blog.Tribulationperiod.com

Little Biblical Doubt Antichrist Soon To Walk Aboard,

A Perplexing Problem is WHEN Islam Draws A Sword,

No Peace and Safety till all terrorists groups on Board,

The Sword of Allah will soon send south its Jihad Hoards,

A possibility many nations seem able to completely Ignore,

Eight years ago I believed attack would be afore year 2012,

Since 2007 I’ve believed it likely to happen twixt 2010 & 2015,

No big war cause terrorist groups to Different Leaders Hearken,

Between now and 2015 a leader will arise to Who their Sparking!

February 3, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

For years I have contended closed door meetings between the terrorist Islamic nations, and all the terrorist group leaders, will be necessary before a time of peace and safety, which matches the one Paul describes in I Thessalonians 5:3,4, is finally fulfilled. I believe many meetings will create such a condition of false peace between Israel and its internal terrorist groups at some point in time between 2010 and 2015.

Only then will rocket and mortar attacks cease against Israel. The three Archive Prophecy Updates are a brief history of the seemingly never ending tit for tat acts of violence between the terrorist groups and Israel. I believe the tit for tat will end at some point in time between now and 2015. When the tit for tat does finally cease, a major Middle East war will suddenly break out a short period of time thereafter.

PROPHECY UPDATE NUMBER 7

Issued in February 2001 on http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Syria will lead an Islamic array of nations against Israel. The well coordinated effort of these nations, aided by the Palestinians within Israel, will be able to initially defeat the woman Israel, and she will be forced to remain in the Negev for three and one-half prophetic years, or 1260 days. According to Zechariah 13:9 to 14:2, only one-third of Israel will make it into the Negev, and the city of Jerusalem will fall to the Islamic conglomerate: “[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. [1] Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. [2] For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.” Considering the present number of Jews in Israel, (about 4.8 million), if the attack were to occur now, that would mean about 1.6 million Jews would be hedged in the Negev for 1260 days. If the attack were to occur in the distant future that number could reach 2 million. I really do not expect such an attack to occur this year, because it has to first be secretly coordinated behind closed doors, between several Arab nations confederate with Syria,

and with the terrorist groups they control. This will take several years. I feel confident the attack will not occur before 2003, but I do believe it will occur before 2012.

ARCHIVE PROPHECY UPDATE 12

Issued in March 2001 on http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

The Apostle Paul had a deep spiritual burden for his own people, the nation of Israel. His born again heart longed for them to forsake their unbelief by turning to Jesus as their Messiah. He expresses this desire in Romans 10:1 as he states: “Brethren, my hearts desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved.” There is no question that Paul saw Israel as being in unbelief. But he knew that some future day they would believe, and consequently be grafted back into God’s olive tree, from which they had been broken off because of their unbelief.

He stated this principle in Romans 11:20, as he wrote: “Well, because of unbelief they were broken off.” But he goes on in verse 23 to indicate they will one day believe, and thereby restored to being part of God’s olive tree. He writes, “And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again.” I said all this to explain the words “they” and “them” in I Thessalonians 5:3, where Paul states: “For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh on them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” Paul, in his use of “they” and “them,” is referring to the nation of Israel in unbelief. However, it would also in part apply to all unbelievers in the last days. So why have I given this discourse? The word translated as “safety” is “asphaleia,” which means “the security one experiences when standing on something that is firmly fixed. It gives the one standing on it a sense of “not falling.” The last four leaders of Israel have worn out the following expression: “We must have a peace with security.” We have heard it used hundreds of times on the media, and it has been printed over

and over again in countless articles. Why is this important? God indicates a time will come when Israel actually believes she has “a peace with security.” Why is it so important that we understand this prediction

? Because we can know that the final war, involving Israel’s Islamic neighbors, will not occur until it is fulfilled! Israel must be lulled into a false sense of security before any united Islamic attack against her can be successful. Until this happens, and it will, I merely wait for it to come to pass. Then, when peace and security for Israel does appear to arrive in the Middle East, you can know that the final war of this age is about to occur. Don’t believe all these terrorist attacks will suddenly cause the final war of this age to begin. It is only when they cease that you can know the last war, which finally produces Armageddon some 3 and ½ years after it begins, is imminent.

