Biblical News

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Fatah gunmen storm West Bank parliament building

Hundreds of Fatah gunmen have stormed Hamas-controlled institutions in the West Bank, including parliament and government ministries, and told staffers that those with ties to Hamas will not be allowed to return.

At the parliament, the Fatah supporters chanted, "Hamas Out," climbed on the roof of the building and fired in the air. They planted Fatah and Palestinian flags on the building.

They also tried to seize the deputy speaker, but were stopped by employees. The gunmen planted Fatah flags and Palestinian banners on the buildings they had taken over.

Many government employees tied to Hamas had not showed up for work on Saturday, the start of the work week in the West Bank, after Hamas took control of Gaza in a military campaign. Apparently, the staffers feared reprisals.

A member of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a violent offshoot of Fatah, said his group planned to take control of all Hamas institutions, in response to Hamas' takeover of Gaza.

At the parliament building, Fatah gunmen entered the office of Deputy Speaker Hassan Kreisheh and tried to grab him, but Fatah employees stopped them. Other Fatah activists took over the Education Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office.

In the West Bank city of Nablus, Fatah gunmen took over the Hamas-controlled city council and planted the Fatah flag on the top of the building. Fatah supporters also kidnapped seven Hamas supporters, and deposed a senior member of the Religious Affairs Ministry.

In the West Bank city of Hebron, Fatah gunmen took over offices of the Education Ministry and the Interior Ministry, warning Hamas-allied employees not to return to work, Al Aqsa members said.

On the first day of Hamas rule in Gaza, a sense of uncertain calm has descended the region following a week of civil fighting.

Graham: Wife Has Great Reception In Heaven

Graham: Wife Has Great Reception In Heaven
Ruth Graham Died Thursday

MONTREAT, N.C. -- Ruth Graham retained her beauty even in death and surely "had a great reception in heaven," an ailing Billy Graham told mourners who gathered Saturday to remember his beloved wife.

"I wish you could look in that casket because she's so beautiful," said Graham, clinging to his walker. "She was a wonderful woman."

Ruth Graham died Thursday at age 87 following a lengthy illness. Her husband's closest confidant, she was remembered as a spiritual stalwart and modest mentor who provided a solid foundation - both biblically and geographically - for her globe-trotting husband.

"The mama that we saw at home was the mama that the world saw," said their son, Franklin, who is now the head of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. He recalled his mother's headstrong and quirky nature, telling the crowd about the time she overcame a locked bedroom door by crawling on the roof, throwing a cup of cold water through his window to wake him.

"I thank you mama for your example, for your love, for your wit, for your humor, for your craziness," he said. "I love you for all of it and I'm going to miss you terribly."

After preaching to more than 210 million people around the world during a six-decade career, Billy Graham, 88, is largely confined to the couple's home in Montreat by several ailments, including prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease. He wasn't expected to speak Saturday but surprised the crowd with his words, perhaps spurred by the sight of his 19 grandchildren.

"God bless all these grandchildren. Some of them I haven't seen in a long time. Some of them I've never seen," he said, drawing laughter from the audience. "Lots of love to everyone, and thank you."

He wiped a tear away a before leaving the auditorium. Family spokesman Larry Ross said later that "the sense of loss is beginning to settle in on him." Family members will hold a private burial ceremony Sunday at the new Billy Graham Library in Charlotte.

Invitations target Raleigh with message of hope

Invitations target Raleigh with message of hope
400,000-plus issued as Greg Laurie crusade plans finalized
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© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Hundreds of thousands of people are being invited to hear from Harvest Christian Fellowship senior pastor and WND columnist Greg Laurie on their lives' purpose, God, and what happens after death, as final preparations are being made for Triangle Harvest 07.

An estimated 3,000 volunteers from more than 200 churches of all denominations are finalizing details for the first large-scale evangelistic outreach in the Raleigh, N.C., region in 13 years, when Triangle Harvest 07 will occupy Raleigh's RBC Center for three days starting next Friday.

"Triangle Harvest 07 has been more than a year in the making, joining local congregations together in a common goal to bring a message of hope to the Triangle community," organizers said. "Preparation for the three-night event has been an undertaking of massive proportions, with more than 405,000 event invitations and 35,000 bumper stickers being distributed, and more than 3,000 volunteers lending their time."

Hindu persecution campaign targets pastor

Hindu persecution campaign targets pastor
Beating leaves Christian in hospital, threats could keep him from home
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© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Another Christian has been victimized by a growing campaign by Hindus to persecute Christians, with a beating that left Pastor Pabitra Kata hospitalized and a series of threats that may, in fact, keep him out of his home, according to a new report from Voice of the Martyrs.

The Christian organization was founded in 1967 by the late Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, who starting their ministry smuggling Bibles into Russia in 1947, and publishes a newsletter that provides regular updates about attacks, and the steadfast faith of persecuted Christians in the modern world.

Various organizations have documented that there are about 200 million Christians in the world who this year will face persecution ranging from discrimination to death for their faith in Jesus Christ.

In a new report, VOM has documented the harassment and assaults on Pastor Pabitra.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

BREAKING NEWS: Billy Graham's wife Ruth dead at age 87

BREAKING NEWS: Billy Graham's wife Ruth dead at age 87

Mike Baker
OneNewsNow.com
June 14, 2007

MONTREAT, N.C. - Ruth Graham, who surrendered dreams of missionary work in Tibet to marry a suitor who became the world's most renowned evangelist, died Thursday. She was 87.

Graham died at 5:05 p.m. at her home at Little Piney Cove, surrounded by her husband and all five of their children, said a statement released by Larry Ross, Billy Graham's spokesman.

As OneNewsNow.com previously reported, Billy Graham said in a news release Wednesday that his wife, Ruth Graham, 87, who had been bedridden for months with degenerative osteoarthritis of the back and neck was, "close to going home to heaven."

"Ruth is my soul mate and best friend, and I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side," said Billy Graham, who is 88 and ailing himself with fluid on the brain, prostate cancer, Parkinson's disease and age-related macular degeneration. "I am more in love with her today than when we first met over 65 years ago as students at Wheaton College."

Ruth Graham rallied briefly after she underwent treatment for pneumonia two weeks ago, but her health worsened because of her weakened condition. She celebrated her birthday Sunday and was alert, but slipped into the coma Wednesday morning.

News that Ruth Graham had fallen into a coma Wednesday came as Billy Graham announced that he and his wife would be buried in Charlotte, at the new Billy Graham Library, instead of at The Cove, a Bible training center near the Grahams' home outside of Asheville.

Terrorists claim CIA files seized

Terrorists claim CIA files seized
Documents said to provide details of U.S. intel networks in Mideast
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Posted: June 14, 2007
11:50 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – Terrorist groups, including Hamas and the Popular Resistance Committees, have seized large quantities of CIA security files stored at major compounds of militias associated with the U.S.-backed Fatah organization of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, terror leaders told WND today.

The terror leaders claimed the files contain, among other information, details of CIA networks in the Middle East.

"The CIA files we seized, which include documents, CDs, taped conversations and videos, are more important than all the American weapons we obtained the last two days as we took over the traitor Fatah's positions," said Muhammad Abdel-El, spokesman for the Hamas-allied Popular Resistance Committees terror group.

The Committees has been accused of carrying out anti-U.S. attacks, including a 2003 bombing of an American convoy in Gaza that killed three U.S. contractors.

Hamas has the past few days taken near-complete control of the Gaza Strip, advancing on the vast majority of Fatah security buildings and positions in the northern, southern and central sections of the territory.

Abbas to Dissolve Palestinian Authority Government in Wake of Hamas-Fatah War

Abbas to Dissolve Palestinian Authority Government in Wake of Hamas-Fatah War
Thursday, June 14, 2007

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — President Mahmoud Abbas will dissolve the Palestinian Authority's government Thursday after fighting between rival parties Hamas and Fatah consumed the Gaza Strip and was expected to call for a state of emergency, sources close to Abbas confirmed to FOX News.

Abbas also fired Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, dismantled the Hamas-Fatah coalition and said he would form a new government.

Abbas is also considering early elections at some stage, said his aide, Tayeb Abdel Rahim, in a news conference. Abdel Rahim said Abbas may "return to the people" when circumstances allow.

Other aides had said Abbas was also planning to call for the deployment of a multi-national force. However, Abdel Rahim made no mention of that in the news conference.

Abbas considers the Hamas fighters who have seized control of most of the Fatah-allied security headquarters in Gaza to be an "outlaw militia," Abdel Rahim said.

