Israel & the Middle East

Joshua Fund mobilizing evangelical Christians all over the world to pray for peace and to help provide emergency relief aid to victims of war and terror.

By Joel C. Rosenberg

(Denver, Colorado, December 29, 2008) — Last night, I received a report by email from inside the Israeli war zone, from an evangelical friend in the Israeli town of Sderot, located on the southern border with Gaza. 

“Yesterday was a day full of explosions on both sides [of the border],” he wrote. “I have temporarily moved out of my apartments [and] am staying with a friend with a bomb shelter maybe 30 feet away….I realize more and more that I am not in control of my life and I am thankful that G-d is. Between tank fire and jets flying overhead it is a bit nerve-wracking, but again I know who holds my life in His hand and I know I need to be about my Father’s business….We have been told that the worst is yet to come and we should plan on having enough food on hand until the end of March….Just as He has always been to His children in the past, I know once again He will be faithful - that’s who He is, the Faithful One.” 

On Saturday, I received an email from a Jewish friend who also lives in Sderot. “I just finished reading the Flash Traffic you’ve sent today,” he wrote. “Being held here in Sderot since this morning under marshal law, it was one of the good things that I enjoyed today and your report was excellent. I also join you in prayer tha the leaders here will have the wisdom and courage to destroy terrorists…in Hamastan-ruled-Gaza….We are under fire, but we know that He will protect us.” 

The Joshua Fund is doing everything we can to stand with these and other friends and to let them know that they are not alone. We are mobilizing evangelical Christians all over the world to pray for peace on the Israel-Gaza border and to show unconditional love and unwavering support. We are asking you and others to continue praying for wisdom and courage for Israel’s leaders as they seek to decimate the Hamas terrorist infrastructure and reacquire the deterrence factor lost during the 2006 war with Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

* Please pray for the half million Israelis living within rocket and missile range of Gaza. They and their children have no idea what today and tomorrow hold. 

* Pray for the Lord to comfort and calm their hearts. Please pray for the 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza, many of whom find themselves trapped in the crossfire of a war that Hamas started but that they as individuals and families don’t want. 

* Please pray for the wounded on both sides, and the families who have lost loved ones. 

* Please also lift up the believers in Jesus in Israel and Gaza who are seeking the Lord’s strength to help them love their neighbors and their enemies in real and practical ways in the name of Jesus. 

* Pray that the believers can be lights in the darkness, bringing good news and hope to those who feel hopeless and alone. 

* Finally, please pray that the Lord would be gracious to provide our Joshua Fund leadership team with wisdom to know how best to help those who are now victims of war and terrorism, and sufficient financial resources to meet those needs quickly and wisely. 

Hamas terrorists have shown no signs of surrendering their vicious, evil war against the Jews of Israel. As of 4pm Israel time (9am eastern) on Monday, at least 50 rockets and missiles had been fired from Gaza at the Israeli towns of Sderot, Ashkelon and Ashdod. Israeli military forces, meanwhile, continue to pummel Hamas headquarters, rocket launching pads, and other military infrastructure. The deputy chief of staff of the IDF is warning Israeli that, “We are just at the beginning of the battle, this will not be hasty. The worst is not behind us — it is still ahead of us, and we should be prepared for this. Our resilience will be determine by the functioning of the authority and the way the civilians are protected.” 

I’m soon boarding a plane back to D.C. Will update you more as I can. God bless you.
To visit Joel’s new weblog site and get the latest developments in Israel, Russia and the epicenter — including links to stories mentioned in this Flash Traffic report — please click here

 
To join more than 80,000 other >> FLASH TRAFFIC << subscribers who are receiving (free) geopolitical and prayer updates from Israel and the epicenter, please click here.

 
To purchase a copy of EPICENTER 2.0 from Amazon.com (32% off), please click here

 
To learn more about The Joshua Fund’s efforts to bless Israel and her neighbors and to make a tax-deductible financial contribution — by mail or on-line — please click here.

 
To visit Joel’s website — www.joelrosenberg.com — please click here
THE FUTURE OF THE U.S., ISRAEL AND RADICAL ISLAM? Three webcasts

What does the future hold for the U.S., Israel and the people of the Muslim world? What are the threats we face? How ought followers of Jesus Christ live in light of dramatic and dangerous geopolitical and religious trends? 

