Kim Jong-stun: North Korea’s Rocket Launch Ends in Failure

FOX News – “North Korea’s attempt Friday to launch a rocket has failed, according to U.S. officials.

A senior U.S. official who is receiving updates from U.S. military launch observers tells Fox News the rocket broke apart between 90 seconds and 2 minutes after launching.

Data suggests the rocket broke up in mid-flight inside the Earth’s atmosphere. Officials tell Fox News the rocket did not fall into any populated areas, suggesting it fell into the ocean.

The rocket likely broke apart between the first and second stages of a three phase process.

A 2009 attempt by North Korea to launch a rocket also failed during its third stage.

Japan’s Defense Minister Naiki Tanaka said, ‘We have confirmed that a certain flying object has been launched and fell after flying for just over a minute.’ He did not say what exactly was launched.

He said there was no impact on Japanese territory from the launch.

In Pyongyang, there was no word about a launch, and state television was broadcasting video for popular folk tunes. North Korean officials said they would make an announcement about the launch ‘soon.’

North Korea had earlier announced it would send a three-stage rocket mounted with a satellite as part of celebrations honoring national founder Kim Il Sung, whose 100th birthday is being celebrated Sunday.” Read more.

Australia: Unexpected Horse Deaths Baffle Vets

“Veterinarians say they are baffled as to what caused the death of four horses on a property in WA’s south-west.

The horses died unexpectedly over a six-day period in Margaret River last week.

Samples of hay, mineral mixers and other food sources which the horses had access to are being tested.

Vet surgeon, Rupert Mothersole, says two of the horses were found dead and another had to be euthanised hours after becoming ill.

‘We’re looking for horses which are either found dead or horses which are showing profound depression, sweating, respiratory distress, muscles tremors, things like that,’ Dr Mothersole said.

‘Some of those signs are quite consistent with a snake bite so they’re the type of signs that a horse owner would be making contact with their vet very rapidly anyway.'” Source – ABC News.

Flashback: Australia: Mass Deaths of Racehorses Continue to Defy Scientific Explanation Despite Exhaustive Testing – “… But less than a fortnight after the healthy young horses were released to roam their picturesque new 81-hectare home – with three dams and a running stream – they began dying at an unprecedented rate. By Wednesday, six days after the first mysterious deaths on the unoccupied property were reported to the RSPCA by passers-by, all but four of the quarter horses, uninsured, were dead. And despite exhaustive testing by Biosecurity Queensland, the mass deaths continue to defy scientific explanation.” Read more.

US Military Stocking Up On a Massive Amount of Anti-Radiation Pills In Preparation for Nuclear Fallout

The Intel Hub – “The US Military is currently seeking a large amount of potassium iodide, this according to a listing on the FBO.gov website by the Defense Logistics Agency.

In the listing it is made clear that they want to be ready in the event of nuclear fallout which has lead many to speculate that this could be in response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster or perhaps in anticipation for an attack on an active Iranian nuclear facility.

The DLA is apparently looking for upwards of 400,000 dollars worth of the thyroid protecting tablets at a time when many government officials have openly told American citizens NOT to buy potassium iodide.

In an article published by Business Insider on March 10th, some of the possibilities as to why this order has been put in were explored.

The U.S. has bought potassium iodide tablets in the past, and is now looking ahead to scenarios, possibly spurred by last year’s Fukushima crisis.

As the federal solicitation is quick to point out, “The recent earthquake in Japan in March of 2011 and the resultant nuclear crisis has renewed interest in this item.”

Of course, potassium iodide would also come in handy if there were to be an airstrike against a target laden will nuclear material, say, like the sites in Iran. One of the big concerns surrounding the practical devastation of those nuclear facilities is the radiation it will unleash into the surroundings.

Destroying one of the most likely Iranian targets, the 1000-megawatt Bushehr nuclear plant, would create just such a concern.”

Read more.

Philippines: Christian Pastors Face Death for Ministering to Muslims

By Gary Lane and Lucille Talusan, CBN News – “MINDANAO, Philippines – The Philippines is a mostly Christian nation, but in the south, Muslim fundamentalists are trying to build an Islamic state.

Christians there face persecution and even death.

The island of Mindanao on the southernmost part of the Philippines is predominantly Muslim. The area’s most remote parts are a haven to terrorist groups linked to al Qaeda that carry out attacks and kidnappings in the region.

Because of this, persecution against Christians is strong. This year, at least four house churches closed down after their pastors and lay leaders were killed by Muslim extremists.

Pastor Mario Acidre was one them. His wife, Mayang, was distraught over her husband’s murder, which took place right in their home.

‘My husband staggered into our bedroom and I was shocked because he was full of blood,’ she recalled. ‘I brought him to the hospital right away. He was operated on for eight bullet wounds, but did not survive.’

