Countdown to Armageddon Newsletter Issue Number 6 -- (c) October 2000, The Family http://armageddon.countdown.org -- mailto:questions@countdown.org With the events taking place in the mideast, here's an article summarizing the peace process and what brought things to this point. The Bible talks a lot about this area and Jerusalem in particular playing a big role in the Endtime. In fact it indicates that the Jewish temple will be rebuilt in the last days. For those of you who are interested in the details here's a short run down: The Bible says that half way through his reign the Antichrist (see http://countdown.org/armageddon/antichrist.htm) will "cause the ritual sacrifices to cease" in Jerusalem. The Jewish sacrifice hasn't occurred since about 70 AD when their previous temple was destroyed. If the Antichrist is to stop the sacrifice, it'll have to start for which there would have to be a temple. How will that take place? What kind of outrage will it spark? We don't know as yet, but it looks like we're soon to find out. Stay tuned. Further below you'll find the usual summary of other articles added to the Countdown to Armageddon site. ________________________________________________________________ CAMP DAVID 2000: A SUMARY OF THE MIDEAST CRISIS ________________________________________________________________ The Camp David summit of July 2000 was the latest in a long line of attempts by Israelis and Palestinians to attain peace in the Middle East. Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion unilaterally declared Israel a nation on May 14, 1948, following the UN partition of Palestine into Arab and Jewish states. The response by Palestine's neighbors was negative. The armies of Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq invaded Israel with the intent of destroying it. By July 1949 Israel had repulsed the invasion, joined the United Nations and been recognized by more than 50 governments around the world. In a series of armistices with Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon in 1949, Israel established borders similar to those of Palestine during the British Mandate. Jordan retained the West Bank of the Jordan River, and Jerusalem was divided under Israeli and Jordanian rule. Subsequent wars were launched by both sides over the next 35 years--in 1973 by Israel's Arab neighbors and by Israel in 1956 and in 1982's invasion of Lebanon. The most dramatic of all was the Six-Day War, June 5–10, 1967. Responding to what it perceived as imminent attack by Egypt, Syria and Jordan, Israel launched a preemptive strike against all three. Israel won stunning victories on all fronts, taking the Sinai and Gaza from Egypt, the Golan Heights from Syria, and the West Bank from Jordan (including the Old City of Jerusalem). In 1979, following negotiations at Camp David between Anwar Sadat of Egypt, Menachem Begin of Israel and President Jimmy Carter, Israel returned the Sinai to Egypt in a peace treaty that formally ended the 30-year state of war between the two countries. Egypt, in return, recognized Israel's right to exist. In 1993, during negotiations in Oslo, Israel and the Palestinians agreed to mutual recognition and limited self-rule for Palestinians in Jericho and Gaza. They also agreed to conclude a permanent treaty that would resolve the status of Gaza and the West Bank. In 1994, Israel and Jordan signed a peace treaty in which Jordan won control of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem. Jordan's King Hussein had previously renounced claims to the West Bank in favor of the Palestinians. In 1998, the Wye Accord was negotiated between Netanyahu and Arafat, with Clinton and an ailing King Hussein of Jordan acting as mediators. In those talks, the Palestinians agreed to remove language from their founding charter that called for the dismantling of the Jewish state, and Israelis agreed to cede an additional 13 percent of the West Bank. Between July 11 and 24 of this year, Barak and Arafat met at Camp David under the auspices of President Clinton. They were unable to bridge the gaps and reach agreement on the thorniest issues: the status of Jerusalem, the future of Jewish settlements in Israeli- occupied territory, and the return of more than 3 million Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan and other countries. The talks adjourned without making any real progress. In remarks since the talks, Clinton and Barak have represented Arafat as the spoiler who wrecked the possibility of a peace agreement by rejecting U.S. proposals for the future of Jerusalem. Palestinian anger at this was compounded when Clinton, seeking to bolster Barak's political standing in Israel, gave an interview to Israeli television saying that Israel's "flexible" stance at Camp David had pushed him toward a decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Clinton also chided Arafat for saying that the Palestinians would go ahead with a formal declaration of Palestinian statehood after Sept. 13. In reply, Hanan Ashrawi, who