Explore the multifaceted issues that dominate the day’s discourse, from geopolitical conflicts to domestic upheavals. The episode does not shy away from controversy, tackling subjects like the drag show legislation in Oregon and the quest for accountability behind anti-ICE riots. Featuring voices from inside Iran, Dr. Harmoz Sheriat sheds light on the internal struggles of the Iranian people pursuing freedom and democracy. The conversation guides us through the spiritual rebirth occurring in Iran, highlighting the growing Christian movement despite oppressive governmental frameworks.
SPEAKER 19 :
from the heart of our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C., bringing compelling interviews, insightful analysis, taking you beyond the headlines and soundbites into conversations with our nation’s leaders and newsmakers, all from a biblical worldview. Sitting in for Tony is today’s host, Jody Heiss.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, good afternoon and welcome to this Thursday edition of Washington Watch. I am Jody Heitz, a senior fellow here at the Family Research Council and deeply honored to be filling in today for Tony. We’ve got a lot in the news. Let me give you some of the highlights that we’ll be discussing today. We’ll begin with the Iranian regime that targeted Israel’s hospital, one of their larger hospitals today, in a missile attack that took place earlier this morning. They wounded about 80 people and caused extensive damage.
SPEAKER 21 :
This is exactly the face of this regime. It’s a terror regime. We are targeting military targets and they are targeting civilians. They are aiming to kill as many civilians as they can. And this is exactly why we launched this operation.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, that was Israel Defense Force spokesperson Effie Defrin earlier today, and we’ll get more details from Real Life Network’s Daniel Cohen when he joins me here in just a few moments, and he’ll be joining us live from Israel. And then at the same time, we have many here in the U.S. wondering whether or not we are going to get involved in the war between Israel and Iran. Well, sounds like we’ll be finding out at least within the next two weeks.
SPEAKER 15 :
I have a message directly from the president, and I quote, based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks.
SPEAKER 08 :
All right, the next two weeks. That was White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt this afternoon. And Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs will be joining me a little bit later in the program to talk about what the president might decide to do. We’ll also be discussing the House Oversight Committee’s investigation into a billionaire who could be behind some of the nationwide protests that we’ve been watching, including those recently in L.A., And then while Pride Month certainly is a thing of the past for more and more Americans this year, there are some who want to bring it back on the stage. For example, folks catch this. Democrat lawmakers in Oregon decided to bring a drag show to the floor of the state legislature yesterday. Unbelievable. Well, we’ll be joined a little bit later in the program with a state representative from Oregon, Dwayne Yonker, to talk about that. And then to close out the program today, I’ll be joined by Dr. Harmoz Shariat to discuss what’s happening on the ground in Iran. That’s a powerful thing. You know, so much is discussed about Israel. But what’s happening in Iran as this war rages on? And what could potentially hold as a regard in reference to the future if a regime change takes place in Iran? Some important questions that we’ll be talking about with Dr. Shariat. So we’ve got a lot coming your way as always. Our website, TonyPerkins.com. If you miss any portion of the program, you want to be sure to check it out there. And of course, there are also tons of resources available there for you as well. TonyPerkins.com. All right, let’s begin with the missile strikes that Iran unleashed on Israel earlier this morning. One of those at least hit the largest hospital in southern Israel. And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the site today, and he is vowing retaliation against Iran and their nuclear threat. And here to fill us in on the details live from Israel is Daniel Cohen. He is the host of the upcoming Daniel Cohen Show on Real Life Network. And Daniel, welcome back to Washington Watch. Thank you for staying up late. It’s good to have you.
SPEAKER 23 :
It’s great to be with you, Jody. How are you?
SPEAKER 08 :
I’m doing great. I hope, number one, that you’re staying safe. And with that, fill us in on the hospital strike and overall what’s going on right now.
