The Next War:

Israel on the Brink

A Special Report and Analysis

from the A-O Newswire

[Editor's Note: This is the kind of special reporting and analysis that makes A-O so unique to the internet. You don't find this kind of information floating around on the other Bible Prophecy websites, and unfortunately, it may become a thing of the past if A-O disappears from the internet.[

Israel Plans For War

The Times of London reports that Israel is planning for an eventual all-out war with Syria and Iran. The newspaper article cites sources indicating that Iranian planners view Israel's ineptness in Lebanon as a reason for confidence that a war with Israel is winnable. This fact has led to Israel reconsidering what kind of hostilities might develop against Iran should Israel choose to launch air strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities. Israeli planners now believe that any Israeli strike would result in an all-out war that would include both Syria and Iran. This new realization has caused Israeli leadership to re-evaluate every aspect of Israel's defense posture and re-evaluate the prospects for a pre-emptive strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.

Among the changes in Israeli planning and strategy for such a future war involves a re-organization of the Israeli Army. One particularly interesting change involves the integration of three elite brigades that performed well during the Lebanon war. These three brigades are to be marshaled into a special force under one command headquarters with the task of handling deep cross-border operations against Syria and even Iran. Another indication that Israel is seriously concerned about an all-out war, is the designation of a new military chief whose sole responsibility is to handle command of any hostilities between Iran and Israel. His job will be to command any future strikes against Iran and or Syria since both nations now have signed a mutual defense treaty.

Other signals of Israeli war preparations include a new emergency budget program to build more modern shelters to withstand the big ballistic missiles now in possession of Syria and Iran. Current Israeli shelters are not capable of handling the devastation of such larger missiles which carry substantially heavier payloads and can reach all of Israel. Both Syria and Lebanon have such heavy missiles and both nations have chemical weapons warheads mountable on those missiles. More details here.

The Illuminati Game Plan?

There are new, yet subtle indications that the Illuminati game plan is to provoke Israel into a pre-emptive war action that will initially engage Syria and then Iran in full-scale war that will in-turn trigger the much vaunted World War 3 that Albert Pike envisioned and wrote about in the late 19th century. Pike wrote a letter to the head of the European Illuminati outlining an Illuminated strategy for three world wars that would herald the coming of the Luciferian “messiah” to bring about a New World Order and a one-world government.

We are perhaps seeing early indications of such an endeavor now plunging ahead full steam in the wake of the Lebanon war. One Council on Foreign Relations member is suggesting that Israel needs to be preparing for a full-scale war by first preemptively attacking Syria.

A debate is quietly raging within the Israeli military establishment and among many Israeli policymakers that Israel’s big mistake in the Lebanon war was not attacking Syria for that nation’s overt assistance to Hezbollah.

One Council on Foreign Relations, senior analyst recently wrote an article for the Los Angeles Times indicating that sooner or later, Israel must deal militarily in a decisive way with Syria and should do so before dealing with Iran.

There are strong indications that Hamas and other Gaza militants will be stockpiling the same kind of rockets that Hezbollah used against Israel. In fact, reports already are filtering in of shipments of such rockets being smuggled into the Gaza Strip in anticipation of a third “Intifada.” In fact, intelligence reports we’ve run across suggest that a future conflict will include both Gaza and West Bank Palestinians and Hezbollah uniting in a joint military operation involving rockets coming from Israel nearly all sides. In other words, things could get ugly, quickly.

Israel seems to be in a developing situation not unlike the American military history fiasco of its wild west era when General George Custer launched a reckless campaign against the American Plains Indians in what is termed “Custer’s Last Stand” at the battle of the Little Bighorn where U.S. cavalry forces were outnumbered 10 to 1 and swamped in overwhelming numbers. Custer and a third of his command was wiped out by his reckless actions. So, too, are the perils now developing against Israel by its neighbors. Clearly, time is not on the side of Israel.

However, Israel is ill-prepared for any conflict at the moment, for a number of reasons.

Israel Coming Unglued?

Israel’s civilian defenses are rather outmoded and out-of-date. Israeli bomb shelters are old, and very much vulnerable to the heavy missiles now held by both Syria and Iran. The fact that both nations have WMD capabilities in chemical and bio-warfare fields only adds to Israel’s peril.

Another factor is the issue of the technical vulnerabilities of Israeli and U.S. electronic weapons countermeasures. The Lebanese conflict demonstrated that Iran possessed new “black-box” technologies capable of countering U.S. and Israeli electronics rendering such capabilities inoperative or ineffective. This is an issue that must be addressed according to some experts we’ve heard from.

