In a unanimous decision no less breathtaking for being somewhat expected, the United Nations Security Council has approved military action against President Muammar Gaddafi, embattled dictator of the North African nation of Libya. Canada’s National Post reported Thursday evening that forces are being deployed for airstrikes and “necessary” actions—anything short of an occupation force. These forces reportedly will include contributions from the USA, Britain, France, Canada and possibly a number of Arab nations considered Western-friendly.
Airstrikes against Gaddafi’s forces were authorized to begin immediately after the United Nations Security Council narrowly approved a resolution late Thursday stating “all necessary measures” can be taken to protect Libyan civilians — short of a military occupation of the country.
The United States, Britain and France — backed by Arab countries — succeeded in pushing through the measure as key veto-bearing council members Russia and China abstained.
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/Canada+expected+pledge+jets+Libya+zone/4460003/story.html
The decision comes as Libyan opposition is holed up in the city of Benghazi, besieged by pro-Gaddafi forces. Some are saying the decision comes too late as columns of Gadaffi’s tanks have been seen rolling toward Benghazi. Though even a week ago it seemed like with just a little push, Gadaffi’s regime could fall, the tide seems to have turned: a UN or NATO military presence could be in for more than they bargained for—fighting to extract a powerfully entrenched dictator from a country that presents no serious, remaining threat to his rule. Echoes of Afghanistan and Iraq. No wonder Russia and Germany refuse to get involved.
How exactly, if at all, these events play into the end-times predictions in the Bible is as yet unclear. It’s just too early to tell.
As far as I can discern, the most relevant biblical prophecy is the passage in Daniel 11:40-45. I’ve blogged recently on this passage of Scripture, helping to shed some light on the identities of the “King of the North”, the “King of the South” and the “he” and “him” mentioned in these verses. Several weeks ago I coined the term “eMageddon” to refer to these events—the wave of popular uprisings organized by social networking tools like Twitter and FaceBook that has swept across the Middle East, and continues still, toppling long-term Arab dictators in its wake. To make it easier to track related events I registered the domain, “www.eMageddon.net” which takes visitors to related blog posts on ProphecyBlog.net. Also search the hashtag, #eMageddon on Twitter.
I really don’t know whether these events will culminate in what biblical scholars call “Armageddon”—the Ezekiel 38 invasion and attack against Israel. But nevertheless, it bears keeping in mind and watching events closely to see how the nation of Israel become involved… and how Russia in particular responds.