Palestinian president tells Washington Post full Israeli withdrawal from territories, safe passage between West Bank and Gaza Strip are fundamental conditions for peace agreement
An Israeli-Palestinian peace deal would have to include an Israeli withdrawal to the 1967 borders and a safe passage between the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas told the Washington Post Saturday.
Asked how the Gaza Strip should be regarded following Hamas takeover, Abbas stated that, "Nobody recognizes Gaza. We have one authority, one cabinet, one government. Hamas is an illegal government."
In the interview, the president expressed his confidence in Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, saying he believed him to be "sincere and serious," and interested in reaching peace.
Abbas was also approving of Vice Premier Haim Ramon's initiative of ceding East Jerusalem to the Palestinians. "In principle, this is the right direction," he said. "The Palestinians should have their own part and the Israelis should have their own part. . . . I say and have always said that East Jerusalem is an occupied territory. We have to restore it."

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Syrian vice president says Syrian not interested in war with Israel 'in distant or near future,' accuses Jerusalem of spreading false reports
Reuters
Syria accused Israel on Saturday of making excuses for war by spreading false reports that an Israeli air raid targeted a site linked to weapons of mass destruction.
Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Shara said his country did not want war "in the distant or near future".
"They (Israel) are making up things to justify an aggression in the future. They are playing on public opinion to mislead it," he said, describing the reports as fabrications. "Everything reported about this raid is wrong and is part of a psychological warfare that will not fool Syria," Shara told reporters after meeting his Iraqi counterpart Adel Abdul-Mahdi.
Damascus says Israel launched the air raid on Sept. 6, bombing an empty area after air defence systems confronted the aircraft. Some US officials have linked the raid to apparent Israeli suspicions of secret nuclear cooperation between Damascus and North Korea.
Diplomats in Damascus say at least four Israeli warplanes crossed deep into Syria in this month's operation. They suggest the intended target may have involved missiles supplied by North Korea but played ...   more »

The Jerusalem-based Institute for Contemporary Affairs recently released a report authored by Lt. Col. Jonathan Dahoah-Halevi that concludes, to nobody's particular surprise, that the Gaza Strip has become a haven for al-Qaida terrorists.
Gaza, part of the biblical "land of the Philistines" was the place where Samson toppled the Temple of Dagon on his enemies, giving his life in the process.
Gaza was first conquered for Israel by King David and subsequently fell to the Assyrians, the Egyptians, the Babylonians, Persians and Greeks.
But in the days of King David, it was part of Israel. In Jesus' day, it was part of the Hasmonean Kingdom that ended with Herod the Great. In 1967, Gaza again became part of Israel when Egypt lost it in the Six Day's War.
In September 2004, Ariel Sharon announced his controversial disengagement plan under the title, "Gaza First." Sharon intended to turn Gaza completely over to Palestinian rule, hoping to accomplish two goals in the process.
The first and official goal was contained within its slogan, "Gaza First." Israel would allow Gaza to govern itself, then use Gaza's success or failure as a template for future negotiations over the West Bank.
Israel pulled out of ...   more »

Timna National Park officials estimate group of Christians thinking site was sacred preformed head shaving ceremony and left offerings to God
Ahuva Mamos
Hundreds of passport photos, human hairs laid out in circle, an endless amount of requests to God, a prayer shawl, and an Israeli flag were found scattered at Solomon’s Pillars in Timna National Park near Eilat Thursday night.
Park officials speculated that a Christian group visited the site and, thinking it was a sacred site, preformed a head shaving ceremony, and left offerings to God.
The mystery began when park officials received a message saying hundreds of photos and crucifixes were found at Solomon’s Pillars. “The place looked like a cult of some kind had been there and preformed a ceremony,” one park official told Ynet.
Park Director Aharon Lavi said the site attracted many believers each year, including pilgrims. “I believe this was a one time thing, a cult of believers, or a crazy individual,” Lavi added.
After finding numerous prayer notes and letters, park officials estimated that the worshippers were Christians who were told by their priest that the site was actually the Western Wall.
The people in the passport photos appeared to be of ...   more »

