Displaying items by tag: israel

All the lists of candidates parties have now been submitted, and some parties have agreed to run together in this new election. There was a joining together of several left wing and some of the smaller right wing parties, yet polls show that there will be no clear victor. We cry out for mercy: ‘Lord, have mercy on Your people as Israel needs a God-given government. Since You are the One who raises up and pulls down, please raise up the one of Your choice to be the next prime minister, defence minister, finance minister, etc. We plead with You for a government which will do Your will for Israel at this time. Abba, show us how to pray and even give us specific people to pray for. President Trump plans a “Deal of the Century” peace plan that could impact the elections. May you reign over the timing and content of this plan.’ (Psalm 99:1)

On 12 November the Israel Defence Forces killed a senior commander of a Jihad terror group responsible for firing dozens of rockets out of the Gaza Strip. This prompted a massive retaliation of over seventy rockets fired at Israel’s civilian districts. The UK’s foreign office advised visitors that attacks could be indiscriminate, including places frequented by foreigners, and on public transport. Most embassies in Tel Aviv have heightened caution or have temporarily closed. Palestinian Islamic Jihad declared that it was preparing for war with Israel. By 13 November, 220 rockets had been fired as far north as Tel Aviv, with 90% intercepted by the army. Schools in the south and much of the centre were closed, keeping 1 million students at home, and a commando unit was deployed to secure border communities from possible infiltration. On 14 November a ceasefire was achieved, but just hours later five rockets were launched from the coastal enclave, with two of them intercepted by Israel’s army. See also

Israel’s sitting prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu, for the second time since April 2019, has been unable to form a coalition government. He returned his mandate to do so to President Reuven Rivlin on Monday 21 Oct. 2019.

Rivlin has since called on Netanyahu’s rival, Benny Gantz, who heads the Blue and White bloc, to try and form a coalition of at least 61 seats in parliament over the next 28 days. It is widely held that Gantz will be unlikely to fare any better than Netanyahu. If he does fail to form a government, an unprecedented third election in one year will take place in 2020. 

The prime minister claimed in a video statement that he tried to bring Gantz to the negotiating table to “prevent another election,” but said Gantz “refused time after time.” (JNN)

PRAYER REMINDER: INTERCEDE FOR ISRAEL’S NEW GOVERNMENT TO BE EFFECTIVELY FORMED SOON:

Once again, the call goes out for intercessors and prayer groups to intercede in this vitally important issue. Pray that Israel's leaders will be able to form a strong and stable government and that a third national election, will be avoided. The damage to Israel as a result of soon repeated elections would be immense.

The direct cost alone would be approximately 700 million shekels, a sum that equals the entire annual budget of the Science Ministry. The indirect price-tag for going back to the polls again would cost the Israeli economy more than 2 billion shekels. This would only be part of the consequences of such an outcome lengthening the current political impasse.

For close to a year now Israel has been unable to carry out important procedures. Senior officials in the various ministries have said the government is “treading water.” They report that new programs cannot be approved, serious processes cannot be conducted and long-term plans cannot be adopted.

The Ministry of the Economy cannot progress with reforms to lower the cost of living. The Interior Ministry is holding back major projects needed by local authorities. The appointments of senior officials – judges, the police chief – are frozen. Diplomatic processes with a direct impact on Israeli security, such as President Trump’s peace plan, have been deferred. Everything is on hold. (JNN)

Source: www.visionforisrael.com

More at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-50167387

On 31 October 1917 Britain answered God’s call to facilitate Israel’s restoration to her ancient homeland, as Cyrus did in the 6th century BC. Britain was then considered a Christian nation, where the idea of restoring the Jewish people to their ancient homeland had been alive for 200 years. The Church understood that God had covenanted the land of Israel to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as an everlasting possession. In 1917 the Balfour Declaration was agreed, and Britain liberated Beersheba from Ottoman Turkish control - the first stage in ensuring that the exiles could freely return. However, in February 2019 the EU and the League of Arab States identified Israel’s settlements as ‘illegal’. Britain agreed with this stance, even though the Geneva Convention states that ‘there is no binding agreement in international law that designates the disputed territories as belonging to the Palestinians’.

