JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
LUKE 21:28-29
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Israel to deploy David’s Sling, final piece of missile defense shield-Senior air force officer says Jewish state still vulnerable to attack, but multi-tiered system will put it ‘one step ahead’ of enemies-By Judah Ari Gross March 20, 2017, 6:10 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israel’s David’s Sling anti-missile battery will go operational within the next two weeks, providing the finishing touch of the Jewish state’s multi-tiered missile defense array, a senior Israeli Air Force officer said Monday.The David’s Sling, also known as the Magic Wand, will make up the middle tier of Israel’s multi-layer missile defense capabilities, and with it, Israel hopes to close the gaps in its missile defense capabilities, said Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitch, head of the army’s Aerial Defense Command-Haimovitch did not give an exact date for the system’s deployment, but said on Monday afternoon that it should occur “around two weeks from today.”However, Haimovitch stressed that even with the new missile defense system, Israel is still vulnerable.The David’s Sling gives the Israel Defense Forces “more capabilities and more effectiveness,” he said, “but it’s never enough. It’s not hermetic.”The lowest layer is the Iron Dome system, capable of intercepting short-range rockets, small unmanned aerial vehicles and mortar shells like those that have been fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip or from southern Lebanon. And at the top are the Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 systems, which are intended to engage long-range ballistic missiles.David’s Sling is aimed at filling the gap between these systems.“One of the threats against us is heavy rockets, not Katyushas or Grads, which can travel 25 miles (40 kilometers), but things that can travel several hundred kilometers,” said Uzi Rubin, an expert on missile defense systems who is considered the father of the Arrow program.For examples, Rubin offered the Iranian Fateh 110 and its Syrian equivalent, the M600. “There are also things like air-to-ground weapons, which act like missiles — the David’s Sling needs to intercept those too,” Rubin said on Monday.The Fateh 110 and M600 each have a range of approximately 190 miles (300 kilometers) and can carry a half-ton warhead. They are both considered fairly accurate, though to what extent is a matter of debate, according to a US Congressional Research Service report.According to US military officials, these missiles have seen repeated use during the Syrian civil war. And since 2010, Israeli officials have said that Syrian President Bashar Assad has been giving M600 missiles to Hezbollah.“A 300-kilometer range from Lebanon — that covers the entire country,” Rubin said. “Look at a map and measure.”Threats like the M600 “are beyond the capabilities of the Iron Dome and beneath those of the Arrow,” he said.With a reported range of 40-190 miles (70-300 kilometers), that is where the David’s Sling will come in.The Defense Ministry deemed the system ready for use in December 2015. The IAF began receiving components of the system in March 2016 and has since been putting the battery through its paces. In January, the David’s Sling passed additional levels of testing.Also in January, the IAF received the Arrow-3 system, an updated version of the missile defense battery, which has been deployed in Israel since 2000.The soon-to-be-deployed David’s Sling, the Arrow-3 system and recent improvements to the Iron Dome have all been part of the army’s “huge buildup” of air defense capabilities, Haimovitch said-This expansion is necessary in light of an “arms race” in the region against Iran and Syria, as well as non-state actors like the Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic State terror groups, he said.“The operational David’s Sling, along with the Arrow 2, Arrow 3 and Iron Dome, will deal with this threat,” he said, keeping Israel “one step ahead” of its enemies.With regard to most types of missile, the military will have overlapping coverage, he said, giving “two solutions for each threat.”According to Haimovitch, the David’s Sling will provide protection for “most of our homeland.” He would not expand on what specific areas would be covered by the missile defense battery and which regions would be vulnerable.The officer’s reticence should be expected, Rubin said.“That’s something that Hezbollah would like to know too,” he said, with a laugh.
Israel said to strike Syria for second time in 24 hours, amid threats from Damascus-Unconfirmed reports indicate jets hit Hezbollah weapons convoy, military targets, hours after drone strike in Syrian Golan; Syria UN envoy says retaliatory missile launches during Friday raid a ‘game-changer’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 2:25 am
Israel is said to have struck Syria overnight Sunday-Monday, the second strike in 24 hours and third in three days as tensions escalated between the two countries over the weekend.Syria media reported early Monday that Israeli jets took out a number of targets near the Lebanon-Syria border including a Hezbollah weapons convoy and Syrian military sites.The reports have not been confirmed.Earlier Sunday, an Israeli drone strike reportedly killed a member of a Syrian pro-regime militia, an attack that came two days after Israeli jets, in an early Friday morning operation, hit an arms transfer meant for Hezbollah near Palmyra, with Syrian air defenses firing missiles at the planes.One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery, military officials said, in the first reported use of the advanced system. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.On Sunday evening, Syria’s ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari said Syria’s response to Friday’s strike was a “game-changer.”Speaking on Syrian state TV, Jaafari said the military’s response was “appropriate and in line with Israel’s terrorist operation,” and that Israel “will now think a million times [before striking again],” according to a translation cited in Ynet.“Syria’s forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game,” he said.His comments came hours after Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems for targeting the Israeli aircraft during the bombing run Friday.“The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Liberman said on Israel Radio.Israeli officials have warned of the possibility Hezbollah and Iran could attempt to set up a base to attack Israel near the border with the Israeli Golan Heights.Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Moscow, where he asked the Kremlin to make sure Iran does not gain a foothold in the area.Israel has also repeatedly vowed to prevent Hezbollah from acquiring any advanced weaponry and several strikes on such convoys over the years since the Syrian civil war began in 2011 have been attributed to Israel. Jerusalem has also claimed several of the raids, including Friday’s.“Each time we discover arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon we will act to stop them. On this there will be no compromise,” Liberman said Sunday.“The Syrians must understand that they are held responsible for these arms transfers to Hezbollah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do.”Earlier Sunday, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that Israeli aircraft struck a truck driving near the town of Khan Arnabeh in the Quneitra province, on the road to Damascus.The National Defense Force, a pro-regime militia set up in 2012, claimed the man killed was from among its ranks, naming him as Yasser Hussien Assayed.#Syria pro-regime media reporting Israeli drone targeted civilian car near Khan Arnebe in Qunitera and killed 1civilian "Yasser al-Sayed" pic.twitter.com/9XOTJbvOqP— Putintin (@putintintin1) March 19, 2017-The group, reportedly set up with the help of Hezbollah, published four pictures on Facebook it said were from the scene of the alleged airstrike. The group said an Israeli drone carried out the strike.The Lebanese news channel NBN reported that the man killed was a Syrian air defense commander. Other reports said Assayed was a civilian.
