ISIS ON OUR DOORSTEP

http://www.prophecynewswatch.com/images/recent/ISIS_jewishthreat.jpg

At 10:54 PM on Wednesday the 8th February the Code Red Alert sirens sounded in the southern resort city of Eilat  as four rockets were fired towards the city from the Sinai Peninsula. As residents rushed to their shelters the Iron Dome anti-missile system shot down 3 of the rockets and the fourth landed in an open area. There were no casualties and no damage but shrapnel from the rockets landed in a hotel swimming pool. Eilat is a popular winter resort and at this time of the year the hotels are full of European tourists seeking respite from their long cold winter.  This incident could have ended with much more serious consequences.

 

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4919939,00.html

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/224675

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-israel-rocket-attack-latest-port-eilat-launch-egypt-resort-islamic-state-terror-group-a7570991.html

 

The following day ISIS (IS or Day'esh) claimed responsibility for the rocket attack.  According to Ynetnews, "The organization issued a statement saying: “A number of rockets were launched at Jewish centers in Eilat, known as Umm Rashrash. The Jews and Crusaders should know that the war of the apostles will not save them in any way.” http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4919939,00.html
 

 

As the world is preoccupied with the new American President and his activities, awareness of the threat of ISIS seems to have fallen off the radar to some extent. In Syria and Iraq ISIS is in retreat as local forces, backed by Russian, US and others, launch operations against them. Yesterday Iraq announced the beginning of an operation to free the last major ISIS stronghold in their country, in western Mosul.

 
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/02/19/iraq-forces-operation-western-half-mosul-islamic-state/98124940/
 
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/iraq-launches-offensive-re-take-part-mosul-isis-prime-minister-n722916

 

While ISIS may be in retreat in some areas it is quietly slipping into others and building strength there. One such area is right here on our doorstep in the Sinai Peninsula, where ISIS has an estimated force of some 800-1000 soldiers which fight against Egyptian forces there. Egypt has destroyed some six ISIS tunnels passing into Eygptian territory in just the last month. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4919939,00.html

 

This Saturday (the 18th) the ISIS group claimed that an unmanned Israeli aircraft attacked one of their bases killing 5 of its operatives. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4924789,00.html
 

On Monday (20 February) two more rockets were fired from the Sinai into Israel. They fell in open spaces. http://jewishnews.timesofisrael.com/two-rockets-fired-into-southern-israel-from-egypt/. ISIS has subsequently claimed responsibility. Meanwhile in the north Ynetnews reports that on the 21st " ISIS-affiliated groups opened a major offensive in the tri-nation border of Israel, Syria and Jordan, attacking various rebel factions and have managed to take control of four villages—Adwan, Saham al-Jawlan, Jalin and Tasil—in addition to the strategic southwestern suburb of Daraa, which is the capital of Hauran" http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4926370,00.html

ISIS TROOPS ADVANCE IN SYRIAN GOLAN
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4926370,00.html

 

In Gaza there are also changes in the power structure and this is ringing warning bells in Israel . Hamas has elected a new  leader, Yahya Sanwar, who is both a radical and extremely militant in his views and actions .

Sanwar is a convicted terrorist who was released from an Israeli prison in exchange for the release of Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit some years ago. His appointment shatters any hope for a future prisoner exchange that would bring about the release of several Israelis currently being held in the Gaza Strip.

Mohammed Deif will theoretically become the head of the military wing of Hamas, but in reality, Sanwar will be both the political leader and the military leader, as the supreme commander of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades.

This is not only bad news for Israel but also for the civilian population in the Gaza Strip. It means that now all of Hamas' resources will be subject to the needs of the military wing and their preparations for war with Israel - amassing arms, training combatants and digging tunnels.  The living conditions for the civilian population may well deteriorate even further.

Ismail Haniyeh, a Sunni Muslim, will take over from Khaled Mashal, as the Head of Hamas' political bureau. He seeks to improve  relations with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Gulf States
 in order to ease conditions for the people, but at the same time he wants tighter relationships with Iran, which funds military training and the military technologies.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4922229,00.html

Ismail Haniyeh (L), Yahya Sanwar (center), Khaled Meshaal (R)
https://www.israelandstuff.com/khaled-mashal-replaced-ismail-haniyeh-ignored-after-hamas-elections-in-gaza/ismail-haniyeh-l-yahya-sanwar-center-khaled-meshaal-r

 

 Israel's chief of the IDF, Gadi Eisenkot,  had this to say about the situation: " the election of the radical Yahya Sanwar as the head of Hamas's political wing in Gaza proves that any distinction made in the past between the Gaza terror organization's political and military branches was now null and void."

