JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER. 1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Snowblowers sales surge as Maritimers dig themselves out of back-to-back storms-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
HALIFAX — Maritimers continue to dig themselves out of back-to-back snow dumps that have hit the East Coast.Some residents are still searching for their lawn ornaments after a series of storms clobbered Atlantic Canada last week.Nova Scotia's online plow tracker showed more than 35 snow-clearing vehicles working on the province's roads Sunday.A spokesperson for the City of Halifax says around 200 crew have been working "around-the-clock," but it could be another week until sidewalks are fully cleared of last week's 80 centimetres of snowfall.An official with Charlottetown's public works says the cleanup is almost over as around 40 trucks were working this weekend to haul snow out of the downtown area.Management at Home Depot stores in Fredericton and Saint John, N.B., say they've seen a spike in snowblower sales and a Halifax location had to order an extra shipment to keep up with demand.Duane Moss, a snowblower technician at Scope Industrial near St. John's, N.L., says he's received about 30 calls a day asking about repairs since a major storm hit last Monday.The Canadian Press.
Biggest storm in five years thrashes Southern California-[Reuters]-By Alex Dobuzinskis-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Southern California cleaned up on Saturday after its biggest storm in years unleashed a wave of rain and snow that killed at least three people and triggered flooding, mudslides, high winds and power outages, officials said.Vital highways and railways were shut down and sinkholes opened on main roads under the heaviest rainfall in the drought-stricken region in at least five years, according to the National Weather Service.In one of wettest spots near Santa Barbara, over 10 inches (25 cm) of rain fell on Friday with several other stations in Southern California reporting at least 9 inches (23 cm), said meteorologist Patrick Burke of the Weather Prediction Center."It's been a very active winter and rainy season for the entire state of California," Burke said. "They needed that because of the drought. But sometimes droughts end with a flood and we've gone from one extreme to the other."Parts of Southern California have been the slowest to exit the drought. But the state's reservoirs are 22 percent more full than the average, according to the California Department of Water Resources.Since Oct. 1, downtown Los Angeles has received more than 18 inches (46 cm) of rain, which is higher than the total annual average of just under 15 inches.By Saturday afternoon, the storm had moved east into Nevada and Arizona. Northern California will be walloped with more rain and snow beginning on Sunday, with 4 to 8 inches (10 cm to 20 cm) of precipitation expected in the coastal mountains, Burke said.Meanwhile, utility crews worked to restore electricity to tens of thousands of customers affected by power outages throughout the Los Angeles area on Saturday.One man died on Friday after he was electrocuted by a downed wire, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Another person was found dead in a submerged vehicle in Victorville, about 85 miles (137 km) northeast of Los Angeles, fire officials said.And the body of a man was discovered on Saturday morning in a creek in Thousand Oaks, 40 miles (64 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, after he was swept away by floodwaters, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office said.Local television news also showed video footage of a San Bernardino County fire truck tumbling over the side of a freeway as the road gave out."All firefighters confirmed safe," the San Bernardino County Fire Department said on Twitter.The storm also brought unusually strong winds. At the Port of Los Angeles, gusts as high as 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) were recorded on Friday.Amtrak railroad service was suspended from Los Angeles north to San Luis Obispo on Saturday due to extreme weather conditions, according to the transportation service's website.(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Paul Simao and Mary Milliken)
California faces more rain, snow as deadly storm moves south-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
(Reuters) - California was bracing on Saturday for another wave of torrential rain as well as heavy snow as a massive storm triggered flooding, mudslides and power outages and killed two people, officials said.The National Weather Service warned that rain totals could reach 10 inches (25 cm) in parts of southern California and 2 feet (60 cm) of snow in higher areas to the east as the storm continues to roll through the region.The severe storm has brought California its heaviest rainfall in six years and comes after months of wet weather that has dramatically eased a years-long drought in the key agricultural state.The rain and melting snowpack also are threatening to undermine a spillway at one of the largest dams in the country. Some 188,000 residents were evacuated from the area earlier this week.Utility crews were working to restore electricity to more than 78,000 customers affected by power outages throughout the Los Angeles area.Early on Saturday, an evacuation order remained in effect for 180 homes in Duarte, a city about 20 miles (32 km) east of Los Angeles, because of fears of mudslides.One man died after he was electrocuted by a downed wire, the Los Angeles Fire Department said, adding that it had responded to 150 reports of downed wires on Friday. Another person was found dead in a submerged vehicle in Victorville, about 100 miles east of Los Angeles, fire officials said on Twitter.A woman was injured when the car she was in fell into a 20-foot sinkhole in Studio City on Friday night. A second car fell into the sinkhole after the woman was rescued, an ABC affiliate reported.Local television news also showed video footage of a San Bernardino County fire truck tumbling over the side of a freeway as the road gave out."All firefighters confirmed safe. The lane under the fire engine has failed, and the engine has gone over the side," the San Bernardino County Fire Department said on Twitter.Amtrak railroad service was suspended for trains between the cities of Oxnard and San Luis Obispo in the central and southern areas of the state due to extreme weather conditions, according to the transportation service's website.In higher areas of eastern California and western Nevada, snowfall and wind gusts of up to 50 mph (80 kph) were in the forecast until Saturday night, the National Weather Service said."This will make travel hazardous or impossible," the service said in an advisory.(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee Editing by Ed Osmond and Paul Simao)
No ice is safe ice, Toronto police remind residents on warm Family Day weekend-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
"No ice is safe ice," Toronto police are reminding residents as the sun shines and temperatures climb well above zero.Const. Corey Smith, spokesperson for Toronto Police Service's Marine Unit, said Sunday that ice over ponds and larger bodies of water can soften quickly even though it may appear thick in spots."The ice gets thin fast. The sun is a very powerful influence on how quickly the ice gets thin. We don't want anybody going out on ice who could be at risk of falling through," Smith said."The water is still very cold. It's also barely above zero."Smith reminded parents to keep children off the ice around waterways and never let children go near waterways by themselves."We like to say no ice is safe ice because you can never guarantee the safety of the ice."He said ice in sheltered areas in and around Toronto Islands may seem ideal for private skating, but residents need to ensure that it is not softening in areas. Conditions might not be suitable this weekend, he said.-Follow the 1-10-1 rule-Police use what he called the 1-10-1 rule when reminding people about the dangers of being immersed in water under 10 C.According to the marine unit, people have one minute to come up with a plan to get to safety, 10 minutes to execute that plan, and one hour before hypothermia leads to unconsciousness and death.The police marine unit patrols Lake Ontario from the Etobicoke Creek to the Rouge River. It patrols areas in and around the Toronto Islands with its priority being Toronto's inner harbour.Steer clear of hydroelectric stations, says OPG-The Ontario Power Generation is also reminding Toronto residents to stay safe on ice and near hydroelectric stations this weekend. It said its stations and dams are clearly marked with warning signs and barriers to prevent access."Winter activities around hydroelectric stations may seem like a good idea but these are restricted areas any time of the year, so if you're outdoors this winter you need to stay away from our facilities," Mike Martelli, president of OPG's renewable generation and power marketing said in a news release."This winter has seen a wide range of temperature fluctuations and thinner than normal ice in many areas, which means people need to take extra precautions on lakes and rivers wherever they happen to be."-17 snowmobile crashes so far this year-The Ontario Provincial Police says snowmobilers also need to be careful this weekend as ice melts.Since the beginning of the year, in the central region of Ontario patrolled by the OPP, which includes Barrie, Bracebridge, Caledon, Collingwood, through to Southern Georgian Bay, there have been 17 snowmobile crashes involving injury and eight where a person has died.The OPP recommends snowmobilers, among other things, check the ice thickness and quality with local ice hut operators and Ontario ministry of natural resources before riding on any frozen waterway; wear a buoyant snowmobile suit and carry ice picks; and only travel on ice that is already well-tracked and marked Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Club trails."Conditions change due to several factors," it says. "What was safe last week may not be safe this week."
DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(EITHER THE EUROPEAN UNION DICTATOR BOOTS 3 COUNTRIES FROM THE EU OR THE DICTATOR TAKES OVER THE WORLD ECONOMY BY CONTROLLING 3 WORLD TRADE BLOCS)
US reassures Europe on Nato and Russia, again By Andrew Rettman-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Feb, 12:50-US vice-president Mike Pence crowned a week of American diplomacy in Europe on Saturday (18 February) by promising to stick by Nato and to take a tough line on Russia."The president [Donald Trump] asked me to be here today to convey a message, a reassurance - the United States of America strongly supports Nato and we will be unwavering in our commitment to this transatlantic alliance,” Pence told the Munich Security Conference in Germany.“Be assured: president Trump and the American people are fully devoted to our transatlantic union,” he added.He listed Russia’s attempt to “redraw international borders” in Europe as one of Nato’s main challenges.He said Trump wanted to find “common ground” with Moscow, but he said the new administration would “hold Russia accountable” for its misbehaviour.He also repeated Trump’s call for European members of Nato to spend at least 2 percent of their GDPs on defence in line with an old pledge.“Let me be clear on this point: The president of the United States expects our allies to keep their word, fulfil this commitment,” he said.German chancellor Angela Merkel, who also spoke in Munich on Saturday, said: “We will do everything we can in order to fulfil this commitment.”She voiced “great anxiety” over Russia’s aggression in east Ukraine and urged Moscow to back off in line with the Minsk ceasefire deal.“The Minsk agreement is the only thing we have at the moment to move forward talks and the possibility of solving the problems,” she said, while noting that she was ready to work with Russia on combatting terrorism."The joint fight against Islamic terrorism is one area where we have the same interests and we can work together," she said.“It is not Islam that is the problem but a falsely understood Islam,” she added.She also said, in an aside on economics, that the current value of the euro does not serve Germany well.“The ECB has a monetary policy that is not geared to Germany, rather it is tailored [to countries] from Portugal to Slovenia or Slovakia. If we still had the [German] Deutsche Mark it would surely have a different value than the euro does at the moment,” she said, referring to the European Central Bank (ECB), which sets the euro’s monetary policy.-The Flynn issue-Pence’s remarks on Nato and Russia came after a series of similar statements in Brussels, Berlin and Munich by senior Trump envoys this week.The reassurances came after Trump floated the idea of a grand bargain with Moscow and after leaks showing that his aides, such as security advisor Mike Flynn, who was fired, had had clandestine contacts with Russian officials.Merkel’s comments on Islam and on the euro also came after Trump tried to ban Muslim immigrants on security grounds and claimed that Germany forced the ECB to undervalue the euro to help its exports.Sebastian Kurz, the Austrian foreign minister, told press on Saturday: “The big topic in Munich is looking to the USA to see which developments to expect next.”He added that there was “still a lot of uncertainty” despite the US assurances.John McCain, a US senator, also indicated that the Trump administration’s public diplomacy in Europe was designed to mask what he called “disarray” in Washington.“The Flynn issue obviously is something that shows that in many respects this administration is in disarray,” he said in Munich on Friday.-Clash on Poland-Meanwhile, the EU’s internal divisions came to light at the Munich meeting in a public clash between Frans Timmermans, the Dutch EU commissioner, and Witold Waszczykowski, the Polish foreign minister, on Friday.Timmermans urged the Polish government to respect its constitution after a clash with judges that triggered a Commission monitoring operation. He also castigated the Polish minister for Warsaw’s “insulting reply” to the Venice Commission, a panel of international experts, on the issue.Waszczykowski replied: “Please allow us to respect our own constitution, not your vision of our constitution.”The minister bristled at a question from the floor which noted that Poland profited from over €50 billion in EU subsidies.“Yes, €50 billion of subsidies go to Poland. And 80 percent goes back to Western Europe. We’re modernising the infrastructure, using Western technology. Who is earning this money? German [firms] make €50 billion in Poland,” he said.
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
Iraqi forces launch offensive to drive IS from western Mosul-[Associated Press]-BRAM JANSSEN-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
HAMAM AL-ALIL, Iraq (AP) — U.S.-backed Iraqi forces launched a major air-and-ground offensive Sunday to retake western Mosul from Islamic State militants and drive the extremist group from its last major urban bastion in Iraq.Ground units pushed into a belt of villages outside the country's second-largest city, and plumes of smoke rose into the sky early in the morning as U.S.-led coalition jets struck militant positions southwest of Mosul and militarized Iraqi police fired artillery."This is zero hour and we are going to end this war, God willing," said Mahmoud Mansour, a police officer, as he prepared to move out.The United Nations warned that hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped inside their homes in Mosul "are at extreme risk," with dwindling fuel, food and water and scarce electricity.Iraq declared eastern Mosul "fully liberated" last month after three months of fierce fighting, but the militants have continued to stage attacks there, including two suicide bombings against government forces on Sunday.The battle for western Mosul promises to be even more daunting, as the half of the city west of the Tigris River has older, narrower streets and is still heavily populated.Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the start of the latest operation on state TV. Using the Arabic acronym for IS, he said government forces were moving to "liberate the people of Mosul from Daesh oppression and terrorism forever."Police units quickly entered the village of Athba, about 3 miles (5 kilometers) southwest of Mosul's international airport, encountering only light resistance. Separately, the Iraqi Army's 9th Division moved into the village of Bakhira, also southwest of the city, the Ministry of Defense said.The U.S.-led coalition has been providing close air support throughout the 4-month-old Mosul offensive and carried out nine airstrikes against IS near Mosul on Saturday, Central Command said. U.S. special operations forces are embedded with some Iraqi units, and thousands of American soldiers are in Iraq to provide logistical and other support."We are very close to it, if not already engaged in that fight," U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters in Abu Dhabi. He declined to go into further detail, saying he owed "confidentiality" to the troops.Citing witnesses in western Mosul, the United Nations said nearly half of all food shops were closed and bakeries had shut down for lack of fuel and an inability to purchase costly flour. Prices of kerosene and cooking gas have skyrocketed, and many of the most destitute families are burning wood, furniture, plastic or garbage for cooking and heating."The situation is distressing. People, right now, are in trouble," Lise Grande, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, said in a statement. "We are hearing reports of parents struggling to feed their children and to heat their homes."Peter Hawkins, of the U.N. agency for children, said: "Three out of five people now depend on untreated water from wells for cooking and drinking as water systems and treatment plants have been damaged by fighting or run out of chlorine."The humanitarian agencies were gearing up to aid 250,000 to 400,000 civilians who may flee because of the fighting, the statement said. The U.N. estimates 750,000 civilians may be left in western Mosul.Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, a top U.S. commander in Iraq, said the Iraqi forces are an "increasingly capable, formidable and professional force.""Mosul would be a tough fight for any army in the world, and the Iraqi forces have risen to the challenge," he said in a statement.Iraqi forces drove IS from eastern Mosul last month, but the militants appear to have left behind sleeper cells to carry out attacks.Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool, an Iraqi military spokesman, said a suicide bomber struck a patrol of government-allied Sunni tribal fighters in the Zihoor neighborhood, while another targeted Iraqi troops in Nabi Younis. IS claimed responsibility for both attacks.Rasool declined to provide casualty figures. Two policemen said one Sunni fighter was killed and nine were wounded in the first attack, while the second attack wounded five soldiers. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information.Iraqi special operations forces, regular army and federal police units are taking part in the offensive along with government-approved paramilitary forces, mainly consisting of Shiite militias, which are operating on the city's outskirts.Mosul fell to IS in the summer of 2014, along with large swaths of northern and western Iraq.___Associated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin and Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, and Maamoun Youssef and Joseph Krauss in Cairo contributed to this report.
Opinion-The need for global cooperation in stopping Iran By Joseph I. Lieberman and August Hanning-euobserver
Washington, 18. Feb, 08:50-When Iranian minister of foreign affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks to the Munich Security Conference this weekend, his words are likely to be misleading at best and deceitful at worst. But it is nonetheless appropriate that Iran be represented at this premier world security conference because Iran continues to be the greatest threat there is to world security. Mr. Zarif may proclaim, as he has before, that Iran will “never initiate war” even though it is obvious that is exactly what Iran has done, for years, either directly or indirectly through radical Islamist terrorist proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. Mr. Zarif may again accuse the United States of breaking the Nuclear Agreement between Iran and the P5+1, but, of course, it is Iran that has broken at least two explicit obligations of the Agreement and tested ballistic missiles in defiance of UNSC Resolution 2231 which endorses the Nuclear Agreement. America has a new president and his views about Iran are quite different from his predecessor. After Iran recently tested those ballistic missiles, president Trump’s national security adviser publically put the Iranians “on notice” that the US would respond to such belligerent behaviour. And then the Trump administration’s Treasury department imposed new economic sanctions on Iran. Thus far the US has been alone in standing up to Iran, but if the US remains alone, Iran will only grow stronger, bolder, and more threatening to the rest of the world. Therefore the support of the European allies is needed.-Roaring missiles- The relationship between the United States and Iran is on course to regress to what it was in a previous, dangerous era. The significant difference today is that Iran is stronger, wealthier, and emboldened by the Nuclear Agreement and the surge of cash it brought them.Analysis from the Institute of War recently set out details showing how Iran was preparing its military for “quasi-conventional warfare hundreds of miles from its borders.” Forces on the frontlines in Iraq, Syria and Yemen and have been joined by thousands of fighters tied to the IRGC, commanding new loyalty throughout the region. Threats of “roaring missiles” have come from senior military officials in Iran, and vocal hostility towards the US grows. Addressing Iran’s escalating aggression should be on everyone’s minds as the Munich Security Conference convenes.Europe’s leaders in particular cannot allow doubts they may have about the new administration drive a wedge between our existing international partnerships. Think of the tragedy in Syria—enabled by Iran’s support for the Assad regime—where barrel bombs fall on innocent civilians and cause a massive refugee influx and security risk in Europe. It is in both European and American interests to check Iran. Trans-Atlantic cooperation, which is celebrated in Munich every February, has been one of history’s greatest success stories—bringing stability and prosperity, checking aggression and expanding freedom.-Clear signal-This conference can send a clear signal to Iran by employing new non-nuclear sanctions based on Iran’s regional aggression, human rights violations, and support of terrorism—all of which were not affected by the Iran Nuclear Agreement. The hope that the Iranian regime would adhere to the spirit of the nuclear agreement and become more moderate was far too optimistic from the beginning, and looks impossible now. The political and religious leader of Iran, ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has stressed in several very clear statements, that Iran is not willing to change its policy. The hope in Germany and in many other states of the world that Iran would accept the existence of Israel as a state, has been bitterly disappointed. On the contrary, Iran is organising exhibitions in which the Holocaust is denied. As both rhetoric and actions escalate, world security and stability will once again depend on international action and a renewed commitment among partners and friends to unite to protect ourselves from the radical Iranian regime. Although during his campaign president Trump said he would tear up the Iran Nuclear Agreement, that seems unlikely now in part because the new administration wants to work with our allies on a new policy toward Iran. We hope European leaders will respond in kind to this different approach by the Trump Administration.Joseph I. Lieberman, a former U.S. senator from Connecticut and 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee, is chairman of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). Dr. August Hanning, the former director of the Federal Intelligence Service of Germany (BND), is senior advisor to UANI.
