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Every week, we post seven to ten news stories from Israel with a suggested prayer focus and scripture for each one, guiding readers how to pray for Israel’s most urgent needs. This Prayer Update is also sent to over 18,000 subscribers every Friday by e-mail. Sign up HERE if you would like to receive this Prayer Update by e-mail.
The Ceasefire with Lebanon: These are the Provisions and the US Guarantees
by Itamar Eichner, Daniel Edelson ~ Ynetnews
US President Joe Biden and Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu
Wednesday, 27 November 2024 | On October 8, 2023, Hezbollah joined the fighting against Israel, a day after the surprise attack launched by Hamas. Almost a year and two months later, on Tuesday night the Security Cabinet approved the agreement that will put an end to fighting in the north.
According to the plan, the ceasefire will come into effect at 4 a.m. on Wednesday. The agreement passed in the Security Cabinet with 10 in favor and one against, Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
“Israel appreciates the US contribution to the process, and maintains its right to act against any threat to its security,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement after the announcement of the ceasefire.
The statement added that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “spoke to US President Joe Biden and thanked him for the US involvement in achieving the ceasefire agreement in Lebanon and for the understanding that Israel maintains freedom of action in enforcing it.”
The dissolution of Hezbollah does not appear in the agreement, which only says that it will not operate in southern Lebanon. In addition, there is no commitment that Hezbollah operatives will not return to the border area. On the other hand, the US guarantee letter, which is a side agreement, allows for Israeli intelligence flights , but the planes will be prohibited from breaking the sound barrier.
Prime Minister Netanyahu listed the reasons that he said led to his decision to agree to the ceasefire, including “the delay in armaments that will be resolved soon,” but did not call on the residents of the north to return to their homes.
These are the 13 Points Included in the Agreement:
1) Hezbollah and all other armed groups in Lebanese territory will not carry out any offensive action against Israel.
2) At the same time, Israel will not carry out any offensive military action against targets in Lebanon, including on the ground, in the air and at sea.
3) Israel and Lebanon recognize the importance of Resolution 1701 of the UN Security Council, which calls for the withdrawal of Hezbollah and other forces from Lebanon south of the Litani River.
4) These commitments do not negate the right of Israel and Lebanon to exercise their right to self-defense.
5) The official Lebanese security forces and army will be the only armed entities that will be allowed to carry weapons or operate their forces in southern Lebanon.
6) Any sale, supply and production of weapons or materials related to weapons to Lebanon will be under the supervision and control of the Lebanese government.
7) All unauthorized facilities for the production of weapons and materials related to weapons will be dismantled.
8) All military infrastructure and bases will be dismantled, and all weapons without a permit that do not comply with these obligations will be confiscated.
9) A committee will be established that will be acceptable to Israel and Lebanon to oversee and assist in ensuring the enforcement of these commitments.
10) Israel and Lebanon will submit reports on any expected violations of these commitments to the committee and the UNIFIL [United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon] force.
11) Lebanon will deploy its official security forces and military forces along all borders, crossing points and the line that defines southern Lebanon, as shown in the deployment plan.
12) Israel will gradually withdraw south of the Blue Line within 60 days.
13) The US will promote indirect negotiations between Israel and Lebanon to reach a recognized land border.
The US Guarantees to Israel
Alongside this, the US provided guarantees to Israel. These are the sections that are included in the US guarantee letter:
* Israel and the US intend to share sensitive intelligence concerning violations, including any infiltration by Hezbollah into the Lebanese army.
* The US may share information provided by Israel with the Lebanese government or commission to allow them to address the violations.
* The US is committed to cooperating with Israel to curb Iran’s destabilizing activities in Lebanon, including preventing the transfer of weapons, affiliates and others from Iranian territory.
* The US recognizes Israel’s right to respond to threats coming from Lebanese territory in accordance with international law.
* In the southern region, Israel reserves the right to act at any time against violations of the commitments. Outside the southern region, Israel reserves the right to act against the development of threats directed against it, if Lebanon is unable or unwilling to thwart these threats. If Israel decides to take such steps, it will inform the US of this wherever possible.
* Israeli flights over Lebanon will be conducted for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance purposes only and will not break the sound barrier.
‘The War Will Not End Until We Achieve All Our Goals’
Netanyahu released a pre-recorded statement ahead of the announcement of the ceasefire, which allowed him to side-step questions from reporters.
“I promised you victory, and we will achieve victory. We will complete the elimination of Hamas, we will return all our hostages, we will ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel and we will return the residents of the north safely to their homes,” said the prime minister at the beginning of his statement that was recorded before the debate on approving the ceasefire in the cabinet. “The war will not end until we achieve all our goals, until we return the residents of the north safely home. It will happen, just as it happened in the south. My friends, the residents of the north, I am proud of you, your ability to endure, I am fully committed to your future.”
Netanyahu also detailed Israel’s actions in the various sectors of the war, including the struggles against Iran, Hamas in Gaza, the terrorist organizations in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria], the Houthis in Yemen and the pro-Palestinian militias in Iraq. Referring to the war in the north, Netanyahu said that “Hezbollah chose to attack us from there on October 8. We set it back decades.
“We eliminated Nasrallah; we eliminated all the senior officials of the organization [Hezbollah] and thousands of terrorists, and we destroyed most of the rocket capabilities and the infrastructure it built near our border,” he added. “We have eliminated thousands of terrorists and destroyed the underground infrastructure near our border for years. We have attacked strategic targets throughout Lebanon and brought down dozens of terrorist towers in Dahieh. All of this sounded like science fiction, But it’s not science fiction, we did it.”
“At every moment of managing this campaign, I observe all fronts simultaneously. That is what I did at the beginning of the war when I decided to focus on Gaza and not open a broader front in Lebanon. That is what I did several months ago when the conditions ripened to go north, and then we decided to focus on Hezbollah,” he said.