PROPHECY UPDATE NUMBER 59

March 15, 2002

I Thessalonians 5:3,4 – For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. [4] But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

When one looks at the current geographical structure of what we call Israel today, he or she cannot fail to notice the military significance of the great Palestinian bulge, the West Bank, in Israel’s center, and the importance of the only PA access to a seaport, the narrow strip in the southwest linking the PA to Egypt, called Gaza. Any graduate of a military academy will tell you that if a nation is attacked from outside her borders, and simultaneously within her borders, it is an impossible situation.

Once the false peace comes to Israel, it will finally be broken by just such a situation, which will cause Israel to be driven southward into the Negev wilderness.

In all of Israel’s endeavors to procure military rest with the Arab nations she has repeatedly, for the last 54 years, made this statement with each new administration: “We must have Peace with Security.” The basic New Testament word for “Security” is “Safety.” There is no danger of the battle of Armageddon beginning in the Middle East until this false peace comes to exist between Israel and her bordering nations.

When Ehud Barak played the role of Santa Claus, and offered the unbelievable concessions to Yasar Arafat at Camp David, why did Arafat not accept them? There is one major overriding reason: Arafat knew he could not control Hamas, Hizbullah. and the Islamic Jihad terrorist groups. In fact, he probably knew he could not control some factions with his own terrorist group Fatah. Had he accepted Ehud Barak’s most generous land concessions, he knew that immediately after he signed the agreement, the terrorist groups would wreck havoc in Israel, and he would look like a helpless fool.

The long and short of peace in the Middle East is totally dependent upon Libya, Sudan, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran calling off the terrorist groups they sponsor long enough for Israel to think true peace is a reality.

The terrorist groups, their sponsoring nations, and the Palestinian leaders MUST work together to bring this false “Peace and Safety” to the Middle East. I suspect this will be one of the main topics discussed secretly, behind closed doors, at the Arab Conference to be held the latter part of this month.

Why has there been intrusion after intrusion into autonomous PA cities and camps by the IDF during the last few months? It has, of course, been in retribution for the numerous human bomb episodes within Israel that have taken many Israeli lives. However, it has also given Ariel Sharon the justification to accomplish an important military objective before he begins to negotiate a final peace arrangement with the Palestinians. He knew full well that the existence of a West Bank “bulge” PA nation in the midst of Israel, filled with terrorist groups, was a completely untenable situation. So, before he holds any peace negotiations with the Palestinians, or anyone else, he is working diligently to destroy the terrorist infrastructure within PA autonomous territory, and its capacity to produce weapons internally. Even if Israel is able to completely surround a newly created Palestinians nation by maintaining the western shore of the Jordan River, the existence of active terrorist groups within the new nation is completely unacceptable.

The only way any Palestinian leader could control the terrorist groups, according to Israel’s mode of thinking, is for Israel to purposely eliminate, or greatly weaken them, before the false peace.

However, in all reality, the only ones who can control them are the countries that supply them with money, weapons, and martyrs.

The only good thing about the current events in the Middle East is this: It clearly advises us that the coming of the Lord is at our doors.

Once the peace comes, then we can rest assured that our redemption is drawing nigh. Once the false peace is in place, a brief period of time will pass. Then, to the surprise of Israel, and most of the world, she will be attacked internally from within by the Palestinians, and externally from the north by Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran, with several other Islamic nations directly assisting in the operation. I do not believe Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia will be among the nations that initially attack Israel.

THREE EXCERPTS I ATTACHED LATE MONDAY NIGHT

Begin Three Excerpts from Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs/Daily Alert

Excerpt 1

Palestinian Rocket Fire Worsens

Yuval Azoulay

Palestinians in Gaza fired at least five Kassam rockets and eight mortar shells at Israel on Sunday. Two soldiers and a civilian were wounded. In addition, Israel Defense Forces soldiers exchanged fire with Palestinians near the Kissufim crossing on Sunday. On Saturday, a Grad rocket struck south of Ashkelon.

