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

In January, during his State of the Union address, US President Barack Obama solemnly proclaimed Israel as a “Jewish state” In pushing for an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement, the president said his objective was an “independent state for Palestinians, and lasting peace and security for the State of Israel — a Jewish state that knows America will always be at their side.” However, in his meeting on March 17 with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, the president conspicuously omitted any reference to Israel as a Jewish state.  In one swoop, he erased Jewish identity from Israel — the very basis and rationale for Israel as a Jewish national homeland:  Here is how he puts it now when calling for “two states, side by side, in peace and security — a state that allows for the dignity and sovereignty of the Palestinian people and a state that allows for Israelis to feel secure and at peace with their neighbors.”  Israel’s Jewishness is now gone from the equation.

Despite the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) ongoing rejection of Israeli demands to be recognized as the state of the Jewish people, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni has not given up on her hopes that the framework agreement being drawn up by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will be implemented. She said “Those who say that there will be no agreement in our generation have given up on the idea of peace. A responsible leadership cannot surrender on the basic interests of the State of Israel which are meant to defend Zionism and on the Jewish and democratic state,” added Livni. Insisting on recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, she said, would “prevent Israel from turning into a binational state.” However, getting the PA to agree will be very difficult, Livni said. The Palestinians said that they will be willing to consider “resolving” the issue of recognizing Israel as a Jewish state when peace talks come an end and a meaningful solution to the conflict is achieved, Palestinian official Nabil Shaath said. “If this issue would have appeared after the central issues would have been solved, and if we would receive the correct answers to practical questions, the issue could be resolved”, he added. Hours later, Shaath denied that he made these comments, saying that the PA’s position is that no discussions be held on the issue of recognition as Israel, as doing so means legitimizing “the theft of Palestine” and endangers the status of the so-called “Palestinian refugees”  – meaning the millions of descendants of Arabs who fled pre-state Israel, whom the PA demands be given the right to “return” to Israel, which could make it a majority-Arab state.

When US President Barack Obama met with Palestinian leader, Mahmood Abbas, on March 17, the US said that no formal proposal had been made to Abbas in their meetings according to a senior State Department official. At the meetings, the Palestinians presented Obama with a map depicting Israeli settlement construction throughout the West Bank. Chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat said that the meetings were “difficult” yet “candid.” Erekat added, “Contrary to what people expected, that we will come out of this meeting with an official American proposal document, this has not happened,” he said. “To submit an official document we need more discussion,” Erekat said. Abbas rejected terms within the US framework document for continued peace talks with Israel, and issued “three no’s” on core issues, leaving the negotiations heading for an explosive collapse, an Israeli TV report said. Specifically, the report said, Abbas rejected Netanyahu’s demand that he recognize Israel as a Jewish state. He also refused to abandon the Palestinian demand for a “right of return” for millions of Palestinians and their descendants — a demand that, if implemented, would drastically alter Israel’s demographic balance and which no conceivable Israeli government would accept. And finally, he refused to commit to an “end of conflict,” under which a peace deal would represent the termination of any further Palestinian demands of Israel. As a result, four left-wing Palestinian factions have called on Palestinian Authority President Mahmouad Abbas to declare the failure of peace talks with Israel. They were the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Democratic Front to Liberate Palestine, the Peoples’ Party and the Palestinian National Initiative Party. They wrote in a letter, “Accepting (US Secretary of State John) Kerry’s plan to sign the framework peace deal is like committing suicide, and this plan has many dangerous consequences on the Palestinian cause and our people’s legitimate rights,” the factions said.

In analysis, Israel Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said that he does not view Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as a partner for peace, noting that he does not believe peace will happen in his generation. “I’ve discovered this conflict is about the entire Palestine, they don’t recognize our right to exist here … it is impossible to make an agreement without there being recognition on the other side of our right to exist as the national homeland of the Jewish people,” he said. “Abu Mazen (Abbas) is a partner that receives but not a partner that gives. He’s not a partner for a final accord that ends with the recognition of the State of Israel,” Ya’alon said. He also said that he is “not sure” if US Secretary of State, John Kerry, was a fair mediator. “We’ll see at the end of the process,” he said. Ya’alon said he completely disagreed with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s recent statement that it is a mistake to focus on the demand to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. “I supported Oslo; I thought that if we gave up land it would bring us tranquility, but when I discovered that the conflict is not only over land, and land is not only Judea and Samaria, it’s actually ‘all of Palestine,’ as they call it, the whole land of Israel, I became more realistic.”

Meanwhile, the Obama administration is very concerned that the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks could collapse soon and is working to find a solution that would allow the talks to continue beyond the April 29th deadline. As a result, Kerry is trying to convince Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to continue the talks and move forward with the upcoming release of the fourth batch of long-serving Palestinian terrorists being held in Israeli jails. Israel has threatened to halt the release of the prisoners, which includes Israeli citizens serving time on terror charges, unless Palestinian Authority head Mahmoud Abbas agrees to an extension of the talks. Abbas in turn has demanded that the prisoner release go through without any commitment on his part and threatened to end the negotiations. US Special Envoy Martin Indyk and Ambassador Dan Shapiro have met with both the Israelis and the Palestinians to find ways on how to continue the peace talks.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Palestinians are refusing to budge on the issue of recognizing Israel as a Jewish state and forfeiting the “right of return.” It was impossible to say there was progress right now in the diplomatic process but “we are continuing to work with the Americans.” As the clock winds down on US Secretary of State John Kerry’s window to secure a peace deal between the Palestinians and Israelis, some Palestinian officials are suggesting that greater involvement by the international community is the key to the success or failure of the Kerry mission. “It is really a decision of the international community that has not done much to see a breakthrough to the Palestinian question and to give Palestinians their basic rights,” Palestinian Minister of Foreign Affairs Riad Al-Malki said. “The US administration should really realize that any kind of pressure put on the Palestinian president is not going to work,” he said. Al-Malki also argued that the international community, which he defined as including the nations of the world except the US, needs to engage itself more in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And if they do not, the PA will be pestering them to do so. “As long as there is no understanding, comprehension, and cooperation from the international community to support our goals, we will continue to make our voice loud” in demanding greater European participation in the peace process.