frequently acts as a spokesman for the Palestinian cause, said that Clinton's remarks exposed the "underlying American bias" in the peace process, and added, "It sounds like blatant political blackmail, all in the interest of Barak." At another point, she said that the television interview amounted to "pandering to Barak and Clinton's domestic needs." The Palestinian media in recent months have frequently alleged that Clinton has tilted increasingly toward the Israelis in an attempt to help Hillary Rodham Clinton in her Senate election campaign in New York. Since the failure of Camp David, Arafat has often repeated his intention to unilaterally declare an independent Palestinian state on September 13. Israeli officials have warned that they would respond by annexing parts of the West Bank, blocking entry of Palestinian workers and stopping trade, effectively choking the Palestinian economy. Palestinians have threatened that if Israel does so, some of the 180,000 Jewish settlers scattered throughout the region might find themselves held as hostages. Editor: Both sides have engaged in saber-rattling while at the same time searching for a diplomatic solution to the crisis. Following are some viewpoints on the issues at stake gleaned from various international papers: ON JERUSALEM: At the heart of Jerusalem are the ruins of the Jewish Temple, destroyed by the Romans in A.D. 70. Ultra-Orthodox Israelis believe the area beyond the wall is the center of the cosmos. According to Jewish tradition, it was there that God collected the dust to make Adam, where Cain killed Abel, where Abraham agreed to sacrifice Isaac. The presence of God is so strong that according to Jewish halacha (law), human beings are too impure to tread atop the Temple Mount-- until, that is, the End of Days and the coming of the Messiah. It is also a Muslim holy site. For 13 centuries, the ruins of the Temple Mount have been home to the spectacular Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque. Muslims call this area the "Noble Sanctuary," and regard it as the third holiest place in the world after Mecca and Medina. The Prophet Muhammad is said to have flown on a winged steed to this spot, from where he ascended to heaven. Prime Minister Ehud Barak has promised his people that Jerusalem will remain the "eternal and undivided" capital of Israel. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has told Clinton that he fears assassination if he turns his back on the sacred city the Arabs call Al-Quds; he demands that the capital of the Palestinian state be located there, too. The issue caused the breakdown of the Camp David talks. Many Israelis say Jerusalem is so dear to them that no part of it can ever be relinquished, yet far more of them visited Turkey last year than ventured into Palestinian neighborhoods like Shufat and Isawiya. (For those keeping count, Jewish rule over Jerusalem covers some 600 of the past 3,000 years.)--By Daniel Klaidman and Jeffrey Bartholet, Newsweek. *** The Israeli government insists that Jerusalem is the "eternal and undivided capital" of the Jewish state. But a moment's reflection is enough to remind us that this statement embodies a claim without substance, whether in terms of international law or as a simple matter of fact. The Israelis occupied East Jerusalem, with its wholly Arab population, by force of arms in 1967, and have remained there as an occupying power ever since. Acting unilaterally and in defiance of a series of UN resolutions, the Israeli government has annexed the Arab sector and established there a number of racially exclusive settlements--all of this against the strongly expressed wishes of the indigenous population. It would be difficult to imagine a more openly illegal position than that of the Israeli government in Jerusalem. Everything about it is contrary to international law. Soon after the occupation began, the UN Security Council adopted the famous Resolution 242, whose opening clause confirmed the basic principle that "the acquisition of territory by war is inadmissible." As regards Jerusalem, the Security Council ruled unanimously (Resolution 267) that any attempt by the Israeli government to alter the status of Jerusalem would be invalid. In other words, the prolonged occupation of East Jerusalem and its annexation, together with all the changes the Israelis imposed on the city, including especially the settlements they built and the colonies of Jewish settlers they planted on Arab land--all these constitute defiance of specific rulings by the body that expresses at the highest level the will of the international community. Why do the Palestinians believe they have the right to exercise sovereignty over East Jerusalem? If you were to ask those of them who live there, they would answer "because it is our home." But besides this natural and easily understood feeling, the Palestinians have on their side two supporting arguments. First, they ask only for what is theirs. They make no claim on territory inhabited by others--even though what is now Jewish West Jerusalem consists largely of property seized in 1948 from its Arab owners. Second, they have the backing of international law, as expressed in those UN resolutions and in the various conventions designed to govern relations between peoples and to protect the rights of the weak against the powerful.