WORLD AT WAR: 4.24.21 - It is Coming, and It Shall Be Done

It is Coming, and It Shall Be Done - By Cynthia Nuara - https://www.raptureready.com/2021/04/18/it-is-coming-and-it-shall-be-done-by-cynthia-nuara/ I began writing an article in February on the increasing tensions between Israel and Iran but kept putting it aside for one reason or another. However, what occurred onApril 11 gave me the incentive to finish it. On Sunday, April 11, there was a cyberattack on Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility (its main one). The cyberattack caused a power failure at the facility, and Iranis calling it a “terrorist act.” As of this writing, Israel has not commented on the incident directly, but it’s not hard to imagine that Israel was behind it. Israel has recently ramped up its warningsagainst Iran’s nuclear program, and this cyber-attack occurred the night after Iran unveiled its new uranium enrichment equipment. “On Rouhani’s order, Iranian experts began injecting gas into a new generation of centrifuges at Natanz enrichment facility.Iran also began the mechanical testing of IR-9 centrifuges and launched an assembly line for its new generation of centrifuges.” Also, this latest incident comes as diplomatic efforts to revive the bogus 2015 nuclear deal with Iran have resumed. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned onApril 7 that Israel will not be bound by any deal world powers make with Iran if it leads to Iran securing nuclear weapons. Let’s go back to February when I read a report in the Jerusalem Post that perked up my ears and started my writing of this article. I wonder if the writer of a February 21 article in the Jerusalem Post titled “Afterthe Swap: Russia’s Role in Syria and Israel’s Policy” realized how prophetic his words were. He spoke of “Russia’s overall role in Syria and how it is able to facilitateaspects of the conflict.” He said, “It is important to understand how Russia does this to potentially see where Syria is going in the future.” He called Russia the “maestro” of the band and said it is unclear whether Iran and Turkey (and their proxies), theU.S., and Syria “will continue to play their roles in concert.” He should have read Isaiah 17 and Ezekiel 38-39 to find the answer. Who would have thought that Russia, Iran, and Turkey would ever form an alliance? But true to God’s word, they’ve done just that. They put aside their differences in orderto achieve their shared goal of reducing Western influence in the region. And each of them has their individual goals of dominance in the region and the world. Vladimir Putin stepped into a power vacuum created by the Obama administration’s failed policies and has managed to get Arab countries running to him to solve their problems.And Putin is playing to all sides. Here are some points made in the article: •Russia has been an ally of the Syrian regime for decades. It has both a naval and airbase in northern Syria. This Russian presence and support forthe Syrian regime led it to intervene in Syria in 2015, although Russia claimed this was to fight ISIS and other terrorist groups. •Russia’s real intervention in Syria was intended to shift the Syrian conflict and leverage it into regional influence. •Russia encouraged talks between Turkey and Iran; soon, they were running to Russia to ask what to do next. •As Turkey became more pro-Russia and more pro-Iran, Russia moved to be the arbitrator of who could have what. When Turkey demanded Afrin [a cityin northern Syria] and the ethnic cleansing of Kurds and needed the airspace to use its F-16s, Russia consented. The trade-off would be that the Syrian regime would get more slices of Idlib [in northwestern Syria]. •Russia sold Turkey S-400s “to create daylight between” (create distance or difference between) Turkey and the U.S., feeding on Turkey’s growing authoritarianismand conspiracy-minded leadership. •Russia, Turkey, and Iran conspired to remove the U.S. from Syria by trying to break U.S. relations with its partners on the ground, the Syrian DemocraticForces (SDF). In October 2019, it appeared they had gotten what they wanted when the U.S. agreed to leave. U.S. diplomats, insiders, and experts had all been marshaled to oppose the “endless” war in Syria. Former U.S. ambassador Robert Ford argued that Americashould leave, essentially saying let Russia, Turkey, and Iran have Syria. •As the U.S. withdrew, Russia took over the American bases. •Russia has a carrot-and-criticism approach with Israel on Syria. Putin has had his eye on Netanyahu since the 1990s and appears to have a good relationshipwith him and to understand Israel’s concerns. Yet, in November 2019, Russia said Israeli airstrikes were the “wrong move” in Syria. Later that month, Russia