VFI News October 5, 2021

Lotfollah Dezhkam, the representative for the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Fars Province, urged the elimination of Israel in a Friday sermon, October 1, in the city of Shiraz.

The Islamic clerical firebrand declared, “The global arrogance led by America with complicity of Israel seeks to delay the realization of an important issue, which is the destruction of the Zionist regime.” Kian Meli, a news outlet opposed to the Islamic Republic of Iran, quoted his remarks. Three regime-controlled news organizations – Islamic Republic News Agency, Fars News and Tasnim – reported on his speech.

Sheina Vojoudi, an Iranian dissident who fled to Germany to escape persecution, said, “The more the mullahs spread hate speech against the Jewish State of Israel, the more Iranian people realize that Israel is our friend, because the regime in Iran is the only enemy that we have. His hate speech against Israel is not surprising.... Ali Khamenei as the leader of the Islamic Republic calls for the annihilation of Israel and Dezhkam is his representative.”

She added, “We are tired of their antisemitism. We have a long history with the Jewish people and we want to be able to revive that 2700 years of friendship. The Islamic Republic’s antisemitism is lethal and endangers both Iranians and Israelis. The regime accuses Iranian dissidents of being Israeli spies, and calls the protesters against the regime’s corruption Israeli agents, and considers them against the national security. We want to normalize relations with Israel like other normal countries.”

Vojoudi added, “Why should our wealth be spent on funding terrorism against Israel and our people suffer from poverty? The democratic countries in the world, especially EU and US, should be aware of the Islamic Republic’s dangerous antisemitism. The regime targets Israelis and Iranian dissidents wherever they can. It is the ideology of the Islamic Republic. And Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, said in one of his speeches, ‘The Muslims must fight until the annihilation of Israel.’ This is what the Islamic Republic in Iran is about and must be stopped.”

The United States government, under both Democratic and Republican administrations, has classified Iran’s regime as the leading state-sponsor of international terrorism. Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt testified before the House Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism in 2020, calling Iran’s regime the top state sponsor of Holocaust-denial and antisemitism. (JPost / VFI News)

“God, we ask that You keep Israel Your children strong under the threat of antisemitism and war.”

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.

The Iranian Air Defense unveiled an indigenous tactical radar and a simulator on Saturday, October 2, the Xinhua news agency reported, citing Iranian media.

The "Hormuz" mid-range radar is capable of calculating the velocity and distance of targets with high accuracy and transferring data to the fire control system for the launch of air defense missiles, Iranian Air Defense Commander Alireza Sabahi Fard was quoted as having said.

The new radar features its enhanced combat capabilities, less time for repair and maintenance, and higher precision in detecting targets, he added.

The "Shams" simulator, also unveiled on Saturday, will be used against ballistic missiles and a range of other targets, and it can simulate action against various targets in long ranges through modern combat scenarios, said Sabahi Fard.

Iran often boasts of its military accomplishments, though it is not always possible to say with certainty that it is telling the truth about those accomplishments.

In 2017, the Islamic Republic claimed to have unveiled a domestically manufactured tank which “has the capability to fire missiles and precisely guide them."

Previously, Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed it had successfully tested a Hormuz 2-type ballistic missile.

Iran has also claimed it is in possession of the “father of all bombs”, described as a domestically-made 10-ton bomb with a high destructive power.

Earlier this year, the Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed that the country has drones with a range of 7,000 km (4,375 miles). (INN / VFI News)

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. - Isaiah 41:10

Zvi Yehezkeli, Arab affairs analyst at Channel 13, on Friday morning warned that Israel has no plan for dealing with the Iranian threat.

In a Friday morning, October 1, interview with 103 FM Radio, Yehezkeli emphasized that Iran is determined to become a nuclear power.

"The Iranians are advancing towards a nuclear weapon, and Israel has no strategy," he told the radio station.

"Whatever we do, the Iranians will continue advancing quickly towards a bomb. The pace at which they advance shows that they don't care about the world, and they will soon be capable of nuclear weapons. And that's news which is not good for Israel.

"Will an agreement, or an attack, stop the Iranians? I am familiar with the Iranian government and the energy of the Shi'ite rule, which seeks revenge in the Middle East. They will not give up on a bomb, even if there is an agreement which delays it.

"The question arises, what is Israel going to do? How will Israel provide an answer to this issue? That's something that [Israeli Prime Minister Naftali] Bennett did not say in his speech, and the defense establishment certainly has many solutions for this issue."

"An Iranian bomb is the Shi'ite government's highest goal," he said. "They want to get there - and they will get there, any way possible." (INN / VFI News)

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” - Matthew 10:28

A fire erupted in an IRGC facility in Iran on Sunday, September 26, leaving two dead and one injured. On Thursday, September 30, Tel Aviv-based ImageSat International (ISI), a commercial servicer for satellite images, estimated that the facility was not just any military compound, it was a secret missile base.

It is still unclear why the fire erupted on Sunday.

A series of explosions and fires have hit industrial sites across Iran, including a number of petrochemical plants, in recent months and over the past year.

Iranian officials have referred to most of the cases as incidents or accidents, although some reports have claimed that at least some of them involved foul play.

The aging infrastructure in Iran has also been blamed for at least some of the incidents. Frequent blackouts have plagued Iran recently amid a heatwave. (JPost / VFI News)

“God, we ask that You protect Your children from Iranian harm.

