MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

Revelation 13:4, “And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, ‘Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?’”

By Soeren Kern, Gatestone Institute – “The threat to Europe and the United States from Islamic terrorism is serious and growing, and new attacks with unexpected targets and timings are increasingly likely, according to two new reports that provide insights and predictions about the threats posed by al-Qaeda and other Salafi-jihadist groups.

The reports — one by the US-based RAND Corporation and another by the EU-based Europol — show that al-Qaeda and related jihadist groups are evolving, splintering and morphing, and that the number of Islamic militants, especially from Western countries, is growing apace.

Taken together, the two reports thoroughly dispute claims by members of the Obama Administration and other policymakers that al-Qaeda has been severely weakened and no longer poses a major threat to the West.

The first report, entitled, ‘A Persistent Threat: The Evolution of al-Qaeda and Other Salafi Jihadists,’ was prepared for the U.S. Defense Department and published on June 4 by the RAND Corporation, a public policy think tank based in California.

As the title implies, the report focuses on the Salafi-jihadist movement, a particular strand of militant Sunni Islamism which emphasizes the importance of returning to a ‘pure’ Islam: that of the Salaf (an Arabic term which means ‘ancestors’ or ‘predecessors’ and refers to the first three generations of Muslims, including Mohammed and his companions and followers).

Salafi-jihadist groups are actively seeking to establish an Islamic caliphate — a theocratic Muslim empire governed by Islamic sharia law — to bring about the unification of the entire Muslim world, and, according to their writings, ultimately the subjugation of the entire globe. These groups believe that violent jihad to achieve this objective is a personal religious duty for every Muslim.

The report documents how the broader Salafi-jihadist movement has become more decentralized among four tiers: 1) core al-Qaeda in Pakistan; 2) formal affiliates that have sworn allegiance to al-Qaeda; 3) Salafi-jihadist groups that have not sworn allegiance to al-Qaeda, but are committed to establishing an extremist Islamic emirate; and 4) inspired individuals and networks.

Between 2010 and 2013, the report says, the number of al-Qaeda-sympathizing Salafi-jihadist groups has increased to 49 from 31; the number of jihadist fighters has doubled to 100,000; and the number of attacks by al-Qaeda affiliates has tripled to roughly 1,000 from 392.

The most significant threat to the United States, the report warns, comes from terrorist groups operating in North Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Iraq and Syria, the location that has seen the greatest growth in the numbers of jihadist groups and militants.” Read more.

Flashback: Boston Bomber: Muslims Are Rising, ‘You Are Fighting Men Who Look Into The Barrel Of Your Gun And See Heaven’ – “‘[Muslims] are beginning to rise. … Know you are fighting men who look into the barrel of your gun and see heaven, how can you complete with that? We are promised victory and we will surely get it,’ a report says Tsarnaev wrote. ‘Tsarnaev reaffirmed his commitment to jihad and expressed hope that his actions would inspire others to engage in violent jihad …’”” Read more.

Flashback: ‘Islam Is Coming’: Jihadist Leader Warns U.S. That Foreign Fighting In Syria Could Be In America Next – “During a radio interview Sunday, a representative of al-Qaida in the Gaza Strip sent a message to the United States: ‘Islam is coming and there is no other choice.’ That sentiment was expressed by Abu Saqer, leader of Jihadiya Salafiya in the Gaza Strip, speaking on ‘Aaron Klein Investigative Radio’ on New York’s WABC Radio. Jihadiya Salafiya represents al-Qaida in the Gaza Strip. Saqer further stated that after battling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the thousands of foreign jihadists currently in Syria could turn their ire on what he called the many other ‘enemies of Islam,’ including Israel and the United States.” Read more.

Revelation 13:15, “The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.”

For peaceful purposes …

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Man Executed In Mosul

By Damien McElroy, The Telegraph – “The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham has set out a list of rules for residents of Mosul as it seeks to impose its Islamist rules on Iraq’s second city.

According to the Prophet Daniel, three “kings” will be subdued and uprooted by the final “horn” or empire of Daniel 7 that will rise up within the Islamic kingdom (Daniel 7:23-25). ISIS is now setting its eyes upon Jordan, Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and even Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. If we’re reading Daniel 11:41 correctly, however, Jordan will never be one of them …

Daniel 11:41, “He shall come into the glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: Edom and Moab and the main part of the Ammonites”

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By Khaled Abu Toameh, Gatestone Institute – “Islamist terrorists in Iraq and Syria have begun creeping toward neighboring countries, sources close to the Islamic fundamentalists revealed this week.

The terrorists, who belong to The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS — known as DAESH in Arabic] and are said to be an offshoot of al-Qaeda, are planning to take their jihad to Jordan, Lebanon, the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula — after having already captured large parts of Syria and Iraq, the sources said.

The capture this week by ISIS of the cities of Mosul and Tikrit in Iraq has left many Arabs and Muslims in the region worried that their countries soon may be targeted by the terrorists, who seek to create a radical Islamist emirate in the Middle East.

According to the sources, ISIS leader Abu Baker al-Baghdadi recently discussed with his lieutenants the possibility of extending the group’s control beyond Syria and Iraq.

One of the ideas discussed envisages focusing ISIS’s efforts on Jordan, where Islamist movements already have a significant presence. Jordan was also chosen because it has shared borders with Iraq and Syria, making it easier for the terrorists to infiltrate the kingdom.