SPEAKER 23 :
Well, yeah, Jody, things are escalating. They’re not getting quieter here. We woke up in the morning this morning to sirens, a double siren again. And more ballistic missiles from Iran. And this one was something. 30 ballistic missiles, in fact. We’ve been woken up in the middle of the night three, four times a night. But this morning, as you mentioned, Siroka Hospital, which has 1,000 hospital beds. This is the largest hospital in southern Israel. It serves about 1 million people. And all day, people here in Israel have been speaking that this was a war crime. That this was most definitely a war crime carried out by Iran. And they’ve been launching at residential buildings. We’ve had fatalities here, people in their apartments sleeping. Think about it. My children are asleep, and there are ballistic missiles. Just think about this, America, for just a second. Your children are sleeping, and people are launching ballistic missiles at your family in the middle of the night. Apartments, synagogues. And I just want to remind everybody that… If you’re hearing people talk about this being a war crime, this is just the latest in a series of war crimes. October 7th was bought and paid for by Iran. That was a war crime. There has been a system for decades of Iran creating this ring of fire around Israel. Hamas, the Houthis, Hezbollah, these are all terror networks that have been attacking Israel. That is a war crime. Israel has wrecked every single one of them, Jody, one at a time, systematically has taken them out. The emperor, Iran, has no clothes. And Israel has been, by the grace of God and by the strength of God, my goodness, if there hasn’t been a lesson taught, you don’t mess with God’s covenant nation. Look at what Israel has been able to do in less than a week, complete air superiority, going all the way back in what, five, six days, in the first 48 hours. And so the questions that we need to be asking ourselves is not, did they cross the line? They’ve already crossed the line and they keep crossing the line. And hitting Sirocco Hospital, I want to just say one thing that was a miracle, then I’ll send it back to you, Jody. Just yesterday, Israel’s health ministry decided to vacate, they evacuated the wing of the hospital where that ballistic missile struck today. Think about how hard it must be having people receiving chemo, patients in a hospital bed, and those sirens go off. When we hear a siren in my house, I live just outside of Tel Aviv, we have 90 seconds to get to our bomb shelter in our basement. How do you move people in beds in 90 seconds? Again, the hand of God, I think it was just a miracle. a miracle that just yesterday Israel said, we want to scale back this particular wing of the hospital, and today a missile struck and there were no fatalities. I think it was about a half dozen people that were slightly injured, Jody.
SPEAKER 08 :
Wow, that’s stunning. I was not aware of how people were moved from that section of the hospital just yesterday. No question, Daniel, the hand of God. There is no other way to explain that. Real quickly, these strikes are… being carried out against Israel are quite different from the strikes that Israel is returning. Real quickly, explain to us the difference of the targets that Iran is choosing versus the targets that Israel is choosing.
SPEAKER 23 :
Yeah, it’s the first part of your question cut out, but I think you were asking me about the difference. Look, Iran’s heart here, Iran is a wounded animal. Iran is wounded. And it makes me ask myself the question, why did the world take so long? Israel is striking military sites, ballistic missile sites, nuclear sites. Israel has taken out military commanders. Israel has taken out scientists that are creating the nuclear weapons that Iran has been bragging for 46 years, Jody, since the Islamic revolution in 1979. They’ve been bragging. They’ve been saying, we consider you, Israel. They characterize the place I’m at as the little Satan and America as the great Satan. And as Israel has been strategically taking out one site after another after another. What is Iran doing? They’re hitting residential buildings, synagogues, schools, and hospitals. I wonder, did you know that during World War II, Jody, there was actually an America First commission? And Charles Lindbergh, I think you all know that he’s… I don’t have to go who he is. Charles Lindbergh actually was a chairman of the America First Commission. And I want to address this with this audience because I think it’s really important.
SPEAKER 08 :
Got to be real quickly, Daniel.
SPEAKER 23 :
Yes, we’re hearing people, this fracture of people on the right, the conservative base. And he said, hey, it’s Europe’s war. Let’s not get involved. Hitler hasn’t attacked us. Let’s not. After Pearl Harbor was struck. The America First Commission was disbanded. How many lives could have been saved? Hitler, Iran is vulnerable right now. America doesn’t have to get boots on the ground, don’t have to spill any American blood, just support Israel. Israel is fighting radical Islam for the rest of the world, keeping the fight here in the Middle East instead of it in America’s soil. Jody.
SPEAKER 08 :
Thank you, thank you, thank you so much, Daniel Cohen, host of the upcoming Daniel Cohen Show on Real Life Network. Cannot wait for that to get underway. God bless you as well, Daniel. All right, I want to switch over real quickly. As all this war rages, President Trump is still considering potential U.S. involvement in the conflict. And according to a statement today, we should know that within the next couple of weeks. So what might he do? Where could all this potentially go? I want to bring on, if we can, Congressman Andy Biggs from the 5th Congressional District of Arizona. Welcome back to Washington Watch. Andy, good to have you.
