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Events
Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Liberman (left)
Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd wrapped up a visit to the Middle East by telling Israel it should allow UN inspectors into its nuclear facilities.
His comments on Israel's nuclear program gave Israeli officials an unpleasant surprise, as they were published online during a gala dinner in Jerusalem marking the friendship between Australia and Israel.
In an interview with the Australian newspaper, Mr Rudd not only called on Israel to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), but said it should open all its nuclear facilities to UN inspectors.
Australia backs Palestinian refugees and Palestinian state
Ramallah - December 15: AUSTRALIA will give $18 million over three years to improve health, education
The money will go to the UN's Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees, which helps people living in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
Mr Rudd made the announcement in Ramallah, the administrative centre of the Palestinian National Authority, in the West Bank. It's Australia's first multi-year commitment to the UN agency.
``Australia is determined to help the Palestinian Authority lay strong foundations for a future Palestinian state and build its infrastructure and economy,'' Mr Rudd said in a statement.
The aid announcement came a day after Mr Rudd
Queensland, Australia:
Australia flood rescue and relief efforts are under way to
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 19: Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague and Queensland Premier Anna Bligh assist in cooking some sausages at a barbecue for flood victims and volunteers in the West End on January 19, 2011 in Brisbane, Australia. Kevin Rudd's hometown of West End, a suburb of Brisbane, was flooded.
Australia says economic cost of floods to top other disasters
CANBERRA (Reuters) – Jan. 17: Floods devastating huge areas of Australia's eastern seaboard, including the nation's third-largest city, look set to be the costliest natural disaster ever in a country known for climatic extremes, Treasurer Wayne Swan said on Monday.
The floods in the major resource state of Queensland, which have swept through an area the size of South Africa, and overnight in 46 towns in Victoria state would not delay a promised return to surplus in 2012-13, Swan said.
The estimated cost of rebuilding the worst hit Queensland state alone stood at A$10 billion ($9.8 billion), The Australian newspaper said on Monday, and the damage bill was rising fast as record flooding moved south to northern and western Victoria.
"It looks like this is possibly going to be, in economic terms, the
"This is very big. It's not just something which is going to occupy our time for the next few months. It will be a question of years as we go through the rebuilding."
Australian flood crisis deepens
January 19: British Foreign Secretary William Hague toured Brisbane to inspect damage from floods that swamped 30,000 homes last week -- the peak of an unprecedented disaster which hit an area larger than France and Germany combined.
"People in Britain were watching this hour by hour, minute by minute, hoping and praying for you," said Hague at a barbecue with flood victims in the east coast city, Australia's third-largest.
"It's hard to imagine the volume of water that came up from the peaceful-looking river over there."
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The Government of Japan deplores the decisions of the Government of Israel to give permission for the construction of 1,600 housing units in East Jerusalem in addition to 112 units in West Bank just after the Israeli and Palestinian leadership’s acceptance of the start of indirect talks.
The Government of Japan does not recognize any act that prejudges the final status of Jerusalem and the territories in the pre-1967 borders
Japan condemns the demolishing of a part of the Shepherd’s Hotel in East Jerusalem with a view to constructing new housing units for Jewish people.
Japan does not recognize any unilateral measures that prejudge the final resolution on pre-1967 borders, nor does Japan recognize the annexation of East Jerusalem by Israel.
In this regard, Japan urges Israel to refrain from any unilateral act that could change the existing conditions of East Jerusalem.
Ambassador Yutaka Iimura, Special Envoy of the Government of Japan for the Middle East, who was in Israel, has already informed Israeli Government officials of Japanese views.
Japan once again strongly encourages both the Israel and the Palestinian sides to focus on the goal of a two-state solution, which is important not only for the Middle East but also for the international community as a whole; to act in such a way that mutual trust will be developed; and to continue efforts for peace tenaciously.
Japan welcomes the series of economic measures announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Quartet Representative Tony Blair on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Japan hopes that based on this announcement, measures will be fully and promptly implemented for economic growth as well as for the improvement of the social and living conditions in the Palestinian territories, particularly the Gaza Strip.
Japan will pay close attention to any developments surrounding this matter.
Japan also hopes that these measures will enhance the mutual trust between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, although they are not a substitute for negotiations for Middle East peace.
Japan, for its part, calls upon both parties to exert further efforts for the resumption of peace negotiations.
The Government of Japan is concerned about the Jerusalem municipal planning committee’s approval of a plan to build housing units for Jewish people in the Sheih Jarrah of East Jerusalem. Such act goes against the efforts by the international community to resume the negotiations.
The Government of Japan does not recognize any act that prejudges the final status of the territories in the pre-1967 borders nor Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem.
