Tag: Gaza border violence

PEACE PLAN?

July 9, 2019 / admin

One thing you can never complain about when living in Israel is boredom. There is never a dull moment around here. So much has happened over the last couple of weeks I don’t know where to start. Perhaps a good place to begin is with the Word of God, for it puts things into a proper perspective. This is what I read this morning:

Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous;
    it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
Praise the Lord with the harp;
    make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
Sing to him a new song;
    play skillfully, and shout for joy.

For the word of the Lord is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
The Lord loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love.

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
    their starry host by the breath of his mouth.
He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;
    he puts the deep into storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the Lord;
    let all the people of the world revere him.
For he spoke, and it came to be;
    he commanded, and it stood firm.

The Lord foils the plans of the nations;
he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.
But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever,
the purposes of his heart through all generations.

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
    the people he chose for his inheritance.
From heaven the Lord looks down
    and sees all mankind;
from his dwelling place he watches
    all who live on earth—
he who forms the hearts of all,
    who considers everything they do.

No king is saved by the size of his army;
    no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
    despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
    on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death
    and keep them alive in famine.

We wait in hope for the Lord;
    he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
    for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love be with us, Lord,
    even as we put our hope in you.

Psalm 33 (my emphasis)

So here goes….

IRAN

It never ceases to amaze me how, just when I think matters are so tense they are about to explode into violence, events increase the tension even more. How tense can things get? When will we get to the breaking point?

In my last blog I wrote about the attacks on the oil tankers in the Gulf. Since then, tension between Iran and the USA has ratcheted up another notch or two. On June 19 Iran shot down an unmanned military drone belonging to the USA using a surface-to-air missile system. This RQ-4A Global Hawk is not the sort of drone you might see your neighbor’s kids playing with. It has a wingspan larger than a Boeing 737, is valued at around $US 110 million, and at the time of the attack was patrolling the Straits of Hormuz at an altitude of 22,000 ft. Iran claims this drone had violated Iranian air space but the USA denies this, saying it was shot down over international waters in the Straits of Hormuz (1). We will probably never know the truth, but this was no doubt a very dangerous incident and could have triggered all-out war. Indeed the following day a USA attack on Iranian military positions was only 10 minutes from being carried out, planes were in the air and ships in position, when the US President Trump suddenly called it off (2). Why he did so I am not sure, but news sources say Trump suggested that the shooting down of the drone was carried out by a ‘loose and stupid‘ Iranian officer without authorization from Teheran (3). That seems unlikely to me but rather a face-saving way of avoiding the consequences of attacking Iran. In any case, war was avoided on this occasion, but tensions continue to mount. This Monday, Mojtaba Zolnour, chairman of Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, in comments carried by the Mehr news agency, stated that “If the US attacks us, only half an hour will remain of Israel’s lifespan” (4).

On Monday this week Iran announced that it had passed the 300kg limit of low-enriched (3.67%) uranium set by the 2014 Nuclear Pact and the following day, Tuesday, it further stated that it would now enrich uranium to a 7% level, beyond that needed for electricity generation or any other legitimate use, but still below the 90% needed for a nuclear bomb. Yesterday, President Rouhani of Iran said in a cabinet meeting ” On July 7, our enrichment level will no longer be 3.67 percent. We will put aside this commitment. We will increase (the enrichment level) beyond 3.67 percent to as much as we want, as much as is necessary, as much as we need”(5). Trump responded in a tweet saying ” Be careful with the threats, Iran. They can come back to bite you like nobody has been bitten before! “. This ongoing war of words reminds me of a kindergarten argument but these ‘tots’ are armed with rather more than some plastic blocks!

SYRIA

Meanwhile in Syria the situation is also tense. Last Sunday ( 30/06) it was reported that all four of the Russian-made S-300 anti-aircraft missile batteries were already operational near the town of Masyaf in northern Syria.

Just hours afterwards, the Syrian London-based Observatory for Human Rights reported that Israeli jets and naval gunships attacked at least ten Syrian government targets, among them a research facility and Hezbollah bases, near the Syrian- Lebanon border, and that fires broke out as a result of the attack (6). They also claimed that 15 people had been killed including 9 foreign and pro-government militia personnel and 6 civilians including a baby. There were no Israeli casualties. An errant Russian-made missile fired by the Syrian air-defense system hit north of Nicosia in Cyprus (6). There were no casualties as the missile landed in an open area on a mountainside.

Israel, as is its long-standing policy, has not admitted to carrying out the attacks, but it has repeatedly made clear that it will not tolerate the buildup of Iranian-funded and equipped Hezbollah bases in Syria, and it has carried out many similar attacks in the past. The map below shows Iranian bases in Syria as of April 2018 (the yellow dots).

*Iranian military presence in Syria (source: skynewsarabiya.com, April 30, 2018)* https://www.memri.org/reports/reports-arab-media-iranian-bases-syria

BEN GURION AIRPORT

For about a month now aircraft operating in Israeli airspace have been experiencing disruptions in their GPS systems. According to the Israel Airports Authority (IAA), these disruptions do not endanger flights as pilots have alternative navigation systems they can use. Israeli authorities have been trying to find the source of these disruptions and fix them, but without success. At least some IAA officials are blaming Russia, saying it is a result of electronic warfare intended to protect Russian planes operating out of their base at Khmeimim Air Base in northern Syria (7). Russia is denying this, of course.

On Monday (1/07) Ben Gurion Airport had another incident to deal with. I turned on my TV mid-afternoon just in time to watch a Boeing 737, with 152 people on board, make an emergency landing. I didn’t breathe for a few minutes as I prayed fervently for their safety. Thank God the pilots managed to bring the plane down safely and all the people were disembarked without incident. The Bulgarian-owned plane had taken off from Cologne airport in Germany and afterwards rubber debris had been found on the runway. The Israeli Airports Authority was notified and the Air Force scrambled some fighter jets to check out the plane. They saw that the left rear tire had been shredded. This information would have helped the pilots know how to land the plane on the remaining 3 wheels. I am happy to say that the 100 or so ambulances and fire trucks that had been assembled at the runway were able to go back to their bases unused. The plane has since been discovered also to have problems with its radar system and has been grounded until repaired.

