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Initial Cold War Tactics become Hot War Tactics at Armageddon!

COMPANION TO PREVIOUS BLOG

September 1, 2007

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

In our last Blog I covered the Cold War Tactics that would dominate the naval tactics of Russia and the U.S. at the time of the initial Islamic Jihad ground

attack. My comments regarding the conduct of the two naval forces, some three and one half years before Armageddon, are detailed in the previous Blog from Daniel 11:40.

Daniel 11:40 – And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, AND WITH MANY SHIPS; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.

At the end of the Tribulation Period, the Cold War will have become the Hot War of all Naval Wars at Armageddon. The ships of America and Great Britain will come from their stationed positions around the coasts of Chittim against the lands which were occupied by Asshur and Eber in the days of the greatness of the Assyrian Empire, breaking through a blockade of the ships of Russia, China, and Islam at the time of the final battle of the Tribulation Period, the great battle of Armageddon.

This is certainly one of the oldest end time prophecies in the Bible, and of such fantastic horror that Balaam states: “Alas, who shall live when God doeth this!”

Numbers 24:23,24 – And he took up his parable, and said, Alas, who shall live when God doeth this! [24] AND SHIPS SHALL COME from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur,

and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever.

Chittim

Daniel prophesied that the ships of Chittim would come against the king of the north. It probably denotes Cyprus, whose ancient capital was called Kition by the Greeks.

The references elsewhere made to Chittim (Isa. 23:1, 12; Jer. 2:10; Ezek. 27:6) are to be explained on the ground that while the name originally designated the Phoenicians only, it came latterly to be used of all the islands and various settlements on the sea-coasts which they had occupied, and then of the people who succeeded them when the Phoenician power decayed. Hence it designates generally the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean and the races that inhabit them.

The immediate descendants of Eber settled the southern end of the great Euphrates and Tigris River Valleys, which would include parts of Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait.

The descendants of Assur, a son of Shem, settled the northern portion of the great Tigtris-Euphrates River Valley, which would include parts of Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Eber

Eber is a person from the Hebrew Bible. He was a great-grandson of Noah’s son Shem and the father of Peleg and Joktan.

He was an ancestor of Abraham who is in turn traditionally the father of the Israelites and the Arabs.

The name “Eber” along with the name Hapiru are considered by Biblical scholars to be the roots of the word “Hebrew”, with “eber” most often meaning “side” or “beyond”, but also region beyond or across, opposite side, or passage.

[Genesis 10:21] Also to Shem, the father of all the Children of Eber, and the older brother of Japheth, children were born. (NASB)

In some translations of the New Testament, he is referred to once as Heber ([Luke 3:35] …the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Shelah…); however, he should not be confused with the Heber of the Old Testament (different Hebrew spelling חבר), grandson of Asher ([Genesis 46:17] The sons of Asher: Imnah and Ishvah

and Ishvi and Beriah and their sister Serah. And the sons of Beriah: Heber and Malchiel).

According to tradition, Eber died at the age of 464 when Jacob was 20. The Hebrew Calendar synchronises this date with 1817 BC.

Assur

(Septuagint Assour.)

(1) The name used in the Old Testament to designate the Assyrian land and nation.

(2) The name of one of the sons of Shem, mentioned in Genesis 10:22. In verse 11 of the same chapter, the Douay version has: “Out of that land came forth Assur”. Here the name in the original refers not to a person, but to the country, as above, and the reading: “. . . he (Nimrod) went forth into the Assyria (Assur)” is preferable. Another Assur, or Ashur, “father of Thecua”, is mentioned in I Paral., ii, 24, and iv, 5.

If one combines the information collected above concerning Chittim, Assur, and Eber, and considers that Balaam was referring to the people that would occupy the these same lands in the last days, it is possible to reasonably conclude that ships will come from Mediterranean Sea sites to afflict Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran by shelling, missiles, and aircraft attacks during the final battle of Armageddon.

