World War 3 Could Very Easily Turn Into The Very First Nuclear War In The Middle East - Michael Snyder THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE

World War 3 Could Very Easily Turn Into The Very First Nuclear War In The Middle East 

Michael Snyder  THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE

Saudi Arabia already has nukes, Iran probably does, and the Russians are one of the two great nuclear powers on the entire planet.  So if Saudi Arabia, Turkey and their Sunni allies do decide to conduct a full-blown ground invasion of Syria, could someone ultimately decide to use nuclear weapons when their backs get pushed up against a wall?

As you read this article, there are thousands of military vehicles and hundreds of thousands of troops massed along the southern border of Turkey and the northern border of Saudi Arabia.  If the command is given and those forces start streaming toward Damascus, it is inevitable that the Syrians, the Iranians, Hezbollah and the Russians would fight back.  It would literally be the start of World War 3, and the Saudis and the Turks are trying very hard to convince the United States to be involved.

But the truth is that we don’t want any part of this conflict, because it could very easily become the very first nuclear war in the history of the Middle East.

Perhaps you didn’t know that the Saudis already have nukes.  Of course the official position is that they don’t, but it is a fact that they were the ones that funded the development of Pakistan’s nuclear program.  It is an open secret that the Saudis have the bomb, but nobody is really supposed to talk about it.

That is why it was so alarming what Saudi political analyst Dahham Al-‘Anzi told RT just recently…

Earlier this week a Saudi political analyst told RT’s Arab network the kingdom has a nuclear weapon.
Dahham Al-‘Anzi made the claim while saying Saudi Arabia is engaged in an effort to “minimize the Iranian threat in the Levant and Syria.”
Although Saudi Arabia has officially denied it has a nuclear weapons program and has publicly stated it opposes nuclear weapons in the Middle East, it has funded a military nuclear program and received scientific assistance from the United States and Pakistan.

You can watch video of this exchange right here…

If you don’t want to believe him, perhaps you will believe the former director of the CIA counter-terrorism operations center.  He told Fox Business that everyone in the intelligence world knows the Saudis have nukes…

If the fur started flying in Syria and Russia and Iran decided to start bombing Saudi airbases, would Saudi Arabia resort to using their nukes?

Let’s hope not.

In the event of a massive ground invasion by Saudi Arabia, Turkey and their allies, it is actually more likely that Russia may decide to be the first one to use nukes.  An invasion force of hundreds of thousands of troops would vastly outnumber the relatively small Russian force that is already inside Syria, and so the Russians may feel that the only way that they can keep the Sunni powers out of Damascus is to use tactical nukes.

Russia has more tactical nukes that anyone else in the world by far, and there are some reports that indicate that Russia may be prepared to use them in Syria.  For example, former Associated Press reporter Robert Parry, the author of America’s Stolen Narrative, says that a source has told him that the Russians have already warned Turkey that this could potentially happen…

If Turkey (with hundreds of thousands of troops massed near the Syrian border) and Saudi Arabia (with its sophisticated air force) follow through on threats and intervene militarily to save their rebel clients, who include Al Qaeda’s Nusra Front, from a powerful Russian-backed Syrian government offensive, then Russia will have to decide what to do to protect its 20,000 or so military personnel inside Syria.

A source close to Russian President Vladimir Putin told me that the Russians have warned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Moscow is prepared to use tactical nuclear weapons if necessary to save their troops in the face of a Turkish-Saudi onslaught. Since Turkey is a member of NATO, any such conflict could quickly escalate into a full-scale nuclear confrontation.

Given Erdogan’s megalomania or mental instability and the aggressiveness and inexperience of Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman (defense minister and son of King Salman), the only person who probably can stop a Turkish-Saudi invasion is President Obama. But I’m told that he has been unwilling to flatly prohibit such an intervention, though he has sought to calm Erdogan down and made clear that the U.S. military would not join the invasion.

Are you starting to understand how serious this is?

With all of the talk of a potential invasion in recent days, the Russians are on high alert and are rapidly preparing for a direct conflict with both Saudi Arabia and Turkey.  The following comes from Infowars…

Still, the Russians are taking no chances and they have put all their forces into high alert. They have very publicly dispatched a Tu-214r – her most advanced ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) aircraft. You can think of the Tu-214R as an “AWACS for the ground”, the kind of aircraft you use to monitor a major ground battle (the regular Russian A-50Ms are already monitoring the Syrian airspace). In southern Russia, the Aerospace forces have organized large-scale exercises involving a large number of aircraft which would be used in a war against Turkey: SU-34s. The Airborne Forces are ready. The naval task forces off the Syrian coast is being augmented. The delivery of weapons has accelerated. The bottom line is simple and obvious: the Russians are not making any threats – they are preparing for war. In fact, by now they are ready.