“Therefore, this evening I will bring a ceasefire outline for the cabinet’s approval. The length of the ceasefire depends on what happens in Lebanon. With the United States’ full understanding, we maintain full freedom of military action. If Hezbollah violates the agreement and tries to arm itself, we will attack. If it tries to rebuild terrorist infrastructure near the border, we will attack. If it launches a rocket, if it digs a tunnel, if it brings in a truck carrying rockets, we will attack.”
The prime minister listed the reasons for the ceasefire in the north:
“The first reason is to focus on the Iranian threat, and I will not expand on that.
“The second reason is to give our forces a breather and replenish stocks. And I say it openly, it is no secret that there have been big delays in weapons and munitions deliveries. These delays will be resolved soon. We will receive supplies of advanced weaponry that will keep our soldiers safe and give us more strike force to complete our mission.
“And the third reason for having a ceasefire is to separate the fronts and isolate Hamas. From day two of the war, Hamas was counting on Hezbollah to fight by its side. With Hezbollah out of the picture, Hamas is left on its own. We will increase our pressure on Hamas and that will help us in our sacred mission of releasing our hostages.”
Photo Credit: US Embassy Tel Aviv/Flickr/Wikimedia.org
Photo License: Wikimedia
Prayer Focus
Continue to pray for Prime Minister Netanyahu as he leads the nation of Israel in this difficult time of war. Pray that he will seek wisdom from the Lord, pray also for his physical strength and endurance. Pray that the ceasefire will accomplish the goals Prime Minister Netanyahu set out: to allow Israel to focus on Iran, the greater enemy; to give the IDF soldiers a breather; and to isolate Hamas from its ally in the north.
Scripture
You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.
IDF Destroyed ‘Most Strategic’ Hezbollah Missile Production Site Shortly Before Ceasefire
by Yoav Zitun ~ Ynetnews
The IDF destroyed a Hezbollah missile production site in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border (illustrative).
Thursday, 28 November 2024 | The Israel Defense Forces [IDF] announced Wednesday that it bombed a Hezbollah missile production site in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley shortly before the ceasefire went into effect.
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari described the site as Hezbollah’s largest precision-guided missile production facility, located in an underground compound near the Syrian border.
“Due to its proximity, the site was a central point through which thousands of weapons components and even terrorist operatives were smuggled from Syria and Lebanon,” the military said in a statement.
The IDF also struck areas near the facility, including a key compound used by Hezbollah’s elite Radwan [special operation] forces for training exercises aimed at an invasion of northern Israel.
“Hezbollah’s production capacity in Lebanon has increased over the past decade with Iranian support as a mechanism for arming the terrorist organization with precision-guided missiles, after several attempts made by Iran to smuggle missiles to Hezbollah were thwarted by Israel,” the IDF said.
“As part of this effort, several production sites were established throughout Lebanon, which centered upon the site that was struck on Tuesday.”
The military claimed Iranian operatives worked alongside Hezbollah at the site, aiding in its construction and operation. “This is Hezbollah’s most strategic missile production infrastructure in Lebanon that was struck during the war. The strike was made possible following precise intelligence that was collected and built over the years,” the military added.
Photo Credit: IDF Spokesperson Unit/Wikimedia.org
Photo License: Wikimedia
Prayer Focus
Give thanks for the precise intelligence by which the IDF was able to target and destroy Hezbollah’s strategic missile production site. Pray for the continued collection of such intelligence and the wisdom to know when to use it. Give thanks that this strike has removed one of Hezbollah’s largest sources of missiles and pray that it will not able to be rebuilt or replaced in any way.
Scripture
But I know your dwelling place, your going out and your coming in, and your rage against Me. Because your rage against Me and your tumult have come up to My ears, therefore I will put My hook in your nose and My bridle in your lips, and I will turn you back by the way which you came.
Heroes on the Frontline: Celebrating Israeli First Responders
by Carin M. Smilk ~ JNS
Hilel Jonathan Jolodenco, head of ambulance services for Magen David Adom in Sderot.
Tuesday, 26 November 2024 | Hilel Jonathan Jolodenco recalled the morning of October 7, 2023, as one that started out rather normally. He heard alarms at 6:30 a.m. in Sderot, in the south of Israel, where he lives and works as a paramedic and the city’s head of ambulance services for Magen David Adom [MDA, Israel’s national emergency and ambulance service]. But he wasn’t ruffled.
“I think I just got used to it—the ‘emergency normality,’” the 34-year-old, originally from Argentina, told JNS. “There’s always an emergency.”
He was referring to his line of work and the fact that Sderot—less than a mile [1.6 km] from the border with the Gaza Strip—has been a primary target of rockets launched by the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror organizations for more than 20 years.
But then he saw men running by the window of his home firing machine guns. His first thought was, “Who’s shooting a movie on a Saturday morning?”
Jolodenco called dispatch, learned what was happening and was told not to go outside. And so he didn’t for a full two hours. Finally, he left and made it to the nearby MDA station, where three staff members were trying to respond to calls of injuries from Hamas-led terrorists that had overrun Sderot.
General protocol is initial basic care at the station, after which first responders transport the wounded to Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon, about 20 minutes away. They had about 15 ambulances but only one that was bulletproof (they have since gotten one more). So, Jolodenco said, “we had to improvise.”
This meant that as they managed to reach people and people started to reach them, they had to drive individuals, one at a time, to the hospital in the sole bulletproof vehicle. Additionally, they couldn’t use the direct route because armed terrorists had overtaken the road, so they had to travel the longer route, making the trips 45 minutes each way.
“We weren’t trained for something like this,” he acknowledged. “Triage, yes, but not something like this.”
In total, they treated 20 people, including a 20-year-old shot in the stomach who survived. Over the next week, the approximately 33,000 residents of Sderot were evacuated and didn’t return until the spring of this year.
