One For Israel

Sagiv Assulin: They are saying, "Marg bar Amrika, Marg bar Israel." The meaning is "Death to America, Death to Israel." What are Judeo-Christian values? Why is this so important? Why is this alliance critical for Israel, for America, and for Western civilization in general?

Dr. Erez Soref: Some ask, "Why was America forced into this war in the Middle East?" Some claim Prime Minister Netanyahu convinced or dragged President Trump into this war in the Middle East. What is really happening behind the scenes? Where is this war going? Is there a spiritual source for this war?

Join us as we have a fascinating, very unique conversation with Sagiv Assulin, a former senior commander in the Israeli Mossad. Shalom, Sagiv.

Sagiv Assulin: Shalom, shalom.

Dr. Erez Soref: Thank you for taking the time. It's so good to sit together again and talk about the situation. We are 15 or 16 days into the "Lion's Roar" or "Epic Fury" war. I have a lot of questions to ask, but before just for our people to get to know you a little bit, if you don't mind, just tell us a little bit more about yourself.

Sagiv Assulin: I'm 47 years old. I retired approximately a year ago from the Mossad. I spent the last 15 years over there. Before that, like every Israeli, I served as a young military officer in the Golani unit. That's me more or less. In most of my time I was dealing with the Iranian case, and I'm very happy to be here.

Dr. Erez Soref: You were also the chairman of the Israeli National Students Association.

Sagiv Assulin: I've been, a long time ago, when I was younger and with a lot of hair.

Dr. Erez Soref: Your hair is still very impressive. There are a lot of voices in the United States, especially in the United States, all over the world, and people that call themselves evangelical Christians that say, "This is not America's war. Israel has dragged America to this war." Mr. Trump said, "No one manipulates me or drags me into anything." From a perspective that we were just talking about, what can we say to our listeners and our viewers to help them understand what's going on?

Sagiv Assulin: I can tell you the way that I see that. If someone thinks that Iran, and in a way radical Islam in general, Shia or Sunni, is only a threat to Israel, either he is very naive or he's got an agenda that he presents things in a different way because of different reasons.

To prove this point, you just need to look on Western civilization, not just America. London has fallen. Paris has fallen. Brussels, most of Europe, and New York in a way. This is not a coincidence. We see a very long, expensive, sophisticated campaign. Sometimes it's under the radar through social media, through public perception. Sometimes it's going outside like what we see right now, but this is the same enemy, the same radical Islam combining forces with progress, ultra-left, and the woke movement.

They are trying to demolish and to destroy the basic values of Judeo-Christian heritage in general, and we see the results. I think for a Christian or a Jew, and we have this kind of people in both camps, we need to be honest because we hear these voices also in Israel and we hear these voices also in the diaspora Jews in America and other places that claim the same things as the Christian part of people from this camp will say.

The way that I see that, those Jews and those Christians that claim that, they are not part of this camp. In a way, they are embracing the enemy's narrative and helping them from inside. These are very dangerous opinions and things that we are hearing right now, but in general, please don't connect that to Judaism and Christianity. Just say, "I have my opinion, I have my agenda," but it's not related to that.

Dr. Erez Soref: I agree. One question that I think a lot of people have, both in Israel and in the United States, it seems like after Khamenei's death, he's ruled Iran with a fist of iron for a long time. Then he's gone, and his heir, his son, is nowhere to be found. Why aren't the military just falling apart? They have some sort of a complicated system. Can you share a little about that?

Sagiv Assulin: It's a good question and it's again something that's hard to understand from outside of Iran from a Western point of view. The Iranian regime, first of all, we need to understand that there is a huge difference between the Iranian regime, the Islamic regime, and the people of Iran. Of course the enemy is the Islamic regime. The people of Iran as I see it, as we see that, as America sees that, they are our allies right now. They are our future partner for peace and it will take place eventually.

The Iranian regime was preparing itself exactly for this moment. In a way you have two kind of armies in Iran. You have the army, the Artesh, that was existing a long time ago. After the revolution in '79, the Iranian Ayatollah regime established the IRGC. Their sole purpose was to protect the regime, that the regime will exist no matter what.

So you have everything doubled: air force, navy, everything in Iran is doubled. Slowly, slowly, a lot of people are asking why those two forces are not going against each other. Actually what's taking place in the last 20 years or so is that the IRGC was even controlling at least in the senior officers over there, controlling also the Artesh.