Iran, NKorea officials: Let's strengthen relationship-[Associated Press]-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Officials from both countries say Iran and North Korea want to strengthen relations.A Sunday report by ICANA.ir, the news agency of Iran's Parliament, quotes parliament speaker Ali Larijani as saying: "We have always been after stability of relations with North Korea."Larijani was addressing Choe Thae-bok, visiting chairman of North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly. He also said both countries should improve economic relations.Thae-bok responded, saying: "North Korea is seeking improved relations with Iran." He also praised Iran's economic and defense improvements.The report said both officials complained about "interventions in independent countries" by the United States.Thae-book is in Iran to participate in an international conference in support of the Palestinians.
U.S. senators look to new sanctions against Iran for missile development-[Reuters]-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
MUNICH (Reuters) - U.S. Republican senators plan to introduce legislation to impose further sanctions on Iran, accusing it of violating U.N. Security Council resolutions by testing ballistic missiles and acting to "destabilise" the Middle East, a U.S. senator said Sunday."I think it is now time for the Congress to take Iran on directly in terms of what they’ve done outside the nuclear program," Senator Lindsey Graham, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told the Munich Security Conference.Graham said he and other Republicans would introduce measures to hold Iran accountable for its actions.Tensions between Tehran and Washington have risen since an Iranian ballistic missile test that prompted U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to impose sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the country's Revolutionary Guards."Iran is a bad actor in the greatest sense of the word when it comes to the region. To Iran, I say, if you want us to treat you differently then stop building missiles, test-firing them in defiance of U.N. resolution and writing 'Death to Israel' on the missile. That's a mixed message," Graham said.Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif told the conference earlier on Sunday that Iran did not respond well to sanctions or threats.James Jones, a former Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and President Barack Obama’s first national security adviser, told a separate event in Munich that he remained convinced that sanctions had persuaded Iran to negotiate the 2015 landmark deal with six world powers to curb its nuclear program."The sanctions did work. Iran would never have come to the negotiating table without sanctions," Jones said. "This is a new form of response that if properly utilized can change behavior and get people to do things that they otherwise wouldn't do."Senator Christopher Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told the same panel there was nothing preventing Congress from imposing sanctions beyond those that were lifted as a result of the 2016 nuclear agreement with Iran.Murphy, a Democrat, said had backed the nuclear deal in the explicit understanding that it would not prevent Congress from taking actions against Iran outside the nuclear issue."There's going to be a conversation about what the proportional response is," Murphy said, referring to Iran's missile test. "But I don't necessarily think there's going to be partisan division over whether or not we have the ability as a Congress to speak on issues outside of the nuclear agreement."Murphy said the United States needed to decide whether it wanted to take a broader role in the regional conflict."We have to make a decision whether we are going to get involved in the emerging proxy war in a bigger way than we are today, between Iran and Saudi," he said.(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and John Irish; Editing by Jane Merriman and David Goodman)
New Homeland Security guidelines aggressively crack down on illegal immigration-[Christian Science Monitor]-Gretel Kauffman-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly signed new guidelines on Saturday giving federal authorities the power to more aggressively crack down on illegal immigration, marking what experts call a major shift in US immigration policies.Under the new guidelines, outlined in a pair of memos, the agency plans to hire thousands of additional enforcement agents, expand the pool of immigrants who are prioritized for removal, enlist local law enforcement to help make arrests, and speed up deportation hearings – directives that would replace nearly all guidelines put in place by previous administrations."The surge of immigration at the southern border has overwhelmed federal agencies and resources and has created a significant national security vulnerability to the United States," Secretary Kelly wrote, citing a surge of 10,000 to 15,000 additional apprehensions per month at the US-Mexico border between 2015 and 2016.Since taking office in January, President Trump has come under fire for what immigrant rights advocates have denounced as unprecedented action against undocumented people in the United States. In a series of executive orders last month, the president expanded the power of immigration officers and announced plans to fulfill his campaign promises by building a wall along the southern US border.Raids in early February, in which Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents (ICE) rounded up more than 680 people in nearly a dozen states, spurred widespread fear across immigrant communities.But the Trump administration's raids were actually smaller than similar sweeps under President Barack Obama, as The Christian Science Monitor's Harry Bruinius reported Tuesday. The Obama administration’s nationwide "Cross Check" operations apprehended more than 2,000 "convicted criminal aliens who pose the greatest risk to our public safety" in a similar five-day sweep in 2015.At the time, officials said that ICE had arrested a total of 13,214 people in a total of six raids, information that a Trump administration fact sheet reiterated this week. As Mr. Bruinius reported for the Monitor:By including this context in its fact sheets, and emphasizing that 75 percent of the immigrants detained last week had some kind of criminal conviction, the Trump administration emphasized continuity. After all, President Obama also prioritized the most dangerous undocumented criminals...Still, the enforcement actions created alarm in many communities – even a sense of panic as word spread that ICE agents were showing up at homes and making targeted arrests.In one sense, the unease was disproportionate to the size of the operation. But many legal experts and immigration advocates note that Mr. Trump’s executive orders on immigration – which call for the hiring of 10,000 additional immigration officers – have fundamentally changed the agency’s previous priorities. That sets the stage for what could be a much wider-ranging routine of targeting undocumented immigrants for arrest.Defenders of Mr. Trump point to the Obama administration's record of having deported more people than any other White House in history, and argue that outrage over Trump's approach is hypocritical."With Trump now residing in the White House and Republicans building their agenda in Congress, activists will turn their attention to the narrative," wrote Austin Yack for National Review on Friday. "There is a new outpouring of articles on the deportation of illegal immigrants not because the press suddenly has a profound interest in the deportation of illegal immigrants, but because radicals who wish to erase our borders see an opportunity to demonize Trump and exploit his shortcomings for their agenda." One significant change, immigrant rights activists note, is the Trump administration's definition of who is a "criminal." Trump's immigration order focuses not just on immigrants convicted of crimes, but anyone charged with an offense. Furthermore, it allows agents to arrest any person that an immigration officer perceives as posing a risk to either public safety or national security.With the new guidelines signed Saturday, the Trump administration would further distance itself from previous administrations on immigration policy. The new directives would allow authorities to seek expedited deportation proceedings, which are currently limited to undocumented immigrants who have been in the country for two weeks or less, to anyone who has been in the country for up to two years. They would also immediately return Mexican immigrants who are apprehended at the border back home pending the outcomes of their deportation hearings instead of housing them on US property.The memos also address the roughly 155,000 unaccompanied minors who have come from Mexico and Central America over the past three years. Under Kelly's guidelines, parents of these minors could be prosecuted if they are found to have paid smugglers to bring their children across the border.Immigrants rights advocates were quick to condemn the new policies."[D]ue process, human decency, and common sense are treated as inconvenient obstacles on the path to mass deportation," said Joanne Lin, senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, in a statement. "The Trump administration is intent on inflicting cruelty on millions of immigrant families across the country."In the memos, Kelly instructed agency chiefs to start hiring 10,000 additional ICE agents and 5,000 more for the Border Patrol, measures that were included in Trump’s executive actions last month. The DHS Secretary also expressed a desire to revive 287(g), a program introduced by former President Clinton that fell out of favor under the Obama administration, which would deputize local police to act as immigration officers for the purposes of enforcement. According to the memo, 32 jurisdictions in 16 states currently participate in the program.Missing from the memos was any action regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which has provided work permits to more than 750,000 immigrants who entered the country illegally as children. During his campaign, Trump vowed to "immediately terminate" the program, but his stance appears to have softened since. Last week, he said he would "show great heart" in his approach.The memos are currently under review by the White House Counsel's Office, which is reportedly seeking some changes.
Police investigate anti-Muslim rally outside Toronto mosque as possible hate crime-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
Police are investigating whether an anti-Islam rally held on the doorstep of a mosque in the heart of downtown Toronto Friday had any criminal element and whether it could be considered a hate crime.With signs of love and support plastered to its exterior, Masjid Toronto bore little sign on Saturday of the rally held there just a day before, during which more than a dozen people — with banners and loudspeakers in hand — called for a ban on Islam as Muslims prayed inside.Toronto police say they have received multiple complaints about the demonstration, some from those who were present at the mosque and others from those who weren't, Const. Allyson Douglas-Cook told CBC Toronto.Douglas-Cook said it's too early to determine whether the incident will be considered a hate crime but that investigators are looking into the possibility.There's a "fine line," Douglas-Cook said, between the free expression of thoughts and views, and breaching the law or violating a particular group.Asked what that line is, Douglas-Cook responded: "That's a conversation we've been having all day."The investigation isn't centred on any one group in particular, police say. As with any complaint, she said, investigators will speak to witnesses, take a formal statement and, if necessary, collect evidence.Asked if there is any criminal element to blocking the entrance of the mosque, Douglas-Cook said it was too soon to tell.From comment sections to real life-Abdul-Basit Khan, a spokesperson for the mosque, said that in the 15 years since it was founded, he's never seen a rally like Friday's."You're used to seeing this kind of vitriol in the comments sections of newspapers or online. You don't necessarily see it in person. So that's what was surprising about yesterday," he said. "Especially in light of Quebec City…""But from the standpoint of the community and the standpoint of the mosque, I would say we have to sort of draw a balance. We want to resist division and hate and at the same time we don't want to blow this out of proportion. It's a handful of people, as I understand it."Khan says he was nevertheless struck by the apparent level of planning that went into the protest, timed to take place on Friday, a day Muslims consider to be the holiest of the week.But he was even more struck by the spontaneous counter-protest and shows of support by passersby and strangers, many of whom he says weren't Muslim.-'We're not supposed to forget'-Klasha White-Hockschild and her 13-year-old daughter were among them.On Saturday, the pair stood in the spot where just a day earlier megaphones could be heard blaring slogans like "Islam is hate!" and "Muslims are terrorists!" — with signs bearing a very different message.White-Hockschild, who is Jewish, said she felt compelled to visit the mosque after the rally, which she called "embarrassing.""It's just not what Canada stands for," she said. "As human beings we need to support each other."We're not supposed to forget, but how easy it is. That's what we realize."Her daughter had a similar, if simpler, message:"We're all people. Just because the colour of our skin's different doesn't mean that we should be divided."Rally held amid debate on anti-Islamophobia motion-Friday's rally came just days after MPs began debating M-103, a House of Commons motion tabled by MP Iqra Khalid to condemn Islamophobia and track incidents of hate crime against Muslims.A Facebook post by a group called Never Again Canada celebrated the demonstration as a "great rally ... in support of free speech."M-103 is not a bill or a law and has no legal force, which is partly why mosque attendee Mehdi Sheikh is perplexed by the vehement opposition by some toward it.-Sheikh believes fear is what is driving that opposition.-"There's a population who feel that they are becoming a minority even though, by far, white people in Canada are still the majority... I guess their fear is that the way they've treated those minorities for so many years when they came, they think that's how they'll be treated.""Minorities are welcomed in Canada," he said. "If you become a minority, you will also be welcome."
