TEMPLE MOUNT IN JERUSALEM

Another Clear Message From the G-d of Israel: Wall Collapses on the Temple Mount Near the Western Wall

All the area of the collapsed wall and the Biblical Kipponus (Berkley) Gate. An ancient gate can be seen in the wall, the snow which covers the ground and chairs can be seen. It was a godly message: no more worship outside the Temple Mount near the Western Wall but on the Temple Mount in my holy Temple - end of the time of exile; the start of redemption. On Saturday, 22 Shevat 5764 (14 February 2004), another wall on the Temple Mount collapsed in the area of the Western Wall. The wall was the continuation of the Western Wall and which contained the western (Mugrabe) gate leading to the Temple Mount. Stones from the collapsed wall fell in the women's prayer area at the Western Wall while women were praying in the area. It was a miracle that none were hurt. As stated above, this happened on Saturday while Jerusalem was being covered with snow. The collapse occurred four days after the earthquake which shook all of Israel, including Jerusalem. The earthquake was stronger in the Jerusalem area than in other areas as Jerusalem is closer to the epicentre which was north of the Dead Sea. Archaeologists and scientists stated that the collapse of the wall was as a result of the quake as well as the snow. The archaeologist, Dr. Eilat Mazal, from the committee for the prevention of the destruction of the antiques on the Temple Mount said that "the occurrence of another much bigger collapse is only a question of time and it will cause a major disaster". Other archaeologists and scientists stated that the collapse is just a forerunner of further collapses on the Temple Mount. The collapse near the Western wall and part of the women’s area As we recently reported, the collapse of this wall is not the first to occur in recent time. A few months ago the western wall of a building on the Temple Mount — which was part of a building that the Moslems had made into a museum on the Temple Mount and which also stood on the Western Wall of the Temple Mount, collapsed. Two and a half year ago, on Tisha b'Av 2001, a long bulge appeared on the southern wall of the Temple Mount after the Temple Mount Faithful Movement brought a cornerstone for the Third Temple to the area. Over the last two years Jordanian engineers and workers have tried to fix the bulge but they have still not completed the work. Israeli engineers and archaeologists said immediately after the bulge appeared that no repairs would give stability to the wall and it will eventually collapse. On the eastern wall of the Temple Mount another long crack and bulge appeared which was 60 meters [197 feet] in length which starts north of the southeastern corner of the Temple Mount and runs all the way to the Mercy Gate. Recently the situation of the crack and the bulge has become much worse. The archaeologists in Israel called on the Israeli Antiquities Department to use the collapse of the wall near the Western Wall for researcher's needs. They called for the investigation of the so-called Berkley Gate, the ancient gate which is under the western wall of the Temple Mount and which was the ancient Biblical gate to the Temple Mount called the Kipponus Gate which was one of the five gates which are mentioned in the Mishna. As was said, since the 19th century it has been called the Berkley Gate after the American Consul to Jerusalem who discovered it. The archaeologist, Meyer ben Dov, said that there is no doubt that this is the Biblical Kipponus Gate. It will now be easier to investigate it because, as a result of the collapse, the gate has been uncovered. In 1968, the Israeli archaeologists who dug close to the area, headed by Prof. Binyamin Mazar, asked the authorities to remove the ramp leading to the western gate of the Temple Mount and to open the Biblical Kipponus Gate which is under it for Jews to enter the Temple Mount. Unfortunately their request was turned down. It is so special and a clear message from G-d that the collapses and the bulges occurred in the walls of the main Biblical gates of the Temple Mount, the southern wall in which were the gates where the millions of Jewish pilgrims entered in Biblical times, in the eastern wall where the Golden-Shushan Gate where the messiah will enter the Temple Mount, and the western wall where the main gates were situated for the entrance of the kings and priests of Israel. The godly message is so clear - He wants to open the gates, which were blocked up during history by the Moslems and Arabs, for His people, Israel. In another recent report I wrote about a Jewish tradition that, in the time of the redemption of Israel, G-d would cause an earthquake to destroy the foreign mosques on the Temple Mount and open the way for the building of the endtime Temple. This time has already come. We are now living in the endtimes, the time of the redemption of the people of Israel. The Temple Mount is now at the center of the godly endtime events of our time. As the archaeologists stated, the latest collapse of a wall, together with other similar events on the Temple Mount, are just the forerunners for much more major collapses on the Temple Mount. The G-d of Israel expected the Israeli Government to remove the mosques from the Temple Mount immediately after the liberation of the Temple Mount in 1967, exactly as the chief rabbi of the Israeli army, Shlomo Goren, demanded of them. The G-d of Israel waited almost 37 years for the Israeli Government to do this. As they do not do this because of weakness, He has started to do what He promised his people of Israel, thousands of years ago as was prophesied by Zechariah. G-d shares about the endtime war of the nations against Israel and her capital, Jerusalem then He promises His people: "Then shall the L-rd go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand on that day upon the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in its midst toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall be moved toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And you shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach to Azal; yes, you shall flee, like you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah; and the L-rd my God shall come, and all the holy ones with you. And it shall come to pass on that day, that there shall not be bright light nor thick darkness; But it shall be one day which shall be known to the L-rd, not day, nor night; but