Quote: ""My one question from the Christians is: What would Jesus do if he were present in the world today? What would he do before some of the oppressive powers of the world who are in fact residing in Christian countries? Which powers would he revive and which of them would he destroy?" the Iranian president asked. "If Jesus were present today, who would be facing him and who would be following him?" He added. Ahmadinejad then linked Jesus with Imam Mahdi, a Shiite leader believed by the Iranian president to have gone into hiding centuries ago, and who is expected by Shiite Muslims to return and usher in a period of messianic dominance for Islam. "All I want to say is that the age of hardship, threat and spite will come to an end someday and Allah willing Jesus would return to the world along with the emergence of the descendant of the Islam's Holy Prophet, Imam Mahdi and wipe away every tinge of oppression, pain and agony from the face of the world," Ahmadinejad said.

Although Ahmadinejad's question is no doubt intended to deflect criticism of his own regime, his question is a very poignant one. Muslims believe that Jesus was a prophet, and will return and conquer Jerusalem in the name of Allah and reign over it for a period of seven years. Christians believe that the Antichrist will rule over Jerusalem for a period of seven years. This twisted Islamic version of the Revelation will have Muslims worshipping the Antichrist - the Mahdi, and the False Prophet - who they claim will be Jesus. When the False Prophet starts working his "miracles" (Revelation 13:14) and commanding that all who do not worship the Beast should be beheaded (Revelation 20:4), it will be the natural thing for them to accept.

Meanwhile, Georges Corm, former Lebanese Finance Minister, has proposed a new peace plan for the Middle East, a plan which he says is based on the "dissident viewpoint" which doesn't enjoy the support of the Western world (the view that Israel is to blame for every war in the Middle East since 1948). I have copied the entire text here, for it makes interesting reading, especially the seven year hiatus on borders. At the end of seven years, Georges states, both communities - Israel and Palestine - must vote on whether they want to continue as separate states or live in one united or federal state. Since Palestinians outnumber Israelis, it would be believed that such a vote would be the equivalent of state suicide for Israel. Why did he pick seven years? How much more evidence do we need that Christ's return is imminent? 

Quote: "1) Palestinian society, from the Mediterranean to the Jordan River, is both open and multi-ethnic, reflecting the spirit of the United Nations’ 1948 and 1949 rulings on the Israel-Palestine conflict; none of the different religious communities has the monopoly over political power and armed force. Jerusalem is an open city with a municipal council composed in equal proportion of Jews, Christians and Muslims.

2) In line with the 2004 opinion of the International Court of Justice at The Hague, there must be no delay in dismantling the wall that Israel has erected along the West Bank to contain the local population. The Palestinians must have total freedom of movement both within the West Bank and to the Gaza Strip. Israel should no longer control Palestinians traveling outside their borders unless they are crossing into Israel. This is a matter for the Palestinian Authority, or the Egyptian and Jordanian police if their borders are concerned. Israel must immediately lift the air, sea and land blockades aimed at the Palestinian people.

3) Those Israeli settlers who are living in settlements established in violation of the Geneva conventions may remain in their homes, as long as Israel compensates those Palestinians whose lands have been seized. The legal interest should be payable at the 12-monthly London interbank rate offered for US dollar deposits.

4) Following UN resolution 194 of 11 December 1948, the Palestinians and their descendants expelled from their homes or ousted by the advancing Israeli army both in 1948 and 1967 must now enjoy the right of return to their historical homelands, or receive Israeli compensation in lieu.

5) The Israeli army must withdraw within 15 days from the areas it has been occupying in the West Bank and Gaza, making way for an international force entrusted with the protection of the Palestinian community in the occupied territories.

6) A referendum must be held after a seven-year period both in Israel and the territories occupied since 1967. The two communities must pronounce on whether they wish to continue living together within a single unified or federal state, or as two separate states.

7) The G7 states and the Arab members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) should together finance a compensation fund for the Palestinian people in the occupied territories. The fund will provide reparation for the occupation of Palestinian lands and the repression the Palestinian people that has endured over recent decades.

8) Whatever the solution adopted, the Israeli-Palestinian state or the two states of Israel and Palestine must make a commitment to remain neutral on the international scene, and to abstain from engaging in any form of privileged relations, military or political, with the regional and global powers.

9) Since 1967, Israel has occupied Syria’s Golan Heights. These must now be returned to Syria, with demilitarised safety zones on both sides of the border. The Israeli settlers in the area may remain in their homes under the same conditions as for the West Bank. The two countries shall resume diplomatic and economic relations as soon as the safety zones are in place and the settlers’ obligations acquitted.

10) Israel must return the Shebaa Farms area, which it still occupies, to Lebanon; it should then also ensure mine-clearance in the south of the country. It has been occupying Lebanon for the last 22 years in contravention of resolution 425 of the UN Security Council, effectively preventing the UN from deploying its interim force (UNIFIL) to the border between the two countries. The UN must see that demilitarised zones on both sides of the border are enforced. Lebanon must also receive compensation for the economic losses that Israel has repeatedly caused it since 1968: Israel has claimed rights of reprisal that it has exacted with relentless assiduity. Israel, the G8 and the Arab OPEC states shall make equal contributions to this fund, paying interest for arrears as defined above.

11) Israel must immediately release all Palestinian prisoners from the West Bank and Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.

12) Palestinians with Israeli citizenship must be allowed to exercise full civil and political rights. The Israeli electoral system must guarantee their fair representation in the Israeli parliament, as well as in the country’s local councils and administrative, military and judicial institutions.

Source YNet News, Answering Islam, Middle East Online