~ Thursday 6th May 2010 ~

Compiled by David Soakell Tel: 01323 410810 E-mail david@cfi.org.uk Website: www.cfi.org.uk

The Word: Darius divided the kingdom into 120 provinces, each under a governor with three administrators over them, one of whom was Daniel. Those who governed were made accountable to them so that the king might not suffer loss. Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the governors by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. At this, the administrators and the governors tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent. Finally these men said, "We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God." (Daniel 6:1-5)

Pointers for prayer: As the 2010 General Elections take place across the UK, how will it all unfold? And who will really speak up for the nation of Israel? Let us beseech the LORD of Hosts that we would have a Government of God's choosing; that they would be a government who will oppose ant-Semitism and support the nation of Israel (thus bringing blessings on the UK and not a curse ~ Genesis 12:3, Isaiah 60:12). Pray that we would have a government who would understand the eternal covenant of God to Israel, and His promise and giving of the land of Israel to the Jewish people as their everlasting homeland, now and always as declared by God's Word (Genesis 17:7-9). Please pray for MP's who would affirm the regathering of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland and the rebirth of Israel as ordained and prophesied in the Scriptures, accomplished by God's hand, and thus have the right and Biblical mandate of Israel to exist in the land of Israel. (Ezekiel 36 and 37; Isaiah 11:11-12) Pray that the new UK government would affirm Jerusalem as the undivided eternal capital of Israel, and that the leaders would recognise the biblical warning that any seeking to move or divide it shall do so at their peril. (Joel 3:16-21). Please continue to pray for strength and wisdom to the leaders in Israel, especially Prime Minister Netanyahu to deal with the threat from Hamas & Hezbollah. (Isaiah 1:26).

Where will you cast your vote? Although this News Report is produced for Thursday reading, I know from the amount of comments and feedback I receive, many of you read this as soon as it drops into your email box on a Wednesday evening. And so for this reason, I felt I needed to start this report with a word regarding the upcoming elections (apologies for those reading this via the postal system).

I can remember during the last election campaign of 2005 seeing an amusing animated advert on television which featured two men in a pub. The first characters attempt to bring up some tedious Political chat was deftly dismissed by the second's response stating he "doesn't do politics". On each subsequent time the second man complains about various items from pub closing time to sporting achievements, he is pointedly reminded by his friend that he "doesn't do politics" and thus implicitly isn't entitled to an opinion on such things. The assumption behind that campaign was that everything that matters ought to be subject to political mediation. Well... over the past few weeks, I've listened to various 'party political broadcasts' and live debates, and apart from the fact that each party appears to want to dig up as much dirt to dissuade voters from voting for the opposition, the whole affair has left me totally confused ~ as ever ~ as to who I want governing our nation. Having said that, I know who I won't be voting for!

You may remember me sending out an email recently stating that we can't tell you who to vote for, nor is it right to get on the Political campaign trail... however, we should be alerted to those groups who oppose Israel. Regarding the issue of 'which party will support Israel', someone once stated, "the best party to vote for is the 'opposition', until that party gets elected of course"... the reason being that once in the driving seat, the pressure from all and sundry will force any Prime Minister to backtrack on issues relating to such a controversial subject such as Israel.

Anyone who stands for Israel today is under a lot of pressure to be "conformed to the world" (Romans 12 v 2). Indeed, any Christians with strong Biblical opinions and beliefs are under a lot of pressure by the ungodly laws, which today are legislated by both our Parliament and the European Union. Much of what we see and hear is in direct contradiction to the Word of God and our Christian beliefs. Today we find that true Christianity is being pushed more and more in the distance and an immoral secularisation is taking its place. We need only look at the latest article from the 'Mail on Sunday' where a Christian preacher is on hooligan charges after saying he believes that homosexuality is a sin. The Christian street preacher was arrested and charged with a public-order offence after saying that homosexuality was sinful. Well... if we truly believe in what the Word of God (the Bible) states, then we cannot be 'people-pleasers', and should expect opposition.

As far as I'm aware, there is no Biblical imperative to vote in the elections, however the Bible does say that we must engage with our communities and love our neighbours. We need to effect change in our own communities, and while Christian political convictions can negatively rule certain parties out, they can offer no positive guidance on which party to support. The view is that the decision must be left to the judgments of individual Christian voters who, like any others, must be left free to decide who to vote for. It is, admittedly, very difficult to argue that only one party in 2010 is worthy of Christian support. This would be true, incidentally, even if most Christians could actually agree on what the relevant ‘Christian political principles’ were, which unfortunately they don’t. The other problem is that even within their own parties, people have been critical of their leaders. Take for example the Labour election candidate who this week launched an extraordinary attack on Gordon Brown, calling him the 'worst prime minister' Britain has ever had. With just 48 hours to go before polling day, North West Norfolk candidate Manish Sood claimed the Prime Minister owes an apology to the British people and the Queen. He branded his own party's leader a "disgrace" and condemned his policies. So who would he be voting for?

