(Galilee, Israel) — Shalom from Northern Israel. What a week it has been. If there’s a biblical phrase that best describes my region of the world over the last seven days, it’s “wars and rumors of wars”. From the attack in Syria that killed multiple high-level Iranian personnel to the looming war with Hezbollah in the north to the imminent invasion of the IDF into Rafah in the Gaza Strip, the tension has reached unprecedented levels. If that’s not enough, Israel is making preparations for a potential and imminent confrontation with Iran in the days ahead. More on that below.
What’s worse is that Israel’s longtime friend in the west, the United States, has become unreliable during some of Israel’s darkest days since the nation was reborn in 1948. This is largely due to the current administration. Moreover, some well-known “conservative” voices in the west are beginning to adopt the mindset that it’s un-American to pour resources into other countries, including Israel. To those considering this same mindset, I would challenge you with a simple reminder that God will one day judge the nations based on their treatment of Israel, and Israel only.
Genesis 12:3a KJV – “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee…”
Joel 3:1-2 KJV – “For, behold, in those days, and in that time, when I shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.”
Matthew 25:37-40 KJV – “Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
God will not ask anyone if they stood up for America or any other nation. He will only ask if they stood up for Israel. In these historic times of biblical proportions, let the enemy not deceive you. Standing with Israel is not an option from God; it’s a commandment from God.
Israel
As I mentioned, the tension is at an all-time high inside Israel right now. In addition to the much-needed judicial reform in my country, the war in Gaza rages on, we’re bracing for escalations with Iran, and we’re receiving strikes almost daily up near our northern border. I can assure you, a conflict with Hezbollah is also on the horizon. However, the aim of the IDF and Israel’s government is to finish business in Gaza first – specifically, the city of Rafah, which is the final stronghold of Hamas. And yes, regardless of what the world media is telling you, we’re going to enter into Rafah soon and finish the job. Attacks are already happening there.
Maybe you’re thinking, “Amir, won’t this isolate Israel all the more if countries pull their support due to Israel not achieving a ceasefire?” To this, my response is twofold: 1) Hamas has rejected every ceasefire proposal put forth. 2) While it’s a shock to live through these biblical times, my God revealed ages ago that Israel would one day be isolated from the rest of the world so that only He will intervene on her behalf. Again, these are tumultuous times, but the God of Israel will make good on His promises.
Gaza & Hamas
One of the biggest complaints coming out of the UN and the global community has to do with the alleged death toll of civilians in Gaza. First of all, war is ugly, but the IDF does everything it can to minimize and avoid civilian fatalities. And let’s not forget that Hamas uses its people as human shields. They have perfected the act of cowardice. Secondly, it surfaced in a report on Wednesday that the Hamas-run organization responsible for keeping track of the death toll in Gaza couldn’t validate over 1/3 of the alleged deaths. Over 11,000 of the 30,000+ deaths could not even be verified.
On Tuesday, it surfaced that an Israeli attack killed three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Additionally, some of his grandchildren were killed. One would think there would be great mourning. This is not the case when you love death more than you value life. He thanked his nonexistent god for their martyrdoms.
The IDF continues to operate in multiple areas inside of Gaza at this time. Often, forces will temporarily remove themselves from some key locations, which causes the terrorists to come out of their holes, exposing them, leading to their elimination.
Lebanon, Syria, and Hezbollah
As previously alluded to, Israel can see a war with Hezbollah on the horizon – it’s only a matter of time. And if we don’t deal with a direct attack from Iran, you can make a safe bet that we’ll deal with increased attacks coming over our northern border. By God’s grace, we haven’t had to deal with Hezbollah while we wrap things up in Gaza, which has allowed us time to move reinforcements up north and manufacture more ammunition and weapons.
Iran
In what’s not a surprise, the Islamic state of Iran continues to develop its nuclear program in pursuit of obtaining a nuclear weapon – something they’re no longer vague about. Iran also continues to strategically sow chaos in the Middle East through its proxies in the region. Furthermore, Israel is prepared to deal with a military confrontation with Iran any day now following the targeted killing of two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) generals and five others associated with the terror organization. This happened when the Israel Defense Force (IDF) leveled an annex in Damascus, Syria, that belonged to the Iranian embassy. One of Iran’s personnel that was killed was in the decision-making circle for Hezbollah and played a crucial role in the planning of the October 7 massacre.
The Iranians know that if they attempt to attack Israel directly, their nuclear sites will enter the crosshairs of the IDF.
The United States
While periodic support for Israel is expressed from the US government, the current administration is flirting with a dangerous line concerning the jeopardizing of its relationship with us during some of our darkest hours. Some of the more recent negative revelations coming out of the US include the decision to label products coming from “Jewish settlements in occupied West Bank”, increased pressure in the form of withholding aid if we don’t pursue a ceasefire in Gaza, and more. Commander of the US Central Command, General Michael E. Kurilla, is visiting Israel now to consult with top military officials in preparation for an attack from Iran.
Time will tell, but this current administration in the US is putting itself in a very weak and compromised position if it wasn’t there already.