SPEAKER 04 :
Good to be with you, Jody. Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER 08 :
All right. Real quickly, what are your thoughts regarding President Trump’s potential decision involving the U.S. and the Israel-Iran conflict?
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, let’s just take a look at this. And Daniel, your previous guest, he got it right. Israel is handling this. And Israel has this under command and control. They’ve got the skies. They’ve wiped out about 60% to 75% of missile launch sites from Iran. They’ve basically cut off the head. And the people on the Iranian street, they’re ready for regime change, which is what Israel is pursuing. President Trump actually doesn’t need to do more than actually demand that, which he’s done, that Iran surrender, give up its nuclear ambitions, and also provide support for Israel by way of which we are doing. He’s providing that support. I also think that his 60-day negotiation strategy was the right strategy. So right now, in my opinion, President Trump doesn’t have to do more than just keep status quo for the United States because Israel is, quite frankly, handling this horrible mess in the Middle East.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, it’s remarkable. Absolutely remarkable what Israel has been able to do, as Daniel shared just a moment ago, in such a short period of time. But what do you make in the backdrop of all of that with President Trump’s decision to increase the presence of our own military assets in the region? I mean, we’ve got aircraft carriers headed there now, various fighter jets and so forth. What do you make of that?
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, for one thing, as you know, we have dotted around the Middle East, we have infrastructure, we’ve got facilities, and we also have personnel. And President Trump, from the very beginning of this, said, don’t be touching our infrastructure and don’t be touching our personnel. And I think that President Trump’s taking a defensive posture, making sure that we have ample resources that should Iran decide to go rogue and go after the United States while we’re staying out of it. But if you attack our installations, our facilities, our personnel, then you’re going to have a major problem on your hand. And I think this is demonstrative for that purpose.
SPEAKER 08 :
Real quickly, and Congressman Andy Biggs, I’d like for you, if you would, to hold over during the break. I’d love to bring you back. I’ve got some more things I’d like to talk about. But what would need to happen, in your opinion, to convince President Trump to get directly involved in this conflict? What would have to happen for that to take place?
SPEAKER 04 :
I think you’d have to see something very deliberate on the part of Iran as an attack on our men, women, and our facilities. I think that would probably do it. I think that he’s going to want to get congressional support, I think. But in any event, that’s short of that. I think he’s going to stay out and say basically what you and I have been talking about is that Israel has the munitions. They have the training. They have incredible intelligence, as we’ve seen, both from this attack against Iran plus the attack against the folks in Hamas. This is an amazing thing that Israel has done. And I think that President Trump is just saying, we’re going to leverage that to protect the United States. And that’s the key for me, Jody. I think that’s what’s going on.
SPEAKER 08 :
Congressman Andy Biggs, I want to thank you in advance for sticking around over the break. We’ve got lots more to talk about. Stay tuned, folks. We’ll be back in just a moment.
SPEAKER 10 :
Hi, everyone. This is Pastor Jay Johnston, National Prayer Director with the Family Research Council. I want to invite you to join our 21-day Family Bible Challenge as we read through the book of Matthew. This is an opportunity for you and for your family to come together for 15 minutes a day to read God’s Word together. Deuteronomy 6 says, these commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Seek the Word of God. Obey the Word of God. Share the Word of God so that you and others might know the joy of walking with God now and for all eternity. As your family gathers to read the Bible, invite the Holy Spirit to work in your life to spiritually transform each one of you. Ask the Lord to show you creative ways for you to connect with your family, to read God’s Word together. I pray that however God uses this challenge in your life and those that you join together with will be a blessing to you and strengthen you as you read the Gospel of Matthew together. Visit FRC.org slash Family Bible Challenge for more information.
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SPEAKER 08 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. I am your host, Jody Heist. Today, filling in for Tony and my guest from the last segment, Andy Biggs, Congressman Andy Biggs from Arizona. Kind enough to stay over. Andy, thank you for staying over. I want to get into another topic here in just a moment. But before I do, there are one more question from our previous discussion on the war in Israel against Iran and so forth. The only big question mark here is the bunker busters capable of getting to the Fordow nuclear site. America’s the only one with that capability. What happens with that in terms of U.S. getting involved? I know at the end of the day, we cannot allow Iran to have nuclear capabilities. So can we avoid involvement knowing that we’re the ones with the capacity to take out the nuclear site?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, here’s the deal. That would constitute an immediate escalation and involvement of the United States. And I’m not sure. I think that Israel has so weakened Tehran. Tehran is actually trying to find mediators to contact us and Israel to try to get out of this situation. That’s what I’m hearing. And, you know, right now with all the rumors, is that true or not? But that’s what we’re hearing. I would guess that President Trump’s reticent to get us involved any further in it Because if you do that, now all of a sudden you trigger US involvement. And does that trigger anybody else’s involvement? And does that get to the heart of regime change? And if you go after regime change, does that look a lot like Afghanistan? Does it look a lot like Iraq? And does this get prolonged? I think that… Israel is capable of actually implementing their full projected battle plan. And when they do, you won’t need the, whatever we call them, the bunker buster, the MOAB. You won’t need that. You will have seen something remarkable happen from the small state of Israel.
