Significant "Signs of the Times"...

The following are excerpts from Signs of the Times, by Gary Kah Hope for the World. I invite you to read all of his enlightening articles, but first read his profile, as he has significant credentials.

"Virtually all of our most powerful leaders, including Tony Blair and George Bush, appear to be falling for the lie that a one-world economic, political and spiritual system will somehow solve our most pressing problems and bring peace. Through their naivety, Satan is tightening his grip on the institutions of this world – including the compromised elements of the church."

..."While in Israel, President Bush also met with Arab leaders at a special summit to promote his Road Map for Peace. This plan, if it remains in tact, will force Israel to give up a large portion of Judea and Samaria, while dividing Jerusalem. The goal of the Bush Administration is to have the plan finalized by November 12th of this year.15 At this point, both Shimon Peres and Ehud Olmert are “on board.” It appears that Israeli citizens are being betrayed by their top two leaders who are prepared to surrender their country to international interests in exchange for a promise of peace."

..."A few weeks after Bush’s trip to Israel he traveled to Rome for what would be his third meeting with Pope Benedict. On Friday, June 13th, Benedict and Bush held 30 minutes of private talks inside a medieval watchtower on the Vatican grounds. ...“Several Italian newspapers cited Vatican sources suggesting that Mr. Bush may be prepared to convert…He has repeatedly made clear his admiration for Benedict and has even claimed to have read some of the pope’s theological books.”19 ...(Jeb Bush, the President’s brother, has already converted to Catholicism.)"

..."Where are all the disturbing events of our day leading us? Ultimately, we know from Scripture (Matt. 24, II Thess. 2, Rev. 19-22, etc.) that Jesus Christ will return in power and majesty to defeat the forces of Satan and establish His reign. What an incredible day that will be! However, I’m afraid that between now and then things are going to “get ugly.”

"I believe, based on Scripture and current world trends, that persecution against the followers of Jesus will soon increase."

..."Therefore, our sacred duty and calling in these last days as we recognize the signs of the times is to stand firm on behalf of the Lord. In I Corinthians 15:58, Paul urges, “…stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” Again in I Corinthians 16:13, Paul emphatically states, “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.”

..."It is better to stand alone in the truth and remain obedient to the Lord than to fall with the majority for the lies of Satan and be subject to everlasting punishment. The prophet Daniel and the three Hebrews stood firm and would not compromise before the king of Babylon. They risked their very lives for the Lord, not knowing if they would be spared. Putting everything on the line in courageous obedience, they believed that no matter what happened their eternity would be secure in Him. They had an enduring trust in the power, goodness, and faithfulness of God; and so must we!"

...“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”
— James 1:12

Read the entire article: Signs of the Times

Amazing Arab Conversion...Must Read!!!

WASHINGTON – When Taysir Saada served as a trained assassin for Yasser Arafat's Fatah organization in the late 1960s, he admits he hated Christians.

If he found a home belonging to followers of Jesus, he would sometimes throw a grenade inside and shoot it up with bursts of machine-gun fire.

He has no idea how many people were killed and wounded in such attacks.

Today a non-uniformed Saada, now known as Tass, patrols the dangerous Hamas-dominated streets of the Gaza Strip – no longer hunting down Christians or bearing arms; the Palestinian-American has traded in his automatic weapons and grenades for the Bible, humanitarian service and apologies to Arab Christians he once persecuted.

His transition from Islamic terrorist to Christian missionary is recounted in a new book, "Once An Arafat Man: The True Story of How a PLO Sniper Found a New Life."

The rest of his story is truly riveting and a testimony to the Grace of God!! Arafat Sniper now Christian

A "Guided" Encounter

As I have found day in and day out, nothing that happens to me is by "chance", it is, rather, by Divine Guidance. Such was the case when searching the internet for anything pertaining to Israel in September 2006. I happened upon an article by Lisa Loden. The particulars escape me now, but her attitude so impressed me that I wrote her via the link provided, which apparently was one used by her church. It was forwarded to her, and she wrote me back as a result. That was two years ago to the month!
Today, when reading an article by Francis Frangipane, I followed a link to another article by Donna Diorio, and clicked on the link to her website, Israel Prayer On it, I found a page with information on Lisa's church founded by her husband, David Loden! Beit Asaph I have provided links to both sites under Friends and Be Informed in the side column as well. Check them out and be blessed!
Please be in prayer now, more than ever, for Israel's land and for Jerusalem, but even more importantly, for the Jews and those who labor to bring the Truth about Yeshua HaMashiach to them.