it shall come to pass, that at evening time there shall be light. And it shall be on that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the eastern sea, and half of them toward the western sea; in summer and in winter shall it be. And the L-rd shall be king over all the earth; on that day the L-rd shall be one, and his name one. All the land shall be changed like the Arabah from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she shall be lifted up, and remain in her place, from the Gate of Benjamin to the place of the first gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananeel to the king's wine presses. And men shall dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall dwell secure. ... and on that day there shall not be Canaanites any more in the house of the L-rd of hosts." (Zechariah 14:3-11,21b) The earthquake which occurred in Israel on 11 February and its result — which was the collapse of the wall in the Western Wall area — is the beginning of the earthquake prophesied by Zechariah. In our last report about the collapse of another wall on the Temple Mount I wrote about the statements of the Israeli seismologists that in the near future there will be a major earthquake which will have the Temple Mount and Jerusalem at its center. The result of this earthquake will be the collapse of buildings in the area and will cause terrible loss of lives and property. The earthquake which occurred on the 11th was an earthquake of a magnitude of 5 on the Richter scale. The quake was felt very strongly, especially in Jerusalem. Despite the fact that it was only a moderate earthquake, houses and furniture shook. On the day after, 11 aftershocks were felt. Now, after the damage from the earthquake has been checked, no building collapsed besides this wall in the Western Wall area. This is a clear message from the G-d of Israel to Israel, its enemies and to all the world that He is determined to fulfil His promises of thousands of years ago and that nothing will prevent Him from cleansing and purifying His holy hill from the foreigners and enemies of the G-d and people of Israel and that the Third Temple is soon to be built. G-d will be King of all the earth on that day, which is soon to come. G-d will then be One and his Name One. Israel and Jerusalem will live in safety and there will no longer be foreigners in the house of the G-d of Israel (Zechariah 14:9,21). It was so unique that the earthquake of 11 February also caused a crack in the ceiling of the Knesset office of the Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon. It was a clear message from G-d to Ariel Sharon as well to fulfil his godly task and to redeem the Temple Mount and to build the endtime Temple of G-d. It is no accident that it happened exactly in the office of Sharon. It was also a godly message to him not to withdraw from the holy Biblical areas of Israel in Judaea, Samaria, and Gaza; not to evacuate the Jewish settlement there, which is a fulfilment of endtime prophecy of the G-d of Israel and very holy to Him and, as He commanded us, will never be removed: "Behold, the days come, says the L-rd, when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink their wine; they shall also make gardens, and eat their fruit. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be plucked up out of their land which I have given them, says the L-rd your God." (Amos 9;13-15) Diagram of the Temple Mount as it is today showing the areas of collapse and the bulges and the area of the latest collapse at the Western Wall. The Western Wall is at the front left. Dear friends in Israel and all over the world; all those who expect and accept the Word of G-d and His prophetic endtime promises. We are living at a very exciting and critical time. This is the time of fulfilment of all the endtime prophecies of the prophets of Israel. We are coming closer and closer to the climax. We should expect major critical prophetic redemptional godly events in the near future. We can see for ourselves the beginning of all of them. It is much more than just signs. These events have already started. Nothing and nobody can stop the march of the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — the G-d of Israel — back to His holy mountain, the Temple Mount, to His house, the holy Temple that Israel was commanded to build on the Temple Mount thousands of years ago and which G-d returned to Israel in a miraculous way almost 37 years ago. We see for ourselves that Israel cannot run away from her godly mission to fulfil G–d's command and request: "Build me a house and I will dwell among you" (Exodus 25:8). This is the pre-condition for all the other endtime events. This is a pre-condition for the fulfilment of G–d's promise to send us His anointed Mashiach ben David and to establish His kingdom, not only in Israel, but from Jerusalem to all the world which will make Israel to again be what G-d commanded them to be - "a holy nation, a kingdom of priests and a treasure mong the nations" (Exodus 19:5,6). Everyone in Israel and all over the world is called on today to lift their eyes, hearts, and attention to Israel, Jerusalem, and especially the Temple Mount. All the exciting and critical endtime events will take place there. Everyone is called on to stand with The Temple Mount and Land of Israel Faithful Movement, the endtime vessel of G-d in its godly historical campaign to serve G-d in these special days and to bring to pass all the endtime plans of the G-d of Israel and the Universe with Israel and all the world. It is a major privilege of our generation, especially of those who are answering the call of G-d and His Faithful Movement, to have a part in these times and godly endtime events. This is the biggest privilege ever that so many generations so desired to have and G-d gave it to our generation. The call of the Faithful Movement today to everyone is to have a part in its holy godly work, to encourage it and to help it to fulfil the expectations of our Beloved G-d of everyone of us. The Third Temple will be built when we shall have a complete desire to do so. We do have it and it comes from the bottom of our hearts and more and more people in Israel and all over the world have this deep desire. This is the time to bring it to pass. This is G–d's timing. Let us not miss the greatest privilege of our lives and generation. Answer the call of the G-d of Israel and the Universe and the call of His endtime vessel, the Faithful Movement in Jerusalem.