(Ha’aretz)

Excerpt 2

After Warning Palestinians to Leave Targets, Israel Retaliates for Gaza Rocket Fire

Barak Ravid

Israel Air Force aircraft struck an evacuated Hamas security headquarters in central Gaza on Sunday after Israel telephoned warnings to Palestinians. Two other strikes were on smuggling tunnels along the border with Egypt.

Before the attack, Israeli aircraft flew over the Gaza-Egypt border, setting off sonic booms, and witnesses said hundreds of people who work in the tunnels there fled, along with residents. (Ha’aretz)

Excerpt 3

Military Intelligence: Hamas Upholding Cease-Fire, But Smaller Gaza Groups Undeterred

Barak Ravid

IDF Military Intelligence Head Maj.-Gen. Amos Yadlin said Sunday that while Israel’s offensive in Gaza had deterred Hamas, other radical groups were still looking to escalate hostilities. “Two weeks following the cease-fire, militants from groups other than Hamas are challenging it and carrying out attacks aimed at renewing escalation,” Yadlin told cabinet ministers. Hamas “is not preventing the attacks of others,” he said. (Ha’aretz)

BUT MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE RANCH, HAMAS IS HAVING A GO AT A MORE PERMANENT TRUCE

I notice in the last paragraph the excerpt uses the common slang express which is one of my favorites, namely “tit for tat.”

EXCERPT I ATTACHED ON TUESDAY MORNING

Begin Excerpt from Lebanese Daily Star

Hamas cites ‘positive direction’ as Cairo works toward stronger Gaza truce

By Agence France Presse (AFP)

Monday, February 02, 2009

CAIRO: Palestinian officials were gathering in Cairo on Sunday amid hopes of bolstering a ceasefire in Gaza, even as Israel threatened to strike at Hamas after Gaza militants fired rockets into Israel. Egypt has been mediating a truce after Hamas and Israel announced ceasefires on January 18, ending a devastating 22-day war that killed more than 1,330 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.

An advisor to deposed Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, who heads the Hamas government in Gaza, told AFP that the group was awaiting Israel’s response to an Egyptian truce proposal. “We can speak with details about the truce after our delegation examines the Israeli response,” said Ahmad Yusef, adding that Hamas expected the response by Monday. “But for now, things are moving in a positive direction.”

A Hamas team from Gaza was already in Cairo, as was Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, while representatives of Hamas’ Syria-based leadership were due on Monday, a Hamas official said.

Abbas was scheduled to travel to Prague to meet his Czech counterpart, Vaclav Klaus, but announced on Saturday that he would travel to Cairo instead, where he would meet Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Monday. Abbas came to Egypt after Egyptian officials relayed “optimistic reports” from meetings with Hamas, Fatah official Nabil Shaath told AFP.

“Our Egyptian brothers reported to us what they feel to be a more open and therefore more optimistic position [from Hamas],” he said. “What Egypt will say to us tomorrow will be very important.”

However, Abbas on Sunday ruled out talks with any group which does recognize the PLO’s legitimacy, in a reference to Khaled Meshaal, political chief of Hamas.

“We say this with utmost clarity: no dialogue with whoever rejects the Palestine Liberation Organization,” Abbas said at a news conference in the Egyptian capital.

Meshaal, who heads Hamas’ politburo from exile in Syria, said last week that the PLO had become obsolete and called for “a new, national authority.”

Hamas beat Fatah in parliamentary elections in 2006.

Meshaal, who was visiting Iran, repeated on Sunday that Hamas would not accept a permanent ceasefire with Israel until it ended its blockade of Gaza.

Israel imposed its siege of the impoverished Gaza Strip following the Hamas victory in the 2006 polls. The Zionist state further tightened its grip after the Islamists took power in Gaza by force in 2007.

“While the occupation continues, a permanent ceasefire has no meaning,” Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency quoted him as saying during a joint news conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki.

Meshaal, who arrived in Iran earlier on Sunday for his first visit since the war, said the Gaza blockade was a key “priority.” “While the blockade continues, we believe the aggression [by Israel] continues,” he added.

Later Sunday Meshaal met Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who urged him to be prepared for any situation even a “new war” with Israel, the semi-official news agency ISNA reported.

