"Watching Over Zion" (The CFI News Report & Prayer Update)

~ Thursday 3rd December 2009 ~
Compiled by David Soakell Tel: 01323 410810
E-mail david@cfi.org.uk Website: www.cfi.org.uk

The Word: "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher... Everything is meaningless." What does man gain from all his labour at which he toils under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains for ever. The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises... Is there anything of which it may be said, "See, this is new"? It has already been in ancient times before us. There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come by those who will come after. I, the Preacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. And I set my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all that is done under heaven; this burdensome task God has given to the sons of man, by which they may be exercised. I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and indeed, all is vanity and grasping for the wind. (Ecclesiastes 1:1-5, 10-14)

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:58)

• Pointers for prayer: Tehran’s vow to build ten more enrichment plants sparks strong reaction; US President Obama announces the deployment of an extra 34,000 American troops to Afghanistan; European Union foreign ministers call for the establishment of Jerusalem as the capital of "Palestine"; and once again, John Demjanjuk is on trial. As we bring you these stories, please do use this information for your intercession. Please battle on in prayer over the situations Israel face. Please continue to seek the LORD as to how you should pray concerning these days we are living in.

• Earnestly intercede for the Jewish people as they face much spiritual warfare aimed at thwarting their divine destiny. Pray for their protection and for their spiritual preparation as they continue to face a difficult future. Please continue to pray also for the Arab people struggling under the heavy restraints of Islamic oppression. Pray that they may find freedom in following the Lord God.

• Pray that Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria & the Golan Heights would remain in Jewish hands, now and until the Messiah returns. But pray too, that the Arab communities would recognise and receive their blessing in wanting to live in harmony with Israel.

Generations come and go, but what do we learn? In one single nights viewing of the news this week, I was struck by the sheer battle we are in when faced with wars or potential wars within the Middle East. The headlines declared that Iran faced mounting threats of sanctions over its plans to expand massively its uranium enrichment programme in defiance of an official rebuke from a rare coalition of world powers. Tehran’s vow to build ten more enrichment plants sparked strong reactions in the US, Germany, Britain and France, four of the six world powers negotiating with Tehran over its nuclear programme, despite doubts over its capacity to follow through on the project. Also in Iran, five British sailors were detained in the Gulf after straying into Iranian waters, and they were threatened with "serious" punishment if they had been found to have acted with "evil intentions", a close aide to Iranian President Ahmadinejad said. This immediately put fresh strains on British-Iranian relations.

Thankfully, as I’m writing this report, news is breaking that the crew held by Iran's Revolutionary Guard have been released. This has been confirmed by the UK's Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Foreign Secretary David Miliband said they had left the island of Siri and were heading for international waters. A statement by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard said interrogations had revealed their "illegal entry" had been "a mistake". At one point, we were wondering if Ahmadinejad was deliberately holding on to them to use as a bargaining tool (see later). Meanwhile, US President Obama announces the deployment of an extra 34,000 American troops to Afghanistan, according to sources briefed since the President issued new orders to his military commanders.

Dictators come and dictators go; wars loom, are fought, and are gone, but what do we learn? There is a famous quote by Friedrich Hegel that states, "We learn from history that we learn nothing from history". How true this is... or as Solomon states in Ecclesiastes 1:11, "There is no remembrance of former things, nor will there be any remembrance of things that are to come". It's as if we will never learn, no matter what we endure. According to http://wiki.answers.com over 60 million people died in World War Two and of those 60 million, more were civilians than soldiers. Yet how many wars have we had since? How many could have been avoided? With the Iraq enquiry now full steam ahead, we have learned that the UK received intelligence days before invading Iraq that Saddam Hussein may not have been able to use chemical weapons, an adviser has said. Foreign Office official Sir William Ehrman told the war inquiry that a report suggested that such weapons may have been "disassembled". So did that particular war even need to happen? And how will this effect today's decisions over Iran. It's the old saying... cry wolf too many times and nobody will believe you. I feel had the Iraq war not happened, we might have been in a better position today to deal with the real threat that is increasing daily from Iranian President Ahmadinejad.

Like I said, it's as if we will never learn. From a human point of view, life does appear futile; and it is easy for us to get pessimistic. The Jewish writer Sholom Aleichem once described life as "a blister on top of a tumour, and a boil on top of that". How gross is that!!! For those who studied English literature in school, you may remember Matthew Arnold's poem "Rugby Chapel", in which he includes this description of life: "What is the course of the life, of mortal men on the earth? - Most men eddy about here and there - eat and drink, chatter and love and hate, gather and squander, are raised aloft, are hurl`d in the dust, striving blindly, achieving nothing; and then they die...". Sadly, when we view the latest news headlines, life can be rather dark. What a relief it is then, when we find the words of Jesus (Yeshua) stating, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10). If only man could live life in accordance with the Word of God. This sadly is far from how mankind lives, however, for those of us who are called to intercede for the Middle East, and in particular Israel, we need to live in the words of Paul who states in 1 Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." As we watch the signs of the times, may we know the fullness of this word.