Israel deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon threatened to oust Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu as head of Likud political party if he makes too many concessions to the Palestinians in the current round of peace talks. “This framework would mean the abandonment of the Jordan Valley, a return to the 67 lines and the division of Jerusalem,” Danon stated. “The Likud is a democratic faction and their will be a race for the leadership when we get to that point. However, as someone who knows the hearts of Likud members, we will not support a framework that brings us in line with the positions of [Justice Minister] Tzipi Livni.” Speaking last week, Chief PA negotiator Saeb Erekat said that he was pressuring Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to leave the ongoing negotiations process with Israel. Erekat stressed that Abbas could leave the negotiating table – but that he is waiting for Israel to release more Palestinian Arab terrorists first. “We put pressure on him to leave and he said, ‘I will not do that until Israel finishes releasing prisoners for the fourth time, at the end of March,” Erekat stated. Danon said that Israel should not fall into Abbas’ trap. “The government needs to reconsider its position on the release of terrorists,” Danon said. “Right now, it is clear that the negotiations are not going anywhere.” If Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon does not follow through with his threat and resigns, he will be fired, sources close to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that he has agreed to extend peace talks with Israel past April 29 if certain conditions are met which include freezing settlement construction and releasing more prisoners. Israel told Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that it might not carry out a final stage of a Palestinian prisoner release unless he commits to prolonging peace talks beyond a US-set April deadline for a deal. “There was never any automatic commitment to release prisoners unrelated to making progress in negotiations,” Israel chief negotiator Tzipi Livni said. An Israeli offical said that Israel wanted assurances that Abbas wouldn’t walk out of the talks once the prisoners went free. “We need to be sure the negotiations will last beyond the release of prisoners, and that they will be substantive, and on solid ground,” the official said. Meanwhile, the US promised the Palestinians that they would pressure Israel to release the last of the 26 long-term Palestinian prisoners. They are scheduled to be released at the end of March. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has asked the US to mediate the release of Marwan Barghouti, a Palestinian leader jailed a decade ago over a spate of suicide bombings. Israel would be committing “political blackmail” if it were to delay the final phase of the Palestinian security prisoner release, a Palestinian official said. “We are awaiting the release of the fourth batch of prisoners, as agreed upon with the Israelis through the United States. We are saying, if they are not released, this is a violation of the agreement and allows us to act however we see fit within the norms of international agreements.” If Israel does not release the 4th batch of Palestinian terrorists in Israeli jails, the Palestinians have threatened to seek full recognition as a member state of the United Nations as Palestinian official Nabil Shaath said the Palestinians said if the prisoner release is called off, the Palestinians will “immediately” turn to the UN.

Israel Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon issued a harsh criticism of the Obama administration declaring that Israel cannot rely on the US to thwart Iran’s nuclear program, accusing the administration of broadcasting weakness throughout the world, and warning that its perceived weakness was inviting further terrorism against US target. Ya’alon said Israel could not afford to rely on the Obama administration to lead an action against Iran’s nuclear program and that Israel could only rely on itself. Israel had believed that “the one who should lead the campaign against Iran is the US,” but instead, “the US at a certain stage began negotiating with them, and unfortunately in the Persian bazaar the Iranians were better,” he said. Therefore, “we (Israelis) have to look out for ourselves.” Ya’alon was adamant that “Iran is fooling the world” about its nuclear program,” but said the West preferred to put off any confrontation — “to next year, or the next term; but it will blow up in the end.” The Iranians had been “on all fours” because of sanctions and diplomatic isolation, but had been allowed to recover, he charged. The interim deal signed in Geneva in November “is very comfortable for the Iranians,” he said, enabling them to establish themselves as a threshold state “and break out to the bomb when they choose to do so.” Ya’alon also stressed several times that the US was radiating weakness in every region worldwide. “The Sunni camp [in the Middle East] expected that the US would support it, and would be as determined as Russia is in its support of the Shiite axis,” he was quoted as saying. “I hear voices of disappointment in the region. I was in Singapore, and I heard disappointment at the strengthening of China and the weakening of the United States. Look what’s happening in the Ukraine; there, to my sorrow, the US is broadcasting weakness.” Ya’alon further warned that if the US continued to show weakness internationally, its own national security would be severely damaged. “If you wait at home, terror will come calling again,” he said. “This is a war of civilizations. If you are perceived to be weak, that certainly does not pay in the world. I hope the US will reassert itself.”

The Obama administration vented its anger at public insults and criticism of US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry by Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, calling Ya’alon’s comments “unconstructive” and “confusing”. A senior source within the US administration told Israel’s Channel 10 that the US will request a public apology from Ya’alon. US State Department spokeswomen Jen Psaki said Kerry spoke with Netanyahu over Ya’alon’s comments. Also Secretary Kerry spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu and he protested to him his concerns about these comments. We were shocked by Moshe Ya’alon’s comments, which seriously call into question his commitment to Israel’s relationship with the United States,” a senior US administration official said. “Moreover, this is part of a disturbing pattern in which the Defense Minister disparages the US Administration, and insults its most senior officials.”