The Origin of the Name Palestine: Truth is Stranger than Fiction

By Mark Ledbetter

Since the defeat of Israel's third rebellion against Rome in 135 AD the land of Israel has been dubbed "Palestine." It is a name that been perpetuated in both secular and biblical history. Most have assumed that then Emperor Hadrian intentionally renamed the area Palestine to had insult to injury to the Jews. Supposedly, the name Palestine is derived from Israel's ancient arch-enemy, the Philistines.

Present-day Palestinians, especially those living in Gaza, lay hold of this assumption citing ancient history gives them a right to the land, and as descendents of the Philistines they have a legal right to the land, just as Israel stakes their claim on ancient Biblical history. It is interesting to note that, however, that the Philistines as a people group ceased to exist 3000 years ago as they were assimilated by local cultures.

When Palestine Meant Israel

In his article, "When Palestine Meant Israel," (Biblical Archaeology  Review, May/June 2001, Vol 27, No. 3, pp. 42-47), David Jacobson brings some interesting insight into the argument regarding the origin of the name Palestine. In the article, he admits the "phonetic similarity between Palaistine and Peleshet, the Hebrew word for the "land of the Philistines." But that is as far as the comparison goes.

He points out that in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, The Septuagint (or LXX), we find a transliteration of the Hebrew and is rendered Philistieim. So, the question that begs to be asked is, how or why did the name Palaistine (Palestine) become the common reference to the Land of Israel, or 'Eretz Yisrael? The answer is surprising and has interesting implications.

The origin goes back to the story recorded in Genesis 32:22-32 where Jacob wrestled with a "man" (or an angel). After the wrestling match, God gave Jacob a new name, Israel. In verse 25 we read, "When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob's thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him."

Again we read in verse 28, "He said, 'Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed."

In each verse a different word is used to indicate a struggle. In verse 25 the word "wrestle" (Hebrew, 'abaq) and is only found in connection with Jacob's wrestling with the Angel of the Lord. In verse 28, the word "striven" is from the Hebrew sarita, which comes from the root sarah, which means "content." The name Israel is from the compound sarita-el, or Yisra'el (Israel). Again, the Hebrew is found only in connection with Jacob's encounter with the angel (see Hosea 12:4). The emphasis is upon contending, or wrestling with God.

In verse 25, the Greek word used in the LXX for "wrestle" is epalaien, "he wrestled." The Greek for "wrestler" is palaistes. Comparing this with Palaistine

• Palaistes [wrestler]
  
• Palaistine [Palestine]
  

Jacobson makes the following observation: "The striking similarity between the Greek word for 'wrestler' (palaistes) and the name Palaistine – which share seven letters in a row, including a diphthong – is strong evidence of a connection between them." He continues:

Hadrian officially renamed Judea Syria Palaestina after his Roman armies  suppressed the Bar-Kokhba Revolt (the Second Jewish Revolt) in 135 C.E.; this is commonly viewed as a move intended to sever the connection of the Jews to their historical homeland. However, that Jewish writers such as Philo, in particular, and Josephus, who flourished while Judea was still formally in existence, used the name Palestine for the Land of Israel in their Greek works, suggests that this interpretation of history is mistaken. Hadrian's choice of Syria Palaestina may be more correctly seen as a rationalization of the name of the new province, in accordance with its area being far larger than geographical Judea. Instead, Syria Palaestina had an ancient pedigree that was intimately linked with the area of greater Israel.

Important Implications

This conclusion suggests, therefore two important thoughts. One, this position undermines the widely circulated myth that Palestine is derived from the word Philistine. Two, Arab Palestinians are actually claiming to be heirs of Jacob and are Israelites rather than Arabs. Arab Palestinians are a myth! Further, the name Syria Palaestinia almost encompasses the entire land area that God promised to Abraham and his descendants (see Genesis 15:18-21).

