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By Arlene Bridges Samuels

Since October 7, 2023, Israel has faced accusations about conducting a genocide against Gaza’s Palestinian Arabs. This apartheid accusation, which has been around for decades, includes a favorite lie: that the Jewish population is all white and oppressive. Whether you’re traveling to Israel or viewing online photos, let your eyes tell you the truth about Israel’s diverse citizenry.

A case in point is that upwards of 170,000 Ethiopian-Israelis can be found among Israel’s current population. This inspiring Ethiopian statistic reflects a singular fact: Israel is the only nation in the world that has transported black Africans to freedom instead of to slavery. Allow that fact to sink in—and pass it on, if you will.

In 1973, Israel’s Chief Sephardi Rabbi Ovadia Yosef ruled that Ethiopian Jews were, according to Jewish law, “Sons of Israel” (Bnei Israel). Facing religious persecution and oppression at home, these Africans began the perilous 2,000-mile trek to Israel in relatively small numbers—numbers that ballooned in the early 1980s with Israeli-initiated airlifts undertaken in response to the thousands of Jews dying along the way. What factors drove them to first undertake their dangerous walks through hostile territories?

Similar to all Jews, in the global diaspora Ethiopians held Judaism in their hearts. Their Judaism harkened back to their belief that the Queen of Sheba’s visit to King Solomon resulted in a son, their ancestor Menelek I. Their tradition says that King Solomon gave Menelek a Torah scroll instructing him to teach Ethiopians about biblical Judaism. You may be inclined to dismiss the story, but facts on the ground in Ethiopia prove the ancient Jewish practices in their culture called Beta (House of) Israel.

Encyclopedia Britannica affirms their Jewish Torah culture in Ethiopia. With a Bible and prayer book written in Geʿez—an ancient Semitic language of Ethiopia—they observed the Sabbath, circumcision, synagogues with priests (kohanim) of the villages, offered animal sacrifices, and kept some of the major Jewish festivals. They followed Jewish dietary laws as best they could despite generations of Ethiopian poverty and famine in that nation.

Danielle Mor, a vice president at the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), explains that Ethiopian Jews were among the most ancient Jews in exile. “They are actually believed to be from the tribe of Dan, exiled by the Babylonians.” She further observes that, living in Ethiopia’s northern rural, mountainous region, they were “cut off from the rest of the Jewish world [and] followed more ancient, biblical traditions, not the traditions of the last 2,500 years.”

Fighting famines and persecution in Ethiopia under dictator Mengistu Hail Mariam—and longing for their homeland, Israel—the Ethiopian Jews first headed north to neighboring Sudan. It was not an easy journey. Suffering from starvation, dehydration, and violence meant Ethiopians died by the thousands. Yet the group maintained its cultural determination to reach their ancestral homeland. Thousands of Ethiopians walked into Sudan. They were then housed in strained, sometimes violent conditions in refugee camps.

Israel, learning of the vast number of deaths, decided to get involved. In 1984-1985, the Ethiopian Jews’ dangerous foot journey was transformed into Israeli flights. Via Operation Moses—the first of three clandestine military undertakings—Israeli pilots airlifted an estimated 7,000 Ethiopian Jews from Sudanese refugee camps to Israel. But leaks and political pressure forced Sudan to end the lifesaving airlift prematurely, leaving many people stranded.

In 1985, the U.S. launched Operation Joshua to evacuate the Ethiopian Jews remaining and bring them to safety in Israel. Three countries cooperated in the complex covert logistics: Israel’s Mossad, the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, and Sudanese State Security. However, this enterprise, too, came to a halt when leaks about Operation Moses became public knowledge and Sudan was pressured by Arab countries to stop.

Operation Solomon, the third masterful operation, was carried out on May 24-25, 1991. Launched to airlift Jews threatened by an escalating civil war in Ethiopia, this remarkable 36-hour enterprise is considered one of the most extraordinary rescue efforts in modern history.

