"About 2,000 organised Zionists and 7,000 to 8,000 agents of Zionism have dragged the world into turmoil," Ahmadinejad told a rally in the central Iranian city of Arak carried live on state television. He said that if the West does not restrain Zionism, "the powerful hand of the nations will clean these sources of corruption from the face of the earth," without specifying which nations.

Iran does not recognise the Jewish state and Ahmadinejad has drawn international condemnation by repeatedly saying since his election in 2005 that Israel is doomed to disappear.

Israel, the Middle East's sole if undeclared nuclear power, accuses Iran of seeking atomic weapons and wants tougher sanctions against the Islamic republic to make it halt its controversial nuclear programme. Iran insists that its nuclear ambitions are purely peaceful and aimed at meeting the country's growing energy needs.

The National Weather Service says areas of northeast Minnesota and northwest Wisconsin could see patchy frost this weekend. That's right, patchy frost in August. The weather agency says clear skies could allow temperatures to dip into the low to mid-30s late tonight into early Monday. Meteorologist Roman Berdes says an unusual cold-air mass from Canada will bring lower temperatures.

The sporting extravaganza failed to quell criticism of China's human rights record, although the International Olympic Committee (IOC) gave the organisers the thumbs-up and said the Games would leave a positive legacy for future generations. China's Communist leadership no doubt breathed a collective sigh of relief as the giant Olympic torch was extinguished. The run-up to the Games had cast a harsh light on China, bringing unrest in its Tibetan region to a global audience and showing that its rulers would not brook internal dissent.

But critics said enough jarring notes had sounded to spoil the symphony, with China refusing any protests during the Games, and sentencing two elderly women to a year of re-education for pushing for the right to demonstrate. Rogge told reporters on Sunday the IOC could not force change on a state "or solve all the ills of the world", but that the Games had promoted a heightened awareness of the environment in China and left an array of venues to nurture future champions.

It all ended tonight with a suitably sacred ceremony in the Bird's Nest Stadium. Our camera position was a few metres away from the VIP section. China's leaders sat in the front row with the IOC President Jacques Rogge. On each of their desks was a pair of binoculars and also a pen and paper (just in case any of them suddenly felt moved to write a speech).

London's mayor, Boris Johnson took part in a rather solemn three-way Olympic flag waving contest. Then came the final moment of a decade of work. The Olympic flame (always known here as the "sacred flame") was put out. A BILLION PEOPLE WILL NOW HAVE TO FIND SOMETHING ELSE TO BELIEVE IN.

THE lead singer, with yarmulke, beard and guitar, appears with a sheep on the cover of the latest record by Lechatchila, a religious-rock group popular among Orthodox young Israelis. "Don't stare at me," the lyrics go. "THE TEMPLE IS SURE TO BE REBUILT RIGHT NOW. WE'VE GOT TO PREPARE, TO BELIEVE, TO MAKE THE REDEMPTION HAPPEN."

For two millennia, ever since the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans, Jews have continued to study, write and indeed sing about the intricate rituals of service and sacrifice, in the belief that one day the Messiah would come and the Temple would be rebuilt. Meanwhile, the faithful were forbidden even to walk on the Holy Mount, let alone worship there.

Recently the rabbinical consensus has been fraying. Nationalist rabbis close to Jews who have settled on the Palestinian West Bank are permitting - even encouraging - their followers to visit the mount. Separately, the energetic and well-endowed TEMPLE INSTITUTE in Jerusalem's old city has been diligently recreating ancient Temple vessels and priestly garments to be ready when needed. The institute runs guided tours of the mount and publishes prayer books in which former Jewish glories are graphically depicted; its director reassures readers of its website that there is no call "for the launching of missiles or the exploding of the mosque". But the Temple is "not just something historic, stored in a memory chest". For nationalist-Orthodox children, it is increasingly a reality.

The larger, ultra-Orthodox community remains ostensibly unaffected. Its rabbis still forbid even walking on the mount and are content to wait for the Messiah without spurring him on. But between the two groups there is a theological overlap that translates into a tough brand of politics. THE ULTRA-ORTHODOX SHAS PARTY, A PIVOTAL PART OF THE GOVERNMENT'S COALITION, HAS GIVEN NOTICE THAT IT WILL WALK OUT IF THERE IS ANY NEGOTIATION OVER JERUSALEM. Sure enough, in leaked draft proposals put by Israel's prime minister, Ehud Olmert, to the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, the question of Jerusalem is postponed indefinitely. Or until the Messiah comes?

Electricity grids down, uncontrolled fires from exploding gas transport systems, no communication to call for help, no water to battle fires: It's all part of a catastrophic scenario some scientists predict could happen under an electromagnetic pulse attack – and the Department of Homeland Security's emergency plan includes no mention of EMP or how it might respond to such an attack. When WND contacted the Department of Homeland Security, a representative explained why a course of action was not included in the National Emergency Communications Plan – a strategy that relies heavily on the ability of authorities at all levels of government to communicate using radios, computers and other electronic devices that could be disabled by an EMP attack.

"When we look at the strategic threat picture, when we look at patterns of criminal activity that all levels of government show, when we look at what is ultimately going to involve limited resources, we have to get to a point where we prioritize," DHS spokesman Russ Knocke said. "We prioritize based upon threat vulnerability and consequence. As we speak today, there's nothing in the threat picture that would suggest an imminent EMP attack."

However, Congress has expressed concern regarding the threat of EMP. A top scientist warned the House Armed Services Committee in July that America remains vulnerable to a "catastrophe" from a nuclear electromagnetic pulse attack that could be launched with plausible deniability by hostile rogue nations or terrorists.

The interim parliament has no binding legislative authority and gives its opinion on matters referred to it by the Arab League council. Al-Saqer also repeated charges that the alleged "Jewish settlement plans of digging under the Aqsa Mosque had reached a dangerous stage."

The Islamic courts movement, which controlled the capital, Mogadishu, and much of the south for six months in 2006, said it wrested control of the southern port city of Kismayo from clan militias. About 70 people were killed during the fighting which started Wednesday and 170 were wounded, said Dr. Ali Hassan of Kismayo Hospital.

Somalia has been at war since 1991, when clan-based militias ousted a socialist dictator and then fought for power among themselves. The conflict is complicated by clan loyalties and the involvement of archenemies Eritrea and Ethiopia, who both back opposite sides in the fighting. The last U.N. peacekeeping force in Somalia included American troops who arrived in 1992 and tried to arrest warlords and create a government. That experiment in nation-building ended in October 1993, when fighters shot down a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter during a battle that killed 18 American soldiers.

Since then, Ethiopian troops have helped Somalia's shaky transitional government push the Islamists from power in Mogadishu and much of the south, but failed to establish security or improve living standards. The Islamic courts movement launched an insurgency in the impoverished country nearly two years ago, but Kismayo would be the biggest city seized since early 2007. Spokesman Sheik Ibrahim Shukri said its forces moved into Kismayo at the request of its residents and that the city "will remain under Islamic control." Government officials declined to comment on the claim.

The comments by deputy head of the general staff Col.-Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn, reported by Russian news agencies, showed that despite protests from the United States, France and Britain, Russia was confident enough to occupy whatever part of Georgia it deemed necessary.

"Russian military: You are not a liberating military, you are an occupying force!" one man shouted at the Poti protest. Banners read "Say No to War" and "Russia go home." On Sunday, a U.S. Navy warship carrying humanitarian aid for Georgia anchored in the southern Georgian port of Batumi. It was the first of five American ships scheduled to arrive this week with supplies.

The Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday the radiation treatment also would make the leafy greens last longer and give them GREATER "SHELF-LIFE" FOR RETAILERS AND CONSUMERS. The approval comes two years after E. coli outbreaks linked to spinach and lettuce sold in grocery stores and served at various restaurants. Outbreaks of the dangerous bacteria sickened dozens of consumers and led some to be hospitalized. In severe cases, patients developed kidney failure.