SPEAKER 08 :
Amazing. Well, we will all find out within the next two weeks is what we’re being told. So we’ll see. I want to thank you for taking time on that. But if I can transition with you, Congressman Biggs, Republican members of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform are now formally investigating the potential funding sources behind all these anti-ice riots that we’ve been seeing in L.A. and elsewhere. And evidently there is an individual that you guys are looking at, a billionaire who has ties potentially with the Chinese Communist Party. Let’s go there. What do we know about this individual and what started the investigation?
SPEAKER 04 :
So this guy’s name is Neville Singham. He’s a billionaire. I think he’s 71 years old. He was American born, but he and his wife reside in Shanghai. And it is reported that he is close to CCP officials. We also are made aware that he is basically funding a group called Socialism and Liberation. And there’s a Socialism and Liberation group that was providing material for a lot of these ICE protesters, anti-ICE protesters. We’re talking things like face masks and those types of things. And the question is, does he have ties with the CCP? And there are multiple reports, I would suggest. This probably came out of originally from New York Post, and then other groups have picked up on this, and they’re kind of dovetailing on that. But the bottom line is, we need to know, first of all— This was not organic, by the way. We know this wasn’t organic just by other addition evidence that we’ve seen, but that this was organized. So how was it organized? Well, we’ve been told that it was organized by, ostensibly by this group, SLI, along with some other Antifa type folks, maybe some BLM in there as well. But this guy here seems to be the money bags behind it. At least that’s the allegation. That’s the report. And so Chairman Comer and Subcommittee Chairman Luna and Subcommittee Chairman Green, along with most Republican members of the Oversight Committee, of which you were a proud subcommittee chair at one point, Jody, have all joined and actually sent this guy a letter. We want answers to these questions and we want him to make himself available for us to come in because we investigate.
SPEAKER 08 :
Incredible. Listen, hats off to you and everyone on Oversight for pursuing this. You know, all of us, I think America has sat back watching this knowing that somebody’s been funding all this stuff. And by the way, the funding here that you’re looking at, I’m assuming, is not just on the L.A. riots, but is this organization or this individual behind protests against anti-ICE type protests in other places across the country, I’m assuming? Do you know that?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, it’s been reported that that this group has been involved with a lot of these protests. And, you know, the more violent ones are L.A. and Portland in particular. So the question is, are those stories accurate? And that’s where you got to get to the bottom of because, Jody, these guys are engaged in criminality. And if you’re funding them, guess what? You’ve you’ve committed a crime because you’ve aided and abetted.
SPEAKER 08 :
Do you have the capacity to subpoena him with him being in another country?
SPEAKER 04 :
You know, he is an American citizen, so you know how it is. We’ll try to get him. And we do have some leverage points without me disclosing those right now, but we do have some leverage points that we’re going to try and use. And if we can actually hit that leverage spots where this guy comes over here, that’s great. If not, there is an organization that we can work on tracking down.
SPEAKER 08 :
Great. Real quickly, we’ve only got less than two minutes, but more news on the Hill. What’s the latest on the budget reconciliation bill making its way through the Senate?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, so what I know is that Senator Mike Crapo has announced the bill. It looks like a lot of the tax provisions are going to remain fairly similar, except for there’s going to be more permanent extensions, not just a 10-year extension. of the 2018 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. What you’re also gonna see, however, is some additional things with the tax plan that they’ve talked about. What I’m sad about is we’re not eliminating the IRA, which is the Green New Deal. But what is good news is the Senate pared back the state and local tax exemption for high tax states, so they would get some kind of special subsidy. some kind of special dispensation. Those have been pared down from $40,000 in the House bill back to where they are currently, which is $10,000. So there’s good and bad, and there’s ugly in this bill, Jody, but it’s making its way through.