In addition, it is important to remember that it is quite likely that the Iranians have nuclear weapons as well.

Of course the U.S. government and the Iranian government both insist that Iran does not have nukes, but many of those in the know insist otherwise.

For instance, you may want to consider what retired U.S. Army Major General Paul Vallely and U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Dennis B. Haney are saying.  The following comes from an article that was authored by Jerome Corsi of WND…

In a joint statement, Vallely and Haney say an accumulation of available evidence shows a coalition of Russia, China and North Korea have assisted Iran since 1979 in achieving a nuclear weapon, despite sanctions, under the guise of a domestic nuclear energy program.
Vallely explained to WND that he and Haney have taken a systematic approach to evaluating each component needed to deliver a nuclear weapon, from the development and testing of a ballistic missile system, to the design of a nuclear weapons warhead, to the development of the weapons-grade uranium needed to produce a bomb.
“To come to our conclusion that Iran is a nuclear weapons power right now, we supplemented publicly available research, plus information from intelligence sources, including Iranian resistance groups such as the National Council of Resistance of IRAN, NCRI,” Vallely explained.

I happen to agree with Vallely and Haney.  I cannot prove it, but all of the intel that I have received indicates that Iran already has nukes.

Hopefully I will not be proven accurate any time soon.

It had been hoped that a cease-fire could be negotiated that would at least temporarily defuse tensions in Syria.  Unfortunately, it does not look like the shooting is going to stop, and this is going to put immense pressure on both Saudi Arabia and Turkey to do something to rescue the radical Sunni militants that are on the verge of defeat.  The Saudis, the Turks and their allies have poured enormous amounts of money and resources into this war over the past five years, and now they are faced with the choice of either accepting defeat or directly intervening in this conflict themselves.

But in order to conduct a full-fledged ground invasion, they are going to need justification for doing so.  There are some that are suggesting that we could soon see a false flag attack that would provide that justification, so that is something to watch out for.
I can’t remember a time when our planet has been so close to World War 3 potentially beginning.

And if it does break out, I believe that it is quite likely that nuclear weapons will be used.

So what do you think?

Do you agree with me?

Mideast on Fire: Jerusalem the Center of a Coming 'Perfect Storm' - Chris Mitchell CBN NEWS

Mideast on Fire: Jerusalem the Center of a Coming 'Perfect Storm'

02-09-2016

Chris Mitchell

CBN NEWS

JERUSALEM, Israel -- Since the dawn of what is known as the Arab Spring in 2011, the Middle East has gone through profound and historic changes, killing hundreds of thousands of people and forcing millions of others from their homes.

Some believe the region could be on the verge of regional war with global consequences.  

In just the past three years, the ISIS terror army conquered huge areas of Syria and Iraq, Iran struck a landmark nuclear deal with the rest of the world, Russia made its biggest military move into the Middle East in decades, and  two main rivals within Islam -- Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran -- appeared on the brink of war.

Israel's former national security advisor describes what is happening in the Middle East now as a "perfect storm."

He believes a series of events are converging that will create a situation far more dangerous than the individual events themselves. Sitting right in the center of the Middle East storm is the nation of Israel and the city of Jerusalem.

In the Blink of an Eye

Middle East expert and best-selling author Joel Rosenberg told CBN News he believes this chaos portends a gloomy picture for the year ahead.

"The state of the Middle East is a catastrophe right now. The Middle East is on fire," Rosenberg said. "2016 is going to be a very dangerous year because you are watching the complete catastrophic failure of American foreign policy under President Obama."

"You're watching the Russians and the Iranians trying to rush into the vacuum of the American retreat," he continued. "You're watching the Islamic State on offense. You're seeing Iran being rewarded for its belligerent behavior and now has two ways to nuclear weapons."

"This is a disaster in the making," Rosenberg warned.

Some are convinced that one of those disasters in the making is the nuclear deal with Iran. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., calls it one of the worst diplomatic agreements in U.S. history.

"Even if Iran follows the deal to the letter, they're going to be a nuclear threshold state in a mere 10 or 15 years, which Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu says is a blink of an eye in the life of nations," Cotton explained. 

He said it could lead to a Middle East nuclear arms race and put the region on the brink of a nuclear holocaust.

"We are at risk of entering a second nuclear age and the loss of life, not in the tens, not in the thousands, not in even the hundreds of thousands -- but in the millions," Cotton warned.

"And that loss of life could include American life because Iran is also developing a ballistic missile program and they also have shown they are willing to kill Americans," he added.

Iran vs. Saudi Arabia

Another storm cloud on the horizon is the growing battle between Sunnis and Shiites, led by Saudi Arabia and Iran. The feud began to boil when the Saudis recently executed a top Shiite cleric.

