You may view the 5 minute update this week via 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
Israel has given its version why the Israel / PLO peace talks held during the month of January in Jordan are now stalled. It consists of the following:
1) Beginning in October when the Quartet tried to start between between Israel and the PLO, the PLO refused to talk with Israel in the same room. The talks in January only happened because of the efforts of King Abdullah of Jordan to convince the PLO to hold low-level talks with Israel beginning on January 3
2) In the Jordanian meetings, low-level talks between Israel and the Palestinians in Jordan ended on January 26 without any agreement to hold future direct talks. The PLO did not offer any new positions on borders and security.
3) The PLO demanded that Israel freeze building Jewish homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem or the PLO would end talks on January 26.
4) Israel wanted the PLO to clarify their position on various issues and the PLO refused to discuss the matter
5) Israel brought a delegation to discuss security issues that included a representative from the Israeli army but the PLO refused to allow him to speak
6) Israel presented to the PLO issues regarding incitement against the Jewish state and the PLO did not want to talk about the issue
Mahmood Abbas plans to present to Israel in the near future a series of demands to start direct negotiations. If Israel refuses to accept the conditions, Abbas plans to ask the United Nations to upgrade their status to a non-member observer.
An agreement to divide Jerusalem and establish a PLO state is a tribulation event.
The link to these articles are as follows:
1) Palestinian obsitnacy led to breakdown of Amman negotiations, Israeli official says
2) Abbas to send Israel message on saving Palestine-Israel peace process: sources
Iran, China and Russia continues to support the government of President Bashar Assad of Syria. Two Iranian warships recently docked at a Syrian port. They were a destroyer and a supply ship. Last week, Bashar Asssad announced a plan to hold a referendum leading to parliamentary elections as a way to resolve the Syrian crisis. China supports the plan. China wants BOTH the Syrian government and the opposition to end the violence. The US, the European Union and the Arab League supports a “Friends of Syria” group that backs the Syrian Sunni opposition to the rule of Bashar Assad. The “Friends of Syria” group plans to host an international conference on the situation. Russia refused to attend the meeting because the Assad government will not be represented. Hamas in the Gaza Strip has announced that they are severing ties with the Assad government. Hamas is mostly Sunni Muslim and the Assad government is a sect of Shi’ite Muslims. Because of the current situation in Syria, the Israeli army fears that Assad may attack Israel in order to try to remain in power.
A war with Syria where Damascus is destroyed (Isaiah 17) is a tribulation event.
The link to these articles is as follows:
1) Iranian warships dock at Syrian port after crossing Suez Canal
2) Analysis: Wishful thinking or faulty intelligence?
3) China backs Assad plan for referendum, election
4) Russia refuses to attend Syria meeting
5) Hamas severs ties with Assad, backs Syrian revolt
6) IDF fears Syria attack as pressure builds on Assad
Belgium-based SWIFT, which provides banks with a system for moving funds around the world said it was ready to block Iranian banks from using its network to transfer money. SWIFT has never cut off a country before from the international financial system. President Obama sent National security adviser Tom Donilon to Israel to try to persuade the Israeli government to not attack Iran. Israel decided to keep its options open. In order to further persuade Israel not to attack Iran, Obama has invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to visit with him at the White House on March 5. Iran indicated to the US and the European Union that they are ready to have talks about their nuclear program. This has caused the US to be cautiously optimistic that Iran will give up its nuclear program and therefore, the US won’t have to attack Iran. The US wants to try diplomacy with Iran before it decides to attack Iran militarily. However, Iran refused the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) from inspecting their nuclear sites and talking to their nuclear scientists about their nuclear program. The IAEA also reported that Iran had carried out a significant expansion of activities at its main enrichment plant near the central city of Natanz and also increased work at the Fordow underground facility. Western and Israeli intelligence experts have concluded that the transfer of 20 percent uranium enrichment to the underground Fordo site near Qom has shortened Iran’s race for the 90 percent (weapons) grade product to six weeks. These developments are a cause of great concern for Israel. It caused Benjamin Netanyahu to say that nuclear sanctions against Iran ‘haven’t worked,’ and Iran is ‘breaking all the rules’. Israel and the USA are in a public dispute on the best approach to handle the Iranian threat. The US believes there is still time for economic sanctions against Iran to cause Iran to make a decision to stop its nuclear program. Israel believes that the window of opportunity to attack Iran and harm its nuclear program is only several months. Israel believes that sanctions against Iran won’t work and Iran should be attacked in the near future. The US says that sanctions need time to work and the US can attack Iran later. Israel said that a public disagreement with the US over the best way to handle the Iranian threat only servers the interests of Iran. Iran says that if it is threatened that it will launch a preemptive strike. Russian supports Iran and says that an attack against Iran by the US and Israel would be a catastrophe to the world.
A US war with Iran is a tribulation event.
The link to these articles is as follows:
1) Banking’s SWIFT ready to stop Iran transactions
2) US aide tells Israel sanctions on Iran need time
3) Barak: More sanctions on Iran before military option
4) US-Israel crisis: Approaching nuclear talks with Iran disable sanctions, spark anti-Israel terror
5) Iran Is Ready to Talk
6) IAEA: Tehran talks failed to secure agreement
7) IAEA: Iran steps up sensitive nuclear work
8.) ‘US believes Iran not trying to build nuclear bomb’
9) Nuclear sanctions ‘haven’t worked,’ Iran ‘breaking all the rules’: Israeli PM Netanyahu
10) Crisis in US-Israel relations over nuclear talks with Iran
11) Top White House official arrives for talks on Iran
12) Hard talk with US officials on Iran fails to move Israel from military option
13) Israel to U.S.: Disagreement over attack on nuclear sites serves Iranian interests
14) Tehran Flexes Muscle, Shrugs off Sanctions
15) Iran cuts down to six weeks timeline for weapons-grade uranium
16) Iran warns of preemptive strike if threatened
17) Russia warns: Israeli attack on Iran will bring catastrophe
18) Iran cuts sales of crude to British, French companies
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