Who Are Israel’s Friends?

The Times of Israel wrote on May 15:

“Forget the United States of America. Move over, Canada, Australia and Germany. The days when those countries were considered Israel’s closest friends are over. The Jewish state’s new best buddies are Egypt and Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. At least that’s the impression one could get if one listened carefully to… Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“… he has repeated this idea perhaps a dozen times — perhaps because he believes statements about peace can soften the expected pressure from the US and the European Union to advance the peace process with the Palestinians…

“Netanyahu officially agrees, in principle, to the creation of a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes that Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people. But he believes that in the current circumstances, with radical Islamists spreading havoc in Israel’s immediate vicinity, a two-state solution as imagined by the international community is unfeasible if not impossible.

“Both the US administration and the EU have explicitly called on Israel’s new government to commit to the goal of Palestinian statehood and take actual steps toward a renewal of the peace process…

“So what of Netanyahu’s dream of an Arab-Israel détente?… experts doubt that an alliance with the Gulf states is in the cards… In the absence of significant progress on the peace process, Netanyahu’s new ‘best allies’ in the Arab world will continue to show Israel the cold shoulder. Jerusalem’s friends in the US and Europe will not be so kind either…”

Israel will find itself isolated and alone in the near future. The notion that Germany might intervene in the Middle East on Israel’s behalf, as propagated by some religious groups, is naïve and unrealistic. In fact, the Bible prophesies something altogether different.

Violence on Jerusalem Day

Times of Israel wrote on May 17:

“Tens of thousands of revelers danced at Jerusalem’s Western Wall Sunday evening amid celebrations throughout the capital, marking Israel’s conquest of the city in the 1967 Six Day War. The celebrants marched to the Western Wall plaza, adjacent to Judaism’s holiest site, the Temple Mount, through the Old City’s Muslim Quarter, where Jewish marchers and Arab protesters clashed violently throughout the afternoon and evening.

“While some 2,000 police were deployed in an effort to preserve the peace and separate Israelis and Palestinians along the route of the march, Jewish teens chanted nationalistic slogans and threw cardboard boxes at the Palestinians, while Arab teens threw stones at marchers and police. Altercations broke out between the groups at the Old City’s Damascus Gate Sunday evening. It was the latest of multiple rounds of clashes…

“Israelis marked the 48th anniversary of the IDF’s capture of East Jerusalem Sunday, a military victory that opened the holy city’s ancient center — and with it the holiest place in Judaism, the Temple Mount and its Western Wall — to Jewish worshipers for the first time since Israel’s founding in 1948. The day is celebrated with official ceremonies, special tours and events, and a march which for years has raised tensions over its route through the Old City’s Muslim Quarter.

“The march concluded in the evening with tens of thousands of celebrants dancing at the Western Wall in the company of prominent politicians and rabbinic leaders. Events were taking place throughout the city Sunday, including concerts, museums opening to the public for free and parades to mark Israel’s larger victory in the 1967 Six Day War and the unification of the capital under Israeli rule. Official events included memorials for soldiers killed during the 1967 war and a ceremony featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Reuven Rivlin and other prominent officials…

“A number of other ceremonies were also scheduled at the Mount Herzl military cemetery, at the Rockefeller Museum, the American consulate in Jerusalem, and a special event for Ethiopian Jews who died on their journey to Israel. Settlements throughout the West Bank also celebrate Jerusalem Day as the beginning of the Jewish settlement movement in the West Bank.”

Abbas an Angel of Peace?

The Associated Press wrote on May 16:

“Pope Francis praised Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as an ‘angel of peace’ during a meeting Saturday at the Vatican that underscored the Holy See’s warm relations with the Palestinians.

“Francis made the compliment during the traditional exchange of gifts at the end of an official audience in the Apostolic Palace. He presented Abbas with a medallion and explained that it represented the ‘angel of peace destroying the bad spirit of war.’ Francis said he thought the gift was appropriate since ‘you are an angel of peace.’ During his 2014 visit to Israel and the West Bank, Francis called both Abbas and Israeli President Shimon Peres men of peace.

“Abbas is in Rome for the canonization Sunday of two 19th-century nuns from what was then Ottoman-ruled Palestine. The new saints, Mariam Bawardy and Marie Alphonsine Ghattas, are the first from the region to be canonized since the early days of Christianity. Abbas on Saturday offered Francis relics of the two new saints… Abbas’ visit also comes days after the Vatican finalized a bilateral treaty with the ‘state of Palestine’ that made explicit its recognition of Palestinian statehood…”

Pope Francis’ Diplomatic Leadership

Reuter’s reported on May 17:

“Pope Francis’ hard-hitting criticisms of globalization and inequality long ago set him out as a leader unafraid of mixing theology and politics. He is now flexing the Vatican’s diplomatic muscles as well.

“Last year, he helped to broker an historic accord between Cuba and the United States after half a century of hostility.

“This past week, his office announced the first formal accord between the Vatican and the State of Palestine — a treaty that gives legal weight to the Holy See’s longstanding recognition of de-facto Palestinian statehood despite clear Israeli annoyance.

“The pope ruffled even more feathers in Turkey last month by referring to the massacre of up to 1.5 million Armenians in the early 20th century as a “genocide”, something Ankara denies.

“After the inward-looking pontificate of his scholarly predecessor, Pope Benedict, Francis has in some ways returned to the active Vatican diplomacy practiced by the globetrotting Pope John Paul II, widely credited for helping to end the Cold War.

“Much of his effort has concentrated on improving relations between different faiths and protecting the embattled Middle East Christians, a clear priority for the Catholic Church…

“‘He’s someone who’s capable of praying in the Blue Mosque in Istanbul and then talking about the Armenian genocide. He’s not someone who’s bound by political correctness,’ said former Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini.

“‘It’s the diplomacy of a real leader.’”

Iran’s True Colors

Breitbart wrote on May 15:

“Iran will never allow Western powers or the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect Tehran’s military sites as part of a final agreement with the P5+1 world powers, Iran’s Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Movahedi Kermani said Friday in an address to Tehran University students. Kermani has enormous influence in the country as Tehran’s Friday Prayers imam, and is appointed directly by the country’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

“He said that the West, and particularly the United States, ‘are hallucinating’ if they think that Iran would allow inspection of its military apparatus, according to Iran’s state-controlled Fars News agency. Those who wish for Iran to recognize the State of Israel as part of a final agreement should ‘bury their dreams,’ the Ayatollah added…

“In addition to his role as Friday prayers leader, Kermani serves as the leader of the Combatant Clergy Association, an Iranian political party that helped overthrow the Shah in 1979 and install the radical Islamic Republic into power.”

As Iran is very clear in its ambitions and goals, why is the West so set on striking a deal with Iran?

Egypt’s New Phase of Terrorism

AFP wrote on May 16:

“An Egyptian court on Saturday sentenced deposed Islamist [first democratically elected] president Mohamed Morsi and more than 100 other people to death for their role in a mass jailbreak during the 2011 uprising. [The verdict included Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badei, already sentenced to death in another trial, and his deputy Khairat al-Shater.]

“Hours after the ruling, gunmen shot dead two judges, a prosecutor and their driver in the strife-torn Sinai Peninsula, in the first such attack on the judiciary in the region…

“Morsi, elected president in 2012 as the Brotherhood’s compromise candidate after Shater was disqualified, ruled for only a year before mass protests spurred the military to overthrow him in July 2013. He was among dozens of Islamist leaders detained during a crackdown that left hundreds of Morsi supporters dead. Many of those sentenced on Saturday were tried in absentia, including prominent Qatar-based Islamic cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi.