appeared to expose details of an Israeli airstrike. In 2017, Israeli media reports said Russia rejecteda request to keep pro-Iranian groups 60 km. from the Golan border. But in August 2018, Russia claimed that Iranian forces pulled back to 85 km. from the Golan. Russia both supports Iran in Syria and explicitly or tacitly allows Israeli military actions againstIranian targets. •Iran is sponging up Syria, building bases, moving in militias, and destabilizing Syria. •Syria is now divided, occupied by Turkey, with the U.S. backing the SDF in the east, Iranian entrenchment in the south, and Israeli airstrikes. •Russia has threaded the needle in Syria. It has enabled friction between the Syrian regime and Turkey, and between Israel and Iran, gambling on theidea that all those involved in Syria now come to Russia to figure out what to do next. •A careful reading of Russian involvement shows how it acts as the ‘maestro’ of the Syrian conflict. •Whether Iran, Israel, Turkey, the U.S., the Syrian Democratic Forces, Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, Hezbollah, andeveryone else in Syria will continue to play their role in concert is unclear. – Source Other reports have claimed that Russia is now “the king,” “power broker,” or “master” of the Middle East. An October 2017 Bloomberg article, “Putin Is Filling the Middle East Power Vacuum,” stated: “The Israelis and Turks, the Egyptians and Jordanians – they’re all beating apath to the Kremlin in the hope that Vladimir Putin, the new master of the Middle East, can secure their interests and fix their problems.” Russia’s influence in the region has increased “because Obama allowed it to,” claims Khaled Batarfi, professor at theJeddah, Saudi Arabian branch of Alfaisal University. “Unfortunately, Obama withdrew to a great extent from the Middle East.” Current events show us that everyone is still playing their roles. As a matter of fact, it’s getting more concerning by the day. Both Russia and Iran have increased their aggression since the Biden bunch took over the White House. What is Iran doing besides what we’ve already mentioned? Iran has increased its attacks through its proxies in Iraq near and at U.S. military bases, and in drone attacks against Saudi Arabia. Iran is also continuing with its uraniumenrichment with a new batch of centrifuges and says it won’t back down unless the U.S. removes ALL of its sanctions. The reality, however, is that Iran never abided by the bogus Iran nuclear deal, and that’s why Trump ended it and reimposed sanctions. Middle East expert Joel Rosenberg believes Iran is “getting ready to attack Israel” through its proxy Hezbollah (that is entrenched in Lebanon). He said, “If the Biden administrationdoesn’t find a way to neutralize the Iranian threat… Israeli leaders may feel they have no other choice but to strike Iran, and the implications for every country in the region – and for the U.S. – are huge.” He believes Iran’s recent bold actions could be driving the Saudis to make a strategic peace deal with Israel, which will enrage Iran and its allies since Saudis are custodiansof Islam’s two holy mosques. Iran and its allies are determined to “make sure Arabs and Israelis never make lasting peace, and will do everything in their power to create war and terror to prevent peace from taking hold,” Rosenberg stated. – Source Saudi leaders have been somewhat aligning with Israel due to the threat from Iran, which they both share. Then there’s this recent development: Saudi leaders tweeted online that Mecca and Medina are the holy places of Islam, not Jerusalem and the Temple Mount (currently occupied by the Al Aqsa Mosque). Another tweetfrom Morocco emphasized that “the Temple Mount and Al Aqsa Mosque is of no particular importance to Muslims and hopes for building of the Third Temple and arrival of ‘peace’ with it for all peoples.” Another report, “Something is Cooking Between Israel and Saudi Arabia,” (as in strategic security) stated, “Saudi Arabia is hoping Netanyahu will win another term and succeedin weakening Iran, which has launched consistent attacks on Saudi Arabia” (through its proxy, the Houthis in Yemen). Zvi Yehezkeli, an Arab affairs analyst, said, “Iran is crushing the Saudis morning and evening. They are also conducting a military blitz onAmerican facilities in Iraq [through their proxies Hezbollah and others], and all this at a time when the Americans are planning negotiations.” “Our neighborhood is beginning a new era and a new order,” he added. And What About Russia? NATO scrambles jets 10 times to track Russian military planes across Europe. The incident occurred on March 29 when a “rare peak” of Russian bombers and fighters flew overthe North Sea, Black Sea, and Baltic