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October thread here: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1711848/posts |
Posted on 09/01/2006 8:57:29 PM PDT by nwctwx
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This is the part that concerns me most. Hoping and praying our nation's military leaders are prepared for this possibility - taking no prisoners and protecting our troops with extra precautions and by whatever means necessary to keep suicide bombers far from the troops, especially those coming at them in vehicles laden with explosives. May any who plan shahid on our troops be blasted into oblivion before they implement their evil plans.
Oh, no! I just talked to a relative this evening who is supposed to be deployed to Afghanistan in two weeks. continued prayers for ALL of our troops...
Thank you, Ian ... I fear something is coming .. praying a lot.
Islamic militia to open "holy war" camps in Somalia
Snip: The hard-line Islamic militia that controls much of southern Somalia said Tuesday it will open training camps in schools to prepare students for holy war, an ominous development amid fears that a Taliban-style regime is emerging in eastern Africa.
FBI raids Missouri Islamic leader's home
Snip: FBI agents searched the home of a prominent Islamic community leader and Iraq war critic, a bureau spokesman said, declining to reveal any reasons for the search. A dozen agents searched the home of Shakir Abdul-Kaf Hamoodi and his wife on Monday, FBI spokesman Jeff Lanza said. Agents removed boxes and computer equipment throughout the day, neighbors said.
Pistachio exports up 128% in Iran (where were your pistachios grown?)
Snip: During the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (started March 21) some 49,000 tons of pistachios, with an estimated value of $313 million, has been exported, said an official with the countrys Agricultural Jihad Ministry.
Muslim taxi drivers at Minneapolis International Airport subjecting fares to sharia
Snip: In another sign of increasing Muslim intolerance in the U.S., Islamic taxi drivers - primarily of Somali extraction - at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport are refusing to accept fares whom they suspect of possibly transporting alcohol.
Recent changes at the terminal have proved a boon for the drivers, forcing passengers to use the ubiquitous taxis to get around within the confines of the airport making them ripe for exploitation. Another angle is that such discrimination by Muslim drivers might make it possible for them to weed out the low fare inter-terminal travelers from those wishing to travel outbound at substantially higher fees, thus assigning themselves all the longer distance fares while the infidels are taking the short ones.
Why airport officials have caved to the unreasonable religious demands of an extremist minority is puzzling but the involvement of the Muslim American Society - an Islamist group whose name pretty much denotes their ultimate intent - in this process may help explain it, MAS being adept at injecting itself into such controversies and always on the side of the extension of Sharia into mainstream America.
Me too GOP_Thug_Mom. A treasured friend's husband is stationed there. Keep those prayers coming; our troops need them in fighting this evil enemy.
Voila - had a big discovery moment a couple of weeks ago. I too LOVE sprouts but haven't bought them since the last e-coli event with them. Went to a local health food store and discovered sprout seeds are for sale in regular vitamin type bottles that can be grown at home. I was euphoric and bought a bottle of alfalfa sprouts. There's enough seeds in the bottle for many "crops" of them.
MamaDearest asks, "Where were your pistachios grown?"
Thank you, Cindy.
You're very welcome Jer33 3.
Chinese pigs fed illegal chemical poisoning 300
Cargo container security risks still high
Snip: If terrorists were to explode a 10-kiloton nuclear bomb in the Port of Long Beach, Rand Corp. researchers recently calculated, it could kill 60,000 people instantly, expose 150,000 more to hazardous levels of radiation and result in more than $1 trillion in economic losses, at least 10 times the financial loss in the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center five years ago.
Thanks Cindy. IMHO it's one way to personally protest by declining to purchase if the labeled source of the product (Iran) is "unacceptable." We definitely seek this product labeled "grown in the USA."
Ditto that.
I just choked on my crackers.
Types of Kufr?
I've seen all versions of spellings and descriptions of infidels and kuffirs, but didn't know there were various types.
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_videos&search_query=kuffar&search_sort=video_date_uploaded&search_category=0
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=kuffar&so=0
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=search_videos&search_query=kufr&search_sort=video_date_uploaded&search_category=0
THANKS MamaDearest.
I learn lots of new things everyday.
P.S. I better put the crackers down if I'm going to click on your next link "Virgins of Paradise."
Note: The following post is a quote:
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1704616/posts
When Miranda Met Osama - Will terrorists get lawyers the moment they're captured on the battlefield?
Wall Street Journal ^ | September 19, 2006 | BRENDAN MINITER
Posted on 09/19/2006 7:01:15 PM PDT by neverdem
WASHINGTON--At the start of the congressional debate over military tribunals for terrorists, I offered House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter a prediction: Sen. John McCain would be the biggest obstacle to enacting rules to effectively prosecute al Qaeda operatives.