Does the US engage in a double standard with Israel ? Is the US permitted to criticize Israel without Israel being able to criticize the US ? A commentary in the Jerusalem Post newspaper stated the following:

The US has told Israel over and over … Friends often have to be brutally honest with one another. US Secretary of State John Kerry often prefaces critical comments of Israeli policies in his speeches or interviews by stressing that he had a flawless voting record on Israel in the Senate for over 29 years, and shouted “Am Yisrael chai!” from Massada on his first visit here in 1986. Being a friend, he implies, means being able to be critical. US President Barack Obama, in his keynote speech to Israel at the Jerusalem International Convention Center during his visit last year at this time, segued from the unabashedly positive part of his speech into the more critical by saying that not everyone in the hall was going to agree with what he had to say about peace. “That’s part of the discourse between our two countries. I recognize that,” Obama said. “But I also believe it’s important to be open and honest, especially with your friends. I also believe that.” The US surely believes that when it comes to being open and honest with Israel. Just take Obama’s recent interview with Bloomberg View’s Jeffrey Goldberg, the one that appeared one day before the president was to meet Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in March in the Oval Office. That interview included some very open and candid criticism of the current government’s policies, and an underlining theme that Netanyahu had so far failed to “seize the day.” Obama painted a bleak future indeed for Israel if its policies did not fundamentally change. Kerry, over the last few months, has given speeches in which he predicted catastrophe – a third intifada, deepening international isolation and boycotts – if the elected government of the State of Israel continued down its current path. That is all well and legitimate, part of what Obama referred to in Jerusalem as the importance of being “open and honest, especially with your friends.”

But how about the other way around? How about when that openness and honesty is not Washington criticizing Israeli policy, but rather Israel passing judgment on US policies? Then, as was evident again this week with Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon’s latest critique of American foreign policy, the US is far less forbearing. For whatever the reason, the US cannot seem to tolerate words of criticism from Israel. Does the US see that it has a right to criticize Israel but Israel doesn’t have a right to criticize the US ? Does the US have a double standard toward Israel ?

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

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Obama Retracts Jewish Identity of Israel
2) Livni Supports PA Recognition of Israel
3) Palestinian official: Peace first, then recognition
4) PA Official: Recognizing Israel ‘Hurts the Refugees’
5) U.S.: No Formal Proposals Were Made to Abbas
6) Erekat: Abbas showed Obama ‘very ugly’ settlement map
7) Left-wing Palestinian factions to Abbas: Declare failure of peace talks
8) Ya’alon: Abbas is a partner that receives, not one that gives
9) Washington reportedly fears collapse of peace talks
10) Netanyahu: No sign of progress in diplomatic process
11) Growing call for non-American role in Mideast peace process
12) US diplomats meet with Israeli foreign minister
13) Danon threatens to oust Netanyahu as Likud chief if he accepts Kerry’s framework
14) Danon: PA ‘Has Livni Wrapped Around Their Little Finger’
15) Netanyahu’s Associates: If Danon Doesn’t Quit, He’ll be Fired
16) Abbas agrees to extend peace talks ‘under conditions’
17) Israel says might not carry out Palestinian prisoner release
18) U.S. to pressure Israel to release Palestinian prisoners
19) Abbas asks Obama’s help to free jailed Palestinian leader Barghouti
20) PA: Delaying prisoner release would be ‘blackmail’
21) Abbas: Failure to free prisoners is breach of deal
22) Palestinians threaten to seek statehood at UN if prisoner release canceled
23) Palestinians threaten to resume UN campaign
24) Israel can’t rely on ‘weak’ US to deal with Iran, Ya’alon warns
25) Kerry ‘Protests’ to Prime Minister Over Criticism from Ya’alon
26) Kerry spoke to Netanyahu over Ya’alon’s comments
27) ‘Mystified’ US slams Israeli defense minister Ya’alon’s criticism of Obama
28) Diplomacy: Ya’alon strikes twice

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) Video: United to Restore: Ephraim and Judah’s desire for restoration and mutual respect

This week, the major issue debated in the Israel / Palestinian peace process is whether Israel should be recognized as a “Jewish state”. Because of this and other issues, US Secretary of State John Kerry said that the level of mistrust between Israelis and Palestinians was the highest he had ever seen. Kerry acknowledged there were “gaps …. some of them very significant,” but stressed they should be seen within the context of the negotiations, saying “I still believe it’s possible, but difficult. Certain narrative issues are so powerful and so difficult that neither leader is going to definitively cede on them at an early stage of the negotiation,” Kerry said. He called them “big-ticket items” which required some trading by both sides. “Neither believes the other is really serious. Neither believes that the other is prepared to make some of the big choices that have to be made.”

Furthermore, US Secretary of State John Kerry criticized Israel’s insistence on Palestinian recognition of the “Jewish state,” saying it’s a “mistake” to condition talks on that issue. “I think it’s a mistake for some people to be, you know, raising it again and again as the critical decider of their attitude towards the possibility of a state and peace, and we’ve obviously made that clear,” Kerry told the House Committee on Foreign Affairs when asked to clarify the official US administration position on the matter. ‘Jewish state’ was resolved in 1947 in Resolution 181 where there are more than 40-30 mentions of ‘Jewish state,'” the secretary of state said.

