South Korea Archives - Israel Rising

May 1, 2018

In a New Era of Peace, the US and Israel Can Resolve the Iran Problem

The recent summit between North Korea and South Korea was as much historic as it was surreal. After 65 years in a state of war, both leaders agreed to work together to ‘denuclearize’ the Korean peninsula, potentially heralding a ‘new era of peace’. Fortunately, it looks doubtful that a forecast by Rabbi Nachmani (23 years ago) of an end of days war initiated by North Korea will occur.

We learn from our sages that Moshe Rabbenu (Moses) was the transmitter of G‑d’s word, the Torah, which is known as truth. But, his brother Aaron HaCohen was focused on bringing peace between husband / wife, friends, nations, etc. He would even ‘bend the truth’ if it meant achieving constructive outcomes. We also learn that Avraham Avinu was known for his kindness whereas his son Yitzchak Avinu was known for strength / rigidness in following commandments. These concepts represent the different paths toward conflict resolution. While both paths were tried with the Koreas, we can optimistically assess that peace triumphed over truth and kindness over rigidity for the greater benefit of world civilization.

Conversely, tensions between Israel and Iran have risen to new heights and appear headed toward resolution via a different path. Israel has taken aggressive measures to thwart the Iranian presence in Syria. Over the weekend, Israel bombed a munitions facility in Syria, killing Iranians. Also, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu dramatically asserted earlier today that the Iranian government lied for years about its nuclear program which was not solely intended for peaceful purposes. Interestingly, it is unclear how Israel fared against the much-heralded Russian S-300 air defense system. Either Israel had a side agreement with Russia to hold back its use or Israel has developed a way to neutralize the capabilities of the system.

Iran Background

The Iranian regime can hardly be described as a flourishing democracy. The political dynamics pit a middle class who want less religious restrictions and more economic opportunity against a poorer class who are more religiously inclined. The leadership in Iran holds what amount to mock elections to give the population the illusion of democracy while the mullahs hold the power. Unfortunately, as of today, the divergent economic and religious interests in Iranian society are too wide to allow both sides to team up and overthrow the regime.

Although most people are familiar with the theocratic divide between Sunnis and Shiites, an even more relevant one is between Arabs and Persians. Deeply rooted prejudices exist as many Persians view Arabs as having a lower status in society. Iranians widely believe that their government should not spend money on Hamas or Hezbollah as they have absolutely no interest in the Arab Israeli conflict.

US – Israel Relations

President Trump was elected on a mandate to forge a new foreign policy direction away from building up other nations at the expense of US interests. During his inauguration, he stated the US would ‘seek friendship and goodwill with the nations of the world’ and ‘not seek to impose our way of life on anyone’. While the US will not initiate any kind of Iranian invasion via military force, it has strongly allied itself with Israel. The threat of annihilation to South Korea from North Korea was not acceptable and can be applied similarly. Israel should not be expected to live in fear of an Iran that intrudes towards its borders and funds terrorist groups. Regrettably, a new US administration has not swayed the mullahs attitude toward Israel or the US. Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani, who is the commander of foreign operations for Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards, even refused to open a letter from then CIA Director Mike Pompeo saying, ‘I will not take your letter nor read it and I have nothing to say to these people’.

As we approach the move of the US embassy to Jerusalem, we can conclude that President Trump has been a strong supporter of Israel. His latest moves elevating Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State and John Bolton as National Security Advisor, both very pro-Israel, reinforce this fact. While a deal maker by trade, President Trump does realize that one cannot negotiate with entities that are sworn to its destruction.

Conclusion

In summary, we have a US administration that strongly supports Israel lined up against a fanatical Iranian theocracy that does not act in the best interests of its citizens. While close monitoring of the Iranian power structure is required, there appear to be cracks in the regime. There was an unverified report over the weekend that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei may remove General Soleimani over differences between him and other commanders. Signs of a potential currency crisis have been evident in recent weeks. This would have dire consequences on the Iranian economy as further economic stress would likely cause businesses to ‘pack up and leave again’.

Generally, I do not put much thought in Israel’s security. As we know, it is a complete miracle that Israel exists as a nation. Israel has overcome insurmountable odds in numerous wars over thousands of years. There are long standing rumors that Israeli wars (of the past 70 years) are never taught at West Point. The mullahs in Iran will soon come to that realization. If the mullahs had an ounce of intelligence, they would realize what they are up against and change course. If Israel’s destruction was their true goal, their best move would be make peace with Israel and pray to Allah that the Jews forsake their G-d. Fortunately, that won’t happen any time soon.

Originally Posted in News With Chai.

