Just a few days ago…

Israel seemed to have been abandoned and scorned by nearly every country on the face of the earth. The United States had no problem criticizing how the war was being prosecuted, more and more European nations were calling for an immediate ceasefire, Jordan had refused to help us in any way by allowing Gazans entrance into their borders, and the goodwill of almost everyone had evaporated into thin air, making us feel as if we were all alone.

As the news began to come in, advising that, within 48 hours, we would be attacked by Iran, then quickly adjusted to reflect a much earlier offensive, predicting an early morning attack just after midnight Saturday. It was almost impossible to keep up with the flurry of updates sent to our phones once the news broke that Iran had launched scores of drones in our direction. Of course, friends from around the world, hearing the shocking news, began to call and send messages, concerned by what they were hearing.

The news even got bleaker as we were informed that the Houthis also had launched their drones. But that wasn’t all. We finally got word that Iranian rockets were also in mid-air, making their way to our military bases and other sensitive targets.

Before long, it felt as if, this time, they were going for the jugular – attempting to overwhelm our Iron Dome System by the estimated 400-500 drones that were scheduled to enter Israeli airspace by 2 a.m. The feeling was one of doomsday proportions as we awaited what seemed like a dress rehearsal for the Armageddon we have all heard about since childhood.  

Was it finally here? Would this be the moment that Israel would be attacked on multiple fronts in the fight for her survival? And would God come through as He has always promised?

Then, something happened that changed everything.

At the same time that we were relying on our air force, our soldiers, and our readiness, in complete contrast to October 7, when we were woefully unprepared, an unpredictable and surprising development occurred that made it clear that we were not alone. 

Unexpectedly, we got help from Amman, whose jets intercepted a significant number of drones as they flew in the direction of Israel. It wasn’t just Jordan who decided to show up for the night show; the United Kingdom also stepped up to the plate by using its Royal Air Force jets to do the job. France also got into the mix, assisting with its advanced technological systems as we took out oncoming hostile aircraft.

Joining these nations in a show of solidarity, strong condemnation against Iran was voiced by President Joe Biden, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, German Ambassador to Israel Steffen Seibert, French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne, European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, European Council President Charles Michel, Spanish Minister Pedro Sanchez, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, Czech Republic Foreign Ministry, Columbia’s President Gustavo Petro, Argentina’s President Javier Milei, Paraguay’s President Santiago Pena, Chile’s Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren, and Mexico’s Foreign Ministry.  

This impressive “Who’s Who” of world leaders and nations includes a long roster of many who, only days ago, had no sympathies for Israel and could only view the conflict through the lens of needy Gazans, whose suffering they accused us of intensifying by not doing enough to meet their needs.

The distorted picture was one of Israel as the oppressor and Gazan civilians, undoubtedly embedded with many Hamas operatives, as the helpless victims.  

That onerous characterization earned us the disdain and contempt of most of the world’s countries, along with some of their citizens and institutions, such as the United Nations and the EU. We had been derided, polarized, and rejected for the vile image problem, which we could not shake, no matter what we did to prove our virtue.

🌐 48 countries that have signed a joint statement condemning Iran’s attack on Israel:

🇦🇱 Albania 🇦🇷 Argentina 🇦🇺 Australia 🇦🇹 Austria 🇧🇪 Belgium 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 🇨🇦 Canada 🇭🇷 Croatia 🇨🇾 Cyprus 🇨🇿 Czechia 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇩🇪 Germany 🇬🇷 Greece 🇭🇺 Hungary 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇮🇱 Israel 🇮🇹 Italy 🇯🇵 Japan 🇱🇻 Latvia 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇲🇹 Malta 🇲🇩 Moldova 🇲🇨 Monaco 🇲🇪 Montenegro 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇿 New Zealand 🇳🇴 Norway 🇫🇲 Micronesia 🇵🇼 Palau 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea 🇵🇱 Poland 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇰🇷 Republic of Korea 🇷🇴 Romania 🇸🇰 Slovakia 🇸🇮 Slovenia 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇦 Ukraine 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 🇺🇸 United States