SO GOES RUSSIA - SO GOES THE WORLD

Vladimir Putin 1, Barack Obama 0

July 9, 2009 | From theTrumpet.com

Time will prove that Mr. Obama failed in his attempt this week to “push the reset button” with Russia.

Brad Macdonald

Apparently the Russians didn’t get the memo. When Barack Obama visited Moscow this week, there was no fainting and fawning, no clamoring crowds, no wall-to-wall media coverage. The general reaction was low-key, cautious and skeptical.

“Crowds did not clamor for a glimpse of him,” reported the New York Times. “Headlines offered only glancing or flippant notice of his activities. Television programming was uninterrupted; devotees of the Russian Judge Judy had nothing to fear. Even many students and alumni of the Western-oriented business school where Mr. Obama gave the graduation address on Tuesday seemed merely respectful, but hardly enthralled.”

“Barack Obama run over by combine harvesters,” reported the popular Russian business daily Kommersant, in a tongue-in-cheek reference to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s preference to visit a combine harvester manufacturer in southern Russia on Monday rather than greet Mr. Obama when he arrived in Moscow.

Some media outlets were outright skeptical. Reporting on Monday’s joint announcement about the upcoming American-Russian treaty to reduce the number of nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles, Russian daily Moskovsky Komsomolets asked, “Can the leopard change his spots?” And it wasn’t referring to Putin. “America’s main strategic course remains unchanged,” it wrote, “irrespective of whoever occupies the president’s chair” (emphasis mine throughout).

How ironic.

The Russian populace and media are skeptical of the American president, whose primary foreign-policy objective thus far has been to apologize profusely for so-called American hegemony, and who has worked overtime to heal—or, in Russia’s case, to “hit the reset button” on—long-standing breaches with foreign powers, including some that consider America their archenemy.

Meanwhile, America’s mainstream media have very little skepticism or caution, or even interest, in reporting on Barack Obama’s efforts to appease Putin, a man whose sometimes brutal and self-aggrandizing policies have given him virtual free-reign over Russia, and whose primary foreign-policy objective is to undermine America and resurrect the Soviet empire.

The American media ought to be asking “can the leopard change his spots” in regard to Vladimir Putin. It should also be expressing greater concern over Washington’s courting of the Kremlin!

New York Post columnist Ralph Peters did so earlier this week. “The series of signing ceremonies in a grand Kremlin hall and the litany of agreements, accords and frameworks implied that the United States benefited from all the fuss. We didn’t,” wrote Peters Tuesday.

Fact is, while America “got nothing of real importance” from President Obama’s trip to Moscow, “the government of puppet-master Vladimir Putin … got virtually all it wanted,” Peters said. Consider the agreement to reduce nuclear stockpiles: Mr. Obama didn’t just agree to reduce America’s arsenal of nuclear warheads, he agreed to slash the number of nuclear delivery systems. The consequences of this decision are grave and far-reaching.

Many of America’s nuclear delivery systems are “dual use,” explained Peters, which means, in addition to being able to deliver a nuclear payload, these systems—such as B-2 bombers and nuclear submarines—are a critical and often-used part of America’s conventional military. Putin wants to gut America’s “conventional capabilities,” wrote Peters, restricting its ability to “stage globe-spanning military operations”—at a time when America is confronting danger around every corner.

This was not the only concession made by Obama. In a speech at the New Economic School in Moscow on Tuesday, the president avoided firm rhetoric about the planned ballistic missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic (even admitting that his administration was “reviewing” the plans), and hinted that Washington might be willing to dilute its defense of Ukraine and Georgia, specifically their ambition to join nato. Mr. Obama’s remarks on these issues were probably not as favorable to Russia as the Kremlin had hoped. But they were less forceful and decisive than those of his predecessor, and an indication that the Obama administration has opted to travel the path of least resistance in the vehicle of appeasement and concession.

Although the Kremlin did make its fair share of concessions to America, each was tinged with self-interest. First, the Kremlin is more than happy to reduce its nuclear stockpile because most of its weapons are old and expensive to maintain. It also signed an agreement on Monday to allow the U.S. military to use Russian airspace to transport weapons and supplies to Afghanistan. The difference between this concession and Obama’s on the nuclear treaty is that the Kremlin’s trade-off didn’t hurt Russia’s national interest. It also grants the Kremlin the right to inspect U.S. shipments.

In the short term, this agreement will likely benefit America more than Russia. But it is quite a canny move by the Kremlin. As America steps up its campaign in Afghanistan, the transport route through Russia will grow in logistical and strategic importance, giving the Kremlin added political and strategic leverage over Washington. “Putin intends to lull us into dependency on a trans-Russia supply route,” wrote Peters, “giving him a free hand in Georgia, Ukraine and elsewhere.”

Mr. Obama also signed a few trade deals with Russia, and got “generalizations … but no hard commitments” from the Kremlin on Iran and North Korea (ibid.).

In April, the Trumpet wrote, “[D]on’t be surprised if the Kremlin tramples on and exploits the United States’ naive willingness to, as Vice President Joe Biden put it in Munich, ‘push the reset button’ with Russia.”

This week, Barack Obama stood face to face with Vladimir Putin and tried to press that reset button. He failed. He might have gained one or two short-term concessions, but his performance was that of a weak, morally blind peacenik. Mr. Obama may have reduced Russia’s nuclear stockpile, but he in no way reduced Vladimir Putin’s ambitions to undermine the United States and restore the Russian empire!

Mr. Obama essentially provided the Kremlin an up-close-and-personal exposé of America’s lack of willpower. It will surely provide impetus for Russia to continue to pursue its goals for global hegemony.

In this sense, Barack Obama’s visit to Moscow likely fueled Vladimir Putin’s deadly ambitions, and accelerated the fulfillment of some earth-shaking Bible prophecies!