 

He also noted that " that at present, he does not see willingness among enemies both on the northern front and in Gaza to initiate a military campaign against Israel."

 

Earlier this month Secretary-General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah threatened to attack Israel's nuclear reactor in Dimona and the ammonia tank currently located in Haifa in the event of a conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4923673,00.html

 

In response to this boast, Gadi Eisenkot, asserted that Nasrallah "was all bark and no bite as his threats against Israel come while his organization is deep in crisis", and that his threats "to fire rockets at the Haifa ammonia facility and the Dimona nuclear reactor were meant to create deterrence and maintain the status quo with Israel as he sees it".

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4926181,00.html

 

 

Earlier this month the Haifa Local Affairs Court ordered the 12,000 ton Haifa ammonia tank to be emptied and relocated within 10 days.  This aging and dangerous tank, established in 1989,  stores all the ammonia imported by Israel. According to a report by researchers at the Haifa Technion Institute of Technology "an enemy strike on the facility and ammonia delivery vessels could bring catastrophe to the area.
While an attack on the container could lead to the deaths of thousands of residents, an attack on the ships conveying the ammonia to the region could kill hundreds of thousands, numbers that were inconceivable in any apocalyptic scenario ever described by the security establishment in the State of Israel,”  http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Haifa-toxic-ammonia-gas-tank-ordered-emptied-in-10-days-481309.  The Haifa Chemicals company has applied for an extension and has been granted an additional 3 months to comply.

Haifa Bay’s 12,000-ton ammonia tank. (photo credit:MAX YELINSON/ MAARIV)
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Haifa-toxic-ammonia-gas-tank-ordered-emptied-in-10-days-481309.

 

The day after the rocket attack on Eilat there was a terror attack in the city of Petach Tikva.  A 19-year old Palestinian terrorist, from the Nablus area, opened fire with a homemade rifle outside the crowded market on Baron Hirsch St. Three people suffered gunshot wounds to their legs. Bystanders gave chase and two were injured, one sustaining a stabbing wound to his neck. The terrorist then entered a sewing machine shop where his gun jammed. His pursuers then neutralized him with a sewing machine ( that must be a first!) and he was captured.    http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4920284,00.html 

 

On the home front there are some serious social problems in Israel.  A little while ago a video, filmed by a hidden camera,  was released of elderly and infirm people in a nursing home being physically beaten and abused by their carers. This video shocked the nation, and brought to the fore the concern that the situation in many such institutions is similarly appalling. Health Minister, Yaacov Litzman, is calling for the urgent transferrance of funds to totally reform the system, which has 'no supervision, no standards and no budget ' .One wonders why it has taken him so long to take some action?
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4925540,00.html.  With the 'baby boomers' now reaching old age there is an urgent need to make better provisions for the  elderly.  It is not only nursing homes that need reform. The pension provisions are also far from adequate, forcing many elderly to live in substandard conditions and work in degrading and physically demanding jobs beyond their capabilities. Some are reduced to begging on the streets.

 

I, myself have been laid off my job and in June will be forced to retire. I will receive the princely sum of 1500 shekels a month from the government to live on, and this after paying national insurance (social security) for around 35 years.  With even the cheapest apartment in Jerusalem costing more than 4000 shekels a month, you can see that it is impossible to make ends meet, unless one has additional resources. For most of the generation now reaching retirement age it has been impossible to save for retirement as the cost of living in Israel is very high and salaries very low in comparison.  Most Israelis finish the month in minus, even if they are working. 

 

There is a serious need for financial reform as the current system favors the wealthy and penalizes the poor. This is something about which the Bible has much to say. Again and again God speaks out against the oppression of the poor, the widows and the orphans. When He gave Moses the Law on Mt Sinai He said:

Therefore you shall not oppress one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God.

Leviticus 25: 17

 

The oppression of the poor is one of the main reasons that God allowed Israel to be conquered by the Assyrians and the Babylonians,

 

"The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger.   So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.   Therefore I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; and I have recompensed their deeds on their own heads,” says the Lord God."

Ezekiel 22: 29-31

 

 

Please pray for the protection of the LORD from all the enemies that surround us, but also pray for righteousness and justice within the nation.  Our national sin is much more dangerous than the enemies that surround us.  We will not find righteousness until we find our God again. We are like sheep without a shepherd. Pray for the salvation of Israel in Yeshua, the Messiah.   