On Sunday, December 7th — the anniversary of the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941 — Lt.-General (ret.) William “Jerry” Boykin and I were honored to speak on such issues at four events in San Diego, including two morning church services at Horizon Christian Fellowship, a luncheon with business and political leaders, and an evening church service where we did an extended question & answer session. Boykin, who has become a dear friend, is a founding member of the U.S. Army’s elite Delta Force. He later became the commander of Delta, and then was in charge of training 10,000 special forces at Fort Bragg, before being promoted to Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence. He is also the author of the must-read memoir, Never Surrender. 

The General and I spoke on the threats facing the United States and Israel from Radical Islam and the risk of being blindsided by future attacks. During the morning services, I focused on what Bible prophecy says about the future of the Middle East and the world. During the evening session, I gave a sneak preview of Inside The Revolution, which will be released March 10th of next year. I also talked about the work of The Joshua Fund to bless Israel and her neighbors with food, clothing, medical supplies and other relief aid. If you have time, I would encourage you to watch the following webcasts. Special thanks to Horizon’s senior pastor Mike MacIntosh and his team for inviting us and hosting such great events. Together, we are organizing the first-ever U.S. “Epicenter Conference” for next spring. Details coming soon. 

Also, several weeks ago, I had the privilege of speaking at a wonderful evangelical congregation in Israel. There, I spoke on the urgent need for godly, Christ-centered leadership as the world faces dangerous, uncertain times. I hope you will have some time to watch this webcast as well. See link below. 

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As always, we will do our best to keep you up-to-date on the kinds of projects we are doing, and brief you on how those projects are proceeding. We will also let you know about the kinds of projects we are developing for the future. In no way do we want to pressure anyone to give financially. We fully believe the Lord will provide for the needs of the people we seek to serve. But if you or others wish to help, we welcome your support, and all financial gifts are tax-deductible. 

If you would like to make a year-end contribution to the on-going work of The Joshua Fund please make your check payable to “The Joshua Fund” and send to: 

The Joshua Fund 
18950 Base Camp Road 
Monument, Colorado 80132-8009 

Thanks so much and may the Lord richly bless you and your family as you bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus — especially at critical moment in history of the epicenter.
Would you consider making a donation of $25, $40 or $60 a month to The Joshua Fund? Please click here to find out more, and/or to make a secure donation on-line.

 
To get the latest prayer requests and updates from Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan and other epicenter countries, please visit The Joshua Fund’s weblog

 
Three webcasts from San Diego and Jerusalem

Today is day 2 of the Gaza operation.
My wife and two kids are sick and my parents in law are taking care of us all. This is the first time since our stay in Israel that there is a lot of “balagan”.

While I’am writing this post qassams and grad rockets are coming down in Israel and Israel is attacking gaza big time. Our concern is the North is Hezbollah taking advantage of the situation? This is what I read this evening.

“northern Israel will burn as Gaza is burning.”

(IsraelNN.com) IAF warplanes flew over Lebanon Sunday following a vow by Hizbullah terrorist chief Hassan Nasrallah to attack northern Israeli communities in retaliation for the IDF military operation against terrorists in Gaza.

According to Lebanese Army officials, four IAF aircraft were spotted flying in southern Lebanese air space. The aircraft, which appeared to be combat planes, remained in the Lebanese skies for more than an hour.

More Israel News

(IsraelNN.com) Hizbullah terrorists have vowed to open a second front against Israel in the north in retaliation for the IDF military operation against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

Terrorist chief Hassan Nasrallah issued a statement on Hizbullah’s Al-Manar television station Sunday, vowing that “northern Israel will burn as Gaza is burning.” Nasrallah rarely appears in person; he speaks via a video hook-up from his hideout due to fears of assassination by Israeli agents, following the 2006 Second Lebanon War.

More Israel News

We follow the news carefully and give you an update when needed.

Last update Groundtroops ready to go into the Gazastrip. 
6000 reserve called for duty.
Shelters to be inspected in the North of Israel.
More than 110 qassam fired on Israel on Sunday 28-12-2008.
Are the bringing Gilad Shalit home? 

Looking for bloggers in Gaza of Sderot please contact me.

By Joel C. Rosenberg

(Washington, D.C., December 27, 2008) — War has erupted on the Israel-Gaza border. 

