Those who do not condemn terrorism, support it, PM Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday, 20 March 2016 at the opening of the weekly cabinet meeting. A day after the suicide bombing in Istanbul that killed four people, including three Israelis, Netanyahu said that terrorism "sows death and destruction throughout the world.” Israel, he said, is at the front of the struggle against terrorism, and that this struggle, while first and foremost a military one, is also a moral one. "The key in the moral fight against terrorism is to make clear that terrorism – the killing of innocent people – has no justification anywhere, not in Istanbul, the Ivory Coast or Jerusalem,” he said. "Those who do not condemn terrorism, support terrorism.” (J. Post) [Comment]

Three Israelis were murdered in a Saturday, 19 March 2016 suicide bombing in Istanbul that wounded at least 36 others. Israel’s Foreign Ministry said there were 11 wounded Israelis: two were in serious condition, two in moderate condition, six in light condition, and a wounded woman who was in surgery. A plane carrying an MDA delegation landed in Turkey after 10pm to help examine the wounded Israelis. The attack occurred on the city's famous Istiklal Street, a popular tourist destination visited by many people on weekends. Among the wounded Israelis were members of two different tour groups, which apparently met on Istiklal Street just before the attack. Turkish officials said that DNA evidence confirmed the suspected bomber, named as Savas Yildiz, was linked to the ISIS terrorist group. Reports said Yildiz was involved in attacks in Mersin and Adana in southern Turkey about a year ago before fleeing to Syria. (Ynet) [Comment]

McGraw-Hill Education, a major USA textbook publisher, announced the recall and planned destruction of a political science book containing maps that are deemed inaccurate and anti-Israel. The book, Global Politics: Engaging a Complex World, was taken off McGraw-Hill Education’s website and slated for recall and destruction in recent weeks following complaints about the maps, the news site insidehighered.com reported last week. The book features four maps of what is now Israel, Gaza and Judea & Samaria and says that it shows "Palestinian loss of land” from 1946 to 2000, with which many historians and supporters of Israel strongly disagree. The critics of these maps argue that they distort key facts, such as Jewish ownership of land before Israel became a country in 1948. McGraw-Hill Education received complaints over the maps from advocates of Israel. Catherine Mathis, a spokeswoman for McGraw-Hill Education, said that, "As soon as we learned about the concerns with it, we placed sales of the book on hold and immediately initiated an academic review. The review determined that the map did not meet our academic standards. We have informed the authors, and we are no longer selling the book. All existing inventory will be destroyed. We apologize and will refund payment to anyone who returns the book.” (J. Post) [Comment]

The annual World Happiness Report published on Tues. 15 March by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) ranked Israel as the 11th happiest country in the world for a third year in a row, out of 156 countries surveyed. The top 10 this year were Denmark, Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, Finland, Canada, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, and Sweden. The bottom 10 were Madagascar, Tanzania, Liberia, Guinea, Rwanda, Benin, Afghanistan, Togo, Syria and Burundi. The United States came in at 13. "There is a very strong message for my country, the United States, which is very rich, has gotten a lot richer over the last 50 years, but has gotten no happier," said Professor Jeffrey Sachs, head of the SDSN and special adviser to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. "The message for the United States is clear. For a society that just chases money, we are chasing the wrong things. Our social fabric is deteriorating, social trust is deteriorating, faith in government is deteriorating," he said. (J. Post) [Comment]

The British Royal Mail postal service has issued a stamp honoring Sir Nicholas Winton, who rescued 669 Jewish children from Europe in 1939 shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War. Winton arranged for eight trains carrying the children to travel from Prague to the UK, utilizing Britain’s Kindertransport program allowing for refugees under 17 from the continent to gain asylum if they had a hosting family. Winton bribed Nazi officials, arranged for forged travel documents and found families to take the children in and pay a £50 deposit for their eventual return travel fees. The families of most of the children rescued were murdered during the Holocaust. Winton, who died last year aged 106, is one of six humanitarians honored in the Royal Mail’s presentation pack issued on Tues. 15 March 2016. (J. Post) [Comment]

Having driven the last Christian out of Mosul, ISIS has now released a chilling video showing a bonfire consuming a huge pile of Bibles and other Christian literature. The video, entitled "Diwan of education destroys Christian instruction books in Mosul,” was made by ISIS’ "morality police,” according to Christian Today. It comes as the USA is deliberating over whether to label the terrorist group’s actions in Iraq as genocide, a term that has important ramifications under international law. The House voted unanimously this week to approve a resolution branding ISIS’ actions as genocide, which the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide defines in part as "acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” The State Department is under pressure to reach the same conclusion, which could obligate the USA to take action. 

