WORLD AT WAR: 5.20.23 - Israel Unleashes Operation Shield and Arrow

 Israel Unleashes Operation Shield and Arrow – By Amir Tsarfati - https://harbingersdaily.com/worldview-with-amir-tsarfati-israel-unleashes-operation-shield-and-arrow/ Shalom from London! Coronation fever is beginning to die down here in London. I must admit, it was quite a spectacular event. So much history. So much tradition. So much pomp.The world was drawn into this ceremony that placed a crown on the head of King Charles III. But as I watched, I couldn’t help but think of the future. A day is soon coming when there will be another coronation. When the crown is placed on the King’s head, it will not just be the symbol of His authority over one nation. Instead,this person will be crowned as King of all kings. Think of the pageantry of Charles’s coronation. Now picture in your mind what we will see as we watch our King, Jesus, take His rightful seat on His throne in Jerusalem! I can barely imagine it. And I knowthat whatever I see in my mind will pale against the actual event. What a day that will be! Israel Unleashes Operation Shield and Arrow Tuesday morning, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) struck the leadership of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist group in Gaza. This action was in retaliation for the firingof 104 rockets at Israel on May 2. The bombs dropped from the fighter jets in Operation Shield and Arrow killed Khalil Bahtini, Tareq Izzeldeen, and Jehad Ghanam, three of the PIJ’s top commanders. Wednesday, the terrorists struck back firing over 350 rocketsacross the border from Gaza into Israel. Only three fell in populated areas and no casualties were reported. The IAF immediately struck back at the launch sites of these rockets. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) also destroyed the homes of ten PIJ operatives. In all, 27 Palestinianswere killed during the operation and more than 76 were injured. The first Israeli casualty came from a direct hit by a rocket to a building in the City of Rehovot. 1,100 rockets have been launched from Gaza towards Israel since the beginningof the operation. For more information, watch my Special Middle East Update: Shield and Arrow Operation In Gaza. A Little Israeli Subterfuge Goes a Long Way According to the Islamic Jihad, Israel does not play fair. Their claim is that their leaders were told that Israel was prepared to enter into peace talks with them in Cairo.So, these leaders, who had been in hiding for years, came out of their little cubbyholes to say goodbye to their families before leaving for Egypt. Once they were exposed, the IDF killed them. If that is what happened, then kudos to the IDF. As the old sayinggoes, “All is fair in love and war, especially when you fire 104 rockets at our cities.” Talks are underway now for another ceasefire, but they are unlikely to be fruitful. The PIJ is making two demands: 1. No more targeted assassinations. 2. Cancel the annualJerusalem Day Flag March scheduled for May 18. Israel will not agree to these conditions. What the PIJ doesn’t understand is that when you are losing badly, it is not time to make demands. More Comes Out on Jordan’s Smuggling MP Two weeks ago, I let you know about a Jordanian member of parliament (MP), Emad Zidan AKA Hamid Eladwan, who was arrested for smuggling weapons and gold across the borderto terrorist groups in the West Bank. At the time, another MP angrily chided Israel for including “gold” in their report, because it made the “heroic act” seem like common smuggling. It now turns out that it was, in fact, just common smuggling. Since February 2022, Emad has illegally brought across the border gold, guns, birds, electronic cigarettes, and people. And these actions were in no way altruistic. Emad wasin it purely for the money. Other Jordanian officials have now been arrested in Jordan, and Emad is being sent back for prosecution. Jordanian Jets Join Fight Against Drugs Jordan’s air force went into action Monday, taking out a Syrian drug factory with ties to Iran-backed Hezbollah. A second target was the home of Marie al-Ramthan, Syrian drugkingpin. Al-Rathman and his family were killed, and the house was left in ruins. Last Thursday, Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, told CNN in an interview, “We are not taking the threat of drug smuggling lightly. If we do not see effective measuresto curb that threat, we will do what it takes to counter that threat, including taking military action inside Syria.” It appears that was not an empty threat. Synagogue Attacked in Tunis Tuesday, after first killing a colleague, a member of the Tunisian National Guard travelled to an ancient synagogue. He rolled up on a quad bike and opened fire. Two Jewishcousins who were making a pilgrimage to the site were killed, along with two police officers and a security guard. Four more police officers were wounded in the attack. The shooter was shot dead on the scene. The synagogue, located on the island of Djerba,is Africa’s oldest. Meeting of the Axis of Resistance Leaders in the Axis of Resistance gathered on Tuesday. At the meeting were commanders from Iran’s Quds Force, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Syria’s Fourth Division, and Gaza’s IslamicJihad and Hamas. Also represented were numbers of Iran’s other proxy militias and Hezbollah operatives