Latest Damascus Update: December 7, 2024
During the turmoil of the Arab uprising in Egypt, in my Scripture studies I found if myself looking at the words of Isaiah 19 concerning "The Burden of Egypt."
Now, the ancient nation of Syria is under siege by rebel Sunni fighting in the streets against the rule of an Alawaite Muslim leader, a leader backed by both Iran and Russia.
Many view Alawites as a minority sect of Shia Islam because they share some of the beliefs of the Twelver Shiites of Iran, yet hardcore Sunni Muslims say they are blasphemers and heretics because the Alawites believe Muhammad's cousin and his son-in-law are "divine."
That belief is why most Alawites consider themselves separate from both Shia and Sunni. It's also the reason they have faced bitter battles throughout their history with Sunni that is still flaring today.
Alawite core belief is a part of the civil war horror about Muhammad's cousin that the headlines will never report.
In Syria, virtually every family is in the conflict as Sunni Muslims antagonize Alawites as heretic zindiqs, and the judgment due to a zindig can include punishment by death and that is what you are seeing.
We are witnessing the beginning a horrific "self-fulfilling" prophecy, so let's go back and examine the words of Isaiah about the oracle of Damascus. The prophet warns of many burdens including those of Babylon, Moab, Egypt, Dumah and Tyre, but the best known of the oracle from Almighty God is all about Damascus.
That may be what we don't understand. The Damascus prophecy also tells us that cities of Aroer [are] "forsaken."
This word "forsaken" is the Hebrew "azab" which means abandoned or deserted. This grieves my soul. Some suppose a form of nuclear devastation is hinted, yet many security experts around the world now believe that Syria maintains massive stockpiles of chemical weapons, whose use in warfare was banned by the Geneva Protocol in 1925.
In an act of temporary insanity, the production of chemical weapons was not banned until 1972 by the Biological Weapons Convention. It is said that Syria's biological and chemical weapon stockpiles include mustard gas and various nerve agents that are stored below Damascus.
So, we have to ask, who are the rebels in Syria?
First, let's consider the potential of chemical threat. We already know Al-Qaeda terrorists are linked to biological weapons development prior to our post 9/11 military intervention in Afghanistan.
Horrors could unfold if Iran, a staunch ally of Syria seeks their goal with the push of a button to wipe what they call "the Zionist regime" off the map. The Israeli Defense Forces would not have an option but the react in defense. Interception of an intercontinental ballistic missile aimed at Jerusalem in the skies over Syria's capital is a real word scenario.
Defense is the thing many miss about Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of latter day events given to him by Almighty God. Daniel sought the answer in self defense!
History is important, so is Syria.
Benhadad is comprised of two Hebrew words: "ben-Hadad." Strong's Hebrew Bible Concordance tells us these mean: "son of Hadad." Importantly, Hadad was an ancient false god, an idol, and ben-Hadad refers to "son of Hadad (the storm god).
We also know in nearby Libya, Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Ghadafi's rule ended on October 20, 2011, notably 41 years after it began on September 1, 1969.
Back to Syria, we saw that Jeremiah's prophecy describes "fire in a palace" that has to be very important. After all, there is no idle word, no wasted space in the Bible, every detail and letter is important and Israel has defensive firepower. So, it is up to us to search and study Scripture to find truth because the cipher is held in the Hebrew language of the Bible.
Where is the "palace" of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad?
It is massive and sits right on top of a high hill overlooking the capital city of Damascus.
Anyone can see the huge "Republican Palace" using Google Maps. Just type in “Damascus, Syria” and zoom in on the massive building sitting 400 feet above the ancient city. It is the home of the leader of Syria's Ba'athist government.
Also consider this: with the fall of Iraq's Ba'athist Saddam Hussein, Syria is the world's only remaining oppressive Ba'athist government. At the heart of the Syrian conflict stands the al-Assad family, which has ruled like a dictatorship since 1970 in the belief of the Alawi Shiite.
The largest of the religious groups in Syria are the Sunni Muslims, they account for 70% of the population. We should take note that the "Twelver Shia" sects of Syria are concentrated between Homs and Aleppo. Homs and its Baba Amr neighborhood is today's center stage to the so-called "revolutionary" fighting and it will certainly move into Aleppo.
Why anti-christ?
To learn more, you may want to link to a film The Coming is Upon Us which is a documentary describing the twisted beliefs of the Shiite Twelver faith with a keen narrative on Iran's big role with the 12th Mahdi.
Today's conflict in the Middle East is not an issue based on dividing Israel, it's who's in Caliphate charge Sunni or Shi'ite.
Joshua 11:1-5 records that five of the original seven hostile nations were utterly defeated by Israel under Joshua's leadership. Now there are six in the league of today's seven nations enraged in an Arab Spring.
If Revelation 17 has anything to do with all of this, another MidEast government may soon fall just as five fell in 1948, just like the five that fell 3,500 years ago in Canaan, but who could that be?
The book of Isaiah tells us:
The book of Joshua tells of the five nations opposed Israel when they entered the land 3,500 years ago. it happened again in 1948, so the prophecy of Revelation 17:10 is well worth repeating:
They were Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.
The five Arab states attacked without any provocation. They're reason was 100% anti-Semitic hatred and most of the world stood by, not lifting a finger. Even America let Israel wander in a stormy sea much like the 937 Jews aboard the M.S. St. Louis fleeing Hitler's destruction that America abandoned for no apparent reason.
There's a beast there and the Caliphate that feigned death at the end of World War I with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, may soon be reborn and revived as a Shiite Haman nation to rise up again with an ancient goal, a goal to wipe Israel off the map and push them into the sea.
Our headlines look much like a repeat of the fall of King Jabin of Hazor described in Joshua 11. Today's Jabin whomever he is, may very rise out of the chaos of an "Islamic Awakening" in an attempt to unify Islam in an attack against Israel.
One BIG concern I have is the U.S. lead in the push of a "Peace Plan" in the name of peace and security that may fuse a ticking time bomb that has existed since the messenger of The Lord declared to Hagar these prophetic words in Genesis 16:11-12:
I think he is an Assyrian of Iran, here's why:
To do that we must look to the north of the Sea of Galilee, after all, Hazor was an ancient city located just north of the Sea of Galilee. Notably, Hazor fell into the control of Aram in the late 12th century BC, a nation-state with its capital in the ancient city of Damascus.
The Bible records David's battles against the Aramaeans in southern Syria in the 10th century BC in 2Samuel 10:6-19: "David killed seven hundred of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there."
Shobach was a Syrian and we know God says that He declares the end from the beginning and reveals all things through the prophets.
It seems that we are seeing the words of the Bible prophetically cycle as the Arab League and the world supports Palestinian statehood. For the sake of peace and security, Israel may very well agree to divide its people and the unconditional covenant land or be forced to, but if that ever happens expect big problems for the planet:
With the noted break-up of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, the League of Nations (now the U.N.) led by Britain and France, redrew the borders of the Middle East with a red pen on paper and added borders according to their own reckoning, or was it?
In 1946, two years before the nation state rebirth of Israel, Jordan appeared out of nowhere on our maps, relabeled from the Hashemite Kingdom of Trans-Jordan.
And now, before our eyes, the Arab League that attacked Israel has been fractured by the chaotic fall of those four leaders.
The Arab League includes the 'six' nation group known as the Gulf Cooperation Council which includes the six nations of The Kingdom Of Saudi Arabia that many do not even know even exists by that name. They are: the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Sultanate of Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah has even called on the "Gulf" Arab states to move beyond cooperation into the unity of the six nations into a single Arab entity.
For Bible prophecy students, this 'call for unification' may also ring a bell and raise the question that the idea of a so-called "one world government" may actually arise from a restored Muslim Caliphate founded on the creeds of Islam that bind them together in a government called Sharia in a religion called Islam.
We must know, the Bible is laser focused on the lands of the Middle East with Jerusalem in the center, so let's look at the agenda of this six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, Their 1981 founding charter of an Arab Nation states (underlines are mine for emphasis):
It's time for you to repent and return to God's voice, return to hear and do His word and walk in the faith of His Kingdom path so that you can ready your lamp for your coming assignment as a watchman on the walls of Jerusalem.
God is a sovereign God.
He has given us the Biblical prophets to warn us in advance of these things.
He is a loving God but a time of judgment sword and pestilence is coming, yet God has provided a way to offer all His redemption and salvation in eternal life.
You can accept His gift of life in Messiah Yeshua. "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:32-33
It's time to consider carefully what your life consists of, look at it and repent of any sin, confess and ask the God of Israel for His forgiveness and accept His gift of love through the Jewish Messiah King.
Do it now, then open the Bible and do it!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Damascus Updates ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 7, 2024: Where is Assad? Russia solves the mystery of the Syrian dictator’s escape
We are witnessing the beginning a horrific "self-fulfilling" prophecy, so let's go back and examine the words of Isaiah about the oracle of Damascus. The prophet warns of many burdens including those of Babylon, Moab, Egypt, Dumah and Tyre, but the best known of the oracle from Almighty God is all about Damascus.
We can read it in Isaiah 17.
Is the "heap" of Damascus a description of
the destruction of the city or...
its people?
The burden of the heap of Damascus is well known because it never happened. Damascus is the oldest continuously occupied city in the world. It's been a well-known Mid-East metro for 5,000 years. It plays a big part in the book of Acts as Paul was headed there to persecute believers that accepted Yeshua as the promised Messiah.
Some prophecies appear to work in cycles, but so far, not this one. It stand apart yet to be fulfilled as a prophecy to come:
Perhaps these so called prophecy "experts" are among those that say that the Scripture verses that reference a future restoration of Israel are only linked to the Babylonian exile and not the mourning fasts turned to joy described by Jeremiah 31:1-25.
the destruction of the city or...
its people?
The burden of the heap of Damascus is well known because it never happened. Damascus is the oldest continuously occupied city in the world. It's been a well-known Mid-East metro for 5,000 years. It plays a big part in the book of Acts as Paul was headed there to persecute believers that accepted Yeshua as the promised Messiah.
Some prophecies appear to work in cycles, but so far, not this one. It stand apart yet to be fulfilled as a prophecy to come:
"The burden of Damascus. Behold, Damascus is taken away from [being] a city, and it shall be a ruinous heap.
The cities of Aroer [are] forsaken: they shall be for flocks, which shall lie down, and none shall make [them] afraid.
The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim, and the kingdom from Damascus, and the remnant of Syria: they shall be as the glory of the children of Israel, saith the LORD of hosts."Some historians say that the destruction of Damascus may have happened thousands of years ago at the hand of Assyria that's described in Isaiah chapters 7-8.
Perhaps these so called prophecy "experts" are among those that say that the Scripture verses that reference a future restoration of Israel are only linked to the Babylonian exile and not the mourning fasts turned to joy described by Jeremiah 31:1-25.
Mourning became joy following the tribulation holocaust of World War II as a remnant of Jewish people survived the sword of Hitler's hatred and returned to Israel.
The reason: God’s glory and prophecy shines brightest at the darkest hour.
Some say Isaiah's prophecy describes that Damascus will be destroyed by a nuclear weapon. That may be true and if we consider that possibility, it could be an accident.
No matter how or when, what is unfolding in Syria today is terrifying and inconceivable. Honestly, I do not know how to effectively pray for the Syrian people that are in dire straits because the real loss is the continued death of precious Syrian men, women and children.
Some say Isaiah's prophecy describes that Damascus will be destroyed by a nuclear weapon. That may be true and if we consider that possibility, it could be an accident.
No matter how or when, what is unfolding in Syria today is terrifying and inconceivable. Honestly, I do not know how to effectively pray for the Syrian people that are in dire straits because the real loss is the continued death of precious Syrian men, women and children.
The Syrian families are innocent and they will be displaced, but God is great, I know He has a plan and somehow He will bring good from this chaos.
Should we consider that by leaving Syria, many people will be saved when Damascus falls?
That may be what we don't understand. The Damascus prophecy also tells us that cities of Aroer [are] "forsaken."
This word "forsaken" is the Hebrew "azab" which means abandoned or deserted. This grieves my soul. Some suppose a form of nuclear devastation is hinted, yet many security experts around the world now believe that Syria maintains massive stockpiles of chemical weapons, whose use in warfare was banned by the Geneva Protocol in 1925.
In an act of temporary insanity, the production of chemical weapons was not banned until 1972 by the Biological Weapons Convention. It is said that Syria's biological and chemical weapon stockpiles include mustard gas and various nerve agents that are stored below Damascus.
One reason that is a big concern is Damascus never signed the Chemical Weapons Convention.
These stockpiles could be used by Syria against their people or fall into the hands of jihadist terror groups like Jabhat al-Nusra, an Al-Qaeda infection in Syria or other radical Sunni rebel factions active in Syria. They include Ahrar al-Sham, the Syrian Democratic People's Party, the Syria Martyrs' Brigade, the Syrian Islamic Front or other radical terrorists who oppose Syria's Ba'athist government and al-Assad's belief following the Alawite Islamic sect of Twelver Shia Islam.
If biological and chemical weapon stockpiles are released or destroyed... a tragedy beyond comprehension will unfold. The scenario of an attack against Assad's arsenal in an attempt to stop the madness could inadvertently unleash a cache of chemical poison on Damascus.
Compounding the current situation, we have to remember Israel is next door and Iran and Russia are in alliance with Syria.
These stockpiles could be used by Syria against their people or fall into the hands of jihadist terror groups like Jabhat al-Nusra, an Al-Qaeda infection in Syria or other radical Sunni rebel factions active in Syria. They include Ahrar al-Sham, the Syrian Democratic People's Party, the Syria Martyrs' Brigade, the Syrian Islamic Front or other radical terrorists who oppose Syria's Ba'athist government and al-Assad's belief following the Alawite Islamic sect of Twelver Shia Islam.
If biological and chemical weapon stockpiles are released or destroyed... a tragedy beyond comprehension will unfold. The scenario of an attack against Assad's arsenal in an attempt to stop the madness could inadvertently unleash a cache of chemical poison on Damascus.
Compounding the current situation, we have to remember Israel is next door and Iran and Russia are in alliance with Syria.
The fact is Russia maintains its only foreign military base on the planet in Tartus, Syria.
To make matters worse, the United States and Russia stand on political polar opposites in Syria's civil war and that is a potential disaster waiting in the shadows of Moscow. Both the Kremlin and the Ayatollahs of Tehran back President Bashar al-Assad while some in Washington like John McCain seek to support the rebel forces opposing the Syrian government.
But who on Earth are these so-called rebels?
Thanks to political and media deception, no one seems to know as U.S. politicians and our left biased media call them "rebels." The truth is some of them are the noble Kurds, but others... who knows who they are at this point, certainly not the mainstream media.
The world has already seen the horrors of al Qaeda and the Taliban as well their offshoots as they seek to terrorize and destroy the West. We have also seen the evils of Iranian operatives Hamas and Hezbollah seeking to wipe Israel off the map.
To make matters worse, the United States and Russia stand on political polar opposites in Syria's civil war and that is a potential disaster waiting in the shadows of Moscow. Both the Kremlin and the Ayatollahs of Tehran back President Bashar al-Assad while some in Washington like John McCain seek to support the rebel forces opposing the Syrian government.
But who on Earth are these so-called rebels?
Thanks to political and media deception, no one seems to know as U.S. politicians and our left biased media call them "rebels." The truth is some of them are the noble Kurds, but others... who knows who they are at this point, certainly not the mainstream media.
The world has already seen the horrors of al Qaeda and the Taliban as well their offshoots as they seek to terrorize and destroy the West. We have also seen the evils of Iranian operatives Hamas and Hezbollah seeking to wipe Israel off the map.
Now, there are others on the Mid East scene like Jabhat al-Nusra. The Nusra Front is a jihadist group and a spin off of the al-Qaeda terror band outcasts of Iraq.
So, we have to ask, who are the rebels in Syria?
Who is fighting who... are they from al Qaeda or other radical groups in places like Iraq that seek nothing but the destruction of anyone that opposes their beliefs?
First, let's consider the potential of chemical threat. We already know Al-Qaeda terrorists are linked to biological weapons development prior to our post 9/11 military intervention in Afghanistan.
On the possibility of a Syrian chemical threat, NTI.org provides an interactive map of the risk and this critical commentary:
"Syria is suspected of having one of the most advanced chemical warfare (CW) capabilities in the Middle East. Syria's initial CW capability was provided by Egypt prior to the October 1973 war against Israel. Since then, Syria appears to have acquired an indigenous capability to develop and produce chemical weapons agents including mustard gas and sarin, and possibly also VX nerve agent.
Chemical weapons agents have been produced since the 1980s at facilities located near the Hama, Homs, and Al-Safira villages in the Aleppo region. However, Syria remains dependent on foreign sources for some dual-use equipment and for the precursor chemicals critical to CW agent production. In recent years, Iran has been identified as a major supplier of Syrian requirements for CW-related supplies. Syria signed an agreement with Iran in 2005 that specifies, among other things, the provision of training and technical assistance to Syrian scientists and technicians and the construction of five chemical pilot plant facilities for developing and producing precursor chemicals."In August 2011, The Wall Street Journal reported:
"WASHINGTON—The U.S. and Israel are closely monitoring Syria's suspected cache of weapons of mass destruction, fearing that terror groups could take advantage of the revolt against President Bashar al-Assad to obtain blistering agents, nerve gas and long-range missiles, according to officials from both countries.Thousands of years before the Wall Street Journal's first news story, Isaiah wrote the Syrian headlines we see unfolding before our eyes today, but there may be a twist.
U.S intelligence services believe Syria's nonconventional weapons programs include significant stockpiles of mustard gas, VX and Sarin gas and the missile and artillery systems to deliver them."
According to Strong's Lexicon, Isaiah's use of the Hebrew word "iyr" that is translated here as "city" means "1) excitement, anguish a) of terror 2) city, town (a place of waking, guarded) a) city, town." The Hebrew word translated as taken away is "cuwr", it means "depart."
By looking into the Hebrew meaning of the words, we can gain a better understanding this dire prophecy:
The last mention of Syria within the "gospel" records is found in Matthew 4:24. Here we read that Yeshua (aka Jesus)... "went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments."
This seems terribly prophetic because Syria needs salvation from torment, so Syria needs Yeshua.
My prayer is that this will cause you to turn to prayer and that you will pray relentlessly for the people of Syria. As you do, implore everyone you know to do the same while asking our Heavenly Father how to pray for Syria.
Chemicals may not be the demise of Damascus, but it seems probable as caches of toxic weapons may exist in Syria in the form of canned terror poisons like VX, Sarin and mustard gas.
I pray these toxins will not be used by Syria's government and I pray these weapons are kept out of the hands of radical rebel, militant faction networks born our of al Qaeda that seek the creation of a revived Caliphate to unite and rule the Muslim world and beyond.
The destruction of Damascus will be a catastrophic moment for the planet, it could come from a WMD, but not Israel's. The oracle's scenario could arrive in the form of nuclear tipped missile fired from Iran and aimed at Israel that is taken out in defense in an approach over Damascus.
By looking into the Hebrew meaning of the words, we can gain a better understanding this dire prophecy:
"Damascus departs from terror."
The last mention of Syria within the "gospel" records is found in Matthew 4:24. Here we read that Yeshua (aka Jesus)... "went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments."
This seems terribly prophetic because Syria needs salvation from torment, so Syria needs Yeshua.
My prayer is that this will cause you to turn to prayer and that you will pray relentlessly for the people of Syria. As you do, implore everyone you know to do the same while asking our Heavenly Father how to pray for Syria.
Chemicals may not be the demise of Damascus, but it seems probable as caches of toxic weapons may exist in Syria in the form of canned terror poisons like VX, Sarin and mustard gas.
I pray these toxins will not be used by Syria's government and I pray these weapons are kept out of the hands of radical rebel, militant faction networks born our of al Qaeda that seek the creation of a revived Caliphate to unite and rule the Muslim world and beyond.
The destruction of Damascus will be a catastrophic moment for the planet, it could come from a WMD, but not Israel's. The oracle's scenario could arrive in the form of nuclear tipped missile fired from Iran and aimed at Israel that is taken out in defense in an approach over Damascus.
Think about it, what does Israel do about rockets that are fired at them? They are shot down in route in self-defense by the Iron Dome.
Defense is the thing many miss about Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of latter day events given to him by Almighty God. Daniel sought the answer in self defense!
Should Syria suffer from such a disaster, that could be the Chernobyl-like warning from the oracle of Damascus.
Like Isaiah, the prophet Jeremiah gives the world some serious warnings concerning those that will flee in fear and anguish. His prophecy parallels the horrific message from Isaiah 19:
Like Isaiah, the prophet Jeremiah gives the world some serious warnings concerning those that will flee in fear and anguish. His prophecy parallels the horrific message from Isaiah 19:
"Concerning Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; [there is] sorrow on the sea; it cannot be quiet.The prophet's words "sorrow on the sea" is foreboding as that Russian military base noted above sits in the Syrian port of Tartus. The Mediterranean Sea abuts Northern Syria to the west and borders the sea and the area can be one of the business waterways in the Mid East.
Damascus is waxed feeble, [and] turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on [her]: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad." Jeremiah 49:23-27
The prophet says:
"Damascus is waxed feeble, [and] turneth herself to flee."The Syrian nation would have to flee the horrors of death and destruction.
History is important, so is Syria.
Today, the fight we see there has been in place for quite some time. It's part of the ongoing sectarian civil religious war of belief between Sunni and Alewite, a war that's symbolic of the iron and clay feet that do not mix foretold in Daniel 2.
Let's flashback to the days of the Ottoman Empire.
In the day, Sunni Muslims oppressed the Alawites of Syria, attempting to convert them to their version of Islam. You already know the reason, the Sunni consider the Alawites infidels.
After the Turkish Ottoman Empire was broken apart at the conclusion of World War I, both Syria and Lebanon came under France's protectorate rule in 1920. Syria basically disregarded that until the French Mandate was enforced in 1922 by the League of Nations.
When Germany took down France in 1940 during World War II, things changed. After the second world war, both Lebanon and Syria became independent nation states no longer under Ottoman or French rule.
The Arab Baath party controlled Syria by 1963 and then Bashar al-Assad's father, Hafez al-Assad seized dictatorial power in 1970 as an Alewite.
Now, fast forward to consider another "key" perhaps to understanding the demise before our eyes of a once beautiful Syria. I think the key is found in the word "Benhadad."
"And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad." Jeremiah 49:27
"But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, which shall devour the palaces of Benhadad." Amos 1:4
The prophet Amos goes on to describe horrific destruction in surrounding nations. Amos is very difficult and heart breaking to read, thank God it ends with this:
"And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God." Amos 9:14-15
I'm no scholar with traditional credentials, but I can read and that's what this website is about, reading the Bible for what it says. If you are like me and you look at most English Bible translations, the word "Benhadad" may throw us a bit off track from the intent of the message that Almighty God had given both Jeremiah and Amos. That's because the word Benhadad seems to read as if it is a place or city.
It may well be, but could it be more?
Benhadad is comprised of two Hebrew words: "ben-Hadad." Strong's Hebrew Bible Concordance tells us these mean: "son of Hadad." Importantly, Hadad was an ancient false god, an idol, and ben-Hadad refers to "son of Hadad (the storm god).
There's a storm right now in Syria.
Ben Hadad has to be important. The first mention of Syria in the Bible is found in Judges 10:6 and it documents the false storm god of Syria. Take note, because ben-Hadad is also the standing title of Syrian kings that have passed their government authority from father to son. So, I think the meaning of the phrase "the son of Hadad" gives us a clue.
Ben Hadad has to be important. The first mention of Syria in the Bible is found in Judges 10:6 and it documents the false storm god of Syria. Take note, because ben-Hadad is also the standing title of Syrian kings that have passed their government authority from father to son. So, I think the meaning of the phrase "the son of Hadad" gives us a clue.
If we understand Syria's recent history, we might understand today's headlines and the storm of strife and terror that lies ahead for Syria.
The ancient fact is that in Biblical times, just as today, many Syrian kings stood in opposition against "Israel" as the people that followed the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in obedience.
The ancient fact is that in Biblical times, just as today, many Syrian kings stood in opposition against "Israel" as the people that followed the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in obedience.
The ages old problem for Syria is that The God of "Israel" gave a promise to Abraham that says, I will bless those that bless you and curse those that curse you.
Syria take note and wake up!!
Syria take note and wake up!!
Whether you know it or not, Syria has been in a state of "emergency rule" since 1963, which its government has justified by the declaration of a continuous "state of war" with Israel.
The Syrian government has used their war declaration to suspend its own citizens’ constitutional rights for the past 39 years!
Take note too, that the separation of Syria and Israel today is basically a razored barbed wire fence along a beautiful bit of land called the Golan Heights. In Scripture, this area was referred to as "Bashan" and the word "Golan" comes from the biblical city of "Golan in Bashan." It's given that name in Deuteronomy 4:43.
Take note too, that the separation of Syria and Israel today is basically a razored barbed wire fence along a beautiful bit of land called the Golan Heights. In Scripture, this area was referred to as "Bashan" and the word "Golan" comes from the biblical city of "Golan in Bashan." It's given that name in Deuteronomy 4:43.
There is no thus saith The Lord here or on any other opinion I write, but those beautiful Golan hills may be the very spot of the apostle Paul's Damascus rode encounter with Yeshua of Nazareth. They may also connect to the oracle of Damascus in ways we have never considered.
Stop and ask yourself, who rules Syria today?
None other than a modern man with the title "ben-Hadad" that carries the name Bashar al-Assad. As noted, he is the son of Hafez al-Assad, the man who took over the nation on November 21, 1970. Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria with an iron fist for 29 years until his death. Twenty years ago, Hafez al-Assad carried out the "Hama massacre" in February 1982, when the Syrian army under his direction conducted military ops against the Sunni Muslim community of Hama.
The estimates for the loss of life there range from 10,000 to 40,000 souls depending on the source.
Stop and ask yourself, who rules Syria today?
None other than a modern man with the title "ben-Hadad" that carries the name Bashar al-Assad. As noted, he is the son of Hafez al-Assad, the man who took over the nation on November 21, 1970. Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria with an iron fist for 29 years until his death. Twenty years ago, Hafez al-Assad carried out the "Hama massacre" in February 1982, when the Syrian army under his direction conducted military ops against the Sunni Muslim community of Hama.
The estimates for the loss of life there range from 10,000 to 40,000 souls depending on the source.
Other Syrian government atrocities against its own civilian humanity include the "Tadmor Prison Massacre," the "Siege of Aleppo, the "Tel al-Zaatar Massacre" as well as the execution of hundreds of Lebanese soldiers (men of war) that surrendered to al-Assad's troops in 1990. That day is known as the "October 13th Massacre."
A few months ago, on July 31, 2011 the Syrian army entered the city of Hama, firing on the civilian public. They murdered over 100 people in what has been now named the "Ramadan Massacre."
A few months ago, on July 31, 2011 the Syrian army entered the city of Hama, firing on the civilian public. They murdered over 100 people in what has been now named the "Ramadan Massacre."
Like father like son.
The terrible massacre is continuing. It's not a civil war of soldiers. As in the days of "ben-Hadad," father and son have now viciously ruled over Syrians for some 40 years.
Forty is a key number found throughout Scripture. This cannot be taken lightly especially in what we have seen since the "Arab Spring." Forty as a period of trial and testing. Looking on the horizon, what we will see in the coming days, months and years in Syria? I don't know.
Forty is a key number found throughout Scripture. This cannot be taken lightly especially in what we have seen since the "Arab Spring." Forty as a period of trial and testing. Looking on the horizon, what we will see in the coming days, months and years in Syria? I don't know.
This we do know: Iran is using Syria like a pawn as a strategic proxy location and Iran's radical leadership utterly hates Israel.
That hate may lead to a Twilight Zone nightmare in Damascus.
Forty years is also the timeline that President Muhammad Anwar El Sadat followed by President Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak ruled in Egypt before the Arab Spring uprisings last February in Cairo took out Mubarak.
Forty years is also the timeline that President Muhammad Anwar El Sadat followed by President Muhammad Hosni El Sayed Mubarak ruled in Egypt before the Arab Spring uprisings last February in Cairo took out Mubarak.
Now, the Muslim Brotherhood has a 47% seat position in Egypt's new parliament and the Salafists with a 25% position potentially appear to be geared up to rule Egypt with "the hand of a hard master, and a fierce king" as the lens of the ancient oracle if Egypt revealed in Isaiah 19 comes into better focus.
We also know in nearby Libya, Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Ghadafi's rule ended on October 20, 2011, notably 41 years after it began on September 1, 1969.
Back to Syria, we saw that Jeremiah's prophecy describes "fire in a palace" that has to be very important. After all, there is no idle word, no wasted space in the Bible, every detail and letter is important and Israel has defensive firepower. So, it is up to us to search and study Scripture to find truth because the cipher is held in the Hebrew language of the Bible.
Where is the "palace" of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad?
It is massive and sits right on top of a high hill overlooking the capital city of Damascus.
Anyone can see the huge "Republican Palace" using Google Maps. Just type in “Damascus, Syria” and zoom in on the massive building sitting 400 feet above the ancient city. It is the home of the leader of Syria's Ba'athist government.
Also consider this: with the fall of Iraq's Ba'athist Saddam Hussein, Syria is the world's only remaining oppressive Ba'athist government. At the heart of the Syrian conflict stands the al-Assad family, which has ruled like a dictatorship since 1970 in the belief of the Alawi Shiite.
The largest of the religious groups in Syria are the Sunni Muslims, they account for 70% of the population. We should take note that the "Twelver Shia" sects of Syria are concentrated between Homs and Aleppo. Homs and its Baba Amr neighborhood is today's center stage to the so-called "revolutionary" fighting and it will certainly move into Aleppo.
The world owes much to beautiful Aleppo, it's the former home of the Aleppo Codex.
Journalists are now prohibited from entering Syria, so the news in this area basically gets to us from raw amateur video of explosions, gunfire and shouts of "Allahu Akbar."
Notably, the Twelver Shiite faith, a counterfeit imitating the 12 Tribes of Israel is the majority religion in both Iran and Iraq. The belief they hold is that their Mahdi ("guided one") will be none other than the "returned" Twelfth Imam, a potential anti-christ figure.
Journalists are now prohibited from entering Syria, so the news in this area basically gets to us from raw amateur video of explosions, gunfire and shouts of "Allahu Akbar."
Notably, the Twelver Shiite faith, a counterfeit imitating the 12 Tribes of Israel is the majority religion in both Iran and Iraq. The belief they hold is that their Mahdi ("guided one") will be none other than the "returned" Twelfth Imam, a potential anti-christ figure.
Why anti-christ?
"Twelvers" believe the Twelfth Imam is the 12th successor of Muhammad who is thought to be an infallible man that has been in hiding in a cave before he will return to rule the world as the Islamic messianic figure. They also believe that he will return with Jesus Christ as his Muslim aid to establish the final global governance of Islam and the destruction of all Christians and Jewish people unless they convert to Islam.
To learn more, you may want to link to a film The Coming is Upon Us which is a documentary describing the twisted beliefs of the Shiite Twelver faith with a keen narrative on Iran's big role with the 12th Mahdi.