“The Islamic resistance has to be careful and prepared for any situation even the possibility of a new war,” Khamenei was quoted as saying.

The fragile ceasefire has been tested by tit-for-tat attacks which flared up after Israeli raids in the territory and after Palestinian militants detonated a roadside bomb at the Gaza border with Israel, killing a soldier. Palestinian fighters have also fired at least seven rockets at Israel, as well a mortar round on Sunday that slightly wounded two people. – AFP, with The Daily Star

END EXCERPTS

IF MESHAAL, AFTER TWO TRIPS TO IRAN ABOUT THE CONFLICT, HAS IN SOME WAY FINALLY CONCEIVED A PLAN WITH IRAN AND SYRIA (MESHAAL’S HEADQUARTERS IS DAMASCUS) TO LULL ISRAEL INTO A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY BY A LENGTHY OR PERMANENT CEASEFIRE, THEN PERHAPS WE WILL AT LAST SEE A BRIEF PERIOD OF THE FALSE PEACE OF I THESSALONIANS 5;3,4. ONLY TIME WILL TELL, BUT I AM VERY CONFIDENT IT WILL COME INTO PLACE AT SOME POINT IN TIME BEFORE 2015, WITH THE ATTACK SHORTLY THEREAFTER AT A POINT IN TIME BETWEEN 2010 AND 2015.

WHEN ALL THE TERRORIST NATIONS AND GROUPS FINALLY COME TOGETHER IN A CONSPIRACY TO LULL ISRAEL INTO FALSE SECURITY THEN THE TIT FOR TAT BETWEEN THE NATION OF ISRAEL AND HER ENEMIES WILL TEMPORARILY CEASE.

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NOTICE TO ALL WHO READ OUR BLOGS ON:

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Starting February Fifth I will only issue Blogs about the Middle East as time permits – My wife’s eyesight has been diminishing for several years, and is now such that she can only read 28 font print with a magnifying glass. It has been going down hill more rapidly in the last six months.

I hope she will be able to keep enough vision to see large objects.

I will be helping my wife with housework and whatever else she needs to the extent I will only issue Blogs when time is available.

This is my last trip to Israel

in March, but she will be well cared for in my absence.

She is the most loved woman in

the church, and we have three of our daughters living here in Dardanelle.

Two of them are nurses and the third is stronger than most men.

Ple ase continue to pray and

ask God to let her keep as much vision as is his will.

Also remember me in your prayers during our coming excursion into Israel.

At age 76 I am no longer a spring chicken.

I won’t be sending out notifications on updates after the fourth of February, so you’ll just have to check our web site from time to

time.

God Bless,
Tom M.

Islam Rising like Yeast won’t Cease,

Turkey turns to the Beast in the East,

The climate of Fear in Her will Increase!

Egypt stays with her friends in the West,

Which in Future War for her won’t be Best!

Ten toes of Daniel will make her pay a Price,

Cause she stays with West over toe’s Advice!

So is overrun by 10 toes before two 0 one Five,

But will be Rewarded in Millennium as a Surprise!

February 2, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

It is no secret that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan Erdogan served four months in jail in 1999 for reciting what courts deemed to be an inflammatory poem interpreted as being anti-secular. Turkey is a staunchly secular state. But he has succeeded, like a snake in the grass, from hiding his anti-secular, pro-Islamic by swearing he is pro-secular long enough to gain sufficient power to put down the military power against him, such that the snake has now been able to expose himself without being deposed by a military coup. He is changing Turkey from a secular state with a massive population of Islamic believers into an Islamic Republic, which will join Syria and Iran to form an iron ring of toes in a Jihad crescent moon that will encircle Israel through the Tigris-Euphrates River Valley. Please take the time to read the two excerpts which follow our heading.

DURING THE ATTACK OF 10 TOES IN THE TRIBULATION PERIOD

Daniel 11:42,43 – He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. [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.

FOLLOWING THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON AND SECOND ADVENT

Isaiah 19:19-25 – In that day shall there be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord. [20] And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them. [21] And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it. [22] And the Lord shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the Lord, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them. [23] In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. [24] In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land: [25] Whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.