These two elements alone are ample reasons to think that Israel and the U.S. will not soon engage Iran in any military ventures. Yet, there are deeper issues than these that should preclude any pre-emptive actions against Syria or Iran any time this year. Such issues mainly revolve around Israel’s own structural inadequacies in command and control as well as the competence of Israel’s civilian leadership. Indeed questions are now being raised in Washington about not only these issues but also about the entire structure of Israel’s government and society and the indications of such levels of massive corruption and societal attitudes that Israel can no longer be counted upon as a stable, dependable ally of the United States.

Israel’s Future: A Military Dictatorship?

Indeed, there is growing concern among many analysts that the nation of Israel itself is on the verge of inner collapse. Israel’s political establishment is showing increasing signs that massive corruption has so infected the governmental establishment that the ability of any government to govern effectively may be impossible. Some believe that the only way Israel’s Jewish population can survive is if the nation becomes a military dictatorship.

Indeed, during the Lebanon war, there was such a frustration within the IDF that reportedly some in military leadership positions contemplated the possibilities of instituting a military coup, in part because the Olmert administration and the Prime Minister’s seeming ineptitude and paralysis for making a decision and then sticking to it. According to some insider sources, the Prime Minister not only seemed paralyzed and waffling but there were apparently orders given only to be reversed minutes or hours later. There was certainly a lack of confidence within the military towards its civilian bosses.

The questions that have emerged now point towards evidence that corruption has become so widespread and so bad within the Israeli poltical structure that effective governance is impossible and a major overhaul of the way Israel is governed is necessary to avoid an eventual collapse of Israel’s political structure. These are questions now being raised and analyzed by the United States as the Bush administration weighs its options in the Iranian nuclear issue.

US Re-evaluates Israel

In the wake of Israel's fiasco in Lebanon, President Bush has ordered a secret study of Israel's government and its ability to function effectively as a government. The order also seeks to know what Israel's true military capabilities really are. He has asked for the report to be on his desk by the end of September.

Such a move, to us, indicates that the Bush administration has scrapped any plans for an attack on Iran anytime soon. It could mean that Bush is still desiring to launch an attack on Iran at a later time but needs to know Israel's situation before determining how to proceed.

The order also indicates a questioning of Israel's strategic value to the United States. Concern is growing that Israel can not be relied upon as a trustworthy ally due to its society, its political system and its military forces. The order comes after many days of apparent arguments within the administration and is formed as a presidential directive as part of an updated National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Israel. The whole point is to get a fresh, reappraisal of Israel's capabilities in regards to US foreign policy in the Middle East region. Is Israel really strong enough to be counted upon as a strong and stable partner and a mainstay as the U.S. conducts foreign policy in the region?

It seems that Bush and his advisors became very frustrated with the current Israeli leadership and its failure to handle the Lebanon situation properly. In other words, the U.S. realizes just how inept the Israeli government has functioned in recent years, not mererly the complete bungling by current Prime Minister Olmert. The rounds of scandals which have surfaced within the Israeli government in recent years suggests, that a malingering disease of corruption and incompetence has lodged itself within Israeli politics and governmental operations.

Israel's Incompetence?

The reasons for such a review come as a result of astounding reports of total chaos, incompetence and stupidity from Olmert's government. It appears that the Israeli military efforts were being run by The Three Stooges conducting something of a Chinese Fire Drill or some sort of fire engine clown act one might find in a circus. It was as if the entire government and military functions of Israeli came unglued, creating a metaphorical 'train-wreck' of massive proportions.

Had Syria had launched a war against Israel in July, Syria would be holding Jerusalem and Tel Aviv today. Ditto could be said for Egypt also. The facts are that Israel's military was essentially, incapable of conducting a war against any standing army in the region because of organizational and structural incompetence. The only thing that would save Israel from such destruction would be its use of nuclear weapons, but even that could be called into question because of concerns no one would know how to push the stupid buttons properly to even order a nuclear attack.

It would seem that the stage is being swept for a total upheaval in Israel's establishment as the US loses confidence in Israel. Israel is going to have to make radical changes in the way its government functions or the existence of that nation could collapse. It is entirely possible that Israel's democratic form of government will collapse into a military dictatorship or else the nation will disappear. It won't take long for Syria, Iran, Egypt and other muslim nations to figure out just how easily Israel could be conquered. Thus, setting the stage for the Magog invasion predicted in Ezekiel 38 and 39.

US Losing Confidence in Israel

As a result of the realization that Israel can not be counted on militarily to even defend itself from further Iranian or Syrian attacks either through Hezbollah or directly by forces of those two nations, the Pentagon has quietly re-structured its command and control for any further conflicts in the region which intelligence estimates now is bound to occur. This re-organization of command and control primarily affects US naval forces.