But what of those who support, or indeed oppose the nation of Israel? The Jewish State of Israel is a close ally of Great Britain... though you wouldn't believe it most of the time. It is the only full democracy in the Middle East (some might add along with Iraq), and as we well know, Israel is under constant fire from Iranian and Syrian-backed terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah. The Jewish nations very existence is threatened by the rise of a nuclear-armed Iran, which has malevolently warned of another Holocaust. So can we really support any political party who opposes Israel? As we read from the recent Daily Telegraph article, the leader of the Liberal Democrats thinks it’s necessary to demonise Israel, and stated that Israel is no better than the Islamic terrorist group Hamas!

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100035649/nick-clegg%E2%8.... I do know however that there is a Liberal Friends of Israel group: http://www.ldfi.org.uk/

But what of the other two main parties… are there people within these groups who will stand with Israel? One of my readers emailed me yesterday stating that he had met Labour's Sir Stuart Bell on the campaign trail and spent ten minutes talking to him. During their discourse Stuart Bell said that he was in the Labour for Israel group in the House, and his wife added he has always been pro-Israel. According to their website, the Labour Friends of Israel "seeks to promote a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel. We work with the Government, Parliamentarians, advisers, and activists throughout the Labour movement." You can check out that site at: http://www.lfi.org.uk/ So what of the Tories? Does the Conservative Party actually offer anyone who will stand up for Israel? Well according to the Conservative Friends of Israel, the Rt Hon David Cameron MP, the very Leader of the Conservative Party has gone on record stating, “I am proud not just to be a Conservative, but a Conservative Friend of Israel; and I am proud of the key role Conservative Friends of Israel plays within our Party”. Do check out their website here: http://www2.cfoi.co.uk/

As yet I've not found a website for the British National Party (BNP) friends of Israel. But whoever you vote for, or indeed have already voted for (if you're reading this after Thursdays elections), it is our prayer that God-fearing men and women may be returned to Parliament as MP’s in this election. Let us also pray that we would have a Government of God's choosing; that they would be a government who will oppose ant-Semitism and support the nation of Israel We know that in the final analysis it is God that puts men and women in these places of power, but we can be used by God to put people into Parliament that have high moral standards, so that the present tide of immorality sweeping our country may be stemmed and hopefully reversed, and so that the Biblical mandate of standing with the Nation of Israel will be seen as one of blessing our nation and not bringing upon us the curse (Genesis 12:3).

Distinctly unpleasant As the day was drawing closer, the election campaign took a distinctly unpleasant turn last week as pro-Palestinian MPs suggested the “Israel lobby” would play a behind-the-scenes role in key constituencies. Martin Linton, chair of Labour Friends of Palestine, told a meeting at the House of Commons held by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and Friends of al-Aqsa: “There are long tentacles of Israel in this country who are funding election campaigns and putting money into the British political system for their own ends."

Martin Linton continued, “You must consider over the next few weeks, when you make decisions about how you vote and how you advise constituents to vote, you must make them aware of the attempt by Israelis and by pro-Israelis to influence the election.” So I guess that he's pointing his finger at us! Well, let him point... Mr Linton was sitting on a tiny 163-vote majority in the London seat of Battersea and is/was unlikely to survive the election. The veteran Jewish anti-Zionist MP Sir Gerald Kaufman suggested wealthy members of the community would play a role similar to that of Tory “non-dom” peer Michael Ashcroft. “Just as Lord Ashcroft owns most of the Conservative Party, right-wing Jewish millionaires own the rest,” he said. You can read the full report in the Jewish Chronicle here: http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/30000/mp-israels-tentacles-will-steal-...

Syria not smuggling scud missiles to Hezbollah... it's all official As I mentioned in my first article, Israel is under constant fire from Iranian and Syrian-backed terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah. The Jewish nations very existence is threatened by the rise of a nuclear-armed Iran, which has malevolently warned of another Holocaust. With this in mind, Brigadier General Yossi Beiditz briefed the Israeli Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee this week on Hezbollah, Syria and Iran. According to Beiditz, the transfer of weapons to Hezbollah is not considered as "smuggling of weapons" to Lebanon - it is an official and organised transfer. The head of the Research Department in the Intelligence Directorate, Yossi Beiditz met on Tuesday (4th May 2010) with the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee of the Israeli Parliament, and discussed publicised reports that have been issued recently about the transfer of scud missiles from Syria to Hezbollah.

Brigadier General Yossi Beiditz stated that, "Syria plays a significant role in the ever-growing rocket arsenal in the hands of Hezbollah... and the transfer of weapons to Hezbollah occurs consistently from Syria and is organized by the Syrian and Iranian regimes. Therefore this is not considered the smuggling of weapons to Lebanon- it is an official and organised transfer." Beiditz confirmed that long-range missiles have been recently transferred from Syria to Hezbollah, and said that "this is just the tip of the iceberg," and that "already today Hezbollah has in its hands an arsenal of thousands of every type and range of rockets, including long-range and more efficient solid-fuel missiles." He stated, "The long ranges of the missiles in the hands of Hezbollah enable them to place their launchers deep inside of Lebanon, and they cover ranges that are much longer than what we have seen in the past. Hezbollah in 2006 was different from Hezbollah in 2010 from the standpoint of their military capabilities which has developed more."