Although Middle East analyst Michael Barak doesn't expect a direct war between two of the region's giants, proxy wars around the region could instensify.

"Executing this guy is meaning like a declaration of war against Iran," Barak said. "Actually, we are already witness to the clash between the Shia and Sunni in Yemen and Iraq and Syria. It will get worse, of course."

Enter the Russian Bear

Russia's actions have generated yet another storm cloud. When it entered the Syrian civil war, it formed an alliance with Iran.

That unprecedented coalition fuels a greater danger to Israel, according to Rosenberg.

"The alliance between Moscow and Tehran is a match made in hell," he said.

"And so what you have now the two countries are now operating in Syria supposedly against the Islamic State. But it puts them dangerously close to Israel," Rosenberg cautioned.

"And the United States under President Obama is just throwing up our hands and say, 'Well, whatever, why don't you guys take care of the problem?'" he said.

"We are ceding the Middle East over to Moscow and Tehran," he warned. "This has dangerous implications for the United States, for the world, and for Israel like we have not seen in generations."

Watch here: Inside Israel

The Bizarre Explanation For Why The U.S. Has Avoided Bombing ISIS Oil Wells Posted - Michael Snyder, THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE BLOG

The Bizarre Explanation For Why The U.S. Has Avoided Bombing ISIS Oil Wells

Posted: 29 Nov 2015 Michael Snyder, THE ECONOMIC COLLAPSE BLOG

Why hasn’t the U.S. bombed the oil wells that ISIS controls into oblivion by now?  Would you believe that it is because the Obama administration “didn’t want to do environmental damage”?  Former Deputy Director of the CIA Michael Morell has publicly admitted that we have purposely avoided damaging the main source of income for ISIS, and his explanation for why we were doing this is utterly bizarre. 

But at this point what could the Obama administration say that would actually make sense?  Everyone now knows that ISIS has been making hundreds of millions of dollars selling oil in Turkey, and that this has been done with the full knowledge and complicity of the Obama White House.  This is potentially the biggest scandal of the entire Obama presidency, and yet so far the Republicans have not jumped on it.

If you or I even gave five bucks to ISIS, we would be arrested and hauled off to Guantanamo Bay.  And yet Barack Obama is allowing ISIS to funnel massive quantities of oil through our NATO ally Turkey, and he is not doing anything to stop this from happening.  It is a betrayal of the American people that is so vast that it is hard to put into words.

By now, virtually everyone on the entire planet knows exactly what is going on.  For example, Iraq’s former National Security Adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie shared the following on his Facebook page on Saturday…

“First and foremost, the Turks help the militants sell stolen Iraqi and Syrian oil for $20 a barrel, which is half the market price.”

Until Russia started bombing the living daylights out of them, an endless parade of trucks carrying ISIS oil would go back and forth over the Turkish border completely unmolested.  Following the downing of a Russian SU-24 bomber by Turkey in an area where many of these trucks travel, Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to publicly air this dirty laundry.  Just check out what he told reporters following a meeting with French President Francois Hollande last week…

Commercial-scale oil smuggling from Islamic State controlled territory into Turkey must be stopped, Putin said after meeting Hollande in Moscow.
“Vehicles, carrying oil, lined up in a chain going beyond the horizon,” said Putin, reminding the press that the scale of the issue was discussed at the G20 summit in Antalya earlier this month, where the Russian leader demonstrated reconnaissance footage taken by Russian pilots.
The views resemble a “living oil pipe” stretched from ISIS and rebel controlled areas of Syria into Turkey, the Russian President stressed. “Day and night they are going to Turkey. Trucks always go there loaded, and back from there – empty.”
“We are talking about a commercial-scale supply of oil from the occupied Syrian territories seized by terrorists. It is from these areas [that oil comes from], and not with any others. And we can see it from the air, where these vehicles are going,” Putin said.

If the Russians could see all of this, the U.S. military could see it too.  In fact, we have far better surveillance capabilities than the Russians do.

So why didn’t Obama put an end to this?

Well, as I mentioned above, former Deputy Director of the CIA Michael Morell told PBS that the Obama administration didn’t want “to create environmental damage”, and he insists that the oil wells are “infrastructure that’s going to be necessary to support the people when ISIS isn’t there anymore”.  The following comes from the Daily Caller…

Appearing on PBS’s “Charlie Rose” on Tuesday, Rose pointed out that before the terrorist attacks in Paris, the U.S. had not bombed ISIS-controlled oil tankers.
Morell explained, “Prior to Paris, there seemed to be a judgment that … look, we don’t want to destroy these oil tankers because that’s infrastructure that’s going to be necessary to support the people when ISIS isn’t there anymore, and it’s going to create environmental damage. And we didn’t go after oil wells — actually hitting oil wells that ISIS controls because we didn’t want to do environmental damage and we didn’t want to destroy that infrastructure, right.”