For some readers, America’s pathetic performance in Moscow will call to mind a prophecy in Leviticus 26:19. Here God warns the people of America (modern descendants of biblical Israel) that because of disobedience He will curse them by breaking the pride of their power. We are approaching the culmination of that curse. America is on the brink of being entirely sapped of its willpower. Events in Moscow this week confirm that this nation—its leadership, its media and its people—no longer possesses the mental, emotional and moral capacity (which was once rooted in some level of obedience to God’s law) to defend itself from attack.

Nationally, there is no greater curse than having a broken will at a time of global chaos, when the world brims with warring ideologies and ambitions—and nuclear weapons. •

WAR WITH "IRAN"

Why Trouble in Iran Will Lead to War

July 8, 2009 | From theTrumpet.com

Political unrest in the Islamic Republic is accelerating toward an epic clash—prophesied in the Bible.

Joel Hilliker

Iran is at a crossroads. America is ignoring it. Germany isn’t.

In the broad scheme, Iran’s star is rising. It is ready to seize the advantage from a fading United States in both Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact, it has effectively neutralized the long-standing threat from the U.S. It has prepared its terrorist proxies in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip for a future attack on Israel. It is about to go nuclear. Many long-held dreams of Iran’s radicals appear about to come true.

And yet, trouble stirs at home. Cracks in the ayatollah’s power have appeared. After allegations of fraud sullied last month’s presidential election, the streets filled with angry protest. The government cracked down; the unrest mostly dispersed. But last Friday, Iran’s biggest group of clerics defied the ayatollah and declared Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s victory illegitimate. “It’s a clerical mutiny,” an Iranian analyst told the London Times. “This is the first time ever you have all these big clerics openly challenging the leader’s decision” (emphasis mine).

Could it be that Iran is on the verge of a transformation? What is going on here?

As we have pointed out, it is erroneous to view these events as a battle between conservative and liberal camps within Iran. Rather, we are witnessing a power struggle between rival conservative factions, both hungering for the same goal: nuclear-armed domination of a Jew-free Middle East en route to broader, global ambitions. The two sides only disagree on how to go about it.

Still, a canny enemy of Iran may view these events as an opportunity. The regime faces opposition. There is murmuring in the camp. On the street are some—perhaps many—who seek genuine liberalization and are willing to fight for it. Maybe these rifts could be exploited, pried apart, in order to rock the establishment—if not to overthrow the regime, then at least to delay or perhaps even halt Iran’s otherwise relentless drive toward achieving its nefarious goals.

That the U.S. is not that canny enemy has become patently clear. The Obama administration has no intention of rocking the Iranian establishment. President Obama wants to work with Khamenei and Ahmadinejad. Formal recognition of Iran’s theocracy is a cornerstone of his foreign policy. Thus, he says preventing a nuclear Iran has “gotten more difficult” because of the popular challenge to the regime.

Radical Iran needs to be dealt with: Its nuclear program must be stopped; its support for terrorism must end. Now appears to be an unusually plum opportunity to take action that could help stabilize the entire Middle East for years to come. (Even Saudi Arabia is apparently giving its blessing to anyone inclined to knock out Iran’s nuclear sites.)

Yet remarkably, the U.S.—which is not only Iran’s number-one enemy but also still presumably the mightiest nation on Earth by several measures—has completely removed itself from contention in terms of making that happen.

The realization that America is out of the picture puts other nations in an intriguing position. Outside of Israel—which now unenviably must face the Iranian threat without its staunchest ally—the most crucial of these nations to watch is Germany.

With America paralyzed, Germany is realizing that if anything is going to be done about Iran, it will have to do it.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has sternly condemned Iranian leaders for their crackdown against election protests. She openly demanded a vote recount and warned that Germany would “not forget” the mullahs’ brutality against their own citizens. Germany’s human rights commissioner published an op-ed article saying that Germany should “openly encourage those who are calling for an end to the Islamic Republic.” Germany’s parliament is filling with calls for more confrontation with Iran. Bundestag member Philipp Missfelder proposed reducing Germany’s economic ties with Iran in order to “make our own contribution to destabilizing the Ahmadinejad regime.”

Hundreds of German companies in Iran are freezing operations there or have pulled out altogether. Some are going much further: proactively working to foment the political tension. “German organizations are trying to escalate the internal power struggles in Iran,” reported German-Foreign-Policy.com (June 22). Deutsche Welle has broadcasted Farsi-language encouragement to protesters. Politically affiliated foundations are offering to partner with those challenging the regime. Apparently these seditious activities were actually going on for months preceding the election.

The ayatollah and his agents are incensed. “The Iranians are rejecting this interference and threatening to break diplomatic relations with Berlin. Still, German organizations close to the government are continuing unabated their activities, fanning domestic protests in Iran” (ibid.).

With these bold moves, Germany is clearly taking the lead in the EU’s response against Iran. “European Union ministers may be ready to push for tougher sanctions against Iran after Germany has shown growing willingness to take a harder line,” wrote the London Times.

Yes, of all nations to seize the opportunity to undermine Iran, it is Germany that is taking advantage. Many say its brash meddling in Iranian politics will actually backfire against the Iranian dissidents, for whom any association with the West is essentially a death sentence. “Interference by the West would be extremely harmful to the movement,” said Iran expert Bahman Nirumand. The movement “would be immediately accused of being guided by the West and its leaders branded as collaborators.” Berlin doesn’t seem to care.