in Syria. Word is they had tea and finger sandwiches before discussing fund-raising ideas for a new water feature at the Qasem Soleimani Memorial site. Syria Allowed Back into the Arab League In 2011, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad came down extremely hard on street protesters. This led to the onset of a decade-long civil war. Due to Assad’s actions, the ArabLeague suspended Syria’s membership in their organization. On Sunday, the member states voted to allow the war-torn nation back into the fold. The move, criticized by the U.S. and others, is intended to help normalize relationships between Syria and some League members, and provide stability for the broken country.Not surprisingly, Russia hails this “long-awaited step” of returning their minion state to the “Arab family.” Russia Unleashes Devastating Air Attack on Ukraine Sunday saw a massive missile and drone attack by Russia against Ukrainian targets. This was followed by a major attack by the mercenary Wagner group against the eastern Ukrainiancity of Bakhmut. But after vowing to take the city that has become a symbol of Ukraine’s resistance, Yevgeny Prigozhin, owner of the Wagner group, began to threaten withdrawal. In an expletive-laden rant, he lamented his heavy losses and accused Moscow of withholding ammunition. If Bakhmut stands, it will be a huge morale booster for the Ukrainianmilitary. -------------------------------- Dishonest, Historically Inaccurate, Anti-Israel: Why Is It So Important For Israel To Have A Presence At The UN? � By Erick Stakelbeck - https://harbingersdaily.com/dishonest-historically-inaccurate-anti-israel-why-is-it-so-important-for-israel-to-have-a-presence-at-the-un/ In recent days, Israel and the Iran-backed terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad reached a ceasefire over the weekend that continues to hold. Islamic Jihad fired over 1200rockets at Israel during the five-day conflict. Many of them were intercepted by Iron Dome or fell inside Gaza, never reaching Israel. The ceasefire kicked in just as Israel yesterday marked the 75th anniversary of its miraculous rebirth as a nation on May 14, 1948. The UN also commemorated that momentousoccasion by holding an event that day, declaring Israel�s reestablishment as a Nakba, or catastrophe. This viciously dishonest, historically inaccurate, anti-Israel hate fest was officially sanctioned by and held at the UN for the first time ever, and it included a high-levelmeeting at the UN headquarters and a special event in the General Assembly Hall featuring Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas did what he usually does, slamming Israel, repeating the Nakba lie, and accusing Israel of seeking a new so-called �catastrophe� against the Palestinians. He also calledon the UN to expel Israel as a member if Israel does not agree to a Palestinian state and a right of return for millions of Palestinian refugees� descendants. This would mean the end of the Jewish state, which is the real goal of Abbas and the other anti-Israelforces. Thankfully, some 32 nations, including the US, UK, Canada, and Ukraine, boycotted this Nakba Day event at Israel�s urging, but far too many, obviously, took part and gavea platform to this madness at the UN. Now imagine being Israel�s representative at the UN and having to walk into this hostile lion�s den every day. It may be the world�s most difficult diplomatic job, but thegood news is Gilad Erdan is more than up to the task. As Israel�s Ambassador to the UN, Erdan represents the Jewish state every day at a notoriously anti-Israel institution. If you think I�m exaggerating, consider this. Sincethe UN was founded in the aftermath of World War II, it�s passed more resolutions against Israel than any other nation. That includes Iran, North Korea, Communist China, Cuba, Syria, and the former Soviet Union. Thankfully, Ambassador Erdan is eloquent and fearless, and most importantly, he has the truth on his side. Below is my exclusive interview with Gilad Erdan: Erick Stakelbeck � You are a very busy man, obviously, as Israel�s top diplomat at the UN. Some may say, why even have an ambassador post at the UN if you�reIsrael? Why is it so important that Israel have a presence at the UN? Gilad Erdan � We live in an era where the reach of social mediais endless. Today, a lie can travel the world before the truth can even put its shoes on, and our enemies exploit the UN resolutions, the anti-Israeli resolutions, in order to harm Israel. We�ve seen what happened when Israel had to attack the Hamas terrorists in Gaza in our operation two years ago. The UN passed resolutions against Israel, and our enemies ignitedanti-semitic attacks here on the streets of New York and LA. Then they exploited the UN resolutions to go after our soldiers and press charges in the International Criminal Court. Additionally, they take these anti-Israeli resolutions and put pressure on Americancompanies like Ben & Jerry�s to boycott Israel. Israel has to be present at the UN to fight against the bias, the distortions, and the lies that are being spread against us. In every challenge, there�s also an opportunity. I can utilize the fact that we have there around one table, almost 200 countries, to showcase our unimaginable technologicaladvancements and maybe to also strengthen the Israeli economy by showcasing our capabilities. Erick