Prior to 1948, the British Mandate called for two "Palestines" – Jewish Palestine and Arab Palestine.

Jewish Palestine was a tiny sliver of land while Arab Palestine included present day Jordan. Before there was an Israeli Philharmonic Orchestra, there was the Palestine Symphonic Orchestra. Similarly, before there was The Jerusalem Post, thee was a Palestine Post. Ironically, Syria objected to referring to the name Palestine because it was "too Jewish."

A Pseudo-Palestinian Movement

Who then, are the Palestinians? Initially, Palestinians were the 750,000 Arabs that left their homes in Israel as a result of the Arab invasion in 1948. The departed for three reasons: One, they were warned to flee because their Arab brothers warned them to remove themselves from harm's way when they invaded Israel; two, Arab intellectuals and businessmen left for Europe and America because they felt that the war would be disastrous if the remained; and three, Arabs remaining behind and proved hostile had their homes confiscated and were expelled from the land.

Arabs fleeing to neighboring Arab nations found themselves unwanted and found themselves as refugees. Through the years they were forced to live in squalid conditions in a hostile environment while living among their own. Meanwhile, many of the 650,000 Jews forced from their homes, livelihoods and fortunes in Arab nations found a home in the new State of Israel.

The designation "Palestinian" did not come into vogue until the 1967 Six-Day War. Three years prior to the '67 war, the Palestinian Liberation Organization was formed to liberate "Palestine," which included both Israel and Jordan. Arafat led the Jordanian "Palestinians" in a revolt against the Jordanian government. When defeated, he took his PLO to southern Lebanon (sound familiar) and moved to Israel in the 1980s.

Truth is at times, stranger than fiction.

 
 

Information is taken from Mark Ledbetter's book, The Road Map to Armageddon.

Psalm 83: Conspiracy, Conspirators, and Prayer

Pastor Mark Ledbetter from Sylacauga, Alabama, shared this in August, 2006; it seems even more pertinent today since we have a clearer picture of what is transpiring….

Several years ago, while still serving as pastor in Winfield, AL, I preached a message regarding the prophetic possibilities found in Psalm 83. What I said then seems even more so today. Following is a review and update in light of recent events that are currently taking place:

The Conspiracy, vvs. 1-4

Since the Psalm is ancient, then the intent of Israel's "neighbors" is ancient, as ancient as Ishmael and Esau. The call for Israel to be "wiped" off the landscape of a predominantly Islamic Middle East is something many have witnessed in modern and now post-modern era.

In 1947, Israel's Arab "neighbors" rejected the U.N. declaration establishing a small sliver of land as a home for Israel. Immediately, surrounding Arab nations engaged in a campaign to "push the Jews into the Sea." It was a war of "extermination" that was launched against a heavily out-manned, out-powered, and ill-equipped people that somehow miraculously prevailed. Ben Gurion's declaration of independence in May 1948 held.

Twice repeated has been the call for Israel's destruction, each with the same results. Israel's enemies were remarkably defeated in 1967 and 1973. Now, with the current crisis in Israel, the call for Israel to be removed from the land is a chief focus of Islamic nations.

The Conspirators, vvs. 5-8

It is easy to identify the identity of Israel's enemies in terms of current events: Syria, Lebanon/Hezbollah, Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinians. This band is enlarged as both Ishmael and Japheth's descendants are united through a common bond – Islam. So, the conspiracy grows in Ezekiel 38 and 39 as Iran makes a stand.

Recently, Iran's Ahamadinejab, has once again called for the Israeli state to be replaced with an Islamic republic – the goal Hamas and Hezbollah have for Israel and Lebanon, respectively. But this time Jordan, Egypt and Turkey failed to object to the inflammatory rhetoric of Ahamadinejab.

Gog and Magog, Tubal, Cush, etc., are all Islamic nations, many are remnants of the former Soviet Empire. Nations under Islamic influence include the southern border of the Mediterranean, or northern Africa, as well as Sudan (Cush) and other African nations. It would be hard for anyone to miss, unless they simply choose to close a blind eye, or be so caught up in the cares of this life that they don't care.