Anti-racism protesters gather at National Assembly in Quebec City-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
Hundreds gathered in front of the National Assembly in Quebec City Saturday afternoon to denounce racism and call for greater unity in the province.The protest, which was followed by a march through the streets around the National Assembly, was part of an anti-racism festival that kicked off Thursday.A number of speakers addressed the crowd, including Mohamed Labidi, president of the Quebec City mosque where a gunman shot and killed six worshippers and wounded 19 others Jan. 29."Long live a unified Quebec, a Quebec without discrimination, a Quebec without racism," he said, adding that "we still have a ways to go."A spokesperson for the festival, Nicolas Villamarin, said xenophobia isn't the future of Quebec society."The rise of racism and intolerance threatens our rights and liberties and don't reflect the society that we want to build together," he said.After the speeches, the crowd walked through the streets of downtown Quebec City, past the U.S. Consulate, city hall and Place d'Youville.
MIGRATING BIRDS IN ISRAEL EATS HUMANS FLESH FOR COMING AGAINST ISRAEL-JERUSALEM
EZEKIEL 39:11-12,18
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers (EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN JORDAN VALLEY) on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog (RUSSIAN) and all his multitude:(ARAB/MUSLIM HORDE) and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.(BURIEL SITE OF THE 300 MILLION,RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS)
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.(OF ISRAEL)
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.(OF THE ISRAEL-GOD HATERS)
EZEKIEL 39:17-21
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.(OF RUSSIAN/ISLAMIC HORDES AGAINST ISRAEL)
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.
22 So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward.
REVELATION 19:17-18
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;(AGAINST ALL NATIONS ARMIES THAT COME AGAINST JERUSALEM AND ISRAEL)
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
EZEKIEL 38:1-7
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:TOBOLSK)
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
WELL NOW THAT KIM JONG UN-THE LEPRICON TWIRP. HAS PRETTY WELL KILLED OFF HIS FAMILY AND RELATIVES. ITS TIME FROM TRUMP TO NUKE HIS POT OF GOLD TO EXTINCTION. AND WHILE TRUMP IS GETTING RID OF TWIRPS. ITS TIME TO NUKE ALL OF MOSUL AND RAAQA. TO GET RID OF ISIS ALSO. SO THERE CAN BE PEACE FOR A FEW DAYS IN THE MIDEAST. TO GET RID OF SOME ISRAEL HATERS. THE NUKING OF OTHER ISRAEL HATING COUNTRIES CAN COME IN A MONTH-AFTER ALL THE MIGRATING BIRDS DEVOUR THE ISIS NUKED MEMBERS BODIES.
Malaysia looks for 4 North Korean suspects who left country-[Associated Press]-EILEEN NG-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Investigators are looking for four North Korean men who flew out of Malaysia the same day Kim Jong Nam, the North Korean ruler's outcast half brother, apparently was poisoned at an airport in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian police said Sunday.Since Kim's death last week, authorities have been trying to piece together details of what appeared to be an assassination. Malaysian police have so far arrested four people carrying IDs from North Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.Malaysia's deputy national police chief, Noor Rashid Ibrahim, said four other North Korean suspects were on the run. The men arrived in Malaysia on different days beginning Jan. 31 and flew out of the country last Monday, when Kim died, Noor Rashid said."I am not going disclose where they are," he told a room packed with journalists, adding that Interpol was helping with the investigation.Noor Rashid showed photographs of the four men, who were traveling on regular — not diplomatic — passports and are ages 33, 34, 55 and 57.He also said there were three other people police wanted to question. He said that one was North Korean, but that police had not yet identified the other two. It wasn't clear if they were suspects or simply wanted for questioning.A rotund man in his mid-40s, Kim Jong Nam was waiting for his flight home to Macau when, authorities say, he was set upon by two women. He sought help at an airport customer service desk and said "two unidentified women had swabbed or had wiped his face with a liquid and that he felt dizzy," Noor Rashid said.Kim died en route to a hospital after suffering a seizure, officials say.Noor Rashid said Sunday that he expected autopsy results to be released within days. "We have to send a sample to the chemistry department, we have to send a sample for toxicology tests," he said.Investigators also want to speak to Kim Jong Nam's next of kin to formally identify the body. He is believed to have two sons and a daughter with two women living in Beijing and Macau."We haven't met the next of kin," Noor Rashid said. "We are trying very hard to get the next of kin to come and to assist us in the investigation."Noor Rashid said charges against the four suspects in custody would be determined by prosecutors.According to police, the Indonesian woman is a spa masseuse and the Malaysian man, a caterer, is believed to be her boyfriend. The Vietnamese woman works at an entertainment outlet and the North Korean man works in the information technology department of a Malaysian company.The Indonesian woman has told investigators that she was duped into thinking she was part of a comedy show prank.Police said the North Korean man's work permit had expired Feb. 6, a week before Kim's death.The case has raised tensions between Malaysia and North Korea. Pyongyang demanded custody of Kim's body and strongly objected to an autopsy. The Malaysians went ahead with the procedure anyway, saying they were simply following procedure.Kang Chol, North Korea's ambassador to Malaysia, said that Malaysia may be "trying to conceal something" and that the autopsy was carried out "unilaterally and excluding our attendance.""We are investigating a case of murder ... we just follow our rules and regulations," Noor Rashid said.South Korea has been quick to blame its enemies in North Korea for Kim's death."Considering North Korea has so far committed crimes against humanity and terror acts, we, together with the international community, are closely watching this brutal, reckless incident with serious concerns," South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon Hee told reporters in Seoul on Sunday.___Associated Press writer Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.
Iran's Zarif says use of chemical weapons in Syria cannot be condoned-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
MUNICH (Reuters) - Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif, pointing to Sunni Islamist militants in Syria fighting against its allies in Damascus, told the Munich Security Conference that the use of chemical weapons could never be condoned.Damascus, an ally of majority-Shi'ite Iran, this week rejected a recent Human Rights Watch report that said its military and allied forces had used chemical weapons during their capture of Aleppo last year. It instead accused anti-government fighters of using chemical weapons."The use of chemical weapons can never be condoned ... Unfortunately the terrorist organizations Nusra and Daesh (Islamic State) still possess chemical weapons," Zarif said.A U.N.-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inquiry assigned to identify organizations and individuals responsible for the chemical attacks concluded last October that Syrian government forces had used chlorine as a chemical weapon at least three times in 2014-15. Islamic State militants, it said, had used sulfur mustard gas in one attack.The U.N. Security Council extended the mandate of the inquiry, known as the Joint Investigative Mission (JIM), until November this year. It is due to issue its next report by Saturday.The United States last month blacklisted 18 senior Syrian officials it said were connected to the country's weapons of mass destruction program, after an international investigation found Syrian government forces were responsible for chlorine gas attacks against civilians.Human Rights Watch Executive Director Ken Roth told delegates the issue was likely to be discussed between major powers in the coming days."Another big test coming up is in the Security Council, probably just this next week, of the so-called joint investigative mechanism established by the Security Council," Roth said."So, the question comes up, what's next? The French have taken the lead in drafting a resolution and put it on the table imposing sanctions for Syria's use of chemical weapons and Russia is threatening to veto it."France said on Feb 14 that the U.N. had to respond over the use of chemical weapons with a resolution that would punish those responsible for repeated attacks.A French diplomatic source said that Paris was still looking for the right time to put the resolution to a vote but that it was working on a new text in the hope of ensuring it was supported by Assad ally, Russia."We have again started work on a text with our partners," the source said.(Reporting By Shadia Nasralla and Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by John Irish; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS ETC) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
Snowblowers sales surge as Maritimers dig themselves out of back-to-back storms-[The Canadian Press]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
HALIFAX — Maritimers continue to dig themselves out of back-to-back snow dumps that have hit the East Coast.Some residents are still searching for their lawn ornaments after a series of storms clobbered Atlantic Canada last week.Nova Scotia's online plow tracker showed more than 35 snow-clearing vehicles working on the province's roads Sunday.A spokesperson for the City of Halifax says around 200 crew have been working "around-the-clock," but it could be another week until sidewalks are fully cleared of last week's 80 centimetres of snowfall.An official with Charlottetown's public works says the cleanup is almost over as around 40 trucks were working this weekend to haul snow out of the downtown area.Management at Home Depot stores in Fredericton and Saint John, N.B., say they've seen a spike in snowblower sales and a Halifax location had to order an extra shipment to keep up with demand.Duane Moss, a snowblower technician at Scope Industrial near St. John's, N.L., says he's received about 30 calls a day asking about repairs since a major storm hit last Monday.The Canadian Press.
