Gordon Brown rules out EU treaty referendum
Gordon Brown will rule out a referendum after signing up to a new European Union Treaty at a summit of Europe's leaders in Lisbon later this evening. The Prime Minister has written to Portuguese leader José Socrates, current holder of the EU's rotating presidency and summit host, conceding that for Britain the talking is over…Mr Brown's attempt to kill off Treaty debate was today set back by opinion polls showing that a large majority of Britons and other Europeans want a popular vote on an EU blueprint drawn up to replace the Euro Constitution rejected by French and Dutch referendum votes two years ago. Today's YouGov polling for The Daily Telegraph finds that seven out of ten, 69 per cent, of Britons back a referendum…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated October 18, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (BR/EU)

Libya joins UN Security Council
Libya — a former pariah state condemned by the U.S. as a sponsor of terrorism — won a seat on the United Nations Security Council Tuesday without opposition from the Bush administration…

Associated Press story at CBC News (dated October 16, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/GI)

Problems remain ahead of EU treaty summit
EU foreign ministers at their final pre-summit talks in Luxembourg on Monday (15 October) left the contentious issues to the 27 heads of states and governments to work out a deal at the end of this week (18-19 October). Poland, Italy, Austria and Bulgaria are topping the list of trouble-makers, with Warsaw seeking to formalise its voting compromise in the new treaty; Rome pressing for more seats in the European Parliament; Vienna concerned by an influx of foreign students; and Sofia unhappy with the spelling of the word 'euro.' However, Portugal - currently chairing the EU - has indicated none of the pending issues is serious enough to block the union's overall agreement on a new set of institutional rules - known as the Reform Treaty…

From EUObserver.com (dated October 15, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU)

Israel Struck Syrian Nuclear Project, Analysts Say
Israel’s air attack on Syria last month was directed against a site that Israeli and American intelligence analysts judged was a partly constructed nuclear reactor, apparently modeled on one North Korea has used to create its stockpile of nuclear weapons fuel, according to American and foreign officials with access to the intelligence reports. The description of the target addresses one of the central mysteries surrounding the Sept. 6 attack, and suggests that Israel carried out the raid to demonstrate its determination to snuff out even a nascent nuclear project in a neighboring state. The Bush administration was divided at the time about the wisdom of Israel’s strike, American officials said, and some senior policy makers still regard the attack as premature…

From The New York Times (dated October 13, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/WT)

Mexico's Fox openly calls for North American Union
Mexico's former President Vicente Fox is making no secret of his desire to promote a "North American Union" to compete economically with Europe and the Far East…Fox shocked many in the U.S. earlier in the week when he told CNN's Larry King that he and President Bush had agreed to work toward a common currency not only for North America but for Latin America as well…Fox explained that he and Bush intended to proceed incrementally, establishing FTAA [Free Trade Agreement of the Americas] as an economic agreement first and waiting to create an amero-type currency later – a plan he also suggested was in place for NAFTA itself…Recently, WND reported BankIntroductions.com, a Canadian company that specializes in global banking strategies and currency consulting, is advising clients the amero may be the currency of North America within 10 years…

From WorldNetDaily (dated October 12, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (US/LA/BR)

Bush U.N. ambassador says he's 'caving' on world court: Bolton sees blocking of death sentence for Mexican rapist-murderer 'ridiculous'
Former U.N. ambassador John Bolton says the Bush administration is caving in to global opinion by siding with Mexico and the International Court of Justice in their attempt to overturn the death penalty of an illegal alien convicted of raping and murdering two teenage girls…

From WorldNetDaily (dated October 11, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (US/GI/MO)

EU treaty 'same as Constitution'
The EU treaty is "substantially equivalent" to the EU Constitution thrown out by Dutch and French voters in 2005, MPs have said…

From BBC News (dated October 9, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU/BR)

The Battle for Jerusalem Begins
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will put Jerusalem on the negotiating table as he hurtles toward a “joint declaration” with the Palestinian Authority ahead of next month’s U.S.-sponsored Mideast summit. The prime minister says that a joint declaration with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas prior to the summit will lead to direct negotiations. The Arabic Al Quds Al-Arabiya newspaper reported Monday morning that Olmert has now come to an agreement with Jordan that Arabs in eastern Jerusalem will be granted Jordanian citizenship. The plan would leave Jerusalem's Muslim holy sites under the control of the Hashemite kingdom, according to the report. Olmert vehemently denied the report…

From Arutz Sheva Israel National News (dated October 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/WT/RE)

Israel May OK Division of Jerusalem
A confidant of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that his government would support a division of Jerusalem, which is reportedly a key component of an Israeli-Palestinian declaration to be made at a U.S.-sponsored Mideast peace conference next month. As part of recent negotiations between the sides, Deputy Vice Prime Minister Haim Ramon has proposed turning over many of the Arab neighborhoods of east Jerusalem to the Palestinians…

Associated Press story at My Way News (dated October 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/WT/RE)

Threats to bumblebees fly under radar
[Entomologist Robbin Thorp] fears that the species — Franklin's bumblebee — has gone extinct before anyone could even propose it for the endangered species list. To make matters worse, two other bumblebee species — one on the East coast, one on the West — have gone from common to rare…If bumblebees were to disappear, farmers and entomologists warn, the consequences would be huge, especially coming on top of the problems with honeybees, which are active at different times and on different crop species. Bumblebees are responsible for pollinating an estimated 15 percent of all the crops grown in the U.S., worth $3 billion, particularly those raised in greenhouses. Those include tomatoes, peppers and strawberries. Demand is growing as honeybees decline. In the wild, birds and bears depend on bumblebees for berries and fruits…

Associated Press story at Yahoo News (dated October 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (US/ND)

