Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13

Michael Hastings Sent Panicked Email About FBI Probe Hours Before Death: Report
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily NewsDaily News
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

He had a big story and wanted to get off the radar until things cooled down.

Hours later, Michael Hastings was dead.

The 33-year-old journalist’s fiery 4 a.m. single-car crash June 18 in Los Angeles came 15 hours after he sent friends a panicked email warning them the FBI was on his tail.

“Hey [redacted] — the feds are interviewing my ‘close friends and associates,’” reads the email, acquired Friday by KTLA-TV. “Perhaps if the authorities arrive ‘BuzzFeed GQ’, er HQ, may be wise to immediately request legal counsel before any conversations or interviews about our news-gathering practices or related journalism issues.

“Also: I’m onto a big story, and need to go off the radat (sic) for a bit.

“All the best, and hope to see you all soon,” Hastings signed off. The email was sent at around 1 p.m. Monday.

Let the Headlines Speak
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily NewsFrom the Internet
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Sunni-Shiite hatred permeates Middle East
It’s not hard to find stereotypes, caricatures and outright bigotry when talk in the Middle East turns to the tensions between Islam’s two main sects. Shi’ites are described as devious, power-hungry corruptors of Islam. Sunnis are called extremist, intolerant oppressors.  

Report: Greece's unemployment to rise to 30 percent in 2014
Greece's unemployment rate will increase to more than 30 percent in 2014 while the economy contracts, a report indicates. A report by the Center of Planning and Economic Research released Friday said the jobless rate will rise to 28.5 percent in 2013 and reach 30.4 percent in 2014.  

Yahoo! News Says Obama Was Born in…Kenya!
The article, about Obama’s upcoming trip to Africa, stated: President Barack Obama makes the first extended trip to Africa of his presidency next week — but he won’t be stopping at the country of his birth.  

Gun-Rights Rallygoers Defy Local Law Confront ‘Police State’ Actions
Protesters showed up to a gun-rights rally in Erie, Pa., with their firearms out in the open—purposely defying a local ordinance that prohibits guns at city parks. “We are American patriots, and we are a force to be reckoned with!” yelled Pastor George Cook of North Bangor, Pa. (350 miles away) at the Perry Square park gazebo Saturday  

Earthquake hits Russia's Far East
The epicentre was in the Sea of Okhotsk, east of the Russian coast and north of Japan. She said the quake registered 8.0 on the Richter scale. Emergency agencies in the Far East issued a tsunami warning for Sakhalin and the Kuril islands, but lifted it soon afterwards.  

Over 250,000 protesters flood Brazilian streets rallying against corruption (VIDEO, PHOTOS)
More than a quarter of a million Brazilians marched through the streets of more than 100 Brazilian cities, protesting government corruption. A new poll shows that 75 percent of citizens support the demonstrations.  

M-CLASS SOLAR FLARE
Sunspot AR1778 produced an impulsive M2-class solar flare on June 23rd at 20:56 UT. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the extreme ultraviolet flash. The eruption flung material away from the blast site, but the debris does not appear to be heading toward Earth. Except for the effects of the UV flash, which created a short-lived wave of ionization in Earth's upper atmosphere, this flare was not geo-effective.  

RADIATION STORM
A minor solar proton storm is underway around Earth. Registering "S1" on NOAA storm scales, the storm is not yet intense enough to have a significant effect on satellites or air travelers. It is, however, trending upward, so the situation could change.  

New Virus Found in Vietnam Brain Infection Patients, Study Says
The virus was detected in 28 of 644 patients who had severe brain infections and none of 122 patients who had non-infectious brain disorders, according to researchers at the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit, Wellcome Trust South East Asia Major Overseas Programme and the Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam.  

All-Time Heat Records Broken in . . . Alaska?!
A massive dome of high pressure, sometimes referred to as a "heat dome," has set up shop over Alaska, bringing all-time record temperatures just a few weeks after parts of the state had a record cold start to spring.  

Earthquake Rocks North Lombok Villages
Local residents are working with police to ward off looters after a 5.4-magnitude earthquake in North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, on Saturday afternoon injured 24 people and damaged around 1,700 houses.  

Seismologists monitor Carson City quake swarm
Nevada seismologists and emergency managers say they're monitoring an earthquake swarm in Carson City that has the potential to result in a major temblor.  

