Global SITREP A10-25: Operation Gideon's Chariots

One of several massive Israeli strikes in Gaza, this one in Jabaliya.

UPDATED 16 May 2025: This SITREP begins essentially as a continuation of the last segment of SITREP A9-25, "Israel's Military Conquest of Gaza," and nomenclatured as "Operation Gideon's Chariots" by the IDF. As noted, this Operation might have had a preemption during this past week (12-16 May) had the Gaza terrorists of HAMAS and the PIJ made significant moves toward releasing all remaining hostages (dead or alive). This did not take place during the stipulated 'Window of Opportunity" during the American president's visits to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.

Israel is seven hours ahead of the US meaning that the Israeli Cabinet-approved Operation Gideon's Chariots commenced several hours ago with massive airstrikes all across Gaza in preparation for the IDF introduction of massive armor and infantry movement into the enclave. The objective is to capture and occupy completely the whole of Gaza and eliminate all terrorists within it. As you might expect this operation entails a long-term plan and IDF presence in Gaza. This will not be a typical "in and out" IDF operation. This is a military conquest in the truest sense of the word.

IRAN 

Also as noted in SITREP A9-25, this past week was Iran's final opportunity to secure a nuclear agreement with the United States. As President Trump departed the UAE he spoke to this, telling assembled media: 

"Iran has an American offer regarding the nuclear program and needs to move fast or something bad will happen."

The obvious question here is, how fast? Perhaps as fast as it takes for Trump to return to the White House Situation Room. Clock ticking.

21 May 2025: The IDF Operation Gideon's Chariots continues apace with more than one hundred fifteen targets in Gaza struck in the past 24 hours. IDF naval and ground forces are press their assaults against terrorists above and below ground level with hundreds of the enemy killed in action. Thus far the IDF has sectioned Gaza into several distinct parcels of land and creating buffers between each of them to preempt any possibility of terrorist enemy force's ability to reinforce and/or rally. At the Kerem Shalom Crossing into Gaza IDF reservists and civilian activists blocked access for aid trucks to enter the strip, vowing to halt aid shipments while HAMAS and PIJ hostages continue to be held in squalor and depraved conditions. IDF CoS MG Eyal Zamir revealed yesterday that a new phase of this operation is just beginning that will showcase increased firepower, maneuver combat that will clear and destroy all infrastructure and opposition encountered.

Most astute observers are noting that the prospect of continued US-Iran nuclear talks progressing are all but exhausted leading to some global media reports suggesting that a unilateral Israeli operation to strike Iranian nuclear sites may be imminent. The Iranian Twelver regime opines that these reports are simply psychological operations (PSYOPS) intended to frighten them. Whatever the case may be, the fact of the matter is that President Trump's 60-day ultimatum for successful negotiations "or bad things will happen" expired several days ago. The ultimatum was no bluff and certain member of the regime's elite in Tehran understand this implicitly. This has created internal division with some expressing the view that the regime's days are finitely numbered due to kinetic external threats and internal rebellion.

UPDATE 30 May 2025: Eschatology Today has had issues with the actions of President Trump during his recent Middle East trip, in particular the catering to the interests of Islamic nations, Sunni and Shi'a, on the Arabian Gulf. These issues were overcome due to the strong conviction that the LORD God has put our president in a position of power in the furtherance of His sovereign will in these 'last days.' However, in recent days the underlying and extremely secular rationale behind the Trump Administration's agenda has become quite transparent and explicit with respect to Syria which is now led by the supposedly reformed Al Qaeda terrorist Ahmed Al-Sharaa (al-Jolani). 

As recently noted in the comments section of this SITREP, the current U.S. intelligence assessment is that the Syrian "transitional government" is in a precarious situation given the existential pressures facing it. The Alawite-Ba'athist regime of Bashar al-Assad fell earlier this year, but the military threat posed by former regime members and their foreign allies may yet result in a catastrophic, full-scale civil war and collapse of the "transitional government" in Damascus. 

Students of prophetic Scripture should understand precisely what this means as it presents the possibility of an uncontrollable civil war in Syria which involves Israel. Isaiah 17 speaks to the ruination of Damascus and the collapse of the Syrian state. Such a result need not necessarily occur due to a nuclear strike upon Damascus, but by an intense civil war that also consumes the entire country. The prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 49:23-27) also laments the destruction of Damascus. These prophecies foretell of a coming all-consuming war for Syria and great destruction inflicted upon Israel as well. 

Thus, it appears as though the Trump Administration through its overtures to Syria as it exists today may be an attempt to preempt the assessment of US intelligence agencies. Nevertheless, what the LORD God has spoken through the prophets will take place and the American administration's efforts to forestall will come to nothing. It is written!

Current military situation in Syria.

The above enlargeable map indicates former Al-Assad regime insurgent strongholds as red colored dots and elipses. The strikes in Tartus and Latakia tonight were directed at missile storage depots.

Mark of the Beast tech is here. E-Tattoo.

Global SITREP B3-23: Israel's 75th

UPDATED 23 April 2023: Israel's 75th year of its modern existence will be celebrated on Tuesday-Wednesday of this week. The following day, Thursday, April 27th, is the date sets by Israel's Coalition Government and its Security Cabinet upon which the IDF will be unrestrained from severe (read: disproportionate) responses to any and all acts of terror against Israel. This new policy will continue even at the risk of full-scale war against Israel's enemies. 