West Papua Delegation Donates Gold For Holy Temple
On Wednesday, the last day of the Sukkot festival, a 34-person delegation from West Papua presented a large amount of gold to be used in the building of the Holy Temple. The delegation, including representatives of the nation’s government, explained that they study the Bible regularly and recently came upon a verse in Zecharia (6:16) reading “And the distant ones will come and build the Temple of G-d.” They discussed the passage among themselves and decided that their faith obligates them to fulfill the verse…

From Arutz Sheva Israel National News (dated October 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/AP/RE)

Married parents 'in the minority by 2031'
Married parents could be outnumbered by single mothers and cohabiting couples within a generation, with serious implications for the health and education of children, official figures show. A report on family life by the Office for National Statistics suggests that Britain is only 24 years away from married couples being in the minority…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated October 5, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (BR/MO)

Scientists: Bird Flu Mutation Sets Stage for Flu Pandemic
The deadly bird flu virus has mutated and may infect people more easily if it begins spreading from human to human, according to a new study…

From Fox News (dated October 5, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ND)

Groundbreaking Study Affirms “Gays” Can Change
Psychologists Mark A. Yarhouse and Stanton L. Jones may have just hammered the final nail in the mythical “born ‘gay’ and stuck that way” coffin. In a first of its kind comprehensive study, Yarhouse and Jones determined over a four year period that men and women suffering from unwanted same-sex attractions can re-“orient” themselves through Christian counseling and/or reparative therapy to their natural and God-given heterosexual state…

From Concerned Women for America (dated September 19, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (MO)

'Dozens died in Syria-Iran missile test'
Proof of cooperation between Iran and Syria in the proliferation and development of weapons of mass destruction was brought to light Monday in Jane's Defence Weekly, which reported that dozens of Iranian engineers and 15 Syrian officers were killed in a July 23 accident in Syria. According to the report, cited by Channel 10, the joint Syrian-Iranian team was attempting to mount a chemical warhead on a Scud missile when the explosion occurred, spreading lethal chemical agents, including sarin nerve gas…

From The Jerusalem Post (dated September 18, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/WT)

9/11 Conspiracy Theories Gain Ground, Study Finds
[A new] poll, conducted by Zogby International for 911Truth.org and released last week, found that 31 percent of Americans do not accept the official explanation for Sept. 11 -- that "19 Arab fundamentalists executed a surprise attack which caught U.S. intelligence and military forces off guard." Among that 31 percent, around 26 percent agreed that the American government "knew the attacks were coming but consciously let them proceed for various political, military, and economic motives." Almost 5 percent believed that U.S. officials "actively planned or assisted some aspects of the attack"…

From Cybercast News Service (dated September 11, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (US/WT)

Pope calls for Sunday's soul 'to be restored'
The Pope has urged Catholics to reclaim the Sabbath as a day of religious reflection during a sermon in Vienna. Pope Benedict XVI's words came on the final day of his three-day visit to Austria amid declining church attendance figures in the central European country…

Adfero (UK) story at Manchester.com (dated September 9, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU/RE)

Cracks appear in Belgium’s long marriage
King Albert II cut short his holiday to make a dramatic plea for national unity, but not even his intervention has stopped Belgians from thinking the unthinkable: would the two squabbling halves of their country be better off apart? Three months after national elections, a collapse of trust between politicians in the Dutch-speaking north and the French-speaking south has left them unable to form a coalition government, and no solution is in sight. Belgians have been shocked by a poll this week that gave 43 per cent support in the Flemish north for secession. Even in the French-speaking southern half of Wallonia, which would have the most to lose economically by partition, one in five people believes that a break-up would be favourable…

From The Times (London) (dated September 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU)

Calling Europe Back to Its Christian Roots: Pope Says Another Alternative Doesn't Exist
Benedict XVI stressed the Christian identity of Europe in an address to members of the government and the diplomatic corps in Austria. The Pope said today in an address in the reception hall of Vienna's Hofburg Palace, the seat of the Austrian presidency, that "Europe cannot and must not deny her Christian roots. These represent a dynamic component of our civilization as we move forward into the third millennium"…

From Zenit News Agency (Vatican) (dated September 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU/RE)

Muslims caught red-handed destroying Temple artifacts
Islamic authorities using heavy machinery to dig on the Temple Mount – Judaism's holiest site – have been caught red-handed destroying Temple-era antiquities and what's believed to be a section of an outer wall of the Second Jewish Temple…

From WorldNetDaily (dated September 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/RE)

Putin praises strength of 'Warsaw Pact 2'
President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao…attend an unprecedented show of joint military force [Aug. 20] amid fears that the Russian leader is trying to turn an increasingly powerful central Asian alliance into a second Warsaw Pact…Founded in 2001, the SCO [Shanghai Cooperation Organization], which includes the four central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyztan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as well as China and Russia, is rapidly gaining a reputation as an anti-Western organization…Yet the SCO has wider ambitions. Pakistan, India and Mongolia all want to join - as does Iran, whose president, Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, attended the summit as guest of honour…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated August 20, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU/AP/ME/WT)

Death Toll in Peru Surpasses 500
The death toll rose to 510 on Thursday in the magnitude-8 earthquake that devastated cities of adobe and brick in Peru's southern desert. Survivors wearing blankets walked like ghosts through the ruins…

Associated Press story at RedOrbit (dated August 17, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (LA/ND)

Hundreds dead, missing after NKorea rain
Heavy rains spawned flooding that left "hundreds" dead or missing in North Korea and destroyed more than 30,000 homes, the country's state media reported…

Associated Press story at Boston.com (dated August 13, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (AP/ND)

UK 'should give up UN seat'
The United Kingdom should lose its independent voice at the United Nations and hand over its seat on the Security Council to the EU, according to the new Foreign Office Minister, Lord Malloch-Brown [in previous comments]… William Hague, the Conservative foreign affairs spokesman, said it was "alarming" that [Prime Minister] Brown had chosen to put in charge of UN reform "the man who thinks we should give up our UN Security Council seat to the EU." Downing Street said there was "no question of Britain giving up its seat"…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated August 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (BR/EU/GI)