Today's conflict in the Middle East is not an issue based on dividing Israel, it's who's in Caliphate charge Sunni or Shi'ite.
A sad reality is hidden in the oracle of Damascus.
Syria is a bit player in Iran's horrifying goal of nuclear power and armament. The loudest opponent is Israel. If this sounds apocalyptic, it is. The latter days are a problem for Syria because despite what the pundits and prognosticator's say, this is not a heroic battle between people seeking democracy.
This is an ancient, religious battle between a Haman-like murderer that wants to destroy Israel in a day.
The oracle of Damascus has warned for 2,500 years since the day Isaiah's scroll was penned. And in the end, whether the oracle of Damascus describes Syria being forsaken by conflict, chemical toxin or the destruction of weapons of mass destruction in a self-defense move of Israel, the bottom line is that the oracle of Damascus is true.
Horrifically, some event in one form or another will not only destroy the city, it will profoundly affect you, your family and friends. It could open up World War III, so is time to get on our knees and pray!
The events we are witnessing are horrifying and have great meaning from the words of the Bible as once again they are proving true, prophetic and unchanging. The prophecy of the demise of Damascus is thousands of years old, yet it may unfold in our lifetime, right before our eyes and ears so pay attention.
The events we are witnessing are horrifying and have great meaning from the words of the Bible as once again they are proving true, prophetic and unchanging. The prophecy of the demise of Damascus is thousands of years old, yet it may unfold in our lifetime, right before our eyes and ears so pay attention.
Wake up! Don't ignore the Bible. Do something and pray for Syria and the Peace of Jerusalem!!
Looming before us is the gigantic risk of World War emanating from a disaster in Damascus because Syria is the pawn of Iran as they seek nuclear capability.
Looming before us is the gigantic risk of World War emanating from a disaster in Damascus because Syria is the pawn of Iran as they seek nuclear capability.
Russia aligns with Iran in Syria. Not only that they have helped Iran develop their nuclear science.
There is an “axis of evil” in the Middle East opposing the superpowers of the U.S., Great Britain and France on the west with the tiny democracy of Israel sitting just south of the Syrian chaos while death chants rant from Iran's leaders.
Mixed in within this disastrous potion, we must see that Sunni Saudi Arabia and the League of Arab States all financially support the demise of their Muslim counterparts, the Persian Shi'ites of Iran.
This situation is hard to fathom because it makes no sense to us in America, but the so-called Arab Spring that unfolded in Egypt is now moving like a tectonic earthquake into Syria right before our eyes. And somehow, someway Israel may suffer greatly too.
In its defense, Israel could become the scapegoat like a burdensome stone and a cup of reeling as the world presses in demanding division of Israel for peace.
Why worry about Damascus? The Bible says so.
Unlike Isaiah's prophecy that promise a wonderful outcome in the end for Egypt in which God says Egypt will be a blessing after an evil ruler governs for a time, Isaiah's end game prophecy for Damascus has not happy ending, it is utterly horrific.
The fulfillment of the ancient words of Isaiah and the prophets like Jeremiah, Amos and even Ezekiel appear to be set in the images and headlines of Syrian news reports that track with the words of Jeremiah... "her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD (YHVH) of hosts."
It's true, Damascus has been a beautiful city and it is is the world's oldest continuously inhabited city, yet God's word says it will be "a heap in the day of grief and desperate sorrow."
That bad news should not be our only focus.
Instead, we should follow Daniel's lead in fasting and prayers of confession. Study the prayer of Daniel 9 and make it your own. It begins like this:
Mixed in within this disastrous potion, we must see that Sunni Saudi Arabia and the League of Arab States all financially support the demise of their Muslim counterparts, the Persian Shi'ites of Iran.
This situation is hard to fathom because it makes no sense to us in America, but the so-called Arab Spring that unfolded in Egypt is now moving like a tectonic earthquake into Syria right before our eyes. And somehow, someway Israel may suffer greatly too.
In its defense, Israel could become the scapegoat like a burdensome stone and a cup of reeling as the world presses in demanding division of Israel for peace.
Why worry about Damascus? The Bible says so.
Unlike Isaiah's prophecy that promise a wonderful outcome in the end for Egypt in which God says Egypt will be a blessing after an evil ruler governs for a time, Isaiah's end game prophecy for Damascus has not happy ending, it is utterly horrific.
The fulfillment of the ancient words of Isaiah and the prophets like Jeremiah, Amos and even Ezekiel appear to be set in the images and headlines of Syrian news reports that track with the words of Jeremiah... "her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD (YHVH) of hosts."
It's true, Damascus has been a beautiful city and it is is the world's oldest continuously inhabited city, yet God's word says it will be "a heap in the day of grief and desperate sorrow."
That bad news should not be our only focus.
Instead, we should follow Daniel's lead in fasting and prayers of confession. Study the prayer of Daniel 9 and make it your own. It begins like this:
"And I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed and said, “Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and loving kindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from thy commandments and ordinances." Daniel 9:4-5Daniel’s prayer is precisely what is required of us today.
We must all give humble confession and seek forgiveness from Almighty God's mercy and grace so that we may be restored to begin walking in God's ways, in His image.
Like Daniel, confession should be our focus in prayer.
It is the teaching and instruction that the Bible gives to us from the beginning of the journey to the Promised Land:
After leaving Egypt, the Bible tells us there were other opponents. They were the ancient nations of the 1) Hittites, 2) Girgashites, 3) Amorites, 4) Canaanites, 5) Perizzites, 6) Hivites, and the 7) Jebusites, "seven nations more numerous and mightier" than Israel.
“‘If they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their forefathers, in their unfaithfulness which they committed against Me, and also in their acting with hostility against Me I also was acting with hostility against them, to bring them into the land of their enemies— or if their uncircumcised heart becomes humbled so that they then make amends for their iniquity, then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and I will remember also My covenant with Isaac, and My covenant with Abraham as well, and I will remember the land.’” Leviticus 26:40-42There are dark days ahead, days of terror. So, it's time to get on our knees to pray, repent and return to the path ways and teaching of our God of the Universe because this is not going away...
"You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end." Matthew 24:6As reported in an earlier Zechariah's Vision update, on November 23, 2011, things changed in the Middle East. Syria's ongoing crisis is not separate from The Arab Spring uprising whose events starkly reminded us of the many Bible verses.
After leaving Egypt, the Bible tells us there were other opponents. They were the ancient nations of the 1) Hittites, 2) Girgashites, 3) Amorites, 4) Canaanites, 5) Perizzites, 6) Hivites, and the 7) Jebusites, "seven nations more numerous and mightier" than Israel.
This is seen in Deuteronomy 7.
Today, the uprisings Islam are mired in a combination of geopolitical and religious conflicts in a number of Muslim countries. This is mistakenly seen by left-wing media as a rise of "democracy" which is pawned off as a good thing. The problem, this uprising is not about democracy but it is a expression of the will of a suppressed people in the Muslim world NOT democracy.
Today, the uprisings Islam are mired in a combination of geopolitical and religious conflicts in a number of Muslim countries. This is mistakenly seen by left-wing media as a rise of "democracy" which is pawned off as a good thing. The problem, this uprising is not about democracy but it is a expression of the will of a suppressed people in the Muslim world NOT democracy.
Joshua 11:1-5 records that five of the original seven hostile nations were utterly defeated by Israel under Joshua's leadership. Now there are six in the league of today's seven nations enraged in an Arab Spring.
Check the list in Joshua 11:19, it clearly tells us Israel's armies did not destroy them all, only five. The Hivites of Gibeon were spared and the Girgashites are never even mentioned again, so five of the seven disappeared in antiquity including the leader of them all, King Jabin of Hazor.
Jabin means "whom God observes" and it reminds me of the popular saying: "know your enemy."
The Arab League or more formally, the "League of Arab States" was founded in Egypt in 1945 by the assembly of guess what: seven nations. They all signed the Arab League Pact including: 1) Egypt, 2) Iraq, 3) Lebanon, 4) Saudi Arabia, 5) Syria, 6) Yemen and 7) Transjordan (renamed Jordan in 1950).
A timeline of the Arab League can be seen at the BBC website.
These seven modern "Arab League" founding members were officially established by the "Protocols of Alexandria." Alexandria is in Egypt and perhaps like a prophetic Biblical blueprint, four (4) of the original seven (7) Arab League leaders have now fallen from power in the Arab Spring.
Jabin means "whom God observes" and it reminds me of the popular saying: "know your enemy."
A timeline of the Arab League can be seen at the BBC website.
These seven modern "Arab League" founding members were officially established by the "Protocols of Alexandria." Alexandria is in Egypt and perhaps like a prophetic Biblical blueprint, four (4) of the original seven (7) Arab League leaders have now fallen from power in the Arab Spring.
By the way, the Arab Spring is a western media name, or more accurately known in the Mideast as the "Islamic Awakening."
If Revelation 17 has anything to do with all of this, another MidEast government may soon fall just as five fell in 1948, just like the five that fell 3,500 years ago in Canaan, but who could that be?
The book of Isaiah tells us:
"I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.'" Isaiah 46:10Perhaps C.S. Lewis was thinking of this when in 1939 he wrote: "Most of all, perhaps, we need intimate knowledge of the past."
The book of Joshua tells of the five nations opposed Israel when they entered the land 3,500 years ago. it happened again in 1948, so the prophecy of Revelation 17:10 is well worth repeating:
"And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space."Chapter 17 of Revelation goes on...
"These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them..."Let's not forget that immediately after Israel declared itself an independent state in May 1948, the armies of five (5) Arab League nations surrounding Israel attacked the newborn nation.
They were Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.
The five Arab states attacked without any provocation. They're reason was 100% anti-Semitic hatred and most of the world stood by, not lifting a finger. Even America let Israel wander in a stormy sea much like the 937 Jews aboard the M.S. St. Louis fleeing Hitler's destruction that America abandoned for no apparent reason.
When the ship eventually returned to Europe, one third of them were murdered.
Cuba was the first nation to reject the ship, and we've all seen the curse of Cuba ever since. The U.S. was next followed by Canada. So, I know we have a problem.
There is an inexplicable geographic and spiritual connection to be explored between the persecution, expulsion, deportation and exodus of the Jewish people. Since Israel was was born in a day, Jewish people in Islamic Arab countries have been shoved out and now in the eruption of the Arab Spring that began in 2010, many Christians are now fleeing Syria.
A short time ago, Arab protests quickly turned into uprisings, riots, demonstrations and rebellions against entrenched Islamic authoritarian regimes. Civilian rebellion and demonstrations raced across the Middle East like a plague in late 2010 and 2011.
While many people ignore the facts on the ground, the truth is that from 1948 to the early 1970s, persecution and expulsion of Jews exiled and tossed out of Arab countries was rampant in Tunisia, Algeria, Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, Libya, Bahrain, Lebanon as these nations expelled brother Judah.
There is an inexplicable geographic and spiritual connection to be explored between the persecution, expulsion, deportation and exodus of the Jewish people. Since Israel was was born in a day, Jewish people in Islamic Arab countries have been shoved out and now in the eruption of the Arab Spring that began in 2010, many Christians are now fleeing Syria.
A short time ago, Arab protests quickly turned into uprisings, riots, demonstrations and rebellions against entrenched Islamic authoritarian regimes. Civilian rebellion and demonstrations raced across the Middle East like a plague in late 2010 and 2011.
While many people ignore the facts on the ground, the truth is that from 1948 to the early 1970s, persecution and expulsion of Jews exiled and tossed out of Arab countries was rampant in Tunisia, Algeria, Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, Libya, Bahrain, Lebanon as these nations expelled brother Judah.
Now look at those nations. They are in turmoil as the curse unfolds.
There's more. A major exodus took place from Persian Iran in 1979–80 as a consequence of the Islamic Revolution there that began as demonstrations against the Shah because he befriended to west with oil contracts. The revolution began in October of 1977 and it lasted two years until both the secular and religious campaigns concluded with a Shi'a constitution led by Ayatollah Khomeini's placement in the role of Supreme Leader in December 1979.
For Bible believers, today's events in the Middle East must remind us of the first exodus that link to the words of Revelation.
And if we are to be wise, it is well worth repeating that four of the seven "kings," the rulers of the original Arab League "have fallen" since December 13, 2003.
One more will make five fallen from power. Is it Bashar al-Assad?
The first fall occurred on December 13, 2003.
It was the day that Saddam Hussein was captured when he was found hiding in a six foot hole in the ground outside his childhood home of Tikrit. Believe it or not, Libya's Muammar Gaddafi was also found hiding in a hole, a drainage ditch outside the town of Sirte in October 2011:
Obadiah warns that Esau has a confederacy, a league of nations that were at peace between themselves, but against Jacob:
Other Arab leaders may flee as well and seek asylum or be killed.
Amazingly, in 2008, Tunisia's Ben Ali publicly predicted the fall of Egypt and a takeover by the Muslim Brotherhood. He also warned of the curse of explosive events across in the entire Middle East region. The Jerusalem Post reported on what has become reality with an incredible story published in December 2010, it included a warning about Syria and their connection to Iran:
'Tunisian premier predicts Muslim Brotherhood takeover'
Could it be possible that Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is one of those prophetic kings noted in John's ancient vision? Is it conceivable that Assad will be the king "that is" one of the seven governments in the prophecy, or will be there be another?
Is today's Syrian civil war and Iranian connection tied to this prophecy?
I don't really know.
It may be another, after all Ben Ali warned of the Gulf not just the Levant. Way back in 2008, a Wikileaks report noted by the Jerusalem Post stated in words that sound prophetic for today:
Today, we know that Ben Ali as well as the leaders of Iraq, Libya and Egypt have fallen.
By the way, if it's not oriented on your map, the Levant includes Lebanon, Syria and northern Iraq, so we should watch this explosive area as well as the Maghreb.
Time will tell but we need to remember these words from Revelation:
It seems obvious that the prophecy of the seven described in Revelation 17 are linked to today's "Ishmael" nations. It appears that we have an ancient chain link woven between the nations that opposed Joshua's ancient armies with today's Israeli Defense Forces that have fought to defend themselves against the Arab League States that rose to global attention in 1948 when they attacked the resurrected Jewish state.
Battles re-engaged in 1967 during The Six Day War and once again in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War when both the United States and the Soviet Union initiated support efforts to their opposing allies across the fence. Another battle occurred with the 2006 Lebanon War, also called the Israel–Hezbollah War. It's important to know there's a problem in Lebanon, it's called Hezbollah.
The unseen story of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, is that it nearly led to a nuclear confrontation between the two world superpowers pitting East against West, Russia vs. the U.S.
Today, we see signs of this deadly opposition once again as Russia seeks expansion, supports Syria as well as nuclear development among the "Twelver" leaders of Shi'ite Iran.
History and the cycle of prophecy are converging in the headlines while the U.S. supports the Sunni of Saudi Arabia as well as Egypt. Take note too, other Sunni Arab Muslim nations are in religious opposition with the Persian Shia much like the days of conflict between Assyrian and Babylon. They may weave that ancient conflict into a sword with Israel as the unsuspecting tip.
No doubt it appears that Syria's Russian and Iranian support for President Bashar al-Assad are engaged in Biblical prophecies outlined in the Bible. There may be another leader due to fall, but I think Assad will be the fifth leader like the days of Joshua to lose his old regime of power through extreme violence and uprising in the Middle East.
We have all witnessed the demise of four dictatorial leaders within the Arab Muslim world, so it is time to wake up from our stupor and open up the Bible because: 1) Iraq (Saddam Hussein), 2) Lebanon (Fouad Siniora), 3) Egypt (Hosni Mubarak) and 4) Libya's (Muammar Gaddafi) all fell from power before over the past two years.
They were stripped from their autocratic rule and king-like power as each of the four "fell" while the world watched on CNN.
Syria's Bashar al-Assad looks to be a part of the latter day story, his dictatorial government centered in Damascus may face destruction as Shiite Alawites seek to destroy Zion.
Al-Assad's palace location and his national dilemma reminds us of Daniel's warning that iron and clay do not mix, so take note: Sunni and Shiite do not mix.
There's more. A major exodus took place from Persian Iran in 1979–80 as a consequence of the Islamic Revolution there that began as demonstrations against the Shah because he befriended to west with oil contracts. The revolution began in October of 1977 and it lasted two years until both the secular and religious campaigns concluded with a Shi'a constitution led by Ayatollah Khomeini's placement in the role of Supreme Leader in December 1979.
For Bible believers, today's events in the Middle East must remind us of the first exodus that link to the words of Revelation.
And if we are to be wise, it is well worth repeating that four of the seven "kings," the rulers of the original Arab League "have fallen" since December 13, 2003.
One more will make five fallen from power. Is it Bashar al-Assad?
The first fall occurred on December 13, 2003.
It was the day that Saddam Hussein was captured when he was found hiding in a six foot hole in the ground outside his childhood home of Tikrit. Believe it or not, Libya's Muammar Gaddafi was also found hiding in a hole, a drainage ditch outside the town of Sirte in October 2011:
"Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. "The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction". Revelation 17:9-11Is this prophecy tied to the Islamic Awakening?
Obadiah warns that Esau has a confederacy, a league of nations that were at peace between themselves, but against Jacob:
All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him. Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, even destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau? Obadiah 1:7-8Like Revelation, Obadiah foretells the end of a league without understanding of God's plan:
And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter. For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. Obadiah 1:10-11Today, the fall from power of four key Arab League government rulers has been chronicled in the headlines since the execution of Iraq's Dictator Hussein on December 20, 2006. As already noted, Libya's Dictator, Muammar Gaddafi fell from power and Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali fled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the western gateway to Mecca and Medina, the former land of Edom and Midian.
Other Arab leaders may flee as well and seek asylum or be killed.
Amazingly, in 2008, Tunisia's Ben Ali publicly predicted the fall of Egypt and a takeover by the Muslim Brotherhood. He also warned of the curse of explosive events across in the entire Middle East region. The Jerusalem Post reported on what has become reality with an incredible story published in December 2010, it included a warning about Syria and their connection to Iran:
'Tunisian premier predicts Muslim Brotherhood takeover'
"The moderate Arab states' fear of Iran and Islamic radicalism continued to pour forth from documents released by WikiLeaks Tuesday night, with the Tunisian President predicting in a conversation with a senior US diplomat two years ago that the Muslim Brotherhood would take over Egypt sooner or later. According to a cable written on March 3, 2008 by Robert Godec, the U.S. ambassador in Tunisia, Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali told Assistant Secretary of State David Welch that "Tunisia was happy it was part of the Maghreb, and not part of Levant or Gulf." The dispatch said Ben Ali "opined that the situation in Egypt is 'explosive,' adding that sooner or later the Muslim Brotherhood would take over. He added that Yemen and Saudi Arabia are also facing real problems. Overall, the region is 'explosive.'"Ben Ali did not foresee his own demise in his oracle, but it appears now that a 5th "king," another ruler from among the Muslim nations that has expelled the Jewish people could fit into the storyline of the kings revealed in the book of Revelation.
Ben Ali also said that Syria was a source of concern in the region, since it is "acting for Iran, and the later is fueling regional problems." Ben Ali, a Sunni Muslim according to the dispatch, said "he 'does not trust' the Shia."
Could it be possible that Syria's President Bashar al-Assad is one of those prophetic kings noted in John's ancient vision? Is it conceivable that Assad will be the king "that is" one of the seven governments in the prophecy, or will be there be another?
Is today's Syrian civil war and Iranian connection tied to this prophecy?
I don't really know.
It may be another, after all Ben Ali warned of the Gulf not just the Levant. Way back in 2008, a Wikileaks report noted by the Jerusalem Post stated in words that sound prophetic for today:
"According to a cable written on March 3, 2008 by Robert Godec, the US ambassador in Tunisia, Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali told Assistant Secretary of State David Welch that "Tunisia was happy it was part of the Maghreb, and not part of Levant or Gulf.""There will be trouble in the Levant and Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali has warned of the Maghreb, the Islamic area of northern Africa.
Today, we know that Ben Ali as well as the leaders of Iraq, Libya and Egypt have fallen.
By the way, if it's not oriented on your map, the Levant includes Lebanon, Syria and northern Iraq, so we should watch this explosive area as well as the Maghreb.
Time will tell but we need to remember these words from Revelation:
"One is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while."Astonishingly, two thousand years after these words were written, Revelation 17:10 reveals that five of seven end-time leaders will fall and one of the seven will remain.
It seems obvious that the prophecy of the seven described in Revelation 17 are linked to today's "Ishmael" nations. It appears that we have an ancient chain link woven between the nations that opposed Joshua's ancient armies with today's Israeli Defense Forces that have fought to defend themselves against the Arab League States that rose to global attention in 1948 when they attacked the resurrected Jewish state.
Battles re-engaged in 1967 during The Six Day War and once again in 1973 during the Yom Kippur War when both the United States and the Soviet Union initiated support efforts to their opposing allies across the fence. Another battle occurred with the 2006 Lebanon War, also called the Israel–Hezbollah War. It's important to know there's a problem in Lebanon, it's called Hezbollah.
The unseen story of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, is that it nearly led to a nuclear confrontation between the two world superpowers pitting East against West, Russia vs. the U.S.
Today, we see signs of this deadly opposition once again as Russia seeks expansion, supports Syria as well as nuclear development among the "Twelver" leaders of Shi'ite Iran.
History and the cycle of prophecy are converging in the headlines while the U.S. supports the Sunni of Saudi Arabia as well as Egypt. Take note too, other Sunni Arab Muslim nations are in religious opposition with the Persian Shia much like the days of conflict between Assyrian and Babylon. They may weave that ancient conflict into a sword with Israel as the unsuspecting tip.
No doubt it appears that Syria's Russian and Iranian support for President Bashar al-Assad are engaged in Biblical prophecies outlined in the Bible. There may be another leader due to fall, but I think Assad will be the fifth leader like the days of Joshua to lose his old regime of power through extreme violence and uprising in the Middle East.
We have all witnessed the demise of four dictatorial leaders within the Arab Muslim world, so it is time to wake up from our stupor and open up the Bible because: 1) Iraq (Saddam Hussein), 2) Lebanon (Fouad Siniora), 3) Egypt (Hosni Mubarak) and 4) Libya's (Muammar Gaddafi) all fell from power before over the past two years.
They were stripped from their autocratic rule and king-like power as each of the four "fell" while the world watched on CNN.
Syria's Bashar al-Assad looks to be a part of the latter day story, his dictatorial government centered in Damascus may face destruction as Shiite Alawites seek to destroy Zion.
Al-Assad's palace location and his national dilemma reminds us of Daniel's warning that iron and clay do not mix, so take note: Sunni and Shiite do not mix.
There's a beast there and the Caliphate that feigned death at the end of World War I with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, may soon be reborn and revived as a Shiite Haman nation to rise up again with an ancient goal, a goal to wipe Israel off the map and push them into the sea.
Our headlines look much like a repeat of the fall of King Jabin of Hazor described in Joshua 11. Today's Jabin whomever he is, may very rise out of the chaos of an "Islamic Awakening" in an attempt to unify Islam in an attack against Israel.
One BIG concern I have is the U.S. lead in the push of a "Peace Plan" in the name of peace and security that may fuse a ticking time bomb that has existed since the messenger of The Lord declared to Hagar these prophetic words in Genesis 16:11-12:
“Behold, you are with child,
And you will bear a son;
And you shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the LORD has given heed to your affliction.
“He will be a wild donkey of a man,I do not think a Jabin-like leader is a part of today's Arab League, he is likely another.
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
And he will live to the east of all his brothers.
I think he is an Assyrian of Iran, here's why:
"O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, and the staff in their hand is mine indignation." Isaiah 10:5One thing is certain, watchmen must look with eyes wide open at the horrific conflict rising in Syria.
"Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt." Isaiah 10:24
"That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders." Isaiah 14:25
To do that we must look to the north of the Sea of Galilee, after all, Hazor was an ancient city located just north of the Sea of Galilee. Notably, Hazor fell into the control of Aram in the late 12th century BC, a nation-state with its capital in the ancient city of Damascus.
The Bible records David's battles against the Aramaeans in southern Syria in the 10th century BC in 2Samuel 10:6-19: "David killed seven hundred of their charioteers and forty thousand of their foot soldiers. He also struck down Shobach the commander of their army, and he died there."
Shobach was a Syrian and we know God says that He declares the end from the beginning and reveals all things through the prophets.
It seems that we are seeing the words of the Bible prophetically cycle as the Arab League and the world supports Palestinian statehood. For the sake of peace and security, Israel may very well agree to divide its people and the unconditional covenant land or be forced to, but if that ever happens expect big problems for the planet:
"And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress." Genesis 16:4This raises another possibility.
"Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children." Galatians 4:25
With the noted break-up of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, the League of Nations (now the U.N.) led by Britain and France, redrew the borders of the Middle East with a red pen on paper and added borders according to their own reckoning, or was it?
In 1946, two years before the nation state rebirth of Israel, Jordan appeared out of nowhere on our maps, relabeled from the Hashemite Kingdom of Trans-Jordan.
And now, before our eyes, the Arab League that attacked Israel has been fractured by the chaotic fall of those four leaders.
For Bible prophecy students, this 'call for unification' may also ring a bell and raise the question that the idea of a so-called "one world government" may actually arise from a restored Muslim Caliphate founded on the creeds of Islam that bind them together in a government called Sharia in a religion called Islam.
We must know, the Bible is laser focused on the lands of the Middle East with Jerusalem in the center, so let's look at the agenda of this six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, Their 1981 founding charter of an Arab Nation states (underlines are mine for emphasis):
"Being fully aware of the ties of special relations, common characteristics and similar systems founded on the creed of Islam which bind them; and Desiring to effect coordination, cooperation and integration between them in all fields; and,We have already seen Biblical prophecy says "five will fall." And it also says...
Having the conviction that coordination, cooperation, and integration between them serve the sublime objectives of the Arab Nation; and,
In pursuit of the goal of strengthening cooperation and reinforcement of the links between them; and
In an endeavor to complement efforts already begun in all essential areas that concern their peoples and realize their hopes for a better future on the path to unity of their States; and
In conformity with the Charter of the League of Arab States which calls for the realization of closer relations and stronger bonds; and
In order to channel their efforts to reinforce and serve Arab and Islamic causes,
Have agreed as follows: click here to continue reading the Arab States GCC charter...
"Concerning Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; [there is] sorrow on the sea..." Jeremiah 49:23
What does this all mean?
Consider a prayer: Please, God, guide me as to what I should do.
God is a sovereign God.
He has given us the Biblical prophets to warn us in advance of these things.
He is a loving God but a time of judgment sword and pestilence is coming, yet God has provided a way to offer all His redemption and salvation in eternal life.
You can accept His gift of life in Messiah Yeshua. "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:32-33
It's time to consider carefully what your life consists of, look at it and repent of any sin, confess and ask the God of Israel for His forgiveness and accept His gift of love through the Jewish Messiah King.
Do it now, then open the Bible and do it!
December 7, 2024: Where is Assad? Russia solves the mystery of the Syrian dictator’s escape
CNN — As many in Syria celebrated the end of the long rule of Bashar al-Assad, rumors swirled about his whereabouts. After a day of intrigue, the mystery was solved when Russian state media announced he had landed in Moscow.
“Assad and his family have arrived in Moscow. Russia, for humanitarian reasons, has granted them asylum,” a Kremlin source said, according to TASS.
Since the uprising began, and the rebels rapidly advanced through the country, Assad had kept a low profile.
After meeting with Iran’s foreign minister last weekend, he pledged to fight “terrorist organizations” but has otherwise made little comment as the rebels captured major cities.
On Saturday, as the rebels encircled Damascus, a source told CNN that Assad was nowhere to be found in the city."
November 11, 2021: This guy has not read Isaiah 19. If he has, he does not believe the god of Israel. He is a false prophet.
The Arab Times reports: Zionist Regime Doomed to Demise: IRGC General
"In remarks at a cultural ceremony in Tehran on Thursday, Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh shrugged off Israeli officials’ threats against Iran, saying the Zionist regime is the only regime in the world arguing about how to survive.
“The (Zionist) regime that discusses its existence is doomed to termination and cannot talk about destroying other countries,” the general added.
He also dismissed the threats from the Israeli officials, reminding the Zionists that they may be able to start a battle, but it is the Islamic Republic that will end it with the termination of the Zionist regime.
If the Zionist regime gives the Islamic Republic an excuse, it will only expedite its termination, he warned."
November 11, 2021: It's a if we are inviting trouble.
"The Biden administration did not reject a UN General Assembly Resolution granting Palestinian refugees the right to return to Israel."
February 18, 2020: Unicef reports: Over half a million children in northwest Syria forced to flee amid continued violence and harsh weather
77 children killed or injured in the fighting since the beginning of the year
"GENEVA/AMMAN/NEW YORK, 18 February 2020 – More than 500,000 children have been displaced by intense violence in northwest Syria since 1 December 2019*, with tens of thousands of children and their families now living in tents and in the open air amid very cold weather and rains.
“We walked for three days and now live in tents. All of our belongings were soaked with rain and mud,” says Nadia*, a recently displaced mother originally from Saraqeb in Idlib, now living in the Aleppo area. “I have a very sick child who needs urgent surgery, but I cannot afford it. If my child dies, all I could do is to bury him.”
Since the beginning of the year, 77 children were verified killed or injured* due to the escalation of violence in the area.
“The situation in the northwest is untenable, even by Syria’s grim standards,” said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director. “Children and families are caught between the violence, the biting cold, the lack of food and the desperate living conditions. Such abject disregard for the safety and wellbeing of children and families is beyond the pale and must not go on.”
Just yesterday, UNICEF received reports that the last two operational hospitals in the western part of Aleppo governorate were hit, one of them a maternity and children’s hospital."
October 8, 2019: Republicans assail Trump’s decision to pull troops from northern Syria as Turkey readies offensive
"Republicans in Congress assailed President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria’s border with Turkey on Monday, warning that a threatened Turkish invasion would lead to a dangerous resurgence of the Islamic State, the slaughter of U.S. allies in the region and a boon for American adversaries."
September 29, 2019: From The Times of Israel: New picture shows Iran’s Khamenei with Nasrallah, Soleimani
"TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has released a “never before seen” photo of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei alongside Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah.
The photo published on the supreme leader’s official website shows Nasrallah with Khamenei on his right and Qassem Soleimani — the commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force — on his left.
The three men are shown in front of what appears to be a door covered by a curtain and surrounded by shelves stacked with books — decor associated with Khamenei’s Tehran office."
March 25, 2019: Trump Formally Recognizes Israeli Sovereignty Over Golan Heights.
"President Trump signed a proclamation Monday that recognizes Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, formalizing the Middle East policy shift he announced over Twitter last week.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was with Trump at the White House as he signed the presidential proclamation. Prior to the signing, Netanyahu made remarks lavishing praise onto Trump that drew comparisons between the president and the Persian emperor Cyrus as heroic defenders of the Jewish people.
"Israel has never had a better friend than you," Netanyahu said, enumerating several instances in which the administration has delivered on campaign promises favoring the Israeli leader, including U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran, restoration of sanctions on that country and the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital leading to the relocation of American embassy there.
"This is truly an historic day," Netanyahu exclaimed, saying it has taken half a century "to translate our military victory into a diplomatic victory."