Sea. Russian activity across an unusually wide area of European skies came on the same day Russian aircraft were tracked off the coast of Alaska. Buildup of Russian troops along Ukraine’s border and in Crimea. A U.S. Defense Dept spokesman confirmed that the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff called top militaryleaders in Russia and Ukraine and said the Pentagon is aware of reports concerning Russian troop movements. U.S. Army Raises Europe Threat Level To ‘Potential Imminent Crisis’ On Ukraine-Russia Fears. Tensions are boiling, clashes have occurred, and Russia has warned NATO to stay out of it. Why Russian’s obsession with controlling this region? Russia needs warmer watersand ice-free ports in order to better maneuver its naval fleet. Its occupation and increasing militarization of the Crimean Peninsula poses a threat that goes well beyond this region. By using the Black Sea as a springboard, Russia can project power beyondits immediate surroundings — into the Middle East, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean — and strengthen its reemergence as a great power. And what about the U.S.? Biden administration removes a number of Gulf air defense batteries to further reduce U.S.’s presence in the Middle East despite Iran-backed Houthis’ recent waves of droneand missile strikes against targets in Saudi Arabia. If the U.S. is one of the “young lions” described in Ezekiel 38:13 that does not intervene when the Russian/Arab coalition invades Israel, this should not be a surprise. Israel will receive no help fromother nations when this invasion occurs, each with their own motives for not doing so. But as we know, Israel won’t need help from anyone since God will personally intervene in a Mighty Way so that all the world will know who is God and protector of Israel. In Daymond Duck’s March 14 article, “The Power of God,” he notes the following: “Concerning the latter years and latter days Battle of Gog and Magog, in the last 2 weeks: •A Libyan oil tanker named the Emerald dumped an estimated 150 or more tons of tar and contaminated waste into the Mediterranean Sea off the coastof Israel that polluted more than 90 miles of Israeli shoreline. A two-week investigation concluded that the Libyan tanker originated in Iran, was destined for Syria, and the pollutants were deliberately dumped near Israel. •There was an explosion on both sides of an Israeli-owned cargo ship coming out of Saudi Arabia in the Gulf of Oman. The ship and cargo were damaged,but the ship did not sink. Israel blamed the explosions on Iran. •An Iranian-backed militia in Iraq fired at least 10 rockets at a U.S. base in Iraq that killed a U.S. citizen. •Iranian-backed Houthis fired rockets at Saudi Arabia almost every day. Since then, there was an attack on another Israel-owned cargo ship on March 25, and Israel is said to be behind the attack on an Iranian cargo ship in retaliation on April6. Defense Minister Benny Gantz declined to react to the report that Israel was behind the attack on the Iranian ship, simply stating that Israel is preparing for threats on all possible fronts. As we know, Israel has conducted many strikes aimed at Iranian-backed targets in Syria in an attempt to thwart Iran’s devious plans. Iran has entrenched itself there withits own military forces and through its proxies. And besides smuggling weapons and ammunition to its proxy Hezbollah through commercial flights from Iran to Lebanon, it has made many attempts to move its weapons from Damascus to Hezbollah, obviously for afuture attack on Israel. Iran has made its intentions to destroy the Jewish state loud and clear. Prime Minister Netanyahu warned on April 5 that Israel will not be bound by any deal world powers make with Iran if it leads to Iran securing nuclear weapons. And he hasalso stated that Israel is prepared to act alone if needed to stop Iran from doing so. Early last month, when asked in a Fox News interview if it’s true that the Israeli military is updating plans to strike Iranian nuclear sites and is prepared to act independently,Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz responded that Israel is working on these plans. “The Iranian nuclear aspiration must be stopped. If the world stops them before, it’s very much good. But if not, we must stand independently and we must defend ourselvesby ourselves,” he said. Iran’s Defense Minister Hatami responded by stating that Iran’s military will level Tel Aviv and Haifa should Israel do anything “out of desperation.” Former Israeli fighter pilot Maj. Gen. Tal Kalman, who heads the IDF’s Iran Directorate, says dealing with challenges Iran poses for Israel is a delicate and complex mission,but one the IDF is more than capable of handling. All