Costa Rica becomes 33rd country to launch pro-Israel caucus

(photo: ISRAEL ALLIES FOUNDATION)

By Gil Hoffman - July 5, 2015 

Originally appeared here in The Jerusalem Post

Costa Rica launched an official Israel Allies Caucus in their parliament last week, becoming the 33rd country in the world to do so, officials present at the event said Sunday.

The caucus was facilitated by The Israel Allies Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting communication between parliamentarians and legislators around the world over who share a belief that the State of Israel has the right to exist in peace within secure borders.

“The establishment of the caucus demonstrates Costa Rica’s profound support for Israel and the importance it places in its bilateral relationship with the Jewish state,” said the foundation's Latin American coordinator, Leopoldo Martinez. Read More

At Magdala, discoveries that resonate with Jews and Christians

(photo: Shmuel Bar-Am)

By Aviva and Shmuel Bar-am - June 27, 2015 

Originally appeared here on The Times of Israel 

Who can ever tell what the future holds? Or where our lives will lead us?

Father Juan Solana has been running the Notre Dame Center in Jerusalem for the Legionaries of Christ religious order for the past ten years. But back in 2004, when informed by the Vatican that he was being sent to Israel, the young, Mexican-born Catholic priest found the prospect daunting, and even a bit frightening. For not only was Israel in the middle of a violent intifada, but Father Juan didn’t know the language. Besides, there were problems at Notre Dame that he felt he didn’t have the experience to solve. Simply put – he was afraid that he wasn’t quite up to the task.

Before setting out for the Middle East, Father Juan flew to Rome for a bit of extra spiritual strengthening. Entering a small chapel in the Vatican, he found himself in front of an unfamiliar altar. As he prayed, he raised his eyes and looked up at the mosaic on the wall, a scene on the Sea of Galilee in which Jesus rebukes his disciple Peter. Above it, there was a quote from the Gospels: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

From that moment on, Father Juan knew that he was on the right path. Even so, in his wildest dreams he couldn’t have imagined just how right it would be. For once in the Holy Land, chance led him to a unique and marvelous discovery. Read More

Israel Saved Me

(photo: Uri Lenz)

By Amit Lewinthal 

Originally appeared here on Israel Hayom 

These two men should never have met, but today they are close friends. They were born in two different countries at different ends of the world, but their life stories are very similar, and today, they both advocate a love for Israel.

On December 24, 2011, Christmas Eve, Rev. Omar Mulinda addressed a congregation of 300 Christians at one of Uganda's biggest churches. Mulinda is highly regarded as an impressive orator, and thousands come to hear his sermons.

Preparations were well underway to celebrate Christmas the following day, but the anticipation and joy were soon replaced with sadness when, as Mulinda recounts: "I left the church early. I was about to enter my vehicle and drive home when someone pretending to be a member of the congregation approached me and said: 'Reverend, can you help me?' I turned around, and I saw another person standing next to him, and there was a third man who closed in on me from behind whom I could not see. I realized that this was an ambush so I turned back to get into my car, but then they poured a bucket full of acid on my head. It was terrible."

Unfortunately for the 41-year-old Mulinda, this attack was not the end of the persecution against him, which ultimately made him a famous reverend in Uganda.

Mulinda was the 52nd of 54 children (!) in a highly respected Muslim family. His mother was the daughter of the great imam. He was brought up Muslim and was slated to become a clergyman. "We were taught not to associate with or become friendly with Christians or Jews," he says. But in 1990, when he was 18 years old, Mulinda met a man who preached about reading the Bible and a love for Israel. This man introduced him to the New Testament.

"I decided that this was the truth, but I could not convert to Christianity then. I would not have survived. I would have had to part ways with my, rich, respected extended family, which viewed Islam as its very foundation. But in my heart, I knew the truth," he says.

In 1993, Mulinda mustered up the courage and secretly converted to Christianity. But his secret was not kept for long -- on his very first day at church, as he was exiting the building after prayer, some of his Muslim friends spotted him and reported him to the Muslim community. At that moment, Mulinda's personal version of hell began. At first it was just his family, which renounced him. Then it was violent persecution, which peaked with the acid attack on that fateful Christmas Eve. Read More

NFL Hall of Famers in Israel for all-star tech tour

(Photo: Herschel Gutman)

By Viva Sarah Press - June 23, 2015

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Owner of the reigning Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, along with 19 NFL Hall of Famers, is in Israel for a special tour of the country’s tech scene, landmarks and local football action.

The goodwill week-long trip to Israel, called, “Touchdown in Israel: Mission of Excellence,” was organized by Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft, in coordination with Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, Ron Dermer.

