Covenant With Many

Israel and UAE agreement to be signed in Washington will be designated as "peace treaty" - Axios

Axios reports: "The agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, expected to be signed within the next two weeks in Washington, D.C., will be a "treaty of peace" with the same legal and diplomatic status as peace agreements Israel has previously signed with Egypt and Jordan, Israeli and U.S. officials tell me. [...] No date has been set for the signing ceremony in Washington, according to Israeli officials, but the event is expected to take place the week of Sept. 14. [...] The White House plans to invite ambassadors of Arab countries, including those who do not have diplomatic relations with Israel, officials say. In doing so, the White House hopes to show the U.S.-brokered Israel-UAE agreement has broad support in the Arab world."

Comment: This is a bit of diplomatic slight of hand. To call this a "peace treaty" is intentionally deceptive, since these countries are not at war. I was pondering this when I went back to the prophetic scripture and realized that peace treaty is not explicitly stated nor implicitly implied in Daniel 9:27. Might this be (or perhaps become) the Covenant with Many?

Covenant With Many - Gog Alliance

Turkey, Iran say Israeli-UAE deal 'shameful,' harmful to Palestinians

UPI reports: "NATO ally Turkey and U.S. foe Iran on Friday denounced the normalization of ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, both saying the Persian Gulf state has abandoned Palestinians in their fight for a homeland. [...] As part of the agreement, Israel agreed to suspend controversial and widely condemned plans to annex parts of West Bank. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had promised the annexation against the wishes of the Palestinians and much of the West. The annexation was also part of Trump's Middle East peace plan."

Comment: Have you heard that a new Mideast peace plan has been approved by the United States, Israel and the United Arab Emirates? It happened this week and the enemies of Israel are not happy. The above linked news report explains that Turkey, Iran and the Palestinians are the big losers in this deal while Israel and moderate Arab states are winners. As we watch the members of the Gog Alliance fall into line according to the prophecy in Ezekiel we should note the absence of Russia. What role will Russia play in all of this? 

Finally, is this development prophetically important? If we see it in light of an ascendant Israel making peace with moderate Arab states while avoiding the be-all-end-all pitfall of Palestinian peace, then yes, it is important. As one commentator put it, "The Palestinian veto power over Israel’s relationship with the Arab world has suffered a major blow." This portends an Israel growing in power and influence in the region, while malcontents like Turkey and Iran are further marginalized. In those countries, grudges will be nurtured, weapons will be purchased and peoples will be prepared for conflict down the road.

Covenant With Many

Trump leaps into Middle East fray with peace plan that Palestinians denounce - Reuters
Reuters reports: "U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday proposed creating a Palestinian state as part of a Middle East peace plan, drawing Palestinian condemnation for imposing strict conditions and agreeing to let Israel maintain control of long-contested West Bank settlements."

Comment: Before this peace plan was announced, the Palestinians rejected it. Can you imagine? I think it's pretty clear they are not interested in peace. I've actually been convinced of this for some time. When they rejected Bill Clinton's peace plan in 2000 (a very generous plan) it became clear that the Palestinians did not want peace with Israel, they wanted peace without Israel.  Nothing has changed in the intervening years to convince me otherwise. Thank you President Trump, you tried. Now it's time for Mideast peace to return to the back burner and for life to go on as usual until the appointed time.

Covenant With Many

Trump's Mideast peace plan will be 'historic': Netanyahu
AFP reports: "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said he expected US President Donald Trump's peace plan for the Middle East to be 'historic' ahead of a trip to Washington. [...] Trump on Thursday said he will release his long-delayed plan before meeting Netanyahu in Washington. 'It's a great plan. It's a plan that really would work,' Trump said."

Comment: Every American president in recent history has released a Mideast peace plan and now it's Trump's turn.  What can Trump do that would be any different than his predecessors? Judging by his behavior, the answer would seem to be, a lot. Can't wait to read the details of this new plan for bringing peace to the Middle East.

Covenant With Many

U.N. Security Council members rebuke U.S. policy shift on Israeli settlements - UPI.com
UPI reports: "The members of the U.N. Security Council strongly rebuked the United States for its announcement that it will no longer consider Israeli settlements to be illegal under international law. The members of the council Wednesday criticized the shift in U.S. policy as it threatens peace in the region by undermining the two-state solution at a time of recent hostility between Palestine and Israel."

