Tag: Middle East Conflict

Operation Protective Edge – day 48.

by atharris, posted in Israel/Hamas conflict, Middle East

OPE now in its 48th day, continues to drag on. Hamas has admitted to kidnapping of the three teens that started this war and has broken 6 consecutive cease-fires. Israel has lost at least 64 soldiers and 4 citizens while the number of dead in Gaza has reached over 2000 with at least 900 of those deaths as militants.

It has also been known for some time now that ISIS has a presence and strong influence in the Gaza Strip.The tone in Israel has been one of frustration against the Prime Minister and Defense Minister’s lackadaisical approach to completing the job and ending the war. But, that may have changed – a little…

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu Sunday issued new directives to Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon: Strike every source of terrorist attack from the Gaza Strip. “No more immunity” for sectors or respect for borders or even civilians. Opening the weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu and Yaalon said: ”We will continue to hammer Hamas – by air, for now. The world is beginning to grasp that Hamas is ISIS and ISIS is Hamas. Israel continues to stand by the civilized world.” Ya’alon aimed for national consensus when he said: “We stand by our policy of avoiding direct confrontation with Hamas or a decisive end to the war; preferring diplomatic closure.”

Recently Israel has targeted Hamas military leaders, killing at least 4 high ranking members. In return for supposed betrayal of Palestinian spying for Israel, Hamas has executed 27 Palestinians.

Hamas has now executed 27 Palestinians accused of spying for Israel, after killing another four Saturday. Seven were shot dead in a public square outside a Mosque after Friday prayers. The victims’ heads were shrouded in hoods and their hands tied behind their backs.  The executions were taped and released for publication.

Meanwhile in the backdrop of ISIS, and the Israel/Hamas conflict, Libya spirals into a larger civil war.

Five weeks of bombardment by grad rockets have devastated parts of the capital, which is suffering cuts to power, water and petrol. Hospitals are running short of vital drugs and thousands are fleeing the city as fighting rages on.
The battle leaves Libya in a state of civil war, with fighting also raging between Islamist brigades and nationalist forces of a former general, Khalifa Hiftar, raging 400 miles away in the eastern city of Benghazi. There were reports that jets from Hiftar had struck and sunk a ship from Misrata trying to bring ammunition to Islamist brigades in the city. – See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/politicians-and-militia-groups-vye-control-battle-torn-libya-99372368#sthash.y8wwvGR2.dpuf

 

The violence in the Middle East will continue to ebb and flow while ever gravitating to the flow culminating just before the beginning of the Tribulation – and then the world will change to that which has never been nor ever shall be again…..

 

 

 

 

Hamas attempt of PA Coup uncovered

by atharris, posted in Israel/Hamas conflict, Middle East

 

Remember there are 2 Muslim factions that make up the Palestinian community. Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority (PA) in the West Bank.

Israel’s security services revealed Monday that “the most dangerous Hamas network since the 80s” had been uncovered, plotting the violent overthrow of Palestinian Authority institutions in Ramallah and seizure of the West Bank. This coup was to be coupled with large-scale terrorist attacks in Israel. No date was attached to the revelation. Hamas terrorist cells were to converge on the PA seat from Jerusalem, Hebron, Nablus, Jericho and 37 Palestinian villages. . The Shin Bet (Israeli Intelligence) reported making 93 arrests in the plot that was allegedly orchestrated by Saleh al-Arouri from Istanbul, who has maintained a base of operation labeled “Hamas-West Bank,” with the knowledge of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, since his deportation in 2010.
Al-Arari took care of recruiting activists and transferring of funds for terrorist operations assisted by a forward command in Jordan. Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal was alleged by the Israeli security services as in on the conspiracy. DEBKAfile finds the timing of this disclosure suggestive. It coincides with a meeting ion Qatar Monday between PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas and Meshaal, and may have been a reminder of Meshaal’s murky history – even though Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi and Abbas must know all about the Hamas leader with whom they hope to conclude a deal for a long-term truce in Gaza.

http://www.debka.com/newsupdatepopup/9459/

http://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-says-it-foiled-hamas-plan-for-coup-against-pa-in-west-bank/

Libya Rising

by atharris, posted in Gog & Magog

The prophetic, big picture is no longer fuzzy anymore and each passing day adds a little more focus to the times we live in. The world has been living in the last days since they were mentioned by the early church fathers 2000 years ago, but this generation of today, is living in the final hours of the last days.

