The war against radical political Islam is not over – in fact it’s just beginning
As Christians, we have the privilege and ability to “discern the signs of the times”. One of these signs is, perhaps, the growing role of political Islam in turning nations against Israel and the West. This is not to advocate war. It is simply to recognize the reality of what is happening, and what is at stake.
Whether it knows it or not, the Western world, that was built on Judeo-Christian values, is fighting a war against radical political Islam.
And that war is far from over. In fact, it is probably only just beginning.
It is an existential battle. Political Islam’s agenda is global dominance.
The main front of that war currently is against the revolutionary regime established in Iran by Ayatollah Khamenei in 1979. The intention of this regime to annihilate the United States (the Great Satan) and the Jewish State (the Little Satan) has been clear for decades. Most recently, this intention is evidenced by its persistent eliminationist rhetoric toward Israel, combined with its nuclear weapons efforts, as well as the continuation of its program to build a massive ballistic missile arsenal (including purchase of ballistic missiles from China) and its ongoing support of its proxies outside Iran (especially Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis), Its attitude towards the West is also evidenced by the regime’s human rights abuses against its own people – including the recent violent repression of protests, during which thousands of protesters were killed, and ongoing suppression of ethnic and religious minorities, have escalated international concerns. U.S. Operation Epic Fury and Israeli Operation Lion’s Roar were launched in the latest phase of this war. They comprise primarily coordinated aerial bombing strikes against Iranian military targets. Focusing initially upon Iranian missile, air, naval and command infrastructure, the operations have also eliminated the political leadership, as well as key leaders of the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), which is the main instrument of the Ayatollah-led regime to oppress its own people, as well as its vehicle for promoting the regime’s global revolutionary ideology by attacking Western interests outside regime. The IRGC is a proscribed terrorist organisation in the US and European Union.
The war has spread to nearly a dozen nations across the already fragile Middle East region. This week, the Security Council adopted a resolution condemning Iran’s “egregious attack” against Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan “in the strongest terms”. The Council reiterated its strong support for those countries’ sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence.
The war is already having a huge impact on world energy markets.
Lebanon
In the south of Lebanon, the IDF is engaged in intense fighting against Iran’s proxy Hezbollah, which ramped up its aggression against Israel following the commencement of Israel’s campaign in Iran. Hezbollah fired hundreds of missiles at Israel last week. Israel’s Defence minister Israel Katz said this week that Israel would destroy the country’s national infrastructure used by Hezbollah if the Lebanese government does not succeed in disarming the group. Under the ceasefire agreement between Lebanon and Israel, the Lebanese government is obliged to disarm Hezbollah, which has an arsenal of hundreds of thousands of missiles that it threatens to use against Israel. The Israeli cabinet is considering a wider campaign in southern Lebanon with the goal of taking control of the entire territory south of the Litani river.
Where is this war heading?
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“There has been some astonishing commentary on the Iran War in the last week. Pro-Israel propagandists claiming that the Straits of Hormuz will be reopened with ease, or those on the other side who claim that this war is already a failure, have nothing of value to add to the debate. I have little patience for analysts who turn every conflict into a race to declare victory or disaster before it has properly played out. That tendency is common in commentary on anything to do with Israel or Trump. One side claims the war is already a failure, while another insists it is a great success. Both are armchair generals, pretending that a complex conflict with many moving parts has already reached a clear conclusion. It has not.
- … It is also true that the tactical air picture has been overwhelmingly one-sided. There is no real benefit in denying that. This has been a massacre of Iranian security forces (estimates currently sit at 10,000 wounded and killed), and it was always likely to be. American and Israeli air power was always going to be able to target Iranian assets extensively if the political decision was taken to do so. The last few days show a switch of targeting to the slow, grinding degradation of internal security apparatus, with thousands of targets hit and Iranian military capabilities greatly diminished. If someone cannot admit that because they dislike the war, they are not portraying the battlefield honestly.
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However, that does not resolve the question of success, because tactical air superiority is not the same as a strategic victory. It addresses one aspect of the war, and only that. The real questions remain unanswered. How long will this last? What will happen to the regime? Will it fragment, consolidate, or survive battered and more dangerous? Will Iranians rise up, remain silent under repression, or rally around the flag against foreign invasion? Will the global economy survive the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, no matter how temporary? Israeli officials themselves now suggest there is no certainty that the regime will fall, and so far, there has not been any indication of a popular uprising under current conditions. People continue to speak and write as if the political end state is already clear from press briefings in Washington. It is not.