Stakelbeck � As you said, it�s so prevalent, the anti-Israel bias there. It�s well known. What is your strategy when you take the floor at the UNrepresenting Israel? How do you fight back against that in your position? Gilad Erdan � The UN was founded after the Second World War, andafter the atrocities of the Holocaust, but at the time, when they decided to establish the Jewish state, there were only 57 Member States. Today, there are almost 200 Member States, 193. You know, how many of them are Muslim countries? Almost 1/3; 57 MemberStates. There are 1.5 billion Muslims around the world. So 1/3 of the UN votes automatically to support all the Palestinian demands and resolutions because the UN is so convoluted,you cannot decide and make any decisions or hold discussions with 200 members state. So, the UN divides member states into either regional or religious voting blocks. Many times even though we have great relationships with a specific country, because it belongs to regional or religious voting blocks, they vote according to the instructionsthey receive�for example, the UAE. We just made peace with the UAE. We have great bilateral relations with them, but they�re being pressured by the Arab League or the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to vote against us, and initiate discussions againstus. So that�s why you see this bias. Israel today represents�we�re a tiny country�only 1/10 of 1% of the world�s population. But how many condemnations do we receive at the UN annually? We receive, in general, 70% of the UN�s condemnations. The UN voted to establish a Jewish state 75 years ago, and now what happened at the UN? The Palestinians held a very big gathering inside the General Assembly Hall to commemoratethe establishment of the State of Israel as a Nakba�a catastrophe. It�s such a disgrace that I cannot even describe it with words. That�s the situation right now at the UN� I�m not going to bow my head. I�m going to fight in order to expose the lies, and the hypocrisy, and I don�t care who�s on the other side. I mean, the Russians of all countries,convened the Security Council on our memorial day in order to condemn Israel. They thought that I�m going to come and participate in their shameful discussion? I did the opposite. I came there. I lit a candle, and I put the candle on the Security Council�sdesk. I read out the names of our fallen soldiers and victims of the terrorist attacks. I slammed the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and I proudly walked out of the discussion. That�s what I mean by �going on the offensive.� That�s my first and maintactic to be used at the UN. The other tactic, in order to try and convince member states to break away from their regional voting Blocks and change their voting patterns. I initiate many events, creativeevents, to showcase Israel�s contributions and technologies to show them how much they can gain from working and collaborating with Israel. I held an event where I invited all the African ambassadors. I introduced them to a few Israeli NGOs who are active and working in Africa to connect many African villagesto running water, because Israel is a world leader in water technologies and renewable energy, literally providing giving life to these people who live in those villages. So when the African ambassadors, see our contribution to their people, it makes it morecomplicated for them to vote against us. Erick Stakelbeck � Israel is blessing Africa; it really is in so many ways. Gilad Erdan � We believe in the Jewish values, what we call inHebrew tikkun olam, healing a fractured world. So wherever we can help another country, we�re doing our best to be there and to help the people who need us. It�s still an uphill battle at the UN, but we can already see the accomplishment. Thank God. You know, I was elected personally, as the Vice President of the General Assemblyfor 2023. Last year was the first time I was elected as a member of the Economic and Social Council of the UN. I succeeded last year to pass, for the second time ever, a General Assembly Resolution providing practical tools to fight against Holocaust denialand distortions. It�s not going to happen overnight, but we are succeeding to erode the number of countries who are voting against us automatically. And my vision is to break to shatter theanti-Israeli majority at the UN. Erick Stakelbeck � Thanks again to Ambassador Gilad Erdan, for those great insights. ------------------------------- It Comes Down To Who You Talk To � By Amir Tsarfati - https://harbingersdaily.com/worldview-with-amir-tsarfati-it-comes-down-to-who-you-talk-to/ It all began on May 2, when the Islamic Jihad sent 104 rockets and mortars from Gaza into southern Israel. One week later, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) launched OperationShield and Arrow. Three senior commanders in the Islamic Jihad, who were responsible for the terrorist group�s air barrage, were targeted and killed. Later, three more would be taken out. In return, the Islamic Jihad fired 1,469 rockets and mortars at Israel. Of those weapons, 291 failed and fell in Gazan territory and 39 dropped into the sea. The Iron Dometook out 437 and two more were intercepted by the David�s sling system. Most missiles that made it through fell harmlessly. However, there were two Israelis who lost their lives in the attack, and 77 who