Who Will Join the Alliance?

The “king of the north” and “king of the south” prophesied in Daniel 11:40 are both coalitions of nations led by one nation in particular. Many other prophecies show that the king of the north is a union of 10 European “kings” led by one supreme German strongman.

We have established that the king of the south bloc will be led by Iran. What other nations will be part of this radical Islamist alliance? This passage in Daniel 11 gives us important clues.

Let’s start in verse 42, which says that when the king of the north attacks, “He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape.” Egypt will be conquered or controlled by the king of the north. This clearly implies that Egypt will be allied with the king of the south.

This prophecy indicates we are about to see a far-reaching change in Egyptian politics! We have been saying since 1994 that this would occur. Look at Egypt today, and you see the nation’s foreign policy and political orientation changing in a way that threatens to transform the entire region!

Radical Changes in Egypt

In 2011, a gigantic change in Egyptian politics occurred, similar to what happened in Iran’s 1979 revolution.

For 30 years, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had resisted the radicals and was a friend to Israel and the U.S., following the policy of his predecessor Anwar Sadat. Mubarak resisted the radical Muslims in their violence toward Israel and other nations. He was a strong ally in helping America, Britain and Israel in their war against terror. He fought against Iran getting the nuclear bomb. And President Mubarak exerted the power needed inside Egypt to control his strongest opponent, the violent Muslim Brotherhood.

Yet America, led by President Barack Obama, turned against this man. When demonstrations exploded in Cairo in January 2011, President Obama made it clear he sided with the anti-Mubarak protesters on the street. From the beginning of these massive demonstrations, the Obama administration set out to humiliate Mubarak publicly! America utterly betrayed a friend of 30 years!

The result? America’s influence in the Middle East plummeted to near zero overnight. Just weeks later, Mubarak was ousted, the nation’s government became destabilized, and Iran began moving in.

Even while Mubarak was still in power, the relationship between Iran and Egypt had started warming up. In 2007, the two countries were edging toward restoring full diplomatic relations with each other. In January 2008, Mubarak held talks with Iran’s parliament speaker, the first such high-level meeting in almost 30 years. The fact that Mubarak himself held this meeting indicated how much pressure he was under from pro-Iranian forces within his country.

Before Mubarak left office, he issued this warning: “They may be talking about democracy, but the result will be extremism and radical Islam.” Indeed, that is what we saw! After his departure, those pro-Iranian forces took control. The extremist Muslim Brotherhood, the largest and most well-organized political organization in Egypt, took control of the country. One of its leaders, Mohamed Morsi, then became president.

The Muslim Brotherhood took charge because it was so organized and so heavily supported by Iran! Are we blind to what Iran can do behind the scenes as it empowers these other groups? This was almost step by step exactly what happened in Iran in 1979.

Many people in the West hope to see Egypt transform into an oasis of democracy and peace. But what do the Egyptian people want? A 2010 Pew Research Center survey showed that the people of Egypt have no interest in Western-style democracy. They actually want strict Islamic rule. This Pew poll found that 85 percent of Muslims in Egypt wanted a strong Islamic influence in the nation’s politics. Nearly the same number said those who leave the Muslim faith should be killed. Eighty-two percent supported stoning adulterers; 77 percent thought thieves should have their hands cut off. Fifty-four percent believe suicide bombings that murder civilians can be justified. Nearly half had a “favorable view” of the terrorist group Hamas, and one fifth held positive views of al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. Among the 18 Muslim nations Pew surveyed, Egypt had the highest unfavorable rating toward America: 82 percent. That poll was taken over a decade ago. The world has grown even more anti-American and radical since.

A powerful Mubarak was able to control or contain the more extreme views of his own people. But when he resigned, that dam was broken.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s rule under Morsi moved quickly to restore diplomatic ties with Iran. Egypt announced it wanted to “open a new page” with Iran. Tehran responded by appointing an ambassador to Egypt for the first time since the two nations halted diplomatic relations in 1978. The Egyptian government also reached out to Hamas, an Iran-backed Palestinian Islamist organization Cairo had previously shunned.

