Has Obama just started
WW3?
Latest Updates:
- Qaddafi: This will be a long war; Libya will destroy "this entire Christian pact." (YNet)
- The African Union called on Sunday for an "immediate stop" to all attacks on Qaddafi's forces.
- Libya's Gadhafi calls on Africans, Arabs, Latin Americans, Asians to stand by Libyan people against the enemy (Reuters)
Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said the Mediterranean has turned into a "real battlefield" after Western air strikes. He has even opened arms depots for his people to defend the country. Gaddafi, in a brief audio message broadcast on state television, condemned the allied Western attacks on Libya as "barbaric, unjustified Crusaders' aggression." He vowed to retaliate with military and civilian targets in the Mediterranean, warning that the interests of Mediterranean and North African countries were now "in danger." "The Mediterranean region has become a real battlefield," he said. "Arms depots have been opened and all the Libyan people are being armed" to defend the country against Western forces. (Nine News)
In light of the West's military intervention in Libya, I am
reposting some information on Libya in end-of-days prophecies in the Bible, followed by some potential scenarios.
Libya is one of the countries featured in Ezekiel 38, which describes the war of Gog and Magog, the global struggle which Ezekiel foresees preceding the final redemption of the Jewish people and the world. Among the nations who rise up are:
פָּרַס כּוּשׁ וּפוּט, אִתָּם; כֻּלָּם, מָגֵן וְכוֹבָע
Persia, Kush, and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet
Persia, which also features in the Purim story which Jews read and commemorate this month, is modern-day Iran, which has made no secret of its stride against Israel at any cost. Kush is Ethiopia, which is also experiencing unrest. In the book of Genesis, Put is the name of the third son of Ham, son of Noah, brother of Kush, Egypt and Canaan. Put is identified in biblical history as the father of the Libyan nation.
In the books of
Ezekiel,
Daniel and
Nahum, Libya joins forces with Egypt, Gog and Tyre against Israel in the end of days, and falls.
כִּי-קָרוֹב יוֹם, וְקָרוֹב יוֹם לַיהוָה: יוֹם עָנָן, עֵת גּוֹיִם יִהְיֶה.
וּבָאָה חֶרֶב, בְּמִצְרַיִם, וְהָיְתָה חַלְחָלָה בְּכוּשׁ, בִּנְפֹל חָלָל בְּמִצְרָיִם; וְלָקְחוּ הֲמוֹנָהּ, וְנֶהֶרְסוּ יְסֹדוֹתֶיהָ.
כּוּשׁ וּפוּט וְלוּד וְכָל-הָעֶרֶב וְכוּב, וּבְנֵי אֶרֶץ הַבְּרִית--אִתָּם, בַּחֶרֶב יִפֹּלוּ
For the day is near, even the day of the LORD is near, a day of clouds, it shall be the time of the nations.
And a sword shall come upon Egypt, and convulsion shall be in Ethiopia, when the slain shall fall in Egypt;
And they shall take away her abundance, and her foundation shall be broken down.
Ethiopia, and Put, and Lud, and all the mingled people, and Cub, and the children of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.
In other words, Libya plays a major role in a final showdown between Israel and her enemies.
How will Qaddafi react to the West's attack? If Qaddafi can shoot at his own people, what will he do when everything is at stake against in his final grasp for power against his ultimate Western enemies, against whom he has amassed power for years on end?
Qaddafi doesn't have many friends left, but there are a few nations who fall in the category of his all-too-convenient enemies' enemies:
Update: Turns out Qaddafi does have at least one friend -
Louis Farrakhan yimach shmo who has asked Obama 'Who do you think you are?'
Other countries who could potentially oppose the Western alliance:
- Russia: Russia abstained from the UN vote, and expressed concern at the decision to intervene in Libya. Could Russia side with Qaddafi if things get out of hand?
-
Iran: Several weeks ago, Iran's US ambassador
warned against foreign intervention in Libya. If a coalition forms against the Western powers, Iran will be the first to provide weapons, regardless of whether they are rallying around Qaddafi or not. And this is where it gets scary. If Iran gets involved, is Israel is harm's way (h"v)?
- The Arab world - Qatar and the UAE are part of the international coalition attacking Libya, and the Arab League is the body that initially pushed for the no-fly zone. But the pro-West Arab elite is not without enemies, especially among non-state actors. Will anti-West forces in the Arab world, such as Hamas, Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda, see an opportunity to side--publicly or privately--with Qaddafi?
-
Venezuela - On Saturday, Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez
criticized Western military action in Libya, claiming the West's "men of war" are ultimately seeking control of Libya's oil fields. Is it just a coincidence Obama is in South America now, or does he know that South America is a minefield of financial and military support for radical anti-Western leaders?
-
Turkey - During a visit to Germany in February, Turkey's PM Erdogan
said a NATO intervention in Libya would be "unthinkable" and "absurd". Turkey has enjoyed flexing its political and diplomatic muscle in the region even, and especially, when its interests conflict with the US.
According to Professor David Passig, as Turkey gains power, it will split from the U.S. and become self-sufficient as a regional power and as a support for Arab states in the region. Is this Turkey's moment?
Update: Turkey has announced it will make the
necessary contribution to enforce the UN-approved no-fly zone, citing that the resolution is binding on all countries.
This war may have begun with all the moral clout on the side of the Western attack, but it could easily unravel into a "struggle against the West", if a rising anti-Western power seizes the opportunity for control over lucrative oil resources and status on the world stage. Keep in mind - Obama started this war without congressional approval or stated support of the American people. As the saying goes - We know where wars start, but we rarely know where they will end. This war started on Purim, but we have no clue where it is going.