[British] PM 'advancing EU treaty on quiet'
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been accused by the Tories of trying to push the EU Treaty through "on the quiet". Shadow foreign secretary William Hague renewed calls for a referendum to be held on the deal, insisting it meant a major transfer of sovereignty from the UK. Only 10 out of the 250 proposals had changed from the former constitutional treaty - which the Government had pledged to put to the vote before it was ditched, he added. Mr Hague was speaking as he launched a pamphlet claiming to explain the contents of the new treaty in "plain English". It says powerful positions are being created in the EU, with a President and a "high representative" who is effectively a foreign minister. The union will also be given the legal status to sign international treaties, while Britain is losing vetoes in some 60 policy areas. Mr Hague said that once Parliament returned from the summer recess it would only have nine working days to consider the treaty before it was passed. He also suggested that the document had been made deliberately "unreadable" in order to stifle concerns over the content…

From The Guardian (Manchester, England) (dated August 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (BR/EU)

Now Africa heads toward continental government
Advancing the movement toward economic and political globalism, the African Union is moving down the path of regional economic integration, with the expected end result of continental economic and political integration…And while the AU is still in a formative state, it's already officially designated by an emblem, a flag, an anthem, a central bank, and unified continental military force. The goal of the African Central Bank is to create an African Single Currency. African Union planners are currently calling the African continental currency the "Gold Mandela." Yet, skeptics note that the eco, a common currency designed to be issued by the West African Economic and Monetary Union is now rescheduled to be issued in July 2009, after failing to materialize through earlier efforts…'

From WorldNetDaily (dated August 6, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (AF)

Death toll rises in South Asia floods
Vital to farmers, the annual rains are a blessing and a curse for the subcontinent -- a fact highlighted by official tallies: At least 186 people have been killed and 19 million driven from their homes in recent days…

Associated Press story at Boston.com (dated August 3, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (AP/ND)

New EU treaty 'cut and pasted' from old
The official English text of the new EU treaty shows that it is a "cut and paste job" from the former European constitution, it was claimed last night…The reference to a constitution is out. Also cut is "symbolic" legal status for the EU's 12-star flag, an official motto and the EU's anthem. Other changes to substance are minor. The title of the EU's "foreign minister" is changed to High Representative. Provisions drawn word for word from the old constitution will give him speaking rights from British and French seats at the UN Security Council. Unlike Europe's current foreign policy representative, Javier Solana, the new minister will also be vice-president of the European Commission, weakening direct control over the post by national governments. Also lifted almost word for word from the 2004 constitutional treaty is a new "ratchet clause" making it far easier for the EU to scrap national vetoes and sidestep referendums…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated August 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU/BR)

China summer storm deaths approach 700
Deaths from floods, lightning and landslides across China this summer have reached nearly 700, state media said on Monday, with experts warning that global warming is likely to fuel more violent weather…

From Reuters (dated July 30, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (AP/ND)

'Reunion' of Priests Spurs Talk of Third Temple
What made this blessing at the Western Wall unique was that the service was among the opening ceremonies of the first international Kohen-Levi conference, "The Gathering of the Tribe," held this week in Jerusalem….Members of the Jewish priestly class came from near and far to participate in this unique "family reunion" of the sons of Aaron…[Many] came to learn exactly how to fulfill their divine ancestral duties for when the Third Holy Temple is built…In addition to seminars about purity laws for priests and the correct way to offer the blessing of the Kohanim, experts talked about recent DNA testing that validates the belief that today's Kohanim descend from one man who lived about 3,000 years ago, at the time of the Exodus -- namely, Aaron. Most Ashkenazi and Sephardi Kohanim in the world have a common set of genetic markers indicating their common origin…

Jewish Telegraphic Agency story at Jewish Exponent (dated July 26, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ME/RE)

Study: Marijuana may increase psychosis risk
Using marijuana seems to increase the chance of becoming psychotic, researchers report in an analysis of past research that reignites the issue of whether pot is dangerous. The new review suggests that even infrequent use could raise the small but real risk of this serious mental illness by 40%...

Associated Press story in USA Today (dated July 26, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (ST/MO)

Russian youth: Stalin good, migrants must go: poll
Russia's youths admire Soviet dictator Josef Stalin -- who presided over the deaths of millions of people -- and want to kick immigrants out of Russia, according to a poll released on [July 25]…

From Reuters (dated July 25, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends October 18, 2007 (EU)

Britons begin repairing flood damage
Gasoline-powered pumps roared into action Tuesday as stunned Britons tried to dry out their houses after the worst flooding in more than half a century…

Associated Press story at Yahoo News (dated July 24, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (BR/ND)

Heatwave claims 500 in Hungary
Hungary said Tuesday as many as 500 people may have died last week in a heatwave which was continuing to stifle much of southern and eastern Europe and spark deadly brush fires…

Agence France-Presse at TerraDaily (dated July 24, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/ND)

Chlorine attacks in Iraq spur warnings in US
A spate of deadly chlorine bomb attacks in Iraq is prompting the Bush administration to urge nearly 3,000 municipal water treatment plants in the United States to make sure their chlorine gas is well protected -- spotlighting what Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has singled out as a "gap in our system of regulation"…

From the Boston Globe (dated July 24, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (US/WT)

Poland raises new objections as EU launches reform conference
Poland raised fresh objections Monday to a major European Union package of reforms meant to replace the bloc's failed constitution and end two years of political turmoil. At a meeting to launch a key conference on finalising the EU's new reform treaty, Polish Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga told her colleagues that Poland was considering opting out of the bloc's Charter of Fundamental Rights…

From EUbusiness (dated July 23, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU)