President Morsi was in office for only a year before he was ousted in a coup d’état by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in July 2013. Iran’s sway within Egypt was wrested from them.

Yet Bible prophecy shows this is only temporary. These pro-Iranian hard-liners are destined to return to power. The Muslim Brotherhood still enjoys tremendous support in Egypt. Sisi’s coup was successful primarily because Egyptians were disgruntled by the Muslim Brotherhood’s economic policies—not necessarily its Islamist ideology. Under Sisi, Egypt’s economic fortunes have not improved; in some areas like tourism, they have worsened. Importantly, the poverty rate has risen to nearly one third of Egypt’s population.

Many in Israel and the West have underestimated the influence of the Muslim Brotherhood and the popular support for anti-Israel policies. Muslim movements organized by the Muslim Brotherhood have received support throughout Egypt. No new leader could ever get the power to resist such strong beliefs of the Egyptian people. This all plays into the hands of Iran.

The prophecy in Daniel 11:42 is moving toward fulfillment in this end time!

Will Libya and Ethiopia Be Next?

The nations of Libya and Ethiopia are mentioned in Daniel 11:43, along with Egypt. These two nations are the key that unlocks the strategy of radical Islam. That strategy is going to shake the U.S. and Europe to their foundations!

This verse says, “But he [the king of the north] shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.” Why did God inspire the mention of Libya and Ethiopia? Every word in God’s inspired Bible has significance. God placed two nations in the same verse as Egypt for a definite reason.

This verse shows that Libya and Ethiopia will also be closely allied with Iran!

Here is how the Soncino commentary defines “at his steps”: “Either joining his army or placing themselves at his beck and call.” The Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon defines that expression as “in his company.” The Moffatt translation reads, “following in his train.”

So you need to watch Libya and Ethiopia. They are about to fall under the heavy influence or control of Iran, the king of the south. That is why they are subdued in the king of the north’s victory.

Why would Iran be so interested in gaining control over Libya and Ethiopia? To me, the answer is intriguing.

Get a good map of the Middle East, particularly of the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. You can quickly see why the king of the south, or radical Islam, is so interested in an alliance with or control over these two countries (as well as Egypt and Tunisia). They are on the two seas that comprise the most important trade route in the world!

Whoever heavily influences or controls Ethiopia will undoubtedly also control the small areas of Eritrea and Djibouti on the Red Sea coastline. These areas only recently became independent of Ethiopia. Also, I believe the Bible view is that these small areas are a part of Ethiopia.

Controlling the Suez Canal, however, is not enough. Egypt tried that in 1956, when Britain, France and Israel kicked it out in one attack. But the situation is altogether different if this sea trade route is lined with radical Islamic nations possessing real airpower, including missiles and drones! This could give Iran virtual control of the trade through those seas. Radical Islam could stop the flow of essential oil to the U.S. and Europe!

Iran could also use these trade routes to get control of Jerusalem, Islam’s third-holiest site. I believe Jerusalem is even more important to Iran than oil is.

The soon-coming Holy Roman Empire—a superpower with 10 kings, dominated by Catholicism and led by the most deceptive and aggressive Germany ever—realizes that Muslim fervor could spread like wildfire should Iran capture Jerusalem. Many Catholics consider Jerusalem their most important religious site.

If Iran gets control of that trade route, it could create enormous damage and chaos in America and Europe almost overnight. Germany and the Vatican, the heart of the Holy Roman Empire, are not going to allow the king of the south to take over Jerusalem and the world’s number one trade route!

I recorded a Key of David television program on January 27, 2011, in which I urged viewers to watch Libya and Ethiopia because of the new understanding I had received. There was almost nothing in the news about Libya at that time. The nation seemed stable.

Less than one month later, a civil war began. Later that year, Libyan dictator Muammar Qadhafi was deposed and murdered. The North African nation has been extremely chaotic ever since. It has experienced multiple terrorist attacks, violent mass demonstrations, loose arms on the streets, assassinations, abductions of politicians and their relatives, messy elections, and sackings and resignations of high-ranking government officials. On September 11, 2012, terrorists in lawless Benghazi in northern Libya assassinated U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens.