“The court will pronounce its final decision on June 2, since under Egyptian law, death sentences are referred to the mufti, the government’s interpreter of Islamic law, who plays an advisory role. Defendants can still appeal even after the mufti’s recommendation…

“Amnesty International lashed out at Saturday’s verdict, saying it reflected ‘the deplorable state of the country’s criminal justice system’. ‘The death penalty has become the favourite tool for the Egyptian authorities to purge the political opposition,’ the London-based rights watchdog said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the death sentence, saying the country was ‘turning back into ancient Egypt’, referring to Pharaonic rule that ended more than two millennia ago… [He also accused the West of turning “a blind eye” to the 2013 coup.]

“Many of the defendants are Palestinians alleged to have worked with Hamas in neighbouring Gaza. They were tried in absentia, as was a Lebanese Hezbollah commander. They were alleged to have colluded with Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood to carry out attacks in Egypt in what prosecutors allege was a vast conspiracy…

“Condemning the verdict, Hamas said that some of its members mentioned in the proceedings were already dead before the 2011 uprising, while some are in Israeli prisons…

“Morsi and other former opposition members have now been condemned for violence during the anti-Mubarak uprising, while Mubarak himself has been cleared of charges over the deaths of protesters during the 18-day revolt that toppled him. Morsi was in prison when the anti-Mubarak uprising erupted on January 25 2011, having been rounded up with other Brotherhood leaders a few days earlier.

“On January 28, protesters fuelled by police abuses torched police stations across Egypt, allowing thousands of prisoners to escape when the force all but collapsed. Since Morsi’s overthrow, the police [have] largely been rehabilitated in public eyes, with officials and loyal media blaming the Brotherhood and foreigners for the violence of the anti-Mubarak uprising.

“The army chief who overthrew Morsi, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, was himself elected president last year. He has pledged to eradicate the Brotherhood, once Egypt’s largest political movement.”

This does not sound like Egypt will become a modern “king of the South,” as some erroneously claim, leading the Arab world, including Iran, the Palestinians and other Islamic countries, and “pushing”  against Europe. Welt Online commented that these verdicts show how much Egypt has departed from being a “constitutional state.”

US Forces Kill One of IS Leaders in Syria

Deutsche Welle reported on May 16:

“US troops flew into eastern Syria and killed IS militant leader Abu Sayyaf in what Washington has called a ‘major blow’ to the terrorist group. Sayyaf is believed to have handled the IS’ oil and financial operations.

“Sayyaf was killed ‘during the course of the operation when he engaged US forces,’ White House National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said. The operation was carried out with the ‘full consent of Iraqi authorities’ and was ‘consistent with domestic and international law,’ she added.

“US authorities, however, did not coordinate with Syrian authorities, Meehan said, adding that Washington had ‘warned the Assad regime not to interfere with our ongoing efforts against ISIL [The Islamic State in Syria and the Levant] inside of Syria.’

“US Special Operations Forces had been ordered to conduct an operation in al-Amr in eastern Syria to capture Sayyaf and his wife, Umm Sayyaf, Pentagon chief Ashton Carter said late Friday.”

Bild Online reported that the US forces had attempted to capture Sayyaf alive, but when he resisted, he “had to be” killed. However, Welt Online reported that according to the White House, the order to kill Sayyaf was given directly by President Obama at Camp David. The paper also claimed that Syria had NOT been informed ahead of time of the action.

To contribute to the confusion, The Associated Press added on May 16:

“Syrian state TV earlier reported that Syrian government forces killed at least 40 ISIS fighters, including a senior commander in charge of oil fields, in an attack Saturday on the country’s largest oil field — held by ISIS… It was not immediately clear why both Syria and the U.S. would claim a similar operation in the Omar oil field. The U.S. has said it is not cooperating with President Bashar Assad’s government in the battle against the Islamic State group. But it says it usually gives Damascus a heads-up on operations within its borders.

“… National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said the U.S. government did not coordinate with the Syrian government or advise it in advance of the operation…

“The extremist group controls much of northern and eastern Syria as well as northern and western Iraq. It has control of most of the oil fields in Syria, which are a key source of its funding… The special operation was announced as ISIS fighters were advancing in central and northeastern Syria. The militants are nearing the historic city of Palmyra, in the central province of Homs, and have seized [a] water facility and an oil field on the city’s eastern outskirts, activists said.

“The advances in the Palmyra countryside were coupled with an announcement Saturday by the Islamic State group that its fighters have seized full control of Saker Island in the Euphrates River north of Deir el-Zour, the northeastern province divided between areas held by the group and the government.”

Breitbart added on May 21:

“Just two days after Islamic State fighters were supposedly routed and driven into the desert by Syrian government troops, ISIS has reportedly taken the entire city of Palmyra, placing both its population and historical treasures in grave peril… 

“CNN quotes one Palmyra resident saying of ISIS fighters, ‘They are everywhere.’  Many of the 70,000 people who lived in the city have fled, while others are huddled in their houses, hoping to escape the notice of the brutal occupation force. ‘After at least 100 Syrian soldiers died in fighting overnight, Syrian warplanes carried out airstrikes Thursday in and around Palmyra, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. 

“But there’s no indication when, or if, Syrian ground forces will try to take back the city. Nor is there a sense that any of the others fighting ISIS, like the United States, will come to the rescue,’ writes CNN.”

The Financial Times added on May 21:

“Ever since the Islamist militants of Isis swept into northern Iraq from Syria last June, the Obama administration has had a consistent response: the Syrian conflict may be complex and uncertain, officials would argue, but the US had a clear plan for Iraq. The dramatic fall in recent days of Ramadi [in Iraq] has blown a hole in that confidence… 

“For an administration still struggling to come to terms with the rapid rise of Isis, which seized the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra on Thursday, the fall of Ramadi has had uncomfortable echoes of the takeover nearly a year ago of the northern city of Mosul, when Iraqi forces simply melted away.”

Deutsche Welle wrote on May 21:

“The Islamists are now thought to control more than half of Syria.”

In addition, the Huffington Post wrote on May 21:

“U.S.-led airstrikes against the Islamic State and other militants in Syria killed two young girls in November, the military confirmed Thursday. The announcement is the first American acknowledgement that the campaign, begun in September 2014, has killed civilians…

“The killing of civilians, even unintentionally, has serious ramifications for the U.S.-led fight against the Islamic State and Washington’s hopes to restore stability to Syria. Many Syrians — particularly non-extremists central to President Barack Obama’s vision for the country — are already highly skeptical of the international mission because they say it neglects the real problem in their country — the oppressive, bloody rule of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

“Scores of reports have questioned previous U.S. claims that no civilians have been killed. The most recent evidence of civilian deaths caused by the U.S.-led campaign emerged earlier this month as the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said an air raid hit a civilian village by mistake and claimed 52 lives — including those of seven children. 118 civilians appeared to have died in the overall campaign at that point…”

England on Its Way Out?

Daily Express wrote on May 16:

“During face-to-face talks with Mr Cameron in Edinburgh yesterday, Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon called for a veto for Scotland, as well as for England, Wales and Northern Ireland [pertaining to a decision to leave the EU]. It would have meant that Britain could not leave the EU without the agreement of all four nations. But the Prime Minister said Britain will vote as one nation.