of this bears close watching. What will be the matchstick that sets in motion the fulfillment of Isaiah 17 and Ezekiel 38-39? Regardless, God’s word tells us what willgo down. Damascus will be completely destroyed, and both southern Syria and northern Israel will be severely damaged (Isaiah 17). The modern-day nations that are considered to bethe ones involved in a last days’ attack against Israel (likely after the destruction of Damascus, etc.) are Russia, Iran, Turkey, and others, with Russia as the ‘maestro’ of the invasion. All three of these nations’ leaders have ambitious global goals. Turkey’s President Erdogan wants to recreate the Ottoman Empire. Iran wants to set up a Shiite Islamic Caliphate.Russia’s President Putin wants to control the world’s oil and sees Israel as a threat to that control. Britt Gillette pointed out the following in an April 2020 end-times article that speaks of the coronavirus-induced oil price war: “If Russia controlled the Middle East, they could control the world’s oil. Only two nations stand in Putin’s way – the United States and Israel. If a global depression,the rapture, or another major event changes U.S. policy in the Middle East, only Israel will stand between Russia and complete dominance of the global oil market. The high stakes incentivize Russia to team up with Iran and take out Israel. This will securetheir collective grip on the region. The Bible says this will happen. More than 2,600 years ago, Ezekiel revealed an alliance composed of Russia, Iran, Turkey, and other regional nations will launch a surpriseattack on Israel from the north (Ezekiel 38-39). Since the launch of the Syrian civil war in 2011, we’ve seen each of the major players mentioned move their forces into Syria. Russia and its allies currently sit on Israel’s northern border, which is the directionfrom which Ezekiel said they’ll attack (Ezekiel 38:15; Ezekiel 39:2). We’ve been watching God set the stage for this conflict for several years. The coronavirus-induced oil price war provides yet another reason to expect we’re getting closer to seeing fulfillmentof Ezekiel 38-39. In December 2010, Israel made a massive gas find off the coast of Haifa with enough reserves to supply Israel’s gas needs for an entire century. And in September 2015, aftera year of drilling, Israel discovered an oil shale deposit on the Golan Heights. The immense size of it was reported weeks later. Interestingly, on September 30, 2015, Russia began its military campaign in Syria. The oil is a huge incentive for Russia to leadan invasion of Israel. But God will personally intervene and destroy the invaders en masse. They will be food for the birds and the beasts. Many Bible prophecy experts agree with the following: “Sheba, and Dedan [modern-day Saudi Arabia], and the merchants of Tarshish [this could represent modern-day England], with all the young lions thereof [would include theU.S. in that case], shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil?” (Ezekiel 38:13a). In other words, they won’t be involved in this invasion but will protest it. Also, see Daymond Duck’s 2017 article, “SlowlyShaping Up,” in which he describes the players in this invasion. Conclusion: So, we see that Saudi Arabia is getting closer with Israel these days due to the Iran threat, even though it says it won’t make a peace agreement with Israel unless it agreesto move its borders beyond 1967 lines and allows for a ‘Palestinian State.’ However, if the Iran threat intensifies, this could cause Saudi Arabia to make that deal with Israel as other Arab nations have done in the past several months (Abraham Accords). The United States is already being torn apart by the Biden regime that intends to finish what Obama began in earnest – that is, taking down the U.S., the only nation standingin the way of global government. This would be a reason for the U.S. not to come to Israel’s defense. The Biden administration and many other Democrat leaders do not support Israel. Puppet Biden has filled his administration with anti-Israel activists. Andhis administration intends to push the Two-State (so-called) ‘solution’ – dividing up God’s land. Something else that would definitely render the U.S. unable to come to Israel’s aid is the rapture when Jesus takes up all the Bible-believing Christians to escape the comingwrath in the Tribulation (Time of Jacob’s Trouble; Daniel’s 70th week), as promised. We’ve seen a convergence of the prophesied end-time signs. Nation (ethic) against nation (ethnic), wars and rumors of wars everywhere you turn, increasing frequency andintensity of earthquakes, plagues and pestilence. Children are being indoctrinated by sinister leftist agendas in the education system. And we know how Jesus feels about children. “At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midstof them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Andwhoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea” (Matthew18:1-6). Jesus said that when He returns, the world will again be like it was in the days of Noah and Lot, and there is absolutely no doubt that we’re there (Luke 17:26-30). So, keep spreading the gospel, pray for the lost, and keep looking up, brethren. “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon theearth” (Revelation 3:10). ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- China and Russia: The Guns of April -by Gordon G. Chang - https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17300/china-russia-provocations Russian troops are massing on the Ukraine border, Chinese vessels are swarming Whitsun Reef of the Philippines in the South China Sea, and China's air force is flying almostdaily through Taiwan's air-defense identification zone. Chinese troops for almost a year have been dug in deep in Indian-controlled Ladakh in the Himalayas. Two large aggressors are threatening to break apart neighbors and absorb them. The Biden administration has issued warnings to both Moscow and Beijing, but neither looks impressed. American attempts to de-escalate flashpoints are seen in Russian andChinese circles as failures of resolve. At least at this moment, those adversaries are right to scoff at the new U.S. leader. The Chinese are especially bold. They describe their flights near Taiwan as "combat drills." At the same time, they are sending large ships close to Taiwan's waters. TheLiaoning, their first aircraft carrier, recently steamed along the east side of the island in an especially provocative gesture. The Global Times, an unofficial Communist Party tabloid used by Beijing to signal new policies, on April 12 posted a video of Hu Xijin, its editor-in-chief, warning thatBeijing would overfly Taiwan � in other words, fly into Taiwan's sovereign airspace � to "declare sovereignty." Threats like that start wars. Chinese leaders speak provocatively because, among other reasons, they do not believe the United States or others will come to Taiwan's rescue. For decades, Washington has maintained a policy of "strategic ambiguity," not telling either Beijing or Taipei what the U.S. would do in the face of imminent conflict. Thisapproach worked in generally peaceful times with a more cooperative Chinese leadership, but, with far more aggressive rulers in Beijing, that policy is failing. Beijing is no longer impressed by American power. China's top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, in the infamous Anchorage meeting in the middle of last month, launched into a tiradein which he told Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that the U.S. could no longer talk to China "from a position of strength." Beijing is openly mocking Washington. Ominously, Global Times on April 14 ran an editorial with this headline: "When Real Determination Is Lacking, the U.S. Should Maintain'Strategic Ambiguity.'" In effect, China's leaders are saying they do not believe President Joe Biden would defend Taiwan. The editorial, in support of this view, makes it clear that Beijing thinksthe military balance of power is in its favor, even if the U.S. were willing to fight on the island republic's side. In a propaganda blast on April 8, China's regime said Taiwan "won't stand a chance" if it decides to invade the island. This Chinese self-perceptionof overwhelming strength is extraordinarily dangerous, of course. It is, therefore, time to reestablish deterrence. As Joseph Bosco, a Pentagon China desk officer in the George W. Bush administration, told Gatestone this month, "Giventhe dramatically changed circumstances, different words are needed now." Unfortunately, Beijing is not hearing them. True, the U.S. and Japan issued a joint leaders' statement mentioning Taiwan � the first time that has happened since 1969 � during the visit of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to the White House on April 16, but the words were milquetoast. At this moment, the failure to adopt appropriately robust language only adds to the perception of American weakness and underlines concerns expressedby Bosco, now a prominent China analyst, and others. What to do? Biden should publicly declare the United States is ditching strategic ambiguity and adopting "strategic clarity," in other words, Biden should issue a cleardeclaration that America will defend Taiwan. Beijing has dared the president to say that; he must respond. Moreover, we have already passed the point where just declarations and warnings will suffice. The Biden administration has yet to impose costs on China for