By Dr. Jack Wheeler
"Everyone in the government and military can only talk of one thing,' he reports.  'No matter who I talked to, all they could do was ask me, over and over again, 'Do you think the Americans will attack us?' 'When will the Americans attack us?' 'Will the Americans attack us in a joint operation with the Israelis?' How massive will the attack be?' on and on, endlessly.  The Iranians are in a state of total panic.'
And that was before September 6.  Since then, it's panic-squared in Tehran.  The mullahs are freaking out in fear.  Why?  Because of the silence in Syria. On September 6, Israeli Air Force F-15 and F-16s conducted a devastating attack on targets deep inside Syria near the city of Dayr az-Zawr.  Israel's military censors have muzzled the Israeli media, enforcing an extraordinary silence about the identity of the targets.  Massive speculation in the world press has followed, such as Brett Stephens' Osirak II? in yesterday's (9/18) Wall St. Journal. Stephens and most everyone else have missed the real story.  It is not Israel's silence that 'speaks volumes' as he claims, but Syria's. 
Why would the Syrian government be so tight-lipped about ...   more »

Ynet reporter and commentator Ron Ben-Yishai continues his journey in Syria, attends Yom Kippur service at 'the last synagogue in Damascus'
Ron Ben-Yishai
SYRIA - As I walk along one of the alleys in the poorer district of the city, where the ancient houses tilt and threaten to crumble, I spot, sitting there against the wall, a young mustached man. When he saw me approaching he rose and moved forward to block my path.  
He was wearing civilian clothes, but the gun sticking out of the belt of his trousers was noticeable.
I explained to him in English-laced Arabic what I was seeking. You cannot, he answered. After a brief negotiation and the handing over of several bills, the plainclothes officer – or was he a member of the al-Mukhabarat (Syrian intelligence) – was content and walked over to a narrow alley between two houses.
Ten minutes later a short man of about 50 came towards me, wrapped in a Jewish prayer shawl. "What can I do for you," the Jewish man asked in French. I decided to avoid taking a risk and identified myself as a tourist, a geography professor. Albert Kamao mulled this over for a moment ...   more »

Earlier this week, Columbia University came under fire for extending a speaking invitation to Iran's radical president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Some wanted to know why the school would let a radical leader speak, but would banned the founder of a pro-border security group.
This type of double-standard is the subject for a new film called Indoctrinate U.
It's a documentary that explores the assault on free thought going on in college campuses across America.
The movie opens tonight at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.
Award-winning filmmaker Evan Coyne Maloney is the man behind Indocrinate U." He's been called "Michael Moore with integrity."
CBN News asked for his take on letting Iran's president speak at Columbia University . Watch the interview in the video player above.
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Dobson, others meet in Salt Lake City to plan options in presidential campaign
James Dobson
WASHINGTON – Some of the top leaders in Christian pro-family activism – including James Dobson of Focus on the Family – met in Salt Lake City yesterday to plot a strategy if Rudy Giuliani or another supporter of legalized abortion is nominated by the Republican Party as its presidential candidate.
Not only was there a consensus among activists to withhold support for the Republican nominee, there was even discussion about supporting the entry of a new candidate to challenge the frontrunners.
It's no secret that Dobson, founder of one of the largest Christian ministries in the country, has no use for Giuliani.
In June, he said: "I cannot, and will not, vote for Rudy Giuliani in 2008. It is an irrevocable decision. If given a Hobson's – Dobson's? – choice between him and Sens. Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, I will either cast my ballot for an also-ran – or if worse comes to worst – not vote in a presidential election for the first time in my adult life. My conscience and my moral convictions will allow me to do nothing else."
Dobson reportedly ...   more »

