'Mahdi' by springtime and Nuke question not serious?

Be Alert! News Briefs for January 9, 2007 Alert Focus: A Burdensome Stone / A Cup of Trembling / The prince of the kingdom of Persia Zechariah 1:14-16 So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, "Proclaim, saying, `Thus says the LORD of hosts, "I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. "But I am very angry with the nations who are at ease; for while I was only a little angry, they furthered the disaster." `Therefore thus says the LORD, "I will return to Jerusalem with compassion; My house will be built in it," declares the LORD of hosts, "and a measuring line will be stretched over Jerusalem."' Iran website heralding 'Mahdi' by springtime State media: Shiite messiah to kill archenemy in Jerusalem, may arrive during next equinox WORLDNETDAILY - December 31, 2006 -- An official state media website in Iran has posted a message heralding the coming of the Shiite messianic figure, Imam Mahdi, noting he could arrive with Jesus by the spring equinox. "Imam Mahdi (may God hasten his reappearance) will appear all of a sudden on the world scene with a voice from the skies announcing his reappearance at the holy Ka'ba in Mecca," the message says. The Islamic Republic of Iran broadcasting website said in a program called "The World toward Illumination," that the Mahdi will form an army to defeat the enemies of Islam in a series of apocalyptic battles, in which the Mahdi will overcome his archvillain in Jerusalem. The Mahdi's far sightedness and firmness in the face of mischievous elements will strike awe. After his uprising from Mecca all of Arabia will be submit to him and then other parts of the world as he marches upon Iraq and established his seat of global government in the city of Kufa. Then the Imam will send 10 thousand of his forces to the east and west to uproot the oppressors. At this time God will facilitate things for him and lands will come under his control one after the other. ... After his appearance the Imam would remain in Mecca for some time, and then go to Medina. ... a descendant of the Prophet's archenemy Abu Sofyan will seize Syria and attack Iraq and the Hejaz with the ferocity of a beast ... finally Imam Mahdi sends troops who kill the Sofyani in Beit ol-Moqaddas (Jerusalem), the Islamic holy city in Palestine that is currently under occupation of the Zionists. The Iranian series also claims the Mahdi will reappear on Earth with Jesus: "We read in the book Tazkarat ol-Olia, 'the Mahdi will come with Jesus son of Mary accompanying him.' ... Imam Mahdi will be the leader while Prophet Jesus will act as his lieutenant in the struggle against oppression and establishment of justice in the world. Jesus had himself given the tidings of the coming of God's last messenger and will see Mohammad's ideals materialize in the time of the Mahdi." As WND reported this month, in a greeting to the world's Christians for the coming new year, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he expects both Jesus and the Mahdi, to return and "wipe away oppression." "I wish all the Christians a very happy new year and I wish to ask them a question as well," said Ahmadinejad, according to an Iranian Student News Agency report cited by YnetNews.com "My one question from the Christians is: What would Jesus do if he were present in the world today? What would he do before some of the oppressive powers of the world who are in fact residing in Christian countries? Which powers would he revive and which of them would he destroy?" asked the Iranian leader. "If Jesus were present today, who would be facing him and who would be following him?" Ahmadinejad's mystical pre-occupation with the coming of the Mahdi is raising concerns that a nuclear-armed Islamic Republic could trigger the kind of global conflagration he envisions will set the stage for the end of the world. In a videotaped meeting with Ayatollah Javadi-Amoli in Tehran, Ahmadinejad discussed candidly a strange, paranormal experience he had while addressing the United Nations in New York last September. He recounts how he found himself bathed in light throughout the speech. But this wasn't the light directed at the podium by the U.N. and television cameras. It was, he said, a light from heaven. According to a transcript of his comments, obtained and translated by Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin, Ahmadinejad wasn't the only one who noticed the unearthly light. One of his aides brought it to his attention. The Iranian president recalled being told about it by one of his delegation: "When you began with the words 'in the name of Allah,' I saw a light coming, surrounding you and protecting you to the end." Ahmadinejad agreed that he sensed the same thing. "On the last day when I was speaking, one of our group told me that when I started to say 'Bismillah Muhammad,' he saw a green light come from around me, and I was placed inside this aura," he says. "I felt it myself. I felt that the atmosphere suddenly changed, and for those 27 or 28 minutes, all the leaders of the world did not blink. When I say they didn't move an eyelid, I'm not exaggerating. They were looking as if a hand was holding them there, and had just opened their eyes – Alhamdulillah!" Ahmadinejad's "vision" at the U.N. is strangely reminiscent and alarmingly similar to statements he has made about his personal role in ushering in the return of the Shiite Muslim messiah. He sees his main mission, as he recounted in a Nov. 16 speech in Tehran, as to "pave the path for the glorious reappearance of Imam Mahdi, may Allah hasten his reappearance." According to Shiites, the 12th imam disappeared as a child in the year 941. When he returns, they believe, he will reign on earth for seven years, before bringing about a final judgment and the end of the world. Ahmadinejad is urging Iranians to prepare for the coming of the Mahdi by turning the country into a mighty and advanced Islamic society and by avoiding the corruption and excesses of the West. All Iran is buzzing about the Mahdi, the 12th imam and