ISRAEL WATCH: 8.15.20 - Israel's August 4 Miracle

Israel's August 4 Miracle - Alex Traiman/JNS.ORG - https://www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=4214 Many of Israel's modern military accomplishments have defied all odds and logic. Surprise victories in Israel's War of Independencein 1948, Six-Day War in 1967 and Yom Kippur War in 1973 will forever stand among Israel's most miraculous and unlikely historical achievements. This past week, Israel may have recorded another security miracle, but one unlikely to be entered into Israeli history books.The reason? It did not take place on Israeli soil, or at the hands of the Israeli military. When a massive stockpile of weapons-grade ammonium nitrate exploded in the Beirut port on Aug. 4, it was without a doubt a tragedyof horrific proportions. At least 150 innocent civilians were killed and thousands more wounded. The damage to the city of Beirut, and to Lebanon's main seaport, will take years to repair. Yet for Israel, there is one major consolation: The stockpile of ammonium nitrate and the collateral damage it caused may wellhave been earmarked for Israel. While Israel and the rest of the international community have been offering humanitarian aid to Lebanon in the wake of one ofthe largest explosions since the Chernobyl nuclear reactor blew in 1986, the greatest aid to the people of Lebanon would be the complete disarmament and expulsion of Hezbollah. Israel should now be staunchly making the case to the international community that weapons in the hands of irresponsible actors--andparticularly international terror organizations--can only end in the death of innocent civilians. It was only one week prior to the massive explosion that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister BennyGantz held a joint press conference following an attempt by Hezbollah to infiltrate Israel's northern border. Netanyahu stated, "We take a grave view of this attempt to infiltrate our territory. Hezbollah and Lebanon bear full responsibilityfor this incident and any attack from Lebanese territory against Israel. Hezbollah should know that it is playing with fire." When terrorists play with fire, the results are almost inevitably going to turn deadly. Just several months ago, Israel's Mossad security agency reportedly provided Germany with significant evidence of Hezbollah'sweapons storage, including ammonium nitrate. It was this information that led Germany to formally ban Hezbollah from operating in its country. Similarly, The Daily Telegraph revealed in 2019 that U.K. intelligence agencies, acting on a tip from a foreign intelligence agency(the Mossad according to a senior Israeli official), found some three tons of ammonium nitrate in a raid on four London properties back in 2015. The ammonium nitrate was stored in thousands of disposable ice packs. In 2019, the IDF published a video detailing Hezbollah's precision-guided missile program. It is currently estimated that Hezbollahhas over 150,000 mortars, rockets and missiles stockpiled for use against Israel. Security experts have similarly indicated that it was an initial explosion of stockpiled weapons in an adjacent portside hangarthat acted as the detonator for the large stockpile of ammonium nitrate. In 2018, ahead of a United Nations Security Council meeting, Netanyahu called Hezbollah's stockpiling of weapons intended forIsrael among Lebanese civilians "a double war crime." In 2016, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah gave a chilling speech indicating that an explosion of ammonium nitratein Israel's Haifa port could carry the same explosive charge as a nuclear bomb. During the 34-day military conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006, the terrorist organization fired approximately 4,000rockets and missiles against Israel, at a rate of approximately 100 per day. And Hezbollah has been using explosives to perpetrate terror attacks for decades. A bombing of American and French peacekeepingforces in 1983 killed 307. The explosive blast was reported to be the equivalent of over 21,000 pounds of TNT. Acting as a primary state-sponsored terror actor of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Hezbollah has wreaked havoc across Lebanon andSyria, and remains the most lethal threat against Israeli population centers. For the last several years, Iran has been consistently smuggling weapons to its terror proxy, via a land bridge across Iraq andSyria, through the Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, and most notably through the Beirut seaport, where the ammonium nitrate was stored in a warehouse adjacent to the water. While grieving over the deaths of innocent civilians, Israel must be extremely grateful that this stockpile was not detonatedanywhere close to its own border. And now seeing firsthand how much damage can be caused by ammonium nitrate, one need only imagine the damage that could be caused should Iran successfully smuggle a nuclear weapon into Hezbollah's hands. During the first Gulf War of 1991, Saddam Hussein fired 42 Scud missiles at Israel. During the barrage, only one Israeli reportedlydied--of a heart attack due to a nearby explosion. The lack of damage to Israel was a phenomenon of