Libya spirals out of control as the violence of Islam continues to sweep the Middle East.

Continue reading “Libya Rising” →

The World Polarizes

by atharris, posted in Israel

Tiny little Israel, roughly the size of the state of New Jersey and with a population of one half of 1 percent of the world’s 7 billion people, and yet it has caused a great divide and commotion among the peoples of the world in the midst of their conflict with Hamas.

Interestingly 2000 years ago, Israel was polarized against one man; Jesus. The Pharisees and Scribes of the day were against Jesus, even accusing Him of working for Satan and calling ‘good’ evil. In the end, most of Israel rejected Jesus and went on to see their destruction beginning in 70 AD.

As it was in the beginning with Adam and Eve, and as it was in the days Jesus walked the Earth, so it is today, a fight between good and evil, a fight for the Kingdom. Just as Israel ended in destruction during that time, the world today is facing the most destructive time in its history.

Perhaps you are reading this and looking for a way out of all the uncertainty, war, and the coming destruction? Perhaps you desperately need peace in your life? Jesus is the only way. Do you know Him?

3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

5 Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:3-6

 

 

Watching the events around the world today, a few verses come to mind.

13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. Matthew 23:13

 

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. Ephesians 6:12

 

20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Isaiah 5:20

 

3 And I will bless them that bless thee (Israel), and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. Genesis 12:3

 

16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.

17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth. Revelation 17:16-18

 

7 In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. 8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. 9 They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust.

10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. 11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him. Psalm 72:7-11

 

17 His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. 18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. 19 And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen. Psalm 72:17

 

 

 

 

 

Declaring Israel a ‘terrorist state,’ Bolivia’s president ends free entry for Israeli visitors

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/07/30/declaring-israel-terrorist-state-bolivia-president-ends-free-entry-for-israeli/

Rising tide of anti-semitism in Britain as Jewish people face backlash over bloodshed in Gaza

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2707421/Rising-tide-anti-semitism-Britain-Jewish-people-face-backlash-bloodshed-Gaza.html#ixzz393io2QAn

Facebook says page calling for death to Jews doesn’t violate ‘community standards’

http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2551348

Anti-Jewish slogans return to the streets in Germany as Mideast protests sweep Europe

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the-israeli-palestinian-conflict-spills-into-europe-with-protests-anti-jewish-slogans/2014/07/30/36ca8d41-b5a4-4790-9b53-c94e75da4ba6_story.html

On Monday morning, an Orthodox synagogue in North Miami Beach, Fla., Congregation Torah V’Emunah, found a swastika and the word Hamas scrawled on the outside of the building. A day earlier, cars owned by a Jewish family in Miami Beach were egged, smeared with cream cheese, and defaced with graffiti reading “Jew” and “Hamas.”

 

In Malibu, Calif., graffiti reading “Jews=Killers” and “Jews are Killing Innocent Children” appeared near the entrance to a Jewish summer camp. Pro-Palestinian graffiti was sprayed on a Chabad center in Las Vegas and on an Orthodox synagogue in Lowell, Mass.

http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-world-news/1.608088

A very good article:

As Operation Protective Edge continues into its fourth week, US Jewish leaders describe in excited terms an almost unprecedented atmosphere of unity among American Jews.

………

However, there is another narrative being voiced as well.

A recent Pew poll highlights an age group that is less than “supportive.” Instead of standing with Israel, the poll finds that a third of all young Americans aged 18-29 (Jews and non) in fact blame Israel for the Gaza conflict.

……….

In a comment on a Times of Israel news article about the poll he writes: “In the US, according to recent surveys, it is largely the younger generation (18-29), the self-proclaimed liberals that chastise Israel the most, yet this is the same generation that cannot point to Israel, Iraq, or Afghanistan on a map (there are many surveys to back that up, too). Empty, misguided conviction in other words.

 

 

 

Cease-fire complexity update

by atharris, posted in Israel/Hamas conflict, Middle East

I had posted the news below in the previous post.

