the paparazzi as a possible reason for encouraging Paul to speed. The 'bright light' theory - the claim that the driver was deliberately blinded by a beam immediately before the crash - is also dismissed by Stevens.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
Mark Townsend and Peter Allen in Paris
Sunday December 10, 2006
The Observer
The American secret service was bugging Princess Diana's telephone conversations without the approval of the British security services on the night she died, according to the most comprehensive report on her death, to be published this week.
Among extraordinary details due to emerge in the report by former Metropolitan police commissioner Lord Stevens is the revelation that the US security service was bugging her calls in the hours before she was killed in a car crash in Paris.
In a move that raises fresh questions over transatlantic agreements on intelligence-sharing, the surveillance arm of the US has admitted listening to her conversations as she stayed at the Ritz hotel, but failed to notify MI6. Stevens is understood to have been assured that the 39 classified documents detailing Diana's final conversations did not reveal anything sinister or contain material that might help explain her death.
Scotland Yard's inquiry, published this Thursday, also throws up further intelligence links with the Princess of Wales on the night she died. The driver of the Mercedes, Henri Paul, was in the pay of the French equivalent of M15. Stevens traced £100,000 he had amassed in 14 French bank accounts though no payments have been linked to Diana's death.
Stevens's conclusion is that Diana, her companion Dodi Fayed, and Paul himself died in an accident caused by Paul driving too fast through the Pont de l'Alma underpass in Paris while under the influence of drink. The car was being pursued by photographers at the time.
Tests have confirmed that Paul was more than three times over the French drink-drive limit and was travelling at 'excessive' speed. The inquiry will quash a number of conspiracy theories that have circulated since 31 August 1997, among them that Diana was pregnant. It also found no evidence that the princess was planning to get engaged to Dodi, son of Mohamed Fayed.
The Harrods tycoon believes that Paul's blood samples were swapped to portray him as a drunk in an elaborate cover-up by the establishment to stop Diana marrying Dodi, a Muslim.
Stevens is expected to concede that while there was a mix-up it was an accident and that the original French post-mortem which found that Paul was three-times over the French drink-drive limit was correct.
He is also expected to discount the role of the white Fiat Uno which struck Diana's car shortly before the crash, even though British police officers have failed to track down the vehicle which left paintwork on the black Mercedes.
The inquiry will support the findings of the original French accident inquiry in criticising the paparazzi as a possible reason for encouraging Paul to speed. The 'bright light' theory - the claim that the driver was deliberately blinded by a beam immediately before the crash - is also dismissed by Stevens.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2006
Rumsfeld bids farewell to Pentagon
Rumsfeld bids farewell to Pentagon
By Rowan Scarborough
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
December 9, 2006
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, in a bittersweet farewell yesterday to Pentagon workers, spoke of "miracles" his personnel performed during his tenure, including liberating Iraq and Afghanistan, deploying the first missile defense, creating a new homeland defense command and expanding the number of covert warriors.
"The institution is important well beyond those who temporarily serve here," said Mr. Rumsfeld, who first served as secretary during the Cold War and leaves the building for a second time on Dec. 18. "Each of you here in this room ... have played a part in one or more of these accomplishments."
"This is our last town hall meeting with our secretary," is how Marine Gen. Peter Pace, whom Mr. Rumsfeld picked as Joint Chiefs of Staff vice chairman and then as chairman, started the proceedings.
Mr. Rumsfeld's stage was a Pentagon auditorium packed with military personnel and civilians who greeted their leader with enthusiastic applause. The defense secretary, pilloried by critics for what they consider a botched war plan in Iraq, was forced to resign Nov. 8 and will say his final farewell on Friday. Defense Secretary-designate Robert M. Gates will be sworn in by President Bush on Dec. 18.
On this day, Mr. Rumsfeld basked in the adulation and repaid tributes.
"This is not a question," said one Pentagon staffer during a question-and-answer session. "It's simply a chance to say thank you."
