Israel Prayer Update

Every week, we post from eight to ten news stories from Israel with a suggested prayer focus and scripture for each one, guiding readers how to pray for Israel's most urgent needs. This Prayer Update is also sent to over 11,000 subscribers every Friday by e-mail. Fill out the form on the side if you would like to receive this Prayer Update by e-mail.

Friday, May 11th, 2012

  1. Netanyahu Boosts Israel's Deterrence
  2. U.S. Lawmakers Tighten Strings on Aid to Egypt, Palestinians
  3. IDF Uncovers Explosive Devices in Northern Jordan Valley
  4. Hamas Unit Tasked with Stopping Attacks on Israel
  5. "Victory Will Be Greater If Hunger Strikers Die"
  6. Palestinian Authority TV Teaches Children to Make Map without Israel
  7. Lauder Condemns Anti-Semitic Remarks by Europeans Intellectuals
  8. Who Are the Palestinian-Arabs?
  9. Still Inventing after All These Years
  10. Found: First Evidence of Jewish Worship in Judah at the Time of King David

  1. Netanyahu Boosts Israel's Deterrence

    The unity deal worked out secretly by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Kadima Chairman Shaul Mofaz boosts our deterrence power on the Iranian front and Israel's ability to press the five permanent members of the Security Council and Germany not to compromise too much.

    The new unity government will attest to very broad support for the Netanyahu government, while the prime minister's and defense minister's position on Iran's nuclear program is widely known.

    This fact was certainly not lost on the US Administration and European governments, which are very anxious about potential Israel moves that may hinder their economic recovery. After all, an Israeli strike in Iran could prompt oil prices, which are currently going down, to skyrocket.

    On the domestic front, the decision to form a unity government has even greater value. First, the official forum of decision-makers on Iran - that is, the security cabinet - has been reinforced with another official who possesses great defense experience. Shaul Mofaz has served as defense minister and IDF [Israel Defense Forces] chief of staff in the past, and recent conversations with him indicate that he will not rush to pull the trigger

    Mofaz will be joining the forum of top eight government ministers, which will now turn into a forum of nine entrusted with taking informal decisions on critical security and diplomatic issues; this also includes the decision on whether to strike in Iran. What we have here is another experienced hand, which will improve the decision-making process on the defense front.

    Should a decision to strike Iran be taken, the existence of a unity government will reduce the danger of criticism should the operation fail or lead to unexpected results.

    In the final analysis, we can assert that the formation of the new government - assuming it will function properly and survive the crises expected in the coming months - boosts Israel's deterrent power and upgrades its leadership's decision-making ability on the security and diplomatic front, topped by the Iran issue.
     
    However, we must keep in mind that the Ulpana affair [whether to evict residents of an illegal settlement] and mostly the issue of drafting the haredim [ultra-Orthodox] into the IDF have not yet been resolved. Only once the government proves that it can contend with this issues, it will also enjoy greater credibility and deterrent power on the security front.

    (By Ron Ben-Yishai, Ynetnews, May 8, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that this new unity government will stay unified and be able to work together in finding solutions to the challenging issues in Israel's immediate future.
    Scripture

    "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!" - Psalm 133:1

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  2. U.S. Lawmakers Tighten Strings on Aid to Egypt, Palestinians

    The U.S. Congress is tightening conditions on foreign aid to Egypt and the Palestinians. Approving by voice vote the $40.1 billion foreign operations budget for 2013, the House foreign operations appropriations subcommittee stipulated that the annual package of $1.55 billion in military and civilian assistance to Egypt would be cut if Cairo breaks its peace treaty with Israel, as some emerging political voices in Egypt have threatened.

    In addition, the secretary of state must confirm that presidential elections later this month are free and fair and that human rights are respected.

    Vis a vis the Palestinians, the legislation cuts funding if the Palestinian Authority signs any agreement with the Islamic movement Hamas or does not actively work to end incitement. The legislation also blocks funding for United Nations Educational and Scientific Organization (UNESCO) after it voted last year to recognize Palestine as a member state.