Jolodenco stayed at the station for the next 60 days, eating, sleeping and working there. At the time, he said, “all I knew about October 7 was what I saw. We had no TV, no phones—we didn’t have anything.”
He said he still hasn’t processed the events of the past year: “I know I did a lot, but I feel like I didn’t do enough. I’m always thinking I could have done more.”
He spent the last week in the United States, speaking and meeting groups affiliated with the American Friends of Magen David Adom (AFMDA). He visited Boston, Philadelphia, New York City and Long Island, NY, before flying home on Sunday.
‘Call Out Hypocrisy’
On Thursday, Jolodenco was in Philadelphia at a fundraiser attended by about 200 people. Social-media influencer and broadcaster Emily Austin, 23, emceed a program that included an address by Gilad Erdan, former Israeli ambassador to the United Nations—now global president of MDA—and Lior Raz, an Israeli screenwriter and actor best known for his performance as Doron Kabilio in the hit Netflix series “Fauda.”
Austin was fresh off an appearance at the Jewish National Fund-USA annual conference in Dallas just days beforehand and was headed to the Gulf States this past weekend. While she acknowledged not being so well-versed about the political situation between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza before October 7, she is now.
She told JNS that the most challenging aspect of her Israel advocacy work is to “not get stuck in the echo chamber”—to unapologetically support Israel but also stay engaged with non-Jewish followers she wants to educate about the situation.
“I call out hypocrisy when I see it,” she said.
Like the International Red Cross, she pointed out, which has neither visited nor treated the 101 hostages that have been held by Hamas in Gaza for the past 13 months. In the same breath, she gave a shout-out to MDA, which is made up of “selfless, generous, heroic brave people who literally put their lives on the line to save others.”
The 35,000 paramedics, emergency medical technicians, first responders and first-aid providers—volunteers and staff, Jews, Arabs and Christians—treat the injured and ill throughout Israel. The six-floor underground Marcus National Blood Services Center in Ramla, funded primarily by AFMDA, is built to withstand missile, cyber and other attacks. It can store up to 500,000 units of blood per year, almost double the capacity of its predecessor.
Austin introduced Erdan to the podium, who in a resounding voice spoke of his verbal battles in the United Nations from July 2020 to this past August. He said the world body has been “hijacked.”
Today, Erdan said, “the UN has become a stain on humanity.”
“Our enemies cannot defeat us on the conventional battlefield,” he stated. But they have a “secret weapon—the house of lies. It’s a weapon in the terrorist arsenal to help them survive.”
He reminded the audience that the United Nations started in 1945 with 51 founding members. Now, there are 193 member states—56 of them Muslim countries that “automatically support the Palestinians in every war against the Jewish people.”
Erdan said Israel has fewer than 10 million citizens, less than one-tenth of 1% of the world’s population; nevertheless, 70% of condemnations issued by the United Nations are against it—more than that of Syria, Russia, North Korea and Iran combined.
Still, he continued, “in this dark year, an unexpected ray of light emerged… a generation of lions arose in Israel, defending our homeland with unbreakable resolve.” He alluded to those who ran to the south in the wake of the terror attacks to help, to the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] fighting a multifront war and to the emergency-service personnel he was there to represent.
One couple in the audience—Bruce and Sue Epstein—was so moved that they decided to pledge $125,000 for a new ambulance for MDA.
‘We Know How to Fight’
Rounding out the evening was Raz, who had his own story to tell. He was in Romania on October 7 but flew back when he heard the news. On October 8, he volunteered to help. He noted the different circumstances when it comes to the Jewish state and other countries during times of war; most citizens attempt to flee, while Israelis everywhere return.
Upon permission from authorities looking for civilians to assist, he took his 4×4 and gun to Sderot to evacuate residents.
He knocked at the door of one house, and a family looked at him with surprise and cried: “Doron is here!” They wanted a selfie, but he replied “later, later” as he shuffled them off to safety.
The actor, who turned 53 on Sunday—the crowd sang “Happy Birthday” as he was presented with candles and a cake—said he was genuinely surprised by the success of “Fauda,” a show that proves art imitates life.
Right now, he said, “we don’t have any other way. We know how to fight.”
And while the scenes were dramatized (“It’s a TV show,” Raz quipped), some parts were factual and almost all of it was emotional.
Fighting is also the theme of his current role in “Gladiator II,” which opened in movie theaters on November 22.
As for season five of “Fauda,” Raz said shooting will begin in April.
With a Doron-like smile, he turned to the audience slightly and said: “I can’t tell you anything. But it’s going to be crazy.”
Photo Credit: Carin M. Smilk/jns.org
Prayer Focus
Give thanks for all the paramedics, ambulance drivers and other first responders who give seflessly to save lives and help others. Pray for the emotional healing of those first responders who saw horrible things and experienced helplessness in the face of evil during and after the massacre of October 7, 2023.
Scripture
Surely the righteous shall give thanks to Your name; the upright shall dwell in Your presence.
ICC Issues Arrest Warrants for Netanyahu, Gallant
by Akiva van Koningsveld and Joshua Marks ~ JNS
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-minister of defense Yoav Gallant
Friday, 22 November 2024 | The International Criminal Court [ICC] has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the tribunal in the Hague announced on Thursday afternoon.
The court’s Pre-Trial Chamber “issued warrants of arrest for two individuals, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu and Mr. Yoav Gallant, for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed from at least October 8, 2023 until at least May 20, 2024, the day the Prosecution filed the applications for warrants of arrest,” it confirmed in a statement.
In a separate statement, the court ordered the arrest of Mohammed Deif, the supreme commander of Hamas’s military wing, who according to the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] was killed in an airstrike on July 13.
The court said it had found reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant “each bear criminal responsibility for the following crimes as co-perpetrators for committing the acts jointly with others: the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.”
The Chamber said that there were also “reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and Gallant bear responsibility for the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against the civilian population,” though it noted that ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan had only provided information about two incidents that the court said were directed against civilians.