“His pledge is a key manifesto commitment and marks a giant leap forward for the Daily Express crusade for the UK to quit the EU. Ms Sturgeon has said if the UK votes to leave the EU in a referendum and a majority in Scotland back staying in, that could trigger a second Scottish referendum. [Mr Cameron rejected that possibility.]…

“Yesterday Foreign secretary Philip Hammond [was] raising the possibility of an in-or-out referendum vote a year early in 2016.”

US Worried About the UK

The EUObserver wrote on May 14:

“US policymakers are worried about the UK. The US’ closest and most capable ally is facing defence spending cuts that could lower the army to its smallest size in 250 years, inhibit its ability to run both its forthcoming aircraft carriers simultaneously, and drop its defence spending rate below the critical 2 percent of GDP threshold that Nato guidelines stipulate. The UK’s national elections last week did little to alleviate these concerns. The Conservatives’ victory raises international concerns over a ‘Brexit’ from the EU and a country fractured along political fault lines through the nascent UK Independence Party and Scottish National Party, which vehemently opposes the country’s nuclear triad…

“But beyond the numbers, these projected defence cuts manifests a larger existential debate on how the UK defines itself in the world. Cracks and fissures are appearing around the edges of the UK’s globalised foreign policy, from the bungled 2013 Parliament vote on intervention in Syria after Cameron convinced the US it was a done deal, to Cameron’s conspicuous absence from the ceasefire agreement his French and German counterparts brokered between Russia and Ukraine, to record-low public support for retaining the UK’s nuclear trident (the linchpin of its nuclear deterrence), to the unresolved ‘Brexit’ debate that continues to erode the UK’s standing in the EU.

“While the UK elections featured a swell of bold platforms from all factions, no political party seemed willing to tackle the uncomfortable question that underlies all these elements: Does the UK still have an appetite for a grander role and global presence, or does it want to close ranks and merely defend the realm? This question does not augur well for the US’ future reliance on the UK as its go-to ally for new military operations…

“The ink was barely dry on an Alliance-wide commitment to reverse defence cuts at the Nato Summit in the UK last September when it was revealed the summit’s host nation likely won’t uphold this pledge…”

What Does Cameron Mean?

The Independent wrote on May 13:

“Britain is too ‘passively tolerant’ and should not leave people to live their lives as they please just because they obey the law, David Cameron has said. At the National Security Council today Mr Cameron unveiled a series of measures that he said would crack down on people holding minority ‘extremist’ views that differed from Britain’s consensus. ‘For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens “as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone”’, he said. ‘It’s often meant we have stood neutral between different values. And that’s helped foster a narrative of extremism and grievance.’”

These are potentially dangerous and explosive words. Would this include religious views being held by a small minority of people, while the majority believes differently? Would this lead to the enforcement of religious practices being upheld by the vast majority, but opposed by a small minority, based on biblical injunctions?

For instance, would this mean that everyone would have to observe Christmas, Easter or Sunday (“Christian” religious holidays which are derived from paganism), while being prevented from keeping the biblically mandated Sabbath and other annual biblical holidays which might be considered “extremist” by orthodox Christianity and the Church of England? One might think that this is far-fetched, but Great Britain’s past includes many cases of severe persecution of Sabbath-keepers—as is true for all European countries, the USA and of course other nations.

The “Biggest Scandal of Our Times”

Der Spiegel wrote on May 15:

“The NSA scandal first morphed into a BND intelligence scandal and eventually into a German government scandal. The biggest scandal of our times. A US intelligence agency, thrown into panic by the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, gathered every last scrap of data it could, presumably (if this qualifier is even necessary at the point), breaking American, German and international law in the process, conducting itself like a secret society inside an open one.

“This breach of law was justified as being in the interests of security… the NSA’s spying activities, carried out with the help of the BND and the failure of the German government, amount to an attack on our freedom, our values and our way of life…”

Annual Charlemagne Prize for Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament

Deutsche Welle reported on May 14:

“At a ceremony in the Germany city of Aachen on Thursday, European Parliament President Martin Schulz was presented with the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen. The prize is awarded for ‘work done in the service of European unification’…

“German President Joachim Gauck, French President Francois Hollande, Jordan’s King Abdullah II and other European and German dignitaries were on hand for the ceremony… In his keynote address, Gauck began on ‘a dark note,’ as he put it, quoting Schulz himself: ‘For the first time in the post-World War II period, the failure of the European Union is a realistic scenario.’ Gauck was referring to problems facing Europe, from the conflict in Ukraine to the divisive, nationalist tendencies in countries such as Greece.

“He said these conflicts showed that many Europeans harbored doubts about the European Union, looking instead to go it alone as nation states in setting policies and crafting foreign relationships. Gauck said Schulz was a man… who saw the need to restore trust in the European Union, implying that this was his biggest contribution to Europe…

“Schulz is German and originally from the town of Würselen, near Aachen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia… he became a member of the European Parliament in 1994. The Social Democrat is serving his second consecutive stint as president of the European Parliament, a role he first assumed in January 2012…”

First Same-Sex Marriage of a EU Leader

The New York Times wrote on May 15:

“The prime minister of Luxembourg on Friday wed his partner of several years in the first same-sex marriage of a European Union leader. Prime Minister Xavier Bettel married Gauthier Destenay, a Belgian architect, less than a year after lawmakers in Luxembourg overwhelmingly legalized same-sex marriage, a sign of shifting attitudes in the predominantly Roman Catholic duchy…

“Mr. Bettel, a 42-year-old lawyer, is the head of the center-right Democratic Party and was elected prime minister in 2013 after having served as mayor of the capital, the city of Luxembourg. He replaced Jean-Claude Juncker, now head of the European Commission, who had been in power for nearly 19 years.

“Johanna Sigurdardottir, the former prime minister of Iceland, which is not a European Union member, married her female partner in 2010, while still in office… Stéphane Bern, a French journalist, noted how Luxembourg, often seen as more conservative than its European neighbors, had surprised even the president of France, where same-sex marriage was legalized in 2013 after months of tumultuous and angry debate…”

How times have changed. Note the next article.

UK Holds the Crown on LGBTI Rights, but Sweden Not Far Behind…

The Local wrote on May 12:

“After looking at how well 48 different nations ranked on issues such as marriage equality, employment, adoption and medical treatment, the ILGA (European Region of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association) gave Sweden a score of 72 percent on its annual Rainbow Map. The result puts Sweden above all other Nordic countries for LGBTI rights and in fourth place overall…

“The other Scandinavian countries weren’t far behind, with Denmark and Norway also reaching the top ten and Finland coming in 13th place. The UK held on to its crown at the head of the table while Malta jumped eight places to come third. Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan remained the bottom three nations…

“In Sweden it was agreed that the gender-neutral pronoun ‘hen’ would enter the dictionary, a promise that was fulfilled earlier this year. The move coincided with a number of local initiatives including gender-neutral toilets in several municipalities.

“Denmark was also praised in the report for ‘great steps forward’ in the shape of its ‘progressive legal gender recognition law’ designed to make it easier for transgender people to have their gender identity legally recognised.

“Meanwhile Estonia became the first former USSR country to officially recognise same sex unions by passing an historic cohabitation act and future marriage equality was approved in Finland and enacted in England, Wales and Scotland, the report noted…

“In 2013, the Spartacus International Gay Guide ranked Sweden the most gay-friendly nation in the world.”

Israelite nations excel in their sad reputation of being highly supportive of “alternative life styles,” which the Bible condemns as abominations.