This SITREP has been posted early in anticipation of potential enemy preemptive actions while Israel commemorates its Memorial Day beginning tomorrow from sundown through Tuesday. Israel's Memorial Day honors fallen IDF soldiers and civilian victims of Islamic acts of jihad. Iran's Twelver Ayatollah has again this morning reiterated his personal threat about the imminent destruction of the State of Israel.

Syria being destroyed by 13 years of continuous warfare.

28 April 2023: Key to the Twelver clerics offensive against Israel is the Rif Dimashq governorate illustrated in the map below. This vast area of southern Syria has seen continuous Israeli air, missile and artillery strikes over the past few years. These strikes have intensified in the first four months of 2023 in a campaign to dislodge both the IRGC, its proxy militias and Hezbollah of Lebanon from their bases. These bombardments have not succeeded in their objective as yet.

Syria's Rif Dimashq Governorate, Damascus and the Golan.

North and east of the Golan Heights is the Al Quneitra governorate, mostly occupied by Israel in the Six Day War of 1967 and again in the Yom Kippur War of 1973. This part of Al Quneitra is known as the Israeli Golan Heights was formally annexed by Israel in 1981. The 1981 Israeli annexation received the approval of the U.S. Trump Administration fours years ago. To the east are the governorates of Dara'a and As Suweida, known in ancient biblical times as Bashan and referenced in last days Bible prophecy. The Rif Dimashq governorate completely surrounds the doomed city of Damascus. Even though all of Syria will cease to exist following the fulfillment of Isaiah 17, it is these highlighted regions will will bear the brunt of the coming hostilities. And to the West of Rif Dimashq is Lebanon, the critical stronghold of the Shi'a, Iran-aligned Hezbollah terrorist organization.

In the past five days, through the patient waiting for the observances in Israel to pass and the prospect of IDF action against terrorists on all sides, the Lord has led to another critical prophecy concerning the coming days which severely impacts the whole of the region. Not previously refenced on Eschatology Today, the prophecy of Zechariah 11:1-3 is as relevant as Isaiah 17, Joshua 13, Psalm 83, Isaiah 11 and Ezekiel 28. 

Elsewhere in Syria, and mostly in the skies above, are the increasingly belligerent actions of the remaining Russian Air Force contingent flying out of Hmeimim Air Base. The U.S. Air Forces CENTCOM commander, Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, has warning of the Russian AF pilots deliberately and repeatedly trying to provoke dogfight combat with US and Coalition fighter aircraft in the skies over Syria. General Grynkewich's directive to U.S. and Coalition pilots when they detect the Russian aggressive mid-air maneuvers is "don't take the bait." New rules of engagement (ROE) are almost certainly now in place and consummate with the risks present.

Therefore, the risk of a miscalculation or a direct attempt to shoot down one of our fighters over Syria increases with each sortie flown. The Russian commanders acknowledge this new reality saying that the previously agreed to deconfliction protocols no longer apply. This new reality is a direct the result of NATO's support of Ukraine and which Russia's views as a NATO war against Russia.

FINAL UPDATE 30 April 2023: For those interested, the final update to SITREP B3-23 features a clickable map of Syria as it exists today. It is hoped this map will bring home the tenuousness of the Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime and the ultimate reason for its demise as foretold in Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27. 

As the title of this map indicates, Syria as a country is a rump version of what it had been prior to 2010-11 and the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War. As we have often heard of late, a country that does not control its borders will soon cease to be a country. It is also instructive to compare this map with the map of Rif Dimashq just above. 

And make note of the internal division of the country that is the Euphrates River. The government forces control only the northern third of the west bank of the Euphrates, from Manbij to Raqqa. The remainder of the southern west bank is under the control of the IRGC and proxy Shi'a forces to Abu Kamal. The entire east bank of the Euphrates River, from the Turkish border Abu Kamal is controlled by the SDF and the U.S.-led international coalition known as Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR). 

The U.S. also has control of a vast area around the At Tanf desert town straddling the Iraqi and Jordanian borders to approximately 55 miles in to Syria. In this position the U.S. forces are in the rear areas of Iranian and Hezbollah forces, and thereby protect Israel along the Golan Heights front. At any time in full-scale conflict the OIF forces could sever the IRGC and proxy forces access to Syria and its major supply lines along the Euphrates from Baghdad, Iraq to Abu Kamal, Syria. The whole of Lebanon and western Syria would in such circumstance be Israel's for the taking, up to the west bank of the Euphrates River, just as Bible prophecy foretells.

Global SITREP E8-21: End of the Road Part III

Dimona Nuclear Complex, Israel

22 April 2021: Eschatology Today has been in the forefront in suggesting that ballistic missile fire orginating from Syria would be a primary casus belli for the fulfillment of the Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27 prophecies. This morning such an interpretation of these prophetic Scriptures took a giant leap towards becoming the reality.

In the past week the Iranians, via the Kayhan newspaper with direct linkage to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, began calling for missile strikes on the Israeli nuclear facility at Dimona, Israel in retaliation for the destruction of the Natanz uranum enrichment facility. 

Today, a Syrian missile nearly achieved this Iranian objective when a long-range Syrian 5V28-S-200 Vega-E, (NATO Name: SA-5 GAMMON) missile impacted open ground just 19 miles from the Israeli nuclear reactor complex. The Vega-E/SA-5 is a nuclear-capable surface-to-air missile (SAM) if fitted with the 25kT warhead. The missle fired today was fitted with a 480 lb. High Explosive Fragmentation (HE-F) warhead, and an alleged maximum range of 155 miles; this SA-5 flew nearly 185 miles suggesting its boosters were used for the extra range needed to strike Dimona.