Jordanian political analyst Oraib al-Rantawi sounded alarm bells by noting that the ISIS threat to move its fight to the kingdom was real and imminent. ‘We in Jordan cannot afford the luxury of just waiting and monitoring,’ he cautioned. ‘The danger is getting closer to our bedrooms. It has become a strategic danger; it is no longer a security threat from groups or cells. We must start thinking outside the box. The time has come to increase coordination and cooperation with the regimes in Baghdad and Damascus to contain the crawling of extremism and terrorism.’

The ISIS terrorists see Jordan’s Western-backed King Abdullah as an enemy of Islam and an infidel, and have publicly called for his execution. ISIS terrorists recently posted a video on YouTube in which they threatened to ‘slaughter’ Abdullah …” Read more.

Flashback: Muslim Brotherhood Takes Aim At Jordan … But Will They Succeed? – “Following successful campaigns in Egypt, Libya and other Middle East and North African nations, the Muslim Brotherhood now is trying to destabilize and possibly overthrow Jordan’s government, according to reports. The Saudi-owned news channel Al-Arabiya, citing leaked files, reported the embattled regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies have sought to destabilize neighboring Jordan by manipulating peaceful demonstrations there and turning them into deadly violence. The leaks came amid rising political tensions in Jordan.” Read more.

Hadith, Sahih Muslim 1:33a, “The Messenger of Allah [Mohammed] said: ‘I have been commanded to fight against people till they testify that there is no god but Allah, that Mohammad is the messenger of Allah, and they establish [Islamic] prayer …”

Qur’an Sura 4:95, “Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and receive no hurt, and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah with their goods and their persons. Allah hath granted a grade higher to those who strive and fight with their goods and persons than to those who sit (at home) …”

Qur’an Sura 9:39, “Unless ye go forth [and fight for the cause of Allah], He will punish you with a grievous penalty, and put others in your place.”

Show of Support for ISIS in Mosul, Iraq, 6/12/2014: “By Allah, we embarked on our Jihad only to support the religion of Allah. [Crowd: Allah Akbar!] We have defeated America and their allies. [Crowd: Allah Akbar!] Allah willing, we will establish a state ruled by the Qur’an and the Sunna. [Crowd: Allah Akbar!] All of you honorable Muslims are the soldiers of the Muslim State. [Crowd: Allah Akbar!] … ” Listen to more.

“Our final destination will be Baghdad, the decisive battle will be there” says the jihadist leader. For now, perhaps. But Baghdad will not be the final destination. The final and decisive battle will be over Jerusalem …

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Zechariah 12:2-3, “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah [and] against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.”

The Globe and Mail – “Iraqi Kurds seized control of the northern oil city of Kirkuk on Thursday, while surging Sunni Islamist rebels advanced toward Baghdad, as the central government’s army abandoned its posts in a rapid collapse that has lost it control of the north.

Peshmerga fighters, the security forces of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish north, swept into Kirkuk after the army abandoned its posts there, a peshmerga spokesman said. ‘The whole of Kirkuk has fallen into the hands of peshmerga,’ said Jabbar Yawar. ‘No Iraqi army remains in Kirkuk now.’

Kurds have long dreamed of taking Kirkuk, a city with huge oil reserves just outside their autonomous region, which they regard as their historical capital. The swift move by their highly organized security forces demonstrates how this week’s sudden advance by fighters of the al-Qaeda offshoot Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has redrawn Iraq’s map.

Since Tuesday, black-clad ISIL fighters have seized Iraq’s second biggest city Mosul and Tikrit, hometown of former dictator Saddam Hussein, as well as other towns and cities north of Baghdad. They continued their lightning advance on Thursday, moving into towns just an hour’s drive from the capital.

The army of the Shiite-led government in Baghdad has essentially fled in the face of the onslaught, abandoning buildings and weapons to the fighters who aim to create a strict Sunni Caliphate on both sides of the Iraq-Syria frontier.

Security and police sources said militants now controlled parts of the small town of Udhaim, 90 kilometres north of Baghdad, after most of the army troops left their positions and withdrew toward the nearby town of Khalis.

‘We are waiting for supporting troops and we are determined not to let them take control. We are afraid that terrorists are seeking to cut the main highway that links Baghdad to the north,’ said a police officer in Udhaim.

”Our final destination will be Baghdad, the decisive battle will be there,’ that’s what their leader of the militants group kept repeating,’ a tribal figure from the town of Alam, north of Tikrit, said.” Read more.

“God help the innocents who live in any city or town controlled by the ISIS.” God help any non-Muslim who today lives in a Muslim land …

Daniel 7:7, “… and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, exceedingly strong. It had huge iron teeth; it was devouring, breaking in pieces, and trampling the residue with its feet …”

By Rick Moran, American Thinker – “The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria – the terrorist group that has seized the Iraqi city of Mosul and is now driving toward Baghdad – has now carved out a ‘nation sized’ area that ‘stretches from the eastern edge of the Syrian city of Aleppo to Fallujah in western Iraq – and now also includes the northern Iraqi city of Mosul,’ says the Washington Post. Their goal is to establish a new Caliphate – and they’re well on the way of doing so.