JERUSALEM-ON-THE-LINE
September 26, 2012

“I am bringing my righteousness near, it is not far away; and my salvation shall not be delayed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel.” Isa 46:13

OBAMA SKIPS MEETINGS WITH WORLD LEADERS TO BE “EYE CANDY” ON TV FOR THE LADIES OF THE VIEW: President Barak Obama held 13 meetings with world leaders at last year's UN summit, but this time around none are scheduled. Instead, he and his wife Michelle headed off to see the women of The View, where he joked he would serve as “eye candy” for the audience. The First Couple joined Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters, Joy Behar, Sherri Shepherd and Elisabeth Hasselbeck for an interview which aired on Tuesday. The President described himself as “eye candy” after Barbara Walters said he was only invited to the program as his wife's date. During the show the Obamas joked about their upcoming anniversary and presented the hosts with White House cloth napkins, golf balls and bottles of Obama's home-brewed beer. Meanwhile, Obama is leaving the one-on-one meetings with world leaders to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week. Critics have charged he is suddenly vulnerable on foreign policy after the wave of violence in the Middle East and the murder of the US ambassador to Libya, and does not want to risk an unscripted moment. Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, found himself struggling to explain why Obama had gone from 13 meetings one year to zero the next. (MailOnline) A question arises if The View, a nice chit-chat with the celebrity ladies, was one of President Obama’s pressing engagements that caused him to turn down Israel’s PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s suggested meeting for an hour or so between this year’s UN Assembly events.  Iran’s deadly nuclear weapons development is justifiably on Mr. Netanyahu’s mind in terms of face-to-face discussions with major world leaders. Obviously the same does not apply for Mr. Obama who opted for being “eye candy,” this week.  Could there have been a possible calculation in the US leader’s mind as to which get-together would gain him more votes in November? Ongoing intercession is vitally needed for the soon-coming US presidential elections.

OBAMA: MIDEAST UNREST AND DEAD AMBASSADOR MERE BUMPS IN THE ROAD: President Obama, in agreeing to a lengthy interview with "60 Minutes," may have created his own "bump in the road." In the course of that interview, Monday, he referred to escalating Middle East turmoil as "bumps in the road," conceding "mistakes" in campaign ads and dismissing concern about Iran's nuclear program as "noise." Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s camp seized on the comments. "These are no bumps in the road. These are human lives," Romney retorted at a campaign stop in Colorado. On ABC News, Romney also said: "I can't imagine saying something like the assassination of ambassadors is a bump in the road." (Fox) “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” Luke 6:45

GIULIANI: OBAMA’S “NOISE” COMMENT FRIGHTENING: Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani spoke out Tuesday regarding President Barack Obama's 60 Minutes interview in which he likened Israel's concern over Iran's nuclear weapons program to "noise" that he prefers to "block out." Giuliani speaking of Ahmadinejad said: "I don't know what he is. I mean he's obviously a murderer, I think a maniac, someone who has announced over and over again he wants to see the destruction of the state of Israel, and in many ways he'd like to see the destruction of the United States of America. And yet he's accorded the status of speaking as a head of state. This is a man who is determined to become a nuclear power, and the President of the United States announces this is just noise that he blocks out. I mean, that is a frightening statement by the President of the United States." Giuliani further said the decision to let Ahmadinejad speak at the UN on Yom Kippur shows the lack of sensitivity and the lack of concern about the state of Israel, which he said is not very high on the president's agenda. He added, “The president was in New York today. He went on The View but he can't visit with Netanyahu or any other world leaders. He announced on 60 Minutes that Israel was just one of our allies, as if it isn't our most important ally in the Middle East. And he treats them almost as if they're not an ally." (Arutz-7)

AHMADINEJAD SAYS ISRAEL HAS NO ROOTS IN MIDEAST: Israel has "no roots" in the history of the Middle East and represents a disturbance for Iran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday. Ahmadinejad boasted that Iran has been around for thousands of years, but Israel has existed for only 60 or 70 years. He said for a certain “historical phase” Israel represents a disturbance for Iran and then is eliminated. "They have no roots in history," he told reporters in New York prior to attending the UN General Assembly. "They do not even enter the equation for Iran." Ahmadinejad also said his nation does not take seriously Israeli threats of attack. The comments came a day after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met with Ahmadinejad to warn him about the potentially harmful consequences of inflammatory rhetoric and "the grave regional implications of the worsening situation in Syria." The Iranian president’s venomous comments regarding Israel, made ahead of the 67th meeting of the General Assembly, indicate he won't be holding back Wednesday at which time he will address the full UN gathering. (INN/Fox)