Comment: To me it's a supernatural thing, how often the affairs of this small little country in the Middle East are the focus of the entire international community. 

Covenant With Many

Trump Mideast envoy to leave job before peace plan released
The AP reports, "The architect of the Trump administration’s delayed Mideast peace plan is leaving the White House in the face of widespread skepticism about the viability of the as-yet unseen proposal and questions about whether the vision for a resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will ever be released."

Comment: This can either mean the plan is finished and he is handing it off to Trump to close the "deal of the century" or the plan is in such disarray that he is leaving to avoid the fallout of an epic failure. Time will tell.

Covenant With Many

President Donald Trump says Middle East peace plan will follow Israeli election
UPI reports: "U.S. President Donald Trump has said his Middle East peace plan will not be fully released until after Israeli elections next month. The peace plan is being finalized by White House adviser Jared Kushner and won't be made public before Israel's elections on Sept. 17, Trump said Sunday."

Comment: It will be interesting to see what the details of the political plan are. I suspect that nothing the Trump team puts forward will be accepted by the Palestinians leadership (both sides) but I'm guessing the hope is that the wider Arab world would accept it and then pressure the Palestinians to accept it. I think the region is ready to have this off the agenda. We need to keep in mind though the difference between elite opinion and public opinion. Although public opinion counts for little in monarchies and dictatorships, people can still express anger in rioting and strife, the kind that brings down regimes. It's not extreme to suggest that the closer Mideast peace comes to becoming a reality the more fragile those "moderate" governments will be. They've spent generations teaching their people to hate Israel and sadly, they did a good job of fostering that hatred. Arab leaders not have the luxury of turning on a dime without experiencing the irrational wrath of their people.

Covenant With Many

Palestinians reject U.S. Mideast peace plan as 'snow job'
UPI reports: "About 2,000 protested in Ramallah, with one demonstrator holding a coffin to represent the chance the deal has in winning over Palestinians. The demonstrations are aimed to draw attention ahead of peace talks between U.S. and Middle East officials this week in Bahrain."

Comment: The U.S. is gathering moderate Arab nations to underwrite Palestinian economic development, the Palestinians reply that they don't want any of that kind of thing. No jobs, no infrastructure, no trade, nothing that might imply life can go on as usual if it means tolerating Israel.  How to make sense of such hatred?

Covenant With Many

Palestinians say US conference doomed without political plan
The AP reports: "The White House announced Sunday it will unveil the first phase of its long-awaited Mideast peace plan at the conference, saying it will focus on economic benefits that could be reaped if the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved. The plan envisions large-scale investment and infrastructure work, much of it funded by wealthy Arab countries, in the Palestinian territories. But officials say the June 25-26 conference will not include the core political issues of the conflict: final borders, the status of Jerusalem, the fate of Palestinian refugees or Israeli security demands. [...] The Palestinians have already said they would reject any peace plan offered by the U.S., saying Trump is unfairly biased toward Israel."

Comment: I think the Trump team is to be commended for trying a novel approach focused on economic development first and putting the political issues on the back burner.  They are wise to focus on things people can agree about (the need for jobs and investment) and delay discussion of the things they most likely will never agree about (Jerusalem and borders). Will it work? Stay tuned!

Jerusalem Security - Covenant With Many

U.N. chastises U.S. for recognizing Israel's claims to Golan Heights
UPI reports: "The United States was chastised Wednesday by the 14 other members of the United Nations Security Council for its decision to recognize Israel's sovereignty over Golan Heights. [...] The stretch of land between the two Middle Eastern countries was seized by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967."

Comment: This is a great example of how easily the world gangs up on Israel. The countries represented by the Security Council are supporting Syria, a country embroiled in a civil war and controlled by a dictator (under sanction by the UN!), and taking offense at the U.S. defending Israel.  You know, historically, when a country fights a war and wins territory, that territory is considered theirs. Many times wars have been fought just to decide who controls territory and it is understood that war settles the matter. After all, why bother fighting if it didn't? So, the historical precedent is represented by the saying, to the victor go the spoils. This historical precedent apparently does not apply to Israel because....Israel. When Israel wins land in war it is thereafter called "disputed" or "occupied territory" so as to deny the legitimacy of the Israeli claim. This is why I applaud the Trump Administration for bravely recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights and firmly stating that it belongs to Israel. They fought, they won, it belongs to them now.