the role Iran and Ahmadinejad are playing in his anticipated return. There's a new messiah hotline. There are news agencies especially devoted to the latest developments. "People are anxious to know when and how will He rise; what they must do to receive this worldwide salvation," says Ali Lari, a cleric at the Bright Future Institute in Iran's religious center of Qom. "The timing is not clear, but the conditions are more specific," he adds. "There is a saying: 'When the students are ready, the teacher will come.'" http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53577 Question about Iranian nuke plan not 'serious' WORLDNETDAILY - January 9, 2007 -- A spokesman for President Bush has concluded that a question about a London Times report on Israel's plans to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities is not serious because it is based on "sources." At a press briefing, WND's correspondent at the White House, Les Kinsolving, asked spokesman Tony Snow about the Times report. "The London Times reports in detail how Israel is planning to bomb Iranian nuclear arms facilities, and I wondered...," Kinsolving asked. "Yes, where did they get that detail? What sources did it mention?" Snow replied. "They just said 'sources.' And I just wondered if the White House believes this is accurate, and if so, we will support our allies…?" "I just – come on, give me a serious questions," Snow said. That newspaper report said Israel has drawn up secret plans to destroy Iran's uranium enrichment facilities with tactical nuclear weapons. The report said "several Israeli military sources" provided the information that the attack would be made with two air force squadrons whose pilots have been trained for the mission. It would be the first attack with nuclear weapons since the U.S. dropped bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. "As soon as the green light is given, it will be one mission, one strike and the Iranian nuclear project will be demolished," one of the sources told the newspaper. The Israeli government has warned many times over years it won't allow nuclear weapons to be made in Iran, where the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has declared "Israel must be wiped off the map." Kinsolving also asked about the president's opinion of a call by a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to allow homosexuals to serve openly in the military. "John Shalikashvili – Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under President Clinton, has called for our armed forces to accept self-announced homosexuals and lesbians, and I just want to know, does the Commander-in-Chief agree with this or not." "The Commander-in-Chief's position is clear on it," Snow said. As WND has reported, Shalikashvili says he believes the nation has evolved to the point where openly practicing homosexuals in the military would be accepted. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53686 Iran: Hitler was a Jew Advisor to President Ahmadinejad claims Nazi leader was Jew who conspired with USSR and Britain to establish Jewish state [Note: The Iranian leadership needs a serious lesson in history. Not only would they find that their beliefs regarding the Holocaust are completely bogus, but that the current name of their nation (formerly Persia) derives from the German “Aryan” - as in Aryan Nation - and that Hitler actually had much to do with the forming of modern day Iran, not Israel.] YEDIOTH AHRONOTH (YnetNews) – By Dudi Goldman - January 2, 2007 -- Just when you thought the Iranian leadership could stoop no further: MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute) reported that a top advisor to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad claimed in an interview with Iranian website Baztab that Nazi leader Adolf Hitler's parents were both Jewish and that Hitler himself was one of the founders of the State of Israel. In the interview, translated by MEMRI, Mohammad-Ali Ramin, a chief aide to Ahmadinejad, told Baztab that Hitler's paternal grandmother was a Jewish prostitute and his father even kept his Jewish name until finally changing it to Hitler when he was 40. Ramin also claimed that the reason Hitler developed such an aversion to Judaism was because his Jewish mother was a promiscuous woman. Hitler therefore, says Ramin, tried to escape his religion. … http://www.ynetnews.com/Ext/Comp/ArticleLayout/CdaArticlePrintPreview/1,2506,L-3347309,00.html Iran vows to 'humiliate' U.S. ASSOCIATED PRESS - January 2, 2007 -- TEHRAN, Iran -- President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad scorned U.N Security Council sanctions imposed against Iran, telling a crowd Tuesday that Iran had humiliated the United States in the past and would do so again. Speaking in the southwestern provincial capital of Ahvaz, Ahmadinejad said the Security Council's resolution last month was invalid and had left the world body's reputation in tatters. The council voted unanimously to bar all countries from selling materials and technology to Iran that could contribute to its nuclear and missile programs. It also froze the assets of 10 Iranian companies and 12 individuals related to those programs. "Let the world know that from the Iranian nation's point of view, this resolution has no validity," Ahmadinejad said. He said the United States was the main power behind the resolution, and warned Washington: "I want you to know that the Iranian nation has humiliated you many times, and it will humiliate you in future." … http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/01/02/iran.nuclear.ap/index.html Hamas: We'll obtain U.S. money transfer WORLDNETDAILY - By Aaron Klein - January 8, 2007 -- JERUSALEM -- A portion of $86.4 million in aid the United States pledged last week to bolster security forces affiliated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party will fall into the hands of the Hamas terror group, Hamas officials told WND. Also, a leader of the Popular Resistance Committees, a terror group allied with Hamas, told WND his organization is planning