In Ethiopia, the situation hasn’t been much better. In 2020, Ethiopia erupted in its own brutal civil war that alienated it from its traditional ally, the United States. This has driven Ethiopia closer to Iran, which sent Ethiopia several drones in August 2021. Meanwhile, the al-Shabaab Islamist terror group—which controls substantial territory of its own in neighboring Somalia—launched a large-scale incursion into Ethiopia in July 2022. An August 2022 Associated Press article said al-Shabaab has “several thousand fighters” under its Ethiopian “command.” These include ethnic Somalis and Oromos—majority-Muslim ethnic groups—from inside Ethiopia. Al-Shabaab is a recipient of much Iranian sponsorship.

Al-Shabaab also has a score to settle with Ethiopia. In 2006, the group took over Somalia’s capital of Mogadishu. Later that year, Ethiopia invaded Somalia, forcing the terrorists out of the city. “The intervention,” the Council on Foreign Relations writes, “which came at the request of Somalia’s transitional government, radicalized al-Shabaab, analysts say. [A]l-Shabaab retreated to the south, where it began organizing guerrilla assaults, including bombings and assassinations, on Ethiopian forces. Some experts say it was during these years that the group morphed into a full-fledged insurgency, gaining control over large pieces of territory in central and southern Somalia.”

The prophecy about Libya and Ethiopia unlocks Iran’s military strategy!

The king of the south is going to push at the king of the north, probably brandishing its power over the Mediterranean-Red Sea route. Libya, Ethiopia and the other nations along the Red Sea play a key role in Iran’s trade route strategy. That push will be a dramatic act of war that will provoke a violent response from the king of the north.

So the Bible indicates that Libya and Ethiopia must be subdued by the king of the north because they are in the radical Islamic camp. Those two nations are “at his steps.” Why are these two nations even mentioned in this prophecy if they don’t play a key role?

Both countries are already influenced by radical Islam but are not in the radical camp—yet. You need to watch for Libya and Ethiopia to turn severely in that direction.

One more detail from the prophecy is worth noting: The emphasis in Daniel 11:42-43 is on Egypt—then we have Libya and Ethiopia. This shows that Egypt is the big conquest! It is the real power behind Libya and Ethiopia, which suggests that it is going to have a heavy hand in swinging those two nations into the Iranian camp.

We need to understand the enormous impact that Egypt working with Iran will have in the Middle East and even globally. This Iran-Egypt axis will change the game in the Middle East—particularly in Libya and Ethiopia.

This means we can expect Egypt—with Iran’s help—to lead Libya and Ethiopia into the Iranian camp!

This is very alarming because of the power Egypt has. For years, America has given Egypt billions and billions of dollars’ worth of military aid. The Egyptians are certain to use their formidable military power to swing much of the Middle East toward Iran.

Barnes’ Notes says about this passage: “A conquest of Egypt was almost in itself a conquest of Libya [and] the Ethiopians.” That’s exactly right! The real powerhouse here is Egypt. Iran and Egypt will work together to swing Ethiopia and Libya into that Iranian-led “king of the south” camp—and they’re going to do it with a lot of violence! They’re very good at fomenting violence.

Elsewhere in the Islamic World

Beyond Ethiopia, Iran has a long history of sending illegal weapons to countries and terrorist groups around the Red Sea. One group that Iran has shipped vast amounts of missiles, weapons and drones to is the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Like Libya and Ethiopia, Yemen is embroiled in civil war. On one side are Saudi-backed government forces; on the other are Iran-backed Houthis. These rebels have been using Iran’s weapons not only to fight their civil war, but also to oppose Iran’s main regional opponent: Saudi Arabia.

Iran has also sent countless arms shipments to Islamists in Somalia, the coastal nation on the Horn of Africa. In March 2008, Tehran signed a military agreement with Sudan. In May of that year, it further boosted its ties with Eritrea, signing trade and investment agreements. The following year, in April 2009, Iran and Eritrea agreed to expand their bilateral cooperation.