Meanwhile, The Revolutionary Council of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah party unanimously endorsed his rejection of demands to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. “President Abbas has reaffirmed his refusal to recognize the Jewishness of the State of Israel and council members stood up to hail this decision,” a senior Fatah official said. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would not sign any deal with the Palestinians, as part of ongoing peace talks, until the Palestinians recognizes Israel as the Jewish state. “They (Palestinians) say they will never recognize a Jewish state and that they will never give up on the right of return. I want to make clear that I will not accept an agreement that does not cancel the (refugees’) right of return and which does not include Palestinian recognition of the Jewish state,” Netanyahu said. “These are basic conditions, which are justified and vital to the security of Israel,” he added. Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state is making the prospects for peace more distant, Netanyahu said. The Palestinians aren’t showing any sign of willingness to reach a practical and fair deal.”

US President Barack Obama and Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas will meet at the White House on March 17.

Finally, I would like to share with you a discussion between Ken Rank (an Ephraimite) and Hanoch Young (an Orthodox Jew) regarding the ministry, “United 2 Restore” whose vision is to see the restoration and reunification of Ephraim and Judah based upon the guiding principal of mutual respect.

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

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Kerry: Israel-Palestinian ‘mistrust’ at highest levels
2) Kerry: Mistake to make Jewish state demand a peace deal decider
3) Fatah Backs Abbas’s Refusal to Recognize Israel
4) Netanyahu to Palestinians: No deal until you recognize Jewish state
5) Netanyahu: Palestinian intransigence reduces prospects for peace
6) United To Restore: Ephraim and Judah’s desire for restoration and mutual respect

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

US President Barack Obama met with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on March 3 in the United States. In an interview prior to their meeting, Obama warned Netanyahu that Israel faces a bleak future — one of international isolation and demographic disaster — if he refuses to endorse a U.S.-drafted framework agreement for peace with the Palestinians and that time is running out for Israel to be a Jewish-majority democracy. In encouraging Netanyahu to accept a US framework peace agreement, Obama quoted the Jewish sage, Rabbi Hillel who said: “If not now, when? And if not you, Mr. Prime Minister, then who?” Obama continued by saying that if Netanyahu “does not believe that a peace deal with the Palestinians is the right thing to do for Israel then he needs to articulate an alternative approach.” He added, “It’s hard to come up with one that’s plausible. There comes a point where you can’t manage this anymore, and then you start having to make very difficult choices,” Obama said. “Do you resign yourself to what amounts to a permanent occupation of the West Bank? Is that the character of Israel as a state for a long period of time? Do you perpetuate, over the course of a decade or two decades, more and more restrictive policies in terms of Palestinian movement? Do you place restrictions on Arab-Israelis in ways that run counter to Israel’s traditions? If you see no peace deal and continued aggressive settlement construction — and we have seen more aggressive settlement construction over the last couple years than we’ve seen in a very long time,” Obama said. “If Palestinians come to believe that the possibility of a contiguous sovereign Palestinian state is no longer within reach, then our ability to manage the international fallout is going to be limited.”

Netanyahu downplayed the significance of Obama’s remarks. “I don’t get disappointed or insulted. If I did, I wouldn’t be able to function and I’m already serving my ninth year [as PM],” he said. Before departing on his trip to the United States, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he would resist “pressures” and “stand steadfast on the State of Israel’s vital interests. In recent years the State of Israel has been under various pressures. We have rejected them in the face of the unprecedented storm and unrest in the region and are maintaining stability and security,” he said, referring to the three-year-old Arab Spring. “This is what has been and what will be.” In their meeting, “Obama will press Netanyahu to agree to a framework for a conclusive round of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations that is being drafted by Secretary of State John Kerry.” Although the document has not yet been made public, it is understood to be a non-binding proposal laying out guidelines for negotiating the central issues of the conflict, such as borders, security, Jerusalem, Israeli settlements and the right of return for Palestinian refugees. Israel Deputy Minister Tzipi Hotovely from Netanyahu’s Likud political party said that Obama’s pressure on Israel to make concessions to the Palestinian Authority “borders on outrageous.” She warned against caving into U.S. pressure, saying, “The more Israel gives in, the more concessions the Palestinians want. There’s an intolerable situation here where the United States is forcing Israel into an agreement that going against the interests of the Israeli public,” she declared, adding, “With all due respect, the international community won’t be at our side when a Hamas state is established on Israel’s eastern border. We need to show political strength,” she urged. Israel’s coalition government is unwilling to accept the deal that American and Palestinian Authority leaders are proposing, she said, and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu should be made to see that. If necessary, there should be threats to quit [the government],” she said. If necessary, the political right should be willing to break apart the coalition and go to elections, she continued, allowing voters to decide if they want to vote for the Right again.

Obama and Netanyahu met for 3 hours. At the meeting, Netanyahu said: “Israel has been doing its part, and I regret to say that the Palestinians haven’t. The people of Israel know that it’s the case. Israel wants peace — not just a piece of paper,”  he said. Netanyahu called for a “real peace… based on mutual recognition” and chided his Palestinian counterparts for promoting “incessant violence” against the Jewish state. “Israel, the Jewish state, is the realization of the Jewish people’s right to self-determination,” Netanyahu said. “I think it’s about time they recognized a nation state for the Jewish people. In the 20 years since Israel embarked upon the [Oslo] peace treaty,” Netanyahu said, “Israel made great efforts to obtain peace – we evicted cities, we freed prisoners, and when you look at what we got in return – you see thousands of missiles on our cities, and suicide terrorists. Israel is doing its part and the Palestinians are not,” he stated. “And that is the truth, and the Nation of Israel knows it is the truth, because they live it. We’ve only been here for about 4,000 years.” Netanyahu made clear to Obama that for the talks to continue, PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas would have to be prepared to make concessions. In return, Obama promised Netanyahu that he would push the Palestinian Authority (PA) to match any Israeli concessions as he seeks to negotiate a framework for peace talks. A US official said: “It’s not as though the Palestinians are going to get a free pass.”

