“Any good news in that paper?”
“Back in the day” when I was an intern with Life in Messiah International, we would go to parks on Chicago’s northside to engage people in conversation. In the 1970s, well before the digital revolution, often people sitting on benches were reading newspapers.
“Any good news in that paper?” was a question I often asked with a smile.
“Not much!” was a typical response.
“Why do you suppose that is?” proved to be a good follow-up question to spark a discussion leading to spiritual matters.
How one “views the news” reflects a personal perspective, of course. What causes one person to rejoice may be received as bad news to me. As a simple example, if the Phillies beat my Chicago Cubs, my friend Scott from Philadelphia will be the one smiling. Same game score; different response.
News out of Israel is often polarizing, depending on one’s perspective. This month “Israel and Turkey renew full diplomatic relations”[1] was a top headline. Turkey’s Islamic government under Tayyip Erdoğan had broken relations with Israel in 2010 after the Mavi Marmari incident.[2] Behind-the-scenes communications in recent months resulted in the restoration of diplomatic ties, even to the point of ambassadors being appointed to Ankara and Tel Aviv.[3]
For those wishing to see Israel integrating well with its Mideast neighbors, Turkey’s public announcement was warmly received. It followed, by four days, the two-year celebration of the Abraham Accords[4] signed on August 13, 2020, establishing diplomatic and economic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Subsequently, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan entered similar agreements with Israel.
Neighboring states who have observed the benefits of cooperation have also taken steps toward Israel. On July 17 of this year Saudi Arabia opened its air space to flights to and from Israel. Reflective of political sensitivities in the region, that announcement was quickly followed by a Saudi official’s statement that this decision did not represent a move toward diplomatic relations with the Jewish state.[5] And to illustrate further how complicated this chess board is, on August 18 Oman refused to open its airspace to Israel, following pressure from Iran.[6]
Given the long history of animus between Middle Eastern people groups and nation states, any easing of tensions is welcomed by those yearning for peace. That Israel and Turkey were able to reach agreement at such a high level at this moment may be somewhat surprising, given that current Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid has only held that office since July 1 of this year – and new national elections have already been called for November 1![7]
Of course, securing the safety of one’s citizens is government’s highest responsibility. To that end Israel has engaged in a series of efforts to eradicate threats to its populace. The fight against terrorism is unending. Here are snapshots of significant actions taken earlier this month:
August 3: Israel Defense Forces (IDF) arrested Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) commander Bassam al-Saadi and his son-in-law Ashraf Zidan Molmad Aljada in the West Bank village of Jenin.[8]
August 5-7: Israel launches Operation Breaking Dawn to root out PIJ strongholds in Gaza. Taysir al-Jabari, commander of the northern brigade of the Islamic Jihad’s military wing and Khaled Mansour, commander of the Islamic Jihad southern division, were among the senior leaders killed.[9]
August 9: Israeli police and military combined forces to raid the West Bank town of Nablus, killing long-sought terrorist Ibrahim al-Nablusi.[10]
Of major operations conducted by the IDF in Gaza over the years, Breaking Dawn was by far the swiftest. Two factors were at play. First, Israel’s extensive use of drones for both surveillance and tactical strikes was massive.[11] Second, the ruling power in Gaza, Hamas, which has the greatest strength in arms and manpower in the impoverished enclave, chose not to engage against Israel. Some say Hamas, still in recovery from the last armed conflict with Israel, stayed out of the fray for economic reasons.[12] Others say the rift is ideological, since Hamas’ Haniyeh wishes to renew ties with Syria, which is in Iran’s orbit.[13]
Mention of the Shiite power widens our lens to include Israel’s greatest existential threat, a nuclear Iran. During US President Joe Biden’s July visit to Israel, he signed the joint statement that Iran would never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.[14] Despite this public stance, the US has continued to “negotiate” with Iran in hopes of extracting a commitment not to create atomic bombs.
Israel, understandably, does not wish to wager its existence on such a promise. With each passing day Iran gets closer to the capability of manufacturing a nuclear weapon – if indeed it has not done so already.[15]
So, what do you think? Is there any good news to be found in the above reports? At best we might say it’s a “mixed review.”
The truth is, looking to the media for consolation or encouragement is a fool’s errand. The situation in the Middle East is as changeable as the weather in the American Midwest where I live.
For the believer, we have the assurance that the Sovereign of the Universe is both “large and in charge” over the affairs of mankind. I love Daniel’s prayer in Chapter 2, verses20-22:
“Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him. It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men and knowledge to men of understanding. It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things; He knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with Him.”
Included in God’s Word is His plan for Israel yet future. We need not fear a nuclear attack that annihilates the Jewish nation. The Scriptures spell out what the God of Israel has in store for His ancient people, fulfilling promises made to the patriarchs and through the prophets. We have assurance based in the covenant-keeping character of the Almighty that His purposes will be brought to completion.
And that indeed is VERY good news!
Written by Wes Taber, Life in Messiah Global Ambassador
Are you a “news junkie” or a “news avoider” at heart?
How do you deal with recurring “bad news” stories? Have you found Scripture to be a strong “antacid” for “news heartburn?”
Does the study of what lies ahead interest you? If so, check out the possibility of streaming the forthcoming Bible Prophecy Conference cosponsored by Life in Messiah.
Endnotes:
[1] https://www.allisrael.com/israel-and-turkey-renew-full-diplomatic-relations-announce-the-return-of-their-ambassadors. All Israel News, a service begun by Joel Rosenberg, is a timely and accurate news source.
[2] https://www.bbc.com/news/10203726. The BBC news report illustrates well how the same event can be viewed so differently by opposing sides.
[3] In every country of the world where embassies are established, the nation’s capital is where the facilities are situated – except for Israel. Of the 90 embassies Israel hosts, 86 are found in the greater Tel Aviv area. The U.S. was the first to physically locate its embassy in Jerusalem on May 24, 2018; Guatemala, Honduras, and Kosovo followed.
[7] Mr. Lapid’s predecessor, Naftali Bennet, was only put in place after four national elections were held in the course of two years. During that time Benjamin Netanyhau remained in place over a caretaker government after his coalition government failed. That Mr. Bennet held Israel’s top governmental seat for barely one year and Mr. Lapid for only four months is indicative of how fractured Israel’s internal politics are and how unstable parliamentary governments can be.
[9] https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/357808.
[10] https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-714243.
[12] https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-714697.
[13] https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2022-08-13/ty-article/.premium/why-didnt-hamas-join-islamic-jihad-against-israel-ideology/00000182-93d0-dca8-abe2-93dc3f510000. Hamas is an offshoot of Egypt’s Sunni Muslim Brotherhood. Iran is the stronghold of Shiite Islam, which is backing the Houthis against the Sunni Muslims in Yemen – the latest iteration of a centuries’ old struggle that has resulted in innumerable deaths on both sides. Iran also funds and seeks to arm Islamic Jihad in Gaza.
[14] https://www.reuters.com/world/us-israel-sign-joint-pledge-denying-nuclear-weapon-iran-2022-07-14/.
[15] https://www.richardsilverstein.com/2022/07/11/us-and-israel-iran-will-go-nuclear/.