Ahmadinejad's games and threats Although now released, fresh strains were put on British-Iranian relations this week after the five British sailors were detained after straying into Iranian waters. At one point we were wondering what "serious" punishment they would face if found to have acted with "evil intentions". What exactly did Iranian President Ahmadinejad define as "evil intentions?" How did this all fit into his mindset with his threats of a nuclear Iran and desire to "wipe Israel off the face of the map?" Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed while standing next to President Hugo Chavez that Iran and Venezuela would "stand together until the end" in the face of US "imperialism." Again, maybe we should be asking what he meant by “standing together until the end "? Did he mean his downfall, or did he have something more sinister in mind?

Ending last weeks tour of Latin America, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad praised his "brave brother" Chavez saying: "Today the people of Venezuela and Iran, friends and brothers in the trench warfare against imperialism, are resisting. We'll stand together until the end," he yelled, raising Chavez's hand in front of the television cameras and shouting in Spanish: "Viva Venezuela! Viva Chavez!" The Iranian leader's three-day regional tour was seen as a clear affront to Washington, a fact illustrated by an unusual letter sent by US President Barack Obama. After Ahmadinejad's first stop in Brazil, it emerged that Obama had sent a letter to the regional power urging it to be more critical of the Islamic republic and its suspect nuclear activities. The letter, written to Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the eve of Ahmadinejad's visit, outlined Washington's foreign policy goals and opposition to Iran's nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad's arrival in Venezuela came as Germany said there was "broad support" for a resolution at a meeting of the UN's atomic watchdog condemning Iran for concealing a second uranium enrichment plant. Tehran and the six world powers ~ Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States, and Germany ~ have been at loggerheads for weeks, failing to reach a nuclear fuel deal aimed at allaying Western concerns. Iran of course denies it is seeking to produce an atomic bomb under cover of its civilian nuclear energy program. However, following this, the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Ali Akbar Salehi underlined that the Iranian government has decided to build 10 nuclear plants, viewing the decision as a response to the offensive measures taken by the six world powers.

Speaking in a press conference in Tehran on Sunday night, Salehi referred to the resolution adopted by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)'s Board of Governors on Friday, denouncing Tehran for building a civilian uranium enrichment facility near the city of Qom, also known as Fordo. Salehi lamented that Iran has tried to do confidence-building measures, and that the six world powers group responded to Iran's "good will" in an "inappropriate manner". The representatives of six world powers urged Iran on Friday to accept a U.N. plan aimed at delaying its ability to build a nuclear weapon, as the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency warned Tehran not to miss the opportunity to resolve the dispute. However, Tehran’s vow to build ten more enrichment plants sparked strong reactions in the US, Germany, Britain and France.

Jerusalem as the capital of "Palestine"? Meanwhile this week, Israel's Ha'aretz daily newspaper reported on Tuesday that a resolution to be discussed and probably approved at a meeting of European Union foreign ministers next week calls for the establishment of Jerusalem as the capital of "Palestine," and grants recognition to a Palestinian state declared unilaterally outside the framework of a peace deal with Israel. The controversial wording is being pushed by Sweden, though many EU representatives are believed to support it. Naturally, Palestinians lauded the report, and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas' spokesman also lobbied the UN General Assembly on Monday to likewise recognize a unilateral declaration of independence by the Palestinian Authority. The affront by the Scandinavian country comes just months after Sweden's largest daily newspaper featured a series of articles accusing Israeli soldiers of harvesting Palestinian organs. Israel decried the allegations, but the Swedish government came to the defence of the newspaper and its right to "free speech," regardless of how libellous it was. Swedish and other EU officials insisted that the new resolution is an effort to get the Palestinians back to the negotiating table, but Israeli officials said it should be clear that it will do just the opposite.

The official was addressing the General Assembly on the anniversary of the 1947 vote on the UN Partition Plan, which recognized Jewish and Arab states west of the Jordan River. Israel accepted the vote, but the Arabs did not, and instead invaded the Jewish state. Despite that fact, the UN marks the day as a day of mourning, and uses it to blast what it calls Israel's "illegal occupation." The Foreign Ministry warned Tuesday morning that a Swedish-led attempt to have the European Union recognize eastern Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian Authority will backfire. The draft proposal would damage efforts to reach peace with the PLO and damage the EU’s standing as a trusted entity, ministry spokesman Yossi Levy said. “The Europeans must pressure the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table," he added. "Such moves like the one being led by Sweden lead to the opposite outcome." In many ways this is not to be unexpected. As the World turns its back on the Jewish State, we are expecting an increase of pressure upon Israel. However what really angered me about the Swedish interference was that their proposal omits any recognition of the rest of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Government officials estimate that several EU members will oppose the proposal by Sweden, which retains the rotating presidency of the European body until next month. Israel's Likud Knesset Member Tzipi Hotovely blamed her own government for the EU move, saying, “This is more proof that the erosion of legitimacy for residents of Judea and Samaria is the direct cause for the erosion of the status of Jerusalem.”

