Shalom from the beautiful Mediterranean waters between Santorini, Greece, and Sicily, Italy! We are on day six of our ten day Discovering Daniel & Revealing Revelation Mediterranean Cruise. So far, we’ve seen biblical locations like Ephesus and Athens, as well as beautiful areas like Istanbul and Mykonos. But most exciting of all is that we’ve been able to teach through the entire book of Daniel already and are well into Revelation. It’s been a wonderful time getting to know 650 of our newest best friends, and it’s quite honestly been quite nice for my wife and me to temporarily get away to a place where we don’t need to worry about things dropping from the sky onto our heads.
Out here on the serene sea, it becomes just a little clearer how people can begin to forget what originally got Israel in the war. The calm waters and the beautiful sights are so different from what I’m constantly seeing back home. But we cannot forget October 7 and all the heinous actions of Hamas. That is one of the reasons why Steve Yohn and I have written The Sick Man’s Rage. The first quarter of the book is a reminder of the horror and tragedy that took place that terrible October day. The thriller then points an accusatory finger at all those who sided with the terrorists, including those who did so more subtly, like Turkey. The book is releasing in six weeks. Now is the time to get your preorders in, so that you can be sure to have them in time for Christmas and so we can be guaranteed that the books get into the big box stores like Walmart, Target, and Hobby Lobby.
The Middle East
Assassination Attempt on Netanyahu
The nation of Israel survived a bit of a close call this past week. A UAV was fired by Hezbollah forces toward the home of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara. Thankfully, the couple were not at home at the time, and the attack caused no injuries. The PM responded by calling the attempted assassination a “grave mistake” and warned on X that “This will not deter me or the State of Israel from continuing our just war against our enemies in order to secure our future.” While the attack was carried out by Hezbollah, there is credible evidence that Iran was behind it. Thus, no one should be surprised that the Islamic regime quickly tried to cover its failure with bravado saying that there would be major destruction to Israel if Netanyahu’s people came after Supreme Leader Khamenei.
Lebanon
It has been a very rough week for Lebanon. For lack of a better phrase, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) is bombing the heck out of Hezbollah. The Dahieh neighborhood of Beirut in particular has been the recipient of the IAF’s focus due to the area’s locations for weapons manufacturing and storage. The fact that it is also home to some of Hezbollah’s primary headquarters makes it an even juicier target.
Other areas of Lebanon have been feeling the brunt of Israel’s force, also. Tyre has seen many sorties taking out terrorist strongholds. Also, in the south, much of the town of Kfarkela has been reduced to ruins. Just across the border from Metula, Israel, Hezbollah has shielded itself in Kfarkela as they shot anti-tank rockets and mortar shells at the Israelis. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has put a strong effort into seeing that this activity ceases.
Gaza
Let me start here with a brief reminder that Yahya Sinwar is dead, killed by a sniper’s bullet. The pictures were not pretty, but they were definitive. When he was finally dispatched last Thursday, he was panicked, helpless, and alone. It seems so appropriate. And if your heart feels a slight twinge of pity for him, take a look on my Telegram at the thousands who went to the sight of the Nova festival to pray on Tuesday, the day that marked the one year anniversary of the event on the Jewish calendar. There are still too many tears to be shed over the victims at the festival and throughout southern Israel to have any left over for the man who perpetrated it all.
The fight still rages in Gaza. The IDF is determined to clear the terrorists out of the northern part of the region. But because Hamas entrenches itself with the population, it is essential to get everyone out of the area and move them down to the humanitarian zone near Khan Yunis. Once that’s done, all the terrorist weapons and infrastructure can be cleared out. Emptying the northern Gaza Strip, including Gaza City, will be the biggest blow to Hamas’s survival. It will also finally allow Israel to retake the effort to get humanitarian aid to those who need it. Once the populace doesn’t depend upon Hamas for aid distribution, the terrorists won’t be needed anymore.