In case you think that this is some sort of a joke, you can watch video of Morell making these comments on PBS below…



After the horrific terror attacks in Paris, the Obama administration finally was shamed into bombing a few of these oil trucks.  But 45 minutes before the U.S. military bombed them, they dropped leaflets telling the truck drivers to “get out of your trucks now and run away from them”.



What kind of “war on terror” are we running?

Why in the world would we want to warn the terrorists to get away from their trucks?

Meanwhile, things between Russia and Turkey continue to get even more tense.  The Russians have slapped severe economic sanctions on the Turks, they have shut down all channels of communication with Turkey’s military, and they are bombing every Turkish vehicle that they can find inside Syria.  The following comes from a report that was put out by Debka…

In the last two days, Putin has been found saying one thing and doing another: Although he declared that Russia would not go to war with Turkey for “stabbing it in the back”, debkafile’s military and intelligence sources report that since Wednesday night, Nov. 25, Russian heavy bombers and warplanes have been hitting every Turkish vehicle moving or stationary inside Syria.
They bombed the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, located on the Turkey-Syria frontier, as well trailers and tractors parked in an area belonging to the Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation, on the Syrian side of the border.

As I wrote about the other day, it has been documented that our NATO ally Turkey has been “training ISIS militants, funneling weapons to them, buying their oil, and tending to their wounded in Turkish hospitals”.  Now, heavy bombing by the Russians threatens to cut off those links…

In addition to punishing the Turkish leader, Russia’s massive military operations in Syria aim to degrade the rebel groups fighting the Assad regime. Heavy bombing sorties this week on the Syrian-Turkish border are cutting off tens of thousands of rebels from their only source of fresh supplies of weapons, ammo, food and fighters, leaving them without a line of retreat and nowhere to send their wounded.

At this point, Russia and Turkey are very close to a state of war.

But as a member of NATO, the United States is obligated to help protect Turkey if a full-blown shooting war does break out.

We are closer to World War III than we have been in decades, and yet most Americans are still completely and totally oblivious to what is taking place.

Hopefully cooler heads will prevail, because things over in the Middle East threaten to spiral completely and totally out of control.

Is Barack Obama Actually Trying to Start World War III? - Michael Snyder

The Obama administration claims that it has been bombing ISIS positions in Syria for over a year. So why in the world do these targets still exist? (Reuters)

Is Barack Obama Actually Trying to Start World War III?

10/14/2015 MICHAEL SNYDER  charisma news

Why has Barack Obama airdropped 50 tons of ammunition into areas that "moderate rebels" in Syria supposedly control? This is essentially the equivalent of poking the Russians directly in the eyes.

Much of this ammunition will end up in the hands of those whom the Russians are attempting to bomb into oblivion, and so to Russia it appears that we are attempting to make their job much harder. Of course, the truth is that there aren't really any "moderate rebels" in Syria at all. Nearly all of the groups that are fighting are made up primarily of radical jihadis or hired mercenaries. Personally, I don't see anyone over there that you could call "the good guys."

At the end of the day, the U.S. supports just about anyone who wants to get rid of the Assad regime, and the Russians are working very hard to keep Bashar al-Assad in power. Just like the civil war in Ukraine, the conflict in Syria is in great danger of being transformed into a proxy war between the United States and Russia, and many fear that these conflicts could eventually be setting the stage for World War III.

The ferocity of Russian airstrikes in Syria has surprised observers all over the planet, and over the past couple of days these airstrikes have been extended to include some new areas:

Russian Air Forces have extended the range of their airstrikes on Islamic State positions in Syria to four provinces, focusing primarily on demolishing fortified installations and eliminating supply bases and the terrorists' infrastructure.

Over the last 24 hours Russian aircraft have attacked terrorist positions in the Hama, Idlib, Latakia and Raqqa provinces of Syria. In total, 64 sorties targeted 63 Islamic State installations, among them 53 fortified zones, seven arms depots, four training camps and a command post.

When I read reports like this, I am deeply troubled. The Obama administration claims that it has been bombing ISIS positions in Syria for over a year. So why in the world do these targets still exist?

Was the U.S. military incapable of finding these installations?

That doesn't seem likely.

So why weren't they destroyed long ago?

Did the Obama administration not want them destroyed for some reason?

What seems abundantly clear is that the Russians are doing what the Obama administration was either unwilling or unable to do. There is now mass panic among ISIS fighters, and thousands of them are fleeing the country:

An estimated 3,000 Islamic State fighters as well as militants from other extremist groups have fled Syria for Jordan, fearing a renewed offensive by the Syrian army in addition to Russian airstrikes, a military official has told RIA news agency.

