I Wish We'd All Been Ready
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Read MoreI Wish We’d All Been Ready
August 24, 2007
Associated Press
U.S. commander wary of withdrawal plan
The U.S. military commander in one of the more troubled areas of Iraq said Friday that embracing Sen. John Warner's call to begin troop withdrawals before the end of the year would be "a giant step backward."
Army Maj. Gen. Rick Lynch, commander of troops south of Baghdad, said that in such a scenario, militants pushed from his sector in recent operations would quickly return.
"If coalition soldiers were to leave, having fought hard for that terrain, having denied the enemy their sanctuaries, what'd happen is the enemy would come back," said Lynch.
"He'd start building the bombs again, he'd start attacking the locals again and he'd start exporting that violence into Baghdad and we would take a giant step backward," Lynch told Pentagon reporters in a video conference from Iraq.
He said that recent gains resulted from the buildup of troops in Iraq and that he needs all the forces he has until Iraqis are able to step up and take over, perhaps some time next year.
3 When he (that is Jesus) was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?” 4 Jesus answered them, “Beware that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah!’ and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
August 24, 2007
Associated Press
Georgia Says It Fired on Russian Plane
Georgian forces fired on a Russian plane flying over Georgian territory earlier this week, a government official said Friday, claiming residents nearby reported an explosion and forest fire afterward.
Russian military officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the claim, which came amid a heated dispute between the ex-Soviet neighbors over Georgian accusations of airspace violations by Russian military aircraft.
"The day before yesterday, at 22:24 hours, a Russian plane was fired at over Upper Abkhazia," Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told The Associated Press. He said authorities could not confirm the plane crashed, but that residents of the remote area reported hearing an explosion and seeing forest burning.
Georgia on Wednesday said that a Russian plane had violated its airspace in the same area a day earlier, but officials did not mentioned Wednesday's alleged intrusion until late Friday. Utiashvili said that was because they were still checking information.
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
August 18, 2007
Associated Press
Koreas Postpone Summit to October
North and South Korea agreed Saturday to postpone the second-ever summit between leaders on the divided peninsula to early October due to recent floods that devastated the impoverished communist North.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Il had been set to host South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun in Pyongyang for the first summit between the countries in seven years from Aug. 28-30. The event has now been rescheduled for Oct. 2-4, both Koreas said.
The North's official Korean Central News Agency said Pyongyang "unavoidably" made the delay request because the country has to focus on coping with the aftermath of the recent flooding.
"Torrential rain hit most of its areas every day, causing great damage, and this made it top priority to recover from the flood damage and make the living of the people in the afflicted areas return to normal," KCNA said.
The South's presidential office said the North reaffirmed in a message that it remained committed to holding a summit. Spokesman Chun Ho-seon told reporters that he does not believe there are any other motivations behind Pyongyang's decision to postpone the summit.
The North has said a week of storms destroyed 11 percent of its staple rice and corn fields. The U.N. warned the severe floods will worsen North Korea's food situation, and an aid group said the numbers of dead and missing from floods has risen to more than 300.
On Friday, South Korea offered the North a $7.5 million emergency aid package.
The South Korean president's office said Saturday it would try to deliver the announced aid as early as possible and consider providing more assistance.
The United States, Germany and Singapore also offered to help Pyongyang cope with the storms, which have drawn unusual candor from the usually secretive regime.
The impoverished North has been unable to feed its people without outside help since a famine began in the mid-1990s.
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
August 23, 2007 12:18
Associated Press
Peru's President Put to Test in Quake
An earthquake that leveled towns in southern Peru was the first big test of the presidency of Alan Garcia, one of Washington's top allies in Latin America.
The president spent four straight nights sleeping by candlelight in Pisco, the hardest-hit city, and saw his approval ratings skyrocket. But he could be in trouble as disorganization in the relief effort becomes increasingly obvious.
"The chaos is among the worst I've seen, and I've been in nine earthquakes," said Pedro Frutos, head of a team of Spanish firefighters that helped search for survivors.
Garcia traveled quickly to Pisco after the Aug. 15 quake and was on the streets until after midnight, assigning tasks to Cabinet ministers, overseeing food and water distribution and coordinating lodging for the thousands of homeless.
He met with foreign rescue teams to thank them for their help. He urged survivors to be patient, assuring them: "No one is going die from thirst and no one is going to die from hunger." He witnessed the birth of a boy in a tent hospital, cuddling the newborn and proclaiming: "He is a message of hope in the midst of death and pain."
And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.
August 15, 2007
Associated Press
Minority religions under attack in Iraq
The suicide bombings that ravaged the Yazidi sect in Iraq underscored the fears of violence and insecurity binding many of the nation's religious minorities, ranging from Christians who are fleeing their ancient enclaves to a dwindling sect that follows the teachings of John the Baptist.
The various religious groups - which in total account for no more than 3 percent of the population - increasingly worry that they will be caught helplessly in the battles between the majority Shiite and Sunni factions or, as in the case in Tuesday's attack, directly targeted by extremists.
"Minorities have historically inhabited areas that are disputed, that lie at the fault lines of the other communities," said Mark Lattimer, executive director of the London-based Minority Rights Group.
The Yazidi, said Lattimer, have a double curse.
They live in a strategic corridor between Mosul, the chief city in northern Iraq, and the borders of Turkey and Syria. The area could become increasingly coveted territory for the insurgent group al-Qaida in Iraq, which appears to be seeking to retrench in northern Iraq after being driven from strongholds in and around Baghdad by U.S.-led offensives.
The group is blamed for the series of four suicide truck bombings that claimed at least 250 lives in the Yazidi town of Qahataniya in the deadliest attack on civilians since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.
Yazidi also are often scorned by Muslims as infidels for their blend of Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrianism, the pre-Islamic faith of Persia. The Yazidi - mostly ethnic Kurds - date their beliefs back 4,000 years and worship an angel figure, Malak Ta'us, or Peacock Angel, who is considered to be the devil by some Muslims and Christians. Yazidis, who don't believe in hell or evil, deny the characterization.
“Then they will hand you over to be tortured and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name. 10 Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come.
Luke 17:20-37
20 Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, “The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; 21 nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There it is!’ For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you.”
22 Then he said to the disciples, “The days are coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it. 23 They will say to you, ‘Look there!’ or ‘Look here!’ Do not go, do not set off in pursuit. 24 For as the lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. 25 But first he must endure much suffering and be rejected by this generation. 26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so too it will be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 They were eating and drinking, and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed all of them. 28 Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29 but on the day that Lot left Sodom, it rained fire and sulfur from heaven and destroyed all of them 30 —it will be like that on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day, anyone on the housetop who has belongings in the house must not come down to take them away; and likewise anyone in the field must not turn back. 32 Remember Lot’s wife. 33 Those who try to make their life secure will lose it, but those who lose their life will keep it. 34 I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 There will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken and the other left.” 37 Then they asked him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.”
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