In many ways, this news comes as no surprise, however in related news, I was surprised to see an article in this weeks Guardian Newspaper. In Isi Liebler's article, he states the plain truth by writing, "Many have been seduced by a false Islamic narrative. In fact, the more concessions Israel makes, the more it is attacked". According to Isi Liebler, Europe has turned dramatically against Israel. In these "enlightened", postmodernist secular societies, which shun all manifestations of nationalism, Israel is no longer considered a revival of Jewish nationhood, but as a colonial implant that many would be happy to see somehow disappear. There is also the "new anti-Semitism" in which demonisation of Israel has become the surrogate for traditional Jew hatred. In this environment, the left and many liberals now focus their rage against Israel. Simultaneously, the growing empowerment of radical Islamic groups throughout Europe has resulted in many countries siding against Israel, rather than confront the jihadists within their own borders. It is in this context that Israel remains the only country in the world whose very right to exist is challenged. Isi Liebler goes on to state, "It also highlights the dilemma facing Israel: the more concessions Israel has made over the last decade in order to reach an accommodation with its neighbours, the greater has been the terror unleashed against it and the more its international standing has eroded. Yet, Israel remains the only democracy in the region; 20% of its inhabitants are Arab citizens, who enjoy equality of rights, freedom of expression and elect their representatives to the Israeli parliament. In contrast, Israel's despotic neighbours are autocracies or dictatorships, which deny freedom of religion and many other basic human rights. They also include the only countries in the world that deny Jews the right of domicile.

But it is Israel that is depicted as a racist apartheid state." For full article, go online at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/nov/26/europe-double-standa...
Could this "poor invalid" really be Ivan the Terrible? One after another, more than 30 years ago, a series of Holocaust survivors identified John Demjanjuk, a then strapping, hard-faced Ukrainian who had come to live in the United States, as "Ivan the Terrible," the sadist who ran the gas chambers at the Treblinka death camp. One after another, Josef Czarny, Pinhas Epstein, Eliahu Rosenberg and others testified against Demjanjuk in Jerusalem, describing the "satisfaction and gratification" he took from breaking the bones of his victims and the relish with which he pumped carbon monoxide into the gas chambers. Few humans were ever as reviled as Mr Demjanjuk while he was on trial in Israel in the '80's. Survivors of Treblinka recalled watching him slice the breasts off Jewish women and ordering a male inmate to rape a 12-year-old girl. When Israel's Supreme Court admitted to problems in his case in 1993 and let him go – without formally acquitting him – he may or may not have expected to live out the rest of his life unbothered by the past. But if he did, he was mistaken.

The grim chronicles of Mr Demjanjuk, who originally fled to the US during the confusion of the post-war years, resumed in early 2002 when a US judge revoked his American citizenship for a second time. In 2005, another judge ruled that he could be extradited to face trial in Germany, Poland or even Ukraine. The battle to keep any court case closed has been largely down to Mr Demjanjuk's large and loyal family, who have worked hard to persuade the courts that he was too frail to be deported and that any journey would constitute torture – because he suffers from a variety of ailments including kidney disease, anaemia and a bone marrow disorder.

Now, in Germany, the wheels of justice have turned slowly but inexorably forward, and Demjanjuk finds himself in the dock again. This time, there are no direct, elderly eyewitnesses to point a shaky finger in his direction. But the "totality of evidence," according to the spokeswoman for the Munich state prosecutor, "is overwhelming." The SS ID card places him incontrovertibly at Sobibor, and his ID number appears on various documents related to the camp. An American court has already established, in a 2002 ruling, that he contributed to the mass murder of Jews. The court was persuaded by evidence compiled by the US Justice Department, which showed that he had given false information about his activities during the Holocaust when gaining American citizenship. Accordingly, he was stripped of that citizenship and, in May of this year, deported to Germany. This week, prosecutors accused John Demjanjuk of playing an active role in the Nazis' machinery of destruction, saying that he was a willing follower of Hitler's racist ideology as they read the indictment against the retired Ohio autoworker.

The so-called "lowest-ranked person to go on trial for Nazi war crimes" is facing trial there because almost 2,000 of his alleged victims were German Jews. He faces up to seven years in jail if convicted, that is, if he lives that long. Understandably, many within Germany and beyond, are being critical over what they perceive as the hounding of an old and dying man. Many are also hoping that this may prove to be the last headline-making Nazi war crimes case. However, new allegations against suspected Nazi war criminals continue to emerge, hundreds of investigations are ongoing in over a dozen countries, and there have been numerous convictions and legal victories in recent years, relating to members of murderous security police units and concentration camp guards.

The question many are asking is, should these old people really be suffering these degrading trials? Just how should we "deal with our past"? Should there be "no limitations" for the crime of mass murder? Indeed, the crucial morality at the heart of the new Demjanjuk trial lies in its message that the passage of time in no way diminishes the gravity of the crime and the guilt of its perpetrators, and that there can be no reward for having evaded justice through the decades and into old age. However, even if proven guilty... what punishment could possibly fit the crimes? This case has left me struggling over quite a few issues... none of which I've got answers for.

David Soakell

Sources: Unless otherwise stated: Personal sources throughout Israel along with The Jerusalem Post, BBC News, Arutz-7 News, Israeli Embassy London, Independent Media Review and Analysis & Israel National Radio