SPEAKER 08 :
Congressman Andy Biggs of Arizona, dear friend, great leader in Congress and in our country, thank you for joining us on Washington Watch. Always great to see you. Thanks, Jody. Take care of yourself, man. You too. All right, friends, Oregon State House Representative will be joining me now. Next, you won’t believe what took place on their House floor yesterday. Stay tuned. We’ll be back with those details right after this.
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SPEAKER 22 :
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SPEAKER 08 :
Thank you so much for joining us today on Washington Watch. Welcome back. I am Jody Heiss. An honor to be filling in for Tony today. All right. So-called Pride Month celebrations, probably most of us are recognizing the reality that they are certainly more muted this year. That would be all the celebrations of Pride Month. But that’s not the case in Oregon. In fact, just yesterday, there was a bizarre celebration In fact, a grotesque performance in the Oregon legislative chambers where two drag queens took to the assembly floor in honor of a Democratic resolution recognizing, quote, the artistry of black drag performers. Incredible. And one of the legislators even went so far as to say that the whole so-called performance was a reminder of the cultural impact of drag. Folks, think about what does that mean? What is the impact exactly, other than desensitizing young people to sexual immorality? It’s remarkable. How did the legislators, other legislators respond to this? Well, joining me now is one legislator from the state of Oregon, Representative Dwayne Yunker. Representative Yunker, welcome to Washington Watch. Thank you so much for joining us by phone.
SPEAKER 05 :
Thank you. Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, listen, it’s an honor to have you. I’m still trying to wrap my brain around what happened on the House floor there at the Assembly Chamber. Tell me, how did you and some of your other colleagues react to this so-called performance?
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, the majority of the Republicans, which weren’t a super minority, most of us were not on the floor. We refused to be on the floor. during the show, I would call it a show because it wasn’t something that our founding fathers would ever dream of having on a House floor or a Senate floor, either in our state or in the U.S. Capitol. So most of us refused to be on the floor. Republicans in the House in Oregon, we pray during our caucus meetings before. Most of us have Christian values, the family values, marriage values. Those things are all important to us, and so most of us were grotesque that we’d be having a show that you would see in some underground, maybe in Portland, but no, it’s going to be on the house floor of Oregon.
SPEAKER 08 :
It’s stunning to me. I mentioned in the introduction coming into this that all of this so-called performance was tied to a Democratic resolution. And so I’m assuming that this was all just a part of one and the same. Tell us about what was the resolution that the Democrats felt so needy to bring a drag performance to the House chamber? What was the resolution? And what was the vote? How did it turn out?
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, so the House of Representatives was honoring black drag queens in the state of Oregon. This first was brought up in February, where it was honoring black drag queens in Portland, and then it drug out, and we were hoping it would go away, and then they pushed it through. And you’ve got to remember, Oregon, I’m trying to say this, but it’s considered the gayest state, which is as being a, you know, someone who grew up here. It’s horrible. But, you know, our governor is a, you know, first lesbian governor. She’s very proud of those things. So this is just how things are happening with the Democratic Party. And so this, you know, we didn’t know exactly what was going to happen. We didn’t know there was going to be a drag queen thing and Um, most of us, you know, and obviously all the ladies from the Republican, they didn’t want to be there. Now we had to, there was a couple of Republicans that had to be there because of quorum. So they were there. Um, and so every democratic vote, um, voted for it. Now there is two, and to be honest, there was two Republicans that voted for him and they’re, um, in a kind of a purple area. I’m not sure why. They could have voted no. They didn’t need our votes, but you’d have to pick that up with them.
SPEAKER 08 :
Wow. So given what you just described about the Democratic makeup of your state, were you surprised at what happened yesterday?
SPEAKER 05 :
No, no, I’m not surprised. This, you know, this is my second year in being a representative, and this is, you know, we… In our state, um, France is, is really pushed. You know, our, our, um, attorney general just came out yesterday against the Tennessee case that was, um, that they won, you know, not allowing transition of children. And of course our attorney general, it’s a Democrat also puts out a statement. This is our values in Oregon. We’re not going to, you know, we’re not going to change. Um, the governor is the same way. They’re very on board. of pushing these, you know, these… I don’t know their values, but they’re their values, not my values, not my Christian beliefs. You know, I’ve come from… I have two brothers that are ministers. Those are not my values. My family’s values are a traditional family of, you know, mom and dad and, you know, children. So… But this is what we fight on every day. And, you know, we’ve pulled a bill to the floor twice this year, but it’s a bill pull when you have a bill and you, you know… And you pulled out a committee to have a vote on it for this bill was about getting, you know, boys that are girls sports and the Democrats all vote. No, not one of them votes will vote with us. Um, so yeah, it’s stunning. They, they don’t want to recognize that there’s differences between male and female that God created us differently for different roles. Um, there it, you know, we have them giving speeches on the floor.
