Watchman of Zion

You may view the 5 minute update this week via audio:

1) Listen to the audio

In this week’s 5 minute update, we focused on:

1) The current status of the Israel / PLO peace process
2) The prospects for war with Syria and Iran

On April 17,Palestinian officials delivered a letter from Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmud Abbas to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu blaming Israel for the failure of peace talks.  The Palestinians will only agree to direct negotiations with Israel if  Israel quits building Jewish homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and releases Palestinian prisoners arrested prior to the 1994 Oslo Accords. The Palestinians will give Israel one month to agree to their demands. If Israel doesn’t agree to the Palestinian demands, they have threatened to renew their efforts for recognition of a PLO state at the United Nations through the General Assembly in either May or June. Israel will reply to the letter asking for direct negotiations between Abbas and Netanyahu without preconditions while insisting that in any agreement that the Palestinians recognize a Jewish state and the security of Israel is maintained. The Palestinians are stating that they will reject Netanyahu’s offer for direct negotiations. The United States said that they will veto a PLO request at the UN Security Council for recognition of a PLO state.

An agreement to divide Jerusalem and establish a PLO state is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Text of Abbas’s letter to Netanyahu
2) ‘US will veto any Palestinian statehood bid at UN’

Russia continues to support the Syrian government of Bashar Assad against the opposition who is trying to overthrow him.  Russia said that Western and Arab support of the opposition is hurting the chances for ending the bloodshed in Syria. Russia has decided to permanently deploy warships off the Syrian coast to protect Assad from external military intervention. However, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are discussing plans to attack Syria to overthrow Assad if the peace plan of Kofi Annan fails.

A war with Syria where Damascus is destroyed (Isaiah 17)  is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) Russia says outside forces hurting Syria peace bid
2) Russian Warships to Patrol Syrian Coast
3) Turkey & Saudis Chart Joint Syria Campaign

Nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers (Russia, China, Britain, France, US and Germany)  took place on April 14 Istanbul, Turkey. Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s foreign policy chief called the talks “useful”. However, during the meetings, the US requested to have a bilateral meeting with Iran. But, Iran refused. It was agreed to continue the nuclear talks in Baghdad on May 23.

The Washington Post reported that a “secret deal” was made between the US and Iran prior to the nuclear talks in Istanbul, Turkey. The agreement consisted of the following:

1) Iran would agree to stop enriching uranium to the 20 percent level

2) Iran would halt work at an underground facility near Qom built for higher enrichment

3) Iran would export its stockpile of highly enriched uranium for final processing to 20 percent for use in medical isotopes

If followed, Iran would not be subject to international inspection of its nuclear program.

The Iranian negotiator, Saeed Jalili,responded that because the West was willing to recognize Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy, “our talks for cooperation based on step-by-step principles and reciprocity on Iran’s nuclear issue could be commenced.” Iran is also demanding that in order to show good will in the talks that economic sanctions be removed from Iran while the talks are talking place.

However, this reported secret agreement between the US and Iran violates an agreement made between the US and Israel regarding how to negotiate with Iran at the Istanbul talks. The US and Israel understanding consisted of the following:

1)  Iran would be allowed to keep 1,000 centrifuges for the low-level enrichment of uranium up to 3.5 percent purity

2)  Iran would not be permitted to keep 20 percent enriched uranium

However, the US delegation did not present any of the agreed demands – or any other – to the Iranians attending the first round of talks in Turkey.  As a result, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused the P5 + 1 negotiators of giving Iran a “free pass” to continue its nuclear program for another 5 weeks until the next meeting on May 23. Furthermore, Israel is concerned that if Iran accepts the US offer that they will not implement it but cheat.

It is expected that the US and Iranian agreement will be presented at the May 23 meetings. It seems that the US is pursuing a policy to prevent war with Iran rather than a policy of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

In gaining knowledge of this proposed secret agreement, Israel Defense Minister flew to the US to speak with US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta as it was being learned that Iran is moving military nuclear facilities to secret locations not covered in the agreement with the US.  As a result of these developments, Israel no longer trusts the US and is making plans to attack Iran should the talks on May 23 fail to meet the Israel demands for Iran shutting down its nuclear program. Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon announced that Iran by the end of 2012 will have a dirty bomb.

