Can you talk about the news coming out of Israel this week, especially as it concerns the elections?

Well, yes, it was obviously a massive rebuke of President Trump and his Republican Party, and frankly, I don't think so much of the war itself, but of the way the war against Iran has been conducted.

And that's a strong feeling in Israel.

But of course, the main impact in Israel is how will it affect the formation of the next Israeli government? And tomorrow, Rick, on Sunday, which, of course, is the first day of the work week in Israel, as you know, the president has met with all the parties that made it into the – 11 parties that made it into the new Knesset.

They've made their recommendations.

And well over half, Rick, have endorsed Gadi Eisenkopf, the former chief of staff, Moroccan-born, a member of his – New party, Yashar Strait, that came behind the Likud by five seats in the overall vote, but the block of parties supporting it is well over 60.

Now, not all of them are Jewish parties.

Can you talk a little bit about that? Give us the history behind that.

Well, David, the top story this week, of course, the Israeli elections, because you give us the latest.

Well, basically the word is stalemate, Rick.

Neither block, as they call it, neither the right-wing Zionist block or the left-wing Zionist block, that contains the left-wing four parties, the right-wing five parties.

Neither of them had a decisive victory or even close to that.

The right-wing block is 53 seats in the Knesset.

The left-wing block, 48.

So they're close to each other.

What does that mean for the nation of Israel, especially as they're facing the specter of war with Iran? Can you talk about the idea of a caretaker government at this time?

Could you tell us what is going on in Israel right now?

Well, Rick, a lot of news as usual, but most of it centered around the overall Middle East situation and the activities in Israel's neighbors.

But the main news at the end of the week was a major terror attack.

The prime minister said they were Hamas gunmen.

There were two of them in a car.

One had an automatic rifle, the other a handgun.

They came up to a checkpoint and they were planning, according to what Israel's discovered, to go on to a nearby highway and just start shooting and killing civilian drivers and people that would have been kids and etc.

If we look at this from a prophetic standpoint, as we look at all that has happened in the 25 years since you wrote that book, can you talk a little bit about how you see things moving on a track politically, but also prophetically as well to what the Bible says is going to happen in the future?

Can you give us the latest?

Well, of course, uh, again, the regional conflict was, uh, the major theme of the week throughout.

It's fortunately not directly involving Israel with Iran at the moment, but everybody's aware that could take place at any time.

And their two proxies on Israel's borders, Hamas in the south in Gaza and, uh, Hezbollah on the north, there was action on both fronts during the week.

Uh, another senior Hamas commander was targeted by the Israelis.

He was very much involved in capturing one of the kibbutz communities down there in the October 7th attack of 2023, and another man that also was involved.

And then we had the head of the Board of Peace, who's a European diplomat, acknowledge that Hamas has been once again taking food that's, uh, coming into the strip from various donors around, uh, the country and the world, and they've been commandeering it and then selling it or taking it to their own forces, et cetera.

Can you talk about this?

Can you tell us what happened?

Well, that's right, Rick.

That was really the main focus of the week.

Wednesday, of course, was the actual Gregorian calendar, Western calendar date of the October 7th invasion and massacre.

1,200 plus people killed, mostly Israelis, and of course around 250 taken hostage and many of those not returning.

It began in the morning with a very, very somber commemoration at the Nova Festival site, Rick.

I believe you've been there.

If you could, could you help our listeners talk about how we should vote, how we should determine who to vote for, and why it is so important to vote?

Can you tell us what happened in this dramatic episode?

Well, Rick, what was meant to be a week of celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles so closely turned into a week of mourning and disaster and multiple funerals with over 110 60 Israelis on the Air Dubai jet that the co-pilot took over.

Prime Minister Netanyahu said that he didn't smuggle on a knife.

He used the emergency crash axe that all cockpits in the world have because since they put the reinforced doors after 9-11 on planes everywhere, they have to have a way to get out of the jet if it does crash and they're still alive.

So that's what he said happened.

He picked it up.

Of course, that was on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv.

And it also highlights the fact that God has a role to play for the Jewish people in the future.

Could you give us an update from this week?

Well, Rick, yes.

Really, the biggest news was the prime minister's speech and the reactions to it and the struggle with Mamdani and the president's statements, all of that.

And I'll talk about that in a second.

But sadly, we also had two serious terror attacks during the week.

The first one on Sunday, the beginning of the week.

just on the eve of Yom Kippur, a father of six in his late 30s, a French immigrant, an immigrant from France to Israel many years ago.

Don't you agree?

Dave, if you would, bring us up to date on the latest developments in the Middle East.

Well, Rick, along Israel's border with the north, Lebanon, it's been a quieter week, thankfully, than the previous month, really, when they were demolishing huge Hezbollah infrastructure.

There was some more of that that went on this week, smaller scale.