The Hague rejected Jerusalem’s challenges regarding jurisdiction, claiming that the court can exercise its authority based on the Palestinian Authority’s [PA] membership. It also ruled that countries are not entitled to dispute the ICC’s jurisdiction before the issuance of arrest warrants.
Regarding Deif, the court said it had “reasonable grounds to believe that senior leaders of Hamas, comprising at least Mr. Deif, Mr. [Yahya] Sinwar, and Mr. [Ismail] Haniyeh, agreed to jointly carry out the 7 October 2023 Operation.”
Khan had initially filed for warrants against former Hamas political leader Haniyeh and Hamas terrorist chief in Gaza Sinwar but dropped the legal proceedings after their deaths on July 31 and October 16, respectively.
Roughly 1,200 civilians were murdered by Hamas-led terrorists on October 7, 2023. Thousands more were wounded and 251 others were taken into the Gaza Strip.
The ICC has no jurisdiction over Israel as Jerusalem is not a signatory to the Rome Statute. But in a legalistic sleight of hand, the court has asserted jurisdiction by accepting “Palestine” as a signatory in 2015, even though no such state is recognized under international law.
The 123 countries that are signatories to the Rome Statute are obligated to act on any arrest warrant it issues, raising the possibility that Netanyahu and Gallant could be placed under arrest while visiting these places.
‘Geopolitical Bombshell’
“It’s a geopolitical bombshell. It’s the first time the court has issued arrest warrants against a Western country and also the first time that they are issuing arrest warrants when there’s no jurisdiction in the case, but they’ve invented it for themselves,” NGO Monitor legal advisor Anne Herzberg told JNS, adding that it was “outrageous.”
Herzberg said that the ICC’s decision should be placed in a political context given the results of the recent US election, which put skeptical Republicans in charge of the executive and legislative branches of government.
“Clearly, I believe the court acted because they know the Trump administration’s coming in a few weeks and it’s going to have an incredibly hostile stance toward the court,” she said, noting that Senate leaders had issued a statement on Wednesday to the effect that they were considering sanctions against the court.
She said the decision must also be examined in terms of its potential consequences for the 101 hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza.
“Is this going to make a hostage deal now even more unlikely? Because again, [they’re] putting all the pressure on Israel, there’s no pressure on the other side, there’s no pressure on Iran, nothing happens to these countries, to Iran, to Qatar, for supporting Hamas. And they’re placing all the blame on Israel. So again…we see these international institutions that are basically enabling a terror war against Israel,” she said.
While stressing that it is not likely that Netanyahu and Gallant will actually be arrested, the warrants have severe implications because the two men won’t be able to travel to Europe for fear of arrest.
Eugene Kontorovich, professor at the George Mason University Scalia Law School, and director of the international law department at the Kohelet Policy Forum, a Jerusalem think tank, told JNS: “An illegitimate court issued arrest warrants against a non-state member, on behalf of a non-existent state, for fake crimes based on unsubstantiated reports.
“Israel’s allies should sanction this illegitimate court,” Kontorovich said.
Avi Bell, a law professor at the University of San Diego and Bar-Ilan University, told JNS: “This is the culmination of a 15-year process, a collaboration between the ICC and the PLO [Palestinian Liberation Organization] to bring up Israelis on fake charges. And the only reason I hesitate saying the word ‘culmination’ is because it’s not the end. They’re going to keep going and bringing further charges against more Israelis as we go along.”
He noted that the court’s timing was peculiar, given that the ICC prosecutor is accused of sexual misconduct and trying to suppress those claims, and Israel questioning the impartiality of an incoming judge on the panel, who came from the prosecutor’s office.
“Israel should be very, very aggressive in its moves against the court,” Bell said.
(Editor’s note: Prime Minister Netanyahu issued the following statement on November 21, 2024 in response to the warrant.)“The antisemitic decision of the international court in the Hague is a modern Dreyfus trial, and it will end the same way.
One hundred and thirty years ago, the French Jewish officer Alfred Dreyfus was falsely accused of treason by a biased French court.
In response of these false accusations, the great French writer Émile Zola wrote his monumental essay, J’Accuse.
He accused the French court of antisemitic lies against an innocent officer, who was later exonerated of all guilt.
Now, an international court in the Hague, also headed by a French judge, is repeating this outrageous offense.
It is falsely accusing me, the democratically elected prime minister of the State of Israel and Israel’s former defense minister Yoav Gallant, of deliberately targeting civilians, this when we do everything in our power to avoid civilian casualties.
We issue millions of text messages, phone calls, leaflets to the citizens of Gaza to get them out of harm’s way—while the Hamas terrorists do everything in their power to keep them in harm’s way, including shooting them, using them as human shields.
The court in the Hague accuses us of a deliberate policy of starvation. This, when we have supplied Gaza with 700,000 tons of food to feed the people of Gaza. That’s 3,200 calories for every man, woman and child in Gaza.
And these supplies are routinely looted by Hamas terrorists, who deprive their people of much needed food.
Yet just in the last few weeks Israel facilitated the vaccination of 97 percent of the people of Gaza against polio. This doesn’t prevent the court of accusing us of genocide.
What in G-d’s name are they talking about in the Hague?
The truth is simple. No war is more just than the war that Israel has been waging in Gaza after Hamas attacked us unprovoked, launching the worst massacre against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
The decision to issue an arrest warrant against me, the democratically elected prime minister of the State of Israel, and our former defense minister was made by a rogue prosecutor who is trying to extricate himself from sexual harassment charges, and by biased judges who are motivated by antisemitic sentiments against the one and only Jewish state.
These judges did nothing, they did nothing, against the real war crimes committed against the millions who have been murdered or uprooted by the dictatorships in Iran, Syria and Yemen.