Hamas fighters took control from three of the rival Fatah movement's most important security command centers in the Gaza Strip, and witnesses said the victors dragged vanquished gunmen into the street and shot them to death execution-style.

'The Gaza Strip has fallen'

'The Gaza Strip has fallen'
2 years after Israeli retreat, Hamas creating 'Islamic caliphate' in territory
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By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

TEL AVIV – Two years after Israel's unilateral retreat from the Gaza Strip, the territory today fell into the near complete control of the Hamas terror group, which now administers Gaza and its borders with Israel and Egypt.

A senior Palestinian Authority official from the Fatah party told WND today "Gaza has fallen. It's now Hamas land. We (Fatah) have lost."

The official said Hamas seeks to create an "Islamic caliphate" in Gaza and that it is expected to put former Hamas Foreign Minister Mahmoud Al-Zahar in control of the terror group's reign in Gaza.

Israeli security officials said they were "gravely concerned" about Iran's influence over the territory Hamas now controls.

According to Israeli and Palestinian security officials and Hamas sources, Hamas today took complete control of northern and southern Gaza and most of central Gaza with the exception of the main Fatah security compound in Gaza City known as the Ansar Compound.

Mother of Eight Planned Suicide Terror Attack in Israel

Mother of Eight Planned Suicide Terror Attack in Israel
The Religion of Peace?

by Hillel Fendel

(IsraelNN.com) Two women from Gaza - a pregnant mother of eight, and her niece, a mother of four - planned a joint two-pronged suicide attack in Tel Aviv and Netanya. They have been arrested.

The General Security Service (GSS) has released for publication that the two women were arrested 24 days ago as they left Gaza for the double attack. Precise intelligence information led to the thwarting of the planned mass murders.

The GSS says that the two women "took advantage of Israel's humanitarian policies, receiving a fraudulent medical permit to enter Israel."

One of the women, Fatma Hassan Zeck, 39, is the mother of eight children and is pregnant with her ninth. She worked in the Islamic Jihad employment office for women in Gaza, and was in regular contact with terrorist elements. She served as a coordinator between the Islamic Jihad terror outfit and women who wished to commit suicide attacks against Israel.

Three months ago, her niece Roda Ibrahim Habib, a mother of four, turned to her, and the two of them decided to commit a joint suicide attack. Zeck made contact with Islamic Jihad handlers, and the preparations began.

The two mothers took along some of their young children to the meetings with their terrorist handlers, at which was discussed precisely how the women would blow themselves up. The 19-year-old son of the older woman, an Islamic Jihad terrorist himself, was present at the traditional picture-taking ceremony, at which the women were photographed holding a Koran and a rifle.

The plan was for them to blow themselves up simultaneously in an area crowded with soldiers or civilians in Tel Aviv and Netanya. They were trained in activating explosives-laden vests, and Zeck was also trained in using a Kalachnikov rifle.

Mass. Lawmakers Block Gay Marriage Vote

Jun 14 01:34 PM US/Eastern
By STEVE LeBLANC
Associated Press Writer

BOSTON (AP) - Massachusetts lawmakers voted Thursday to block a proposed constitutional amendment that would have let voters decide whether to ban gay marriage in the only state that currently allows it.

The narrow vote was a victory for gay marriage advocates and a devastating blow to efforts to reverse the historic 2003 state court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

The proposal needed 50 votes to advance to the 2008 ballot. It got 45, with 151 lawmakers opposed.

Opponents of gay marriage vowed to press on, but Thursday's defeat after more than three years of sometimes wrenching debate could prove insurmountable. Any effort to mount a new ballot question would take years at a time political support in Massachusetts is swinging firmly behind gay marriage.

More than 8,500 same sex couples have married in Massachusetts since it became legal in May 2004.

'Tiller the killer' abortion charges coming to head

'Tiller the killer' abortion charges coming to head
Under pressure from pro-life groups, state moves toward ruling on charges
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Posted: June 14, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The results of yet another investigation into allegations a notorious Kansas doctor performs illegal late-term abortions will be released within a few weeks, officials have announced.

Just six months ago the first investigation was finished, and it resulted in then-Attorney General Phill Kline filing 30 criminal charges against George Tiller.

The state, which is under pressure from pro-life activists to move on the charges, will complete its second investigation into the charges against Tiller "by the end of June," according to a statement from Ashley Anstadt, a spokeswoman for current Attorney General Paul Morrison.

However, she told WND she could not release the details of the "ongoing investigation."

The pressure on the state has been mounting, because Kline, who was replaced in January by Morrison, had completed his investigation of Tiller. After having two judges approve the case, Kline had filed the 30 criminal counts against Tiller for performing illegal late-term procedures as well as failing to document the reasons for those abortions.

A series of moves by officials, including a prosecutor and a judge, resulted in those charges being dismissed almost immediately.

But producers for Fox News host Bill O'Reilly, who has aired several updates on the situation, were in Wichita recently to confront Tiller on a trip to a gas station about the allegations.

The segment aired Tuesday, showing Tiller commenting about the weather when asked about the late-term abortions he performs.

The segment on O'Reilly also discussed a videotaped statement from Paul McHugh, a nationally noted psychiatrist who was hired by Kline to examine redacted medical records obtained by the state from Tiller and deliver an expert opinion about the validity of the psychiatric diagnoses used by Tiller to justify post-viability abortions.

As WND columnist Jack Cashill has documented, those evaluations produced no credible evidence that there was a reasonable basis for the abortions.

The issue at hand is the late-term abortions Tiller performs. State law bans abortions after 21 weeks unless the mother's life is in danger or the pregnancy will produce "substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function," which has been interpreted to include mental health factors.

In the interview, arranged by Women Influencing the Nation, McHugh said the reasons cited by Tiller were "social," not "psychiatric."

"Some of them [the reasons] would be construed as trivial," he said. "A trivial one would be not being able to go to a rock concert."

None of the anonymous case files included a full psychiatric profile, he said. "There's a life at stake here. Much more serious issues need to be brought up, especially if you want to obey the Kansas law."

He said other reasons offered for terminating the life of the unborn child were that the mother was worried the offspring would not thrive, that the woman would have her future redirected, that she wouldn't get a good education after she had a child, that they would always feel guilty…

"These are not psychiatric ideas, they're social," he said. "There was nothing to back these things up."

Infanticide, Abortion Responsible for 60 Million Girls Missing in Asia

Infanticide, Abortion Responsible for 60 Million Girls Missing in Asia

By Sherry Karabin

There is a little-known battle for survival going in some parts of the world. Those at risk are baby girls, and the casualties are in the millions each year. The weapons being used against them are prenatal sex selection, abortion and female infanticide — the systematic killing of girls soon after they are born.

According to a recent United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) State of the World Population Report, these practices, combined with neglect, have resulted in at least 60 million "missing" girls in Asia, creating gender imbalances and other serious problems that experts say will have far reaching consequences for years to come.

"Twenty-five million men in China currently can’t find brides because there is a shortage of women," said Steven Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute in Washington, D.C. "The young men emigrate overseas to find brides."

The imbalances are also giving rise to a commercial sex trade; the 2005 report states that up to 800,000 people being trafficked across borders each year, and as many as 80 percent are women and girls, most of whom are exploited.

"Women are trafficked from North Korea, Burma and Vietnam and sold into sexual slavery or to the highest bidder," Mosher said.

State-Sanctioned Infanticide?

Mosher, the first American social scientist allowed into China, puts much of the blame on Beijing's one-child policy, which took effect in 1979.

The policy encourages late marrying and late childbearing, and it limits the majority of urban couples to having one child and most of those living in rural areas to two. Female infanticide was the result, he said.

"Historically infanticide was something that was practiced in poor places in China," Mosher said. "But when the one-child policy came into effect we began to see in the wealthy areas of China, what had never been done before in history — the killing of little girls."

In recent years, female infanticide has taken a back seat to sex-selective abortion or female feticide, due to the advent of amniocentesis and ultrasound technology as well as other prenatal sex selection techniques, many of which are now readily available in clinics and doctors’ offices.

"We feel it's a serious problem that everybody should be concerned about and aware of," said Wanda Franz, president of the National Right to Life Committee. "This is a form of abortion that, from our point of view is especially egregious. Abortion is claimed to help women; obviously in these cases, females are the direct victims, because women in these cultures are not valued.

Senate Leaders Agree on Immigration Bill With Tough Border Security Measure

Senate Leaders Agree on Immigration Bill With Tough Border Security Measure
Thursday, June 14, 2007

WASHINGTON — Senate leaders have agreed on a way to bring a pulled immigration bill forward, breaking the impasse that had stalled the bill, Fox News confirms.