“I don’t think there’s a better place that you can bring people no matter what their faith might be. They come here and their lives are changed,” Kraft said.

The gridiron greats got an up-close look at 10 Israeli startups at a technology expo in Jerusalem’s Old City.

“Jerusalem was recently voted by Time Magazine as one of the world’s five emerging tech hubs and that can truly be seen today,” said Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. “I think it’s a combination of really understanding our past and the beauty and the power of Jerusalem and its history. I believe in a very strong connection between our past and our future. More and more high tech entrepreneurs see their future here.”

The NFL legends saw a demo of ReWalk, a wearable exoskeleton that allows individuals with spinal cord injuries to walk again. They also got an introduction to Elminda, the world’s first FDA-approved neural functional assessment tool to visualize serious brain trauma and illness. Read More

Israeli Home Device Turns Trash Into Biogas Fuel

By Maya Yarowsky - June 15, 2015

Originally appeared here on NoCamels

The Western world may have grown accustomed to microwave ovens and electric burners, but the majority of developing populations still cook their food and heat their homes over an open fire. While that may seem like a more “pastoral” and healthy way to live, the World Health Organization reports that up to four million people die from the direct and indirect effects of cooking with solid fuels, like wood, charcoal and coal.

This staggering statistic hadn’t come to the attention of the Israeli inventors of the HomeBioGas system, until the information was pointed out to them by none other than United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. During a visit with Israeli President Reuben Rivlin last year, Ban expressed the global need for a sustainable and safe solution to this dire issue, naming Israel’s HomeBioGas’s bio-digester as a very viable answer.

HomeBioGas’s TevaGas (TG) device is the first family-sized bio-digester made available on the market, which, according to Marketing Director Ami Amir, “is as easy to use as a dish-washer.” For those who don’t know what a bio-digester is, it takes organic material (like left-over food) and converts it into a fuel, known as biogas, through an anaerobic process carried out in a warm atmosphere. This fuel can then be used by a household for other purposes, like heating. According to Amir, this system does not even generate any foul odors. Read More

The dangerous good deeds of Gal Lusky

By Abigail Klein Leichman - June 16, 2015

Originally appeared here on Israel21c

Gal Lusky chose Frank Sinatra’s classic “Fly Me to the Moon” as her mobile phone’s ringtone.

“The moon is just about the only place I know that’s peaceful right now,” quips the founder and CEO of Israeli Flying Aid, a nonprofit volunteer organization that provides lifesaving aid in areas of natural disaster or conflict.

Lusky was one of seven female and seven male Israelis chosen to light torches at the 67th Independence Day ceremony on Jerusalem’s Mount Herzl.

Her inclusion in this illustrious group is all the more remarkable considering that many of her missions are to nations normally off limits to Israelis, such as Pakistan, Sudan, Indonesia, Iraq and other places she is not at liberty to identify.

That the Ministry of Culture and Sport approved her nomination for the honor is a testament to Israel’s democratic principles, says Lusky. “The government knows how strongly I love my country.”

Lusky tells ISRAEL21c she established Israeli Flying Aid because no other Israeli NGO was dealing with disasters in hostile territories. “I believe Israel does amazing work where it’s invited to do so, but I wanted to compensate the other parts of the world.” Read More

High-tech Israeli helmet aims to prevent flight crashes

 (photo: screen capture: Channel 2)

By Daniel Bernstein - June 14, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

An Israeli-developed smart flight helmet will detect emergency situations in which pilots are about to lose consciousness, and take control of the plane in order to prevent disasters.

The state known as G-LOC, which occurs from excessive and sustained g-forces draining blood away from the brain, can cause pilots to momentarily faint as the flight takes off, and recoup as they regain a horizontal state.

Those short lapses have long been the cause of flight crashes around the world, as planes plummeted to the ground before pilots had a chance to regain control.

That is, until LifeBeam, a small Tel Aviv-based start-up, in cooperation with the defense ministry, finally came up with a solution, Channel 2 reported Sunday. Read More

Stephen Curry’s mother gushes about Israel

(photo: YouTube screenshot)

By JTA - June 16, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

The mother of Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry said in an interview with an Israeli sports channel that a trip to Israel five years ago transformed her and sparked her interest in learning Hebrew.

Sonya Curry told Israel’s Sport 5 channel in an interview after Game 5 in Oakland on Sunday night that her son’s basketball success is a result of “grace and favor.” She added that he was “made for this moment.”

Curry showed the interviewer the Hebrew tattoo on the nape of her neck which reads chen, meaning grace.

