Showing posts with label Shannon Bream. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shannon Bream. Show all posts

Monday, April 25, 2016

Joel C. Rosenberg's Blog: How did my visit with Jordan’s King Abdullah come about & what did I learn about this Sunni Arab ally? My interview with Fox News.

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New post on Joel C. Rosenberg's Blog

How did my visit with Jordan’s King Abdullah come about & what did I learn about this Sunni Arab ally? My interview with Fox News.

by joelcrosenberg
(Jerusalem, Israel) -- On Sunday, I was interviewed on the Fox News Channel to discuss President Obama's latest trip to the Middle East, my recent visit to Jordan to meet with King Abdullah, the op-ed I wrote for the Jerusalem Post about that trip, and The First Hostage.
You can watch the video of the interview by clicking here. Also, here is a transcript of the conversation I had with Fox anchor Shannon Bream:
SHANNON BREAM: Germany is the last stop on President Obama's three-country tour. He began the week, of course, with a bit of a tense trip to Saudi Arabia, as that region faces numerous critical challenges.
Tucked in the midst of all the trouble is Jordan, where King Abdullah II is not only managing the influx of more than a million refugees, but also waging a constant battle against the threats from ISIS. There are growing questions about why the U.S. and -- in that region -- more Arab nations aren't stepping up to do more to help the man who has been viewed as our most faithful Sunni Arab ally.
Joel Rosenberg, best-selling author...met days ago with King Abdullah and came away with some key insights and joins us now live from Jerusalem. Welcome to you, Joel.
ROSENBERG: Great to be with you, Shannon. Shalom from Jerusalem.
BREAM: And listen, let me ask you -- you had an unbelievable amount of access, a special invitation from King Abdullah. Tell us a little bit about what you saw, and what kind of viewpoint it gives you now, on exactly what Jordan and that region is facing.
ROSENBERG: It was fascinating. King Abdullah in January was given a copy of my recent novel, The First Hostage, which is about ISIS -- the Islamic State -- trying to capture chemical weapons in Syria and launch an attack against the United States, Israel and Jordan, and even try to topple King Abdullah. A friend of his, an advisor to him, gave him the book, and he read it in just a few days. And rather than banning me from the kingdom, invited my wife and I on a five day visit. It was fascinating.
Look, King Abdullah is our most faithful Sunni Arab ally, and yet he faces enormous challenges. All of us in this region face the threat of ISIS, but Jordan, you know -- ISIS's roots run deep in Jordan. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the man who invented ISIS -- then called Al Qaeda in Iraq -- was from Jordan. So the king faces a huge challenge, but I think he is up for it. I spent time with him, having lunch with him, having dinner with him, meeting with many of his top generals. He's a Special Forces guy. He was the head of Special Forces in Jordan before he took the throne. But he needs more American, Arab and international help.
BREAM: Yeah, and we have such a delicate score of relationships across that region, as you know. You know about the visit to Saudi Arabia this week, the tensions that are there. We also have word this week that the U.S. has spent more than $8 million purchasing heavy water nuclear materials from Iran, and some people see a link there between the meetings with Saudi Arabia, the pressure regarding Iran, and now this new purchase at a time when a lot of people here still aren't sold on the overall nuke deal that we just made with them.
ROSENBERG: Yes, what is surprising almost every Sunni Arab leader in the region -- and certainly Israel, as well -- is why is the President of the United States tipping away from our historic allies -- Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf emirates, and again obviously Israel, as our most faithful ally in the entire region -- and tipping all this effort to help Iran? And not taking decisive measures to destroy ISIS once and for all? ISIS and a nuclear Iran pose existential threats to every leader, and every person, in this region, as well as to the United States. And yet the President keeps tipping -- when push comes to shove, he's going with Iran these days. This is a huge mistake. It bothers me. It bothers many in this region.
BREAM: Well, Joel, we thank you so much for giving us some insights. You've written an op-ed that gives even more about that amazing trip you had with the King. And you know how I feel about The First Hostage. I can understand why after reading it he would have invited you. It is a great read. People will be entertained, as they always are with your books, but they will learn a lot about what we're really facing, as well. Joel, thank you for joining us live from Jerusalem.
ROSENBERG: Thank you.
[NOTE: During the interview, Fox News I identified me several times as a "former advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu." While it's true that I worked as an aide to him in 2000, that was more than 15 years ago. I want viewers to be clear that I don't claim to speak for Mr. Netanyahu in any way. My views are wholly my own.]
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joelcrosenberg | April 25, 2016 at 1:11 pm | Categories: Uncategorized | URL: http://wp.me/piWZ7-4AJ

Monday, January 11, 2016

Joel C. Rosenberg's Blog: Why is ISIS trying feverishly to lure the U.S. into a ground war in Syria?

