Russia, Turkey, Iran Sign Deal to Establish Syria Safe Zones - http://www.breitbart.com/jerusalem/2017/05/05/russia-turkey-iran-sign-deal-establish-syria-safe-zones/
Russia, Iran and Turkey on Thursday signed an agreement on setting up four safe zones in Syria that the United Nations described as a promising step to wind down the brutal six-year war.
The United States however gave an extremely cautious welcome, citing concerns over Iran's role as a guarantor, even as it expressed hope that the deal could set the stage for a settlement.
Several members of the rebel delegation left the room shouting in protest as the signing ceremony got underway in the Kazakh capital Astana, angry at regime ally Iran, an AFP reporter saw.
The plan for the "de-escalation areas" was discussed on Tuesday by US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin during a telephone conversation.
The agreement provides for a ceasefire, a ban on all flights, rapid deliveries of humanitarian aid to the designated areas and the return of refugees.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "encouraged" by the breakthrough. He stressed it will be "crucial to see this agreement actually improve the lives of Syrians."
Russia and Iran, which back Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in the war, and Turkey, a supporter of rebel forces, hope to build on a ceasefire deal they reached in December.
The Syrian government and rebel delegations are not signatories to the deal.
"We are not supporting this agreement. It is an agreement between the three countries," said Usama Abu Zeid, a rebel spokesman. "We do not at all agree that Iran... is a guarantor of this accord."
- 'Promising' step -
UN envoy Staffan de Mistura, who was in Astana as an observer, described the agreement as "an important, promising, positive step in the right direction" toward de-escalation.
A working group will be set up within two weeks to resolve technical issues and the three countries agreed to set up the four areas by June 4.
The areas include key territory held by anti-Assad forces.
The first zone includes the whole of Idlib province along with certain parts of neighboring Latakia, Aleppo and Hama provinces.
The second will encompass certain parts in the north of Homs province, and the third will be comprised of some areas of Eastern Ghouta, outside of Damascus.
The fourth zone will include parts of the Deraa and Quneitra provinces in southern Syria, according to the memorandum seen by AFP.
- US doubts about Iran -
The UN envoy said the deal would be quickly put to the test and that success on the ground could pave the way to a new round of political talks in Geneva later this month.
"There will be a period not longer than two weeks in which all this will be seriously put to the test and we want that test to succeed," he said.
In Washington, the State Department, which had dispatched an observer to the talks, said it appreciated Russian and Turkish efforts but called into doubt Iran's role.
"We continue to have concerns about the Astana agreement, including the involvement of Iran as a so-called 'guarantor'," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.
"Iran's activities in Syria have only contributed to the violence, not stopped it, and Iran's unquestioning support for the Assad regime has perpetuated the misery of ordinary Syrians."
"We nonetheless hope that this arrangement can contribute to a de-escalation of violence, end the suffering of the Syrian people, and set the stage for a political settlement of the conflict," she said.
- What monitoring? -
Russia's envoy, Alexander Lavrentiev, said the zones would remain in place for six months, a period that could be extended.
It remained unclear whether there would be any international monitoring of the safe zones.
Guterres said the United Nations will support de-escalation efforts, but he did not specify whether it would have a role in the new set-up.
Putin said Wednesday that ways to monitor the zones would be an issue for separate talks.
Lavrentiev said Moscow was ready to send observers to the zones.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in comments published Thursday that the plan would solve "50 percent" of the six-year conflict.
Damascus supports the Russian plan, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.
Syrian rebels said earlier Thursday that they had resumed participation in the talks after having suspended their involvement a day earlier over air strikes against civilians.
More than 320,000 people have been killed in Syria since the country's war began with anti-government protests in March 2011.
Prophecy watch: Iran, Turkey agree to cooperate in Syria
AFP reports that Russia, Turkey and Iran have signed an agreement to establish safe zones in Syria that may lead to bringing peace over that nation. The pact provides for a ceasefire in hostilities, a ban on all flights over the areas, and the distribution of humanitarian aid to returning refugees. Russia and Iran have been supporting Syria in the civil war between Syria's dictator Bashar Assad and Islamic rebel factions. The rebels, many of which are part of terrorist groups that have been supported by both the previous White House and Turkey, vowed to continue fighting. They don't agree that Iran and Turkey have authority to decide their actions. This agreement could be a type and shadow of end time prophecy.