NSA controversy boosts interest in ‘private’ Internet search engines
Internet users are taking a fresh look at “privacy” search engines that do not store data or track online activity, in light of the flap over US government surveillance. While Google’s market share has not seen a noticeable dent, privacy search engines like US-based DuckDuckGo and European-based Ixquick have seen jumps in traffic from users seeking to limit their online tracks.  

India floods: Rescuers race to save survivors
Rescuers in northern India are making a concerted push to reach 7,000 people still stranded in the mountains after flash floods and landslides. Air force officials say they need to get to the affected areas urgently as time is running out for survivors. In Uttarakhand state, where the death toll is expected to pass 1,000, there was more rain on Monday with further downpours predicted.  

Egyptian army 'ready to intervene to stop conflict'
The army in Egypt has warned it will not allow the country to descend into "uncontrollable conflict". The comments by army chief Gen Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi came a week ahead of planned mass protests by opponents of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. He said the army was obliged to stop Egypt plunging into a "dark tunnel".  

UK spy scheme said to be larger than Prism
A British intelligence agency, GCHQ, has tapped into undersea fibre-optic cables to hoover up telephone conversations and Internet traffic, according to documents seen by The Guardian newspaper. Codenamed "Tempora," the secret surveillance programme is said to be on an even larger scale than the US-led Prism scheme revealed by US whistleblower Edward Snowden earlier this month.  

Merkel party: No to eurobonds and No to Turkey
Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union on Sunday (23 June) adopted its political programme ahead of the September elections, vowing to oppose any debt mutualisation in Europe. The main message of the 128-page long manifesto is that Germans should vote for the Christian Democrats and their Bavarian sister party (CSU) as they got Germany and Europe out of the crisis.  

Netanyahu: Israel to continue acting against Gaza rocket fire
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday warned Palestinians in the Hamas-led Gaza Strip that Israel would continue to act militarily against elements who launch missiles and rockets at the country's population centers. Netanyahu's comments came after six rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel overnight, prompting the Israel Air Force to respond with air strikes on multiple terror targets.

Lebanese Fighting Leaves At Least 17 Dead, Including 12 Soldiers
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Sectarian gunfights, which erupted Sunday in the southern town of Sidon, spilling over into the Palestinian Ain Hilwa refugee camp, between the Lebanese army and an armed Salafi Sunni militia led by the fiercely anti-Hizballah Sheikh Ahmed al-Asir, quickly spread to Beirut, Tripoli and the Beqaa Valley.

In Sidon, at least 12 Lebanese soldiers were killed fighting to crack down on Sheikh al Asir’s Jund a-Sham militia, which also has Palestinian Sunni extremist backing.  DEBKAfile: The Lebanese army’s crackdown on Hizballah’s opponents - while not raising a finger to stop the flow of the Shiite group’s forces into Syria - indicates that President Michel Sleiman has thrown his support behind pro-Syrian Hizballah. The clashes Sunday recall the onset of the Lebanese civil war. Then too the Palestinians took part in the fighting. Early Monday, armed roadblocks were thrown up in the Lebanese capital and the sounds of gunfire were heard, while in the northern town of Tripoli and the eastern Beqaa Valley, Lebanese troops and Sunni militias were engaged in firefights. 

Israel Rehearses Massive Al Qaeda Attacks from Syria and Egypt
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Israeli military, police, Shin Bet and special counterterrorism units early Monday staged their largest ever counter-terror exercise which simulated massive al Qaeda attacks coming in through Syria and Egypt against strategic targets and army bases. The scenario depicted scores of Israeli dead and hundreds injured, as well as the capture of hotels with large numbers of people held hostage. The exercise was planned secretly. Some of the units taking part received no advance warning of their roles until they reached the “targeted locations.” A senior army officer rated the exercise “satisfactory.” 

Israel Closes Crossing Into Gaza
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily NewsINN - Gil Ronen
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

The Kerem Shalom goods crossing, reserved for trade between Israel and Gaza, will be closed until further notice following the rocket attacks on southern Israel overnight, the army said Monday.

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) attacked targets in Gaza early Monday, following the rocket fire from Gaza, sources from both sides of the conflict said.

"In response to the numerous rockets launched at Israel in the past several the hours, IAF aircraft targeted terrorist infrastructure including two weapon storage facilities in the central Gaza Strip and a rocket launch site in the southern Gaza Strip. IAF pilots reported accurate strikes on the targets," the army said in a statement.