Instead, they falsely accuse the one democracy in the Middle East, Israel, thereby imperiling the right of all democracies to defend themselves against murderous terrorists and tyrants.
Nor did the court do anything against the Hamas terrorists who raped our women, beheaded our men, burned babies alive in front of their parents and kidnapped hundreds of men, women and children to the underground dungeons of Gaza. They’re still holding 101 hostages, citizens of many lands, including the United States.
Come to think of it, the court did issue one arrest warrant against Hamas.
Now hear this. They issued an arrest warrant against the corpse of the Hamas arch-terrorist, Muhammad Deif. His corpse.
What an absurdity.
No biased anti-Israel decision in the Hague will prevent the State of Israel from defending its citizens.
I want to thank our many friends around the world, especially those in the US, who have condemned this outrage and who have said this decision will have severe consequences for the ICC and those who cooperate with its decision.
Israel does not, Israel will not recognize the validity of this decision. We will continue to do everything we must do to defend our citizens and to defend our state against Iran’s axis of terror. Iran and its terrorist proxies, which include Hamas, Hezbollah the Houthis and others. Our enemies are your enemies, and our victory will be your victory, the victory of civilization over barbarism and tyranny.”
Photo Credit: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90/jns.org
Prayer Focus
Pray that the world will recognize this decision of the ICC for the blatant antisemitic action that it is and will enact stringent sanctions on the court. Pray for Israel’s success as they have decided to appeal the decision. Pray that this travesty of justice will be completely overturned.
Scripture
You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
A Trump Win Has Iran Recalculating its War with Israel
by Aviram Bellaishe ~ JNS
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addresses the media after casting of his ballot in the presidential runoff elections in Tehran on June 28, 2024.
Tuesday, 26 November 2024 | Three days before the US presidential elections, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gave a November 2 speech to students. One of them, invited in advance, asked him to alter his fatwa (“religious decree”) that forbids the production of nuclear weapons. Khamenei responded that Iran will do all that is necessary regarding warfare and armament.
In the Iranian propaganda sphere, Khamenei’s statements quickly turned into declarations by military officials. The commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps [IRGC], Gen. Hossein Salami, warned the United States and Israel that Iran will arm itself with whatever it needs to achieve victory. If Salami was hinting at Iran’s nuclear capabilities, Kamal Kharrazi, a senior adviser and head of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, stated openly that Iran is capable of producing nuclear weapons and “the only barrier is Khamenei’s fatwa, which forbids [their] production.”
In the days leading up to the US elections, the Iranian regime built a narrative of “nuclear threshold deterrence” based on the assumption among Iranian analysts that this was what had restrained Israel militarily. No less important, the narrative claimed, this deterrence had given Tehran the confidence to carry out two direct attacks on Israel. Alongside the Biden administration’s admonitions, it had prevented Israel from attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities in its October 26 counterstrike.
When it turned out former President Donald Trump had won the elections, Iran realized that it would have to reassess its strategy. In particular, when Trump’s high-level appointments were announced, the regime recalculated its moves out of fear that any provocation could turn the incoming president into a more dangerous adversary and could give Israel the green light to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities.
The Iranians now understand that the order of the day is to maintain the status quo. That means they need to establish a communication channel for a nuclear agreement, primarily with the Trump administration. This would allow them to buy time, preserve the nuclear threshold status they have reached—and above all, forestall an Israeli attack on their nuclear program.
The danger lies in the “new Israel” that has emerged. Iranian analysts have concluded that Israel no longer sees itself as fighting an “existential war” and will not repeat its past behaviors. They now feel that they misjudged Jerusalem’s capabilities in the past. Israel, it turns out, is capable of enduring a prolonged war. Israel, in Tehran’s view, had the audacity to target and kill Hamas senior leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and was prepared to attack inside Lebanon, including successfully assassinating Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. This revised outlook on Israel reinforces Iran’s belief that Israel will eventually attack Iran’s nuclear facilities once the opportunity arises.
Amid the threat of such an Israeli attack, Iran decided to alter its messaging both internally and externally. In recent days, residents of various Iranian cities, particularly Tehran, have been experiencing intentional power outages caused by the stoppage of electricity production. Simultaneously, regime-affiliated outlets began circulating Khamenei’s declarations from seven years ago that “nuclear energy is essential for Iran’s future, which requires the production of 20,000–30,000 megawatts of nuclear-generated electricity in the coming years.” This looks suspiciously like an Iranian attempt to signal to the world that: “We need nuclear energy for electricity and energy independence, and so we need nuclear facilities in the country.”
According to supporters of Iran’s regime, the visit to Tehran on November 14 by International Atomic Energy Agency [IAEA] director Rafael Grossi offered an opportunity to undermine Israel’s media campaign about the urgency of the Iranian nuclear threat and the need to attack it amid the current tensions. Iran has warned the agency and countries of the region that an Israeli attack coupled with an Iranian response would expose the region to a significant nuclear threat involving extensive radiation.
At the same time, Iran is aware of the complexity of dealing with the IAEA, since it does not want or is not yet in a position to make concessions to the agency before reaching an understanding with Washington. Iran views concessions to the IAEA at this stage as weakening its negotiating stance with the main party holding sway over sanctions relief—Donald Trump.
Trump, commentators say, does not trust international institutions and would prefer that all disputes and resolutions be directly handled. He is likely to view any agreement with the IAEA as resulting from fears about his election, and that could influence his stance towards Iran and the nuclear issue in the near future.
This perspective aligns with a recent report in the New York Times that Trump’s close ally, Elon Musk, met with Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in New York City for exploratory talks. Iranian analysts believe that the meeting was coordinated with Trump and marked an attempt to create a direct negotiation channel with Tehran. By choosing a prominent businessman like Musk for this task instead of a political or military figure, Trump, they say, is signaling his readiness for negotiations and an agreement.
