Iranian Nuke Scientist: Weekend Quake was a Nuclear Test - Israel News - Arutz Sheva
INN reports: "The report quotes an Iranian nuclear scientist who claims to be working in uranium enrichment for the project, and who said that the 'quake' was actually an underground nuclear bomb test."

Comment: Please join me in praying for the peace of Jerusalem and the entire region. This is a dangerous time as Israel enters into an election cycle and top Iranian leaders are facing health problems at the same time as the global financial crisis hits their country. Let's pray that the leaders of Iran don't do something reckless like attack Israel to distract their people from their domestic problems.

My Way News - Intel says Iran plans secret nuclear experiments

AP reports: "With Iran's nuclear program already under international scrutiny, any new efforts by Tehran to increase its nuclear expertise and its store of enriched uranium would set off alarm bells - particularly if that stock was highly enriched. [...] Defying weak sanctions, the Islamic Republic has moved further through enrichment toward developing weapons capability - now anywhere from six months to several years away, depending on the source."

SpaceWeather.com - Colorado Fireball
Space Weather reports, "On Oct. 28th, a meteoroid hit Earth's atmosphere and disintegrated with the luminosity of a full Moon. By happenstance, the event occurred directly above an all-sky video camera in Colorado. Today's issue of Spaceweather.com features a movie of the fireball, the sound of radio echoes from the fireball's trail, and eyewitness reports from several US states."

My Way News - Iran feels economic pain as oil prices fall
AP reports: "Iran plunged this week into a bitter storm of political recrimination, largely directed at President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as officials and ordinary Iranians realized with shock that the Islamic republic faces a severe economic crisis of its own."

My Way News - Syrian crowd protests US raid amid heavy security
AP reports: "Tens of thousands crowded a Damascus square in a government-orchestrated rally Thursday to denounce a deadly U.S. raid on Syrian territory near Iraq and send a loud message to America: Leave us alone!"

My Way News - Taliban storm Afghan culture ministry, kill 5
AP reports: "Taliban fighters stormed the Ministry of Culture in the heart of Kabul Thursday, killing five people in an attack the president said aimed at derailing the government's new effort to draw militants into a peace process and end a seven-year insurgency."

My Way News - Kids in Pakistan quake zone beg for food
AP reports: "Children begged for food from trucks passing through Pakistan's quake zone Thursday as the death toll rose to 215 and survivors prepared for another frigid night camped out amid wrecked mountain villages."

My Way News - Attackers kill at least 61 in northeast India
AP reports: "The scale and planning behind the 13 blasts surprised authorities, who struggled to determine who was behind the attacks - among the worst in a region plagued by separatism, ethnic violence and Islamic militants."

My Way News - Archaeologist says he found oldest Hebrew writing
AP reports: "An Israeli archaeologist has discovered what he believes is the oldest known Hebrew inscription on a 3,000-year-old pottery shard - a find that suggests Biblical accounts of the ancient Israelite kingdom of David could have been based on written texts."

My Way News - 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami biggest in 600 years

AP reports: "The tsunami that killed 230,000 people in 2004 was the biggest in the Indian Ocean in some 600 years, two new geological studies suggest. That long gap might explain how enough geological stress built up to power the huge undersea earthquake that launched the killer waves four years ago, researchers said."

Comment: Over the years many Bible prophecy teachers interpreted Jesus' prophecy about roaring waves causing distress among the nations as a spiritual symbol of one thing or another, they couldn't see how the prophecy could literally be about roaring waves. Of course, now, in a world where global warming is assumed to be raising sea levels and great earthquakes cause mega tsunamis we can certainly appreciate the danger posed to coastal areas.

My Way News - Quartet to discuss Israel-Palestinians peace talks

AP reports: "A senior Palestinian official said Wednesday the Quartet of Middle East peacemakers will meet early next month at Sharm el-Sheik to assess progress in Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. [...] The so-called Quartet is made up of the U.N., the U.S., the European Union and Russia."

My Way News - Syria hardens stance after deadly US raid
AP reports: "Syrian President Bashar Assad has pursued indirect peace talks with Israel and says he is open to direct talk as early as next year. Syria also has agreed to establish diplomatic ties with Lebanon - a country it used to dominate - for the first time in their history."

Comment: Syria is on an interesting trajectory and it could be that the destruction of Damascus is years away, though it's clear that Syria may fall easily into reckless behavior if the recent overtures noted in the AP report are not reciprocated.

My Way News - At least 170 dead as quake hits southwest Pakistan
AP reports: "Desperate villagers clawed through piles of mud and timber looking for victims of an earthquake that collapsed thousands of homes in southwestern Pakistan before dawn Wednesday, killing at least 170 people."

My Way News - Congo soldiers fleeing Goma along with refugees
AP reports: "Firing wildly, Congolese soldiers commandeered cars, taxis and motorbikes Wednesday in a retreat from advancing rebel fighters, joining tens of thousands of terrified refugees struggling to stay ahead of the violence. [...] Congo said Rwandan troops had crossed the border and attacked its soldiers - raising the specter that neighboring nations will again be drawn into Congo's war"

My Way News - Strong quake hits Pakistan, at least 100 killed
AP reports: "A government minister says the death toll from an earthquake in southwestern Pakistan has risen to more than 100. Minister for Revenue and Rehabilitation Zamaruk Khan says the government is readying food, shelter and medical care for survivors of Wednesday's quake. He says 'more than 100' people have been killed so far."

My Way News - Internet companies embrace human rights guidelines
AP reports: "Leading Internet companies, long criticized by human-rights groups for their business dealings in China, agreed Tuesday to new guidelines that seek to limit what data they should share with authorities worldwide and when they should do so."

Comment: It's nice to see that these companies recognize that they have a responsibility when dealing with repressive countries, but I'd like to see how these new polices fare when tested by real events. Is this just PR?

My Way News - Israeli elections to be held in mid-February
AP reports: "A spokeswoman for Israel's Parliament says national elections will be held in mid-February. That leaves three and a half months for what is expected to be a tough election campaign with significant ramifications for Mideast peace talks."

My Way News - Diplomats: IAEA says Syrian nuke info needs probe
AP reports: "Diplomats say soil and air samples from an alleged Syrian nuclear site bombed last year by Israel provide enough evidence to justify a further inquiry."

My Way News - Tens of thousands of civilians flee in east Congo
AP reports: "Rebels vowing to take Congo's eastern provincial capital advanced toward Goma Tuesday, sending tens of thousands fleeing. Chaos gripped a separate front as government soldiers fired on civilians and aid workers trying to escape, the top U.N. envoy said."

My Way News - UN nuclear chief says Iran blocking progress
AP reports: "The U.N. nuclear chief said Monday that Iran is blocking his watchdog agency from verifying whether the nation has any ambitions for nuclear weaponry."