Libya has signed contracts with France to buy anti-tank missiles and radio communications equipment worth $405m (£199m), Libyan officials have said.
The arms agreement is Libya's first with a Western country since a European Union embargo was lifted in 2004.
France has confirmed the missile deal - the larger of the two.
Last month Libya agreed to release six Bulgarian medics convicted of infecting children with HIV. France denies that the move was linked to any arms deal.
Libyan officials, speaking to reporters anonymously, said Libya was purchasing Milan anti-tank missiles worth $230m and radio communications equipment worth $175m.
Both contracts were secured by subsidiaries of the European aerospace and defence giant EADS, they said.
EADS and French Defence Minister Herve Morin confirmed that the sale of the anti-tank missiles had been agreed.
The firm said the deal had been reached after 18 months of talks.
President Nicolas Sarkozy is facing questions over the timing of the deal with Libya, coming so soon after his government helped secure the release of the medics.
France's opposition Socialist leader Francois Hollande has called for a parliamentary inquiry into the negotiations between France and Libya.
Normalised ties
The five Bulgarian nurses and Palestinian-born ...   more »

For first time since fall of Iron Curtain, Russia plans to build permanent bases on Syrian soil as part of large arms deal between two countries. Defense establishment officials fear Russian ships may try to spy on Israel's weapon systems

Aryeh Egozi, Alex Fishman Published:
For the first time since the fall of the Iron Curtain, Russia plans to re-operate the Tartus and Latakia ports in Syria as permanent bases for the Russian Navy in the Mediterranean basin, according to recent western media reports.  
Rumors on the growing Russian activity in the Mediterranean began spreading following a statement by Russian Navy commander, Admiral Vladimir Masorin, as he visited the Russian Navy base in the Sebastopol port in Ukraine.    
Nuclear subcontractor said Tehran's first atomic power plant in Bushehr will not be finished before autumn 2008, a delay of more than year to earlier plans    
"Being present in the Mediterranean is very important for our Navy in the Black Sea," the admiral said.  
The Qatar-based television network al-Jazeera quoted a senior Russian Defense Ministry official over the weekend, who declared that Russia must be permanently present in the Mediterranean again.  
According to the reports, Syria plans ...   more »

By Pastor Chuck Baldwin
August 3, 2007
I have served the Lord as an evangelical Christian all of my adult life. As a Christian, I believe the Bible is the Word of God. I believe Jesus is the Son of God, that He died for my sins, and that He physically rose from the grave. I believe He ascended to Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father, where He "ever liveth" to make intercession for the saints.
I have had the privilege of winning numerous souls to Christ. As a veteran pastor of more than 30 years, I have had the joy of baptizing many hundreds of converts. I believe in the local church. I believe in missions. I am also an American.
As an American, I revere the history and heritage of this great country. I hold America's Founding Fathers in deepest regard. I believe the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights set forth the greatest political principles and form of government ever devised my man. I believe in individual freedom, national sovereignty, and states' rights. Furthermore, I believe that my devotion to God does not, in any way, contradict ...   more »

It's hard to imagine how much America – and the world – has changed in just my lifetime. I was born at the beginning of the Depression. The United States was only a second-rate power until I was a young teenager. It emerged from World War II as a world power. By the time I was in my 20s, America was an undisputed superpower.
During the Cold War years, the world was essentially divided between two superpowers – The Soviet Union and the USA. I witnessed America rise from secondary power to become the greatest superpower on earth when the Soviet Union crumbled under the weight of its failed economic system.
Concurrently, I watched America's power decline from within. I witnessed the growing influence of socialist, liberal, secular humanist professors in our major universities during the 12 years I worked with college students. This influence spread as their students carried these ideas into careers in the media and politics.
As America drifted further and further from God, it embraced this godless ideology. The impact of this change soon became evident. Though we led the world in military technology and power, we've come to the point where the last war in ...   more »

by WND Staff/
"The boys already are serving as deacons in their Christian church, and have gone on Egyptian talk programs to express their dedication to Christianity."
(Egypt)-Egyptian schoolboys, Mario Medhat Ramses and Andrew Medhat Ramses, face a future without educational opportunities even though they had been classified as "brilliant" students at the French Lycee school of Alexandria. Why? Because when they were ordered to take a school test that would result in their conversion to Islam, they wrote, "I am Christian." The boys knew in advance that by declaring their faith on the exam paper they would lose their education.
"What brought the case to the public's attention is the categorical refusal of the two kids to pass the Islamic exams and convert to Islam, stating, 'they will not deny their Christianity and convert to Islam no matter what it would cost them,' said Sam Grace, a spokesman for Coptic News.
"We need all human rights organizations to try to force Egypt to respect the human rights conventions, and Egypt is a signatory for all these human rights conventions. Our aim is really that we want to call on all human rights groups in the civilized world, and all ...   more »