Legalization of Same-Sex Marriages by Popular Vote in Catholic Ireland?

The Washington Post wrote on May 16:

“Catholic and deeply conservative, Ireland was long known as one of the toughest places in the Western world to be gay. Homosexuality was only decriminalized here in 1993, following years of pressure from European authorities. But now Ireland may be preparing for its coming-out party, with a referendum on Friday [May 22] that could make it the world’s first country to approve same-sex marriage in a popular vote.

“That such a momentous event in the gay rights struggle could happen here, of all places, reflects the breathtaking social change that has swept Ireland in recent years and the weakening hold of the scandal-scarred Catholic Church. The church has come out firmly against the referendum. But in a country where priests once held unquestioned sway and where 85 percent of the nation still identifies as Catholic, a large majority of Ireland appears ready to defy church teachings and vote to give same-sex partners the same right to marry as heterosexual couples…

“The change to Ireland’s constitution could reverberate well beyond this island nation’s borders at a time when other countries, the United States among them, are wrestling with the issue in legislation and in the courts. Unlike in the United States, where nine Supreme Court justices will soon give their ruling, Ireland has placed the choice in the hands of its 4.5 million people — leading to a passionate and colorful campaign that has made a once-taboo subject the focus of a national debate…

“Abortion is still prohibited in Ireland. But same-sex marriage is seen by traditionalists as perhaps the ultimate concession to cultural relativism in a country where divorce was illegal and the sale of condoms was tightly regulated until the mid-1990s…

“The government backs a yes vote, as do all the significant political parties, the major media organizations, unions and business groups. The yes campaign has also won support from sports stars and even some dissident clerics. In January, a Dublin priest announced during a Saturday night mass that he supported the referendum and that he is gay. His congregants gave him a standing ovation. The church hierarchy has been notably quiet — releasing letters and preaching sermons against the measure but hardly putting its full weight behind the referendum’s defeat. In a country where the wounds of the church’s child sex abuse scandal are still raw, it’s unclear whether Catholic leaders could influence voters even if they tried…

“Polls have shown that same-sex marriage is favored by a significant majority of Irish voters. But the contest is expected to tighten as the campaign enters its final days…”

 Mandatory Vaccination Bill Passes California Senate

The Huffington Post wrote on May 14:

“A bill that would make vaccines mandatory for nearly every child in California passed the state Senate on Thursday morning. The controversial bill ensures that parents enrolling their children in California schools will be allowed to opt them out of immunizations only for medical reasons and may no longer cite religious or personal belief exemptions as reasons not to vaccinate. It passed 25-10 in the Senate, The Associated Press reported…

“The bill now advances to the state Assembly and, if passed by that chamber, to Democrat Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk for final approval. While the governor has not taken a stance on whether vaccines should be mandatory, a spokesman told the Los Angeles Times that Brown ‘believes that vaccinations are profoundly important and a major public health benefit, and any bill that reaches his desk will be closely considered.’

“If the measure becomes law, California will join Mississippi and West Virginia as the only states with such strict vaccine requirements. Bills aimed at limiting non-medical exemptions to vaccines failed in Washington state and Oregon in March.

“Since the bill was introduced, the state’s vocal anti-vaccination community has staged protests outside lawmakers’ offices throughout the state. Pan’s office has received so many phone calls that it had to open a second phone line, ABC 7 reported.”

This is just another example as to how antagonistic and ignorant law makers in some of our most liberal states are really trying to suppress and abandon religious freedom and liberty in this country—for the sake of the “greater good” (i.e., the “outbreak” of just a very few (!) cases of measles in one of California’s amusement parks, allegedly due to unvaccinated children—a claim which has been highly disputed and which is really without merit).

This slogan has led to the violation and “sacrifice” of individual liberties, while it has caused many atrocities through the years… one may only think of Nazi Germany or Stalin’s dictatorship. This liberal way of thinking justifies the killing of innocent civilians in war, labeling their death as necessary casualties—or it tolerates or even advocates the murder of unborn children through abortion, as it is allegedly within the right of the mother to rule over her body. None of the liberal advocates (including many Catholics and Protestants) seem to care about the right of the innocent and helpless child.

Report from the UK by Brian Gale:

The British general election has just taken place and the outcome is surprising, to say the least.   Before the election, not one of the eleven polling companies predicted a Conservative victory but suggested that both of the two main parties would be very close in the number of seats won.   However, the final exit poll showed a different picture much to everyone’s surprise, and that has been borne out by the result.

Certainly the victory could turn out to be something of a poisoned chalice with the Prime Minister and the newly elected government facing nationalism in Scotland and anti-European sentiment in England plus many other things that need attention.   It will be very interesting to see how it all plays out.

Even though we are not to vote or take political sides, it is always interesting to see what happens as we have to live with the result and consequences.   Wikipedia writes about one of the most famous slogans in political history: ‘‘It’s the economy, stupid’ is a slight variation of the phrase ‘The economy, stupid,’ which James Carville had coined as a campaign strategist of Bill Clinton’s successful 1992 presidential campaign against sitting president George H. W. Bush.   Clinton’s campaign had advantageously used the then-prevailing recession situation in the US as one of the campaign means to successfully unseat George H. W. Bush.”

The existing coalition government in the UK focused their campaign on their financial management of the economy, having inherited a dire economy in 2010 and they were, in effect saying, “It’s the economy stupid”.  Of course the other parties told a different story.   They said, as you would expect, that they would do a better job if they were elected.

The leaders of two of the three main parties are both atheists (they have both subsequently resigned as leaders of their party after their defeat) and Mr Cameron is a believer in God and an Anglican churchgoer although he admits that he doesn’t attend church as much as he should.   Mr Blair, a former UK Prime Minister, was a believer in God but allowed those around him to say that “we don’t do God”.   Is it any wonder that we continually have problems when the ideas for running the economy and legislation enacted come from the recesses of men’s minds without any reference whatsoever to God’s Word?

There was a time when leaders did acknowledge the wisdom that can be found in the Word of God, and our nations were influenced in a positive way.   However, any such influence that there was has been eroded by the liberal permissive society in recent decades, and to our detriment.

Unfortunately, UK politicians no longer seem to have any deference towards the Bible and the wisdom that it can give to those who read it in belief and who ask God for understanding.   Problems are evident in every nook and cranny of society today, but the very obvious is ignored.  The problems are now far too big, not only because they are now out of hand, but there is also absolutely no willingness to acquire true knowledge from the pages of the Bible.   It is seen as archaic and completely out of touch, rather than having the answers to the woes currently being experienced.

Running the country, according to those in power or seeking power, is all about GDP (Gross Domestic Product), inflation, interest rates, unemployment levels, a minimum wage, taxes paid to government spending, stock market indices and a number of other issues.

We have surely passed the point of no return when mankind at large does not have the capacity to solve the manifold and often complex problems that engulf the world at this time.   We have seen that many countries around the world have economic problems on a scale hitherto not experienced, and at the same time, a breakdown in understanding right from wrong.   Are the two connected?

In effect, it is believed that it is all about material prosperity – “it’s the economy stupid.”   But consider carefully the following:

Our UK governments in recent years have striven to allow and encourage women to go out to work.   Children suffer with little parental instruction and absent parents (of course, in some cases, this may be very necessary because of an absent parent or the inability to earn sufficient income even from a two parent working family).

Our UK governments have approved and promote homosexuality and other perverted sexual activities.