Thirty aircraft were utilized for Operation Solomon, including the Israeli Air Force C-130 Hercules. Seats were removed to maximize passenger capacity and plastic sheeting was laid down for improved hygiene and disease prevention. One El Al 747 airlift set a world record: 1,122 passengers—and the miracle of two babies born during the flight.

During Operation Solomon, doctors and paramedics were on hand for malnourished Ethiopians, providing water and food. A summation from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported that the operation’s execution was flawless: planes took 14,087 Ethiopian Jews from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to Israel in one weekend. Once, 25 planes were in the air simultaneously, including planes chartered from Ethiopia’s state airline.

So, when you hear cries of “apartheid in Israel,” or “genocide,” or “lack of diversity”—that’s nothing but propaganda! Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics recorded that between 1980 and 1992, Israel repatriated upwards of 44,766 Jewish Ethiopians. History books, websites, social media, and videos are replete with diverse facts and stories of Israel’s decision to airlift black Ethiopian refugees to their homeland.

In fact, Israel is alone in its dedicated, complex efforts to rescue Africans instead of enslaving them. The United States and Great Britain, for example, cannot make such claims, since their horrific slave trade lasted for several hundred years. Mercifully, both countries long ago abandoned the deadly slave trade, yet true freedom remained ahead in slow legal and activist advocacy for equality.

The Ethiopian Jews’ transition into Israel was indeed complicated and challenging for both Israelis and Ethiopians. As an example, the first years of integrating Ethiopians—who had lived in huts with no electricity—into contemporary Israeli society meant teaching them how to turn on a stove and perform other tasks required for living in a modern culture. Israelis had to make their own adjustments regarding the culture of Ethiopians. Israel, though, has made frequent transitions—receiving people making Aliyah from nations such as India, China, Mexico, and South America—each bringing their own unique cultures.

In frequent trips to Israel, I have met and talked with many wonderful, exceptional Ethiopian citizens. Among them was Shlomo Molla, former deputy speaker of Israel’s Parliament Knesset, who in 1984 arrived in Israel barefooted. Today, Ethiopians serve in the Israel Defense Forces and attend Israel’s Ono College, which champions multiculturalism and where they earn degrees for prestigious positions as attorneys and in the tech sector.

Israel’s enemies have no regard for Psalm 34:13— Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. I encourage you to put these facts in your truth-telling toolbox and pass it on as one way to oppose lies by expressing your support for Israel.

Our CBN Israel team welcomes you to join us in prayer this week: 

• Pray for those blinded by hate to open their eyes to truths about Israel’s diversity.
• Pray for lingering challenges for Ethiopians to gain added influential roles in Israel.
• Pray for Ethiopian families grieving for deceased family members among the IDF.
• Pray for all Ethiopian family members still in Ethiopia who await their Aliyah.

Arlene Bridges Samuels is the weekly feature columnist for CBN Israel since 2020. Working on the staff of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as their SE Regional Outreach Director for nine years, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as the Leadership Outreach Director part-time for their project American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel, is published at AllIsrael.com and The Jerusalem Connection, and has traveled to Israel since 1990. By invitation, she attends Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summits as part of Christian media worldwide. In 2024, Arlene and her husband Paul co-authored Mental Health Meltdown: Illuminating the Voices of Bipolar and Other Mental Illnesses. www.TheMentalHealthMeltdown.com.

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

The American bald eagle—renowned as one of the world’s most iconic birds—serves as a powerful symbol of courage and resilience. When storms brew overhead, unleashing thunder and lightning, eagles do not retreat to safety like many other birds. Instead, both males and females fly straight into the heart of the tempest.

Their extraordinary ability to harness the wind’s power propels them higher than usual, lifting them into calmer air. From this vantage point, their view is clearer, and their flight becomes smoother. Rather than evading storms, eagles confront them head-on. In much the same spirit, the responses to the recent, catastrophic Guadalupe River storm in Texas—along with Israel’s Operation Rising Lion and the United States’ Operation Midnight Hammer—vividly exemplify the resilience and strength embodied by eagles.