Over the past three days - amidst Christmas week in the Holy Land - radical Islamic terrorists in Gaza have fired more than 100 rockets, missiles and mortars at Israeli Jews living in the southern border towns of Sderot, Ashdod and Ashkelon. Since December 19th, nearly 200 rockets have been fired at Israel from Gaza. By God’s grace, Israeli casualties have been minimal, despite the barrage. Only one Israeli has been killed in the attacks so far. But two Palestinian children - sisters aged 5 and 13 - were killed when a Hamas rocket landed on a house in Gaza rather than Israel. 

Overnight, the IDF launched a series of aistrikes at Hamas targets to try to stop the missile and rocket onslaught. One report indicates that Israeli warplanes fired upwards of 30 missiles at Hamas targets. Israel’s Channel 2, however, reported that “60 planes were involved in the attack, and nearly 100 targets were hit.” Hamas leaders say at least 150 Palestinians were killed in the airstrikes, and some 300 were wounded. Those casualty figures have not, however, been verified as of 10am eastern time Saturday. Hamas leaders declared, “This is war!” 

Israeli leaders are threatening a full scale invasion of Gaza to root out Hamas and other militants as a new poll finds that 60% of Israelis support an invasion to stop the rocket attacks. “Is it the spirit of Islam to kill innocent children?” Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Thursday morning. ” To shoot rockets at kindergartens and at civilians? I do not think that this is the spirit of Islam. Hamas, which does this against the spirit of Islam, is the main reason for your suffering - for all of ours. I say to you in a last-minute call, stop it. Stop it. You the citizens of Gaza, you can stop it. I know how much you want to get up in the morning to quiet, to take your children to kindergarten or school, the way we do….Hamas must be stopped - and so it will be. I will not hesitate to use Israel’s strength to strike at Hamas and Islamic Jihad. How? I do not wish to go into details here.” 

Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni - currently running for Prime Minister in the Feb. 10th elections - said in Cairo: “Enough is enough. When there’s shooting, there’s a response. Any state would react that way.” Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak - also running for Prime Minister - also sounded tough, saying, “whoever harms the citizens and soldiers of Israel will pay a heavy price.” 

Are these threats of a full ground war for real? If so, casualties on both sides could mount quickly and a humanitarian crisis could explode. But full scale war is not a foregone conclusion. Olmert, Livni, and Barak have been threatening to invade Gaza for the last several years, as more than 6,000 rockets, missiles and mortars have rained down on some half a million Israelis living near the Gaza border. Yet they have never followed through on their threats. 

This is a key message point of opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been urging Olmert to launch an invasion and stop the violence immediately rather than merely repeat empty threats. “I do not know of a country that would be hit by this many missiles and not do anything,” Netanyahu said Wednesday. “We must stop being hit and attack in order to renew our deterrence capability and our national honor.” Netanyahu is currently leading in the polls in his own bid to be Prime Minister, in part because Israelis see him as stronger on defense than Livni and Barak. But should the current government launch an aggressive and effective assault on the Hamas terrorist infrastructure in Gaza, this could dramatically help Livni and Barak in the polls and cause Netanyahu to lose ground. 

Please be praying for Israel’s current political and military leaders to have the wisdom and courage to the right thing to protect their citizens. Pray, too, that the Lord would raise of up more leaders in the Jewish State who will be like the “sons of Issachar” described in I Chronicles 12:32, men who “understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” Pray for the Israeli families who are suffering in many ways due to the relentless barrage of rocket fire from Gaza. Meanwhile, please pray for Palestinian leaders to effectively confront the Hamas radicals and shut down their terrorist operations. Please pray for all the Palestinian families who are victims of both war and terrorism. 

And please don’t forget to pray faithfully and consistently for evangelical Christians on both sides of the border and around the world to know how best to help Israelis and Palestinians who are caught in the crossfire and suffering as a result. The Joshua Fund is currently providing aid to citizens in the Israeli town of Sderot and will continue to do so, as the Lord provides funding and open doors.
To visit Joel’s new weblog site and get the latest developments in Israel, Russia and the epicenter — including links to stories mentioned in this Flash Traffic report — please click here

 
To join more than 80,000 other >> FLASH TRAFFIC << subscribers who are receiving (free) geopolitical and prayer updates from Israel and the epicenter, please click here.