Our UK governments have their own definition of the family which emerge from the ideas and thoughts of politicians according to their own reasonings.

Our UK governments have allowed abortion and, in the process, have killed millions of innocent unborn children.

Our UK governments have presided over education which is increasingly liberal with the false, ridiculous theory of evolution being taught as fact.

Our UK governments have allowed ill-discipline in schools to proliferate, so that teachers can’t do their jobs properly, and this ill-discipline is now endemic in society at large.  It all leads to more aggression and violence and affects the very fabric of our society.

Our UK governments have presided over the marginalisation of Christianity whilst allowing foreign religions to promote their own creed in this country.

You will note from the above examples that the economy is not mentioned except in passing.   And this is the fundamental problem today.  Yes, a vibrant and successful economy is necessary to sustain all that needs to be done but if the foundation is wrong then the whole house falls.

In Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28 we read about the blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience.   If we had, as a nation, observed all of God’s Commandments (Deuteronomy 28:3), we wouldn’t have all the problems that are extant in society today.   Whilst these were blessings that would have been given to ancient Israel, the same principles apply to their descendants.    And we are those descendants today (see our booklet, “The Fall and Rise of Britain and America”).

In Deuteronomy 28, verses 2-6, many blessings are outlined which we don’t enjoy today.   In verse 7 we read that we would be protected against our enemies and many blessings are revealed in verses 8-14.   From verses 15 onwards, the curses for disobedience are described, which we are now reaping because God is seen, generally, as either non-existent or irrelevant.

Just think of the change that would happen if the leaders and nations turned to God.   The book of Jonah shows what can happen when a nation “from the greatest to the least of them” (Jonah 3:5) believe God and obey Him.

Our new government in the UK has no chance of resolving the issues that confront our nation because they are tackling them from a wrong perspective.   If they said that obedience to God was essential; if they promoted marriage between a man and a woman only and totally supported the Godly family-ordained unit; if they removed all the approval of perversion that engulfs our society; if they said that abortion would no longer be allowed; if the educational system taught the truth of God rather than the false evolutionary concept; and if our government only allowed the truth of God to be taught and not all of the false religions that have invaded our lands; then we would be truly headed in the right direction.

The problem is that leaders give no thought to proper moral values; in fact, it seems that they continue to ignore the source that would ensure success.  Is a change of attitude in the nation likely to happen?   It could, but there would have to be such a transformation throughout the country that it is unlikely to happen now.

We live in a society where someone can be convicted for calling someone else a name that offends them but anybody can blaspheme the Name of the great Creator God and Jesus Christ without any sanction or prosecution whatsoever.   The nation, at large, has no respect for God and He will only allow such behaviour to go on for so long.

One other simple example will show how far the nation has descended into the depths of depravity.   On May 1st (a minority party leader stated that she was “open to the idea of legalising three-way marriages.  Party members could get the chance to formulate policy to permit so-called polyamorous relationships, which would allow more than two people to enter into marriages or have civil partnerships.”   She said that she had already led the way in calling for the liberalisation of marriage laws and is “open” to going further. This answer was given to the question, “As someone living with his two boyfriends in a stable long-term relationship I would like to know what your stance is on polyamory rights. Is there room for your support on group civil partnerships or marriages?”

It should be quite clear that since the UK has turned its back on God in so many ways, curses are the inevitable consequence.  It is safe to say that if politicians campaigned on instituting Godly values in our society, they wouldn’t be voted into power anyway.

In the book of Jeremiah we read: “How can you say, ‘We are wise, And the law of the LORD is with us’?  Look, the false pen of the scribe certainly works falsehood. The wise men are ashamed, They are dismayed and taken. Behold, they have rejected the word of the LORD; So what wisdom do they have?” (Jeremiah 8:8-9).

However, we do know from God’s Holy Days that it will happen.   The Feast of Tabernacles pictures the time when Christ will rule on earth and a right way of living will be taught and implemented at that time.   Whilst it won’t happen before the return of Jesus Christ, it will happen when He returns to this earth.   There will be no more elections, no more politics and no more Satan-inspired activities.   It will be well worth waiting for!

Cameron Wins with Simple Majority

JTA wrote on May 8:

“Ed Miliband, the first Jewish leader of Britain’s Labour Party, is resigning as British Prime Minister David Cameron definitively won reelection… The surprisingly strong showing scuttled Miliband’s ambitions of becoming his country’s first Jewish prime minister…

“According to polls, British Jews strongly favored Cameron, in part because of Miliband’s relative coolness on Israel and the Labour Party’s shift to the left since the departure of Tony Blair, who led Britain in the 1990s and the first part of the 2000s.

“Poor showings by the anti-immigrant U.K. Independence Party led its leader, Nigel Farage, to resign on Friday. Also resigning was David Clegg, the leader of the centrist Liberal Democrats…”

The UKIP executive refused to accept Nigel Farage’s resignation and so he is now back as their leader.   Although they only have one seat in Parliament (out of 650 available) they did poll 3.9 million votes and many had been drawn to the party by their immigration stance and their commitment to withdrawal from the EU.

Many “explanations” were given as to why all these polls were so terribly wrong and totally unreliable. But the real answer might be that God directed the outcome of these elections, to keep Mr. Cameron in office so that he could bring about God’s prophesied purpose of having Great Britain leave the EU (Mr. Cameron insisted after the election that the promised referendum will take place in 2017, when Britain will decide whether or not it would stay in Europe—a vast majority is expressing a wish to leave the EU). Even though Mr. Cameron has only pledged to hold it—not to support it—Mr. Milliband had vowed a much closer co-operation with the EU. Please view our new StandingWatch program, “WHY the Surprise Victory for David Cameron?”

Cameron’s Victory “Bad News for Europe?” — Germany Will Have to “Take an Even More Dominant Role in Europe”

 The Local wrote on May 8:

“German politicians and commentators confronted the reality that Germany would have to take an even more dominant role in Europe on Friday after David Cameron’s Conservative party achieved a surprise victory in the British general election.

“Cameron’s promise to put the UK’s membership of the European Union to a vote in 2017 and the massive surge of support for the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) will likely see the country consumed with its internal politics. Meanwhile, elections the same year in France could see the eurosceptic National Front divide the country, leaving Germany the only one of Europe’s three largest nations with the stability to look to a long-term vision.

“… the trend of recent years which has seen Germany take a leading role in European foreign policy is set to continue…

“Spiegel interpreted the election result in the European context, leading with the blunt headline ‘Bad news for Europe.’ ‘Firstly this is a bad result for Europe. It means that Cameron, the weak leader, will become even more susceptible to pressure from within his own party. The eurosceptic loudmouths from the back-benches will become even more powerful,’ wrote Christoph Scheuermann…

“The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung spoke of having to ‘rub one’s eyes’ when the results were announced, expressing disbelief at how misleading opinion polls had been… the paper expressed anxiety at the repercussions for Europe…

“Süddeutsche Zeitung was sceptical of the surprise Conservative victory, and focused on the various problems the Prime Minister will face in his second term. ‘Struggling to triumph’ read the headline. ‘Cameron may have secured a slim overall majority, but this is far from a great victory,’ wrote Björn Finke…

“Business daily Handelsblatt went with the headline ‘Election winner in a torn land’… ‘This election accelerates dramatically historical changes that have been long in the making. For us in Europe this means the possibility of a “Brexit.”’”