attacks against Israel using weapons recently transferred to Fatah by the U.S. and Egypt. The Popular Resistance Committees leader said attacks using the foreign weapons are meant "to prove the Zionist-American conspiracy to bolster forces against us won't work." "We will obtain the U.S. weapons," the Committees leader said. According to documents revealed Friday, the Bush administration will provide $86.4 million to strengthen security forces loyal to Abbas, including Force 17, Abbas' security detail, which also serves as de facto police units in the Gaza Strip and West Bank. Some members of Force 17 also are openly members of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades terror organization, Fatah's declared "military wing." U.S. officials confirmed the financial aid is set to be transferred to Fatah. The multi-million-dollar grant will be used to "assist the Palestinian Authority presidency in fulfilling PA commitments under the Road Map (peace plan) to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism and establish law and order in the West Bank and Gaza," a U.S. government document said. ... http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53672 Rocket-launching terrorists loyal to Abbas WORLDNETDAILY - By Aaron Klein - January 4, 2007 -- TEL AVIV -- Militants associated with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party who have been firing rockets from the Gaza Strip into nearby Jewish towns are loyal to Abbas and commit their attacks in accordance with Fatah, the northern Gaza leader of Fatah's declared "military wing" told WND in an interview. Since a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza-based terror groups was agreed to in November, more than 60 rockets have been fired by Palestinians in Gaza, seriously injuring two Jewish teenagers and disrupting life in Israeli cities neighboring the Gaza Strip. The Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which bills itself as the "military wing" of Fatah, has taken responsibility for about one-third of the recent rocket fire. Abbas has claimed Brigades leaders firing rockets from Gaza during the truce are "renegade" members of the group, and that he doesn't have authority over the militants. Miri Eisin, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, this week told the Israel Resource News Agency the Al Aqsa Brigades members firing the projectiles from Gaza are not affiliated with Fatah and don't take orders from Abbas. She said the militants are directed by the Iranian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah militia. Olmert last month held talks with Abbas and has said he is willing to conclude a peace agreement with the Palestinian leader. But Abu Ahmed, the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades leader in the northern Gaza Strip, told WND his group, including the militants launching rockets, is loyal to Abbas and coordinates "resistance operations" with the Fatah party. "The Al Aqsa Brigades is the military wing of the Fatah and the President Abu Mazen (Abbas) is the chairman of the movement. We are committed to our leadership, to Abu Mazen. All our activity is in accordance with the political line of Fatah, which consists of fighting the occupation until the creation of a Palestinian state. The rocket shooting is part of this vision," Abu Ahmed said. All rockets fired from Gaza have been launched from the northern part of the territory, which falls within Abu Ahmed's jurisdiction in the Brigades. Asked why Abbas distances himself from Al Aqsa's rocket firing, Abu Ahmed told WND, "Listen, we are aware of our president's (Abbas') declarations but we are also aware of the international political system that brings the president to adopt this position." The terror leader said Abbas never asked his group to halt the rocket fire. ... http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53627 'Hamas training in Iran, Lebanon' WORLDNETDAILY - By Aaron Klein - January 2, 2007 -- RAMALLAH -- Hamas members have been flying to Iran and Lebanon for advanced military training with Iranian Revolutionary guard units and Hezbollah militants, according to a senior intelligence official from Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah party. The official was confirming reports last week quoting Israeli security sources saying dozens, perhaps hundreds, of Hamas terrorists left Gaza for training in Iran. "We are sure according to information that we have that Hezbollah prepares Hamas for a confrontation with us (Fatah) and with Israel. None of these preparations takes place in Gaza, but they take place in Lebanon, in Iran and in other places where the Iranian and Hezbollah experts train Hamas militants," the senior Palestinian intelligence official told WND. ... http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53600 Hezbollah offers pay-per-slay WORLDNETDAILY - December 31, 2006 -- Israeli intelligence sources say Hezbollah is not only funneling Iranian money into Israel, but the group has marketized its terror aid by linking funding to the successful targeting of Qassam rockets from Gaza into Israel, with the payments linked to the number of Israelis killed or wounded. The Jerusalem Post reported that Hezbollah is paying "thousands of dollars" for each Qassam rocket fired at the western Negev, with most of the money going to Palestinian splinter groups. Sources within Shin Bet, the Israeli Security Agency, said the cash, originating in Iran, is smuggled into Gaza and paid out on an attack-by -attack basis. "We know that Hezbollah is involved in funding terrorist activity in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank," a security official told the Post. "Palestinian terrorists get thousands of dollars per attack. Sometimes they are paid before the attack and sometimes they submit a bill to Lebanon afterward and the money gets transferred a short while later." ... http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53573 FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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