It was near the end of an hourlong interview, at the end of a hot August day. But Mr. Hunter was obviously piqued by the assertion that his friend and a man who was tortured at the hands of North Vietnamese captors would do anything to make it harder to win the war on terror. Sitting up, Mr. Hunter answered the assertion: "Well, I don't agree with that."
As we sat in his spacious office with its view of the Capitol dome, the chairman had been making the case for a hardnosed approach to national security and, somewhat surprisingly, giving a frank and at times critical assessment of the war on terror and the state of the U.S. military. In the past, Mr. Hunter has clashed with the Bush administration over defense spending and intelligence reorganization. As a combat veteran of Vietnam and father of a U.S. Marine lieutenant who fought in the battle for Fallujah, Iraq, Mr. Hunter understands both the anxiety of staying the course and also the danger involved in losing a war by undercutting the troops fighting it.
He was quick to point out his belief that the reason al Qaeda hasn't struck again on U.S. soil is that the response to 9/11 involved a lot more than bombing terrorist training camps: "We didn't just sit back in fortress America." By liberating Afghanistan and Iraq and pursuing a global war against al Qaeda and its affiliates, he said, "we've kept them off balance."
He also noted that it's impossible to know how many would-be terrorists...
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
ON THE NET...
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/TerenceJeffrey/2006/09/20/benedict_is_right
"Benedict is right"
By Terence Jeffrey
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
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http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/2006/09/013195print.html
"GAZAN MUSLIMS FORM GROUP TO ATTACK CHRISTIAN TARGETS"
Article Snippet: "The irony meter has shorted out from overload."
September 19, 2006
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http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=112348
"Gazan Muslims Form Group to Attack Christian Targets"
23:03 Sep 19, '06 / 26 Elul 5766
by Ezra HaLevi
ARTICLE SNIPPET: The group, which calls itself the Army of guidance, sent an announcement to news agencies based in Gaza saying that every place relevant to Christians will be a target until the cursed infidel the Vatican apologizes to Muslims."
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http://press-release.blogspot.com/2006/09/statement-from-mujahedeen-shura.html
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2006
"Statement from the Mujahedeen Shura council of Iraq about the cross worshiper "Pope" declarations"
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http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_922.html
Travel Warning
United States Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Washington, DC 20520
This information is current as of today, Tue Sep 19 2006 16:51:50 GMT-0700.
ISRAEL, THE WEST BANK AND GAZA
August 29, 2006
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http://www.newswithviews.com/Kouri/jim77.htm
"ABC NEWS COMPARES POPE TO A ROTTWEILER"
Jim Kouri, CPP
September 19, 2006
NewsWithViews.com
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http://www.rep-am.com/story.php?id=12745
September 19, 2006
"AL-QAIDA IN IRAQ WARNS POPE THAT ISLAM WILL PREVAIL"
by Lee Keath
(AP WIRE)
Cairo, Egypt
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http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/2006/09/013186print.html
September 19, 2006
"POPE AGAIN ASKED TO CONVERT TO ISLAM"
(AFP)
Tripoli
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http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/2006/09/013185print.html
September 19, 2006
"MUSLIMS WANT FURTHER APOLOGY FROM POPE"
(AP)
Ankara, Turkey
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http://www.ignatiusinsight.com/features2006/jfessio_reflections_sept06.asp
"Is Dialogue with Islam Possible? Some Reflections on Pope Benedict XVI's Address at the University of Regensburg | Fr. Joseph Fessio, S.J. | September 18, 2006"
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1704084/posts
"Rushdie, Hirsi Ali, the Pope -- Who's Next?"
Der Spiegel ^ | 09/18/2006 | Claus Christian Malzahn
Posted on 09/19/2006 4:15:17 AM PDT by Republicain
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The pope has apologized for the outrage amongst Muslims sparked by his recent comments. But the episode proves once again that criticizing Islam is dangerous.
Twenty years ago in the German city of Bremen, Dutch comedian Rudi Carrell's life depended on police protection. His offense? In a satirical program on German television, he let fly with a lewd joke about the then leader of the Iranian revolution Ayatollah Khomeini. Mass demonstrations in Iran -- orchestrated, no doubt, by the government -- were the result. The threats of violence led to an apology by Carrell, and he never again made a joke about any Muslim -- at least not on television.
In February 1989, the Ayatollah then released a fatwa calling for the murder of Salman Rushdie for his novel "The Satanic Verses." The book, he and other Muslim leaders claimed, was a grave misrepresentation of Islam. Rushdie's Japanese translator lost his life as a result of the fatwa and Rushdie himself went into hiding, though the Iranian leadership distanced itself from the fatwa in 1998. There remain, however, a number of fanatical Muslims who yearn to see Rushdie dead."
(Excerpt) Read more at service.spiegel.de ...