Near that you have also the Basij. They are forces that you can find them anywhere in Iran, even in small neighborhoods. They are extremely, extremely radical Shia like the IRGC. Their goal and goals is to control the people on the streets and to make sure that their daily lives are according to the Shia extreme radical rules.

Dr. Erez Soref: So like a religious guard in the neighborhood?

Sagiv Assulin: Yes, and they are very violent, very bad people. There is other layers. You have the Niruye Entezami as we call it in Farsi. It's like a local police also. So you have three layers that the goal is to protect the regime and to enhance and make sure that everybody is living according to the radical Islamic Shia.

The other side of that is the people of Iran, and 60% of them under the age of 40 hate the regime and hate the radical Islam way of life. They are Western people in their souls and they are more similar to Israelis and Americans than not. This is the bright side of what we are seeing. In a way, this is only a matter of time. Could be in a few weeks, could be in two years, but it can't contain it any longer.

Dr. Erez Soref: Not by force.

Sagiv Assulin: Yes, not in the fact that 60% are under the age of 40 and not feeling related to this regime and to this radical Islam in any way. For those that are trying to say we, Israel and America and other parts, have a very bad experience with dealing with radical regimes in Afghanistan, Syria, and other places, that's not the case.

This is much, much more complex. We cannot compare Iran to any other place. In all the places that everyone mentioned, the people were with the regime in a way. In Iran, it's exactly the opposite. This is a radical Shia regime that took control of a nation that in their state of mind they are in a different place.

It's an empire of 2,500 years and this 47 years is nothing. It's a hiccup if we compare it to this 2,500 years. President Trump and the Prime Minister Netanyahu and all the great teams are changing the history and reshaping the narrative and the geopolitical situation as it's supposed to be. Those are... we should be very pleased and happy and thankful for this change that we are seeing right now because if we are zooming out, it's balancing back the war between good and bad, light and darkness. Iran is the source and the base of all of that and I believe that winning over there, and we are winning over there, will start a shockwave that will hopefully rearrange everything back.

Dr. Erez Soref: So Sagiv, we're into this for over two weeks. We see it from the side of families and it's very difficult with young children and elderly people. It's not comfortable for anyone. It's been a tough couple of weeks or weeks and it seems like it's going to carry on for a few weeks more from what they say here in Israel at least. That's been your world. You understand the mindset. You speak the language, the Farsi language. Where is it going in your opinion?

Sagiv Assulin: The last two weeks were pretty tough, but we are tougher. Israel and America are not going to break. We need to continue and there is no doubt that we are winning. I know that we hear some other voices again, those voices are always with agenda, but this is 100% clear. We are winning against our worst enemy.

I believe that according to the goals of this war that were declared related to the nuclear threat and to the missiles, we are achieving 95% of our goals and in a matter of days we will achieve all of them. The regime eventually, like the president said and like also here in Israel, I truly believe that only the Iranian people can take down the Iranian regime. Eventually it's up to them.

It's true that everybody is doing everything that they can to make this job easier and possible for them, but eventually the Iranian people will need to take their own destiny in their own hands and to go outside to the streets. I believe that they will do so. If it will happen in a few weeks and everything will collapse over there, I don't know. No one can actually tell you how it will take place. I said a long time ago that I believe that until the end of the Trump administration, this regime will fully collapse.

The train is already out of the station. This regime will never go back to be what it used to be and the biggest threat on America, on Israel, on Western civilization is taking off now. This is huge. This is something that in the last 50 years was like a huge cloud over Western civilization, America, Israel, Europe, and we see this threat getting removed.

It's not a secret that they are trying to do everything that they can to hurt America also from inside with terror cells, with attacks. This is the way they think, the way they always act since the days of the ancient Farsi empire was to try to take the war to the enemy land. If they did it to Israel for many years, they surround Israel by a ring of fire, Hezbollah and Hamas and the Houthis and all of that, they are trying, not successfully, but trying also to do it to America by Venezuela, by countries in South America, Cuba, and also to try to hurt America directly like we saw the attempts with drones or with terror cells.

Thanks to this unbelievable relationship between Israel and America, it's not that we are sharing intelligence and information, it's like one entity. Everything Israel sees, America sees. I think nothing like that was ever before. Israel of course sees America as part of Israel. Everything is shared and Israel sees our goal to protect America as we are protecting Israel. So it's going to both directions. Of course America is also protecting Israel and we are thankful for that. Every Israeli sees America as part of Israel. It's not a partnership. It's much more than that. It's a family. It's brotherhood, sisterhood, whatever you want to call it. That's the situation. This is how we see that.