"At least 3,000 militants from Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), al-Nusra and Jaish al-Yarmouk have fled to Jordan. They are afraid of the Syrian army having stepped up activities on all fronts and of Russian airstrikes," the RIA source said.

The mainstream media in the United States is not talking much about this, are they?

But the U.S. media is reporting on this latest airdrop of ammunition to rebel groups in Syria. For example, the following comes from CNN:

U.S. military cargo planes gave 50 tons of ammunition to rebel groups overnight in northern Syria, using an air drop of 112 pallets as the first step in the Obama administration's urgent effort to find new ways to support those groups.

Details of the air mission over Syria were confirmed by a U.S. official not authorized to speak publicly because the details have not yet been formally announced.

C-17s, accompanied by fighter escort aircraft, dropped small arms ammunition and other items (such as) hand grenades in Hasakah province in northern Syria to a coalition of rebels groups vetted by the US, known as the Syrian Arab Coalition.

If you were the Russians, how would you feel about this?

I know how I would feel.

And just as Joe Biden has previously admitted, the "moderate middle" in Syria simply does not exist. The following is an extended excerpt from a piece that was originally written by investigative journalist Nafeez Ahmed:

The first Russian airstrikes hit the rebel-held town of Talbisah north of Homs City, home to (al-Qaida's) official Syrian arm, Jabhat al-Nusra, and the (pro-al-Qaida) Ahrar al-Sham, among other local rebel groups. Both al-Nusra and the Islamic State have claimed responsibility for vehicle-borne IEDs (VBIEDs) in Homs City, which is 12 kilometers south of Talbisah.

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reports that as part of "U.S. and Turkish efforts to establish an ISIS 'free zone' in the northern Aleppo countryside," al-Nusra "withdrew from the border and reportedly reinforced positions in this rebel-held pocket north of Homs city."

In other words, the U.S. and Turkey are actively sponsoring "moderate" Syrian rebels in the form of (al-Qaida), which Washington, D.C.-based risk analysis firm Valen Globals forecasts will be "a bigger threat to global security" than IS in coming years.

Last October, Vice President Joe Biden conceded that there is "no moderate middle" among the Syrian opposition. Turkey and the Gulf powers armed and funded "anyone who would fight against Assad," including "al-Nusra," "(al-Qaida) in Iraq (AQI)," and the "extremist elements of jihadis who were coming from other parts of the world."

In other words, the CIA-backed rebels targeted by Russia are not moderates. They represent the same melting pot of (al-Qaida-affiliated) networks that spawned the Islamic State in the first place.

---

It has been well-documented that many of these so-called moderate rebel groups in Syria have fought alongside ISIS and have sold weapons to them. So this false dichotomy that Barack Obama keeps trying to sell us on is just a giant fraud. The following comes from a recent Infowars report:

In September 2014, a commander with the FSA admitted cooperating with ISIS and the al-Nusra Front.

"We are collaborating with the Islamic State and the Nusra Front by attacking the Syrian Army's gatherings in: Qalamoun," Bassel Idriss said. "Let's face it: The Nusra Front is the biggest power present right now in Qalamoun, and we as FSA would collaborate on any mission they launch as long as it coincides with our values."

In July 2014, a report in Stars and Stripes documented how the 1,000-strong Dawud Brigade, which had previously fought alongside the FSA against al-Assad, had defected in its entirety to join ISIS.

The same month factions within the FSA—including Ahl Al Athar and Ibin al-Qa'im—pledged services to the Islamic State.

Members of the Islamic State claim to cooperate with the FSA and buy weapons provided by the U.S.

"We are buying weapons from the FSA. We bought 200 anti-aircraft missiles and Koncourse anti-tank weapons," ISIS member Abu Atheer told al-Jazeera. "We have good relations with our brothers in the FSA. For us, the infidels are those who cooperate with the West to fight Islam."

U.S. anti-tank weapons are playing a critical role in the Syrian conflict. As reported by the Washington Post, U.S.-made anti-tank missiles are being used by the rebels to destroy lots of Russian-made tanks that are being used by the Syrian army:

So successful have they been in driving rebel gains in northwestern Syria that rebels call the missile the "Assad Tamer," a play on the word Assad, which means lion. And in recent days they have been used with great success to slow the Russian-backed offensive aimed at recapturing ground from the rebels.

Since Wednesday, when Syrian troops launched their first offensive backed by the might of Russia's military, dozens of videos have been posted on YouTube showing rebels firing the U.S.-made missiles at Russian-made tanks and armored vehicles belonging to the Syrian army. Appearing as twirling balls of light, they zigzag across the Syrian countryside until they find and blast their target in a ball of flame.