Assuming that the leakers were Iranian, as the Times claims, their main objective was to lower the anxiety level in Iran over Trump’s victory. Similarly, Iran’s denial of the meeting is viewed as a “negotiation game” aimed at emphasizing its internal constraints amid opposition to dialogue with the United States, so that Washington will not present tough demands at the outset.
Iran’s fear of an Israeli attack is driving the need to stall for time and recalibrate. Iran understands that, from the start, it must avert an Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities. In Iran’s view, the Trump administration may allow such an attack, especially considering the recent pro-Israel appointments and the backdrop of the ongoing war with Hamas, Hezbollah and other Iranian-supported terror proxies.
In light of these developments and the primacy of energy concerns, Iran seeks to undermine the “nuclear threshold” narrative and portray nuclear power as a solution to its energy crisis. Tehran understands that, at this point, it is better to project a willingness for dialogue and work toward an agreement that will provide immunity from an Israeli strike while preserving its nuclear capabilities for a future date. Iran’s ultimate goal of destroying Israel is seen as immutable and extending beyond Trump’s administration, so a temporary delay—a new “poisoned chalice”—is a necessity.
Israel must act in concert with the Trump administration to damage or destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities and set back its arms race for years. Only after that can Iran present a “plan” for an agreement and oversight.
The opinions and facts presented in this article are those of the author, and neither JNS nor its partners assume any responsibility for them.
Photo Credit: Majid Saeedi via Getty Images/jns.org
Prayer Focus
Proclaim the Word of the Lord: it is His purpose regarding Israel that will stand, not the many plans of the nations and their leaders. Pray for confusion and miscommunication amongst the leaders of Iran, a nation which seeks the destruction of Israel, God’s chosen people.
Scripture
Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.
‘My Heart Is with the Girls Who Are Still There’: Former Hostage Says Her Heart Is Still in Gaza
by Yael Ciechanover ~ Ynetnews
Families, friends and former hostages like Agam Goldstein-Almog, long for the safe return of every captive held by Hamas (illustrative).
Wednesday, 27 November 2024 | “It took me time to understand I was back in Israel,” said 18-year-old Agam Goldstein-Almog, reflecting on her release from captivity a year ago in an interview with Ynetnews and Yedioth Ahronoth. “I feel like I’m living a step forward and a step back, unable to comprehend that this is my reality—what happened to me and my family.”
Agam was abducted from her home in Kibbutz Kfar Aza along with her younger brothers, Gal and Tal and her mother, Chen, during the brutal attack on October 7. Her father, Nadav and her older sister, Yam, were murdered in the assault. After 51 days in captivity, Agam and her family were released, but she now speaks for the women she met in the tunnels who remain in captivity.
“If I had known a year ago that I would leave the women who were with me and they would still be there, I would have said goodbye differently. I would have been sorry. I was sure they’d be freed a day or two after us,” she said. “I knew nothing—not even when I’d be released. And honestly, I still don’t feel free because they are still there.”
Agam’s voice trembled as she continued: “If something happens to them, I don’t know how I’ll live with myself, knowing I was the last one to see them, that I delivered messages from them to their families. The danger to life there is constant, every single day.”
“People tell us we’re a miracle—that it’s amazing we’re here. But I can’t feel that joy, that sense of a miracle. The sharp transition from Gaza to Israel—I still can’t grasp it. In so many ways, I’m still living there, trapped in the fear for the women who are still in captivity. A year has passed, but it only amplifies the pain and confusion. Where are they? How are they?”
Over the past year, Agam has struggled to adjust to a new home and a shattered family. “My daily life has completely changed. Every action I take is weighed down by a heavy sense of unease,” she said. “Every decision, big or small, feels overwhelming. I often feel like there’s no point to anything. It’s hard to get out of bed because I can’t believe the reality I’m waking up to—without my father, my sister, my home, or those women still captive.”
Describing the emptiness, she added: “It’s hard to be in this new, incomplete family dynamic. Home, which should feel comforting and whole, sometimes feels unbearable with what remains. I still have so much, but I’ve lost so much, too. I ask myself, when will I finally feel at home? When will this feel like my family? When will I wake up in the morning and not feel this pain, not long so desperately for what I’ve lost? When will I be able to accept what’s left and be grateful for it? Many times, I feel alone in my sorrow.”
Now, a year after returning, Agam has a message for Israelis: “I hope the country remembers the joy of our return—how people could finally breathe again when we came back. Yes, we returned to grief and mourning, but we were here. Let’s recreate that joy by bringing everyone back. It cannot end any other way.”
She added: “Knowing so many people were waiting for me gave me strength. I immediately told my mom that the women still in captivity had to see it—the goodness of people, the soldiers who took care of me after Gaza. Each of those encounters slowly restored my faith, showing me there’s still good in the world. I hope those left behind will have a chance to feel that goodness, too. We must bring all the hostages home. These are our people. They’ve been suffering for so long, and this is a reality we must never accept.”
Photo Credit: amir appel/Flickr.com
Photo License: Flickr
Prayer Focus
Join Agam in interceding for the release of the girls and all those still held hostage in Gaza, praying that they would keep their eyes fixed on the Lord who is able to deliver them. Pray that the nation of Israel will soon rejoice in the return of the remaining hostages. Pray for the healing of emotional trauma being experienced by Agam and other hostages who were released last year.
Scripture
Have mercy on me, O LORD! Consider my trouble from those who hate me, You who lift me up from the gates of death, that I may tell of all Your praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion. I will rejoice in Your salvation.
Former UNRWA Chief Met with Hamas, Hailed ‘Spirit of Partnership’
by JNS
UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl
Monday, 25 November 2024 | Former United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) Commissioner-General Pierre Krähenbühl repeatedly met with senior members of Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups, expressing the UN agency’s willingness to work together in the “spirit of partnership,” Geneva-based watchdog group UN Watch revealed over the weekend.