Since then, other outbreaks have affected a variety of products, most recently Salmonella contamination in hot peppers from Mexico that surfaced earlier this summer. "In the aftermath of the recent outbreaks, FDA wanted to fast track an important tool to help industry improve the safety of fresh produce," Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) spokesman Brian Kennedy said

"This turmoil is not going to go away quickly and will require serious efforts to overcome it," a top official of the International Monetary Fund, John Lipsky, told Reuters. "A year ago there was a real sense of uncertainty and confusion. PEOPLE WERE PERPLEXED BY THE TURMOIL THAT HAD COME ON QUITE SUDDENLY. I would say the mood this year is one of greater clarity…let's call it a bit more somber," said Lipsky, the IMF's first deputy managing director.

The annual symposium hosted by the Kansas City Federal Reserve has drawn senior officials from the world's most powerful central bankers, including Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet. Fed officials say that it will take a prolonged period for the harm done to confidence by the collapse in the U.S. housing market to wash through the system. BERNANKE ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THERE WOULD BE NO QUICK FIX.

And if the greenback continues its slide in 2008, as expected, more and more criminals are likely to exchange euros for illicit goods, said Criminal Intelligence Service Canada in its annual report. "The US dollar weakened significantly against other major currencies in 2007 and according to some economists, is expected to depreciate further in 2008," said the report.

"As a consequence, other currencies - particularly the euro - are poised to weaken the US dollar's dominance as the currency of choice for international remittances and payments," it said. "This trend could also drive an increase in observed instances of bulk-cash transfers denominated in currencies other than Canadian and US dollars," the report added.

The bank, with $752 million in assets and $622 million in total deposits, was shuttered by the Kansas state bank commissioner's office and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the FDIC said yesterday in a statement. The pace of bank closings is accelerating as financial firms have reported more than $500 billion in writedowns and credit losses since 2007. The FDIC's "problem" bank list grew by 18 percent in the first quarter from the fourth, to 90 banks with combined assets of $26.3 billion.

Prior to yesterday, the FDIC had closed 36 banks since October 2000, according to a list at fdic.gov. The U.S. shut 12 banks in 2002, the highest in the period, and 2005 and 2006 had no closures.

U.S. bank regulators closed Florida's First Priority Bank on Aug. 1; Reno-based First National Bank of Nevada, Newport Beach, California-based First Heritage Bank, and Pasadena-based IndyMac Bancorp Inc. in July; Staples, Minnesota-based First Integrity Bank and ANB Financial in Bentonville, Arkansas, in May; Hume Bank in Hume, Missouri, in March; and Douglass National Bank in Kansas City, Missouri, in January.

The most probable outcome is a long strength-sapping credit crunch alongside repeated dividend cuts and capital raisings. At the least it will be a headache for Britain's policymakers and at worst will tax severely government budgets that are already stretched.

British commercial property developers and house buyers both drank deeply at the well when loans were being made freely in past years, using increasing amounts of leverage despite the fact that the income the asset could generate was often not enough to cover the payments. Both markets have now come unstuck spectacularly.

British house prices are down about 11 percent from the peak and derivatives markets are pricing in another 20 percent fall from here. It is if anything a bit worse for commercial property, where derivatives traders are pricing in a fall of about a third from the peak in June 2007 to the end of 2009, according to Morgan Stanley calculations. While the borrowers will of course take the first hit, increasing numbers will default, forcing writedowns by banks.

An IOC official told The Times that because of "discrepancies" that have come to light about the age of He Kexin, the host nation's darling who won gold in both team and individual events, an official inquiry has been launched that could result in the gymnast being stripped of her medals.

The investigation was triggered as a US computer expert claimed yesterday to have uncovered Chinese government documents that he says prove she is only 14 - making her ineligible to compete in the Olympics - rather than 16, as officials in Beijing insist is her age. Mike Walker, a computer security expert, told The Times how he tracked down two documents that he says had been removed from a Chinese government website. The documents, he said, stated that He's birth date was January 1 1994 - making her 14 - and not January 1 1992, which is printed in her passport.

Bela Karolyi, the former gymnastics coach whose wife, Martha, coaches the US women's team, has repeatedly accused the Chinese of fielding underage female gymnasts. The ages of two other team members have also aroused suspicion: Jiang Yuyuan and Yang Yilin. Time magazine reported that government records, that have since disappeared, showed both girls to be 14. Gymnasts must be 16 to compete. The minimum age for female gymnasts was increased from 14 to 15 in 1981, and up to 16 in 1997, to protect the physical and mental health of young athletes.