SPEAKER 08 :
Got to leave it there. Thank you. Thank you, Oregon State Representative Dwayne Yunkert for joining me today. And thank you for your stand for decency. We appreciate it. Grateful for you joining us on Washington Watch. All right, friends, on the other side of the break, what’s happening on the ground in Iran? We’ll go there and give you info right after the break. Stay tuned.
SPEAKER 02 :
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How should Christians think about the thorny issues shaping our culture? How should Christians address deceitful ideas like transgenderism, critical theory, or assisted suicide? How can Christians navigate raising children in a broken culture, the war on gender roles, or rebuilding our once great nation? Outstanding is a podcast from The Washington Stand dedicated to these critical conversations. Outstanding seeks to tear down what our corrupt culture lifts up with an aim to take every thought and every idea captive to the obedience of Christ. Whether policies or partisan politics, whether conflict in America or conflict abroad, join us and our guests as we examine the headlines through the lens of Scripture and explore how Christians can faithfully exalt Christ in all of life. Follow Outstanding on your favorite podcast app and look for new episodes each week.
SPEAKER 08 :
Welcome back to Washington Watch. Thank you so much for joining us today. I am your host, Jody Heiss, filling in today for Tony and a great honor to do so. Before I get to my final guest, I want to encourage you to join believers literally from all across the country for Lift Up Life. This is going to be a national day of prayer and fasting for the unborn. It’s going to take place next Tuesday, the 24th, and at 10 o’clock a.m. Eastern Time, you can join in to a special prayer event featuring pastors and pro-life leaders from across the country as we lift up this urgent need to the Lord. And so if you don’t have the Stand Firm app, you can join that event next Tuesday at 10 a.m. Eastern Time by having the Stand Firm app, or you can go to liftuplifeday.com. That’s one word, liftuplifeday.com. Or you can simply text the word PRAY to 67742. So check this out. This is an important time, and the battle for life is far, far from over. This is a time for us to be urgent and purposeful, intentional in prayer and fasting for that cause. So get more information. Pray to 67742. All right, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it clear that Israel’s war is against the Iranian regime, not the people of Iran. The brutality and ferocity of the current regime is certainly well documented, and that includes, among a host of other things, tremendous oppression on many minority groups within Iran, including Christians, for sure. But could all of that potentially change as a result of this war? And what effect is the war having so far on the Iranian people right now? Well, here to discuss this is Dr. Harmoz Sheriat. He’s the founder and president of Iran Alive Ministries. Dr. Sheriat, welcome back to Washington Watch. Great to have you.
SPEAKER 03 :
Thank you, Jody, for inviting me to share.
SPEAKER 08 :
Give us a recap of what’s happening on the ground in Iran. There’s a lot of news, I think, coming out of Israel, but what’s happening on the ground in Iran since this whole war started on June 13th?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I’m in touch with them daily. As you may know, we have a 24-7 satellite broadcast with the internet cut. We have many viewers and we have many leaders inside Iran. So I’m in touch with them. There is a lot of suffering, but let me make this point that The attack of Israel, that’s what the people of Iran have been asking Netanyahu to do. That’s strange. But the last year, they have been saying, hey, would you do the same that you did to Lebanon? You eliminated their… Leaders one by one with pinpoint laser accuracy. Would you do that to us? Iranian people have been saying that for the last year. And so they welcome this attack, strangely. That’s very strange. People will ask another country, would you attack us? But they were hoping this. They were hoping that Netanyahu and Israel will take out the supreme leader, the top leaders, and there will be a change of government without much price to pay. And it hasn’t been that way for much of the time. But people of Iran are hopeful. There are two types of people talking to each other. One is saying, hey, we told you war is ugly. Why did you want war? And the other group are saying, well, we know we have to pay a price. We have been paying a price for the last 45 years with our lives. Our loved ones have been killed and we are going to continue to pay a price. Why not pay a little price for a short time for the government to change? So overall, the people of Iran are hopeful.
