Black Community News News and Commentary for Christians
Shalom from a very windy and dusty Galilee! In many areas, Israel is on fire, but it’s not because of the weather or other natural events. Israel is burning because its enemies have set it on fire. We saw the beginning of this arson several days ago, but the flames never fully took. But now with the high, swirling winds and the very hot days, the Israeli landscape has become a tinderbox. So, when the Palestinians began setting fires again, they spread like, well, wildfire.
For those who think that Israel is looking for a secret Palestinian plot behind every natural disaster, there are two main reasons why you can be sure that these fires have been intentionally set. First, because of the nature of the fires. Most wildfires see embers blow in the wind, catch in the tops of trees, and then consume the wood downward. What we’re finding in many areas around the fires are burned-out trunks separated by many feet of uncharred dirt, each with leaves that are untouched by flame. That shows incompetent intentionality. In other areas, remnants of fire-starting materials were left behind. Unfortunately, there are still more places where the arsonists found success.
But the second reason we know that a human hand is behind these fires is that we’ve caught humans attached to fire-starting hands. Numerous arrests have already been made, and security forces are scouring the areas for other arsonists, particularly around Jerusalem where the flames are at their worst.
There is one more piece of evidence that is circumstantial but still holds a lot of weight. Tuesday sundown to Wednesday sundown was Yom HaZikaron, our memorial day when we mourn the 25,420 IDF soldiers who have thus far given their lives in defense of this nation. It is a solemn day of mourning and remembrance. But then, sundown Wednesday to sundown Thursday is Yom HaAtzmaut, our independence day. It is the polar opposite of Yom HaZikaron with celebrations and parties throughout the nation. It stretches credulity to believe that these two days just happen to be when Israel is experiencing what will likely turn out to be the worst wildfires in its history.
I am writing this on Wednesday. I don’t know what the fire situation will look like when this is published tomorrow. Rain has started and I’m praying it’s enough to stanch the spread of the flames. What I do know for now is that we desperately need your prayers. Already, we are receiving help from other countries in the fight against these wildfires. I’m trusting that God will hear and will act on the entreaties offered up by those who follow Him.
Breaking Update: Shin Bet believes that the arsonists operated in teams of 2-3 to set the fires in order to ruin Independence Day. To cause as much damage as possible, they burned the trunks of the trees instead of just the leaves, so that the trees themselves would be unsalvageable. All evacuated residents of the Judaea hills have been allowed to return home and roads have been reopened. Overall, more than 5000 acres have been burned and many fire crews are still active.
MidEast & Beyond
If you want to keep up to date with all that’s happening with the fires in Israel and any other important news in the Middle East, please subscribe to my Telegram channel. It is constantly updated through the day with all that is most important. On YouTube you can find two more important resources. First, there is the “MidEast & Beyond: Iran’s Massive Explosion! Who Did It?” from Tuesday, which includes all the main stories of the past week. Then there is the Breaking News Update from Wednesday in which I presented the fire crisis that is facing our nation. When you do check out these videos, please be sure to like, comment, share, and subscribe so that we can ensure they are highlighted by YouTube.
Battle for the Druze
The Druze are a monotheistic, religious, ethnic group found in Lebanon, Syria, and Israel. Although they are Arab, they are not Muslim, which often brings them into conflict with the Iran-backed militias found in the states north of Israel. One hundred thousand Druze, however, have found a safe home in Israel. Every year at this time, hundreds of Syrian and Lebanese Druze pour over the border to travel to the tomb of Nabi Shu’ayb, just west of Tiberias in the Galilee. Nabi Shu’ayb is also known as Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, and his tomb is the holiest site for the Druze.
But as 600 Druze crossed into Israel this past week, recently minted Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa sent his secret hit squads to Jaramana and other Syrian towns to give the Druze living there the Alawite treatment. In other words, he tasked the “non-governmental” militias to butcher the Druze the way they had humiliated and massacred the Alawite community back in March. But they are finding that the Druze are not like the Alawites – they fight back. And they also know that Israel has their backs. Al-Sharaa wants peace with Israel, at least for now. So, it will be interesting to see if he pulls his shadow forces back.