Dr. Erez Soref: So Sagiv, as someone that deeply understands the mindset, what can you tell us? I think a lot of people don't understand what is the driving force of the Iranian regime. Why are they so... they want a nuclear bomb, they want to destroy Israel, they want to destroy the United States. Why?

Sagiv Assulin: First of all, a lot of time people ask me what is the strategy of the Iranian through America and through Israel. In a way, in a lot of cases, this question can be very complicated and hard to answer, but in this case I think it's a very simple question because the Iranian saying that for the last 47 years. Maybe five times a day they are shouting out loud in every place in Iran. They are saying, "Marg bar Amrika, Marg bar Israel." The meaning is death to America, death to Israel.

It starts with that and it's ending with that. That's their strategy. Very simple. When they are saying that, I strongly suggest to believe them. This is what they are aiming to, this is their goal. From a Western point of view, normal human being, normal Western values, it's very, very hard to understand that.

If we are trying to analyze that from our values, from our perspective of understanding of life, it's hard to understand why. If we will not understand that they are living, breathing, doing everything that they are doing from the minute that they came to this world is under the umbrella or the understanding or the belief from a deep, deep religious belief of Shia radical Islam perspective, we will never be able to understand their goals, their motivation, and why they are doing the things that they are doing.

If we will start to think and to understand what is the starting point of their beliefs, maybe we will understand their intention. From an Iranian Shia radical perspective, they are living right now the end times. They need to push forward to promote this conflict with America, with Israel, the little Satan and the big Satan. Eventually their Mahdi will come and the Islam will rule.

If we don't understand that, that this is the goal, we will never understand this conflict. As more chaotic is the situation, as more that this conflict becomes like it is right now, they are not establishing their goals in life. That's the situation.

In a way, if someone thinks that there is any chance that they will take out and raise up the white flag and surrender because really they don't have any chance against America, of course not against America and Israel together, but still it's not happening. Every time they are raising the level of conflict, they are doing everything that they can to confront America, to confront Trump directly, to confront Israel. If we think about it from a Western point of view, it's not normal, it's not rational. But what I just explained, that's the beginning of and the ending of all of that.

Dr. Erez Soref: In other words, this is so important. Trying to talk to them, to say, "Okay, let's negotiate," to force a Western mindset, a mindset that says we grew up the Judeo-Christian value says love your neighbor. Now in their mind, that's not... life in the Judeo-Christian world, life has value. Life is valuable. Now in their mind, and this is I think my main takeaway from what you said, they see this conflict, they see this war as an apocalyptic step given to them by Allah to fight the United States and Israel.

Sagiv Assulin: Yes, and from their perspective it's meant to be and the time is now and they are living this situation. They were waiting for that. They are pushing for this conflict. I can tell you in any kind of negotiation, the only side that can be a little bit more flexible or to change something in their state of mind or in their approach, it will always be the Western side.

Why? Because we are always hoping we'll try to achieve peace, and the other side is exactly the opposite. When we are appreciative and doing everything for peace and for freedom and for our values, the other side is exactly the opposite. Eventually, however or whatever we will try to describe or to think about that, this is a war between evil and good, between light and darkness. It's very simple actually when you analyzing all of that and just looking on the things as they are. This is who they are, this is what they believe, and what is so fascinating about it is the fact that they are saying that.

We are choosing sometimes not to listen or not to believe or try to be over-sophisticated and to analyze that. No, it's exactly what they are saying and thanks God we have a leadership right now, after a long time by the way, that understand that and listening to what they are saying and reacting to their threats as we are supposed to react to something like that. If someone is saying that he wants to kill you, the smart thing to do is to wake up earlier and to prevent that and to kill him first.

Dr. Erez Soref: You know, we've seen in those two weeks, just over two weeks of the war, we have seen an increase in terror attacks in America. Within America it seems like some of the terrorists were actually relatives of some people in Lebanon, Hezbollah people in Lebanon, Shia Muslim, same thing. So what can we say to America? Wake up, it's coming from within? Sleeper cells? What can we understand?

Sagiv Assulin: Unfortunately, as we will allow those forces to act freely, we will see more and more from this kind of actions. I can tell you that I'm not in a place to tell America what to do, and I'm not in a place even to advise to give them a good advice. I can tell you what we are doing in Israel against that, and I think that if America will see that and will decide to take an action, not according but since we are sharing the same values, the same heritage, the same point of view to the future of the world, it will be smart if they will do so.

In Israel, we will survive and we are surviving this situation. I think people in Israel more and more understand that this is eventually a war that based not on territories and not on anything else.