US boycotts UN discussion on Israeli human rights abuses-State Department slams Human Rights Council for ‘longstanding bias’ against Jewish state that ‘threatens its credibility’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 3:13 pm
The US on Monday issued a strongly worded statement accusing a United Nations body of longstanding bias against Israel.Amid threats from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to withdraw entirely from the United Nations Human Rights Council, the State Department announced it would boycott the council’s entire Monday discussion about alleged human rights abuses committed by Israel and vote against any resolutions that came from it.“The United States strongly and unequivocally opposes the existence of the UN Human Rights Council’s Agenda Item Seven: ‘Human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories,'” acting spokesperson Mark Toner said in a statement.Agenda Item Seven is a permanent fixture requiring the council to discuss three times each year any alleged abuses of human rights committed by Israel against Palestinians. Toner said that the item threatens the credibility of the council.“Today’s actions in the Council are yet another reminder of that body’s longstanding bias against Israel,” he said. “No other nation has an entire agenda item dedicated to it at the Council. The continued existence of this agenda item is among the largest threats to the credibility of the Council. It does not serve the interests of the Council to single out one country in an unbalanced matter.”Israel is the only country-specific issue that has a permanent place on the council’s agenda, an opening for discussion about the Jewish state that often sees anti-Israel invective delivered at council meetings from Arab and Muslim states.“Later this week, the United States will vote against every resolution put forth under this agenda item and is encouraging other countries to do the same,” Toner said.Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon also slammed to council.“The UN Human Rights Council has turned harming Israel into its raison d’etre,” he said. “The time has come to end to this shameful, and even embarrassing, chapter in the history of the UN. Members of the Council must put an end to the bias in this absurd body.”Earlier, Michael Lynk, the special rapporteur on Palestinian territories held by Israel since 1967, warned that the “illegal settlement enterprise has moved at an alarming pace” this year.The US has always boycotted the discussion of the agenda item on Israel, and for the past several years Jerusalem has encouraged other nations to do the same.Last month, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley called out the Human Rights Council for “breathtaking double standards” and “outrageously biased resolutions” against Israel, during a press conference after her first meeting with the UN Security Council.Earlier this month US envoy Erin Barclay said the United States’ commitment to human rights “is stronger than ever.” However, she slammed the council for its focus on Israel.“No other nation is the focus of an entire agenda item… The obsession with Israel… is the largest threat to this council’s credibility,” said Barclay, a career diplomat. “It limits the good we can accomplish by making a mockery of this council. The United States will oppose any effort to delegitimize or isolate Israel.Last week Tillerson sent a letter to nine nonprofit groups in which he explained that the United States may quit the council unless it makes reforms, Foreign Policy reported.In the meantime, Tillerson said, the US would reiterate its “strong principled objection to the Human Rights Council’s biased agenda against Israel.”Tillerson wrote that the US was concerned as well about membership in the council of countries accused of human rights violations, such as China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.Should US President Donald Trump’s administration opt out of the UNHRC, it wouldn’t be the first to shun the body.When the UNHRC was created out of the discredited UN Human Rights Commission in 2006, then-US president George W. Bush refused to join the new group, believing that it would lack credibility and that, like its predecessor, it would allow human right violators to become members.In 2009, president Barack Obama reversed that decision, hoping to improve the UNHRC.“With others, we will engage in the work of improving the UN human rights system,” then-secretary of state Hillary Clinton said at the time.
Israel is world’s 11th-happiest country, but…Separate poll finds that about one-third of Israeli Jews would move abroad given the opportunity-By Jacob Magid March 20, 2017, 5:41 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israel is the 11th-happiest country in the world, ranking behind such happiness superpowers as Norway, Switzerland and Canada, but above the United States, which placed 14th, Germany(16th) and the UK (19th), according to the UN’s 2017 World Happiness Report, released Monday.The survey seeks to quantify happiness as a means of making societies healthier and more efficient. The United Nations first published the annual report in 2012, when Israel placed 14th. In the four years since then, the Jewish state has remained in the 11th spot.The survey found that six main factors determined the level of happiness in the countries surveyed: gross domestic product per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, individual freedom, generosity and perceptions of corruption.Norway capped the list as the world’s most happy country, moving up three spots from last year and replacing Denmark (2nd) at the top, followed by Iceland, Switzerland and Finland.The most miserable countries were largely in sub-Saharan Africa, with Tanzania, Burundi and the Central African Republic edging out Syria for the three bottom spots on the list.However, the impressive statistics for the Jewish state arrive as a separate Israeli poll paints a gloomier picture.A survey released Monday by Masa Israeli, a Jewish identity project run in collaboration with the Education Ministry, found that 27 percent of Israeli Jews would leave the country if given the opportunity.The poll indicated that the number is even higher among secular Israelis, who polled at 36%. The demographic least likely to depart the country was shown to be religious Jews, at just 7%.Single secular males between the ages of 23 and 29 were found to be most likely to seek emigration.The poll was commissioned on the eve of Masa Israeli’s fourth conference, set to be held at the Knesset on Monday with the goal of finding new ways to build a common discourse in Israeli society.A separate segment of the survey focused on the issue of identity. Respondents were asked whether they consider themselves to be Israeli or Jewish first. Among Israelis who defined themselves as “traditional” or “religious” Jews, 83% and 90% identified as Jewish first, respectively; while with “secular” respondents, 44% identified first as Israeli and only then as Jewish.In a statement on the survey results, Masa Israeli CEO Uri Cohen said, “The very fact that so many say they would leave the country if given the opportunity suggests that many Israeli citizens do not feel a sense of belonging to the country. This is an alarming statistic.”