--Michael Adams, The Guardian. *** Jerusalem is a mediator's nightmare. Sovereignty is the problem. Sovereignty brings ultimate ownership, and both sides want it. One proposal is to internationalize the Old City--something originally proposed by the 1947 UN partition plan [and often repeated by Pope John Paul II]. Another proposal, from the Roman Catholic Patriarch, Michel Sabbah, is to hand over sovereignty to God. Although this initially caused some amusement, it has the advantage that religious elements on both sides find it difficult to reject, while secular elements see it as a possible way to sidestep the rival political claims. Jordan has not publicly endorsed the idea but some senior officials are enthusiastic about its possibilities. The Egyptians are working with the Palestinians on a draft proposal which is said to include a concept called "spiritual sovereignty." So far, nobody is sure how this would operate in practice, or who would represent God on earth. But a Jordanian official was confident that a way could be found if people wanted to make it work.--Brian Whitaker, The Guardian. ON PALESTINIAN REFUGEES: The recognition of the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland is enshrined in UN resolution 194, which was approved by the UN General Assembly--including the sponsor of the Camp David talks, the U.S. Barak, the Israeli people and the entire Jewish people should understand why the recognition of this right is essential for Palestinians. After 2000 years of the Diaspora, the founders of the state of Israel felt it necessary to make a law legislating the right of every Jew to "return to Eretz Israel." This Israeli law of return allows any person in the world with a Jewish mother to pack up and fly to Tel Aviv and become a citizen of Israel. Isn't it equally important for Palestinians who were evicted from their homes 50 years ago to be able to exercise this undeniably basic human right? Fifty-two years ago, when the state of Israel was created on the basis of a UN resolution, an entire people were made refugees. Four hundred Palestinian villages within the borders of today's Israel were demolished and wiped from the map. Survivors of this catastrophe are dispersed in refugee camps in Palestine, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. Others can be found scattered in the four corners of the world.--By Daoud Kuttab, The Age Melbourne. U.S. BIAS: When it comes to critiquing Washington's policy in the Middle East, most of the United States press hum the Washington tune--as long as it is whistled by Israel. Why is this so? Why is Washington widely regarded by Middle Easterners and Europeans as heavily biased in support of Israel? There are two reasons. First and foremost is the power--financial and political--of the Israel lobby. Read what former President Jimmy Carter had to say: "President Sadat repeatedly asks me to exercise major pressure on Israel, but I simply cannot do it because it would be a personal political suicide for me." Any writer or official who criticizes Israel harshly may be damned an "anti-Semite," a poisonous charge that destroys careers. Far easier to go along, particularly when the wide American public has lost interest in the never-ending problem. The second reason for the heavy Israel bias is that history doesn't figure. On the question of Jerusalem, does it matter that U.S. policy was once quite different? After Israel seized East Jerusalem in 1967, America's UN ambassador, Arthur Goldberg, declared it occupied territory. Washington then stated occupied lands should be returned in exchange for peace. Israeli settlements in the occupied areas were described by Washington as "obstacles to peace and illegal under international law." Virtually every country has refused to move its embassy to Jerusalem, consistent with international law and the protection of lives and property in the region. Mr. Clinton may do so.[ED: Said he would do so] Would Jewish votes obtained in New York for Hillary outweigh the damage to American interests?