The compromise legislation could come up as early as the middle of next week, once the Senate completes a large energy package. Legislators will consider 19 amendments (10 from Republicans and nine from Democrats) that are in need os some 'polishing' a senior Republican aide tells Fox News.

President Bush's support for a $4.4 billion infusion of border security cash today apparently helped to ease concerns of many conservatives, as well as some liberals.

Many members had feared the funds would, in the end, not be put foward to build 370 miles in new border fencing, hire border patrol officers, construct some 200 miles of vehicle barriers, and other beefed up provisions.

The funding will be allocated in a large amendment authored by Republican Sens Jon Kyl of Arizona, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and Mel Martinez of Florida.

The measure designed as a "confidence builder" for many conservatives, and it went along way toward breaking the stalemate that resulted in Dem leader Reid pulling the bill from the floor last week.

Teen facing felony for taping cop

Teen facing felony for taping cop
State's wiretapping ban prohibits recording officer's voice
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Posted: June 14, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

An 18-year-old from Pennsylvania is facing a felony charge after he was caught videotaping a police officer handing out a traffic ticket on a public street.

"I didn't think I could get in trouble for that," Brian D. Kelly told The Patriot-News.

Apparently, neither did a long list of members of the public, who have erupted on the newspaper's comment page.

"This is the most asinine thing I have EVER heard. Citizens have the right, and indeed, often the DUTY to film police officers performing their job," wrote ZippoPA. "I will donate right now to a fund to defend this person."

"Don't police videotape you from their car without consent? I think they should be required to obtain consent for dashboard cameras," added TheSabre.

"In the era of Rodney King and such we should have the right to video them, after all they video us … with the dashcam," suggested cd3.

Hindu Mob in India Beats, Strips, Parades Pastor

Hindu Mob in India Beats, Strips, Parades Pastor
During assault, they douse him with kerosene and toss burning Bible at him.

by Vishal Arora

Laxmi Narayan Gowda, an independent pastor and representative of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), was recovering in a hospital at press time with swelling and numerous bruises.

The incident took place at about 7 p.m. in Hessarghatta, about 30 kilometers from Bangalore, when a group of about 50 people barged into the pastor’s house and threatened him with violence unless he moved out of the area, said Sam Joseph, a Karnataka-based leader of the All India Christian Council (AICC).

The group returned with 100 more people shortly after, cornered Pastor Gowda in a room in his house, and began assaulting him in front of his wife and two small children.

Extremists of the Bajrang Dal, youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council), allegedly led the mob.

One of the assailants threw kerosene on the pastor, and others started burning Bibles. Someone tossed a burning Bible onto Pastor Gowda, but miraculously he did not catch fire, Joseph told Compass.

The extremists then stripped the pastor naked and hung a board around his neck that said, “I am the one who was converting people,” before parading him through the area.

“By this time, the mob had swollen to about 1,000, as more people joined in to harass and torture the pastor,” Joseph added.

Local police arrived about an hour later, after one of the pastor’s relatives called them by telephone.

The assailants burned at least 250 Bibles and also vandalized furniture and equipment.

Police had not registered a case against the attackers at press time. When Compass spoke to Inspector R. Malesh of the Soladevanhalli police station, he said the victim did not want to file a complaint.

“We have requested the Christians to give us a complaint in writing, but they do not want to press charges against the attackers,” he said.

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

PC mandate gone wild: Christian books yanked from prisoners

PC mandate gone wild: Christian books yanked
Rule to keep radical Islamic texts from prisoners, but feds decide to limit literature of all religions
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Posted: June 11, 2007
5:45 p.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Hundreds of Christian books are disappearing off the shelves of U.S. prisons under a federal directive intended to prevent violent inmates from receiving radical Islamic texts, prompting a lawsuit.

Instead of focusing on Muslim books, the directive restricts literature from all religions, the Associated Press reported. The post-9/11 order, which only now is being implemented, allows the prison libraries to stock only 100 to 150 books for each religion.

Three inmates at the federal prison camp in Otisville, N.Y., have filed suit, claiming violation of their constitutional rights.

Inmate John Okon told U.S. District Judge Laura Taylor Swain the set of books removed from the prison were used to minister to new converts.

"I have really seen religion turn around the life of some of these men, especially in the Christian community," he said, according to the AP.

Court Rules in Favor of Enemy Combatant

Court Rules in Favor of Enemy Combatant
Jun 11 01:02 PM US/Eastern

By ZINIE CHEN SAMPSON
Associated Press Writer

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The Bush administration cannot legally detain a U.S. resident it believes is an al-Qaida sleeper agent without charging him, a divided federal appeals court ruled Monday. The court said sanctioning the indefinite detention of civilians would have "disastrous consequences for the constitution—and the country."

In the 2-1 decision, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel found that the federal Military Commissions Act doesn't strip Ali al-Marri, a legal U.S. resident, of his constitutional rights to challenge his accusers in court.

It ruled the government must allow al-Marri to be released from military detention.

Al-Marri has been held in solitary confinement in the Navy brig in Charleston, S.C., since June 2003. The Qatar native has been detained since his December 2001 arrest at his home in Peoria, Ill., where he moved with his wife and five children a day before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to study for a master's degree.

"To sanction such presidential authority to order the military to seize and indefinitely detain civilians, even if the President calls them 'enemy combatants,' would have disastrous consequences for the constitution—and the country," the court panel said.

Rabbis: Peres 'existential danger' to Jewish state

Rabbis: Peres 'existential danger' to Jewish state
Religious leaders urge against electing veteran politician as Israeli president
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Posted: June 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – A group of hundreds of prominent Israeli rabbis today urged Knesset members here against electing former prime minister Shimon Peres for president, calling Peres an "existential threat" to the Jewish state.

"Electing Peres will be upholding the policies he has been promoting, like withdrawals from Judea and Samaria (West Bank), Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. Peres is a major existential danger to the state of Israel," read a statement by the Rabbinical Congress for Peace, a coalition of more than 350 Israeli rabbinic leaders and pulpit rabbis.

"We witnessed the destruction and terror brought to our doorsteps from the evacuations Peres previously urged, including Israel's disastrous retreat from Gaza and Lebanon and Peres' brainchild, the Oslo accords, which offered PLO leader Yasser Arafat territory bordering Jewish cities," said the statement.

Peres last month formally announced his decision to run for president of the state of Israel after the former president, Moshe Katsav, lost his position amid a rape scandal. Elections will be held later this week in which Knesset members vote for presidential candidates by secret ballot.

Officials: Iran, Syria orchestrated raid on Jewish state

Officials: Iran, Syria orchestrated raid on Jewish state
Terrorists storm Israeli border, attempt kidnapping
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Posted: June 11, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – An attempted Palestinian raid of the Israeli border this weekend, purportedly to kidnap an Israeli soldier, was orchestrated by Syria and Iran, according to security officials associated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party.

The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday thwarted an attempt by the Iranian-backed Islamic Jihad terror group to kidnap a soldier on the Israeli side of a major crossing into the Gaza Strip.

Four terrorists approached the Israeli border in an SUV bearing "TV" signs in an attempt to disguise themselves as journalists. Reporters working in Gaza usually travel in cars with "TV" symbols to identify themselves. Upon reaching the crossing, the terrorists blew a hole in the border fence and attempted to storm an IDF position.

IDF troops rushed to the scene, chasing three of the gunmen back to the Gaza Strip. One of militants, 19-year-old Mohammed Jaabari, became separated from the group and hid inside Israel. Jaabari was shot dead after he opened fire when soldiers approached him, the IDF said.

Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.

Orthodox sector curses gay pride parade

Orthodox sector curses gay pride parade

Badatz rabbis distribute message that 'all sinners' involved in Jerusalem pride march will 'feel a curse on their souls and evil will pursue them.' Orthodox community plans mass protest against parade next week; organizers expect 100,000 protestors

Neta Sela Published: Israel News

The Orthodox Righteous Court of Law (Badatz) have placed a curse on the organizers and particpicants in the gay pride parade scheduled to take place in Jerusalem next Thursday. The curse also applied to police forces that will secure the event.

Rabbis from the Orthodox Edah Haredit sector (Badatz) published a message in Jerusalem on Sunday which read: "To all those involved, sinners in spirit, and whoever helps and protects them, may they feel a curse on their souls, may it plague them and may evil pursue them; they will not be acquitted of their transgressions from heavenly judgment."

The Edah Haredit is an extreme body which has declared ideological warfare against the "heretic Zionist government." Its members shun Knesset votes, do not carry Israeli ID cards, and refuse allowances from the government budget.