Ezekiel 38:2 says, "...set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against them." Magog, Meshech, Tubal are all located in what is now modern Turkey. Verse 5 says, "Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them..." Persia is modern day Iran. Turkey and Iran are rivals as they are positioning for control of the Middle East. We know, however, that Magog (Turkey) eventually leads and Persia follows. These players represent both Shiite and Sunni Muslims who unite against Israel in the "acharit-hayamim," meaning the end of days. God will destroy them with earthquakes, fire and brimstone. Ezekiel 38: 21 says, "...every man's sword shall be against his brother."
In Chapter 2 of the prophetic book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that perplexed him and none of his astrologers, magicians or sorcerers could interpret it. Daniel was called upon to do so in what has become a keystone of prophetic end time interpretation for the Day of the Lord. Daniel describes a statue with a head of gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of brass, and Verse 33 says "His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay." He is talking about the kingdoms or empires leading to the end of days. Verse 44 explains "And whereas you saw iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay." Another use of the word "cleave" means "be united."
Turkey and Iran both figure prominently in the end of days, and one must come into submission to the other for prophecy to be fulfilled. Some Bible scholars and end time watchmen see Turkey and Iran as part of that mixture of clay and iron that can hold strong for a time, but is destroyed by the Lord, "and they shall know that I am the Lord (Ezekiel 38:23)." Turkey brings Iran into agreement to attack Israel. But the Lord destroys them and in the process they turn on one another. With the agreement regarding Syria, we may be seeing how such an end time alliance can be created with the influence of other nations such as Russia and the US. Let's keep an eye on these developments. Watch and pray.
Putin & Trump discuss Iranians on Israel's border -
Israel was seriously dismayed Wednesday, May 3, when first reports reached Jerusalem about the telephone conversation between Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin Tuesday, during which Trump agreed to consider Putin's plan for "de-escalation zones" in Syria, in place of the American security zones proposal. The Russian president's plan includes the posting of Iranian military officers as co-monitors for those zones, one of which is to be located on the Syrian-Israeli border.
President Trump described the conversation as "Very good."
The four "de-escalation zones" proposed would be situated at:
1. The northwestern province of Idlib up to the Turkish border;
2. The central Syrian province of Homs (where also the Al-Shariat air base hit by US Tomahawks last month is located);
3. The East Ghouta suburb of Damascus (including also a big military airfield);
4. The Southern region along Syria's borders with Jordan and Syria.
The Russian president explained that the "guarantor countries" - i.e. Russia, Turkey and Iran - would appoint the monitors for the de-escalation zones.
debkafile's military and intelligence sources report that Israel was deeply concerned to discover that President Trump had nodded to Putin going forward with his plan, despite Iran's active involvement. He was even ready to send a US official for the first time to the fourth round of the Syrian peace talks between the Syrian government and opposition in Astana Wednesday, although this process is jointly sponsored by Russia, Turkey and Iran. Stuart Jones, acting assistant Secretary of State, was sent to attend the meeting in the Kazakh capital as an observer, thereby elevating the former American representation from ambassador..
This development caused Israeli disquiet on a number of grounds:
a) The Iranian monitors for the new zones will sit directly opposite the Israeli border. Notice has gone out to Washington and Moscow that the Israeli government will on no account countenance an Iran military presence along its border.
b) Israel also eyes with mistrust the possible deployment of Russian and Turkish offices along its border with Syria.
c) Declaring eastern Damascus a protected zone would obstruct Israel aerial operations for keeping Iranian air shipments of advanced weapons via Syria out of Hizballah's hands. Iran would be able to renew its shipments under full protection.
You can read more about the Russian and American "zones" for Syria in the coming issue of DEBKA Weekly out Friday, May 5.
d) There were also some misgivings in Israel about the way National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster characterized President Trump's approach to foreign policy, shortly before Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas arrived at the White House on Wednesday.