SPEAKER 08 :
That’s remarkable. Dr. Harmoz Shariat with Iran Alive Ministries. I have actually read some of those accounts. I was looking forward to having you on to verify the fact that some of the Iranians have been asking for this. So let’s just go there a little bit further. Let me ask it to you this way. The strikes from Israel on Iran, What does that reveal to the Iranians about the Israeli government?
SPEAKER 03 :
They always respected the Israeli government. Actually, may I say, Netanyahu is more popular in Iran than in his own country. And Israel is a country that people of Iran are looking up to. They have been saying, hey, we could have been there, like Israel. If this Islamic government wasn’t ruling us, we could be the power, we could have the center of technology and wealth in the Middle East. So they’re looking up to Israel as a nation. And may I say something? I’ve been telling our Jewish friends, and now the people of Iran are saying it, they’re saying, hey, at one time, In the Old Testament, Cyrus, our king, set your people free. Now it’s your turn to return the favor and you set our people free. So they’re seeing that historical favor that Cyrus gave to the Jewish people, set them free and send them back and give them money to build the temple. They’re saying this is historical that they’re returning a favor.
SPEAKER 08 :
Wow, that’s remarkable. I want to, if I can, I want to play a video clip for you of Iran’s permanent representative to the United Nations, a statement he made earlier this week regarding how the Iranian regime has responded to Israel. So play clip one for me, if you would, please.
SPEAKER 01 :
We focused only on military and economic assets involved in the aggression. Unlike the Israeli regime, Iran respects the international humanitarian law. We did not target civilians.
SPEAKER 08 :
All right. I hope you were able to hear that. What would your response to that be?
SPEAKER 03 :
Iranian government has shown that there is no morality. There is no commitment to truth. Even when they signed for the agreement in the past, they have agreed multiple times. They’ve agreed about stopping the nuclear activities, but they continued, they lied. So they want to look good, but you can never trust them. And at this point, this is my feeling, they’re attacking the civilians in Israel hoping that Israel will attack the civilians in Iran. Why? Because the Iranian government knows that the people of Iran are pro-Israel. They want Israel to attack, but only military targets and top leadership, not people. So if Israel makes that mistake of attacking the civilians, then the Iranian government will win. They would tell their own people, see, they don’t care about you. We told you Israel has no intention to set you free. They hate you. So it’s a survival mode for the Iranian government. They would lie. They would do anything to survive.
SPEAKER 08 :
Amazing. So let’s – how does the – attitude of the Iranian people differ from their own government. I mean, it sounds like you’re laying out a scenario where the people as a whole, and I’m sure there are some people who probably agree with the indoctrination that they have received from the Iranian government and so forth, but you’re describing a scenario where many, and I don’t know what percentage or how many that may be, but the Iranian people differ from their government. Is that what you’re saying?
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, totally. There is a major gap between Iran, Iranian people and the government. It took 45 years to get there. Whatever the government of Iran stands for, the people are against. So when they come out, the Iranian government with its own people, which are about 10, 15% of the population, when they come out and say, death to America, death to Israel, the people of Iran say they might be, they are probably good people. Iranians, I would say, I can boldly say this. The only nation that loves Israel, at least an Islamic nation that loves Israel right now is Iran. Maybe more than any other nation in the world. Iranians love Israel and U.S.,
SPEAKER 08 :
Wow. So what outcome do the Iranian citizens want from this attack? I mean, what are they hoping for?
SPEAKER 03 :
They’re hoping for the change of government with the least amount of casualties, civilian casualties, the least price they have to pay, because they paid a big price the last 20 years. Multiple times they came on streets and they protested. And the government of Iran was so cruel, killed thousands, Thousands of them, arrested tens of thousands of them, and tortured, raped, and then executed many. And let me make this point. Iranian government is telling its own people today, we may be weak towards the outsiders, towards Israel, towards US. We may have lost our proxy forces in the Middle East. But hey, watch out. We are strong towards you. Just dare come on streets. We will have no mercy. So Iranian people know that. That’s why even the government of Iran is so weak. You don’t see major protests on the streets because the people of Iran know, even though the government of Iran is so weak, it’s strong towards them. If they come on the streets, they will kill tens of thousands of them with no mercy.