 
To purchase a copy of EPICENTER 2.0 from Amazon.com (32% off), please click here

 
To learn more about The Joshua Fund’s efforts to bless Israel and her neighbors and to make a tax-deductible financial contribution — by mail or on-line — please click here.

 
To visit Joel’s website — www.joelrosenberg.com — please click here

Smoke rises from the Gaza town of Rafah after Israeli air strikes on Saturday. AFP

What will happen in the North of Israel?
Is the Hezbollah willing to back the Hamas and are they going to send rockets to Galilee?

And the latest news.

As the IAF launched its attack, Defense Minister Ehud Barak declared the Gaza vicinity communities under a “special situation in the home front,” giving security forces special jurisdiction over the area and allowing them to make municipal decision the likes of how the local schools and industries will operate.

We are looking carefully to the news to find out what is next. The TV is reporting that 1 woman is killed and 4 others injured due to rocket attacks on Israel after the strike.

• Sources from friends in the Army: Tanks are seen close to the crossings with the Gaza and moving.
• Israel will continue to attack the terrorists
• Parts of Gaza without electricity
• Gaza on the Phone: People running and in panic. (some places without Internet.
• Prominent Hamas leader killed.

Israeli aircraft launch air attacks across Gaza, causing many deaths and injuries, according to CNN journalist.

Peres told the world that israel will not enter the Gaza.

They will go and attack from the air.

Hamas: At least 40 dead, 70 wounded in IAF Gaza strikes

Reuters reports the full story

Reportedly, a “limited operation” will begin within days that will combine an air attack with some ground operations against Hamas and other Gaza terror groups. 
The cabinet has given the go-ahead for an operation of a few days’ duration with clearly defined goals.  Haaretz

Just days after the cabinet gave the military final approval to counter ongoing Palestinian rocket fire against communities in the western Negev, the IDF launched an operation, striking Hamas installations throughout the Gaza Strip on Saturday.

Gaza reporter said attacks appeared to be biggest he has seen in decades!

So this is the respond of Israel on the ongoing rocket attacks on the citys around the Gazastrip. Lets pray for Israel and the people in The Gaza strip!

The question is now will the hezbollah respond in the North of Israel? Discuss it on our forum.

Israel has launched air strikes on Hamas installations in Gaza City, killing at least 40 people and causing heavy damage, according to witnesses.

At least 30 missiles were fired at targets on Saturday, with initial reports saying that there were at least 100 casualties.

“I’m afraid we have at least 40 dead,” Islam Shahwan, Hamas police spokesman, said.

Shahwan said that a police graduation ceremony was hit as it was being held in Gaza City.

The simultaneous strikes were described as “massive” by the AFP news agency.

There was no immediate comment from Israel.

However, it follows the decision by the Israeli security cabinet to increase reprisals for cross-border rocket attacks against Israel, and the breakdown of a six-month-old Israel-Hamas truce earlier this month.

Several Hamas police compounds were said to have been hit.

Ayman Mohyeldin, Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Gaza, said: “A series of explosions were heard over Gaza City.

“From where we are there are at least seven different clouds of smoke from the strikes.

“We are seeing some casualties being evacuated in cars.”

Mohyeldin said that Hamas, who rule the Gaza Strip, was being held responsible by Israel for any attacks from the territory into Israel, even if they are undertaken by other Palestinian factions.

Al Jazeera

Xmas Peace? No Rockets and death people!

WHERE IS GAZA? 

* The Gaza Strip is a sliver of towns, villages and farmland at the southeast end of the Mediterranean, 45 km (25 miles) long and at most 10 km (6 miles) wide. It is wedged between Israel to the north and east, and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula to the south. 

HISTORY OF THE TERRITORY: 

* Gaza city has been continuously inhabited for more than 3,000 years and was a crossroads of ancient civilisations. It is believed to be the burial place of the Prophet Mohammad’s great grandfather. 

* Four centuries of rule by the Ottoman Empire were briefly interrupted by Napoleonic France and also saw growing Egyptian influence until Britain took control of Gaza and the rest of Palestine in World War One. Egypt took control of the Strip during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. 

* The Strip’s population tripled in 1948-49 when it absorbed about a quarter of the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees displaced from areas that are now part of Israel. 