Natl. Intel Director Worried About Terror Sleeper Cells in U.S.
The nation’s top intelligence official yesterday went farther than ever before in outlining what he described as a heightened threat of an al Qaeda attack on American soil…

From ABC News (dated July 22, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (US/WT)

Turkey's ruling party wins election
Turkey's Islamic-rooted ruling party won parliamentary elections by a wide margin Sunday, and the prime minister pledged to safeguard the country's secular traditions and do whatever the government deems necessary to fight separatist Kurdish rebels…

Associated Press story at Yahoo News (dated July 22, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME)

More than 150 killed in China floods
Another 74 people have died in floods across China bringing the death toll for the week to at least 156 in one of the deadliest rainy seasons in years…

Agence-France Presse story at Breitbart.com (dated July 22, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (AP/ND)

Japan's more provocative military makes neighbors nervous
The incremental changes - especially since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States - amount to the most significant transformation in the Japanese military since World War II, one that has brought it ever closer operationally to America's military while rattling nerves throughout northeast Asia…

From the International Herald Tribune (dated July 22, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (AP/WT)

Olmert Reiterates Stance to Give Away Judea and Samaria
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reiterated his belief that Israel "needs to withdraw" from the biblical Jewish provinces of Judea and Samaria [known to most as the West Bank]…

From Arutz Sheva Israel National News (dated July 21, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/WT)

Israel frees 255 prisoners in bid to boost Abbas
Israel released 255 Palestinian prisoners on Friday as part of a series of goodwill gestures designed to bolster Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in his standoff against Hamas…

From CNN (dated July 20, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/WT)

Hindu prayer in Senate defies nation's founding, some say
Some Americans took offense when a Hindu chaplain led the morning prayer in the United States Senate July 12 because they said it defied the Judeo Christian heritage set forth by the nation's founders…Zed was the first Hindu to offer a Senate prayer since the formation of the governing body in 1789, and he was invited by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D.-Nev. But Zed was not the first Hindu to pray in Congress. That distinction belongs to a Hindu priest who prayed before the House in 2000. Also, a Muslim prayed before the Senate several years ago…

From Baptist Press (dated July 19, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (US/RE)

Asian Parasite Killing Western Bees - Scientist
A parasite common in Asian bees has spread to Europe and the Americas and is behind the mass disappearance of honeybees in many countries, says a Spanish scientist who has been studying the phenomenon for years.... Treatment for nosema ceranae is effective and cheap -- 1 euro (US$1.4) a hive twice a year -- but beekeepers first have to be convinced the parasite is the problem…

Reuters story at Planet Ark (dated July 19, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (US/EU/ND)

EU banks on 'unreadable' treaty
The revived EU constitution has deliberately been made "unreadable" to help fend off demands for a referendum, according to the former Italian prime minister, Giuliano Amato…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated July 18, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU)

Report: Al Qaida network planning UK plot of 'Hiroshima' caliber
A British intelligence report…said there is a potential threat from Al Qaida in Iraq. “A member of this network is reportedly involved in an operation which he believes requires AQ Core authorization,” the report said. “He claims the operation will be on 'a par with Hiroshima and Nagasaki' and will 'shake the Roman throne'. We assess that this operation is most likely to be a large-scale, mass casualty attack against the West"…

From World Tribune (dated July 18, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (BR/WT)

Merkel Open to Missile Shield Due to Iran Threat
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday she does not oppose U.S. plans for an anti-missile shield to counter any future attack by Iran, a project that has strained ties between Russia and the West…

Reuters story at Javno (Croatia) (dated July 18, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/WT)

Report: Christians crucified by terrorists in Iraq
Believers in Jesus said to be nailed to crosses, tied with ropes, set ablaze…

From WorldNetDaily (dated July 17, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/RE/WT)

Israelite priests hold first gathering since Temple era
Jews belonging to the Tribe of Levi, and particularly the Kohen [i.e., priest] clan, came together for a mass gathering in Jerusalem on Sunday. It was the first large-scale gathering of biblically-mandated Israelite priests since the time of the Second Temple. The gathering included lectures and seminars on the history and future of the Temple, and culminated with all of the participants declaring the priestly blessing over Israel from the Western Wall. Genetic research over the past several decades has succeeded in isolating a particular DNA signature shared by all members of the Tribe of Levi, making the reinstitution of Israel's priestly caste a relatively simple endeavor once the Temple is rebuilt.

From Israel Today (dated July 15, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/RE)

China, Russia seek 'multi-polar world'
Russia and China on Friday stressed their common desire for a ''multi-polar world'' - one not dominated by the United States - and vowed to keep improving economic ties that President Vladimir Putin said are already improving fast…

Associated Press story at NDTV (India) (dated July 13, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (AP/EU)

Government report: Al Qaeda strongest since September 11, 2001
Al Qaeda is the strongest it has been since the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, a new U.S. government analysis concludes…

From CNN (dated July 12, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (WT)

Germany Skeptical of EU Foreign Ministers' Middle East Initiative
Germany has criticized a call by 10 European foreign ministers to redefine EU objectives in the Middle East, including deploying in the Palestinian territories an international troop force armed with a "robust mandate"…

From Deutsch Welle (Germany) (dated July 12, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/ME/WT)

Olmert allows Muslims to dig on Temple Mount
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has quietly granted the Waqf – the Muslim custodians of the Temple Mount – permission to dig unsupervised on the sacred site, WND has learned. The permission was granted in spite of longstanding fears from leading Israeli archeologists the Waqf might hide or dispose of Jewish Temple artifacts discovered during any Muslim digs. The last time the Waqf conducted an unsupervised excavation on the Temple Mount, in 1997, the Muslim custodians ultimately were caught by Israeli authorities disposing truckloads of Mount dirt that contained Jewish Temple artifacts…

From WorldNetDaily (dated July 11, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/RE)

Pope: Other Christian Denominations Not True Churches
For the second time in a week, Pope Benedict XVI has corrected what he says are erroneous interpretations of the Second Vatican Council, reasserting the primacy of the Roman Catholic Church and saying other Christian communities were either defective or not true churches…[Also] Benedict revived the old Latin Mass, saying it was wrong for bishops to deny it to the faithful because it had never been abolished. Traditional Catholics cheered the move, but more liberal ones called it a step back from Vatican II….