WMR has learned from U.S. and foreign intelligence sources that the B-52 transporting six stealth AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missiles, each armed with a W-80-1 nuclear warhead, on August 30, were destined for the Middle East via Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana.
However, elements of the Air Force, supported by U.S. intelligence agency personnel, successfully revealed the ultimate destination of the nuclear weapons and the mission was aborted due to internal opposition within the Air Force and U.S. Intelligence Community.
Yesterday, the Washington Post attempted to explain away the fact that America's nuclear command and control system broke down in an unprecedented manner by reporting that it was the result of "security failures at multiple levels." It is now apparent that the command and control breakdown, reported as a BENT SPEAR incident to the Secretary of Defense and White House, was not the result of a command and control chain-of-command "failures" but the result of a revolt and push back by various echelons within the Air Force and intelligence agencies against a planned U.S. attack on Iran using nuclear and conventional
weapons.
The Washington Post story on BENT SPEAR may have actually been an effort in damage control by the ...   more »

by Robert Maginnis
The war drums are sounding louder in the Mideast and America could be drawn into the coming conflict.  The Bush administration can either ignore the warnings and abandon the region or engage the antagonists.  But America’s options and credibility are limited.
The US military is stretched perilously thin and America is not viewed as an honest broker by many.  But “We’re living under a volcano,” argues Mustata Alam, director of security studies at the Gulf Research Center in Dubai.  A study by his organization concludes that “an accidental war” that might escalate to include the US is “high.”
The US is ill-prepared militarily to participate in “an accidental war” if it requires ground forces beyond those already committed to operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.  US military action to support Israel against potential antagonists Syria, Iran or Iran’s proxy Hezbollah (Party of God) would be limited to air and naval forces. Given the nature of the threat, however, that may be inadequate.
Syria is beating the loudest war drums and appears to be the geographical lynchpin to any near-term conflict with Israel.  Syrian President Bashar Assad says his military is preparing for that war.  “We have begun preparations ...   more »

Spokesman: 'As a Catholic, the speaker is confident that Christianity has not been harmed'
Participant in previous Folsom Street Fair, which features public displays of nudity and sexual fetishes
Asked to respond to a San Francisco "gay"-festival's promo mocking the Last Supper of Jesus Christ, the chief spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi offered a dismissive quip.
"As a Catholic, the speaker is confident that Christianity has not been harmed," said Drew Hammill, the San Francisco Democrat's press secretary.
WND reported earlier this week the Last Supper poster promoting the Folsom Street Fair replaces the bread and wine with sex toys and depicts Jesus Christ and his disciples as "half-naked homosexual sadomasochists."
Scheduled for Sunday, the annual sadomasochistic "leather event" features public displays of nudity and sexual acts.
After the ad was exposed by the Christian group Concern Women for America, the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights pressed the Miller Brewing Co. to remove its logo from the poster. With the logo still in place despite a promise from Miller, along with the beer giant's continued sponsorship, the Catholic group is calling for a boycott of the company.
CWA noted Pelosi, a major supporter of homosexual activism, will ...   more »

By Brian Rohrbough
Yes, disregard what God commanded and compromise on the God-given right to life that every innocent human being deserves. Follow man's wisdom, and then tell us the great things you will accomplish. If we won't follow you, then resort to calling us names.
Last year, National Right to Life endorsed a pro-abortion candidate over a pro-life candidate. Yes you read this correctly. If a man or woman will compromise on "Do not murder," then maybe National Right to Life can tell us what they won't compromise on. There can be no higher standard to judge a political candidate by than if he will protect the innocent.
This year, Operation Rescue said that anyone who doesn't agree with their compromise is a pro-abort. How ironic since they are the leaders who propose that a baby conceived in rape or incest can be put to death. Why? Because her father is a criminal. Yet they call us pro-abortion.
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God said do not put a child to death for the crimes of her father (Deuteronomy 24:16). But, of course, they know better than God Almighty. After all, they live in the "real world." In this world you ...   more »