He recalled the time his daughter's dance troupe came to the Pentagon and Mr. Rumsfeld took time out to talk to the 30 young persons. Five ended up joining the military. "You had a profound effect on the young members of that troupe and on our country," the admiral said.
Mr. Rumsfeld told the audience: "I leave office very proud to have served with your, inspired by your dedication, by your patriotism and by your sacrifice, and we recognize that sacrifice.
Mr. Rumsfeld will surely go down in history as one of the country's most important defense secretaries. He came into officer under orders from Mr. Bush to transform the armed forces to better fight new threats -- including terrorists. Little did he know at his Jan. 20, 2001, swearing in that the battle would come in just eight months when al Qaeda terrorists flew airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
A workaholic, Mr. Rumsfeld created the first homeland defense command, reorganized the Army into more agile combat brigade teams, empowered and increased special operations forces, canceled major weapon systems as outdated and pushed the Pentagon deeper into the black-bag world of intelligence and counterterrorism. He pressed commanders to fight lighter and faster, relying more on intelligence and precision bombing.
After the September 11, 2001, attack, his popularity soared. America saw a tough-talking leader who said he would be more than willing to have his troops kill terrorists. But the muddled war in Iraq, now in its fourth year, sank his likability in Congress and the nation. Critics said his style of fighting left too few troops in Iraq who were unprepared for an insurgency that has tossed that country into the throes of sectarian violence.
Yesterday, he invoked two events to illustrate his roller-coaster tenure: the inauguration of Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, after U.S. troops ousted the Taliban; and being "stunned by the news" of detainee abuses by American soldiers at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
"Clearly the worst day was Abu Ghraib," he said. The scandal incited the political left to castigate American forces as well as Mr. Rumsfeld, who was labeled a torturer.
"I remember the irresponsible comments by some who tried to sully the image of the courageous and dedicated men and women in uniform who keep the American people safe," he said, feisty to the end.
He also addressed the American people, whose support for the Iraq war has dropped sharply as the count of U.S. dead exceeds 2,900.
"Just take Iraq and Afghanistan," said Mr. Rumsfeld, 74, who served first as defense secretary from 1975 to 1977 under President Ford. "The military can't lose. They can't lose a battle let alone a war over there. But they also can't win because it is not a conventional conflict. There isn't an army, a navy or an air force to go defeat. It takes political and economic activity. ... And that takes patience and we have to understand that as a society, as a people and not be impatient."
He quoted a wounded soldier at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as telling him, "If only the American people will give us the time, we can do this. We're getting it done."
© 2006 The Washington Times, LLC.
By Rowan Scarborough
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
December 9, 2006
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, in a bittersweet farewell yesterday to Pentagon workers, spoke of "miracles" his personnel performed during his tenure, including liberating Iraq and Afghanistan, deploying the first missile defense, creating a new homeland defense command and expanding the number of covert warriors."The institution is important well beyond those who temporarily serve here," said Mr. Rumsfeld, who first served as secretary during the Cold War and leaves the building for a second time on Dec. 18. "Each of you here in this room ... have played a part in one or more of these accomplishments."
"This is our last town hall meeting with our secretary," is how Marine Gen. Peter Pace, whom Mr. Rumsfeld picked as Joint Chiefs of Staff vice chairman and then as chairman, started the proceedings.
Mr. Rumsfeld's stage was a Pentagon auditorium packed with military personnel and civilians who greeted their leader with enthusiastic applause. The defense secretary, pilloried by critics for what they consider a botched war plan in Iraq, was forced to resign Nov. 8 and will say his final farewell on Friday. Defense Secretary-designate Robert M. Gates will be sworn in by President Bush on Dec. 18.
On this day, Mr. Rumsfeld basked in the adulation and repaid tributes.
"This is not a question," said one Pentagon staffer during a question-and-answer session. "It's simply a chance to say thank you."