Japan urges Israel to refrain from any unilateral act that
March 11, 2011:
The powerful earthquake that unleashed a devastating tsunami Friday appears to have moved the main island of Japan by 8 feet (2.4 meters) and shifted the Earth on its axis.
"At this point, we know that one GPS station moved (8 feet), and we have seen a map from GSI (Geospatial Information Authority) in Japan showing the pattern of shift over a large area is consistent with about that much shift of the land mass," said Kenneth Hudnut, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Tsunami warning center raises magnitude of Japan quake to 9.1,
The Japan earthquake was the fourth most powerful ever recorded with a magnitude of 9.1, twice more powerful than the initial estimate of 8.9, Gerard Fryer, geophysicist of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, said this morning.
Japanese Prime Minister says country
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said on Sunday he was confident that the nation could overcome the crisis caused by a massive earthquake and tsunami disaster, which he termed the biggest crisis Japan has faced since the end of World War Two.
Workers scramble to cool reactors; official says 2nd blast possible
Workers continued efforts to cool down fuel rods inside two nuclear reactors Sunday as a Japanese government official warned that a second explosion could occur at the plant.
The aftermath of the devastating earthquake -- from the scores of casualties to the nuclear concerns at the plant in Fukushima prefecture -- marks the "toughest and most difficult crisis for Japan" since the end of World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Sunday.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said an explosion could take place in the building housing the No. 3 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in northeastern Japan.
About 24 percent of electricity in Japan is produced by 55 nuclear power units in 17 plants and some were in trouble after the quake.
Widespread destruction from Japan earthquake, tsunamis
More than 215,000 people were living in 1,350 temporary shelters in five prefectures, or states, the national police agency said. Since the quake, more than 1 million households have not had water, mostly concentrated in northeast. Some 4 million buildings were without power.
The magnitude 8.9 offshore quake was followed by at least 19 aftershocks, most of them of more than magnitude 6.0. Dozens of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of miles from the epicenter.
USGS:
Earthquake Causes Major Damage in Northern Japan:
Houses and others burn in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, March 11, 2011 after Japan was struck by a strong earthquake off its northeastern coast earlier in the day. (Kyodo News/AP Photo)
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The Government of Japan deplores the decisions of the Government of Israel to give permission for the construction of 1,600 housing units in East Jerusalem in addition to 112 units in West Bank just after the Israeli and Palestinian leadership’s acceptance of the start of indirect talks.
The Government of Japan does not recognize any act that prejudges the final status of Jerusalem and the territories in the pre-1967 borders
Japan condemns the demolishing of a part of the Shepherd’s Hotel in East Jerusalem with a view to constructing new housing units for Jewish people.
Japan does not recognize any unilateral measures that prejudge the final resolution on pre-1967 borders, nor does Japan recognize the annexation of East Jerusalem by Israel.
In this regard, Japan urges Israel to refrain from any unilateral act that could change the existing conditions of East Jerusalem.
Ambassador Yutaka Iimura, Special Envoy of the Government of Japan for the Middle East, who was in Israel, has already informed Israeli Government officials of Japanese views.
Japan once again strongly encourages both the Israel and the Palestinian sides to focus on the goal of a two-state solution, which is important not only for the Middle East but also for the international community as a whole; to act in such a way that mutual trust will be developed; and to continue efforts for peace tenaciously.
Japan welcomes the series of economic measures announced by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Quartet Representative Tony Blair on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Japan hopes that based on this announcement, measures will be fully and promptly implemented for economic growth as well as for the improvement of the social and living conditions in the Palestinian territories, particularly the Gaza Strip.
Japan will pay close attention to any developments surrounding this matter.
Japan also hopes that these measures will enhance the mutual trust between the Israeli and Palestinian sides, although they are not a substitute for negotiations for Middle East peace.
Japan, for its part, calls upon both parties to exert further efforts for the resumption of peace negotiations.
The Government of Japan is concerned about the Jerusalem municipal planning committee’s approval of a plan to build housing units for Jewish people in the Sheih Jarrah of East Jerusalem. Such act goes against the efforts by the international community to resume the negotiations.
The Government of Japan does not recognize any act that prejudges the final status of the territories in the pre-1967 borders nor Israel’s annexation of East Jerusalem.
Japan urges Israel to refrain from any unilateral act that
March 11, 2011:
The powerful earthquake that unleashed a devastating tsunami Friday appears to have moved the main island of Japan by 8 feet (2.4 meters) and shifted the Earth on its axis.
"At this point, we know that one GPS station moved (8 feet), and we have seen a map from GSI (Geospatial Information Authority) in Japan showing the pattern of shift over a large area is consistent with about that much shift of the land mass," said Kenneth Hudnut, a geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
Tsunami warning center raises magnitude of Japan quake to 9.1,
The Japan earthquake was the fourth most powerful ever recorded with a magnitude of 9.1, twice more powerful than the initial estimate of 8.9, Gerard Fryer, geophysicist of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, said this morning.