    (By The Media Line, May 10, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Praise God for this strong stand! Pray that this pressure will bring about good results.
    Scripture

    "To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever." - Psalm 30:12

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  3. IDF Uncovers Explosive Devices in Northern Jordan Valley

    For the third time in recent weeks, IDF [Israel Defense Forces] forces have discovered explosive devices in the northern Jordan Valley. Early Tuesday morning (May 8), IDF forces conducted an operation in the village of Tamon, near Bekaot. Based on intelligence information, the forces conducted searches during which five hidden explosive charges were found. The devices were neutralized in a controlled manner by sappers and three Palestinians were detained and taken in for questioning by security forces.

    In contrast to other weaponry found in the area recently, the explosive devices uncovered were ready for immediate activation and were relatively large and complex. Previous devices found were smaller and more improvised, made from old deodorant containers and bottles.

    According to the IDF's Jordan Valley Brigade, there is a trend of hostile activities moving from the Nablus region to the Jordan Valley region. The Jordan Valley Brigade is emphasizing that it will do whatever it takes to thwart this trend, due to the importance of creating a buffer between Judea and Samaria and the country of Jordan, with which Israel has a peace agreement.

    Two weeks ago, four improvised explosive devices were uncovered at the Bekaot Crossing. Two Palestinians were arrested following the incident. A month ago, military police uncovered seven improvised explosive devices, three knives, and 50 bullets amongst a Palestinian's possessions.

    (By Israel Defense Forces, May 8, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Praise God that He continues to watch over Israel! Pray that all of Israel's security forces will be alert and able to uncover what is hidden.
    Scripture

    "Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever." - Psalm 136:1

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  4. Hamas Unit Tasked with Stopping Attacks on Israel

    The Hamas government in the Gaza Strip is operating a unit that stops militants from firing rockets into Israel, the Ha'aretz daily reports. This marks a role reversal for the Palestinian Islamic movement, which was founded as a jihad-fighting force against the Jewish state.

    Formed several months ago and under the direct command of Interior Minister Fathi Hammad, the 300-man unit is tasked with foiling attacks by organizations such as the Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees. Its soldiers make their way around Gaza by motorcycles and four-wheel-drive vehicles and are authorized to shoot anyone who resists arrest.

    Most of those detained can expect to spend at least a couple of months in prison without trial. Islamic Jihad members, however, are almost always released on the spot due to informal understandings with the Hamas government.

    (By The Media Line, May 10, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that this task force will not be biased or lenient, and justice will prevail.
    Scripture

    "It is a joy for the just to do justice, but destruction will come to the workers of iniquity." - Proverbs 21:15

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  5. "Victory Will Be Greater If Hunger Strikers Die"

    Israeli security officials fear that the death of any Palestinian prisoner as a result of the ongoing hunger strike, which has entered its 21st day, may lead to an eruption of violence in the territories, the Yedioth Ahronoth daily reported Monday [May 7].

    Some 1,600 Palestinian prisoners are protesting against the conditions of their incarceration, which were significantly worsened while Gilad Shalit was held captive by Hamas in Gaza. Among other things, the prisoners are demanding an end to solitary confinement, an end to administrative detentions and reinstating family visits from Gaza. They are also demanding that Israel allow them to take university courses and give them access to Arab TV channels.

    The Israel Prison Service has agreed to give the prisoners some of their privileges back, but has not accepted their demand to end the administrative detention policy.

    Bilal Diab, 27, who has been refusing food and medical attention for 70 days, was transferred to the Assaf Harofeh Medical Center last week after his condition deteriorated.
     
    Khader Adnan, who was the first prisoner to launch a hunger strike, said "from our perspective, the hunger strike will be considered a success in any case, regardless of whether the prisoners' demands are met or if they die in prison."
     
    Adnan, who refused food for more than two months, ended his strike after Israel agreed to release him from administrative detention. "If they die, the victory will be even greater," he said. "In any case, Israel will be held responsible." Meanwhile, Islamic Jihad threatened to resume its rocket attacks on Israel from Gaza should one of the prisoners die.
     