The Prayer, vvs. 9-18

The Psalmist mixes no words regarding how he wants God to respond! He calls for God to respond with force, and by doing so, revealing that the war that Islam proposes is a war against God Himself, and will end in God's ultimate glory. This will be the result in the battle between Jehovah and Allah in Ezekiel 38 & 39.

^"Fill their faces with dishonor, that they may seek Thy name, O LORD. Let them be ashamed and dismayed forever; and let them be humiliated and perish, That they may know that Thou alone, whose name is the LORD, art the Most High over all the earth." (Ps 83:16-18, NAS)

© Mark Ledbetter 2006

Ancient vs Modern Day Israel

I found the following information to be an amazing parallel between the Judges and Kings of ancient Israel vs the Prime Ministers and coming Kings of modern day Israel. Note the numbers in each period of history, the 4th entry in each period, and the final King entries in both periods.

The original source of the material could not located, nor has its accuracy been verified. Use for general informational purposes only.

Don


Beginning of the nation of Israel [1897 BC]

Abram… a great nation… Abraham; for a father of many nations

There were 13 judges:
1) Moses
2) Othniel
3) Ehud
4) Deborah – Only woman
5) Tola
6) Jair
7) Jephthah
8) Ibzan
9) Elon
10) Abdon
11) Samson
12) Eli
13) Samuel

Then came Kings. The first 2 were:
1) Saul (Was a type of anti-christ – did things not unto the Lord)
2) David (Was most after God’s heart – did things unto the Lord)


Modern Israel

First Zionist Congress – Theodore Herzl [1897 AD]

Who has been Prime Minister since then:
1) David Ben-Gurion (1948-1953, 1955-1963)
2) Moshe Sharett (1954-1955)
3) Levi Eshkol (1963-1969)
4) Golda Meir (1969-1974) – Only woman
5) Yitzak Rabin (1974-1977, 1992-1995)
6) Menachem Begin (1977-1983)
7) Yitzak Shamir (1983-1984, 1986-1992)
8) Shimon Perez (1984-1986, 1995-1996)
9) Benjamin Netanyahu (1996-1999)
10) Ehud Barak (1999-2001)
11) Ariel Sharon (2001-2006)
12) Ehud Olmert is acting PM until elections
13) Could this PM could be the one to sign the agreement with the AntiChrist?

The next 2 Kings?
1) The Antichrist (Saul like qualities)
2) Lord Jesus Christ

The Real 'Right of Return'

By Arlene Kushner
FrontPageMagazine.com | Wednesday, September 17, 2008

It is perverse, if not altogether surreal, that the international community persists in treating with seriousness the negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel that deal in some considerable measure with the “key issue” of return of refugees.
Perhaps we can attribute this to a political correctness that makes it impossible for many to challenge a concept that the Palestinians are advancing with great passion. But if there is ever going to be peace in the Middle East, self-deluding perceptions based on political correctness must be abandoned.

It’s time to get real: The “right of return” does not exist.

UNRWA, the UN agency responsible for those Palestinians considered to be “refugees,” premises the existence of the “right” rather tenuously on the lead sentence in UN General Assembly Resolution 194, paragraph 11: “the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbors should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date…”
But a closer look at this sentence and its broader context exposes the fatal weaknesses inherent in advancing it as the legal basis for “return”:
read the rest of the article: Right of Return

Bozrah the Sheep Pen of the Messiah

The Location of the Coming of the Messiah According to the Hebrew Scriptures

The link below provides a study showing where the Second Coming of the Messiah will take place. This subject is often misunderstood by even the most noted scholars. There is much confusion concerning the timing of the Second Coming and the Rapture of the Church, and the term Battle of Armageddon is also an event that is often misunderstood. This will detail the scriptures indicating the return of the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua (Hebrew for Jesus).

The main error about the Valley of Armageddon is that it is incorrectly named. From the Hebrew Har-Meggido or Mount Meggido. Meggido is an ancient city near the Valley of Jezreel. There is no battle here only a gathering of the Gentile armies of the Anti-Messiah against the nation of Israel. This gathering is very much like the gathering of the Allied Forces in Ryad, Saudi-Arabia in Operation Desert Storm 1 in the early 1990's. Bozrah is not the same Bosera in southern Iraq. (Both meaning sheep pen but are different locations.)