Iran has considerable influence and control in North Africa, and it greatly intensified with the unrest that began erupting with the Arab Spring in early 2011. The Tunisian government fell to radical Muslims in January of that year. Ennahda, the Islamist party banned under the dictatorship of Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, quickly emerged as probably the most powerful political force in the country. In October that year, the Islamist party won the nation’s first free elections since independence in 1956. That is almost exactly what happened in Egypt when its first-ever free elections ushered in the Muslim Brotherhood in 2012. However, it didn’t take long before discontent surged against the hard-line Ennahda. Assassinations of two prominent opposition figures in 2013 threatened to spark another revolution in Tunisia. It was only averted when rival factions negotiated a peaceful abdication of the elected Islamist government. Tunisia then elected the secular-nationalist Nidaa Tounes Party, whose candidate, Beji Caid Essebsi, became president. Essebsi, however, is a former official of the ousted Ben Ali regime. He has been criticized for Tunisia’s failing economy and for terrorist attacks that have crippled the tourism industry. Again, this scenario is not much different from Egypt’s.

Now let’s focus on one of the most important of Iran’s allies indicated in prophecy: Iraq.

A Key Prophecy About Iraq

Iran is already the most powerful Islamic country in the Middle East. Imagine the power it would have if it gained control of Iraq, which was at one time the third-leading exporter of oil in the world. I predicted as far back as 1992 that this could happen. This was based on a prophecy that I will explain in the next chapter of this booklet.

Here is what I wrote in “Is Iraq About to Fall to Iran?” in the December 1994 issue of the Philadelphia Trumpet magazine: “Such a takeover [of Iraq] by Iran would shock the world—especially Europe. It would be a strong impetus for Europe to unite quickly. Such a move would, in all likelihood, give Iran power to cause a sizable increase in the price of oil. [In reality, it would then control virtually all the flow of oil in the Middle East.] This could help trigger a collapse of the Western world’s weak currencies. This in turn could cause Europe to quickly unite into the most powerful economic bloc in the world. That very event is prophesied to occur in your own Bible!”

You should read that paragraph again!

The way events have unfolded since the early 1990s has opened the way for that scenario to be fulfilled even more dramatically than I imagined.

The more influence Iran gains over Iraq, the more this terrorist state virtually controls this whole area—which contains much of the world’s oil!

In 2003, the United States eliminated the leadership of Iraq. Saddam Hussein was the only leader that Iran feared. The U.S. removed him, but it lacked the will to guard the spoils of war. America had a marvelous opportunity at that time to pressure Iran. Other terrorist-sponsoring nations would have quickly caved in if Iran were beaten or forced to stop supporting terrorism.

Saddam Hussein was definitely a terrorist threat. But the primary source of terrorism is Iran. Decisive action in Iraq, without dealing with Iran, has not stopped terrorism.

In fact, the U.S. effectively cleared the way for Shiite Iran to rule over Shiite Iraq!

It was the U.S. that overpowered Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević in the 1999 Kosovo War. He was the only leader in Europe that Germany feared. The staggering paradox may be that U.S. power paved the way for both the king of the north and the king of the south—and thus accelerated its own destruction.

Since America toppled Saddam Hussein, Iran has worked every possible angle in order to extend its influence over the majority Shiite population in Iraq and assume control over its massive oil wealth.

Shortly after Baghdad was taken by coalition forces, it quickly became clear how much the Iranian Shiites had already made inroads into Iraq even under Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship.

Stratfor wrote in April 23, 2003: “The Shiite population is creating a serious administrative problem for the United States. This was partly expected, partly a surprise. The surprise is not to the extent of anti-Americanism but the extent of the organization. The Shiites are much better organized than U.S. intelligence believed. It is clear that their long-term goal is to govern Iraq.” In truth it was building toward that goal long before the U.S. attacked Iraq.

“The Iraqi Shiite community, to the extent to which it is organized, owes that organization to Iran,” Stratfor continued. “Iran’s goal is simple: Get the United States out of Iraq. Officials in Tehran do not expect this to happen immediately, but they do expect it to happen.”

Events since America’s invasion of Iraq two decades ago have proved that Iran’s expectation was entirely justified.

Though America vowed not to allow an Iranian-style theocracy to gain hold in Iraq, it lacked the political will to see that pledge through. Iran now has great influence within Iraq’s government.