Mashaal made one more interesting point that relates to the US. He claimed that Secretary of State John Kerry called his friends in Qatar and Turkey at the start of the conflict and asked them to broker a ceasefire. If this is true, it’s nothing less than a scandal because it would mean Kerry had cut out the ground from beneath the Egyptian ceasefire proposal.

It turns out this was a true statement by Mashaal concerning the latest, absurd cease-fire proposal from Secretary of State John Kerry.

The Palestinian Authority is fuming at US Secretary of State John Kerry, accusing him of trying to undermine the Egyptian ceasefire initiative endorsed by Israel and the PA last week and rejected by Hamas, an Arab daily reported on Sunday.

Palestinian sources told the London-based A-Sharq Al-Awsat that Kerry had initially agreed to an Egyptian proposal for an immediate ceasefire followed by five days of negotiations between Israel and the PA, with American assurances to address some of Hamas’s demands. But on Friday evening Kerry produced a new plan based on consultations with Qatar and Turkey and conducted between “the State of Israel” and “the Palestinian factions,” excluding the PA. The Israeli cabinet unanimously rejected Kerry’s plan.

Read more: Abbas fumes at Kerry over alternative ceasefire bid | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/abbas-fumes-at-kerry-over-alternative-ceasefire-bid/#ixzz38i1vKPdw

“confidential draft” of the American ceasefire proposal leaked to the press appears to confirm what The Times of Israel reported Friday — that Washington was willing to generously accede to many of Hamas’s demands, while all but ignoring Israel’s security requirements.
The published text of the proposal, obtained by Haaretz, also shows that Qatar and Turkey – Hamas’s main sponsors in the region — were given prominent roles in the mediation, while the Palestinian Authority and Egypt were entirely marginalized.

According to the text, “the Palestinian factions” and the State of Israel would make three commitments:

a)……

b)……..

c) Convene in Cairo, at the invitation of Egypt, within 48 hours to negotiate resolution of all issues necessary to achieve a sustainable cease-fire and enduring solution to the crisis in Gaza, including arrangements to secure the opening of crossings, allow the entry of goods and people and ensure the social and economic livelihood of the Palestinian people living in Gaza, transfer funds to Gaza for the payment of salaries for public employees, and address all security issues.

…..as it basically accepts all of Hamas’s demands but addresses Israeli worries only tangentially.

Read more: Leaked document confirms US ceasefire bid generous to Hamas | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/leaked-document-confirms-us-ceasefire-bid-generous-to-hamas/#ixzz38i5aSH6x

Betrayal?

As Ha’aretz correspondent Barak Ravid, one of Israel’s premier left-wingreporters, put it:

“The document recognized Hamas’ position in the Gaza Strip… [and it] placed Israel and Hamas on the same level, as if the first is not a primary US ally and as if the second isn’t a terror group which overtook part of the Palestinian Authority in a military coup and fired thousands of rockets at Israel.”

 

http://www.israeltoday.co.il/NewsItem/tabid/178/nid/24786/Default.aspx?utm_source=news&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=No-sidebar-news-1&utm_content=1308

Interesting words, a hint of something to come?

In the legitimacy stakes, Netanyahu has three solid allies for crushing Hamas: Saudi King Abdullah, Egyptian President Abdel-Fatteh El-Sisi and the UAE ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Sunday, Mahmoud Abbas attached a Palestinian voice to this group.

This regional coalition has enormous clout, derived, on the one hand, from the Israeli military and its fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Egyptian army’s containment of Hamas efforts to break out into Sinai for strategic depth; and, on the other, from the financial might of Saudi Arabia and the oil emirates and the world prestige they enjoy.

So why is the Obama administration shoving this powerful coalition out of his way and building a rival alliance to counter it?

 

http://www.debka.com/article/24135/Netanyahu%E2%80%99s-dilemma-Back-Obama%E2%80%99s-save-Hamas-policy-or-fight-for-its-downfall-with-Egypt-and-Saudis-

Meanwhile Egypt continues to guard Israel’s back.

An official in Cairo reports that 14 Al Qaeda militants were killed and 47 other terrorists were arrested in Egyptian army raids in northern Sinai. Friday, 12 jihadists were killed and 11 others detained, said a spokesperson of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Mohamed Samir Abdel Aziz Saturday night.