The armies are gathered, and Israel will learn of the passage:

Matthew 24:15-16, "Therefore when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place" (whoever reads, let him understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains."

They heed this prophesy and flee to the mountainous wilderness in Southern Jordan (Edom) to a city called Bozrah. Bozrah is an Old Testament city in Edom whose name translates as sheep pen. The city that closely resembles a sheep pen in Southern Jordan is the ancient Roman city called Petra. A rock fortress that is highly defendable with the surrounding mountains. The remnant of Israel flees Jerusalem as foretold in Isaiah.

More at link...

full story here

The link will show a continuation of the story, photographs, Scriptures, history of Petra and so much more. This is a must read!

Don

Land Boundaries Given To Abraham

Genesis 13:14,15
And the LORD said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are — northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.

Genesis 15:18-21
On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying:
“To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates— the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”

Map of the land boundaries:

see map here

Don

Remembering September 11, 2001

I have a tribute to Capt.Thomas Farino on my personal blog: Midspoint

Someday, Peace…

Pain unspeakable, taking emotions prisoner
Battering the soul with images tender hearts cannot endure.
The enormous depth of anguish cannot at length be fathomed,
Nor the mount of sorrows scaled within a single lifetime.

Outcries hide in caverns of unrequited silence,
Tears flow unrestrained into streams of mass frustration.
Sleep comes not, for the vigil, held amid the devastation,
Burning eyes with hallowed cinders of the cherished…lost.

Yet echoes of a faith not buried, nor crumbled underneath the rubble
Bring unrelenting waves of peace surpassing comprehension.
And with it springs up courage, molding heroes from the ashes,
Who, despite the dangers hidden, care beyond their lives.

Still, vengeance is but God’s alone, in perfect judgment executed,
Bringing hatred to its knees beneath the blue of freedom’s skies.
Released from shackles of oppression, the wounded heal in Love’s embrace,
And in the face of hope rebuilt…fades the battle cry.

© Mid Stutsman 2001

The Third Temple

Rice Urging Division of Jerusalem

by IsraelNN Staff
Last Update: 09/02/08

(IsraelNN.com) Aaron Klein, Jerusalem Bureau Chief for WorldNetDaily.com, reveals that multiple reports on Thursday in official Palestinian Authority media outlets insist that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressed Israel in her visit here earlier this week to sign a document that would divide Jerusalem by the end of the year.

Interviewed by Israel National Radio's Tovia Singer, Klein stated that the proposed deal would offer the Arabs a state in Israel's capital city as well as in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza Strip.

More at link...

full story here



I have said that I believed Jerusalem was God's line drawn in the sand, so to speak - and that if it was crossed, He would bring swift judgment down on all who would seek to divide her. In light of the current situation there regarding relentless attempts to split Israel's God given land, this Scripture promise for Jerusalem may be significant for today: (Note the surveyor's line over Jerusalem)

Zechariah 1:16-17 NKJV
Therefore thus says the LORD:
"I am returning to Jerusalem with mercy;
My house shall be built in it," says the LORD of hosts,
"And a surveyor's line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem."'
"Again proclaim, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts:
"My cities shall again spread out through prosperity;
The LORD will again comfort Zion,
And will again choose Jerusalem.'"

These Scriptures describe the judgment that will come for dividing the land:

Joel 3:2 NKJV
I will also gather all nations,
And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
And I will enter into judgment with them there
On account of My people, My heritage Israel,
Whom they have scattered among the nations;
They have also divided up My land.

Zechariah 14:2
For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

I believe if the land is divided as we are seeing today - crossing the line God has established, He will bring His swift judgment on all who tread on it as He has promised.

I also believe there's only just a few more grains of sand remaining yet to drop down into the bottom of the hour-glass of time as we know it.

Don

God Will Never Forget Thee, Zion!

(Isaiah 49:14-16)
But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me,
And my Lord has forgotten me."

"Can a woman forget her nursing child,
And not have compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget,
Yet I will not forget you.
See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;
Your walls are continually before Me."

