Palestinian Authority: Peace and Stability Only If You Accede to Our Demands: Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesman for the Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas, slammed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly, promising that there will be no peace or stability until the “Palestinian nation’s” demands are met.
In his speech, Netanyahu said, “Many decades of efforts to make peace with Arab Nations have failed because they were based on one false assumption – that the Palestinians must be appeased as a precondition to peace. The Palestinians have much to gain from new peace agreements. They should be part of these agreements, but they should not have a veto on peace.”
Responding to this, Abu Rudeineh said, “There will be no peace or stability in the region without placating the Palestinian nation and fulfilling its demands … Peace will begin from Palestine and stability will begin when the Palestinian nation achieves its national and legitimate rights and an independent Palestinian nation whose capital is eastern Jerusalem is created.”
Meanwhile, last week, hundreds of Palestinian rioters gathered along the Gaza Strip, shortly after six Palestinians were killed in Judea and Samaria and Gaza within a 24-hour period. On Friday, September 22, a large fire broke out near Kibbutz Kissufim near the Gaza-Israel border, after Gazans flew incendiary balloons across the border, and some landed near the kibbutz. The last time an incendiary balloon sparked a fire near Gaza was two years ago.
Several fires broke out again along the Gaza border on Sunday afternoon, according to Israeli media. An additional battalion will be sent to reinforce the Gaza area, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said, following a visit by Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and continued arson attacks from the terrorist enclave. (INN / VFI News)
“God, we ask that You help us establish and maintain peace in Israel. We pray that everyone will be able to coexist harmoniously and prosper, without experiencing violent riots and terrorist attacks in their everyday lives. We are also extremely thankful that our leaders and defense forces keep defending Israel and its citizens nationally and internationally and are protecting them from harm.”
The articles included in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Vision for Israel. We try to provide accurate reporting on news pertinent to Israel, the Middle East, the diaspora, and Jewish issues around the world—and we hope that you find it both informative and useful for intercessory prayer.
Netanyahu Calls on UN to Condemn Iran, Palestinian Terrorism: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on the United Nations to “condemn Iranian subversion and Palestinian terrorism against innocent civilians and to refrain from its baseless criticism of Israel,” in a meeting with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, September 20.
Multiple Jewish organizations have condemned the UN Human Rights Council Commission of Inquiry report on Israel. American Jewish Committee (AJC) CEO Ted Deutch said in a statement, at the time of the 2022 report:
“There’s no mention of Hamas. There’s no mention of terrorism. There’s no mention of the thousands of rockets that rained down on Israel with the sole intention of killing as many civilians as possible, and that there’s a failure to acknowledge that every country, including Israel, has a right to defend itself.”
During the Wednesday meeting, Netanyahu requested that Guterres help change the attitude of UN institutions towards the State of Israel, saying that “it was untenable that while major changes for the better were taking place in the world and the Middle East, the UN was unaffected and remained steadfast in its hostility to Israel.”
The prime minister also held several high-level meetings during his trip to New York, including a meeting earlier with US President Joe Biden, during which he told him: “I think that under your leadership, Mr. President, we can forge a historic peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia.” (JPost / VFI News)
Israel’s Ambassador to UN Detained by Security After Iran Speech: Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, was detained by UN security personnel on Tuesday, September 19, after he staged a protest on the floor of the General Assembly during a speech by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. Erdan was released but told American media that he was detained with “unacceptable” brutality.
Erdan protested by displaying an image of Kurdish-Iranian Mahsa Amini with the caption, “Iranian women deserve freedom now!” Amini’s death resulted in a series of protests, during which at least 476 people were killed by regime security forces.
“While the butcher of Tehran is speaking at the UN and is being respected by the international community, hundreds of Iranians are protesting outside, shouting and calling on the international community to wake up and help them,” Erdan said in a statement.
“Other ambassadors have previously held signs for ideological reasons, including in recent sessions on the war in Ukraine, with no repercussions. I will not be deterred and will always stand up for what is right and just,” Erdan added.
“So I decided to show him and remind everyone the struggle of the Iranian women, and also to remind the world and the Iranian people that they are not our enemies, that the people of Israel support and stand in solidarity with them, whatever their regime is telling them and lying to them about Israel,” he continued. (I365N / VFI News)
“God, we pray for Iranian women and girls, as well as for every Iranian citizen that is oppressed by the current authoritarian regime. We ask that You help them create a peaceful democratic country and rid themselves of the rulers that have no regard for the Iranians’ lives nor welfare.”
The Last Jew of Yemen Is Being Tortured by the Houthis and Must Be Saved – Opinion: As Jews around the world prepared for Yom Kippur, the last known Jew in Yemen was forced to observe the Holy day alone in an Islamist dungeon. For the past seven years, Levi Marhabi has been held hostage by the ruthless and fanatical Houthi rebels who control large swathes of Yemen.
He is in poor health, and it is time for world Jewry to sound the alarm and press the international community to take action and bring about his release. According to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a bipartisan federal government agency, Marhabi was arrested by Houthi forces in March 2016.
He was accused of helping some of his fellow Yemeni Jews to take a family Torah scroll out of the country and was sentenced on March 13, 2018, to three years and six months in prison. The following year, a Yemeni appeals court ordered that he be set free, but Houthi officials ignored the ruling and continued to hold him.