aggressive actionsjeopardizing America's security and that of allies like Japan. Chinese leaders, while hearing the mild warnings from the Biden administration, must be asking one question: "Or what?" As China threatens Taiwan, Russia threatens Ukraine. Moscow in recent weeks has reportedly massed an estimated 85,000 troops near its border with that former Soviet republic,now an independent state. The concentration of Russian forces there is the highest since 2014, when Moscow annexed Crimea. That year, Russia-backed soldiers took control of much of the Donetsk and Luhansk portions of Ukraine's Russian-speaking Donbas, and Moscow began issuing passports to ahalf million people in the Donetsk and Luhansk "People's Republics." Vladimir Putin in 2019 said that Russia reserved the right to protect ethnic Russians outside Russia. This month, Dmitry Kozak, deputy head of Russia's presidential administration,said his country might intervene to "defend" its citizens. If it did, he suggested, Ukraine would not survive because it would not be "a shot in the leg, but in the face." The American response has not been adequate. Russians perceive Biden as feeble. "In Putin's game of brinkmanship, Biden blinked first," said journalist Konstantin Eggertto the BBC, referring to the American president proposing a meeting to his Russian counterpart. Biden's "nerves," he said, "had failed him." That assessment may be correct. In the face of threats directed at Washington by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, the U.S. Navy did not, as many had expected,send two destroyers through the Bosporus into the international waters of the Black Sea. Politico reported that "two U.S. officials familiar with the plans" said the cancellation was due to American concerns about inflaming the Russia-Ukraine situation. Gregory Copley, president of the International Strategic Studies Association, told Gatestone that Turkey announced Washington's intention to sail into the Black Sea beforea decision had in fact been made. Especially in light of Ankara's announcement, the ultimate decision to stay away made it look as if the U.S. had backed down. Significantly, Ukraine was disappointed by the decision. Copley, also editor-in-chief of Defense & Foreign Affairs Strategic Policy, points out China and Russia usually test new American presidents, as do other states. What isdifferent this time is the seriousness of their provocations. The Dragon and the Bear appear to be coordinating moves, as they have for some time. At the very least, each is acting with an eye to what the other is doing. Once one ofthese aggressors makes a move, the other large state, taking advantage of the situation, will almost certainly follow. Biden also has to be concerned about Moscow or Beijing acting through proxies Iran and North Korea. China's communist regime has a history of engaging in belligerent acts � most notably the 1962 invasion of India during the Cuban missile crisis � while others are distractedby faraway events. Consequently, war could break out on both ends of the Eurasian landmass at the same time. All the elements for history's next great conflict are now in place. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Echoes Of Ezekiel 38 - Israel/Iran Shadow War Heats Up You won't hear the corporate media say very much about the "shadow war" that Israel and Iran are currently engaged in, because the corporate media is absolutely obsessed with covering the internal strife that is tearing the U.S. apart right now. But if they were doing their jobs correctly, corporate media outlets would be focusing on the Middle East, because the conflict between Israel and Iran could literally spark a major global war at any moment. As Israeli military aircraft pounded Iranian-backed forces in southern Syria on Thursday morning, there were reports coming in from central Israel of massive explosions that were so large they "shook the houses"... Alarms sounded in Abu Qrenat near Dimona in southern Israel early Thursday morning, the IDF's Spokesperson's Unit reported. Residents from across the country, including central Israel and Jerusalem, reported hearing "loud explosions" that "shook the houses." According to the Jerusalem Post, an Israeli military official insists that there was just one explosion and that it was caused by a Syrian surface to air missile that just happened to land in the southern Negev... Brig.Gen. Hidai Zilberman later told reporters that the explosion was due to the firing of an SA-5 surface to air missile that was fired towards Israel and that it exploded in the southern Negev. The firing of the missile came during Israeli air strikes in the south of Syria. The missile was not directed towards any