A Bulgarian charter plane makes an emergency landing at Ben Gurion Airport
https://www.timesofisrael.com/plane-that-made-emergency-landing-at-ben-gurion-reportedly-grounded-by-new-issue/

GAZA

The situation with Gaza is still up and down. Last week approximately 100 fires were started in Israeli territory by incendiary devices attached to balloons flown over from the Gaza Strip. On Thursday (27/6) alone some 30 fires were ignited, a record number in one day, since the ‘balloon war’ began over a year ago. The following day Israel and Hamas made yet another ceasefire agreement and this past week saw a drop in the number of incendiary attacks. On Friday (5/07) some 7000 Gazan rioters burned tires, hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails at Israeli soldiers and two were caught crossing the border fence with a knife. Some 40 Gazans were reportedly injured in the Israeli response (8)

This seemingly endless tit-for-tat round of rioting, incendiary attacks, punishments and concessions is wearing thin, especially for the residents of towns and kibbutzim near the Gaza perimeter. Knesset Member Alon Shuster had this to say after a fire was ignited within his kibbutz, Kibbutz Meflasim, ” The fire has reached inside Kibbutz Mefalsim,… “Soldiers, security officials, firefighters and kibbutz members are working to put it out. But we get the impression that Netanyahu doesn’t care at all.” He added that “The resilience of the residents of the south will weather any challenge, but the neglect by the Israeli government has reached the point of criminal negligence, and it’s time that someone said so” (9).

I don’t think the current government is negligent or uncaring. However with elections looming in September it is unlikely they are going to take any drastic steps before then. What is more, the alternative is frightening – an all-out war with Hamas probably necessitating a ground incursion which would lead to massive casualties on both sides including civilian losses. No one is keen on such a scenario.

Yesterday (8/07) yet another terror tunnel stretching from Gaza into Israeli territory was uncovered, the 18th tunnel discovered since the end of the 2014 Gaza War, known in Israel as Operation Protective Edge. Together with the 37 tunnels destroyed during that war, this brings to 55 all the tunnels discovered so far. Imagine how many homes, hospitals and schools that could have been built with all that concrete! This latest tunnel was discovered during the construction of the 65 km underground barrier and sensor system being built around the Gaza Strip designed to prevent such tunnels from being built. This project, begun in 2016 and due to be completed by the end of this year, is costing Israeli taxpayers some 3 billion Israeli shekels ( = 1 billion US dollars) ( 10).

A picture taken in January 2018 of a destroyed Palestinian Islamic Jihad tunnel, leading from Gaza into Israel, near the southern Israeli kibbutz of Kissufim. (Jack Guez/AFP/POOL)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-uncovers-cross-border-attack-tunnel-from-southern-gaza/

TRUMP’S PEACE PLAN

This past week also saw the unveiling of the first phase of Trump’s Peace Plan for the Middle East, the economic workshop held in Bahrain. It would seem that the Plan is based on the idea that economic prosperity for the Palestinians would bring about peace. If so, it is doomed to failure. The root of the unrest in the Middle East is ideological and religious, not economic. This was highlighted by the refusal of the Palestinians to participate in the workshop, which they see as a US-Zionist conspiracy to end the political rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people (11).

The Plan heralded by the US as ‘the opportunity of the century’ was seen by the Palestinian leadership as an attempt to buy them off, and they called for other Arab states to boycott the workshop. Only two brave Palestinian businessmen attended and at least one of those was arrested (and later released) on his return home. Here in Israel, we have a saying ” The Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity” – referring to the many occasions in which they could have attained a state of their own, and economic prosperity, but refused to compromise on their ideological and political demands. Massive amounts of money have been poured into Gaza and the West Bank. They should be the richest people on earth, but much of this money has been sunk into developing military weapons and infrastructure with which to attack Israel, or was diverted into the deep pockets of their leadership.

Some of you may know of Mosab Yousef, the son of Sheik Hassan Yousef, one of the co-founders of Hamas. Mosab defected from Hamas and became an informer for the Israeli Shin Bet for ten years preventing scores of terror attacks and assassinations, and later became a Christian believer. He is now living in the USA and he wrote the book, “Son of Hamas“, which I would highly recommend. This past week his younger brother, Suheib Yousef, also defected from Hamas and fled to an unknown location in Asia. Suheib had a senior position in Hamas and worked in Turkey gathering information which he said was “sold to Iran in return for financial assistance“. In an interview, broadcast on Israel’s Channel 12 news, Shueib said he had decided to leave Hamas because of its corruption. He also said that the Turkish branch of Hamas actively recruits people, including children, to carry out terror attacks in Israel. He added, “The goal of the attacks in the West Bank is to kill civilians, not for resistance, or Jerusalem, or liberating Palestinian land and not even because they hate Jews. They send these innocent people because they want to export the crisis [from Gaza] to the West Bank.” He called Hamas a racist terrorist organization that is dangerous for the Palestinian people. He also expressed revulsion for the corruption of the Hamas leadership. He said, “Hamas senior officials live in fancy hotels and luxury buildings, their kids are in private schools. They’re paid generously by Hamas, earning between $4,000 to $5,000 a month. They have security guards, swimming pools and country clubs. They eat in high-end restaurants, paying $200 for one course, while a family in Gaza lives on $100 a month.” He went on to criticize their double standards regarding the weekly “March of Return” protests at the Gaza border fence saying, “I want them to send their own children to carry out attacks” and ” Why doesn’t Ismail Haniyeh go to the fence to throw stones?” (12).

ETHIOPIANS PROTEST

On the evening of Wednesday last week at least 50,000 commuters were stuck for 5-7 hours in traffic jams caused by protesters blocking main arterial roads all over the country. These protests were a spontaneous uprising of the Ethiopian Jewish community expressing their anger at the racist targetting of their community by the police and discrimination against them in general. Many non-Ethiopians joined the protests and even many of the stranded travelers. The protests turned violent in places and 111 police, firemen and passersby were treated for injuries and 136 protesters arrested. At least one car was torched and many others damaged.

These protests were triggered by the shooting dead of a 19-year-old Ethiopian man, Solomon Tekah, by an off-duty policeman in the northern town of Kiryat Haim. The policeman saw three teenagers beating up a young boy and he tried to break up the fight. The attackers then turned on the policeman throwing stones at him. Fearing for his, and his wife and children’s safety, he claims he fired a shot at the ground to warn them off and the bullet ricocheted up and killed Tekah.

Since Wednesday there have been some protests and demonstrations but they have on the whole been nonviolent and have not disrupted traffic, largely because the family of the killed man asked protesters to refrain from violence, and respect the 7-day period of mourning for their son. Police also warned protesters they would take stronger measures if demonstrations became violent or disrupted traffic. While most Israelis have sympathy for the Ethiopians who are discriminated against in many ways and have suffered from unacceptable police violence against them, I fear that demonstrations of this kind will turn people against them even more. Furthermore, there is a large number of disaffected youth and anarchists who are only too happy to jump on whatever bandwagon they can find to cause trouble.