* Israel captured the Gaza Strip from Egypt in the 1967 war. 

* Israel pulled Jewish settlers and soldiers out of the territory in September 2005. 

* Israel conducted large-scale ground operations in June 2006 after militants tunnelled across the Gaza border and captured an Israeli soldier, who is still being held. 

* A year later, Hamas Islamists took control of the Gaza Strip after routing President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah forces. 

* Israel tightened the closure of its borders with Gaza, curbing fuel supplies and limiting movement of people. International organisations have condemned the blockade, which Israel says is meant to curb rockets fired by militants. 

* Under an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire in June, Hamas agreed to halt rocket fire in return for Israel easing the blockade. Hamas declared the end of the truce on Dec. 18. 

WHO LIVES THERE? 

* About 1.5 million Palestinians live in Gaza, more than half of them refugees from past wars with Israel. Gaza has one of the highest population densities and demographic growth rates in the world. 

* Most Gazans live on less than $2 a day and up to 80 percent are dependent on food aid, according to aid groups.

 At least 140 people killed, over 230 wounded.

• Police Depatment graduation ceremony among targets.

• Gaza Police Chief among the dead.

• Israel says strikes are “just the beginning.”

[Aljazeera.net | Saturday, 27 December, 2008.]
Israel has launched air strikes on Hamas installations across the Gaza Strip, killing at least 140 people and causing heavy damage, according to officials and witnesses. At least 30 missiles were fired at targets on Saturday, with the head of emergency services in Gaza saying that at least 200 people were also wounded.Hours after the Israeli strikes Gaza fighters fired rockets into southern Israel, heeding to calls by Hamas and other affiliated Palestinian groups to avenge the attacks, unprecedented in their scale.

Among those killed in Israel’s massive offensive was Tawfiq Jabber, the Gaza police chief. Islam Shahwan, a Hamas police spokesman, said the missiles hit a police graduation ceremony in Gaza City. The Hamas-run interior ministry said all security compounds in Gaza have been destroyed.

Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president and leader of Fatah, condemned the “aggression” in Gaza. Mousa Abu Morzouz, the deputy leader of Hamas, told Al Jazeera: “Until now the aggression didn’t stop … they are targeting all the police headquarters and offices. We will defend out people, we will retaliate against this aggression … our military will retaliate.”

Marzouz called on the international community to condemn the attacks: “Nobody in this world can accept what happened and the Israeli aggression … [we expect] the international community to stand agasint this and say that it is not acceptable.”

Mustafa Barghauthi, former Palestinian information minister, said; “This is not an attack on the Hamas. Its an attack on the whole population and the free will of the people of Gaza.” He accused Israel of committing “war crimes” and demanded that Abbas and his government stop all relations with Israel.

The Israel army released a statement saying “terrorist installations” were hit and that all Israeli pilots returned unharmed. The operation against the Hamas is “only just beginning,” Avi Benayahu, an Israeli military spokesman said. (Full story here.)

UN peacekeepers and Lebanese troops have stepped up patrols along the border with Israel after rockets were discovered aimed at the Jewish state and ready to fire, a UN spokeswoman said on Friday.

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon and the Lebanese army “have deployed additional troops and intensified patrols and security control of the area,” said UNIFIL spokeswoman Yasmina Bouziane.

UNIFIL commander Major General Claudio Graziano of Italy, is in contact with senior Lebanese and Israeli military officials, Bouziane added.

On Thursday, security forces found eight Katyusha rockets in the coastal region between Naqura and Tair Harfa that were aimed at Israel, an army official said.

The rockets were ready to fire, an officer said on Friday, adding that an investigation was underway and that the rockets had been dismantled.

The area where the rockets were found is a stronghold of the Shiite Hezbollah group and lies less than five kilometres (three miles) from the border.

Israel and Hezbollah fought a devastating 34-day war in 2006 that killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers.

During the war, Hezbollah fired more than 4,000 rockets at Israel.

The group has been accused by the Jewish state of using the time since the end of the conflict to rearm. Last month, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak told parliament that Hezbollah is now three times stronger than it was in 2006.

We are living in the north of Israel with to small kids. Origianally we are dutch so all this warnews is new for us and not always easy.

Sources:

ynetnews

Freelibary