Jerusalem Security - Covenant With Many

Hamas, Israel continue fighting despite reports of a cease-fire - UPI.com
UPI reports: "Despite news of a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, rockets continued to be launched from both sides of the conflict."

Comment: Hamas attacks Israel with rockets and Israel retaliates. Rinse and repeat. Do you ever wonder if the Palestinians really want peace? Do they think rocket attacks are peaceful gesture? 

Covenant With Many

Gallup poll: Half of Americans back independent Palestine - UPI.com
UPI reports: "A new Gallup poll finds 50 percent of Americans support an independent Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the highest number since 2012. The change shows more Americans supporting Palestinian statehood, despite most in the United States feeling sympathetic to Israel, a major U.S. ally, Gallup reported."

Comment: I think most Americans only know what the mainstream news media tells them about the world, which is to say, very little. They may find the question "Do you support an independent Palestine?" to be a perfectly straightforward question.  They may assume (lacking any other information) that the Palestinians are a single political, cultural and national group with their own continuous history going back hundreds or thousands of years. They won't know that the Palestinians are a mixture of former Egyptians, Jordanians, Lebanese and Arab peoples who lived in a geographic area that the Romans previously called Palestina but has never existed as a state called Palestine. They also won't know that the current people called "Palestinians" are separated into two groups currently involved in a low-level civil war (Fatah vs. Hamas) and one of the things they don't agree on is peace with Israel. One rival group (Hamas) actually participated in parliamentary elections, running on a war-with-Israel platform...and won. So, if we are to ask do you want an independent Palestinian state, we should ask, which Palestinians will get a state? Maybe it's time to forget the two-state solution and go for a three-state solution. At least that would reflect an honest appraisal of the situation. I suspect that in the end, there will be only one state left standing after the Pslam 83 War. I stand with Israel.

Jerusalem Security - Covenant With Many

Israel strikes Gaza in retaliation for rockets launched at Tel Aviv - UPI.com
UPI reports: "Israeli airstrikes hit Hamas targets within Gaza Thursday night in retaliation to two rockets fired earlier at central Israel from the Palestinian-controlled area along the country's western coast. [...] IDF attacked several military facilities within Gaza, striking six buildings used by the militant Palestinian organization, Haaretz reported. [...] Two rockets fired from Gaza were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system, the IDF said. Earlier Thursday, two rockets were fired from Gaza toward Tel Aviv, setting off emergency sirens in the capital for the first time since Israel conducted a large scale military operation in Gaza in 2014."

Comment: The "militant wing" of the Palestinians is again demonstrating their support for Mideast peace.

Covenant With Many

US says closing consulate in Jerusalem no policy shift
The AP reports: "When first announced by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in October, the move infuriated Palestinians, fueling their suspicions that the U.S. was recognizing Israeli control over east Jerusalem and the West Bank, territories that Palestinians seek for a future state. [...] The downgrade is just the latest in a string of divisive decisions by the Trump administration that have backed Israel and alienated the Palestinians, who say they have lost faith in the U.S. administration’s role as a neutral arbiter in peace process. [...] The Trump administration has cited the reluctance of Palestinian leaders to enter peace negotiations with Israel as the reason for such punitive measures, although the U.S. has yet to present its much-anticipated but still mysterious “Deal of the Century” to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, announced last month that the U.S. would unveil the deal after Israeli elections in April. "

Comment:  The media fixates on Palestinian opposition but they fail to note that half of the Palestinians (the Hamas wing) has always been against the peace process and indeed, against the existence of Israel. The Trump approach seems to be to bypass the Palestinians (who have, after all, opposed every previous peace deal) and work with the Arab neighbors to get their support first. Will this work? Time will tell. Looking forward to the unveiling of the peace plan in April.

Covenant With Many

Kushner to visit Mideast for peace plan push - Politico
Politico reports: "The president’s son-in-law will reveal significant details of the economic portion of the Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan. Jared Kushner will crisscross the Middle East later this month seeking buy-in for his peace plan from leaders throughout the region. [...] The forthcoming trip is intended in part to gauge regional reaction to the economic portion of the plan, which would create economic incentives — likely including job opportunities — for Palestinians."

