Thousands Sing, Pray And Rally For Israel In Netherlands
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
THE HAGUE (Worthy News) – Thousands of Israel-supporting Christians have gathered in recent weeks near the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Dutch city of The Hague, where Israel has been charged with genocide.
Since Sunday, tens of thousands of people already viewed a worship gathering published on video sharing site YouTube showing believers braving the Dutch winter cold to pray and sing, including in Hebrew, for Israel. “Gadol Elohai,” meaning “How great is our God,” reverberated throughout the streets near the ICJ building.
“Shiru ki gadol Elohak” or “Sing with me how great is our God,” sang performers of Netherlands-based Presence Ministries, which is “committed to praying and worshipping Jesus,” also known as Yeshua, “in public places and on city squares.”
Jacob Keegstra, the Dutch chairman of the Jerusalem-based International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ), told participants that he met many of those murdered on October 7 in Israel by Hamas. “At the beginning of October, we gathered with over 3,000 Christians from over 100 Nations at the Feast of Tabernacles in Israel. And on October 5, we went with a thousand people to the kibbutz at the border [near Gaza ] and met the mayor of that area, and we had lunch with many because it was the Feast of Tabernacles,” he recalled.
However, “exactly two days later, 1,200 people, including many we met at a big dinner table, were murdered,” Keegstra said. He noticed that Hamas, condemned as a Palestinian terrorist organization by Israel and most of its allies, had also “tortured, hanged and burned” victims, referring to footage and other evidence that emerged from the scene.
Keegstra stressed that Hamas fighters were inspired by the same evil spirit that motivated the Amalekites, a nomadic tribe, to attack the people of Israel as described in the Old Testament of the Bible and the Torah.
ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
However, as believers in Christ Jesus, “we’re standing here as a royal priesthood in front of the [Peace] Palace [where the ICJ is based] to take our position. We are not fighting against flesh and blood but against principalities and power in high places,” he added. “God is still on the throne as He was with Moses,” who led the people of Israel out of Egypt to near the Promised Land, Keegstra said.
Keegstra and the Christians gathering here then prayed for Israel at a time when “we see that anti-Semitism is rising.”
A Jewish Holocaust survivor told Worthy News she is increasingly concerned about the plight of Jewish people in the Netherlands. She also expressed concerns about Jews in her city of Amsterdam, where Jewish schools were closed amid the bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas fighters.
The decision was reportedly taken out of fear of attacks against pupils and teachers.
Within the Dutch Jewish community, there are fears of incidents after Hamas called for protests across the Muslim world, said the Dutch Center for Information and Documentation Israel.
The Center and the Netherlands-based Christenen voor Israel (Christians for Israel) organization organized a massive rally in The Hague this month to support Israel in its legal battle against genocide charges.
ICJ GENOCIDE
The ICJ genocide case brought by South Africa has added to concerns that it will lead to more anti-Israel protests, whatever the outcome.
South Africa has condemned Israel’s attacks against Hamas targets in Gaza as the Hamas-run health ministry claims more than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed, though those figures have been complex to verify.
Israel says Hamas is using civilians as human shields, adding to the death toll. Pro-Israel demonstrators agree. “We are shocked about the bizarre allegations made by South Africa. They say Israel commits genocide. But if Israel wouldn’t act, they would be wiped out of the map,” argued Frank van Oordt, who helped organize the January 11 rally of Christians for Israel.
It wasn’t easy to express support for Israel’s position, as police slowed down the procession due to pro-Palestine protesters.
“I told police that the pace [of the walk towards the ICJ Peace Palace] should be set by ourselves and not by anti-Israel figures who refuse to accept police authority,” said chief rabbi Binyomin Jacobs.
Yet at the separate worship event in The Hague, Christians urged the people of Israel and anyone else watching them to trust Christ Jesus, also known as Yeshua Hamashiach. “Because He Lives, I can face tomorrow,” they sang.