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Shin Bet chief: For Hamas, Passover is prime time for terror-Nadav Argaman warns lull in security incidents during 2016 is ‘deceptive,’ as terror groups still seek to carry out attacks-By Judah Ari Gross March 20, 2017, 11:01 am-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The head of the Shin Bet security service warned lawmakers on Monday that terror groups may try to carry out attacks during the Passover holiday next month.“We are just before the Passover holiday, and there is no doubt that terrorist infrastructures, mostly the established one, and specifically Hamas, will try to agitate the area and carry out attacks,” Nadav Argaman told the Knesset’s powerful Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.“Our goal, of course, is to ensure quiet holidays for every citizen of the State of Israel,” he added.Israel’s security forces regularly warn that holidays serve as opportunities for terrorist groups to conduct attacks. The Israel Defense Forces raised such concerns ahead of Passover last year as well.Jewish pilgrims often visit the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City during the holiday, often prompting Palestinian claims that settlers are “storming” the holy site, which can incite potential attackers. During interrogations, Palestinian terrorists have cited the situation on the Temple Mount as a driving force behind their attacks.During holidays, especially weeklong festivals like Passover, families are more inclined to travel and hike, and there is thus an increased risk of attacks.Therefore, for most major Jewish holidays, the IDF shuts down the crossings between the West Bank and Israel.Argaman, who took over the internal security service in May 2016, told the panel of his organization’s activities over the past year, in the midst of “highly significant geostrategic changes” in the region resulting from both the US-Russian global power struggle and the Iran nuclear deal signed in 2015.The past year, he said, saw the continuation of a “wave of terror” that began in the fall of 2015 but has waned in recent months.However, Argaman said, that calm, and security forces’ successes thus far, are deceptive.“I have to say that the quiet we have been experiencing since 2016 — this comparative quiet — is a misleading quiet, it deceives and intoxicates, and this is for one simple reason: The terrorist infrastructures of Hamas and the global jihad are working every day to carry out terror attacks within the State of Israel,” he said.The Shin Bet chief credited “technological, intelligence and operational” developments with bringing down the number of attacks.“[In 2016,] we stopped 400 potential assailants before they could carry out attacks,” he said.“And yet, I must say that in the past year, unfortunately, 16 citizens and one foreign national died as a result of terror attacks,” Argaman added.In total, 40 Israelis, two Americans, a Palestinian and an Eritrean national have been killed in the spate of stabbing, car-ramming and shooting attacks that began a year and a half ago.According to AFP figures, some 250 Palestinians, a Jordanian and a Sudanese migrant have also been killed, most of them in the course of carrying out attacks, Israel says, and many of the others in clashes with troops in the West Bank and at the Gaza border, as well as in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip in response to rocket attacks.The spate of Palestinian attacks that began in October 2015 was dubbed the “lone wolf” intifada, as many of the attacks were carried out by individuals who were not connected to any terror group.The attacks were at first attributed to tensions over Palestinian fears that Israel was seeking to change the status quo on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a charge Israel has repeatedly and vehemently denied. Palestinian leaders have argued that the primary cause for attacks during this period was despair caused by Israel’s military occupation of the West Bank.The Hamas terror group, which controls the Gaza Strip, continues to refer to each attack as part of a “Jerusalem Intifada.”
Israel will continue to defend its citizens, says UN envoy in response to Syria threats-Danon fires back at Syrian ambassador who called Friday’s raid on Hezbollah arms transfer a ‘terror operation’ and warned Syrian retaliatory missile launches were ‘game-changer’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 6:19 am
Israeli ambassador to the UN Danny Danon hit back at the Syrian envoy to the world body on Monday, calling him hypocritical for describing Israel’s airstrike Friday on a Hezbollah weapons convoy in Syrian territory as a “terrorist operation” while boasting of Syria’s retaliatory missile attacks as a game-changer.“It is the peak of hypocrisy for the ambassador of a regime that massacres its own people to level such accusations at us,” said Danon in a statement early Monday.“Israel will continue to defend its citizens and will act against any attempt to harm them,” he vowed.In an early Friday morning operation, Israeli jets hit an arms transfer meant for Hezbollah near Palmyra, with Syrian air defenses firing missiles at the planes. One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery, military officials said, in the first reported use of the advanced system. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.Speaking on Syrian state TV on Sunday, Syria’s ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari, said the Syrian response was “appropriate and in line with Israel’s terrorist operation,” and that Israel “will now think a million times [before striking again],” according to a translation cited in Ynet.“Syria’s forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game,” he said.The comment emphasized the escalating tensions between Damascus and Jerusalem in recent days and came hours before Israel reportedly carried out a number of strikes overnight Sunday-Monday, including on yet another Hezbollah weapons convoy.Syria media reported early Monday that Israeli jets took out a number of targets near the Lebanon-Syria border. The reports have not been confirmed.This came hours before an Israeli drone strike reportedly killed a member of a Syrian pro-regime militia on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights.Earlier Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems for targeting the Israeli aircraft during the bombing run Friday.“The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Liberman said on Israel Radio.Israeli officials have warned of the possibility Hezbollah and Iran could attempt to set up a base to attack Israel near the border with the Israeli Golan Heights.Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Moscow, where he asked the Kremlin to make sure Iran does not gain a foothold in the area.Israel has also repeatedly vowed to prevent Hezbollah from acquiring any advanced weaponry and several strikes on such convoys over the years since the Syrian civil war began in 2011 have been attributed to Israel. Jerusalem has also claimed several of the raids, including Friday’s.“Each time we discover arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon we will act to stop them. On this there will be no compromise,” Liberman said Sunday.“The Syrians must understand that they are held responsible for these arms transfers to Hezbollah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do.”