"The president is not a super-patient man," he said. He does not have time to "debate over doctrine, and instead seeks to challenge failed policies of the past with a businessman's results-oriented approach," McMaster said.
The trouble is that Middle East issues, such as the Syrian conflict and Israeli security, demand patience and rather more than a businessman's results-oriented approach, else they may lead to such potentially disastrous consequences as an Iranian military presence that is far too near and dangerous for Israel to countenance.
Just Be Ready
And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority." -Acts 1:7
I'm a student of Bible prophecy, and I believe the Lord could come back at any time. I believe we've seen signs of the times and prophecies fulfilled before our very eyes, not the least of which is the return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel.
At the same time, I have seen people who claim to have discovered special Bible codes and to have determined the day of Jesus' return. Yet Jesus said, "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32).
As the book of Acts opens, Jesus is alive, and the disciples return to an old idea: "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6). They still didn't quite get it. They were excited that the Lord was alive again, but they were saying, in effect, "Okay, we are back to business as usual. It's really weird the way You got crucified, but You're alive, and it's wonderful. Now, let's get the kingdom established." They still thought Jesus was coming to establish an earthly kingdom and overthrow the power of Rome.
But Jesus responded, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority" (verse 7). He was saying, "This is not the thing for you to be concerned with right now."
Jesus was saying to them (and to us), "Don't be so worried about when I am coming. Rather, focus on what you are to be doing while you await My coming. Don't worry about the when. Just be ready, because it could happen at any moment."
As we look at history, we see that the Roman Empire eventually crumbled . . . but the gospel prevailed.
The Beating Drums of War - By Matt Ward -
On Thursday last week, a huge explosion ripped through a military base, located just outside the Syrian capital, Damascus. It was a brazen attack carried out by Israel against an enemy that is already deeply entrenched inside Syria. The target, believed to be an arms depot operated by Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, was almost completely destroyed. This military base was believed to contain substantial amounts of Iranian weaponry, due to be transferred directly to Hezbollah, likely for use against Israel.
Without explicitly admitting responsibility for the strike, Israel Katz, Israel's intelligence minister, told Israeli Army Radio that, "I can confirm that the incident in Syria corresponds completely with Israel's policy to act to prevent Iran's smuggling of advanced weapons via Syria to Hezbollah."
Katz continued, "The prime minister has said that whenever we receive intelligence that indicated an intention to transfer advanced weapons to Hezbollah, we will act." [1]
This current strike follows on the heels of an Israeli attack just last month, when several strikes near the Syrian desert city of Palmyra targeted what were also believed to be "advanced weapons systems," belonging to Hezbollah.
The last time Israel attacked targets based within Syria, Bashir Assad tried to retaliate by launching several ground to air missiles, a number of which managed to penetrate Israeli airspace. The world awaits his reaction, if there is one, this time.
Israel took this action because they are growing increasingly worried that Hezbollah are gaining in strength, and that the Lebanese group are proactively preparing for an imminent confrontation with the Jewish state. Several recent indicators suggest a climactic war may be just around the corner. The drums of a third Lebanon war are already beating loudly.
Officials on both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border are actively anticipating a third Lebanon War. It would be no exaggeration to say that at this point both Israel and Hezbollah already believe they are in a state war with each other; it just hasn't been admitted or declared yet. Additionally, both sides are jockeying for position, taking every opportunity to improve their strategic position ahead of a war they both know is coming.
This next war, when it arrives, will be different from the first or second Lebanon wars. Unlike previously, the next war in Lebanon will be a real doomsday situation for both Israel and Hezbollah. Israel simply cannot afford to lose the next fixed conflict it fights in, as it did in the 34-day Lebanon war of 2006, when Israel was supposed to annihilate the Iran-backed "party of God," Hezbollah. It didn't quite work out that way and many today describe this war as a disaster for Israel, even though they didn't actually lose it in any definable way.
