The United Nations estimates that 800,000 people had to leave their homes. A harsh four year drought, along with poor national infrastructures, has driven hundreds of thousands of Syrian farmers off their land in the country’s north-eastern section. The land where wheat grew abundantly is dry and provides no sustenance.

Most relocated to camps at the entrance to cities, and have no access to electricity or running water. The residents complain that there are no schools, either, in the camps, and that many of the children have to work to sustain their families.

Those who remain in the villages sell their belongings for food and require aid from the UN and the Syrian government. The World Food Program (WFP) has begun distributing food to more than 200,000 people who stayed on the farms, and the Red Cross is funding delivery of water to them. “We don’t want to provide assistance to these people where they are now, and create a dependency syndrome,” stated Muhannad Hani, WFP country manager, regarding the refugees who reached the camps. “Those people are farmers.” “We’re working in partnership with the government to make sure that those people return to that place and resume what they’ve been doing for decades and centuries.”

[Note: The Divine Authority uses natural law - Genesis 12:3]

JAKARTA, Indonesia – A volcano in western Indonesia spewed hot lava and sand high into the sky early Sunday August 29, 2010 in its first eruption in 400 years. Indonesia, the world’s largest archipelago, is on the so-called “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

Government volcanologist Surono, stated Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra province started rumbling a few days ago and the minor morning eruption had mostly stopped. He stated Mount Sinabung last erupted in 1600, so observers don’t know the volcano’s eruption pattern and are monitoring it closely for more activity. The government has distributed 7,000 masks to refugees and set up public kitchens so people can cook food, stated Priyadi Kardono, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Agency.

It sent sand and ash up to a mile (1.5 kilometres) high but lava only moved near its crater. It caused no major damage and only dust covered plants and trees. Evacuations on the volcano’s slopes started Friday at the first signs of activity. Up to 10,000 people who fled are staying in government buildings, houses of worship and other evacuation centres in two nearby towns.

ALGIERS, Algeria – August 29, 2010, Algerian forces, backed by helicopters, have killed eight al-Qaida insurgents in an attack in a mountainous area considered a bastion for the terror network’s North African branch. The area in the mountainous Kabyle region is considered a haven for al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb. Residents of Beni-Yenni village alerted authorities after insurgents sought food there.
A leader of the Patriots, armed civilians working with the army, stated one soldier died during the clashes in the Berrekmouche valley, 75 miles (120 kilometres) east of Algiers. The Patriot spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to comment about the operation. He stated the killings occurred Saturday August 28, 2010 and the sweep, which began with helicopter bombardments, continued Sunday.