ARAB GUNMAN MURDERS EIGHT STUDENTS IN JERUSALEM: An Arab gunman entered the prominent Mercaz Harav yeshiva in Jerusalem on Thursday night, killing eight students and wounding nine others. The gunman killed two people at the entrance, then entered the library, spraying the students with gunfire from a rifle. A medical volunteer said, 'We came to the library and saw two bodies at the entrance on the floor, and it was very bad. There were bodies and Jewish books all over the floor. They were shot one by one." (INN)

THOUSANDS IN GAZA CELEBRATE JERUSALEM TERROR ATTACK: Gaza's streets filled with joyous crowds of thousands on Thursday evening following the terror attack in Jerusalem. Armed men fired in the air in celebration and others passed out sweets to passersby. Hamas issued a statement saying it "blesses the Jerusalem operation." (Ynet) "They are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless." Romans 1:31

UN FAILS TO CONDEMN J'LEM TERROR ATTACK: The UN Security Council abstained from condemning last Thursday's Jerusalem terror attack. US officials said Libya - currently chairing the Security Council - blocked the UN from denouncing the massacre and called for "balanced action." The Anti-Defamation League said the fact the Security Council could not bring itself to publicly deplore the heinous murder of eight Israeli teenagers was "shocking." (Haaretz) "Arise, O Lord, let not man triumph; let the nations be judged in your presence." Ps 9:19

PA SOURCES SAY HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH HELPED IN J'LEM TERROR ATTACK: Palestinian defense sources said the gunman in Thursday's terrorist attack was acting on instructions from Hamas leaders in Damascus, in coordination with Hezbollah. Israeli police confirmed the shooting was not a spontaneous attack but carefully planned in advance. The terrorist, an East Jerusalem resident, had a blue identity card, and transported people in the area. The question arises if there are more East Jerusalem Arabs networking with terrorist groups further afield to carry out future attacks in the city, or if Thursday's tragedy was an isolated incident. Public Security Minister Avi Dichter said East Jerusalem Arabs should be expelled to the West Bank if found to be involved in militant activity. (Haaretz)

HAMAS MEMBERS: 'IRAN IS OUR MOTHER.': A Hamas senior commander claims hundreds of its jihadists have been trained in Iran. He said 300 of the groups "best brains" had been secretly sent to Iran and half are still learning terrorist skills from the Revolutionary Guards. "Iran is our Mother," he said. "She gives us military supplies, money and information." Israeli officials believe Iran is waging a "proxy war" against their country through Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. (Jihad Watch) "With cunning they conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish. Ps. 83:3

ISRAEL WILL NOT ACT ALONE TO HALT IRAN NUKE PROGRAM: President Shimon Peres said Israel is not going to allow the US or other nations to shift the responsibility of dealing with Iran's unhindered nuclear weapons progress onto the Jewish State. He warned if a recently imposed third round of economic sanctions fails to thwart Iran's nuclear enrichment, non-military options will have been used up.  Asked if Israel would act independently to prevent the Islamic Republic from obtaining the bomb, he replied under no circumstances would his nation consider that option, because the problem is an international one. (Reuters)

US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONDEMNS ROCKET ATTACKS ON ISRAEL: Palestinian rockets launched from the Gaza Strip are now reaching Jewish communities as far as the coastal city of Ashkelon. They continue to batter Israel's southern Negev town of Sderot on a daily basis. The US House of Representatives March 5th approved by a near unanimous vote a resolution condemning the rocket attacks on Israel, stating the firing of projectiles on a civilian population constituted a blatant violation of human rights and international law. The resolution supports Israel's sovereign right to defend its territory against rocket attacks. It also stresses the moral difference between Israel unintentionally harming Palestinian civilians during military operations, and the deliberate attacks on Israeli civilians by Hamas and the other terror groups in Gaza. (Ynet)

POLAND PLEDGES CITIZENSHIP TO JEWS FORCED OUT IN COMMUNIST-ERA: In 1968 clashes took place across Poland between students and police, developing into widespread radicalism among the country's youth. Poland's Communist leaders then used Jews as scapegoats to divert attention from the social unrest. Thousands of Jews were forced to leave Poland and relinquish their citizenship at that time. Jews who were victims of that antisemitic campaign may now have their citizenship reinstated according to Poland's President Lech Kaczynski.  He made the announcement in a moving ceremony last week marking the 40th anniversary of the purge. (J.Post) "Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tents of the wicked will be no more." Job 8:22

WARSAW GHETTO BORDERS TO BE MARKED IN RED: Poland's Warsaw Municipality announced last week it will mark the borders of the Warsaw Ghetto with a red line stretching across the heart of its modern and flourishing capital. City officials claim the sufferings of half a million Jews in the ghetto will now be remembered by every resident of and visitor to the Polish capital. In addition, 21 monuments marking public buildings or significant milestones in the ghetto's history will be placed in different corners of the ghetto's routes. (Y.Net)

Jerusalem On The Line, a weekly prayer and news update, conveys the pulse beat of Israel and surrounding Middle East countries with concise, hot-off-the-press information.  Writing and editing staff members heed the cry from those who love the Jewish nation and desire to pray intelligently to please keep sending accurate news from Jerusalem as there is so little in the foreign media.  We seek to alert, inform and educate on events and concerns locally, as well as trends developing abroad that pertain to Israel and the Jewish people. Jerusalem On The Line is translated into German, Dutch, French and Polish. Consider making a donation in support of this important global outreach at: www.jnnnews.com/donations.htm

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SAVE THE DATE AND PLAN AHEAD:

VFI & JSH Conference in the USA in Charlotte, NC – April 10-12, 2008.

VFI & JSH Conference in The Netherlands – June 6-8, 2008.

VFI & JSH Conference in London, England – June 26-28, 2008.

Succot Tour & Celebration: October 12-24, 2008

We are so grateful to all our wonderful volunteers who come from so many different places to work tirelessly at The Joseph Storehouse in Israel. We are always glad to have more volunteers, there is so much work to do, and if you have the opportunity to come and work with us, please contact us at info@visionforisrael.com and you will be most welcome in Jerusalem.

Special Request: If you are visiting Israel soon we have an urgent need to receive supplies of vitamins and toiletries at The Joseph Storehouse. If you have spare luggage capacity we would be really grateful if you would bring some with you. Please visit www.visionforisrael.com for more information.

Blessings from Jerusalem,
Barry Segal with the Editorial Staff