Begin DEBKAfile Article

DEBKAfile: USS Kearsarge Expeditionary Strike Group takes up position opposite Lebanese coast amid trepidation over September presidential election

August 31, 2007, 11:25 AM (GMT+02:00)

Our military sources report that aboard the Kearsarge group’s vessels are members of the 22nds Marine special operations-capable Expeditionary Unit, ready to execute landings on Lebanese beaches.

Wednesday, Aug. 29, Adm. William Fallon, chief of US Central Command and the war on terror paid an unannounced visit to Beirut, although for years US generals have given the Lebanese capital

a wide berth. He left after three hours, the longest time considered safe for him to stay. Our sources reveal he reviewed with Lebanese leaders US preparations for military intervention should the September presidential election descend into civil violence or elicit an attempt by Iran, Syria or Hizballah to seize power by force. Such an attempt could leave Lebanon dangerously stranded between two rival administrations.

The posting of the Kearsage and a marine force within reach of Lebanese shores is intended as a deterrent and indicator of Washington’s willingness to send the military over to prevent Lebanon’s takeover by Iran or Syria.

Adm. Fallon also inspected the measures for protecting the lives of the anti-Syrian leaders prime minister Fouad Siniora, majority party head Saad Hariri and Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, and the safety of US ambassador Jeffrey Felton, a key mover in charting US strategy for Lebanon, and the embassy staff.

Portents of coming unrest were seen last week in the hasty departure from Beirut

of the Saudi and UAE ambassadors under threats to their lives. Most Arab and European missions have cut down staff in the Lebanese capital.

Lebanese police are investigating the re-appearance of a sick videogame in Beirut whose goal is the murder of the prime minister, cabinet members, Jumblatt and Maronite leader Samir Geagea, who are designated “thieves and traitors.” Its name, “The Battle of the Seraya,” refers to the government building.

The game, which has been removed from stores in Beirut, depicts underground tunnels leading from the government building to the US embassy, echoing Hizballah’s reference to the Siniora government as “the Feltman Cabinet.”

The government building has been guarded by tanks and three army and police battalions since the Hizballah-led opposition occupied downtown Beirut earlier this year with the declared aim of toppling the government.

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Cold War Intimidation Tactic s

will be used in Initial Islamic Attack!

August 31, 2007

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

The Russian Naval forces will not become directly involved in actual combat in the initial Jihad attack against Israel, which I guesstimate is likely to occur at some point in time between 2008 and the end of 2012 – A guess, no more and no less!

Russian and American Fleets will both be patrolling in the international waters of the Mediterranean off the coasts of Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Egypt, when the initial Jihad attack from the north is launched by Hizbullah and Syria.

The Russian Fleet will be there to intimidate the American Fleet from taking Israel’s part in the fight, and the American Fleet will serve the same purpose against the Russian Fleet.

Neither of the two will take a part in the land struggle, and Israel will be driven into the Negev Wilderness from Beersheba southward. However, both of them will be active participants in the battle of Armageddon some three and one half years after the initial attack, along with the naval forces of France, China, and Great Britain.

Daniel 11:40,41 – And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, AND WITH MANY SHIPS; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. [41] He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief

of the children of Ammon.

Revelation 12:6 – And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

Zechariah 13:9 – And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.

Begin Jerusalem Post Article

Analysis: Russia uses Syrian port to demonstrate its power in the Mediterranean

Alex Kogan, THE JERUSALEM POST

August 31, 2007

Russia is expanding its military presence in Syria, developing an advanced naval port at Tartus and providing Syria with sophisticated missile technology.

The story of Russia’s return to Tartus, Syria’s second most important port after Latakia, broke a year ago. It is Moscow’s only foreign naval outpost situated outside the former Soviet Union.

In June 2006 Russian media reported that Moscow had begun dredging at Tartus with a possible eye to turning what was largely a logistical base into a full-fledged station for its Black Sea Fleet, soon to be redeployed from the Ukrainian port of Sevastopol. But Tartus is much more than just a new home for the fleet; it allows projection of Russian power into the entire eastern Mediterranean, and, by extension, a flexing of military might before Israel and the West.