 

Now to finish I want to share some images of the first intimations of spring in our beautiful Land:

 

 

Floods in Kiryat Yam (Photo: Tunnel flooded in Haifa (Photo: Haifa Coastal District Fire Department))
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4921150,00.html

 

 

Snow in Golan Heights Golan Heights (Photo: Lilach Ashter)

 

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4923639,00.html

                             

      

Anenomes on Har Hatormusim  (the Lupin hill)

Almond blossoms in Ein Kerem (the birthplace of John the Baptist)

Almond blossoms in Ein Kerem

Mountain lupin and white mustard at Har Hatormusin, Emek Elah (where David fought Goliath)

Wildflowers on Har Hatormusim

Mountain lupin

         

   Thank you so much  for standing faithfully with us and all Israel in your prayers.  We appreciate you so much and pray the God of Israel will richly bless you in return and faithfully keep you under the shelter of His wings.  

I have until now never asked for donations as I have been working full time, however now that I have been laid off my job and am being forced to retire, I am in need of additional finances to live.  If you would like to help out you can give an offering on-line through paypal, click on the donate button below:            

 

 

 A DOLL FOR CHRISTMAS?

What are you buying your children, or grandchildren, for Christmas or Hannuka this year? A doll perhaps? How about one of these?

https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/images/article_images/temp_images/20151209_TerroristDolls.jpg


This week Israeli customs officials confiscated a shipment of 4,000 Palestinian terrorist dolls, made in the United Arab Emirates, and bound for the West Bank. The kefiyah clad dolls are clutching a rock in their raised right hands, and bear a picture of the El-Aksa Mosque on the Temple Mount, with a caption that translated reads "O Jerusalem we are coming" and "Jerusalem is for us".
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/22728-israel-confiscates-4000-palestinian-puppets

For whom were these dolls intended? Children? If so, then surely this must be the lowest and most despicable act of incitement I can imagine. But for all that, it doesn't surprise me. A people that brainwashes their children to hatred and violence from the cradle, that encourages their children to go out and commit murder, and rejoices when they are killed as a result, has surely sunk to the lowest depths of humanity. How I cry out for these children. What chance do they have of a decent and worthwhile life? How can they ever grow up to build a nation and lead their people in the path of peace with their neighbors - us?

Yet this week New Zealand put forth yet another draft proposal for bringing about peace between Israel and the Palestinians, calling for the Security Council of the UN to mandate a course of action for the two parties to prepare for talks in "a realistic but early timeframe".http://bigstory.ap.org/article/b99accfddab140d88fff2d5c9df12028/new-zealand-circulates-un-resolution-israel-Palestinians
The fact that the Russian Ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin, stated that his country supported the new draft resolution saying "We have always claimed that the UN should be more involved," perhaps says it all. http://www.jerusalemonline.com/news/world-news/the-israeli-connection/russian-supports-new-zealand-on-israeli-palestinian-peace-talks-16824 Putin's Russia continues to strengthen its influence and power in the Middle East by supporting and arming Israel's enemies, Iran and Syria. They are hardly neutral observers.

I think most Israelis would be in favor of a two state solution if the terms of its establishment were to ensure lasting peace. Most would be quite happy to live beside the Palestinians and even have them live and work amongst us, if they could be trusted not to attack us with knives and bombs.

Actually Jews and Arabs are cousins- they have similar languages and cultures. Israelis love to eat Arab food and shop in Arab souks (markets). Many of us work and shop together quite happily. Sadly however, there have been a number of instances when a Palestinian who has worked alongside Jews in Israel suddenly one day pulls a knife or a gun and kills his workmates, even though they may have eaten together in their homes and even invited each other to their family weddings. Such treachery has eroded all trust. 

The Palestinian Authority still does not even recognize Israel's right to exist and is doing everything it can to incite violence against Israelis. The only path to peace is negotiation and compromise, but at this juncture there is no one to talk to, and the intervention of the UN would only make things worse. Israel has a deep distrust of the UN that is seen as heavily biased against Israel. What the NZ proposal and the Western world in general does not seem to recognize is that it 'takes two to tango". Israel is willing to negotiate and compromise but that there is no one to talk to. Westerners think all people want nothing more than peace, but here in the Middle East, that is simply not so.  there is no way to negotiate peace if the other part does not want peace. How many more 9/11s and the type of attacks that occurred in Paris recently will it take for the world to wake up? There is a huge movement of Islamic fundamentalism that is quite open about its one and only goal, to overcome the whole world and destroy anyone who is not Muslim. This is Jihad. They want war not peace and sadly, the Palestinians are but a pawn in their game. It suits them to 'keep the pot boiling' by incitement and accusation against Israel. The greatest threat to the Palestinians is not Israel but Islamic fundamentalism.