Syrian 5V28-S-200 SAM

It is currently unknown why Israel's vaunted anti-missile defenses failed to engage and destroy the SA-5. Speculation would be to preempt the potential for high collateral damage in populated central Israel, or the Syrian missile was in a controlled fight profile as suggested above. Eschatology Today believes this was no accident; it was a joint operation of Iranian-Syrian military commanders as directed by the Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei.

Israel's response has been swift and powerful with the IAF striking the originating SAM site and several others throughout the country. The Israeli response most probably has not sufficiently dampened the glee in Damascus and Tehran due to the near-success of this mission which is effectively a proof-of-concept success. Be cautious of offical statements by the US and Israeli talking heads who will seek to downplay the importance and the facts of what has occurred. 

This is a very complex issue and we'll watch for valid updates.

Global SITREP B1-19: Israel's Northern Front Offensive - Part IV

NZIV.Net map of enemy forces in Golan region.

Update 13 March 2019:  At 23:00 EDT last night the IDF issued an alert regarding declassified intelligence on an enemy that would be made public in one hour.  As promised exactly at midnight my phone rang with  the declassified intel which was presented in video form by the IDF spox (LTC Jonathan). 

I'm sure that alert and video are the lead story in Israel this morning regarding Hezbollah's (Iran's) drive to establish fighting positions on the Golan from which to attack Israel. We also now have open confirmation from Israel about the recent IAF strikes on Quneitra, Hader (Khader) and Erneh on the Syrian Golan. No doubt there will be a lot more strikes coming in the days ahead, and that quickly takes us to the next SITREP. 

11 March 2019: Syria has now twice declared its intention to attack Israel and recover the Golan. The first declaration was to the U.N. three days ago and the second to the world at-large. Behind Bashar al-Assad's government pushing for this is the apocalyptic regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is but one side of the proverbial coin. 

The other side of that coin is the now persistent RUMINT (Rumor Intelligence) that the United States will recognize the Golan  as sovereign Israeli territory and do so prior to upcoming election in Israel on 9 April. It will be interesting to see if we get to the Israeli election without a major conflict erupting beforehand.

6 March 2019: As if on cue, what began as a continuous HAMAS nighttime assault against the security fence around Gaza and an ever increasing level of balloon-borne IEDs into southern Israel has transformed over the past 48 hours into a large scale engagement. The timing of this to take the focus off of the Golan has not been lost on anyone, so it is included here as part of the Psalm 83 war.

As of this evening a barrage of katyusha rockets was cut loose by HAMAS. Iron Dome intercepted them. Israel has responded with punishing airstrikes throughout Gaza from drones and fighter aircraft. Tremendous explosions make these strikes far different than the pin-pricks that have been so routine in the past several months. The new port area at Khan Younis is recieving at lot of IAF attention. IDF armor, Merkava tanks to be precise, are staring into Gaza from several locations (avenues of ingress should that order be given).

Bibi with US Army troops deployed in Israel

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Israel... The above image is of PM/DM Bibi Netanyahu posing this morning for a selfie with US Army troops deployed in Israel. The US soldiers are part of the deployment of the THAAD (Theater High Altitude Air Defense) and AN/TPY-2 system. 

This system is specifically going to counter any and all Iranian ballistic missiles fired towards Israel. None will make it as the TPY-2 can "see" an object the size of a baseball hundreds of miles away. In fact, this radar can see many baseball size objects at the same time. An Iranian ballistic missile warhead would obviously be much larger than a baseball, so you get the point, TPY-2 sees anything and everything. TPY-2 then tracks, targets and fires the THAAD interceptor(s) which intercepts the target(s) by impacting at a speed of Mach 8 and a distance of about 93 miles from Israel. THAAD is a "hit to kill" high altitude air defense system. Now you know why Bibi and the US soldiers are smiling. Ayatollah checkmated. 

3 March 2019: We begin Part IV of this series with a current Operational Intelligence (OPSINT) map from NZIV.net. This map serves as a companion to an also current ILTV report (video below) on the massing by IRGC-QF General Qassam Soleimani of Hezbollah and Iranian proxy forces on the Israeli Golan border. Solemani's intent is for these forces to invade and capture the Israeli Golan.

As you may recall, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad visited Tehran just last week for a pair of face-to-face meetings with Ayatollah Khamenei. General Soleimani accompanied al-Assad in both the public and private meetings al-Assad had with the Ayatollah. Below is the image of the private meeting attended by the three and the Arabic-Farsi interpreter. It would appear that operational orders have been issued to both Soleimani and al-Assad for the war to shortly commence upon Israel. This is the war Eschatology Today has long identified with the literal fulfillment of Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27.

Global SITREP A3-19: Israel's Northern Front Offensive

F-16I Sufa

UPDATED 21/22 January 2019: The IDF pummeled IRGC-QF forces across Syria beginning just before midnight Israel Standard Time with one of the heaviest rocket and missile barrages ever. Iran's allies in Syria were also warned to stand down unless they desired to recieve the same. Ammo dumps, command and control (C2) sites, training camps, Iranian structures at Damascus International Airport, and dozens of mobile Syrian air defenses, like the Russian-made Pantsyr and Buk, have been all but obliterated during these strikes. The Iranian targets struck were on every side of Damascus, completely encircling the city.

The Iranian buildings at Damascus International Airport destroyed tonight.
Click on this image for a much more detailed view.