Russian sources said the country’s military planned to form a squadron to operate in the Mediterranean within three years, built around the Moskva missile cruiser.

In addition, several respected Russian newspapers have reported that Moscow planned to deploy an S-300PMU-2 Favorit air-defense system to protect the base, with the system being operated by Russian servicemen rather than by Syrian forces.

According to these reports, the system would provide air defense protection for a large part of Syria.

Moscow and Damascus have also reached an agreement to modernize Syria’s anti-aircraft network by upgrading medium-range S-125 missile complexes that were sold to Syria in the 1980s.

Another instance of secret activity at the port came on March 9, 2005, when yet another Russian Black Sea Fleet vessel, the Azov, supposedly carrying machinery for rebuilding the moorage at the Tartus technical base and replacements for obsolete items in the base’s storage, left for Syria.

When it arrived at the port, several suspicious meetings between local authorities and Russian Navy officers took place, Russian media reported.

Less than two months later, Syria test fired new Scud missiles.

The Syrians launched one Scud B missile with a range of 300 kilometers, and two Scud D missiles with a range of 700 kilometers.

It is tempting to suggest that technologies for these projectiles were among the “equipment” brought on board the Azov.

The Russians have not stopped at moving missiles in their attempt to make an impression in the region. On one occasion they sent fighter planes into Israeli airspace.

In January 1996, the Russian Navy aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov came very close to Israeli territorial waters.

On January 27, it launched several advanced Su-33 fighters, the naval version of the Su-27.

The jets ventured into Israeli air space near Haifa. IAF planes were scrambled to intercept, but a skirmish was avoided.

The incident was kept secret for six years and was only revealed in 2002 in an article in the Israel Air Force magazine.

According to the report, Russian planes entered Israel’s airspace at least twice and several F-16 scrambled for an intercept mission after an intrusion alert was received.

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True Peace with Weakest Head of a Two-Headed Monster Impossible!

August 31, 2007

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Not even a FALSE peace can ever be attained in the land of Israel until ONE Palestinian leader has control of all the terrorist groups operating there. Yassar Arafat never had control over all of them, not even over his own Fatah group of terrorists.

Abbas has even less than Arafat. I have stated that principle since Arafat rose to power.

Please read the following excerpt from our Archive Special Prophecy Update Number 120C before reading the Jerusalem Post Article by Herb Keinon.

SPECIAL PROPHECY UPDATE NUMBER 120C

May 20, 2003

Determining Factors in Peace – True or False

Ever since President Clinton, desirous to make the bringing in of peace to the Middle East the crowning achievement of his presidency, brought the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, and the Palestinian leader Yassar Arafat, together at Camp David to negotiate such a peace, it has not been possible for it to occur because of a single factor – YASSAR ARAFAT IS NOT IN CONTROL OF THE TERRORIST GROUPS IN ISRAEL OR ALONG ITS NORTHERN BORDER.

From a biblical prospective I can definitely state: TRUE PEACE CAN NEVER COME ON THE SCENE ACROSS THE MIDDLE EAST UNTIL JESUS ESTABLISHES IT AFTER HIS SECOND ADVENT. From a Biblical prospective I can also state with certainty: THE ONLY TYPE OF PEACE THAT COULD COME IN BEFORE JESUS ARRIVES IS A FALSE PEACE.

From an analytical prospective I can honestly state: UNLESS THE IN-COUNTRY ACTIONS OF TERRORISM CEASE A FALSE PEACE CANNOT COME IN.

And, after a period of long observation in the Middle East, I can also say with great confidence and assurance: THE LEADERS OF SYRIA AND IRAN ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO HAVE THE ATTENTION OF THE TERRORISTS IN ISRAEL TO A DEGREE LEVEL SUFFICIENT

TO GET THEM TO TEMPORARILY STOP THEIR ACTIVITIES LONG ENOUGH TO BRING IN A SHORT PERIOD OF FALSE PEACE.

