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" Recently, the Sanhedrin, still, chose someone else besides its rightful Messiah, and have even embraced the Islamic idea, that Messiah could be the Islamic Mahdi. Astonished? Its all caught on film."

Iran warns world of coming great event Says 'evil hegemony' soon will be defeated by power of Allah (snip) Khamenei then claimed the current century as the century of Islam and promised that human history is on the verge of a great event and that soon the world will realize the power of Allah. (snip) Mahdi will reappear at the time of Armageddon. Selected forces within the Revolutionary Guards and Basij reportedly have been trained under a task force called “Soldiers of Imam Mahdi” and they will bear the responsibility of security and protecting the regime against uprisings. Many in...

After Iran begins fueling first nuclear reactor, president says 'Zionist entity knows Iran an indestructible bulwark,' adding Tehran's response to any strike will be 'hard and painful.' US: Bushehr reactor not a proliferation risk As Iranian and Russian engineers began loading fuel into Iran's first nuclear power plant on Saturday, Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad promised a global response if his country is attacked, in an interview with Qatari daily Al-Sharq. "Our options will have no limits... They will touch the entire planet," he said Saturday in response to a question about Tehran's reaction in the event of such an...

Last week, Iran's opposition leaders Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karoubi canceled anti-government demonstrations timed to commemorate the anniversary of last year's disputed presidential election. Secretary of the State Hillary Clinton called the cancellation "regrettable," but missed the larger point. The reform these two men offer is not what the majority of Iranians want: They want an end to the current Islamic regime. One year ago, the Obama administration missed an opportunity to support Iran's uprising. They mistakenly calculated that back-door negotiations with Iran's clerics and promises made by its rulers would bring cooperation on the nuclear issue. The Americans were...

(I'reading a fascinating book calledThe Siege of Mecca by Yaroslav Trofimov. I came across of section I thought Freepers might find interesting. It has to do with the Muslim concept of the "End of Days" and part played in it by Jesus Christ. It is from Chapter 5, pp. 47-48. (P.S. I having to type this in, so please forgive by hunt-and-peck fingers. Hopefully there's not too many typos.) ================================================= "The idea of a Mahdi has fuel Muslim imagination for centuries. There is no mention of it in the Quran itself . But the Phophet Mohammed, according to some nattators,...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2008 – From Mosul in the north to Basra in the south, insurgent-committed violence in Iraq continues to decrease as stability visibly increases, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said today. Video “For 10 of the last 11 weeks, we’ve sustained less than 200 attacks per week nationwide,” Army Lt. Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III, commander of Multinational Corps Iraq, told Pentagon reporters during a satellite-carried news conference from his Baghdad headquarters. Attacks in Iraq had once reached more than 1,500 a week a few years ago during the zenith of insurgent-committed violence. “It...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2008 – Coalition and Iraqi forces killed an enemy fighter, detained 10 suspected terrorists and found weapons during recent operations throughout Baghdad, military officials said. Coalition troops killed one man and detained five others allegedly connected to al-Qaida. The individuals are believed to be involved in assassinations, bombings and financial conspiracies for the group against coalition and Iraqi forces. Various weapons were confiscated during the operation, officials said. In operations yesterday: -- Iraqi soldiers captured four suspected terrorists who allegedly attacked coalition forces in the city’s Rashid district. The individuals ambushed the U.S. police training team with...

Shi'ite militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr stepped back into Iraq's political fray Friday with an offer that (if genuine) Washington would be hard-pressed to refuse: Set a timetable for withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, and the Mahdi Army will begin to disband. "The main reason for the armed resistance is the American military presence," said Sadr emissary Salah al-Ubaidi, who spoke to reporters in Najaf Friday. "If the American military begins to withdrawal, there will be no need for these armed groups." Sadr in the past has vowed to expand the humanitarian work of his movement but promised to maintain...

BAGHDAD — The militia that was once the biggest defender of poor Shiites in Iraq, the Mahdi Army, has been profoundly weakened in a number of neighborhoods across Baghdad, in an important, if tentative, milestone for stability in Iraq. It is a remarkable change from years past, when the militia, led by the anti-American cleric Moktada al-Sadr, controlled a broad swath of Baghdad, including local governments and police forces. But its use of extortion and violence began alienating much of the Shiite population to the point that many quietly supported American military sweeps against the group. Prime Minister Nuri Kamal...

BAGHDAD — An Iraqi citizen and Iraqi Security Volunteers assisted Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers in the recovery of two separate weapons caches July 15-16 in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. At approximately 10:15 p.m., July 15, Soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division reported a group of ISV members handed over 10 mortar fuses to a combat outpost in the Aamel community. Acting on a tip from an Iraqi citizen, Soldiers from the 1st BCT, 4th Inf. Div., discovered three rocket propelled grenades at approximately 11:45 a.m., July 16, in the Hadar neighborhood. An explosives...

WASHINGTON, July 16, 2008 – Coalition forces detained 18 suspected terrorists and discovered weapons caches during recent operations in Iraq, military officials said. Coalition forces captured 16 suspected terrorists in separate operations today in Baghdad and Mosul. An alleged car-bombing cell leader, three suspected subordinate leaders and five suspected cell members were detained during operations in Baghdad. The individuals reportedly manufacture and distribute car bombs while staging attacks on local security forces. Coalition forces believe the suspects were in the process of “planning an imminent attack” on U.S. and Iraq forces in the area, officials said. Intelligence gathered from a...