One of the reasons for this action was that Israel determined it was IRGC-QF forces which fired an Iranian Ra'ad-1 surface-to-surface rocket (good read at link) at northern Israel yesterday morning. It could not go unanswered; an overwhelming response was needed to teach the Iranians a lesson. Thus, as intimated yesterday, the war against Iran in Syria has suddenly eschalated to a new and much higher level. The fulfillment of Isaiah 17 may just be in the offing as the end result of the war against Iran in Syria. One of several prophetic dominos set to topple in rapid sequence.

20 January 2019: It took all of just four days for the new IDF CoS Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi to continue the war against Iranian military entrenchment and arming of Hezbollah in Syria. Moreover, he threw a Russian ultimatum and threats concerning no more IAF attacks in Syria right back into Moscow's face. This morning, in broad daylight, at least four IAF strike aircraft attacked one or more targets in Syria. 

Apparent disinformation coming from Russian and Syrian sources claims the attack was on Damascus International Airport and it failed completely with all Israeli missiles destroyed by Pantsyr and Buk air defense systems. However, there is considerable OSINT reporting that the strike actually targeted the Iranian Hezbollah underground weapons bunkers located at al-Kiswah. Damascus Int'l and the al-Kiswah bunkers are about equidistant from central Damascus.

An hour after the airstrike Syria launched one or more rockets towards northern Israel which were promptly shot out of the sky by Israel's Iron Dome ADS. Bottom line: Lt. Gen. Kochavi has called the Russians bluff in the most forceful , broad daylight manner. In this gambit Russia wisely stood down and did not fire at the IAF strike aircraft. Israel's deterrent power is as it has always been. There was never any doubt that Israel would stand down in the face of empty Russian threats. On this blog those kinds of doubts never existed.

12 January 2019: At about 11 PM last night in southern Syria that latest strike in the war Israel has been waging against Iranian entrenchment in Syria and the arming of Hezbollah began. As before the IAFs targets were Iranian weapons storage facilities at Damascus International Airport and a Hezbollah weapons depot a few miles to the southwest at Al-Kiswah. Media disinformation that last night's strikes were unsuccessful should be ignored. They were quite successful. Also, this particular strike was assessed to be imminent 11 days ago in the 30 December update to SITREP E4-18. It is the most recent strike since the strike on the night of 25 December 2018.

Satellite Photo Reconnaissance of Damascus Int'l Strike

It is interesting to note that this strike occurred on the very same day as reports of non-essential U.S. military equipment were seen to be withdrawing from northern Syria. In this light, last nights IAF strikes could be seen as a message to Tehran, Damascus and Moscow: nothing has changed. The strike would also mesh neatly with IDF CoS Lieutenant General Gadi Eisenkot's pre-retirement interview of yesterday with the New York Times.

Key points in the information coming from LTG Gadi Eisenkot are that a January 2017 decision of the cabinet authorized him to commence a sustained series of military actions against Iran in Syria. This authorization followed Israel's intelligence assessment that IRGC-Qods Force chief Qassem Soleimani had amassed 22,000 men of an eventual 100,000-strong force in Syria. According to LTG Eisenkot this was Soleimani's greatest strategic error - he picked a fight where he did not have the forces to sustain it much less win it.

LTG Eisenkot made clear that between 2011 and 2016 "thousands" of strikes occurred and they were conducted within specific parameters, such as the targeting of Iranian arms shipments moving overland via Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. However, from his January 2017 authorization the strikes against Iranian assests in Syria have been an almost daily occurrence; the inference here is that many were not reported or attributed to actions of the waring sides in the Syrian civil war. Most recently, the general stated that in 2018 alone there were more than 2,000 ordnance strikes on Iranian targets in Syria.

LTG Eisenkot officially retires next week, but he leaves behind complete Israeli superiority in intelligence collection, combat air superiority, strong deterence and justified freedom of action, not to mention the continued full-support of the United States. This reality has forced Soleimani to transfer his troops to eastern Syria and Iraq. U.S. forces may yet directly engage Iranian forces in Iraq.

So, we still watch the ongoing real-world process for the filfillment of Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27 continue. These night-time events in Syria that we wake up to here in the U.S. will continue, and more than likely increase in severity. The incoming IDF CoS Major-General Aviv Kochavi, who will certainly will be promoted to Lieutenant General, will have the same authorization as his predecessor and will likely be able to expand the operations he leads against Iran in Syria.

Global SITREP C2-18: The Trump-Putin Summit

19 July 2019: If one ever wanted to see the Globalist elite in a full-fledged and completely unhinged tirade, all one had to do was observe their lap-dog media reaction to the Trump-Putin summit. The unhinging has been on full display 24/7 and continues to this very moment on a global scale. From their pronouncements of "low expectations" prior to the summit to the post-summit cries of "treason!" nothing could be more evident. One could get the overwhelming impression, and Eschatology Today did, that the Globalist elite want, more than anything, for a world war to erupt between the United States and the Russian Federation. However, all of the media reporting and the unhinged Globalist spokespersons tirades are pure nonsense. Absolute rubbish in fact.

An eminently more truthful assessment of what occurred in Helsinki, Finland can be found on Brietbart in a column written by Caroline Glick: Trump Was The Big Winner At Helsinki Summit. Read Caroline's thoughts for yourselves, knowing full-well that they are a very conservative albeit secular point-of-view and something most folks will find agreeable. 

More will be written on this, but the executive summary view of this blog is that what occurred in Helsinki was known to the LORD from the beginning and it changes nothing regarding what Scripture foretells. In fact, as we will soon see, it enhances the certainty of prophetic fulfillment on the scale we have been discussing here over the past ten years.