According to AFP, Arab witnesses said the air raids, which caused no injuries, hit uninhabited sites belonging to the Islamic Jihad movement.

Late Sunday two Arab rockets landed in southern Israel, without causing any damage or injury, according to Israeli military sources.

Two other rockets were intercepted by Israel's "Iron Dome" defense system, the army said.

It said Hamas was accountable for the rocket attacks.

Hotovely: Annex Judea and Samaria, Pay Demographic Price
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily NewsINN - Elad Benari
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Deputy Transportation Minister MK Tzipi Hotovely (Likud) said on Sunday that it was time that the Israeli government take steps to annex Judea and Samaria, even if it comes with the price of giving citizenship to Arabs residing in these areas. Estimates of the number of Arabs in the area vary from 1.5 to 2.4 million.

Speaking to Arutz Sheva, Hotovely said that offering citizenship to Palestinian Authority Arabs would be a small price pay for ending the status quo which brings international criticism of Israel, viewed as an “occupier” in Judea and Samaria.

"Some think that the way to go is to divide the country. We do not belong to this group,” she said. “Therefore we need to understand that every decision has a price, and therefore if we do not adopt the annexation plan, we will pay the price through pressure and boycotts of Israel and Judea and Samaria.”

Hotovely noted that the reality in which the Israeli right does not provide a clear answer regarding the question of the future of Judea and Samaria causes more people to fall for the idea of a two-state solution. "When we clearly declare that  these areas are not up for negotiation and that we are going to apply sovereignty over them, we can come before the public and say in a clear and loud voice that these lands are ours and we are prepared to pay a demographic price for this,” she said.

According to Hotovely, Israel should begin by annexing Area C, which is under full Israeli control, and thus present a statement to the world that Israel is moving towards full Israeli sovereignty over Judea and Samaria.

"Israel should say it is headed towards applying sovereignty. It makes no sense to leave this in the air for 45 years,” she said. “Leaving it up in the air sends a message that we have no connection to these places.”

The difference between her plan and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett’s plan, explained Hotovely, is that Bennett only says that sovereignty should be applied in Area C where only 4% of PA Arabs live - and all of the Jews - and gives Areas A and B to the Arabs. This, she said, perpetuates the Oslo Accords.

As for possible condemnations by the international community if Israel carries out such a move, Hotovely said, "The world will accept anything that sounds like a solution. Currently it wastes all its money and resources on a failed solution, because there is no Palestinian willingness to give up Jerusalem or the ‘right of return’. The world tried to promote peace with a specific formula, and if we begin to repeat the truth that Judea and Samaria are not bargaining chips for negotiations and an alternative solution begins to emerge, the world will be convinced.”

British Spy Agency Said to Tap World’s Phone Calls, E - Mails
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily Newsc/net
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Accusations of broad government surveillance have traveled across the pond. Britain’s intelligence agency has reportedly been collecting and storing vast amounts of data from the world’s telephone calls and Internet traffic — and sharing that information with the National Security Agency.

Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters secretly gained access to fiber-optic cables that carry the world’s communications, reports the Guardian. The GCHQ taps into huge amounts of data from these cables and stores it for up to 30 days to be looked over by analysts from GCHQ and the NSA.

The Guardian reported Friday that documents shown to them by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed the secret operation, code-named Tempora. It gives the GCHQ and the NSA access to “recordings of phone calls, the content of email messages, entries on Facebook and the history of any internet user’s access to websites.”

“It’s not just a U.S. problem. The U.K. has a huge dog in this fight,” said Snowden, according to the Guardian. “They [GCHQ] are worse than the U.S.”

The GCHQ has been carrying out the operation, without warrants or “any form of public acknowledgement or debate,” for nearly 18 months, according to the report.

As Egypt Lurches Into Civil Strife, Local Militias Raise Their Heads. Obama Keeps Faith With Brother
Jun 24th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

After weeks of mounting anti-government turmoil across Egypt, army chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi finally spoke up Sunday, June 23, to warn that the Egyptian army would “not watch the country descend into uncontrollable conflict” ahead of the planned June 30 mass opposition rallies” or allow “an attack on the will of the people.”

