Endtime Magazine Jan-Feb 2013 | Page 7

nuclear bomb or to possess the means of building a nuclear bomb. IRAN REACHES IMMUNITY FROM ISRAELI ATTACK In October of 2012, Iran moved the last of its centrifuges into the underground facility at Fordo. The event that Israel said she would never allow to happen had, in fact, happened. The possibility of an Israeli air strike against Iran’s nuclear enrichment facility had now been taken away. Israel’s choices were narrowed to a ground invasion of Iran, the use of nuclear bombs in a strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, the US conducting an attack on Iran, or accepting Iran as a nuclear power. At press time, President Obama continues to insist that there is still time for diplomacy to work with Iran. The latest statement from the Obama administration was that Iran must begin to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) by March 2013. However, so many deadlines have been set and broken that no one has faith in them any longer. Meanwhile, Israel’s options continue to shrink, and the fear in Israel grows that Iran will suddenly announce that she now possesses a nuclear bomb. ATTACK ON IRAN IN 2013? Many political observers and even some government officials have expressed the opinion that the US will attack Iran sometime in the first half of 2013, if diplomatic efforts fail. Iran’s leaders have stated repeatedly that, if the US or Israel attacks Iran, it will trigger World War III. That leaves every person on earth with the disturbing question, “In the year 2013, will the conflict with Iran erupt into the Sixth Trumpet War that will ultimately wipe out one-third of the human race?” SYRIA If Iran does not serve as the flashpoint for the prophesied Euphrates River War, the expanding conflict in Syria certainly could. Since the demonstrations against the Bashar Assad government began in 2011, in excess of 40,000 Syrians have been killed. The West desperately wants to replace the Assad regime with a government that will be subservient to the UN. DO ALL THESE FACTORS INDICATE THAT WE ARE ON THE BRINK OF THE EUPHRATES RIVER WAR SPOKEN OF IN REVELATION 9? Both Hillary Clinton and President Obama have stated emphatically that Bashar Assad must leave power. However, a UN resolution calling for Assad to step down was vetoed by Russia and China. Since President Obama is a firm believer in global governance, he has been unwilling to lead an invasion that the UN would not approve. However, the US, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have supplied money and military equipment to assist the rebels in their war against Assad. Russia, in the meantime, has continued to insist that the Syrian conflict is an internal matter and that outside forces must not interfere. CHEMICAL WEAPONS It has been known for many years that Syria possesses a large stockpile of chemical and biological weapons. President Obama has warned Assad against using those weapons in the Syrian conflict. He has stated this would be a red line for the US. Assad has stated that he would never use these weapons against his own people, but would feel free to use them if external forces invaded Syria. Around the first of December, satellite reports indicated that the Syrian government had begun the process of activating its chemical weapons. It appeared this was happening because Assad’s hold on power was slipping from his grasp. Again, the US warned that the use of these weapons against the people of Syria was a red line that Assad should not cross. As the conflict increased in intensity, Turkey requested that NATO move anti-missile defenses into Turkey along its Syrian border. NATO moved quickly to fulfill this request. General Hassan Firouzabadi, the Iranian armed forces chief, said the planned deployment of NATO Patriot missiles along Turkey’s border with Syria “could lead to a world war.” Firouzabadi said Iran wanted its neighbor Turkey to feel secure but called for NATO not to deploy the Patriots in its easternmost member state, which also borders Iran. “Each one of these Patriots is a black mark on the world map, and is meant to cause a world war,” he said. “They are making plans for a world war, and this is very dangerous for the future of humanity and for the future of Europe itself.” Firouzabaki’s remarks were accentuated a few days later when it became known that Russia had sent a doze