This time around there is simply too much at stake. With IS on its border, with Iran and Russia swamping Syria with men, military hardware and advanced weaponry, and the eyes of an increasingly anti-Semitic world watching closely, the Jewish state cannot under any circumstance afford to look weak. It cannot allow itself to look in any way "defeat-able."
The political stakes are equally as high. After the Arab-Israeli war of 1973, then-Prime Minister Golda Meir was forced to step down - not because she lost the war but because she did not win it. In 2009, Ehud Olmert also resigned, not for defeat but again, for not winning the Lebanon war of 2006. There will be no turning back and no hesitation from current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once this shadow war comes out into the cold, hard light of day. It really will be an "all or nothing" type of situation.
Yet this next war will also be a battle of survival for Hezbollah too. Loose and they will likely be finished, and so too will be Iran's influence in the Arab world. Both sides cannot afford to lose, or even look like they have lost. This is why military planners from both sides are openly declaring that when this next conflict does come, it will be a brutal one, with no quarter given by either side.
Hasan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's chief, has long been shouting about how ready he is for this next round of conflict, declaring that when it begins, his troops will be on the offensive against Israel, capable of raining long-range missiles down on Israeli cities and marching deep into the Israeli heartland, perhaps even occupying settlements and towns.
A climactic war is on the horizon for Israel and Hezbollah. The indicators of this future conflict abound. In mid-April, Israel announced it had successfully layered its airspace with the most sophisticated anti-missile tripartite defense system ever developed.
The U.S. made Arrow defensive system will, Israel believes, handle all long range Iranian missiles, whilst Israeli made David's Sling will deal with all shorter range projectiles, leaving Iron Dome to intercept all rockets and drone cross border attacks. This is the theory at any rate. Wars, unfortunately, rarely work out so neatly in their execution. The cold, hard reality will likely be that Israel, and all its advanced and sophisticated defensive counter measures, will be utterly swamped by the sheer volume of missiles and rockets fired at it.
Meanwhile in Syria, a combined Iranian-Syrian-Hezbollah force has just begun a large offensive aimed at occupying the border area directly adjacent to Israel, southwest of Damascus. Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's Defense Minister, has stated bluntly, "Israel will not allow the concentration of Iranian and Hezbollah forces on its Golan border." [2]
Yet occupying the Israeli Golan border is the specific intention of this Iranian-Syrian-Hezbollah force. They are clearly trying to establish a platform from which they can launch a future multi-front war against Israel.
In Israel, mass military drills have been conducted and border fortifications have been dug. Electronic surveillance and counter measures along the Lebanese border area have been prepared and plans for the mass evacuation of entire Israeli border communities have been drawn up and practiced in real time, in the real world.
War is coming once again to Israel, and soon. The consistent targeting and striking of Hezbollah assets held deep within Syria are an indicator of it, and also of Israel's utter determination to deny and destroy all advanced weapons systems transfers to Hezbollah, even at the very real risk of stirring up substantial Russian animosity against them.
In this next war, a further complicating factor is that Israel also know that they are unlikely to be facing Hezbollah alone. After all its service to the Syrian regime since the beginning of the civil war in 2012, after all its sacrificed soldiers and men, Hezbollah will no doubt be expecting some form of reciprocation from Damascus, against Israel. Equally, Iran-a long time backer of Hezbollah, is also expected to throw its hat in the ring against the Jewish state when war becomes a reality.
All of this, of course, leads to one other serious question; what would America under Donald Trump do in such a circumstance? Certainly the United States would expect Syria, Russia and Iran to stay neutral, something Iran and Syria almost certainly would not do.
How would this make America react? The one certainty in the Middle East right now is that the nature of U.S.-Israeli relations under this new administration have changed. Trump has made it abundantly clear, as had Vice President Pence and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, that they will stand shoulder to shoulder and back to back with Israel against all comers. All comers. While comforting for those of us who hold Israel dear, nevertheless this raises the uncomfortable specter of a wider conflagration in the Middle East, should Israel and Hezbollah slide into a violent and potentially very messy war.