Dr. Erez Soref: Not resources.

Sagiv Assulin: Not resources, not nothing like that. This is a religious war. That's a fact.

Dr. Erez Soref: I would say a spiritual religious war.

Sagiv Assulin: I agree. More and more people in Israel that understood that, and I'm not saying that it was easy, that was a process also in Israel. But after October 7th and in the last two years, and by the way as you know more things that taking place behind the scenes, you understand how miracle upon miracle upon miracle that happened to us. Thanks God. More and more people are reconnecting to their Jewish heritage and history and background. When we approach that from this approach, we are shifting the situation to a winning.

Like what's happening in Israel, same thing with the progress and with radical Islam, we are waking up. I hope that America will wake up also but because of understanding that that's the situation.

Dr. Erez Soref: We definitely see that happening from our perspective at One For Israel. We see that happening, what you say, a sense that people say this cannot be explained away just by human factors. There has to be a spiritual factor and a lot of people both Jewish people and I think Christians in America and other parts of the world are waking up to say there is something spiritual that cannot be explained away just by the human happening.

The good news for us is that we see in the Bible that these things, in some way they're predictable. It's not exactly the same way as the Islamic thinking of Maktub, it says and that's it. It's not kind of the biblical perspective. However, the conflict is very real for this time. I will say this and I often say it to our friends as an Israeli who is not American but I love America, I love our American friends. I think we see the great value now in this cooperation even in this spiritual situation. People are waking up to this reality and it'll be interesting to see where this goes.

Sagiv Assulin: I can tell you that we, the Israelis, of course love America, love the president.

Dr. Erez Soref: Mr. Trump is very popular in Israel.

Sagiv Assulin: We are so thankful for this alliance. We are so thankful for this support, and we do understand that we are sharing the same past and the same future. Because this alliance is based on Judeo-Christian values, and people in Israel now understand that, what is this Judeo-Christian values? Because this is a concept, again I will be honest and we'll share, that it was maybe not so familiar and acceptable also inside Israel.

But more and more people now thanks to this administration, thanks to President Trump, to all the people that surround him understand what is this Judeo-Christian relationship. We see that taking place those days and the average Israeli that for us maybe Christianity was something that related in the past to only Spanish Inquisition, only to negative things, now we see the shift. Everything, a lot of people are opening their eyes and say, "Okay, there is something else."

This is something very blessed that going on here in Israel especially by the young generation that understanding why America and Israel is working together, why we are fighting together. This is not just coming from a military-wise, not just coming from economic-wise, not just for partnership that it's much more deeper than that. As I see it, this is the meaning of being light to the nation, not just Israel, America also. We are together and as we see Europe going down, drowning, losing all their values, losing themselves to themselves, you see the opposite side of that, this alliance between Israel and America and United States, and it's only based on that.

True, there is voices in Israel and in America that maybe trying to contradict that, but we need to put it in perspective. It's a small percentage eventually.

Dr. Erez Soref: This is something that I think for many, many of our viewers and listeners is super important. People... I was humbled over and over and over again for the past 25 years when I met evangelical Christians, people that believe in the Hebrew Bible, in the New Testament, in Jesus of Nazareth, and they love our people. They love Israel because the Holy Spirit put that love in their heart.

For a long time they couldn't understand why Jewish people, Israelis and Jewish people in diaspora, can't really get that. As you said, there's a painful history that comes to the forefront for a lot of Jewish people. But now the good news is it's shifting, it's changing, and I think that's of key importance. I heard you talk about that on national TV here, which I think is pretty dramatic, honestly.

Sagiv Assulin: I was privileged to and had the opportunity to explain to my people, to my fellow Israelis, what it is Judeo-Christian values, why is this so important, why this alliance is critical for Israel, for America, and for Western civilization in general. The good news that more and more people see that, accept that, embrace that just for understanding and seeing the situation as it is.

That's a process. Again we need to understand that for average Israeli we don't understand the difference between Catholic Christian, evangelical, other. As more will join the understanding and the basic of this Judeo-Christian heritage values and what exactly we are fighting for, so there is room for everything. But this process is taking place in both sides and it's creating only good things I think for Israel and for America.

Dr. Erez Soref: Well Sagiv, thank you so much. It's been absolutely fascinating and I think we've learned a lot also about the spiritual perspective, some of the practicalities that are involved. We want to thank you, our viewers, our listeners, for praying for us, praying for the people of Israel, praying for the US military, the Israeli military, during this time of war. We appreciate it, we thank you and we stand with you. Shalom.