Top Arab MK hails ‘inspiring’ boycott activist Linda Sarsour-Ayman Odeh says the Palestinian-American, who indicated Zionism and feminism are incompatible, is a ‘freedom fighter’-By Marissa Newman and JTA March 20, 2017, 3:04 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The top Arab Israeli lawmaker heaped praise Monday on a pro-Palestinian advocate of a boycott on Israel who recently appeared to suggest that Zionism and feminism were incompatible.Ayman Odeh, the leader of the Joint (Arab) List faction, tweeted support for Linda Sarsour, calling her a “freedom fighter.”“Linda Sarsour, the freedom fighter who fights for the rights of all people! You inspire us all in our struggles,” he wrote on his official account.In an interview with The Nation last week, Sarsour — an organizer of the Women’s March in DC — indicated those who identify as Zionist cannot be feminist because they are ignoring the rights of Palestinian women.“It just doesn’t make any sense for someone to say, ‘Is there room for people who support the state of Israel and do not criticize it in the movement?’ There can’t be in feminism. You either stand up for the rights of all women, including Palestinians, or none. There’s just no way around it,” Sarsour said.She also said that Palestinian-American women in social justice movements cannot be as visible as other women because they are the target of unspecified attacks from “right-wing Zionists.”“The fact of the matter is that there are hundreds of Palestinian women organizing, but not all of them are visible. And I’ll tell you why,” Sarsour said. “You’ve probably seen that any visible Palestinian-American woman who is at the forefront of any social-justice movement is an immediate target of the right wing and right-wing Zionists. They will go to any extreme to criminalize us and to engage in alternative facts, to sew together a narrative that does not exist.”She was responding directly to criticism of the platform’s statement on Israel by Emily Shire, the politics editor of the women’s news site Bustle. Shire wrote about her dilemma as a Zionist feminist in a New York Times op-ed published March 7.“I find it troubling that embracing such a view is considered an essential part of an event that is supposed to unite feminists,” Shire wrote. “I am happy to debate Middle East politics or listen to critiques of Israeli policies. But why should criticism of Israel be key to feminism in 2017?”Shire also criticized the strike for the involvement of Rasmea Odeh, a Palestinian woman convicted and sentenced by an Israeli military court in 1970 to life in prison for her role in two bombing attacks, including one in 1969 that killed two Israelis. Odeh was among the eight authors of an op-ed in The Guardian announcing the movement. She confessed to planting the bomb, though in recent years has claimed that the confession was given under torture, which is disputed by Israeli officials.“While the fairness of Ms. Odeh’s conviction is debated, the fact that she was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which was categorized as a terrorist organization by the State Department, is not,” Shire wrote.Sarsour was in the Jewish media spotlight last month for different reasons. Following the vandalism of a Jewish cemetery outside St. Louis, she and another Muslim activist, Tarek El-Messidi, organized a fundraiser for the repair of the burial site. They raised over $160,000, far exceeding their $20,000 goal.She also condemned the omission of Jews from the White House’s Holocaust Remembrance Day statement in January as “absolutely outrageous” and “the definition of anti-Semitism.”How do you have a Remembrance Day for the holocaust and not mention Jews?! Absolutely outrageous. Definition of anti-semitism. https://t.co/onurkajVwk— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) January 29, 2017-Sarsour has stirred controversy for her support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. She has called herself “a critic of the State of Israel” and has dubbed Zionism “creepy.”Nothing is creepier than Zionism.Challenge racism, #NormalizeJustice. Check out this video by @remroum http://t.co/q282BYT8— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) October 31, 2012.
28 And when these things begin to come to pass,(ALL THE PROPHECY SIGNS FROM THE BIBLE) then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption (RAPTURE) draweth nigh.
29 And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree,(ISRAEL) and all the trees;(ALL INDEPENDENT COUNTRIES)
30 When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(ISRAEL LITERALLY BECAME AND INDEPENDENT COUNTRY JUST BEFORE SUMMER IN MAY 14,1948.)
JOEL 2:3,30
3 A fire devoureth (ATOMIC BOMB) before them;(RUSSIAN-ARAB-MUSLIM ARMIES AGAINST ISRAEL) and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.
30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.(ATOMIC BOMB AFFECT)
ZECHARIAH 14:12-13
12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their eyes shall consume away in their holes,(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB) and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.(DISOLVED FROM ATOMIC BOMB)(BECAUSE NUKES HAVE BEEN USED ON ISRAELS ENEMIES)(GOD PROTECTS ISRAEL AND ALWAYS WILL)
13 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.(1/2-3 BILLION DIE IN WW3)(THIS IS AN ATOMIC BOMB EFFECT)
EZEKIEL 20:47
47 And say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
ZEPHANIAH 1:18
18 Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the LORD'S wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land.
MALACHI 4:1
1 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven;(FROM ATOMIC BOMBS) and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE
Israel to deploy David’s Sling, final piece of missile defense shield-Senior air force officer says Jewish state still vulnerable to attack, but multi-tiered system will put it ‘one step ahead’ of enemies-By Judah Ari Gross March 20, 2017, 6:10 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israel’s David’s Sling anti-missile battery will go operational within the next two weeks, providing the finishing touch of the Jewish state’s multi-tiered missile defense array, a senior Israeli Air Force officer said Monday.The David’s Sling, also known as the Magic Wand, will make up the middle tier of Israel’s multi-layer missile defense capabilities, and with it, Israel hopes to close the gaps in its missile defense capabilities, said Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitch, head of the army’s Aerial Defense Command-Haimovitch did not give an exact date for the system’s deployment, but said on Monday afternoon that it should occur “around two weeks from today.”However, Haimovitch stressed that even with the new missile defense system, Israel is still vulnerable.The David’s Sling gives the Israel Defense Forces “more capabilities and more effectiveness,” he said, “but it’s never enough. It’s not hermetic.”The lowest layer is the Iron Dome system, capable of intercepting short-range rockets, small unmanned aerial vehicles and mortar shells like those that have been fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip or from southern Lebanon. And at the top are the Arrow 2 and Arrow 3 systems, which are intended to engage long-range ballistic missiles.David’s Sling is aimed at filling the gap between these systems.“One of the threats against us is heavy rockets, not Katyushas or Grads, which can travel 25 miles (40 kilometers), but things that can travel several hundred kilometers,” said Uzi Rubin, an expert on missile defense systems who is considered the father of the Arrow program.For examples, Rubin offered the Iranian Fateh 110 and its Syrian equivalent, the M600. “There are also things like air-to-ground weapons, which act like missiles — the David’s Sling needs to intercept those too,” Rubin said on Monday.The Fateh 110 and M600 each have a range of approximately 190 miles (300 kilometers) and can carry a half-ton warhead. They are both considered fairly accurate, though to what extent is a matter of debate, according to a US Congressional Research Service report.According to US military officials, these missiles have seen repeated use during the Syrian civil war. And since 2010, Israeli officials have said that Syrian President Bashar Assad has been giving M600 missiles to Hezbollah.“A 300-kilometer range from Lebanon — that covers the entire country,” Rubin said. “Look at a map and measure.”Threats like the M600 “are beyond the capabilities of the Iron Dome and beneath those of the Arrow,” he said.With a reported range of 40-190 miles (70-300 kilometers), that is where the David’s Sling will come in.The Defense Ministry deemed the system ready for use in December 2015. The IAF began receiving components of the system in March 2016 and has since been putting the battery through its paces. In January, the David’s Sling passed additional levels of testing.Also in January, the IAF received the Arrow-3 system, an updated version of the missile defense battery, which has been deployed in Israel since 2000.The soon-to-be-deployed David’s Sling, the Arrow-3 system and recent improvements to the Iron Dome have all been part of the army’s “huge buildup” of air defense capabilities, Haimovitch said-This expansion is necessary in light of an “arms race” in the region against Iran and Syria, as well as non-state actors like the Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic State terror groups, he said.“The operational David’s Sling, along with the Arrow 2, Arrow 3 and Iron Dome, will deal with this threat,” he said, keeping Israel “one step ahead” of its enemies.With regard to most types of missile, the military will have overlapping coverage, he said, giving “two solutions for each threat.”According to Haimovitch, the David’s Sling will provide protection for “most of our homeland.” He would not expand on what specific areas would be covered by the missile defense battery and which regions would be vulnerable.The officer’s reticence should be expected, Rubin said.“That’s something that Hezbollah would like to know too,” he said, with a laugh.
Israel said to strike Syria for second time in 24 hours, amid threats from Damascus-Unconfirmed reports indicate jets hit Hezbollah weapons convoy, military targets, hours after drone strike in Syrian Golan; Syria UN envoy says retaliatory missile launches during Friday raid a ‘game-changer’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 2:25 am
Israel is said to have struck Syria overnight Sunday-Monday, the second strike in 24 hours and third in three days as tensions escalated between the two countries over the weekend.Syria media reported early Monday that Israeli jets took out a number of targets near the Lebanon-Syria border including a Hezbollah weapons convoy and Syrian military sites.The reports have not been confirmed.Earlier Sunday, an Israeli drone strike reportedly killed a member of a Syrian pro-regime militia, an attack that came two days after Israeli jets, in an early Friday morning operation, hit an arms transfer meant for Hezbollah near Palmyra, with Syrian air defenses firing missiles at the planes.One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery, military officials said, in the first reported use of the advanced system. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.On Sunday evening, Syria’s ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Jaafari said Syria’s response to Friday’s strike was a “game-changer.”Speaking on Syrian state TV, Jaafari said the military’s response was “appropriate and in line with Israel’s terrorist operation,” and that Israel “will now think a million times [before striking again],” according to a translation cited in Ynet.“Syria’s forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game,” he said.His comments came hours after Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems for targeting the Israeli aircraft during the bombing run Friday.“The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Liberman said on Israel Radio.Israeli officials have warned of the possibility Hezbollah and Iran could attempt to set up a base to attack Israel near the border with the Israeli Golan Heights.Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Moscow, where he asked the Kremlin to make sure Iran does not gain a foothold in the area.Israel has also repeatedly vowed to prevent Hezbollah from acquiring any advanced weaponry and several strikes on such convoys over the years since the Syrian civil war began in 2011 have been attributed to Israel. Jerusalem has also claimed several of the raids, including Friday’s.“Each time we discover arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon we will act to stop them. On this there will be no compromise,” Liberman said Sunday.“The Syrians must understand that they are held responsible for these arms transfers to Hezbollah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do.”Earlier Sunday, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that Israeli aircraft struck a truck driving near the town of Khan Arnabeh in the Quneitra province, on the road to Damascus.The National Defense Force, a pro-regime militia set up in 2012, claimed the man killed was from among its ranks, naming him as Yasser Hussien Assayed.#Syria pro-regime media reporting Israeli drone targeted civilian car near Khan Arnebe in Qunitera and killed 1civilian "Yasser al-Sayed" pic.twitter.com/9XOTJbvOqP— Putintin (@putintintin1) March 19, 2017-The group, reportedly set up with the help of Hezbollah, published four pictures on Facebook it said were from the scene of the alleged airstrike. The group said an Israeli drone carried out the strike.The Lebanese news channel NBN reported that the man killed was a Syrian air defense commander. Other reports said Assayed was a civilian.