That said, this incident is being seen by the Ethiopian community as just the last of a long line of incidents of racism and brutality, carried out especially by the police, against the Ethiopian community in recent years. Some such incidents have been caught on video and widely circulated. Public Security Minister, Gilad Erdan, condemned the intolerable violence by some of the demonstrators, but also said that the protests were “an explosion of pain and rage by teens and many young people who truly feel that they have no future here, and that they are judged by the color of their skin.” He also said “I listened this week for hours to young people from the community and heads of organizations. Their words broke my heart. Talented young men and women, eloquent and erudite, told me of many expressions of racism and humiliation they’ve faced in every step of their lives: In school, in the army, in the job market and yes, to my great sorrow, in police treatment of them as well” (13).

Racism is rife in Israeli society, something that shocked me deeply when I first arrived, given the history of the Jews. On one hand it is not surprising in a society made up of immigrants from all over the world. We all come bringing our own prejudices and attitudes towards the other. I can remember moving into a Yemenite neighborhood, the first ‘Anglo-Saxon’ (as English speakers are known here) to live there. It was not long before a ‘spy’ was sent in, ostensibly to borrow a green pepper. When I saw her inspecting my kitchen closely I asked her what she was doing, she said: ” We thought your house would be much dirtier“. She then told me they believed that ‘Anglo’ homes were filthy. There may be some truth to this claim in their eyes since Yemenite women typically keep their homes spotless and often wash the floors several times a day. I certainly do not do that! We had a good laugh and ended up friends, but it reinforced to me how we all have our prejudices.

The Ethiopians who immigrated to Israel in the 80’s and 90’s have been the target of much discrimination, not the least because they are easily identifiable by the color of their skin. They came mainly from primitive villages in the countryside and were largely uneducated and illiterate. They also tended to be quiet-spoken, unassuming and somewhat passive, contrary to the outgoing, noisy and often aggressive Israelis. This put them at a severe disadvantage economically and socially. Although many young Ethiopians have succeeded admirably becoming doctors, lawyers, reaching high posts in the army and in politics, others are still struggling to integrate. Unemployment in the Ethiopian community is around 13%, three times the national average and on average Ethiopians earn about 1/3 less than the national average (14). Israel must work harder to eradicate these inequalities, and remove the prejudices if we are not to explode from within. We have had a succession of governments that have failed to deal with the many serious social issues within Israeli society. I hope and pray that the September elections will bring in a government that will take these matters seriously.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES

There have been three significant events in the world of archaeology in Israel this past week or so. First, archaeologists broke through the final wall opening up the now-subterranean ‘pilgrimage road’ which Jews in ancient times used to walk from the Pools of Siloam to the Temple Mount (15).

US Ambassador to David Friedman (L) speaks during the opening of an ancient road at the City of David archaeological and tourist site in the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan in east Jerusalem on June 30, 2019. (Tsafrir Abayov/AFP)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-envoys-hammer-through-ancient-east-jerusalem-path-dug-under-palestinian-homes/

Secondly, the DNA analysis of bones from the ancient Philistine city of Ashkelon confirms the belief that the Philistines were of European origin (16).

Philistine remains in Ashkelon
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/265474

Finally, today it was announced that archaeologists have found and identified the ancient Philistine city of Ziklag (17). Ziklag was one of the cities granted to the tribe of Simeon within the territory of Judah (Joshua 15:31, Joshua 19:5). When David fled from King Saul he took refuge with the Philistine King Achish in the city of Gat. King Achish then granted the city of Ziklag to David and David dwelled there one year and four months.

So Achish gave him Ziklag that day. Therefore Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah to this day. Now the time that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was one full year and four months.

I Samuel 27: 6-7

From Ziklag David raided the Geshurites, the Girzites and the Amalekites, and consequently the Amalekites attacked Ziklag and burned it, taking captive all the inhabitants including David’s two wives (I Samuel 30:1) After consulting the LORD, David pursued the Amalekites and succeeded in freeing all the captured people and they returned to Ziklag. David was in Ziklag when he heard the news that King Saul was dead (II Samuel 4: 10). In the book of Nehemiah Ziklag is listed as one of the cities in which dwelt some of the people of Judah who had returned from the Babylonian exile (Nehemiah 11:28).

Pottery assemblage from Khirbet a-Ra’i, which archaeologists have identified as biblical Ziklag. (Excavation expedition to Khirbet a-Ra‘i)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/archaeologists-say-they-found-town-where-future-king-david-took-refuge-from-saul/

SOME SHORT NEWS ITEMS

Traffic Woes.

From 12 July the old Highway 1 entrance to Jerusalem will be blocked for at least 3 years. Traffic will be diverted to other routes into the city. In the long term a new entrance via a tunnel from Motza connecting with Begin Boulevard is hoped to ease the current bottleneck but until construction is complete we are going to experience even more disruption to traffic flow than we are already subject to (18).

Rebuilding Mevo Modiin

A fire on 24 May this year destroyed 40 of the 50 homes in the settlement of Mevo Modiin, also known as the Carlebach Moshav. It was founded by Shlomo Carlebach, popularly known as the ‘singing Rabbi’ and was a haven for Orthodox religious musicians, artists and ‘free spirits’. The fire now believed to have been caused by nationalistic (Palestinian) arson also burned homes in the neighboring Kibbutz Harel, and around 2000 acres of national parkland and public land. The affected people, 60 families, have vowed to rebuild and both the Jewish Agency for Israel and Jewish Federations of North America are offering immediate emergency assistance to the families. In addition the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews said it will provide up to $5,000 in assistance per family (19).

A woman surveys what remains of her home in Mevo Modiin.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/digging-through-the-charred-wreckage-of-the-carlebach-moshav/

‘Therefore do not fear, O My servant Jacob,’ says the Lord,
‘Nor be dismayed, O Israel;
For behold, I will save you from afar,
And your seed from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return, have rest and be quiet,
And no one shall make him afraid.

Therefore all those who devour you shall be devoured;
And all your adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
Those who plunder you shall become plunder,
And all who prey upon you I will make a prey.
For I will restore health to you
And heal you of your wounds,’ says the Lord.

Jeremiah 30: 10, 16-17

References:

HOT SUMMER

June 19, 2019 / admin

Both Israeli and Palestinian leaders have been warning that we are going to have a long, hot summer in these parts. They are not talking about the weather but rather about the rising tensions between Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza, and Hezbollah and Iran in Syria and Lebanon, not to mention the escalating tension in the Persian Gulf.

This reminded me of the Bible passage about David and Bathsheba. It begins thus “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war …” (2 Samuel 11:1). What is it about the spring that caused kings to go off to war? Is it because that is when the weather is most propitious for battle or is it because the hormones are awakened in spring? I don’t know but in the animal kingdom spring is the season when males fight to prove themselves worthy to mate with the females. Perhaps there is something of that in the human species too? Then again, perhaps it is just the growing heat that makes us all a little crazy.