SPEAKER 08 :
Wow. So… Is there a possibility? It sounds like you were saying the people want a regime change. That certainly is a political possibility now. Is there a potential of a worse regime change if that were to happen? Could the outcome go that direction, or are you pretty confident that it would be for the good if there is a regime change?
SPEAKER 03 :
Knowing the Iranian culture, this is a personal view. Many Iranians are thinking very positive that if this government changes, we’re going to have democracy, we’re going to have heaven on earth. But knowing the culture of the Middle East, I say the Middle East is not ready for democracy. So unfortunately, my opinion is if this government goes, the problems will not go away and there will be internal conflict. Of course, many people know that, still say, hey, we want that. Let’s go to the next step. We know the road will not be easy, but let’s take the first step to get rid of this government. Then we will work it out. But it’s not going to be easy. If Khamenei is in power, it’s very bad. And if he goes, it’s going to be bad also. It’s going to be hard days and months ahead of us.
SPEAKER 08 :
So it’s going to be probably worse before it gets better, but it can all change. Let me ask you this question that comes to me a lot, and I think someone like you would have a better perspective than most people I know, at least. Do you see any prophetic significance right now as to what’s happening between these two countries?
SPEAKER 03 :
Of course, you know, Jeremiah 49, verses 34 to 39, you go there, and I’ve written that in my book, Iran Alive, Iran’s Great Awakening. My book is called Iran’s Great Awakening. I wrote it five years ago, but you read the middle chapters, it’s the current events. I write there, according to Jeremiah 49, that Israel and other nations will attack Iran and attack, you know, it says I will break the bow of Iran. That’s missile sites. That’s the nuclear sites, the military targets. So it’s happening. Jeremiah 49, 34 and on is happening today. It might not be the final, but it’s towards the end. towards the fulfillment of those prophecies. And Iranian people, this is what we’ve used. We have a 24-7 channel. That’s what I’m sharing with the people of Iran. The moment this war started, we started having live broadcasts every day and presenting these verses to Iranian people, saying it’s really bad, but hey, It’s going to be bad for a while, but God has promised the end is going to be great. Jeremiah 49, 38, God says, I will set my throne in Elam, which is completely inside Iran. And then the following verse, he says, I will restore the fortunes of Iran. So the end is good. We’re giving people hope. And we’re getting so many stories. I encourage you to go to our website, iranalive.org. Sign up. You’re going to receive great stories and also up-to-date news. You won’t read it in the major medias.
SPEAKER 08 :
That sounds great. So give me this. What is the state of the gospel in Iran? And what is Iran Alive Ministries doing right now? Are you seeing an awakening spiritually take place in regard to Christianity?
SPEAKER 03 :
Absolutely. Iranians are very open to the gospel. Iran has the fastest growing evangelical population in the world. We are seeing thousands come to Christ. We are seeing right now 1,200 converts that contact us. And we have had over 100,000 people that have contacted us, prayed with us. And I do a curve. How many people are coming every month? And I would show you, and you will be shocked. The curve is like an exponential growth. The number of salvation is growing exponentially. And we at Iran, we are good at evangelism, but we’re working on training them. Did you know we have an online school and we have over 4,700 students, most of them from Iran, They want to be trained. They say, we are hungry for the word of God. Pastor Hormuz, train us. We want to serve the Lord. There is a supernatural hunger for the people of Iran for the true God. They come to Christ. And healthy babies, they’re hungry for the word. And I want to encourage your viewers, would you pray for us? And would you join us to disciple this nation? They’re so hungry. Would you join us and broadcast your programs on our channel? Let them hear the gospel. They’re hungry. They will sit there for hours and listen to the gospel teaching.
SPEAKER 08 :
What great, great, great news. Dr. Harmoz Shariat, thank you so much for joining us today. Iran Alive Ministries, I want to encourage our viewers and listeners to check that out. And as we have just been asked, Now is the time for us to be in prayer for Israel, for Iran, for their citizens, for the good hand of God to powerfully be at work in these countries for kingdom purposes. Dr. Chariot, thank you so much for joining us. God bless you. All right, friends, that wraps up this edition of Washington Watch. Hope you have a fantastic evening, and we’ll see you again tomorrow right here.
SPEAKER 19 :
Washington Watch with Tony Perkins is brought to you by Family Research Council and is entirely listener supported. Portions of the show discussing candidates are brought to you by Family Research Council Action. For more information on anything you heard today or to find out how you can partner with us in our ongoing efforts to promote faith, family, and freedom, visit TonyPerkins.com.