First and foremost is consideration of the Russian presence in Syria. Nevermind the Iranian and Hezbollah presence for a moment, it is a wholesale Russian military retreat from Syria which stands on the precipice of literal fulfillment. Isaiah 17:12-13 guarantees it will happen. So, one either belives what the LORD has foretold through His prophets, or one does not. It's that simple.  

Those prophecy teachers opining that Ezekiel 38/39 will come to fulfillment by being launched from Syria are engaging in a very significant interpretive error. They fail to consider fully why Gog himself and his military coalition of allies would seek to take a great spoil in a military conquest of Israel.  

Wouldn't the loss of the billions and billions of capital expenditures Russia has invested in Syria, not to mention the unrecoverable millions in military hardware sold to the current regime, and their prophesied total loss be enough of an incentive for such thoughts to arise in his evil mind once Israel is safe, living in security and fearing no external threats whatsoever? Remember, not on ly Damascus to become a heap of ruins, but Syria itself as a nation will cease to exist as well. Same is true for Iran; it has poured billions into Syria (and Lebanese Hezbollah) and will be left with nothing to show for it. The sanctions and loss of oil revenues will bite, and bite hard.

Taking a step back, we can now see clearly how the Obama Administration, with Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, made the current Russian-Iranian situation in Syria possible. Beyond the notion that the LORD works in mysterious ways, there are some things which need to be highlighted in retrospection. 

In 2009, Hillary approached Vladimir Putin and Russia with that now infamous and quite ridiculous plastic red toy "reset button." That toy reset nothing and emboldened Russia to believe that it could - without consequences - commence a military conquest of Ukrainian Crimea and southeastern Ukraine itself. Obama did absolutely nothing of substance to oppose this blatant military aggression. In fact by his actions he set the conditions for it to take place. Then barely three years later Obama doubled down on his unilateral surrender to Putin in telling Mevedev that after his election he'd have even more flexibility to surrender American military deterence thus enabling greater Russian military adventures - just like the one Putin began in Syria in 2015. 

These are the reasons why the Globalist elites reacted to the Trump-Putin Helsinki Summit they way they did. Trump stands as a strong American president, one who can literally look down into Putin's eyes with an accompanying firm handshake, and let him know that war is possible, but we would much rather see the Russian leader change course to avert such an obvious potential catastrophe. Bible prophecy tells us very point blank that it's the catastrophe which Putin and Russia will shortly opt for.

Global SITREP B4-18: Flood Warning

Image from Syrian media showing flames following an attack
on Iranian (IRGC) missle site near al-Kiswa, south of Damascus.

(UPDATE BELOW) 8 May 2018: With multiple sources indicating an imminent Iranian missile attack against Israel being launched from Syria, it was not difficult to project that Israel would launch one or more preemptive strikes. Accordngly, the first of what may become several strikes - depending on the IDF's post-strike Battle Damage Assessments (BDA) - occurred just before 4 PM EDT this afternoon at the large IRGC base at al-Kiswa. The IAF struck this same IRGC base on 2 December 2017.

The targets of todays strike were Iranian missiles and their launchers. The IAFs air-to-ground missiles clearly hit their targets as seen in the Syrian media image at the top. Once again the Israeli Air Force operated with impunity against military targets in Syria, presumably under protection of Russian air defense systems located at Khmeimim Air Base to the northwest. Below is a satellite reconnaissance image of the Al-Kiswa IRGC base taken in May of last year.

As expected the sound of crickets can be heard coming from official Israeli government and IDF spokespersons office. In Damascus the sound of massive explosions were heard; the reddish glow of fires in the night sky coming from the direction of the Al-Kiswa base located just 7.4 miles to the south were seen. Should Iranian missiles from any part of Syria or Lebanon be lauched in retaliation, Israel has previously promised a severe response will result, probably larger than the destruction of the Syrian air defense system a couple months ago.

UPDATE 10 May 2018: The Eschatology Today analysis of the full-scale war that erupted early this morning on the Golan border between Israel and Syria, when Iranian forces launched a rocket attack on IDF positions is as follows. 

This is ongoing proof that all can see that the Ezekiel 38/39 war was NOT next, and was NEVER going to be next, in the series of prophetic fulfillments that will lead to the start of Gabriel's 70th Week prophecy concerning Israel's future. The issue has been settled conclusively. 

What is occurring today reinforces the fact that God makes no mistakes; men do, and lots of them. Consider: the Prime Minister of Israel, Bibi Netanyahu, was in the capital city of prophetic Magog and standing next to President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin (Gog of Magog), during a celebratory parade just a handful of hours before this war was commenced in earnest by Persia, one of Magog's allies. PM Netanyahu almost certainly conveyed to Mr. Gog a promise of what would come down on his allies should they strike against Israel. Less than 24-hours later, that has become a promise kept.

The IAF is engaged this morning is massive air strikes on bases around Damascus which house and receive the weapons Iran is using. The damaged that has been done particularly to Iranian assets has been categorized as extremely severe. One might anticipate a no-fly zone being declared and enforced by the Israel, with the possibility of Iranian and Syrian cargo aircraft carrying war materiel contraband cargo being shot down by patrolling IAF aircraft. Further current battle damage assessments will be forthcoming.

Make no mistake, this war which is currently limited to within Syrian borders is certain to escalate; they key provisions within Isaiah 17 and Jeremiah 49:23-27 stand to be both the end game for those prophecies as well as the starting point for several others: Joshua 13:1-7, Psalm 83, Isaiah 11:12-14, Ezekiel 28:24-26. Therefore, we can reasonably expect Gaza and Arab unrest in Judea and Samaria to go well beyond any previous intifada.