He recalled the time his daughter's dance troupe came to the Pentagon and Mr. Rumsfeld took time out to talk to the 30 young persons. Five ended up joining the military. "You had a profound effect on the young members of that troupe and on our country," the admiral said.
Mr. Rumsfeld told the audience: "I leave office very proud to have served with your, inspired by your dedication, by your patriotism and by your sacrifice, and we recognize that sacrifice.
Mr. Rumsfeld will surely go down in history as one of the country's most important defense secretaries. He came into officer under orders from Mr. Bush to transform the armed forces to better fight new threats -- including terrorists. Little did he know at his Jan. 20, 2001, swearing in that the battle would come in just eight months when al Qaeda terrorists flew airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
A workaholic, Mr. Rumsfeld created the first homeland defense command, reorganized the Army into more agile combat brigade teams, empowered and increased special operations forces, canceled major weapon systems as outdated and pushed the Pentagon deeper into the black-bag world of intelligence and counterterrorism. He pressed commanders to fight lighter and faster, relying more on intelligence and precision bombing.
After the September 11, 2001, attack, his popularity soared. America saw a tough-talking leader who said he would be more than willing to have his troops kill terrorists. But the muddled war in Iraq, now in its fourth year, sank his likability in Congress and the nation. Critics said his style of fighting left too few troops in Iraq who were unprepared for an insurgency that has tossed that country into the throes of sectarian violence.
Yesterday, he invoked two events to illustrate his roller-coaster tenure: the inauguration of Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, after U.S. troops ousted the Taliban; and being "stunned by the news" of detainee abuses by American soldiers at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.
"Clearly the worst day was Abu Ghraib," he said. The scandal incited the political left to castigate American forces as well as Mr. Rumsfeld, who was labeled a torturer.
"I remember the irresponsible comments by some who tried to sully the image of the courageous and dedicated men and women in uniform who keep the American people safe," he said, feisty to the end.
He also addressed the American people, whose support for the Iraq war has dropped sharply as the count of U.S. dead exceeds 2,900.
"Just take Iraq and Afghanistan," said Mr. Rumsfeld, 74, who served first as defense secretary from 1975 to 1977 under President Ford. "The military can't lose. They can't lose a battle let alone a war over there. But they also can't win because it is not a conventional conflict. There isn't an army, a navy or an air force to go defeat. It takes political and economic activity. ... And that takes patience and we have to understand that as a society, as a people and not be impatient."
He quoted a wounded soldier at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as telling him, "If only the American people will give us the time, we can do this. We're getting it done."
© 2006 The Washington Times, LLC.
Iran offers to help U.S. withdraw from Iraq
Iran offers to help U.S. withdraw from Iraq
The Associated Press
Published: December 9, 2006
MANAMA, Bahrain: Iran's foreign minister delivered a blunt challenge to the United States on Saturday, saying Tehran is willing to help U.S. troops withdraw from neighboring Iraq but only if Washington makes some tough policy changes.
Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki claimed U.S. troops were responsible for at least half the violence tearing apart Iraq and that their departure would pay security dividends for the entire region.
"If the United States changes its attitude the Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to help with the withdrawal from Iraq," Mottaki told the International Institute of Strategic Studies conference here. "Fifty percent of the problem of insecurity in Iraq is the presence of foreign troops."
Mottaki echoed calls made last week by Iran's top national security official, Ali Larijani, for Gulf Arab countries to eject American bases in their countries and establish a regional security pact with Iran. Mottaki went further and offered deeper cooperation with the six Gulf Arab states on energy, tourism, business and counter-narcotics.
Iran's offers do not seem to have tempted Gulf neighbors worried about the dangers of living near Iran's nuclear facilities, especially amid threats by Washington and Israel to use military force to destroy them.
Mottaki's forceful speech was a blunt challenge to U.S. interests in the Gulf, and a strong display of the country's rising assertiveness in the face of U.S failures in the region.