Like I said earlier, this is looking more and more like a proxy war between the United States and Russia.

Could that be what Obama actually wants?

Obama is poking China in the eyes lately too. CNN is reporting that U.S. warships may soon be sailing into territorial waters around the Spratly Islands. These are islands that the Chinese government claims ownership over, but the U.S. government disputes that claim, and Obama seems determined to flex his muscles in the area:

The United States (U.S.) may soon deploy war ships near China's artificial islands in the South China Sea.

It wants to send a message that it does not recognize China's territorial claims over the area.

This is according to a Financial Times report quoting a senior U.S. official who said its ships will sail within 12-nautical-mile zones that China claims as its territory around the Spratly Islands within the next two weeks.

If Obama sends warships into that area, there is a very real chance that they could get shot at. According to Newsweek, the Chinese are saying that they will not permit U.S. ships to violate those territorial waters under any circumstances:

"We will never allow any country to violate China's territorial waters and airspace in the Spratly Islands in the name of protecting freedom of navigation and overflight," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in response to a question about possible U.S. patrols. "We urge the related parties not to take any provocative actions, and genuinely take a responsible stance on regional peace and stability."

Such exchanges appear to be moving China and the U.S. toward a much feared, yet long expected, military confrontation. Just as unsettling, both sides seem confident they can prevail.

Over the past couple of years, our relations with China have really gone downhill very rapidly, and if the trading relationship between the two largest economies on the planet breaks down, that would have massive implications for the entire global economy.

In addition to everything above, the civil war in Ukraine continues to rage on. The United States funded, equipped, trained and organized the forces that violently overthrew the democratically elected government in Ukraine, and then once those thugs (which actually included some neo-Nazis) took power, the Obama administration immediately recognized them as the legitimate government of Ukraine.

The Russians were absolutely infuriated by this, and they have been providing soldiers, equipment and supplies to the rebel groups that are fighting back against this new government. Of course the Russians deny that they are doing this, but it is exceedingly obvious that they are.

The rebel groups that the Russians have been backing have been doing very well and have been steadily taking ground, and this is not how the power brokers in D.C. envisioned things playing out in Ukraine. So in a desperate attempt to shift the momentum of the conflict, a bill is going through Congress that would provide "lethal military aid" to the government in Kiev. Initially the bill would have provided 200 million dollars in lethal aid, but now it has been upped to 300 million dollars. There are some that believe that the final figure will be significantly higher.

Once this bill gets passed, it will be an extremely important event. For the Russians, it will mean crossing a red line that never should have been crossed. You see, the truth is that Ukraine is Russia's most important neighbor. Just imagine how we would feel if the Russians helped overthrow Canada's government and then start feeding weapons to the new pro-Russian government that they helped install. That is exactly how the Russians view our meddling in Ukraine.

Earlier this year, I wrote an article in which I discussed an opinion poll that showed that 81 percent of all Russians now view the United States negatively, and only 13 percent of Russians have a positive view of this nation. Not even during the height of the Cold War were the numbers that bad.

The stage is being set for World War III, but most Americans are completely and totally oblivious to all of this because they are so wrapped up in their own little worlds.

Most Americans still seem to assume that the Russians and the Chinese are our "friends" and that any type of conflict between major global powers is impossible.

Well, the truth is that conflict has already begun in Ukraine and Syria, and tensions are rising with each passing day.

It won't happen next week or next month, but we are on the road to World War III.

So what will the end result be?

Michael T. Snyder is the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog and author of The Beginning of the End.

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Ukraine's Christians Standing in the Gap for Peace - CBN News

George Thomas, CBN News Sr. Reporter
March 11, 2014


KIEV, Ukraine -- Ukraine's acting president Oleksandr Turchynov, a man of deep faith and prayer, is in the center of the storm in Ukraine, but he's not alone.

Turchynov is seeking an increase in the country's armed services as he has called on parliament to turn Ukraine's interior ministry troops into a national guard to defend the nation against aggression.

He's also called for the mobilization of military reservists and volunteers into the armed forces.

Pastor Wolodymyr Kunets couldn't be prouder of his country's new leader.

"He is a born again Christian and loves God!" Pastor Wolodymyr Kunets, with Word of Life, told CBN News.

For several years, Turchynov has attended Kunets's church in Kiev and serves as deacon.

"It is very rare, not just for Ukraine, but the entire region, for a Baptist Christian to run the country," Kunets said.

Turchynov recently told a Christian magazine that God is working in his country despite the political chaos. He's asking believers worldwide to pray.