--Henry Precht, The Christian Science Monitor. (Henry Precht, a retired Foreign Service officer, specialized in Egyptian, Iranian, and Arab-Israel affairs during his career, 1962–87.) *** Israel vows it will never give back the Old City of Jerusalem, which it conquered in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. Palestinians, the 1.2 billion-strong Muslim world, the Vatican, Europe, and the UN insist the Old City return to Muslim-Christian rule as capital of Palestine. Israel refuses any right of return to Palestinian refugees expelled from their homes in 1948 and 1967, though it welcomed one million Russians and still keeps its doors open for new immigrants. Israel also says it will never force 180,000 Jewish settlers on the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan to leave. End of story? Not necessarily. The president of the United States has the power to break this impasse. In 1956, Israel, in collusion with France and Britain, invaded Egypt and seized Sinai. When Israel refused to withdraw at war's end, President Dwight Eisenhower ordered Israel to vacate Sinai or face the cut-off of all U.S. aid and an end to the tax-deductible status of contributions to Israel. Israel vacated Sinai. Israel has received $100 billion in aid from the U.S. since 1948. Every year, U.S. taxpayers give Israel $5 billion in open and hidden aid. Egypt is paid $2 billion annually not to confront Israel. Israel's military is dependent on U.S. equipment and technology. Only the oft-used U.S. veto prevents Israel from facing UN sanctions over its refusal to withdraw from the West Bank and the Old City. But there will be no real pressure on Israel to compromise. Every senior position in the State Department and National Security Council responsible for Mideast policy has been filled with strong American supporters of Israel who are virtually part of Israel's political establishment. The three senior American diplomats at Camp David II have all been involved with the U.S. Israel lobby; two were Israeli residents. The powerful Israel lobby has warned Congress, "no pressure on Israel." Politicians recall that President George Bush's attempts to press Israel into halting settlements brought charges of "anti-Semitism" that contributed to his failure to get re-elected and to Clinton's upset victory.--Eric Margolis. On Israeli and U.S. pressure on the Palestinians to compromise: Israel took control of West Jerusalem in 1948, expelling approximately 25,000 Palestinians from that part of the city. After seizing the remainder of the city in 1967, Israel dramatically expanded its municipal boundaries into occupied East Jerusalem, effectively annexing vast areas of what had been Palestinian land. Now, as a "compromise," Israel offers Palestinian residents of Jerusalem a small degree of control over municipal matters in Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, in return for Palestinian agreement to Israeli sovereignty over all of the city and Israeli control over zoning and land use. Many Israeli politicians loudly protest even this proposal. We Palestinians do not seek to divide Jerusalem; the city already is divided. Instead we recognize the interests of the Jewish people to Jerusalem and seek to share the city. In negotiations at Camp David and elsewhere, we have expressed willingness to reach an agreement that would give Israel sovereignty over all of West Jerusalem in exchange for recognition of Palestinian sovereignty over East Jerusalem. We have proposed establishing an open city, giving all Palestinians and Israelis, as well as their visitors, free access to all parts of Jerusalem. Thus, we Palestinians have not been unwilling to compromise on Jerusalem. Israel demands sovereignty over all of Jerusalem. We seek sovereignty only over East Jerusalem. Who is being inflexible?--Faisal Husseini, Los Angeles Times Service. (The writer, the senior Palestinian official in Jerusalem, contributed this comment to the Los Angeles Times.) *** Many of Arafat's supporters cannot understand why more concessions are necessary. By their reckoning, Arafat's recognition of the state of Israel in 1993 signed away their right to claim 78 percent of land they consider their own. Left with the remaining 22 percent, they say they are being asked to concede even more territory and their rights to Jerusalem. A fair solution, they say, is simple. "If you take something of mine and there is a fight, then for peace you must give back what you took," says an American businessman of Palestinian origin who declined to give his name.--Cameron W. Barr, The Christian Science Monitor. *** The formula for peace is simple. One, Israel must return the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem and recognize Palestinian sovereignty over those areas. Two, it must acknowledge responsibility for the refugees and make some arrangement for compensation or return. That's the Palestinian bottom line. That's what the United Nations says must happen, and Israel continues to say no. Alas, the Palestinians have had history and international law on their side while the Israelis have had a huge army and the American government on their side.