We donated shoes to 44 underprivileged children in Ashdod. Told that these gifts were especially for them—from people who loved them—their faces were filled with joy. Thank you for helping us bless these dear children, and for helping them in their walk with the Lord.

Leader of the UK Labour Party Sir Keir Starmer has said he welcomes the Abraham Accords agreements between Israel, the United Emirates and Bahrain, and that he welcomes diplomatic normalization between Israel and Arab countries.

His comments were made to the Labour Friends of Israel lobbying group during the current Labour Party annual conference, and came following a motion passed by delegates calling for an arms boycott and other sanctions against Israel for its policies toward the Palestinians.

“We must bring people together... not drive them apart with boycotts. That’s the path forward for Israelis and Palestinians,” said Starmer.

Starmer praised the new Israeli government for including an Arab party, Ra’am, in the coalition, and said that he is “encouraged by the steps the government is taking to repair relations with the Palestinian Authority and its proposals to tackle the terrible plight of the people of Gaza.”

He added that he is seeking to visit Israel as soon as possible, and that he is “committed to doing all I can to continue rebuilding the important bond with our friends in Israel.”

He also noted his work to remove antisemitism from the Labour Party’s ranks, which became an ongoing problem under the tenure of former leader Jeremy Corbyn. He said, however, that “our work to tear antisemitism out by its roots must continue. “ (JPost / VFI News)

After Nazi graffiti was found at a Jewish cemetery in Argentina last week, the local Jewish community wanted to do more than just paint it over.

So on Friday, October 1, the local Jewish community of Sante Fe, a province about 300 miles northwest of Buenos Aires, convened representatives of other religious groups for an interfaith ceremony to remove the swastikas painted in the cemetery, one in the area dedicated to the memory of Holocaust victims.

The ceremony included evangelical Christians, Catholics and Muslims as well as representatives from a host of local groups, and it was streamed online. A video showed several people brushing over swastikas painted near the ground, followed by a series of comments from representatives of different groups. (INN / VFI News)

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” - John 13:34-35

The first commercial flight between Bahrain and Israel landed Thursday, September 30, at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, a year after the US-brokered normalization of ties between the countries. Gulf Air flight GF972 touched down at Israel’s main airport shortly after Foreign Minister Yair Lapid began a landmark visit to Manama, where he will open the Israeli embassy.

Crew members waved the flags of Bahrain and Israel from the cockpit windows of the passenger jet when it landed. Passengers include the heads of Gulf Air and a Jewish chef named Alex, who owns a restaurant in Bahrain and flew to Israel to see his mother and two sisters.

The flight kicked off a new regular Tel Aviv-Manama route that will include two weekly flights in each direction, on Mondays and Thursdays. Prices start at $199 including baggage.

The Bahrain flight and Israel’s first bilateral ministerial visit to the Gulf country are part of a thaw in regional relations after the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan also agreed last year to establish ties with Israel under agreements known as the Abraham Accords.

Lapid landed in Bahrain earlier Thursday for the first ministerial visit to the island kingdom since relations were formally established. He was set to open Israel’s embassy in Manama later in the day, and to sign agreements on water, environment and sports.

Lapid was received on the tarmac by Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif al-Zayani.

Lapid and Zayani met again later as part of the official diplomatic dialogue the countries agreed upon in 2020. The two discussed ways of developing bilateral ties further, especially the security, economic, and civil society relationship.

“Thank you for the opportunity to be here today, and to take this step together in building our relations,” said Lapid, “in a model of coexistence and cooperation between cultures and between faiths.”

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett met on Sunday, October 3, in New York with both Zayani and UAE Foreign Minister Khalifa al-Marar on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. Bennett told Zayani that he was looking forward to meeting with Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at some point in the future.

Since becoming foreign minister in June, Lapid has also visited the United Arab Emirates and Morocco, two countries that Israel has normalized relations with over the past year. (TOI / VFI News)

“God, we ask that you bring only honest, strong diplomatic relationships to Israel, and protect Your people from any deceit or harm.”

Israel is gearing up to take part in Expo 2020 Dubai when the world fair opens Friday, October 1, a spokesman said, a year after the UAE and the Jewish state normalized ties.

“We’re very happy to be here,” Menachem Gantz told AFP, the spokesman of Israel’s Pavilion at the six-month world fair. “This is the first time the expo is in the Middle East, and the first time Israel is participating in an event of such a large scale and importance (in an Arab country).”

On September 15 the United Arab Emirates marked one year since normalizing ties with Israel, a move that leaders hope could reap a trillion dollars in trade and business.

Previously, Egypt and Jordan were the only Arab states to have peace agreements under which they recognize Israel, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the deal a “betrayal” of their cause.

After the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan also agreed to normalize ties.

The Israeli pavilion, which includes a large illuminated sign saying “toward tomorrow” using both Arabic and Hebrew — will be open to all. Inside, pathways run between sand dunes made of a thin layer of concrete and sand-colored rubber.

“Our pavilion… is made of things that integrate us, that show how similar we are,” Gantz said.

“The ‘sand’ we’re standing on symbolizes the dunes, and the topography of Israel and the Emirates is very similar to it.”

The UAE and Israel have sought to emphasize the economic dividend offered by normalization.

The global expo, which Dubai hopes will attract visitors and boost the economy, is set to open its doors to the public on October 1 after a one-year delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. (TOI / VFI News)

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:11

The suggestions, opinions, and scripture references made by VFI News writers and editors are based on the best information received.

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