After Netanyahu met with Obama, he gave a speech before the Jewish group, AIPAC. Part of his speech is as follows:

Netanyahu’s speech “sparked a furious reaction” from the Palestinians. In his speech, Netanyahu said Israel and the Palestinians had a lot to gain from peace and called on the Palestinians to “stop denying history” regarding Israel’s historic, biblical connection to the Land. He also challenged the Palestinians to stand on the “right side of the moral divide.” PA senior official Nabil Shaath called it “an official announcement of a unilateral end to negotiations,” saying the Palestinians “totally rejected” Israel’s right to exist as the nation-state of the Jewish people. PA spokesman, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, said the same thing. “Netanyahu’s continued demand [to recognize] a Jewish state is a waste of time and [meant] to avoid a just and comprehensive peace agreement,” Rudeineh said.

US Secretary of State John Kerry met with Jordan’s King Abdullah to discuss the Israel-Palestinian peace talks. At the meeting, Kerry said: “It is no mystery what the endgame really looks like. We’re at a point in history that requires the United States, as Israel’s closest friend and the world’s preeminent power, to help end this conflict once and for all.” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas believe a two-state solution will require the recognition of  “two states for two peoples,” he said, without explicitly addressing a requirement of the Israeli government that Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish homeland. According to a Palestinian daily newspaper, Israeli and Palestinians have received copies of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s framework peace proposal. However, this has not been confirmed by either side.

In an interview with Israeli television, Netanyahu said that the talk of a peace agreement is premature because the Palestinians are not ready to make concessions toward a final-status agreement. He said: “First let’s see if the Palestinians are even willing to negotiate. From what I see, they are very far from this. They think they can continue with their acts of refusal – to go with demands to the United Nations and to distance themselves from the question of what their concessions are, how will they recognize a Jewish state,” Netanyahu said. Furthermore, in order to reach an agreement, the Palestinians would have to agree to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, he added. Netanyahu said that Israel wanted peace, although it was not clear to him that the Palestinians did, given that they had not adjusted their positions as part of talks. Netanyahu also said that he would not evacuate West Bank settlements even as he acknowledged that some of them would not be within Israel’s permanent borders if a final-status agreement was reached with the Palestinians. Netanyahu said: “It’s obvious that some of the settlements will not be part of an agreement. Everyone knows that. I will ensure that it’s the smallest number possible, if we get to that point. And I will not abandon any Israeli. “I will not leave a single Israeli without Israeli security, without the full security that we can ensure for every Israeli,” he said, adding, “We of course will not abandon any Israeli citizen.” In a  recent poll, 65% of Israelis say Israel should not sign a peace accord with the Palestinians if it does not include recognition of Israel as a Jewish State. 52% of Israeli’s would oppose a settlement freeze as a demand to continue the ongoing peace talks.

Regarding Jersualem, he said that it would remain under Israeli sovereignty. Netanyahu said that Israel was willing to reach a peace agreement with the Palestinians provided that certain conditions were met. The main concern is that a peace agreement will meet Israel’s national and security needs. If this was the case, Netanyahu said that “No pressure will be needed because I’ll do it willingly. [But] if they try to force on us an agreement that endangers our security and our vital interests, I won’t pass it. I’ll stand against it.” He added: “I think I showed, in this visit [to the US] and over the past five years, that I can stand against these pressures.” Asked if the politics of Israel’s ruling coalition, which includes parties vocally opposed to any deal that sees an Israeli withdrawal from any part of the West Bank, would be an obstacle to accepting the American framework proposal, Netanyahu rejected the idea.“I don’t think so. People understand that when entering the negotiations, Israel is holding to its positions. [The framework proposal] is a document, not a signed agreement, but will be an American document with American positions. The Americans are saying, ‘Look, this is a platform over which you can start to debate. We don’t have to agree to everything they write. I think (the Kerry document) … is a possible path toward moving the talks forward. It will take us at least a year to exhaust these negotiations but I can’t say that the Palestinians will accept this document and I also have not seen it yet,” he said.

Israel Justice Minister and chief negotiator Tzip Livni said that a peace agreement with the Palestinians would allow Israel to keep its “values as a Jewish, democratic state. The best choice is to divide the land and to keep the state of Israel – maybe smaller – but with our values as a Jewish, democratic state living in harmony – a secured state,” Livni said. “I’m sure that [neither] us [nor] the Palestinians are going to be in love with it,” she said. “But I hope that both of us can live with it, move forward, and this is something that can create trust and basis for negotiations.”

Meanwhile, Israel Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said that Israel will not accept any conditions for a continuation of talks with the Palestinians rejecting new Palestinian demands that Israel freeze settlement construction and release more Palestinian prisoners in order to continue negotiations past their April 29 deadline. PLO President Mahmood Abbas met with Israel Knesset member, Zehava Gal-On and placed conditions on continuing talks beyond the April deadline saying, “The only way we would agree to extend the talks would be if Netanyahu declares a settlement freeze and agrees to free more prisoners beyond the next round, including women, young people, and administrative detainees,” he said. Liberman replied by saying, “Giving in to conditions has never helped in the past. It is important to remember history, people try to deny history.”