Edah Haredit rabbis warned Sunday that anyone who participates in the gay parade will be hurt "in body, soul and finances."

Court to Focus on Vaccine-Autism Link

Jun 11 07:47 AM US/Eastern

WASHINGTON (AP) - Thousands of families that allege vaccines caused their children's autism are preparing for their day in court, which could bring them vindication and compensation.

Since 1999, more than 4,800 families have filed claims with the government alleging their children contracted autism as a result of routine vaccinations. Most contend that a preservative called thimerosal is to blame for the impaired social interaction typical of the disorder.

If they prevail in the courts, the families are entitled to compensation from a multibillion-dollar trust fund. Previously, large scientific studies have found no association between autism and vaccines containing thimerosal.

The first of what eventually could be nine test cases from those claims is the subject of the hearing opening Monday in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. Three special masters appointed by the court will preside over the hearing, expected to last through June 29.

Monday's case addresses the theory that the cause of autism is the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine in combination with other vaccines containing thimerosal. The preservative, about 50 percent mercury by weight, is no longer found in routine childhood vaccines but is used in some flu shots.

Paris Hilton Calls Barbara Walters From Jail -- 'God Has Released Me'

EXCLUSIVE: Hilton Calls Barbara Walters From Jail -- 'God Has Released Me'
She 'Was Severely Depressed and Felt as If I Was in a Cage,' but now Has 'New Chance'

By BARBARA WALTERS
June 11, 2007

On Sunday at 3 p.m., Paris Hilton phoned me collect from jail. Prisoners must call collect.

The unusual conversation came about because Kathy Hilton, Paris' mother, had phoned me, and while we were talking, Paris called on the other line. When she heard I was talking to her mother, she said she'd like to talk to me herself.

She sounded tired but totally aware of what she was saying.

"How are you?" I asked.

Paris answered, "I'm hanging in there." But she declared, "I feel as if I'm a different person. I've dropped my appeal. I don't want to cause any more problems."

I asked what happened in the jail that led to her being released or reassigned to her home. She said she had not been wailing, sobbing or screaming as had been described.

"But," she said, "I was not eating or sleeping. I was severely depressed and felt as if I was in a cage. I was not myself. It was a horrible experience."

"How are you different?" I asked.

"I'm not the same person I was," she said. "I used to act dumb. It was an act. I am 26 years old, and that act is no longer cute. It is not who I am, nor do I want to be that person for the young girls who looked up to me. I know now that I can make a difference, that I have the power to do that. I have been thinking that I want to do different things when I am out of here. I have become much more spiritual. God has given me this new chance."

I asked what kinds of things she might want to do.

She said she would like to help in the fields of breast cancer — her grandmother had breast cancer — or multiple sclerosis. Her father's mother suffers from that disease.

She thought she might get toy companies to build a kind of Paris Hilton playhouse, where sick children might come, and the toy companies could donate toys.

She has had a person whom she described as a spiritual adviser who said, "My spirit or soul did not like the way I was being seen and that is why I was sent to jail."

"God," she said, "has released me."

She is reading newspapers — The LA Times and the Wall Street Journal — and books like "The Secret," "The Power of Now" and the Bible.

Note from Lighthouse:
Ok, so I have to say... I am glad she is reading the Bible! However, The Secret needs to go. I have not read the power of now. But I must ask, do you think that she is sincerely questioning changing, Sincerely going to change, or just trying to get out of jail and still have a career?

I am not sure, but neither am I the Judge. However, with that said, one thing we can be sure of is that God has allowed her a second chance... just as He has allowed us a second chance! We pray that she truly will seek and trust in Jesus as Lord & Savior.

Death toll rises in China flooding

Death toll rises in China flooding
More than 640,000 people reported homeless

BEIJING - The death toll from flooding and landslides in southern China has risen to at least 71, with more rain forecast for the area, state media reported Tuesday.

More than 640,000 people have been forced from their homes, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing an official from the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The torrential rains that triggered the flooding were expected to continue over the next couple of days, Xinhua said.

It said the heavy rains have lashed the provinces of Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Jiangxi and Fujian over the last week.

Television footage showed destroyed homes and flooded fields, and the ministry said overall economic losses have reached $436 million.

The worst-hit province was Guangdong — the heart of China’s export-driven light manufacturing industries.

Xinhua said damages in Guangdong totaled $160 million, although there were no immediate reports of any damage to factories or shipping facilities.

New Games Merge Fantasy With Real World

Jun 11 12:04 PM US/Eastern
By GREG BLUESTEIN
Associated Press Writer

ATLANTA (AP) - 0611tAugmentedReality There's no alien world behind the virtual reality gear, just a modestly decorated living room that can be seen without the video goggles.
But once the game "AR Facade" starts, you might wish there were space invaders. That's because it puts you in the middle of an excruciatingly uncomfortable argument between Trip and Grace, a bickering thirty-something married couple.

Do you play moderator and decide to help broker a truce? Do you instigate them by complimenting Grace on her decorating style or pretending to be impressed with your pal Trip's place? Or do you act as if everything's peachy while their arguing heats up?

Whatever path is taken, this participatory soap opera at a Georgia Tech research lab is at times funny, awkward and intriguing. And it's always intense and emotionally draining.

"AR Facade" is an "augmented reality" game, a genre that mixes a virtual world with physical reality. The technology is still emerging, though someday people may play such games with gear as simple as their cell phones.

So far, scientists seem to be having fun with the possibilities.

'Military plan against Iran is ready'

'Military plan against Iran is ready'
By YAAKOV KATZ

Predicting that Iran will obtain a nuclear weapon within three years and claiming to have a strike plan in place, senior American military officers have told The Jerusalem Post they support President George W. Bush's stance to do everything necessary to stop the Islamic Republic's race for nuclear power.

Bush has repeatedly said the United States would not allow Iran to "go nuclear."

Israel successfully launches Ofek 7 spy satellite

JPost special: US candidates talk tough on Iran
A high-ranking American military officer told the Post that senior officers in the US armed forces had thrown their support behind Bush and believed that additional steps needed to be taken to stop Iran.

Predictions within the US military are that Bush will do what is needed to stop Teheran before he leaves office in 2009, including possibly launching a military strike against its nuclear facilities.

On Sunday, Sen. Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut said the US should consider a military strike against Iran over its support of Iraqi insurgents.

Iran threatens Gulf blitz if US hits nuclear plants

From The Sunday Times

Iran threatens Gulf blitz if US hits nuclear plants

Michael Smith

IRAN has threatened to launch a missile blitz against the Gulf states and plunge the entire Middle East into war if America attacks its nuclear facilities.

Admiral Ali Shamkhani, a senior defence adviser to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that Gulf states providing the US with military cooperation would be the key targets of a barrage of ballistic missiles.

Shamkhani told the US journal Defense News that missiles would be launched not only at US military bases but also at strategic targets such as oil refineries and power stations.

Qatar, Bahrain and Oman all host important US bases and British forces are based in all three countries. Any Iranian attack would be bound to draw in the other Gulf Cooperation Council states: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

The attacks on Arab states would be in addition to airstrikes on Israel, which have been threatened repeatedly. An Iranian foreign ministry official said: “The objective would be to overwhelm US missile defence systems with dozens and maybe hundreds of missiles fired simultaneously at specific targets.”

Sunday, June 3, 2007

IRS to church: Shut up – Church to IRS: No way

IRS to church: Shut up – Church to IRS: No way
Pastor under investigation says he 'will not stop preaching God's word'
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Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A Christian church in Kansas has told the Internal Revenue Service that it will not stop teaching and preaching God's Word, "even if it relates to contemporary issues in the world," after the federal agency demanded answers to 31 questions about its beliefs and warned about "political" activity.

Spirit One Christian Center Pastor Mark Holick told WND that the IRS, perhaps, should brush up on the freedoms assured U.S. citizens regarding religion and speech before making such demands in the future.

He said the issues the church addressed – and will continue to address – concern issues that the Bible addresses, such as killing and protecting the defenseless.

The response came to a series of questions from the IRS questioning whether the church was involved in "political" activity. In specific, Holick said, the IRS cited a sign that read: "Sebelius accepted $300,000.00 from abortionist Tiller, price of 1000 babies."

But that, he said, was just part of a responsibility on the part of a Christian church to comment on abortion, a red-hot topic in the church's home city of Wichita.

That's also the location of the abortion business of George Tiller, whose political connections in Kansas have been documented by Operation Rescue, a pro-life organization, and reported by WND.