Gaza

The last major flareup of violence between Gaza and Israel, in early May, which resulted in the deaths of 4 Israelis and 29 Gazans, stopped on May 5th when a ceasefire, brokered by Egypt, was agreed. The ceasefire agreement included an obligation on Hamas to halt violence along the border fence, maintain a buffer zone 300 meters from the border and to stop the launching of incendiary balloons at Israeli communities, to end nighttime clashes between Gazans and Israeli security forces along the border, and to end the flotillas trying to break through the maritime border between Gaza and Israel. In return, Israel was to expand the fishing zone, enable the UN cash-for-work programs, allow medicine and other civil aid to enter the strip and open negotiations relating to electricity, crossings and healthcare (1).

After a few short weeks of relative calm, the past two weeks have seen tensions rising once more as both sides claim the other is not keeping their side of the agreement.

The Gazans have begun to target Israeli crops and nature reserves with incendiary devices once again. The conditions are right for fires now that the daytime temperature is rising over 30 degrees Celsius most days and the vegetation is tinder dry. The winter wheat crop is ripe and ready for harvest. Last Wednesday at least six fires in southern Israel were blamed on incendiary balloons launched from the Strip on Wednesday, and another balloon with a bomb attached to it exploded over an Israeli town (2). This explosive balloon was the first armed attack since the May 5 ceasefire came into effect. The terrorists in Gaza have also upgraded their incendiary balloon technology so that the balloons drip flaming liquid as they fly starting multiple fires from a single launch (3).

A firefighter fights a fire in a wheat field near Gaza
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/263242

As a result of this upsurge in balloon attacks, Israel announced on Wednesday a full naval closure on Gaza, preventing Gazan fishermen from fishing. Gazan terrorists retaliated by firing two rockets into Israeli territory on Thursday. One was shot down by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system before it landed in the targeted Israeli town. The second rocket hit a school in the Israeli town of Sderot. Fortunately, most of the students had already gone home for Shabbat and the few occupants of the school were saved by the fact that the rocket failed to explode. Nevertheless, this constituted a serious violation of the ceasefire agreement and on Friday morning the IDF attacked a number of Hamas military targets in Gaza.

On Friday some 7000 Gazans demonstrated at the border and launched dozens of fire balloons into Israel, igniting at least 7 blazes causing significant damage to farm crops. Some of the protestors breached the border fence and the IDF responded with tear gas and live fire, wounding 46 according to the Hamas -run Gazan Health Ministry (1)

Palestinians riot by the border fence with Israel east of Gaza City as smoke billows from arson balloons launched during the protest, on May 15, 2019. (Mahmud Hams/AFP)
https://www.timesofisrael.com/after-fresh-gaza-violence-army-said-pushing-for-serious-military-campaign/

As the spectre of another round of violence looms there is much pressure from the civilian population, especially those living in the communities close to the Gaza Strip, and from at least some of the IDF leaders for a much stronger military response. Roni Daniel, a veteran military analyst on Israel’s TV news channel, Channel 12, cited a senior military source saying that Israel was “on the verge of a serious military campaign,” and that the IDF was considering ending its policy of warning occupants of buildings ahead of airstrikes, even if it causes casualties (4). It seems unlikely however that the Israel Security Cabinet would give the go-ahead for a serious military campaign ahead of the elections on September 17, unless we are forced into it by a serious upsurge in violence from Gaza. That said, the situation is volatile and it would not take a lot to light the fuse.

Syria

Last Tuesday night (11/06) the Tel al-Hara observation post in Syria was attacked by Israel according to Syrian sources. Israel, according to its long-standing policy, has not verified whether it was responsible or not. Tel al-Hara is an extinct volcano that towers over the Israeli border. As the highest vantage point in the area it has been used by Syrian, Russian, Iranian, and Hezbollah forces to gather intelligence on Israel. Late last year the Syrian army took control of the area once more and an agreement between Israel and Syria, mediated by Russia, was made. According to this agreement, only the Syrian army is allowed to remain in this area and Hezbollah, and the Iranian-backed Shiite militias were to be pushed back at least 80km east of the Damascus – Daara Road, which runs close to the Tel.

Iran

Last week, on Thursday (13th May) two oil tankers were attacked in the Straits of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. The crews of both tankers managed to escape but the tankers burned. This follows a similar attack on 4 tankers in the Straits of Hormuz earlier in the month, on the 12th May (6). The USA and others have blamed Iran for these attacks. The Pentagon has released grainy video footage it says shows Iranian forces removing a limpet mine from the side of one of the ships: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=7Gz08OQUnms . A good summary of the situation there can be seen on the link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/13/a-visual-guide-to-the-gulf-tanker-attacks .

The Straits of Hormuz contain a shipping lane only 2 miles wide each way and it is through this bottleneck that about 1/3 of all the world’s oil must pass each day (6). Most of the crude oil exported from Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq passes through it to key markets in Asia, the Pacific, Europe, North America and beyond (6,7). Iran has repeatedly threatened to disrupt this movement in order to force the USA to lift its embargo. Such a blockade would seriously threaten world oil supply and destabilize world economies.

Tanker on Fire in Persian Gulf, June 13, 2019 http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/263242

A combined maritime force of Gulf States, the USA and European and Asian allies protect the Strait. The US 5th Fleet is based in Bahrain and maintains a constant presence in the Persian Gulf using patrol vessels, guided-missile destroyers, and mine counter-measures vessels. It also monitors the Strait using satellites and drones (8). Earlier this month an aircraft carrier, the “Abraham Lincoln”, usually stationed in the Mediterranean moved into the Persian Gulf (9) to join the two already stationed there (10). At least two B52H Stratofortress planes and fighters from the Lincoln Strike Group were also moved to the area (11) Last week the USA announced that it was moving an additional 1,000 troops into the area (13).

Iran announced this week that it has quadrupled its production of enriched uranium and by June 27 it will exceed the amount of enriched uranium permitted in its stockpile according to the 2015 nuclear deal made with world powers (12).

With this buildup of military might and the constant exchange of threats and insults between the USA and Iran the tensions are mounting daily. Western and Israeli intelligence officials are concerned that Iran could mount an attack on Israel, by means of activating its proxies in Syria and Lebanon (Hezbollah), in order to further “escalate its feud with the United States and force Washington to the negotiation table” (14).