Iraq Falls to Iran

In 2010, Iraq had been at a political impasse, unable to form a government for nine months—that is, until it received the support of Iran-backed, anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

In August 2014, Haidar al-Abadi, a Shiite with strong Iranian connections, was appointed Iraq’s prime minister. His first foreign trip was to Iran. “Choosing Iran as my first destination after taking office indicates the depth of ties,” Abadi said.

For years now, Iran has worked to position itself to hold power in Iraq, working with the Iraqi government, cementing economic ties, and exploiting other diplomatic channels. And far from preventing this from happening, the U.S. has encouraged it!

In 2013, Iran used the threat of Islamic State terrorists to justify its continued meddling in Iraq. Reluctant to get embroiled in another Middle East conflict, the U.S. actually invited Iran to help combat the Islamic State. The U.S. even shared the Taqqadum military base, 45 miles west of Baghdad, with Iran. The U.S. first used this base when the Iraq War began in 2003. According to a 2015 Bloomberg View report, some of the militant groups at Taqqadum directly fought against the U.S. in the past.

Ali Khedery, a strategic consultant who advised several U.S. ambassadors in Iraq, warned that the Islamic State “will be defeated. The problem is that afterwards, there will still be a dozen militias, hardened by decades of battle experience, funded by Iraqi oil, and commanded or at least strongly influenced by [Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps]. And they will be the last ones standing.”

This is exactly what happened. Today, southern Iraq is host to dozens of Iran-backed Shiite militias. Using these proxies, Iran has attacked U.S. bases, launched drones and missiles at Saudi Arabia, and funneled weapons, personnel and equipment into Syria and Lebanon.

In January 2020, massive protests erupted demanding that the U.S. leave Iraq. Muqtada al-Sadr called for a “million-man march” against America’s continued presence there. In response, Iraq’s parliament passed a non-binding vote to expel American forces from the country.

Then, in December 2021, America officially ended its combat mission there. It retains a small advisory and training presence, but it has no plans to keep Iran out of this troubled nation.

Events have proved the accuracy of Bible prophecy. Iraq has effectively fallen under Iran’s sway. It is destined to be a significant ally of the king of the south.

Iran Has America ‘Surrounded’

In a September 2003 interview with the irna news agency, former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani gave a chilling version of these events: “Even though the United States has a physical presence in the countries that surround us, the reality is that the United States is in fact surrounded by Iran” (emphasis mine).

Was that just bluster? Look at the situation honestly and you can see that it is true! Iran has indeed “surrounded” America, because it is the king of terrorist-sponsoring nations!

Amid the uprisings that swept through the Middle East in early 2011, Stratfor wrote of the extent of the growing Iranian influence: “As Iran has reminded every U.S. ally in the region amid the recent unrest, from Bahrain to Saudi Arabia and from Yemen to Israel, Tehran is the rising power and the one filling the vacuum as the Americans leave. It is Tehran that has a strong, established network of proxies and covert operatives already in place in key positions across the region. It can foment unrest in Gaza or Lebanon that spills over into Israel; and it can at the very least exacerbate riots in Bahrain, the home of the U.S. 5th Fleet and which is on the doorstep to Saudi Arabia’s own Shiite population in the oil-rich east. Iran has done all of this while U.S. troops have remained in Iraq, and what it has achieved so far is only a foreshadowing (and intentionally so) of what might be possible if Persia dominated Mesopotamia, the natural stepping-stone to every other corner of the region” (April 14, 2011).

Iran’s tentacles extend throughout the region. As America has withdrawn its forces from Iran and Afghanistan and reduced its presence in the Middle East, Iran has grown even bolder. It is working to strengthen its ties with and extend its influence over the very nations that Scripture indicates will be part of the king of the south alliance. The radical Islamic movement, led by Iran, is very strong in Egypt, Algeria, Libya and Ethiopia. This religion will probably take control of these countries very soon. Iran appears to be on the verge of becoming a world superpower.

Truly, the fulfillment of this pillar end-time prophecy is drawing ever closer!

Continue Reading: Chapter 4: Another, More Mysterious Alliance