"I'm so glad he's been given such a position, but from another perspective it is very scary because we are experiencing very difficult times," Kunets said. "We are bankrupt as a nation and there are many enemies who don't want to see Ukraine do well."

When protests started last November, Ukrainian Christians found themselves playing the role of peacemaker. Ostap Kryvdyk is a leader of the anti-government demonstrators.

"During the gun fights there was a priest who was standing there and who gave his last words and last service to dying people," Kryvdyk, with Maidan Self Defense unit, said. "And he personally told me that 20 people died in his arms."

Men like Father Theodosiy Ivashko, with the Greek Catholic Church, literally risked their lives to stand in the gap.

"It happened just a few feet from here: Hundreds of Ukrainian police stood on one side and anti-government demonstrators on the other, and we took our place in the middle calling for calm," Ivashko said.

Victoria Semenikhina traveled to Maidan, ground zero of the mass demonstrations, to pray for families that lost loved ones. She also gives thanks for men like Father Ivashko.

"I saw Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, and other Christians who were helping those for and against the government," Semenikhina, who is from Kharkav, said. "These men and women are also heroes, as much as those who gave their lives for freedom."

For months here on Maidan, the Ukrainian church, across denominations, played the role of peacemaker. Today it is preaching a message of reconciliation.

"We are preaching this message in almost every service and encouraging people to demonstrate in practical ways how we can help heal our nation," Kunets said.

Parliament member and well-known Christian Alexandr Dubovoy said his country has a small window of opportunity to get things right or else.

"People are clearly not happy, but we cannot overcome evil with evil. We have to be more forgiving," Dubovoy said.

Days after the massacre that killed more than a hundred and injured some 600 others, Larissa Litvin's church erected a tent for counseling.

"So many people have come for prayer. Entire families with children are coming and asking how they can help move our country forward after all the violence and bloodshed," she said. "This is a critical moment for us."

One that Litvin and believers here say must be covered in prayer and forgiveness.

CBN News - video

Celebrating Purim in New York 150 Years Ago - Israel's History - a Picture a Day

Israel's History - a Picture a Day (Beta)

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A Purim Treat from the Archives of the Library of Congress

 -- Celebrating Purim in New York 150 Years Ago

Posted: 10 Mar 2014

Nearly all of our vintage photographs are from the Middle East, 

especially from the Holy Land.

But in honor of the Jewish festival of Purim, joyously commemorated this week by Jews around the world, we bring our readers a print we found in the Library of Congress archives.

The Purim holiday commemorates the victory of Queen Esther and Mordechai over the evil Haman of Persia, saving the lives of the Jewish people.



The picture appeared in an American newspaper on April 1, 1865. The wood engraving is captioned, "The Hebrew Purim Ball at the Academy of Music, March 14." The picture contains a large sign, "Merry Purim," another sign listing the "Order of Dancing," and merrymakers wearing costumes and masks.

The picture was published in Frank Leslie's illustrated newspaper, printed in New York, NY. The Academy of Music was built in 1854 and was located in Manhattan at Irving Place and East 14th Street.


"Chanucka celebration in New York City" 1880

We found another engraving from Frank Leslie's newspaper, also of the Academy of Music, in the Library of Congress archives. It is dated 1880 and captioned "New York City--the Chanucka celebration by the Young Men's Hebrew Association, at the Academy of Music, December 16th--scene of the sixth tableau, 'the dedication of the temple.'"

Click on pictures to enlarge.

The Russians Are Coming! Subbotnik Converts Are Making Aliya

Posted: 09 Mar 2014

Khudera, Russian proselytes (Library of Congress, circa 1906).

Today, the Library of Congress caption reads, "Identified
by researcher as Russian converts to Judaism (Subbotniki)"
Israeli news announced this week that the aliya (immigration) of Russian "Subbotniks" will resume.

Identified and trained by the Shavei Israel organization, the Subbotniks are descendants of a group of Russian Christians who assumed a Jewish lifestyle 200 years ago. They were persecuted by the Czars, Communists and Nazis.

The following feature appeared in Israel Daily Picture two years ago.

The Library of Congress' American Colony photo collection is full of mysterious pictures, some of which have been presented on these pages. Here's one, captioned "Khudera, Russian Proselytes," with the date listed as "between 1898 and 1934." Who or what is "Khudera?"

In the 19th century, a Christian sect in Russia kept Saturday as their day of Sabbath, thus earning the name "Subbotniks." They read the Old Testament and had a loose identification with Judaism.


Yoav Dubrovin (Dubrovin Farm Museum)

In the late 1800s, two emissaries from Eretz Yisrael (one, Meir Dizengoff, would become mayor of Tel Aviv) traveled to Europe to encourage Jews to move to the land of Israel. In Kovno they encountered a successful Subbotnik farmer named Dubrovin who peppered them with questions about the Bible and about farming and weather conditions in the Galilee. The respected sage of Kovno, Rabbi Yitzhak Elchanan Spektor, had befriended Dubrovin and after several years converted Dubrovin, now named Yoav, and his family to Judaism.