Begin Jerusalem Post Article

Full Gas in Neutral

?

Herb Keinon

(Jerusalem Post)

As swell as it might be that Olmert and Abbas are holding these talks, all the optimism and good cheer and willingness to revisit what are essentially the Clinton parameters of 2001 cannot paper over the fact that Abbas can’t implement any agreement on Jerusalem, borders, or refugees. Abbas does not rule Gaza, and his grip on the West Bank is not all that tight.

The Israeli public, following seven years of unrelenting terror, is – according to all opinion polls – not in the same giving mood that it was before the onslaught of Palestinian violence that began in September 2000.

The major challenge facing both Olmert and Abbas is not producing a paper that will please Secretary of State Rice, but rather what to do with Hamas – Iran’s new local proxy.

Any agreement that Olmert and Abbas might work out will be meaningless if Hamas retains its current strength in Gaza.

Unless Hamas is defanged, it will retain its ability to scuttle any agreement through terrorist actions.

The idea that if you just show the Palestinians a skeleton of a potential agreement, then they will eject Hamas and hop on board the peace train seems somewhat simplistic. What if they don’t (as they didn’t in the past when this same political horizon was offered by Clinton and Barak), or what if Hamas simply doesn’ t le

t them?

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Islamic Caliphate Crescent Moon Vision over the known Wo

rld 0f 1299!

Each Passing Month Sees a Better Armed and Trained Crescent Moon around Israel from Gaza�

��s Hamas to Southern Lebanon’s Hizbullah to Damascus

to Baghdad to Tehran.

August 30, 2007

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

If you take the time to examine the origin of the crescent moon and star, which appear on flags and other emblems of Islamic origin, you will find as many traditional teachings on it as Carter has liver pills. After having looked at numerous ideas and opinions of how it actually began, I am inclined to take the following account as the most likely to be valid.

The Origins of the Islamic Crescent and Star from:

http://www.gabn.net/hassan/crescent.htm

Begin Quote

“In 1299, conquering what is now Turkey, Sultan Osman had a vision of a crescent moon stretching over the world; it thus became a symbol of the Ottoman dynasty, and when Constantinople fell to Muhammad II in 1453, the crescent came to represent both Islam and the Turkish empire.

The star was added by Sultan Selim III in 1793 (its five points being established in 1844).”

End Quote

While I don’t believe Sultan Osman actually had such a vision, I do not doubt he said he did. Please don’t bother to send me the many accounts of the crescent moon and/or star symbol going back to the moon god worshipped by

the ancient Middle East civilizations, and how this all ties into the current Islamic system of worship. There are as many different accounts of how it ties in to Islamic worship as the number of fleas on a wild dog. While I am in complete disagreement with the teachings of Islam, and believe them to be a monstrous lie, I do know Muhammad caused many of the Middle East civilizations to stop worshipping idols, and the things of the creation such as the sun, moon, and stars.

I do not doubt the star and moon symbols will appear in the flag of the Caliphate of the Antichrist, with one tip of the actual crescent moon it represents in Morocco, and the other tip in India, while the star is over conquered Cairo.

PROPHECY UPDATE NUMBER 50

January 11, 2002

At this point in time the Antichrist has driven south out of Syria to push Israel into the Negev wilderness from Beersheba southward, where she will remain trapped for some three and one-half years.

Revelation 12:6 – And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

In this Update we will continue the drive of antichrist across the southern tip of Gaza toward Egypt and her Suez Canal.

Daniel 11:42 – He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.

The political, geophysical, and military positioning of Syria, Iran, and Iraq, from a prospective of having world influence, literally stinks. But the position of Egypt’s Suez Canal, and Cairo, her capital, is outstanding.

The antichrist is supposed to be a man of genius in all areas. That being the case, he would be worse than a military academy dropout were he not to take the Suez Canal, and then make Cairo his empire’s capital.