End Time Battles

With the aligning of the nations and the gathering together of Israel’s enemies many Messianic and Christian believers are asking themselves if this is not leading up to the fulfillment of the prophecies regarding the battle(s?) described in Ezekiel 38, Joel 3, and Zechariah 12. There is much controversy about the timing of the battle or battles described in these passages as to whether they precede the coming of Yeshua and his millenial reign or whether they are the same as the battle described in Revelation 20 at the end of the Messianic Millenium. I do not wish to enter into this discussion at this point but it does seem clear to me that world events are reaching a crisis point and that a great battle centered on Israel and Jerusalem is imminent. If you do not yet know Yeshua as your savior and Lord I strongly suggest you seek to do so. Time is running out. If you do already know Him then you need to make sure you are ready in your heart to face whatever is coming. We also have a duty to be much in prayer and standing with Israel, and the God of Israel, YHWH, in these times. I am very concerned that many Christians do not study the Word of God and are unfamiliar with the role of Israel in God’s redemption plan and are therefore being led into deception just as Yeshua (Jesus) himself predicted would happen in the end times (Matthew 24). We need also to be praying for our own nations that they will be found on the right side of this great battle for God will judge the nations as he said,

In those days and at that time,
    when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem,
I will gather all nations
    and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat.
There I will put them on trial
    for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations
    and divided up my land

Joel 3: 1-2

References:

POSSESSING THE LAND

April 20, 2019 / admin

A Land of Milk and Honey, Beit Guvrin in the Judean foothills

Today is the first day of the LORD’s Passover Feast. It is my favorite of the Feast days of Israel, perhaps because it was the first I became acquainted with, but also because of its rich symbolism and its close ties with the coming of Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah. Every year we celebrate it but every year it is as if I come to it anew. It never grows tiresome and I love the prayers and songs of this time which are full of our collective memory of how God has kept and provided for us through the generations. Its a time that stimulates faith and fills the heart with joy.

The story of the Passover focuses on the Exodus from Egypt, when God stretched forth his hand and brought the Israelite people out of slavery with mighty signs and miracles, and led them through the wilderness for forty years providing for their every need, until they entered into the Promised Land, Israel. For those of us whose Lord is Yeshua, it is a powerful parallel and foreshadowing of our personal salvation in which we were set free from slavery to sin and death, and given a full life of freedom and liberty as sons and daughters of the living God. Of course, it is also especially meaningful because our saviour and Lord, Yeshua, was crucified on the day of the Passover sacrifice and rose on the third day, the first day of the week following the Passover Shabbat, the day of the Wave Offering (Leviticus 23:9).

This Passover my focus has shifted a little. Instead of concentrating on the Exodus from Egypt I have been considering in more depth the entrance into the Promised Land. Perhaps this was largely triggered by a trip a friend and I made last week up into the Galilee and the Golan, during which we were reminded of the abundance and beauty of this glorious Promised Land. It is a good land, full of fruitfulness and health, but one that is totally dependent upon the blessing of God. If He withholds the rain, the land languishes and dies, but when God blesses us with good rain, as he has done this year, the land simply bursts forth with life.

Butterfly and wildflowers on Har Yona, Nazareth Illit, Galilee, April 2019.

” Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him. For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.”

Deuteronomy 8: 6-9

The People of Israel crossed over the Jordan River on the 10th Day of the First Month (Nisan, as it is known today). On the same day, all the men of Israel were circumcised and while they were still raw and healing 4 days later, all Israel celebrated the Passover on the 14th of Nisan. On the next day, the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the manna stopped and they ate for the first time of the fruit of the Promised Land, their own God-given land. How wonderful that must have felt!

On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho….

On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. The manna stopped the day after^[d] they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate the produce of Canaan.

Joshua 4: 19 ; 5: 10-12

Some years ago I was visiting a friend in Eilat and as I left we prayed together for my journey. I was surprised when in the midst of our prayer she asked God to give me revelation as I journeyed northwards to my home. I admit I was a bit skeptical at that moment, but as I traveled I did indeed receive a revelation that has never left me. It was mid-summer and the desert of the Negev was sere and seemingly lifeless, and it stretched on mile after mile after mile. Then suddenly, and it was suddenly, just a few kilometers south of Tel Aviv, the landscape turned green and fertile. In that moment I understood just how vulnerable we were. We teeter on the very edge of the great desert that stretches across the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula. How desperately we need to cling to God and his provision of rain in order to survive. God has not given us a land of abundant rainfall and lush greenness, as in the countries of western Europe for example, but rather a marginal land, a ‘land of milk and honey’, right on the edge of the desert, so that we may not grow lazy and lax and forget our need for total reliance on God. This is the grace of God for Israel, and indeed it has also been the grace of God in my own personal life.

Israel’s possession of the Land and the enjoyment of its abundance was always conditional. As long as they were faithful to the LORD God of Israel they would remain in the land and be blessed with prosperity, but if they should turn aside to foreign gods or forget the God of Israel, and sin against Him, then He would cast them out. However it was never final, there was always a way of repentance and return. Moses warned the people of Israel saying.

“…but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land. Be careful not to forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he made with you; do not make for yourselves an idol in the form of anything the Lord your God has forbidden. For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time—if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God and arousing his anger, I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live there long but will certainly be destroyed. The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the Lord will drive you. There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath.

Deuteronomy 4: 22-31

We know that on two occasions God did cast the people of Israel out of their land because of their idolatry and sin, but in our days he has had mercy upon us and brought us back home again. Not only that, but he has prospered us beyond all imagining. Today Israel proudly stands amongst the most powerful nations on this Earth and as I travel about the land I am constantly awed by what has been achieved in just 70 or so years. But herein lies great danger, the danger that we will take the glory to ourselves and forget the LORD and his mercies. It is He who has done it and not us. Please pray that the people of Israel will not be puffed up and proud, glorying in our accomplishments, but that we will humble ourselves and pray to God with thankful hearts for what He has done, so that we may continue to enjoy his abundant blessings.

When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down,and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied,then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you. You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.”But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.

If you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed. Like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the Lord your God.

Deuteronomy 8 : 10-20

OTHER PRAYER POINTS:

Elections:

We prayed, we voted but it is God who establishes our leaders for His purposes. The elections are over and the Likud Party, led by Binyamin Netanyahu, and the Blue and White Party, ed by Benny Gantz, were tied with 35 seats each. To form a government, a party has to have a minimum 61 seats in the 120-strong Knesset (Parliament). This means that each party will have to form a coalition with other parties in order to reach this minimum. There is no way the Blue and White Party can do this, because the left is currently very weak. Only the Likud Party has the possibility of succeeding. This means that Likud is currently negotiating with the right-wing religious parties in order to gain the required 61 seats. It seems likely that Netanyahu is set to serve a record-breaking 5th term as Israel’s Prime MInister. In short, the elections have changed little, with the religious right coming out more powerful than ever. The exceptional success of the Blue and White party may however serve as a warning to Netanyahu that there is growing discontent with the inordinate power yielded by his religious coalition partners, alienating the secular majority. Please pray that the new government, whoever they are, will pay due attention to the internal distribution of wealth, narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor, and boosting the education, health and welfare sectors.