Biggest storm in five years thrashes Southern California-[Reuters]-By Alex Dobuzinskis-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Southern California cleaned up on Saturday after its biggest storm in years unleashed a wave of rain and snow that killed at least three people and triggered flooding, mudslides, high winds and power outages, officials said.Vital highways and railways were shut down and sinkholes opened on main roads under the heaviest rainfall in the drought-stricken region in at least five years, according to the National Weather Service.In one of wettest spots near Santa Barbara, over 10 inches (25 cm) of rain fell on Friday with several other stations in Southern California reporting at least 9 inches (23 cm), said meteorologist Patrick Burke of the Weather Prediction Center."It's been a very active winter and rainy season for the entire state of California," Burke said. "They needed that because of the drought. But sometimes droughts end with a flood and we've gone from one extreme to the other."Parts of Southern California have been the slowest to exit the drought. But the state's reservoirs are 22 percent more full than the average, according to the California Department of Water Resources.Since Oct. 1, downtown Los Angeles has received more than 18 inches (46 cm) of rain, which is higher than the total annual average of just under 15 inches.By Saturday afternoon, the storm had moved east into Nevada and Arizona. Northern California will be walloped with more rain and snow beginning on Sunday, with 4 to 8 inches (10 cm to 20 cm) of precipitation expected in the coastal mountains, Burke said.Meanwhile, utility crews worked to restore electricity to tens of thousands of customers affected by power outages throughout the Los Angeles area on Saturday.One man died on Friday after he was electrocuted by a downed wire, the Los Angeles Fire Department said. Another person was found dead in a submerged vehicle in Victorville, about 85 miles (137 km) northeast of Los Angeles, fire officials said.And the body of a man was discovered on Saturday morning in a creek in Thousand Oaks, 40 miles (64 km) west of downtown Los Angeles, after he was swept away by floodwaters, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office said.Local television news also showed video footage of a San Bernardino County fire truck tumbling over the side of a freeway as the road gave out."All firefighters confirmed safe," the San Bernardino County Fire Department said on Twitter.The storm also brought unusually strong winds. At the Port of Los Angeles, gusts as high as 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) were recorded on Friday.Amtrak railroad service was suspended from Los Angeles north to San Luis Obispo on Saturday due to extreme weather conditions, according to the transportation service's website.(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Paul Simao and Mary Milliken)
California faces more rain, snow as deadly storm moves south-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
(Reuters) - California was bracing on Saturday for another wave of torrential rain as well as heavy snow as a massive storm triggered flooding, mudslides and power outages and killed two people, officials said.The National Weather Service warned that rain totals could reach 10 inches (25 cm) in parts of southern California and 2 feet (60 cm) of snow in higher areas to the east as the storm continues to roll through the region.The severe storm has brought California its heaviest rainfall in six years and comes after months of wet weather that has dramatically eased a years-long drought in the key agricultural state.The rain and melting snowpack also are threatening to undermine a spillway at one of the largest dams in the country. Some 188,000 residents were evacuated from the area earlier this week.Utility crews were working to restore electricity to more than 78,000 customers affected by power outages throughout the Los Angeles area.Early on Saturday, an evacuation order remained in effect for 180 homes in Duarte, a city about 20 miles (32 km) east of Los Angeles, because of fears of mudslides.One man died after he was electrocuted by a downed wire, the Los Angeles Fire Department said, adding that it had responded to 150 reports of downed wires on Friday. Another person was found dead in a submerged vehicle in Victorville, about 100 miles east of Los Angeles, fire officials said on Twitter.A woman was injured when the car she was in fell into a 20-foot sinkhole in Studio City on Friday night. A second car fell into the sinkhole after the woman was rescued, an ABC affiliate reported.Local television news also showed video footage of a San Bernardino County fire truck tumbling over the side of a freeway as the road gave out."All firefighters confirmed safe. The lane under the fire engine has failed, and the engine has gone over the side," the San Bernardino County Fire Department said on Twitter.Amtrak railroad service was suspended for trains between the cities of Oxnard and San Luis Obispo in the central and southern areas of the state due to extreme weather conditions, according to the transportation service's website.In higher areas of eastern California and western Nevada, snowfall and wind gusts of up to 50 mph (80 kph) were in the forecast until Saturday night, the National Weather Service said."This will make travel hazardous or impossible," the service said in an advisory.(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee Editing by Ed Osmond and Paul Simao)
No ice is safe ice, Toronto police remind residents on warm Family Day weekend-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
"No ice is safe ice," Toronto police are reminding residents as the sun shines and temperatures climb well above zero.Const. Corey Smith, spokesperson for Toronto Police Service's Marine Unit, said Sunday that ice over ponds and larger bodies of water can soften quickly even though it may appear thick in spots."The ice gets thin fast. The sun is a very powerful influence on how quickly the ice gets thin. We don't want anybody going out on ice who could be at risk of falling through," Smith said."The water is still very cold. It's also barely above zero."Smith reminded parents to keep children off the ice around waterways and never let children go near waterways by themselves."We like to say no ice is safe ice because you can never guarantee the safety of the ice."He said ice in sheltered areas in and around Toronto Islands may seem ideal for private skating, but residents need to ensure that it is not softening in areas. Conditions might not be suitable this weekend, he said.-Follow the 1-10-1 rule-Police use what he called the 1-10-1 rule when reminding people about the dangers of being immersed in water under 10 C.According to the marine unit, people have one minute to come up with a plan to get to safety, 10 minutes to execute that plan, and one hour before hypothermia leads to unconsciousness and death.The police marine unit patrols Lake Ontario from the Etobicoke Creek to the Rouge River. It patrols areas in and around the Toronto Islands with its priority being Toronto's inner harbour.Steer clear of hydroelectric stations, says OPG-The Ontario Power Generation is also reminding Toronto residents to stay safe on ice and near hydroelectric stations this weekend. It said its stations and dams are clearly marked with warning signs and barriers to prevent access."Winter activities around hydroelectric stations may seem like a good idea but these are restricted areas any time of the year, so if you're outdoors this winter you need to stay away from our facilities," Mike Martelli, president of OPG's renewable generation and power marketing said in a news release."This winter has seen a wide range of temperature fluctuations and thinner than normal ice in many areas, which means people need to take extra precautions on lakes and rivers wherever they happen to be."-17 snowmobile crashes so far this year-The Ontario Provincial Police says snowmobilers also need to be careful this weekend as ice melts.Since the beginning of the year, in the central region of Ontario patrolled by the OPP, which includes Barrie, Bracebridge, Caledon, Collingwood, through to Southern Georgian Bay, there have been 17 snowmobile crashes involving injury and eight where a person has died.The OPP recommends snowmobilers, among other things, check the ice thickness and quality with local ice hut operators and Ontario ministry of natural resources before riding on any frozen waterway; wear a buoyant snowmobile suit and carry ice picks; and only travel on ice that is already well-tracked and marked Ontario Federation of Snowmobile Club trails."Conditions change due to several factors," it says. "What was safe last week may not be safe this week."
DANIEL 7:23-24
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast (EU,REVIVED ROME) shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth,(7TH WORLD EMPIRE) which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.(TRADING BLOCKS-10 WORLD REGIONS/TRADE BLOCS)
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings(10 NATIONS-10 WORLD DIVISION WORLD GOVERNMENT) that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.(EITHER THE EUROPEAN UNION DICTATOR BOOTS 3 COUNTRIES FROM THE EU OR THE DICTATOR TAKES OVER THE WORLD ECONOMY BY CONTROLLING 3 WORLD TRADE BLOCS)
US reassures Europe on Nato and Russia, again By Andrew Rettman-euobserver
BRUSSELS, 18. Feb, 12:50-US vice-president Mike Pence crowned a week of American diplomacy in Europe on Saturday (18 February) by promising to stick by Nato and to take a tough line on Russia."The president [Donald Trump] asked me to be here today to convey a message, a reassurance - the United States of America strongly supports Nato and we will be unwavering in our commitment to this transatlantic alliance,” Pence told the Munich Security Conference in Germany.“Be assured: president Trump and the American people are fully devoted to our transatlantic union,” he added.He listed Russia’s attempt to “redraw international borders” in Europe as one of Nato’s main challenges.He said Trump wanted to find “common ground” with Moscow, but he said the new administration would “hold Russia accountable” for its misbehaviour.He also repeated Trump’s call for European members of Nato to spend at least 2 percent of their GDPs on defence in line with an old pledge.“Let me be clear on this point: The president of the United States expects our allies to keep their word, fulfil this commitment,” he said.German chancellor Angela Merkel, who also spoke in Munich on Saturday, said: “We will do everything we can in order to fulfil this commitment.”She voiced “great anxiety” over Russia’s aggression in east Ukraine and urged Moscow to back off in line with the Minsk ceasefire deal.“The Minsk agreement is the only thing we have at the moment to move forward talks and the possibility of solving the problems,” she said, while noting that she was ready to work with Russia on combatting terrorism."The joint fight against Islamic terrorism is one area where we have the same interests and we can work together," she said.“It is not Islam that is the problem but a falsely understood Islam,” she added.She also said, in an aside on economics, that the current value of the euro does not serve Germany well.“The ECB has a monetary policy that is not geared to Germany, rather it is tailored [to countries] from Portugal to Slovenia or Slovakia. If we still had the [German] Deutsche Mark it would surely have a different value than the euro does at the moment,” she said, referring to the European Central Bank (ECB), which sets the euro’s monetary policy.-The Flynn issue-Pence’s remarks on Nato and Russia came after a series of similar statements in Brussels, Berlin and Munich by senior Trump envoys this week.The reassurances came after Trump floated the idea of a grand bargain with Moscow and after leaks showing that his aides, such as security advisor Mike Flynn, who was fired, had had clandestine contacts with Russian officials.Merkel’s comments on Islam and on the euro also came after Trump tried to ban Muslim immigrants on security grounds and claimed that Germany forced the ECB to undervalue the euro to help its exports.Sebastian Kurz, the Austrian foreign minister, told press on Saturday: “The big topic in Munich is looking to the USA to see which developments to expect next.”He added that there was “still a lot of uncertainty” despite the US assurances.John McCain, a US senator, also indicated that the Trump administration’s public diplomacy in Europe was designed to mask what he called “disarray” in Washington.“The Flynn issue obviously is something that shows that in many respects this administration is in disarray,” he said in Munich on Friday.-Clash on Poland-Meanwhile, the EU’s internal divisions came to light at the Munich meeting in a public clash between Frans Timmermans, the Dutch EU commissioner, and Witold Waszczykowski, the Polish foreign minister, on Friday.Timmermans urged the Polish government to respect its constitution after a clash with judges that triggered a Commission monitoring operation. He also castigated the Polish minister for Warsaw’s “insulting reply” to the Venice Commission, a panel of international experts, on the issue.Waszczykowski replied: “Please allow us to respect our own constitution, not your vision of our constitution.”The minister bristled at a question from the floor which noted that Poland profited from over €50 billion in EU subsidies.“Yes, €50 billion of subsidies go to Poland. And 80 percent goes back to Western Europe. We’re modernising the infrastructure, using Western technology. Who is earning this money? German [firms] make €50 billion in Poland,” he said.