The New York Times added on May 8:

 “Prime Minister David Cameron, having achieved a smashing and unexpected outright victory in Britain’s general election, heads into his second term facing severe — even existential — challenges to his nation’s identity and place in the world: how to keep the United Kingdom in the European Union and Scotland in the United Kingdom.”

AFP wrote on May 8:

“Prime Minister David Cameron’s expected new five-year term could prove less stable than the outgoing one and will put Britain on a rocky course to an EU membership referendum, analysts said Friday… Without his former junior coalition partner, the centrist Liberal Democrats, Cameron could find himself under pressure to be more right-wing and pursue a harder line on Europe, experts said.”

Things Have Changed in the UK

The Associated Press wrote on May 9:

“After years of sharing power, David Cameron pulled off an unexpected election triumph that gave the Conservative prime minister a second term with an outright majority Friday and dealt a stinging defeat to his three main rivals… But he faces a fractured Britain – divided by rich and poor, by separatist gains in Scotland and by doubts over its place in the European Union.

“The election ushers in a new era in British politics, with veteran lawmakers ousted by a public that made clear it had lost trust in its political leaders. The victors included a 20-year-old Scottish nationalist who beat out a senior Labour Party leader in Scotland.

“It was also unexpected. Polls had predicted a dead heat – a result that would have meant days of haggling to form a new government. Queen Elizabeth II was out of town at her castle in Windsor, and needed to rush back to London for the traditional meeting at Buckingham Palace in which the victor offers to form a government… The surprising outcome merely underscored how much things have changed – that there is now a new unpredictability in British politics…”

UK Referendum Earlier?

The EUObserver wrote on May 12:

“The UK could hold a referendum on EU membership as early as July 2016, The Guardian reported Monday evening (11 May). The paper quoted a government source as saying that the ‘mood now is definitely to accelerate the process and give us the option of holding the referendum in 2016’… The referendum will be preceded by negotiations to get a ‘better deal’ in Europe for UK. The idea is that British voters can then decide, based on the results of the talks, if they want their country to stay in the EU, of which it has been a member since 1973.

“… The Guardian noted that a bill, which is needed to hold a referendum, could be passed by June 2016, making a referendum possible the next month, or in September 2016, after the summer break.”

No Special Deal for Britain

The Local wrote on May 13:

“[German] Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble had a prickly response to British demands for reform of the EU in the margins of a European finance ministers’ meeting on Tuesday… Schäuble was in no hurry to meet Prime Minister David Cameron’s timetable – and was fed up with ‘silly’ and ‘unnecessary’ interventions in the eurozone crisis from across the Channel… He explicitly rejected attaching a package of British demands to any reforms made to shore up the currency union.

“Cameron hopes to press other member countries into treaty change ahead of a referendum on EU membership set for 2017, a key promise he made to bolster support on his right wing before last week’s parliamentary election… But Schäuble’s brusque dismissal of British officials’ plan to tack special terms for the UK onto a new push for political and fiscal integration among eurozone members sets the scene for a showdown between the two countries.

“… That was a stark difference from UK Chancellor (finance minister) George Osborne, who said in Brussels that he had ‘a very clear mandate to improve Britain’s relationship with the rest of the EU and to reform the EU so that it creates jobs and increases living standards for all its citizens.’”

The EUObserver added on May 13:

“French finance minister Michel Sapin dismissed the idea of a ‘so-called renegotiation’ leading to a EU treaty change. ‘If it’s about discussing the functioning of the EU, this sort of discussion is possible. If it’s about renegotiating treaties, you know the position of France. That’s a completely different matter. In the current context, no treaty change, no constitutional debate,’ he said.”

Jury Duty Decision in the UK

The Telegraph wrote on May 11:

“A devout Muslim man who objected to jury service by claiming his religion forbids it was forced to serve by an Old Bailey judge. The man wrote to the court asking to be excused because he felt unable to sit in judgement of others. ‘As a Muslim, I believe you shouldn’t judge anyone and can’t come to any decision regarding another person,’ he wrote. ‘I could not take the responsibility of judging a person innocent or guilty. ‘I believe we are judged after our death and I would hate to think an innocent person would suffer because of the evidence and my decision.’

“The juror was ordered to appear at the Old Bailey on Monday morning to argue his case on the first day of his jury service. He said: ‘I deeply believe I can’t take that responsibility. I would be really uncomfortable to come to any decision when a decision is to be made.’

“But Judge Timothy Pontius QC said his situation was no different to other Muslims asked to serve on a jury. ‘Many understandably will have religious beliefs and are members of one faith or another,’ said the judge. ‘Some have very deeply-held religious beliefs and yet they discharge their responsibilities consciously and consistent with their religious beliefs. ‘It is common for many members of the jury to be practising Muslims, some hold their religious faith very deeply indeed, and yet are content to sit in judgement of fellow citizens.’

“The juror conceded he would want a jury to decide if a crime was committed against his family and eventually agreed he would serve if ordered to do so. ‘I’ve made my excuse,’ he said. ‘I’ve written to you asking for my dismissal. I live in this country and have to go by the law, but if you order me to be of service that is my responsibility.’

“Judge Pontius told him: ‘I don’t for a moment doubt the strength of your religious beliefs, but for the reasons I have set out and applying the logic which I have expressed about the position, I regret I can’t excuse you from jury service.’’

The problem with this potential juror is that his conviction was not strong enough. This should serve as an example to everyone who refuses to become a juror due to his sincerely held religious conviction. He could not serve on a jury and render a decision, even IF ordered by a court to do so. The biblical injunction is very clear: We must obey God rather than man, if there is a conflict. For the same reason could a true Christian not serve as a combatant in the army and kill an enemy, even IF ordered to do so.

US Camp David Summit Skipped by Most Gulf Heads of State

The Associated Press reported on May 11:

“It is not just the Saudi king who will be skipping the Camp David summit of U.S. and allied Arab leaders. Most Gulf heads of state won’t be there. The absences will put a damper on talks that are designed to reassure key Arab allies, and almost certainly reflect dissatisfaction among leaders of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council with Washington’s handling of Iran and what they expect to get out of the meeting…

“At the summit, leaders of Gulf nations will be looking for assurances that they have Obama’s support at a time when the region feels under siege from Islamic extremists and by Iran’s rising influence. The Gulf states worry the nuclear pact taking shape with the U.S., Iran and other nations may embolden Tehran to act more aggressively in the region…

“Abdulkhaleq Abdullah, a professor of political science at Emirates University, said Gulf leaders were staying away from the Camp David gathering to signal their displeasure over the nuclear talks. ‘I don’t think they have a deep respect, a deep trust for Obama and his promises. There is a fundamental difference between his vision of post-nuclear-deal Iran and their vision,’ he said… Abdullah… said the Gulf ties with the United States remain strong, but they have been strained during Obama’s tenure.”

The Weekly Standard wrote on May 11:

“It was a long time ago and a galaxy far, far away: In July 2008, presidential candidate Barack Obama made big, bold news by travelling to Berlin to – as The New York Times triumphantly recorded – ‘restore the world’s faith in strong American leadership and idealism.’ With 200,000 Berliners waving campaign-provided American flags, Obama called for renewing America’s alliances and undoing the cowboy unilateralism of George W. Bush and Obama’s 2008 opponent Sen. John McCain.