After years of Iranian provocations, Germany is beginning to push back. America’s disappearing act on Iran is accelerating the trend.

Germany is deeply interested in expanding its influence in the Middle East. The fact that Iran—the most dominant and prickly power in the region—is its biggest obstacle is very plain. Germany’s appetite for a confrontation appears to be growing. (Read “Look Who’s Getting Tougher With Iran” from earlier this year.)

At the same time, the fact that Iran’s supreme leader is vulnerable right now means that he is also dangerous. Challenges to his absolute authority undermine the very nature of the Islamic Republic. He could well take more extreme and brutal measures to reestablish his authority and demonstrate his power. The weapons in his arsenal include the Revolutionary Guard, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, operatives in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq, and many more terrorist sleeper cells around the world.

Watch Iran and Germany closely. Tension is clearly growing and could be approaching an explosive climax.

What makes this situation so important is the fact that the Bible specifically prophesied a spectacular clash between these two nations—a clash that would spark a world war!

The Prophet Daniel wrote, “And at the time of the end [the time just ahead of us] shall the king of the south [an Iranian-led, radical Middle Eastern power] push at him: and the king of the north [a German-led European power] shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown …” (Daniel 11:40-41).

That we are witnessing a German-led Europe getting agitated by and taking steps to confront Iran suggests just how soon we will see the fulfillment of Daniel’s end-time prophecy! •

NORTH KOREA

NKorean Rocket Capable of Hitting Half the U.S: Scientists

July 1, 2009
Bernama

SEOUL, July 1 (Bernama) -- The long-range North Korean rocket, which was launched in April, could be converted into a ballistic missile, that can theoretically hit half the United States with a payload of 1 tonne or more, two U.S. physicists have concluded from their joint study.

Quoting MIT professor Theodore Postol and a physicist at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) David Wright, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Wednesday that the rocket could fly even further as of over 10,000 kilometres, if the rocket is turned into a missile.

"The Unha launcher represents a significant advance over North Korea's previous launchers and would have the capability to reach the continental United States with a payload of 1 tonne or more if North Korea modified it for use as a ballistic missile," they said.

"We estimate that it could have a range of 10,000-10,500 kilometers, allowing it to reach Alaska, Hawaii, and roughly half of the lower 48 states," they said in an article posted this week on the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, reports Yonhap.

On April 5, North Korea launched what it claims was a rocket designed to carry a satellite into orbit. The U.S. and its allies say nothing entered orbit, calling the "Unha-2" rocket a disguised form of a ballistic missile capable of flying over 6,700 kilometers.

Noting that a "first-generation plutonium warhead could have a mass of 1,000 kilograms or more," Postol and Wright said the rocket could carry a 1-tonne payload as far as 7,000-7,500 kilometers even if it had only two of its three stages.

"This would allow it to reach Alaska and parts of Hawaii, but not the lower 48 states," they said, writing on the assumption that the rocket was designed to carry a lightweight satellite.

"The mass of the satellite plus the deployment mechanism and the structure that attached the satellite to the third stage may have been about 300 kilograms," they said.

Both the scientists based their analysis partly on the video footage of the rocket launch North Korea released in April, adding computer modeling and past analysis also contributed to their study.

"By measuring the distance the launcher moves as a function of time in these videos, we determined the thrust-to-weight ratio of the Unha vehicle at launch.

"Using estimates of the mass of the Unha launcher, we then estimated the thrust at liftoff generated by the engines," they said.

Drawing similarities between the North Korean rocket and the components previously developed by China, Russia and Iran, the physicists concluded that "it's extremely unlikely that these technologies were indigenously produced by North Korea."

"The third stage appears to be very similar, if not identical, to the upper stage of the Iranian Safir-2 launch vehicle, which placed a small satellite in orbit in February," they said.

Therefore, the Unha-2 appears to use a third stage with liquid rather than solid fuel, unlike the Taeopdong-1 launcher, they wrote.

Postol, whose expertise lies in ballistic missile technologies, teaches science, technology and national security policy at MIT. Wright co-directs the Global Security Program at the UCS.

-- BERNAMA

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=422155

CHRISTIAN PROPHECIES

Five Prophecies to Watch

From the August 2009 Trumpet Print Edition »

President Obama’s June 4 speech will accelerate the fulfillment of several end-time Bible prophecies. Here we spotlight five to keep your eye on. By Stephen Flurry

Prophecy One: America’s Death Knell

Knowing the identity of nations is the key to understanding end-time prophecy. (You can have this key by requesting a free copy of Herbert Armstrong’s book The United States and Britain in Prophecy.) Old Testament prophecies, for example, spring to life when we understand that the term Israel is referring to modern-day America and the British Commonwealth.

The entire chapter of Ezekiel 33 is a tragic prophecy about Israel’s downfall. In verse 11, God laments the destruction of these people, saying “turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”

The Prophet Hosea saw a similar fate for the United States and Britain (Ephraim). “And the pride of Israel doth testify to his face: therefore shall Israel and Ephraim fall in their iniquity; Judah also shall fall with them” (Hosea 5:5). The Prophet Jeremiah also spoke of a time of unprecedented trouble in Jacob (also Israel, or the United States). “Alas! for that day is great,” he wrote, “so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble …” (Jeremiah 30:7).