Michelle Malkin
August 3, 2007
The blood of innocent Christian missionaries spills on Afghan sands. The world watches and yawns. The United Nations offers nothing more than a formal expression of "concern." Where is the global uproar over the human rights abuses unfolding before our eyes?
For two weeks, a group of South Korean Christians has been held hostage by Taliban thugs in Afghanistan. This is the largest group of foreign hostages taken in Afghanistan since Operation Enduring Freedom began in 2001. What was their offense? Were they smuggling arms into the country? No. Inciting violence? No. They were peaceful believers in Christ on short-term medical and humanitarian missions. Seventeen of the 23 hostages are females. Most are nurses who provide social services and relief.
Over the last few days, the bloodthirsty jihadists have demanded that South Korea immediately withdraw troops from the Middle East, pay ransom and trade the civilian missionaries for imprisoned Taliban fighters. The Taliban leaders have made good on threats to kill the kidnapped Christians while Afghan officials plead fecklessly that their monstrous behavior is "un-Islamic."
Two men, 29-year-old Shim Sung-min and 42-year-old Rev. Bae Hyeong-gyu, have already been shot to death and dumped in the ...   more »

Did you know that many (in fact, most) color laser printers are spying on you whenever you print a document? Though you may not have heard the news, the discovery was announced in late 2005. Manufacturers embed a pattern of tiny yellow dots on printed pages. The dots are too small to be seen with the naked eye (especially since they're yellow, see the above photo to see what they actually look like), but under a microscope and blue light they're revealed. The dots are placed in a pattern unique to each printer, and since most color laser printers are purchased through well-documented service providers or direct from the manufacturer, it's simple to track any printed page back to the owner of the printer.
The original idea was obviously to help the government track down currency counterfeiters, since any phony money would be tagged with the yellow dots and would be easily trackable back to the source. But there are also signs of abuse, with the FBI reportedly using the technology to keep tabs on who's printing material for groups like the ACLU and Greenpeace. That's a little scary... and important to remember if you've considering printing a whistleblowing tip ...   more »

Whizzing to work in a flying saucer seems like a futuristic fantasy reminiscent of George Jetson and his space-age pals.   
The 'Jetsons-like' flying machine is the size of a small car and boasts a top speed of 100mph 
But that reality may be one step closer after US company Moller International embarked on a wacky 30-year quest to build a personal flying pod.
Inspired by the 1960s cartoon series, the California-based company has just begun production on the initial six airframes of its M200G Volantor.
Described by its creators as “the ultimate off-road vehicle", the saucer-shaped vehicle can take off and land vertically and travel at a maximum speed of 100mph.
Powered by eight of the company’s rotary engines, the vehicle can carry two passengers and glide about three metres above the ground.
Company founder Dr Paul Moller said the vehicle could travel over any surface, and was as easy to operate as a hovercraft.
“You can speed over rocks, swampland, fences, or log-infested waterways with ease because you’re not limited by the surface,” he said. 
He said the vehicle's electronics kept the craft stabilized at no more than 10 feet altitude, which placed the craft close enough to ...   more »

In a new videotape released by al-Qaida Sunday, the terrorist organization threatened to target US embassies around the world, as well as sites within the United States.
"These spy dens and military command and control centers - from which you plotted your aggression against Afghanistan and Iraq and which still provide vital moral, military, material and logistical support to the crusade - shall continue to be legitimate targets for brave Muslims ... until and unless you heed our demands: Stop the crusade and leave the Muslims alone," the tape said.
Original Source

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By Spencer Ackerman - August 2, 2007, 5:41 PM
There's irresponsibility. There's demagoguery. And then there's Trent Lott.
It turns out the Capitol Police have bolstered security around the U.S. Capitol after a recent al-Qaeda communique threatened an attack on Washington. Lott, according to Roll Call (sub.req.), responded with characteristic gravitas. In light of the heightened threat, Congress can either amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act or all of us can run screaming into the inferno.
Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott (R-Miss.) ominously advised Thursday that Congress needed to pass changes to terrorist surveillance laws before leaving for the August recess and warned that otherwise “the disaster could be on our doorstep.”
Further demonstrating his counterterrorism sagacity, when asked if people should leave Washington, D.C., during the month of August, Lott replied that "I think it would be good to leave town in August, and it would probably be good to stay out until September the 12th." By contrast, a former Capitol Hill chief had the temerity to note that, according to U.S. intelligence analysis he'd been privvy to, "Americans tend to be much more oriented toward anniversaries and the jihadists seem to be less so. I've seen over the ...   more »