To this end, last week thousands of civilians in Jabalia were warned by the IDF to flee. Hamas resisted the effort because they were using the Gazan citizens as shields. Somehow, the population managed to break free and move out, allowing the IDF to move in. Now, amidst all the bullets and explosions, hundreds of terrorists are coming out of their holes to surrender.
In a new intelligence revelation that surprised no one, six Al-Jazeera journalists were discovered to be operatives in Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist organizations. With various functions, such as sniper, deputy head of a propaganda unit, and leader of a rocket launching squad, these journo-terrorists took embedding just a little too far. Al-Jazeera, using an “I’m rubber, you’re glue” defense strongly denied the accusations and attempted a reversal saying that Israel targets their reporters.
Israeli Security Breach
Speaking of people working undercover, Israeli intelligence arrested seven people for spying for Iran. Originally from Azerbaijan, the group received cryptocurrency from Tehran for photographing and gathering information on key military sites all over Israel. They carried out their espionage for two years and are reported to have completed 600 missions. This is one of the most serious security breaches in Israel in recent years.
United States Security Breach
And, while we’re on the subject of espionage, it seems that the Defense Department in Washington sprung its own leak. Ariane Tabatabai, chief of staff of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and a U.S. naval intelligence officer, leaked classified documents about Israel to Iran. However, that’s just what we know about for sure right now. This woman had access to all naval movements and all special forces operations in the world, including the Middle East. Who knows what she might have passed on? What’s so aggravating is that there was credible information that she was spying back in October 2023, and not only did the Biden administration choose not to pursue it, but she was able to keep her security clearance. Unbelievable!
More from the U.S.
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken made another visit to Israel Tuesday. His message? Don’t attack Iran, stop the war in Gaza, and send more food to Hamas. Okay, he said to send food to the Gazan citizens, but everyone knows who actually gets the humanitarian aid. I feel badly that the SecState had to travel all the way to Israel for another conversation that would be roundly ignored. My suggestion is that he just sends a recording of himself giving his usual spiel to Netanyahu. That way, whenever the person making the real decisions in the White House says to go bug the Israelis again, Blinken can just call up the PM and say, “Hey, Bibi, mind playing that video again?” Netanyahu could tell him “sure”, then have it running in the background while he and his staff got real work done.
It's less than two weeks before the U.S. election. Want more evidence that your vote is important? The Wall Street Journal reported that Yahya Sinwar cited liberal Israeli opposition and pressure from the White House as reasons for refusing a hostage deal. In other words, without the radical Israelis and the double-speaking U.S. administration, we might have our hostages home by now. Again, America, your vote counts!
Turkey
Two armed men stormed the Turkish Aerospace Industries headquarters near the Ankara airport yesterday. In the ensuing melee, five people were killed and 22 more were injured. The attackers, identified by Turkish authorities as members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), were both killed on site.
The Ministry
Just because the cruise is going on doesn’t mean that Behold Israel has shut down regular operations. On Monday, we released a wonderful video with Dr. Rick Yohn and me called “Explore the Bible: How We Got the English Bible”. In this first in a two-part series, Rick and I looked at how we got from Wycliffe to the King James Bible. It’s a fascinating study with a lot of unexpected stories mixed in.
On Wednesday, I was with Steve Yohn for our inaugural Authors’ Corner. Our focus was on The Sick Man’s Rage – its origins, its purpose, along with a little glimpse into its storyline. It was a fun time and is well-worth watching. By the way, if you want to view our well-produced trailer for the new book, check it out.
I know there have been struggles for some of you who like to monitor my Telegram channel from outside of the app. Let me assure you, this is a Telegram issue and there is nothing we can do about it. If you want to join my Telegram channel, you may do so here.
Again, it’s a beautiful day on the boat and I want to get back to meeting people, so I’m going to keep this a little shorter than usual. Thank you for your prayers for the ministry and for Israel. You are a true blessing, and I am grateful to the Lord for your love and support.
Awaiting His Return,
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