©September 11, 2011 Revive Israel Ministries

9-11 and the "New" Middle East

A ceremony will be held in Israel today, September 11, 2011, to commemorate the lives lost in the Twin Towers attack, exactly 10 years ago.  These ten years have seen the creation of a new reality in the Middle East. There have been violent upheavals in most of the Muslim nations surrounding Israel. Anarchy, bloodshed and radical Islamic takeovers are widespread. Let us pray for America as she mourns her lost; and to bind the spread of radical Islam.

Mob Attack on Israel Embassy in Egypt

On Friday evening, September 9, after afternoon prayers, a large and frustrated crowd of Muslim Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square in Cairo. Seeking an outlet to their anger, a mob reported of several thousand moved to attack the Israeli embassy. They broke down the protecting wall and entered the building. All Israeli diplomats and their families were evacuated, except for 6 security personnel, who remained in the building.

Throughout the night, September 10, Prime Minister Netanyahu tried to reach Egyptian government and security officials to stop the mob, but there was no response. Netanyahu then called directly to U.S. President Obama to ask for help. Obama called to Egypt and demanded intervention. The Egyptian army showed up in armed vehicles, firing tear gas and even live ammunition. Many were injured and reportedly three demonstrators were killed.

The 6 security personnel were locked inside the building. Netanyahu talked on the phone with "Yonatan," the head of the security team. With only one door remaining between them and the mob, the Egyptian commando force arrived and rescued them, thus diverting an international disaster at the last moment.

On the morning of September 10, Netanyahu issued a statement thanking President Obama and the Egyptian military, yet he also stressed the gravity of the situation. Obviously there can be no diplomatic relations if one nation cannot protect the embassy and personnel of the other nation. The upheavals in Egypt have placed the 30 year peace treaty with Israel in jeopardy.

Turkish Opinions of Israel

This month has seen a further deterioration of the relationship between Turkey and Israel, as Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan announced cancelling diplomatic, commercial, and defense arrangements with Israel. Yet not all Turks feel the same way. Here is an excerpt from columnist Burak Bekdil, appearing in Hurriyet Daily News, August 23, 2011:

It has been two and a half years since Prime Minister Erdoğan told Israeli President Shimon Peres, “You (Jews) know well how to kill.” Erdoğan has also declared that the main obstacle to peace in this part of the world is Israel, calling the Jewish state “a festering boil in the Middle East that spreads hate and enmity.” Let’s try to identify who are the ones who know well how to kill.

The Syrian death count clicks every day to come close to 2,000; and the Turkish-Kurdish death toll is already over 40,000 since 1984. Only during this Ramadan, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) death toll has reached 50 in this Muslim Kurds vs. Muslim Turks war.

Sudan is not in the conventional Middle East, so let’s ignore the genocide there. Let’s ignore, also, the West Pakistani massacres in East Pakistan (Bangladesh) totaling 1.25 million in 1971. Or 200,000 deaths in Algeria in war between Islamists and the government in 1991-2006.

A simple, strictly Middle East research will give you one million deaths in the all-Muslim Iran-Iraq war; 300,000 Muslim minorities killed by Saddam Hussein; 80,000 Iranians killed during the Islamic revolution; 25,000 deaths in 1970-71, the days of Black September, by the Jordanian government in its fight against the Palestinians; and 20,000 Islamists killed in 1982 by the elder al-Assad in Hama. The World Health Organization’s estimate of Osama bin Laden’s carnage in Iraq was already 150,000 a few years earlier.

Some 11 million Muslims have been violently killed since 1948, of which 35,000, (0.3 percent) died during the six years of Arab war against Israel, or one out of every 315 fatalities. In contrast, over 90 percent who perished were killed by fellow Muslims.

I asked a Christian Turkish friend how a journalist could write this and survive. His comment was that the article probably appeared only in the English edition of the opposition newspaper, for if it had been published in Turkish, he would have signed his own death warrant. A review of the hundreds of "talkbacks" showed a majority in favor of his comments. Pray for Bekdil's protection.

Jerusalem-wide Prayer Meeting

By Eddie Santoro

This Tuesday, September 6, members of 7-8 congregations in Jerusalem met for a joint prayer meeting. There was great unity among the congregations, which has been produced by friendship among the Jerusalem area pastors. This unity at the meeting led to a powerful anointing of the Holy Spirit in prayer. We interceded for the surrounding nations in the Middle East, for upcoming events in the United Nations, for the salvation of Israel, and much more. The prayers were rapid fire and intense. Everyone participated. The auditorium was packed out.

Toward Jerusalem Council II

By Daniel Juster

The "Toward Jerusalem Council II" conference takes place this week in Jerusalem, convening major Church denominational leaders, particularly from Europe and Africa this year. The conference is a dialogue designed to bring official Church support and understanding of the Messianic movement in Israel and around the world. Please pray for a clear strategy and agreement of vision to come forth from this conference and for a breakthrough into Church leadership in Asia as well.