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Then there is everything beyond the immediate exchange of fire. Gulf states are already absorbing serious security and economic costs from a war they did not want. Shipping through Hormuz has been disrupted. Energy markets have become entangled in the conflict, whether anyone likes it or not. The longer this persists, the more second- and third-order effects begin to kick in, and those effects are precisely what make instant verdicts so unreliable. A war may appear clean and decisive from the cockpit and still generate a deeply unstable regional aftermath. Conversely, it can seem reckless in week one and produce outcomes that advocates later cite as strategically beneficial. Both possibilities remain open.”
“Lawfare” – the ICJ genocide case against Israel
Another front of the war between the West and political Islam is the international courts in The Hague – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In December 2023, South Africa launched a case at the ICJ, accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza. This was less than three months after Hamas invaded Israel and killed over 1200 people and took 251 hostages back into the tunnels in the Gaza Strip. Clearly, the legal case against Israel had been prepared in collaboration with Hamas and its main sponsor, the revolutionary regime in Tehran.
The case has been brought under the Genocide Convention (1948). Several states who are also party to the Genocide Convention have “intervened” in the case. Most of them urge the Court to support South Africa’s case.
The states that are supporting South Africa are: Colombia, Libya, Mexico, Palestine, Spain, Türkiye, Chile, Moldives, Bolivia, Ireland, Cuba, Belize, Brazil, Comoros, Belgium, and Namibia.
The states that are presenting arguments supporting Israel are: Paraguay, the United States, Hungary and Fiji.
The Netherlands and Iceland pretend that they are “neutral”. This is not true. Their arguments invite the Court to adopt a very liberal view of the concept of “intention” to commit genocide. They urge the Court to consider Israel’s forced displacement of Palestinians, the deaths of children, and the withholding of humanitarian aid from the Gaza Strip as evidence that Israel’s real intent in Gaza is not to defeat Hamas, but to kill as many Palestinians as possible.
This “lawfare” is another front of political Islam’s war against the West.
The question is whether Western nations will wake up in time to realize that they are under attack.
This week, continue to pray for the Peace of Jerusalem. Pray for the people of Iran, that they will be freed – physically and spiritually – from the tyranny of the current regime. Pray for the leaders of Israel and the United States and all nations affected by this crisis – that they will act with restraint yet take whatever action is necessary to eliminate evil. Pray for the speedy coming of our Lord and Savior: the Messiah of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
What do Biblical Prophecies say about Iran and Israel
The conflict between Iran and Israel is a struggle of all ages. In biblical times, Iran was referred to as Elam, about which many Scriptures speak. This prompts us to ask the question: What does the Bible say about Iran and Israel? Can you draw a parallel between the history of Israel and Iran and thus compare the Bible with current events? We discuss this with Rev. Willem J.J. Glashouwer, President of Christians for Israel International.
Stop calling the Iran War too early
Maj. Andrew Fox: The air campaign has been devastating, but the strategic outcome remains unknowable. Anyone declaring victory or failure already is analysing politics, not war.
A small group of states is supporting Israel in the ICJ
ICJ: he United States, Paraguay and Hungary have intervened in support of Israel in the case brought by South Africa against Israel under the Genocide Convention 1948.
Khamenei Is Dead. The Campaign Must Continue Root and Stem
Gregg Roman at MEF: The United States and Israel crossed the Rubicon. There is no off-ramp. There is no diplomatic settlement waiting on the other side of this strike. The coalition must press the offensive, obliterate the remaining regime infrastructure, and crush the Islamic Republic until it ceases to exist. We must remove it root and stem.
Spain’s Extremist Muslim Problem
Pierre Rehov at Gatestone: A European government that blocks a vital operation against Iran while maintaining alliances with movements historically tied to Iranian and Venezuelan influence networks has placed itself outside the democratic consensus.
SCRIPTURE FOR THE WEEK:
Daniel 12“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered. 2 “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise[a] will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.” 5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and there before me stood two others, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank. 6 One of them said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?” 7 The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, “It will be for a time, times and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.” 8 I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?” 9 He replied, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end. 10 Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand. 11 “From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. 12 Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. 13 “As for you, go your way till the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days you will rise to receive your allotted inheritance.”