A US war with Iran is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) Ahmadinejad Says No Atomic Retreat Ahead Of Talks
2) Nuke talks with Iran ‘useful,’ new meet set for May
3) Iran snubs US delegate in cat-and-mouse game in Istanbul
4) The stage is set for a deal with Iran
5) Israel: Obama’s secret dealings with Iran conflict with US-Israeli understandings
6) Obama ready to yield on Iran’s nuclear transparency. Israel:Tehran will cheat
7) West must lift sanctions against Iran: Ayatollah Jannati
8.) Obama’s Proposals Are Primed to Pre-empt War – Not a Nuclear-Armed Iran
9) Netanyahu: Istanbul talks gave Iran a ‘freebie
10) Barak says Israel never ruled out attacking Iran
11) Barak to Panetta: What is your bottom line for Iran?
12) Israel Loses Patience with Obama, Starts Countdown to Unilateral Decision on Nuclear Iran

From a Biblical prophetic perspective, the reason why the God of Israel would allow these events to happen is because it will result in the end of the exile of the house of Jacob and the reunification of the 12 tribes of Israel (Ephraim and Judah).

We will to be “watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem” and we will not rest until the God of Israel makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth (Isaiah 62).

Shalom in Yeshua the Messiah,

Eddie Chumney
Hebraic Heritage Ministries Int’l

You may view the 5 minute update this week via audio:

1) Listen to the audio

In this week’s 5 minute update, we focused on:

1) The current status of the Israel / PLO peace process
2) The prospects for war with Syria and Iran

On April 17, Palestinian officials will deliver a letter from Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmud Abbas to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  The letter will blame Israel for the failure of peace talks.  The Palestinians will only agree to direct negotiations with Israel if  Israel quits building Jewish homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and releases Palestinian prisoners arrested prior to the 1994 Oslo Accords. The Palestinians will give Israel one month to agree to their demands. If Israel doesn’t agree to the Palestinian demands, they have threatened to renew their efforts for recognition of a PLO state at the United Nations through the General Assembly in either May or June. Israel will reply to the letter asking for direct negotiations between Abbas and Netanyahu without preconditions while insisting that in any agreement that the Palestinians recognize a Jewish state and the security of Israel is maintained. The Palestinians are stating that they will reject Netanyahu’s offer for direct negotiations.

An agreement to divide Jerusalem and establish a PLO state is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Abbas to send Netanyahu letter on 17 April
2) Abbas threatens to renew UN statehood bid
3) Fatah official: PA considering new UN bid
4) Israel PM to Seek Direct Talks with Abbas
5) Palestinians spurn Netanyahu call to resume talks

April 12 was the deadline for a UN-brokered cease-fire in Syria.  The Syrian government agreed to the cease fire based upon several conditions:

1) The Syrian government could defend themselves against opponents of the government if the opposition continued its resistance

2) The Syrian government wanted “written guarantees” from the opposition to lay down their weapons before the Syrian government would withdraw from cities.

In explaining their demands, Syria said that it will not allow a repeat of what had happened during the Arab League’s observer mission in January where Assad pulled back his armed forces from cities and their surroundings only to see rebels flood the areas vacated by government troops. This offer was rejected by the rebels.

Syria is a battleground between Russia and the US. Russia supports the Syrian government and the US does not. In reality, the battle in Syria is a battle between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims over control and influence in the Middle East. The “Arab Spring” was mainly uprisings against Arab political leaders with the goal to establish the rule of the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood in these countries. Sunni Muslims want to remove the government of Bashar Assad who is a member of the minority Alawite sect of Shi’ite Islam. The United States is supporting the Sunni Muslims over the Shi’ite Muslims in this religious war. In doing so, the United States want to weaken the Shi’ite Muslim axis of Syria, Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon. As a result, both Syria and Iran is a battleground in the sectarian war between Sunni’s and Shi’ites.

A war with Syria where Damascus is destroyed (Isaiah 17)  is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) Syria says it will stop fighting by UN deadline
2) Peace plan at risk after Syrian rebels reject regime’s call to disarm
3) I have enforced state rule so will stop fighting: Bashar al-Assad
4) Syria is battleground for Russia and US
5) Syria: The Battleground Between Sunnis and Shiites

Nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers (Russia, China, Britain, France, US and Germany)  are scheduled to begin Friday, April 13 in Istanbul, Turkey. US President Barack Obama said that he is willing to accept an Iranian civilian nuclear program if Iran agrees to international demands to prove that it will not build a nuclear bomb. However, Obama warned that time is running out for a peaceful settlement and the US would increase sanctions on Iran if the talked failed. DEBKA reports that the US and Israel have agreed to allow Iran to have enriched uranium up to 3.5 percent if they do not enrich to 20 percent which can be quickly converted to weapons grade.

Israel along with US and European diplomats are in agreement that the following demands need to be made upon Iran in order for the talks to be successful.