    Ziad Abu Ein, Palestinian deputy minister of prisoners affairs, said the death of one of the Palestinian prisoners would trigger violence in the territories. According to him, the hunger strikers have called on Hamas' armed wing to kidnap soldiers in order to advance their release.
     
    The northern branch of the Islamic Movement in Israel called on its supporters to fast on Monday as an act of solidarity with the prisoners.

    (Roni Shaked, Ynetnews, May 7, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that God will give decision makers wisdom in knowing how to handle this very delicate situation.
    Scripture

    "For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding." - Proverbs 2:6

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  6. Palestinian Authority TV Teaches Children to Make Map without Israel

    A children's program teaching arts and crafts on official Palestinian Authority [PA] TV instructed children how to make models of "Palestine." The shape of the map of "Palestine," which was cut out of paper, included all of Israel. Adding a political message, PA TV taught the children to cover the entire model with the colors of the Palestinian flag, symbolizing Palestinian sovereignty over the whole area.

    Palestinian Media Watch has documented that the official PA maps erase all of Israel defining it as "Palestine." The international community has criticized the Palestinian Authority for this practice.

    Before he was elected to office, President Barack Obama said that he viewed the use of these maps that present a world without Israel as a security threat to Israel: "I will never compromise when it comes to Israel's security... Not when there are maps across the Middle East that don't even acknowledge Israel's existence." [AIPAC Conference, June 4, 2008]

    Maps that "don't even acknowledge Israel's existence" are still the official maps in the Palestinian Authority.

    (Excerpts of an article by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that more international pressure will be placed upon the Palestinian Authority to change the way they educate their children.
    Scripture

    "For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is destruction; their throat is an open tomb; they flatter with their tongue. Pronounce them guilty, O God! Let them fall by their own counsels; cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against You." - Psalm 5:9-10

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  7. Lauder Condemns Anti-Semitic Remarks by Europeans Intellectuals

    World Jewish Congress [WJC] President Ronald S. Lauder has strongly condemned recent remarks by the Norwegian sociologist Johan Galtung who on repeated occasions had revived anti-Semitic canards such as Jewish control of the media and suggested that Israel's Mossad could have been behind last year's massacres in Norway, committed by Anders Breivik, in which 77 people died.

    Lauder said the "despicable" remarks by the 81-year-old Galtung, a world-renowned peace scholar, were yet another sign that "anti-Semitic and anti-Israel sentiment is on the increase in certain intellectual and academic circles in Europe" and that many scholars and artists "are clearly obsessed" with Israel and the Jews.

    "There is a growing tendency to blame the Jews for all evil that happens under the sun. It is a scandal that a leading academics such as Galtung does not shy away from citing notorious forgeries such as the Protocols of the Elders of Zion to support his bigoted arguments.

    "He and other intellectuals accuse Jews of stifling public debate and controlling the mass media. He and others hallucinate about a world in which nasty Jews control world finance. These people are obsessed about Israel and its alleged might. And, worst of all, they get their facts wrong almost all the time," Lauder pointed out.

    Recently, German writer and Nobel Prize laureate Günter Grass alleged that it was Israel that posed the biggest threat to world peace.

    Ronald S. Lauder also lambasted a recent court ruling in Italy in which the leftist cartoonist and anti-Israel activist Vauro Senesi was cleared of anti-Semitism despite portraying Jewish lawmaker Fiamma Nirenstein with a Star of David and fascist symbols in one of his cartoons. The judge ruled that he could not be accused of anti-Semitism "because of his profound commitment to humanitarian causes in Third World countries."

    The WJC president said: "While the cartoonist is given the license to publicly insult Jews, the court finds others guilty of defamation for calling him an anti-Semite - what a travesty!"

    While Lauder praised the widespread condemnation for Galtung's and Grass' statements in the Norwegian and German press, he lamented the widespread silence of fellow academics and intellectuals. "Shouldn't it be a lesson from European history that whenever anti-Semitic statements are made all decent people must condemn them, and not just the Jews?