According to each of these prophecies, we know it is the end time when the United States is stripped of its power and global supremacy and is overrun by its enemies. President Obama’s speech in Cairo was a sure warning that we now live in that time!

As one commentator noted in the London Times, he became the first Western leader since Napoleon to address Islam as a single bloc, thus legitimizing the Islamic extremist view that the world should be divided along religious lines. In his 54-minute, 6,000-word address, not once did the president use the word terrorism. His administration has carefully avoided using the term war on terror—opting instead for the obscurely worded “overseas contingency operation.” His repeated attempts to extend an olive branch to Iran and the rest of the Islamic world send an unmistakably clear signal to America’s enemies: The terrorists are winning. And they know it.

Jeffrey Kuhner, president of the Edmund Burke Institute, wrote about the global significance of the Cairo speech. “It will be remembered as the pivotal moment in history when the United States ceased to be a superpower,” he wrote. “Sapped of its self-confidence and sense of grandiose destiny, America chose the policy of appeasement over confrontation, lies over truth, illusion over reality” (Washington Times, June 13, emphasis mine throughout).

America’s position in the world, ideologically, morally, economically and geopolitically—especially in relation to radical Islam—has been declining for years. Obama’s capitulation in Cairo was a very public sign that America lacks the moral clarity to discern good and evil and the mental willpower to stand up against tyranny.

America’s enemies recognize weakness when they see it. The president’s overtures in Cairo, as sincere as they might be, will not result in better U.S.-Islamic relations, nor bring the people of the world together in peace. Instead, for all of his trouble, as Asia Times opined, the president will get “more megalomania from Iran, more triumphalism from the Palestinians, and less control over Iraq and Afghanistan. … It is hard to imagine any consequence except a steep diminution of American influence” (June 2).

Prophecy Two: The Rise of the King of the South

The rise of Iran and radical Islam and its inevitable clash with a German-led European superpower is the keynote prophecy of Gerald Flurry and the Trumpet. The prophecy is found in Daniel 11:40: “And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.”

The Islamic Republic of Iran is the head of the international network of Islamic terrorism—the biblically prophesied “king of the south.” This radical network, as the scripture says, practices a “pushy,” or combative, foreign policy. Is there a better way to describe Iran?

Iran is gunning for the destruction of the Jewish state. It feeds Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank, Palestinian terrorist groups inside Israel, and Hezbollah in Lebanon. It has complicated American efforts in Iraq and is meddling in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its nuclear weapons program is advancing rapidly, and it has been connected to the nuclear programs of both Syria and North Korea. Iran is the number-one threat to peace in Israel and the Middle East—in many ways, even worldwide.

President Obama ignored this reality in his Cairo declaration. Rather than criticize Tehran’s belligerent foreign policy, Obama guaranteed its perpetuation by signaling that America is prepared to embrace Iran as it is. On the nuclear issue, for example, Obama declared that Iran has the right to develop nuclear power. Meanwhile, he remains naively committed to seeking a “world in which no nations hold nuclear weapons.”

Then there’s Egypt. Verse 42 of Daniel 11 makes clear that Egypt will be aligned with Iran and the king of the south. This is why the Trumpet has said for years that a radical shift will soon occur within Egyptian politics, as Mubarak (an ally to the West) gives way to a radical Islamic government in Cairo that will ally itself to Tehran.

Included in the audience at Cairo were members of the Muslim Brotherhood (mb), a radical Islamist group with terrorist roots and the primary political opposition to President Mubarak. The Egyptian daily Al-Masri al-Youm reported June 4 that Obama met with mb officials in Washington earlier this year. Certainly, Washington’s overtures toward the Brotherhood will not help Egypt’s president, who himself didn’t attend the June 4 speech.

The Palestinians also have good reason to celebrate Obama’s historic Muslim address. As we have often pointed out, the prophesied clash between the European king of the north and the Iran-led king of the south will primarily revolve around Jerusalem. With President Obama telling the Islamic world that America “does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements” and that it’s “time for these settlements to stop,” it’s no wonder Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who turned down a generous Israeli offer for Palestinian statehood last year, is in no rush to meet with Israel’s new government. He is content to sit back and watch Obama and Netanyahu duke it out.

The Bible reveals that neither America nor Israel will confront this prophesied king of the south. That task will be left to the king of the north, a German-led, Catholic-inspired European superpower (to learn more, request Germany and the Holy Roman Empire).

By condoning Tehran’s actions in his Cairo speech, Obama emboldens Iran’s “pushy” foreign policy, making the spectacular clash prophesied in Daniel 11:40 inevitable.

Prophecy Three: Breaking the Brotherhood

Biblical history testifies to the familial relationship between Manasseh (America) and Judah (the Jewish people)—which explains the historic bond between these nations. Yet Bible prophecy says that in the end time this historic brotherhood would be severed. In Zechariah 11:14, God said He would “break the brotherhood between Judah [modern-day Israel] and Israel [primarily the United States and Britain].”

In his Cairo speech, President Obama said the historic bond between the U.S. and Israel was based on Jewish aspirations for a homeland that were “rooted” in the tragedy of the Holocaust. He was wrong. In fact, Jewish aspirations for statehood not only predate the Adolf Hitler era, they predate the Zionist movement. Their history in the territory on which their country is built goes back to biblical times (article, page 6).