WORLD POWERS IN THE LAST DAYS (END OF AGE OF GRACE NOT THE WORLD)
EUROPEAN UNION-KING OF WEST-DAN 9:26-27,DAN 7:23-24,DAN 11:40,REV 13:1-10
EGYPT-KING OF THE SOUTH-DAN 11:40
RUSSIA-KING OF THE NORTH-EZEK 38:1-2,EZEK 39:1-3
CHINA-KING OF THE EAST-DAN 11:44,REV 9:16,18
VATICAN-RELIGIOUS LEADER-REV 13:11-18,REV 17:4-5,9,18
WORLD TERRORISM
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
Iraqi forces launch offensive to drive IS from western Mosul-[Associated Press]-BRAM JANSSEN-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
HAMAM AL-ALIL, Iraq (AP) — U.S.-backed Iraqi forces launched a major air-and-ground offensive Sunday to retake western Mosul from Islamic State militants and drive the extremist group from its last major urban bastion in Iraq.Ground units pushed into a belt of villages outside the country's second-largest city, and plumes of smoke rose into the sky early in the morning as U.S.-led coalition jets struck militant positions southwest of Mosul and militarized Iraqi police fired artillery."This is zero hour and we are going to end this war, God willing," said Mahmoud Mansour, a police officer, as he prepared to move out.The United Nations warned that hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped inside their homes in Mosul "are at extreme risk," with dwindling fuel, food and water and scarce electricity.Iraq declared eastern Mosul "fully liberated" last month after three months of fierce fighting, but the militants have continued to stage attacks there, including two suicide bombings against government forces on Sunday.The battle for western Mosul promises to be even more daunting, as the half of the city west of the Tigris River has older, narrower streets and is still heavily populated.Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced the start of the latest operation on state TV. Using the Arabic acronym for IS, he said government forces were moving to "liberate the people of Mosul from Daesh oppression and terrorism forever."Police units quickly entered the village of Athba, about 3 miles (5 kilometers) southwest of Mosul's international airport, encountering only light resistance. Separately, the Iraqi Army's 9th Division moved into the village of Bakhira, also southwest of the city, the Ministry of Defense said.The U.S.-led coalition has been providing close air support throughout the 4-month-old Mosul offensive and carried out nine airstrikes against IS near Mosul on Saturday, Central Command said. U.S. special operations forces are embedded with some Iraqi units, and thousands of American soldiers are in Iraq to provide logistical and other support."We are very close to it, if not already engaged in that fight," U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters in Abu Dhabi. He declined to go into further detail, saying he owed "confidentiality" to the troops.Citing witnesses in western Mosul, the United Nations said nearly half of all food shops were closed and bakeries had shut down for lack of fuel and an inability to purchase costly flour. Prices of kerosene and cooking gas have skyrocketed, and many of the most destitute families are burning wood, furniture, plastic or garbage for cooking and heating."The situation is distressing. People, right now, are in trouble," Lise Grande, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, said in a statement. "We are hearing reports of parents struggling to feed their children and to heat their homes."Peter Hawkins, of the U.N. agency for children, said: "Three out of five people now depend on untreated water from wells for cooking and drinking as water systems and treatment plants have been damaged by fighting or run out of chlorine."The humanitarian agencies were gearing up to aid 250,000 to 400,000 civilians who may flee because of the fighting, the statement said. The U.N. estimates 750,000 civilians may be left in western Mosul.Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, a top U.S. commander in Iraq, said the Iraqi forces are an "increasingly capable, formidable and professional force.""Mosul would be a tough fight for any army in the world, and the Iraqi forces have risen to the challenge," he said in a statement.Iraqi forces drove IS from eastern Mosul last month, but the militants appear to have left behind sleeper cells to carry out attacks.Brig. Gen. Yahya Rasool, an Iraqi military spokesman, said a suicide bomber struck a patrol of government-allied Sunni tribal fighters in the Zihoor neighborhood, while another targeted Iraqi troops in Nabi Younis. IS claimed responsibility for both attacks.Rasool declined to provide casualty figures. Two policemen said one Sunni fighter was killed and nine were wounded in the first attack, while the second attack wounded five soldiers. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release information.Iraqi special operations forces, regular army and federal police units are taking part in the offensive along with government-approved paramilitary forces, mainly consisting of Shiite militias, which are operating on the city's outskirts.Mosul fell to IS in the summer of 2014, along with large swaths of northern and western Iraq.___Associated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin and Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, and Maamoun Youssef and Joseph Krauss in Cairo contributed to this report.
Opinion-The need for global cooperation in stopping Iran By Joseph I. Lieberman and August Hanning-euobserver
Washington, 18. Feb, 08:50-When Iranian minister of foreign affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks to the Munich Security Conference this weekend, his words are likely to be misleading at best and deceitful at worst. But it is nonetheless appropriate that Iran be represented at this premier world security conference because Iran continues to be the greatest threat there is to world security. Mr. Zarif may proclaim, as he has before, that Iran will “never initiate war” even though it is obvious that is exactly what Iran has done, for years, either directly or indirectly through radical Islamist terrorist proxies in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. Mr. Zarif may again accuse the United States of breaking the Nuclear Agreement between Iran and the P5+1, but, of course, it is Iran that has broken at least two explicit obligations of the Agreement and tested ballistic missiles in defiance of UNSC Resolution 2231 which endorses the Nuclear Agreement. America has a new president and his views about Iran are quite different from his predecessor. After Iran recently tested those ballistic missiles, president Trump’s national security adviser publically put the Iranians “on notice” that the US would respond to such belligerent behaviour. And then the Trump administration’s Treasury department imposed new economic sanctions on Iran. Thus far the US has been alone in standing up to Iran, but if the US remains alone, Iran will only grow stronger, bolder, and more threatening to the rest of the world. Therefore the support of the European allies is needed.-Roaring missiles- The relationship between the United States and Iran is on course to regress to what it was in a previous, dangerous era. The significant difference today is that Iran is stronger, wealthier, and emboldened by the Nuclear Agreement and the surge of cash it brought them.Analysis from the Institute of War recently set out details showing how Iran was preparing its military for “quasi-conventional warfare hundreds of miles from its borders.” Forces on the frontlines in Iraq, Syria and Yemen and have been joined by thousands of fighters tied to the IRGC, commanding new loyalty throughout the region. Threats of “roaring missiles” have come from senior military officials in Iran, and vocal hostility towards the US grows. Addressing Iran’s escalating aggression should be on everyone’s minds as the Munich Security Conference convenes.Europe’s leaders in particular cannot allow doubts they may have about the new administration drive a wedge between our existing international partnerships. Think of the tragedy in Syria—enabled by Iran’s support for the Assad regime—where barrel bombs fall on innocent civilians and cause a massive refugee influx and security risk in Europe. It is in both European and American interests to check Iran. Trans-Atlantic cooperation, which is celebrated in Munich every February, has been one of history’s greatest success stories—bringing stability and prosperity, checking aggression and expanding freedom.-Clear signal-This conference can send a clear signal to Iran by employing new non-nuclear sanctions based on Iran’s regional aggression, human rights violations, and support of terrorism—all of which were not affected by the Iran Nuclear Agreement. The hope that the Iranian regime would adhere to the spirit of the nuclear agreement and become more moderate was far too optimistic from the beginning, and looks impossible now. The political and religious leader of Iran, ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has stressed in several very clear statements, that Iran is not willing to change its policy. The hope in Germany and in many other states of the world that Iran would accept the existence of Israel as a state, has been bitterly disappointed. On the contrary, Iran is organising exhibitions in which the Holocaust is denied. As both rhetoric and actions escalate, world security and stability will once again depend on international action and a renewed commitment among partners and friends to unite to protect ourselves from the radical Iranian regime. Although during his campaign president Trump said he would tear up the Iran Nuclear Agreement, that seems unlikely now in part because the new administration wants to work with our allies on a new policy toward Iran. We hope European leaders will respond in kind to this different approach by the Trump Administration.Joseph I. Lieberman, a former U.S. senator from Connecticut and 2000 Democratic vice presidential nominee, is chairman of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI). Dr. August Hanning, the former director of the Federal Intelligence Service of Germany (BND), is senior advisor to UANI.
Iran, NKorea officials: Let's strengthen relationship-[Associated Press]-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Officials from both countries say Iran and North Korea want to strengthen relations.A Sunday report by ICANA.ir, the news agency of Iran's Parliament, quotes parliament speaker Ali Larijani as saying: "We have always been after stability of relations with North Korea."Larijani was addressing Choe Thae-bok, visiting chairman of North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly. He also said both countries should improve economic relations.Thae-bok responded, saying: "North Korea is seeking improved relations with Iran." He also praised Iran's economic and defense improvements.The report said both officials complained about "interventions in independent countries" by the United States.Thae-book is in Iran to participate in an international conference in support of the Palestinians.