According to the USCIRF’s database of religious prisoners of conscience, “Marhabi lives in inhumane prison conditions, where his health continues to deteriorate. He reportedly suffers from kidney and lung issues and has lost all his teeth from being tortured repeatedly.” Other reports indicate that he may be partially paralyzed as well.
Marhabi is the last known living heir in Yemen to a once-vibrant Jewish community that dates back at least 2,000 years and possibly traces its origins to biblical times. (JPost / VFI News)
“God, we ask that You please assist in the quick release of Levi Marhabi. We pray that he will be quickly reunited with his family and that he will recuperate fully from all the physical and psychological torment he has endured. We pray that he can celebrate all the Holy days onwards in Israel, while in good health and surrounded by loved ones.”
Netanyahu and Saudi Arabia Prince Comment on Normalization Deal: Prime Minister Netanyahu during the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday, September 20, addressed the efforts for normalization with Saudi Arabia: “I believe that we are at the cusp of a historic peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia. Such a peace will go a long way to ending the Arab Israeli conflict.”
He further went on to describe a planned corridor connecting the Arabian peninsula, Israel, and Europe, to allow for travel, shipping, and energy pipelines between all of the countries involved. “The US has been indispensable in this effort,” Netanyahu stated.
“Just as we achieved the Abraham Accords with the leadership of President Trump, I believe we can achieve peace with Saudi Arabia with the leadership of President Biden,” he added.
Meanwhile, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman commented on the negotiations for the normalization agreement in an interview with American media which also aired on Wednesday.
“Everyday we get closer. It seems it’s for the first time, a real one, serious. We get to see how it goes.” He insisted his country could work with Israel, no matter who is in charge, calling a potential deal “the biggest historical deal since the end of the Cold War.”
Bin Salman also stated that a deal would rest upon agreements related to the treatment of the Palestinian Arabs. “If we have a breakthrough of reaching a deal that gives the Palestinians their needs and makes the region calm, we’re going to work with whoever is there.” (INN / VFI News)
“The Lord gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace.” – Psalm 29:11
Sa’ar: There Are Disturbing Things in the Proposed Deal with Saudi Arabia: MK Gideon Sa’ar gave an interview to Israeli media on Saturday night, September 23, in which he commented on the agreement being negotiated with Saudi Arabia.
Sa’ar stated that if the agreement reached with Saudi Arabia is a good one, then the opposition will support the agreement, but also noted immediately the concerns that arise from the talks surrounding the agreement so far.
“There are definitely disturbing things, and there is no such thing ‘at any cost’ in diplomacy,” Sa’ar said. He added that “the Saudi demand to enrich uranium on its soil with a full fuel reserve is disturbing and will lead to a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.”
“The demands on the Palestinian issue are vague,” he added. “Conceding territories and dividing Jerusalem – we should not make these moves when the incitement continues and the payment to terrorist activists continues.”
Sa’ar added that he heard from officials in the defense establishment who told him that they too are concerned. “The required discussions have not been held so far – this is not appropriate. The defense establishment should be included so that it analyzes the proposals, and a public discussion should also take place,” he said. (INN / VFI News)
“Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ ” – Deuteronomy 4:6
Israel Is Not An Apartheid State, Former South African Defense Minister Says: Israel cannot be compared to an apartheid state, former anti-apartheid activist and South African politician Mosiuoa Lekota said in a complete rejection of the accusation in an interview with the South African Friends of Israel podcast earlier in September.
Lekota, who served time in prison alongside Nelson Mandela and later became South Africa’s defense minister, provided arguments against such comparisons.
“I was in Israel, my brother,” Lekota began, recounting his visit. “In Israel, you won’t find the same divisions between Jews and non-Jews that we used to witness during apartheid. There are no segregated buses for different ethnic groups, like Jews and Arabs.
“In Israel, everyone boards the same bus, travels wherever they need to, and disembarks as they wish. There is no apartheid in Israel, not even within their schools.” Lekota was interviewed by South Africa Friends of Israel spokesperson, Bafana Modise. (JPost / VFI News)
Diplomatic Achievement: Congo to Open Embassy in Jerusalem: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Thursday, September 21, with President Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
The two leaders discussed strengthening cooperation between the countries in the fields of agriculture, trade, defense, cyber and more. During the meeting, Netanyahu and Tshisekedi announced that Israel would open an embassy in Kinshasa, and Congo would move its embassy to Jerusalem.
Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “We just had very productive talks with the President of Congo, and we agreed that Israel will open an embassy in Kinshasa, and Congo will move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem – these are two good announcements and I think they reflect our common desire to upgrade our relations.”
President Tshisekedi said, “I confirm that we had excellent discussions with the Prime Minister of Israel, Netanyahu. The discussions covered our excellent relations and how to reinforce those relations.”
Furthermore, the Pacific Islands nation of Fiji will send a delegation headed by Deputy Prime Minister Villiame Gavoka to Israel this month, before opening an embassy in Jerusalem in 2024, Fiji officials said, fulfilling an election promise by Gavoka’s political party. (INN / VFI News)
“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” – Psalm 133:1
The suggestions, opinions, and scripture references made by VFI News writers and editors are based on the best information received.