Elyakim Ha’etzni, a veteran leader of the settlement movement in the West Bank said that “the bitter truth” is that Netanyahu had already decided to give in and accept most of the dictates of the U.S. and the Palestinian Authority. “Netanyahu has agreed to conduct negotiations on the basis of the 1948 armistice lines with some land swaps. There will be a building freeze in the West Bank outside the major settlement blocs. Netanyahu has also surrendered on the issue of an Israeli presence in the Jordan Valley, except for a few guard posts on the Jordan River,” Ha’etzni said. The media has been exceptionally quiet about what Netanyahu has already admitted agreeing to, Ha’etzni said. “Netanyahu will soon announced that not one resident of the West Bank will have to leave their homes but that announcement will come with one small detail – they will have to live under Palestinian sovereignty.” The Palestinians, in the end, are likely to recognize Israel as a Jewish state, Ha’etzni predicted. “In the end, we will be witness to how our country was sold for the price of a ‘stew’ of words, in which the Palestinians mumble that they recognize Israel as a Jewish state, a recognition that will have no political effect whatsoever.” The big question, Ha’etzni said, is what Israeli politicians plan on doing about the impending deal. “Will MKs on the right play the game, or will they see the deal as the end of the government? And the even bigger question: Will Naftali Bennett make it clear to Netanyahu that a building freeze even in the ‘isolated’ settlements in Binyamin will result in Jewish Home’s withdrawing from the coalition?”

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat has recommended that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to abandon the peace talks with Israel. Abbas reportedly told Erekat that he wasn’t willing to quit until the fourth prisoner release takes place at the end of March. Erekat claimed that the main obstacle to the talks was the issue of Israel as a Jewish state. “We’ve talked about the core issues: Jerusalem, borders, refugees, water and prisoners,” he said. The negotiator continued and said that the ‘character’ of Israel, whether its a Jewish state of not, has not been decided upon. “Our demand is that Israel recognize the state of Palestine within the 1967 borders. Then the two countries will live in peace and it will end the conflict between us,” he claimed. Palestinian spokesman, Mohammed Shtayyeh said an extension of talks beyond April 29 is unlikely. He said that the gaps between Israel and PA negotiators have only widened after seven months of talks. “What we have seen in the talks is that the gap is growing, rather than narrowing,” He said that the biggest obstacle for the Palestinians is Netanyahu’s demand to accept Israel as a Jewish state. Abbas cannot “under any circumstances” recognize Israel as a Jewish state because this would restrict the return options of “Palestinian refugees” and potentially pave the way for a gradual expulsion of Israel’s large Arab minority, claimed Shtayyeh. For his part, Abbas said, “They are pressing and saying, ‘No peace without the Jewish state,”‘ he said. “There is no way. We will not accept.” Furthermore, in order to extend talks, Palestinian official Nabil Shaath said that Israel must agree to a freeze on settlement construction.

Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas is scheduled to meet with US President Barack Obama on March 17.  The Palestinians are concerned about US pressure to accept a framework proposal. Palestinian officials said that it would be a “grave mistake” to force Abbas to accept any agreement that does not satisfy a majority of Palestinians. A Palestinian daily newspaper said that although the Palestinians are opposed to the extension of the talks beyond April 30, “they are convinced that they have no real choice but to continue with the negotiations if they want to avoid being blamed for the failure of the peace process,” the paper said.

In reply to the Palestinian position, US State department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, “The American position is clear, Israel is a Jewish state,” Psaki said. “However, we do not see a need that both sides recognize this position as part of the final agreement.” Psaki said the current focus is on reaching a framework agreement that would allow for the continuation of the peace talks. “The parties have to agree to what will be in a framework and what will be a part of the path forward for negotiations,” she said.

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

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Obama to Israel — Time Is Running Out
2) Obama’s message for Netanyahu: Israel faces bleak future should talks fail
3) Obama: US won’t be able to defend Israel if peace talks fail
4) Embarking for US, Netanyahu says Israel will reject pressures
5) Hotovely Protests Obama’s ‘Scandalous’ Pressure on Israel
6) Obama gets lecture on peace talks from Netanyahu in White House meeting
7) Netanyahu to Tell Obama: Pressure Abbas, not Us
8.) Obama Promised Netanyahu to Pressure Abbas, Says Official
9) Netanyahu’s AIPAC Speech
10) P.A. ‘Furious’ Over Netanyahu’s AIPAC Speech
11) Kerry lands in Jordan to discuss peace talks with King Abdullah
12) Israel, PA Get Copies of Kerry’s Proposal
13) Netanyahu: Talk of peace deal premature given Palestinian inflexibility
14) Netanyahu: Peace talks require at least another year
15) Netanyahu says any peace deal with Palestinians at least a year away
16) Netanyahu: Some settlements won’t be retained by Israel
17) Netanyahu: Not All Settlements Will be Part of an Agreement
18.) Israel would preserve ‘Jewish, democratic’ values with Palestinian deal, Tzipi Livni tells Amanpour
19) Liberman to Abbas: Israel will not accept more conditions to continue talks
20) Ha’etzni: PM Preparing a Bitter Surprise for Israelis
21) Netanyahu Has The Votes To Break Away From Likud’s Hardliners To Pursue Peace
22) Erekat: I suggested to Abbas to abandon the negotiations with Israel
23) Abbas Aide: Extending Talks is Pointless
24) PLO: No extension of talks without settlement freeze
25) PA: ‘Grave mistake’ for Abbas to accept unsatisfactory deal
26) Abbas: There’s ‘No Way’ We’ll Recognize Israel
27) Ahead of US visit, Abbas refuses to recognize Israel as Jewish state
28.) Palestinian daily claims US isn’t insisting the PA recognize Jewish Israel
29) U.S.: No Need for PA to Recognize Israel
30) US State Department: Recognition of ‘Jewish state’ not a precondition to peace talks

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

US President Barack Obama has decided to take a more “active role” in the negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. When Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the US on March 3, Obama will make an “urgent appeal” to Netanyahu to accept US Secretary of State, John Kerry’s framework peace plan. Obama is expected to apply the same pressure to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas when Abbas comes to the US on March 17. Palestinian Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat and Palestinian intelligence chief, Majed Faraj, will travel to the US in the next week to meet American officials in preparation for the Abbas visit to the US on March 17. Erekat and Faraj are expected to meet Secretary of State Kerry and Middle East Envoy Martin Indyk.