UPDATE 11 MAY 2018: The Israel vs Iran war in Syria war was engaged for less than 24 hours ... so, for the time being, it's over.  It's over for now because according to the IDF's BDA there are no more worthwhile Iranian military targets to strike. Who shoots at a militarily insignificant pick-up truck with a $100,000 missile? Nobody. 

There are still IRGC-QF troops and proxy forces in Syria, but their foremost weapons were broken within within a very short period of time. That's a primary military objective - break the enemy's weapons so that he can no longer fight. A total of 70 IRGC-QF targets were engaged with 60 air-to-ground missiles from IAF strike aircraft, and 10 surface-to-surface artillery missiles. 70 weapons fired, 70 targets destroyed. Mission accomplished. 

It matters not one iota what the weapons used were by either side, this was a one-sided fight because the LORD God and the archangel Michael are standing watch over Israel, Daniel 12:1. If the bride of Christ needs a sign pointing to its soon harpazo to be with the Lord, it is the gadowl sar Michael standing watch over Israel. Why did state-of-the-art Iranian missiles fail? Michael is present. How did Israel's arrows strike each and every Iranian and Syrian target precisely to ensure iits total destruction. Michael is present.

Have the iranian Twelver clerics learned any lesson from this engagement? Will they now withdraw their disarmed forces out of Syria? No, they haven't, and no they won't. Their supreme arrogance, lofted chins and raised heads are swimming in the decepetion of a coming al-Mahdi figure if they can just create the right amount of chaos to hasten his arrival. Yeah, and Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny too. Iranian troops will remain in Syria, they will try to re-arm themselves, but it matters not, because Michael is present and the sure prophetic written Word of God will happen as it is written.  

Marana'tha!

Global SITREP C5-17: The Syrian Situation Revisited Part VII

Marjan Oil Field rig 

30 June 2017: Last entry for Part VII. Warfare for control of Quneitra resulted again in the Syrian Army deliberately sending mortar rounds into Israel. No one can be that far off in getting their mortar fire on-target. The IAF response was to immediately obliterate the Syrian mortar position.

Also, within the past 24-hours Russian propaganda media has reported that rebel forces in Daraa plan to use chemical weapons in a manner so as to blame it on the Al-Assad regime and in so doing cause retaliatory US/French air strikes on the regime. This report is an I&W that the Al-Assad regime, backed by Russia and Iran, is likely behind any such event should it actually occur in the stalemated Daraa warzone.

28 June 2017: It turns out that we caught the Syrians red-handed making Sarin at one of the Al -Sha'irat Air Base shelters not destroyed in the Tomahawk attack of two months ago. It looks as if the mixed of precursor chemicals has stopped and Syria has, for the moment at least, backed down. 

Last night, 27 June, the White House issued a warning to Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime which is identical to the expectation published here (highlighted below) one week ago. The Associated Press published and then updated the White House warning early this morning. 

The warning is based on received, actionable and highly critical intelligence that al-Assad's military was detected preparing precursor chemicals "for a possible sarin gas attack in either the east (or) south of the country." So highly critical, urgent and actionable was the received intelligence that the normal American inter-governmental channels for issuing a direct warning to the Syrian government were bypassed. The warning was direct in stating that both Bashar al-Assad and his military forces would pay a "heavy price" if the chemical attack were to occur.

There is nowhere more south in Syria than the under siege city of Dara'a, and the east of the country is hotly contested by the U.S.-led CJTF-OIR forces against approaching Iranian/Hezbollah and Syrian columns as reported here in the previous parts of this SITREP.


26 June 2017: All eyes on the Golan Heights. A major flare-up could occur here at any moment's notice. Since Saturday the IAF has destroyed a Syrian heavy machine gun bunker and two Syrian Main Battle Tanks, both costing Syrian soldiers their lives.  

20 June 2017: Two noteworthy items. First, Saudi coastal security forces caught a team of IRGC-QF terrorists red-handed in the midst of an operation to blow up several Marjan Oil Field rigs. The Saudi's apprehended one IRGC terrorist team in their explosives-laden watercraft while two other teams managed to escape back into Iranian waters. Such an attack, even though it was thwarted, is an act of war, and serves to illustrate the nearness of Jeremiah 49:34-39 to its literal fulfillment.

Second, as noted earlier in comments, Russia is seriously outgunned by the US in the ongoing showdown in Syria. Also noted in the previous SITREP was the recent forward deployment into Syria of just two U.S. HIMARS rocket artillery system vehicles. Russian squawking about this deployment of two HIMARS 6x6 vehicles illustrates how sensitive they are to their mere presence.

However, two HIMARS vehicles do not constitute an overwhelming offensive juggernaut. So why the Russian angst? Note Russia's recent ultimatum to strike U.S. air or ground assets which located west of the Euphrates River. This is precisely where the HIMARS have been deployed. So, would Russia actually launch strikes against the HIMARS to show their resolve to counter the U.S. build up and make good on their threat? If this is Putin and his generals plan they had better reconsider and recalculate their risk assessment.

For the sake of argument, let's say Russia takes them out. In the U.S. counter-strike we would in a matter of minutes, certainly within an hour's time, take out all of their expensive big boy toys toys at Hmeimim Air Base. The embarked airwing of the USS G.H.W. Bush is a mere 5 minutes away from reaching out and touching those Russian toys, even while in port Haifa, and in a manner that would leave none of them operational. Without their vaunted S300 and S400 air defense systems and an operable runway at Hmeimim Air Base the Russian mission in Syria would effectively be eliminated. Mission incomplete, mission fail. The point is that Russia is severely outgunned in Syria.