    "It is time that Europe's intellectuals engage in some soul-searching because unfortunately, we are talking about more than just a few isolated cases of 'angry old men' ranting against Israel and the Jews. It is a trend that must be halted, and we hope that non-Jewish intellectuals and scholars will also come out in support for Israel and the Jewish people," said Lauder.

    (Excerpts of an article by World Jewish Congress, May 2, 2012)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that God will raise up a voice (or voices) among European intellectuals who will take a bold stand against such anti-Semitic rhetoric.
    Scripture

    "He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God." - Psalm 98:3

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  8. Who Are the Palestinian-Arabs?

    Most Palestinians are Muslim-Arabs who originated in the Arabian Peninsula. However, the source of the name "Palestine" was Pleshet, the region of the Philistines (Pleshtim in Hebrew), who originated in Greece's Aegean Islands. They were expelled from Greece in 1300 BC and settled the coastal plain of the Land of Israel in 1200 BC.  The Roman Empire introduced the name "Palestina" in order to erase the memory of the Jewish People and the Jewish Homeland, Judea, from history.

    Contrary to political correctness, Palestine was never an Arab entity with a unique national, geographic, cultural, identity. It was part of a larger entity, and its Arab inhabitants considered themselves as part of the Arab, Moslem, Ottoman or the Greater-Syria entities.  George Habib Antonius, the leading historian of Arab nationalism, considered Palestine to be part of Greater Syria.

    History documents that the Land of Israel was the cradle of Jewish identity 2,000 years before the appearance of Islam, and that the tangible connection between the Jewish People and the Jewish Homeland has been sustained since then.  On the other hand, Palestinian Arabs have not been in the area west of the Jordan River from time immemorial; no Palestinian state has ever existed, no Palestinian People was ever robbed of its land, and there is no basis for the Palestinian "claim of return."

    Most Palestinian Arabs are descendants of 1845-1947 Muslim migrants from the Sudan, Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, as well as from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya, Morocco, Bosnia, the Caucasus, Turkmenistan, Kurdistan, India, Afghanistan and Balochistan. Arab migrant workers were imported by the Ottoman Empire and by the British Mandate (which defeated the Ottomans in 1917) to work on infrastructure projects.

    The baseless claim of an Arab presence in the Land of Israel from time immemorial and the attempt to dismiss the moral, historical, and geographic Jewish right to sovereignty over the Land of Israel have fueled Arab hatred and terrorism, have constituted the chief obstacle to peace, have perpetuated war and terrorism.

    (Excerpts of an article by Yoram Ettinger, The Ettinger Report)

    Prayer Focus
    Pray that more people like this reporter will rise up and courageously tell the truth about such long-held suppositions that are baseless according to historical facts.
    Scripture

    "And they sang responsively, praising and giving thanks to the LORD: 'For He is good, or His mercy endures forever toward Israel.' Then all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD…" - Ezra 3:11

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  9. Still Inventing after All These Years

    At 91, Prof. Nathan Citri offers no advice on how to achieve longevity. That he's made it this far  -  with a mind so sharp he is still inventing innovative medical diagnostic kits  -  may be thanks to long walks or good genes. He cannot know for sure, since the Nazis cut short the lives of his parents and his only sister.

    "This country saved my life," says Citri. In return, he continues to give Israel the best of his extraordinary knowledge in microbiology. Born Natan Cytrynowski in Lodz, Poland, the future Hebrew University researcher was raised in a Hebrew-speaking home by Zionist educators.

    "How many people spoke Hebrew at home in those days? Nobody else I know of," he tells ISRAEL21c with a laugh. He vividly recalls visitors marveling that the Cytrynowski kids not only conversed in Hebrew but even cried out in Hebrew when they were upset. "I always say that my mother tongue is Hebrew even though my mother never made it to Israel."

    This unusual upbringing benefited Citri greatly when he left Poland for Palestine in 1937 through Youth Aliyah. He arrived at Ben Shemen youth village, a well-known training ground in the basics of kibbutz (communal settlement) farming.