A Christian organization needs to be able to talk of the moral issues of the day – including abortion, Holick noted. The sign just told of Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius' connections to the abortion industry.

Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy

Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy
After objecting to rape of believers, accused of crime against Muhammad
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Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Michael Ireland
© 2007 Assist News Service

LAHORE, Pakistan – A Pakistani Christian has been sentenced to death for blasphemy by the sessions court in Lahore.

According to sources in Pakistan, following the sentencing Wednesday, a large mob led by Islamic clerics responded by shouting slogans against Younis Masih and threatening anyone involved in providing security or legal assistance to "blasphemers."

Christian Solidarity Worldwide says Masih, a Christian from Chungi Amar Sadu in Lahore, was charged Sept. 10, 2005, under Section 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code. Section 295C relates to blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad and carries the death penalty.

Al-Qaida cited in persecution of 200 million Christians

Al-Qaida cited in persecution of 200 million Christians
Intel report says terrorist network among major perpetrators in 60 countries
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Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

The following report is excerpted from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, the premium online newsletter published by the founder of WND. Subscriptions are $99 a year or, for monthly trials, just $9.95 per month for credit card users, and provide instant access for the complete reports.

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

LONDON – A report by Britain's intelligence service MI6 reveals for the first time an estimated 200 million Christians in 60 countries are now facing persecution orchestrated, in part, by al-Qaida.

The report has been sent to the pope and church leaders. It is the first time the secret intelligence service has shared its information with religious leaders.

"We do so because we believe the situation is extremely serious," said an MI6 source.

The report is based on details from MI6 agents stationed in the countries. North Korea is identified as the world's worst repressor of Christians. More than 50,000 Christians are incarcerated in work camps because they refuse to submit to the extreme views rigorously enforced by the country's dictator, Kim Jong-il.

An estimated 40,000 Christians are imprisoned in China for their beliefs. The MI6 analysis calculates there are some 70 million "active Christians" in the People's Republic, all living in a climate of fear because of their beliefs.

4 Men Charged in Plot to Bomb Kennedy Airport

By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM
Published: June 2, 2007

Federal law enforcement officials and New York City police said today that four people have been charged with conspiring to bomb Kennedy International Airport.

The plan, which was described by United States Attorney Roslynn R. Mauskopf as “one of the most chilling plots imaginable,” involved a former airport worker who is a United States citizen of Guyanese descent and a former member of the Guyanese parliament, who is also an imam.

“Once again would-be terrorists have put New York City in their crosshairs and once again the F.B.I., New York Police Department and other law enforcement agencies have joined forces to stop them,” said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.

The former airport worker, Russell Defreitas, was in custody in Brooklyn and was expected to be arraigned this afternoon. The former Guyanese parliament member, Abdul Kadir, and Kareem Ibrahim of Trinidad, were in custody in Trinidad. A fourth man, Abdel Nur, of Guyana, was still being sought, law enforcement officials said.

If convicted, the men could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Two senior law enforcement officials said that there was no imminent threat to the airport and that the men had yet to obtain any explosives. They had conducted surveillance and the former airport worker had made several trips to Guyana and one trip to Trinidad and Tobago to try to get support for the plot.

Kindergarteners choose 'death for the sake of Allah'

Kindergarteners choose 'death for the sake of Allah'
'Armed' boys in camouflage, ski masks, declare devotion to jihad
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© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a kindergarten graduation ceremony featured yesterday on Palestinian television, boys outfitted with toy machine guns, camouflage fatigues and ski masks marched to a military beat and declared their "most lofty aspiration" to be "death for the sake of Allah."

Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV reported the ceremony of kindergarteners of the Islamic Association in Gaza.

The video, with translation, was made available by the Middle East Media Research Institute, or MEMRI, in Washington, D.C.

Gays and lesbians allowed conjugal visits in prisons

Gays and lesbians allowed conjugal visits in prisons
Mark Martin, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau

(06-01) 04:00 PDT Sacramento -- California's prison system is changing its regulations to allow conjugal visits for gay and lesbian inmates in response to a legal threat and a 2003 law that gave domestic partners many of the same rights as married couples.

Facing a complaint from an inmate in a Vacaville prison and pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union, the state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has begun to allow overnight visits for inmates with registered domestic partners and is to adopt permanent regulations later this year. The change will allow gay and lesbian inmates the same rights as other inmates, who are eligible to spend up to three days with family members in living areas -- usually trailers -- on prison grounds.

Corrections officials say they are responding to legislation signed by former Gov. Gray Davis that awarded more rights to registered domestic partners and prohibited state agencies from discriminating against domestic partners.

"We intend to comply with the law,'' said Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Only five other states -- Connecticut, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York and Washington -- allow conjugal visits of any kind; California is believed to be the first state in the country to allow visits for domestic partners.

The new regulations will add domestic partners to a list of family members, ranging from spouses to siblings to grandparents, who can visit inmates overnight.

Indian Christians Demand Protection

Indian Christians Demand Protection
By Gary Lane
CBN News

CBNNews.com - Minority voters returned India's Congress party to national power in 2004. Now, three years later, the country's Christian minority said it is time their government protect them from a surge of attacks by Hindu extremists.

More than 4,000 Christians from across India gathered in Delhi and marched to the steps of the parliament to demand an end to violence against Christians.

They carried signs saying "let Christians live and serve the marginalized and oppressed" and "Christians are as Indian as anyone else born in India."

"We have all come here to protest against what is going on and we are saying the central government's silence is totally unacceptable to the Christian community across the country," Joseph D'souza, president of the All India Christian Council, said.

The Christian protest and rally came in the wake of a recent brutal televised attack against Rajistan pastor, Walter Massih.

Young militants members of a radical, Hindu nationalist group known as the VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) are believed to be responsible for the assault against the pastor April 29, as he cried out to the Lord.

Billy Graham's 'journey of faith' preserved in newly dedicated library

Allie Martin
OneNewsNow.com

The Billy Graham Library has been dedicated by three former presidents along with family and friends of the evangelist. The 40,000-square-foot facility depicts the life of Dr. Billy Graham and is located on the grounds of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association in Charlotte, North Carolina.

More than a thousand invited guests turned out for the event, which featured a number of dignitaries, including former Presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, and George H.W. Bush, who delivered the keynote address. Speaking at the dedication on Thursday, the 88-year-old evangelist said the dairy barn-styled library and museum -- designed to recall Graham's childhood on the family dairy farm in Charlotte -- focus on the message of Christ.

"This building behind me is just a building -- it's an instrument, it's a tool for the Gospel," Graham said. "The primary thing is the Gospel of Christ, which Franklin has already outlined. I'm very grateful for his leadership. I pray that God will use this to speak to many people who come through this facility."

The audience laughed in response when Graham, commenting on the speeches and the museum itself, said "I feel like I've been attending my own funeral." He then added that he felt "terribly small and humbled by it all."

Abortionist pays to avoid assault trial

Abortionist pays to avoid assault trial
Civil case says he tried to hit man with car, 'escort' attacked child
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Posted: June 2, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

An abortionist and his Granite City, Ill., clinic have paid an undisclosed settlement to a family that runs a pro-life ministry to avoid a civil trial for damages from his attempt to run down the father as well as an assault by a clinic "escort" on a child.

The settlement this week comes from Hope Clinic and its chief abortionist, Yogendra Shah, and was being paid to Daniel, Angela and Arielle Michael, their Small Victories ministry confirmed.

With their lawyers, Tom Brejcha of the of Chicago's Thomas More Society and Jason Craddock of Chicago, the family appeared before Judge David Hylla for the settlement conference with Mark Levy, a lawyer for the abortion business, and Sally Burgess, a director for the abortion business.

"After several hours of mediation, the Hope Clinic along with chief abortionist Yogendra Shah agreed to pay an undisclosed settlement amount to the Michael family, to avoid going to trial," the ministry announcement said.

Christian denied permission to join 'gay' parade

Christian denied permission to join 'gay' parade
Charges hypocrisy, saying homosexuals don't 'accept us for who we are'
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By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A Christian street preacher is charging that the homosexual community in Chicago is guilty of hypocrisy because he was refused permission to march in a June 24 "gay" pride parade.

"I see this as nothing but hypocrisy," said Ruben Israel, who has been at the Chicago event for seven previous years, protesting the homosexual lifestyle choice from the sidewalks.

This year he sought permission to participate, and was refused. He followed up with a statement making the accusation.

"Is this not the same group that demands everyone accept them for who they are?

"Is this not the same group that cries discrimination, if not recognized?

"Is this not the same people that will not accept us for who we are?

"Is this not the same people that demand tolerance?