"Your recognition is a two-fold act of historic justice. Israel won the Golan Heights in a just war of self-defense, and the Jewish people's roots in the Golan go back thousands of years," he added.
Following the signing, Trump said, "This was a long time in the making."
The latest move reverses the position U.S. administrations have held for more than 50 years, when Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. The region was annexed by the government in 1981, officially making it part of Israel and serving as a strategic military and agricultural post.
Netanyahu called the high ground "invaluable" to the national security of the nation, as did Trump's proclamation.
"Today, aggressive acts by Iran and terrorist groups, including Hizballah, in southern Syria continue to make the Golan Heights a potential launching ground for attacks on Israel. Any possible future peace agreement in the region must account for Israel's need to protect itself from Syria and other regional threats. Based on these unique circumstances, it is therefore appropriate to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights," the document reads.
The decree puts the U.S. at odds with much of the international community, which considers the Golan occupied territory.
Syria's Foreign Ministry rejected Trump's decision to legitimize Israel's claim over the contested land, calling it "a flagrant aggression of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic, turning a blind eye to all international reactions that condemned such resolution," according to an official interviewed by the Syrian Arab News Agency.
"The US president has no right or legal capacity to legalize the occupation or usurp the others' land by force... and this US hostile policy makes the region and the world subject to all dangers," the official said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said it is "clear that the status of Golan has not changed," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday, Reuters reported.
"The UN's policy on Golan is reflected in the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and that policy has not changed," Dujarric said.
Critics, including the U.N., contend U.S. recognition of Israel's control over the disputed Golan is an irreversible break from the long-held principle of territorial integrity, prohibiting the acquisition of territory by war, that will inevitably have global consequences; they argue it weakens America's ability to oppose Russia's annexation of Crimea, as well as, pave the way for the Trump administration to recognize any future Israeli annexation of the West Bank."
Like I've said many times, there is no thus saith The Lord here, but those beautiful hills are the very area that the apostle Paul's Damascus road encounter and the Golan may be connected to the conflict and destruction described in Isaiah's oracle of Damascus in ways rarely considered in a move to take the Golan away from Israel.
December 20, 2018: Mattis resigns after clash with Trump over troop withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan
"Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned Thursday after clashing with President Trump over the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria and Afghanistan, saying in a parting letter that the president deserves someone atop the Pentagon “better aligned” with his views.
The retired Marine general’s surprise resignation came a day after Trump shocked American allies and overruled his advisers, including Mattis, upon announcing a withdrawal from Syria. In the process, Trump declared victory over the Islamic State, even though the Pentagon and State Department for months have been saying the fight against the group in Syria isn’t over.
Trump also ordered the Pentagon, against Mattis’s recommendation, to come up with a plan to withdraw approximately half of the American troops deployed to Afghanistan, a move that military officials have warned could plunge the nation into chaos."
December 20, 2019: Using Twitter to ironically fulfill Obama's forgotten 2013 promise of "no boots on the ground" and just one month after Israeli PM Netanyahu took over the defense ministry of Israel following the resignation of Avigdor Lieberman, Trump's withdrawal from Syria is victory for Iran and Russia, experts say
"Analysis: The move provides "Iran with solid control over the entire arc of the Levant from Baghdad to Beirut," one expert said.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria will be hailed as a victory in Russia and Iran and a betrayal among Kurdish and Arab opposition forces that have waged a seven-year war against the Damascus regime, experts and former officials say.
Although Russian and Iranian forces had already turned the tide of the civil war in favor of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the presence of U.S. troops has served as an obstacle to their ambitions and a source of leverage for Washington in any potential political settlement of the conflict.
Just within the last week, senior U.S. officials had argued that the American military mission was needed to ensure the lasting defeat of ISIS militants and to serve as a bulwark against Iran.
But with Trump's move to pull out the U.S. troops, Russia and particularly Iran — which sent thousands of proxies and its own elite forces into Syria — stand to emerge as the dominant players in a country that shares a border with Israel.
The withdrawal, if carried out, will "provide Iran with solid control over the entire arc of the Levant from Baghdad to Beirut," said Nicholas Heras, Middle East security fellow at the Center for a New American Security think tank.
Iran already wields significant influence next door in Iraq, where it has heavily backed Shiite militias and cultivated close ties to the Shiite-ruled government."
September 28, 2018: Russia Begins Missile System Delivery to Syria, Warns West on Peace Talks
"UNITED NATIONS — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday Moscow had started delivering the S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Syria and warned Western powers of trying to undermine U.N.-led efforts to end the seven-year conflict.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had said on Monday the system would be delivered to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in two weeks despite strong Israeli and United States objections. A week previously, Moscow had accused Israel of indirectly causing the downing of a Russian military jet in Syria.
"The delivery started already and as President (Vladimir) Putin said, after that incident ... the measures that we will take will be devoted to ensuring 100 percent safety and security of our men," Lavrov told a news conference at the United Nations.
Russia, along with Iran, has helped Assad recover huge amounts of lost territory in Syria without persuading him to agree to any political reforms. It has also pushed its own talks with Iran and Turkey, known as the Astana process, as U.N-led peace negotiations have stalled."
August 29, 2018: It began March 15, 2011 seven years ago, when will it end?
NATO Confirms Russian Naval Buildup Off Syria, Calls for Restraint
"NATO confirmed a large scale Russian navy buildup in the Mediterranean Sea off Syria on Tuesday. “The Russian Navy has dispatched substantial naval forces to the Mediterranean, including several ships equipped with modern cruise missiles,” NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu confirmed to Haaretz in a statement.
Russian media on Tuesday called the deployment Moscow's largest naval buildup since it entered the Syrian conflict in 2015. The reinforcement comes as Russia's ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is believed to be considering an assault on the last big rebel-held enclave, Idlib in the north."
Damascus air defenses said placed on high alert for fear of US attack
"Russia claims US is readying strike on Syrian government forces following 'staged chemical weapons attack.
Syrian air defenses were placed on high alert Monday, according to a report in the pro-regime news site Al Masdar. A source told the newspaper that the Mazzeh airbase was preparing to defend against a possible US missile attack on Damascus.
Earlier in the day a top Russian official said the US was bolstering its military forces in the Middle East in preparation for a strike against Syrian government forces, according to the Russian news agency TASS.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told reporters, “the US is making preparations for a missile attack on Syria, which will follow after a staged chemical weapons attack in the province of Idlib, blamed on the Syrian government.”"
Explained Syria, Turkey, Russia and U.S. to Square Off in Idlib With Millions of Civilians in the Crosshairs
Aid workers are bracing for the Idlib battle, which Turkey claims will put millions of civilians in danger - despite their desire to attack jihadist forces there
"Turkey's foreign minister said last Friday it would be disastrous to seek a military solution in the northern Syrian region of Idlib, a rebel-held enclave which the Syrian government says it aims to recapture.
Idlib is a refuge for civilians and rebels displaced from other areas of Syria as well as for powerful jihadist forces. It has been hit by a wave of air strikes and shelling this month in a possible prelude to a full-scale government offensive.
Turkey has backed some rebel groups in the region and set up a dozen military observation posts. It is trying to avert an attack by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is backed by Moscow.
"A military solution here would be a disaster, not just for the Idlib region, but a disaster in terms of Syria's future," Mevlut Cavusoglu told a news conference in Moscow with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
The two ministers met in Ankara 10 days ago and Cavusoglu then gave a similar message, saying it would be a "massacre" to bomb Idlib, even though there are militants there.
"Where will some 3.5 million civilians go to?" Cavusoglu said on Friday.
"It is important for all of us to neutralise these radical groups," he said. "But we have to distinguish the civilians from the terrorist groups."
Idlib is controlled by an array of insurgent groups, with Sunni Muslim jihadists believed to be the dominant force there.
April 14, 2018: Trump announces "precision" strike on Syria's chemical weapons capabilities Friday
"Friday night, President Trump announced the U.S. launched "precision" military strikes against targets inside Syria linked to recent chemical attacks. The strike is the culmination of days of threats by President Trump against the Syrian government over a suspected chemical attack against civilians in Douma on the outskirts of Damascus on Sunday.
"A short time ago, I ordered the U.S. Armed Forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of Syrian dictator, Bashar al-Assad," the president said from the White House. "A combined operation with the armed forces of France and the United Kingdom is now under way.""
If it seems odd that French forces are engaged, there's more to that story.
Syria was established after WWI and was governed by France after the Ottoman Empire fell. Syria only gained independence from France in 1946 following WWII. Today, France has a deep distrust of Syria's supporter Iran and its people are still in the aftermath of the Paris terror attacks orchestrated by ISIS, otherwise know as ISIL or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant based in Raqqa, Syria. ISIS claimed the Paris were in retaliation for the French airstrikes on ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq. The terrorists were masquerading as Syrian migrants.
April 11, 2018: On April 7th toxic gas fell from the sky on the citizens of Douma, Syria a suburb just east of Damascus.
Today, we around the timeline of the historic fall of the walls of Jericho some 3,500 years ago when Israel's 12 nations and the sojourners with them marched around Jericho's walls for seven days blowing their shofars before the city's walls collapsed.
The story of the fall of Jericho at the last long blast of the trump is perhaps one of the most amazing stories in the Bible and Friday will mark seven days since the Douma attack in Syria. Many believe it was the day the walls fell, but the Bible is not so clear.
"French President Emmanuel Macron said a decision would be made "in the coming days," and that any airstrikes would target the Syrian government's chemical facilities."
"The World Health Organization said Wednesday that according to reports from its partners, 500 people who sought treatment Saturday showed signs and symptoms of toxic chemical exposure. "
"Russia has warned of "grave repercussions" if the U.S. strikes Assad."
Syria has been at war with itself for seven years now, Israel has been a restored nation for 70 years and Jericho's destruction happened 70 Jubilees past.
Now, the nations are still sounding their shofar if you will, warning against the atrocities as that attack killed at least 40 people and injured 500. There is judgment in the number 40 in Scripture.
April 9, 2018: Haley to UN: Only a monster does this...
April 5, 2018: Putin, Erdogan and Rohani Discuss Syria's Future in Ankara
When I saw this photo of Hassan Rohani, Rycep Erdogan and Vladimir Putin after reading the croaking rhetoric of Rohani from Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, I could not get the image of the tree frogs of Armageddon off my mind.
No, I am not saying these men are those three croaking frogs that John describes from his vision but the similarity is eerie to say the least.
What I am saying is that we should all watch and be familiar with John's warnings of those who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle as the voices of the 6th bowl of plague pouring out that is described in Revelation 16:12-16...
The Ayatollah armed with his Revolutionary Guards as well as Iran's proxies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon may provide a better representation of the three frogs croaking against Israel with escalating rhetoric, threats and vows to destroy the Jewish State straight from the dragon's mouth.
In today's vernacular we might call the three frog's croaking the voice of lunatics.
April 4, 2018: Khamenei: Israel should be forced to 'retreat to point of demise'
"Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called Wednesday on the people of Muslim countries to defeat Israel. "With an intense and planned struggle, they should force the enemy to retreat toward the point of demise," he said.
Any move to negotiate with Israel would be an "unforgivable mistake", the cleric added, after Saudi Arabia's crown prince said Israelis were entitled to live peacefully on their own land.
Supreme Leader Khamenei later tweeted, "On days when escalation of oppression and barbarism by the Zionists, in Gaza has saddened and angered those who care for Palestine, we reiterate the perpetual stance of the Islamic Republic regarding the issue of Palestine."
Did you know Khamenei's right hand has been paralyzed for years and he is not able to write with it following a 1981 assassination attempt?
According to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg in the 1700's that a worthless shepherd with a blind right eye denotes no understanding of truth and a faith based on evil?
March 2, 2018: New satellite photos show Iran establishing another base in Syria
"Exclusive satellite images from ImageSat International obtained by Fox News show what is believed to be the new Iranian base, eight miles northwest of Damascus, operated by the Quds Force — the special operations arm of Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The photos show two new white hangars, each roughly 30 yards by 20 yards, used to store short- and medium-range missiles."
February 21, 2018: News from the conflict in Syria has shown the escalation of chaos as an Iranian drone flying into Israeli airspace on Saturday that was shot down by the IDF, followed by Syrian anti-aircraft fire that brought down an Israeli F-16 fighter jet that then led to an IDF military strike in which Israel bombed both Syrian and Iranian targets.
Middle East military heavyweights Israel, Iran on collision course over Syria
"Iran and Israel are on a collision course over Tehran’s expanding footprint in Syria, raising the odds of a direct clash between the region’s two military heavyweights that could quickly draw in other combatants.
With Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Iran’s most potent military ally, emboldened by their success in upholding Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israel is growing more and more wary of being attacked by missiles not just from southern Lebanon but also from inside Syria.
Israel has been sporadically bombing Hezbollah positions in Syria for the past three years. But the situation reached new heights this month when what Israel said was an Iranian armed stealth drone was intercepted and downed over Israel and an Israeli F-16 fighter jet was in turn shot down by anti-aircraft fire from inside Syria during a retaliatory airstrike.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif traded belligerent taunts at a major security conference in Munich this week, with the hard-line Mr. Netanyahu brandishing a piece of the downed drone and warning that Tehran “should not test Israel’s resolve.”
“Israel will not allow the regime to put a noose of terror around our neck,” he said. “We will act if necessary not just against Iran’s proxies but against Iran itself.”"
February 16, 2018: Washington Examiner - OPINION - How Israel intends to defeat Iran in Syria by Tom Rogan
"In the next several months, Israel is likely to aggressively strike Syrian regime headquarters in Damascus.
As we saw in last weekend's Israeli Defense Force strikes in southern Syria, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is determined to defeat Iran's emerging power projection stronghold in Syria. They are right to do so.
With Iran now in effective control of a contiguous land corridor between its own territory through Iraq up to Syria’s border with northern Israel, the Iranian hardliners – most notably, the revolutionary guards (IRGC) – have an unparalleled ability to threaten Israel.
Iran’s basic aspiration here is to threaten Israel in the same way that North Korean forces have the credible ability to fire thousands of artillery rounds into Seoul in the opening hours of any conflict.
In turn, Iran's growing threat has unleashed an Israeli strategy that is bold in its objectives and highly aggressive in tactical means.
After all, Damascus is only 130 miles from Tel Aviv, and less than 100 miles from northern Israeli cities like Acre, Haifa, Nahariyya, Natanya, and Nazareth. With those Israeli population centers in range of Iranian artillery-rocket and missile forces such as those of the Fateh family, Israel could face tens of thousands of immediate casualties in the event of a conflict.
It gets worse."
October 25, 2017: ISIS Slaughters 128 in Syrian Christian Town: 'They Attacked us Like Animals, They Came to Kill Us'
"Shocking details are emerging of a surprise 'revenge' attack by ISIS militants on what was once a predominantly Syrian Christian town.
"They attacked us like animals, they came to kill us," a resident of Qaryatayn said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
On Sunday, Syrian government troops recaptured Qaryatayn from ISIS militants. But before retreating from the town, the terror group went on a killing spree slaughtering countless people.
"They killed children {and} women," recounted one survivor. "They broke the arms of the women {and} burned them."
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 128 people were murdered in the rampage.
"They killed more than a hundred innocent people from the families of both civilians and militants," said one resident.
Syrian soldiers, backed by various militias, regained control of the town, which was held by ISIS militants since early October. Thousands of the town's Christian residents fled for the lives.
"They left nothing behind them, they took everything, belongings, stole the houses and the cars and took the men and killed them," said one eyewitness."
October 23, 2017: Horrifically, Newsweek reports this from Syria: IN SYRIAN CHRISTIAN TOWN, ISIS MASS-EXECUTED 116 PEOPLE BEFORE ASSAD'S ARMY CLOSED IN
"Evidence has emerged of another Islamic State militant group (ISIS) mass execution, this time in the Syrian Christian desert town of Al-Qaryatain.
The militant group killed at least 116 civilians in executions committed in the days before the Syrian regime recaptured the town, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a U.K.-based monitoring group with an extensive network of contacts in Syria.
“ISIS has over a period of 20 days executed at least 116 civilians in reprisal killings, accusing them of collaboration with regime forces,” SOHR chief Rami Abdelrahman told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
ISIS regained control of the town three weeks ago, and then the killings began. Syrian regime forces, backed by Russian air power, arrived and liberated the town on October 21 after dozens of ISIS fighters retreated, at which point the remains of the victims of the mass execution were found.
“After the regime retook it, the town’s residents found the bodies on the streets. They had been shot dead or executed with knives,” Abdelrahman said."
September 22, 2017: Arab media reports Israeli airstrike on Damascus Airport
"Arab media reports on Thursday night claimed that Israel attacked a weapons depot next to Damascus International Airport.
A report from one daily, Al Arabia Al Jadid, said that a series of explosions shook the airport. Al Masdar News, a Lebanese outlet, also reported that an Israeli drone attack the airport, citing a report from the Syrian military that the attack did not seriously damage the airport or its surroundings, and that there were no casualties. The report also claims that, in response, the Syrian military shot down an Israeli drone near the Israeli-Syrian border, though these claims remain unconfirmed.
Al-Mayadeen, a Lebanese television station, also claimed that two rockets hit near the airport. An independent Syrian pro-Assad outlet, Muraselon, reported that three strikes hit the airport. A pro-Assad Facebook page called ''Damascus Now'' claimed that a ''hostile missile'' had targeted the airport.
The weapons depot that was allegedly attacked is said to be one of Hezbollah's.
There have been no confirmations or denials from Israel, Syria or Hezbollah."
Rarlier, on September 8th, The New Arab reported: "Syria's army said in a statement that the airstrike caused material damage near the town of Masyaf and warned against the "dangerous repercussions of this aggressive action to the security and stability of the region.”
But Britain-based war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the strikes hit a Scientific Studies and Research Centre facility - the agency the US describes as Syria's chemical weapons manufacturer."
August 4, 2017 Mideast Cauldron: How Iran May Target Israel in the Aftermath of ISIS
"GOLAN HEIGHTS, Israel – After a nine-month battle, Iraq took control of the ISIS stronghold in Mosul. Now the U.S.-led coalition remains focused on taking the fight to ISIS in Raaqa, Syria, the terror group's self-proclaimed capital.
Some experts are warning the battle against the Islamic State might just be a prelude to a much more dangerous battle just ahead."
June 27, 2017: Fox News Syria 'potentially' preparing for another chemical attack: A history of Syria's chemical weapons use
"As the White House warned against a potential impending chemical attack in Syria, the U.S. Pentagon on Tuesday confirmed that it’s detected “active preparations” for use of chemicals in the Middle Eastern nation.
“The United States has identified potential preparations for another chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime that would likely result in the mass murder of civilians, including innocent children,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Monday evening.
Assad's government and Russia dismissed the White House’s allegation that Damascus was preparing a new chemical weapons attack.
Spicer warned that should Syrian President Bashar Assad conduct “another mass murder attack using chemical weapons,” then “he and his military will pay a heavy price.”"
June 8, 2017: UN: Islamic State Killed 231 Civilians Trying to Flee Mosul
"The United Nations Human Rights Office said Thursday it has “credible reports” indicating Islamic State fighters in Iraq killed at least 231 civilians who were trying to flee western Mosul.
The reported killings happened between May 26 and June 3, all in the al-Shifa neighborhood, and involved people trying to get from Islamic State-held areas to locations held by Iraqi troops.
The United Nations also said it is still investigating reports of other civilian casualties from an airstrike in the Zanjilly section of western Mosul that reportedly killed between 50 and 80 people."
March 24, 2017: U.N. says 300,000 civilians at risk in Damascus battle, pause needed
"Fighting around Syria's capital Damascus has cut 300,000 people off from humanitarian aid and pauses in the conflict are needed to let aid convoys in, Jan Egeland, U.N. humanitarian advisor on Syria, said on Thursday.
"They are totally dependent on our supplies. Starvation will be just around the corner unless we get there in the coming weeks," Egeland told Reuters in an interview after chairing the weekly Syria humanitarian taskforce meeting in Geneva.
The besieged Douma and Kafr Batna areas of rural Damascus contain 161,000 and 142,000 civilians respectively. Their food stocks have dwindled and informal supply routes have been cut.
"The increase in the fighting has disastrous effects on the civilian population," Egeland said. "They haven’t had any supplies by the U.N. since October in Douma, and in the Kafr Batna area not since June of last year."
The Syrian government is not giving the green light for convoys and armed groups are not guaranteeing the security of aid convoys, meaning that no aid can go in, Egeland said."
March 17, 2017: IDF Hits Syria Targets, Shoots Down Incoming Syrian Missile
"YERUSHALAYIM - IDF forces struck in Syria overnight Thursday, hitting several targets. In response, Syrian army forces fired antiaircraft missiles at the Israeli planes. None were hit, but as the Syrian missiles were fired in the direction of the Jordan Valley, the Red Alert early warning system went into action, sounding a loud siren at about 2:30 a.m. that sent residents scurrying for shelter.
A Syrian rocket was shot out of the sky by the Israeli Arrow antimissile defense system. Portions of the missile fell over the northern Jordan Valley and inside Jordan as well. It was not immediately clear how debris from the missile may have ended up in neighboring Jordan."
January 12, 2017: Israeli rockets hit military airport near Damascus
"A huge explosion has rocked a Syrian Air Force installation southwest of the capital Damascus, after the Israeli regime launched a rocket attack against a designated target at the site.
The Israeli rockets struck the Mezzeh Military Airport, less than eight kilometers southwest of Damascus, early on Friday, and caused a large fire, but there has been no immediate report of casualties.
Syrian state TV quoted the army command as saying that the rockets, which it said were fired from an area close to the Sea of Galilee in the north of the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, hit the airport’s compound.
Earlier reports said the rockets had targeted an arms depot at the military installation.
Several loud explosions were reportedly heard after the attack against the major facility for the elite Republican Guards.
The Syrian army also vowed to take revenge for the "flagrant" attack and "amputate the arms of the perpetrators."
Bomb attack leaves eight dead in Syrian capital
"At least eight people have lost their lives when a powerful explosion ripped through a heavily secured district of the Syrian capital Damascus.
A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a bomber blew himself up on Thursday evening in the southwestern Kafr Sousa neighborhood of Damascus, where some of Syria's main security installations are located.
Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that a “terrorist” detonated an explosive belt close to a sports club there."
November 20, 2016: As battles deluge Aleppo and Mosul, we have to remember Genesis 10 because this area accounts for Noah's sons that spread out over the land after the devastation of the flood destroyed humanity except for Noah, his sons, and their wives. Here is the introductory verse of the chapter:
The Times of Israel reports... Paris peace parley proceeding as planned, France insists
"France will hold an international peace conference on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict next month, French officials said over the weekend, rebuffing several reports claiming that Paris had decided to shelve the planned summit.
The reports had quoted French President Francois Hollande as saying that he was facing difficulties convening the summit due to heavy international opposition, particularly from Israel but also from the United States.
French diplomats over weekend said the reports were “erroneous.” Hollande never said the confab was scrapped, merely that it was subject to “incertitude” that bears clarification after the US election, they said.
“As President Hollande reaffirmed in his speech to the UN General Assembly on September 20, our goal is to convene an international conference in order to help relaunch the Middle East peace process,” a spokesperson from the French Foreign Ministry said Thursday. “We are working closely with our partners and in collaboration with the parties to that end.”"
November 18, 2016: An opinion post in the Washington Post By Laila Maher Soudi, Raed Saleh and Ahmad Tarakji says: More than 250,000 in Eastern Aleppo could die after the next 20 days
If you do not know much about Aleppo... Paul of Tarsus may have traveled through Aleppo many times on his pilgrim journeys to Jerusalem as well as his trips to Antioch with Barnabas.
Stephen traveled to Aleppo too, preaching the good news of Yeshua.
Abraham may have stayed in the city as he crossed over, walking in God's instruction toward Canaan. When he arrived in the Promised Land he dealt with them when he purchased Sarah's grave:
Aleppo was the home base of the Amorites before the Hittites stormed the city like today's terror nightmare.
This horrific story that is unfolding now has bruised my heart. We are entering uncharted territory, pray for another November miracle.
November 1, 2016: Aleppo and Mosul exist on the same plane separated by 383 miles. Today, battles rage in the tale of two cities, as only an 8 1/2 hour drive separates their devastation.
The firepower against ISIS is led by Russia to the West in Syria and the United States to the East in Iraq as Moscow and Washington accuse each other of war crimes as civilians hide from the crossfire and the question remains, what will be the end of the conflict and crisis in the Levant?
The future of the Shia-Sunni conflict may point toward Jerusalem. What happens in Mosul and Aleppo is important to the future of the planet.
October 14, 2016: Today, Reuters reports: Exclusive: Obama, aides expected to weigh Syria military options on Friday
"U.S. President Barack Obama and his top foreign policy advisers are expected to meet on Friday to consider their military and other options in Syria as Syrian and Russian aircraft continue to pummel Aleppo and other targets, U.S. officials said.
Some top officials argue the United States must act more forcefully in Syria or risk losing what influence it still has over moderate rebels and its Arab, Kurdish and Turkish allies in the fight against Islamic State, the officials told Reuters.
One set of options includes direct U.S. military action such as air strikes on Syrian military bases, munitions depots or radar and anti-aircraft bases, said one official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
This official said one danger of such action is that Russian and Syrian forces are often co-mingled, raising the possibility of a direct confrontation with Russia that Obama has been at pains to avoid."
This meeting comes after Russia announced this week... Russia moves nuclear-capable missiles into Kaliningrad and after Russia test-fires 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles from the Georgy Pobedonosets, a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine in the Sea of Okhotsk amid the tensions growing between the United States and Russia over the Syrian War as Russian Television Warns of Nuclear War Amid US Tensions.
Another test of 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles occurred August 26, 1957 and the Cold War ensued.
Pray, if you consider yourself a child of God -- you MUST pray now!
Now, we have retaliated and released a strike threat, perhaps it seems as retaliation to hacking from Russia, but then again is this a diversion of sort? I'm not into conspiracies, but I do think we have to consider and pray about Obama's meeting today to weigh our Syrian military options: CIA Prepping for Possible Cyber Strike Against Russia
"The Obama administration is contemplating an unprecedented cyber covert action against Russia in retaliation for alleged Russian interference in the American presidential election, U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News.
Current and former officials with direct knowledge of the situation say the CIA has been asked to deliver options to the White House for a wide-ranging "clandestine" cyber operation designed to harass and "embarrass" the Kremlin leadership.
The sources did not elaborate on the exact measures the CIA was considering, but said the agency had already begun opening cyber doors, selecting targets and making other preparations for an operation. Former intelligence officers told NBC News that the agency had gathered reams of documents that could expose unsavory tactics by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Vice President Joe Biden told "Meet the Press" moderator Chuck Todd on Friday: "we're sending a message" to Putin and that "it will be at the time of our choosing, and under the circumstances that will have the greatest impact.""
October 6, 2016: Our President and 2009 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Barack Hussein Obama has brought us to the abyss of Syria.
ABC Breaking News | Latest News Videos
Russia Warns US Not to Intervene in Syria, Threatens to Shoot Down Any Airstrike Attempts
"Russia has warned the United States not to intervene militarily in Syria against forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, threatening that it may shoot down any aircraft attempting to launch strikes.
In a bluntly worded statement, a spokesman for Russia’s defense ministry warned that Russia and the Syrian government had deployed sufficient air defenses to block any potential attacks.
It follows rumbling in Washington that the White House may be considering launching strikes against some Syrian regime military targets as an alternative option for moving forward in the Syrian conflict after the collapse of U.S.-Russian cease-fire negotiations."
October 5, 2014: From Bloomberg: U.S.-Russia Ties Crumble Under Weight of Syria, Nuclear Pact
"Ties between Russia and the U.S. deteriorated further after the Obama administration proclaimed bilateral peace talks over Syria dead and Moscow suspended a 16-year-old treaty meant to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation.
“Everybody’s patience with Russia has run out,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in Washington on Monday, blaming Vladimir Putin’s government for undermining the fight against Islamic State and for indiscriminate bombing that has killed civilians and targeted hospitals in Syria. “Russians have been complicit” in the Syrian tragedy, Earnest said, and “there is nothing more for the United States and Russia to talk about.”"
October 2, 2016: Russia warns US not to attack Syrian regime
"(CNN)Russia warned the United States about taking direct action against the Syrian regime, saying it would cause negative consequences across the Middle East, Russia's state-run Sputnik news agency reported Saturday.
Meanwhile, intense fighting continued in the besieged Syrian city Aleppo on Saturday, with one of the main hospitals bombed by Russian-backed Syrian forces.
Sputnik reported that Russian's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, "If the US launches a direct aggression against Damascus and the Syrian army, it will lead to terrible, tectonic shifts not only on the territory of this country but also in the region in general."
She said the United States risked creating a power vacuum in Syria were it to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Such a power vacuum would be filled by "terrorists of all sorts," Sputnik reported."
September 30, 2016: Today, Sputnik distorted a warning from US State Department Spokesman John Kirby: Losing in Syria, US Resorts to Threatening Russian Cities With Terror Attacks
Washington looks to have shifted its approach to Russia to language of intimidation and threats. On Wednesday, US State Department Spokesman John Kirby said that if the Syrian army's offensive does not stop, Russian cities may be faced with the threat of terror attacks. Russian terrorism experts respond, commenting on the implicit threat.
Speaking at a press briefing, Kirby suggested that if Russian-supported Syrian military operations aren't halted immediately, "extremist groups will continue to exploit the vacuums that are there in Syria to expand their operations, which could include attacks against Russian interests, perhaps even Russian cities. Russia will continue to send troops home in body bags, and will continue to lose resources, perhaps even aircraft."
September 29, 2016: ISIS prepares for FINAL BATTLE: US troops 3 MILES from site of ancient APOCALYPSE prophecy
"US SPECIAL forces are encircling a jihadi stronghold in Syria claimed by ISIS to be in old Islamic prophecy as the site of the final battle - triggering the apocalypse.
According to the extremists' twisted ideology, Dabiq - a tiny town in northern Syria - will see a "major apocalyptic showdown with the armies of the infidel" that will result in the collapse of civilisation.
And Turkish troops backed by American commandos are understood to be just three miles from the town.
ISIS claim the battle will erupt in a field outside the small town, which in 2004 recorded a population of just 3,000 people.
ISIS even named its terrorist propaganda and recruitment magazine after the settlement, which lies around six miles from the Turkish border.
Jihadists believe the Prophet Mohammed remarked that "the last hour will not come" until an army vanquishes the Romans at "Dabiq or Al-A'maq."
One of the founders of ISIS, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, is quoted in the vile group's propaganda magazine as saying: "The spark has been lit here in Iraq, and its heat will continue to intensify - by Allah's permission - until it burns the crusader armies in Dābiq."
Reports in recent days that Turkish artillery fire has hit the town, in the northern countryside of Aleppo, suggest that battle may now have begun."
But The Lord is NOT silent in Syria.
Many may not realize it, but Syria represents 1/3rd of the covenant land promise given to Abraham and in fulfillment of Joel 2:28-29 Abba is taking action. God is pouring out His Spirit in the tribulation of this war-torn land:
Syrian woman had dream for six nights of men coming with Good News; on the seventh day they arrived
"As the Syrian civil war continues after a failed cease-fire, many Muslims are encountering God, including a mother with confounding dreams that left her in a state of anticipation.
“The woman dreamt repeatedly of a man who told her that three people would come and bring her good news,” according to a ministry director for Christian Aid Mission (CAM).
“She continued to have this dream for six days in a row,” the director told CAM. “On the seventh day, one of our teams was doing home visits and decided to visit a new house.”
The three men approached her door, not knowing that God had already prepared the way. The woman’s eyes widened when she opened to see the three, and quickly ushered them inside.
“When they opened their Bible, she instantly fell to her knees,” the director told CAM.
When her husband and children walked in, she could not contain herself. “These are the people that the man in my dream told me to meet!” she told them excitedly.
The followers of Jesus spoke to her about His saving death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. Then they prayed with the family.
“They all put their faith in Him,” the ministry leader recounted. The entire household was saved!
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.” Acts 16:30-31"
August 26, 2106: Revealed: Isis sends new waves of jihadis to attack Europe
Exclusive: Europol chief warns: fanatics using fake passports to sneak in from Syria
"Britain was today warned of a rising threat from Islamic State fighters sent “on mission” from Syria.
The alert came as the EU’s top law enforcement officer revealed that increasing numbers of jihadis are using fake documents to sneak into Europe.
Europol’s director Rob Wainwright said IS had taken a “strategic decision” to send its fanatics to attack the continent in an attempt to distract attention from battlefield defeats in its heartland.
He also highlighted the weapons trade on the “Dark Net”, saying it was a “major part of the security challenge” that is now facing Europe. Mr Wainwright said some IS extremists were using false Syrian passports in a bid to arrive undetected — with a small but increasing number posing as refugees.
Others were exploiting the “industrial scale” production of false documents by criminals to obtain EU passports and move freely over the continent.
Mr Wainwright said Europe also faced the return of thousands more extremists as IS crumbled in Syria in a “long, long struggle” that will pose an “onerous security challenge” for years.
The warnings, in an interview with the Standard at Europol’s HQ in The Hague, came as Mr. Wainwright also:
But Kayla's final storyline will not be left behind, instead it will be "Reign With Messiah." This incredible young woman will be honored with others like her by Almighty God in the shofar call for the first resurrection of the saints. Kayla will live and reign with Messiah Yeshua.
Many may wonder why the Bible points toward this 1,000 year promise. The reason, it is "the day" of rest and honor given by El Shaddai. This great promise is given in Revelation 20:4-6.
Kayla Mueller in Captivity: Courage, Selflessness as She Defended Christian Faith to ISIS Executioner 'Jihadi John'
"American hostage Kayla Mueller was tortured, verbally abused, forced into slave labor for ISIS commanders in Syria and raped by the group's top leader, but her fellow hostages say she never surrendered hope, she selflessly put the welfare of fellow captives above her own and she even stood up to executioner "Jihadi John" to defend her Christian faith."
TIMELINE: Kayla Mueller in ISIS Captivity
ISIS Hostage Kayla Mueller's Heartbreaking Proof of Life Video
Kayla Mueller: American ISIS Captive Wrote Letter to Family Before Her Death
August 21, 2016: Top US commander warns Russia, Syria
"(CNN)In the most direct public warning to Moscow and Damascus to date, the new US commander of American troops in Iraq and Syria is vowing to defend US special operations forces in northern Syria if regime warplanes and artillery again attack in areas where troops are located.
"We've informed the Russians where we're at ... (they) tell us they've informed the Syrians, and I'd just say that we will defend ourselves if we feel threatened," Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend told CNN in a telephone interview Saturday from his Baghdad headquarters.
Townsend is the first senior military commander to speak on the record about the US possibly challenging the Syrian Air Force in the wake of an incident just days ago.
Townsend, who took command this week, made the remarks following what defense officials described as an "unusual" incident Thursday in northern Syria in which the regime of President Bashar al-Assad used warplanes to attack an area near where US special operations forces were operating in support of Kurdish forces, which are the Americans' key ally in the conflict."
August 13, 2016: From the Jerusalem Post: War of attrition: The Syrian rebellion grinds on into its 6th year, with no end in sight
"IT IS now five years since the outbreak of the Syrian armed rebellion against the regime of Bashar Assad, and up to 400,000 people have been killed in the civil war that has ravaged and destroyed the country. In addition, 13.5 million people have lost their homes and of those, around 6.6 million have left the country.
Yet an end to the war seems nowhere near, as a half-decade on, the revolt finds itself at an impasse. Any hopes for a democratic transformation of the country are long gone.
Today, the rebellion is dominated by Sunni Islamist groups of various hues, supported by a variety of regional players. Salafi Islamist groups are the strongest among the armed groups, with Ahrar al-Sham (Free Men of the Levant) perhaps the single strongest group. Jabhat al-Nusra (Support Front) – until recently the official franchise of the Al-Qaeda network in Syria – and Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) from the Damascus area are also leading players."
CBN News' Chris Mitchell gives a video report from Jerusalem...
August 2, 2016: Rescuers say toxic gas dropped on Syrian town where Russian helicopter shot down
"A Syrian rescue service operating in rebel-held territory said on Tuesday a helicopter dropped containers of toxic gas overnight on a town close to where a Russian military helicopter had been shot down hours earlier.
The opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) accused President Bashar al-Assad of being behind the attack. Assad has denied previous accusations of using chemical weapons.
A spokesman for the Syria Civil Defence said 33 people, mostly women and children, were affected by the gas, which they suspect was chlorine, in Saraqeb, in rebel-held Idlib province."
May 17, 2016: Russia mobilized 160,000 troops in Syria in July 2013 to fight ISIS after U.S. officials stated that Israel struck Russian-made missiles in Latakia, today...
Russia Builds Military Camp Near Ancient Site in Palmyra
"Russia has built a military encampment inside a zone that holds the UNESCO world heritage site in the ancient Syrian town of Palmyra, where Islamic State militants were driven out recently by pro-government forces.
The Russian military described the camp Tuesday as "temporary," saying its few housing units were being used by explosives experts who are removing mines left behind by the militants, and that the Syrian government had given approval to build the camp."
A Bible student needs to ask, are we seeing a preview of the prophetic call of Ezekiel 38:7-9 ?
Turkey shells northern Syria for second day: monitor www.reuters.com
This reminds me of Gideon's story that also includes kings from Midian. Judges 6 tells us more...
Notice too, Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress [not a threshing floor] when the messenger of the LORD appeared and said: “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.”
Gideon gave an excuse much like Moses... Excuse me, if The Lord is with us why has this happened and where are the miracles? My family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least.
The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”
Gideon knew the story of Moses so he was confident that YHVH doesn't have a problem providing a sign so he said, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me."
Is there a Gideon out there?
January 8, 2016: ISIS fighter executes own mother in Syria for 'apostasy,' rights groups say
Everyone knows that the militants that are fighting Assad have no fighter aircraft, yet... Russia deploys anti-aircraft missiles in Syria to protect its warplanes
Syria's war: Who is fighting and why
October 2, 2015: There are now joint Russian-Iranian-Syrian-Iraqi-Hezbollah-China war ops in Syria. Debka has filed this report: Chinese warplanes to join Russian air strikes in Syria. Russia gains Iraqi air base...
Putin signs decree drafting 150,000 conscripts into the Russian military... as Iran and Hezbollah prepare major ground offensive in Syria with air support from Moscow's bombers
The May 15th story "When an ISIS Fighter Wants to Talk" is provided by The Voice of the Martyrs Radio Network. If the episodes is not shown use the search feature at the top of the VOM Radio))) page to find the episode. All VOM Radio episodes are also available free on SoundCloud and iTunes or you can listen below.
June 1, 2015: In case you took your eye off the road to Damascus for a split second, there is a death march underway as the Islamic beast of Daesh led by Caliph Ibrahim, or Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Somehow the ISIS beast is gaining strength in expanding its caliphate across Syria and Iraq regardless of United States and Arab ally airstrikes that began in the outskirts of Nineveh on August 8th 2014.
Today, Al Arabiya reports ISIS militants ‘advance towards Damascus’
May 30, 2014: Whoa, just as a story breaks from Albuquerque, N.M of Grasshopper Swarms So Dense They Show Up on Radar and a Dust storm kills 5 in Tehran, hold on to your hats if this story from Lebanon's AlAkhbar is verified. So far, it looks like it could be some bogus propaganda trying to inflame and inflate fear around Revelation 16:12.
However, there's a comment in the report about ISIS, perhaps propaganda. If you have not heard of them, they are one of the jihadist rebel groups certain Congressmen have promoted for U.S. arms support.
A new Turkish aggression against Syria: Ankara suspends pumping Euphrates’ water...
This scenario has been painted before, perhaps that's where the Beirut paper came up with the story.
Here's another story of water shortage in Aleppo. Today's Aleppo is thought to be the city of Berea in Acts 17. You may know the story, its where Paul went to after he taught knowledge of the word of God that Christ must suffer, and rise from the dead. He did that in Thessalonica for three sabbath days, as his manner was out of the scriptures (Torah, Prophets & Psalms).
We need to be able to do that too.
May 28, 2014: Syria to Miss Chemical Arms Deadline, U.N. Chief Says
"The United Nations secretary general has for the first time acknowledged that the eradication of Syria’s chemical arms stockpile will not be completed by June 30, the deadline imposed by a diplomatic agreement last September in which President Bashar al-Assad renounced the weapons and avoided a threatened American military strike.
In a May 23 letter to the Security Council obtained by The New York Times on Wednesday, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that roughly 8 percent of the stockpile remained in Syria, awaiting shipment for destruction abroad. Mr. Ban also said that one of Syria’s 12 storage facilities had yet to be closed, and that only five of 18 production facilities had been closed."
Islamic militants claim American carried out suicide attack in Syria
AP reports: Syrian troops bombard suburbs of the capital, Damascus, in clash with rebels
I recall my June 11, 2014 update (below) when I got a bit gnarly about Senator John McCain's pontification on national TV where he advised that the United States should arm the "rebels" fighting in Syria. I had watched the June 2nd “Face the Nation” broadcast and it took me two week to even write a post about it because I was so disgusted as he described his "secret trip to Syria" where he said he personally met with rebels.
Today... Senator McCain, have you read this headline from USA Today?
Syrian rebels pledge loyalty to al-Qaeda
I commend Mariam Karouny as she files this critically important report on "the reality" of the Syrian conflict for Reuters: Apocalyptic prophecies drive both sides to Syrian battle for end of time.
Please send the story link to Senator McCain!!
February 2, 2014: Ynetnews Report: Assad stockpiling chemical weapons as 'insurance policy'
Since that day, the Middle East has become destabilized as Obama opened a dark door.
As you can read for yourself or watch at the Whitehouse link above, Obama's speech called for improved mutual understanding and relations between the Islamic world and the West and the president opened his speech seeking a common ground between Muslims and the United States. To do this, he became the first U.S. President in history to quote from the Quran and not the Bible, this has unleashed a curse.
IN the speech, Obama described his own personal childhood experiences with Islam, he spoke of his Muslim family members and told how he grew up in Indonesia, a Muslim nation and he affectionately recalled hearing "the call of the Azaan." Ask yourself, what has occurred since he spoke those dark words?
The "Azaan" may not mean much to you unless you know the meaning of its words, so here they are in English and Arabic:
September 4, 2013: As Trumpets Day will announce that Yom Kippur (Judgment Day) approaches on the evening of Friday September 13th, the 113th Congress of the United States will regroup to determine whether they will give 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner Barack Obama, the one man in history that won the award with no diplomatic foreign policy experience.
Now the peace prize winner seeks Congressional support to inflict the fire of judgment on Bashar al-Assad and attack Syria from the sea and from the air with "no boots on the ground" to enforce his red line comments. No boots on the ground, coming from the west to attack hints on the storyline of Daniel 8.
The House reconvenes on September 2nd and the Senate on the 6th. But there is something VERY critical that you MUST know. Syria and Iran have a mutual defense pact that was signed by both nations, and make no mistake, if Syria is attacked, Iran may come our snorting and head butting like a wild ram.
Attacking Syria is attacking Iran plain and simple and it very well may be the biggest military mistake in U.S. history as the Obama administration insanely seeks to have the U.S. military back rebels in Syria despite the fact no chemical connection to al-Assad has been made public yet.
The President's trumpet is blowing the alarm for a future east/west dilemma. The headlines remind me of Jeremiah's warning:
Read and test the words of Daniel for yourself. One thing is certain, time will prove the truth.
Even if the U.S. or the radical al-Qaeda rebels eliminate Bashar al-Assad, it will be the rebels that will be empowered to assume power and continue their destruction in Syria and in the region. Assad may be a dictator, but in the long term, the replacement will be horrific and Syria's Christian population will become extinct. Read this report closely... who's guarding who as Fighting rocks historic Syrian Christian village:
Iraqi Shiites in Iran and Iraq are sympathetic to the Alawite-dominated government of Syria as are Russia and China because of oil interests and make no mistake, Shiite groups will be prepared for terrorism after a U.S. strike on Syria and the stated goal in Iran is to bring in the Mahdi by chaos and a goal for the destruction of Israel.
Assad's removal may very well engage a chain reaction of dire Biblical prophecies in the backyard of Jesus.
AFP reports:
"The head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards warned Saturday that a US strike on Syria would trigger reactions beyond the borders of Tehran's key regional ally, ISNA news agency reported. "The fact that the Americans believe that military intervention will be limited to within Syrian borders is an illusion; it will provoke reactions beyond that country," commander Mohammad Ali Jafari was quoted as saying.
Just as U.S. interventions in the Islamic world (Afghanistan, Iraq) have bolstered extremism, so will an aggression on Syria reinforce extremism and, as in Iraq and Afghanistan, its results will be pain, massacre and the exodus of the innocent population," he added.
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday the United States was weighing "limited, narrow" action against Syria, insisting the world had a duty to act after it concluded that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad's had gassed to death more than 1,400 people."
Oh Magog, do you remember the WMD's of Iraq? It was just 10 years ago...
Consider what the "Voice of the Martyrs" reports:
August 25, 2013: The Telegraph today says "Britain is planning to join forces with America and launch military action against Syria within days in response to the gas attack believed to have been carried out by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces against his own people."
Is that one reason that Russia has continued to warn that a military strike against Syria could have "catastrophic consequences" for the region? Is Russia also aware of a retaliation plan against Israel?
The Telegraph also reported... "Russia said that the West would be making a "tragic mistake" by launching military strikes on its ally Syria as the international community headed for a repeat of the bitter diplomatic showdowns that preceded military action in Iraq and Kosovo."
Syrian official: Israel 'will come under fire' if Syria attacked
Top member of Assad's party warns 'We have strategic weapons aimed at Israel.' Russia objects to intervention, cautions against repeat of 'past mistakes'
July 11, 2013: Perhaps the British committee has been studying their Bible. Spy agencies fear terror groups could get chemical weapons in Syria
MI6 fears al-Qaeda groups fighting in Syria could seize the regime’s stockpile of chemical weapons with “catastrophic consequences” for the UK and the West.
June 16, 2012: Reporting for The Independent, Robert Fisk based out of Beirut, today released an exclusive breaking news story that Iran is sending 4,000 troops to Syria to support Assad's troops. This is important and the storyline is much deeper as it may show that the lines are being drawn closer for the prophetic latter time goat-ram conflict described by Gabriel in Daniel 8.
I recommend that you read the FULL STORY not just the excerpt below and consider the deep implications that Mr. Fisk has shed some very serious light on.
It amazes me that as events unfold, the two nuclear superpowers of the planet, the U.S. (West) and Russia (East) are at odds with each other within the divide of the two feet of Islam.
The U.S. has aligned with Sunni nations and Russia has aligned with the minority Shiites including Iran.
Yet the people of Syria that we support militarily, and with money are the Sunni who oppose the small Alawite sect of Sh'ia. And if you say, well what about Iraq, they are Shiite too, yet we freed them from a dictator.
Consider the implications of this headline, "Iraq, Russia ink weapons deal"
IN this report, Senator McCain continued to say as he has in the past we should get militarily involved. We have all heard him say we need to be arming the rebels.
Well, the problem is - - no one really has any idea what "rebels" he is talking about. Can we even be sure that there are any "good guys" still left in the fight and just who are they? As you can see in this post, I am convinced that any such intervention to arm the so-called "rebels will have a negative ramification of Biblical proportions for the United States.
Frankly, I am completed dumbfounded by McCain.
Yes, he is a war hero but he needs to get a grip on reality. Perhaps he should step down if his mind is this disjointed from reality. If you doubt the insanity of arming the rebels, stay turned you will see their true intent. Syria is complicated due to misinformation but McCain paints it as simply, good vs evil... the people vs the tyrant.
The reality is this is the mixture of clay and iron spoken of by the prophet Daniel.
This is Sunni vs. Shiite and you need to understand the conflict from stories just like these...
This Reuter's story provides more details of the alledged chemical attack by rebel fighters against Syrian security forces in Aleppo. The photo of a ruinous heap seen in this report on the attack from Israel National News is astounding. February 9, 2013: Rebels close in on heart of Damascus
US News and World Report: Russia Docks Warships in Syria as NATO Arms Turkey Expert: Ships show Russia still backs Assad By Paul D. Shinkman. December 4, 2012: This week's headlines:
Meanwhile, this report comes from Istanbul:
July 12, 2012: Sky News HD gives this important video report today: Syria's Chemical Secret: Israel Raises Alarm Intelligence sources are warning of Syria's secret chemical stockpile that could fall into terrorist hands.
If so, he will be leading a group of ten which have received no kingdom as yet; but will receive power as kings one hour with the beast following the fall of the five kings. We need to keep our eyes on Assad's old friend in Turkey. Why? Because history repeats just as the Bible teaches. The Ottoman's of World War I were called the Ottoman Turks. They supported Germany and now following the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Turkey is no longer a key ally to the west. June 28, 2012: Explosions in Damascus, Syria and Debka states Assad is confined to palace by his Republican Guard
A senior Israeli military officer has said that the ongoing conflict in Syria has made it easier for Hezbullah to smuggle weapons into Lebanon. He added that there is concern that some of the Assad regime's stockpile of chemical weapons could end up in the group's hands. Defense Minister Ehud Barak has warned that sophisticated weapons could be transferred from Syria to Lebanon and to Hizbullah should Assad fall."
May 28, 2012: As the E.U. nations struggle with potential financial disaster, a human disaster hits the people of Syria with the horror of Houla as civilians and children are murdered Friday. This may in my view, may result in the possibility of a conflict between the United States and Iran as the U.S. could possibly intervene in Syria just as Iran has committed troops to support the Syrian leadership with Iran's Revolutionary Guards. But just who is the "opposition" in Syria?
It seems no one knows, but the truth is there if we just look. There are the defectors from the Syrian Army. They call themselves the Free Syrian Army, but what about the others? Unlike the other Arab Spring uprisings, the voice of the the common people seems to be missing, or is that because the media as well as Facebook and Twitter are not allowed in the country? Here is something interesting. Just take a quick look at this photo that was published in RT Times on Published on May, 14 2012... notice the gold watch, the spotlessly clean, collared and buttoned up golf shirt and the ID tag, what's with that? It seems the Sunni's are being imported to oppose the Shia Alewite that control Syria.
May 10,2012: Two strong explosions rip through Damascus killing 40 people April 1, 2011: Nations pledge millions for Syrian opposition "ISTANBUL (AP) - A coalition of more than 70 partners, including the United States, pledged Sunday to send millions of dollars and communications equipment to Syria's opposition groups, signaling deeper involvement in the conflict amid a growing belief that diplomacy and sanctions alone cannot end the Damascus regime's repression." March 23, 2012: Activists: 40 Killed this Week in Syria Town
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The headline news and the ancient Song of Moses tells us: dark days are ahead. So return to God's teaching and instruction so you can find your identity and purpose in His word and blow the trumpet. The Lord is watching over His land and His people, Ephraim and Judah, indeed the whole House of Israel and the strangers and aliens that walk with them. May our prayer be:
77 children killed or injured in the fighting since the beginning of the year
"GENEVA/AMMAN/NEW YORK, 18 February 2020 – More than 500,000 children have been displaced by intense violence in northwest Syria since 1 December 2019*, with tens of thousands of children and their families now living in tents and in the open air amid very cold weather and rains.
“We walked for three days and now live in tents. All of our belongings were soaked with rain and mud,” says Nadia*, a recently displaced mother originally from Saraqeb in Idlib, now living in the Aleppo area. “I have a very sick child who needs urgent surgery, but I cannot afford it. If my child dies, all I could do is to bury him.”
Since the beginning of the year, 77 children were verified killed or injured* due to the escalation of violence in the area.
“The situation in the northwest is untenable, even by Syria’s grim standards,” said Henrietta Fore, UNICEF Executive Director. “Children and families are caught between the violence, the biting cold, the lack of food and the desperate living conditions. Such abject disregard for the safety and wellbeing of children and families is beyond the pale and must not go on.”
Just yesterday, UNICEF received reports that the last two operational hospitals in the western part of Aleppo governorate were hit, one of them a maternity and children’s hospital."
October 8, 2019: Republicans assail Trump’s decision to pull troops from northern Syria as Turkey readies offensive
"Republicans in Congress assailed President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria’s border with Turkey on Monday, warning that a threatened Turkish invasion would lead to a dangerous resurgence of the Islamic State, the slaughter of U.S. allies in the region and a boon for American adversaries."
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| An image published on Ali Khamenei's official website on September 25 showing Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, left, alongside Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, center, and Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani. (Khamenei.ir) |
The photo published on the supreme leader’s official website shows Nasrallah with Khamenei on his right and Qassem Soleimani — the commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force — on his left.
The three men are shown in front of what appears to be a door covered by a curtain and surrounded by shelves stacked with books — decor associated with Khamenei’s Tehran office."
March 25, 2019: Trump Formally Recognizes Israeli Sovereignty Over Golan Heights.
"President Trump signed a proclamation Monday that recognizes Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, formalizing the Middle East policy shift he announced over Twitter last week.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was with Trump at the White House as he signed the presidential proclamation. Prior to the signing, Netanyahu made remarks lavishing praise onto Trump that drew comparisons between the president and the Persian emperor Cyrus as heroic defenders of the Jewish people.
"Israel has never had a better friend than you," Netanyahu said, enumerating several instances in which the administration has delivered on campaign promises favoring the Israeli leader, including U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal with Iran, restoration of sanctions on that country and the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital leading to the relocation of American embassy there.
"This is truly an historic day," Netanyahu exclaimed, saying it has taken half a century "to translate our military victory into a diplomatic victory."
"Your recognition is a two-fold act of historic justice. Israel won the Golan Heights in a just war of self-defense, and the Jewish people's roots in the Golan go back thousands of years," he added.
Following the signing, Trump said, "This was a long time in the making."
The latest move reverses the position U.S. administrations have held for more than 50 years, when Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. The region was annexed by the government in 1981, officially making it part of Israel and serving as a strategic military and agricultural post.
Netanyahu called the high ground "invaluable" to the national security of the nation, as did Trump's proclamation.
"Today, aggressive acts by Iran and terrorist groups, including Hizballah, in southern Syria continue to make the Golan Heights a potential launching ground for attacks on Israel. Any possible future peace agreement in the region must account for Israel's need to protect itself from Syria and other regional threats. Based on these unique circumstances, it is therefore appropriate to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights," the document reads.
The decree puts the U.S. at odds with much of the international community, which considers the Golan occupied territory.
Syria's Foreign Ministry rejected Trump's decision to legitimize Israel's claim over the contested land, calling it "a flagrant aggression of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic, turning a blind eye to all international reactions that condemned such resolution," according to an official interviewed by the Syrian Arab News Agency.
"The US president has no right or legal capacity to legalize the occupation or usurp the others' land by force... and this US hostile policy makes the region and the world subject to all dangers," the official said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres said it is "clear that the status of Golan has not changed," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said on Monday, Reuters reported.
"The UN's policy on Golan is reflected in the relevant resolutions of the Security Council and that policy has not changed," Dujarric said.
Critics, including the U.N., contend U.S. recognition of Israel's control over the disputed Golan is an irreversible break from the long-held principle of territorial integrity, prohibiting the acquisition of territory by war, that will inevitably have global consequences; they argue it weakens America's ability to oppose Russia's annexation of Crimea, as well as, pave the way for the Trump administration to recognize any future Israeli annexation of the West Bank."
Like I've said many times, there is no thus saith The Lord here, but those beautiful hills are the very area that the apostle Paul's Damascus road encounter and the Golan may be connected to the conflict and destruction described in Isaiah's oracle of Damascus in ways rarely considered in a move to take the Golan away from Israel.
December 20, 2018: Mattis resigns after clash with Trump over troop withdrawal from Syria and Afghanistan
"Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned Thursday after clashing with President Trump over the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria and Afghanistan, saying in a parting letter that the president deserves someone atop the Pentagon “better aligned” with his views.
The retired Marine general’s surprise resignation came a day after Trump shocked American allies and overruled his advisers, including Mattis, upon announcing a withdrawal from Syria. In the process, Trump declared victory over the Islamic State, even though the Pentagon and State Department for months have been saying the fight against the group in Syria isn’t over.
Trump also ordered the Pentagon, against Mattis’s recommendation, to come up with a plan to withdraw approximately half of the American troops deployed to Afghanistan, a move that military officials have warned could plunge the nation into chaos."
December 20, 2019: Using Twitter to ironically fulfill Obama's forgotten 2013 promise of "no boots on the ground" and just one month after Israeli PM Netanyahu took over the defense ministry of Israel following the resignation of Avigdor Lieberman, Trump's withdrawal from Syria is victory for Iran and Russia, experts say
"Analysis: The move provides "Iran with solid control over the entire arc of the Levant from Baghdad to Beirut," one expert said.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria will be hailed as a victory in Russia and Iran and a betrayal among Kurdish and Arab opposition forces that have waged a seven-year war against the Damascus regime, experts and former officials say.
Although Russian and Iranian forces had already turned the tide of the civil war in favor of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the presence of U.S. troops has served as an obstacle to their ambitions and a source of leverage for Washington in any potential political settlement of the conflict.
Just within the last week, senior U.S. officials had argued that the American military mission was needed to ensure the lasting defeat of ISIS militants and to serve as a bulwark against Iran.
But with Trump's move to pull out the U.S. troops, Russia and particularly Iran — which sent thousands of proxies and its own elite forces into Syria — stand to emerge as the dominant players in a country that shares a border with Israel.
The withdrawal, if carried out, will "provide Iran with solid control over the entire arc of the Levant from Baghdad to Beirut," said Nicholas Heras, Middle East security fellow at the Center for a New American Security think tank.
Iran already wields significant influence next door in Iraq, where it has heavily backed Shiite militias and cultivated close ties to the Shiite-ruled government."
September 28, 2018: Russia Begins Missile System Delivery to Syria, Warns West on Peace Talks
"UNITED NATIONS — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday Moscow had started delivering the S-300 surface-to-air missile system to Syria and warned Western powers of trying to undermine U.N.-led efforts to end the seven-year conflict.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu had said on Monday the system would be delivered to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces in two weeks despite strong Israeli and United States objections. A week previously, Moscow had accused Israel of indirectly causing the downing of a Russian military jet in Syria.
"The delivery started already and as President (Vladimir) Putin said, after that incident ... the measures that we will take will be devoted to ensuring 100 percent safety and security of our men," Lavrov told a news conference at the United Nations.
Russia, along with Iran, has helped Assad recover huge amounts of lost territory in Syria without persuading him to agree to any political reforms. It has also pushed its own talks with Iran and Turkey, known as the Astana process, as U.N-led peace negotiations have stalled."
August 29, 2018: It began March 15, 2011 seven years ago, when will it end?
NATO Confirms Russian Naval Buildup Off Syria, Calls for Restraint
"NATO confirmed a large scale Russian navy buildup in the Mediterranean Sea off Syria on Tuesday. “The Russian Navy has dispatched substantial naval forces to the Mediterranean, including several ships equipped with modern cruise missiles,” NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu confirmed to Haaretz in a statement.
Russian media on Tuesday called the deployment Moscow's largest naval buildup since it entered the Syrian conflict in 2015. The reinforcement comes as Russia's ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, is believed to be considering an assault on the last big rebel-held enclave, Idlib in the north."
Damascus air defenses said placed on high alert for fear of US attack
"Russia claims US is readying strike on Syrian government forces following 'staged chemical weapons attack.
Syrian air defenses were placed on high alert Monday, according to a report in the pro-regime news site Al Masdar. A source told the newspaper that the Mazzeh airbase was preparing to defend against a possible US missile attack on Damascus.
Earlier in the day a top Russian official said the US was bolstering its military forces in the Middle East in preparation for a strike against Syrian government forces, according to the Russian news agency TASS.
Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told reporters, “the US is making preparations for a missile attack on Syria, which will follow after a staged chemical weapons attack in the province of Idlib, blamed on the Syrian government.”"
Explained Syria, Turkey, Russia and U.S. to Square Off in Idlib With Millions of Civilians in the Crosshairs
Aid workers are bracing for the Idlib battle, which Turkey claims will put millions of civilians in danger - despite their desire to attack jihadist forces there
"Turkey's foreign minister said last Friday it would be disastrous to seek a military solution in the northern Syrian region of Idlib, a rebel-held enclave which the Syrian government says it aims to recapture.
Idlib is a refuge for civilians and rebels displaced from other areas of Syria as well as for powerful jihadist forces. It has been hit by a wave of air strikes and shelling this month in a possible prelude to a full-scale government offensive.
Turkey has backed some rebel groups in the region and set up a dozen military observation posts. It is trying to avert an attack by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who is backed by Moscow.
"A military solution here would be a disaster, not just for the Idlib region, but a disaster in terms of Syria's future," Mevlut Cavusoglu told a news conference in Moscow with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov.
The two ministers met in Ankara 10 days ago and Cavusoglu then gave a similar message, saying it would be a "massacre" to bomb Idlib, even though there are militants there.
"Where will some 3.5 million civilians go to?" Cavusoglu said on Friday.
"It is important for all of us to neutralise these radical groups," he said. "But we have to distinguish the civilians from the terrorist groups."
Idlib is controlled by an array of insurgent groups, with Sunni Muslim jihadists believed to be the dominant force there.
April 14, 2018: Trump announces "precision" strike on Syria's chemical weapons capabilities Friday
"Friday night, President Trump announced the U.S. launched "precision" military strikes against targets inside Syria linked to recent chemical attacks. The strike is the culmination of days of threats by President Trump against the Syrian government over a suspected chemical attack against civilians in Douma on the outskirts of Damascus on Sunday.
"A short time ago, I ordered the U.S. Armed Forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of Syrian dictator, Bashar al-Assad," the president said from the White House. "A combined operation with the armed forces of France and the United Kingdom is now under way.""
If it seems odd that French forces are engaged, there's more to that story.
