Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Third Annual Christian Media Summit Sunday evening, devoting part of his address to praising the longstanding support for Israel by its Evangelical Christian friends while also issuing familiar warnings about the threats to Israel from Iran. “We have one main goal and that is to make sure that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons and that its march toward an empire and conquest has stopped,” he said. Meanwhile, in Teheran, officials with the clerical regime which rules Iran were holding celebrations to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 1979 student takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and the subsequent 444-day hostage crisis.

Residents of southern Israeli communities were hit last Friday by a massive riot along the Gaza border fence followed hours later by a barrage of rockets from inside the Hamas-ruled territory. Air defense units intercepted most of the incoming rockets but one hit a house in the long-suffering border community of Sderot, causing nearly destroying the structure but causing no casualties as the family who lived in the house managed to get to their bomb shelter in time. The Air Force launched strikes on Hamas positions inside the Strip in retaliation and by Monday morning a tense calm had returned to the border area. However, security forces remained on high alert as the funeral for a Palestinian man killed in the retaliatory strikes included chants calling for “revenge” against Israel.

The National Financial Investigations Unit of the Lahav 433 special police battalion in conjunction with the Central District Attorney’s criminal department moved Monday morning to arrest 10 suspects and detain nine others for questioning following a months-long undercover investigation into allegations of financial corruption. The individuals arrested included the mayor of a city in northern Israel, the CEO of a large contracting firm, a Regional council chief and lower level officials in different municipalities.

Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz tweeted a sympathetic message to the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest against the mismanagement of the country by the Baghdad regime, saying “We sympathize with the Iraqi people’s struggle for freedom and a good life and strongly condemn the acts of repression and murder against the protesters, led by Qasem Soleimani and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. The Iraqi people have a tradition and ancient and magnificent history, and many Iraqi immigrants in Israel for the better remember many years of living together.”

The latest upheaval in northeastern Syria caused by Turkey’s invasion, and the division of the Syrian plunder among Turkey, the Assad regime, and Russia, presents Iran with new avenues for building up attack capabilities and further destabilizing the region and threatening Israel.

Evolving conflicts and unrest are reshaping the Middle East rapidly. The U.S. will continue to have key national interests at stake in this region even as challenges outside it demand greater American attention. ISW Board Member General (Ret.) David H. Petraeus joins Maseh Zarif to share his views on a range of issues, including the state of ISIS post-Baghdadi, Iran’s regional campaigns, U.S. policy in the region, and the challenge of balancing among national security requirements globally.

The ICEJ is represented internationally through its branch network in some 86 nations of the world. These branches have contacts with church leaders and movements in their nations. Throughout the year the Embassy sends speakers around the world to explain important issues regarding Israel and the Middle East. Our foremost objective is to increase Christian awareness and support of Israel.