"Is this not the same group that wishes to walk in Macy's parade and [be] allowed in the 'Boy Scouts?" Israel asked.

Gaza fundamentalists threaten to behead 'immodest' women

Fundamentalists in Gaza threaten to behead 'immodest' women broadcasters

Radical Islamist group Swords of Truth, responsible for internet cafe bombings, threatens specific group for first time

Associated Press Published: 06.02.07, 19:17 / Israel News

A Muslim extremist group threatened to behead female TV broadcasters if they don't don strict Islamic dress, leaving the women terrified and marking a further downward spiral in Gaza's anarchy.

The threat to "cut throats from vein to vein" was delivered by the Swords of Truth, a fanatical group that

has previously claimed responsibility for bombing Internet cafes and music shops.

The new threat was the first time the organization targeted a specific group of people, and adds to a growing climate of extremism, fear and suspicion in Gaza.

In many parts of the Muslim world, religious conservative policies keep women out of TV anchoring positions or only let them take the jobs if they wear headscarves. But in some countries scarves are uncommon, like Lebanon and Jordan, and Egypt even keeps newscasters who wear them off its TV stations.

Most of the 15 women broadcasters on government-run Palestine TV wear headscarves. But they also wear makeup and Western clothing, which is not considered strictly observant by the extremists.

The Swords of Truth issued the statement Friday in an e-mail sent to news organizations. "We will cut throats, and from vein to vein, if needed to protect the spirit and moral of this nation."

The group accused the broadcasters of being "without any...shame or morals" and said it knew where to find the women.

Pro-life teenager released from charges by university

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com

A South Dakota teenager who spoke about pro-life issues on a college campus before being arrested for failure to leave has had the charges against him dismissed by a state attorney.

Stephen Wesolick, an attorney for 18-year-old Joey Cox, says his client was a member of a team from the California-based Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust group, which came to South Dakota School of Mines & Technology as part of its "Campus Life Tours Project." Cox was arrested on campus May 8 after his arrival because of a policy that allegedly required previous permission through a two-week notice for free-speech activities on campus.

"Mr. Cox was arrested, and charges were brought against him as a Class 1 misdemeanor, in which he faced up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine," Wesolick says. However a state attorney dismissed the charges against Cox.

The order dismissing the charges states it was "in the best interests of justice" to do so, Wesolick notes. He says he thinks the state attorney made that decision because the school was enforcing what the attorney terms an unconstitutional policy. "Free speech is a protected right under the Constitution and does not require adherence to this type of school policy," he asserts.

FDA: throw away toothpaste made in China

Kevin Freking - Associated Press writer
OneNewsNow.com
June 2, 2007

WASHINGTON - The government warned consumers on Friday to avoid using toothpaste made in China because it may contain a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze. Out of caution, the Food and Drug Administration said, people should throw away toothpaste with labeling that says it was made in China. The FDA is concerned that these products may contain diethylene glycol.

The agency is not aware of any poisoning from toothpaste in the United States, but it did find the antifreeze ingredient in a shipment at the U.S. border and at two retail stores: a Dollar Plus store in Miami and a Todo A Peso store in Puerto Rico.

Officials said they are primarily concerned about toothpaste sold at bargain retail outlets. The ingredient in question, called DEG, is used as a lower-cost sweetener and thickening agent. The highest concentration of the chemical found in toothpaste so far was between 3 percent and 4 percent of the product's overall weight.

"It does not belong in toothpaste even in small concentrations," said the FDA's Deborah M. Autor.

The FDA increased its scrutiny of toothpaste made in China because of reports of contamination in several countries, including Panama.

The agency is particularly concerned about chronic exposure to DEG in children and in people with kidney or liver disease.

Agency officials said they had no estimate of how many tubes of tainted toothpaste might have made it into the U.S.

Friday, May 25, 2007

Saudis arrest Christian for entering Mecca

Saudis arrest Christian for entering Mecca
By MICHAEL FREUND

Saudi officials have arrested a man in Mecca for being a Christian, saying that the city, which Muslims consider to be holy, is off-limits to non-Muslims.

Nirosh Kamanda, a Sri Lankan Christian, was detained by the Saudi Expatriates Monitoring Committee last week after he started to sell goods outside Mecca's Great Mosque.

After running his fingerprints through a new security system, Saudi police discovered that he was a Christian who had arrived in the country six months earlier to take a job as a truck driver in the city of Dammam. Kamanda had subsequently left his place of work and moved to Mecca.

"The Grand Mosque and the holy city are forbidden to non-Muslims," Col. Suhail Matrafi, head of the department of Expatriates Affairs in Mecca, told the Saudi daily Arab News. "The new fingerprints system is very helpful and will help us a lot to discover the identity of a lot of criminals," he said.

Similar restrictions apply to the Saudi city of Medina. In a section entitled, "Traveler's Information," the Web site of the Saudi Embassy in Washington states that, "Mecca and Medina hold special religious significance and only persons of the Islamic faith are allowed entry."

Lawmakers pass redefinition of 'sex'

Lawmakers pass redefinition of 'sex'
Bill threatens references to 'mom,' 'dad' at school
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By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a move with national implications, California's state Senate passed a bill today that establishes a new definition for "sex," threatens references to "mom" and "dad" and could restrict the presentation of scientific evidence to students.

The plan, SB 777, which actually would turn the state into a promoter for the homosexual lifestyle, is much like a bill approved by lawmakers last year but vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who said adequate legal protections against discrimination already existed.

The new measure passed on a 23-13 vote.

For more than a year, advocates for the homosexual lifestyle repeatedly have pressed lawmakers in California – which wields national influence as the biggest purchaser of curriculum – to adopt their agenda. The new plan now goes to the state Assembly, which approved a similar plan in 2006.

The newest legislation, sponsored by state Sen. Sheila James Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, a lesbian, would ban textbooks, references, teaching aids, activities, events, discussions, posters, announcements, workbooks and anything else within the public school system from anything that "reflects or promotes bias against" homosexuality, transgenders, bisexuals or those with "perceived" gender issues.

We blew sex seminar, school chief says

We blew sex seminar, school chief says
Superintendent concedes violations, then says forums will continue
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

It took multiple violations of school policy to allow a seminar at Boulder High School in Colorado to turn into an explicit sex rally in which a guest speaker told students as young as 14 to go have sex and use drugs, according to the superintendent.

However, Supt. George Garcia is defending the seminar anyway, and promised that they will continue.

"The existing partnership between the Conference on World Affairs and Boulder High School is a positive and beneficial one for engaging students in a thoughtful and thought-provoking discussion of often controversial issues," Garcia said in a statement released by the district.

Teachers rebel over atheism promotion

Teachers rebel over atheism promotion
District mandates handouts that violate religious beliefs
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

Some teachers in the Albemarle School District in Virginia are rebelling against their managers' orders to hand out to students as young as kindergarten a promotion for a summer camp that advocates for "Atheists, Freethinkers, Humanists, Brights, or whatever..."

A representative of the teachers talked to WND only on condition that a name and school not be used, and said such advertisements provided by the district to hand out to children violate the teachers' religious beliefs.

It was the same school district that WND earlier reported was distributing publicity about a "Pagan Christmas ritual" being held in the community.

The newest brochure advertises Camp Quest.

A sample of the brochure district told teachers to hand out

Mosques awarded Homeland Security grants

Mosques awarded Homeland Security grants
CAIR urges Muslim clerics to cash in on federal funds
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

While the European Union investigates mosques for ties to Islamic terrorism, the U.S. government is giving mosques security grants that are designed to protect churches, synagogues and other nonprofit groups from Islamic terror.

Most recently, the Islamic Society of Baltimore landed a $15,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to upgrade security at its Maryland mosque.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations since April has been urging leaders of mosques and Islamic schools across the nation to apply for the DHS grants, even though the agency's program was set up to help protect nonprofit facilities that are at high risk for attacks by Islamic terrorists.

'We must fine you because you're a Christian'

'We must fine you because you're a Christian'
Convert loses family, home, crops in Hindu crackdown
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Posted: May 25, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

In a nation where 75 percent of the population is Hindu, there was a congregation of four Christians in his small village when Rajan expressed a faith in Jesus Christ. But that's back down to three after he lost his family and crops, and was forced to leave his home and village, because of his conversion, according to new documentation obtained by the Voice of the Martyrs.

Sources within Nepal, the mountainous nation sandwiched between India and China that holds Mt. Everest, have told the Voice of the Martyrs that the persecution campaign encompassed all parts of Rajan's life when he became a Christian.