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Joel C. Rosenberg's Blog

Why is ISIS trying feverishly to lure the U.S. into a ground war in Syria? The answer lies in ancient Islamic prophecies of a place called “Dabiq.” (My interview on Fox News)

by joelcrosenberg
Dabiq-first3issues(Washington, D.C.) -- In my latest novel series -- The Third Target and The First Hostage -- the leaders of the Islamic State launch a carefully-coordinated plot to blow up an Israeli-Palestinian peace summit, capture the President of the United States, and lure the U.S. and Western alliance into a ground war in Syria.
While the books are fiction, they are based on actual ISIS strategy. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the head of ISIS, and his inner circle are, in fact, feverishly trying to draw the U.S. into a ground war in Syria.
The question is: Why? The answer lies in an obscure town in northern Syria called "Dabiq." On Fox News yesterday, I explained why Dabiq is so important to the ISIS leadership.
To watch the video, please click here. Also, here's the transcript.
FOX NEWS ANCHOR SHANNON BREAM: The fight against terror -- both home-grown and global -- is a top concern for those tuning into the President's final State of the Union address Tuesday. What is the President's strategy and how important are the exact words he uses when outlining the global terror threat? Joel Rosenberg is a best-selling author who has written extensively about the realities of the newest threat, which he calls "Apocalyptic Islam." His brand new book, The First Hostage, has just been released, and I am at the edge of my seat getting through it -- an excellent book. And you use fiction to communicate ideas that you think are important as a way of helping people learn about the threats and what's going on, but in an entertaining, fascinating way.
JOEL C. ROSENBERG: Tom Clancy did it. Vince Flynn did it. It is a good way. A lot of people don't want to read a 900 page book on Islamic theology or history. But they understand that it's real and it's urgent, and this is a way to get into the story.
BREAM: You and I have talked about the fact that al Qaeda and that threat, obviously, murderous around the globe, but this is -- you say -- ISIS to a new level. It's not simply radical. You're using the word apocalyptic, that they want to bring about the end of the world, essentially.
ROSENBERG: That's right. The Islamic State's magazine is called, Dabiq. D-A-B-I-Q. Most people have no idea what that means. It's a little town in the north of Syria. Why is that important? Because they believe, based on ancient Islamic prophecies, that the Western world -- "the forces of Rome" -- will be drawn to that spot for the second-to-last battle of all history, and that the West will lose, and the Islamic State will win, and then they head to Jerusalem. The idea is that they believe that the End of Days has come, their messiah -- known as the "Mahdi" -- will come reign over the entire world at any moment. They're driven by an Islamic eschatology that's genocidal. And that's why it's so dangerous. And yet most leaders -- including the President and our two front-runners on the Democrat and Republican side -- they don't understand it. They don't talk about it. That's a problem.
BREAM: Well, what you're saying -- what you're outlining, their whole purpose and mission -- it seems to be driven by theology, by their beliefs about the End Times. But as you mention, we have a lot of leaders who want to say, "This isn't a religious group. They are not Islamic. They've hijacked, or they're using, the religion simply as a vehicle for their violence, but it's not based on religion." But it sounds like the way that you're describing it, it's completely based on they're understanding of it.
ROSENBERG: You can decide that you don't want to want it to be based on religion, but that's what they believe. Now, we're not talking about all 1.6 billion Muslims. You know, I've got characters in here [in my novels] who are Islamic leaders, Arab leaders -- they're Muslims, they're not evil. What's evil is to have an End Times theology, that you're trying to bring about the end of the world, and you believe you need to kill every Jew, Christian, and others you would call an "infidel," to get to your Islamic global kingdom. This is what's defining ISIS. This is what's actually defining Iran's leadership -- not the people, but the leaders. The difference is that ISIS wants to build the caliphate now, so they're killing, slaughtering now, whereas Iran wants to build the pathway to nuclear weapons so when they get ready to launch the caliphate war it will be genocidal by the millions, not just the tens or hundreds of thousands.
BREAM: So how do you respond to those who say, "This sounds like crazy talk. It sounds cuckoo, all these theories and prophecies"?
ROSENBERG: Well, it is. And you have to distinguish this. Jews have an eschatology. Jews -- I'm Jewish on my father's side -- we believe the Messiah is coming at one point. Christians -- I'm an Evangelical -- believe that Jesus is coming to set up a Kingdom. The difference is the genocidal nature [of Islamic eschatology], [they're determination] to annihilate all of Israel and the United States and all infidels. So it is a crazy eschatology, End Times theology, but to ignore it, to ignore what's actually animating both the Islamic State leaders and the Iranian leaders, is incredibly dangerous. Because one of the themes in my novels -- including The First Hostage -- is, "If you misunderstand the nature and threat of evil, you risk being blindsided by it." This [novel] is about ISIS trying to capture and behead the President of the United States, as they draw us into a ground war in Syria, based on their ancient Islamic prophecies. And you have to understand your enemy if you're going to defeat them.
BREAM: Well, as with all your books, it's a great way to be entertained and informed at the same time. It is a wild ride. We wish you much success with it. Thanks for stopping in, Joel Rosenberg. Best wishes.
ROSENBERG: It's good to be with you.
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joelcrosenberg | January 11, 2016 at 1:23 pm | Categories: Uncategorized | URL:http://wp.me/piWZ7-3P6
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