Daniel 11:43 – But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

The three most “precious things” in Egypt are: the Suez Canal, the Nile River and its Delta, and Cairo, the capital. He will conquer the Suez Canal zone and all of Egypt. So just what is Egypt? Many are inclined to establish it as the land bordered on the north by the Mediterranean Sea, on the west by Libya, on the south by Sudan, on the southeast by the Red Sea, and on the northeast by its Sinai border with Gaza and Israel’s Negev. And, geographically, that is quite correct. However, in reality, that is not Egypt. The real Egypt, where her people live, is much, much, smaller. Egypt is the land along her north and east coastlines up to about two miles inland, the Nile Delta, and the land along the Nile River extending about fifteen miles either side of its banks.

The antichrist will send messages to leaders of two of the original 10 nations confederated with him, namely Libya and Sudan, requesting them to mass their troops along the northern coastal border with Libya, and along the border where the Nile enters Egypt from Sudan. This will cause the diversion of some Egyptian troops away from Cairo and the Suez Canal in order to protect their western and southern borders. And this will allow the antichrist to rapidly push across the Suez Canal into Cairo and along her western and eastern coastlines, then to quickly progress southward down the Nile with little resistance. I believe he will control Egypt within two weeks after he reaches the Suez Canal.

Once he has conquered Egypt, he will make an assessment of his geopolitical position. After having done so, he would be a military fool to return to his home country. He will establish his capital at Cairo, and will remain there for more than three years. After three years he will receive news that causes him to quickly return to Jerusalem. If a military leader plans to put down his roots for a while, what would be one of his major concerns

? The relationship he has with the rulers of the nations that are on his immediate borders. That is, how sure he is they will not pull a surprise attack on him.

So, through the prestigious position he has gained in the eyes of the Islamic world by this time, it will allow him to use the terrorist groups, already in Sudan and Libya, to overthrow their leaders, and in their place to install two

of his stooges, where they will remain in control for some three years. He will already have plucked up the ruler of Lebanon, and replaced him with a stooge.

For more than three years, with the Suez Canal under his control, he will gain worldwide recognition and acclaim in his capital city of Cairo. Israel will be trapped in the Negev for more than three years, and stability will finally have come to the troubled Middle East. He will supposedly have done what all nations say they are seeking, that is, brought stability to the Middle East.

Then tidings from the north and the east of Cairo cause him to return to the holy temple mount in Jerusalem, as a call to the final battle of this age is issued to all nations.

Daniel 11:44,45 – But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many. [45] And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.

End Archive Prophecy Update Number 50

Begin Jerusalem Post Article

Analysis: How strong has Hamas becom

e?

NICK FRANCONA, THE JERUSALEM POST

August 28, 2007

Hamas’s June victory over Fatah in Gaza was more than a political achievement – it was a military bonanza.

From its capture of Fatah’s security headquarters, Hamas acquired stockpiles of American-made small arms and ammunition as well as a wide range of military equipment and vehicles originally transferred to bolster Fatah forces loyal to Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

In addition, increased smuggling since June has reportedly provided Hamas with additional Russian-made weapons, including antitank and antiaircraft missiles.

The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) estimates that 40 tons of explosives entered Gaza in the two months following Hamas’s takeover, along with 150 rocket-propelled grenade launchers in August alone. According to Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, it would have taken Hamas approximately one year – through smuggling or other means – to obtain the amount of weaponry seized during the Gaza takeover.

Hamas’s upgraded military capabilities will affect the durability of its control over Gaza, as well as Fatah’s prospects for challenging that control, Israel’s policy toward the territory, and future US security assistance to the PA.

A survey of its arsenal supports the Israeli assessment that Hamas has undergone a “generational change” over the past two years.

Small arms and antitank weapons

Hamas displayed captured American arms on various affiliated Web sites and on its own Al-Aksa television network. It claimed to have captured thousands of M-16 and Kalashnikov assault rifles, along with large supplies of ammunition and stockpiles of RPGs, some equipped with dual warheads designed to penetrate armor. The group also possesses at least one Russian-made Dushka heavy machine gun that fires large-caliber rounds and can be mounted on vehicles.