Pastor Acidre was a former Muslim who converted to Christianity. He boldly shared the gospel to his Muslim relatives and neighbors.

Despite threats to his life, he was not afraid to hold Bible studies in his home, which he eventually converted into a house church.” Read more.

Flashback: Philippines: Christian Father of 13 Beheaded by Suspected Muslim Extremists in Mindanao – “MacArthur Arbado, an elder at the Bible Baptist Church in Carmen, Cotabato, was murdered on November 10 as he returned to his farm. The attackers shot him in the leg, back and abdomen before decapitating him with his own machete. MacArthur leaves behind his wife, Lolita, and 13 children.” Read more.

‘Being a Christian is Illegal in Iran’: 12 Christians Await Verdicts After Easter Sunday Apostasy Trial

By Lisa Daftari, FOX News – “Twelve Christians stood trial Easter Sunday in Iran, where they were called ‘apostates’ in a courtroom and tried on multiple charges, according to sources close to Iran’s Christian community.

The Christians had been acquitted on the same charges, including ‘crimes against the order,’ a year ago in Bandar Anzali, a city on the Caspian Sea. The group was first arrested when authorities found them drinking wine while taking communion, according to sources.

‘It ultimately illustrates that being a Christian is illegal in Iran. No matter how clear or how open a pastor and a church may be, Christians are being brought to trial just for being Christian,’ said Jason DeMars, director of the Present Truth Ministries advocacy group who is in daily contact with the Evangelical Christian community in Iran.

No verdict has yet been issued in the case.

The attorney for the group, prominent human rights advocate Mohammad Ali Dadkhah — who also represents Youcef Nadarkhani, the Iranian Christian pastor charged with apostasy and sentenced to death for leaving Islam and converting to Christianity — was not able to attend Sunday’s court appearance, according to sources who said his flight from Tehran was fogged in. The 12 represented themselves to the judge.” Read more.

Flashback: Iran’s Final Verdict: Allah’s Law Has Spoken, Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani Should Be Killed for Rejecting Islam – “A trial court in Iran has issued its final verdict, ordering a Christian pastor to be put to death for leaving Islam and converting to Christianity, according to sources close to the pastor and his legal team. Supporters fear Youcef Nadarkhani, a 34-year-old father of two who was arrested over two years ago on charges of apostasy, may now be executed at any time without prior warning, as death sentences in Iran may be carried out immediately or dragged out for years.” Read more.

India: Islamic Militants Attack Christians, Including Children, With Knives ‘Threatening to Murder Them All’

By Santosh Digal, BosNewsLife Asia – “CALCUTTA, INDIA (BosNewsLife)– Christians in India’s eastern West Bengal state were recovering of their injuries Thursday, April 12, after Muslim militants broke up a prayer meeting and beat up believers, including women, local police and Christians said.

The March 30 attack in the village of Nutangram in Murshidabad district involved ‘about 100 Muslim radicals’ led by Muslim leader Mohammed Aanu Shaike, local Christians explained.

There was no immediate reaction from the leader and no group claimed responsibility for the attack.

The Muslim mob allegedly ‘barged into the prayer meeting’ at the home of a Christian and verbally abused them and mercilessly beat up the Christians including women.’

Muslim women were also provoked to beat up Christian women, witnesses said. The Muslims reportedly chased the Christians, including children, with a knives, threatening to murder them all.” Read more.

Mali: Christian Leader Beheaded as Islamists Terrorize Country, Create List of All Christians They Intend to Execute by Beheading

By Charles Gardner, ASSIST News Service – “TIMBUKTU, MALI (ANS) — A Christian leader has been beheaded and others are being threatened with similar treatment as Islamic militants run amok in Mali, West Africa.

Christians have fled the town of Timbuktu in the north of the country where harsh Sharia Law has already been imposed amid reports that churches in Gao, 200 miles to the east, have been completely destroyed.

The news comes in the wake of a military coup in the country, one of the effects of which is that sanctions applied from outside has cut off electricity supplies, further delaying reports of the latest upheavals along with desperate pleas for help.

Among those affected is British Bible college graduate Timothee (Tim) Yattara, who recently returned home to his home country in a bid to help spread the gospel in this remote – and now dangerous – part of Africa located on the edge of the Sahara.

Tim has fled with his family to Bamako, the country’s main city some 400 miles away in the south-west, but without the money to rent a house.

“We have escaped in the wake of horrible death threats as the Islamists have a list of all the Christians in Timbuktu whom they intend to execute by beheading. As proof of their intentions, one leader has already been killed in this way and some churches in Gao have been demolished. Most Christians have already fled for safety, but Sharia Law has been imposed all over the north.'” Read more.