ISRAELI ENVOY WALKS OUT OF AHMADINEJAD’S UN SPEECH: Israel's UN envoy, Ron Prosor, demonstratively walked out of a UN session Monday on the rule of law when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took to the podium to speak. "The leader of an outlaw country that is a serial violator of the fundamental principles of the rule of law has no place in this hall," Prosor said. Letting Ahmadinejad address the UN on the issue was like "appointing an arsonist as fire chief." Earlier Monday, Ahmadinejad disregarded a UN warning to avoid incendiary rhetoric and declared ahead of the General Assembly session that Israel has no roots in the Middle East and would be “eliminated.” He also denied sending arms into Syria and called economic conditions in his sanctions-hit country “not as bad as they are portrayed.” (J. Post)

MK YAAKOV KATZ: ISRAEL BLIND TO THE DANGER OF EGYPT: National Union chairman and Knesset Member Yaakov Katz who was nearly given up for dead in the Yom Kippur War, warns the government of Israel is blind to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood threat. MK Katz was deputy company commander in an elite combat unit and was seriously wounded in the war 39 years ago. Ariel Sharon, who then was an IDF commander, is credited with saving his life by insisting he be evacuated for medical care. MK Katz, through a statement issued by his office, said, "Egypt now is deploying tanks in the Sinai Peninsula and sending armed soldiers with the intent to harm Israel. Egypt surprised Israel in 1973 by rolling its tanks into the south as Jews throughout the country were praying in synagogues on Yom Kippur. As on the eve of the Yom Kippur War, Israel still is closing its eyes in the face of Egyptian terrorists who are Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi’s best friends and carry out his previous declarations for the destruction of the State of Israel." (INN)

EGYPT’S REQUEST TO CHANGE THE PEACE TREATY: Sinai has become a base for terrorist elements, including homegrown al-Qaeda-inspired groups and Palestinian terror operatives who enter Sinai from Gaza. The radical terror groups target both Israeli and Egyptian military forces. Egypt is presently requesting to alter sections of the 1979 Camp David peace accord that limit its military presence in Sinai, to allow more Egyptian forces in to push back the jihadists and reestablish security for both Egypt and Israel. Unfortunately, things aren't so simple. The Muslim Brotherhood that has ascended to power has a radical, worrisome ideology, and it is far too soon to know the impact on Egypt's policies toward Israel. (J. Post) Egypt ushered its military presence into Sinai after a terrorist attack last August killed 16 Egyptian soldiers in the peninsula. Israel said Egypt moved tanks into Sinai without its consent. This military initiative on the part of Egypt was a breach of the 1979 peace treaty between the two countries. Pray Israel will be on its guard where changes to the Camp David Accords are being requested by the Egyptian government now in the grip of the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist group. This organization has long been an avowed enemy of the Jewish state with Israel’s destruction on its agenda.

Blessings from Jerusalem,

Barry Segal with the Editorial Staff 

As international speakers and messengers of the Good News through music, Barry and Batya Segal are at the forefront of what God is doing in the present day nation of Israel. With strong ties in both the nations and Jerusalem, the Segals are weaving the deepest roots of our biblical heritage together with the fresh Spirit-filled worship of today to create their rich harmony of Scripture and song.

The Segals have a vast vision for God's purposes in the nations and to the people of Israel. In fact, their longing to help rebuild Israel both spiritually and physically inspired them to pioneer the non-profit charity organization, Vision for Israel and The Joseph Storehouse. This arm of their ministry focuses on assisting the poor and needy, widows and orphans, and reaching out to the new Jewish immigrants coming into the land of Israel. Vision 's most challenging project to date is "The Joseph Storehouse®", humanitarian aid center, located in the hills of Jerusalem. The Joseph Storehouse functions as a channel of blessing to all of Israel, Jewish and Arab, through the gathering and distribution of emergency medical supplies, food, clothing, and other basic life necessities. USA office contact info: Vision for Israel, PO Box 7743, Charlotte NC 28241, 866-351-0075. The Segal's web site is http://www.visionforisrael.com/

Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.