were injured. In Gaza, there were 33 killed in the response. Quite a few houses belonging to terrorists were demolished by the IDF and many weapons factories and caches were destroyed. All eyes are now on today�s annual Jerusalem DayFlag March after Hamas issued threats against it, while demanding it not be held. Israel and Cyprus to Build Gas Pipeline and Production Plant Cyprus Energy Minister Giorgos Papanastasiou will soon travel to Israel to work out the details of a joint gas venture between the two countries. A pipeline will be builtcapable of transferring both Israeli and Cypriot gas from their sizable offshore fields. Also in the works is a liquefaction plant off the coast of Cyprus which will prepare the gas for export by tanker to Europe. The hope is to have the pipeline completedin 18 months, and the liquefaction plant in 2 � years. Warming Relationship Between Sweden and Israel When Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen visited Sweden on Monday, it was tangible evidence of the warming relations between the two countries. For years, the relationshiphas been tense, primarily over a very disparate view of the Palestinian situation. However, in the last two years, economic and technological ties have started to bring Jerusalem and Stockholm back together. This official visit by Cohen, the first by Israelin 22 years, speaks strongly of this reconciliation. Russia Freezes Finnish Bank Accounts Not all is happy in the Nordic regions. Russia has frozen the bank accounts of the Finnish embassy in Moscow and the consulate in St. Petersburg. According to Finnish ForeignMinister Pekka Haavisto, this action, which he called �bullying�, was enacted in late April. Both the embassy and consulate have enough cash reserves to continue operating for a time. Thus far, Moscow has not explained their action. Russian Military Possibly Destroys American-Made Patriot Missile System in Ukraine It comes down to who you talk to. The Russian defense ministry claimed Tuesday that early that morning one of their hypersonic missiles had destroyed a U.S.-made Patriot missiledefense system. The U.S. said, �Wait a second. Sure, it was damaged, but we wouldn�t say �destroyed.�� Then, the Ukrainian air force spokesperson downplayed the whole incident, saying, �Do not worry about the fate of the Patriot.� Who�s telling the truth?I guess we�ll find out the next time there is an airstrike on Kyiv. Ukraine Intelligence Considers Striking Drone Factories in Iran It has been another devastating week in Ukraine. Russia has hit them time and again on the ground and, especially, in the air with missiles and drones. It is the latter weaponthat has Ukrainian intelligence considering a philosophy that we in Israel know very well. When the weapons keep coming, you hit the source. Where is the source of these drones? Iran. So, don�t be surprised if sometime in the future you hear of a Ukrainian-backedstrike of some kind on drone factories in Iran. Britain Commits Drones and Missiles to Ukraine When Ukraine�s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to have the U.K. join a �fighter jet coalition,� Sunak declined, offering instead tosupply long-range attack drones and hundreds of missiles. While it may not have been exactly what Zelenskyy wanted, what he is getting is enough to send Moscow into a rage. �It leads to further destruction,� said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. �It makesthis whole story for Ukraine much more complicated.� Sometimes the lack of self-awareness among Russia�s leadership is staggering. Hungary Blocks EU Money Transfer to Ukraine The EU has been supporting Ukraine�s military efforts through their European Peace Facility (EPF). This time, however, when time came to approve the next portion of EPF money,Hungary said no. Their excuse was essentially that Ukraine was hogging all the funds, and more should be left for other places that need it. But Budapest has shown where their leanings lie from the beginning of the Russia/Ukraine conflict, disapproving ofsanctions and refusing to send military equipment to aid Kyiv. Turkey�s Presidential Election Goes into Runoff Less than one percentage point kept incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from reaching the majority he needed to avoid a runoff. Final numbers saw Erdogan at 49.24%, hisprimary rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, at 45%, with another 6%-plus of the vote split between two other candidates. Many see an Erdogan reelection as giving the already authoritarian president a mandate for an even stronger grip on the government. Kilicdaroglu,on the other hand, is promising a return to democracy. The strong possibility that the incumbent will remain in office caused the Turkish lira to drop to a two-month low of 19.70 to the U.S. dollar. The next round of elections is May 28. Azerbaijan Makes Arrests in Alleged Plotting of Iran-Supported Coup At least seven people were arrested in Azerbaijan on Tuesday as part of an alleged coup plot. Using assassinations and armed riots, the cell, organized by Rufulla Akhundzadahand his son Almursal, hoped to bring down the government and replace it with a state under Sharia law. Akhundzadah was in touch with Iranian intelligence, who planned to bring the cell across the border for military training and religious education. --------------------------------