Putin feeling froggy? Think he might jump? Not if he's as smart as he thinks he is. President Trump and his senior Pentagon military planners are calling Putin's bluff. Nevertheless, miscalculations do happen and Bible prophecy indicates there may well be a near-term miscalculation in Syria.

F/A-18 Super Hornets

The Eschatology Today predicted event written about in Part V of this series has now occurred and the also predicted new phase of the war in Syria is now a fact. It took almost exactly 30 days for the prediction within the 15 May update of that SITREP to occur in the real-world:

15 May 2017: The two nuclear-armed (US and Russia) opposing armed force coalitions in Syria now appear to be engaged in operations designed to seize and hold territory. This is conventional warfare as we have known it for millennia. The real danger here is the allies with each coalition could engage each other in combat, either deliberately or by accident and particularly in southern and western Syria. In the skies overhead a free-for-all dogfight could also occur between the two sides combat aircraft. And then there's the continuing Iranian-Hezbollah drive to seize the Syrian side of the Golan. This is all stage-setting for the major conflagration this series on the Syrian Situation has been highlighting according to Bible prophecy (Isaiah 17; Jeremiah 49:23-27)

If one were to continue to read the paragraph following the above from that same update and then look at the situation that is now developing just to the north of the "cities of Aroer" of northwestern Jordan, that is, around Dara'a, Syria, and as reinforced in the recent 18 June update in Part VI of this series, one might be able to see how these events are eminently predictable through the literal interpretation of the plain text wording of Isaiah's and Jeremiah's prophetic texts:

I would speculate (actually, I expect) that the Dara'a campaign appears to be falling into an Aleppo-like grind where the Syrian regime's offensive makes no headway resulting in the use of chemical weapons by the al-Assad regime in an attempt to break the stalemate. We all should understand what will result if this does occur as Dara'a lies just 9 miles from the Jordanian border.

So, with this as the lead-in to Part VII of this series, we can hopefully have a better understanding of how these prophecies will come to their literal fulfillment. What is Bible prophecy if not God telling us well in advance what will happen in the future due to the decisions made by the opposing sides in these last days "wars and rumors of wars." 

The critical thing is, these are no longer a hazy or distant future fulfillment of prophetic texts, but fulfillment that we can see occurring now, coming with as little advance notice as a Biblical month of 30 days. We're talking in this series on Syria about literal prophetic fulfillment before it happens, not as occurs from far too many preachers pulpits where the discussion is after the fact. This is utilizing the fulfillment of Bible prophecy as testimony to the inerrant nature of the LORD God's prophetic word. If this is not a here and now witnessing tool, then none exist. 

Global SITREP B6-17: The Syrian Situation Revisited Part II

Location of Shayrat Air Base in west-central Syria

FINAL UPDATE 8 April 2017: This will be the final update for SITREP B6:17 so that it doesn't become too large. Subsequent related events in Syria, the Eastern Mediterranean or elsewhere in the Middle East will be covered in The Syrian Situation Part III SITREP.

As most are now aware the USS Porter and USS Ross launched 30 Tomahawks each. One of those cruise missiles malfunctioned and fell harmlessly into the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. As military operations go, this was a very limited, extremely precise, meticulously planned and professionally executed strike mission. This strike mission could have been a much larger operation, but in the deliberations over what the US should do the concept of proportionality was the key determining element on the scale of operation the US would execute. It was the correct option that was chosen.

The message this strike mission sent to the most hostile governments in Syria, Iran and North Korea was as precise as the strike itself. Those government's understanding of the message is another matter entirely and out of any human control. Ditto for the Russian government. Xi Jinping wears three hats: he is the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party; the President of the People's Republic of China, and the Chairman of the Central Military Commission. That this strike was prepped and ultimately occurred while Xi Jinping was dining with President Trump in the middle of their very first and extremely important summit meeting is positively astounding. The effect must have been nothing short of seismic. 

In fact, the entire world was sent the unmistakable message that the United States of America is back, and back in increasing power on the global stage; gone like the wind was the pontificating but do-nothing America of Barack Obama. And the whole world was put on notice and has taken notice - friends and foes alike. Clean-up in aisle planet earth, which is overdue as a result of the eight Obama Administration years, is happening in real-time.

I have always believed that the fulfillment of Bible prophecy is largely the Lord's omniscient forewarning about the results of the free will decisions that human governments and their leaders will make in the future. That is what I believe is occurring now and will occur in the immediate future because Bible prophecy, as with the entire Word of God, is inerrant and fulfilled as explicitly as it has been written. So it will be with Jeremiah 49:23-27 and Isaiah 17. 

7 April 2017: Less than 24 hours later and the now highlighted analysis provided below has become real-world fact: the United States of America, a nation far too many Bible scholars and teachers of last days eschatology have opined to play no-role in last days prophetic fulfillment, has just done exactly that. A few hours ago U.S. executed a key event in the ongoing fulfillment of Bible prophecy found in the books of Jeremiah and Isaiah. Action such as the United States has just undertaken in Syria are commonly known in today's parlance as a "game changer." FACT: as witnessed by innumerable individuals around the world, the United States has been a central player in the literal fulfillment of Bible prophecy since Israel's re-birth in 1948.