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http://www.danielpipes.org/article/3968
"Pope Benedict Criticizes Islam"
by Daniel Pipes
New York Sun
September 19, 2006
"[NY Sun title: "The West Should Be Free To Criticize Islam"]"
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OFF TOPIC:
http://michellemalkin.com/archives/005955.htm
Michelle Malkin.com - blog: "MUSLIMS WILL EXECUTE CHRISTIANS" (Updated)
September 19, 2006
http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/2006/08/indonesia-releases-al-qaeda-linked.html
Gateway Pundit - blogspot: "Indonesia Releases Al Qaeda-linked Cleric, Will Execute Christians"
August 25, 2006
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=319Q4lDyNWI&eurl=
YouTube.com: "3 Christian Women Convicted in Indonesian Court"
Added August 25, 2006
Note: The following text is a quote:
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http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/s06090093.htm
ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net -- E-mail: danjuma1@aol.com
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Religious tensions rising.
By Elizabeth Kendal
World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (WEA RLC)
Special to ASSIST News Service
AUSTRALIA (ANS) -- This comprehensive posting on the rising ethnic-religious tensions in Bosnia and Herzegovina consists of two parts: an examination of the present situation, and an overview of the history that has created its context.
While the recent religious incidents that triggered this posting might seem to be fairly insignificant, the issues and their potential to inflame conflict are not. In fact the issues emerging in Bosnia and Herzegovina today are reminiscent of those that led to war in 1992.
When sparks appear in the midst of an incendiary environment, then regardless of how small they appear, they must be taken seriously and investigated thoroughly with the goal of preventing an explosion. This posting submits that Bosnia and Herzegovina warrants the immediate, diligent attention of religious liberty monitors, advocates and intercessors, as well as peace-makers who can recognise romanticism, embrace realism, and care more about protecting flesh-and-blood than illusory political ideals.
Note: The following text is a quote:
---
http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/s06090090.htm
ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net -- E-mail: danjuma1@aol.com
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Courage And Honor In Iran
Persecution Escalates As Iranian President Speaks At UN
OPEN DOORS USA
Jerry Dykstra, Media Relations Coordinator
Phone: 616-915-4117
E-Mail: JerryD@odusa.org
Web Site: www.opendoorsusa.org
For Immediate Release
SANTA ANA, CA (ANS) -- (Last Friday the United States took Iran to task for its harsh and oppressive treatment of religious minorities, including Christians. In its annual Report on International Religious Freedom around the world, the State Department said it found a further deterioration in what it called the extremely poor status of respect for religious freedom in Iran. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is on a three-day visit to New York City and addressed the United Nations General Assembly today. The following article is an update on the status of persecuted Christians in Iran).
The situation in Iran is very similar to that of the first century church: mass conversions, persecution, signs and wonders, visions and dreams and even multiple wives. Only God knows how many thousands of Iranian Muslims have come to Christ through Christian satellite TV broadcasts.
A typical story is that of Hanan. She was a devout Muslim asking God to show her the true path. She dreamt one night of a big building with lots of people speaking strange languages. She followed a beam of light coming from above and as she followed the beam outside, she understood that the building was a church and the beam of light was Jesus. After Hanan became a Christian, she changed for the better and her sisters also became Christians.
Most of the new believers are young and very passionate about their faith in Christ, although, out of fear, most remain secret believers not connected to any church or house church.
However, alongside this Christian revival is an Islamic revival determined to root out and destroy corrupting influences such as Christianity. Persecution has become state policy and is being implemented at all levels and in various forms throughout Iran.
Christians report that persecution has increased markedly and that believers are experiencing much greater hardship since the election of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in August 2005, who has pledged to restore an Islamic government in Iran.
Christians such as 31-year old Issa Motamedi Mojdehi have been charged with drug trafficking offenses, but even secret police officials admit that his real offense was converting from Islam to Christianity seven years ago. Unless Issa renounces his Christian faith and returns to Islam, officials told him, he would remain in jail and possibly face execution as conversion to Christianity carries the death penalty in the Islamic Republic of Iran
Issa was released on bail after four weeks on August 24. He was told he is free for the moment, but the judge then introduced new accusations that Issas 8-year old daughter Martha had been trying to lead other children to the Christian faith.
Hamid Pourmand, a former army colonel released recently after two years in jail, was warned that attending church services could land him back in prison.
Fifty-one-year old Ali Kaboli, was released in June, but could still face the death penalty for converting to Christianity 35 years ago.
While in jail, prisoners face strong psychological pressures, including threats to kill their family and other Christian believers, in order to force them to recant their Christian faith and return to Islam. Iranian dissident Akbar Ganji, imprisoned for six years, says that many prisoners of conscience are kept in solitary confinement on no legal grounds with no access to books, newspapers or telephone, legal representation or their families.