Japanese Prime Minister says country
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said on Sunday he was confident that the nation could overcome the crisis caused by a massive earthquake and tsunami disaster, which he termed the biggest crisis Japan has faced since the end of World War Two.
Workers scramble to cool reactors; official says 2nd blast possible
Workers continued efforts to cool down fuel rods inside two nuclear reactors Sunday as a Japanese government official warned that a second explosion could occur at the plant.
The aftermath of the devastating earthquake -- from the scores of casualties to the nuclear concerns at the plant in Fukushima prefecture -- marks the "toughest and most difficult crisis for Japan" since the end of World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan said Sunday.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said an explosion could take place in the building housing the No. 3 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in northeastern Japan.
About 24 percent of electricity in Japan is produced by 55 nuclear power units in 17 plants and some were in trouble after the quake.
Japan Adds $86 Billion to Stabilize Markets After Quake
The Bank of Japan began pouring cash into the banking system after the nation’s most powerful earthquake on record, while later today it may keep its asset- purchase plans unchanged as officials gauge the longer-term effect on the world’s third-largest economy.
Governor Masaaki Shirakawa told reporters late yesterday he’s ready to unleash “massive” liquidity, and the BOJ said today it will pump 7 trillion yen ($86 billion) to maintain financial stability. Economists said officials will likely decide to keep longer-term credit programs at a total of 35 trillion yen. The bank’s main interest rate has already been cut to near zero as policy makers last year sought to end the nation’s deflation.
USGS:
Japan earthquake:
The magnitude 8.9 offshore quake was followed by at least 19 aftershocks, most of them of more than magnitude 6.0. Dozens of cities and villages along a 1,300-mile stretch of coastline were shaken by violent tremors that reached as far away as Tokyo, hundreds of miles from the epicenter.
Earthquake Causes Major Damage in Northern Japan:
Houses and others burn in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture, March 11, 2011 after Japan was struck by a strong earthquake off its northeastern coast earlier in the day. (Kyodo News/AP Photo)
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Explosions and gunfire were heard in the Libyan capital of Tripoli Sunday morning as the U.S. and its allies continued military strikes against targets of Libyan leader Muammar al-Qaddafi, who on Libyan state radio said the raids were "acts of terrorism".
Qaddafi added that all of the country's people were now carrying weapons to defend the nation.
"We will not leave our land and we will liberate it," he said.
He said he has opened up the weapons depots to Libyans, and said everyone is armed with "automatic weapons, mortars, bombs."
Gadhafi warns of 'long-drawn war' after airstrikes by U.S., allies
Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi promised "a long-drawn war" Sunday after an international coalition hammered the nation's air defense as part of an operation to enforce a no-fly zone.
Gadhafi said the strikes were a confrontation between the Libyan people and "the new Nazis."
"You have proven to the world that you are not civilized, that you are terrorists -- animals attacking a safe nation that did nothing against you," Gadhafi
said in a televised speech.
Report: Libya to give weapons to one million people
Libya's government has begun distributing arms to more than one million people and will complete the operation within hours, the state news agency reported on Sunday.
Jana news agency quoted sources in Libya's defense ministry as saying they "expected the operation to end in the next hours to arm more than a million men and women."
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Purim Wars: 1991, 2003 and 2011
February 13:
"Fleets of boats should take Palestinians … and wait by the Palestinian shores until the problem is resolved," Gaddafi was shown saying on state television. "This is a time of popular revolutions."
"We need to create a problem for the world. This is not a declaration of war. This is a call for peace," he said in a speech given to mark the birthday of the Prophet Mohammed, a holy day in the Islamic calendar.
"The white colour has decided to get rid of the green colour," Gaddafi said. "These countries should be united against the white colour because all of these white countries are the enemies of Islam."
He also said: "All Arab states which have relations with Israel are cowardly regimes."
Timeline from the Los Angeles Times
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Purim conflicts with
Desert Storm in Iraq ended February 28, 1991
Iraqi Freedom in Iraq began March 19, 2003
Odyssey Dawn in Libya began March 19, 2011
Purim Evening 'Super Moon' Over Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC
ICONIC ERUPTION: A huge filament of magnetism and hot plasma blasted off the sun's southwestern limb on March 19th around 1200 UT. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory recorded the action. Space Weather (click here)
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The United States plans a new push to promote comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Tuesday, suggesting a stronger U.S. hand in trying to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley speaks at a press conference
Reporting from Atlanta and Washington— One of the largest convulsions of tornado activity in U.S. history left a swath of death and debris from Oklahoma to North Carolina and Virginia, killing at least 44 people, disrupting power service for thousands, and leaving many others injured or huddled in shelters.