Associated Press story at Fox News (dated July 10, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/RE)

EU eyes its next big challenges
Europe's leaders agreed at the [June] summit the key elements of a new reform treaty, to replace the unloved constitution, but a detailed final deal has yet to be agreed, and could still cause problems…Others agree that the EU may now finally see the emergence of a core Europe, instead of struggling to agree at 27…Antonio Missiroli of the European Policy Centre, a Brussels think-tank, thinks a central group of countries is likely to emerge. "There will be a group of some 10 countries equally involved in the euro, Schengen and key common policies and a very varying set of countries more on the periphery," he says…

From BBC News (dated July 10, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/BR)

Brown Says No Need for U.K. Referendum on EU Treaty
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said there would be no need for a U.K. referendum on the proposed European Union constitutional treaty, so long as five British ``red lines,'' agreed at negotiations in Brussels last month, were maintained in the detail of the document…The opposition Conservatives say Brown should call a referendum on the treaty, arguing that it is too close to the proposed EU constitution…

From Bloomberg (dated July 9, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (BR/EU)

'Don't tell British about the EU treaty'
The new European Union treaty will mean "transfers of sovereignty" from Britain and Gordon Brown is right to hide the fact from the public, an EU leader admitted yesterday. Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg's premier and leader of the bloc of 13 single currency members…said he supported public debate on the treaty - except in Britain…"Britain is different. Of course there will be transfers of sovereignty. But would I be intelligent to draw the attention of public opinion to this fact?" Mr Juncker, a supporter of a United States of Europe, described the June 23 deal signed by Tony Blair as an "objective success" for friends of the EU constitution…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated July 3, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (BR/EU)

Hamas’s plans for Temple Mount foiled
Hamas attempts to gain control of the Temple Mount and recruit new Israeli-Arab operatives in east Jerusalem have been foiled by the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), a senior security official announced on Monday…

From The Jerusalem Post (dated July 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/RE/WT)

UN offers Pakistan aid as 600 die in South Asia rains
More than 600 have been killed across South Asia as the annual summer monsoon brings downpours and extreme weather, with at least 117 deaths in southwestern Pakistan during the past week…

Agence France-Presse story at Yahoo News (dated July 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (AP/ND)

Secret Document: U.S. Fears Terror 'Spectacular' Planned
A secret U.S. law enforcement report, prepared for the Department of Homeland Security, warns that al Qaeda is planning a terror "spectacular" this summer, according to a senior official with access to the document. "This is reminiscent of the warnings and intelligence we were getting in the summer of 2001," the official told ABCNews.com…

From ABC News (dated July 1, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (US/WT)

Poles smudge EU agreement before the ink has even dried
A deal on Europe’s future, stitched together at last week’s bad-tempered summit, began to unravel yesterday after the intervention of the EU’s most unpredictable leader. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the Polish Prime Minister, who sent his brother Lech, the President, to the summit, stunned Brussels by declaring his determination to renegotiate the compromise…Jaroslaw, who demanded extra voting power for Poland, insisted yesterday that the deal had not taken full account of Poland’s demands. Now he wants a permanent mechanism that allows a minority of dissenting states to be able to delay EU decisions for up to two years. His latest outburst has alarmed EU leaders, who were hoping for a trouble-free passage to a final text in October and a signing ceremony in December…

From The Times (London) (dated June 30, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU)

[Israeli Minister] Lieberman wants NATO troops in Gaza
Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman discussed deploying NATO forces in the Gaza Strip in a meeting with NATO Deputy Secretary General Alessandro Minuto Rizzo in Brussels…

From Ynet News (dated June 28, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/EU/WT)

Israel braces for July war with up to five enemies
Israel is preparing for an imminent war with Iran, Syria and/or their non-state clients. Israeli military intelligence has projected that a major attack could come from any of five adversaries in the Middle East. Officials said such a strike could spark a war as early as July 2007…

From World Tribune (dated June 25, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (ME/WT)

EU Leaders Give Themselves Six Months to Map Out Bloc's Future
The 27 countries of the European Union gave themselves six months to decide between consensus and the squabbling that almost sank a summit in Brussels. EU leaders agreed at the Brussels meeting to negotiate by the end of this year a new governing treaty to guide the 50-year- old bloc and any future members. The summit, though, ran into an unscheduled third day and came near to collapse until Poland yielded to pressure to scale back its call for a greater say in EU decisions…

From Bloomberg (dated June 25, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU)

EU leaders agree on reform treaty
European Union leaders have reached agreement in Brussels on an outline of new rules to govern the 27-member bloc. At dawn on Saturday they announced a compromise to delay until 2014 a new voting system that reduces Poland's influence - the main stumbling block. Other proposals envisage a long-term president and a foreign affairs head. The new treaty, expected to be finalised later this year, preserves much of the planned EU constitution, which was rejected by voters in 2005. The treaty will need to be ratified by each of the EU's member states, before entering into force in mid-2009…

From BBC News (dated June 23, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (EU/BR)

China building military force to challenge US
An increasingly wealthy China is now building a military force tailored specifically to challenge any attempt by the United States to intervene in a conflict over Taiwan, Western and Chinese military analysts have said…

From The Times of India (dated June 11, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends July 25, 2007 (AP/WT)

Report: PM willing to return Golan for peace with Syria
A recent flurry of secret messages from Israel to Syria signaled Israel's willingness to give up the Golan Heights in return for a peace agreement…