In recent months, Christians have also lost their jobs, had their shops shut down or had their livelihoods removed.
Depriving converts to Christianity of their means of employment is the governments way of trying to asphyxiate the church, one Iranian source told Compass Direct. A lot of believers lost their jobs after the intervention of the security police. The officials objective, he said, is to force Christians to leave Iran permanently.
Compass also reports that, in at least five other incidents during August, Iranian police have harassed and mistreated local converts to Christianity, some of whom have fled their hometowns to live more inconspicuously in large cities.
Other Christians, such as two young women in a southern Iranian city, were beaten by police in their homes. One was also arrested for several days and was phoned by police every day following her release. Police threatened to re-arrest her and to arrest her brother and parents as well.
The few remaining Protestant leaders, who are still allowed to meet, are under relentless pressure to compromise with government investigators by providing the names of their members, particularly any who are converts from Islam.
Giving all for Jesus
Some pastors have given their lives for their faith. Last November, Ghorban Dordi Tourani, a 53-year old Muslim convert to Christianity, was arrested by the secret police and then just a few hours later, his stabbed and bleeding body was thrown in front of his home in Gonbad-e-Kavus, where he lived with his wife and four children, ages 323.
Wonderfully, a year before his death, Ghorban wrote this prayer: Lord Jesus, please let me glorify your holy name in every moment of my life on this earth. I am willing to give my life that belongs to you, for the sake of you and your church.
Within days of Ghorbans murder, representatives of Irans dreaded secret police, the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS), arrested and severely tortured 10 other Christians in several cities and raided the homes of all known Christians in Ghorbans town.
The current Iranian deputy Minister of Interior Mahmoud Saeedi was formerly the director of the MOIS. He was however removed from office in 1999 following mounting pressure as it became clear that his department oversaw the brutal murders of three Iranian church leaders in 1994 and 1995. They included Mehdi Dibaj, who was released from prison in January 1994 following a worldwide outcry initiated by his friend and colleague Bishop Haik Hovspeian Mehr, who was himself abducted and murdered just three days after Mehdis release. Haiks death was confirmed to his family by the authorities. Mehdi was similarly murdered in June that year and his body found in a west Tehran park.
Learning to forgive
Haik's widow, Takoosh, described how God helped her not only to forgive her enemies but to love them as well: At first she cried out to God, Lord, youre asking too much. How can I love them when they killed the love of my life? However, she tells how God gently took her by the hand and helped her. Little by little, she came to the point where she realized one day that she could love her enemies. She began to see the Islamic extremists as lost sheep without a shepherd. She says God enabled her to love.
Takoosh also explains, Worship is a powerful tool in overcoming hardship, but so is the reading of the Word of God, support from other believers, the empathy of people who visit or phone, and the love of brothers and sisters from around the world expressed in cards and letters.
This is where organizations such as Open Doors which deliver Bibles and facilitate prayer and coordinate letter-writing campaigns, can be a lifeline for suffering and persecuted Christians.
I could have become bitter because of what happened. Instead, I chose to obey God. He taught me to trust him 100% and to completely hand my life over to him, Takoosh concludes.
Haiks death was not in vain as many others took inspiration from his courage. Avin became a believer in Jesus at Haiks funeral service. She said, if someone was willing to offer his life as Haik did, she realized that Christianity had to be true. In the last couple of years, God has used Avin to bring others to Jesus and thus the church continues to grow despite opposition.
Uniting with the Persecuted Church
On 9 June, Iranian church leaders issued a joint statement which says in part: We cannot express how deeply encouraged and thankful Iranian Christians are that so many are standing with us in prayer. We believe the Lord will hear the cries of His people, so we urge everyone to carry on praying and spreading the word about this prayer effort. Lets see millions praying for Iran and let us witness together how God can transform a nation.
An estimated 200 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with another 200 to 400 million facing discrimination and alienation. Open Doors, celebrating 50 years of service to persecuted Christians, serves and strengthens the Persecuted Church in the world's most difficult areas through Bible and Christian literature distribution, leadership training and assistance, Christian community development, prayer and presence ministry and advocacy on behalf of suffering believers. To partner with Open Doors, call toll free at 888-5-BIBLE-5 (524-2535) or go to our USA Web site at www.opendoorsusa.org. To request a complimentary six-month subscription to our monthly newsletter Frontline Faith, call 888-5-BIBLE-5 or register on-line.
(To set up an interview, please contact Jerry Dykstra at 616-915-4117 or email jerryd@odusa.org).
** You may republish this story with proper attribution.
RE: A Weather Public Announcement for PORTUGAL
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_portugal.html
Do they take much space? I'm limited and I seem to have lost my green thumb. :)
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