U.S. senators look to new sanctions against Iran for missile development-[Reuters]-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
MUNICH (Reuters) - U.S. Republican senators plan to introduce legislation to impose further sanctions on Iran, accusing it of violating U.N. Security Council resolutions by testing ballistic missiles and acting to "destabilise" the Middle East, a U.S. senator said Sunday."I think it is now time for the Congress to take Iran on directly in terms of what they’ve done outside the nuclear program," Senator Lindsey Graham, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told the Munich Security Conference.Graham said he and other Republicans would introduce measures to hold Iran accountable for its actions.Tensions between Tehran and Washington have risen since an Iranian ballistic missile test that prompted U.S. President Donald Trump's administration to impose sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the country's Revolutionary Guards."Iran is a bad actor in the greatest sense of the word when it comes to the region. To Iran, I say, if you want us to treat you differently then stop building missiles, test-firing them in defiance of U.N. resolution and writing 'Death to Israel' on the missile. That's a mixed message," Graham said.Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif told the conference earlier on Sunday that Iran did not respond well to sanctions or threats.James Jones, a former Supreme Allied Commander in Europe and President Barack Obama’s first national security adviser, told a separate event in Munich that he remained convinced that sanctions had persuaded Iran to negotiate the 2015 landmark deal with six world powers to curb its nuclear program."The sanctions did work. Iran would never have come to the negotiating table without sanctions," Jones said. "This is a new form of response that if properly utilized can change behavior and get people to do things that they otherwise wouldn't do."Senator Christopher Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told the same panel there was nothing preventing Congress from imposing sanctions beyond those that were lifted as a result of the 2016 nuclear agreement with Iran.Murphy, a Democrat, said had backed the nuclear deal in the explicit understanding that it would not prevent Congress from taking actions against Iran outside the nuclear issue."There's going to be a conversation about what the proportional response is," Murphy said, referring to Iran's missile test. "But I don't necessarily think there's going to be partisan division over whether or not we have the ability as a Congress to speak on issues outside of the nuclear agreement."Murphy said the United States needed to decide whether it wanted to take a broader role in the regional conflict."We have to make a decision whether we are going to get involved in the emerging proxy war in a bigger way than we are today, between Iran and Saudi," he said.(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and John Irish; Editing by Jane Merriman and David Goodman)
New Homeland Security guidelines aggressively crack down on illegal immigration-[Christian Science Monitor]-Gretel Kauffman-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly signed new guidelines on Saturday giving federal authorities the power to more aggressively crack down on illegal immigration, marking what experts call a major shift in US immigration policies.Under the new guidelines, outlined in a pair of memos, the agency plans to hire thousands of additional enforcement agents, expand the pool of immigrants who are prioritized for removal, enlist local law enforcement to help make arrests, and speed up deportation hearings – directives that would replace nearly all guidelines put in place by previous administrations."The surge of immigration at the southern border has overwhelmed federal agencies and resources and has created a significant national security vulnerability to the United States," Secretary Kelly wrote, citing a surge of 10,000 to 15,000 additional apprehensions per month at the US-Mexico border between 2015 and 2016.Since taking office in January, President Trump has come under fire for what immigrant rights advocates have denounced as unprecedented action against undocumented people in the United States. In a series of executive orders last month, the president expanded the power of immigration officers and announced plans to fulfill his campaign promises by building a wall along the southern US border.Raids in early February, in which Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents (ICE) rounded up more than 680 people in nearly a dozen states, spurred widespread fear across immigrant communities.But the Trump administration's raids were actually smaller than similar sweeps under President Barack Obama, as The Christian Science Monitor's Harry Bruinius reported Tuesday. The Obama administration’s nationwide "Cross Check" operations apprehended more than 2,000 "convicted criminal aliens who pose the greatest risk to our public safety" in a similar five-day sweep in 2015.At the time, officials said that ICE had arrested a total of 13,214 people in a total of six raids, information that a Trump administration fact sheet reiterated this week. As Mr. Bruinius reported for the Monitor:By including this context in its fact sheets, and emphasizing that 75 percent of the immigrants detained last week had some kind of criminal conviction, the Trump administration emphasized continuity. After all, President Obama also prioritized the most dangerous undocumented criminals...Still, the enforcement actions created alarm in many communities – even a sense of panic as word spread that ICE agents were showing up at homes and making targeted arrests.In one sense, the unease was disproportionate to the size of the operation. But many legal experts and immigration advocates note that Mr. Trump’s executive orders on immigration – which call for the hiring of 10,000 additional immigration officers – have fundamentally changed the agency’s previous priorities. That sets the stage for what could be a much wider-ranging routine of targeting undocumented immigrants for arrest.Defenders of Mr. Trump point to the Obama administration's record of having deported more people than any other White House in history, and argue that outrage over Trump's approach is hypocritical."With Trump now residing in the White House and Republicans building their agenda in Congress, activists will turn their attention to the narrative," wrote Austin Yack for National Review on Friday. "There is a new outpouring of articles on the deportation of illegal immigrants not because the press suddenly has a profound interest in the deportation of illegal immigrants, but because radicals who wish to erase our borders see an opportunity to demonize Trump and exploit his shortcomings for their agenda." One significant change, immigrant rights activists note, is the Trump administration's definition of who is a "criminal." Trump's immigration order focuses not just on immigrants convicted of crimes, but anyone charged with an offense. Furthermore, it allows agents to arrest any person that an immigration officer perceives as posing a risk to either public safety or national security.With the new guidelines signed Saturday, the Trump administration would further distance itself from previous administrations on immigration policy. The new directives would allow authorities to seek expedited deportation proceedings, which are currently limited to undocumented immigrants who have been in the country for two weeks or less, to anyone who has been in the country for up to two years. They would also immediately return Mexican immigrants who are apprehended at the border back home pending the outcomes of their deportation hearings instead of housing them on US property.The memos also address the roughly 155,000 unaccompanied minors who have come from Mexico and Central America over the past three years. Under Kelly's guidelines, parents of these minors could be prosecuted if they are found to have paid smugglers to bring their children across the border.Immigrants rights advocates were quick to condemn the new policies."[D]ue process, human decency, and common sense are treated as inconvenient obstacles on the path to mass deportation," said Joanne Lin, senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, in a statement. "The Trump administration is intent on inflicting cruelty on millions of immigrant families across the country."In the memos, Kelly instructed agency chiefs to start hiring 10,000 additional ICE agents and 5,000 more for the Border Patrol, measures that were included in Trump’s executive actions last month. The DHS Secretary also expressed a desire to revive 287(g), a program introduced by former President Clinton that fell out of favor under the Obama administration, which would deputize local police to act as immigration officers for the purposes of enforcement. According to the memo, 32 jurisdictions in 16 states currently participate in the program.Missing from the memos was any action regarding the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which has provided work permits to more than 750,000 immigrants who entered the country illegally as children. During his campaign, Trump vowed to "immediately terminate" the program, but his stance appears to have softened since. Last week, he said he would "show great heart" in his approach.The memos are currently under review by the White House Counsel's Office, which is reportedly seeking some changes.
Police investigate anti-Muslim rally outside Toronto mosque as possible hate crime-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
Police are investigating whether an anti-Islam rally held on the doorstep of a mosque in the heart of downtown Toronto Friday had any criminal element and whether it could be considered a hate crime.With signs of love and support plastered to its exterior, Masjid Toronto bore little sign on Saturday of the rally held there just a day before, during which more than a dozen people — with banners and loudspeakers in hand — called for a ban on Islam as Muslims prayed inside.Toronto police say they have received multiple complaints about the demonstration, some from those who were present at the mosque and others from those who weren't, Const. Allyson Douglas-Cook told CBC Toronto.Douglas-Cook said it's too early to determine whether the incident will be considered a hate crime but that investigators are looking into the possibility.There's a "fine line," Douglas-Cook said, between the free expression of thoughts and views, and breaching the law or violating a particular group.Asked what that line is, Douglas-Cook responded: "That's a conversation we've been having all day."The investigation isn't centred on any one group in particular, police say. As with any complaint, she said, investigators will speak to witnesses, take a formal statement and, if necessary, collect evidence.Asked if there is any criminal element to blocking the entrance of the mosque, Douglas-Cook said it was too soon to tell.From comment sections to real life-Abdul-Basit Khan, a spokesperson for the mosque, said that in the 15 years since it was founded, he's never seen a rally like Friday's."You're used to seeing this kind of vitriol in the comments sections of newspapers or online. You don't necessarily see it in person. So that's what was surprising about yesterday," he said. "Especially in light of Quebec City…""But from the standpoint of the community and the standpoint of the mosque, I would say we have to sort of draw a balance. We want to resist division and hate and at the same time we don't want to blow this out of proportion. It's a handful of people, as I understand it."Khan says he was nevertheless struck by the apparent level of planning that went into the protest, timed to take place on Friday, a day Muslims consider to be the holiest of the week.But he was even more struck by the spontaneous counter-protest and shows of support by passersby and strangers, many of whom he says weren't Muslim.-'We're not supposed to forget'-Klasha White-Hockschild and her 13-year-old daughter were among them.On Saturday, the pair stood in the spot where just a day earlier megaphones could be heard blaring slogans like "Islam is hate!" and "Muslims are terrorists!" — with signs bearing a very different message.White-Hockschild, who is Jewish, said she felt compelled to visit the mosque after the rally, which she called "embarrassing.""It's just not what Canada stands for," she said. "As human beings we need to support each other."We're not supposed to forget, but how easy it is. That's what we realize."Her daughter had a similar, if simpler, message:"We're all people. Just because the colour of our skin's different doesn't mean that we should be divided."Rally held amid debate on anti-Islamophobia motion-Friday's rally came just days after MPs began debating M-103, a House of Commons motion tabled by MP Iqra Khalid to condemn Islamophobia and track incidents of hate crime against Muslims.A Facebook post by a group called Never Again Canada celebrated the demonstration as a "great rally ... in support of free speech."M-103 is not a bill or a law and has no legal force, which is partly why mosque attendee Mehdi Sheikh is perplexed by the vehement opposition by some toward it.-Sheikh believes fear is what is driving that opposition.-"There's a population who feel that they are becoming a minority even though, by far, white people in Canada are still the majority... I guess their fear is that the way they've treated those minorities for so many years when they came, they think that's how they'll be treated.""Minorities are welcomed in Canada," he said. "If you become a minority, you will also be welcome."