Syria was established after WWI and was governed by France after the Ottoman Empire fell. Syria only gained independence from France in 1946 following WWII. Today, France has a deep distrust of Syria's supporter Iran and its people are still in the aftermath of the Paris terror attacks orchestrated by ISIS, otherwise know as ISIL or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant based in Raqqa, Syria. ISIS claimed the Paris were in retaliation for the French airstrikes on ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq. The terrorists were masquerading as Syrian migrants.
April 11, 2018: On April 7th toxic gas fell from the sky on the citizens of Douma, Syria a suburb just east of Damascus.
Today, we around the timeline of the historic fall of the walls of Jericho some 3,500 years ago when Israel's 12 nations and the sojourners with them marched around Jericho's walls for seven days blowing their shofars before the city's walls collapsed.
The story of the fall of Jericho at the last long blast of the trump is perhaps one of the most amazing stories in the Bible and Friday will mark seven days since the Douma attack in Syria. Many believe it was the day the walls fell, but the Bible is not so clear.
"French President Emmanuel Macron said a decision would be made "in the coming days," and that any airstrikes would target the Syrian government's chemical facilities."
"The World Health Organization said Wednesday that according to reports from its partners, 500 people who sought treatment Saturday showed signs and symptoms of toxic chemical exposure. "
"Russia has warned of "grave repercussions" if the U.S. strikes Assad."
Syria has been at war with itself for seven years now, Israel has been a restored nation for 70 years and Jericho's destruction happened 70 Jubilees past.
Now, the nations are still sounding their shofar if you will, warning against the atrocities as that attack killed at least 40 people and injured 500. There is judgment in the number 40 in Scripture.
April 9, 2018: Haley to UN: Only a monster does this...
April 5, 2018: Putin, Erdogan and Rohani Discuss Syria's Future in Ankara
When I saw this photo of Hassan Rohani, Rycep Erdogan and Vladimir Putin after reading the croaking rhetoric of Rohani from Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, I could not get the image of the tree frogs of Armageddon off my mind.
No, I am not saying these men are those three croaking frogs that John describes from his vision but the similarity is eerie to say the least.
What I am saying is that we should all watch and be familiar with John's warnings of those who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle as the voices of the 6th bowl of plague pouring out that is described in Revelation 16:12-16...
"And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet." Revelation 12:13
Rohani Erdogan and Putin
The Ayatollah armed with his Revolutionary Guards as well as Iran's proxies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon may provide a better representation of the three frogs croaking against Israel with escalating rhetoric, threats and vows to destroy the Jewish State straight from the dragon's mouth.
In today's vernacular we might call the three frog's croaking the voice of lunatics.
April 4, 2018: Khamenei: Israel should be forced to 'retreat to point of demise'
"Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called Wednesday on the people of Muslim countries to defeat Israel. "With an intense and planned struggle, they should force the enemy to retreat toward the point of demise," he said.
Any move to negotiate with Israel would be an "unforgivable mistake", the cleric added, after Saudi Arabia's crown prince said Israelis were entitled to live peacefully on their own land.
Supreme Leader Khamenei later tweeted, "On days when escalation of oppression and barbarism by the Zionists, in Gaza has saddened and angered those who care for Palestine, we reiterate the perpetual stance of the Islamic Republic regarding the issue of Palestine."
"Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! A sword will be on his arm and on his right eye! His arm will be totally withered, and his right eye will be blind." Zechariah 11:17But what about the right eye?
According to the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg in the 1700's that a worthless shepherd with a blind right eye denotes no understanding of truth and a faith based on evil?
March 2, 2018: New satellite photos show Iran establishing another base in Syria
"Exclusive satellite images from ImageSat International obtained by Fox News show what is believed to be the new Iranian base, eight miles northwest of Damascus, operated by the Quds Force — the special operations arm of Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The photos show two new white hangars, each roughly 30 yards by 20 yards, used to store short- and medium-range missiles."
February 21, 2018: News from the conflict in Syria has shown the escalation of chaos as an Iranian drone flying into Israeli airspace on Saturday that was shot down by the IDF, followed by Syrian anti-aircraft fire that brought down an Israeli F-16 fighter jet that then led to an IDF military strike in which Israel bombed both Syrian and Iranian targets.
Middle East military heavyweights Israel, Iran on collision course over Syria
"Iran and Israel are on a collision course over Tehran’s expanding footprint in Syria, raising the odds of a direct clash between the region’s two military heavyweights that could quickly draw in other combatants.
With Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Iran’s most potent military ally, emboldened by their success in upholding Syrian President Bashar Assad, Israel is growing more and more wary of being attacked by missiles not just from southern Lebanon but also from inside Syria.
Israel has been sporadically bombing Hezbollah positions in Syria for the past three years. But the situation reached new heights this month when what Israel said was an Iranian armed stealth drone was intercepted and downed over Israel and an Israeli F-16 fighter jet was in turn shot down by anti-aircraft fire from inside Syria during a retaliatory airstrike.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif traded belligerent taunts at a major security conference in Munich this week, with the hard-line Mr. Netanyahu brandishing a piece of the downed drone and warning that Tehran “should not test Israel’s resolve.”
“Israel will not allow the regime to put a noose of terror around our neck,” he said. “We will act if necessary not just against Iran’s proxies but against Iran itself.”"
February 16, 2018: Washington Examiner - OPINION - How Israel intends to defeat Iran in Syria by Tom Rogan
"In the next several months, Israel is likely to aggressively strike Syrian regime headquarters in Damascus.
As we saw in last weekend's Israeli Defense Force strikes in southern Syria, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is determined to defeat Iran's emerging power projection stronghold in Syria. They are right to do so.
With Iran now in effective control of a contiguous land corridor between its own territory through Iraq up to Syria’s border with northern Israel, the Iranian hardliners – most notably, the revolutionary guards (IRGC) – have an unparalleled ability to threaten Israel.
Iran’s basic aspiration here is to threaten Israel in the same way that North Korean forces have the credible ability to fire thousands of artillery rounds into Seoul in the opening hours of any conflict.
In turn, Iran's growing threat has unleashed an Israeli strategy that is bold in its objectives and highly aggressive in tactical means.
After all, Damascus is only 130 miles from Tel Aviv, and less than 100 miles from northern Israeli cities like Acre, Haifa, Nahariyya, Natanya, and Nazareth. With those Israeli population centers in range of Iranian artillery-rocket and missile forces such as those of the Fateh family, Israel could face tens of thousands of immediate casualties in the event of a conflict.
It gets worse."
October 25, 2017: ISIS Slaughters 128 in Syrian Christian Town: 'They Attacked us Like Animals, They Came to Kill Us'
"Shocking details are emerging of a surprise 'revenge' attack by ISIS militants on what was once a predominantly Syrian Christian town.
"They attacked us like animals, they came to kill us," a resident of Qaryatayn said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
On Sunday, Syrian government troops recaptured Qaryatayn from ISIS militants. But before retreating from the town, the terror group went on a killing spree slaughtering countless people.
"They killed children {and} women," recounted one survivor. "They broke the arms of the women {and} burned them."
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 128 people were murdered in the rampage.
"They killed more than a hundred innocent people from the families of both civilians and militants," said one resident.
Syrian soldiers, backed by various militias, regained control of the town, which was held by ISIS militants since early October. Thousands of the town's Christian residents fled for the lives.
"They left nothing behind them, they took everything, belongings, stole the houses and the cars and took the men and killed them," said one eyewitness."
October 23, 2017: Horrifically, Newsweek reports this from Syria: IN SYRIAN CHRISTIAN TOWN, ISIS MASS-EXECUTED 116 PEOPLE BEFORE ASSAD'S ARMY CLOSED IN
"Evidence has emerged of another Islamic State militant group (ISIS) mass execution, this time in the Syrian Christian desert town of Al-Qaryatain.
The militant group killed at least 116 civilians in executions committed in the days before the Syrian regime recaptured the town, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a U.K.-based monitoring group with an extensive network of contacts in Syria.
“ISIS has over a period of 20 days executed at least 116 civilians in reprisal killings, accusing them of collaboration with regime forces,” SOHR chief Rami Abdelrahman told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
ISIS regained control of the town three weeks ago, and then the killings began. Syrian regime forces, backed by Russian air power, arrived and liberated the town on October 21 after dozens of ISIS fighters retreated, at which point the remains of the victims of the mass execution were found.
“After the regime retook it, the town’s residents found the bodies on the streets. They had been shot dead or executed with knives,” Abdelrahman said."
September 22, 2017: Arab media reports Israeli airstrike on Damascus Airport
"Arab media reports on Thursday night claimed that Israel attacked a weapons depot next to Damascus International Airport.
A report from one daily, Al Arabia Al Jadid, said that a series of explosions shook the airport. Al Masdar News, a Lebanese outlet, also reported that an Israeli drone attack the airport, citing a report from the Syrian military that the attack did not seriously damage the airport or its surroundings, and that there were no casualties. The report also claims that, in response, the Syrian military shot down an Israeli drone near the Israeli-Syrian border, though these claims remain unconfirmed.
Al-Mayadeen, a Lebanese television station, also claimed that two rockets hit near the airport. An independent Syrian pro-Assad outlet, Muraselon, reported that three strikes hit the airport. A pro-Assad Facebook page called ''Damascus Now'' claimed that a ''hostile missile'' had targeted the airport.
The weapons depot that was allegedly attacked is said to be one of Hezbollah's.
There have been no confirmations or denials from Israel, Syria or Hezbollah."
Rarlier, on September 8th, The New Arab reported: "Syria's army said in a statement that the airstrike caused material damage near the town of Masyaf and warned against the "dangerous repercussions of this aggressive action to the security and stability of the region.”
But Britain-based war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the strikes hit a Scientific Studies and Research Centre facility - the agency the US describes as Syria's chemical weapons manufacturer."
August 4, 2017 Mideast Cauldron: How Iran May Target Israel in the Aftermath of ISIS
"GOLAN HEIGHTS, Israel – After a nine-month battle, Iraq took control of the ISIS stronghold in Mosul. Now the U.S.-led coalition remains focused on taking the fight to ISIS in Raaqa, Syria, the terror group's self-proclaimed capital.
Some experts are warning the battle against the Islamic State might just be a prelude to a much more dangerous battle just ahead."
June 27, 2017: Fox News Syria 'potentially' preparing for another chemical attack: A history of Syria's chemical weapons use
"As the White House warned against a potential impending chemical attack in Syria, the U.S. Pentagon on Tuesday confirmed that it’s detected “active preparations” for use of chemicals in the Middle Eastern nation.
“The United States has identified potential preparations for another chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime that would likely result in the mass murder of civilians, including innocent children,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Monday evening.
Assad's government and Russia dismissed the White House’s allegation that Damascus was preparing a new chemical weapons attack.
Spicer warned that should Syrian President Bashar Assad conduct “another mass murder attack using chemical weapons,” then “he and his military will pay a heavy price.”"
June 8, 2017: UN: Islamic State Killed 231 Civilians Trying to Flee Mosul
"The United Nations Human Rights Office said Thursday it has “credible reports” indicating Islamic State fighters in Iraq killed at least 231 civilians who were trying to flee western Mosul.
The reported killings happened between May 26 and June 3, all in the al-Shifa neighborhood, and involved people trying to get from Islamic State-held areas to locations held by Iraqi troops.
The United Nations also said it is still investigating reports of other civilian casualties from an airstrike in the Zanjilly section of western Mosul that reportedly killed between 50 and 80 people."
March 24, 2017: U.N. says 300,000 civilians at risk in Damascus battle, pause needed
"Fighting around Syria's capital Damascus has cut 300,000 people off from humanitarian aid and pauses in the conflict are needed to let aid convoys in, Jan Egeland, U.N. humanitarian advisor on Syria, said on Thursday.
"They are totally dependent on our supplies. Starvation will be just around the corner unless we get there in the coming weeks," Egeland told Reuters in an interview after chairing the weekly Syria humanitarian taskforce meeting in Geneva.
The besieged Douma and Kafr Batna areas of rural Damascus contain 161,000 and 142,000 civilians respectively. Their food stocks have dwindled and informal supply routes have been cut.
"The increase in the fighting has disastrous effects on the civilian population," Egeland said. "They haven’t had any supplies by the U.N. since October in Douma, and in the Kafr Batna area not since June of last year."
The Syrian government is not giving the green light for convoys and armed groups are not guaranteeing the security of aid convoys, meaning that no aid can go in, Egeland said."
March 17, 2017: IDF Hits Syria Targets, Shoots Down Incoming Syrian Missile
"YERUSHALAYIM - IDF forces struck in Syria overnight Thursday, hitting several targets. In response, Syrian army forces fired antiaircraft missiles at the Israeli planes. None were hit, but as the Syrian missiles were fired in the direction of the Jordan Valley, the Red Alert early warning system went into action, sounding a loud siren at about 2:30 a.m. that sent residents scurrying for shelter.
A Syrian rocket was shot out of the sky by the Israeli Arrow antimissile defense system. Portions of the missile fell over the northern Jordan Valley and inside Jordan as well. It was not immediately clear how debris from the missile may have ended up in neighboring Jordan."
January 12, 2017: Israeli rockets hit military airport near Damascus
"A huge explosion has rocked a Syrian Air Force installation southwest of the capital Damascus, after the Israeli regime launched a rocket attack against a designated target at the site.
The Israeli rockets struck the Mezzeh Military Airport, less than eight kilometers southwest of Damascus, early on Friday, and caused a large fire, but there has been no immediate report of casualties.
Syrian state TV quoted the army command as saying that the rockets, which it said were fired from an area close to the Sea of Galilee in the north of the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, hit the airport’s compound.
Earlier reports said the rockets had targeted an arms depot at the military installation.
Several loud explosions were reportedly heard after the attack against the major facility for the elite Republican Guards.
The Syrian army also vowed to take revenge for the "flagrant" attack and "amputate the arms of the perpetrators."
Bomb attack leaves eight dead in Syrian capital
"At least eight people have lost their lives when a powerful explosion ripped through a heavily secured district of the Syrian capital Damascus.
A police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a bomber blew himself up on Thursday evening in the southwestern Kafr Sousa neighborhood of Damascus, where some of Syria's main security installations are located.
Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that a “terrorist” detonated an explosive belt close to a sports club there."
November 20, 2016: As battles deluge Aleppo and Mosul, we have to remember Genesis 10 because this area accounts for Noah's sons that spread out over the land after the devastation of the flood destroyed humanity except for Noah, his sons, and their wives. Here is the introductory verse of the chapter:
This is the account of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, Noah's sons, who themselves had sons after the flood. Genesis 10:1These names are the genesis of the nations of the ancient Biblical world and they figure prominently in the Bible storyline, such as Egypt and Canaan in the genealogy of Ham, and Ashur (Assyria) and Eber (the ancestor of Abraham) in the genealogy of Shem. Today, we see this land at the forefront of disaster once again, so we must ask, is there a link in Genesis 10 that like the journey of Abraham will lead to Jerusalem?
The Times of Israel reports... Paris peace parley proceeding as planned, France insists
"France will hold an international peace conference on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict next month, French officials said over the weekend, rebuffing several reports claiming that Paris had decided to shelve the planned summit.
The reports had quoted French President Francois Hollande as saying that he was facing difficulties convening the summit due to heavy international opposition, particularly from Israel but also from the United States.
French diplomats over weekend said the reports were “erroneous.” Hollande never said the confab was scrapped, merely that it was subject to “incertitude” that bears clarification after the US election, they said.
“As President Hollande reaffirmed in his speech to the UN General Assembly on September 20, our goal is to convene an international conference in order to help relaunch the Middle East peace process,” a spokesperson from the French Foreign Ministry said Thursday. “We are working closely with our partners and in collaboration with the parties to that end.”"
November 18, 2016: An opinion post in the Washington Post By Laila Maher Soudi, Raed Saleh and Ahmad Tarakji says: More than 250,000 in Eastern Aleppo could die after the next 20 days
"Raed Saleh is head of the organization White Helmets, the Syrian Civil Defense (Twitter: @SyriaCivilDef). Dr. Ahmad Tarakji is president of the Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS). Laila Soudi works with SAMS and the psychiatry department at the Stanford University School of Medicine.This is really beyond what I can grasp, if this article is not a false flag, in just days some 250,000 could die & 100,000 are children. They need a miracle from the Bible now. I can't believe this is happening.
Today, more than 250,000 Syrians remain trapped in besieged eastern Aleppo with limited access to food, clean water and medical supplies. Living under constant aerial bombardment, residents in the eastern part of the city have nowhere to go. Eastern Aleppo is expected to run out of food and medical supplies in 20 days or less, after which we risk losing more than a quarter-million people to mass starvation and restricted access to lifesaving medical care.
Of the quarter of a million people stuck in Aleppo, 100,000 are children. These children cannot eat or sleep without incapacitating fear. Every day, they experience unparalleled levels of trauma and anxiety, making them an especially vulnerable group with only 29 doctors remaining to care for them and their families. Our doctors are faced with the unimaginable task of having to decide which child to save and which to let die due to the severe shortage of medical supplies and staff. Furthermore, we do not have the infrastructure in place to provide those who survive with mental-health services to alleviate their severe trauma symptoms. Instead, we let them leave our hospitals in anguish and despair, knowing we helped rescue them from underneath the rubble and provided medical care for them in our hospitals but also knowing we cannot alleviate their fear. We are all afraid. We work knowing that the next child we help may be our own."
If you do not know much about Aleppo... Paul of Tarsus may have traveled through Aleppo many times on his pilgrim journeys to Jerusalem as well as his trips to Antioch with Barnabas.
Stephen traveled to Aleppo too, preaching the good news of Yeshua.
Abraham may have stayed in the city as he crossed over, walking in God's instruction toward Canaan. When he arrived in the Promised Land he dealt with them when he purchased Sarah's grave:
"And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” 5 The Hittites answered Abraham, “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” Genesis 23:3-6The Aleppo Codex was found in Aleppo, Syria. It is considered the oldest and most accurate complete Hebrew Bible to have ever been discovered. When the UN voted to establish Israel in 1947, it was thought to be lost in a riot that torched the Aleppo synagogue where it had been kept safe for hundreds of years as fire broke out on the 29th of November, but somehow some of it survived like a miracle.
Aleppo was the home base of the Amorites before the Hittites stormed the city like today's terror nightmare.
This horrific story that is unfolding now has bruised my heart. We are entering uncharted territory, pray for another November miracle.
November 1, 2016: Aleppo and Mosul exist on the same plane separated by 383 miles. Today, battles rage in the tale of two cities, as only an 8 1/2 hour drive separates their devastation.
The firepower against ISIS is led by Russia to the West in Syria and the United States to the East in Iraq as Moscow and Washington accuse each other of war crimes as civilians hide from the crossfire and the question remains, what will be the end of the conflict and crisis in the Levant?
The future of the Shia-Sunni conflict may point toward Jerusalem. What happens in Mosul and Aleppo is important to the future of the planet.
October 14, 2016: Today, Reuters reports: Exclusive: Obama, aides expected to weigh Syria military options on Friday
"U.S. President Barack Obama and his top foreign policy advisers are expected to meet on Friday to consider their military and other options in Syria as Syrian and Russian aircraft continue to pummel Aleppo and other targets, U.S. officials said.
Some top officials argue the United States must act more forcefully in Syria or risk losing what influence it still has over moderate rebels and its Arab, Kurdish and Turkish allies in the fight against Islamic State, the officials told Reuters.
One set of options includes direct U.S. military action such as air strikes on Syrian military bases, munitions depots or radar and anti-aircraft bases, said one official who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
This official said one danger of such action is that Russian and Syrian forces are often co-mingled, raising the possibility of a direct confrontation with Russia that Obama has been at pains to avoid."
This meeting comes after Russia announced this week... Russia moves nuclear-capable missiles into Kaliningrad and after Russia test-fires 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles from the Georgy Pobedonosets, a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine in the Sea of Okhotsk amid the tensions growing between the United States and Russia over the Syrian War as Russian Television Warns of Nuclear War Amid US Tensions.
Another test of 3 intercontinental ballistic missiles occurred August 26, 1957 and the Cold War ensued.
Pray, if you consider yourself a child of God -- you MUST pray now!
Now, we have retaliated and released a strike threat, perhaps it seems as retaliation to hacking from Russia, but then again is this a diversion of sort? I'm not into conspiracies, but I do think we have to consider and pray about Obama's meeting today to weigh our Syrian military options: CIA Prepping for Possible Cyber Strike Against Russia
"The Obama administration is contemplating an unprecedented cyber covert action against Russia in retaliation for alleged Russian interference in the American presidential election, U.S. intelligence officials told NBC News.
Current and former officials with direct knowledge of the situation say the CIA has been asked to deliver options to the White House for a wide-ranging "clandestine" cyber operation designed to harass and "embarrass" the Kremlin leadership.
The sources did not elaborate on the exact measures the CIA was considering, but said the agency had already begun opening cyber doors, selecting targets and making other preparations for an operation. Former intelligence officers told NBC News that the agency had gathered reams of documents that could expose unsavory tactics by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Vice President Joe Biden told "Meet the Press" moderator Chuck Todd on Friday: "we're sending a message" to Putin and that "it will be at the time of our choosing, and under the circumstances that will have the greatest impact.""
October 6, 2016: Our President and 2009 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Barack Hussein Obama has brought us to the abyss of Syria.
ABC Breaking News | Latest News Videos
Russia Warns US Not to Intervene in Syria, Threatens to Shoot Down Any Airstrike Attempts
"Russia has warned the United States not to intervene militarily in Syria against forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, threatening that it may shoot down any aircraft attempting to launch strikes.
In a bluntly worded statement, a spokesman for Russia’s defense ministry warned that Russia and the Syrian government had deployed sufficient air defenses to block any potential attacks.
It follows rumbling in Washington that the White House may be considering launching strikes against some Syrian regime military targets as an alternative option for moving forward in the Syrian conflict after the collapse of U.S.-Russian cease-fire negotiations."
October 5, 2014: From Bloomberg: U.S.-Russia Ties Crumble Under Weight of Syria, Nuclear Pact
"Ties between Russia and the U.S. deteriorated further after the Obama administration proclaimed bilateral peace talks over Syria dead and Moscow suspended a 16-year-old treaty meant to reduce the risk of nuclear proliferation.
“Everybody’s patience with Russia has run out,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in Washington on Monday, blaming Vladimir Putin’s government for undermining the fight against Islamic State and for indiscriminate bombing that has killed civilians and targeted hospitals in Syria. “Russians have been complicit” in the Syrian tragedy, Earnest said, and “there is nothing more for the United States and Russia to talk about.”"
October 2, 2016: Russia warns US not to attack Syrian regime
"(CNN)Russia warned the United States about taking direct action against the Syrian regime, saying it would cause negative consequences across the Middle East, Russia's state-run Sputnik news agency reported Saturday.
Meanwhile, intense fighting continued in the besieged Syrian city Aleppo on Saturday, with one of the main hospitals bombed by Russian-backed Syrian forces.
Sputnik reported that Russian's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, "If the US launches a direct aggression against Damascus and the Syrian army, it will lead to terrible, tectonic shifts not only on the territory of this country but also in the region in general."
She said the United States risked creating a power vacuum in Syria were it to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Such a power vacuum would be filled by "terrorists of all sorts," Sputnik reported."
September 30, 2016: Today, Sputnik distorted a warning from US State Department Spokesman John Kirby: Losing in Syria, US Resorts to Threatening Russian Cities With Terror Attacks
Washington looks to have shifted its approach to Russia to language of intimidation and threats. On Wednesday, US State Department Spokesman John Kirby said that if the Syrian army's offensive does not stop, Russian cities may be faced with the threat of terror attacks. Russian terrorism experts respond, commenting on the implicit threat.
Speaking at a press briefing, Kirby suggested that if Russian-supported Syrian military operations aren't halted immediately, "extremist groups will continue to exploit the vacuums that are there in Syria to expand their operations, which could include attacks against Russian interests, perhaps even Russian cities. Russia will continue to send troops home in body bags, and will continue to lose resources, perhaps even aircraft."
September 29, 2016: ISIS prepares for FINAL BATTLE: US troops 3 MILES from site of ancient APOCALYPSE prophecy
"US SPECIAL forces are encircling a jihadi stronghold in Syria claimed by ISIS to be in old Islamic prophecy as the site of the final battle - triggering the apocalypse.
According to the extremists' twisted ideology, Dabiq - a tiny town in northern Syria - will see a "major apocalyptic showdown with the armies of the infidel" that will result in the collapse of civilisation.
And Turkish troops backed by American commandos are understood to be just three miles from the town.
ISIS claim the battle will erupt in a field outside the small town, which in 2004 recorded a population of just 3,000 people.
ISIS even named its terrorist propaganda and recruitment magazine after the settlement, which lies around six miles from the Turkish border.
Jihadists believe the Prophet Mohammed remarked that "the last hour will not come" until an army vanquishes the Romans at "Dabiq or Al-A'maq."
One of the founders of ISIS, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, is quoted in the vile group's propaganda magazine as saying: "The spark has been lit here in Iraq, and its heat will continue to intensify - by Allah's permission - until it burns the crusader armies in Dābiq."
Reports in recent days that Turkish artillery fire has hit the town, in the northern countryside of Aleppo, suggest that battle may now have begun."
Many may not realize it, but Syria represents 1/3rd of the covenant land promise given to Abraham and in fulfillment of Joel 2:28-29 Abba is taking action. God is pouring out His Spirit in the tribulation of this war-torn land:
Syrian woman had dream for six nights of men coming with Good News; on the seventh day they arrived
"As the Syrian civil war continues after a failed cease-fire, many Muslims are encountering God, including a mother with confounding dreams that left her in a state of anticipation.
“The woman dreamt repeatedly of a man who told her that three people would come and bring her good news,” according to a ministry director for Christian Aid Mission (CAM).
“She continued to have this dream for six days in a row,” the director told CAM. “On the seventh day, one of our teams was doing home visits and decided to visit a new house.”
The three men approached her door, not knowing that God had already prepared the way. The woman’s eyes widened when she opened to see the three, and quickly ushered them inside.
“When they opened their Bible, she instantly fell to her knees,” the director told CAM.
When her husband and children walked in, she could not contain herself. “These are the people that the man in my dream told me to meet!” she told them excitedly.
The followers of Jesus spoke to her about His saving death on the cross and resurrection from the dead. Then they prayed with the family.
“They all put their faith in Him,” the ministry leader recounted. The entire household was saved!
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household.” Acts 16:30-31"
August 26, 2106: Revealed: Isis sends new waves of jihadis to attack Europe
Exclusive: Europol chief warns: fanatics using fake passports to sneak in from Syria
"Britain was today warned of a rising threat from Islamic State fighters sent “on mission” from Syria.
The alert came as the EU’s top law enforcement officer revealed that increasing numbers of jihadis are using fake documents to sneak into Europe.
Europol’s director Rob Wainwright said IS had taken a “strategic decision” to send its fanatics to attack the continent in an attempt to distract attention from battlefield defeats in its heartland.
He also highlighted the weapons trade on the “Dark Net”, saying it was a “major part of the security challenge” that is now facing Europe. Mr Wainwright said some IS extremists were using false Syrian passports in a bid to arrive undetected — with a small but increasing number posing as refugees.
Others were exploiting the “industrial scale” production of false documents by criminals to obtain EU passports and move freely over the continent.
Mr Wainwright said Europe also faced the return of thousands more extremists as IS crumbled in Syria in a “long, long struggle” that will pose an “onerous security challenge” for years.
The warnings, in an interview with the Standard at Europol’s HQ in The Hague, came as Mr. Wainwright also:
• Said a new squad of 200 counter- terrorism officers is to be deployed to the Greek islands within weeks to spot extremists seeking entry to Europe.August 25, 2016: ABCNews "20/20" files their report called "The Girl Left Behind" on the amazing witness of faith of Kayla Mueller.
• Predicted more attempted Paris-style “spectacular” attacks, saying there are more than 50 counter-terror investigations under way in Europe.
• Warned of reports that extremists are attempting to radicalise migrants at refugee reception centres in Greece and the Balkans.
• Revealed that “hundreds” of law enforcement operations are trying to stop illegal firearms being moved to Britain and other EU nations.
But Kayla's final storyline will not be left behind, instead it will be "Reign With Messiah." This incredible young woman will be honored with others like her by Almighty God in the shofar call for the first resurrection of the saints. Kayla will live and reign with Messiah Yeshua.
Many may wonder why the Bible points toward this 1,000 year promise. The reason, it is "the day" of rest and honor given by El Shaddai. This great promise is given in Revelation 20:4-6.
Kayla Mueller in Captivity: Courage, Selflessness as She Defended Christian Faith to ISIS Executioner 'Jihadi John'
"American hostage Kayla Mueller was tortured, verbally abused, forced into slave labor for ISIS commanders in Syria and raped by the group's top leader, but her fellow hostages say she never surrendered hope, she selflessly put the welfare of fellow captives above her own and she even stood up to executioner "Jihadi John" to defend her Christian faith."
TIMELINE: Kayla Mueller in ISIS Captivity
ISIS Hostage Kayla Mueller's Heartbreaking Proof of Life Video
Kayla Mueller: American ISIS Captive Wrote Letter to Family Before Her Death
August 21, 2016: Top US commander warns Russia, Syria
"(CNN)In the most direct public warning to Moscow and Damascus to date, the new US commander of American troops in Iraq and Syria is vowing to defend US special operations forces in northern Syria if regime warplanes and artillery again attack in areas where troops are located.
"We've informed the Russians where we're at ... (they) tell us they've informed the Syrians, and I'd just say that we will defend ourselves if we feel threatened," Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend told CNN in a telephone interview Saturday from his Baghdad headquarters.
Townsend is the first senior military commander to speak on the record about the US possibly challenging the Syrian Air Force in the wake of an incident just days ago.
Townsend, who took command this week, made the remarks following what defense officials described as an "unusual" incident Thursday in northern Syria in which the regime of President Bashar al-Assad used warplanes to attack an area near where US special operations forces were operating in support of Kurdish forces, which are the Americans' key ally in the conflict."
August 13, 2016: From the Jerusalem Post: War of attrition: The Syrian rebellion grinds on into its 6th year, with no end in sight
"IT IS now five years since the outbreak of the Syrian armed rebellion against the regime of Bashar Assad, and up to 400,000 people have been killed in the civil war that has ravaged and destroyed the country. In addition, 13.5 million people have lost their homes and of those, around 6.6 million have left the country.
Yet an end to the war seems nowhere near, as a half-decade on, the revolt finds itself at an impasse. Any hopes for a democratic transformation of the country are long gone.
Today, the rebellion is dominated by Sunni Islamist groups of various hues, supported by a variety of regional players. Salafi Islamist groups are the strongest among the armed groups, with Ahrar al-Sham (Free Men of the Levant) perhaps the single strongest group. Jabhat al-Nusra (Support Front) – until recently the official franchise of the Al-Qaeda network in Syria – and Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam) from the Damascus area are also leading players."
CBN News' Chris Mitchell gives a video report from Jerusalem...
August 2, 2016: Rescuers say toxic gas dropped on Syrian town where Russian helicopter shot down
"A Syrian rescue service operating in rebel-held territory said on Tuesday a helicopter dropped containers of toxic gas overnight on a town close to where a Russian military helicopter had been shot down hours earlier.
The opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) accused President Bashar al-Assad of being behind the attack. Assad has denied previous accusations of using chemical weapons.