Although it is unclear whether Hamas acquired more advanced antitank missiles from Fatah or through smuggling, the group now reportedly has Sagger missiles that are more accurate and sophisticated than standard or upgraded rocket-propelled grenades.

The group also reportedly possesses Russian-made Konkors antitank weapons capable of piercing armor.

Antiaircraft missiles and rockets
Numerous sources, including Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, believe Hamas has acquired antiaircraft munitions, including Strela (SA-7) missiles. Although IAF jets are equipped with systems to counter missiles, they may pose a threat to IDF helicopters and older aircraft. At the same time, however, these more advanced weapons will require a more sophisticated level of training on Hamas’s part if they are to be effective.

Hamas has also significantly increased its rocket capability. Following Israel’s disengagement from Gaza two years ago, the group began to improve its Kassam rocket manufacturing capabilities.

Since the weapons’ introduction in 2001, their range has been expanded considerably from the original 2-3 kilometers. Hamas’s newest Kassam rocket has an estimated range of 17 kilometers, capable of hitting Ashkelon. With wider tubes, these rockets can also carry a greater payload of explosives.

In addition, Hamas has reportedly smuggled Katyusha rockets into Gaza. Both the Hamas-affiliated Palestinian Information Center and the Web site of Hamas’s Izzadin Kassam Brigades acknowledged – but did not specifically confirm – Israeli reports that Hamas has acquired at least 50 long-range Katyushas.

These rockets are more advanced than the homemade Kassams and are capable of striking targets up to 20 kilometers away. Hamas does not possess nearly as many of these rockets as Hizbullah, which launched up to 200 per day during its war with Israel last summer.

Since June, Hamas has largely refrained from rocket fire against Israel while it concentrates on governing Gaza. Islamic Jihad, however, continues to actively plan and execute attacks against Israel. According to Jane’s Defence Weekly, Islamic Jihad has surpassed Izzadin Kassam in rocket manufacturing and technology.

The al-Quds Brigades – Islamic Jihad’s military wing – recently unveiled its latest rocket, dubbed the Quds-4, with a reported range of 18-22 kilometers. Overall, Israel has reported 121 rocket attacks in the two months since Hamas’s takeover.

Captured Intelligence

Hamas claims to have obtained thousands of hard-copy files as well as computer records, photographs, and audiovisual recordings from the Fatah-run PA intelligence headquarters. Although most US intelligence officials doubt that any highly sensitive material was compromised during the Gaza takeover, one former official with experience in the Strip told The Wall Street Journal in July: “People are worried, and reasonably so, about what kind of intelligence losses we may have suffered.”

In the same article, Bruce Riedel, an intelligence veteran and former National Security Council aide to Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, speculated that there would be “quite a treasure trove of materials that would document the relationship with the CIA.”

In Gaza, Hamas’s former foreign minister Mahmoud Zahar told Newsweek the seized documents revealed global collaboration between Palestinian and US intelligence operatives.

Zahar and other Hamas leaders are using the papers as part of an ongoing public relations effort portraying their Fatah rivals as collaborators with Israel and the West.

Dichter and other Israeli officials believe Hamas has obtained eavesdropping equipment and other signals intelligence technology. This is a concern because Hamas could use such equipment to counter future efforts to monitor the group.

Hamas’s military organization

Hamas is in the process of reorganizing its fighters into a more cohesive force. IDF officials say the group has approximately 13,000 armed members divided into four brigades. Hamas was apparently inspired by Hizbullah’s war with Israel last summer and appears to be modeling its forces after the Lebanese Shi’ite militia. Israeli sources suggest that these changes are designed to help Hamas wage guerrilla warfare in the event of an Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, with a focus on maximizing casualties among IDF forces and nearby Israeli population centers.