She said that following a visit to Israel about five years ago she “was just transformed spiritually.”

She said she wanted to learn Hebrew because that is the language Jesus spoke and because she wanted to read the Torah in Hebrew. Read More

Israel sends veterinarians to aid flood-hit Tbilisi zoo

(photo: Tinatin Kiguradze / AP)

By i24news - June 15, 2015

Originally appeared here on i24news

Israel is sending two senior veterinarians to the Georgian capital of Tbilisi to assist local zookeepers to cope with the aftermath of devastating floods that damaged the animals' enclosures and sent lions, tigers, bears, and, most notably, a hippopotamus to roam the urban jungle.

Dr. Nili Avni Magen and Dr. Yigal Horowitz, both of whom work at Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo, will spend a week in the flood-hit locale.

Georgian authorities expressed their gratitude to Israel for the aid.

Some of the escaped zoo animals are still on the loose as of Monday. Read More

Ten Ways Israel Is Treated Differently

By David Harris - June 14, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Huffington Post 

It's appalling to see how Israel is treated by a totally different standard than other countries in the international system. Of course, Israel deserves scrutiny, as does every other nation. But it also merits equal treatment -- nothing more, nothing less.

First, Israel is the only UN member state whose very right to exist is under constant challenge.

Notwithstanding the fact that Israel embodies an age-old connection with the Jewish people as repeatedly cited in the most widely read book in the world, the Bible, that it was created based on the 1947 recommendation of the UN, and that it has been a member of the world body since 1949, there's a relentless chorus of nations, institutions, and individuals denying Israel's very political legitimacy.

No one would dare question the right to exist of many other countries whose basis for legitimacy is infinitely more questionable than Israel's, including those that were created by brute force, occupation, or distant mapmakers. Just look around at how many nations fit those categories, including, by the way, quite a few Arab countries. Why, then, is it open hunting season only on Israel? Could it possibly have anything to do with the fact that it's the only Jewish-majority country in the world?

Second, Israel is the only UN member state that's been targeted for annihilation by another UN member state.

Think about it. The leadership of Iran, together with Iran-funded proxies in Lebanon and Gaza, has repeatedly called for wiping Israel off the map. Is there any other country facing the threat of genocidal destruction?

Third, Israel is the only nation whose capital city, Jerusalem, is not recognized by other nations.

Imagine the absurdity of this. Foreign diplomats live in Tel Aviv while conducting virtually all their business in Jerusalem. Read More

Former al-Jazeera America journalist sues over anti-Israel, pro-Arab bias

(screen capture: YouTube)

By David Bauder - June 12, 2015 

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

NEW YORK (AP) — The former head of Al Jazeera America’s documentary unit has sued the news network, claiming it is biased against non-Arabs and women in stories that it produces and in how it treats employees.

Shannon High-Bassalik, fired in February after working through half of a three-year contract, said the network’s recently ousted chief executive Ehab Al Shihabi left meetings when women were speaking and admitted that he tried to favor an Arab point of view on the air to please AJAM’s Qatar-based ownership.

Al Jazeera America called High-Bassalik’s accusations unfounded and said she made none of them during an investigation of her employment record conducted by an outside law firm.

The troubled news network, an offshoot of the international Al Jazeera network, has reached few viewers in the United States. Through lawsuits and resignations over the past two months, a picture has emerged of a place that has consistently fallen short in its efforts to give Americans a hard news, unbiased alternative to CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC.

“As ratings failed to live up to the expectations of management, Al Jazeera openly decided to abandon all pretense of neutrality in favor of putting the Arabic viewpoint front and center, openly demanding that programs be aired that criticized countries such as America, Israel and Egypt,” High-Bassalik’s lawsuit stated. Read More 

12 of the coolest new apps from Israel

(Photo: shutterstock.com)

By Abigail Klein Leichman - June 11, 2015

Originally appeared here in Israel21c

Take a selfie without hands? Connect with your favorite Chelsea footballers? Cope with an overflowing email inbox? Israeli app makers have you covered.

In honor of Israel Mobile Week – June 8-12, 2015 — ISRAEL21c brings you a dozen more made-in-Israel apps that could make your life healthier, more fun, and more efficient.

1. uHealth - is a focus- and attention-building iOS app from the folks at Umoove. It relies on made-in-Israel eye-tracking technology to guide children or adults through games designed to train them gradually to ignore distractions, focus and be more attentive. Points are earned as concentration improves and you advance to more challenging levels.