BAGHDAD – Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained seven suspected criminals and discovered two weapons caches June 26 and 27 in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. Soldiers from the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained a suspected criminal at approximately 11:45 a.m., June 26, in the Hadar community. The suspect is allegedly responsible for emplacing a roadside bomb earlier this year. Meanwhile, Iraqi Army soldiers from the 24th Brigade, 6th IA Division, discovered an 80 mm mortar round, a 60 mm mortar round, a hand grenade, one mortar tube and a blasting cap at approximately 1 p.m....

BAGHDAD — Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers detained the leader of an improvised explosive device criminal cell in the Rashid District of southern Baghdad, June 24. Soldiers from the 4th Infantry Regiment, attached to the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained the known criminal at approximately 1 p.m. near Forward Operating Base Falcon, Baghdad. “The detainment of this key criminal will keep the residents of Rashid much safer,” said Maj. Dave Olson, 1st BCT Spokesman, 4th Inf. Div., MND-B. “The 2nd Bn., 4th Inf. Regt. Soldiers have worked hard to transform the Doura area into a safe and...

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2008 – Iraqi soldiers and police, assisted by U.S. and coalition troops, are making good progress in pacifying the city of Amarah and surrounding areas in Iraq's Maysan province, a senior U.S. military officer posted in Iraq said today. The Iraqi-military planned and led operation is part of Baghdad’s efforts to help citizens “regain control of their towns, cities and villages” from illegal militias or other extremists, Army Col. Charles Flynn, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team, told reporters during a satellite-carried news conference at the Pentagon. “We stand in full support...

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2008 – Coalition and Iraqi forces killed three militants, detained 20 suspects and found weapons in Iraq over the past three days, military officials said. During operations today: -- Coalition forces killed two enemy fighters, including an al-Qaida in Iraq cell leader, near Sharqat, about 55 miles south of Mosul. Military officials said forces engaged the men after perceiving them as a “hostile threat.” The slain enemies later were found to have been armed with guns and grenades. Troops detained three suspects in the operation. -- Coalition troops followed an alleged associate of al-Qaida in Iraq senior...

BASRA — Operation Charge of the Knights, a joint operation involving UK Soldiers and the Iraqi Army, which aims to restore order and improve security in Basra, is making further progress. The Iraqi Army continues to demonstrate its commitment to improving the security situation in the city, carrying out a number of vehicle check points in recent days. Inspections were carried out on a number of vehicles which were going in and out of the city. In addition, numerous house searches were carried out, leading to multiple arrests of suspected militants. 140 rounds of 150mm High Explosive shells were also...

WASHINGTON, June 22, 2008 – U.S. and Iraqi forces discovered and confiscated weapons caches and captured insurgents during ongoing operations over the past several days in Iraq. In Baghdad today, Iraqi police seized an explosively formed projectile and several machine-gun rounds during operations in the New Baghdad district. In another operation, police uncovered a weapons cache in New Baghdad consisting of mortar rounds, a rocket, an artillery round, a number of machine-gun rounds, a mortar base plate, a telescopic sight, explosives, a night vision device and a rocket sled. Iraqi soldiers later confiscated several AK-47 rifles, two magazines and a...

BAGHDAD – Coalition forces captured five suspected Special Groups outlaws during operations in Baghdad and near Hillah Friday and Saturday. Acting on intelligence information, Coalition forces conducted a raid on the suspected residence of a Special Groups leader and recruiter east of Hillah, about 180 km south of Baghdad. The man was wanted for running Special Groups recruiting efforts, as well as ordering assassinations and directing the specialized training of Special Groups criminals. Coalition also captured an associate of the targeted individual. During a separate operation in northeast Baghdad, Coalition forces conducted a raid on the residence of a suspected...

WASHINGTON, June 19, 2008 – U.S. and Iraqi troops detained 35 suspected terrorists during recent operations in northern Iraq, military officials said. Coalition forces captured 21 suspected terrorists in various operations today across northern Iraq: -- Eight were detained in Tarmiyah, about 25 miles north of Baghdad, for their alleged association with a terrorist network responsible for numerous bombings, murders and hijackings, and for transporting terrorists throughout the country, officials said. -- Coalition forces captured six suspected terrorists in Mosul. One man is wanted for his connections with al-Qaida leaders and foreign-terrorist facilitators throughout the country. Five others were detained...

WASHINGTON, June 18, 2008 – U.S. and Iraqi troops killed one enemy fighter and detained 23 suspected terrorists during recent operations in northern Iraq, military officials said. Coalition forces targeted al-Qaida in Iraq operatives in and around Mosul, killing one and detaining 15 today. In operations yesterday: -- Coalition forces in Biaj, about 80 miles southwest of Mosul, came under attack and returned fire, resulting in one attacker dead, one wounded and six others captured. Eight other suspected terrorists were captured in separate operations in Mosul. -- Also in Mosul, Iraqi troops captured a suspected terrorist leader. He’s believed to...