March 22, 2017

North Korea, Israel, and the Light of Redemption

For several years now, I have written several posts about North and South Korea being in the Twilight Zone of our halakhic international dateline and the End of Days implications of their placement there. As Rav Levi Sa’adia Nachmani zt”l said years ago. that the Great light of Mashiach will come from the following two cryptic verses from Parshat Ha’Azinu (Devarim 32:21-22):

כא הֵם קִנְאוּנִי בְלֹא-אֵל, {ר} כִּעֲסוּנִי בְּהַבְלֵיהֶם; {ס} וַאֲנִי אַקְנִיאֵם בְּלֹא-עָם, {ר} בְּגוֹי נָבָל אַכְעִיסֵם. {ס} 21 They have roused Me to jealousy with a no-god (atheism); they have provoked Me with their vanities (nonsensical pursuits); and I will rouse them to jealousy with a non-people (the PaLeStinians who are not a nation, just an Arab collection of Squatters from Jordan and Egypt since the P(h).L.S(h). root in Hebrew means “to squat on someone else’s land” This is true in all Semitic languages by the way. The derogatory name for Ethiopian Jews in the Amharic language with the same P(h).L.S(h). root, given them by Ethiopian Xtians, was FaLaShah or Squatters in their midst.); I will provoke them with a vile nation (Tzarfat or France).
כב כִּי-אֵשׁ קָדְחָה בְאַפִּי, {ר} וַתִּיקַד עַד-שְׁאוֹל תַּחְתִּית; {ס} וַתֹּאכַל אֶרֶץ וִיבֻלָהּ, {ר} וַתְּלַהֵט מוֹסְדֵי הָרִים. {ס} 22 For a fire (a nuclear blast) is kindled in My nostril, and burneth unto the depths of the nether-world (She’ol or Seoul, South Korea), and devoureth the earth with her produce, and setteth ablaze the foundations of the mountains.

Now Rav Nachmani seemed to insinuate that the North Korean nuclear program may have been first to be used on Seoul, South Korea or against Japan or even against the American Pacific Coast, but its final target address would at least be an attempt to nuke Eretz Yisrael. So over the course of the past week we see this lo and behold, Israel had to bomb a convoy of hi tech missiles from North Korea that were being transported in Syria to Hezbollah! So if the missile and high grade fissionable uranium and plutonium technology, which is being produced in North Korea and disbursed to their Axis of Evil ally in Persia, is now being disbursed to Syria and Hezbollah, we are right now not far away from at least an attempt to actualize Rav Levi Nachmani’s nightmare scenario. These are telling moments and telling times while our Supreme Court focuses its evil efforts on the destruction of Jewish life in Yesha, the rest of the world makes no distinctions and focuses in on murdering all of us. But alas they will not succeed. G-d if overseeing this last and final ingathering of exiles which began in earnest in several stages over the last 100 years (1917, 1948, 1967, 1990-1991). The last one was predicted by the Vilna Gaon. The final push to ingather the exiles of Israel would take place 3/4 of the way through the 6th Millennium in the years 5750 and 5751 (1990- 1991) to fulfill the verse in Yeshayahu 27:13 that with the Teki’ah blast of a Great Shofar, the Lost ones in the Land of Ashur and the castaways in the Land of Egypt would come on Aliyah. Since the Lost ones in Ashur were at least in part absorbed by the Khazar tribe, the tenth son of Togarmah (the Turks), who migrated north to form their 500 year kingdom between the Black and Caspian Seas and since the Khazar kingdom did convert en masse to Judaism because of the convincing arguments of Rav Yehudah Almangari (recorded in the Kuzari by Yehudah HaLeivi), and since Khazaria was destroyed by Russia around the year 1240ce dispersing Jews northward into the Pale of Settlement in Russia and the Ukraine mixing in with Ashkenzaic Jews migrating eastward, the ingathering of Russian Jewry which began in 1990 and the ingathering of the castaways from Egypt, Ethiopian Jewry, in Operation Shlomo and Sheba in 1991 were a tremendous fulfillment of this incredible prophesy, right on schedule according to the Vilna Gaon. This ingathering began the last 250 years BEFORE Yom sheKulo Shabbat too. According to Sefer HaLeshem, that final ingathering would take a maximum of 40 years so that Techiyah HaMeitim could begin by the year 5790, 40 years after 5750.

In order to continue this post, though, we need to pause for review of the following three posts that I wrote many years ago on this blog.

1. The Koreas (Are) In the Twilight Zone from December 31, 2005
and
2. North Korea is Emerging from the Twilight Zone from September 17, 2007
and
3. The Korean Peninsula is Inching Closer to World War from March 31, 2013

Also ponder the following from the Zohar VaEira 32a:

Zohar 32a continued, after discussing how the Children of Yishmael were given merit for 1300 years, 400 years after the last Tanna, Yehudah HaNassi, wrote down the Mishneh because of the emptiness of Eretz Yisrael.