miraculous proportions. That nearly 3,000 tons of weapons-grade ammonium nitrate likely earmarked for use against Israel will now never reach its intendedtarget is a similar miracle. Yet despite the severe damage caused by Hezbollah's "work accident," the stockpiling of weapons against Israel remains a gravethreat. A campaign to fully disarm Hezbollah must be immediately launched. For as long as Hezbollah continues to have missiles pointed at Israel, the Jewish state will live in constant fear of attack.Peace in the region will never be reached until Hezbollah is fully disarmed. August 14th, 2020 Qatar and the Antichrist's False Peace By Hal Lindsey Recent news regarding Qatar provides a preview of things to come. In the future, the Antichrist will negotiate a Middle East peace agreement with Israel. But it will not address the deeper issues, and the treaty will not last. We can see a picture of its flawsright now. For years, people familiar with Bible prophecy wondered how the Antichrist could possibly end the antagonism between Israel and its Muslim neighbors. Hatred of the Jews seemed too entrenched. But Anwar Sadat and, later, King Hussein of Jordan, both signed treatieswith Israel. In the last few years, the increasing nuclear ambitions of Iran's Shia Muslim leaders have pushed Israel and the rest of its Sunni Muslim neighbors toward increased cooperation. Against all odds, Israel has been developing significant ties to Saudi Arabia and the others, including Qatar. But today's cooperation between Israel and its Arab neighbors shows the same weakness that will end the Antichrist's treaty. In its bedrock beliefs,Islam contains a profound hatred and deep contempt for all things Jewish. Last month, Qatar gave the world a preview. For years, it has been well known in intelligence circles that Qatar has been a major funder of terrorist operations. In 2017, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates cut diplomatic ties with Qatar. They said they were doing so because ofQatar's support for terrorism. On July 19th of this year, Egypt Today and other outlets, reported, "A German private security contractor, who has worked for the federal republic's intelligence and security services, leveled bombshell allegations against Qatar's regime, stating Doha financesthe US and EU-designated terrorist movement Hezbollah and has declared Jews to be the enemies of the tiny Gulf state." This story garnered headlines all over the world, but it shouldn't have been a surprise. We have long known that Qatar supports, not only Hezbollah, but al Qaeda, al-Nusra, ISIS, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Hamas. In fact, almost all of Hamas's support comesfrom Qatar. Hamas could not even exist if not for Qatar. In a Jerusalem Post editorial this week, Herb Keinon wrote that the recent Hamas rocket attacks on Israel were a signal to Qatar to send more money. The Qataris have claimed they are only trying to "spread democracy" in the Middle East. Yet Qatar's own government is anything but democratic. It is a monarchy, owned and operated by a single family. They represent one of the least democratic nations in theworld. Yet they say they have decided to "spread democracy to the world." During the seven years we call the tribulation, several Sunni Muslim nations, including Saudi Arabia, will break with the Antichrist's peace plan, and move against Israel. This is not the northern coalition led by Russia and Iran, but a group of more southerlynations. They will be led by someone Daniel 11 describes as the "king of the South." His advance on Jerusalem marks an early stage in the war of Armageddon. Daniel 11:5 says, "The king of the South will grow strong." Verse 25 says, "The king of the South will mobilize an extremely large and mighty army." That "large and mighty army" is being built right now. Saudi Arabia has been using its vast oil wealth to arm itself to the teeth. It now has the fifth largest defense budget in the world. Some intelligence organizations rank it even higher, saying that onlythe United States and China spend more on their militaries. Yet Saudi Arabia has a population of only 32 million. Once again, the Bible proves to be true. Thousands of years ago, Hebrew prophets described 21st century geopolitics with uncanny accuracy. That should give us confidence that we can also trust the Bible in each of our lives. It contains the very words of Godto human beings. What a privilege to carry its words in our phones as well as having them on our bookshelves. But don't just carry the Bible around or leave it to gather dust. Get into it. Gain strength and understanding from it. Don't neglect it - especiallynow. Israel's historic deal with the UAE could be just the beginning - Israel Kasnett - https://www.jns.org/israels-historic-peace-deal-with-uae-could-be-just-the-beginning/ "Since 2007, there has been a steady drumbeat of a message that Israel is improving its relations with moderate Arab countries," said Josh Krasna ofthe Jerusalem Institute for Strategic Studies and the Foreign Policy Research Institute. A joint statement by U.S. President Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan-the crown princeof Abu Dhabi-announcing the "Abraham Accord," a peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, is the first since Jordan signed such an agreement in 1994. What does this deal include, and what does it portend for the future? Richard Goldberg, a senior adviser at Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told JNS that "the peace agreement paves the way for full normalizationof diplomatic, trade and travel relations between Israel and the UAE." But this is apparently only the start of a broader relationship between Israel and the Persian Gulf states. Trump hinted as such during his statement to the press when he said, "I think you'll be seeing some very exciting things, including ultimately withthe Palestinians." Netanyahu also hinted at future diplomatic ties during his press conference when he said, "I believe there is a good chance we will soon see more Arabcountries joining this expanding circle of peace." Joshua Krasna, an expert on strategic and political developments in the Arab world at the Jerusalem Institute for Strategic Studies, as well as a seniorfellow in the Foreign Policy Research Institute, told JNS that "over the last few years, there has been a slow, but steady buildup in relations between Israel and the Gulf states. Israeli businessmen have been going back and forth for a while, and Israeliministers have attended conferences." For example, former Transportation and Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz visited Oman in 2018. Former Minister of Culture and Sport Miri Regev alsovisited the UAE that year. "Since 2007, there has been a steady drumbeat of a message that Israel is improving its relations with moderate Arab countries," said Krasna. But the big change came in 2018 when Netanyahu went to Oman. At the time, there was a great deal of talk that a diplomatic breakthrough was expectedimminently. The joint statement said that the three leaders had "agreed to the full normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates," andKrasna noted that the United States and Israel seem to be touting full normalization as a closed deal. Still, Bin Zayed wrote on Twitter that the deal means "cooperation and setting a roadmap towards establishing a bilateral relationship," which is muchsofter and more ambiguous language. Saudi Arabia has 'biggest decision to make of all' The Arab Peace Initiative, a 2002 Saudi-led proposal that called for Israel's full withdrawal from the disputed territories in exchange for normalizationwith the Arab world as a starting point, has now been tossed out the window as clearly normalization has now come first. According to Goldberg, Saudi Arabia now has "the biggest decision to make of all." If presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden wins the U.S. election in November, Goldberg said "there are pro-Iran, anti-Gulf voices inthe Democratic Party who will work to cut off U.S. arms sales to Riyadh next year." If so, he noted, Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman will be "worse off politically if the UAE has a peace treaty with Israel and Saudi Arabia doesn't." Goldberg even warned in an Aug. 7 Newsweek article of the consequences for Saudi Arabia and the UAE if they don't sign historic peace deals with Israel. He wrote, "A Biden administration will be tempted to re-enter the Iran nuclear deal, returning to the Obama-era strategy of seeking a balance of powerbetween the Islamic Republic and its Sunni Arab neighbors." He also wrote that "with Iran once again flush with cash from U.S. sanctions relief and importing advanced conventional arms from Russia and China,MBS [Bin Salman] and MBZ [Bin Zayed] will have only one true ally in the Middle East: the State of Israel." "Arab-Israel regional integration is critically important to isolate Iran," he added in his comments to JNS. "Iran's hold on the region will continueto weaken as its neighbors grow stronger both economically and strategically." With regard to Israeli military cooperation with the UAE, Goldberg said "this certainly opens the door for expanded bilateral military relations andperhaps even multilateral military exercises hosted by the U.S." Israeli Minister of Sports and Culture Miri Regev cheers on the Israeli Judo team in Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates in October 2018.She is the first Israeli minister to officially visit the UAE. Source: Screenshot. 'A strong win going into the elections' According to Krasna, this is a win for both the UAE and Israel as "the UAE can claim it got annexation taken off the table. Netanyahu can claim a majorachievement on the wider Arab-Israeli conflict front. As opposed to the joint agreement that says annexation has been "suspended," Bin Zayed wrote on Twitter that "an agreement was reached to stop furtherIsraeli annexation of Palestinian territories." During his press conference, Netanyahu emphasized that annexation is still on the table, and that he plans to go through with it. But according to Krasna, the current political climate doesn't allow Netanyahu to go ahead with it anyway, so with this deal, he "gets an elegant face-savingand significant reward for something he wasn't going to be able to do anyway. He wasn't going to be able to push the annexation, certainly not before the U.S. election." Krasna