Begin Excerpt 1 from Jerusalem Post

A climate of fear

February 1, 2009

Abe Selig , THE JERUSALEM POST

Ever since she was a kid, Sheila wanted to be married in Istanbul’s famous Neveh Shalom Synagogue.

“It’s a very beautiful place,” the 26-year-old told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday. “Growing up in Istanbul, all the girls want to to have their weddings there.”

But Sheila, who made aliya three years ago and lives in Jerusalem, said that given the dramatic increase in anti-Israel and anti-Semitic sentiment in Turkey following Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip last month, her dream wedding is turning into something of a nightmare.

“I was engaged three months ago,” said Sheila, who asked that her last name not be published out of fear for her family’s safety, all of whom still live in the Turkish metropolis. “My fiance is Israeli, and his family no longer wants to go there for

the wedding. On top of that, when my mother goes to the ministry offices [in Istanbul] to try and get the marriage forms filled out, they won’t help her.

They won’t help her because she’s Jewish.”

Describing a “climate of fear” in her former hometown, the Turkish immigrant said she will most likely cancel her wedding plans.

“Frankly, I’m scared to have my wedding there now,” she said. “On the one hand, yeah, it’s my dream, but on the other hand, the situation there has simply gotten out of control.”

“Every day it gets worse,” Sheila continued. “My parents told me that a shopkeeper near one of the Jewish neighborhoods, where my grandparents live, put a sign in the window of his store that said, ‘No Jews allowed, but dogs are welcome.’

“Even when my parents go to buy a phone card to call me, they get harassed by the shopkeepers the minute they say they’re trying to make a call to Israel.”
Sheila also said that during the war, billboards went up around town decrying the Israeli “crimes” in Gaza, and the government made students in every Turkish school stand for a moment of silence in solidarity with the children of Gaza.

“They even had to do it at the Jewish school I went to as a kid,” Sheila said. “I can only imagine how uncomfortable the students must have felt.”

And while she admits that Turkish anti-Semitism was always a festering force somewhere in the shadows, Sheila said it’s now reached levels unseen in her lifetime, or in that of her parents, and is spilling over into the streets.

“Just look at the way they stood outside to meet [Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan] when he came back from Davos,” Sheila said, referring to the popular head of government’s grand reception after his televised spat with President Shimon Peres. “He’s the one to blame for this, he’s rallying the poor and uninformed people behind his rhetoric, and they’re buying it. We knew it would be bad the minute he came into the government, but we never thought it would be this bad.”

Sheila is not alone.

Nathalie, also a new immigrant from Istanbul, lives in Tel Aviv. She agreed to speak to the Post, but also asked that her last name remain unpublished.

“I’m going there on Friday,” Nathalie said. “And yes, I’m a little scared.”

“I think this is the sign of Turkey moving toward a very dangerous future,” she said. “Since the Gaza war started, the newspapers have been writing really nasty stuff and the demonstrations on the street have gotten really ugly. It’s not just against Israel,” she said. “they’re demonstrating against Jews.”

“I think people are starting to think about leaving,” Nathalie continued. “But then there are those who feel like it will calm down as well. I think the main thing to remember is that local elections are coming up in Turkey, and the prime minister is demonizing the Jews to rally more votes.

It’s like a classic anti-Semitic theme. But at the same time, there’s such strong ties between Israel and Turkey, it makes you wonder if he’s crazy. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Itzik Behar, who made aliya from Izmir in 1948, agrees.

“They need us more than we need them,” he said, as he stood outside of a barber shop in Jerusalem’s Mahaneh Yehuda Market on Sunday. “But I’ll tell you the truth, I love Turkey, I used to go back all the time. But now, I wouldn’t go there if you paid me.”

Behar cited two reasons.

“First, it’s because of the situation there now – I’d be afraid for my safety, as an Israeli and as a Jew.

“But second, it’s because of that fear. I’m really angry with the Turks. They always received me so well, and treated me like a brother – after all, I grew up there. But to see this on the news every night, the way they’re demonstrating and being violent, I feel like they’ve turned on me, like they’re traitors,” Behar said.