US boycotts UN discussion on Israeli human rights abuses-State Department slams Human Rights Council for ‘longstanding bias’ against Jewish state that ‘threatens its credibility’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 3:13 pm
The US on Monday issued a strongly worded statement accusing a United Nations body of longstanding bias against Israel.Amid threats from Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to withdraw entirely from the United Nations Human Rights Council, the State Department announced it would boycott the council’s entire Monday discussion about alleged human rights abuses committed by Israel and vote against any resolutions that came from it.“The United States strongly and unequivocally opposes the existence of the UN Human Rights Council’s Agenda Item Seven: ‘Human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories,'” acting spokesperson Mark Toner said in a statement.Agenda Item Seven is a permanent fixture requiring the council to discuss three times each year any alleged abuses of human rights committed by Israel against Palestinians. Toner said that the item threatens the credibility of the council.“Today’s actions in the Council are yet another reminder of that body’s longstanding bias against Israel,” he said. “No other nation has an entire agenda item dedicated to it at the Council. The continued existence of this agenda item is among the largest threats to the credibility of the Council. It does not serve the interests of the Council to single out one country in an unbalanced matter.”Israel is the only country-specific issue that has a permanent place on the council’s agenda, an opening for discussion about the Jewish state that often sees anti-Israel invective delivered at council meetings from Arab and Muslim states.“Later this week, the United States will vote against every resolution put forth under this agenda item and is encouraging other countries to do the same,” Toner said.Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon also slammed to council.“The UN Human Rights Council has turned harming Israel into its raison d’etre,” he said. “The time has come to end to this shameful, and even embarrassing, chapter in the history of the UN. Members of the Council must put an end to the bias in this absurd body.”Earlier, Michael Lynk, the special rapporteur on Palestinian territories held by Israel since 1967, warned that the “illegal settlement enterprise has moved at an alarming pace” this year.The US has always boycotted the discussion of the agenda item on Israel, and for the past several years Jerusalem has encouraged other nations to do the same.Last month, US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley called out the Human Rights Council for “breathtaking double standards” and “outrageously biased resolutions” against Israel, during a press conference after her first meeting with the UN Security Council.Earlier this month US envoy Erin Barclay said the United States’ commitment to human rights “is stronger than ever.” However, she slammed the council for its focus on Israel.“No other nation is the focus of an entire agenda item… The obsession with Israel… is the largest threat to this council’s credibility,” said Barclay, a career diplomat. “It limits the good we can accomplish by making a mockery of this council. The United States will oppose any effort to delegitimize or isolate Israel.Last week Tillerson sent a letter to nine nonprofit groups in which he explained that the United States may quit the council unless it makes reforms, Foreign Policy reported.In the meantime, Tillerson said, the US would reiterate its “strong principled objection to the Human Rights Council’s biased agenda against Israel.”Tillerson wrote that the US was concerned as well about membership in the council of countries accused of human rights violations, such as China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.Should US President Donald Trump’s administration opt out of the UNHRC, it wouldn’t be the first to shun the body.When the UNHRC was created out of the discredited UN Human Rights Commission in 2006, then-US president George W. Bush refused to join the new group, believing that it would lack credibility and that, like its predecessor, it would allow human right violators to become members.In 2009, president Barack Obama reversed that decision, hoping to improve the UNHRC.“With others, we will engage in the work of improving the UN human rights system,” then-secretary of state Hillary Clinton said at the time.
Israel is world’s 11th-happiest country, but…Separate poll finds that about one-third of Israeli Jews would move abroad given the opportunity-By Jacob Magid March 20, 2017, 5:41 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
Israel is the 11th-happiest country in the world, ranking behind such happiness superpowers as Norway, Switzerland and Canada, but above the United States, which placed 14th, Germany(16th) and the UK (19th), according to the UN’s 2017 World Happiness Report, released Monday.The survey seeks to quantify happiness as a means of making societies healthier and more efficient. The United Nations first published the annual report in 2012, when Israel placed 14th. In the four years since then, the Jewish state has remained in the 11th spot.The survey found that six main factors determined the level of happiness in the countries surveyed: gross domestic product per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, individual freedom, generosity and perceptions of corruption.Norway capped the list as the world’s most happy country, moving up three spots from last year and replacing Denmark (2nd) at the top, followed by Iceland, Switzerland and Finland.The most miserable countries were largely in sub-Saharan Africa, with Tanzania, Burundi and the Central African Republic edging out Syria for the three bottom spots on the list.However, the impressive statistics for the Jewish state arrive as a separate Israeli poll paints a gloomier picture.A survey released Monday by Masa Israeli, a Jewish identity project run in collaboration with the Education Ministry, found that 27 percent of Israeli Jews would leave the country if given the opportunity.The poll indicated that the number is even higher among secular Israelis, who polled at 36%. The demographic least likely to depart the country was shown to be religious Jews, at just 7%.Single secular males between the ages of 23 and 29 were found to be most likely to seek emigration.The poll was commissioned on the eve of Masa Israeli’s fourth conference, set to be held at the Knesset on Monday with the goal of finding new ways to build a common discourse in Israeli society.A separate segment of the survey focused on the issue of identity. Respondents were asked whether they consider themselves to be Israeli or Jewish first. Among Israelis who defined themselves as “traditional” or “religious” Jews, 83% and 90% identified as Jewish first, respectively; while with “secular” respondents, 44% identified first as Israeli and only then as Jewish.In a statement on the survey results, Masa Israeli CEO Uri Cohen said, “The very fact that so many say they would leave the country if given the opportunity suggests that many Israeli citizens do not feel a sense of belonging to the country. This is an alarming statistic.”
