ICG: Middle East News

Muammar al-Gaddafi

Today, I received the following from ICG’s Mark Armstrong:

You’veprobably followed some of the news from Libya, where Gaddafi largely crushed the unidentified “rebel forces.” Since the UN has approved calls for military action against the Libyan regime, Gaddafi has claimed to call a cease fire amid reports that U.S. warships are heading his way and British and French aircraft have scheduled a visit. There has been no question over recent decades, Gaddafi is a rotten, brutal dictator who has orchestrated vicious terrorist attacks. Assuming he is deposed or killed, who will replace him? Will the U.S. and NATO allies clear the way for Libya to become another terrorist training center?

The media, and the U.S. administration cheered the move to oust Mubarak from Egypt. But whenever we hear some additional news from Egypt, it is of more riots and continuing violence. As the U.S. and the world should have learned from Iran, toppling a brutal dictator in the Muslim Middle East is no guarantee of better days ahead. Speaking of Iran, there has been very little in the way of cheering for the opposition movement to topple the oppressive theocracy of the mullahs and their midget, Ahmadinejad. Wouldn’t that be even better news than the ouster of Mubarak?

Possibly the most unnerving reports coming out of the Middle East are those of a continuing clamor of demonstrations in Bahrain, and Iran is in support of that now, just as they supported the movement in Egypt. They’re also calling for the Saudi kingdom to be toppled because of its cooperation with the U.S.

The situation in Libya will change and the final King of the South will rise up. The more chaos there becomes in the world in general, and the Middle East/North Africa in particular, the more the stage is being set for the people there to desire to support such a leader.

Here are some other news items related to the Middle East:

Libyan Forces Take Aim on Benghazi as World Leaders Convene
VOA 19 March 2011

Rebels in Libya say pro-government forces advanced on their eastern stronghold in Benghazi Saturday, as world leaders convened an emergency summit on the Libyan crisis in Paris.

The rebels say military units loyal to Moammar Gadhafi shot down one of their planes over Benghazi. They also report that government troops and artillery have been moving closer to the city, in apparent disregard of a cease-fire that Libya’s leader declared on Friday.

Representatives from the United Nations, European Union, Arab and Western powers are gathering in France to decide on a response to the deteriorating military situation in Libya.

Egypt’s New Rulers Friendly with Assad

Israel National News – March 18, 2011

Egypt’s temporary military rulers sent a delegation to Syria on Thursday to meet with President Bashar al-Assad. Egyptian General Murad Mohammed Muafi and Assad agreed to boost cooperation between the two countries, according to Syria’s SANA news agency.

The meeting follows long-term tension between Egypt and Syria. Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak refrained from developing warm ties with Assad due to disagreement over Syria’s role in Lebanon.

Assad sent his greetings to the new Egyptian government shortly after Mubarak’s overthrow, wishing them success and expressing readiness to “cooperate with Cairo.”

Egyptians vote in major test of shift to democracy

Forbes – Maggie Michael, Hamza Hendawi – ‎19 March 2011‎

CAIRO — Eager for their first taste of a free vote in decades, Egyptians lined up by the hundreds Saturday to vote on constitutional amendments sponsored by the ruling military that critics fear could propel the country’s largest Islamist group to become Egypt’s most dominant political force…the timeframe would benefit Mubarak’s one-time ruling National Democratic Party and the Muslim Brotherhood – archrivals and the two most powerful and best-organized political groups in Egypt.

Middle East unrest: 52 shot dead in Yemen

Telegraph.co.uk – Adrian Blomfield – ‎19 March 2011

Pro-regime snipers positioned on rooftops in the Yemeni capital Sana’a shot dead at least 52 protesters as authoritarian regimes across the Middle East grappled with a fresh wave of popular unrest.

The situation in much of the Middle East remains volatile. Protests have not resulted in stabilization for much of the region. The Muslim Brotherhood’s goal is to get a unified Arab/Islamic world that will speak with one voice, like the prophesied King of the South.

While troubles will precede the end (Mark 13:5-8), the end will come.

And the final King of the South may rise up soon–and this will be a leader that will turn against the West (Psalm 83; Daniel 11:40).

Watch (cf. Mark 13:33-37).

Some articles of possibly related interest may include:

Is There A Future King of the South? Some no longer believe there needs to be. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? What does the Bible say?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States?
The Arab World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy The Bible discusses the origins of the Arab world and discusses the Middle East in prophecy. What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam?
Africa: Its Biblical Past and Prophesied Future What does the Bible teach about Africa and its future? Did the early Church reach Africa? Will God call all the Africans?
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, British, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first?
Will the Anglo-Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people?
Does God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2018 or 2019?
Can the Great Tribulation Begin in 2011, 2012, or 2013? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord?