Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Blue and White leader Benny Gantz were in Washington Monday for separate meetings with US President Donald Trump regarding the so-called “Deal of the Century” plan for ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Elements of the plan are expected to be released Tuesday during a joint press conference Trump and Netanyahu are scheduled to give. Prior to their arrival at the White House, Trump publicly declared to the two Israeli officials that “You have six weeks to get this [plan] going – if you want it.”

Amidst lingering tensions between the US and Iran, three Katyusha rockets landed inside the US Embassy compound in Baghdad on Sunday evening, causing some damage and at least one injury, according to Iraqi media sources. Leaders of Iranian-backed Shi’ite terror militias active in Iraq have called for mass protests to evict US forces from the country in the coming days. However, large-scale protests against them and their Iranian patrons have also continued in recent days in several Iraqi cities, accompanied by violent confrontations which have killed several people.

An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale killed at least 38 people and injured many more in Turkey’s Elazig province last Friday, prompting Israel and other neighboring countries to offer assistance. “We are anxiously tracking the developments,” wrote MDA director-general Eli Bin in a letter to Turkish Red Crescent president Dr. Kerem Kinik on Saturday. “This is a significant earthquake that requires a large-scale response and collaboration between a large number of organizations.”

Israelis were relieved on Sunday morning as a break in the inclement weather brought some relief from what has been, by most standards, the harshest winter in almost 30 years. Record low temperatures combined with heavy precipitation and winds have led to several deaths and widespread property damage, but over the weekend nearly 100,000 Israelis took advantage of warmer temperatures and clear skies to visit national parks and otherwise enjoy the outdoors.

In the latest sign of thawing relations between Israel and its Sunni Arab neighbors, Interior Minister Arye Deri authorized an initial batch of Israeli citizens to visit Saudi Arabia on Sunday. The visitors reportedly include business people interested in joint ventures with their Saudi counterparts as well as Moslem citizens who with to visit Saudi Arabia for religious pilgrimages. Visitors must still secure permission from Saudi authorities.

In a dramatic move, President Trump has announced that Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his leading rival, Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz, will visit the White House on January 28 to be briefed on the administration’s long-awaited Middle East peace plan. Trump told reporters that the plan would likely be released before the summit. Predictably, no invitation was extended to the Palestinian Authority, which severed relations with Washington after the U.S. embassy was moved to Jerusalem in 2017.

The U.S. strike against Qasem Soleimani inspired nationalist and anti-Western sentiment in Iran. But Tehran’s mishandling of the Ukraine International Airlines crash on January 8, 2020 reinvigorated widespread protests against the Iranian government. While these protests are unlikely to threaten regime survival—at least for now—the underlying economic and political grievances pose a long-term challenge for the government. The regime would likely face more serious problems if there were defections from key units within Iran’s security forces and if the protest movement became more centralized and better organized.

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 by stimulating leaders, churches and organizations to become effective influences in their countries on behalf of the Jewish people.