1) An immediate closing and dismantling of the Fordo underground nuclear facility deep under a mountain near the city of Qom.
2) A halt in the production of uranium enriched to 20 percent
3) The shipment of existing enriched uranium stockpiles out of Iran

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated that Iran would not surrender its nuclear rights “even under the most difficult pressure.”  Furthermore, he said that Iran has enough foreign currency to survive Western economic sanctions for several years.  DEBKA reports that Iran will offer their own initiatives at the meetings. They include the following:

1) Iran will continue to enrich low-grade 3.5 percent uranium in unlimited quantities

2) Iran will not agree to remove enriched uranium outside its country

3. Iran is prepared for a deal whereby the six powers endorse Iran’s right to enrich as much high-grade 20-percent enriched uranium as it wishes according based upon the following fomula:

a) A joint panel of the six powers and Iran will determine the amounts required to meet the needs of its reactor and the production of isotopes for medical research

b) Iran will sell its oversupply on the international market and become the world’s No. 1 exporter of 20-percent enriched uranium

4. Iran will reject demands to shut down the underground enrichment plant at Fordow, near Qom, but agree to signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty’s Additional Protocol – which would permit IAEA inspectors to make spot checks at all suspect nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow – with one provision: The six powers must also require Israel to sign the NPT plus the Additional Protocol. If Israel doesn’t sign both parts of this treaty, neither will Iran endorse the AP.

Iran has preempted a European oil embargo against its oil scheduled to begin on July 1 by stating that it will no longer sell oil to:  Britain, France, Germany, Spain and Greece.

A US war with Iran is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) ‘Obama could accept Iran civilian nuclear program’
2) Secret US-Israeli accord lets Iran keep low 3.5 enriched uranium
3) Iran nuclear talks set for this week
4) U.S. plans hard-line approach in negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program
5) Obama threatens more Iran sanctions; Ahmadinejad defiant
6) Netanyahu lays down three demands for Iran talks
7) Iran vows to defend ‘rights’ ahead of nuclear talks
8.) Ahmadinejad on eve of talks: Iran will not surrender atomic rights
9) Iran’s “new initiatives” place Israel at center of nuclear talks
10) Report: Israel Told US ‘No Attack until Early Fall’
11) Report: Iran stops oil exports to Spain
12) Report: Iran halts oil exports to Germany

From a Biblical prophetic perspective, the reason why the God of Israel would allow these events to happen is because it will result in the end of the exile of the house of Jacob and the reunification of the 12 tribes of Israel (Ephraim and Judah).

We will to be “watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem” and we will not rest until the God of Israel makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth (Isaiah 62).

Shalom in Yeshua the Messiah,

Eddie Chumney
Hebraic Heritage Ministries Int’l

You may view the 5 minute update this week via audio:

1) Listen to the audio

In this week’s 5 minute update, we focused on:

1) The current status of the Israel / PLO peace process
2) The prospects for war with Syria and Iran

Next week, PA President Mahmood Abbas with meet with Israel to present to them a letter blaming Israel for the stalled peace talks. Abbas will present four demands upon Israel before they will enter into direct peace negotiations. They are as follows:

a) The acceptance of a PLO state based upon 1967 borders with agreed land swaps

b) Insistence that Israel must freeze building of Jewish homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem

c) Israel must release Palestinian prisoners including those arrested before the 1994 signing of the Oslo Accords

d) A return to the situation on the ground in the West Bank before September 2000

When Israel receives the letter, they are expected to review it and plan to give their own response several days later. Israel’s position is expected to be as follows:

a) Israel is willing to discuss all core issues including: borders, security, refugees, water, settlements and the status of Jerusalem.

b) The Palestinians must recognize Israel as a Jewish state

c) In any peace agreement, Israel’s security must be maintained

d) Israel would like to renew talks without any preconditions

Dr. Jonathan Spyer of the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya expressed his view that the Palestinians aren’t interested in true negotiations but wants Israel to be forced into concessions imposed upon it by the international community.

An agreement to divide Jerusalem and establish a PLO state is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Olmert at J Street insists Abbas is peace partner
2) Abbas to accuse Netanyahu government of undermining Palestinian Authority
3) PM to meet PA delegation led by Fayyad
4) Israel Confirms Netanyahu, Fayyad Meeting for Talks

The Syrian government seems to have gained the upper hand against the opposition who wants to remove Assad from power with the help and support from Russia and Iran.  Russia warned Western and Arab nations against arming the Syrian opposition. In order to back up its warning,  a Russian guided missile destroyer arrived  in the Syrian port of Tartus from its Black Sea base for a naval exercise. The United States and Europe had hoped that the fall of Assad from power would contribute to the isolation of Iran. Because of these events, the position of Iran has been strengthened in their upcoming nuclear talks with the P5 (Russia, China, US, France and Britain)+ 1 (Germany) powers scheduled for mid-April.

