GNITN - Special Edition

Israel At War – Day 459

Iran In The Crosshairs

A Fourth Time

Incoming president Donald Trump held a press conference today and in it he and his incoming Middle East envoy discussed the hostage talks among other things. We learn about it in a report from The Jerusalem Post:

President-elect Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said on Tuesday that he thinks the hostage talks are significantly progressing at a Trump press conference in Palm Beach, Florida.

"Well, I think we're making a lot of progress, and I don't want to say too much because I think they're doing a really good job back in Doha," Witkoff said at a Trump press conference in Palm Beach, Florida.

Witkoff seemed to think a deal can be reached before the inauguration:

He added that he hopes to have good things to report about the Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza by the time Trump is sworn in as president on January 20.

"I think that we've had some really great progress, and I'm really hopeful that by the inaugural, we'll have some good things to announce on behalf of the president," he said.

Witkoff said that he if did not travel back to Doha on Tuesday night, he would head there on Wednesday night.

He and the current envoy are working together, which makes sense:

"Biden's envoy Brett McGurk and Witkoff talk regularly and the discussions are constructive," a US official told The Jerusalem Post. "These conversations are appropriate given the stakes and are what the American people should expect to be happening. We share the common aim to get the hostages out."

Trump then dropped the same truth bombs for another time when it comes to the hostages:

"If the hostages are not back by the time I'm in office, all hell will break out in the Middle East, and it will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good, frankly, for anyone," Trump previously said of the Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas during the terror group's October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel.

Trump, when asked about this warning on the Hugh Hewitt Podcast on Monday, responded, "That is exactly what I meant. If the hostages are not released by the time I take office, there will be hell—no ‘don’t,’ there will be hell. They need to be released now."

The president-elect’s “don’t” allusion was a swipe at Joe Biden’s comments on 10/10/23.

While Trump certainly wants the hostages back, but also wants the overall war to end, too:

Trump reportedly also wants the deal to make progress toward resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to sources familiar with his thinking.

If Trump gets his way, the whole region will stabilize. We shall see what he lets Israel do unlike the outgoing administration which constantly limited them. How much leeway Israel gets isn’t fully known.

A Strike On Iran

According to an article from The Times Of Israel President Trump is open to an attack on Iran’s nuclear sites:

Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer reportedly left a November meeting with Donald Trump believing the US president-elect will either support an Israeli military strike against Iranian nuclear facilities or direct a US strike on those sites himself.

The revelation was reported Monday in the Axios news site, which cited two sources who spoke to Dermer — a close confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — after the meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

According to the article, Israel isn’t going to wait until Trump takes office and Biden is ok with that:

The report said that Israel is seriously considering a strike of its own and that outgoing US President Joe Biden’s aides have also urged him to carry out a US strike before Trump takes office. No active conversations about such a strike are still being held at the White House, Axios clarified.

Dermer however is coming back to DC to meet with aides from Biden and Trump:

Dermer is reportedly slated to travel back to Washington this week for meetings with Biden and Trump aides.

A third option may be on the table from Trump:

Despite the increased speculation regarding a potential strike on Iran, Axios cited other unnamed individuals close to Trump who believe he will attempt to secure a new nuclear deal with Tehran before pursuing military options.

Predictably, Iran would love to extend talks for a new nuclear deal so they can avoid the attacks and presumably recover from Israel’s last attacks that crippled them:

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview last week that his country is ready to restart nuclear talks with the US.

At the news conference in Mar-a-Lago, Trump said a US war against Iran could also happen:

Asked about the possibility of war with Iran, in a November interview with Time magazine, Trump responded, “Anything can happen… It’s a very volatile situation.”

And that is classic Trump. Tease Iran with US strikes to let them know he means business. Iran however also played the war card while also saying they’re open to a new deal as long as Israel doesn’t get out of line:

“We are fully prepared for the possibility of further Israeli attacks,” Araghchi said to China’s state-run CCTV, according to a translation provided by the broadcaster. “I hope Israel will refrain from taking such reckless action, as it could lead to a large-scale war.”

In contrast to bombastic rhetoric often utilized by Tehran to threaten Israel, however, Araghchi said Iran would pursue a “diplomatic approach” and would consult with allies, including China.

Ah, the Chinese card is also in play. Folks, China has had their fingers all over the military arms with Iran and their proxies especially with the Houthis rebels in Yemen. As complex as this situation is, God can easily intervene and simplify things. And we should pray for Him to do exactly that.