According to Palestinian sources, “Obama will intervene forcefully and directly, and will apply pressure to Netanyahu and Abbas so that they agree to a framework agreement.” According to these sources, the framework agreement will determine that the capital of the Palestinian state will be eastern Jerusalem, and in exchange, there will be Palestinian concessions in other matters, including borders and refugees. Senior Palestinian sources said that the way to resolve the crisis of the peace negotiations would be to announce that Jerusalem was the capital of both states, with an indication to Israel’s right to acquire international recognition as a Jewish state which would implicitly also mean the recognition of the state of Palestine. The issues of borders, refugees, settlements and water resources are expected to be included in appendices to the agreement which will be discussed by joint committees. The issue of the Jewish identity of Israel, which Netanyahu’s government insists must be recognized, is categorically rejected by the Palestinians, according to the sources. If “Obama succeeds in convincing Netanyahu and Abbas to agree to concessions on the framework agreement, he will announce a date for signing the agreement in Washington, with himself taking part in person.”

Israeli sources revealed that Obama will ask Netanyahu and Abbas about their future plans in case of the failure of the negotiations, and will give them the option to cooperate with the American plan, or face isolation and live with the difficult reality which awaits them if the US abandoned the peace process. If the US is unable to persuade Israel and the Palestinians to agree to a framework deal, the Obama administration is debating whether they should go forward and publicly present the framework plan. US Secretary of State John Kerry is determined to present a proposal by no later than March 28 – the day when a fourth phase release of Palestinian terrorists from Israeli prisons is scheduled to take place. According to Israeli sources, “There is a serious debate taking place within the White House over whether a framework agreement should be presented now, at any price, or whether to wait.”

US Secretary of State John Kerry admitted that there would not be a “final status agreement” between Israel and the Palestinians by April 29. He said: “We’re using the current deadline to help shape this,” he added, noting he  was prepared to continue the talks “for whatever period of time might be appropriate. Right now, he said: “For months we’ve been saying we’re trying to get a framework” by the April 29 deadline. “We’re trying to get the framework, which is a huge deal if we’ve used these seven months thus far to get an understanding of where the parties are and to be able to shape the final negotiations,” said Kerry. However, a senior Palestinian official said that the Palestinians reject US moves to extend an April deadline for nine months of hard-won talks with Israel to culminate in a framework peace deal. “There is no meaning to prolonging the negotiation, even for one more additional hour, if Israel, represented by its current government, continues to disregard international law,” Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erakat said. Palestinian President Mahmood Abbas said that he will not extend negotiations with Israel past April 29 if the framework agreement doesn’t deal with the core issues. The PA leader stressed that the Palestinians will only agree to an extension of the peace talks “if Netanyahu declares a construction freeze in the settlements and a further release of prisoners after the next round,” referring to the third and final wave of prisoners set to be released by Israel – the good-will gesture which brought the Palestinians back to the negotiations table. Otherwise he said that he will terminate the peace process and look to join various UN international organizations.

Meanwhile, it is being reported that the Israeli government has unofficially and quietly frozen settlement construction outside the major blocs for the past few months in an apparent acquiescence to American pressure. Jordan Valley regional council members were asked why construction was being held up in the settlements that he administers, even in projects that had received approval from the defense minister. He was told that the order had come from on high not to advance construction plans in settlements outside the major blocs. “We received instruction from policy makers not to advance plans outside what’s found in the settlement blocs,” they said. “Let’s wait patiently until we return from the United States and then we’ll talk” more about the issue.

DEBKA, an Israeli intelligence and news gathering website reports that Netanyahu has accepted the US framework proposal for continued talks with reservations. However, after an 8 hour meeting with Abbas in Paris, France, the Palestinians have rejected the US plan. Abbas accused Kerry of being biased towards Israel and reiterated his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state. The head of the PA also raised objections to proposed security arrangements and a recommendation for final borders between Israel and a future Palestinian state. Abbas also called Kerry to task on the proposed agreement’s vaguely worded fate of Jerusalem. PA chief Mahmoud Abbas called ideas that Kerry presented to him as “madness.” According to reports in PA newspapers, Kerry proposed lopping off Arab neighborhoods of Jerusalem and placing them under PA sovereignty, enabling the PA to declare Jerusalem its capital. In their meeting, Kerry offered that the Beit Hanina neighborhood be declared as the Palestinian capital instead of the entire east Jerusalem area. He also raised the possibility that the Jordan Valley would remain under Israeli sovereignty. In addition, the PA would annex ten Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria, and be responsible for their security. Most other communities would remain under Israeli sovereignty, based on land swaps. In response, the report said, a furious Abbas practically threw Kerry out of his office, telling the Secretary of State that if he did not back down on his ideas, Abbas would return to demanding that all descendants of Arabs who fled Israel in 1948 be repatriated in Israel, rolling back the “flexibility” he had promised to show on that demand. Abbas also reiterated that he would not recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

Israel Knesset members from the Sephardic ultra-Orthodox political party, Shas, Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox political party, United Torah Judaim, and the left wing parties Meretz, and Labor all signed on to a letter of support sent by Labor Party MK Eitan Cabel to US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro. The letter expresses support for the efforts of the U.S. to negotiate a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. However, Israel Knesset members from the Land of Israel Caucus accused the US of being biased toward the Palestinians in negotiations in a meeting with US Ambassador to Israel, Dan Shapiro. Deputy Transportation Minister Tzipi Hotovely (Likud Beytenu) stressed that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was “acting in a political arena. Any framework agreement that talks about 1967 lines or that includes evacuating towns or giving up sovereignty in Judea, Samaria and Jerusalem can bring down the current government.” According to a source in the meeting, which was closed to press, Shapiro rejected claims the US was taking the Palestinians’ side and was hurting Israel. “The US is taking part in the negotiations because Israel is our ally,” he stated. “A good peace treaty will protect Israel’s security and won’t hurt Israel.”