From The Jerusalem Post (dated June 8, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/WT)

Palestinians say fed up with gunmen
For most Palestinians, black-hooded gunmen have long been respected symbols of resistance against Israeli occupation. Now, frequent internal fighting and lawlessness gripping the Palestinian territories have transformed the militants into no more than gangsters in the eyes of many of those who once saw them as heroes. "It's very ironic but I'm relieved the Israelis have started a bombing campaign. The gunmen killing each other on the streets were forced to go into hiding," said Mai, a Gaza housewife, referring to strikes aimed at halting rocket attacks on Israel…Legislator Nasser Jum'a, once a leading member of Fatah's al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade… said ordinary Palestinians were so fed up with the armed groups "they now wish the Israeli occupation would take over in Gaza or hope for the return of Jordanian rule in the West Bank" to get rid of them…

Reuters story at Yahoo News (dated June 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/WT)

[After threat] Putin offers radar site in Azerbaijan
Vladimir Putin, bitterly opposed to a U.S. missile shield in Europe, presented President Bush with a surprise counterproposal Thursday built around a Soviet-era radar system in Azerbaijan rather than new defenses in Poland and the Czech Republic. Bush said it was an interesting suggestion and promised to consider it. Putin's formula would force a major rethinking of U.S. plans for defending Europe against attack from hostile regimes such as Iran or North Korea. While outright acceptance of Putin's idea appeared doubtful, the White House seemed eager to avoid further inflaming tensions by giving it short shrift. The Russian president said he would abandon his threat to retarget missiles on Europe — if Bush accepted the Kremlin's missile-defense proposal…

Associated Press story at Yahoo News (dated June 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/ME/WT)

Chavez Calls for Leftist Defense Bloc in Latin America
President Hugo Chavez called for the creation of a common defense pact between Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua and Bolivia, while the leftist Latin American bloc announced the creation of a development bank to finance joint projects. Chavez said Wednesday that the four-nation Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, or ALBA, which began as a socialist-leaning trade group, should cooperate militarily to become more independent of U.S. influence…

Associated Press story at Fox News (dated June 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (LA/WT)

Poll shows belief in evolution, creationism
Majorities of Americans in a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll say evolution and creationism are both likely explanations for life on Earth — underscoring the complexities of an issue that has put Republican presidential candidates on the spot in recent weeks. Two-thirds in the poll said creationism, the idea that God created humans in their present form within the past 10,000 years, is definitely or probably true. More than half, 53%, said evolution, the idea that humans evolved from less advanced life forms over millions of years, is definitely or probably true. All told, 25% say that both creationism and evolution are definitely or probably true…

From USA Today (dated June 7, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/RE)

LA residents told to cut showers as drought deepens
Los Angeles residents were urged on Wednesday to take shorter showers, reduce lawn sprinklers and stop throwing trash in toilets in a bid to cut water usage by 10 percent in the driest year on record… It is the driest year since rainfall records began 130 years ago…

From Reuters (dated June 6, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/ND)

Mohammed likely to top British boys' names list by year-end
Mohammed will likely become the most popular name for baby boys in Britain by the end of the year, The Times reported on Wednesday, citing government data. Though official records from the Office for National Statistics list the spelling Mohammed 23rd in its yearly analysis of the top 3,000 names given to children, when all the different spellings of the name are taken into account, it ranks second, only behind Jack, according to The Times…

Agence France-Presse story at Breitbart.com (dated June 6, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (BR/RE)

Russian nuclear store 'a powder keg'
Scientists have identified a risk of an "uncontrolled chain reaction" at one of the world's largest radioactive waste stores in northern Russia. According to environmentalists, this could trigger a disaster worse than the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in 1986. But the probability of such a disaster is regarded as very small by regulatory authorities… Andreeva Bay, on the Kola Peninsula in northwest Russia, is home to 21,000 spent uranium fuel assemblies from nuclear submarines and ice-breakers…

From NewScientist.com news service (dated June 4, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/ST)

One Third of Americans Say Bible is Literal Word of God
Do you believe the Bible is the literal word of God? Since 1991, the Gallup Organization has asked Americans that question, yet their answers remain remarkably unchanged. About 31% of people believe the Good Book is infallible. Frank Newport with Gallup says we still live in a country where God’s word is taken seriously… If you add together the people who think the whole Bible is the direct word of God and those who see it as divinely inspired, but not all parts are to be taken literally, you arrive at about 80% of the public believing it to be a major source of truth in their lives…

From Focus on the Family (dated June 4, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/RE)

Americans Remain Negative on State of Nation's Moral Values
Gallup's annual Values and Beliefs poll finds Americans are very pessimistic about the current state of moral values in the United States, as has typically been the case in recent years. Only about one in six Americans describe the state of moral values in the country in positive terms, and perceptions that moral values are "poor" in the country are at their highest point, edging closer to the 50% mark. More than 8 in 10 Americans think morality is getting worse, representing a slight increase in the past three years. The groups of Americans who are most negative about moral values in this country include senior citizens, blacks, women, conservative Republicans, Protestants, and weekly churchgoers…

From The Gallup Poll (dated June 4, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/RE/MO)

High-level group writes new-look EU treaty
A small group of politicians from around the EU have published a repackaged treaty for the bloc, hoping to feed into the emerging consensus among member states that a "simplified treaty" has to be extracted from the ashes of the rejected EU constitution… The 16-strong group, containing several former prime ministers as well as two current European Commissioners, has stripped the rejected constitution of its constitutional elements - including the article on the EU's symbols and the controversial "God-less" preamble - reduced the charter of fundamental rights to one legally binding article and say they do not mind if the proposed EU foreign minister ends up with another name. Essentially, however, the main elements of the original constitution have been kept in…

From EUObserver.com (dated June 4, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU)