“The events of recent months are an indication of how spectacularly Obama has failed to fulfill his 2008 promise. This week comes the news that Saudi Arabia’s newly installed King Salman and three of the other six Gulf monarchs are boycotting Obama’s Camp David summit – a meeting called by Obama to reassure the Arab states that the forthcoming nuclear deal with Iran was not a betrayal of their longstanding security relationship with the United States. Beyond their fears of Iran’s nukes, the Gulf states see the rise of an aspiring Persian hegemon – in Yemen, in Syria, in Iraq – taking advantage of, if not actively conspiring with, a retreating America.  In this case ‘no show’ means ‘no confidence.”

Did President Obama Lie?

Breitbart wrote on May 11:

“Seymour Hersh, the Pulitzer Prize winning left-wing investigative journalist, is accusing Pres. Obama of lying about the raid that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden… Hersh’s story describes a politically obsessed President Obama rushing to get word out about the raid over the objections of key officials like Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Hersh points out that the bin Laden raid ‘was the high point of Obama’s first term, and a major factor in his re-election.’

“Hersh’s other main claim involves the knowledge of Pakistani officials. Hersh says the Obama administration claimed that the senior generals of Pakistan’s army and Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI) were not told of the raid in advance. ‘This is false, as are many other elements of the Obama administration’s account.’

“Appearing on CNN Monday morning, Hersh strongly defended the story from attacks by host Chris Cuomo and CNN Security Analyst Peter Bergen, who wrote a lengthy rebuttal for CNN. Responding to the charge that his article was based primarily on just one single, anonymous source, veteran reporter Hersh told Cuomo he had ‘vet and verify[ied]’ his reporting with other sources.

“Bergen claims Hersh’s argument is essentially a massive conspiracy theory, calling it ‘farrago of nonsense that is contravened by a multitude of eyewitness accounts, inconvenient facts and simple common sense.’ In his criticism, however, Bergen notes that the Obama administration made false statements right after the raid.

“In his article, Hersh correctly points out that in the immediate aftermath of the bin Laden raid, White House officials initially made some false statements about the raid — for instance, that bin Laden was using his wives as human shields during the raid — but these were quickly corrected. Hersh says the reason for the inaccuracies is that President Obama wanted to take immediate credit for the raid. Hersh said that the initial plan was to announce the death of bin Laden about a week later, but Hersh writes:

“‘Obama’s speech was put together in a rush, the retired official said, and was viewed by his advisers as a political document, not a message that needed to be submitted for clearance to the national security bureaucracy. This series of self-serving and inaccurate statements would create chaos in the weeks following.’

“Hersh quotes from Robert Gate’s book Duty about how upset Gates was that President Obama decided to push narrative in order to take credit. ‘That we killed him, I said, is all we needed to say. Everybody in that room agreed to keep mum on details. That commitment lasted about five hours. The initial leaks came from the White House and CIA. They just couldn’t wait to brag and to claim credit. The facts were often wrong… Nonetheless the information just kept pouring out. I was outraged and at one point, told the national security adviser, Tom Donilon, “Why doesn’t everybody just shut… up?” To no avail.’

“Hersh reports others were also incensed by President Obama’s approach to organizing and delivering the speech: ‘Gates wasn’t the only official who was distressed by Obama’s decision to speak without clearing his remarks in advance, the retired official said, “but he was the only one protesting. Obama didn’t just double-cross Gates, he double-crossed everyone.’”

The Washington Post reported on May 11 that “the CIA and White House are both rejecting his account” and that a “CIA official told The Washington Post that Hersh’s story is ‘utter nonsense.’’’

Of course, what else would they say? Hersh’s story was also rejected by Robert O’Neill, the former Navy SEAL who says he fired the shots that killed Osama bin Laden. But Hersh is not a nobody, nor is he a conservative. He “earned a Pulitzer Prize in 1970 for exposing the mass killing of civilians in the My Lai Massacre in Vietnam in 1969, and later was credited with helping to expose the abuse of detainees by the U.S. military at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison in 2004.”  Hersh also claims that from the outset, the goal of the mission was to assassinate bin Laden, and that his dead body was not “buried” in the way as claimed by the White House, but disposed of in a most despicable way.

More Sources Confirm Hersh’s Account

 Newsmax reported on May 12:

“After Seymour Hersh claimed in a lengthy expose that the Obama administration inaccurately took full credit for the killing of Osama bin Laden, more sources have come forward to confirm his account. Two intelligence sources have told NBC News that the year before the U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden, a ‘walk in’ asset from Pakistani intelligence told the CIA where bin Laden was hiding, while three sources say that the Pakistani government was aware of bin Laden’s location all along…

“John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, dismissed Hersh’s account…  For his part, Hersh has defended his account. He told CNN on Monday, ‘I’ve been around a long time … and I understand the consequences of what I’m saying.’”

Newsmax added on May 13:

“Another voice has joined the chorus of those who say that Seymour Hersh’s account of the demise of Osama bin Laden is more accurate than the claims of the Obama administration: New York Times foreign correspondent Carlotta Gall. Gall has said that she had gleaned from her sources that Pakistan’s intelligence service had kept bin Laden prisoner since 2006, and that the CIA learned about his location from a Pakistani informer who sold the information for $25 million.  ‘On this count, my own reporting tracks with Hersh’s,’ Gall wrote.”

Those who dismiss Hersh’s account outright—such as John McCain—had better beware what they are saying. The German magazine, Focus, reported this week that other journalists confirmed Mr. Hersh’s account as well, stating that most of the information had been known in Washington all along.

Netanyahu’s Shaky Government

The Washington Post wrote on May 7:

“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been a dominating political figure in the United States this year, seemingly invincible as he hurled thunderbolts at President Obama and other adversaries. But here in Israel, not so much. After winning a narrow election victory in March, Netanyahu formed a fragile government late Wednesday with a bare one-vote margin in parliament. Israeli analysts, left and right, are questioning whether the government can last long. Netanyahu said Thursday that he had been leaving the foreign-minister position vacant for Labor Party leader Isaac Herzog, in hopes of broadening his base, but Herzog rejected the offer…

“Netanyahu’s camp hopes for a new opening with Gulf Arab states that share mistrust of Iran… An Israeli-Arab alliance against Iran is intriguing. But like much else about Netanyahu’s fledgling government, it’s more an aspiration than a practical agenda. Netanyahu, so potent in the United States, has a shaky base at home.”

Vatican Recognizes State of Palestine

The Associated Press reported on May 13:

“The Vatican officially recognized the state of Palestine in a new treaty finalized Wednesday, immediately sparking Israeli ire and accusations that the move hurt peace prospects. The treaty, which concerns the activities of the Catholic Church in Palestinian territory, is both deeply symbolic and makes explicit that the Holy See has switched its diplomatic recognition from the Palestine Liberation Organization to the state of Palestine.

“The Vatican had welcomed the decision by the U.N. General Assembly in 2012 to recognize a Palestinian state and had referred to the Palestine state since. But the treaty is the first legal document negotiated between the Holy See and the Palestinian state, giving the Vatican’s former signs of recognition an unambiguous confirmation in a formal, bilateral treaty…

“The United States and Israel oppose recognition, arguing that it undermines U.S.-led efforts to negotiate an Israeli-Palestinian deal on the terms of Palestinian statehood. Most countries in Western Europe have held off on recognition, but some have hinted that their position could change if peace efforts remain deadlocked. The treaty was finalized days before Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visits Pope Francis at the Vatican. Abbas is heading to Rome to attend Francis’ canonization Sunday of two new saints from the Holy Land.”