There was a couple drone attacks from Hezbollah, and there was a couple Israeli actions against them, but it was a fairly quiet week there.

In Gaza, we had two more senior Hamas troops military leaders targeted by the IDF during the week, eliminated during the week.

And again, the Army leaders made clear that they will eliminate any leader that they know took part in the October 7th massacre nearly three years ago, now at the end of the High Holy Days in 2023.

We also had, Rick, a big controversy regarding We had a minister in the Palestinian Authority, a former minister.

If you could talk to us a little bit about those experiences, how important Yom Kippur is, and maybe even a prophetic perspective on Yom Kippur.

Well, David, let's talk about the news coming out of Israel, especially their interaction with the Iranian proxy Hezbollah.

Yes, Rick.

Really, all of the news this week is connected in one way or another to Iran.

In Lebanon, in South Lebanon, the IDF announced on Thursday they had completed destroying all of the underground bunkers, several miles worth of underground bunkers, Rick, on the Beaufort Castle Ridge and just in front of it.

And that was a major development.

But as I mentioned last week, we found out there were some Iranian Revolutionary Guards actually stationed there with the Hezbollah fighters that were planning attacks upon northern Israel.

And during the week again, Iran warned that Israel could be subject to another barrage of missiles.

can't

Well, David, let's start with an update out of the Middle East, especially as it relates to a renewal of the conflict between Israel and Iran.

Yes, it's been a return to active warfare this week, as everyone knows, I'm sure by now.

That, of course, began on Sunday when the U.S. spotted the Iranian regime, the Revolutionary Guards, about to fire on a rocket some mines back into the Strait of Hormuz area.

and of course aiming to shut down the increasing traffic that President Trump has been talking about, that the U.S. has been escorting out of the Gulf, up to about two-thirds of what was happening before the war began, the White House said.

And the Iranians responded in a very strong way by hitting four Arab countries nearby.

They hit a U.S. air base in Iraq.

They hit two bases in belonging to the U.S. in Jordan, won a marine base, Rick, down near the port of Aqaba on the Red Sea.

Can you tell us why that is?

Can you talk about that?

Yes, Rick, there was some fairly significant military action again this week in South Lebanon.

The IDF basically is trying to smoke out a group of 20 to 30, they estimate, Hezbollah members that are hiding in an underground bunker.

They're not hiding there.

They're trapped there, basically, because the Israelis have it surrounded.

That's right next to the Beaufort Castle that they captured earlier this year.

And on Thursday in particular, there was some heavy air activity both there and in the valley below.

Do you

Activity in Gaza this week.

Well, there was.

There were more clashes, two attempts by Hamas members to infiltrate into the Israeli areas, and they said to attack Israeli forces there.

So the IDF struck back in both cases, even though they've been very low key in their restraint, many say, in recent weeks, because, of course, the 15-point Gaza peace plan and President Trump touting and Prime Minister Netanyahu opposing part of it.

And then we had an IDF report, Rick, during the week, a sad one that the largest hospital in the Gaza Strip up in Gaza City, the basement is being used as a torture chamber, it said, by Hamas.

They're taking in any Palestinian they feel opposed them or is openly opposing them and torturing them and killing them.

Terrible story there.

Can you tell us what you know about this?

Well, David, we'll start with an update from Israel, and I know we're gonna hear about action in Gaza and Lebanon.

Well, yes.

I'll start off with Lebanon first.

We had, uh, more, uh, action there this week.

In fact, on Wednesday, we had a major Israeli operation against Hezbollah positions near the city of Tyre, right on the coast, the biblical city.

And that's the first time since the ceasefire came into effect two weeks ago that they have carried out airstrikes like that.

Of course, a strong response from Hezbollah c- condemning it and the Lebanese government.

Talk about your relationship with our dad, his legacy, and just the fact that he made it his mission for people to understand Bible prophecy, and not only that, to use current events to help us to understand where we are in God's timeline, remembering Dr. Jimmy DeYoung.

What's the latest coming out of Israel this week?

Well, the focus was once again in Israel on its northern neighbor, Lebanon.

On Wednesday, we had two IDF soldiers killed in a hidden bomb explosion in a home that was being used by Hezbollah, had been used by it to store weapons, etc.

And there was a group in there.

Two were killed.

That's the first death since the ceasefire went into effect in June, Rick.

Four others were seriously wounded, four other soldiers.

And David, this is a very concerning move that we have seen from the left for sure, but also from the right, people being very anti-Semitic, very anti-Israel and It's a concerning trend, and I just wanted to get your thoughts on this.

Could you give us an update on the latest?

Well, yes, of course, the Prime Minister was in, uh, Washington on Tuesday, uh, meeting with the president and of course, attending the funeral of, uh, Lindsey Graham.

And it was a pretty good meeting, everybody said.

They, they spoke for about 90 minutes.

They covered several topics.