In 1903, Dubrovin moved to the land of Israel with his family of 13. In 1909, he established a very successful farm in Yesod HaMa'aleh in the upper Galilee.

So who are the "Russian Proselytes of Khudera?"

According to Yoav Dubrovin's biography, the family lived in Hadera before purchasing their farm in Yesod HaMa'aleh. Elsewhere in the Library of Congress collection there is reference to Jewish towns "Jewish coastal colonies: Herzlia, Ranana, Nathania, Khudeira. Herzlia" -- apparently what we call and spell as "Hadera."

The mystery photo is likely a Dubrovin family portrait (minus Yoav who was in his 70s at this time) and was probably taken around 1906. Yoav Dubrovin lived to the age of 104.

Yoav Dubrovin's son donated the farm to the Jewish National Fund in 1968, and today the farm house has been restored and is the centerpiece of the Dubrovin Farm Museum.

Get the Gold! - Now Think On This (Steve Martin)

“Get the Gold!”

“Don’t hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or—worse!—stolen by burglars. Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it’s safe from moth and rust and burglars. It’s obvious, isn’t it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being.” (Matt. 6:19-21, The Message)

I love the Olympics! Be it the winter or summer games, I enjoy watching all the nations’ athletes walk in for the opening ceremonies, all dressed in their colorful and smartly dressed uniforms (as my Brit friends would say) and cultural garments, waving their flags and their hands to the crowd, as they proudly represent their countries. It is a great sight of unity among the people, and the hosting country always puts on a fascinating show. Russians, Chinese, Americans, Europeans, Asians and more have all hosted the grand celebration of completion among athletes. I commend them for it.

It amazes me each time a new country is represented that I have never even heard of, or a country is in the games for the first time. Especially the lone athlete carrying his flag by him or herself. I hope they do well and make new friends. They certainly have worked hard to get there too.

Training and coming together through teamwork, in preparation for the honor of their country and their sport, has been the foundation built on for the competition. It certainly brings out the best. The goal of standing on the podium after their event is completed, holding onto the precious metal of gold, silver or bronze is a grand sight, as their home flag is lifted and their national anthem is played.

As a former athlete myself, in middle and high school, I understand a measure of the effort it certainly takes for these competing. To spend hours, days, months and even years preparing; and then to give it all you have at that specific moment in time, when you have a few minutes to excel in an individual event, or as your teams goes through the bracket toward the championship game, is quite the effort. May they all do well, and accomplish their heart’s desire.

I am chasing gold too. Mine isn’t made up of the earthly metal, but it is being stored up as an eternal reward, to fit on my head as a crown. The King Himself, Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus Christ) will be giving them out. And then we will participate in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb ceremony too. That will indeed be a "crowning moment" for those who have received His salvation through His shed blood. It will be a joyous occasion, as much perseverance and running the race He has given us while in our human body has been accomplished. I look forward to sharing that eternal time with those I have walked with, and those who I will meet for the first time.

While our time remains here on this planet, our hearts are to be set on stockpiling treasure in heaven, as The Message Bible puts it in terms we certainly understand. Laying up those crowns prepared for those who have followed in His plans and purposes will be the award, along with the eternal realm of heaven itself. This is not just a dream or fairy tale, but it is reality. Our labors here on earth are to be for eternal, not just temporal, achievements. My heart and yours must be set on that purpose.

Enjoy the Olympics as you can. Celebrate with the victors as they raise their hands and winning metals in triumph, knowing that your reward, being stored up in heaven, is a treasure worth living for in this time we have been given. This too is a shadow of things yet to come, for those who know the Lord Jesus.

Now think on this,

Steve Martin

Love For His People

Founder

Love For His People, Inc. is a charitable, not-for-profit USA humanitarian organization started in 2010 to share the love of the Father in the nations.

If these letters minister to you, please consider sending a charitable gift of $5-$25 today, and maybe each month, to help us bless known families in Israel, whom we consistently help through our humanitarian ministry. Your tax deductible contributions receive a receipt for each donation. Fed. ID #27-1633858.

Go here for safe ONLINE GIFT GIVING THROUGH  OUR WEBSITE using major credit cards: Love For His People If you don't have a PayPal account you can also use your credit card or bank account (where available). 

Contribution checks can be sent to: 

Love For His People, Inc.  P.O. Box414   Pineville, NC 28134

Todah rabah! (Hebrew – Thank you very much.)

Please share this Ahava Love Letter/Now Think On This with your friends.