"Hindu neighbors have dug up Rajan's cauliflower and potatoes," the VOM reported its sources confirmed. "He has lost his whole year's income."

Villagers took every opportunity to make life difficult for him, including their response when some water from his field inadvertently spilled onto a neighbor's land, the sources reported.

"He was recently fined 6,000 rupees (about $100, a large sum in Nepal), after water from his field spilled over into a neighbor's field," the VOM sources reported. "Normally, this would not be a problem, but the neighbors consider water from Rajan's field unclean because he is a Christian.

"Normally, we wouldn't fine you, but because you changed your religion and became a Christian, you need to pay 6,000 rupees," the villagers told him, according to VOM.

Armed student intervened to stop Idaho killer

Armed student intervened to stop Idaho killer
'People need to step up more, people turn their head too often'

MOSCOW -- While some people desperately dialed for help as gunfire rang out in Moscow, one young man sprang into action.

For the first time, an exclusive interview with the University of Idaho student who nearly became the fourth fatality in the Moscow massacre.

Pete Husmann, like many, heard the hail of gunfire Saturday night. Unlike most, he ventured into the night. It is a choice that nearly killed him.

In his hospital room, surrounded by family, 20-year old Pete Husmann tells an incredible tale of how his courage led him into the line fire.

Armed Intruders Break In Home, but Armed Friend Saved Family!

By ERICA ESTEP
6 News Reporter

KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- There is a new twist in the January murders of Christopher Newsom and Channon Christian. An East Knoxville woman says the suspects in the case broke into her home just a day before the couple was carjacked.

The single mother is afraid for her safety, so 6 News is protecting her identity. She lives less than a mile from the crime scene of the gruesome double murder on Chipman Street.

Her home was invaded by armed men a day before Newsom and Christian were carjacked. She says they are connected.

"I heard a big boom...they kicked...they kicked the door in."

The scuff marks are still visible where her front door was kicked in. She couldn't believe what happened next.

"I ran back into the room and they start shooting my door down," the woman says.

She says the suspects tried to get inside her bedroom. The door to the room is now ripped at the bottom.

The young mother's 13-year-old son and two friends were just a couple rooms away.

"I was screaming... ya'll stay down," she says.

But there was someone else in the house. A male friend who had a gun of his own. He shot back and the suspects took off.

ACLU condemned for 'attacking' veterans memorials (Crosses) during time of war

Jim Brown
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

A constitutional attorney says instead of thanking American veterans for their service, the American Civil Liberties Union is "dishonoring" them by attacking their memorials across the United States.

The American Legion has announced that it is teaming up with the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) and Liberty Legal Institute in a campaign to fight ACLU efforts to remove religious symbols from war memorials. The ACLU has already filed suit to remove crosses at veterans' memorials, like the Mt. Soledad cross in San Diego and the Sunrise Rock cross in the Mojave Desert, which is now covered by a box.

Final preparations under way for Creation Museum grand opening

Allie Martin
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

The Answers in Genesis Creation Museum is set to open this holiday weekend. Final preparations are under way for Saturday's ribbon-cutting ceremony and media preview day at the 65,000-square-foot facility in Petersburg, Kentucky.

The Creation Museum will feature life-sized, realistic animatronic dinosaurs and humans, along with a number of videos, a special effects theater, a mini-Grand Canyon exhibit and a planetarium. The facility also includes indoor waterfalls, a special effects theatre, two miles of nature trails, and a collection of minerals and pristine fossils.

Answers in Genesis (AIG) president Ken Ham says the new museum will focus on the truth of scripture. And when visitors come to the museum, he notes, "they recognize we're not just saying 'Here's what the Bible says.' We're also saying 'and we have this evidence to back it up -- evidence from geology, and biology, and astronomy and so on.'

Pro-life activist says South Carolina ultrasound bill is useless

Rusty Pugh
OneNewsNow.com
May 25, 2007

A South Carolina bill that would have required abortionists to show women a picture of an ultrasound of their unborn child before they could get an abortion has been altered in the State Senate. In the opinion of one pro-life group, the change has rendered the bill useless.

South Carolina's House approved a bill in March that required all women seeking an abortion to be shown a sonogram before undergoing the procedure to take the child's life. However, the Senate's version of the Informed Choice Act (H 3355) drops the requirement that the abortionist show women the pictures, and puts that burden on the woman seeking the abortion.

Woodwyk says abortion providers like Planned Parenthood have an agenda, as many abortions as possible, and they don't want women to know the truth.

"They're looking at their bottom line -- it's dollars and cents. You show a woman that it's truly a baby not just a blob of tissue and they're going to say, 'I can't kill this baby.'"

U.S. joins Arab allies in aiding Lebanese army

U.S. joins Arab allies in aiding Lebanese army
Five military planes deliver supplies to battle Islamic militants

TRIPOLI, Lebanon - Military aid from the United States and Arab allies began arriving Friday after Washington said it was rushing supplies to the Lebanese army battling al-Qaida-inspired militants barricaded inside a Palestinian refugee camp in the country’s north.

Sporadic gunfire exchanges early Friday punctured the lull in the fighting as the Lebanese army continued to build up around the Nahr el-Bared refugee camp near the port city of Tripoli.

The move appeared to be either a preparation to storm the camp — a maze of narrow streets and tightly packed homes where hundreds of Fatah Islam militants are holed up — or a tightening of the siege to force them to surrender. Thousands of Palestinian refugees are trapped inside.

Images depict al-Qaida torture techniques

Images depict al-Qaida torture techniques
Pentagon-released documents reveal horrors of 'safe house'
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Editor's Note: Images in the following, and in the link, are graphic.

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

The Pentagon has released graphic images that reportedly were obtained by U.S. military personnel in a raid on an Iraqi safe house, showing prescribed methods of torture for victims, including dragging a victim behind a vehicle and amputating limbs with a meat cleaver.

The images [warning, they are graphic] have appeared on the Smoking Gun website and others, and participants in a chat forum at Jihad Watch simply noted that the treatments depicted, from using a blowtorch on human skin to extracting an eye with a sharp tool, make it clear the U.S. use of any coercive methods on inmates isn't even in the same league.

"The pictures … are worth … 100,000 words in knowing the creatures behind the events," wrote Lame Cherry. "This … is what real torture looks like and not what the MSM was trying to portray in people standing in a cell naked being humiliated as 'torture.'"

Ford tops sponsors on Pro Homosexual - approved TV shows

Ed Thomas
OneNewsNow.com

A pro-family group has completed a television monitoring project that focused on recording ads and sponsors on programs reportedly named by a major homosexual support group as giving positive portrayals of that lifestyle. Ford, the automaker that's already a target of conservative and pro-family groups, has emerged as the top sponsor of those pro-homosexual programs.

American Family Association (AFA), which started the year-old boycott against Ford last spring because of its support of homosexual media and organizations through advertising and financial donations, says it has concluded a 12-week network TV monitoring project that again points to Ford's support of the homosexual agenda. AFA spokesman Randy Sharp says his group did not set out to target the automaker this time.

"Even though we've got this boycott against Ford, we weren't looking at Ford," Sharp says. "We were looking to determine beyond a reasonable doubt and through scientific methods which company was sponsoring the most homosexuality on TV."

Sharp says they chose to monitor programs identified by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) as supportive of the homosexual lifestyle, and noted the advertisers for them. During the monitoring period, advertisements were tallied for shows such as Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, and Ugly Betty on ABC; and ER and The Office on NBC.

"Without any prejudice, it was clear from the results that the Ford Motor Company was the top corporate sponsor of pro-homosexual television shows on network television," the AFA spokesman says. "Not only did Ford top the list, but they topped the list by a wide margin over the number-two company."

Ford topped the top-ten list that includes Toyota at number two, followed by AT&T and Proctor & Gamble, with Revlon and GlaxoSmithKline tied at number five.

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

25% of young U.S. Muslims OK suicide bombings

May 22 10:06 AM US/Eastern
By ALAN FRAM
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - One in four younger U.S. Muslims say suicide bombings to defend their religion are acceptable at least in some circumstances, though most Muslim Americans overwhelmingly reject the tactic and are critical of Islamic extremism and al-Qaida, a poll says.

The survey by the Pew Research Center, one of the most exhaustive ever of the country's Muslims, revealed a community that in many ways blends comfortably into society. Its largely mainstream members express nearly as much happiness with their lives and communities as the general public does, show a broad willingness to adopt American customs, and have income and education levels similar to others in the U.S.

Even so, the survey revealed noteworthy pockets of discontent.

While nearly 80 percent of U.S. Muslims say suicide bombings of civilians to defend Islam can not be justified, 13 percent say they can be, at least rarely.