The aftermath of the deadly flood that began in the dark, early hours of July 4th is heartbreaking. At this writing, at least 110 people have lost their lives, and 171 remain missing.

Residents of the usually scenic Texas Hill Country are no strangers to flooding—hence the region’s reputation as “Flash Flood Alley”—but this deluge defies description. Reports indicate that the National Weather Service (NWS) issued timely warnings. Janice Dean, Fox News senior meteorologist, posted on X: “There were warnings. The NWS offices were staffed. It came overnight on a holiday weekend in a flood-prone area. A worst-case scenario in terms of timing and magnitude.”  

Yet even amid this unprecedented disaster, critics have found ways to politicize the tragedy, blaming President Trump for events beyond any human control. In a particularly egregious example, Texas pediatrician Dr. Christina Propst posted a cruel remark claiming that flood victims, including children, were Trump supporters who got “what they voted for.” After immense backlash, Blue Fish Pediatrics in Houston rightly terminated her employment. When a pediatric physician expresses such hatred toward children, it underscores how damaging political agendas can become when they eclipse basic compassion.

Despite the politicization of this heartrending disaster, countless workers and volunteers—like eagles flying into the storm—are placing themselves in hazardous areas to help those in need. With support from Texas National Guard helicopters and U.S. Coast Guard airlifts, volunteers have responded in an inspiring outpouring of compassion. The world is witnessing Americans aiding one another on rescue missions large and small, with teams trekking through rough terrain to deliver help wherever possible. The Mountain Mules, who famously navigated treacherous mountain passes in western North Carolina to deliver supplies after Hurricane Helene, are now on the ground in Texas, leading the way once more.

Isaiah 40:31 offers a perfect prayer for everyone affected by the Texas river tragedy: But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.  

Other symbols of eagles flying into a different kind of storm are the American and Israeli pilots whose courage deserves the world’s applause.

Their successes in the storms of war are nothing short of remarkable. The U.S. and Israeli Air Forces have flown with precision into enemy territories over Iran and its proxies. Despite differing opinions about these operations’ outcomes, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been at least temporarily restrained from unleashing its campaign of terror against the wider world. The Islamic regime remains focused on its long-standing goal: re-establishing a caliphate to impose cruel Shia religious oppression.

Though the current conflict is called the Twelve Day War, Iran effectively launched hostilities in 1979 by capturing and holding U.S. Embassy staff as hostages for 444 days. After overthrowing the Persian government, the Shia ayatollahs began oppressing their own population and arming terror proxies to attack Israel. In reality, the so-called Twelve Day War could more accurately be called the Forty-Six Year War. It began in 1979—and, as history and Scripture remind us, it has not yet ended.

Since declaring its modern independence in 1948, Israel—now 77 years strong—has brought immeasurable blessings to the world through her remarkable innovation, resilience, and perseverance. God’s promise in Amos 9:15 remains clear: “I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them.” His promise is permanent, with no future exile or relocation.

Nevertheless, choosing to trust our faithful Father God is often difficult amid storms of lawlessness, antisemitism, and national disasters at home and abroad. While Israel and Middle East turmoil dominate headlines—much of it filled with distortion—the lawlessness and disinformation are not only antisemitic but also deeply anti-Christian.

Today, an estimated 340 million Christians face widespread persecution. Nigeria, known as “the world’s center of Christian martyrs,” has seen at least 52,250 Christians murdered over the past 14 years, according to the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law. Hatred against Jews continues to escalate worldwide in many forms. Since October 7, 2023, at least 17 synagogues have been targeted by arsonists, and countless acts of hatred and intimidation against the Jewish people have continued to surge.

President Trump responded swiftly, signing a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County and offering these words of support: “God bless all of the people who have gone through so much.” He plans to visit Texas as early as tomorrow (Friday), provided his arrival does not disrupt recovery efforts. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed solidarity, stating: “My wife Sara and I and all of Israel are praying for the Great State of Texas. Israel knows disaster—we’ve lived through war, fire, and flood. Dear friends, we stand with you!”

