In the News:

1. Israel:


Bombing attempt on Egypt-Israel gas pipeline fails

Six gunmen in Sinai targeted the pipeline that carries natural gas from Egypt to Israel and Jordan on Sunday, overpowering a guard and planting an explosive device before fleeing, The Associated Press reported.

The explosive device failed to detonate and was eventually defused by soldiers at the gas terminal in the village of el-Sabil near el-Arish, AP quoted an Egyptian security official as saying.

Last month, the Egyptian army deployed hundreds of additional soldiers to the northern Sinai Peninsula to guard the pipeline.

Israeli Airstrike Kills 2 Gaza Militants

Israeli aircraft killed two Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip Sunday, as Israel's military prepared to deploy a new defense system to shoot down rockets fired from Gaza.

The French news agency, AFP, quoted an Israeli army spokeswoman confirming the attack and saying the air force plane had hit a "terrorist cell" that she said was "preparing to fire a rocket at Israel."

Tensions between the two sides have escalated during the past week, with Palestinian militants firing dozens of rockets and mortar shells into Israel and Israeli forces responding with air strikes.

Israel deploys Iron Dome missile defense system for first time

The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday deployed the Iron Dome anti-rocket system for the first time ever on Sunday in southern Israel.

Weeks of stepped-up rocket and mortar attacks have drawn fears of renewed war and led to new calls in Israel for the military to deploy the $200 million system.

The Israel Defense Forces on Sunday deployed the Iron Dome anti-rocket system for the first time ever on Sunday in southern Israel.

Weeks of stepped-up rocket and mortar attacks have drawn fears of renewed war and led to new calls in Israel for the military to deploy the $200 million system.

The components of the battery – which include launchers, a radar, the control system and monitor – were each placed a few kilometers from one another on desert terrain, as soldiers from the Israel Air Force air defense unit began configuring the system.

The IDF said the system should begin operating on Sunday afternoon, but has described the step as an "operational experiment," saying the deployment of the Iron Dome and beginning its actual use will take some time.

The Israeli-developed system uses cameras and radar to track incoming rockets and is supposed to shoot them down within seconds of their launch.

The Israel Air Force has stressed that even the first two batteries will not be enough, and that at least three more will be needed to provide ample defense from Gaza rocket attacks.

Once deployed, however, the Iron Dome still cannot provide full protection to residents of Israel's south, Home Front Minister Matan Vilnai told Army Radio on Sunday.

And one must ask - why is this "Iron Dome" needed? After all, according to the MSM's reporting, there is nothing happening in Israel which would require such a defense system. Right?

Palestinian militants have fired dozens of rockets at Israel over the last week, prompting Israeli air strikes against targeted areas in the Gaza Strip.

Oh...Almost forgot - the daily barrage of missiles being fired into Israeli civilian areas.

The renewed hostilities have fed concerns of another large-scale Israeli military operation. In December 2008, Israel invaded Gaza in response to years of rocket and mortar barrages on its southern communities, killing 1,400 Palestinians, including more than 900 civilians, and causing widespread destruction. Thirteen Israelis also died in that war.

Israel says that Hamas, which suffered heavy losses in the fighting, has largely recovered from the fighting and restocked its arsenal with more powerful weapons.

2. Japan:

Radioactivity soars in Japan reactor, workers evacuated

Japanese authorities evacuated workers on Sunday from a reactor building they were working in after radiation in water at the crippled nuclear power plant reached potentially lethal levels, the plant's operator said.

Tokyo Electric Power Co said radiation in the water of the No. 2 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant was measured at more than 1,000 millisieverts an hour. That compares with a national safety standard of 250 millisieverts over a year. The US Environmental Protection Agency says a dose of 1,000 millisieverts is enough to cause hemorrhaging.

The latest radiation scare was confined to inside the reactor. Radiation levels in the air beyond the evacuation zone around the plant and in Tokyo have been in normal ranges.

3. Syria

Syrian army enters tense port city

Syrian army units deployed in a seaside Mediterranean city rocked by protests and unrest, eyewitnesses and activists said Sunday.

The government on Saturday said armed groups had attacked people in the religiously mixed resort city, adding that at least two people were killed by rooftop snipers.

Protesters accused government forces of opening fire on them. Activists said some demonstrators burned tires, attacked businesses and set fire to an office of the ruling party Saturday.

Demonstrators on Saturday also attacked a police station and offices of the Baath party in the town of Tafas, six miles (10 kilometers) north of the southern border city of Daraa, the epicenter of more than a week of anti-government protests

Perhaps of greater importance, at least to a prophecy watcher is the following:

Assad has placed his fellow Alawites, adherents of a mystical offshoot of Shiite Islam, into most positions of power in Syria. He has built a close relationship with Iran, allowing the Shiite powerhouse to extend its influence into Lebanon, where it provides money and weapons to Hezbollah militants.