Gaza border tensions:

Since the Egyptian brokered ‘ceasefire’ came into effect the Gaza border tensions eased some. Some of the troops and weapons that had been moved there have now been redeployed elsewhere. The situation still remains very tense and the ‘March of Return’ demonstrations continue IDF forces. On Friday about 6,000 Palestinians demonstrated at the border and according to Hamas sources, 46 were injured (1). A shot was fired at Israeli forces defending the border and in response an Israeli aircraft and a tank attacked two military positions belonging to Hamas (2). As I am writing reports are coming in of a loud blast heard by residents of Israel’s Shaar Negev region, adjacent to the Gaza border. It appears at this stage that two rockets fired at Israel fell short, landed in an open area in Palestinian territory and exploded. The Israeli airforce has already responded. This could signal another escalation of tensions there. Please pray for peace and a long-lasting resolution of these issues.

Passover security

There is always a heightened threat of terrorism during the Jewish Feasts in Israel. As is usual, the West Bank and Gaza are under ‘lockdown’ for the duration of Passover, in an effort to prevent attacks. Today a 20 year old Palestinian attempted to attack soldiers at the Tapuah Junction in the West Bank but was thwarted. Please pray that our streets, synagogues, churches, parks and other places where many people gather during this festive season will remain safe. Pray too for the safety of all those who daily put their lives on the line so that Israeli citizens, pilgrims and tourists can be safe.

May you all have a peaceful and blessed Passover and Easter season, in the name of Yeshua and the LORD God of Israel.

References:

SIGNS OF THE TIMES

March 16, 2019 / admin

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you.For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.All these are the beginning of birth pains.

“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Matthew 24 :3-4

It is yet another wet rainy Shabbat here in Israel. Praise God for every drop of rain!! The weather pundits are saying this is probably the last winter storm before the Spring sets in. We’ve already had our first Spring sharav (hot dry East wind) and all the lovely spring flowers are adorning our beautiful Land.

MASSACRE IN NEW ZEALAND

Yesterday morning I rose and turned on the TV news and was stunned that the leading headline was about the massacre of 49 Muslim worshipers in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. More than 40 others were wounded. My condolences go out to the survivors and family members of those who were victims of this appalling act. As a New Zealand citizen, and a former resident of Christchurch, I am deeply shocked and saddened, though not surprised, that this has happened.

A few years ago I was boarding an internal flight in New Zealand and was horrified that there had been absolutely no security check of our hand luggage. When I remarked upon this to the man in the queue beside me, he said “Oh no, we don’t need that here. We don’t have any problems with security”. I was appalled. What sort of bubble was he living in? Just a few days earlier there had been a terrorist shooting attack in Sydney, Australia. I wondered just how close did it all have to get before New Zealanders woke up to the reality of the world in which we live?

As we landed in Wellington airport we were greeted by a large sign proclaiming ” Welcome to the Middle of Middle Earth”. I felt it was very appropriate, not just because the movie trilogy “Lord of the Rings” was filmed in NZ, but because in many ways New Zealand was truly like The Shire, the town of the Hobbits in that film. It was a beautiful, simple, innocent culture, concerned with their own everyday matters, blissfully unaware of the dark evil bearing down on them from every direction. I am truly heartbroken that that innocence has now been forever lost.

MISSILES OVER TEL AVIV

The reason I had turned on the TV that morning, was that the night before two Iranian supplied Fajr-type middle-range missiles had been fired from the Gaza Strip towards Tel Aviv. I knew that, during the night, Israel’s Defense Forces would be retaliating and was concerned that this incident would signal the beginning of a new Gaza war. Both the missiles fired appeared to explode before hitting the ground (see the video below) although the IDF say no anti-missile rockets were fired. There were no injuries nor damage in the Tel Aviv region, although some large pieces of metal from the rockets fell in built-up areas. Overnight the IDF bombed some 100 Hamas military targets in the Strip and on Friday morning another 9 rockets were fired at Israeli settlements near the border. Six of these were shot down by the Iron Dome antimissiles. Some of the shrapnel landed in a school yard but fortunately no students had yet arrived at the school.

Two rockets over Tel Aviv

In the following hours Hamas claimed that the missiles fired at Tel Avi were a ‘mistake’. They say some low-level group fired them off without proper authorization. This sounds unlikely to me and all the more so since in October last year Hamas claimed that similar missiles fired ‘accidentally’ at Beer Sheva had been set off by lightning. Hamas seems rather ‘accident prone’ and it does not explain why the missiles were all set up, and aimed at Tel Aviv in the first place. I also do not believe a ‘low-level’ Hamas group would be given access to such a missile. Firing a sophisticated missile of this kind requires rather more than a match and a fuse. I don’t think anyone really believes this version of events, but it is a convenient face-saving story, both for Israel and for Hamas. Hamas does not want a war right now and was in fact in the midst of cease-fire negotiations with Israel, brokered by an Egyptian delegation that was actually in the Strip at the time. Israel also wants to avoid an escalation so the story permits us to carry out only a limited attack in response.

Hamas is in a weak position right now, starved of funding by the Palestinian Authority and facing riots at home. Over the past few days, the citizens of Gaza have been rioting in the streets demanding economic relief, something that Hamas is not in a position to give. If indeed a ‘low-level’ unit of Hamas fighters did set off the missiles without authorization from the top, it indicates a fragmentation of Hamas forces and disintegrating control. Indeed Iran has been encouraging the more extreme Hamas fighters to attack Israel, even contrary to orders from Hamas leadership, in order to influence the upcoming Israeli elections.

Although the situation on the border is quiet at the moment it is very tense and any further accident or ‘mistake’ might cause a violent escalation which cannot be stopped. In view of this, Hamas called for a pause in the weekly border riots, which apparently was heeded, but as we come up to the first anniversary of the beginning of the so-called “March of Return” at the end of the month, and the Israeli elections on the 9th April, it is probable that the riots will continue to escalate. With the winter rains due to stop soon and the winter wheat ripening in the fields around the Strip, the risk of fires is again increasing. There have already been a number of incendiary balloons sent across the border into Israel in recent days.

THE GOLDEN GATE

In Jerusalem too there has been an increase in tensions recently, especially in the area of the Golden Gate. The Golden Gate has great significance for all three monotheistic religions. It is the eastern gate which faces the Mount of Olives and gives direct access to the Temple Mount, or would do so were it open. The existing gate was built in around 520 CE (AD) on the ruins of an earlier gate. In 810CE it was closed off by Muslims, and then reopened briefly by the Crusaders in 1102 only to be closed off again by Saladin after his conquest of Jerusalem in 1187. The Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent, rebuilt it and walled it up in 1541 and it has remained closed ever since. The Ottomans also placed a Muslim cemetery in front of the gate to prevent the entry of any false Messiahs.

