by Rabbi Shraga Simmons
Everybody knows you can't eat bread during Passover. But what's the deal with not eating rice and beans, too?
The Torah instructs a Jew not to eat (or even possess) chametz during all seven days of Passover (Exodus 13:3).
"Chametz" is defined as any of the five grains -- wheat, spelt, barley, oats, and rye -- which has come into contact with water for more than 18 minutes. This is a serious Torah prohibition, and for that reason we take extra protective measures on Passover to prevent any mistakes.
Which brings us to the category of prohibited Passover food called "kitniyot." Sometimes referred to generically as "legumes," this includes rice, corn, soy beans, string beans, peas, lentils, mustard, sesame seeds and poppy seeds. Even though kitniyot cannot technically become chametz, Ashkenazi Jews do not eat them on Passover. Why?
The Smak (Rabbi Yitzchak of Korbol) explains that products of kitniyot appear like chametz products. For example, it can be hard to distinguish between rice flour (kitniyot) and wheat flour (chametz). Therefore, to prevent confusion, all kitniyot was prohibited.
The Beit Yosef (Rabbi Yosef Karo, 16th century, Israel) notes that since regular grains may become mixed together ...   more »

Largest terror op in 3 years was to 'execute mass killings and abductions'
By Aaron Klein
JAFFA, Israel – Hamas used two seized U.S. military vehicles to carry out a large-scale attack this weekend against a major Israeli border crossing, Hamas leaders told WND. 
The vehicles were captured when Hamas last June took complete control of the Gaza Strip, overtaking all U.S.-backed security compounds in the territory associated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party. The U.S. provided Fatah with weapons, vehicles and large sums of financial and military aid.
Israeli defense officials called yesterday's border attack the largest, most sophisticated Hamas terrorist operation since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005. 
"We utilized two American armored Jeep vehicles in the heroic operation at Kerem Shalom," said Abu Abdullah, who is considered one of the most important operational members of Hamas' so-called military wing. "We obtained the vehicles last June."
Muhammad Abdel-Al, the spokesperson and a leader of the Hamas-allied Popular Resistance Committees terrorist organization which participated in this weekend's attack, confirmed two American vehicles were utilized. 
Abdel-Al added, "We warned you we would obtain all the weapons the Zionists and Americans gave to your puppets in Fatah. It is ...   more »

By Chris Mitchell
CBNNews.com - JERUSALEM, Israel - What's the greatest danger to world stability? Israeli opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu believes it's the possibility of a nuclear Iran.
"Our central policy must be that Iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons."
Is Netanyahu's assessment of the Iranian threat accurate? Click play to watch Pat Robertson's analysis following CBN News Reporter Chris Mitchell's report.
Netanyahu addressed a group of foreign journalists and warned of the danger Iran poses.
"The militant Shiites in Iran are openly racing and openly boasting that they're racing to develop nuclear weapons with the explicit, announced goal of wiping Israel from the face of the earth."
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But he also warned a nuclear Iran poses a danger not just to Israel.
"This is not merely a local problem but a global problem. Obviously if Iran possesses nuclear weapons, everything we've been talking about will pale in comparison because the power to extend power, to threaten, to realize the threats, to make good on the threats would be on a level that we have not seen, nor can we readily imagine," Netanyahu said.
But how do you stop Iran? Netanyahu advocates financial ...   more »

Friday: Carter in Syria to Meet Assad and Mashaal
Jimmy Carter met Friday with Syrian President Bashar Assad before holding talks with Hamas' exiled political chief Khaled Mashaal.
Carter's meetings with Hamas have drawn sharp criticism from Israelis, U.S. officials. Washington lists Hamas as a terrorist group.
Ynet reported, that former President Carter met Friday with the exiled leader of Hamas and the group's deputy chief, men the US government has labeled as global terrorists and Israel accuses of masterminding suicide bombings and kidnappings.
Friday: 5.2 earthquake rocks large region of Midwest - AP
WEST SALEM, Ill. (AP) — Residents across the Midwest were awakened Friday by a 5.2 magnitude earthquake that rattled skyscrapers in Chicago's Loop and homes in Cincinnati but appeared to cause no major injuries or damage.
The earthquake struck southern Illinois about six miles north of Mount Carmel, at 4:37 a.m., violently shaking people from their beds, swaying Chicago skyscrapers and vibrating the earth as far east as Georgia.
It was felt in such distant cities as Milwaukee, Des Moines, Iowa, and Atlanta, nearly 400 miles to the southeast.
The strongest quake produced in recent history by the Wabash area was a magnitude 5.3 in southern ...   more »