ISRAEL SATAN COMES AGAINST
1 CHRONICLES 21:1
1 And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.
GENESIS 12:1-3
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I (GOD) will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee,(ISRAELIS) and curse (DESTROY) him that curseth thee:(DESTROY THEM) and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
ISAIAH 41:11
11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee (ISRAEL) shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing;(DESTROYED) and they that strive with thee shall perish.(ISRAEL HATERS WILL BE TOTALLY DESTROYED)
ISRAELS TROUBLE
JEREMIAH 30:7
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob’s trouble;(ISRAEL) but he shall be saved out of it.
DANIEL 12:1,4
1 And at that time shall Michael(ISRAELS WAR ANGEL) stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:(ISRAEL) and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation(May 14,48) even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro,(WORLD TRAVEL,IMMIGRATION) and knowledge shall be increased.(COMPUTERS,CHIP IMPLANTS ETC)
Shin Bet chief: For Hamas, Passover is prime time for terror-Nadav Argaman warns lull in security incidents during 2016 is ‘deceptive,’ as terror groups still seek to carry out attacks-By Judah Ari Gross March 20, 2017, 11:01 am-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The head of the Shin Bet security service warned lawmakers on Monday that terror groups may try to carry out attacks during the Passover holiday next month.“We are just before the Passover holiday, and there is no doubt that terrorist infrastructures, mostly the established one, and specifically Hamas, will try to agitate the area and carry out attacks,” Nadav Argaman told the Knesset’s powerful Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee.“Our goal, of course, is to ensure quiet holidays for every citizen of the State of Israel,” he added.Israel’s security forces regularly warn that holidays serve as opportunities for terrorist groups to conduct attacks. The Israel Defense Forces raised such concerns ahead of Passover last year as well.Jewish pilgrims often visit the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City during the holiday, often prompting Palestinian claims that settlers are “storming” the holy site, which can incite potential attackers. During interrogations, Palestinian terrorists have cited the situation on the Temple Mount as a driving force behind their attacks.During holidays, especially weeklong festivals like Passover, families are more inclined to travel and hike, and there is thus an increased risk of attacks.Therefore, for most major Jewish holidays, the IDF shuts down the crossings between the West Bank and Israel.Argaman, who took over the internal security service in May 2016, told the panel of his organization’s activities over the past year, in the midst of “highly significant geostrategic changes” in the region resulting from both the US-Russian global power struggle and the Iran nuclear deal signed in 2015.The past year, he said, saw the continuation of a “wave of terror” that began in the fall of 2015 but has waned in recent months.However, Argaman said, that calm, and security forces’ successes thus far, are deceptive.“I have to say that the quiet we have been experiencing since 2016 — this comparative quiet — is a misleading quiet, it deceives and intoxicates, and this is for one simple reason: The terrorist infrastructures of Hamas and the global jihad are working every day to carry out terror attacks within the State of Israel,” he said.The Shin Bet chief credited “technological, intelligence and operational” developments with bringing down the number of attacks.“[In 2016,] we stopped 400 potential assailants before they could carry out attacks,” he said.“And yet, I must say that in the past year, unfortunately, 16 citizens and one foreign national died as a result of terror attacks,” Argaman added.In total, 40 Israelis, two Americans, a Palestinian and an Eritrean national have been killed in the spate of stabbing, car-ramming and shooting attacks that began a year and a half ago.According to AFP figures, some 250 Palestinians, a Jordanian and a Sudanese migrant have also been killed, most of them in the course of carrying out attacks, Israel says, and many of the others in clashes with troops in the West Bank and at the Gaza border, as well as in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip in response to rocket attacks.The spate of Palestinian attacks that began in October 2015 was dubbed the “lone wolf” intifada, as many of the attacks were carried out by individuals who were not connected to any terror group.The attacks were at first attributed to tensions over Palestinian fears that Israel was seeking to change the status quo on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a charge Israel has repeatedly and vehemently denied. Palestinian leaders have argued that the primary cause for attacks during this period was despair caused by Israel’s military occupation of the West Bank.The Hamas terror group, which controls the Gaza Strip, continues to refer to each attack as part of a “Jerusalem Intifada.”