By Bob Unruh
Pro-life organizations are trying to build support for the legal definition that an unborn child is a person to exploit a weakness that was cited by author Harry Blackmun when he wrote the creative Roe V. Wade abortion precedent in 1973.
But their work has generated a huge argument within the pro-life movement: whether it's better to chip away at the opportunities abortionists have to conduct their business or a challenge should be mounted to confront Roe's very premise that the unborn are only tissue.
WND reported earlier when several pro-life organizations launched an advertising campaign that was critical of other pro-lifers for their praise for the U.S. Supreme Court's partial birth abortion decision, which said some procedures could be restricted.
Groups including Focus on the Family noted it was the first court opinion in years that actually supported abortion restrictions and said it was a moral victory, while others including the America Life League countered that the court ruling actually would not prohibit a single abortion, just a way of doing them.
That argument has been raised to a new level now, with opinions from some of the top legal experts in the pro-life camp squaring ...   more »

A ground-based missile successfully intercepted a target missile Friday in a test of the nation's defense system, the Missile Defense Agency said.
An intercontinental ballistic missile interceptor blasted out of an underground silo at Vandenberg Air Force Base shortly after 1:15 p.m., and tracked a target missile that had lifted off from the Kodiak Launch Complex in Alaska, the Boeing Co. said in a statement.
The Missile Defense Agency said initial results show the interceptor's rocket motor system and kill vehicle performed as planned. Boeing said the warhead was tracked, intercepted and destroyed.
Boeing is the prime contractor for what is formally known as the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system.
The MDA expects to invest $49 billion in ballistic missile defense development and fielding over the next five years.
Two operational interceptor missiles are currently based at Vandenberg and there are 11 deployed at Fort Greely, Alaska.
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By Juliana Barbassa, The Associated Press
FRESNO - Tunnels run beneath Chinatown: brick-walled passages that were once home to people and activities that couldn't be mentioned aboveground.
Rick Lew knows, because he walked the passages as a child, entering through a trapdoor in his grandfather's liquor store.
"There was a nightlife you couldn't see from the streets," he said.
But to many others, the lace-work of tunnels sprawling under the city was just another tall tale from Fresno's days as a Western railroad town and a hub of gambling and prostitution.
Now, a group of archeologists is using ground-penetrating radar to find evidence of the secret passages, which are believed to branch out from long-abandoned basements littered with animal and human waste, cobwebs and other filth.
The project, funded by the city and headed by a group working to preserve Chinatown, will take data gathered via radar and compare the findings to the memories of those who recall the neighborhood's heyday, said Kathy Omachi, vice president of Chinatown Revitalization. That will help archeologists decide where to dig trenches and look for the passages, researchers said.
The approximately six blocks just west of the railroad tracks that make
up the historic ...   more »

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- In an age of al-Qaida, sleeper cells and the threat of nuclear terrorism, Huntsville is dusting off its Cold War manual to create the nation's most ambitious fallout-shelter plan, featuring an abandoned mine big enough for 20,000 people to take cover underground.
Others would hunker down in college dorms, churches, libraries and research halls that planners hope will bring the community's shelter capacity to 300,000, or space for every man, woman and child in Huntsville and the surrounding county.
Emergency planners in Huntsville _ an out-of-the-way city best known as the home of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center _ say the idea makes sense because radioactive fallout could be scattered for hundreds of miles if terrorists detonated a nuclear bomb.
"If Huntsville is in the blast zone, there's not much we can do. But if it's just fallout ... shelters would absorb 90 percent of the radiation," said longtime emergency management planner Kirk Paradise, whose Cold War expertise with fallout shelters led local leaders to renew Huntsville's program.
Huntsville's project, developed using $70,000 from a Homeland Security grant, goes against the grain because the United States essentially scrapped its national plan for fallout shelters after the collapse ...   more »