Hatnua Knesset political party member Meir Sheetrit said that he “hoped” that the United States would force Israel to accept the peace deal that Secretary of State John Kerry was putting together. Being backed into a corner and heavily pressured by the U.S., Sheetrit said, was the only way Israel and the Palestinian Authority would “swallow their medicine” and enter into a deal that would benefit them both.

Meanwhile, as Israel Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu was getting ready to leave for the US on March 3, the organization, Women In Green and the Sovereignty Forum sent a letter to the Prime Minister, telling him that precisely now was the time to declare Israeli sovereignty over the West Bank. The letter said:

Honored Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,

Today you are your starting out on your complex mission to the United States and may you have Heaven’s support and the support of the Land of Israel. We are at a decisive time in which it is possible to strengthen our position. As you leave Jerusalem, the Women in Green movement and the Forum for Sovereignty are with you and will accompany you with a very large poster that will be placed at the exit from Jerusalem for the coming weeks. It reads: “YES to Sovereignty over Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley”.

In a discussion on the expulsion from Gush Katif and northern Samaria that was held in Ariel a few days ago, public relations expert Eyal Arad claimed that the Right failed because it did not present an alternative. This is not true. There is an alternative! A realistic, Zionist plan does exist – application of Israeli sovereignty. This plan is indeed accompanied by difficulties, but the difficulties associated with sovereignty are preferable to the physical and spiritual destruction entailed in the establishment of a terrorist Palestinian state in the heart of our Land, a stone-throw away from Ben Gurion Airport. And we must think not only in terms of survival, we must aspire to realize our hold on the Land and our sovereignty in the Land of Israel.

In a recent poll, 3/4 Three quarters of Hebrew-speaking Israelis would support a peace agreement with the Palestinians based on the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, and more than half would vote for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he were to leave the Likud and create a new party. According to the survey, 76 percent of respondents said they are “sure” or “think” that they would be willing to support an agreement after they were told about nine different elements of the deal, all based on the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, presented to them in a way that made them seem beneficial to Israel. More than 60 percent of respondents said they would likely support a regional peace treaty even before any components of it were discussed. According to the authors of the poll, “The significance of this poll shows that

a) Israelis indeed hold right-wing views
b) they don’t believe the Palestinians
c) they will accept a far-reaching deal based on the Arab Peace Initiative if presented properly to them and
d) that they will support Bibi Netanyahu if he does make such a heroic decision

In a visit to Israel, German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed support for Israel’s security requirements and its demand to be recognized by the Palestinians as a Jewish state. Merkel also stated her opposition to Israeli expansion of West Bank settlements saying they make a positive outcome of the talks less likely. She said that her German government supports “a two-state solution – a Palestinian state and a Jewish state of Israel. We also support Israel’s security requirements to be able to finally live in secure borders. But for a two-state solution we need territorial integrity,” she said. “Thus we treat the settlement question with concern, in which we are not always of one opinion,” she said. “We hope that we can overcome the problems and that the two-state solution can be implemented with an agreement.” Merkel also said that she did not support a boycott or labeling of Israel settlement goods. Israel Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, thanked her for this position saying, such sanctions against the Middle East’s only true democracy are “neither moral nor correct nor productive” but only serve to strengthen Palestinian intransigence, he said. “There can be criticism of Israel — that’s legitimate,” Netanyahu said. “But it’s hard not to notice that those who call for boycott of Israel do not call for boycott of any other state… A boycott on the Jewish people, and the country of the Jewish people?”

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

The link to these articles are as follows:

1) Report: Obama to Press PM to Take Kerry Deal
2) ‘Obama to press Netanyahu, Abbas to accept framework’
3) Obama will Pressure Israel ‘Forcefully’ over Framework
4) Germany’s Merkel backs main Israeli stances in peace talks
5) Report: U.S. May Unveil Framework Peace Deal Without Agreement of Israel or Palestinian Authority
6) Kerry allows more time for final Israel-Palestinian deal
7) Palestinian sources say framework agreement to be signed in Washington
8.) MKs Tell Dan Shapiro They’re Behind Kerry Plan
9) MKs to Shapiro: US taking side of Palestinians in peace talks
10) Sheetrit: US Should Force PA, Israel to ‘Swallow their Medicine’
11) Groups: Fantastic Opportunity for Israeli Sovereignty
12) Kerry: Peace Talks will Continue Beyond April
13) Palestinians reject US push for peace talks beyond April
14) Report: Kerry offered Beit Hanina as Palestinian capital
15) Abbas ‘exploded with rage’ at Kerry over ‘insane’ framework proposals
16) PA Report: Abbas Angry at Kerry, Threatened to End Talks
17) Obama to meet with Abbas on March 17 over peace process
18.) Abbas threatens a turn to ‘international organizations’
19) Official said to confirm informal settlement freeze
20) Poll: Three quarters of Israeli Jews would accept peace deal

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