On the order of U.S. Commander-In-Chief Donald J. Trump the United States Navy's guided missile destroyers Porter and Ross (DDG 78 and DDG 71, respectively) launched a total of about 30 Tomahawk cruise missiles each at Bashar al-Assad's Shayrat (Ash Sha'irat) Air Base where the chemical attack of three days ago on Khan Sheikhoun was determined through all-source intelligence analysis to have originated. (Additional and graphic details HERE.) The U.S. Tomahawks began impacting the base at 3:45 AM this morning Syrian time, or approximately 6 hours prior to this posting.

October 2016 DigitalGlobe satellite image of Ash Sha-irat Air Base southeast of Homs, Syria 

A damage assessment image of Shayrat air base in Syria, following U.S. Tomahawk Land Attack Missile strikes on April 7, 2017 from the USS Ross and USS Porter, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers. DigitalGlobe/U.S. Department of Defense/AP

The forty aircraft shelters known to be at Ash Sha-irat probably each received at least one Tomahawk. So did the anti-air positions and fuel depot. Ash Sha-irat Air base is now also known to be a Syrian chemical weapons storage site. All anyone can do is hope the remaining 20 Tomahawks destroyed the chemical weapons bunkers at Ash Sha-irat Air Base, but it also should go without saying that Bashar al-Assad did not have all of his chemical weapons eggs in this one basket. Syria has now been found guilty of crimes against humanity, and its allies (Russia, Iran/Hezbollah and North Korea) are complicit in these crimes which now span from December 2012 to April 2017. The Obama Administration is now also complicit with the Russian Federation in fomenting a bald-faced lie regarding Syrian Weapons of mass Destruction. To borrow a phrase, Obama lied and Syrian children and babies died.

At approximately 01:30 hours this morning (EDT in Washington, D.C.) the Bashar al-Assad government released a statement calling the U.S. strikes on Ash Sha-irat Air Base "aggression" which had caused "losses."  Responsibility for this attack is also borne by the Russian Federation which had caused a boondoggle in the UN Security Council deliberations of yesterday due to its persistent objections in defending the al-Assad regime and threatened veto over the text of a condemning resolution. That failed diplomatic tactic convinced U.S. National Military Authority to strike immediately. 

For his part Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin released a statement through his spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying Russia regarded the American strike as "aggression against a sovereign nation" based upon a "made-up pretext." The U.S. and Russia are now locked into opposing sides of what amounts to a military confrontation on a Middle Eastern battlefield. 

Final assessment for this update: The Syrian capability to continue to use its banned chemical weapons against its enemies has only been very moderately reduced as a result of the Tomahawk strike on Ash Sha-irat Air Base, which is now a smoking pile of rubble. While the American Tomahawk strikes are currently billed as "one-off" there is little doubt that additional attacks by Al-Assad using WMD on his own people will result in fresh attacks on his military forces - who are defended by Russian military forces. 

Not to jump too far ahead of the present situation, but according to Bible prophecy, the Syrian government will be proven to have learned nothing from the lesson this strike was intended to have taught them. Bye bye Damascus; Bye bye Syria.

More updates to follow...

Map of Syria: Areas of Control, Khan Sheikhoun Sarin Attack 

6 April 2017: Instead of posting an update to Global SITREP A9-17, I've decided to post this as Part II of that SITREP, along with the understanding that this is also an near-real time update to what was being discussed in the preceding Global SITREP B5-17. In fact, it seems at this point a lot of prophetic Scripture is running together as it they were a stampede.

Firstly, the map (clickable) above illustrates the current lines and areas of control of the factions involved in the Syrian civil war as well as the location of the Sarin gas WMD attack by the government of Bashar al-Assad upon the civilians of the rebel-held city of Khan Sheikhoun. 

There are two critical things to note immediately. Some of you who've been reading Eschatology Today in the past several months are probably already aware of what will once again be stated. Based upon Jeremiah 49:23 the high probability has been repeatedly stressed of some major catastrophe occurring in northwest Syria. A weapons of mass destruction (WMD) attack involving the use of the G-series Sarin nerve agent on civilians in Khan Sheikhoun in northwest Syria definitively qualifies in the literal fulfillment of Jeremiah 49:23.

However, this is just the beginning and worse is coming down the pike. This is the second note of note of critical importance. The likelihood of U.S. military action, airstrikes or cruise missile strikes, upon one or more Syrian government airfields is a very high probability. These U.S. attacks could occur this morning or in the next day or so. Sooner rather than later in order to convey the seriousness of how the Trump Administration views the situation.

What is unknown is how Russia will respond to U.S. attacks and their level of severity upon their patron Bashar al-Assad's military infrastructure. The cratering of airfield runways and destruction of rotary-wing aircraft (helicopters) is a minimum of what U.S. air and naval forces in the region are likely to hit. Naval forces may be a key as the second half of Jeremiah 49:23 indicates:

"Hamath and Arpad are shamed,
For they have heard bad news.
They are fainthearted;
There is trouble on the sea;
It cannot be quiet."

Notice the direct tie-in of this verse to what Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 17:12-13. For sure this is another indicator of far, far worse that is yet to come. Another unknown is that when the U.S. strikes Syria will Assad, at Iranian urging then strike out at Israel? Understand this: If Bashar al-Assad (or the IRGC/Hezbollah) were to order a weapons of mass destruction chemical attack upon Israel, then have no illusions that Israel will strike back with nuclear weaponry. And here we could be witness to the literal fulfillment of both Isaiah's and Jeremiah's prophecies in real-time. 

What strikes most solidly about all this is that instead of referencing an entire chapter of the Lord's prophetic word through His prophets, it is now necessary to cite individual and pairs of verses as coming to fulfillment before our eyes.

Marana'tha