“They turned on all of Israel in a heartbeat, and I don’t think many Israelis will forget that. Go to the airport and see how many Israelis are flying to Turkey today. No, you know what, I’ll save you the trip.

None. Zero.”

Begin Excerpt 2 from Jerusalem Post

The Region: Egypt and Turkey

February 1, 2009

Barry Rubin , THE JERUSALEM POST

Two of the region’s most important countries – Egypt and Turkey – are at a crossroads. Egypt has the chance to again be the Arab world’s central power; in contrast, Turkey’s government is throwing away the opportunity to become a major diplomatic player in

the region while hammering the last nail into the coffin of its chance for European Union membership.

Let’s consider Egypt first. In the Gaza war’s aftermath, everyone is asking Cairo its preferences for policing the border with Hamas’

s radical Islamist semi-state next door. Egypt must take the lead in any new arrangement to stop arms’ smuggling. Moreover, that country is now the Palestinian Authority’s indispensible patron and will determine whether a coherent international effort will be made to bring down Hamas. Any hope for an Arab-Israeli peace process or, more likely, simple stability is riding with Egypt now.

But that’s not all. In recent months, Egypt has taken decisive public steps toward being the leader of moderate Arab resistance to the Iran-Syria axis, radical Islamism and – in most Arabs’ minds – the Shi’ite threat.

[…….]

THEN THERE’S Turkey. We have known for some time that the Ataturk era is over, but now we see that an Islamist-oriented period has begun. It isn’t just the unprecedented high level of abuse aimed against Israel. Nor is it merely the statements verging on the anti-Semitic which have frightened Turkish Jews more than at any time in modern history. It is also the increasing confidence – one might say arrogance – of the ruling AKP party, more openly pushing an Islamist-oriented agenda, and in some ways apparently drifting closer to Iran and Syria.

What is motivating the AKP to seem more and more like a wolf in sheep’s clothing? The most important factor is its success. From election to election, the AKP increases its base of support. The opposition remains divided and incompetent. The party’s leaders may increasingly be thinking they will be in power forever and inclined to make sure their wish comes true.

And so the media is intimidated; the army is curbed by periodic arrests in retaliation for alleged coup plans.

A new constitution is being written for the country. Systematically, institutions are being taken over: The party’s men are put into the bureaucracy, its controlling shadow falls on the universities and it installs new judges in the courts.

The presidents of Iran and Sudan are feted as heroes, the would-be mass murders of the first and the already implemented killings of the second are ignored. The first got a security cooperation treaty; both obtained offers of more Turkish investments in their gas producing fields. No wonder the AKP is so friendly with Iran, Sudan and Hamas – it views them as ideological fellows.

As the Turkish analyst Soner Cagaptay put it, “It appears that [Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdogan has finally answered the question of where Turkey belongs – and that in his opinion, it’s not with the West.” Almost exactly 70 years after his death, the republic’s founder Kemal Ataturk is no doubt rolling in his grave, which, by the way, the AKP no longer invites visiting Islamist leaders to visit when they come to Ankara.

It is not all a free ride for Turkey, though. Erdogan has thrown away the economically valuable Israeli tourist trade – advice: go to Georgia or Azerbaijan instead – and his country’s diplomatically prestigious ability to mediate in disputes. The Turkish government was proud to host the Israel-Syria talks, but it is doubtful if Israel will trust it again in that position. And as for the idea of Turkish participation in guarding Gaza’s borders against smuggling, Erdogan’s inciteful hate Israel speeches will exclude the country from that role also.

Even worse, there are many in the European Union looking for new reasons to keep Turkey out of that select club.

The AKP’s extremist turn gives ample evidence of an Islamist rather than a moderate, “modern” orientation.

The Turkish government’s open partnership with radical forces horrifies many Turks and will lose Ankara lots of friends abroad. It is not too late to pull back, but probably the AKP will go even further, fueled by likely successes in local elections this summer.

For Egypt, in contrast, there is a great opportunity.

Will Ankara’s loss be balanced by Cairo’s gain?

The writer is director of the Global Research in International Affairs Center and editor of the Middle East Review of International Affairs Journal.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more detailed information go to:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml.

