Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13

‘Americans Know the Two - State Solution Has Failed’
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily NewsINN - Eliran Aharon, Maayana Miskin
Categories: Today's Headlines;Peace Process

United States leaders realize that the so-called “two-state solution” has failed, former Yesha Council head Danny Dayan declared following a round of meetings with senior U.S. officials.

Dayan spoke to Arutz Sheva after speaking to several high-ranking leaders. In his latest trip to American, he has been “places where no official representatives of Yesha [Judea and Samaria] have ever been,” he said.

Dayan will also meet with high-ranking figures in the American media.

Regarding U.S. pressure on Israel to mollify the Palestinian Authority, Dayan said, “If there is any pressure, I didn’t feel it. I on the contrary feel a wish to reassess American policies in the Middle East.”

MK Yoni Chetboun of the Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) faction made similar remarks on Sunday morning. Chetboun reacted to visiting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s remarks in meetings with Israeli and PA leaders.

“It turns out that Kerry, too, understands that there is no chance of establishing a Palestinian state,” he declared.

The time has come for “an alternative to the two-state idea, something that will bring stability to the region,” he said.

Releasing terrorists, as PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has demanded, will not only not bring stability, but will do the opposite, he warned. Freeing prisoners in an attempt to coax Abbas into returning to the negotiating table “will encourage terrorists and those who send them,” he said.

Netanyahu: Israelis will Get a Chance to Nix Peace Deal
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily NewsINN - Maayana Miskin
Categories: Today's Headlines;The Nation Of Israel

Israelis will get a chance to weigh in on any planned peace deal with the Palestinian Authority, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced Sunday during the weekly Cabinet meeting.

“There won’t be a diplomatic agreement that endangers Israel’s citizens, and I believe – I think it’s vital – that any agreement, if we reach one, will be brought before the people,” he declared.

“Israel is prepared for immediate negotiations, with no preconditions,” Netanyahu said.

“We are not putting any obstacles in the way of renewed talks toward a permanent agreement and a peace deal between us and the Palestinians,” he continued. However, he added, “There are things we will strongly insist on during the talks themselves, primarily security.”

Netanyahu recently held a round of meetings with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who is trying to get Israel and the PA back to the negotiating table.

Netanyahu has repeatedly stated that he is willing to hold negotiations at any time, with no preconditions. PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas continues to insist on several preconditions, including a complete Jewish construction freeze in Israeli communities east of the 1949 Armistice line.

Let the Headlines Speak
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily NewsFrom the Internet
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Catholic Priest Beheaded in Syria by Al-Qaeda-Linked Rebels as Men and Children Take Pictures and Cheer
Syrian Catholic priest Francois Murad killed last weekend by jihadi fighters was beheaded, according to a report by Catholic Online which is linking to video purportedly showing the brutal murder. ...Murad, 49, was setting up a monastery in Gassanieh, northern Syria. Last Sunday, on the Christian leader’s Sabbath, extremist militants trying to topple President Bashar Assad breached the monastery and grabbed Murad.  

Hospitals Threaten Obamacare Savings by Exiting Program
Almost a third of 32 hospitals and health systems involved in an experiment aimed at changing the way medical providers are paid may exit the program, a potential threat to the Affordable Care Act’s ambitious cost-saving goals. Medicare’s “Pioneer” program is designed to save money by more efficiently managing care for patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and dementia.  

Dozens succumb to heat in western US
Dozens of people across western US states have been treated for exhaustion and dehydration, as the region is continuing to bake in a heat wave. A man in Las Vegas is believed to have died from a heat-related illness. Air-conditioned "cooling centres" have been set up in California, Nevada and Arizona, as officials warn the heat could be life-threatening.  

Chinese military in S.China Sea 'threatens peace'
The Philippines said that an increasing Chinese military and paramilitary presence in the disputed South China Sea was a threat to regional peace. Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario made the statement in a press release issued at a regional security forum attended by his counterparts from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China.  

Egypt protest: Crowds gather for big anti-Morsi rally
Crowds have been gathering in Cairo's Tahrir Square ahead of a mass rally to demand the resignation of Egypt's Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Thousands spent the night the square, focus of the protests which brought down former leader Hosni Mubarak. Sunday is the first anniversary of Mr Morsi's inauguration as president.  