As a Christian community, we must uphold Israel in prayer and provide tangible support through trusted Christian and Jewish organizations. Let us draw inspiration from the eagle—soaring above storms—and strengthen our resolve to stand with Texas and Israel alike.

Our CBN Israel team welcomes you to join us in prayer for rescuers in Texas, that they might “soar on wings like eagles.”

Prayer Points:

• Pray for families in shock who have lost loved ones and friends.
• Pray for strength for all rescuers and compassionate providers.
• Pray for donations to meet needs of victims who have no homes.  
• Pray for the restoration of kindness among those who are hard-hearted toward Israel, Jews, and persecuted Christians.

Arlene Bridges Samuels is the weekly feature columnist for CBN Israel since 2020. Working on the staff of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as their SE Regional Outreach Director for nine years, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as the Leadership Outreach Director part-time for their project American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel, is published at AllIsrael.com and The Jerusalem Connection, and has traveled to Israel since 1990. By invitation, she attends Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summits as part of Christian media worldwide. In 2024, Arlene and her husband Paul co-authored Mental Health Meltdown: Illuminating the Voices of Bipolar and Other Mental Illnesses. www.TheMentalHealthMeltdown.com.

By Arlene Bridges Samuels

The Islamic Republic of Iran is home to some 10,000 to 15,000 Jews, who remain as the modern remnants of ancient Jews captured in Jerusalem and forcibly deported to Babylon in 587/586 B.C. While it’s not common knowledge, even now Iran’s Jewish population is the second largest in the Middle East after Israel. Also not well known is the existence of the Cyrus Cylinder, an archaeological treasure dating from the sixth century B.C. and displayed in London’s British Museum.

Discovered in Babylon (modern-day Iraq) in 1879, the clay cylinder draws a straight line from ancient Persia to Jewish people and their history with inscriptions from King Cyrus. In part, Cyrus observes in the cuneiform text, “I took up my lordly abode in the royal palace amidst rejoicing and happiness. … My vast army marched into Babylon in peace; I did not permit anyone to frighten the people.”

Scholars often call Cyrus’s decrees for the Jews the “first charter of human rights.” Cyrus, a pagan king, allowed all the people he conquered—including Jews—to keep their religions and cultures. Today, in exploring the destiny of modern Iranian Jews we find another Middle Eastern set of complicated facts and questions.

Let’s take a moment to revisit the 70-year Jewish exile in Babylon. The annals of biblical and archaeological history recount Nebuchadnezzar’s destruction of Solomon’s Temple and eventually the rise of Cyrus the Great in 539 B.C. Why is Persian King Cyrus described as “great?” Apart from his military achievements, tolerant rule, and political astuteness, God tapped this secular ruler to liberate the Jewish exiles by repatriating Jews to their homeland.

Some 50,000 exiled Jews undertook the grueling 900-mile journey to Jerusalem. Most remained behind, however, possibly because many felt they were too old, or they preferred their good lives in Cyrus’ kingdom. The prolific prophet Isaiah mentioned Cyrus by name in Isaiah 44:28 and 45:1—some 150 years before Cyrus freed and financed not only the return of the Jews but also the wherewithal to rebuild the second Temple!

Cyrus’ words are not only inscribed in the Cyrus Cylinder but also in Ezra 1:2-3 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says, ‘The LORD, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the LORD, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem, and may their God be with them.”

This link gives added historical insights: [view here].

In modern times, millennia after the human-rights King Cyrus, the Islamic Regime conquered what was called Persia in 1979 and rebranded the country with its Shia Islam. Its apocalyptic ayatollahs are bent on welcoming the so-called Twelfth Imam to rule the world in the end times, an oppressive, one-sided religious governance. Their theology is light years away from the freedom-loving historic King Cyrus.

That said, surprisingly the Jewish community has lived a somewhat unrestricted life under the Islamic Regime. With 30 synagogues, Jewish schools, youth sports, kosher butcher shops, restaurants, and a matzah factory, Jews are an official religious minority and hold one seat in the Iranian parliament. Nevertheless, with upwards of 100,000 Jews living in Iran in 1979, numerous individuals and families fled to Israel and the United States before and after the revolution in waves of mass immigration.