Palestinians have reinvented this history, claiming the Jews are without legal or historic right to their homeland and that modern-day Israel exists only because of Europe’s guilt after the Holocaust. In Cairo, President Obama legitimized this bit of Arab propaganda.

Nine years ago, President Bill Clinton and Prime Minister Ehud Barak offered the Palestinians 94 percent of the West Bank, all of East Jerusalem, and unrestricted control of the Temple Mount. In swift response, Nobel Prize winner Yasser Arafat unleashed a bloody five-year campaign of rockets, sniper fire and suicide bombings aimed primarily at civilians that killed more than 1,000 Jews.

Last year, lame duck Prime Minister Ehud Olmert offered the Palestinians 93 percent of the West Bank and other perks that amounted to even more land than what was on offer in 2000, even after a decade of natural growth in Israeli settlements. Nevertheless, Mahmoud Abbas’s spokesman called the Israeli proposal a “waste of time” and said it demonstrated a “lack of seriousness” on Israel’s part.

Clearly, it’s not settlement activity that is obstructing the process for peace. All the same, during his Cairo speech, President Obama called on Israel to freeze even the natural growth of its existing settlements in the West Bank, without issuing a single demand to the Palestinian Authority.

Why would the United States now elevate the marginal issue of settlement growth to the top of its Middle East agenda? Because Washington wanted to create a crisis with Israel, as Stratfor noted on June 8. In doing so, Obama wins no matter what Israel’s response might be. If Netanyahu gives in, the U.S. will have imposed its will on Israel. And if Netanyahu doesn’t give in (far more likely, considering prophecy), Obama can drive a wedge between the U.S. and Israel and then “use that split as a lever with Islamic states,” Stratfor noted.

President Obama went to Cairo in search of a “new beginning” in the relationship between the United States and the Muslim world. By doing so, the U.S. effectively ended its brotherly and strategically critical alliance with Israel. That “unbreakable” bond between America and Israel, the president’s assurances notwithstanding, is now broken. Israel knows it has been abandoned by the United States.

Prophecy Four: Israel Appeals to Germany for Help

A related end-time prophecy is found in Hosea 5:13: “When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then went Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb: yet could he not heal you, nor cure you of your wound.”

The Hosea 5:13 wound is the misnamed “peace” process (request a free copy of Jerusalem in Prophecy for an explanation). Since kicking off its land-for-peace strategy in Oslo in 1993, Israel has only suffered greater violence and death. The voids it has left by pulling out of southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip have been filled by Iran’s most lethal proxies, Hezbollah and Hamas. At least 1,500 Israeli citizens have been murdered by terrorists during this time. And with Hezbollah and Hamas furiously amassing a much deadlier arsenal, the body count will inevitably rise.

Still, President Obama is applying massive pressure on Israel to freeze all settlement growth and to cede more land to the Palestinians and Syrians.

This is why in Hosea, God says that Judah, after being mortally wounded by the peace process, will seek help from Assyria (Germany), rather than the United States. This prophecy provides further proof of America’s growing irrelevance in the world, particularly to its former ally Israel. Bereft of other options, the Jews will seek help from the very power that perpetrated the greatest crime against them in modern times.

The Jewish state’s incurable wound will soon result in Israel’s desperate turn to the German-led European Union for help—a move that will trigger the beginning of the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:21-22).

But before that, half of Jerusalem will be taken by force.

Prophecy Five: Jerusalem Split Down the Middle

Zechariah 14:2 tells us, “For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.”

According to this prophecy, a Hamas-dominated Palestinian insurgence, backed by Iran, will take half of Jerusalem by force shortly before the Messiah sets foot on the Mount of Olives (verse 4). Thus, we can deduce that Israel will not cave in to pressure from Washington and give away what little land it has left. As the U.S.- Israeli alliance has suffered, so too has America’s ability to dictate terms to Israel.

In his Cairo speech, President Obama increased expectations among Arabs that Jerusalem would be theirs. Meanwhile, a growing number of Israelis have lost faith in the land-for-peace strategy.

For the past decade, at times it appeared as if Israel would willingly give up East Jerusalem at the negotiating table. In December of 2005, a poll published by Yedioth Ahronoth found that about half of Israelis supported the idea of giving up parts of Arab East Jerusalem if it would solidify a peace deal with the Palestinians. Former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Israel would someday have to give up its dream of an eternally united Jerusalem under Jewish sovereignty, and rumors circulated that his government was devising a plan to divide the city.

Compare that with where we suddenly are today. The conservative Benjamin Netanyahu is Israel’s prime minister again. In his much-anticipated response to President Obama’s Cairo speech, Netanyahu left the door cracked open for the development of a Palestinian state, but only if that state is demilitarized and its leaders recognize Israel as the state of the Jewish people. Netanyahu added, “Israel needs defensible borders and Jerusalem must remain the united capital of Israel ….”

As our regular readers know, we have been expecting this harder-line stance to emerge in Israel. With Israel’s new government unwilling to compromise on Jerusalem, and expectations growing among Arabs that a sovereign state is in sight, the stage is now set for Zechariah 14:2 to be fulfilled. •

G-D HAS NO MERCY - NO RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

« U.S. troops do a final patrol in Khan Bani Saad, Iraq, on June 28.
(Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images)

American Forces Withdraw From Iraqi Cities

July 2, 2009 | From theTrumpet.com

As America moves out, Iran moves in.