Already there are just too many competing, separate militaries operating over the skies of Syria; it is truly remarkable that there has not been a much more significant crisis up until this point. Yet a war between Israel and Hezbollah has the potential to further trigger just such a series of confrontations and standoffs. If that does happen, all bets would be off as to the outcome.
The stakes in the Middle East have never been higher, nor has the region looked so volatile. The situation between Hezbollah and Israel is becoming more antagonistic by the day. The pertinent question every thinking person should be asking right now is at what point will Israel deem it absolutely, and finally necessary to move against Hezbollah?
It is clear that Israel views Hezbollah as an existential threat against its existence; the status quo, as it currently stands, will not last, and a wider Middle Eastern chaos will likely follow in its wake. The Middle East today is a tinder box which is already alight. It may well soon explode before our eyes.
Iran in Syria: A Gathering Storm? - P. David Hornik - http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/266537/iran-syria-gathering-storm-p-david-hornik
The mullahs want to target the "Little Satan" from across the border.
The Iranian regime, as it has made clear in countless threats, rallies, and missile displays, wants to destroy Israel, the "Little Satan."
Given Israel's military might and, according to foreign reports, nuclear arsenal, Iran's goal is probably unattainable. But the nearer Iran gets-or perceives itself to get-to that goal, the more warfare and instability is likely to ensue.
At present, thanks to Syria's collapse into civil war and the Obama administration's-at best-inept policy there, Iran is within reach of establishing a permanent military presence to Israel's north-a surefire recipe for ongoing struggle and menace.
Israeli officials, Reuters reports, now estimate that Iran "commands at least 25,000 fighters in Syria, including members of its own Revolutionary Guard, Shi'ite militants from Iraq and recruits from Afghanistan and Pakistan."
Iran is also reportedly seeking a naval base in Syria, and, if it gains a lasting foothold in Israel's northern neighbor, will undoubtedly want an airbase there as well.
The Reuters report notes that Israeli intelligence minister Yisrael Katz has been on Capitol Hill urging stepped-up U.S. threats and sanctions on Iran and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah. Israel wants Russia to rein in Iran, too-though whether Russia is willing is still in dispute.
Of particular concern are Iran's efforts to establish a beachhead for itself and Hezbollah on the northern Golan Heights, directly across the border from the Israeli-controlled southern Golan.
Two years ago an Israeli airstrike on the northern Golan killed both Hezbollah and Iranian commanders seeking to build a terror network there. Israel remains acutely concerned that such efforts will continue.
Iran's naked aggression toward Israel was in evidence this week in a different kind of attack. The Israeli daily Haaretz reports:
Cybersecurity experts are convinced that Iran is behind the large-scale cyberattack revealed Wednesday by Israel's Cyber Defense Authority. The attacks have been identified as being carried out by a hacker group known as OilRig, which has been tracked to Iran and is believed to be financed and directed by one of the Islamic Republic's intelligence agencies.
OilRig...is known to have attacked in both government and private sector targets the past, focusing primarily on Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United States and Israel.
The recent attacks were aimed at at least 120 Israeli targets, including private companies, government departments, research institutes and hospitals.... It is unclear at this point whether the attack had any specific targets beyond creating damage in Israeli computer networks, and the extent of that damage is still being assessed.
Other reports, like this one, claim the cyberattack was successfully thwarted.
What is not in doubt is that the-for now-low-level war between Iran and Israel is not only continuing but intensifying. On Thursday it was reported that Israeli missiles fired from the Golan Heights hat hit and destroyed Iranian arms supplies in a Hezbollah depot near Damascus International Airport.
Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz, mentioned above, appeared to confirm that Israel was behind the strike, saying it "exactly matches our declared policy."
Iran's harassment of a U.S. warship in the Persian Gulf this week suggests that its cockiness toward the "Great Satan," too-after a period when it seemed to have waned-is returning.
A cyber attack on Israel, arms shipments to Hezbollah, and provocative moves against the U.S. navy are-among much else-all in a week's work for Iran.
Israeli officials are, though, well aware that the current administration has a much more sober view of the problem than the previous one, and more hopeful that, this time around, the forces of civilization will push back against a regime that has been sowing discord and death for almost four decades.
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