And the Israelis afterwards said that, of course, the main topic was Iran, but that Netanyahu presented his opinions of the various possibilities of, of the war's development, but didn't advocate for any one of them and, uh, wasn't there to, as it were, put Israel's position up, but to listen more to the president and what he felt was right and what was coming.

And, uh, that was, uh, followed, of course, on, uh, Thursday by the announcement at the White House that the, uh, Board of Peace that, uh, President Trump set up, uh, to end the Gaza war and to get the release of the hostages, which thankfully did take place in the first phase, that it is back on track because it was basically sidelined, Rick, when Israel and, and the US, uh, attacked Iran last year in June, and then, of course, the follow-up this year.

Can you talk about this?

this year.

We also had the Israeli government order all bomb shelters open throughout the country, cleaned out and ready for action.

There's a question as to whether there'll be school on Sunday, if we're still at peace by then.

This, of course, comes while...

We had an announcement that the Prime Minister Netanyahu will be meeting at the White House with President Trump on Tuesday.

He's flying there on Monday and will be attending the funeral of Senator Graham, the late Senator Graham, and then meeting with the President.

Their first in-person meeting since just before the war started.

Israel will probably have to respond to this, which could be something that ignites more chaos in the region and the whole Middle Eastern region with Israel at the center of it is essentially sitting on a powder keg right now, aren't they?

Could you give us the latest from this week?

Well, of course, Rick, the main story this week was the re-escalating war with Iran between the United States and Iran.

Israel still sitting on the sidelines of that, but prepared, fully prepared to join at any second, particularly if Israel's attacked.

And on that basis, we had another warning from several Iranian leaders that they would attack Israel.

U.S. bases in Israel, they're saying, but still in Israel.

if the U.S. strikes Iranian bridges and power plants and solenization plants, etc., which is happening now.

That began on Friday, so we'll have to wait and see.

Can you tell me why that is?

Can you give us an update on what has happened this week?

Well, Rick, of course, the big news was the escalating war this week in the region.

On Thursday evening, there was an Air Force ceremony.

The prime minister and the defense minister and the chief of staff all said that the IDF is fully prepared to reenter the war at any time, at any moment, on full alert, and that this time they would reach all of Iran, the defense minister said, and nothing would be spared.

The Iranians responded on Friday by saying they would hit Israel in response to the U.S. attacks this week on 180 targets or something throughout Iran because, of course, the U.S. military is also operating out of Israel.

In fact, there are refueling tankers based at Tel Aviv at the airport there, Rick, and, of course, two air bases in the south that the U.S. has access to.

This came after Iran bombed, the regime bombed Jordan on Thursday.

Could you talk about this rise of anti-Semitism, how concerned it is to you?

What's the latest? Well, the week

ended Friday evening with some good news for a change in Israel.

It was already the Sabbath there when a signing ceremony took place in Washington, D.C., between the Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors to the U.S. with Marco Rubio at the ceremony behind them, standing behind them and other officials and And, Rick, what they signed is a framework agreement for a peace treaty, basically, between the two countries.

And as I've mentioned, they had one in 1983 that Hezbollah wrecked half a year later by all of its violence and attacks on U.S. forces and different things.

So they're trying to start that back up again and get a full treaty.

But what this agreement says is that there will be two pilot areas set up, one north of the Latani River, and one south of it, both where IDF forces are stationed.

They'll pull out of those areas, and the Lebanese army will immediately come in, and Israel will clean those areas, if you will, of Hezbollah fighters first, so there'll be no resistance that the Lebanese army has to deal with.

Does this agreement that you've talked about make them more secure? What

David, could you give us the Israeli perspective, what they think about what is going on here? Well,

Rick, I'll just start by quoting a BBC correspondent in Jerusalem this morning who said she has talked to dozens of people on the street and government officials and read the papers, etc.

She said absolutely nobody supports this memorandum of understanding in Israel amongst the Israelis, the Jewish Israelis.

Now, I don't know if that's the case, but there certainly has been strong opposition expressed by members of the prime minister's own cabinet to Ben-Gavir and others more on the right.

But even some centrist Likud members have condemned parts of it.

And the press has been running headlines that I've been reading, you've been reading for the last few days that Iran basically has won.

In fact, that was the headline in the Ynet website yesterday that Iran has won.

Can you talk about that?

Can you give us an update now? What's the latest?

Well, of course, Rick, it's deja vu all over again because for about the third or fourth weekend in the last two months, We have President Trump saying at the White House on a Thursday or Friday that a peace deal is about to be signed, that the final details are coming.

This, of course, is just a framework agreement.

It's not really a peace deal, but just what they will discuss afterwards.

But it would mean the opening of the Straits of Hormuz and et cetera.

And we're getting different versions of what's in it, so we don't know yet.

But the Israelis are watching and waiting.

Can you talk a little bit about their role in the Middle East right now?