In Hebrew the Golden Gate is called Sha’ar HaRahamim, the Gate of Mercy, through which the shekinah glory, or the divine presence, would enter to rest on the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies of the Temple, and it is expected that the shekinah would appear again at the coming of the Prince, the Messiah, who would reopen the Gate.

Then the man brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, the one facing east, and it was shut. The Lord said to me, “This gate is to remain shut. It must not be opened; no one may enter through it. It is to remain shut because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.

Ezekiel 44: 1-3

The Muslims call the Gate, Bab el-Zahabi, or Bab el-Dhahabi, meaning the Golden Gate or the Gate of Eternal Life. In addition they name the southern door of the Gate, the Gate of Mercy and the northern door the Gate of Repentance. They believe that the Gate will be the site of Allah’s final judgement and the future resurrection.

For Christians, the Gate also has deep significance. It was through this Gate that Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey prior to his crucifixion (John 12: 12-15), thus fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9.

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

“Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!”Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written:

“Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion;
see, your king is coming,
seated on a donkey’s colt.”

John 12: 12 -15

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
    Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
    righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Zechariah 9:9

Christians also believe that it is through this Gate that Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) will return as is prophesied in the Ezekiel passage quoted above.

In recent days a battle for the Gate has been raging. For decades the hall of the Gate compound, accessible only from the Temple Mount, was used by Muslims as offices and a community center hall hosting religious and other activities. In 2003 Israel closed off the area claiming it was being used by Hamas for political purposes and it has remained closed until the 25th of February this year when the Waqf, the Muslim authority in charge of the Temple Mount, illegally broke down the Israeli-built barrier, saying they were intending to carry out repairs needed because of rain damage. They stayed to pray in the hall, ostensibly making it a de facto Mosque, calling for the faithful to pray there. An announcement by the new head of the Islamic Waqf Council of the intention to rebuild the Gate of Mercy compound and repurpose it into a prayer site is a clear provocation and it is deemed by Israel to be a violation of the ‘status quo’. Palestinian propaganda claims that Israel is planning to turn the area into a synagogue. With both sides accusing the other of violations of the ‘status quo’ this site has become yet another flashpoint in the city, and since last Monday there have been violent confrontations between Muslim worshippers and Israeli police. On Thursday an Israeli policewoman was seriously injured by a Molotov cocktail during the riots.

The Golden Gate complex from inside the Temple Mount compound

https://www.tutorialathome.in/history/golden-gate-jerusalem

It is not surprising then that such a significant site would be a focus of the spiritual warfare in which we are all engaged. Please pray for the peace of Jerusalem and also for the people of the God of Israel, wherever we may live, that we will stand strong and unified in these evil times. Jesus warned us of a falling away from the faith in the end times and that many false prophets and teachers would arise. Please pray that we will not allow our love to grow cold because of the increase in wickedness in the world.

At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

Matthew 24: 10-13

MOONSHOT

February 24, 2019 / admin

This is the first time I am writing my blog on this new website “Talia’s Joy”. It will still be available on the Google Blog site as before, at least for a while. You are invited to look at the other posts on this website too.

I haven’t written for a while because I have just started a new job and have been rather busy. It seems I failed ‘retirement’ and it is good to back in the working world. I am only working part time and, so far, I am enjoying it a lot.

It is deep winter here in Israel and it has been a cool and wet one so far – the wettest I can remember for quite a while. We haven’t had a lot of rain here in the Jerusalem area, but there have been plentiful rains and snowfall in the north where it is most needed to fill the Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) and the aquifers. The Kinneret has risen 1.4 m since the start of the winter and is expected to pass the lower red line by the end of the rainy season in about a month (1). When it passes the lower red line pumping from the lake can resume. This is gratifying and a reason for rejoicing, but the lake is still far from ‘full’ and as its level falls on average half to one centimeter a day because of evaporation in summer, we could still use more rain. Please keep praying.

Even though we are still in the coldest and wettest month, there are already signs of spring. The almond trees are gracing the hillsides around Jerusalem with their lovely white and pink blossom. The brilliant red anenomes are in full bloom and the annual “Red South Festival”, celebrating the blooming of the desert land in the Negev is in full swing, with many thousands of Israelis visiting the wildflowers every weekend.

The spring flowers are already turning our landscapes into beautiful gardens.

Anenomes and other wildflowers in meadow at Beit Guvrin, 20 February 2016
Photo: Talia Good

ISRAEL ON THE MOON

The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
⁴Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world.

Psalm 19: 1-4

An artists rendition of Bereshit on the Moon
https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5467064,00.html

Early this morning (22/02) Israel’s first moon mission was successfully launched from Florida, USA. If all goes well, this unmanned spacecraft will touch down on the moon on 11 April. This will make Israel the fourth nation to land a spacecraft on the moon, an amazing accomplishment for a beleaguered nation of only 8 million people. This tiny craft, weighing only 585 kg and about the size of a dishwasher is named “Bereshit”, Hebrew for the first words of the Bible, “In the Beginning” ( also the Hebrew name for the first book, Genesis). This spacecraft was designed and built by a private nonprofit organization, called SpaceIL, which originally intended to compete in a Google-sponsored competition to put a spacecraft on the moon. The competition was eventually abandoned as none of the participants were able to meet the deadline, but the Israeli team decided to continue. Funded mainly by private donors, the mission will cost about $100 million, a small fraction of the cost of similar landings carried out by the USA in the sixties. It is hoped the spacecraft will land on the Mare Serenitatis (the Sea of Tranquility), a dark, lava-covered area in the northern hemisphere of the Moon. You can see this Mare from Earth – it is the left eye of the ‘man in the moon’. All going well it will send back photos and magnetic data. As it has no cooling system the spacecraft is expected to cease functioning in the intense sunlight on the moon after just 3 days. You can read more about this exciting project on https://nordic.businessinsider.com/spacex-israel-moon-mission-launch-spaceil-lunar-lander-2019-2/ or go to the website of SpaceIL, http://www.spaceil.com/

SPIRITUAL WARFARE

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6 : 12

It is not surprising that as we draw ever nearer to the times of the end, the intensity of the spiritual warfare being waged against the Kingdom of God is strengthening. In the center of the vortex, here in Israel, we are certainly aware of this and it seems the Enemy is ramping up the opposition. More and more believers here are coming under very serious attacks of the Enemy, mainly in the realm of health and finances.

Good friends of mine recently returned to Israel after a few years in Canada taking care of family matters. Getting settled back into the Land is no easy matter, even without the interference of the Enemy. Less than a month after their return they came home from their congregational meeting last Shabbat to find that their new home had been broken into and all their valuables stolen. Gone are all their computers and camera equipment, which they need to carry out their ministry and earn a living here. The youngest son also lost his computer which he needs for his online home schooling courses. They also lost the money they had raised for their resettlement. It is a dire blow for a family (God knows their name) that is also facing serious health issues and the death of a son just a few months ago. Please lift up this family in prayer, including their wider extended family which is also facing intense attack.

