From The Sunday Times

November 11, 2007

Uzi Mahnaimi, Tel Aviv

THE defensive missile shield around Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor was placed on red alert 30 times last week amid fears of an airstrike by Syria.

A battery of American-made Patriot antiaircraft missiles has been moved to Dimona in the Negev desert following intelligence that a strike may be launched in retaliation for Israel’s bombing of a suspected nuclear site in Syria two months ago.

In a highly unusual move, the officers in charge of the missiles were permitted to talk to Israeli state television about their preparations. "We’re ready to launch the missiles in seconds, once we’re on full alert," said First Lieutenant Adi, a young female officer who is the deputy commander of the battery.

Tension with Damascus has heightened since September 6 when Israeli fighters destroyed the suspected nuclear installation in northern Syria.

"The fact that the Syrians didn’t launch an immediate strike against Israel doesn’t mean that they won’t retaliate in due course," said an Israeli defence source. "Dimona is on the top of their list."

Tension is mounting in Israel. "Every civilian aircraft en route from Cairo to Amman, or from Jeddah to Cairo and vice versa, which deviates even slightly from its route, sets off an alarm and risks a missile being fired," said the female commander of the Patriot battery.

Military sources in the United States are warning that new revelations on the extent of Iran's nuclear programme may provide the impetus for an Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities. Yesterday President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed that Iran is presently operating around 3000 cascading Uranium centrifuges, a fact that has now been confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Intelligence experts believe that 3000 centrifuges would produce enough Uranium for Iran to manufacture an atomic weapon by 2009.  Ahmadinejad also announced that Iran was planning to install 54,000 centrifuges at its nuclear facility in Natanz. US analysts have said America will hold off on any strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, but could not guarantee that Israel would not.

Quote: "The British paper quoted military sources in the US capital as saying that the figure presented by Ahmadinejad could be the "tipping point" that touches off an IAF strike. Washington was reluctant to go forward with a strike against Iran, but Israel was a "different matter," the officials said. Even before the Iranian president's announcement US defense officials told the Times that "Israel could do something when they get to around 3,000 working centrifuges. The Pentagon is minded to wait a little longer." Concern over an Israeli strike has been "heightened" following the September 6 strike on a target suspected to belong to a Syrian nuclear program, the paper said.

Israeli Foreign Minister Mark Regev has accused the IAEA of foot-dragging, and its chief Mohammed ElBaradei of playing into Iranian hands. A few months ago Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert also accused the ElBaradei of not doing enough to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. 

Quote:  ""If ElBaradei thinks that an Iranian bomb in three years time does not bother him, it certainly worries me, even extremely," Olmert said in France. "It would be better if ElBaradei made an effort to prevent them from obtaining a bomb." ElBaradei said in an interview with France's Le Monde newspaper that Iran would need "between three and eight years" to develop a nuclear bomb and that there were was no immediate threat. "I want to get people away from the idea that Iran represents a clear and present danger and that we're now facing the decision whether to bombard Iran or let them have the bomb. We're not in that situation at all," he said.

As I have said before, while the Iranian President has stated publicly that Iran is not seeking to attack any country, Iran's leaders do not recognize Israel as a country. President Ahmadinejad has also repeatedly called for the Jewish state to be "wiped off the map", most recently at an address to the United Nations. Iran's quarrel is with Israel alone. Former Iranian Ayatollah's have boasted that it would only take one nuclear device to destroy Israel, while any retaliatory response from Israel would cause limited damage due to Iran's geographical size. The threat has been made, only Iran presently lacks the means to carry it out. Clearly the diplomatic option will fail, because Ahmadinejad is determined to bring about world chaos to hasten the coming of the Islamic Mahdi. Praise God that we are not waiting for the coming of the Mahdi. We serve the Living and True God, and wait for His Son from Heaven, who has already delivered us from the wrath to come. Have you trusted in Him? He waits for you.

1st Thessalonians 1:8-10
For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing. For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

Source Times Online, Jerusalem Post, France24

JTA

Published: 11/06/2007

Iran could procure nuclear weapons by 2009, a top Israeli intelligence analyst said.

Brig. Gen. Yossi Baidatz, chief analyst for Israel's military intelligence, told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday that if Iran's nuclear program goes unchecked, it could produce warheads by the end of 2009 or the beginning of 2010.

Western powers believe Iran is two or three years further away from nuclear bomb-making capability.

Baidatz also said that the hard-line regime of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad looks strong despite its unpopularity at home and foreign pressure to abandon its atomic ambitions.

King Abdullah II of Jordan has called on China to increase its involvement in the Middle East in an effort to bring peace to the region. His comments came as Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni was in Beijing to lobby the Communist government to strengthen sanctions on Iran over its nuclear programme. 

Quote: ""China can play an important role in supporting this process both as a world power and respected and trusted Asian neighbour," said the King, on a visit to mark 30 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries. "As a permanent member of the United Nations (Security Council) and a country that has good relations with all parties in our region, China's role is, I believe, destined to increase in the coming period," he said in a speech at Peking University.

China's role is indeed destined to increase in the coming period. China enjoys good relations with all parties in the Middle East at present, but according to Scripture that will change. Following the failure of the peace process in the Middle East, and following the outbreak of war, the Kings of the East (or "sun-rising") are prophesied to march on Israel. The Euphrates river will be dried up, allowing their armies to cross unhindered into the Holy Land. Looking at a map of the Middle East, the Euphrates river acts as a land barrier between east and west, protecting Israel from invasion from states such as Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and China. Turkey is planning to build around 22 dams on the Euphrates. Syria relies heavily on the Euphrates for generating electricity, and frequently experiences power blackouts when the water level runs low.

Revelation 16:12
And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs [come] out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, [which] go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

The army that the Apostle John sees in the tribulation period numbers some 200 million men. Presently the only nation capable of mustering such a force would be China, and this causes many Christians to believe that China may have a big part to play in the end time scenario.

Revelation 9:13-18
And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. And the number of the army of the horsemen [were] two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses [were] as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.

Source Reuters, Bible Study