Britain 'isolated' over new treaty for Europe
At a pre-G8 meeting in Berlin, the German chancellor will warn Mr Blair that he will be under siege if he tries to defend Britain's sovereignty at a meeting on June 21 in Brussels - where details of a treaty will be thrashed out to replace the constitution that was rejected by French and Dutch voters two years ago…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated June 3, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/BR)

Iran president sees "countdown" to Israel's end
Iran's president said on Sunday the Lebanese and the Palestinians had pressed a "countdown button" to bring an end to Israel. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who triggered outrage in the West two years ago when he said Israel should be "wiped off the map", has often referred to the destruction of the Jewish state but says Iran is not a threat. "With God's help, the countdown button for the destruction of the Zionist regime has been pushed by the hands of the children of Lebanon and Palestine," Ahmadinejad said in a speech. "By God's will, we will witness the destruction of this regime in the near future," he said. He did not elaborate…

From Reuters (dated June 3, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/WT)

Gaza: Female TV staff get death threat
A radical Islamic group in the Gaza Strip issued a death threat over the weekend against women working for the official Palestinian Authority television station, accusing them of dressing immodestly and behaving in a way that violates the teachings of Islam. The threat, the first of its kind against female employees of Palestine TV, was made by the Righteous Swords of Islam, a relatively new group that is believed to have links with al-Qaida…

From The Jerusalem Post (dated June 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/RE/WT)

Three Arrested, 1 Sought In Terror Plot On New York City's JFK Airport
Federal authorities announced Saturday they had broken up a suspected Muslim terrorist cell planning a "chilling" attack to destroy John F. Kennedy International Airport, kill thousands of people and trigger an economic catastrophe by blowing up a jet fuel artery that runs through populous residential neighborhoods. Three men, one of them a former member of Guyana's parliament, were arrested and one was being sought in Trinidad as part of a plot that authorities said they had been tracked for more than a year and was foiled in the planning stages. "The devastation that would be caused had this plot succeeded is just unthinkable," U.S. Attorney Roslynn R. Mauskopf said at a news conference, calling it "one of the most chilling plots imaginable"…

From Fox News (dated June 2, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/LA/RE/WT)

Palestinian Kindergarten Graduates Vow to Die for Allah
A televised graduation ceremony at a Palestinian kindergarten in Gaza shows little boys dressed in black masks, camouflage fatigues, carrying toy guns, and waving green Hamas flags. The children vow that their most "lofty aspiration" is death for the sake of Allah. The ceremony aired on Hamas' Al-Aqsa Television on Thursday…

From Cybercast News Service (dated June 1, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/RE/WT)

Brussels warns Poland and UK on EU constitution
European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso has warned both Poland and the UK not to block attempts to agree a new treaty for the European Union…

From EUObserver.com (dated June 1, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/BR)

Merkel still aims to keep bulk of EU constitution
German chancellor Angela Merkel said she still hopes to save the bulk of the EU constitution but said she realised compromises will have to be made…

From AFX News (London) (dated May 31, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU)

Spanish PM backs French plan for 'Mediterranean Union'
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said Thursday that he backed a French proposal to set up a "Mediterranean Union" comprising nations from its northern and southern flank…

Agence France-Presse story at Expatica (dated May 31, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/ME)

Vatican signals support for Turkey EU bid
The Vatican has indicated it supports Turkish EU accession and acknowledged Ankara's progress toward democracy at a time when clouds of doubt are gathering over Turkey enlargement inside the EU itself…

From EUObserver.com (dated May 31, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/ME)

Russia wants control of downtown Jerusalem
Moscow is in negotiations to purchase a large section of downtown Jerusalem once controlled by the Russian government prior to Israel's rebirth in 1948…An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman stressed that Israel is not "selling" the land to Russia, but rather "returning" the area to its former owners - a very dangerous way of putting things considering the Arab claim to all of what is today the Jewish state…

From Israel Today (dated May 31, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/EU)

'EU should have more say at Rafah'
Israel has asked the European Union observer force at the Rafah border crossing to take upon itself wider authority, and on a parallel track Israel has asked Egypt to step up efforts to prevent Palestinian terrorists from crossing into Gaza…

From The Jerusalem Post (dated May 30, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/EU)

The persecution of Lina Joy, continued
Malaysia supreme court upholds law forbidding citizens from converting out of Islam…

From columnist and blogger Michelle Malkin (dated May 30, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (AP/RE)

Merkel promises 'fair' solution on EU constitution
German chancellor Angela Merkel has said she is determined to find a way out of the EU's institutional impasse before Berlin gives up the bloc's presidency at the end of next month… With the June summit looming and the ambitious goal of getting the framework of a new treaty plus a timetable agreed, much of the discussion is now focussing on France's idea for a simplified treaty. According to president Nicolas Sarkozy, who is energetically lobbying the idea among national capitals, the new treaty should keep proposals such as the EU foreign minister and the permanent president of the bloc, give the EU a legal personality and extend qualified majority voting. Italian prime minister Romano Prodi, a strong proponent of the original more extensive constitution which Italy has ratified, gave his backing to these elements after meeting the French president on Monday – but shied away from using the expression simplified treaty. Last week, European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said that there was a consensus emerging around Mr Sarkozy's proposals…

From EUObserver.com (dated May 29, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU)

[Israel] Sabbath-Sunday Bill Survey Shows Support
[Member of the Israeli Knesset] Zevulun Orlev (NRP) has announced the findings of a poll showing 56% support amongst Israelis for his proposed legislation making Sunday a day of rest and allowing some public transportation and entertainment on the Sabbath. Orlev's bill would change the official approach to Sabbath as the country's day of rest… Orlev's bill, which he proposed last week, also calls for a second day of rest during the week - Sunday - during which businesses and offices would be closed…

From Arutz Sheva Israel National News (dated May 25, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/RE)