A spokesman for the Syria Civil Defence said 33 people, mostly women and children, were affected by the gas, which they suspect was chlorine, in Saraqeb, in rebel-held Idlib province."
May 17, 2016: Russia mobilized 160,000 troops in Syria in July 2013 to fight ISIS after U.S. officials stated that Israel struck Russian-made missiles in Latakia, today...
Russia Builds Military Camp Near Ancient Site in Palmyra
"Russia has built a military encampment inside a zone that holds the UNESCO world heritage site in the ancient Syrian town of Palmyra, where Islamic State militants were driven out recently by pro-government forces.
The Russian military described the camp Tuesday as "temporary," saying its few housing units were being used by explosives experts who are removing mines left behind by the militants, and that the Syrian government had given approval to build the camp."
A Bible student needs to ask, are we seeing a preview of the prophetic call of Ezekiel 38:7-9 ?
“Be prepared and get yourself ready, you and all your company who have been mobilized around you; you will be their guard. After a long time you will be summoned.We need to take note, between Palmyria and Israel lies the Duma District. Duma is home to a very ancient volcanic field. Why does that matter when we consider the words of Ezekiel 38?
In the last years you will enter a land that has been restored from war and regathered from many peoples to the mountains of Israel, which had long been a ruin.
They were brought out from the peoples, and all of them now live securely. You, all of your troops, and many peoples with you will advance, coming like a thunderstorm; you will be like a cloud covering the land."
"And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone." Ezekiel 38:21-22March 11, 2016: Syrian pastor: 'God is waking up a sleeping Church', more people becoming Christians than ever before
"More people, including Muslims, are coming to Christ in Syria than ever before, as the five year anniversary of the civil war approaches, according to a persecution charity.February 23, 2016: Commentary from CNN's Faisal Al Yafai... Will Saudi Arabia be sucked into Syria?
"We're in a big harvest. God is waking up a sleeping Church," one pastor told Open Doors. "The Muslims coming to faith are ready to die for their new beliefs; that is a different kind of Christianity.""
"Saudi Arabia has been extremely clear in its views on the conflict. When Adel Al Jubeir, Saudi's foreign minister, spoke to CNN's Christiane Amanpour, he was unequivocal: "There are two ways to resolve Syria -- and they both involve the removal of Bashar al-Assad. One way is a political process... the other alternative is by force.""February 14, 2016: This February marks four years and today Houston, we have a problem... Turkish artillery are shelling the Kurds, not ISIS in northern Syria. Turkey has demanded that the Kurdish YPG leave the territories it has gained.
Turkey shells northern Syria for second day: monitor www.reuters.com
"The Turkish army shelled positions held by Kurdish-backed militia in northern Syria for a second day on Sunday, killing two fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said."US, France urge Turkey to stop shelling Kurds in northern Syria www.rt.com
"Washington and Paris have called on Turkey to cease its massive artillery bombardment against Kurdish targets near the city of Azaz in northwest Syria, including an air base recently retaken from Islamist rebels, and to de-escalate tensions on all sides."Syria's Kurds 'won't retreat' despite Turkish shelling www.aljazeera.com
"Armed group strikes defiant note after Turkey demands Kurdish withdrawal from captured territories in Syria's north."February 6, 2016: You thought Syria couldn't get much worse. Think again
"(CNN)Aleppo's fall to rebels -- back in 2012 a much more moderate bunch than the often al-Nusra-infected alliances we see now -- was a symbolic moment: the commercial heart of Syria turning on the country's own government.January 14, 2016: I just read in a CNN Money report that says "the world is facing the worst risks in a generation" by Ivana Kottasova.
Now, as thousands flee to the Turkish border from Russian airstrikes pounding the city and government forces moving in, the battle for Aleppo is again gaining significance.
The towns of Nubul and Zahraa were reached by government forces late Wednesday and their seizure could mark a turning point in the war in northern Syria. Not because they are significant in themselves, but because to reach the towns, the regime had to cross through towns that mark the main supply route into the rebel-held area of Aleppo.
Nearly five years into the civil war that has killed more than 250,000 people, according to the United Nations, Aleppo remains split in two with 320,000 civilians thought to be in the rebel-held area in the east of the city."
"What comes next may take months to play out. A siege is a complex and ghastly prospect that will take weeks to come into effect, on a population already struggling, but long aware this could happen.
A humanitarian disaster will build, likely meters away from Turkey's military. And Russia, whose decisive and often brutal intervention has given the regime a momentum it has not seen in years, will continue to see its military might reshape the landscape of this war, and effectively scupper the negotiations it has, on paper, bought into in Geneva.
But it won't end there -- whatever the outcome. ISIS still exists, mere miles away, and could step into any void."
"Had enough doom and gloom already this year? Sorry, there's more to come.Like wheat in a winepress the CNN report references the incredible exodus we have seen that enveloped the Shemittah Year as people fled the locusts of ISIS and more. The report states:
The world is facing the greatest risks in a generation, according to experts surveyed by the World Economic Forum.
Political instability is the worst it has been since the Cold War, and the number of people being forced to flee their homes is the highest in history. The effects of climate change are becoming more prominent, and terrorism is on the rise.
Those are the conclusions of the forum's risk report, released ahead of its annual meeting of world leaders and top business executives next week in Davos, Switzerland. It makes grim reading, warning of a rising toll from global uncertainties.
"The risks are more real, more imminent, more tangible...we are on the edge of a tipping point," said Espen Eide, the head of geopolitical affairs at WEF.
The report is based on a survey of almost 750 experts and decision-makers, including academics, chief executives, and political leaders. It says that the risks it has been warning about over the past decade are starting to harm people, institutions and economies."
"Currently, an estimated 60 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to war, poverty and natural disasters. That's equivalent to the world's 24th largest country and the largest number in history."What's amazing is this figure is 20-30 times the number that left Egypt some 70 Jubilees ago, but the story line provides a significant parallel as the ISIS locusts from the east arrived at Passover 2014 just before the Nineveh exodus began.
This reminds me of Gideon's story that also includes kings from Midian. Judges 6 tells us more...
The sons of Israel (ben Yisra'el) did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and the Lord gave them into the hands of Midian (strife) for seven years.Notice, the prophet did not really give out any new information. What was happening then fits today's headlines.
Because the power was so oppressive, they prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds as the Midianites, Amalekites and the people of the east invaded like innumerable swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count them; they invaded the land to ravage it.
Midian impoverished the Israelites and they cried out to the LORD for help so he sent them a prophet, who said:
This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says:
I brought you up out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.Do not worship the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you live. But you have not listened to me.
I rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians.
I delivered you from the hand of all your oppressors.
I drove them out before you and gave you their land.
I said to you, ‘I am the LORD your God.
Notice too, Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress [not a threshing floor] when the messenger of the LORD appeared and said: “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.”
Gideon gave an excuse much like Moses... Excuse me, if The Lord is with us why has this happened and where are the miracles? My family is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least.
The LORD answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”
Gideon knew the story of Moses so he was confident that YHVH doesn't have a problem providing a sign so he said, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me."
Is there a Gideon out there?
January 8, 2016: ISIS fighter executes own mother in Syria for 'apostasy,' rights groups say
(CNN)An ISIS fighter has executed his own mother before a public audience, an expat Syrian rights group said.November 25, 2015: Russia RT News reports today that: Moscow to deploy S-400 defense missile system to Khmeimim airbase in Syria
The 20-year-old killed his mother in the Syrian city of Raqqa, ISIS' de facto capital, as hundreds looked on near the post office where she worked, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
ISIS had accused her of apostasy after her son turned her in, the activists said. She allegedly had been "inciting her son to leave the Islamic State." She wanted to escape with him and told him "that the coalition will kill all members of the organization."
"The Russian Air Force base in Latakia will be reinforced with S-400 SAM system, which will soon be deployed there, Russia's Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Wednesday.These weapons make any jet fighter program, much less any surface to air missile defense system like Israel's Arrow or David's Sling obsolete. The Russian offensive weapons system is so fast at 10,000 miles per hour that once fired it can reach any point in Israel in much less than two minutes. It seems that the Isaiah's Oracle of Damascus may have just unrolled to reveal Zechariah 5...
"S-400 will be deployed on Khmeimim airbase in Syria," Shoigu said at a Defense Ministry meeting.
"The S-400 is Russia's most advanced anti-aircraft defense system. It is as an upgrade of the S-300 Growler family, designed and developed by Almaz Antei. The S-400 is employed to ensure air defense using long- and medium-range missiles that can hit aerial targets at ranges up to 400 kilometers. The S-400 is capable of hitting tactical and strategic aircraft as well as ballistic and cruise missiles. The system includes a set of radars, missile launchers and command posts, and is operated solely by the Russian military.November 24, 2015: Russia supports Syria and Iran, Turkey is a member of NATO and like the U.S. an ally of the Arabs. Today, the stakes in the conflict of this division propelled exponentially in Syria as CBS News reports Turkish military shoots down Russian fighter jet over Syria
Khmeimim airbase in Latakia, Syria, accommodates Russian Air Force squadrons of Su-27SM and Su-30 fighter jets, Su-34 and Su-24 tactical bombers, which are all taking part in airstrikes on Islamic State positions. The airbase is protected by state-of-the-art air defense systems and radars. Khmeimim also has a fully operational unit for maintaining fixed- and rotor-wing aircraft and providing logistical assistance to pilots."
"LONDON -- Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet over Syria Tuesday saying the Su-24 jet's pilots violated Turkish airspace and failed to heed multiple warnings to leave.November 5, 2015: A November protocol has engaged in reaction to Islamist militant's midair explosion of a Russian charter over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
A U.S. official told CBS News that radar tracking confirmed the Russian plane was in Turkish airspace, saying, "it was close," but it did cross the border.
Russia flatly denied that its warplane had crossed into Turkish airspace.
"We are looking into the circumstances of the crash of the Russian jet. The Ministry of Defense would like to stress that the plane was over the Syrian territory throughout the flight," the Russian ministry said in a statement.
The Turkish Defense Ministry was quoted by Reuters as saying the Russian jet was warned 10 times within five minutes to leave Turkish airspace before it was shot down. Turkish officials said the Su-24 was warned as it flew over Yaylidag, in Turkey's southern Hatay province, and the Ministry of Defense released radar images purportedly showing the Ru-24's flightpath over the southern tip of Turkey's Hatay province, which juts down into northern Syria.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the nation was simply following its rules of engagement when it shot down the plane. He said Turkey harbors no "enmity" toward Russia or any other nation.
In Washington, President Obama said that while information about the incident was still emerging, Turkey had a "right to defend its territory and its airspace.""
Everyone knows that the militants that are fighting Assad have no fighter aircraft, yet... Russia deploys anti-aircraft missiles in Syria to protect its warplanes
"Russia has deployed anti-aircraft missiles in Syria to protect its warplanes carrying out airstrikes against militants, the head of the Russian air force disclosed Thursday.Russia has engaged but you can see this is really about Sh'ia vs. Sunni.
The missiles were dispatched to territory under the control of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government to protect against "all possible threats," Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said in an interview with the daily newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda.
"We sent there not only fighter jets, attack aircraft, bomber aircraft, helicopters but also missile systems, as various force majeure circumstances may occur," Bondarev said. “There can be different emergencies, such as hijacking a jet on the territory of a neighboring country or an attack on it. We should be ready for this,” he said."
October 2, 2015: There are now joint Russian-Iranian-Syrian-Iraqi-Hezbollah-China war ops in Syria. Debka has filed this report: Chinese warplanes to join Russian air strikes in Syria. Russia gains Iraqi air base...
"Russia’s military intervention in Syria has expanded radically in two directions. DEBKAfile’s military and intelligence sources report that China sent word to Moscow Friday, Oct. 2, that J-15 fighter bombers would shortly join the Russian air campaign that was launched Wednesday, Sept. 30. Baghdad has moreover offered Moscow an air base for targeting the Islamic State now occupying large swathes of Iraqi territoryOctober 1, 2015: Truth or fiction?
Russia’s military intervention in Syria has five additional participants: China, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Hizballah.
The J-15 warplanes will take off from the Chinese Liaoning-CV-16 aircraft carrier, which reached Syrian shores on Sept. 26 (as DEBKAfile exclusively reported at the time). This will be a landmark event for Beijing: its first military operation in the Middle East as well the carrier’s first taste of action in conditions of real combat.
Thursday night, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi, made this comment on the Syrian crisis at a UN Security Council session in New York: “The world cannot afford to stand by and look on with folded arms, but must also not arbitrarily interfere (in the crisis).”
A no less significant development occurred at about the same time when Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, speaking to the US PBS NewsHour, said he would welcome a deployment of Russian troops to Iraq to fight ISIS forces in his country too. As an added incentive, he noted that this would also give Moscow the chance to deal with the 2,500 Chechen Muslims whom, he said, are fighting with ISIS in Iraq."
Putin signs decree drafting 150,000 conscripts into the Russian military... as Iran and Hezbollah prepare major ground offensive in Syria with air support from Moscow's bombers
● Russia launched airstrikes on rebel groups in Syria for second day straightRussia Goes to War in Syria - but Against Whom?
● Country accused of targeting moderate rebels backed by U.S and not ISIS
● Moscow foreign minister Lavrov has rejected the 'rumours' as 'unfounded'
● Hundreds of Iranian and Hezbollah troops 'set to launch ground offensive'
"Russia's military has returned to Syria with a vengeance, and President Barack Obama has welcomed their involvement.Charles Krauthammer Opinion writer for The Washington Post offers this:
The Russians say they're targeting the Islamic State, but their motives are now being questioned, with some saying their real goal is to prop up the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al Assad.
And the Russian military is not alone in coming to the defense of the Assad regime. Reuters reports hundreds of Iranian troops began arriving in Syria 10 days ago.
One Lebanese source also told the news agency that Russian airstrikes will also be accompanied "by the Syrian army and its allies." The forthcoming military operation would likely include Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon, and would focus on recapturing territory currently occupied by anti-government rebels in northern Syria.
On Wednesday, Russian fighter jets dropped bombs deep into the heart of Syria. But instead of hitting ISIS, the bombers destroyed targets in Homs and Hama – cities where only U.S.-backed rebels are fighting against the Assad regime.
An amateur video showed the mayhem and carnage left behind by the Russian airstrikes. People were seen screaming and fleeing, carrying the injured from the rubble."
"Last Sunday, Iraq announced the establishment of a joint intelligence-gathering center with Iran, Syria and Russia, symbolizing the new “Shiite-crescent” alliance stretching from Iran across the northern Middle East to the Mediterranean, under the umbrella of Russia, the rising regional hegemon."September 21, 2015: Russia to Start Bombing in Syria ASAP
"Since last Friday, Moscow has sent two dozen additional fighter jets to Syria, bringing the total number in the country to 28. The same day, Defense Secretary Ash Carter spoke by phone to his Russian counterpart about what the Pentagon called “mechanisms for deconfliction,” a strong indication that Russia intended to conduct airstrikes in the same areas that U.S. forces and their coalition partners are now operating against ISIS.September 10, 2015: The burden of Damascus intensifies as CNN reports U.S. warns Russia on military buildup in Syria
After more than a year of U.S.-led airstrikes, the political and military situation in Syria appears to have reached a critical turning point, American officials and experts said. The U.S. campaign is effectively at a stalemate, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has said. In recent weeks, as Assad lost ground and the Obama administration’s Syria policy came under withering criticism for failing to train and equip any significant rebel force, the Russians began moving military equipment, supplies, and troops into Syria.
The massing of Russian force would seem to add a new and potentially volatile element to the chaotic war, with the U.S. struggling to find allies on the ground or blunt the spread of ISIS, and U.S. military analysts accusing their senior officers of distorting intelligence to paint a rosier picture of the military situation."
"Washington (CNN)America's top diplomat called his Russian counterpart Wednesday to warn that Moscow's military buildup of troops in Syria could escalate the bloody conflict there that has engulfed the region for more than four years.YNet News also reports: Iranian troops join Russians in Syria fighting
The U.S. has been watching Russia's movement of military personnel with concern for several days, though the Foreign Ministry only confirmed the buildup Wednesday.
There are "Russian military experts in Syria who are instructing (the Syrians) on the use of the military systems being delivered" to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a close Moscow ally, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
Russia "has long been supplying arms and military equipment to Syria in accordance with bilateral contracts," she said.
That confirmation follows repeated warnings from Secretary of State John Kerry to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about how such activity could intensify the raging civil war there."
"Qasem Soleimani, commander of Iran's elite Quds Force, has sent hundreds of ground soldiers into Syria in the past few days apparently in cooperation with Russia's President Vladimir Putin, said a senior Israeli security official Thursday.September 9, 2015: Israel Conducts Airstrikes at Syrian Artillery Near Damascus
Russia has also recently deployed military assets into Syria and according to the Israeli source, has teamed up with Iran in an unprecedented attempt to protect the embattled regime of Bashar Assad from falling to rebel groups including the Islamic State.
The Israeli source said that Iran's increased military involvement in Syria was "due to Assad's crisis and under Russian-Iranian cooperation as a result of a meeting between Soleimani with Russian President Vladimir Putin," said the Israeli source."
BEIRUT (Sputnik) — The Israeli Air Force has carried out airstrikes against an artillery position of the Syrian Army near the town of Zabadani, around 45 km (28 miles) from Syria's capital Damascus, a military source told Sputnik on Thursday.August 7, 2015: ISIS kidnaps 250 Christians in Syria, thousands more flee
"Israeli Air Force planes carried out airstrikes at an artillery position belonging to the Syrian Army," the source said. "The artillery was used to help the army repel attacks from militants in the eastern part of Zabadani."
"Around 250 Christians have been abducted by Islamic State in a key strategic town in the province of Homs, Syria, sources have told Christian Today.June 3, 2015: The June 1st information on ISIS posted below probably made you sick about the road to Damascus that ISIS is attempting right now, but this will blow your socks off.
Founder of campaign group A Demand for Action (ADFA) Nuri Kino confirmed that those missing are all from the Syriac Orthodox or Syriac Catholic churches, and the number known to have been taken is steadily increasing.
The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that the kidnapping took place during heavy clashes between ISIS militants and government forces in the town of Al Quaryatayn this week, which ISIS has now taken. It is the group's biggest capture since taking Palmyra in May."
Violent ISIS Fighter Converts to Christianity After Encountering Jesus Christ in Powerful DreamPlease share the story!
"In a powerful story of redemption and grace, an Islamic State militant known for his brutal killing of Christians..."
The May 15th story "When an ISIS Fighter Wants to Talk" is provided by The Voice of the Martyrs Radio Network. If the episodes is not shown use the search feature at the top of the VOM Radio))) page to find the episode. All VOM Radio episodes are also available free on SoundCloud and iTunes or you can listen below.
June 1, 2015: In case you took your eye off the road to Damascus for a split second, there is a death march underway as the Islamic beast of Daesh led by Caliph Ibrahim, or Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Somehow the ISIS beast is gaining strength in expanding its caliphate across Syria and Iraq regardless of United States and Arab ally airstrikes that began in the outskirts of Nineveh on August 8th 2014.
"Syrian regime strikes against ISIS in and around the ancient city of Palmyra have failed to halt their advance towards Damascus, a monitor said on Sunday.The Jordan Times reports Daesh advances in Syria against both regime and rival rebels
The intense strikes came after the fall of Palmyra, named Tadmor in Arabic, to the militants last week. But so far, the strikes had failed to halt the militants, who advanced towards the capital Damascus and overran major phosphate mines about 70 kilometers south of Palmyra."
"ISIS is accused of executing hundreds of people in and around Palmyra since it swept into the oasis city last week after a lightning advance across the desert from its stronghold in the Euphrates Valley to the east."
"BEIRUT — The Daesh group seized territory from both Syrian government forces and rival rebels over the weekend further expanding the caliphate it has proclaimed straddling Iraq and Syria.May 23, 2015: ISIS: Terror moving toward Jordan
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that following gains in both Homs province in the centre and Aleppo province in the north, Daesh now controlled half of the country's land area.
Geographer and analyst Fabrice Balanche said that across Iraq and Syria, the jihadist group now controlled nearly 300,000 square kilometres, an area the size of Italy.
In Aleppo province — on Syria's border with Turkey — Daesh has expanded its control at the expense of rival rebel groups.
Daesh captured the village of Suran on Sunday taking them to within 10 kilometres of the border, the observatory said."
"... the increasing military power of ISIS is a warning call not only for the Middle Eastern countries but also for other countries of the world. The way, in which ISIS is receiving support from other terrorist organizations like, Boko Haram (Nigeria), Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, Jundallah, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (Pakistan),The Islamic State of the Maldives (Maldives), Militants of the group Abu Sayyaf (Philippines, Malaysia) and Tehreek-e-Khilafat highlights that now, it’s not time to discuss who did what? But need to form unity to deal with this monster."February 26, 2015: Islamic State in Syria abducts at least 150 Christians
"(Reuters) - Islamic State militants have abducted at least 150 people from Assyrian Christian villages in northeastern Syria they had raided, Christian Syrian activists said on Tuesday.Without any interpretation needed, Matthew 24:9-12 screams at us today as the Assyrian International News Agency gives us more on today's cold Syrian horror: ISIS Attacks Assyrian Villages in Syria, 4 Killed, Dozens Captured, Churches Burned
A Syrian Christian group representing several NGO's inside and outside the country said it had verified at least 150 people missing, including women and elderly, who had been kidnapped by the militants.
"We have verified at least 150 people who have been abducted from sources on the ground," Bassam Ishak, President of the Syriac National Council of Syria, whose family itself is from Hasaka, told Reuters from Amman.
Earlier the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 90 were abducted when the militants carried out dawn raids on rural villages inhabited by the ancient Christian minority west of Hasaka, a city mainly held by the Kurds."
"Hassaka, Syria (AINA) -- Fighting broke out at 5 AM today between ISIS and Assyrian and Kurdish fighters in the Hasaka province in northeast Syria. ISIS attacked the Assyrian villages of Tel Goran, Tel Hurmiz, Tel Tamar, Tel Baloaa Tel Shamiran, Tel Riman, Tel Nasra, Tel Khareta, and Abu Tena. The ISIS fighters were met by members of Assyrian Guards (called Natorehs), an Assyrian Militia, and Kurdish fighters form YPG. 4 Assyrian fighters were killed as well tens of ISIS fighters. According to the latest reports, fighting is still ongoing in Tel Tamar.I do not know what to say or do but to pray and repeat our Savior's words: “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning..."
ISIS has abducted dozens of Assyrian men, women and children, including 12 from Tel Hurmiz, 15 from Tel Goran. They have been brought to Jabal Abdul Aziz. The residents of the villages of Tel Shamiran (approximately 50) and Tel Jazira (about 40) are being held captive in their own villages by ISIS.
According to a report by Newsweek, ISIS will use the Assyrian hostages for a prisoner swap with Kurdish fighters.
A number of churches have been destroyed, including the church in Tel Hurmiz, one of the oldest churches in Syria, the Mar Bisho church in Tel Shamiran, the church in Qabr Shamiy and the church in Tel Baloua."
May 30, 2014: Whoa, just as a story breaks from Albuquerque, N.M of Grasshopper Swarms So Dense They Show Up on Radar and a Dust storm kills 5 in Tehran, hold on to your hats if this story from Lebanon's AlAkhbar is verified. So far, it looks like it could be some bogus propaganda trying to inflame and inflate fear around Revelation 16:12.
However, there's a comment in the report about ISIS, perhaps propaganda. If you have not heard of them, they are one of the jihadist rebel groups certain Congressmen have promoted for U.S. arms support.
A new Turkish aggression against Syria: Ankara suspends pumping Euphrates’ water...
This scenario has been painted before, perhaps that's where the Beirut paper came up with the story.
Here's another story of water shortage in Aleppo. Today's Aleppo is thought to be the city of Berea in Acts 17. You may know the story, its where Paul went to after he taught knowledge of the word of God that Christ must suffer, and rise from the dead. He did that in Thessalonica for three sabbath days, as his manner was out of the scriptures (Torah, Prophets & Psalms).
We need to be able to do that too.
May 28, 2014: Syria to Miss Chemical Arms Deadline, U.N. Chief Says
"The United Nations secretary general has for the first time acknowledged that the eradication of Syria’s chemical arms stockpile will not be completed by June 30, the deadline imposed by a diplomatic agreement last September in which President Bashar al-Assad renounced the weapons and avoided a threatened American military strike.
In a May 23 letter to the Security Council obtained by The New York Times on Wednesday, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that roughly 8 percent of the stockpile remained in Syria, awaiting shipment for destruction abroad. Mr. Ban also said that one of Syria’s 12 storage facilities had yet to be closed, and that only five of 18 production facilities had been closed."
Islamic militants claim American carried out suicide attack in Syria
"(CNN) -- A truck is loaded with munitions, then driven up a hillside in northern Syria. Moments later, there is a massive blast followed by cries of "Allahu Akbar," or God is great in Arabic, as well as the rattling of gunfire.May 22, 2014: Reuters reports today: No sign Syria is handing over remaining chemical weapons
Suicide bombings like this are not new in war-torn Syria. But what could make this one different is the man who radical Islamists say played a part in pulling it off.
An American."
"(Reuters) - Syria has made no progress in relinquishing a last batch of chemical weapons it says is inaccessible due to fighting, making it increasingly likely it will miss a final deadline to destroy its toxic stockpile, Britain said on Thursday.May 13, 2014: Urgent report from ICEJ... AL QAIDA IN SYRIA GAINING GROUND NEAR ISRAELI BORDER Christians who refuse to convert to Islam reportedly crucified
The British deputy representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) told delegates in The Hague that packaging material had arrived for the 100 metric tons of toxic chemicals.
"But there is still no sign of any movement of chemicals, nor any indications of a time scale for a move," said the statement, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters."
"Israel’s monitoring of the Golan Heights border got a little more urgent this week as it was reported that The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), a terrorist militia so violent it has even been disowned by the Al-Qaida organization which spawned it, has killed off more rival rebels than the soldiers loyal to Syria’s Assad regime, and is rapidly consolidating a large swath of territory from south-central Syria to the heartland of Anbar province in Iraq.May 12, 2014: Iran and Assad have won in Syria, say top Tehran foreign policy figures
Meanwhile, the Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaida’s recognized franchise in Syria, has taken control of most of the territory along the Jordanian border and is inching closer to controlling the border with Israel. However, the actions of these groups have angered many Syrians, who protest that they never invited Al-Qaida into their country to take part in their revolution against the regime and don’t want them there. The group has also been accused of publicly executing its enemies, including by crucifying and/or beheading Christians who refuse to convert to Islam."
"Iran and its close ally President Bashar al-Assad have won the war in Syria, and the US-orchestrated campaign in support of the opposition's attempt to topple the Syrian regime has failed, senior Iranian officials have told the Guardian.April 13, 2014: New Reports Of Chemical Weapons Attack In Syria By Matt Picht
In a series of interviews in Tehran, top figures who shape Iranian foreign policy said the west's strategy in Syria had merely encouraged radicals, caused chaos and ultimately backfired, with government forces now on the front foot.
"We have won in Syria," said Alaeddin Borujerdi, chairman of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee and an influential government insider. "The regime will stay. The Americans have lost it."
Terrorism perpetrated by al-Qaida-linked jihadist groups and individuals armed and funded by Sunni Muslim Arab countries was now the main threat facing the Syrian people, Borujerdi said. Many foreign fighters who had travelled to Syria from Britain and other European countries could soon return. "We are worried about the future security of Europe," he said."
"Syria's government is trading accusations with rebel forces over new reports of a gas attack on a village north of Damascus.April 4, 2014: The time leading up to Passover 3,500 years ago were days of great distress to the south of Syria in Egypt. This week in Damascus:
This unverified footage purports to show the aftermath of a chlorine gas attack in the town of Kafr Zeita. Opposition groups say six people died in the attack, which coincided with a reported barrel bombing from government helicopters. (Via YouTube / Kafr Zeita)
Syrian state TV paints a very different picture of the attack, which they say killed two people and wounded more than 100. Al Arabiya reports state media blame the attack on the radical al-Nusra Front and accuses the group of plotting two more attacks on civilian targets.
And discovering the truth behind this attack might prove difficult. A former Syrian chemical weapons chief told Al Jazeera chlorine attacks "can't be easily discovered, even if the monitoring regime arrives 48 hours later."
International groups are still working on dismantling the Syrian regime's declared stockpiles of chemical weapons, after a chemical attack in August 2013 prompted the government to turn over its supply. (Via Euronews)"
AP reports: Syrian troops bombard suburbs of the capital, Damascus, in clash with rebels
"BEIRUT – Syrian activists say government forces have bombarded some suburbs of the capital, Damascus, killing several people.Militants in Syria prepare chemical attack in Damascus – UN envoy
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says that 22 fighters have been killed since late Thursday in the fighting in the suburb of Mleiha and surrounding areas.
Activist Ammar al-Hassan, who is based near Mleiha, says air raids killed seven people in the suburb Friday morning. He added that at least six fighters have been killed there since Thursday night.
Syrian troops have been on the offensive on the outskirts of Damascus in order to distance opposition fighters from President Bashar Assad's seat of power.
Also Friday, the state news agency SANA said five mortar shells slammed into Damascus' predominantly Christian Bab Touma neighborhood, wounding 22 people."
"Armed gangs in Syria are conspiring to stage a chemical attack in the Damascus suburbs in order to later lay the blame on the Bashar Assad’s government, Syria's UN Ambassador Bashar Jaafari has warned the Security Council.April 2, 2014: This week, CNS News reported: Syria conflict death toll hits 150,344. This is horrific.
“Competent Syrian authorities intercepted a wireless communication between two terrorists in the Jawbar area of the Damascus governorate,” Jaafari said in a letter addressed to Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council. The letter was published on Tuesday on the UN website.
In that communication, the diplomat said, one “of the terrorists said that another terrorist named Abu Nadir was covertly distributing gas masks.”
The Syrian security services, Jaafari said, also intercepted another communication between militants one of whom was called Abu Jihad. During that conversation, the latter indicated that toxic gas would be used and “asked those who are working with him to supply protective masks.”
Back in March, Jaafari informed the Security Council that a person named Haytham Salahuddin Qassab “transported chemical substances from Turkey on behalf of the terrorist organization known as Ahrar al-Sham.” He allegedly purchased the chemical agents from Turkey’s Dharwa Import and Export Company."
I recall my June 11, 2014 update (below) when I got a bit gnarly about Senator John McCain's pontification on national TV where he advised that the United States should arm the "rebels" fighting in Syria. I had watched the June 2nd “Face the Nation” broadcast and it took me two week to even write a post about it because I was so disgusted as he described his "secret trip to Syria" where he said he personally met with rebels.
Today... Senator McCain, have you read this headline from USA Today?
Syrian rebels pledge loyalty to al-Qaeda
"BEIRUT — A Syrian rebel group's April pledge of allegiance to al-Qaeda's replacement for Osama bin Laden suggests that the terrorist group's influence is not waning and that it may take a greater role in the Western-backed fight to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad.Well, if you have not read it then try this one on for size. It is the first that I have seen presented by a major news outlet on the medieval Sunni vs. Shiite reality of Syria. I am not saying it is the first report of its kind, just that it is the first that I have seen and you will not want to skip past it.