Beiditz concluded, "Syria continues to march on two different paths without being forced on the international arena to choose between them. On one side Syria is improving her relations with the West, with the Arab states, and with Turkey, and is returning to a role of influence within Lebanon. At the same time, Syria is deepening her strategic and operational cooperation with Iran, Hezbollah and the Palestinian terror organizations." This issue certainly needs addressing, as it would clearly appear that Syrian backed Hezbollah are preparing for another full scale war with Israel. With Iran threat of nuclear weapons, and the possibility of an early strike by Israel to take out any nuclear plants, Hezbollah could also be gearing up for such an attack. Do pray into this situation.

Netanyahu's extremist nation of Israel Did you know that in June 1876, United States Army General George Armstrong Custer was defeated by Cheyenne Indians at the Battle of the Little Big Horn? Of course you knew that... In what became known as “Custer’s Last Stand,” defeat was attributed primarily to a false assumption. Custer expected to encounter an enemy force of approximately equal size; instead, he faced a force at least three times the strength of his. That false assumption cost the charismatic general his life, along with the lives of 267 men trusting in his leadership. Had Custer been better informed, and the threat better understood, disaster may well have been averted. Yet 134 years later, a false assumption and lack of understanding by US President Obama could well spell similar disaster ~ but this time it could be for many nations.

There is a common thread tying together most terrorist activity occurring around the world today. Whether it is Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Russia, Yemen, Lebanon, Gaza, or even China...and that common thread is Islamic extremism. Did you know that in 2008, one hundred and thirty-three women were killed in one year in Basra, Iraq’s second largest city, either by religious vigilantes or as a result of so-called “honour” killings? The report said 79 of the victims were deemed by extremists to be “violating Islamic teachings”, 47 others died in “honour” killings and the remaining seven were targeted for their political affiliations. Did you know that this week in 2010 thousands of Muslim extremists attacked a Christian educational centre in Bogor regency, West Java province, Indonesia. The toll from Tuesday's attack is three destroyed cars and several buildings damaged or burnt. The wrath of fundamentalists was unleashed, and encouraged by the local Council of Ulema (MUI), by unsubstantiated rumours that the Christian community BKP Penabur were planning "to build a place of worship" within the complex. Targeted attacks against the Christian community continue in the regency of Bogor, coupled with the impotence of the Indonesian authorities unable to stop the violence with a religious background. Yesterday morning, thousands of Islamic extremists attacked and set fire to the centre of the Foundation Penabur BPK, despite the garrison erected earlier by hundreds of police.

Did you know Pakistan is still producing an estimated 10,000 potential jihadis a year despite claims made by Islamabad of taking strong action against terrorists in the country? According to Arnaud de Borchgrave, foreign affairs columnist and editor-at-large at The Washington Times, Islamic Extremists are flourishing in Pakistan. "A true-green jihadi believes the enemies of Islam (principally the United States, India and Israel) are on a crusade to push back the frontiers of Islam and deprive the Muslim world of its principal means of defence - Pakistan's nuclear arsenal," Borchgrave wrote in his hard hitting column. These are only the 'tip of the iceberg... I could go on to write pages of information on the Islamic terrorist of Darfur, or the Militant Hamas members on how they threw their fellow Fatah members off rooftops in Gaza... not to mention the Al-Qaeda, the complexity of the situation in Afghanistan, the shocking Islamic child martyrdom teaching methods of the Palestinians, or Ahmadinejad's genocidal ambitions. Yet on Wednesday, 6th May 2010, Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas actually went on record to state that the Israeli government is “extremist”.

The PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday that the Israeli government is “extremist” and must halt all building for Jews on land claimed by the PA before it agrees to American-mediated talks. Asked if he would sit down to talk if Israel continues to build Jewish homes on land claimed by the PA, Abbas said, “Certainly not. This is our land.” The harsh words, stated in an interview with CNN a day after consultations with Saudi Arabia, came hours before Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is to meet with U.S. Middle East envoy George Mitchell in what so far are one-sided talks. Since taking over the PA after the death of Yasser Arafat five years ago, Abbas has leaned heavily on the Arab world and its allies for advice and support. He told the Saudi Arabian newspaper Okaz on Tuesday, "The support of the kingdom to our cause springs from its strong belief that what it is doing for the Palestinian cause is a duty dictated on it by its conscience and its faith.”

In response, the Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) has launched a TV ad campaign in Washington, D.C., to highlight the need for peace education as prerequisite for peace. The 30-second TV spot is running on CNN, FOX News, MSNBC and Headline News in the Washington area this month to point out the negative impact on peace of the Palestinian Authority's policy to glorify terrorists. This campaign coincides with PMW's release this week in Washington of the new PMW report, From Terrorists to Role Models: The Palestinian Authority's Institutionalisation of Incitement. The 26-page report and additional documentation will be presented to members of Congress on Thursday. The campaign follows the U.S. administration's strong and public condemnation of Palestinian glorification of terrorists as an impediment to peace.

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