    Together with Naomi, his late wife and fulltime collaborator, Citri developed a prototype for bedside kits that detect and identify resistant bacteria from blood or urine, yielding lifesaving information within minutes rather than days. He felt sure someone younger would replicate his idea, which he considered an obvious approach. However, nobody stepped up to the plate.

    So in September 2011, seven months after Naomi's passing, Citri went to London to show his concept to a world expert in the field. The Israeli already had consistent results obtained in Britain with prototype kits produced according to his emailed instructions.

    The expert told Citri it could take two years to develop the invention. "I said, 'Look at me. I don't have that kind of time. We need to do this right now.' And he gave me the names of two British companies with the technology to produce this kind of kit."

    The next day, the first rep to show up at his hotel said, "There have been countless failed attempts at solutions, and your idea is so simple and straightforward. We want it."

    The agreement, administered through Hebrew University's tech transfer company, Yissum, has fast-tracked the process of gaining Europe's CE Mark of approval for the kits. Though the nonagenarian has known many sorrows, he remains upbeat and is working on another diagnostic kit whose details are still hush-hush.

    (Excerpts of an article by Abigail Klein Leichman, Israel21c.org)

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  10. Found: First Evidence of Jewish Worship in Judah at the Time of King David

    Prof. Yosef Garfinkel, the Yigal Yadin Professor of Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, announced on May 8 the discovery of objects that for the first time shed light on how Jewish worship was organized in Judah at the time of King David.

    During recent archaeological excavations at Khirbet Qeiyafa, a fortified city in Judah adjacent to the Valley of Elah [where David fought Goliath, just west of Beit Shemesh], Garfinkel and colleagues uncovered rich assemblages of pottery, stone and metal tools, and many art and religious objects. These include three large rooms, which correspond to the biblical description of worship at the time of King David.

    It is the first time that a place of worship [referred to as shrines] from the time of early biblical kings were uncovered. Because these rooms pre-date the construction of Solomon's temple in Jerusalem by 30 to 40 years, they provide the first physical evidence of a system of worship in the time of King David.
     
    Located approximately 30 km. [19 miles] southwest of Jerusalem, Khirbet Qeiyafa was a border city of the Kingdom of Judah opposite the Philistine city of Gath. The city, which was dated by 10 radiometric measurements done on burned olive pits, existed for a short period of time between ca. 1020 to 980 BC.
     
    The biblical tradition presents the people of Israel as conducting worship different from all other nations of the ancient Near East by being monotheistic and an-iconic (banning human or animal figures). The absence of cultic images of humans or animals in the three rooms provides evidence that the inhabitants of the place practiced a different way of worship than that of the Canaanites or the Philistines, observing a ban on graven images.

    According to Prof. Garfinkel, "This is the first time that archaeologists uncovered a fortified city in Judah from the time of King David. Even in Jerusalem, we do not have a clear fortified city from his period. Thus, various suggestions that completely deny the biblical tradition regarding King David and argue that he was a mythological figure, or just a leader of a small tribe, are now shown to be wrong."

    Garfinkel continued, "Over the years, thousands of animal bones were found, including sheep, goats and cattle, but no pigs…This suggests that the population of Khirbet Qeiyafa observed two biblical bans - on pork and on graven images - and thus practiced a different cult than that of the Canaanites or the Philistines."  

    The three rooms are part of larger building complexes. In this respect, they are different from Canaanite or Philistine cults, which were practiced in temples - separate buildings dedicated only to rituals.

    The religious objects include five standing stones, two basalt altars, two pottery libation vessels and two portable shrine models. One of the models was made of pottery and the other of stone. These are boxes in the shape of temples and could be closed by doors.

    The clay shrine is decorated with an elaborate façade, including two guardian lions, two pillars, a main door, beams of the roof, folded textile (curtain) and three birds standing on the roof. Two of these elements are described in Solomon's Temple: the two pillars (Yachin and Boaz) and the curtain in front of the Ark of the Covenant (Parochet).

    (From a press release by Hebrew University, May 8, 2012)

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