At that time, a nation from the end of the earth (halakhically determined international dateline) will be aroused against evil Rome and wage war against it for three months. Nations will gather there, and [Rome] will fall into their hands, until all the children of Edom will gather against it [that nation] from all the corners of the world. Then G‑d will be roused against them. This is the meaning of: “For G‑d has a sacrifice in Botzrah”(Yishayahu 34:6). (Botzrah is the city in Iraq controlled by the Shi’ite Arabs at the behest of neighboring Iran. This points to an endtimes alliance between the nation at the edge of the world (N. Korea) and Persia/Iran.) And afterwards, it is written: “That it might take hold of the ends of the earth…” (Job 38:13) He will destroy the descendants of Ishmael from the land, and break all the powers of [all the nations’ guardian angels] Above. There will not remain any power of any people on earth, except the power of Israel alone. This is the meaning of “G‑d is your shadow upon your right hand”. (Psalms 121:5)

Here, below, is the preceding text for the above excerpt from the Zohar from the Kabbalah On Line website from Chabad.org:

Come and see: for four hundred years (after the year 4000 when Eretz Yisrael was being emptied of Jews), the Heavenly minister of the children of Ishmael stood and begged before G‑d. He said to Him, ‘whoever is circumcised has a portion in Your name’. He (G-d) said to him, ‘it is so’. He (Yishmael’s Minister) said to Him, ‘Behold Ishmael who is circumcised. Why does he not have a portion in You like Isaac?’ He said to him, ‘It is not so, the one (Isaac) was circumcised properly and according to the full requirements, while the other was not so’ [as Ishmael does not fulfill “periyah/uncovering of a fourth layer of skin after three are removed”]. Moreover, the ones (Children of Isaac) cleave to Me as is specified on the eighth day, while the others (Children of Ishmael) are distanced from me for many days[being circumcised only at age 13]. He [Ishmael’s guardian angel] said to Him, ‘But still in all, since he is circumcised, would he not have a good reward for this?’

[R. Hiyya then says] Woe is to the time that Ishmael was born into the world and was circumcised. What did G‑d do [to appease Ishmael]? He distanced the children of Ishmael from supernal cleaving and gave them [only] a portion below in the Holy Land (for 1300 years or 26 Jubilee cycles, 100 years (or more exactly 98 years) for each year when Ishmael was circumcised) on account of their circumcision.

And in the future, the children of Ishmael are destined to rule over the Holy Land for a long time when it is empty from anything, like their circumcision which is empty and imperfect. And they will prevent the children of Israel from returning to their place until the reward for the merit of the children of Ishmael reaches completion (26 Jubilee cycles of control of Eretz Yisrael in the merit of his imperfect circumcision).

The children of Ishmael [i.e. the Arab nations] will (THEN After their 1300 year reward) cause great wars in the world and the children of Edom will gather against them and wage war against them, one on the sea (First Persian Gulf War as lead by Gog H.W. Bush, Sr.), one on the dry land (2nd Persian Gulf War as lead by Gog ben Gog W Bush, Jr.), and one near Jerusalem (to be determined). And they [the children of Edom]will rule over them [the children of Ishmael], but the Holy Land will not be given over to the children of Edom. [The children of Edom is the Christian West, for Edom is Rome (see Num. 24:19, Rashi) and Rome signifies Greece-Rome and the Roman Catholic Church, the foundations of Western Civilization]

Then, the following from above:

Originally Published in Years of Awe.

September 5, 2016

BREAKING NEWS: North Korea Fires 3 Ballistic Missiles at Japan

The South Korean military reported that North Korea fired three Rodong-type midrange missiles just after midday. The missiles landed in the Sea of Japan after reaching about 1,000 kilometers (600 miles).

The missile launch comes on the back of the G-20 summit in Beijing, China. South Korea has pleaded with China to drop its opposition to a US backed missile defense shield. The North Korean bravado has made the shield seem far more necessary. As China continues to rise in global stature, most indications are that their opposition will stay.

Despite China’s opposition, South Korea is committed to deploying the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or Thaad, missile defense system by the end of 2017.

The Iran Link

It has been known by observers for years that a secret pact between Iran and North Korea allows both to continue development separately and yet merge success together. It is clear that while Iran has pushed forward with its nuclear program, the North Koreans have worked hard at perfect ballistic missiles. Now that Iran has begun to see itself normalized within a broader international framework, continued cooperation between the Iranians and North Koreans is assured.

This cooperation not only endangers the South Koreans, but Israel as well. With neither the Iranians or North Koreans prevented from building weapons of mass destruction, both sides can work together in sowing destruction on their enemies.