Imagine if tomorrow Israel took all its settlements and all its soldiers out of the West Bank and turned it all over to the Palestinian Authority. What would happen?  Its not hard to guess. Just look at the Gaza Strip. That's what we did there - we took out all our soldiers and all our settlements. Did the Palestinians raise up a viable state with schools, and hospitals and all the infrastructure needed for a decent standard of living for their people? Did they stop shelling our communities in the south? No, Hamas took over from the Palestinian Authority and turned Gaza into something not far short of Hell.  It also happened in the Sinai, and the same thing would almost certainly happen in the West Bank. The PA is weak and crumbling. Hamas is stronger and is supported by Iran, but standing in the wings, just waiting for the right moment, and growing in power and support daily, is Dayish (ISIS).  I think, in view of this, most Israelis have come to despair of the 'two state' solution'. It just no longer seems even possible. The incitement and poison in Palestinian society runs too deep now. We feel there is no one to talk to about peace, and little point in trying. 

HOPE
So is there any hope at all? Yes, there always remains hope.

This week Sarah Tehiya Litman and Ariel Beigel were married, and it was celebrated by thousands of Israelis from all walks of life, religious, haredi, secular, right wing, left wing, you name it.  Why? On November 13, Sarah and her father, Yaacov, and her brother, Netanel, were driving home from a pre-wedding celebration when their car was fired upon by Palestinian terrorists.  Sarah's father and brother were hit. A Palestinian ambulance arrived on the scene, but seeing that the wounded were Jews, they refused to treat them and left. Before help could arrive both Yaacov and Netanel died of their wounds.  Sarah and her fiancé, Ariel, could have retreated into their private grief and cancelled, or at least postponed their wedding, but instead they determined to hold it anyway. Not only that but they hired the largest reception venue they could find and invited to their reception any Israeli who wanted to attend. According to some reports at least 5,000 accepted the invitation.



http://www.israel21c.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/The-surviving-Litman-family-singing-emotionally-with-the-bride-Sarah-Tehiya-Litman-and-groom-Ariel-Beigel-under-the-bridal-canopy.-Photo-by-Hadas-ParushFLASH90-1168x657.jpg

Sarah's brother, Dvir, had this to say, "This evening, I have to say Kaddish on my father and sing ‘Come, O Bride’ for my sister, but we’re showing that no one will ever defeat the people of Israel. We are here forever".  http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/195434/thousands-of-israelis-attend-wedding-of-israeli-woman-who-lost-her-father-and-brother-in-terrorist-attack

It is interesting to note that Sarah Tehiya' s names literally translate as 'princess of resurrection life'. Pray that she and her new husband, and their families will rise up out of their sorrow, call upon the LORD of Israel and find resurrection life.

By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth

 

Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
⁹ For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.

¹⁰ The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
¹¹ The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.
¹² Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.

Psalm 33

Let us pray this prayer together with the Psalmist:

Do not keep silent, O God!
Do not hold Your peace,
And do not be still, O God!² For behold, Your enemies make a tumult;
And those who hate You have lifted up their head.
³ They have taken crafty counsel against Your people,
And consulted together against Your sheltered ones.
⁴ They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation,
That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”

⁵ For they have consulted together with one consent;
They form a confederacy against You:
⁶ The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
Moab and the Hagrites;
⁷ Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
⁸ Assyria also has joined with them;
They have helped the children of Lot. Selah

⁹ Deal with them as with Midian,
As with Sisera,
As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon,
¹⁰ Who perished at En Dor,
Who became as refuse on the earth.
¹¹ Make their nobles like Oreb and like Zeeb,
Yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,
¹² Who said, “Let us take for ourselves
The pastures of God for a possession.”

¹³ O my God, make them like the whirling dust,
Like the chaff before the wind!
¹⁴ As the fire burns the woods,
And as the flame sets the mountains on fire,
¹⁵ So pursue them with Your tempest,
And frighten them with Your storm.
¹⁶ Fill their faces with shame,
That they may seek Your name, O Lord.
¹⁷ Let them be confounded and dismayed forever;
Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,
¹⁸ That they may know that You, whose name alone is the Lord,
Are the Most High over all the earth.

Psalm 83

AMEN

PS. Lately there have been a number of excellent and positive articles in the local Hebrew press about the Messianic movement. This is indicative of the beginnings of an opening of hearts in Israeli society. Not long ago such positive press coverage would have been unthinkable. For those of you who understand Hebrew, take a look at this one:  

http://familyguide3.walla.co.il/item/2914039

I also recommend going to the link - for an excellent explanation in Hebrew about what we believe  (This may be a good resource to share with your Israeli friends).
 http://www.messiah.co.il/index.php/theblog/107-messianic-jews-jesus-christ-yeshua-messiah

http://www.messiah.co.il/index.php/theblog/107-messianic-jews-jesus-christ-yeshua-messiah
video in Hebrew about Messianic Jews.