[Darris McNeely] Ten years ago President Bush announced that coalition troops invaded Iraq in what was called at that time "Shock and Awe" in an attempt and effort to overthrow Saddam Hussein, thinking that he had weapons of mass destruction. The goal was accomplished. Saddam Hussein was overthrown. Iraq was thrown into turmoil. President Bush said at that time that this was a major step in bringing freedom to the peoples of Iraq and by removing the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein. A lot has happened in those ten years just in Iraq alone. Unfortunately freedom - at least as we are used to it in the United States - has not really been brought to the entire region, especially Iraq. They still have problems. Ethnic minorities, religious minorities are working against each over, vying for power. Iran, which is not on this map, just next door to Iraq has been able to influence not only this area but over into Syria. And of course just more than two years ago the Arab Spring events that began down in North Africa, over through the leadership in Egypt, and spread over into Syria, which is still going through turmoil. We're seeing a lot of problems throughout the Middle East. Ten years on and freedom and the Arab Spring and all of these events, have yet to bring about a lasting solution to some of the difficulties in this challenging area.

[Steve Myers] I think it's interesting because that was supposed to bring stability to the region that we were supposed to intercede so that finally they could have a government that would work and stabilize the region. And yet has it worked? Ten years later can we say it's any more stable than it was? It's really worse.

[Darris McNeely] It really hasn't. That's true. One thing to realize as you look at this map here - and this is just a portion of the Middle East - but the lines that are drawn that created Jordan and Syria and Iraq, most people don't realize this was done in 1922 after World War I, the Paris Peace Conference. These lines that were drawn essentially on the floor by diplomats who never really understood the dynamics of the region, the religious issues, the ethnic issues of the Muslim and Arab world, and these lines really don't mean anything. And today what we're seeing in this turmoil is these lines are beginning to disintegrate. And what yet will emerge out of this in the Middle East is yet to be seen. The scenes have not fully developed. It points out something that Christ spoke to in His core prophecy in Matthew 24.

[Steve Myers] Matthew 24:7 Christ pointed to a time like this where nations rise against nations, kingdom against kingdom. And it's interesting that nationalities are included in that reference. We don't necessarily see that in English, but in the Greek it really points to that.

[Darris McNeely] It does. It really does talk about the various ethnic groupings that make up virtually all nations, and especially in this region with different ethnic nationalities and the problems there multiplied because of even the religious squabbles within Islam that further complicate this situation. The region is far from stabilized. And it points up to the reason why we watch this area because it ties into events that are described in Bible prophecy regarding the Middle East and its impact upon our modern world and the world today.

[Steve Myers] Keep your eyes on the Mid-East. That's BT Daily. We'll see you next time.