Theft is a serious problem in Israel. I have had my home broken into on three separate occasions and my bicycle stolen. My landlords and friends upstairs have had their car stolen from just outside on the street four times, twice this last year. It’s getting hard for them to get insurance on their vehicles. One of our neighbors also had his house broken into and car stolen recently. It’s hard not to feel anxious about this threat. The first thing I do each morning is to check that my car is still there and my house secure. It’s hard to always find that ‘peace that passes understanding’. Our possessions are not important in the big scheme of things, but we do need them to function in our daily lives, and when they are stolen it is stressful to say the least. Most of us who live in Israel live from day to day financially, and have no reserves to fall back on when disaster strikes. The Enemy knows where we are most vulnerable.

Pray that all the believers here in the land will be careful to put on the armor of God daily, and not give the Enemy the slightest opening for attack. It is hard to be that vigilant and to walk in total sanctification and faith all of the time. Please cover us with your prayers.

Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints

Ephesians 6: 13-18

ELECTION FEVER

Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.

Romans 13: 1

Israel is in the grip of election fever. National Elections will be held on the 9th April. I have never become involved in Israeli politics to any great extent but I do believe that it is important to pray for our leaders, and that includes prayer to determine who those leaders will be.

Israel has a complex, democratic system of government. Israelis vote for party lists for the 120 seat Knesset (Parliament). Since the founding of the State in 1948 no one party has ever had an outright majority, meaning that we have always been ruled by coalition governments. Such a system gives inordinate power to the smaller, extreme right- or left-wing parties. Binyamin Netanyahu and his right-wing Likud party have been in power for the last decade.

Today (22/02) is the last day for parties to submit their lists. A few days ago Netanyahu announced that his Likud Party had formed a coalition together with the extreme far-right religious parties in anticipation of a coalition of left and centrist parties joining forces. This may lose his party votes as he has now joined forces with the extreme right, including the Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power) Party, successor to the Kach Party, once led by the late-Rabbi Yehuda Kahane, and which was banned some years ago for its extreme racist stance (3). This morning the two largest centrist parties, Yesh Atid , led by Yair Lapid, and Israel Resilience , led by Benny Gantz, will run together in the elections (4). If successful Gantz and Lapid would rotate for the Prime Minister’s position. The left wing parties are in disarray and can only agree on one thing, that they want to depose Netanyahu. They are unlikely to be a threat to either the Right or the Center in this election. The latest polls are giving a lead to the Centrist Gantz/Lapid coalition, but it will be a close-run election.

In the Israeli political scene there is really only one deciding issue and that is national security. Netanyahu has remained in power because most Israelis have seen him as the best leader in International Affairs and military matters. Netanyahu is now 69 years old and faces corruption charges which may lead to an indictment before the election date. On the other hand, the Centrist coalition leaders, Gantz (59) and Lapid (55), are both former IDF c

Chiefs of Staff, and their coalition lists include other high-ranking military men, including Gabi Ashkenazi, also a former IDF Chief of Staff, and a former Defense Minister, Moshe Ya’alon.

Left to right: Gabi Ashkenazi, Moshe Ya’alon, Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz

https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5467517,00.html

You might be wondering what the terms ‘right’ and ‘left’ mean in Israeli politics. It is not primarily an economic delineation but rather a religious one. The right is mainly religious, morally conservative and ‘hawkish’ in military position. The left is more secular, morally more liberal and ‘doveish’. This is of course an oversimplification of a very complex picture.

The focus on national security as the overriding concern means that internal issues often get pushed aside. Israel faces many internal challenges such as the inequity of wealth, the rising number of poor, crises in the education and health sectors, just to name a few. I am praying that, whatever government gets into power, at least some of these issues can receive the attention they deserve. It is important of course that we face the external threats to our existence but that is meaningless if we self-destruct from inside.

TENSION IN THE SOUTH

It is almost a year now since the “March of Return” protests began at the Gaza border and in the last week or so there has been an increase in the number and violence of the confrontations. Until recently the main confrontations were on Fridays, after Muslim prayers, but this week there have been violent protests on the border on a daily basis and we have also seen the resurgence of balloon-borne incendiary devices. It is difficult to get much news as the elections are dominating the media and, quite frankly, I think we are all getting a bit bored with it all. It is sad when such things become routine and ‘normal’.

This week top military analysts have warned that we can expect an increase in tension and confrontation as the elections approach and a full-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip is looking more and more inevitable. Today the IDF began a 3-day military-wide exercise simulating an all out war with Gaza. The drill will include the ground forces, armor, artillery and aircraft and will involve the use of live-fire exercises, troop deployments to various areas, aerial maneuvres, and include a test of the emergency call-up procedures. Though the IDF claims that this ‘surprise’ exercise was part of its routine training programme, it comes in wake of an assertion by the former military ombudsman, Maj. Gen. (res.) Yitzhak Brick, that the army was not prepared for large scale war (5). I suspect is also designed to send a message to Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip not to continue pushing the escalation any further. Please pray that they get this message. A full-scale war would result in the great loss of life on both sides, but would be a terrible humanitarian disaster in Gaza, which is already teetering on complete collapse.

JERUSALEM AND THE TEMPLE MOUNT

In recent weeks there has also been a rise in terrorism in Jerusalem and the West Bank. On Thursday night last week (21/02) 10 Molotov coctails were thrown at a bus carrying Jewish tourists in Siloam (an Arab village in Jerusalem), about 400 m from the Western Wall. The bus was destroyed by fire but miraculously all the passengers escaped (6).

On Friday (22/02) thousands of Muslim worshippers entered the Bab-al-Rahama (the Mercy Gate) compound. This Gate is known to Christians as the Golden Gate through which Yeshua (Jesus) will return. Israel closed this compound in 2003 because excavations were being carried out there which posed a threat to Jewish antiquities on the site. On Friday the Waqf, the Islamic Endowment, which controls activities on the Temple Mount illegally opened the gate and permitted the entry of Muslim worshippers. Today Israel detained the Waqf Council chairman, Sheikh Abd al-Athim Salhab, and the Deputy Director of Awqaf in Jerusalem, Sheikh Najeh Bkerat (7). No doubt this incident will raise the temperature on the Temple Mount and could lead to increased rioting and terror attacks. Please pray for the peace of Jerusalem

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May they prosper who love you …”

Psalm 122:6

REFERENCES

Raindrops Are Falling

February 2, 2019 / admin

Update written on January 26, 2019 can be seen on https://cryforjerusalem.blogspot.com/

Tag: Gaza border violence

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