Lebanon (MNN) — Hezbollah takes aim at the Golan Heights in the latest air strikes and missile exchange with Israel. Drones targeted Israeli military bases in areas they had not reached before.
This escalation moves Israel one step closer to opening war on a second front, this time with Hezbollah in the north. It wouldn’t be the first time Israel and Lebanon faced off.
“In 2006, when we had the war between Israel and Hezbollah, it was all a matter of weeks. The airport closed right away; most of the infrastructure in Lebanon was bombed. It was devastating but short,” Elie Haddad with the Arab Baptist Theological Seminary says.
“When this conflict started in October, the anticipation of whether it would grow into a full-scale war was a little bit unsettling.”
Located in the hills overlooking Beirut, ABTS is keeping its doors open despite Lebanon’s latest turmoil.
“One of the things that we’re prepared to do [is] open up our guest house and dormitories to house people that have been internally displaced,” Haddad says. “Right now, we have a few families from the south.”
Please pray for the innocent people suffering during these difficult times. Pray that the Lord comforts those who are grieving, that He calms those who are anxious, and that He protects those who are in danger.
(Photo, caption courtesy of Arab Baptist Theological Seminary)
Internet access is a deciding factor for seminary students in the coming days and weeks, but plenty of backup plans are in place.
“Right now, more than half of our students reside in Lebanon. If the internet is disrupted, it could be a big disruption for the ministry. We don’t know what that will look like. We’ll be watching, and as things develop, we will respond accordingly,” Haddad says.
“No matter what happens in Lebanon, we should be able to continue, even if we have to set up shop somewhere else temporarily, like in Turkey, Cyprus, or Jordan.”
Pray this experience will equip students to be peacemakers, no matter where in the MENA region they call home.
“Pray for peace in the region,” Haddad requests. “I do believe that war is of the devil. This is the utmost manifestation of sin and the brokenness in the world.”
Header and story images courtesy of ABTS.