The continuation of comparative calm for the Jewish community is now highly questionable since the Twelve Day War started on June 13. The Iranian Jewish community’s concerns are multiplying by the day. The Regime is arresting dozens of Jews, and some are held without any outside contact. Detainees include rabbis and other Jewish leaders amid a sobering headline in Israel’s Ynet Global News: “Anyone Can Disappear.”

The Regime is focusing right now on Jews with relatives in Israel. The Persian Human Rights News Agency HRANA mentions a November 2011 law that had already restricted family ties between Israeli and Iranian Jews. The Iranian Parliament banned Iranian Jews from travel to Israel. The punishment is up to five years in prison and passport ineligibility. A leader in the Tehran Jewish Association commented anonymously, “We’ve seen limited summonses during previous crises, but the current scale is unprecedented and has raised serious concerns about the psychological and social well-being of our community.”

As the world’s largest sponsor of terror, the Islamic Regime has a track record of fostering horrific evil outside its borders. But it also holds another world record: the second-highest number of executions inside Iran, according to Amnesty International. Only China outpaces Iran in that regard. I daresay all Iranians are aware of the prisons, public hangings, and hateful cries against Israel and the United States even now—in their parliament and funerals after their recent widespread losses in weapons, nuclear sites, and leadership.

I am puzzled now about the Islamic Regime’s leaders amid their war losses. When I recall the total defeat of Japan and Germany in World War II, I have concluded that Iran’s culture is so vastly immersed in cruelty and domination that it has transitioned into more than its Shia Religion. It is a literal Religion of Evil. They will not give up. Even now.

The 2,700-year-old Jewish community is walking an incredibly fragile tightrope. Some diaspora Iranians tend to think Iran’s Jews voicing support for the Regime is a survival strategy. On the other hand, the Central Jewish Committee of Tehran states that “Judaism is a religion, not a political ideology,” adding that Iranian Jews are completely separate from the Zionist (Israel) regime.

Yasmin Shalom Mottahedeh, an Israeli who made Aliyah in the 1980s, put it this way in an interview a few years ago: “The country can never be empty of Jews. It’s a community that has survived since the Babylonian exile after the destruction of the First Temple.” Yasmin concluded, “Jews have had the opportunity to leave, but those who are there have chosen to stay for a reason.”

It is impossible for us to know or understand why every Jew did not flee Iran both leading up to and following 1979. But we do know that the Islamic Regime is a deadly one. Prayers for the Iranian Jews are necessary, as the oppressive leaders attempt to rebuild the country by murdering anyone who stands in their way, Jews and non-Jews. And the ultimate prayer: That all Iranians will rise in freedom to rebuild their beautiful Persian country.

Our CBN Israel team welcomes you to join us in prayers for Iranian Jews by reflecting on King Cyrus’ quote in Ezra 1:3—“And may their God be with them.”

Prayer Points:

• Pray the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will reveal His fullness to the Jews of Iran.
• Pray that God’s heavenly armies will surround the Iranian Jewish families with safety.
• Pray that the Islamic Regime will release the Jews they arrested back to their families.
• Pray Iranian Jews will not suffer the evils leveled against Israeli Jews on October 7, 2023. 

Arlene Bridges Samuels is the weekly feature columnist for CBN Israel since 2020. Working on the staff of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as their SE Regional Outreach Director for nine years, International Christian Embassy Jerusalem USA engaged her as the Leadership Outreach Director part-time for their project American Christian Leaders for Israel. Arlene is an author at The Blogs-Times of Israel, is published at AllIsrael.com and The Jerusalem Connection, and has traveled to Israel since 1990. By invitation, she attends Israel’s Government Press Office Christian Media Summits as part of Christian media worldwide. In 2024, Arlene and her husband Paul co-authored Mental Health Meltdown: Illuminating the Voices of Bipolar and Other Mental Illnesses. www.TheMentalHealthMeltdown.com.