After the election last month, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had 28 days to secure the 61 seats necessary to achieve a functioning majority government by building support from smaller parties in the Knesset. After nearly a month of fraught negotiations he acknowledged his failure to cobble together a coalition, and returned the mandate to President Reuven Rivlin. Rivlin has turned to Netanyahu’s principal rival, Benny Gantz, of the centrist Blue and White party, who tweeted, ‘It is time for blue and white.’ Pray for the new government to bring God glory, and may the fear of God fall on all those who are in the political arena.

Religious Jewish parties won nearly 20% of the vote in the national election on 17 September. Previously, those parties have united with the conservative Likud party to form a governing coalition. But now the religious-nationalist bloc fell short of a majority in the Knesset, winning only 56 of the 120 seats. Seven decades after Israel’s founding, the debate over Judaism’s place in public life rages on. Israeli political battle lines often fracture along balancing Jewish religion and liberal democracy. These tensions were a central issue in the election, and will influence the composition of Israel’s next government.

Following April’s elections Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a governing coalition, the first such failure in Israeli history. Snap elections will now be held on 17 September. The polls predict another election result that would make it impossible to form a government. Pray for a breakthrough, asking God to bring about His government for Israel. Claim the words of Isaiah 1:26 for these elections. Let the voters have Your mind, particularly as they weigh up Netanyahu’s plan to annexe 600 square miles of Palestinian territory. May the results bring a government through which You can be glorified, and may every stumbling stone to prevent a godly government be removed. The autumn feasts of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Succoth begin soon. Pray for Jews to be reconnected to their biblical roots and see the King of Israel, their Messiah and Lord.

On 1 September Hezbollah fired several precision-guided missiles from Lebanon towards an army base on Israel’s northern border, destroying an IDF armoured vehicle in the attack. Thankfully, there were no soldiers inside it at the time, but there had been just 30 minutes before the attack, leading Israel’s Army Radio to broadcast that Israel and Hezbollah were ‘30 minutes away from war’. Israel led Hezbollah to believe that there were casualties by staging a well-planned medical evacuation, prompting the terror group to hold fire and giving Israel tactical advantage to strike back with artillery and helicopter fire, sending over 100 shells into Hezbollah positions in Lebanon. Many lives are at risk due to escalating tensions between Israel and Iran’s proxy, Hezbollah.

Recently there have been four attacks on weapons storage facilities belonging to Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) militia. Some factions of the PMU are believed to be Iran proxies, which might explain why there have been accusations of possible US and Israeli involvement. The latest attack took place even though prime minister Mahdi had closed Iraqi airspace to all unauthorised flights of drones, spy planes, jets and helicopters; including the US-led coalition. With Israel being suspected of organising these attacks, some claim that the United States and Russia have allowed them to do so. Iraq’s president said his country does not want to become a battleground for other countries at the expense of its people. ‘Iraq's interest comes first, and the nation will not allow others to turn it into a land for competition.’

Lebanon opened fire on Israeli surveillance drones on 28 August, heightening the conflict between the warring neighbours. Lebanon does not usually attempt to down Israel’s unmanned surveillance planes, but its Hizbollah military wing said it was preparing a ‘calculated strike’ against Israel, in retaliation for an Israeli raid on its position near Damascus and a drone attack in Beirut on its Iranian missile-making equipment. Sources believe Lebanon will target Israeli soldiers on patrol near the border. Israeli media reported that Israel had targeted and destroyed machinery used for the production of precision-guided missiles. It is trying to disrupt the flow of weapons and technology from Iran to its proxies in Syria and Lebanon. In response to constant rocket attacks, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes against Hizbollah and Iranian positions in Syria, so far with little response. Lebanon’s president is increasingly influenced by Hizbollah, which is also represented in the country’s parliament.