The resultant re-organization has culminated in the Pentagon ordering a U.S. naval contingent to continually monitor the region from positions off the Lebanese coast. The purpose is to provide the most sophisticated intelligence and advance warning capaibilities to protect against any hostile Hezbollah, Iranian or Syrian efforts to probe Israel's military defenses or that of the peace keeping forces.

It should also be noted that the UN peace keeping forces involving French and Italian troops does not need the support of the French aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, nor the Italian aircraft carrier Garibaldi as well as an amalgam of 15 European warships. Some intelligence analysts think the European forces are in place to keep an eye on any potential US and Israeli military moves against Iran and or Syria and perhaps interfere with any U.S. or Israeli attack on Iran. Clearly, the Europeans are anticipating that the U.S. will make some sort of military move soon against Iran.

Our sources however, indicate that because of the Israeli meltdown, such a move is highly unlikely unless, Iran and Syria provoke some sort of action. It may well be that the Europeans are less aware of the seriousness of Israel's incapability for properly mounting a war. It may well be that they think the Lebanese fiasco was deliberately created so that Iran or potential adversaries would let their guard down. The indications we are getting however, is that the U.S. and Israel did not create the ruse of an Israeli meltdown. No, it is our opinion that the meltdown was for real.

All of this comes behind the backdrop of new developments on the Iranian nuclear weapons program. New intelligence reports indicate that Iran continues to shock the intelligence world with its progress on nuclear weapons development. There had been reports that Iran’s nuclear production capability would be achieved by last spring or this fall. This information was based upon limited information that many considered to be outrageously unreliable. However, those sources were not far from the truth according to more recent intelligence updates, as we understand it.

Apparently there were some snags that developed in Iran’s program in the past year and a half that apparently delayed the time-table. Those snags have apparently now been overcome, thanks to secret assistance from Pakistani nuclear scientists who were surreptitiously spirited away from Pakistan to Iran for consultation. The problems were diagnosed and solutions employed so that now, Iran’s bomb production capability is perhaps only 10 to 12 months away, with new breakthroughs being achieved. Iran’s recent announcement of successes is not to be discounted lightly, particularly now that Pakistani nuclear physicists are involved in the program.

All of this, of course, sets the stage for a coming military confrontation. How soon? As we reported earlier this year, citing independent reports by Pulitzer Prize journalist Seymour Hersch, President Bush wants to launch pre-emptive air strikes on Iran with possible use of nuclear weapons. Another respected journalist, Will Thomas reported that Bush even wanted to invade Iran with ground forces moving in from Iraq. Both reporters were getting signals that Bush wanted some sort of action this past spring or summer. The Hezbollah situation was perhaps supposed to be the excuse for launching strikes but apparently Israel couldn’t get its act together plus the ECM problem developed and the plans became sidetracked as problems developed that would preclude any successful action against Iran.

As we understand it now, the ground warfare option has been tabled by the Bush White House amid opposition from Pentagon planners who have determined that such a venture would be like Custer at the Little Big Horn, a total massacre of US forces.

On the flip side, Iran is apparently prepared for any kind of attack, ground or air and has prepared a trap for any US actions, including a massive war effort inside Iraq by both Shiite and Sunni sects, perhaps combined with Iranian army forces invading Iraq to directly tackle US Army and Marine forces.

There can be no doubt that Iranian leaders are prepared to shut off the Persian Gulf shipping lanes, thus depriving the world of oil shipments from the Gulf region. Iran could easily stop such shipments because of its advanced anti-ship missile capabilities and ECM technology. Any US Navy ships in the Gulf would likely become sitting ducks.

Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations then become extremely vulnerable to Iranian military threats as well as potential internal upheavals by citizens against the royal families ruling in the Gulf. This aspect has been driven home to the Saudis in particular. The King of Saudi Arabia has begun making moves as a result.

Saudi Arabia Fears Iran

Saudi Arabia had been quietly moving away from the idea of being protected by the American military power in the region. The Saudis have been less than cooperative with U.S. foreign policy in the past 3 years or so, especially in the wake of Gulf War 2. That has all changed with the Lebanese war and Iran's signalling its intent to build nuclear weapons. The Saudis are terrified of Iran's ability to crush not only the Saudi kingdom but also that of other Gulf nations as well. As a result, the Saudis have quietly stepped back under the American umbrella of protection.