said this is also a win for the United States as it gives Trump a major foreign-policy achievement ahead of the U.S. elections. "It will give him a very strong win going into elections," he said. Circling back to whether other Arab-world nations might follow suit and sign peace agreements with Israel, Goldberg said that over the last few years,"most people thought Bahrain would go first since they led the way on warming relations with Israel." He predicted that Bahrain will be next to make peace with Israel. "We should expect an announcement from Manama at some point soon," said Goldberg, adding that he presumes other nations will follow suit. Mabruk AND Mazol Tov!!! - A.V. Rauf - https://bibleprophecyfortoday.com/2020/08/13/mabruk-and-mazol-tov/ 2020 does not cease to surprise. As we press into the second half of this rather volatile and challenging year, something amazing and unheard of hasjust taken place. In light of what is already shaping up to be a HOT month, with several fires occurring daily worldwide and the major announcement of Democratic Presidentialcandidate's running mate VP candidate Kamala Devi Harris in lieu of the upcoming elections in the United States and despite the COVID Epidemic gripping the world's economies......THERE IS PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST!!! President Donald Trump has successfully brokered full diplomatic relations between the Nation of Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Ever since its inception in 1948 (which was 72 years ago), only two other nations have made similar agreements with Israel: Jordan and Egypt. This announcement makes the United Arab Emirates the first Gulf Arab state to have active diplomatic ties with Israel. Moving forward it is very possiblethat more Arab and Muslim countries will follow the UAE. My guess is Bahrain, but who knows. I can't imagine Turkey joining this group unless, well that would have to be discussed in another post. Interestingly enough, this initiative is being referred to as the ABRAHAM ACCORDS! The key issue here from a prophetic standpoint is that this deal will most likely halt Israel's annexation plans and the building of settlements onlands sought by the Palestinians. This was land that is not to be given up according to God's covenant with Israel. That ultimately will lead to the Day of the LORD: Joel 3:1-2- For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,2 I will also gather all nations,and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land. Let me also make this very clear: This is NOT the Peace Deal or "Covenant with many" spoken of by the Prophet Daniel in Chapter 9 in the Book of Daniel: Daniel 9:27-And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation tocease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. However, could this a pre-cursor to the covenant of many that the coming world leader otherwise known as the Antichrist confirms for a period of sevenyears?? That in itself is yet to happen. The Bible also tell us that the coming World Leader will be a "Little Horn." In other words, someone who rises toprominence and emerges on the World scene. Daniel 8:9-11- And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward thepleasant land.10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by him the daily sacrifice was taken away,and the place of the sanctuary was cast down. Now, one can argue that the UAE is and of itself a federal constitutional monarchy made up from a federation of seven hereditary tribal leaders. Soperhaps this could be that covenant but is is yet to be confirmed. Perhaps when that happens you will also hear about Jerusalem as well as the building of the third temple which I believe is not too far off in the near distant future. It was interesting to note that just this week practically the entire government of Lebanon resigned after the explosion near the port of Beirut. Thereis a void of leadership in Lebanon as of now. The area of Syria, Lebanon and the Golan Heights in Israel is important to monitor in the very near future. Could this Little Horn emerge from this area in the very near future?? In reference to Daniel 8:9-11- And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east,and toward the pleasant land... if the "pleasant land," Is Israel and we know historically all invasions against Israel came from the North, if one is looking from that trajectory, then Lebanon (as does Syria) falls into that periphery. But for now, what has happened today is historic in the sense that it brings peace between two of the world's most forward leaning, technologicallyadvanced states, let alone two of the oldest nation that sprung forth through the Seed of Isaac and the Seed of Ishmael. Nonetheless, the accuracy Of God's prophetic Word has a track record of 100% accurate. What has happened today is yet another piece of the puzzle thatis unraveling in the Middle East as the Church Age is rapidly coming to its conclusion and the onset of the Tribulation Period, otherwise known as the Time of Jacob's Trouble is not far ahead. Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem and even more importantly obtain the free gift of salvation that comes through Jesus Christ!!!! Maranatha!!!