Late reports have come in that Wednesday the Druze from Jabal a-Druz and Mount Hermon sent reinforcements to the defend positions around Damascus. Along the way, local Sunni tribes attacked the reinforcements and slaughtered most of them. Hikmat Al-Hajri, the spiritual leader of the Druze community in Syria spoke today and made it clear that their people can no longer trust a Syrian regime that is using murderous gangs to massacre the Druze.
An Iranian Port Explodes
An Iranian-flagged ship, Golbon, left Taicang, China, in January loaded with 1,000 tons of the chemical compound sodium perchlorate. One month later, it arrived at the Port of Shahid Rajaee near Bandar Abbas. The question is, what was it doing there? Sodium perchlorate is a key ingredient in creating solid fuel for long-range missiles, and the 2,000,000 pounds that was off-loaded to the Iranian port was enough for 200 missiles. At least it would have been if it hadn’t all gone up in flames.
The fire was tremendous, and it burned for days. At least 70 people were killed, and more than 1200 others were injured. Immediately, fingers were pointed at Israel, but they always are. This time, though, they just might be correct. The timing of the explosions took place while Israel and the U.S. were in talks about Iran’s nuclear program. Could this plot come from those discussions? Then there’s the coincidental accuracy of the blasts which took place only in the three separated warehouses that contained the compound. Iranian authorities, who have already been humiliated at every turn by Israel, are saying that it was a failure by the port authorities to follow safety protocols. That still doesn’t explain why only those three warehouses blew and why they did so at the same time. But, hey, if the Iranians want to say it’s their own fault, I’m fine with that. I’ll never put any failure past them.
President Trump’s Remarks on Iran
On Sunday, President Trump communicated that he is optimistic that an agreement can be made with Iran regarding their nuclear aspirations. I must admit that I was disappointed to hear that. It shows a misunderstanding of the Middle Eastern mind that responds to impending military action and knows how to play the long game. Trump’s push for a new nuclear deal appears to take the impending action option off the table. That allows the Iranian regime to slow things down, stall all they can, and hopefully put any decision off until after Trump either loses his majority in Congress or is term-limited out of office.
Prime Minister Netanyahu, on the other hand, has made it clear that negotiations are not enough. Iran must lose its ability to enrich uranium completely. Israel is racing against the clock to make this happen. My hope is that with all the conversation that they’ve had, maybe Trump and Netanyahu are playing “good cop, bad cop” with Tehran to either prepare for an attack or to force them to destroy their enriching capabilities. Whatever is going to happen must do so soon before time runs out.
Humanitarian Aid in Gaza
I’ve said this before and it bears repeating: Never in the history of warfare has an army been expected to provide humanitarian aid to the very people they are fighting against. That changed with Israel and Gaza. Unfortunately, just to be able to function within this crazy antisemitic world, Israel has had to agree to pour tons of humanitarian aid into Gaza just to avoid being globally condemned for fighting back against a terrorist group that invaded and carried out a massacre. Now Qatar has weaseled its way into the negotiations and has, at least on the surface, appeared to gain the trust of the U.S. president. Israel finds itself in a conundrum because it really does want to help any Gazans who are innocent of the terroristic crimes, but they just can’t find a way to get aid to them without Hamas exploiting it for themselves. Ultimately, it’s a mess and will continue to be so until the Gazans finally realize that there is no life left for them in that region and they emigrate to another location.
