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Drone Attacks in Sheba
Terrorism forces Yemen to strengthen its ties with America
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Friday, August 09, 2013
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www.bibleinthenews.com Audio & Print versions
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Welcome to the Bible in the News. The news has been a-buzz with developments throughout the Middle East.
Threats of Attack on Americans
The United States issued a global terror alert this past week following the discovery of a plot to attack American diplomatic missions in the Middle East.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday,
The intercepted communications of exchanges between Mr. Zawahiri and the leader of the Yemen branch, Nasser al-Wuhayshi, showed Mr. Wuhayshi presenting his plan of attack in order to seek tacit approval, and he received it, several current and former U.S. officials say
Mr. Wuhayshi was Osama bin Laden's personal secretary and has long known Mr. Zawahiri. He escaped a Yemeni prison in 2006 and saw an opportunity after a major Saudi crackdown on al Qaeda. He reconstituted the group in Yemen in January 2009, drawing on al Qaeda's defunct Saudi branch.
America has taken this discovery very seriously. The Voice of America reported the temporary closing of 19 US diplomatic missions throughout the Middle East on August 8th:
The United States shut diplomatic missions across the Middle East and Africa late last week because of the threat of potential attacks. This week, the U.S. State Department ordered its non-essential staff to leave Yemen, relocating them to the U.S. consulate in Frankfurt, Germany.
U.S. President Barack Obama said Wednesday during a speech to U.S. Marines at Camp Pendleton, California that the nation is taking the threats seriously, but will not back down. "As for these extremists, here's what those who would cowardly attack our civilians don't get. The United States is never going to retreat from the world. We don't get terrorized," the president affirmed.
Increase of American Military Activity in Yemen
Added to this has been an increase in American military activity in Yemen. On August 9, the Washington Post reported that at least 7 Saudi militants were killed in a recent wave of US drone attacks. The same paper also reported senior Yemeni officials as suggesting that Saudis are increasingly crossing the border to carry funds or seek terrorist training.
The Washington Post reported this past week:
Since July 27, drone attacks in Yemens southern and central provinces have killed a total of 34 militants suspected of being members of the countrys al-Qaida branch, security officials have said.
The terror network bolstered its operations in Yemen more than a decade ago after key Saudi operatives fled here following a major crackdown in their homeland. The drone strikes and a U.S.-backed offensive that began in June 2012 have driven militants from territory they had seized a year earlier, during Yemens political turmoil amid the Arab Spring.
This comes during the visit of the Yemeni president Masour Hadi to the Whitehouse on August 4th. The president of Yemen stated,
As a result of the activities of al Qaeda, Yemens development basically came to ahalt whereby there is no tourism, and the oil companies, the oil-exploring companies had to leave the country as a result of the presence of al Qaeda. So our cooperation against those terrorist elements are actually serving the interests of Yemen.
Cooperation between Yemen and America has been increasing over the past couple of years. The government of Yemen has come to realize that the Arab Spring effect is threatening its hold on power. Consequently, they are seeking to close ranks with the Americans.
But what has this got to do with the Bible?
The Biblical Sheba is located in Yemen. The record of the visit of the queen of Sheba to Solomon is found in 1 Kings 10:1-2
And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning thename of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions. And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.
The ancient Biblical nation of Sheba is believed to be Sabaean kingdom whose capital was Marib. The great irrigation dams built for the spice industry are still visible today, and stand as archaeological proof of the ancient civilization recorded in the Bible, but also in ancient history by Herodotus and Josephus.
The Lord Jesus Christ mentions the Queen of Sheba rising in judgment:
The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here. (Matthew 12:42)
Yemen in latter day prophecy
The mention of the Queen of the South by the Lord Jesus Christ ties Yemen with the power of the south mentioned by Daniel as being in the area at the time of the end:
And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. (Daniel 11:40)
Not only this, but Ezekiel mentions the ancient nation of Sheba as forming part of the southern alliance that protests Gogs invasion:
Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil? (Ezekiel 38:13)
So Yemen has to be allied with Dedan (or Saudi Arabia) and to the merchants of Tarshish, which as we have seen before are powers of Britain, the United States and their allies (For more information on this see the recent Bible Magazine, Volume 26 #1 or older issues such as Volume 24 #3, and Volume 20 #3 all available online, and the Bible in the News entitled Operation Eager Liondated June 28th).
The fact that the Yemeni and American Presidents are meeting are signs that the alliances spoken of in the Bible are coming into place. Even though the radical Muslim forces in the Middle East would like to see America thrust out, the Bible has a different plan in mind. We must remember the words of the Nebuchadnezzar, who came to understand:
This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men. (Daniel 4:17)
Israel and Egypt working together to fight extremist Muslim terrorists
The drone strikes that America has been making in Yemen have caught the attention of the Media. But this week Israel has also been busy over the Egyptian border. The Times of Israel reported,
At least five Islamic militants were killed last night in an Israeli drone strike in the Egyptian Sinai, near the Israeli-Egyptian border.
The unprecedented attack marks the first time Israeli forces have operated against a target inside Egypt since the two countries signed a peace treaty in 1979. Egyptian security sources confirmed the attack was co-ordinated in advance with Cairo.
What is interesting is Israel and the interim government in Egypt are working together. The Israel Times continues:
Last nights attack coincides with an ongoing campaign by the Egyptian army against Islamic gunmen in the Sinai. At least 60 militants have reportedly been killed in the last month. Egypt has beefed up its forces in the area, including the deployment of assault helicopters.
Citing widening terrorist operations in recent times, the Egyptian army said it was conducting an intensified campaign in Sinai in co-ordination with the interior ministry to crack down on militants who threaten Egyptian national security
In an article entitled Bankrupt Hamas, Canadas National Post stated:
The Egyptian Armys ongoing operations against the subterranean tunnels connecting Egypt to the Gaza Strip, which have long served as key arteries for bulk cash smuggling, are wreaking havoc with Hamas finances. Until last year, the faction relied heavily on Iran and Syria for a great deal of its cash, but the civil war in Syria prompted Hamas to loosen its ties to the Axis of Resistance. Funding from Tehran has since dropped off precipitously since then, forcing the faction to turn to the Muslim Brotherhood block to make ends meet.
Hamas has also augmented its income over the past decade by taxing goods that come through the tunnels connecting the Gaza Strip to Egypt
Egypts junta is engaged in a relentless effort to shut down the tunnels. Mounting concern that Hamas members might be sneaking into Egypt with dangerous weapons led to a crackdown on the tunnels.
With all the unrest in Egypt, the last thing the ruling army wants is weapons in the hands of its opposition.
The radical Muslim factions arising out of the Arab spring are causing the Arab governments in the Middle East to reluctantly work with Israel and America to protect themselves. The finger of God has indicated a course which they are going to take, whether they like it or not.
Tune in next week for the Bible in the News. This has been Jonathan Bowen joining you.