Krähenbühl, who led the controversial UN agency until his resignation over misconduct allegations in 2019, attended a gathering of Palestinian terrorist leaders in Beirut on February 12, 2017, according to the watchdog.
The former UNRWA boss, as well as the agency’s former Lebanon chief of staff, Hakam Shahwan, who similarly resigned following allegations of corruption, posed for a picture with senior terrorist members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad [PIJ] and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
The gathering included Ali Baraka, who heads Hamas’s relations abroad and was recently indicted by the US government for “heinous crimes” related to the October 7, 2023 massacre, including conspiracy to murder Americans and to use weapons of mass destruction resulting in death.
Another participant in the Beirut meeting was Abu Imad al-Rifai, the representative of Iranian-backed PIJ in Lebanon. UN Watch noted that Al-Rifai boasted about sending a wave of suicide bombers to Baghdad in 2003 to murder American and British troops.
Krähenbühl was said to have told the gathering of terrorists, “Regarding the principle of partnership you mentioned, and the necessity of being proactive so that we remain cooperative and not caught off guard, I completely agree with you and strongly support this perspective. I also have a request: that the spirit of partnership be mutual.”
He continued, “If you have any criticisms, observations, concerns, or issues you are dissatisfied with regarding UNRWA, let us come back and meet in similar gatherings—even if we meet a thousand times.
“Challenge our decisions, tell us, ‘We do not agree with this decision, and we criticize it.’ We might change it or even entirely tear it up. But we want the spirit of partnership to prevail in our meetings,” he stated.
According to the former UNRWA chief, “We prefer these discussions not to be public, as that could challenge our credibility. More importantly, it could lead to a loss of trust between donor countries and UNRWA, which might result in reduced or even halted funding.”
Krähenbühl reportedly concluded his remarks by reiterating that “if we can achieve this, it means we are united and no one can separate us.”
UN Watch said that UNRWA has continued to meet covertly with terror operatives after Philippe Lazzarini took over when Krähenbühl left the agency to lead the International Committee of the Red Cross in 2019.
The Israeli government has long criticized UNRWA’s operations in the Gaza Strip as controlled by Hamas. That criticism sharpened after October 7 and revelations that UNRWA employees took part in the mass slaughter.
Israel terminated relations with UNRWA on November 3, a week after the Israeli parliament, by a vote of 92 to 10, passed legislation on October 28 banning the organization’s operations in the Jewish state’s territory.
In July, the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office slammed UNRWA after Jerusalem’s Foreign Ministry published more evidence that the aid agency is employing hundreds of Hamas and PIJ terrorists.
“Israel has told donor countries that hundreds more of UNRWA’s 13,000 local staff are active Hamas terrorists,” PMO Public Diplomacy Directorate spokesman David Mencer told reporters.
“We have provided much evidence that UNRWA works hand-in-hand with Hamas,” Mencer added, referring to the Hamas server farm found under UNRWA’s Gaza headquarters, the UNRWA staffers who took part in the October 7 massacre and the tunnels underneath UNRWA schools.
“UNRWA is useless at aid distribution. UNRWA is useless at education, except glorifying suicide bombers and encouraging Jew-killing and Israel sees no role whatsoever for UNRWA in Gaza after this war ends,” he concluded.
Photo Credit: UN TV/Multimedia/jns.org
Prayer Focus
Pray that any other UNRWA leaders or employees with hidden ties to Hamas or any other terrorist organization will be publicly revealed and the UN as a whole would be held accountable for their actions. Pray that this “spirit of partnership” would be eradicated completely.
Scripture
You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
‘The Laser Era’: Israeli Military to Acquire Personal Laser Defense Systems for Troops
by Yoav Zitun ~ Ynetnews
The IDF plans to deploy a personal laser defense system which uses technology similar to the Iron Beam pictured here (illustrative).
Wednesday, 27 November 2024 | The Defense Ministry and defense industry giant Rafael Advanced Defense Systems are set to sign a major new deal in the coming months to procure compact anti-missile laser systems for intercepting anti-tank missiles and other aerial threats designed to protect infantry soldiers.
This development is set to revolutionize the battlefield, comparable to the first operational deployment of the Israel Defence Force’s [IDF] Trophy active protection system fitted on tanks or the Iron Dome’s first interception.
The military is expected to integrate and equip its forces with Rafael’s innovative system—an active laser-based defense array that will likely be deployed with elite units and combat brigades initially.
The system can neutralize threats such as anti-tank missiles and kamikaze drones targeting soldiers by using a laser beam to burn and destroy the threat mid-air automatically, whether the troops are maneuvering in enemy territory or on routine border security missions.
The deal is expected to be finalized soon and will join Rafael’s other groundbreaking defense systems, such as the Trophy system, which successfully intercepted hundreds of threats targeting Merkava Mark IV tanks and Namer armored personnel carriers over the past year along the Gaza Strip and Lebanon border.
The new system may arrive in the IDF as early as next year and is inspected as part of a broader weapons system that could also include remotely operated machine guns and possibly a 30-mm cannon, enhancing both the unit’s defensive and offensive capabilities.
This compact laser system is also expected to reduce IDF operational costs. Each laser activation costs only a few dollars, compared to the thousands required for each Trophy system interception.
“Rafael managed to develop solutions for atmospheric disturbances and concentrate energy into a laser beam capable of striking a target the size of a coin, neutralizing it by unifying multiple beams into a single one before impact,” security sources explained. “This is even simpler than for shorter ranges than long ones, fit for infantry defense.”
Last month, the Defense Ministry signed a massive 2 billion shekel (US $549 million) deal to significantly expand the deployment of the Iron Beam laser interception system. “This deal heralds a new era—the laser era,” said Defense Ministry Director-General Maj. Gen. (res.) Eyal Zamir, noting that the first operational utility of the ground-based laser system is expected to be ready within a year.
Photo Credit: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems photographer/Wikimedia.org
Photo License: Wikimedia
Prayer Focus
Give thanks for the ingenuity and brilliance of the Israeli scientists who have developed this revolutionary personal laser defense system. Prayerfully remember that this weapon is intended for defensive action and not offensive strikes. Pray for the day when Israel will be able to lay down its weapons of self-defense and contribute its creativity and genius to bless the world.
Scripture
And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.
Two Weeks after 89th birthday, Palestinian Authority President Names Possible Successor
by JNS
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas
Thursday, 28 November 2024 | Rawhi Fattouh, 75, will temporarily replace Mahmoud Abbas in case of the death of the octogenarian leader of the Palestinian Authority [PA], Ramallah announced on Wednesday, two weeks after Abbas’s 89th birthday.
The PA’s official Wafa news agency reported that Abbas on Wednesday signed a declaration that should his position become vacant, Fattouh will serve as the organization’s supreme leader “pending the holding of presidential elections as per the Palestinian Elections Law.”
Abbas claimed that he issued the order in an attempt to “maintain stability” during a period in which the PA was “facing many challenges.”
The last election for the position of PA chief was in 2006, which means Abbas is currently in the 20th year of his original four-year term.
Fattouh, a longtime Abbas confidant who now leads the Palestinian National Council—the legislative body of the Palestine Liberation Organization—served as PA interim chief after Yasser Arafat’s death in November 2004.
Born in 1949 in the Gaza Strip, Israeli analysts have considered the PA official “dull and lacking political influence or ability to actually rule.”
In March 2008, Israeli border guards caught Fattouh with 3,000 cell phones in his car, which he tried to smuggle from Jordan into Judea and Samaria using his Israeli-issued entry permit. The incident reportedly “enraged” Abbas, and he banned Fattouh from entering his offices.
Last year, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant revoked Fattouh’s VIP entry permit after he paid a visit to a released Palestinian terrorist who served decades in jail for killing a soldier in the Israel Defense Forces [IDF].
Karim Younis murdered IDF Cpl. Avraham Bromberg in the Golan Heights in 1980. He was sentenced to life in prison in 1983, but in 2012 then-Israeli President Shimon Peres commuted his term to 40 years.
Also in 2023, Fattouh said Arabs had lived in Jerusalem for more than 1.5 million years, while the Jewish people had only been in the region for 6,000 years. The oldest human fossils archaeologists have found date to 300,000 years ago—1.2 million years later than Fattouh’s claim.
JNS sought comment from the US State Department as to how Abbas’s decision to appoint Fattouh as his temporary successor aligns with Washington’s demands for administrative reforms by Ramallah.
Photo Credit: Flash90/jns.org
Prayer Focus
Pray for the biblical heartland of Judea and Samaria as the Palestinian Authority (PA) faces many challenges within itself, and this can affect the security of the Jewish residents of the area. Pray that the naming of an interim successor should Mahmoud Abbas die suddenly will contribute to the stability of the PA and Arab residents of the biblical heartland.
Scripture
He makes peace in your borders, and fills you with the finest wheat.
Despite War, Israeli Universities Shine in Global Rankings
by Shahar Ilan ~ Ynetnews
The entrance of Hebrew University
Monday, 25 November 2024 | Last week, the prestigious Shanghai Ranking for academic institutions published its detailed 2024 departmental rankings, and overall, it was a positive year for Israeli academia.
The decline in computer science rankings was halted, with the Weizmann Institute’s computer science department breaking into the top 100. Hebrew University climbed to 14th place globally in mathematics, with Israel boasting three universities in the top 100 for the subject.
Additionally, Israel’s two technological universities, the Technion and the Weizmann Institute of Science, ranked in the top 40 in chemistry, a highly profitable field. In journalism and communications, Israel emerged as a global leader, with Hebrew University and the University of Haifa both ranked in the top 30.
Overall, 11 Israeli academic programs are ranked among the world’s top 50.
It was also a strong year in the overall institutional rankings published in August. After several weaker years, three Israeli universities—the Weizmann Institute of Science, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the Technion—were ranked among the top 100 globally.
The Weizmann Institute of Science led Israeli institutions, securing the 69th spot, slightly down from 68th last year. The Hebrew University of Jerusalem climbed from 86th to 81st place, while the Technion dropped from 79th to 85th, resulting in a swap between the two institutions. Additionally, the Technion was ranked 11th among the world’s top technological universities.
The Shanghai Ranking, published annually since 2003, evaluates the research performance of academic institutions based on various criteria, including the number of Nobel and Fields Medal laureates among faculty and alumni, the number of scientific papers published in leading journals such as Nature and Science, and other research achievements. The ranking assesses over 2,500 universities worldwide, highlighting the top 1,000.
The high status of Israeli academia has become de rigueur, but it is important to remember that Israel is a country of just 10 million inhabitants. When calculating the number of institutions in the top 100 relative to population size, Israel ranks fourth in the world, trailing only Switzerland, Singapore and Denmark, and ahead of countries like France, Germany, the UK and Sweden.
Last week, rankings were also published for specific academic departments, including technological fields, which hold special significance for the Startup Nation. The good news is that the decline of Israeli programs in computer science has been halted. The Weizmann Institute, which dropped last year to the 100–150 range (exact rankings are only published for the top 50), returned to the top 100. Ben-Gurion University and the Technion, which also saw declines, regained ground, and the University of Haifa entered the top 100 for the first time.
Photo Credit: BlueHorizon/Wikimedia.org
Photo License: Wikimedia
Prayer Focus
Give thanks for the achievements of Israeli universities who have faced many challenges over the past year. Pray for those students who have been called to serve in their IDF reserve units, asking that they will be able to regain their focus once they return to the classroom. Give thanks for each student currently enrolled, praying that they will find their place of contribution to the State of Israel once they graduate.
Scripture
Teach me good judgment and knowledge, for I believe Your commandments.
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