You may use material originated by this site. However, if you wish to use any quoted copyrighted material from this site, which did not originate at this site, for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner from which we extracted it.

Erdogan now Dismal,

Turk’s façade Fizzles!

Congratulations Israel,

Plan of Turkey IS Visual,

Erdogan is snake in Grass,

In old Benedict Arnold Class,

Hope you do not change Mind,

Old Turk Military Saw The Signs,

Erdogan’s Power WITH Iran Allies,

Now keeps military power Demised,

So military coup cannot be Organized,

TO NATO Turks Will Soon SAY Goodbye,

Its union with 9 Islamic toes draws Nigh,

Its Turk advantage to do it is reason Why,

Erdogan promise to remain secular is a Lie,

Will be 1 of 10 Jihad Toes attacking by & By!

February 1, 2009

http://www.tribulationperiod.com/

Since Mustafa Kemal Atatürk founded the modern secular Republic of Turkey in 1923, the Turkish military has perceived itself as the guardian of Kemalism, the official state ideology, even though Atatürk himself insisted on separating the military from politics.

The TAF still maintains an important degree of influence over Turkish politics and the decision making process regarding issues related to Turkish national security, albeit decreased in the past decades, via the National Security Council.

The military has had a record of intervening in politics. Indeed, it assumed power for several periods in the latter half of the 20th century.

It executed coups d’etat in 1960, 1971, and 1980.

Most recently, it maneuvered the removal of an Islamic-oriented prime minister, Necmettin Erbakan, in 1997.

On April 27, 2007, in advance of the November 4, 2007 presidential election, and in reaction to the politics of Abdullah Gül, who has a past record of involvement in Islamist political movements and banned Islamist parties such as the Welfare Party, the army issued a statement of its interests. It said that the army is a party to “arguments” regarding secularism; that Islamism ran counter to the secular nature of the Turkish Republic, and to the legacy of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The Army’s statement ended with a clear warning that the Turkish Armed Forces stood ready to intervene if the secular nature of the Turkish Constitution is compromised, stating that “the Turkish Armed Forces maintain their sound determination to carry out their duties stemming from laws to protect the unchangeable characteristics of the Republic of Turkey. Their loyalty to this determination is absolute.”

Contrary to outsider expectations, the Turkish populace is not uniformly averse to coups; many welcome the ejection of governments they perceive as unconstitutional.

In the present century, an Islamic-oriented elected administration has been able to break down some of the military’s powers, such that many military officers have been arrested. Some have already been tried, while others are awaiting trial.

I am afraid the military will is no longer able to do a coup d’etat on the Islamic-oriented government now in power, and that Turkish relations with

the West will continue to go down the drain.

Begin Excerpt 1 from Jerusalem Post

‘Erdogan-led Turkey can’t broker talks’

February 1, 2009

haviv rettig gur , THE JERUSALEM POST

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan “has lost all credibility as an honest broker in peace discussions,” a senior Israeli diplomatic official told The Jerusalem Post Saturday night, citing Erdogan’s recent anti-Israel rhetoric.

“As long as he is the prime minister of the country, Turkey has no place in peace negotiations or discussions,” the official added.

“It is not a trustworthy diplomatic partner anymore.”

Until recently, Turkey had played a key role in quiet discussions between Israel, Syria, and other regional players.

The loss of the Turkish diplomatic channel was a serious blow to these discussions, said Foreign Ministry officials.

“The only parties that could reasonably play that mediating role now are the Americans under Obama, or, in theory, a European party,” the diplomatic official surmised.

At the Davos World Economic Forum on Thursday night, Erdogan launched a blistering attack on Operation Cast Lead, Israel’s offensive against Hamas infrastructure in Gaza.

This was followed by an impassioned defense of Israel’s actions by President Shimon Peres, Erdogan’s fellow panel member at the prestigious conference.

When Erdogan tried to respond, he was cut off by the moderator, and quickly stormed off the stage, accusing Peres of lying.

“It’s not that he criticized Israel,” said the Israeli official. “Other countries, such as the French, criticize Israel whenever they see fit.