Comment: I'm waiting eagerly to see how Trump's Mideast peace plan will differ from his predecessors. Will it require Israel to give up land to those peaceful Palestinians in yet another "land for peace" scheme? How much land is Israel expected to give and in exchange for what? After all, look at Gaza. Israel ceded control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinians in 2005 and instead of using it to build a nice proto-state with schools, hospitals and parks they turned it into a missile launching platform and impoverished the people with corruption. Do we really think the Palestinians will make better use of even more land? From these very early reports, it would appear that Trump's plan does indeed offer new initiatives by asking regional players to support the peace plan financially. This looks to be a smart move if it makes Mideast peace a regional effort - a group effort  - and is thus less likely to disintegrate in the face of notoriously fickle Palestinian leadership. Well, times will tell of course, but Kushner's trip is an interesting development, one we will follow closely. 

Covenant With Many - Jerusalem

U.S. resolution condemning Hamas fails at United Nations
UPI reports: "The United Nations failed to pass a U.S. resolution condemning Hamas and other militant groups for their activities against Israel in Gaza. While the majority of the U.N.'s general assembly voted for the resolution Thursday, the United States and outgoing ambassador Nikki Haley were outflanked procedurally, losing a vote beforehand requiring a two-thirds approval for the resolution to pass, instead of a simple majority. In the end, 87 countries voted for the resolution condemning Hamas, 57 voted against and there were 33 abstentions."

Comment: What a burden (or a burdensome stone as Zechariah said) Jerusalem is to the nations. Why can't they let it go? Why is this small little country of Israel always at the top of the international agenda, as if somehow they were a superpower or a strategic competitor? Israel has no oil like Saudi Arabia. Israel is not at the crossroads of East and West like Turkey. Yet the status of Israel is a constant issue among the nations of the entire world. It's a wonder to behold.

Jerusalem Security

Israel launches airstrikes in Gaza, destroys Hamas TV station - UPI.com
UPI reports: "The Israeli military and Palestinian militants exchanged rocket fire Monday after a botched undercover mission over the weekend killed several people in the Gaza Strip. [...] The IDF said it built up its troops and defenses along the border with Gaza after Palestinians launched at least 300 projectiles over the fence into Israeli territory."

Comment: Here is another good example of how the news media goes out of the way to denigrate Israel while promoting the Palestinian cause. According to this UPI reporter, the Palestinians (aggrieved and wrong, btw) launched "projectiles" at Israel. You know, another word for projectiles would be missiles. But, that sounds so harsh and mean-spirited, right? Better go with the technical and almost antiseptic sounding term projectiles. It's almost Orwellian, this use of alternative terms and phrases to describe the conflict between the Palestinians and Israel.

Covenant With Many

PLO threatens to pull out of agreements with Israel - UPI
UPI reports: "The Palestine Liberation Organization could repeal agreements it made with Israel, including the Oslo Accords that established its relationship with the nation. 'We are going to put all the agreements between us and the Israelis on the table and we will ask them to stop violating each agreement,' PLO President Mahmoud Abbas said on Palestinian TV Tuesday. 'I am not saying this is an easy issue; it is a dangerous issue. Perhaps we will arrive at the point of abrogating a lot of what is between us and the Israelis.' The Palestinian Central Council will meet in Ramallah Oct. 28 and 29."

Comment: The Palestinians never fail to impress me with their sincere actions in pursuit of peace with Israel.  ;>

Covenant With Many

As Gaza worsens, Palestinian leader controls fate of US plan - AP
The AP reports, "Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been sidelined, isolated and humiliated by the Trump administration. But the embattled Palestinian leader may have the final say in determining the fate of the White House’s long-awaited vision for Mideast peace."

Comment: This is another good example of the news media exaggerating the power of the Palestinians over the peace process.  Has there ever been a peace agreement they have accepted? If there is power is saying no, then they have that. But if there is power and influence in negotiating and promoting a deal for the betterment of their people, then they have demonstrated that they have no power.

Covenant With Many

AP - Trump, at UN, backs separate states for Israel, Palestinians
AP reports: "For the first time since taking office, President Donald Trump endorsed a two-state solution as the best way to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians as he met Wednesday at the U.N. with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. [...] In his earlier comments, Trump said his much anticipated but still unreleased Mideast peace plan could be presented in the next two to four months, but was not specific as to timing."

Comment: It will be interesting to see how Trump's peace plan differs from those proposed by his predecessors. Expecting big things from a great deal-maker!