That sentiment is strongest among those younger than 30. Two percent of them say it can often be justified, 13 percent say sometimes and 11 percent say rarely.

"It is a hair-raising number," said Radwan Masmoudi, president of the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy, which promotes the compatibility of Islam with democracy.

He said most supporters of the attacks likely assumed the context was a fight against occupation—a term Muslims often use to describe the conflict with Israel.

U.S. Muslims have growing Internet and television access to extreme ideologies, he said, adding: "People, especially younger people, are susceptible to these ideas."

Federal officials have warned that the U.S. must be on guard against homegrown terrorism, as the British suffered with the London transit bombings of 2005.

'Have sex, do drugs,' speaker tells students

'Have sex, do drugs,' speaker tells students
'Men with men, women and women, whatever combination you would like'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Bob Unruh
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A guest speaker at an assembly at Boulder High School in Colorado has told students as young as 14 to go have sex and use drugs, prompting school officials to say they will investigate.

The instructions came from Joel Becker, an associate clinical professor of psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles.

"I am going to encourage you to have sex and encourage you to use drugs appropriately," Becker said during his appearance at the school as part of a recent panel sponsored by the University of Colorado's Conference on World Affairs.

"Why I am going to take that position is because you are going to do it anyway," he continued. "I think as a psychologist and health educator, it is more important to educate you in a direction that you might actually stick to. So, I am going to stay mostly on with the sex side because that is the area I know more about. I want to encourage you to all have healthy, sexual behavior."

WND also has reported on similar assemblies that have been used by schools to promote homosexuality, including one where parents were banned from the event, and a second where WND reported school officials ordered their 14-year-old freshman class into a "gay" indoctrination seminar after having them sign a confidentiality agreement promising not to tell their parents.

MOVIE SCUM GLORIFY SEX WITH HORSES; CANNES CROWD AGOG

Bestiality flick shocks Cannes
22/05/2007 12:42 - (SA)

Cannes - A semi-documentary about a group of US men who had sex with horses has taken the title as the most shocking movie at the Cannes film festival.

But while Zoo has drawn big, curious crowds at its screenings, the real unsettling quality about the movie is its approach: it depicts the men in a sympathetic light, one that tries to push the viewers to understanding their sexual perversion.

The documentary - in which actors recreate non-explicit scenes under audio interviews with some of the men involved - centres on a true-life incident.

In July 2005, a 45-year-old man died of internal bleeding after being anally penetrated by an Arabian stallion during a bestiality weekend in the US state of Washington.

The victim, a Boeing engineer working on top-secret defence projects named Kenneth Pinyan, suffered a perforated colon.

The ensuing investigation led police - and eventually much of the national media - to the farm where the interaction took place, outing the other members of the group.

Independent filmmaker Robinson Devor shies away from prurient imagery, instead enveloping the story in rich photography that gives it a dreamlike beauty overwhelming the sordidness of the subject matter.

Pictures of students doing drugs in yearbook spark outrage

JEFFERSON COUNTY - There are a number of things Karen Marshall does not like about her daughter's Conifer High School yearbook. Three pages in particular; pages 13, 33 and 71.

"On page 13, they have students smoking pot and using drug paraphernalia," she said. "I just don't want to see any more people get hurt or die and this book is actually helping towards the delinquency of minors."

It was just over a week ago that two Conifer students died when their Jeep rolled off the road.
The Colorado State Patrol believes drugs may have played a role in that crash.

Monday, the yearbook advisor, Amy McTague released a statement apologizing to the students, staff and community for the controversial images and quotes.

She says she discussed the photos at length with her editor and they agreed that some of the elements are completely inappropriate. She goes on to say "these issues detract from the many wonderful things that are included in the book."

Photos on three pages of the book show teens smoking marijuana, drinking and proudly displaying their minor in possession citations.

"There are some things in the yearbook I don't feel like I can defend," Conifer High Principal Pat Termin said, adding some parts of the book crossed the line.

"We didn't do the right thing in some of the activities we portrayed," she said. "I'm certainly not oblivious to messages here that we have this section in the yearbook that some students believe it was important for them to illuminate. I think it's an issue the community needs to examine."

Ex-KGB Agent Accused in Litvinenko Death

Ex-KGB Agent Accused in Litvinenko Death

May 22 08:45 AM US/Eastern
By TARIQ PANJA
Associated Press Writer

LONDON (AP) - Prosecutors accused a former KGB agent Tuesday of murder in the radioactive poisoning of fellow ex-operative Alexander Litvinenko and sought his extradition from Russia. The case is sure to challenge already-tense relations between London and Moscow.

Andrei Lugovoi had met with Litvinenko at a London hotel hours before the former agent turned Kremlin critic fell ill with polonium-210 poisoning. Lugovoi has repeatedly denied any involvement in interviews with the police and media.

A top deputy to Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett summoned the Russian ambassador to seek Moscow's cooperation in the case, but the Russian prosecutor-general's office said it will not turn over Lugovoi to British authorities.

"In accordance with Russian law, citizens of Russia cannot be turned over to foreign states," spokeswoman Marina Gridneva said in remarks broadcast on the NTV television channel. "A citizen of Russia, committing a crime on the territory of a foreign state, can, upon presentation of material by this state, can be brought to criminal responsibility, but only in Russia."

The politically charged case has driven relations between London and Moscow to post-Cold War lows. Prime Minister Tony Blair's spokesman said Britain had an extradition agreement with Moscow.

"Murder is murder; this is a very serious case," Blair's spokesman said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with government policy. "The manner of the murder was also very serious because of the risks to public health."

Litvinenko, 43, died Nov. 23 after ingesting the rare radioactive isotope. On his deathbed, he accused President Vladimir Putin of being behind his killing. The Russian government denies involvement.

Christian college claims discrimination in state grants

Christian college claims discrimination in state grants
Generic awards given to students attending anywhere but this school
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: May 22, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A court ruling that a generic state college grant isn't available if you go to a particular Christian college will be appealed to the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the school said.

Former U.S. Sen. Bill Armstrong, R-Colo., now president of Colorado Christian University, said the decision from federal district court that the school is "pervasively sectarian" so students do not qualify for state grant programs is just wrong.

"This is blatant religious discrimination," Armstrong told WND, as well as a violation of the 1st and 14th Amendments.

U.S. District Court Judge Marcia Krieger has ruled that the state constitution forbids the use of state funds to support religious schools, declaring the ban imposed on CCU by the Colorado Commission on Higher Education "is narrowly tailored to accomplish the state's compelling interest in complying with the anti-establishment clause of its own constitution."

'Anti-war vet' charged with fraud

'Anti-war vet' charged with fraud
Claimed he 'slaughtered' hundreds of civilians in Iraq
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: May 22, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

A man who claimed in an anti-war video to have "slaughtered" hundreds of civilians while serving with the Army Rangers in Iraq faces federal charges of falsifying his record.

Jesse MacBeth, 23, alleged in a 20-minute production by a 1970s antiwar activist he personally killed 200 civilians, many of them at close range, while on patrols with the Army Rangers during 16 months in Iraq before being discharged due to wounds.

But MacBeth's discharge form contradicted his claims, showing he never went to Iraq and was kicked out of the Army after six weeks at Fort Benning, Ga., because of his "entry level performance and conduct."

The complaint in U.S. District Court in Seattle charges him with one count of using or possessing a forged or altered military discharge certificate, and one count of making false statements in seeking benefits from the Veterans Administration, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports.

U.S. OKs talks with Syria, Gives green light to Israel to negotiate Golan Heights withdrawal

Report: U.S. OKs talks with Syria
Gives green light to Israel to negotiate Golan Heights withdrawal
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: May 22, 2007
1:19 p.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – The U.S. has given Prime Minister Ehud Olmert the green light to negotiate with Syria regarding an Israeli retreat from the Golan Heights, according to diplomatic sources quoted today by Israel's Haaretz daily newspaper.

The Golan Heights is strategic mountainous territory looking down on Israeli and Syrian population centers twice used by Damascus to launch ground invasions into the Jewish state.

According to Haaretz, the Bush administration granted Israel permission to discuss vacating the Golan, but Washington reportedly stipulated Olmert must not agree to any negotiations, even indirectly, regarding a change in the U.S. position toward Syria.

The U.S. largely has attempted to isolate Damascus, which is accused of aiding the insurgency against U.S. troops in Iraq and generating instability in Lebanon.

Sunday, June 17, 2007

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Sunday, June 3, 2007

Friday, May 25, 2007

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

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