North American union plan headed to Congress in fall
A powerful think tank chaired by former Sen. Sam Nunn and guided by trustees including Richard Armitage, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Harold Brown, William Cohen and Henry Kissinger, is in the final stages of preparing a report to the White House and U.S. Congress on the benefits of integrating the U.S., Mexico and Canada into one political, economic and security bloc. The final report, published in English, Spanish and French, is scheduled for submission to all three governments by Sept. 30, according to the Center for Strategic & International Studies. CSIS boasts of playing a large role in the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994 – a treaty that set in motion a political movement many believe resembles the early stages of the European Community on its way to becoming the European Union…

From WorldNetDaily (dated May 24, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/LA)

American Christianity -- Laodicean church in the making, says Barna
More than 20 years of research, says The Barna Group, has revealed a disturbing trend among Americans' spiritual beliefs and behavior: their commitment to orthodox biblical perspectives is "slipping." The director of a recent Barna study says the findings reflect a "spiritual profile" among Americans similar to that of the early church at Laodicea -- a church which Jesus admonished for being "neither hot nor cold" and called to repentance…

From One News Now (dated May 23, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (US/RE/MO)

Two-speed Europe would solve constitution deadlock, Prodi says
Mr Prodi – claiming to speak on behalf of 18 EU states which have largely ratified the original text – rejected "radical changes" to the foreseen institutional reforms. He listed the EU foreign minister, a lengthier presidency, the extension of qualified majority voting, the union's legal personality and the abolition of its three-pillar structure as elements which "must be preserved." "If the compromise does not convince us, we will not sign it," he warned, clearly stating that a multi-speed Europe could bring about the long-sought breakthrough on the controversial issue…

From EUObserver.com (dated May 22, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU)

Hundreds view 'sweating' statue
Hundreds of Hindus in Nepal are flocking to see a statue of a deity which is said to be "sweating". Devotees believe the apparent perspiration is a sign of impending turmoil or natural disaster…

From BBC News (dated May 21, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (AP/RE)

Scientists allowed to create hybrid embryos
Scientists will be allowed to create hybrid animal-human embryos for stem cell research after the Government dropped its opposition to the procedure. In what is seen by many as a U-turn, the Government published a draft bill that effectively sweeps away last year's ban…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated May 19, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (BR/ST/MO)

Australian water crisis could be worse than thought
Water shortages facing Australia's drought-hit prime agricultural area might be worse than expected, the government was told on Wednesday, as river towns braced for unprecedented restrictions on water use…. Prime Minister John Howard in April urged Australians to pray for rain…

From Reuters (dated May 16, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (BR/ND)

£20m railway line under the cloud of Vesuvius and mafia war
There is a "one-in-two" chance of the volcano erupting in the next few years. A survey of the volcano last month warned that 300,000 people could die in an eruption…

From The Telegraph (London) (dated May 16, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/ND)

Ex-chief rabbi opposes new moves to visit Temple Mount
Former chief rabbi Abraham Shapira, responding to a visit to the Temple Mount this week by dozens of religious-Zionist rabbis, declared Wednesday that such visits remain forbidden for Jews… Perhaps the most significant ruling, though, came from Rabbi Yaakov Ariel - one of the leading halakhic figures in religious Zionist circles today and a candidate for the chief rabbinate. Ariel published his ruling Friday in Argaman, a journal for religious women, where he gave explicit permission to women to visit the Temple Mount if they immerse in a mikveh after completing their menstrual cycle. He also gave permission to brides to go on their wedding day, after immersion and before the marriage ceremony…

From Haaretz (Tel Aviv) (dated May 16, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/RE)

Merkel gives up on God in EU treaty
German chancellor and Christian Democrat Angela Merkel has voiced regret there will be no reference to Christian roots in the revised EU treaty, amid controversial remarks about damage to churches in Turkish Cyprus at a meeting of religious VIPs in Brussels…

From EUObserver.com (dated May 15, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU/RE)

Japan approves constitution steps
Japan's parliament has passed a bill that sets out steps for holding a referendum on revising the country's pacifist constitution…

From BBC News (dated May 14, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (AP/WT)

Rabbis Call for Temple Mount Visits
Close to 30 leading religious-Zionist rabbis visited the Temple Mount "in purity" on Sunday, after taking the necessary Halakhic [Jewish legal] precautions. The precautions involve immersing in a mikveh (ritual bath), taking off one's shoes, and clarifying the precise areas forbidden for entry - or else going only with a guide who knows the area. The visit was unique in that it marks the first time such a large group of rabbis ascended together to the holy site… [Rabbis consider that] biblical law forbids one from entering the holy areas of the Temple Mount, and some feel that the precise boundaries of those areas are not known. However, Rabbi Yisrael Ariel of the Temple Institute has shown that the rock under the Dome of the Rock is in fact the Holy of Holies, and most scholars agree… Last week, a group of over 40 rabbis signed a declaration calling upon the religious public - those who know the laws and restrictions - to frequent the permitted sites on the Temple Mount… Former Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, however, issued an opposite call, saying that visits to the Temple Mount could lead to the grave sin of entering forbidden sacred locations…

From Arutz Sheva Israel National News (dated May 13, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (ME/RE)

Voting and veto issues to dominate EU constitution discussions
The voting system and where member states should have a right to a veto are shaping up to be the two biggest issues at the treaty summit [in June] in Brussels with diplomats already gearing themselves up for a long meeting…

From EUObserver.com (dated May 10, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (EU)

Pakistan: New apostasy bill to impose death on anyone who leaves Islam
Pakistan’s government sends draft bill tabled by six-party Islamic alliance to standing committee for review…The Apostasy Act 2006 which the government sent to the committee would impose the death penalty on Muslim men and life in prison on Muslim women in case they leave Islam. It would also force them to forfeit their property and lose legal custody of children…

From AsiaNews (dated May 9, 2007)
Posted to Current World News & Trends June 8, 2007 (AP/RE)