Syria has accepted a cease-fire and peace plan drawn up by UN and Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan. However, fighting between the government of Syria and the opposition continues. The peace plan does not require Assad to be removed from power. Russia, China and Iran have endorsed the plan.

A war with Syria where Damascus is destroyed (Isaiah 17)  is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) Syria accepts cease-fire; fighting enters Lebanon
2) Iran voices support for Annan’s Syria peace plan
3) By securing Assad and its alliance, Iran gains upper hand for nuclear talks
4) Iran praises Syria for its handling of uprising
5) Russia warns West, Arabs against arming Syria rebels
6) Russian warships launch drill from Tartus versus US-Israeli-Greek naval exercise 

Both US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said that the window for Iran to solve its nuclear program dispute with the United States through diplomacy is closing. However, Obama sent a message to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei through the Turkey’s Prime Minister Erdogen that the United States would agree to an Iranian civilian nuclear program if they proved they were not developing a nuclear bomb. On the other hand, Clinton expressed doubt that Iran has any intention of negotiating a solution that would satisfy the US and Israel. She said that the policy of the US is prevention of Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb and not containment.

Israel Defense Minister Ehud Barak expressed Israel’s position regarding what they would like to see in the talks with Iran which would indicate that Iran would be moving away from building a nuclear bomb. Iran would have to agree to the following conditions:

1) Transfer of all uranium enriched to 20 percent – approximately 120 kilograms – out of Iran to a third party country

2) Transfer of the majority of the 5 tons of uranium enriched to 3.5 percent out of Iran leaving just enough needed for energy purposes

3) Closure of the Fordow enrichment facility buried under a mountain near the city of Qom

4) Transfer of fuel rods from a third party country to Iran for the purpose of activating the Tehran Research Reactor

Barak is not optimistic that Iran will agree to these conditions. The P5 + 1 talks with Iran over its nuclear program is tentatively scheduled for April 13 in Istanbul, Turkey. However, Iran is having a disagreement with Turkey regarding policy toward Syria and thus has suggested to move the talks from Istanbul to Damascus, Baghdad, Moscow, Vienna, Geneva or China. Turkey has dismissed this proposal as a waste of time because it will never be accepted by the West and it is a sign that Iran is not serious about negotiations. By being in dispute over the location of the talks, the US and Israel believes that Iran is trying to buy more time to develop its nuclear program.

Israel’s Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Ya’alon says that an Israeli attack against Iran is not imminent. Senior Israel defense officials said that while Israel will need to wait to see the effect sanctions and diplomacy have on Iran’s nuclear program, a possible military confrontation with Iran may happen in 2012 or it could be postponed until 2013. Qatar said that it opposes any military strike on Iran and will not allow the United States to launch an attack from its soil. Both Russia and China warned the US and Israel against an attack upon Iran. Russia said that such an attack would be a violation of international law.

A US war with Iran is a tribulation event.

The link to these articles is as follows:

1) Obama: Window for diplomatic solution to nuclear Iran is closing
2) ‘Obama signaled Khamenei that U.S. could accept civilian nuclear program in Iran’
3) Clinton: Iran’s window closing
4) Barak reveals Israel’s conditions for Iran-West talks
5) Iraq says Iran proposes Baghdad for nuclear talks
6) Erdogan: Iran making excuses to stall talks
7) Iran ducks away from nuclear talks. Moscow: Mid East at boiling point
8.) ‘Baku granted Israel access to airbases for Iran strike’
9) Ya’alon: No imminent strike on Iran
10) ‘Confrontation with Iran may be delayed to 2013’
11) Qatar says no US strike on Iran from its soil
12) Russia, Iran set to counter US/Israeli strike against Iran. US-led naval drill
13) China ups the pressure to prevent a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities

From a Biblical prophetic perspective, the reason why the God of Israel would allow these events to happen is because it will result in the end of the exile of the house of Jacob and the reunification of the 12 tribes of Israel (Ephraim and Judah).

We will to be “watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem” and we will not rest until the God of Israel makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth (Isaiah 62).

Shalom in Yeshua the Messiah,

Eddie Chumney
Hebraic Heritage Ministries Int’l