The Watchman On The Wall

The Watchman On The Wall
Eph 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Verse 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Monday, March 4, 2013

Locusts Plague Egypt

God gives us this promise in Scripture:

"When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land"  (2 Chronicles 7:13-14).

Israel’s Agriculture Ministry has set up a hot line for helping farmers manage the destruction wrought by swarms of locusts which Monday 4 March 2013 flew in from Egypt where they devastated crops. The swarm consists of an estimated 30 million insects. The first were seen in the Negev Kadesh Barnea area. The UN FAO sent out prior warnings to Egypt, Jordan and Israel.
Swarms of locusts are devouring Egyptian crops and Israelis are bracing for the destructive bugs to migrate their way ahead of the Passover holiday.
An estimated 30 million locusts has been devastating crops in Egypt. This has fueled apocalyptic fears because of the infestation’s proximity to the Bible story of Passover in which a swarm of locusts, the eighth of ten plagues, was imposed on Egyptians by God for enslaving and abusing ancient Hebrews.
A swarm of locusts in Egypt
Israel’s Agriculture Ministry set up an emergency hotline and urged residents to be vigilant in reporting sightings of the insects to prevent an outbreak.
A special task force has also been set up to help farmers manage infestations.
The locusts pass through the country as part of their normal migration from north east Sudan to Saudi Arabia, the Egyptian Agriculture Ministry said, emphasizing that Egypt was just ‘a fly over and rest stop’ for the locusts, which were in larger numbers this year.
Pink locusts invade Egypt
The insects descended on agricultural farms in Giza and in Cairo, causing significant damage. Fears have been raised that the locusts could spread to Israel. 
In a statement from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN, the infestation was described as a ‘immature swarm’ which ‘appeared in the afternoon (on March 2) in the eastern Cairo districts of New Cairo and Mokattam and dispersed into several smaller swarmlets.
The statement read: "he locusts originated from breeding that has been in progress since November in southeast Egypt between Berenice and the Sudanese border." 
Desert Locust
 As vegetation dried out, small groups and swarms of immature adults moved slowly north along the Red Sea coast, reaching Marsa Alam on 8 February, Hurghada on the 16th and Zafarana on the 26th.
Besides Israel, Lebanon and Jordan have been alerted.
In Cairo, people were burning tires to create black smoke to deter the locust from settling.  There were reports that swarms had been seen in Zafarana, about 124 miles from Cairo, on the Red Sea and in the city of Qena, where the insects have been sighted in at least three villages.
According to the Israel National News, the Egyptian Agriculture Minister Dr Salah Abd Al Mamon said: "Egyptian armed forces and border guards are attempting to fight the swarm with all means at their disposal."
"I ask the families living in the locust-plagues areas not to burn tires. This does not chase away the locusts, but only causes damage and could ignite large scale fires that would cost in lives."
He said that strong winds were predicted in weather forecasts and he hoped that this would force the insects to migrate toward the Red Sea and Saudi Arabia. The Egyptians are going to use crop dusting planes to handle the infestation.
Egypt and Israel were infested with locusts in 2004. The swarm of locusts was the first invasion since 1959.
Farmers in 15 out of the 27 Egyptian governorates suffered significant agricultural damage as the insects devoured crops and flowers.
This year Passover will begin on the evening of March 25 and end on the evening of April 2.
Yellow legged Asian hornet
The infestation comes as a study warns that yellow-legged Asian hornets that prey on bees are among the latest non-native species threatening UK wildlife. The Asian hornet, which grows to between 2.5cm and 3cm (1-1.2 inches), preys on native honeybees, wasps and other pollinators, potentially devastating hives and threatening honey and crop production.
A Spanish Slug
A growing number of alien species, from killer shrimps to Spanish slugs, are set to soon reach English shores, a Europe-wide study warns.

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