Anti-racism protesters gather at National Assembly in Quebec City-[CBC]-YAHOONEWS-February 18, 2017
Hundreds gathered in front of the National Assembly in Quebec City Saturday afternoon to denounce racism and call for greater unity in the province.The protest, which was followed by a march through the streets around the National Assembly, was part of an anti-racism festival that kicked off Thursday.A number of speakers addressed the crowd, including Mohamed Labidi, president of the Quebec City mosque where a gunman shot and killed six worshippers and wounded 19 others Jan. 29."Long live a unified Quebec, a Quebec without discrimination, a Quebec without racism," he said, adding that "we still have a ways to go."A spokesperson for the festival, Nicolas Villamarin, said xenophobia isn't the future of Quebec society."The rise of racism and intolerance threatens our rights and liberties and don't reflect the society that we want to build together," he said.After the speeches, the crowd walked through the streets of downtown Quebec City, past the U.S. Consulate, city hall and Place d'Youville.
MIGRATING BIRDS IN ISRAEL EATS HUMANS FLESH FOR COMING AGAINST ISRAEL-JERUSALEM
EZEKIEL 39:11-12,18
11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog (RUSSIA/ARAB/MUSLIMS) a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers (EAST OF THE DEAD SEA IN JORDAN VALLEY) on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog (RUSSIAN) and all his multitude:(ARAB/MUSLIM HORDE) and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.(BURIEL SITE OF THE 300 MILLION,RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS)
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.(OF ISRAEL)
16 And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.(OF THE ISRAEL-GOD HATERS)
EZEKIEL 39:17-21
17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.(OF RUSSIAN/ISLAMIC HORDES AGAINST ISRAEL)
18 Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
19 And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
20 Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
21 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.
22 So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward.
REVELATION 19:17-18
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;(AGAINST ALL NATIONS ARMIES THAT COME AGAINST JERUSALEM AND ISRAEL)
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
EZEKIEL 38:1-7
1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face against Gog,(RULER) the land of Magog,(RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal,(TOBOLSK) and prophesy against him,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) the chief prince of Meshech(MOSCOW) and Tubal:TOBOLSK)
4 And I (GOD) will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws,(GOD FORCES THE RUSSIA-MUSLIMS TO MARCH) and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:
5 Persia,(IRAN,IRAQ) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:
6 Gomer,(GERMANY) and all his bands; the house of Togarmah (TURKEY) of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.(AFRICAN MUSLIMS,SUDAN,TUNESIA ETC)
7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.
EZEKIEL 39:1-8
1 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog,(LEADER OF RUSSIA) and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech (MOSCOW) and Tubal: (TUBOLSK)
2 And I will turn thee back,(RUSSIA-ARAB MUSLIM ISRAEL HATERS) and leave but the sixth part of thee,(5/6TH OR 300 MILLION DEAD RUSSIAN/ARAB/MUSLIMS I BELIEVE) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts,(RUSSIA) and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:
3 And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.
4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands,( ARABS) and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.
5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
6 And I will send a fire on Magog,(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMB) and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.
8 Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord GOD; this is the day whereof I have spoken.
WELL NOW THAT KIM JONG UN-THE LEPRICON TWIRP. HAS PRETTY WELL KILLED OFF HIS FAMILY AND RELATIVES. ITS TIME FROM TRUMP TO NUKE HIS POT OF GOLD TO EXTINCTION. AND WHILE TRUMP IS GETTING RID OF TWIRPS. ITS TIME TO NUKE ALL OF MOSUL AND RAAQA. TO GET RID OF ISIS ALSO. SO THERE CAN BE PEACE FOR A FEW DAYS IN THE MIDEAST. TO GET RID OF SOME ISRAEL HATERS. THE NUKING OF OTHER ISRAEL HATING COUNTRIES CAN COME IN A MONTH-AFTER ALL THE MIGRATING BIRDS DEVOUR THE ISIS NUKED MEMBERS BODIES.
Malaysia looks for 4 North Korean suspects who left country-[Associated Press]-EILEEN NG-yahoonews-February 19, 2017
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Investigators are looking for four North Korean men who flew out of Malaysia the same day Kim Jong Nam, the North Korean ruler's outcast half brother, apparently was poisoned at an airport in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian police said Sunday.Since Kim's death last week, authorities have been trying to piece together details of what appeared to be an assassination. Malaysian police have so far arrested four people carrying IDs from North Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.Malaysia's deputy national police chief, Noor Rashid Ibrahim, said four other North Korean suspects were on the run. The men arrived in Malaysia on different days beginning Jan. 31 and flew out of the country last Monday, when Kim died, Noor Rashid said."I am not going disclose where they are," he told a room packed with journalists, adding that Interpol was helping with the investigation.Noor Rashid showed photographs of the four men, who were traveling on regular — not diplomatic — passports and are ages 33, 34, 55 and 57.He also said there were three other people police wanted to question. He said that one was North Korean, but that police had not yet identified the other two. It wasn't clear if they were suspects or simply wanted for questioning.A rotund man in his mid-40s, Kim Jong Nam was waiting for his flight home to Macau when, authorities say, he was set upon by two women. He sought help at an airport customer service desk and said "two unidentified women had swabbed or had wiped his face with a liquid and that he felt dizzy," Noor Rashid said.Kim died en route to a hospital after suffering a seizure, officials say.Noor Rashid said Sunday that he expected autopsy results to be released within days. "We have to send a sample to the chemistry department, we have to send a sample for toxicology tests," he said.Investigators also want to speak to Kim Jong Nam's next of kin to formally identify the body. He is believed to have two sons and a daughter with two women living in Beijing and Macau."We haven't met the next of kin," Noor Rashid said. "We are trying very hard to get the next of kin to come and to assist us in the investigation."Noor Rashid said charges against the four suspects in custody would be determined by prosecutors.According to police, the Indonesian woman is a spa masseuse and the Malaysian man, a caterer, is believed to be her boyfriend. The Vietnamese woman works at an entertainment outlet and the North Korean man works in the information technology department of a Malaysian company.The Indonesian woman has told investigators that she was duped into thinking she was part of a comedy show prank.Police said the North Korean man's work permit had expired Feb. 6, a week before Kim's death.The case has raised tensions between Malaysia and North Korea. Pyongyang demanded custody of Kim's body and strongly objected to an autopsy. The Malaysians went ahead with the procedure anyway, saying they were simply following procedure.Kang Chol, North Korea's ambassador to Malaysia, said that Malaysia may be "trying to conceal something" and that the autopsy was carried out "unilaterally and excluding our attendance.""We are investigating a case of murder ... we just follow our rules and regulations," Noor Rashid said.South Korea has been quick to blame its enemies in North Korea for Kim's death."Considering North Korea has so far committed crimes against humanity and terror acts, we, together with the international community, are closely watching this brutal, reckless incident with serious concerns," South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Jeong Joon Hee told reporters in Seoul on Sunday.___Associated Press writer Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea, contributed to this report.
Iran's Zarif says use of chemical weapons in Syria cannot be condoned-[Reuters]-YAHOONEWS-February 19, 2017
MUNICH (Reuters) - Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif, pointing to Sunni Islamist militants in Syria fighting against its allies in Damascus, told the Munich Security Conference that the use of chemical weapons could never be condoned.Damascus, an ally of majority-Shi'ite Iran, this week rejected a recent Human Rights Watch report that said its military and allied forces had used chemical weapons during their capture of Aleppo last year. It instead accused anti-government fighters of using chemical weapons."The use of chemical weapons can never be condoned ... Unfortunately the terrorist organizations Nusra and Daesh (Islamic State) still possess chemical weapons," Zarif said.A U.N.-Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inquiry assigned to identify organizations and individuals responsible for the chemical attacks concluded last October that Syrian government forces had used chlorine as a chemical weapon at least three times in 2014-15. Islamic State militants, it said, had used sulfur mustard gas in one attack.The U.N. Security Council extended the mandate of the inquiry, known as the Joint Investigative Mission (JIM), until November this year. It is due to issue its next report by Saturday.The United States last month blacklisted 18 senior Syrian officials it said were connected to the country's weapons of mass destruction program, after an international investigation found Syrian government forces were responsible for chlorine gas attacks against civilians.Human Rights Watch Executive Director Ken Roth told delegates the issue was likely to be discussed between major powers in the coming days."Another big test coming up is in the Security Council, probably just this next week, of the so-called joint investigative mechanism established by the Security Council," Roth said."So, the question comes up, what's next? The French have taken the lead in drafting a resolution and put it on the table imposing sanctions for Syria's use of chemical weapons and Russia is threatening to veto it."France said on Feb 14 that the U.N. had to respond over the use of chemical weapons with a resolution that would punish those responsible for repeated attacks.A French diplomatic source said that Paris was still looking for the right time to put the resolution to a vote but that it was working on a new text in the hope of ensuring it was supported by Assad ally, Russia."We have again started work on a text with our partners," the source said.(Reporting By Shadia Nasralla and Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by John Irish; Editing by Andrew Bolton)
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