The pledge of allegiance by Syrian Jabhat al Nusra Front chief Abou Mohamad al-Joulani to al-Qaeda leader Sheik Ayman al-Zawahri was coupled with an announcement by the al-Qaeda affiliate in Iraq, the Islamic State of Iraq, that it would work with al Nusra as well.
Lebanese Sheik Omar Bakri, a Salafist who says states must be governed by Muslim religious law, says al-Qaeda has assisted al Nusra for some time.
"They provided them early on with technical, military and financial support , especially when it came to setting up networks of foreign jihadis who were brought into Syria," Bakri says. "There will certainly be greater coordination between the two groups.""
I commend Mariam Karouny as she files this critically important report on "the reality" of the Syrian conflict for Reuters: Apocalyptic prophecies drive both sides to Syrian battle for end of time.
Please send the story link to Senator McCain!!
February 2, 2014: Ynetnews Report: Assad stockpiling chemical weapons as 'insurance policy'
Times of London quotes Israeli and Russian sources as saying that Syrian leader has been helped by North Korea and IranJanuary 30, 2014: FoxNews reports... Syria has shipped out less than 5 percent of chemical weapons
Embattled Syrian leader Bashar Assad is stockpiling weapons of mass destruction rather than handing over them as agreed last summer, the Sunday Times reported, quoting Israeli and Russian sources.
The report cites the sources as saying that the WMDs, which include chemical and biological weapons, are being upgraded with North Korean and Iranian assistance, and are believed by the Israelis to be located in Western Syria, in "the heartland of his Alawite sect." They are to serve, the paper said, "as an insurance policy in case (Assad's) country is eventually partitioned."
"Syria has promised to give up its entire stockpile by mid-2014, under a deal agreed by Russia and the U.S., but the country has given up less than 5 percent of its chemical weapons arsenal, Fox News confirmed.October 20, 2013: Today, CyprusMall reports: Suicide bomber kills 31 in Syria’s Hama
According to Reuters, the country will miss next week's deadline to send all toxic agents abroad for destruction.
The deliveries sent this month in two shipments to the Syria port of Latakia equaled 4.1 percent of the approxim
ately 1,300 tons of toxic agents reported by Damascus to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the report said."
"A suicide bomber driving a truck packed with 1.5 tonnes of explosives killed at least 31 people and wounded dozens in the Syrian city of Hama on Sunday, state media and a monitoring group reported.September 10, 2013: It seems this Arab Spring all began just 18 months after President Obama gave his incoherent, detached from reality "A New Beginning" speech on June 4th 2009, from Cairo University in Egypt.
The man blew himself up inside the vehicle on a busy road on the outskirts of the city in central Syria, the SANA news agency said. It blamed “terrorists”, the term it uses to describe rebel forces trying to topple President Bashar al-Assad.
The pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attack targeted an army checkpoint but most of the dead were civilians.
Syria’s 2-1/2-year-old conflict began as peaceful protests but has turned into civil war. More than 100,000 people have died, according to United Nations figures, in fighting that is now spread across most of the country.
Rebels have been joined by hardline Islamists, some of them linked to al Qaeda, who have become increasingly powerful among opposition forces.
According to the Observatory, the suicide bomber was from the Nusra Front, an al Qaeda affiliate that has frequently used suicide bombers to attack military and political targets.
Pictures on Syria TV showed firemen trying to put out huge fires as black smoke rose from charred trucks and cars.
Rebels also used a car bomb a day earlier to attack a checkpoint on the outskirts of Damascus. Heavy clashes erupted after the blast and continued on Sunday.
Rebels said they seized the first checkpoint and were now fighting to capture a second one down the road. The checkpoints, to the southeast of the capital, sit between the rebel-held suburb of Mleiha and the government-held suburb of Jaramana."
Since that day, the Middle East has become destabilized as Obama opened a dark door.
As you can read for yourself or watch at the Whitehouse link above, Obama's speech called for improved mutual understanding and relations between the Islamic world and the West and the president opened his speech seeking a common ground between Muslims and the United States. To do this, he became the first U.S. President in history to quote from the Quran and not the Bible, this has unleashed a curse.
IN the speech, Obama described his own personal childhood experiences with Islam, he spoke of his Muslim family members and told how he grew up in Indonesia, a Muslim nation and he affectionately recalled hearing "the call of the Azaan." Ask yourself, what has occurred since he spoke those dark words?
The "Azaan" may not mean much to you unless you know the meaning of its words, so here they are in English and Arabic:
Allah is the GreatestIn the Cairo speech it somehow Obama planted the seed of violent Islamic revolution and terro when he spoke of the Iraq War, He said:
Allahu akbar
I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah
ash-hadu alla ilaha illallah
I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah
ash-hadu anna muhammadarrasulullah
Rush to Prayer
hayya ‘alassalä
Rush to success
hayya ‘alal-falah
Allah is the Greatest
Allahu akbar
There is none worthy of worship except Allah
la ilaha illAllah
"...I believe that the Iraqi people are ultimately better off without the tyranny of Saddam Hussein..."Today he said...
September 4, 2013: As Trumpets Day will announce that Yom Kippur (Judgment Day) approaches on the evening of Friday September 13th, the 113th Congress of the United States will regroup to determine whether they will give 2009 Nobel Peace Prize winner Barack Obama, the one man in history that won the award with no diplomatic foreign policy experience.
Now the peace prize winner seeks Congressional support to inflict the fire of judgment on Bashar al-Assad and attack Syria from the sea and from the air with "no boots on the ground" to enforce his red line comments. No boots on the ground, coming from the west to attack hints on the storyline of Daniel 8.
The House reconvenes on September 2nd and the Senate on the 6th. But there is something VERY critical that you MUST know. Syria and Iran have a mutual defense pact that was signed by both nations, and make no mistake, if Syria is attacked, Iran may come our snorting and head butting like a wild ram.
Attacking Syria is attacking Iran plain and simple and it very well may be the biggest military mistake in U.S. history as the Obama administration insanely seeks to have the U.S. military back rebels in Syria despite the fact no chemical connection to al-Assad has been made public yet.
The President's trumpet is blowing the alarm for a future east/west dilemma. The headlines remind me of Jeremiah's warning:
...I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment. How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet? For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge. Jeremiah 4:19-22At first, after attack it may seem that we will be successful as our fighting forces can attack by never setting boots in Syria, but if we consider that Daniel 8 may very well speak of latter day conflict, we must know there may be a grave retaliation to come after the ram's initial fall from the first head butt. Perhaps the vision was given to Daniel of a goat because you can't really stop a goat from a head butt, its like they are frenzied and crazy. Does that mean Congress will vote no to Syria, yet an attack will still ensue?
Read and test the words of Daniel for yourself. One thing is certain, time will prove the truth.
Even if the U.S. or the radical al-Qaeda rebels eliminate Bashar al-Assad, it will be the rebels that will be empowered to assume power and continue their destruction in Syria and in the region. Assad may be a dictator, but in the long term, the replacement will be horrific and Syria's Christian population will become extinct. Read this report closely... who's guarding who as Fighting rocks historic Syrian Christian village:
"For centuries, this picturesque, predominantly Christian village nestled on the slopes of the Qalamoun Mountains north of Damascus preserved its ancient customs and traditions – including Aramaic, the presumed language of Jesus.If Assad falls as it appears he will, a horrific war with Syria, Iran and Hezbollah could result and it will surely be a fight to the death. Hezbollah claims to have 70,000 rockets aimed at Israel. Iran says they promise to wipe Israel off the map and destroy the great Satan which they say is America and they will start with attacks on our Embassy's in Baghdad, Iraq and Beirut, Lebanon. In addition, we can expect attacks in our embassy's in Jordan and Turkey. So much for no boots on the ground.
But when fighting broke out in Maaloula this week, it exposed the tacit agreements that have sometimes been struck in the course of the Syrian civil war – as well as the precarious nature of these arrangements.
Shortly after dawn on Wednesday, September 4, several rebel brigades entered Maaloula, which is home to two of the oldest surviving monasteries in Syria, after overrunning a checkpoint near the village entrance manned by troops and militia loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad."
Iraqi Shiites in Iran and Iraq are sympathetic to the Alawite-dominated government of Syria as are Russia and China because of oil interests and make no mistake, Shiite groups will be prepared for terrorism after a U.S. strike on Syria and the stated goal in Iran is to bring in the Mahdi by chaos and a goal for the destruction of Israel.
Assad's removal may very well engage a chain reaction of dire Biblical prophecies in the backyard of Jesus.
AFP reports:
"The head of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards warned Saturday that a US strike on Syria would trigger reactions beyond the borders of Tehran's key regional ally, ISNA news agency reported. "The fact that the Americans believe that military intervention will be limited to within Syrian borders is an illusion; it will provoke reactions beyond that country," commander Mohammad Ali Jafari was quoted as saying.
Just as U.S. interventions in the Islamic world (Afghanistan, Iraq) have bolstered extremism, so will an aggression on Syria reinforce extremism and, as in Iraq and Afghanistan, its results will be pain, massacre and the exodus of the innocent population," he added.
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday the United States was weighing "limited, narrow" action against Syria, insisting the world had a duty to act after it concluded that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad's had gassed to death more than 1,400 people."
Oh Magog, do you remember the WMD's of Iraq? It was just 10 years ago...
Consider what the "Voice of the Martyrs" reports:
"Christians in Syria are reporting increasing attacks from opposition forces and worsening humanitarian conditions, with many displaced Syrians struggling to find food and shelter."That's not the Syrian government but the rebel opposition. The same opposition that Syria, the ancient land called Assyria that has received the blame for the use of chemical weapons by terrorists that have infiltrated the country. Is that possible?
"Syria's government has denied using chemical weapons and has pointed the finger at "terrorists" -- its term for anti-Assad rebels.In Britain, where the House of Commons sided with Russian sentiment and voted by 285 votes to 272 against participation in an assault on Syria The Guardian has provided ongoing reports from a military informant inside the Syrian military:
A delegation of Iranian MPs left Saturday for Syria and Lebanon to examine the situation and "condemn the use of chemical weapons by terrorist groups," a parliamentary official said.
Iran, Damascus's main regional ally, has issued stern warnings against any US-led military action targeting Syria, with supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei saying it would be a "disaster" for the region."
On Friday, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif spoke by telephone with UN special envoy for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi to "warn against any adventurism that will have serious consequences."
Iranian media reported that Zarif also called a dozen European and Arab foreign ministers to "condemn the use of chemical weapons" in Syria, to "criticise the war-mongering (of the US and its allies) and raise concern about the consequences of any military action in the region."
Jafari said participation by other countries in a strike on Syria "will trigger crises for the national security of those countries" and "transfer the crisis to the Zionist (Israel) regime."
"The officer has been in contact with the paper on several occasions over the last 12 months during which time he provided reliable information about battles between the troops of Bashar al-Assad and rebel groups. He has declined to provide accounts of events where he has not served."With the Australia, Canada and now the British backing out of support of the Nobel Peace Prize winner, that leaves only France standing alone in support of the U.S. leadership and that single support HAS NOT HAPPENED since 1776 when Benjamin Franklin served as ambassador to France.
"Speaking about the chemical attack last week on the outskirts of Damascus, he denied the involvement of government forces and said news of the gassing had come as a shock.
"Why would we use chemical weapons in Al Ghouta, when we have government forces where the attack happened? Over the last few days we have launched a military operation called Capital Shield to protect Damascus and its countryside. We managed to get 75% of the way through the process, but then we were shocked to learn about the chemical weapons in Al Ghouta.""
August 25, 2013: The Telegraph today says "Britain is planning to join forces with America and launch military action against Syria within days in response to the gas attack believed to have been carried out by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces against his own people."
"Royal Navy vessels are being readied to take part in a possible series of cruise missile strikes, alongside the United States, as military commanders finalise a list of potential targets.So, what will happen if the cruise missiles inadvertently strike and release a cache of stored chemical weapons?
Government sources said talks between the Prime Minister and international leaders, including Barack Obama, would continue, but that any military action that was agreed could begin within the next week.
As the preparations gathered pace, William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, warned that the world could not stand by and allow the Assad regime to use chemical weapons against the Syrian people “with impunity.”
Britain, the US and their allies must show Mr. Assad that to perpetrate such an atrocity “is to cross a line and that the world will respond when that line is crossed”, he said.
British forces now look likely to be drawn into an intervention in the Syrian crisis after months of deliberation and international disagreement over how to respond to the bloody two-year civil war.
The possibility of such intervention will provoke demands for Parliament to be recalled this week.
The escalation comes as a direct response to what the Government is convinced was a gas attack perpetrated by Syrian forces on a civilian district of Damascus last Wednesday."
Is that one reason that Russia has continued to warn that a military strike against Syria could have "catastrophic consequences" for the region? Is Russia also aware of a retaliation plan against Israel?
The Telegraph also reported... "Russia said that the West would be making a "tragic mistake" by launching military strikes on its ally Syria as the international community headed for a repeat of the bitter diplomatic showdowns that preceded military action in Iraq and Kosovo."
"Moscow warned the West not to preempt the work of the United Nations inspection team that is due to investigate last week's alleged chemical attack.And threats come out of Syria against Israel according to YnetNews...
The Kremlin is certain to join China to block any attempts by Britain, France and America to secure UN backing for a military response to Syria's alleged use of chemical weapons on its own people.
A Russian foreign ministry spokesman drew parallels with the US-led overthrow of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein to justify its stance – a comparison rejected by Britain and America."
Syrian official: Israel 'will come under fire' if Syria attacked
Top member of Assad's party warns 'We have strategic weapons aimed at Israel.' Russia objects to intervention, cautions against repeat of 'past mistakes'
"A member of the Syrian Ba'ath national council Halef al-Muftah, until recently the Syrian propaganda minister's aide, said on Monday that Damascus views Israel as "behind the aggression and therefore it will come under fire" should Syria be attacked by the United States.July 26, 2012: This Time report tells us of Ahrār ash-Shām or the "Islamic Movement of the Free Men of the Levant" which has formed as a black flag brigade fighting Bashar al-Assad... TIME Exclusive: Meet the Islamist Militants Fighting Alongside Syria’s Rebels
In an interview for the American radio station Sawa in Arabic, President Bashar Assad's fellow party member said: "We have strategic weapons and we can retaliate. Essentially, the strategic weapons are aimed at Israel."
Al-Muftah stressed that the US's threats will not influence the Syrain regime and added that "If the US or Israel err through aggression and exploit the chemical issue, the region will go up in endless flames, affecting not only the area's security, but the world's."
Earlier this week the Syrian top official said that an attack of this kind will expand the circle of hostilities beyond Syria. According to him, it may bring about a world-war, the extent of which cannot be foretold."
"There has been much speculation about whether Islamic radicals have gained a foothold in the chaotic battlefield that is Syria today. They have, albeit a small one. While there are jihadists, both foreign and local, inside Syria, their presence should not be overstated. At this stage, they remain a minor player in the conflict. But as Karl Vick’s story in the Aug. 6 issue of TIME (subscription required) relates, should the conflict spiral out of hand, their role may grow exponentially.July 18, 2013: As stated above in the original post, perhaps chemical weapons will be a trigger for horror in Damascus. Today, CBS News reports: U.S. considering use of military force in Syria
In late January, the jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra li Ahl Ash-Sham, or the Support Front for the People of Syria, announced its formation and goal to bring down the regime of President Bashar Assad. In the months since, it has claimed responsibility for many of the larger, more spectacular bombing attacks on state security sites, including a double suicide car bombing in February targeting a security branch in Aleppo that left some 28 dead.
Little is known about the shadowy group beyond that it is headed by someone using the nom de guerre of Abu Mohammad al-Golani (Golani is a reference to Syria’s Golan Heights, occupied by Israel.) Some say the group is a regime creation, to prove Assad’s assertion that he is fighting terrorists, while others say it is an offshoot of the al-Qaeda group the Islamic State of Iraq."
"The Obama administration is deliberating whether to use military power in Syria, where a civil war entering its third year has killed almost 93,000 people, the nation's top military officer told a Senate panel Thursday.
Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, said during congressional testimony that he has provided President Barack Obama with options for the use of force in Syria.
Speaking about what he termed "kinetic strikes," Dempsey added that the "issue is under deliberation inside of our agencies of government." But he declined to provide further details, as members of the Senate Armed Services Committee pressed him for greater clarity on the strategy for ending the war and removing Syrian President Bashar Assad from power.
"The decision on whether to use force is the decision of our elected officials," Dempsey said. "It would be inappropriate for me to try to influence the decision with me rendering an opinion in public with what type of force we should use.""
July 11, 2013: Perhaps the British committee has been studying their Bible. Spy agencies fear terror groups could get chemical weapons in Syria
MI6 fears al-Qaeda groups fighting in Syria could seize the regime’s stockpile of chemical weapons with “catastrophic consequences” for the UK and the West.
"Sir John Sawers, chief of the Secret Intelligence Service, warned MPs there could be a “highly worrying proliferation” of the deadly weapons if president Bashar Assad’s regime falls.July 6, 2013: The Telegraph reports: Egypt: Bashar al-Assad says coup is defeat for political Islam
All three spy agencies believe Syria now represents the biggest terror threat to the UK, including the risk of British jihadists travelling there and returning to attack this country.
The warnings were contained in the annual report of the parliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee, which takes evidence from the spy chiefs in private.
The committee said there was “no doubt” within the UK intelligence community that Syria had chemical weapons and there as “serious concern” over its security.
They are thought to include sarin, ricin, mustard gas and VX – described as "the deadliest nerve agent ever created."
Sir John told the committee there was the risk of "a highly worrying proliferation around the time of the regime fall."
The committee concluded: "There has to be a significant risk that some of the country's chemical weapons stockpile could fall into the hands of those with links to terrorism, in Syria or elsewhere in the region. If this happens, the consequences could be catastrophic.""
"Syria's Bashar al-Assad, fighting to crush a two-year-old uprising against his rule, said the upheavel in Egypt was a defeat for political Islam.June 30, 2013: As chaos is ready to erupt to the south once again and burden Egypt, it continues north of Israel in Syria. We have the report of a Catholic Priest Beheaded in Syria by Al-Qaeda linked rebels while men and children take pictures and cheer:
"What is happening in Egypt is the fall of what is known as political Islam," Mr Assad said in an interview with Syrian state newspaper Ath-Thawra, excerpts of which were posted on the internet.
"Anywhere in the world, whoever uses religion for political aims, or to benefit some and not others, will fall.
"You can't fool all the people all the time, let alone the Egyptian people who have a civilisation that is thousands of years old, and who espouse clear, Arab nationalist thought."
Mr. Assad said the Muslim Brotherhood's performance had helped the people see through "lies.""
"Syrian Catholic priest Francois Murad killed last weekend by jihadi fighters was beheaded, according to a report by Catholic Online which is linking to video purportedly showing the brutal murder.Peace is no where to be seen north or south of Israel.
As The Blaze reported last week, Murad, 49, was setting up a monastery in Gassanieh, northern Syria. Last Sunday, on the Christian leader's Sabbath, extremist militants trying to topple President Bashar Assad breached the monastery and grabbed Murad.
While earlier reports suggested Murad may have been shot to death, Catholic Online reported Saturday: "The Vatican is confirming the death by beheading of Franciscan Father, Francois Murad, who was martyred by Syrian jihadists on June 23."
The Catholic news service quotes local sources who report that the radical Al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra, or Al-Nusra Front, was behind the savage killing."
June 16, 2012: Reporting for The Independent, Robert Fisk based out of Beirut, today released an exclusive breaking news story that Iran is sending 4,000 troops to Syria to support Assad's troops. This is important and the storyline is much deeper as it may show that the lines are being drawn closer for the prophetic latter time goat-ram conflict described by Gabriel in Daniel 8.
I recommend that you read the FULL STORY not just the excerpt below and consider the deep implications that Mr. Fisk has shed some very serious light on.
It amazes me that as events unfold, the two nuclear superpowers of the planet, the U.S. (West) and Russia (East) are at odds with each other within the divide of the two feet of Islam.
The U.S. has aligned with Sunni nations and Russia has aligned with the minority Shiites including Iran.
Yet the people of Syria that we support militarily, and with money are the Sunni who oppose the small Alawite sect of Sh'ia. And if you say, well what about Iraq, they are Shiite too, yet we freed them from a dictator.
Consider the implications of this headline, "Iraq, Russia ink weapons deal"
Iran to send 4,000 troops to aid President Assad forces in SyriaJune 11, 2013: On Sunday, June 2, 2013 I watched in horror as Senator John McCain appeared on national television on the CBS program “Face the Nation” as he described his secret trip to Syria where he said he personally met with rebels fighting against President Bashar Assad's government forces.
Sunday 16 June 2013
"Washington’s decision to arm Syria’s Sunni Muslim rebels has plunged America into the great Sunni-Shia conflict of the Islamic Middle East, entering a struggle that now dwarfs the Arab revolutions which overthrew dictatorships across the region.
For the first time, all of America’s ‘friends’ in the region are Sunni Muslims and all of its enemies are Shiites. Breaking all President Barack Obama’s rules of disengagement, the US is now fully engaged on the side of armed groups which include the most extreme Sunni Islamist movements in the Middle East.
The Independent on Sunday has learned that a military decision has been taken in Iran – even before last week’s presidential election – to send a first contingent of 4,000 Iranian Revolutionary Guards to Syria to support President Bashar al-Assad’s forces against the largely Sunni rebellion that has cost almost 100,000 lives in just over two years.
Iran is now fully committed to preserving Assad’s regime, according to pro-Iranian sources which have been deeply involved in the Islamic Republic’s security, even to the extent of proposing to open up a new ‘Syrian’ front on the Golan Heights against Israel."
IN this report, Senator McCain continued to say as he has in the past we should get militarily involved. We have all heard him say we need to be arming the rebels.
Well, the problem is - - no one really has any idea what "rebels" he is talking about. Can we even be sure that there are any "good guys" still left in the fight and just who are they? As you can see in this post, I am convinced that any such intervention to arm the so-called "rebels will have a negative ramification of Biblical proportions for the United States.
Frankly, I am completed dumbfounded by McCain.
Yes, he is a war hero but he needs to get a grip on reality. Perhaps he should step down if his mind is this disjointed from reality. If you doubt the insanity of arming the rebels, stay turned you will see their true intent. Syria is complicated due to misinformation but McCain paints it as simply, good vs evil... the people vs the tyrant.
The reality is this is the mixture of clay and iron spoken of by the prophet Daniel.
This is Sunni vs. Shiite and you need to understand the conflict from stories just like these...
Teenager, 15, Executed By Islamist Rebels in SyriaMarch 19,2013: U.S. official: 'High probability' Syria used chemical weapon (CNN)
A teenager selling coffee in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo was arrested by Islamist rebel fighters for insulting the Prophet Mohammed, beaten and then executed in front of his family, a watchdog group claims.
The boy, Mohammed Qatta, 14, reportedly refused to give a customer coffee, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Sunday.
"Even if [Prophet] Mohammed comes back to life, I won't," the boy said, who was known by his nickname "Salmo."
Extremist rebels driving past in a black car overheard the comment, the opposition Aleppo Media Center said. Qatta was taken away by the fighters and later brought back, his head wrapped with his shirt and his body covered with marks from whipping.
The rebels then read out the boy's sentence - not in a Syrian accent, but in classical Arabic. They accused the boy of blasphemy and told the crowd - which included the boy's parents - that anyone who insulted the Prophet would suffer a similar fate.
Qatta was then shot in the mouth and neck. A graphic photo was released late Sunday of the dead boy clearly showing wounds that matched the reports.
The boy's parents confirmed the accounts in an interview posted online on Monday by the Aleppo Media Center. In it, his father stoically recounted the execution while his mother wailed.
"Why did they kill my son," she cried. "We are not for or against anybody in this conflict, may God take revenge on them."
The Islamists and their group have yet to be identified."
Read the full story at ABC News.
There is a "high probability" that Syria deployed chemical weapons in the ongoing civil war, but final verification is needed, the chairman of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee told CNN on Tuesday.
"I have a high probability to believe that chemical weapons were used," Chairman Mike Rogers (R-Michigan) told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "We need that final verification, but given everything we know over the last year and a half, I would come to the conclusion that they are either positioned for use, and ready to do that, or in fact have been used."
Rogers and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-California), chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, struck ominous tones in an interview on CNN's "The Situation Room" about the possibility that Syria had crossed what President Barack Obama has said was a "red line" that could lead to the United States getting involved militarily in the conflict.
"Rebel fighters moved closer to the Syrian capital of Damascus on Friday, with fierce battles against government forces reported on the periphery of the city resulting in over 40 deaths, opposition groups said. Syrian government forces battled on Friday to recapture sections of the Damascus ring road from rebels pressing in on the capital, opposition activists said. War planes fired rockets around Jobar, Qaboun and Barzeh neighbourhoods, the sources said. Heavy fighting was taking place at the Hermalleh junction on the ring road just south of Jobar, which had been seized by the rebels. Rebel fighters based in the eastern Ghouta region broke through government defensive lines on Wednesday, capturing parts of the road and entering Jobar, 2 km (one mile) from security bases in the heart of the city. President Bashar al-Assad, struggling to contain a revolt in which 60,000 people have been killed since March 2011, has lost control of large parts of Syria but his forces, backed by air power, have so far kept rebels away from central Damascus."December 28, 2012: Today a Voice of America report comes from nearby Iraq the the Sunni-Shiite conflict is spreading as protests spread through the MidEast:
"Tens of thousands of Iraqis have taken to the streets in a Sunni-dominated western province, the latest in a series of demonstrations against the country's Shi'ite-led government. The protesters blockaded a main highway Friday in Anbar province west of the capital, Baghdad, holding placards and chanting slogans against the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Protests were also reported in the northern Sunni towns of Tikrit, Mosul and Samarra."December 25, 2012: Little did you know but the words of Matthew 24:9-10 that were recorded nearly 2,000 ago, reflect today's horrors seen in Syria as reported by CNN:
"A report issued last week by the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on Syria focused on sectarian hostilities and referred to dangers faced by Christians. It cited a car bombing outside a bakery in Jaramana and the kidnapping of Christians in September. Before the conflict started in March 2011, the largest Christian communities were in the Damascus, Aleppo and Homs regions, it said. But many Christians have fled their homes because of the violence. Homs Christians have escaped to Damascus, and some have made their way to Beirut; Armenians who had been living in Syria have sought refuge in Armenia. Syria's Armenian Orthodox and other Christian communities "have sought protection by aligning themselves with the government, with the consequence that they have come under attack from anti-government armed groups," the report said."December 11, 2012: While many believe the Biblical prophecy of the destruction of Damascus has to be from an explosive attack on Syria, ABC News files this report that matches the message given here in this post exactly 11 months ago, that Isaiah 17 describes "a heap of ruins" that will center around Damascus "in a day of grief and incurable pain": Defector: Assad Will Use Chem. Weapons
"A former top general in Syria's chemical weapons program says he doesn't doubt for a moment that President Bashar al-Assad will deploy his chemical weapons arsenal as he tries to hold onto power and crush the uprising that started almost two years ago. Sillou told ABC News: "The regime started to fall and deteriorate. It's coming to its end," said retired Major General Adnan Sillou in an interview in a hotel near Antakya, on Turkey's southern border with Syria. "It's highly possible that he'll start using [chemical weapons] to kill his own people because this regime is a killer." Sillou until September 2008, was chief of staff on the defensive side of the chemical weapons program. He said he was in charge of training soldiers against attacks and contact with the weapons, as well as procuring safety equipment to guard against them. He listed mustard gas along with the sarin, VX and tabun nerve agents as the main elements in Syria's chemical arsenal, whose existence Syria doesn't even acknowledge. Foreign intelligence officials and analysts have focused on the first three as the main threats, and last week U.S. officials said there was evidence sarin had not only been moved, but its binary components, usually stored separately, had been combined and placed into bombs for use. Sillou accuses Assad's forces of already spraying pesticides and dropping white phosphorous, claims also made by opposition activists. "They're idiots, crazy. Simply they are killers," he said. Sillou believes the regime could step it up to more serious chemical weapons if Aleppo, Syria's most populous city where fighting has raged for months, falls to the rebels. In July, Sillou left Syria for Turkey almost four years after he said he retired from the military. Sillou told ABC News that in his last post, which he held for six years, he was second in command behind a man named Said Ali Khalil, a member of Assad's ruling Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam. After defecting, Sillou said he was debriefed by an Arabic-speaking agent from the Central Intelligence Agency in Turkey's capital, Ankara. The meeting lasted three hours and was the last contact he said he had with them or any other intelligence agency. Fighting is raging around the capital, Damascus, notably on the airport road where rebels are trying to take the airport to hamper outside support and deal a highly symbolic blow to the regime. The uptick in violence near the seat of Assad's power has raised American fears that he could resort to using his chemical weapons."And in Washington the U.S. Formally Recognizes Syria's Main Rebel Group
The U.S. on Tuesday formally recognized Syria's main rebel group, paving the way for more U.S. support in pursuing an end to the rule of President Bashar al-Assad. The announcement by U.S. President Barack Obama in a television interview, ahead of an international conference in support of Syrian rebels on Wednesday in Morocco, puts the administration on foot with European allies who are seeking to leverage a string of recent rebel successes by increasing support to the opposition. "We've made a decision that the Syrian Opposition Coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population ...December 8, 2012: Syrian Rebels Tied to Al Qaeda Play Key Role in War
"BAGHDAD — The lone Syrian rebel group with an explicit stamp of approval from Al Qaeda has become one of the uprising’s most effective fighting forces, posing a stark challenge to the United States and other countries that want to support the rebels but not Islamic extremists. Money flows to the group, the Nusra Front, from like-minded donors abroad. Its fighters, a small minority of the rebels, have the boldness and skill to storm fortified positions and lead other battalions to capture military bases and oil fields. As their successes mount, they gather more weapons and attract more fighters. The group is a direct offshoot of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Iraqi officials and former Iraqi insurgents say, which has contributed veteran fighters and weapons. “This is just a simple way of returning the favor to our Syrian brothers that fought with us on the lands of Iraq,” said a veteran of Al Qaeda in Iraq, who said he helped lead the Nusra Front’s efforts in Syria. The United States, sensing that time may be running out for Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, hopes to isolate the group to prevent it from inheriting Syria or fighting on after Mr. Assad’s fall to pursue its goal of an Islamic state."December 5, 2012: As the USS Eisenhower group and two Iwo Jima groups now bring 10,000 amphibious U.S. troops afloat off the Syrian coast Syria loads chemical weapons into bombs; military awaits Assad's order:
"The Syrian military is prepared to use chemical weapons against its own people and is awaiting final orders from President Bashar Assad, U.S. officials told NBC News on Wednesday. The military has loaded the precursor chemicals for sarin, a deadly nerve gas, into aerial bombs that could be dropped onto the Syrian people from dozens of fighter-bombers, the officials said."