There it goes again - it seems that every time one turns over a rock in the Middle East - Iran is lurking behind the scenes. One would expect Iran to begin protecting the Assad regime in order to ensure that they continue to have a puppet government who is easily manipulated. Unless, of course, the protesters could represent a more favorable option for Iran.

But whatever happens - whatever the eventual outcome - one can safely bet that Iran will be behind it.

Syria army beefs up presence in city at heart of protests

Syria's army has beefed up its presence in the southern restive city of Daraa, as soldiers took to the streets in the northern port city Latakia where tensions are rising, residents said Sunday.

The protests began eight days ago in Daraa, the city which has remained a focal point of a bloody government crackdown on opponents, and pose the most serious challenge to the 48-year rule of the Baath Party and its leader, President Bashar al-Assad.

At least 55 people have been killed in and around Daraa alone, as secret police and special forces try to quell the protests.

Syrian activists also called Sunday for a nationwide general strike in the wake of a crackdown on anti-government protesters that has left dozens dead.

We just saw yesterday, where the protesters were calling for action by Assad to retake the Golan Heights, so the protesters are more arguably more radically opposed to Israel than Assad is - as hard as that is to believe (how could anyone be more opposed to Israel than Assad?)

Therefore, taking a simplistic approach, the argument could be made as follows:

- Either Assad makes political points by taking some action against Israel, or
- Assad is taken over by coup and the next government installation makes good on the promise/desire to retake Golan.

Either scenario isn't favorable to Israel, but highly prophetic, as we know there will be a major battle between Syria (and others) against Israel. This can be found in the pages of Isaiah 17.

This situation is worth watching very closely.

And last but not least, Carolne Glick turns in yet another excellent commentary:

Understanding the third terror war

Wednesday's bombing was not a stand-alone event. It was part and parcel of the new Palestinian terror war that is just coming into view. As Israel considers how to contend with the emerging onslaught, it is important to notice how it differs from its predecessors.

On a military level, the tactics the Palestinians have so far adopted are an interesting blend of state-of-the-art missile attacks with old fashioned knife and bomb-in-the- briefcase attacks.

The diverse tactics demonstrate that this war is a combination of Iranian-proxy war and local terror pick-up cells. The attacks are also notable for their geographic dispersion and for the absence thus far of suicide attacks.

Israelis understand that we are entering a new period of unremitting fear, where we understand that we are in danger no matter where we are. Whether we're in bed asleep, or our way to work or school, or sitting down on a park bench or at a restaurant; whether we're in Rishon Lezion, Sderot, Jerusalem, Itamar or Beersheba, we are in the Palestinians' crosshairs. All of us are "settlers." All of us are in danger.

After describing the various attacks and the tactics being used, we see this - and these facts are worth reading VERY closely, as these facts reveal the world that we are rapidly approaching:

Palestinians no longer feel they need to pretend to oppose terror to maintain European support for their war against Israel.

The Palestinians assess that Europe is swiftly moving towards the point where it no longer needs to pretend to be fair to Israel.

The British, French and German votes in favor of the Palestinians' anti-Israel UN Security Council resolution last month were the latest sign that the key European governments have adopted openly hostile policies towards Israel.

Between the rapidly expanding political power of Europe's Muslim communities and the virulently anti-Israel positions nearly universally adopted by the European media, European governments are compelled to adopt ever more hostile positions towards Israel to appease their Israel-hating publics and Muslim communities.

The bottom line? Its right here:

The Palestinians recognize that they don't need to pretend to be good to get Europe to support them.

After the people of Europe have been brainwashed by their media and intimidated by the Muslim communities, they have developed a Pavlovian response regarding Israel whereby every mention of Israel makes them hate it more. It doesn't matter if the story is about the massacre of Israeli children or the bombing of synagogues and nursery schools. They know that Israel is the guilty party and expect their governments to punish it.

What the Palestinian silence on who committed what atrocity tells us is that in this new terror war, the Palestinians believe they cannot lose. With Europe in tow, Fatah and Hamas feel free to combine their forces and advance both militarily and politically.

There you have it. The world we see today in and around Israel is precisely as it was described by the prophets Ezekiel and Zechariah. Exactly what we have today. And the future wars, also foretold by these ancient prophets will also come, exactly as described.

What we are seeing now is the stage being set - the pieces of the puzzle being assembled as we watch in real time.

Its an amazing time to be alive on planet earth. We are living in a biblical age. For those of us who know, we watch in utter amazement - amazement that we have a merciful God who gave us this information - information which indicates that Jesus will be coming for His church soon.

Its a promise that we can count on. It was given by God Himself.