target, Zilberman said. But that wouldn't seem to explain the multiple "explosions" that residents of central Israel reported on Thursday morning. In any event, we are seeing fighting on an almost daily basis now. After hitting pro-Iranian targets inside Syria about 50 times in 2020, Israeli airstrikes have become even more frequent in 2021. In addition, Israel has conducted a series of extremely bold attacks inside Iran itself over the last nine months. The following comes from the New York Times... In less than nine months, an assassin on a motorbike fatally shot an Al Qaeda commander given refuge in Tehran, Iran's chief nuclear scientist was machine-gunned on a country road, and two separate, mysterious explosions rocked a key Iranian nuclear facilityin the desert, striking the heart of the country's efforts to enrich uranium. The steady drumbeat of attacks, which intelligence officials said were carried out by Israel, highlighted the seeming ease with which Israeli intelligence was able to reach deep inside Iran's borders and repeatedly strike its most heavily guarded targets,often with the help of turncoat Iranians. The most dramatic incident was the attack on the Natanz nuclear facility. It turns out that attack caused far more damage than we were originally told... The latest sabotage incident on April 11 caused a blackout at the Natanz facility and major damage. The attack, widely believed to be orchestrated by Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, took out a number of Iran's older and "least efficient" IR-1 centrifugemachines, according to Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Saeed Khatibzadeh. Meanwhile, Alireza Zakani, head of the Parliament Research Center, has noted that "several thousands" of centrifuges were damaged or destroyed. The Iranians vowed "revenge" after that incident, and they have attacked Israeli ships multiple times since then. Here is one example... An Israeli-owned ship was attacked near Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, the Lebanese Al Mayadeen news channel reported on Tuesday. Israeli defense sources confirmed that a ship partially was attacked on Tuesday, and said they were certain that Iran is behind the attack. The attack took place in international waters, likely by an unmanned drone or a missile strike, they said, notingthat only minor damage was caused. That was the third such attack on an Israeli-owned ship, and more attacks are expected in the future. The good news is that a full-blown war between Israel and Iran has not erupted yet. But such a war is coming. It is just a matter of time at this point. Inevitably, someone will escalate things a little bit too much, and then thousands of missiles will start flying. Iranian-backed Hezbollah has 150,000 missiles pointed at Israel right now, and the Iranians are fully capable of doing immense damage to major Israeli cities. Of course the Israeli military is even more powerful. In the event of a full-blown war, Israel could literally level every single major city in Iran, Syria and Lebanon. Our world is steamrolling toward war, and it won't be anything like the relatively minor conflicts that we started in Afghanistan and Iraq. At this moment, the seeds of World War 3 are being planted, and eventually those seeds will blossom into a conflict that will be far more horrific than most people would dare to imagine. Originally published at The Economic Collapse Blog - reposted with permission. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What really happened in the skies near Israel�s nuclear reactor? � Yaakov Lappin - https://www.jns.org/what-really-happened-in-the-skies-near-israels-nuclear-reactor/ Former intelligence officer Tal Beeri tells JNS �an alternative and unfounded narrative of a warning strike� on Dimona�s nuclear research center is playing out in media channels affiliated with Iran. Two days before a Syrian surface-to-air missile flew into southern Israel in response to reported Israeli airstrikes on targets in the Damascus area, two suspicious Iranian cargo planes landed at Damascus International Airport,likely carrying advanced weapons, a former IDF intelligence officer has told JNS. Early on Thursday morning, international media reports said that the Israeli Air Force hit a number of unknown targets in Syria, which triggered a Syrian SA-5 surface-to-air missile battery to fire on the Israeli aircraft. Maj. (res.) Tal Beeri, director of the research department at the Alma research center, which uses open-source material to shed light on security threats to Israel emanating from Syria and Lebanon, spent 20 years in IDF intelligencespecializing in Lebanon and Syria. He said that according to online public flight-tracking programs, the Iranian cargo planes landed at the Damascus airport on April 20. �Those who follow Iranian cargo planes movements from Iran to Damascus are not surprised by airstrikes that follow them,� he said. �We don�t know what the specific target of the Israeli strike was, but I am certainly linkingit to the arrival of the cargo planes,� added Beeri. During the reported attack, as in many previous Israeli strikes, Syrian air-defense missile batteries launched interceptor missiles. �The SA-5 is an old, Russian-built surface-to-air missile,� explained Beeri. �It can reach a range of some 400 kilometers and an altitude of some 40,000 feet. It has a 200-kilogram warhead.