Meanwhile, Egypt lurches day by day closer to what US and Israeli intelligence diagnose as “low intensity civil war.” In outlying towns, law and order is breaking down as armed gangs attack governors and burn emblems of government, while the ruling Muslim Brotherhood deploys armed men strike back at government opponents. The police are not intervening in the disorder - any more than the army has to date.
debkafile‘s military sources note that Defense Minister al-Sissi avoided defining which side the generals regarded as representing the “will of the people” – President Mohamed Morsi who pushed them off the national stage, or the myriad opposition groups sworn to overthrow him on the first anniversary of his rise to power. They aim to replace him with a high presidential council headed by a Supreme Court judge. A number of opposition groups say they have collected 15 million signatures in support of their demand.
If they succeed in their high-stake bid, Egypt would undergo its third revolution in three years. The first in 2011 ousted President Hosni Mubarak, whose successor, the Supreme Military Council, was itself unseated in 2012 by the Muslim Brotherhood.

The popular voice, heartened by the middle class clamor rising in Istanbul’s Taksim Square and Rio de Janeiro, speaks with greater confidence in its power to put Mohamed Morsi’s head on the block and get rid of Islamist rule - especially since he has also fallen out with his own Muslim Brotherhood.

For the Egyptian opposition, the 16 provincial governors the president approved this month were the last straw which shut the door to any possible conciliation and dialogue with the incumbent rulers. Morsi was considered as going too far by his appointment as governor of Luxor, Adel Khayat, a member of the extremist Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiyya, al Qaeda’s Egyptian branch.

The president has been wooing for the favor of extremist Salafist and pro-al Qaeda circles for help in standing up to Muslim Brotherhood leaders. Realizing he was the symbol of rising discord, Khayat stood down Sunday, June 23, “for the sake of Egypt.”
From the start of his presidency, Morsi’s Brotherhood masters expect Morsi to bow obediently to their authority and perform their will. His continuing independence has confronted him with his own Islamic camp as the fifth adversary bent on his ouster, in addition to –

1.  The secular and liberal groups for whom Islamic rule is anathema:

2.  Religious minorities, led by the largest, the indigenous Christian Copts;
3.  Sections of the Egyptian army;

4.  Despairing elements of the population, who see their country disintegrating into chaos and corruption, with no hope of personal security for Egypt’s masses and many of them facing starvation.
There is no reliable estimate of the size and strength of any of those five groups, excepting the Muslim Brotherhood, or their chances of coming together – either to overthrow the president, or to back him against fellow opponents.
These evaluations are further complicated by the wide reporting gap between the state of affairs in Egypt’s main cities and the bulk of the population in the rural areas. Most accounts focus on Cairo and Alexandria or, at most, the Canal towns of Suez and Ismailia, or the urban areas of the Delta, which have veered completed out of the central government’s security control. The rest of the country might as well be on the other side of the moon.

According to debkafile’s intelligence sources, local armed militias are springing up in the Suez and Delta cities and certain rural areas. Their political hues and plans of action are hard to pin down.
Two more imponderables further befog the direction in which Egypt may be headed: How the Obama administration views the mayhem touched off by the anti-Mubarak revolution it fostered, and the intentions of al-Qaeda’s Salafi allies in Sinai.
According to our Washington sources, the US has pulled away from President Morsi in disapproval, while at the same time staying close to the Muslim Brotherhood. This orientation is manifested by the coming appointment of Anne Woods Patterson, former US ambassador to Cairo, as Under Secretary for the Near East. She has been Obama’s point person for cultivating good rapport with the Muslim Brotherhood, which he counts on as a reliable and steady hand at the helm of rule in Cairo.
Washington also maintains a good relationship with the Egyptian army, which is judged as the only organized power system in the country, as well as the steadfast guardian of the historic Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty.

Lawless Sinai falls through the cracks between the US, the Muslim Brothers and the military. Its destabilizing influence reaches into the Palestinian Gaza Strip and along the Egyptian-Israeli border running down eastern Sinai.
The army is willing to combat arms smuggling through Sinai to the Palestinian Hamas in the Gaza Strip, but refuses to take on the mutinous Bedouin of the al-Qaeda-linked Salafi cells who roam freely through the peninsula’s wastelands.
To step into the gap, the Obama administration last week decided to assign another 400 US soldiers to the 13-nation Multinational Observer peacekeeping force posted in Sinai to monitor the 1979 Egyptian-Israeli peace accord.