Expanding Abraham Accords
Already, the Abraham Accords have brought Israel into relationships with some unexpected Muslim countries. But the list may likely continue to expand, possibly to include both Syria and Saudi Arabia. President Trump already believes that Israel and the Saudis will normalize relations. The new Syrian president has stated that they want peace and are just looking for Israel to withdraw back to its prewar lines. Ron Dermer, Israel’s Minister of Strategic Affairs, also feels confident about future relationships with other Middle Eastern countries, but he says that there must be a final victory in the war first. “In the Middle East, when you win, when you’re strong, that’s what attracts others,” he told the Jewish News Syndicate. Dermer believes that victory will come within the next year.
Green Energy Failure?
Sometime around Monday noon on the Iberian Peninsula the lights went out, and the blackout lasted in many areas of Portugal and Spain for up to ten hours. What could have caused such a massive power failure? Was it a cyberattack? Was there an explosion at a main station? Authorities have been trying to determine what could have caused such a widespread and complete blackout that left cities dark and people on electric trains stranded out in the middle of nowhere. Many feel they may have found the answer in the fact that Spain relies on wind and solar power for 43% of their energy. At the time of the blackout, the bottom dropped out of the solar component, dropping its input by more than 50%. If this turns out to be the base cause, then this would be the first great blackout attributable to a failure of green energy. Because of the green narrative of global society, however, even if this is a renewable failure it is unlikely that a story like that would ever be allowed to hit the mainstream news.
Oh, Canada
I can’t tell you how much I love Canada and our many dear friends who live there. That is why it is so heartbreaking to see the election results that have put extreme leftist Mark Carney in the position of prime minister. When you see the voting breakdowns, especially amongst older Canadians, it becomes very evident that this was not a pro-Carney vote, but an anti-Trump election. And because these voters hate Trump more than they love their country, the whole nation is in for a very rough time ahead. Canada, we all love you and we are praying for you.
The India/Pakistan Crisis Worsens
The tensions between Pakistan and India that began last week have led to shots being fired. What began with an attack by a Pakistani militant group that killed 26 tourists in India’s Kashmir has now led to fighting between Pakistan and India forces in the Pargwal-Akhnoor sector of Jammu & Kashmir. Now, Pakistan claims to have credible evidence that India will launch an attack by the end of day Thursday. Both the United States and China are asking the countries to slow the escalation. If this conflict blows up, there’s no telling how far these two nuclear-armed nations are willing to go to come out on top.
Ministry
“Although the remnant of God-followers was small, there was still a remnant. That’s how God operates. Even when the nation departs from Him, He always keeps some close.” What a great, long-suffering God we serve! That is a quote from my new book, The Israel Decree, releasing this coming Tuesday! This incredibly important book traces through Scripture God’s covenantal assurances and their certain fulfillment. Please, arm yourself with the truth found in this book. At only 128 pages, it’s a quick read and it packs a powerful punch. Preorder your copies today!
If you missed Jan Markel, Pastor Barry Stagner, Pastor Mike Golay, and me on “CONNECT Round Table”, please take the time to watch. We talked Israel, we talked geopolitics, and we talked Bible prophecy. It’s well worth the watch!
Pastor Barry Stagner and I will be back together Tuesday morning, May 6, at 10:00 AM PDT for “MidEast & Beyond”. With all that’s going on in the world, you don’t want to miss this important news show!
The Behold Israel board arrived last night, and we are ready to hit the ground running. As I did last week, I’ll ask you again to please pray for our time together. There are some major decisions that must be made, as well as important plans to be developed for 2026. I’m excited to see what God is going to do as we keep our eyes on Him.
Thank you again for your love, prayers, and support for Behold Israel. Keep praying for the fires to end, and for the war to finally come to a close. I know that God has His eye on His people, both Israel and the church, and that is where our hope comes from.
Awaiting His Return,
Amir Tsarfati
Amir Tsarfati, a Jewish Christian, is the founder and president of Behold Israel, a news site to correct the scarcity in trustworthy reportage on issues and events impacting Israel, and to resolve the uncertainty about who or what to believe.
The views expressed in opinion articles are solely those of the author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Black Community News.