The Lord has tatooed Zion/Jerusalem on the palms of His hands...
her walls are continually before Him. No matter what unbelieving, corrupt government tries to sell out Israel to her enemies, Israel/Jerusalem is ever before the Lord. He has wed Himself to her. He is her bridegroom. She will always be in His heart. The enemies of Israel have her destruction in mind, even those enemies within, whose hearts are not Jewish, those who call themselves Jews but are not and love not the land that was specifically given to them by the Creator of heaven and earth, but God says He will defend her.

We may yet have our faith tried in this respect, if the Lord allows the unthinkable to happen in order to bring Israel to her knees so that her people will acknowledge Yeshua as Messiah. We may think as others undoubtedly will, that God has forsaken His Beloved... but stand strong when these things happen, for God is not a man that He should lie... what He has said He will bring to pass.
Never doubt for a minute that God's Word is true, and that He is orchestrating all that is happening--for Israel's future benefit~never cease to pray for the peace of Jerusalem!!!

Wall dating to Second Temple unearthed

The Jerusalem Post
Sep 3, 2008
By ETGAR LEFKOVITS

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1220444319782&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

The remains of the southern wall of Jerusalem that was built by the Hasmonean kings during the time of the Second Temple have been uncovered on Mount Zion, the Antiquities Authority announced Wednesday.

The 2,100-year-old wall, which was destroyed during the Great Revolt against the Romans that began in 66 CE, is located just outside the present-day walls of the Old City and abuts the Catholic cemetery built in the last century where Righteous Gentile Oskar Schindler is buried.

The sturdy wall, which is believed to have run 6 km. around Jerusalem, was previously exposed by an American archeologist at the end of the 19th century, the state run archeological body said.

The Israeli archeologist who started the ongoing excavation a year-and-a-half ago also uncovered the remains of a city wall from the Byzantine Period (324-640 CE) that was built on top of the Second Temple wall at a time when ancient Jerusalem reached its largest size after its southward expansion.

"In the Second Temple period the city, with the Temple at its center, was a focal point for Jewish pilgrimage from all over the ancient world, and in the Byzantine period it attracted Christian pilgrims who came in the footsteps of the story of the life and death of their messiah," said Yehiel Zelinger, the excavation's director.

He said the builders of the Byzantine wall were unaware of the existence of the earlier structure, yet they placed their wall precisely along the same route due to its advantageous location for the defense of the city.

Full story at link...

Moslem 1925 pamphlet claims Temple Mount Jewish

"The widely-disseminated Arab claim that the Temple Mount isn't Jewish has been debunked - by the Supreme Moslem Council (Waqf), in a 1925 pamphlet." See the pamphlet and read the article here: Temple Mount

The fact that the Jewish government never saw this part of Jerusalem important enough to keep it under Israeli control, speaks volumes about the spiritual state of this nation so important to God!! As Christians, we may yet be surprised at what will have to happen to this country to bring it to its knees and acknowledge the sin of pride and self-reliance to the end that its people accept Yeshua as their Mashiach(Messiah).

Galilee Arabs Could Declare A State Now

This, from: The Jerusalem Post

"If the Israeli government doesn't make sure there is a Jewish majority in the Galilee, the Arab majority could declare independence and [demand] international recognition based on the precedent of [breakaway Georgian provinces South] Ossetia and Abkhazia," Danny Ayalon, former ambassador to the US and current co-chairman of Nefesh B'Nefesh, said at a political gathering in Carmiel Sunday evening.

This, from: World Net Daily
By Aaron Klein
© 2008 WorldNetDaily





JERUSALEM – After months of denials the status of Jerusalem is on the table during negotiations, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office today confirmed to WND that a mechanism has been created to deal with the issue of the holy city in U.S.-backed Israeli-Palestinian talks aimed at creating a Palestinian state by the end of the year.

"Of all the final status core issues, the issue of Jerusalem is probably the most difficult and unlike some of the other issues, we have yet to start negotiating the future of Jerusalem. Therefore in order to not let the process fall victim to its weakest link, we have the establishment of an agreed upon mechanism that would continue to deal with Jerusalem. That mechanism was created in such a way that it would address the concern of both sides," Mark Regev, Olmert's spokesman, told WND.

Regev would not detail which mechanism had purportedly been created to discuss Jerusalem.