Hamas’s Executive Force, the security unit established after group members were barred from integrating into the PA security apparatus, now numbers 6,000. Although its principal mission is to police Gaza, the force is also suspected of bolstering the Murabitun, Hamas’s large popular army. Overall, Hamas is developing a diversified force capable of controlling domestic challenges and enhancing its capabilities against Israel.

Since Israel’s 2005 disengagement from Gaza – and especially since Hamas’s more recent victory over Fatah – Hamas has significantly enhanced its military capabilities across a range of areas. This is likely to protect the group from domestic challenges for the foreseeable future as well as provide it with more options, both offensive and defensive, in the event of a confrontation with Israel.

However effective the economic and financial blockade against Hamas may be, there is no sign that such efforts have dented the group’s control over Gaza or slowed the pace of its military development.

For now, Israel has opted not to initiate large-scale military operations in Gaza, wary of the casualties that would result. With last summer’s war fresh in the public’s mind, however, pressure could mount for Israel to act against Hamas before the group grows strong enough to replicate Hizbullah’s performance. Under current conditions, a high-casualty incident – for example, a successful rocket strike on an Israeli target beyond Sderot – would likely provoke a harsh response.

Nick Francona is a research intern at The Washington Institute.

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Turkish Army Ready to intervene against Centers of Evil in New Government!

August 30, 2007

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Three times in past decades the powerful Turkish army has been able to seize power from different civilian governments

trying to end Turkey’s secular form of government.

If they are not successful during the life of the present civilian government, then it is very possible that Turkey will slip back under a religious Islamic form of government, which would be instrumental in a Turkish Ruler becoming one the ten horns in the end times empire of Antichrist in the seventh Chapter of Daniel.

Daniel 7:24,25 – And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. [25] And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Begin Guardian Article

Turkey Military: Secularism Under Attack

Monday August 27, 2007 5:16 PM

By C. ONUR ANT

Associated Press Writer

ISTANBUL, Turkey (AP) – Turkey’s staunchly secular military said Monday that the strict line between Islam and the state was under attack by “centers of evil” – a strong warning ahead of the expected election of a president with a background in political Islam.

Gen. Yasar Buyukanit, chief of the military, said in a note on the military’s Web site, that “our nation has been watching the behavior of centers of evil who systematically try to corrode the secular nature of the Turkish Republic.”

Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, whose bid earlier this year to become president in a parliamentary voting process was blocked by the secular establishment because of concerns about his Islamic past, was expected to win the post on Tuesday.

The statement from the military, which seized power from civilian governments three times in past decades, was issued to mark the 85th anniversary on Aug.

30 of a military victory that was crucial for the establishment

of modern Turkey.

“Nefarious plans to ruin Turkey’s secular and democratic nature emerge in different forms everyday,” Buyukanit said in the statement.

“The military will, just as it has so far, keep its determination to guard social, democratic and secular Turkey,” Buyukanit said.

In April, when Gul’s candidacy first came to vote, the military, which had largely stayed out of the public debate, indicated it was willing to become more openly involved.

“It should not be forgotten that the Turkish armed forces is one of the sides in this debate and the absolute defender of secularism. When necessary, they will display their attitudes and actions very clearly,” the military said at the time.

Gul is likely to be Turkey’s 11th president after a third round of presidential voting in the Parliament Tuesday.

He withdrew his earlier bid in the face of mounting criticism from the secular opposition, which was backed by the military and the top court.

Huge crowds took to the streets in major cities and demanded that Gul revoke his candidacy for the post.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had picked Gul as his candidate, called early general elections to defuse tensions.

The elections were held July 22, and Erdogan’s ruling party won a resounding victory, which most analysts here interpreted as the people’s support for Gul’s candidacy.

Gul renewed his presidential bid after the elections.

In t he first two rounds of voting,

he failed to get support from two-thirds of the Parliament, which was required to be elected for the post.

He will need only a simple m

ajority in the third round on Tuesday. His party holds 341 of the 550 seats in Parliament.

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