Signs of a Looming WWIII?
Mark 13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don’t be alarmed; these things must take place, but the end is not yet.
Matthew 24:6 You are going to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, because these things must take place, but the end is not yet.
World war will culminate right up to the time the LOZ are summoned to administer the wrath of our Creator.
Obama’s bomb deal with Israel raises the spectre of war
The following post is part of a new series that brings a fresh perspective to global news from our team of foreign correspondents
Barack Obama may be widely regarded at home as the least pro-Israeli president in decades, but he has secretly okayed giving the Jewish state a bunch of special bunker-busting bombs – ideal for destroying Tehran’s ruling mullahs’ nuclear ambitions and so powerful that George W. Bush blocked handing the
m over.
Capable of penetrating deep beneath the surface, the bunker-busters would be crucial for any air strikes at Iran nuclear sites. Mr. Netanyahu has wanted the bunker-busters for years and, as first reported by Newsweek, Mr. Obama agreed to hand over 55 of the sophisticated and powerful weapons.
Given Israel’s track record of pre-emptive bombing strikes to destroy nuclear sites in neighbouring nations and Iran’s ambitious and suspicious nuclear program, the American bunker-busters may increase the chance of another Middle East war. Iran’s unpredictable and bellicose President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has vowed to wipe Israel off the map. Iran continues to defy international sanctions with a clandestine nuclear program. Meanwhile, Mr. Netanyahu now has the means to carry out his threat that “Iran will not acquire nuclear arms, and this implies everything necessary to carry this out.”
The bunker-busters will fit nicely on Israeli’s top fighter-bomber, the F-15. Dropped from up to a dozen kilometres away, the needle-nosed, 2.5-tonne bomb ‘dives” to its target, correcting its course so precisely as it plunges that it will fly down a ventilation stack or slice through six metres of concrete or 30 metres of dirt before exploding with colossal force.
That’s hardly the sort of thing used against the rabbit’s warren of sub-surface tunnels used by Hamas to smuggle small arms and rockets into Gaza from the Egyptian Sinai near the Canada Gates.
The bunker-buster bombs, and Mr. Obama’s staunchly pro-Israeli stance last week at the United Nations where he vowed to block a Palestinian bid for recognition, have buoyed his approval ratings in Israel. – The Globe and Mail
Russian aircraft carrier to carry out exercises in Med Sea
Russia is sending its northern fleet led by the country’s only aircraft carrier, the “Admiral Kuznetsov,” to the Mediterranean Sea for exercises, daily Hürriyet reported on its website Thursday.
The Kuznetsov will sail the waters in the Barents Sea for a week and carry out drills there first, the report said.
The carrier will then start a three-month voyage to the Mediterranean Sea via the Northeast Atlantic. It will be joined by anti-submarine ship “Admiral Chabanenko” and other vessels.
It was not yet decided which ports the ships would visit but it was possible that the fleet could take part in military exercises with fleets of other countries in the region while it is in the Mediterranean.
The last time the Admiral Kuznetsov sailed in Mediterranean waters was in the winter of 2008-2009, when it visited ports in Turkey and Syria. – Hurriyet Daily News
Report: Israel scrambles IAF warplanes toward Turkish ship
Israel Defense Forces jet fighters were scrambled toward a Turkish seismic research ship in the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkish media reported on Friday, in what seemed to be a further escalation in the already fraying ties between the once longtime allies.
According to the report, cited by the Turkish daily Today’s Zaman and based on a report by the Turkish Vatan daily, two Israel Air Force F-15s took off to face the Turkish vessel on Thursday night, flying through the airspace of both Cyprus and Turkish Cyprus.
The report added that the warplanes approached the Turkish ship despite incessant warnings by forces in Turkish Cyprus, according to which the planes had breached the territory’s airspace.
Ultimately, the report indicated, Turkey launched two F-16 fighters to track the Israeli planes, at which point the IAF fighter jets returned to Israeli airspace.
In addition, the report claimed that an IAF helicopter hovered over the ship, Piri Reis, while the ship was in the Aphrodite gas field off Cyprus’ southern coast and near to the larger Leviathan natural gas field.
The reported incident took place as Israel-Turkey ties continued to deteriorate over Israel’s refusal to apologize for its 2010 raid of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla which resulted in the deaths of nine Turkish nationals.
A recent inflammation in tensions came amid controversy over drilling rights in what could be natural gas-rich areas in the Eastern Mediterranean.
On Tuesday, Turkey said it was exploring for gas in an offshore zone where Cyprus started drilling last week, a provocative step in a dispute over Mediterranean resources.
Last week, Turkey and Turkish Cyprus signed a pact outlining maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean, paving the way for gas exploration. Turkey said it would protect any research vessel with warships, raising the prospect of an armed stand-off.
On September 23, Turkey dispatched its only research vessel, the Piri Reis, to the eastern Mediterranean.
“Piri Reis, escorted by warships, has started research in the same area where Greek Cypriots are exploring,” Omer Celik, Vice Chairman of the ruling AK Party who oversees foreign affairs, said on Twitter.
“We have shown clearly to everyone that we will not allow the eastern Mediterranean to become a Greek Cyprus-Israel goal,” he said in another message. – Haaretz.com
Mark 13:7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don’t be alarmed; these things must take place, but the end is not yet.
Matthew 24:6 You are going to hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not alarmed, because these things must take place, but the end is not yet.
World war will culminate right up to the time the LOZ are summoned to administer the wrath of our Creator.
