Week of July 16, 2024

In northern Israel, Arab and Jewish civilians go about their daily life in a new normal—infused with trauma from Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks, frequent sirens, bomb shelter visits, property damage, and physical injuries from shrapnel or strikes. While the Iron Dome (a missile defense system) may be able to intercept most hostile fire, it is impossible to stop everything.

On Tuesday, July 9, a Hezbollah rocket killed an Israeli couple who were driving back home to their children. Tragically, the rocket hit their car at the Nafah Junction on Highway 91—a mere five minutes away from their home in Kibbutz Ortal in northern Israel. The fatal strike took the lives of Nir and Noa Baranes, both aged 46, and left their three children orphaned.

Hezbollah, a terror group backed by Iran, claimed this attack was a response to the death of its member Yasser Qarnabash in Syria this same day. Syrian media reports Qarnabash died in an Israeli strike on the Damascus-Beirut highway, but Israel has not confirmed their involvement. Qarnabash was previously a bodyguard for Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah.

Please pray for the Baranes children, for all families in northern Israel who suffer from the increase of Iran-backed Hezbollah rocket fire, and for believers to be bold in their witness for Yeshua (Jesus) during these difficult days.

After issuing several rounds of evacuation warnings over the past few weeks for various parts of Gaza City, on Wednesday morning the IDF dropped a final round of leaflets calling on “everyone in Gaza City” to evacuate and head south via humanitarian corridors established by the IDF. The flyer provided a map with instructions for the safe routes to evacuate Gaza City on the Salah a-Din road or the coastal road.

Later, the IDF raided UNRWA’s headquarters in Gaza City, where they had previously found extensive Hamas tunnel infrastructure and killed or captured many jihad gunmen. In this raid, troops battled through cells of gunmen inside the UNRWA facility and discovered a renewed Hamas command center and a large cache of weapons including rockets, machine guns, mortars, explosive devices, grenades, and bomb-dropping drones. Israel’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, reports 60 percent of Hamas terrorists have been killed since last October.

Pray for the success of IDF soldiers as they 1) seek to evacuate Gazan civilians from zones where strikes or maneuvers will take place, 2) plan and conduct their targeted operations, and 3) eliminate terrorist infrastructure and jihadists. Pray for both Gazans and Israelis to find Jesus and for Hamas leaders to repent.

Almog Meir Jan, an Israeli hostage rescued last month, has filed suit against the People Media Project. This US-based non-profit oversees the Palestine Chronicle, which employed Hamas activist operative Abdallah Aljamal as a journalist, despite being aware of his terrorist connections. Aljamal published numerous articles for the Palestine Chronicle while holding Meir Jan and two other Israeli hostages in his home.

The suit alleges the defendants knowingly procured and spread Hamas propaganda to the Palestine Chronicle’s readers in the United States. By providing a journalistic platform to a known Hamas operative who held Israelis hostage in his own home, the Palestine Chronicle “aided, abetted and materially supported” Hamas. Through the lawsuit, Meir Jan seeks to hold this media outlet responsible for supporting Aljamal and Hamas itself in their acts of terrorism, including kidnapping and holding Meir himself hostage for 246 days.

Pray for truth and justice to triumph in this legal case. Pray also for all the rescued hostages to find healing and peace in Jesus; for the hostages still in captivity to receive divine strength, sustenance, hope through Immanuel; and for Messiah Yeshua to be revealed to all the families of hostages—dead or alive.

Protected by Prayer and Worship

Although terrorists were just a few yards away, the fear dissolved when Timothy* clicked on a live-streaming worship session by Israeli worship leader Emanuel Roro. As a soldier missing his weapon with no means to defend himself if attacked, Timothy utilized the power of worship and prayer to provide safety for himself and others. At his recent baptism, we rejoiced as Timothy retold the story of how Emanuel’s live stream helped him on October 7 (now known in Israel as “Black Saturday”), when terrorists invaded the Israeli town he was visiting. Timothy is being discipled by our Israeli staff.

Thank the Lord with us for using prayer and worship to protect and calm Timothy during the terrorist attacks last October. Pray for his discipleship with us, and for his testimony to reach others with the good news of Jesus’ power to save—both now and for eternity.

Looking for Answers, Finding Jesus

Last September, Ada* and her family came to Israel from Ukraine. In October, the war began, and they had many questions about God! They were alone in Israel and so scared they wanted to return to Ukraine. In December, we met and invited them to one of our events. Ada liked it so much she came with her family to the church. There she found answers, aligned herself with God, and is now preparing for baptism!

Praise God with us for Ada’s new faith! Pray for her spiritual growth, and for us as we disciple her. Pray for us as we want to help many more people like her who are looking for answers. We need your help and prayerful support. We are working on several new projects for new immigrants who have come to Israel. Our ministry vision is not only to help them as they return to their biblical homeland but, most of all, to help them spiritually return to their God!

*Names changed for privacy