Mosul, long considered a haven for Iraq’s Christian population, was overrun by terrorists in 2014. After the takeover, ISIS demanded that Christians convert to Islam, pay a tax known as a jizya, or flee the city. Although Mosul was once considered a center of Christianity in the region, all Christians are believed to be gone from the city. The Christian population of Iraq has dropped from 1.5 million to 275,000 since ISIS established its caliphate. "The stated purpose of ISIS to eliminate and force the Christians and Yazidi people out of the region,” Curry said. "They are succeeding. The Christian population in the region has greatly diminished.” If USA Secretary of State John Kerry determines their actions amount to genocide, the UN could be forced to address the issue. "This has always been genocide,” Curry said. "The West has realized that they cannot deny it any longer.” (Fox) Indeed, more deeply heart-rending than the loss of precious Christian books is the loss of lives, loved ones, homes, limbs, dignity and peace for hundreds of thousands of Christians in Middle East war-torn areas. Pray for comfort, relief and liberation to come to those who suffer beyond anything most of us can begin to imagine.
[Comment]

A delegation of senior Hamas members who recently traveled to Cairo in an effort to improve relations between the Islamist regime and the Egyptian government has failed to achieve its objective, according to an Egyptian media report published Tues.15 March 2016. The Al-Ahram media outlet reported that the attempt to mend relations with the government of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi failed due to Hamas' refusal to admit any responsibility in Sinai terrorist incidents, and its "refusal to admit mistakes." According to the report, Egyptian authorities presented to Hamas evidence of Hamas' involvement in Sinai incidents, with a view to setting up a joint investigation, "but the Hamas delegation did not show a will to cooperate." Hamas continues to be in a state of strategic distress due to ongoing Egyptian hostility, which has kept the Rafah border crossing shut with few exceptions over the past year. The failure to advance reconciliation efforts with the Palestinian Authority has also increased pressure. Hamas’ military wing is also investing heavily in digging terrorist tunnels for future use against Israel. (J. Post) "The trouble they cause recoils on them; their violence comes down on their own heads.” Ps 7:16 [Comment]

A delegation of senior Hamas members who recently traveled to Cairo in an effort to improve relations between the Islamist regime and the Egyptian government has failed to achieve its objective, according to an Egyptian media report published Tues.15 March 2016. The Al-Ahram media outlet reported that the attempt to mend relations with the government of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi failed due to Hamas' refusal to admit any responsibility in Sinai terrorist incidents, and its "refusal to admit mistakes." According to the report, Egyptian authorities presented to Hamas evidence of Hamas' involvement in Sinai incidents, with a view to setting up a joint investigation, "but the Hamas delegation did not show a will to cooperate." Hamas continues to be in a state of strategic distress due to ongoing Egyptian hostility, which has kept the Rafah border crossing shut with few exceptions over the past year. The failure to advance reconciliation efforts with the Palestinian Authority has also increased pressure. Hamas’ military wing is also investing heavily in digging terrorist tunnels for future use against Israel. (J. Post) "The trouble they cause recoils on them; their violence comes down on their own heads.” Ps 7:16 [Comment]

On 8 March 2016, Saudi journalist Muhammad Aal Al-Sheikh wrote in the Saudi daily Al-Jazirah that today, Iran is the number one enemy of Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries, supplanting the historical enemy Israel. Arguing that Iran is exploiting the Palestinian issue as a pretext for "infiltrating deep into the Arab world, shredding its Arab fabric, and dragging Arab society into supporting its expansionary plan," he emphasized that the Palestinians should expect no salvation from Iran. He also warned the Gulf Shi'ites that they were mere pawns for Iran, which was using them to promote Persian national aspirations. (MEMRI) [Comment]

 Israeli President Reuven Rivlin landed in Moscow Tues. night, 15 March 2016, and on Wed. began talks with Russian leaders including President Vladimir Putin. Rivlin is expected to press his – and Israel’s - admonition that Iran is as great a threat as is ISIS. Israel was reportedly caught by surprise when Putin announced the Syrian pullout and Rivlin will no doubt do what he can to understand what the strategic thinking behind the move was. It seems clear to the defense echelon that Russia will maintain a military presence in Syria after the withdrawal and Israel needs to understand the limitations and complications of its own operations in Syria based upon the Russian presence there. A senior Israeli official was quoted as saying, "What we want is that Iran and Hizbullah not emerge strengthened from this process.” Jerusalem is hoping that Russia shares its belief that the Lebanon-based Iranian proxy Hizbullah terror network that has been fighting alongside Syrian President Assad’s forces must not be allowed a stronger foothold in Syria. Russian envoy Alexi Drobinin was quoted as saying, "We will try to ensure that the Syria crisis is resolved, and we will also do everything so that Israel’s national security interests are not harmed in this process. (Media Line) Be prayerfully alert to events taking place in countries adverse to the Jewish state on the other side of Israel’s northern borders. This region, most immediately, includes Syria and Lebanon, out of which terrorists groups rabidly hostile to Israel and supported by Iran, operate. Pray for the Lord’s angelic shields to be along Israel’s northern borders. [Comment]