• U.S. warns Syria regime against using chemical weapons • U.S. intel indicates Syria ramping up chemical weapons bases • U.S. weighing military options if Syria uses WMD • Obama Warns warns Assad against using chemical weapons • Syrian chemical arms use would draw immediate response • Syria regime 'mixing chemicals to make sarin gas'November 28, 2012: The BBC reports on Syria conflict: Twin bomb blasts shake Damascus suburb
"At least 34 people are reported to have been killed and many injured by two car bomb explosions in a south-eastern district of Syria's capital, Damascus. State media said "terrorists" were behind the blasts in Jaramana and broadcast pictures showing several charred vehicles and damaged buildings. The district is predominantly Druze and Christian, two communities which have so far not joined the uprising. Earlier, there were clashes between security forces and rebels in Jaramana. There has been fierce fighting in recent days in eastern parts of the countryside around Damascus, known as the Ghouta."October 19, 2012: Lebanon on edge after anti-Syrian intel official killed by Beirut car bomb
"Beirut, Lebanon (CNN) -- Tensions were high Friday night around Lebanon, hours after a top Lebanese intelligence official known for his anti-Syrian stance and at least two others were killed in a massive explosion in normally peaceful neighborhood of Beirut. Gunfire erupted in the capital and enraged citizens blocked roads after the blast, which left Brig. Gen. Wissam al-Hassan dead and heightened fears that Syria's civil war could boil over into neighboring Lebanon. In Sidon, people shouted, blocked city streets and burned tires in protest, according to CNN iReporter Ernesto Altamirano. The friction turned to violence in other spots, including clashes in the seaside Lebanese city of Tripoli between supporters and foes of Syria's government." "Al-Hassan, the chief of the Internal Security Forces Information Branch, was a powerful Sunni Muslim figure aligned with a political movement that emerged after Rafik Hariri's assassination and opposes Syria's government under al-Assad. He was also leading an investigation into a Lebanese politician accused of working with two Syrian officials to plan attacks inside Lebanon."October 17, 2012: As the battles continue, an amateur video shows the explosive downing of a Syrian helicopter today as fire falls from the sky:
"Turkey’s government has put its military into a “high state of readiness” over simmering tensions along the border with Syria amid a continuing visit by the country’s top soldier to inspect troops massed along the frontier. “We want to give a strong message to the Syrian regime that Turkey is determined to protect its borders and people and is ready to do whatever necessary – that is the meaning of high-level readiness,” a high-ranking official said."And according to the Anatolia News Agency, its not just the Syrian border that is seeing a Turkish troop buildup:
"New military outposts were introduced yesterday along the Turkey-Iran border by the governor of the eastern province of Van. Some 37 of 43 outposts stationed along the 285 kilometer-long border Turkey shares with Iran have been re-built by the state-run Housing Development Administration (TOKİ) since 2010. The outposts have been built closer to the border compared to their previous locations in order to better monitor and fight against terrorist activities and smuggling, according to the report."Hurriyet Daily News also reports that: Russia to target Turkey with anti-aircraft missiles
"Russia has begun installing a new state-of-the-art anti-aircraft weapon system in its southern military region with an eye toward targeting Turkey in response to a NATO missile defense shield outpost that was recently established in East Anatolia, daily Hürriyet reported. The installation will be completed by the end of this year, said Russian Col. Igor Gorbul, adding that the S-400 anti-aircraft missiles were capable of destroying all types of airplanes, as well as ultra-stratospheric and ballistic missiles. Turkish-Russian tensions rose last week after Ankara forced down a Syrian passenger plane en route from Moscow to Damascus on suspicions that it was carrying weapons, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov moved to defuse tensions by saying the country’s bilateral relationship would not be damaged by the incident."August 2, 2012: Stratfor reports on The Specter of Syrian Chemical Weapons
"Hezbollah may be the militant organization in the region that could most effectively utilize Syrian chemical munitions. The group possesses a large inventory of artillery rockets, which could be used to deliver the type of barrage attack required for a successful chemical weapon attack. Rumors have been swirling around the region for many months that Libyan rebels sold some chemical munitions to Hezbollah and Hamas. While we have seen confirmed reports that man-portable air-defense systems and other Libyan weapons are being smuggled into Sinai en route to Gaza, there has been no confirmation that chemical rounds are being smuggled out of Libya."July 23, 2012: The NY Times reports on the words of a man named Jihad: Syria Threatens Chemical Attack on Foreign Force
"BEIRUT, Lebanon — Syrian officials warned Monday that they would deploy chemical weapons against any foreign intervention, a threat that appeared intended to ward off an attack by Western nations while also offering what officials in Washington called the most “direct confirmation” ever that Syria possesses a stockpile of unconventional armaments. The warning came out of Damascus, veiled behind an assurance that the Syrian leadership would never use such weapons against its own citizens, describing chemical and biological arms as outside the bounds of the kind of guerrilla warfare being fought internally. "Any stock of W.M.D. or unconventional weapons that the Syrian Army possesses will never, never be used against the Syrian people or civilians during this crisis, under any circumstances,” a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Jihad Makdissi, said at a news conference shown live on Syrian state television, using the initials for weapons of mass destruction. “These weapons are made to be used strictly and only in the event of external aggression against the Syrian Arab Republic.""Syria rejects Arab League plan for Assad to step down
"Syria has rejected an Arab League call for President Bashar al-Assad to hand over power to his deputy. The league, meeting in Cairo, urged Syria to form a national unity government with the opposition within two months. A government official called the plan "flagrant interference" in Syria's internal affairs, state TV said. The UN says more than 5,000 people have died as a result of the crackdown on protests since they began last March. The league called on both sides to end the bloodshed. The government in Damascus says it is fighting "terrorists and armed gangs" and claims that some 2,000 members of the security forces have been killed."July 22, 2012 AFP reports: Turkey sends missile batteries to Syria border
"Turkey sent batteries of ground-to-air missiles to the border with Syria on Sunday, media reports said, boosting its firepower as rebels in Syria seized several border posts. As fighting raged in Damascus and Aleppo, rebels were said to have taken control of three crossing points on the border with Turkey, which is sheltering thousands of Syrians who have fled the conflict at home. A train convoy carrying several batteries of missiles arrived in Mardin in southeastern Turkey and will be transferred to several army units deployed on the border, according to the Anatolia news agency. Television footage showed at least five vehicles in the convoy were carrying air defence missiles, in the latest show of force by Syria's one-time ally which is now a fervent critic of President Bashar al-Assad's regime. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned last month after the downing of a military jet initially blamed on Damascus that it now regarded Syria as a "clear and imminent threat.""NBC News staff and wire services report: A first? Helicopter gunships bombard Syrian capital
"Helicopter gunships bombarded several districts of Syria's capital in an effort to drive out insurgents, as rebels battled President Bashar Assad's forces near the main intelligence base in the northern city of Aleppo on Sunday, witnesses said. "Helicopters are fiercely shelling the northern quarter of Barzeh with rockets and machine guns," an NBC News contact in Damascus said. "They're flying over my head. The shelling is the first of [its] kind ever witnessed in Damascus." Residents and opposition activists told Reuters that Syria's elite Fourth Division troops were besieging the northern neighborhood of Barzeh, one of three northern areas hit by helicopter fire. Rebels were also driven from Mezze, the diplomatic district of Damascus, they said." "As the violence raged seemingly unabated, the United States said it was closely monitoring Syria's chemical weapons stockpile and is "actively consulting" Damascus's neighbors to stress concerns over the security of those weapons and Syria's responsibility to safeguard them. "We believe Syria's chemical weapons stockpile remains under Syrian government control," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said on Saturday. "Given the escalation of violence in Syria and the regime's increasing attacks on their people, we remain very concerned about these weapons.""July 19, 2012: Fears grow Syria will use chemical weapons stockpile
"Bashar al-Assad is highly likely to deploy chemical weapons as he faces an unprecedented threat to his rule, security sources warned on Thursday night. British military intelligence chiefs told The Daily Telegraph there was a "high probability" of the Assad regime resorting to chemical agents following the assassination of three senior Syrian military figures in a bomb attack on Wednesday. A source said that the killings amounted to a "red line crossed" for the regime and that a chemical attack could come "soon" as a result. "The threat is genuine," the source added. Syria has one of the largest stockpiles in the Middle East, including nerve agents, sarin, anthrax and mustard gas. With the Assad regime teetering on the brink, Western powers have expressed concern that it might be tempted to unleash these weapons."July 17, 2012: The BBC continues to provide the most up to date relevant reporting on event in Syria: Syria: Assad regime 'ready to use chemical weapons'
"The most senior Syrian politician to defect to the opposition has told the BBC the regime will not hesitate to use chemical weapons if it is cornered. Nawaf Fares, ex-ambassador to Iraq, said unconfirmed reports indicated such weapons might have already been used. The comments were made as clashes were reported in Baghdad Street, central Damascus, and fighting spread in suburbs around the city.
"Syria is known to have a significant stockpile of chemical weapons. There have been growing concerns in neighbouring countries and among Western governments about the security of such weapons should the regime fall. Asked if he thought President Assad might use chemical weapons against the opposition, Mr Fares told BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner in an interview in Qatar that he would not rule it out, describing Mr Assad as "a wounded wolf and cornered."
"There is information, unconfirmed information of course, that chemical weapons have been used partially in the city of Homs," he said. Mr Fares's claim that Sunni Muslim militants in al-Qaeda are collaborating with a regime dominated by those from the minority Allawite sect will surprise many."July 13, 2012: The Wall Street Journal provides this video report... US Concerned as Syria Moves Chemical Stockpile
"U.S. officials said that Syria has begun moving parts of its vast chemical weapons arsenal out of storage facilities. Julian Barnes has details on The News Hub."
"Hundreds of tonnes of Syria's stockpile of deadly nerve gas could fall into the hands of terrorist groups if the regime of Bashar al Assad falls apart amid widening concerns that Israel could go to war to try to stop this 'Doomsday threat'. According to Middle Eastern and other intelligence sources, Syria has the biggest stockpiles of the nerve gasses VX and Sarin, as well as mustard gas, in the Middle East. Investigations by Sky News have identified four sites where the agents are produced: Hama, Latakia, Al Safira, near Aleppo and at the Centre D'Etude et Recherche Scientifique laboratories in Damascus." "There are widespread fears that a Gaddafi-style collapse of Syria into chaos, would mean that chemical weapons would spread around the globe."July 3, 2012: Today, let's review an interesting commentary on the Syrian situation from Sydney J. Freedberg, Jr.: US Military Confronts Nightmare Scenario Of Syrian Collapse
"Call it Somalia on steroids. Call it Syria next week. Either way it's a scenario the US military needs to prepare for: an intervention into a failing state where rival factions have looted a sophisticated arsenal, from tanks to shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles to weapons of mass destruction."July 1, 2012: Four members of international diplomacy team known as the Quartet that have aligned themselves to divide Israel have now teamed up with foreign ministers from China, Iraq, Turkey and the Arab League to devise none other than a "six" point international plan in Geneva to move President Bashar al-Assad out of power and form a transitional government of national unity through discussion and mutual negotiation. The Action Group for Syria Final Communiqué has been released. The issue however is that there is no national unity in Syria. Can you imagine the success the Brits, Chinese and Russians would have had meeting in Geneva in 1861 to devise a plan through political dialogue of preventing the American Civil War? The nation is engaged in civil war as the Arab Spring has systematically and geographically moved nation by nation from west to east. Four governments have been overthrown as regime change began Saturday December 13, 2003 in Iraq and continued eight years later with the protests in Tunisia that started on December 18, 2011. Egypt, Lybia and Yemen followed. Syria is next. Revelation tells us plainly, five of seven kings must fall. As I asked in my November 23 and September 23, 2011 Zechariah's Vision PRAYER ALERT's... Are we staring prophecy right between the eyes of the beast?
Syria should remind all Bible prophecy students of the imagery and prophetic words of Revelation. And as stated in another post, if we are to be wise, it is well worth considering that four of the seven "kings", the rulers of the original Arab League States "have fallen" within the last eight years since December 13, 2003, the day Saddam Hussein was captured when he was found hiding in a six foot hole in the ground outside his childhood home of Tikrit and Lybia's Muammar Gaddafi was found in a drainage pipe outside Sirte: "Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. "The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction." Revelation 17:9-11
Following the execution of Iraq's Dictator Hussein, Libya's Dictator Muammar Gaddafi has now fallen from power as has Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. Ben Ali has fled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the western gateway to Mecca. It appears now that Syria's President Bashar al-Assad will be the 5th Arab League leader to fall, yet "one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while."
Astonishingly, two thousand years after it was written, Revelation 17:10 tells us plainly that five of the seven leaders, yes five will fall. It does appear that the prophecy of Revelation 17 and today's Arab League are tied together. If so, we now have a solid link between the ancient nations that opposed Joshua as well as Israel's armies that fought Arab League members in 1948 and 1967. And it now appears that Syria's President Bashar al-Assad will soon fall. He will be the fifth dictator of the original Arab League nations to lose power through extreme violence and the second of the three nations (Egypt, Syria and Jordan) that fought with Israel in 1967.
We have seen the Arab League leaders of Iraq (Saddam Hussein), Lebanon (Fouad Siniora), Egypt (Hosni Mubarak) and now Yemen's (Ali Abdullah Saleh) fall before our eyes as they have been stripped from their autocratic rule and dictatorial power as their governments have collapsed as the world watched. Syria's Bashar al-Assad is on the threshold of losing his power and government at any time and even Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he must step down. Wow... we really need to keep our eye on Ergodan. How is it he can assume such power? If these Arab League nations are indeed the seven kings of Revelation reflected first in the book of Joshua, then one of the seven today is the government which was (in power)... will come back into power... and go on to destruction by the sword in the valley of decision.
This is prophesied by Joel 3 and Zechariah 9. This means that the Arab League, like Islam itself that feigned death at the end of World War I with the fall of the Ottoman Empire will be reborn - revived to rise up again and it has. This prophecy looks just like a repeat of the fall of King Jabin of Hazor. Today's Jabin whoever he is, may very well rise from the chaos of the Islamic Awakening in an attempt to unify the people and nations of the Mideast. Like the original Arab League this may very well be led by the nations with the greatest might and wealth in the desert sands, Saudi Arabia.Are we staring into the face of the prophecy? Do the words of Daniel 2:31-46 and Revelation 17:8-14 foretell of a revived Islamic Caliphate uniting the clay and iron of Sunni and Shia under the spiritual leadership of the awaited Mahdi, the hope of Iran?
If so, he will be leading a group of ten which have received no kingdom as yet; but will receive power as kings one hour with the beast following the fall of the five kings. We need to keep our eyes on Assad's old friend in Turkey. Why? Because history repeats just as the Bible teaches. The Ottoman's of World War I were called the Ottoman Turks. They supported Germany and now following the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Turkey is no longer a key ally to the west. June 28, 2012: Explosions in Damascus, Syria and Debka states Assad is confined to palace by his Republican Guard
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report June 28, 2012, 11:13 AM (GMT+02:00) "Debkafile, citing Western intelligence sources, reports Thursday, June 28, that the Republican Guard battalion commander charged with the Syrian president’s security is keeping Bashar Assad shut away in his “Unity” palace. Assad and his family may not leave the building without the commander’s permission under an order current since the second half of last week. It is not clear to whom the commander defers in this case and who in fact actually determines whether Assad can come or go. Asked by Debkafile if an element in the Republican Guard ordered the palace placed under siege to prevent the president and his family fleeing, those Western sources replied that the situation could be described as a “partial siege” which is constantly expanding. They added, in response to another question about the Syrian ruler’s freedom of movement, that neither Assad nor members of his family are able to leave the palace to go anywhere and they are aware of the restrictions placed on their movements. "Because of the partial siege and these restrictions," said those intelligence sources, "Assad and his wife are both in very low spirits and the atmosphere inside the palace is very bleak.""June 27, 2012: The Globe reports Fierce fighting rages close to Damascus, Assad acknowledges country is at war (video link).
"Only rarely since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad broke out 16 months ago has fighting raged so close to Damascus, the capital that has stayed largely loyal to the regime. “This is the first time that the regime has used artillery in fighting so close to the capital,” Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told Agence France-Presse." "The fighting outside Damascus, barely eight kilometres from the city’s ancient souk and modern downtown core, was close to elite Republican Guard bases in the suburbs of Qadsaya and al-Hama. Those crack troops, commanded by Mr. al-Assad’s younger brother Maher are among the best-trained, best-equipped and – presumably – most loyal to the Alawite-dominated regime. For rebel forces to battle the Guards close to their main bases is unprecedented and may be an indicator of increasing prowess among the insurgents seeking to topple the Assad regime."June 26, 2012: Press TV says... Unconfirmed reports say that Britain’s special operations forces have crossed from Turkey into Syria advancing up to ten kilometers inside the country.
"DEBKAfile, an Israeli military intelligence website, has reported that unconfirmed first reports from British, French, and Turkish sources say British forces have entered Syria from Turkey, taking the lead of a western military incursion. Moreover, on Sunday 24 June, The Daily Star reported that Britain’s fighter planes were on stand-by to invade Syria in case Britain’s NATO ally, Turkey, decided to launch a strike on Syria. DEBKAfile said the British incursion was aimed at securing the start of western intervention in Syria to topple President Bashar Al Assad."June 25, 2012: The number of 40 deaths continues to repeat in this report: NATO to hold emergency meet over Turkish jet shot down by Syria
"NATO will hold emergency talks on Tuesday to discuss Syria’s downing of a Turkish jet fighter, but the alliance is not expected to take military action, even if it confirms Turkey’s claim that the unarmed plane was attacked in international airspace. The incident has further raised regional tensions over the conflict in Syria, where some 40 people were reported killed Sunday in new clashes between rebels and government troops. On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sharply criticized Syria for downing the Turkish plane, which Turkey’s Foreign Ministry called an “open and grave violation of international law” that would justify retaliation." “The United States condemns this brazen and unacceptable act in the strongest possible terms,” Clinton said in Washington. “It is yet another reflection of the Syrian authorities’ callous disregard for international norms, human life, and peace and security.”June 22, 2012: Syrian military says it downed Turkish fighter jet
The Syrian military has said it shot down a Turkish plane "flying in airspace over Syrian waters", according to state-run news agency Sana. "[The jet] was dealt with in accordance with the laws that govern such situations," a military spokesman said. Turkey had earlier said it believed that one of its F-4 fighter jets had been shot down by Syrian forces. A search for the two crew members is under way, involving Turkish and Syrian coast guard ships. The F-4 Phantom disappeared over the Mediterranean, south-west of Turkey's Hatay province, near the Syrian coast.Syria downs Turkish jet, Ankara to act decisively
ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syria shot down a Turkish warplane over the Mediterranean on Friday and Ankara warned it would respond decisively to the incident that threatened to open a new international dimension in the 16-month revolt against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Syria said the Turkish aircraft was flying low, well inside Syrian territorial waters when it was shot down. With the second biggest army in NATO, a force hardened by nearly 30 years of fighting Kurdish rebels, Turkey would be a formidable foe for the Syrian army which is already struggling to put down a 16-month-old revolt.Just in case you were wondering why the "sudden" conflict between Turkey and Syria, perhaps we have a big clue about Turkey's role with Saudi Arabia from The Guardian: Saudi Arabia plans to fund Syria rebel army
"Exclusive: Command centre in Turkey organising weapon supply to opposition. Saudi officials are preparing to pay the salaries of the Free Syria Army as a means of encouraging mass defections from the military and increasing pressure on the Assad regime, the Guardian has learned. The move, which has been discussed between Riyadh and senior officials in the US and Arab world, is believed to be gaining momentum as a recent flush of weapons sent to rebel forces by Saudi Arabia and Qatar starts to make an impact on battlefields in Syria. Officials in the Saudi capital embraced the idea when it was put to them by Arab officials in May, according to sources in three Arab states, around the same time that weapons started to flow across the southern Turkish border into the hands of Free Syria Army leaders. Turkey has also allowed the establishment of a command centre in Istanbul which is co-ordinating supply lines in consultation with FSA leaders inside Syria. The centre is believed to be staffed by up to 22 people, most of them Syrian nationals." "Intelligence officials say a power vacuum would provide an attractive environment for militants who espouse a global jihad world view. "The next three to six months are crucial in Syria," one official said. "The ingredients are right for them [jihadists] to turn up and start acting decisively. That would not be a good outcome.""This is from The New York Times regarding possible CIA involvement in Turkey:
WASHINGTON — A small number of C.I.A. officers are operating secretly in southern Turkey, helping allies decide which Syrian opposition fighters across the border will receive arms to fight the Syrian government, according to American officials and Arab intelligence officers. The weapons, including automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, ammunition and some antitank weapons, are being funneled mostly across the Turkish border by way of a shadowy network of intermediaries including Syria’s Muslim Brotherhood and paid for by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the officials said.And today the Voice of America reports... Syria Said to Possess Vast Quantities of Chemical Weapons
"WASHINGTON, D.C. -The Syrian Army is by regional standards a highly-capable military force and its air force is one of the largest in the Middle East. In addition to that, Western experts believe Syria has a large chemical weapons arsenal including mustard gas, the more modern sarin and even VX - the most toxic of all chemical agents."June 18, 2012: Russia to send marines to Syria
"MOSCOW – Two Russian navy ships are completing preparations to sail to Syria with a unit of marines on a mission to protect Russian citizens and the nation's base there, a news report said Monday. The deployment appears to reflect Moscow's growing concern about Syrian President Bashar Assad's future. The Interfax news agency quoted an unidentified Russian navy official as saying that the two amphibious landing vessels, Nikolai Filchenkov and Caesar Kunikov, will be heading shortly to the Syrian port of Tartus, but didn't give a precise date. The official said the ships will carry an unspecified number of marines to protect Russians in Syria and evacuate some equipment from Tartus, if necessary. Each ship is capable of carrying up to 300 marines and a dozen tanks, according to Russian media reports. That would make it the largest known Russian troop deployment to Syria, signaling that Moscow is becoming increasingly uneasy about Syria's slide toward civil war."June 15, 2012: Mere coincidence or do we consider Jesus’ statement in Luke 21?
“and great signs shall there be from heaven”…Should we also consider the grip of the sectarian conflict between the Shia Alawites and the Sunni Muslims in Syria as its Sunni nation rises in distress against the Alawite kingdom of Syria's president Bashar al-Assad just as they did in all nations of the Arab Spring? Luke records the word’s of Messiah. Do we ignore them?
“Then said he unto them, nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom”Today's news tells us the warning seen in Luke 21:25, the distress of nations, and the seas (people) are roaring as bombing is reported across Syria on Friday as 40 die just as 40 lives were lost on May 10th.
DAMASCUS, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Syrian authorities raided restive areas in capital Damascus and central Homs province on Friday to track down armed groups, as a number of explosive devices went off in several Syrian cities, causing injuries and property losses. Acting on a tip, authorities raided a number of "terrorist" hideouts in the Damascus' suburb of Douma and its outskirts, killing three terrorists, and either injuring or arresting others, said state-run SANA news agency, quoting an official source. SANA also reported that Syrian authorities raided a hideout of armed groups in central Qusair town, killing unspecified number of terrorists and injuring several others, while a pro-government website page said that armed groups had set the municipal building in Qusair ablaze, and fierce clashes are still underway. In the meantime, five members of law-enforcement forces, one of them a first lieutenant, were injured when an explosive device was detonated near al-Jawwash roundabout in Hama province on Friday, said SANA, adding the injured were rushed to Hama National Hospital.
Also on Friday in central Midan neighborhood in Damascus, nine civilians and members of the military engineering units were injured in the blast of an improvised explosive device planted by an "armed terrorist group" in al-Qa'a region behind al-Majed Mosque in al-Midan, according to SANA. Another explosive device was detonated overnight Friday at Bab Sharqi area in the heart of the old Damascus, local media said, giving no further details. Sound of explosions could be heard reverberating across Damascus after midnight Friday. In Aleppo province, two civilians were injured in a blast of an explosive device that was planted in a waste container.
Also in Aleppo, six civilians and three law-enforcement members were injured when an explosive device, planted by an armed terrorist group near Saad Bin Abi Wakkas Mosque in Salaheddin neighborhood went off, causing material damage. On the opposition side, the activists' network, Local Coordination Committees (LCC), said that more than 40 people were killed across Syria on Friday. It said one man was killed and others injured in the army shelling on the suburb of Douma. It added the army also shelled the Damascus' suburbs of Harasta and Deir al-Asafir. The LCC said overnight protests erupted in a number of Syrian cities Friday.June 14, 2012: RT reports: Syria now in state of civil war – UN
"Following 15 months of violence the Syrian conflict has now been described as a “civil war” by the UN peacekeeping chief. Coming as it does amid repeated attacks on UN observers the statement may endanger the whole peace plan in Syria. Herve Ladsous, the Under-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations, is the first UN official to acknowledge that the conflict has escalated to the state of civil war. "I think there is a massive increase in the level of violence, so massive indeed that in a way it indicates some change of nature," he told Reuters and AFP on Tuesday. "Clearly what is happening is that the government of Syria lost some large chunks of territory in several cities to the opposition and wants to retake control of these areas," Ladsous added."June 7, 2012: (CBS/AP) Syrian opposition activists claim President Bashar Assad's regime massacred dozens of people in the central Hama province late Wednesday, a claim the government rejects outright as international envoy Kofi Annan is poised to brief the United Nations on violence in the country and the status of his foundering ceasefire plan. Israel National News reports Syrian opposition claims Assad using toxic material, unidentified gas on Syrian civilians. By Elad Benari
"Syrian opposition sources claimed on Thursday that aircraft belonging to the Syrian Air Force have dropped toxic material into the province of Daraa, the Al-Jazeera network reported. According to the report, the unidentified material smells like sulfur and causes drowsiness and unconsciousness.No further information on these materials was provided, but the report also said that Assad’s forces had used unidentified gas shells on civilians in Daraa, Hama and Deir ez-Zor. The fact that Syria has a stockpile of unconventional weapons, including chemical weapons, is well-known. The IDF’s Northern District Commander, Yair Golan, recently warned that the battle being in Syria between opponents of the Assad regime and Assad loyalists may have an effect on what is happening in Israel. Golan pointed out that “Syria has weapons of mass destruction along with a very heavy arsenal of weapons, including surface-to-ground missiles and chemical weapons. The fact that Syria is a storehouse of weapons which fuels terrorists in the region is very unsettling.”
A senior Israeli military officer has said that the ongoing conflict in Syria has made it easier for Hezbullah to smuggle weapons into Lebanon. He added that there is concern that some of the Assad regime's stockpile of chemical weapons could end up in the group's hands. Defense Minister Ehud Barak has warned that sophisticated weapons could be transferred from Syria to Lebanon and to Hizbullah should Assad fall."
May 28, 2012: As the E.U. nations struggle with potential financial disaster, a human disaster hits the people of Syria with the horror of Houla as civilians and children are murdered Friday. This may in my view, may result in the possibility of a conflict between the United States and Iran as the U.S. could possibly intervene in Syria just as Iran has committed troops to support the Syrian leadership with Iran's Revolutionary Guards. But just who is the "opposition" in Syria?
It seems no one knows, but the truth is there if we just look. There are the defectors from the Syrian Army. They call themselves the Free Syrian Army, but what about the others? Unlike the other Arab Spring uprisings, the voice of the the common people seems to be missing, or is that because the media as well as Facebook and Twitter are not allowed in the country? Here is something interesting. Just take a quick look at this photo that was published in RT Times on Published on May, 14 2012... notice the gold watch, the spotlessly clean, collared and buttoned up golf shirt and the ID tag, what's with that? It seems the Sunni's are being imported to oppose the Shia Alewite that control Syria.
May 10,2012: Two strong explosions rip through Damascus killing 40 people April 1, 2011: Nations pledge millions for Syrian opposition "ISTANBUL (AP) - A coalition of more than 70 partners, including the United States, pledged Sunday to send millions of dollars and communications equipment to Syria's opposition groups, signaling deeper involvement in the conflict amid a growing belief that diplomacy and sanctions alone cannot end the Damascus regime's repression." March 23, 2012: Activists: 40 Killed this Week in Syria Town
(BEIRUT) — Syrian activists are urging international humanitarian organizations to urgently go to the northern Syrian town of Saraqeb, where they say security forces have killed more than 40 people in the past four days.March 17, 2012: Explosions Rock Syrian Capital By the CNN Wire Staff
"(CNN) -- "A series of deadly explosions rocked parts of Damascus Saturday with some of the targets being Syrian government facilities, witnesses and state television reported. At least 27 people were killed and 97 others were wounded in two blasts, state TV reported, quoting Syrian Health Minister Wael Halki. The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said early indications were that two booby-trapped cars exploded in crowded areas. It put the death toll at 24, with 140 people injured and serious damage caused to surrounding buildings. One explosion occurred near the customs criminal investigations department, witnesses said. Another struck near the Air Force intelligence headquarters in Tahrir Square in a different area of the city. State TV reports blamed the explosions on "terrorists.""On January 29, 2012 the following excerpt came from a report from the BBC's Middle East editor, Jeremy Bowen:
Syria rebels gain foothold in Damascus By Jeremy Bowen BBC Middle East editor, Damascus "Dark days ahead The regime, and the people who want it overthrown, view what is happening here as a fight to the finish. For both sides, it is winner take all. The fact that the country is splitting along confessional lines is dangerous. In Lebanon, next door, they had a sectarian civil war that pretty much destroyed the country. In Syria it is not a war yet, but it is starting to look like one. Homs, the centre of the uprising in the north, is paralysed and battered. Deraa, where it started in the south, feels as if it is being patrolled by an occupying army. There are questions I cannot answer. How much force does the regime hold in reserve? Will the president face a palace coup, perhaps from an Alawite general fearful that Mr Assad's stand will destroy their whole community? And will foreigners intervene decisively, as they did in Libya? I cannot see how, in the long term, the regime can survive an uprising started by people who are so determined that they demonstrate even when they might get killed. But it will not go quietly. Everyone I have spoken to here believes the worst days still lie ahead."On December 23, 2011 The world was shocked to learn to that 40 die in Damascus suicide blasts:
"Twin suicide car bombs exploded outside two buildings of Syria's powerful intelligence agencies today, killing at least 40 people and wounding more than 100, authorities said. They were the first such attacks since the country was thrown into turmoil by the nine-month-old uprising against the rule of President Bashar Assad. The government quickly held up the explosions as proof of its claims that it is battling not a popular uprising but terrorists intent on overthrowing the regime."The same number died on October 28, 2011 as Syrian security forces kill 40 after worst day of violence in weeks
"Syrian security forces opened fire on Friday on protesters and hunted them down in house-to-house raids, killing about 40 people in the deadliest day in weeks in the country's 7-month-old uprising, activists said."
"Come Oh Lord unite the whole House of Israel! Regather your chosen from the ends of the earth. Let Ephraim and Judah cry out to your Spirit. Shechinah Ha Yeshua return to the earth. Come oh Lord revive the whole House of Israel, call from your chosen a remnant of faith. Make Ephraim and Judah as One in your Spirit. Shechinah Ha Yeshua be seen in the earth. In these dark days the light is coming, Yeshua is coming... Back to His land!" (This prayer is excerpted from Music by "Wild Olive" - Peter and Julie Jackson.)Shalom ya'll.
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