EU concern over Der Spiegel claim of US spying
The head of the European Parliament has demanded "full clarification" from the US over a report that key EU premises in America have been bugged. Martin Schulz said that if this was true, it would have a "severe impact" on ties between the EU and the US.  

Pope warns church leaders against seeking power
Pope Francis told prelates Saturday to shun the "logic of human power," pressing his campaign to root out corruption and other wrongdoing from the Vatican's scandal-tainted power structures.  

Kerry Extends Israel Trip Amid Speculation on Talks
In a hectic day of shuttle diplomacy with senior Israeli and Palestinian leaders in two capitals, Secretary of State John Kerry struggled on Saturday to close a deal to revive dormant Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.  

Gay marriage opponents ask Supreme Court to reimpose California ban
Opponents of gay marriage filed a long-shot petition on Saturday with the Supreme Court asking the justices to immediately halt same-sex weddings taking place in California since Friday, when an appeals court lifted a 5-year-old ban on gay matrimony. Marriage ceremonies of gay and lesbian couples went ahead after a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco removed its stay of a trial judge's order declaring the gay marriage ban, known as Proposition 8, unconstitutional.  

Russia to hold talks with N. Korea about ending its nuclear program
North Korea's chief nuclear negotiator will meet senior Russian officials next week to discuss ending the embattled nation's nuclear program, Russia's foreign ministry said. The talks involving Kim Kye Gwan, North Korea's first deputy foreign minister, and Russian deputy foreign ministers Vladimir Titov and Igor Morgulov will take place Thursday, the ministry said in a statement, according to Russia's RIA Novosti news agency.  

Pakistani Christian accused of blasphemy in Canada
A Christian girl who was accused of burning Islam's holy book in a case that focused international attention on Pakistan's harsh blasphemy laws was forced to move to Canada over security concerns, her lawyer said Saturday.  

Atheists unveil Fla monument near Ten Commandments
A group of atheists unveiled a monument to their nonbelief in God on Saturday to sit alongside a granite slab that lists the Ten Commandments in front of the Bradford County courthouse. As a small group of protesters blasted Christian country music and waved "Honk for Jesus" signs, the atheists celebrated what they believe is the first atheist monument allowed on government property in the United States.

Kerry Winds Up Peace Shuttle After Palestinians Refuse to Start Talking Without Preconditions
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Peace Process

US Secretary of State John Kerry wound up his fifth peace shuttle trip for reviving Israel-Palestinian peace talks at the end of a fruitless third conversation with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah Sunday, June 30. Abbas turned down Kerry’s blueprint for both sides to forego preconditions and return straightaway to the long-stalled peace talks. The Secretary left Ramallah empty-handed after the Palestinians reverted to their three-point ultimatum: Israel must first accept 1967 borders as the basis for negotiations, release Palestinians jailed more than 20 years and freeze West Bank and Jerusalem construction.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu told the Israeli cabinet Sunday that he had offered to join the Palestinians to negotiate a final settlement without preconditions or further delay.
Kerry plans to return in a few weeks to resume his peace push.

Saturday night, debkafile reported Secretary Kerry believed he was close to a deal after both the Israelis and the Palestinians agreed to drop prior conditions for their meeting.

Kerry Makes Good Progress Toward Restarting Israeli - Palestinian Peace Talks. Preconditions Dropped
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Peace Process