But Erdogan launched accusation after accusation and did everything possible to be disrespectful, including telling outright lies. He went as far as to publicly shame the president of the state of Israel,” the official said.

The Davos incident was the culmination of a month of angry tirades against Israel by the Turkish prime minister.

Throughout the Gaza fighting, Erdogan blamed Israel alone for the escalation and called for it to be barred from the UN.

He accused Israel of “inhuman actions which would bring it to self-destruction.

Allah will sooner or later punish those who transgress the rights of innocents,” he said.

In a January 13 speech to Turkey’s parliament, he accused “media outlets supported by Jews” of “disseminating false reports on what happens in Gaza, finding unfounded excuses to justify targeting of schools, mosques, and hospitals.”

Began Excerpt 2 from Jerusalem Post

Iran: Give Erdogan a Nobel Peace Prize

February 1, 2009

JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST

A senior Iranian cleric called on Sunday for Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for his ‘courageous act’ at the World Economic Forum in which he and President Shimon Peres faced off over the situation with the Gaza Strip, the Iranian state radio IRNA reported.

According to the report, Ayatollah Naser Makerem-Shirazi told a group of theological students that Erdogan had taken a “decisive and crushing” stand against the “atrocities of the Zionist regime in the occupied lands.”

On Thursday, while the two were on stage at the forum in Davos, Switzerland, the Turkish leader lashed out at Peres over the “barbaric acts” committed by Israel during its three-week operation in the Gaza Strip.

Peres then spent 20 minutes explaining the Israeli position, which Erdogan then tried to challenge again. When the moderator told the Turkish prime minister to limit his response to two minutes, the premier got mad and walked off stage.

Meanwhile, in an interview with Newsweek magazine published online Saturday, Erdogan said that Hamas was a political party, not an “arm of Iran,” and that “if the whole world had given them the chance of becoming a political player maybe they would not be in a situation like this after the elections that they won.”

The Turkish prime minister went on to say that the “political will of the Palestinian people” had been ignored by the world, in that the international community fails to “respect” Hamas’s legitimacy.

“Palestine today is an open-air prison,” he said.

In the interview, which will appear in the February 9 issue of the magazine, Erdogan also spoke of indirect negotiations between Israel and Syria, which Turkey brokered last year. He said he was involved in “very intense telephone diplomacy” between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Syrian President Bashar Assad. He segued into speaking of Hamas, saying that the group should have been involved in the Israel-Syria talks.

“Moreover during that talk, I said to Prime Minister Olmert that I believed I could be successful in freeing the kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit,” he added.

Erdogan said he told Olmert that Turkey could have mediated in order to secure Schalit’s release and that Israel would have to free jailed Hamas leaders in return.

Ties have been particularly strained between Israel and Turkey recently due to Erdogan’ s critici

sm of IDF Operation Cast Lead in Gaza and his public spat with Peres.

During the Newsweek interview, Erdogan again slammed the Gaza operation, reiterating his previous accusations of a disproportionate response to Hamas rocket fire on Israel. He added, however, “I’m not saying that Hamas is a good organization and makes no m

istakes. They have made mistakes, but I am evaluating the end result.”

He went on to rebut criticism labeling his recent comments on Israel as anti-Semitic, saying “I have always declared that anti-Semitism is a crime against humanity… my frustration is against the current Israeli government.”

“Everything we have said is against the current Israeli government, nothing against Jews,” he added.

“I have stated very clearly that anyone who even thinks about doing anything against the Jews in Turkey will find me against them,” he said, quipping, “Of course, I’m not going to ask Olmert to write my speeches.”

Asked if Turkey would continue to deal with Israel, he described the Jerusalem-Ankara relationship as “serious,” but added “the current Israeli government should check itself.”

Finally, answering a question on whether US President Barack Obama would “play a more even-handed role between the Palestinians and the Israelis,” he said, “There is no justice right now. We expect justice from now on.”

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Sunday that while Israel had important strategic ties with Turkey, it also had “difficult” disagreements with the country over several issues, including policies regarding Hamas.

Livni told Israel Radio that she expected Turkey to respect Israel’s position despite “hard” pictures coming out of Gaza and the numerous anti-Israel demonstrations in the country.

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