Female Genital Mutilation Highest in Egypt

The website of egyptianstreets.com reported on May 10:

“Egypt’s Minister of Health Adel Adawy announced on Sunday that 92 percent of married Egyptian women [aged between 15 and 49] have experienced female genital mutilation… The majority of females undergo genital mutilation between the ages of nine and 12, with only 31 percent of the operations run by doctors, said the Minister of Health. The Minister of Health added that FGM in rural areas is as high as 95 percent, compared to up to 39.2 percent in urban cities… more than 50 percent of married women in Egypt favor female genital mutilation and is in accordance with religious teachings…

“Despite a large number of women surveyed believing that FGM is condoned by Islam, Egypt’s top Islamic authority has condemned the act as ‘un-Islamic’ and ‘barbaric’. Moreover, Egypt banned female genital mutilation in 2008. Article 242 of Egypt’s Penal Code criminalizes the circumcision of girls The punishment for performing FGM is a prison sentence ranging from three months to two years or a fine of 5,000 Egyptian pounds…

“According to the World Health Organization, Egypt, Somalia, Guinea, Djibouti and Sierra Leone have the highest rates of FGM. A 2013 UNICEF report found that Egypt has the world’s highest total number of FGM sufferers, with 27.2 million women having undergone FGM.”

China’s Military Ambitions

The website of freebeacon.com wrote on May 8:

“China’s military plans to produce nearly 42,000 land-based and sea-based unmanned weapons and sensor platforms as part of its continuing, large-scale military buildup, the Pentagon’s annual report on the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) disclosed Friday. China currently operates several armed and unarmed drone aircraft and is developing long-range… unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for both intelligence gathering and bombing attacks.

“The acquisition and development of longer-range UAVs will increase China’s ability to conduct long-range reconnaissance and strike operations,” the report said… The drone buildup is part of what the Pentagon identified as a decades-long military buildup that last year produced new multi-warhead missiles and a large number of submarines and ships… Additionally, the Pentagon for the first time confirmed China’s development of an ultra-high speed maneuvering strike vehicle as part of its growing strategic nuclear arsenal… a strike weapon that travels at the edge of space at nearly 10 times the speed of sound…

“The Chinese military, once a backward, ill-equipped force, is rapidly becoming a very sophisticated high-technology military organization that is focused on developing asymmetric warfare capabilities that will allow it to defeat the United States or other advanced militaries in a future conflict. The new capabilities include anti-satellite weapons, including a high-earth orbit missile capable of hitting strategic satellites as high as 22,000 miles in space, and cyber warfare capabilities… Chinese nationalism is also on the rise.”

It was also reported that on May 8, Putin and Chinese president Xi Jinping signed an “economic” agreement between Russia’s Eurasian Union and China’s Silk Road.

 Russia’s Re-Invention of History

 The EUObserver wrote on May 8:“Russia’s EU ambassador, Vladimir Chizhov… [said] ‘Crimea was not an annexation by any means … it was an attempt by local people to decide their future for themselves’. He justified Russia’s deployment of special forces in Crimea by claiming Ukrainian nationalists were preparing a ‘massacre’ of Russian speakers.

“He added that Stalin, who, like Hitler, murdered millions of Russians…  is a ‘national hero’ for many Russians… He also defended Russia’s invasion of Poland in 1939, under the ‘Molotov-Ribbentrop’ pact with Germany, as an act of ‘necessity’ at the time. It’s a narrative espoused by many Russian people… The narrative causes horror in Russia’s neighbours… [It] has also caused alarm in EU chancelleries and in Washington…

“Opposition leaders, such as Boris Nemtsov, are being murdered, and NGOs are being harassed as ‘foreign agents’. ‘He [Putin] has nothing to brag about at home … so the only thing he can offer to Russian people is fear of an outside enemy and fantasies of imperial greatness’, Garry Kasparov, a former Soviet chess champion who lives in the US, told EUobserver in a recent interview… For Kasparov, they do it because ‘the collapse of the Soviet Union was painful. But, unlike Germany, there was no process of reconciliation or lustration, of cleansing society of former Communist apparatchiks, and, most importantly, of the KGB’, he said, referring to the Russian intelligence service, now called the FSB…”

Some gullible and uninformed Western authors and commentators have even bought into the Russian propaganda that Russia—and not the USA and its Western Allies— brought an end to World War II and that Russia defeated Nazi Germany. Nothing could be further from the truth. However, blame must be asserted against the USA and its Western allies that they collaborated with Stalin… who was an evil dictator and no better than Hitler.

 History would have turned out much differently if the USA and Great Britain would have cooperated with Count Stauffenberg and those German officers who were quite active in trying to defeat (assassinate) Hitler as early as 1943, asking for support from the Allies who tragically refused to lend any helping hand, insisting instead in Germany’s unconditional surrender, which, as they knew, German officers (opposed to Hitler) could never agree to.

 So, the Western Allies chose instead to work with mass murderer Stalin against mass murderer Hitler—but as the old German proverb says, “The one who wants to eat with the devil must have a big spoon.” As it turned out, the spoon of the Allies was not big enough, and terrible consequences ensued, which, correctly understood, will be a major cause for a future World War, which will be fought by continental Europe, under German leadership, against the USA and the UK.

Germany’s Spy Scandal Intensifying

Thomson/Reuters reported on May 11:

“German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended her present and past chiefs of staff on Monday against criticism that they lied to the public about the prospects of a ‘no-spy agreement’ with the United States. Media reports alleging lying by Merkel’s aides were the latest in a controversy over German intelligence… The latest report said Washington never offered Germany a no-spy agreement after those revelations, despite statements from Merkel and senior aides during the campaign for Germany’s general election held only a few months later…

“Raising the pressure on Merkel, SPD Secretary General Yasmin Fahimi said on Monday: ‘If it’s true the U.S. never held out the prospect of such a no-spy agreement between Germany and America, then the conservatives lied in the 2013 election campaign.’… Former Justice Minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger from the Free Democrats (FDP), who were in coalition with Merkel’s conservatives from 2009-2013, joined the attack, telling Der Spiegel magazine’s online edition: ‘In the end, the chancellery pulled the wool over people’s eyes.’”

The Local wrote on May 10:

“The US intelligence agency NSA asked its German partner service BND to spy on the European country’s engineering and technology giant Siemens, a German newspaper [Bild am Sonntag] reported Sunday. In the latest report on a widening spying scandal, the newspaper said the US National Security Agency (NSA) suspected that Siemens was supplying communications technology to a Russian secret service, said the newspaper…

“In response to the scandal, which is straining Merkel’s ruling left-right coalition, the BND last week reportedly scaled back its cooperation with the NSA on communications intercepted at its listening post in Bad Aibling in the southern state of Bavaria. The Merkel government has so far declined demands by a parliamentary oversight panel to release a list of the NSA’s requested search terms or ‘selectors’ for IP and email addresses and mobile phone numbers, citing its ongoing consultations with Washington.

“The Bild am Sonntag reported Sunday that the United States had already rejected the request, citing its ongoing operations, and that it had threatened to scale back cooperation if Berlin released them anyway. The US side had warned it would limit its help to terror warnings but would no longer share material such as high-resolution images of war zones or of areas where German citizens have been kidnapped, the report said.

“Fugitive US intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, who is living in hiding in Russia, told Germany’s news weekly Spiegel that the latest reports show that ‘massive surveillance is a reality’. ‘Industrial espionage is practised and the intelligence services are working beyond the control of the representatives of the people and of justice,’ said Snowden.”