Barring unforeseen glitches, US Secretary of State John Kerry is reported by debkafile’s exclusive sources Saturday night to be closer than ever before toward reviving the long-stalled peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. Since Thursday, June 27, he has been shuttling between Jerusalem and Amman, whittling down the gaps between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Saturday night, Kerry dared to start looking at a realistic prospect of them getting together in Amman and kicking off direct talks for a settlement of the longest Middle East dispute.
Behind a cloak of secrecy and “difficulties” used as red herrings, the US Secretary came up with a formula that has come close to acceptance. The gist is, as Netanyahu has demanded all along, that the two parties withdraw all preconditions, sit down together and reframe those preconditions as “demands” to be negotiated between them.
For instance, Netanyahu will no longer be required to pledge in advance an Israeli withdrawal to the pre-1967 boundaries with minor adjustments – as Abbas has insisted until now, whereas the Palestinian leader will not have to recognize Israel as the national state of the Jewish people.
Both are close to accepting “the Kerry blueprint” whereby matters of principle will be thrashed out in the course of the direct talks and not predetermined beforehand.
The Palestinian leader’s demand for the recognition of East Jerusalem as the capital of the future Palestinian state went the same way as the Israeli demand to put security issues at the top of the agenda. Netanyahu argued there was no point in acceding to the Palestinian demand for maps showing how Israel envisaged the borders of the two states, when those borders were bound to be affected in negotiations on the core issues of Jerusalem and security.

Our sources report that if both the Israeli and Palestinian leaders finally endorse “the Kerry blueprint,” we shall soon witness a landmark summit in Amman, hosted by Jordan’s King Abdullah, between Abbas, Netanyahu and Kerry, the matchmaker. This event will symbolize the restart of direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks under the America aegis.

Kerry plans to have the process accompanied by a US mechanism for clarifying – or rather, defusing - disputes as they arise, smoothing them over diplomatically or moving past them to keep the talks on course. It will be headed by a respectable American figure, or possibly even himself.

The prime minister has steadfastly refused to announce another settlement freeze on the grounds that Abbas broke off talks in the course of the first one two years ago. However, the Palestinian leader dropped this demand some weeks ago when he saw Netanyahu quietly putting construction on a back burner.
Kerry and Netanyahu agreed in principle to oil the wheels of dialogue with a hefty injection of economic assistance to the Palestinians in the region of $4 billion for improving Palestinian living conditions on the West Bank.

debkafile’s sources note cautiously that crises and upsets may still be ahead before the US Secretary can announce an early Amman summit and a breakthrough in his unrelenting drive to get the Israelis and Palestinians around the table. The Palestinian leader has made no move to withdraw his threat to turn to the UN in September, dissolve the Palestinian Authority and hand the keys to Ban Ki-moon, if the negotiations fail to satisfy the Palestinians or break down. This prospect may recede if the talks take off and go well.

Fresh Syrian Army - Hizballah Assault on Homs
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily Newsdebkafile
Categories: Today's Headlines;Contemporary Issues

Syrian and Hizballah forces embarked Saturday on a heavy assault on the rebel-held northern districts of Homs. They pounded rebel positions with heavy artillery and rockets backed by aerial bombardment by Syrian fighter-bombers.

1 - In-4 European Jews Targeted By Anti-semites
Jun 30th, 2013
Daily NewsIsrael Today - Yossi Aloni
Categories: Today's Headlines;Antisemitism

One-in-four European Jews (26 percent) experienced anti-Semitic harassment at least once over the past 12 months, and one-in-three (34 percent) were targeted in the last five years.

Five percent of the victims reported that their property had been destroyed because they are Jewish, and seven percent suffered physical injury or were threatened with physical harm.

Forty-to-fifty percent of Jews in France, Belgium and Hungary said they are considering emigration because they now feel unsafe.

These were the results of a recent survey conducted among Jews in nine European countries by the European Union's Agency for Fundamental Rights. Those figures were included in an annual assessment report to the Israeli Knesset by the Jewish People Policy Institute.

The report concluded that Jews in Europe are pessimistic about the future much more than they are willing to admit, and that Jewish people across the continent feel threatened. According to the report, Jewish life in Europe might be at another turning point.

Recently, 200-300 Jewish families left France for Montreal, Canada, and another 120 families migrated to London. New York City now has two large French Jewish communities, and over 50,000 French Jews have arrived in Israel since 1990.

Attempts over the past couple of years to further restrict Jewish life in Europe - for instance by banning circumcision, ritual slaughter of animals and Jewish burial rites - do not bode well.

Nor does the Israeli government necessarily expect the situation to improve.

Instead, the recommendations of the Knesset are to ease the ingathering of threatened European Jewish communities by removing barriers to employment and social integration, and by improving the absorption process of Jewish immigrants into the Israeli army.