The Saudis are also concerned that Iran might turn Lebanon into a nation of Shiite muslims, now a mixture of Sunni, Shia and Druze Christians. The Saudis fear a puppet regime in Lebanon under Iran's control will be the beginning of many more puppet states, including the Saud kingdom. As a result, the Saudis recognize that in the wake of the Lebanon war, hearts and minds can be won over by Iran dispensing economic aid and generous loans to the Lebanese citizenry, in exchange for allegiance to Iran and to Hezbollah. The Saudi alarm at such a prospect is so great that the kingdom is launching its own economic aid program to outbid Iran for the allegiance of the Lebanese people. It's sort of an Islamic version of the concept of "The Prosperity Gospel" of sorts in a bid to keep Sunnis in Lebanon from converting to the Shia sect's Islamic dogmas and Iran's Shiite dogma power politics.

Another element in the Saudi plan to counter the growing influence of Iran is to develop a new Pan-Arab unity that would shut Iran out of any influence as Iran is not Arabic, but instead, Persian. There's a difference. Such a new emergence would help isolate Iran as a predatory nation within the Middle East construct and thus minimizing its influence and power and creating a protective wall against Iranian hegemony in the region and against any backlash by Iran should America wage war on Iran.

Now why is this so important from the aspect of Biblical Prophecy?

The Impact with Biblical Prophecy

Iran is mentioned in two key future events according to the Biblical prophecies of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Iran will play a role in the first of two judgments against “Babylon-America.” Isaiah 13:17 and Jeremiah 51: 11 and 27-28 indicates that Iran (referred to as the “Medes” and 3 small tribes comprising much of modern-day Iran) will play some sort of role during the first judgment or the “fiery” judgment of “Babylon-America.”

Based upon nearly 20 years of analysis on these prophecies, it is this commentator’s opinion that the text is indicating Iran will play a role in the destruction of Babylon-America’s forces in the Persian Gulf region when supernatural, angelic forces move to destroy “Babylon-America.” In other words, as the continental United States is destroyed supernaturally, Iran acts within the Persian Gulf region to destroy American forces in the region.

The second key event in which Iran is mentioned comes in regard to the Magog invasion as described by Ezekiel chapter 38: 5. Iran (Persia) is mentioned as one of the allies which join in the invasion of Israel from the north.

So Iran has two key prophetic roles to fulfill. This means that any attempt by President Bush to destroy Iran would be an attempt to subvert Biblical Prophecy and God’s Word. We can only say that this will NOT sit well with God, should Bush move to carry out such an attempt. Such an action would be the proverbial last straw, prompting God to declare, “enough,” and trigger the divine wrath in full wrath against America that will result in America’s total destruction in one hour of one day.

Thus, any mention of the Bush administration planning to attack Iran, particularly with nuclear weapons, catches this researcher’s attention. If such an attack is to develop, this commentator is firmly convinced that at the last moment, before the attack can be carried out, or perhaps even as US planes and missiles are in the air, angelic forces will swing into action against the continental United States. I’d also expect to see angelic forces intercept any US aircraft or missiles and destroy them. The results will leave Iran free to essentially conduct mop-up operations against U.S. military forces in the Persian Gulf, such as those in Iraq, Afghanistan and in bases around the Persian Gulf such as in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, and perhaps Diego Garcia.

In addition to all of this, Revelation 18:4 comes into fulfillment as The Rapture of the Church takes place, I believe just prior to the angelic forces inflicting God’s divine wrath on America. Essentially then, I expect The Rapture to take place at the last moment, just before the judgment begins possibly as US warplanes and missiles are flying towards their targets in Iran. Some think there is to be a gap between the time of the Rapture and the beginning of the judgment. While this is possible, I wouldn’t make any such dogmatic assertions. To the contrary, the Revelation 18:4 passage suggests the rescued believers will be pulled out at the last moment, much like Lot and his family were pulled from Sodom and Gomorrah.

No doubt, prior to such occurrences, events will escalate publicly in the media. I would anticipate a lot of drum beating by the Bush administration before the President orders such an attack. Therefore, I think this will perhaps be the key warning signals that we all need to be on the alert for.

At this time, I do not see any signs of imminent military attack by the United States or Israel against Iran. In fact, there seems to be strong indications that such an attack has been delayed yet again, perhaps for another 12 months. Yet, having said that, do not relax and rule out something developing suddenly. Why?

Should Iran make some sort of provocative move, such as attacking shipping in the Gulf or attacking U.S. military interests or some sort of massive terror attack attributed to Iran might spark a sudden, knee-jerk event at perhaps any moment. Thus, it is possible that all of this might transpire even in this current month of September. I doubt it, but I wouldn’t rule it out. It should be noted that some prophecy watchers hold to a theory that the Rapture of the church will come during one of the two feast days of Rosh Hashanah. We find that theory to be an intriguing one and if it is indeed a correct theory then perhaps this is the year and if so, Rosh Hashanah starts on the night of September 22nd. It is something to be aware of and to keep an eye out for. So my advice is to be alert, watch and be prepared for any eventuality.