At one point, Mottaki addressed an audience that included U.S. Vice Adm. David Nichols, the deputy chief of U.S. Central Command, a member of the American delegation, and said the regional chaos sparked by the Bush administration's twin wars demonstrated that U.S. military force was no longer a realistic policy option in the Middle East.
"Today the time of threats is over. The period of unilateralism is over," Mottaki said. "Look at Iraq. Look at Afghanistan. That gives us a very important lesson."
Iran's proposal for a Gulf security alliance shows no sign of gaining traction among the region's Arab leaders. Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheik Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa said security of the energy-rich region depends on the United States, the European Union and other major oil-importing countries.
Much of the discussion at this security conference centered on the U.S. Iraq Study Group report, and its recommendation that Washington seek Iran's help in steering Iraq away from civil war.
Former defense secretary William Cohen urged Iran to push for talks with Washington.
"If you forgo aspirations for nuclear weapons and cut off funding for radical elements and support the Mideast peace process, then yes, you'd be welcomed into the international community. We'd have billions of dollars going into your economy," Cohen told the Iranians among 250 delegates from 22 countries.
"If Iran is simply interested in pursuing a nuclear energy program and not weapons, that's something the U.S. wouldn't object to and would support."
jk-wnt
Copyright © 2006 the International Herald Tribune All rights reserved
The Associated Press
Published: December 9, 2006
MANAMA, Bahrain: Iran's foreign minister delivered a blunt challenge to the United States on Saturday, saying Tehran is willing to help U.S. troops withdraw from neighboring Iraq but only if Washington makes some tough policy changes.
Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki claimed U.S. troops were responsible for at least half the violence tearing apart Iraq and that their departure would pay security dividends for the entire region.
"If the United States changes its attitude the Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to help with the withdrawal from Iraq," Mottaki told the International Institute of Strategic Studies conference here. "Fifty percent of the problem of insecurity in Iraq is the presence of foreign troops."
Mottaki echoed calls made last week by Iran's top national security official, Ali Larijani, for Gulf Arab countries to eject American bases in their countries and establish a regional security pact with Iran. Mottaki went further and offered deeper cooperation with the six Gulf Arab states on energy, tourism, business and counter-narcotics.
Iran's offers do not seem to have tempted Gulf neighbors worried about the dangers of living near Iran's nuclear facilities, especially amid threats by Washington and Israel to use military force to destroy them.
Mottaki's forceful speech was a blunt challenge to U.S. interests in the Gulf, and a strong display of the country's rising assertiveness in the face of U.S failures in the region.
At one point, Mottaki addressed an audience that included U.S. Vice Adm. David Nichols, the deputy chief of U.S. Central Command, a member of the American delegation, and said the regional chaos sparked by the Bush administration's twin wars demonstrated that U.S. military force was no longer a realistic policy option in the Middle East.
"Today the time of threats is over. The period of unilateralism is over," Mottaki said. "Look at Iraq. Look at Afghanistan. That gives us a very important lesson."
Iran's proposal for a Gulf security alliance shows no sign of gaining traction among the region's Arab leaders. Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheik Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa said security of the energy-rich region depends on the United States, the European Union and other major oil-importing countries.
Much of the discussion at this security conference centered on the U.S. Iraq Study Group report, and its recommendation that Washington seek Iran's help in steering Iraq away from civil war.
Former defense secretary William Cohen urged Iran to push for talks with Washington.
"If you forgo aspirations for nuclear weapons and cut off funding for radical elements and support the Mideast peace process, then yes, you'd be welcomed into the international community. We'd have billions of dollars going into your economy," Cohen told the Iranians among 250 delegates from 22 countries.
"If Iran is simply interested in pursuing a nuclear energy program and not weapons, that's something the U.S. wouldn't object to and would support."
jk-wnt
Copyright © 2006 the International Herald Tribune All rights reserved
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