US ENGAGING SYRIA ON ANTI-TERROR CONCERNS: Reversing yet another policy of former President George W. Bush, current US President Barack Obama announced days ago he would nominate diplomat Robert Ford to become Washington's first ambassador to Syria since 2005. The recommendation is one of a recent flurry of US diplomatic activities, which saw US undersecretary of state for political affairs William Burns meet with Syrian President Bashir Assad last week - to discuss anti-terror concerns.  Attempts to engage Damascus in anti-terror dialogue seems strangely out of place, as one discerning reporter pointed out. Syria continues to insist on supporting Hizbullah and Hamas terrorists, and remains one of four countries on the US list of states that support terrorism. Syria is also Iran’s closest Arab ally. (INN) “An oracle concerning Damascus: ‘See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins.’” Is 17:1

STATE DEPARTMENT LIFTS WARNINGS AGAINST TRAVEL TO SYRIA: The US State Department announced last week it was lifting an advisory warning American travelers of security concerns in Syria – even though Syria remains on a US list of countries supporting terrorism. The announcement came after a meeting between the highest-ranking American official to visit Syria in five years who held 'candid' talks with the Syrian president. (AP)

SYRIA WARNS ISRAEL NEW MIDEAST WAR WOULD BE CATASTROPHIC: Syrian PM Premier Naji al-Otari said Saturday, after meeting with French PM Francois Fillon in Damascus, that any new war in the Middle East will have dangerous repercussions not only in the Middle East but also on the international level. On Friday, Syrian President Bashar Assad met with the French prime minister to discuss bilateral political, economic and cultural relations. During the talks, Assad highlighted "the need for European countries to force Israel to commit to the requirements of peace." (Ha’aretz) Syria's foreign minister warned Israel earlier this month that any new war would reach Israeli cities, to which Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman responded that the Syrian army would be defeated and its regime would collapse in any future conflict.  Based on things being said, both by Israel and Syria - in addition to other volatile issues in the region - the likelihood of a military conflict exploding in the Middle East at any moment and elevating to prophetic levels is high.

SYRIA DISMISSES CALL FOR MORE ACCESS TO NUCLEAR SITES: Syria on Saturday refused an International Atomic Energy Agency request to allow its inspectors unrestrained access - days after the agency said a bombed Syrian complex could have been a nuclear site.  An IAEA report that uranium particles found at a Syrian complex destroyed in an Israeli air strike in 2007 suggest the possibility of covert nuclear activity in the area. (Ha’aretz)

FRENCH PM: WORLD TO TAKE ACTION IF IRAN REFUSES NUCLEAR TALKS: French Prime Minister Francois Fillon said world powers would soon have to take new action against Iran if Tehran continues to reject Western proposals on its disputed nuclear program. Fillon said he was worried by a new report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which said Iran may be working to develop a nuclear-armed missile. The US is leading a push for a fourth round of UN Security Council sanctions against Iran because of suspicions it is secretly developing a nuclear arsenal. Washington has been supported by fellow Security Council members Britain and France.  Russia, which has been reluctant to impose more sanctions, said it was "very alarmed" by the latest report. Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Friday urged the international community to impose harsh sanctions on Iran as soon as possible. It warned that the new IAEA report is far sharper and clearer than previous reports regarding the military aspects of Iran's nuclear program. (Reuters) “The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?” Eccles 6: 11  Pray for wisdom amongst world leaders and effective measures to halt Iran’s destructive plans against Israel and the West.

ISRAEL TO PUSH CHINA ON IRAN SANCTIONS: A high-ranking Israeli delegation will leave at the end of the month for Beijing, for political, security and economic discussions with senior Chinese officials. The central issue of the talks will be the Iranian nuclear program, and the Israeli request for sanctions on Tehran.  China is the sternest opponent to the sanctions, followed by Russia. China has vast economic interests in Iran, with much of the Chinese energy market dependent on imported Iranian oil. The US administration is trying to persuade some of the other Gulf States to supply China with oil at a lower price than that required by Iran. One offer was already made by Saudi Arabia but was not accepted by the Chinese. (Ha’aretz)

RUSSIA TO SUPPLY IRAN WITH S-300 DEFENSE SYSTEMS: Russia intends to fulfill a contract to supply S-300 air defense missile systems to Iran.  Israel and the US have repeatedly asked Russia to scrap a contract to sell Iran the truck-mounted S-300, which can shoot down hostile missiles or aircraft up to 90 miles away. "There is a contract to supply these systems to Iran, and we will fulfill it," one Russian official said. (Reuters)

PA AGENTS DESTROY JEWISH PRODUCTS:  A multi-branch team of PA agents found an Arab-driven car carrying over $5000 worth of cleaning products several days ago. The supplies were manufactured in a Jewish community in Samaria and were promptly confiscated and destroyed. The operation was described in the PA as a “Palestinian national moral obligation” in safeguarding PA “interests and its economy.”  In early January, PA Prime Minister Salam Fayyad took part in a mass burning of Israeli products made by Jews in Judea and Samaria. Food, books, cosmetics, clothing, and handicrafts were incinerated. A PA official said at the time that they had found and destroyed one million dollars’ worth of Israeli products in PA stores. Israel, for its part, has made many efforts to help the PA economy in Judea and Samaria. Most notable among various gestures, such as issuing increasing numbers of permits for PA residents to work in Israel, Israel bent over backwards to facilitate the Bethlehem Economic Conference for Investors in May 2008. (INN)

MEETING ISRAEL’S NEEDS DURING INCREASINGLY TROUBLED TIMES: The National Insurance Institute's annual Poverty Report released Nov. 2009, paints an extremely grim picture: There are 1,651,300 needy people living in Israel, including 783,600 children. Hardship is mounting. Please continue to enable us to assist terrorist victims, entire households suffering from poverty, the elderly and others in need in Israel. Your donations are needed and welcomed at www.visionforisrael.com Make your online donation today. For residents in the UK and outside North America you can visit www.josephstorehouse.co.uk  If you prefer to send your donation by check, you can mail it in to the Israel address or the addresses in the USA and the UK or one of our other branches in The Netherlands and Germany:     

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Blessings from Jerusalem,
Barry Segal with the Editorial Staff