American troops completed their withdrawal from Iraqi cities Tuesday, amid great cheers from the Iraqi people. But some fear that this withdrawal will give Iran more power. About 130,000 U.S. soldiers will remain in the nation in urban outposts to help the Iraqi forces if called upon, roughly the same number of troops that were stationed in Iraq before the surge three years ago.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki recently claimed victory in ending the “occupation” of Iraq. Yet even as Iraqis celebrated the newly proclaimed National Sovereignty Day, a car bomb killed at least 33 people and wounded 92 in the northern oil hub of Kirkuk. Many in both Iraq and America worry that another round of violence is about to break out now that American troops have left the cities.

“There is a large element of wishful thinking, both among Iraqi politicians, who claim that the 600,000-strong Iraqi Army and security forces have the situation under control, and among Western politicians preparing for the evacuation of all U.S. forces from Iraq by the end of 2011,” wrote the Times of London.

Fox News military analyst Col. David Hunt warned that the security situation in Iraq “will hinge as much on Iran as the Iraqi government.”

“Iran … is tied at the hip to Iraq with treaties and religion and money spent, and they’ve got Iranian militia,” he said. “We did a good job of killing a lot of al Qaeda in Iraq, but there is still a very bad element inside that country and Iran can cause instability.”

He also warned that “Iran got their nose under the tent” and that Iraq and Iran are “tied economically now.”

Iran primarily has two ways it is attempting to control Iraq. Firstly, it has strong ties with Iraq’s Shiite government. With American forces out of the way, many worry that the Shiites will grab more power from the Sunnis.

“Now Sunnis are scared that the majority Shiite Iraqi government has just been waiting for the U.S troops to leave the cities so the Shiites can cut off the jobs to former Sunni fighters that the U.S. government promised,” wrote Tony Blankley on Townhall.com. “There are (not completely reliable) reports that the jobs cutoff and other abuses have started already.”

The Times reported that the government has already arrested some members of the Sunni Shawa “Awakening” movement—fighters who formerly worked with al Qaeda, but changed their allegiance to the U.S. As the Shiites consolidate power in Iraq, Iran gains a greater hold on its neighbor.

But if Iraq’s Shiites refuse to do Tehran’s bidding, Iran has another tool it can use to bring them into line: terror.

“Iran is still supporting, funding and training surrogates who operate inside of Iraq. They have not stopped, and I don’t think they will stop,” said Gen. Ray Odierno, America’s top military commander in Iraq. “I think many of the attacks in Baghdad are from individuals that have been, in fact, funded or trained by the Iranians.”

“Those are being done by groups that have been trained in Iran, been funded by Iran. Usually their leaders are still in Iran and they have surrogates doing operations in Iraq,” he said.

He noted that tighter security has significantly reduced the number of attacks. But with U.S. forces out of the cities, Iranian militias could become more powerful. American troops would not be on hand to stop their attacks, and being out of the cities could significantly reduce America’s intelligence-gathering capacity.

America’s withdrawal could make the Iranian regime even bolder. The Wall Street Journal wrote on Tuesday:

Iranian and insurgent media declared the United States to be a paper tiger lacking staying power. The Baker-Hamilton Commission report underscored such perceptions. Al Jazeera broadcast congressional lamentations of defeat throughout the region. Iranian intelligence told Iraqi officials that they might like the Americans better, but Iran would always be their neighbor and they best make an accommodation. Al Qaeda sounded similar themes in al Anbar.

The Journal wrote that this perception of American weakness is already affecting Iraq:

Troop numbers are not the issue. It is the projection of weakness. Not only Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki but Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani have also reached out to the Islamic Republic in recent weeks.

The Trumpet has long forecasted that Iraq would fall to Iran. Watch this unfold before your eyes as America withdraws. For more information, read “When America Leaves Iraq ….” •

WHERE IS THE "ARK OF THE COVENANT"

'Ark of the Covenant' about to be unveiled?
Ethiopian patriarch tells pope he will show artifact to world

---

Posted: June 24, 2009
9:35 pm Eastern

© 2009 WorldNetDaily

Ark of the Covenant as depicted in 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' (Paramount Pictures)

The patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia says he will announce to the world Friday the unveiling of the Ark of the Covenant, perhaps the world's most prized archaeological and spiritual artifact, which he says has been hidden away in a church in his country for millennia, according to the Italian news agency Adnkronos.

Abuna Pauolos, in Italy for a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI this week, told the news agency, "Soon the world will be able to admire the Ark of the Covenant described in the Bible as the container of the tablets of the law that God delivered to Moses and the center of searches and studies for centuries."

The announcement is expected to be made at 2 p.m. Italian time from the Hotel Aldrovandi in Rome. Pauolos will reportedly be accompanied by Prince Aklile Berhan Makonnen Haile Sellassie and Duke Amedeo D'Acosta.

Abuna Pauolos, patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Ethiopia

"The Ark of the Covenant is in Ethiopia for many centuries," said Pauolos. "As a patriarch I have seen it with my own eyes and only few highly qualified persons could do the same, until now."

Want to know more about the ancient box holding the Ten Commandments? Get "Exploring the Ark of the Covenant" – a two-DVD set!

According to Pauolos, the actual Ark has been kept in one church, but to defend the treasure, a copy was placed in every single church in Ethiopia.