--Charley Reese, The Orlando Sentinel. *** Camp David II broke down. So who is surprised? Mr. Arafat must have realized that the end had come when Madeleine Albright made her preposterous offer of "a sense of sovereignty" over the Muslim religious sites of Jerusalem. So much for statehood. So much for an Israeli withdrawal from occupied East Jerusalem. So much for a halt to settlement building. Even the silly villages which Mr. Arafat might have controlled outside his would-be capital would have "virtually full sovereignty," according to the Americans. Ehud Barak wouldn't give up Jerusalem. He wouldn't abandon the settlements. Mr. Arafat would not make the "concession"--for which read capitulation--of ceding Israeli control over all of Jerusalem. Mr. Clinton predictably saw fit to praise the stronger of the two parties--he spoke of Mr. Barak's "courage, vision" etc--but merely referred to Mr. Arafat's "commitment." So much for America's role as the "honest broker" of the Middle East peace. Offered virtual sovereignty to secure virtual peace, the Palestinian leadership preferred failure to humiliation. Now they are supposed to talk it all through again. And Mr. Clinton says they must avoid "unilateral action"--he meant a declaration of statehood by Mr. Arafat. Have no doubt, it may be all Mr. Arafat has left to offer Palestinians--virtual statehood, that is.--Robert Fisk, The Independent. ________________________________________________________________ ENDTIME NEWS DIGEST A compilation of articles proving that we are indeed living in the 'Time of the End' ________________________________________________________________ WAR _____________________________________________________________ Hiroshima: The bombs of August Was the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki an unavoidable necessity or rather a wanton act of gargantuan cruelty? [Howard Zinn, The Progressive] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?war_hiroshima_bombs_august APOSTASY ________________________________________________________ Save kids from the bloodthirsty Bible Two lawyers said that they had written to a German Family Minister asking her to officially class the Bible among books considered dangerous for children because of its violent content. [AFP] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?apo_save_kids_bible BIG BROTHER _____________________________________________________ Nowhere to hide Seven years ago an international coordinating group was set up by the FBI. It's goal was to make telecommunications systems more "interception-friendly." [Duncan Campbell, The Guardian] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?big_nowhere_to_hide Germans can hire satellite tag to mind the children Parents in Germany will soon be able to keep track of their children with satellite-linked equipment that works on the same basis as devices used to locate stolen cars. [Michael Leidig, Electronic Telegraph] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?big_germans_satellite_children Satellites give nosy neighbors their big break For less than £100, people will be able to spy on their neighbors using cameras in the sky that beam live pictures to their internet screen. [Nick Fielding and Michael Burke, The Sunday Times] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?big_satellites_nosy_neighbors EARTHQUAKES AND NATURAL DISASTERS _______________________________ Droughts, floods and change ahead as climate warms Imagine New York toiling under the heat and humidity of Miami, and the rising seas, pushed on by storm surges, lapping at the foundations of the World Trade Center. [Agence France-Presse] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?ear_drought_floods_warms ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT ____________________________________________ Rise of the corporate nation-state Around the globe, more and more corporations are beginning to act like governments. They negotiate with guerrilla leaders, build roads, and set up schools. [The Christian Science Monitor] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?one_rise_corporate_nation PLAGUES AND DISEASES ____________________________________________ Worries rise over effect of antibiotics in animal feed ... but her physicians were dismayed to find that drug didn't work either--the bacteria in her body were resistant to it as well. The woman died soon after. [Marc Kaufman, Washington Post] http://countdown.org/end/link.php?pla_worries_antibiotics_feed ________________________________________________________________ Be sure to visit the following sections of our site when you get a chance: - Countdown to Armageddon http://countdown.org/armageddon - The Future Foretold http://countdown.org/futureforetold - Endtime New Digest http://countdown.org/end ________________________________________________________________ There is another interesting newsletter/magazine, called Activated. It's all about strengthening our walk with the Lord and includes subjects on the "last days" as well. Drop by and see if you like it: http://activated.org ________________________________________________________________ * You are subscribed to the Countdown to Armageddon updates newsletter. If you received this newsletter in error, follow these instructions: * To unsubscribe email updates-request@countdown.org and include the word 'remove' in the subject line * Or visit http://countdown.org/newsletters ________________________________________________________________