The three-day outbreak from Thursday to Saturday included 241 tornadoes reported over 14 states, according to AccuWeather.com, noting that the spate of twisters is likely to rank among the most active ever recorded.
Meteorologists warned that another storm system was likely to plague the central and southern plains early this week and move east, possibly striking some of the same areas.
Netanyahu:
The pro-democracy uprisings sweeping through the Arab world are in danger of being manipulated by Iran's Islamic Republic, Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu warned in an interview with AFP.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with AFP at the weekend, the Israeli premier said the unprecedented protests sweeping through the Middle East and North Africa could go one of two ways.
"What we hope to see is the European Spring of 1989," he said, referring to the year which marked a turning point for the wave of revolutions sweeping
through the Eastern Bloc which led to the break-up of the Soviet Union two years later.
Abbas:
Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said Friday that Iran has ordered the Islamist movement Hamas not to reconcile with its long-time foe and his secular party, Fatah.
"Until now Hamas refuses to say yes or no to the initiative" to put an end to divisions, form a new government and prepare for elections.
"Now the ball is in their court," Abbas said.
Turkey, Iran Open new border gate,
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (L) and his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Salehi, attended a ceremony for the opening of a new border gate between Turkey and Iran.
Iranian and Turkish officials opened a new border crossing over the weekend, as the Turkish side highlighted the presence of a friendship for eternity between the peoples of the two countries.
“Our prime minister has set a target of $30 billion” in annual trade with Iran, he also said. “That is why we are opening this border crossing. We are declaring to the world that Turkey and Iran will remain friends for eternity. The Peoples of Van and Hoy will live as neighbors and siblings for eternity, he added. “Let our gate be the door that opens hearts and minds.”
Saudi threatens to recall envoys from Iran
Saudi Arabia has threatened to recall its diplomats from Iran unless the Islamic republic improves their protection, the kingdom's deputy foreign minister told reporters on Sunday.
"I hope we won't be obliged to withdraw our diplomatic mission from Tehran if Iran fails to take the necessary measures to protect it," Prince Turki bin Mohammed told reporters.
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Obama addresses AIPAC, calls
In a speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Sunday, President Obama said that the US "believes that negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders with Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with Palestine... The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states..."
Obama also stated he was against a unilateral approach to creating a Palestinian state via the UN.
Obama Offers Deepest Condolences for Missouri
In the wake of yet more terrible storms, this time in the Midwest, the President called Missouri Governor Jay Nixon to personally extend his condolences and to tell all of the families of Joplin affected by the severe tornadoes that they are in his thoughts and prayers.
Plume released from Icelandic volcano forces
A dense ash cloud from an Icelandic volcano blew toward Scotland on Monday, causing airlines to cancel flights, forcing President Barack Obama to shorten a visit to Ireland, and raising fears of a repeat of last year's huge travel disruptions in Europe that stranded millions of passengers.
Nearly 50 tornado reports in central US on Sunday
The fourth major outbreak of the season continued on Sunday as the total number of tornado
National Weather Service Director Jack Hayes said the storm was given a preliminary label as an EF4 — the second-highest rating given to twisters. The rating is assigned to storms based on the damage they cause. Hayes said the storm had winds of 190 to 198 mph. At times, it was three-quarters of a mile wide.
Netanyahu offers condolences for tornadoes in speech at AIPAC
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opened his AIPAC speech on May 23, 2011, by offering condolences on the recent tornadoes and flooding in America.
Netanyahu stated, "My friends, before I talk about things about Israel, I want to say something about the scenes on television that I saw today and you have been seeing as well. When tragedy strikes America, Israel... Israel feels an immediate identification; and tragegy has struck America. In recent days, floods and tornadoes have claimed the lives of hundreds of Americans, including today in Joplin, Missouri. All I can say is, America, we're with you! On this day, on every day!"
Netanyahu under U.S. pressure:
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Tuesday for the first time acknowledged that some settlements would end up beyond Israel’s borders in any peace deal and hinted at a softening of his line on Jerusalem, during a landmark address to the US Congress.
Though he declared that “Jerusalem must remain the united capital of Israel,” he added that “I believe with creativity and goodwill a solution can be found.”
"Thunderstorms are exploding across western Oklahoma!"
Severe thunderstorms are exploding across Oklahoma and Kansas this evening. A Particularly Dangerous Situation tornado watch has been issued for southern Kansas and northern Texas.
In western and southern Kansas, several supercell thunderstorms have developed with a significant threat for tornadoes, damaging winds and hail. Severe storms are currently approaching Wichita.
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