Flashback: Christian Bishop in Egypt: Christians Are Currently Experiencing Their Worst Time in Recent Centuries, Many Now Unable to Buy or Sell – “This statement was made by the Coptic Orthodox Bishop Stephanos of Beba and Elfashn to the international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). Christians are being violently killed under the eyes of the international media. Also, for the first time in many years, churches are being systematically burned and destroyed… Problems are also experienced in day-to-day life because calls are often made in the media not to buy from Christian merchants or to sell anything to Christians. Businessmen are therefore faced with a struggle for economic survival. Christians are indirectly excluded from employment, for example by job advertisements specifying ‘a female employee with headscarf’. Attempts are being made ‘to drive the Christians out’.” Read more.

Related: The Mark of the Beast – What Your Church May Not Be Telling You – “… The Babylonian Empire encompassed areas of Saudi Arabia (the birthplace and spiritual homestead of Islam) to the south, to parts of Asia Minor (Turkey) in the north, and from Egypt in the west to Persia (Iran) in the east. This area is today the epicenter of Islam. Additionally, one intriguing aspect to the ‘curse’ [of Zechariah 5:3] that goes out over the whole land is that the word for ‘curse’, and even how it is pronounced, is the Hebrew word ‘alah’. The Prophet Isaiah, in describing the condition of the earth at the time leading up to the Second Coming of Messiah, says that ‘the curse [alah] has devoured the earth, And those who dwell in it are desolate’ (Isa 24:6). To dwell in the earth does not in and of itself make one ‘desolate’. But the same cannot be said for those who dwell in the ‘curse.'” Read more.

Buh-Bye: As Weather Gets Biblical, Insurers Go Missing

Reuters – “PITTSBURGH — As weather disasters strike with more frequency, homeowners first get hit with the destruction or total loss of property. Many are then hit with the unexpected loss of homeowners insurance policies as insurance companies re-evaluate their financial liabilities.

After a tornado ripped through Springfield, Massachusetts, last year, R. Paula Lazzari’s home was badly damaged. The retired teacher found broken windows, missing siding and a damaged roof. Her insurer offered to fund repairs for one broken window and some of the siding. It took nine months — and mediation services from an independent adjuster and the Massachusetts Division of Insurance — to get her bills paid, according to the parties involved.

In this era of unpredictable weather patterns, Lazzari’s case is not unique. Insurance companies are raising rates, cutting coverage, balking at some payouts and generally shifting more expense and liability to homeowners, according to reports from the industry and its critics.

‘Insurance companies have significantly and methodically decreased their financial responsibility for weather catastrophes like hurricanes, tornados and floods in recent years,’ the Consumer Federation of America said in a statement after studying industry data.

The industry concedes that it is trying to avoid getting trounced by those same punishing weather patterns.

‘Last year (2011) was an extraordinary year for natural disasters,’ said Michael Barry of the Insurance Information Institute (III), an industry trade group.” Read more.

China: Golf Ball-Sized Hailstones Kill Three People, Injures Dozens

Sky News – “Hailstones the size of golf balls have reportedly killed three people and injured 25 others in China.

The giant pieces of ice pelted several rural areas in east China’s Jiangxi province overnight and on Wednesday morning, resulting in the deaths of three people, the Xinhua news agency said.

The hailstones were said to be as large as 3.5cm in diameter and weighed 18g on average.

The storms forced the evacuation of more than 700 people, destroyed about 2,700 hectares of crops and damaged more than 900 houses, a spokesman with the Jiangxi provincial department of civil affairs said.

Around 170,000 Jiangxi residents have been affected by the freak weather, the spokesman added.

In southwestern Guizhou province, hailstorms hit 47 villages in Taijiang county overnight, leaving 25 residents injured, including two who were severely hurt, a regional government spokesman said.” Read more.

 

Magnitude 6.2 and 6.9 Quakes Shake Gulf of California – More Strong Tremors Shake Earth in 24 Hours

RT – “A 6.9 magnitude earthquake has jolted Mexico’s California peninsula. The tremor’s epicenter was 10.3 kilometers below the surface, and 133 kilometers from the town of Guerrero Negro.

­No data about the quake’s consequences is available at the moment.

The shock follows a less powerful 6.4 tremor that shook the mountains of western Mexico on Wednesday. It made tall buildings sway in Mexico City, 322 kilometers away, sending people rushing out of buildings on to the streets.

This was the latest strong earthquake to jolt the planet in the last 24 hours.

On Wednesday, an 8.6 quake off Indonesia was followed by a series of powerful aftershocks up to 8.2 in magnitude. Five people died as a result. The tremors off Sumatra’s Aceh province put the entire Indian Ocean region on tsunami alert, prompting people in coastal cities to rush for higher ground.

A tsunami that followed a similar earthquake off Aceh in 2004 killed nearly 230,000 people, most of them in Indonesia.

Mexico has been no stranger to quakes in recent weeks.” Read more.