Quote: "Ultimately, like many Palestinians, Umm Ali blames the "nakba" -- the disaster of Israel's birth -- in 1948 and the "naksa", or setback of the 1967 war, for her hardships: "Of course, it is all because of our displacement."

Reuters also decries Israel's desire to preserve a Jewish majority in its homeland rejecting any thought of Palestinian "right of return", while refusing to mention the expulsion of Jews from East Jerusalem during the War of Independence and the destruction of some 13 synagogues in the city by Jordanian forces. In the article, another Palestinian recalls how he had "high hopes" that Israel would be wiped off the map on June 5th 1967, and his despair when their efforts failed. 

Quote: "Another man, declining to give a name, recalled the high hopes on the eve of war as Egypt, Jordan and Syria, backed by Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Algeria, took on Israel. "They told us not to fight because they had seven armies," he said. "But they were defeated like butterflies."

The following link was sent to me by my friends Darrel and Denese. As the world mourns the Israeli victory of 1967, Arab nations are once again facing the biggest storm to hit the region in sixty years. This time it's not another "nakba". Tropical Cyclone Gonu hit the Gulf state of Oman today, bringing heavy rains and strong tides along with the threat of severe flooding. During the Six Day War, Egypt halted Israeli shipping passing through the Straits of Tiran, threatening the collapse of the Israeli economy. Now on the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War, the biggest Cyclone to hit the Arabian Peninsula in 60 years is bearing down on the Middle East, disrupting shipping for a second day and sending oil prices higher. Tens of thousands of people in Oman have been evacuated from their homes, and thousands more are being evacuated in southern Iran. Schools have been designated as emergency shelters, and the airport is closed. Residents in the capital Muscat have been advised to stay in their homes.

Quote: "Oil prices rose amid forecasts that the strongest storm to threaten the Arabian Peninsula in 60 years was barrelling toward Iran. As heavy rains lashed coastal areas, authorities closed all operations at the port of Sohar and evacuated the 11,000 workers, port spokesman Dirk Jan De Vink said. Sohar's oil refinery and petrochemical plant remained running at very low levels, with authorities considering a total shutdown, he said. De Vink said he and the other beachfront residents of the city of 60,000 were leaving their homes, all threatened by rising tides and large waves pushed by the approaching storm. "These people know the force of the sea and they're doing the right thing," he said. "Most of them are leaving or have already left."

This storm reminds me of Hurricane Katrina, the most destructive storm to ever hit the United States. Hundreds of thousands of people were forced to flee New Orleans, and many thousands lost their lives as a result. It occurred shortly after Israel's disengagement from Gaza, and was perceived by many to be a divine judgement on the US for its part in the division of God's land. As we are now in the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War, and the 59th anniversary of the birth of Israel - with the biggest storm hitting the Arabian Peninsula in 60 years, perhaps God is reminding Arab nations of their harsh treatment of His people Israel, and what to expect if they continue down this path.

Isaiah 2:4 
And he (Christ) shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.