� The missile is originally designed to shoot down larger air targets, like transport planes. �If it doesn�t strike a target in the air, it continues to fly until it falls because its flight trajectory ends,� said Beeri. �We saw in recent years quite a few incidents during airstrikes in which these missile launchesfrom Syria had unexpected results. Airstrikes can lead to Syrian missiles reaching all sorts of surprising places.� Examples include the SA-5 missile that was successfully intercepted by an Israeli Arrow 2 missile over the Jordan Valley in March 2017, and the SA-5 missile that knocked an Israeli F-16 out of the sky in February 2018. Duringthat same incident, a second SA-5 missile fell in the Greek-populated region of Cyprus. In September 2018, recalled Beeri, an SA-5 missile hit a Russian intelligence-gathering aircraft while trying to hit an Israeli jet with tragic and deadly consequences. In July 2019, an SA-5 fired from Syria fell on the Turkish-populated side of Cyprus. �From our understanding of the incident, the SA-5 fired [on April 22] was launched south of Damascus. The missile did not hit any aircraft, and its trajectory took it over Jordan. When it was over the Dead Sea, it crossedover into Israeli territory and traveled in a straight line until reaching the Beersheva region,� said Beeri. At that stage, warning sirens went off in the region of the Bedouin village of Abu Qrenat, in the northwest Negev, stated the Israel Defense Forces. An Israeli air-defense system fired a missile at the Syrian missile but failed to strike it, according to Defense Minister Benny Gantz. �The IDF acted against necessary assets [in Syria], preventing potential harm against Israel,� he said during a press conference. �An SA-5 crossed border. There was an attempt to intercept that didn�t succeed. The air forceis investigating the incident. In most such cases, we see other results.� Shortly afterwards, the IAF �struck the battery from which the missile was launched and additional Syrian surface-to-air batteries in the area,� the IDF Spokesperson�s Unit said in a statement. �Revenge� a totally baseless claim A Syrian military source told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) that the IAF hit targets in the Damascus and Golan regions. SANA said in its reports that four Syrian soldiers sustained injuries in an Israeli strike south of Damascus and that the attack also caused some damage. Beeri added that there were also indications that a Syrian officer at the rank of captain was killed in the attack. Nevertheless, he said, when taken into the context of four incidents in the past three years, even such ��unusual� incidents become somewhat routine. �The fact is that the Syrian missile flew until it could not fly any further. This time, it reached the Beersheva region,� he stated. This has not stopped social-media accounts and media channels affiliated with the radical Shi�ite-Iranian axis from holding what Beeri described as a �celebration� over the incident. The narrative of �revenge��in which a surface-to-surface ballistic missile was deliberately fired at the Dimona-based Negev Nuclear Research Center as a �warning strike� to prove what the Iranian axis can do�has taken holdthere. �Here is the �revenge,� but this is totally baseless claim,� said Beeri. �They are linking the incident to recent incidents at the Natanz nuclear site in Iran,� he added, referring to the April 11 blast that tore throughthe facility, taking thousands of Iranian centrifuges offline and for which Iran has blamed Israel. Asked if this alternative narrative could still provide a face-saving outlet for Iran, Beeri said that public sentiments in narratives can, in principle, calm desires for revenge, but only if formal decision-makers and militarychiefs in Iran agree to use such an outlet. He added that it remains unclear whether the Iranian leadership, which is aware of what really happened, would do so. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ VISIT: PROPHECY WATCHER WEEKLY NEWS: HTTP://PROPHECY-WATCHER-WEEKLY-NEWS.BLOGSPOT.COM