Israel will continue to defend its citizens, says UN envoy in response to Syria threats-Danon fires back at Syrian ambassador who called Friday’s raid on Hezbollah arms transfer a ‘terror operation’ and warned Syrian retaliatory missile launches were ‘game-changer’-By Times of Israel staff March 20, 2017, 6:19 am
Israeli ambassador to the UN Danny Danon hit back at the Syrian envoy to the world body on Monday, calling him hypocritical for describing Israel’s airstrike Friday on a Hezbollah weapons convoy in Syrian territory as a “terrorist operation” while boasting of Syria’s retaliatory missile attacks as a game-changer.“It is the peak of hypocrisy for the ambassador of a regime that massacres its own people to level such accusations at us,” said Danon in a statement early Monday.“Israel will continue to defend its citizens and will act against any attempt to harm them,” he vowed.In an early Friday morning operation, Israeli jets hit an arms transfer meant for Hezbollah near Palmyra, with Syrian air defenses firing missiles at the planes. One missile was intercepted by Israel’s Arrow missile defense battery, military officials said, in the first reported use of the advanced system. It was the most serious incident between the two countries since the Syrian civil war began six years ago.Speaking on Syrian state TV on Sunday, Syria’s ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari, said the Syrian response was “appropriate and in line with Israel’s terrorist operation,” and that Israel “will now think a million times [before striking again],” according to a translation cited in Ynet.“Syria’s forceful response to the Israeli attacks changed the rules of the game,” he said.The comment emphasized the escalating tensions between Damascus and Jerusalem in recent days and came hours before Israel reportedly carried out a number of strikes overnight Sunday-Monday, including on yet another Hezbollah weapons convoy.Syria media reported early Monday that Israeli jets took out a number of targets near the Lebanon-Syria border. The reports have not been confirmed.This came hours before an Israeli drone strike reportedly killed a member of a Syrian pro-regime militia on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights.Earlier Sunday, Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman threatened to destroy Syrian air defense systems for targeting the Israeli aircraft during the bombing run Friday.“The next time the Syrians use their air defense systems against our planes we will destroy them without the slightest hesitation,” Liberman said on Israel Radio.Israeli officials have warned of the possibility Hezbollah and Iran could attempt to set up a base to attack Israel near the border with the Israeli Golan Heights.Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Moscow, where he asked the Kremlin to make sure Iran does not gain a foothold in the area.Israel has also repeatedly vowed to prevent Hezbollah from acquiring any advanced weaponry and several strikes on such convoys over the years since the Syrian civil war began in 2011 have been attributed to Israel. Jerusalem has also claimed several of the raids, including Friday’s.“Each time we discover arms transfers from Syria to Lebanon we will act to stop them. On this there will be no compromise,” Liberman said Sunday.“The Syrians must understand that they are held responsible for these arms transfers to Hezbollah and that if they continue to allow them then we will do what we have to do.”
Top Arab MK hails ‘inspiring’ boycott activist Linda Sarsour-Ayman Odeh says the Palestinian-American, who indicated Zionism and feminism are incompatible, is a ‘freedom fighter’-By Marissa Newman and JTA March 20, 2017, 3:04 pm-THE TIMES OF ISRAEL
The top Arab Israeli lawmaker heaped praise Monday on a pro-Palestinian advocate of a boycott on Israel who recently appeared to suggest that Zionism and feminism were incompatible.Ayman Odeh, the leader of the Joint (Arab) List faction, tweeted support for Linda Sarsour, calling her a “freedom fighter.”“Linda Sarsour, the freedom fighter who fights for the rights of all people! You inspire us all in our struggles,” he wrote on his official account.In an interview with The Nation last week, Sarsour — an organizer of the Women’s March in DC — indicated those who identify as Zionist cannot be feminist because they are ignoring the rights of Palestinian women.“It just doesn’t make any sense for someone to say, ‘Is there room for people who support the state of Israel and do not criticize it in the movement?’ There can’t be in feminism. You either stand up for the rights of all women, including Palestinians, or none. There’s just no way around it,” Sarsour said.She also said that Palestinian-American women in social justice movements cannot be as visible as other women because they are the target of unspecified attacks from “right-wing Zionists.”“The fact of the matter is that there are hundreds of Palestinian women organizing, but not all of them are visible. And I’ll tell you why,” Sarsour said. “You’ve probably seen that any visible Palestinian-American woman who is at the forefront of any social-justice movement is an immediate target of the right wing and right-wing Zionists. They will go to any extreme to criminalize us and to engage in alternative facts, to sew together a narrative that does not exist.”She was responding directly to criticism of the platform’s statement on Israel by Emily Shire, the politics editor of the women’s news site Bustle. Shire wrote about her dilemma as a Zionist feminist in a New York Times op-ed published March 7.“I find it troubling that embracing such a view is considered an essential part of an event that is supposed to unite feminists,” Shire wrote. “I am happy to debate Middle East politics or listen to critiques of Israeli policies. But why should criticism of Israel be key to feminism in 2017?”Shire also criticized the strike for the involvement of Rasmea Odeh, a Palestinian woman convicted and sentenced by an Israeli military court in 1970 to life in prison for her role in two bombing attacks, including one in 1969 that killed two Israelis. Odeh was among the eight authors of an op-ed in The Guardian announcing the movement. She confessed to planting the bomb, though in recent years has claimed that the confession was given under torture, which is disputed by Israeli officials.“While the fairness of Ms. Odeh’s conviction is debated, the fact that she was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which was categorized as a terrorist organization by the State Department, is not,” Shire wrote.Sarsour was in the Jewish media spotlight last month for different reasons. Following the vandalism of a Jewish cemetery outside St. Louis, she and another Muslim activist, Tarek El-Messidi, organized a fundraiser for the repair of the burial site. They raised over $160,000, far exceeding their $20,000 goal.She also condemned the omission of Jews from the White House’s Holocaust Remembrance Day statement in January as “absolutely outrageous” and “the definition of anti-Semitism.”How do you have a Remembrance Day for the holocaust and not mention Jews?! Absolutely outrageous. Definition of anti-semitism. https://t.co/onurkajVwk— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) January 29, 2017-Sarsour has stirred controversy for her support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. She has called herself “a critic of the State of Israel” and has dubbed Zionism “creepy.”Nothing is creepier than Zionism.Challenge racism, #NormalizeJustice. Check out this video by @remroum http://t.co/q282BYT8— Linda Sarsour (@lsarsour) October 31, 2012.