 

The majority of Evangelical Christians are still in favor of Israel, but as I stated before, this White House Administration is not. So now the complexity increases with a new twist. With all of the consulting and counseling going on, is it starting to look more like Psalms 83?? Just a thought for now…..

Keep not thou silence, O God: hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God.

2 For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head.

3 They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones.

4 They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.

5 For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:Psalms 83

 

 

 

 

 

Cease-fire complexity

by atharris, posted in Israel/Hamas conflict, Middle East

The ongoing attempts for a ceasefire of the Israeli/Hamas conflict is complex and includes multiple countries and parties. They include the US, Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Palestinian Authority (PA) under President Mahmoud Abbas from the West Bank and Hamas political bureau, Khaled Mashaal from the Gaza Strip. Israel and the US have previously stated they only recognize Egypt as a legitimate cease-fire broker.

 

Hamas rejected Secretary of State John F. Kerry’s call for a cease-fire amid concerns that an agreement won’t be reached before other parties are drawn into its conflict with Israel

 

Wednesday’s speech by the head of the Hamas political bureau, Khaled Mashaal, in Qatar, did not constitute good news. One way or another Mashaal made clear that the fighting is likely to continue for a considerable time. The stance he presented, which is accepted by all wings of Hamas — military and political, in Gaza and overseas — is that there will be no ceasefire without the full lifting of the blockade on the Strip.

The blockade mentioned by Mashaal is the Rafah border crossing between Israel and the Sinai Peninsula, currently guarded by the Egyptian army.  It is the main route in which Hamas can continue to receive arms and men to ensure survival.

Mashaal made one more interesting point that relates to the US. He claimed that Secretary of State John Kerry called his friends in Qatar and Turkey at the start of the conflict and asked them to broker a ceasefire. If this is true, it’s nothing less than a scandal because it would mean Kerry had cut out the ground from beneath the Egyptian ceasefire proposal.

 

While Khaled Meshal haggles with ceasefire brokers in Qatar, his agents are known to have appealed urgently to Tehran to find the weapons they need and deliver them at top speed to the Gaza Strip – possibly from Libya by the Iranian-terrorists’ arms smuggling route through Egypt.

For now, Egypt is still protecting Israel’s southern border.

  Egypt: Army shoots suicide bomber near Gaza border

The Ma’an news agency quoted an Egyptian army source to the effect that the attacker carried an explosive device and was shot after he attempted to cross the border with Israel south of Rafah.

The source claimed that the Egyptian army had also destroyed a vehicle loaded with Grad missiles in Sheikh Zuweid in the North Sinai district, killing at least two operatives inside.

The Egyptian army said that it had thwarted a total of two missile attacks against Israel since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge on July 8.

 

 

 

 

ISIL update

by atharris, posted in ISIS, Middle East

IS – Islamic State is also known as ISIL—Islamist State of Iraq and the Levant.  Wikipedia defines the Levant as, “The Levant (/ləˈvænt/), also known as the Eastern Mediterranean, is a geographic and cultural region consisting of the “eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt“.[2] The Levant today consists of the island of Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Palestine, and part of southern Turkey.

IS – has declared Iraq as their very own giving Iraq the new title of Islamic State. IS plans to continue their assault into the Levant with the intention to eventually control all of that area. Today ISIL now controls an astounding 35% of Syria.

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is now in control of 35 percent of the Syrian territory following a string of victories, the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Friday.

ISIS holdings include nearly all of Syria’s oil and gas fields, the monitoring group said in a statement.

One of the latest gains of the self-proclaimed “caliphate” was the seizure of the country’s biggest oil fields, in Deir el-Zour in eastern Syria, earlier in the week.

 

ISIL is now moving into northern Syria.

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), the group that overran Mosul in Iraq last week and has been pushing south towards Baghdad, announced it is also preparing an offensive in northern Syria.
In a statement dated June 17, 2014, and published on several Arabic websites, ISIS called on its fighters to attack the city of Al-Qamishli and its rural areas. In the last several hours a number of bombings have been reported on Twitter and some reports say the airport of Qamishli has been heavily damaged.

 

ISIS is leaving a path of destroyed churches, shrines and mosques in its wake as it storms across Syria and Iraq, and has even set its sights on Mecca — Islam’s holiest site.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/07/10/isis-destroys-shrines-and-mosques-sets-sights-on-mecca/