2. Safie - allows parents to keep track of, and automatically locate, their children through their phone. The app also notifies parents in case of emergency via a panic button. Each child can be tracked by as many as five adults, and the app can be installed on any smartphone (both parents and children need to install Safie for the app to be operative). Parents can receive updates on the whereabouts of their children every few minutes, every hour or once a day.

3. Fansino - an app to connect fans and performance artists, won App of the Year at the 2015 Mobile World Congress. Fansino enables artists to manage and connect with their fan base from one place, find out who’s listening, track streaming services and online presence, and keep tabs on social-media mentions. It allows fans to gain rank and get rewards, find other fans of the same artists, and follow favorites through one feed. Read More

Time to be honest about Israel's capital

(photo: Wikipedia) 

By Frida Ghitis - June 9, 2015

Originally appeared here on CNN 

Diplomacy sometimes creates moments of delusion, when learned men and women seem to lose touch with reality and speak in confusing sentences. That fact is on clear display when it comes to the issue of Israel's capital.

Let's be clear here: In every reasonable, logical way, the capital of Israel is Jerusalem. That is where the seat of government resides, where the country's parliament stands and legislates and where the President, Prime Minister and Cabinet have their offices and meet. Whatever some governments or politicians might say to the contrary, this fact should be accepted by everyone.

Now, this should not preclude parts of Jerusalem becoming part of another country, say, a future Palestinian state. But when it comes to Jerusalem, as we were reminded Monday by a Supreme Court ruling, nothing is simple.

On Monday, America's top court ruled on the case of 12-year-old Menachem Zivotofsky, who was born in Jerusalem and wanted his passport to state Israel as his country of birth.

Sounds simple, doesn't it?

Sadly, it isn't. In reality, in many situations where the U.S. government talks of Jerusalem, it refuses to say in what country that city is actually located. Indeed, official U.S. policy says the status of Jerusalem is unresolved, subject to the outcome of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. But while this position is based on the laudable wish to avoid harming the prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace, there are surely better ways to achieve the same goal without denying reality. Read More 

Israel to invest $500 million in Druze, Circassian communities

(photo: Haim Zach/GPO)

By JTA - June 9, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Times of Israel 

Israel’s Cabinet approved a more than $500 million plan to develop Druze and Circassian communities.

The first half of the new plan was approved in December.

Under the plan, the Israeli government will invest significant resources in the Druze and Circassian communities in education, social welfare, employment, tourism, transportation and planning budgets. Read More

The Polyphony Foundation Is Using Classical Music To Bring Jewish And Arab Musicians Together In Israel

By Alexandra Svokos - May 29, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Huffington Post 

The Polyphony Foundation is spreading classical music across Israel -- and bringing Jewish and Arab people together in the process.

Polyphony began as a small school in 2007 in Nazareth, with the intention of bringing classical music education to the Arab community. After establishing that, co-founder Nabeel Abboud-Ashkar wanted to expand the school's mission. He started the nonprofit Polyphony Foundation in partnership with Deborah and Craig Cogut in 2011 with the goal of creating positive shared experiences between Arab and Jewish communities in Israel.

"Within the challenges that the Israeli society is facing, we thought that classical music can play an important role," Abboud-Ashkar told The Huffington Post.

Polyphony provides basic music education in schools in addition to running conservatories, orchestras and traveling ensembles. It currently serves over 6,000 students in 73 kindergartens and 26 elementary schools across the country. Next year, they expect to nearly double the number of students. Read More

Israel's Ethiopian success

By Donny Weber - June 7, 2015 

Originally appeared here in The Jerusalem Post

There is much being written by the national and international media, buoyed by their politics and agenda, and a message being pushed by NGO’s, outside governments, and various agencies, politicians, partisan players, and “those with a principled agenda” as regards the “plight” of the Ethiopian community in Israel: the State is racist. 

Yes. There are major political, social, and especially economic issues and struggles amongst the majority of more than 140,000 Ethiopians in Israel. Issues of race, culture, and disadvantage are also at the forefront of recent demonstrations and clashes with law enforcement. 

But Israel can boast of an Ethiopian success that not even Ethiopia match. Israel can boast of a success with a non-native population far exceeding its native population--within literally months of its founding.

And yet, Israel never had separate drinking fountains, or schools, or train cars, or education systems. Israel has not had a racial or religious based banishment of people from government or public service. Israel does not permit discrimination in employment or hiring practices. Israel did not have slavery and can look at it’s magical history in welcoming--literally-- a “melting pot” of people from every single country in the world.

Yet, sordid characters are claiming apartheid.

And I want to say clearly, concisely, directly: this ain’t your poppa’s South Africa, this ain’t your momma’s Klu Klux Klan American South!! 

If you want to see such turn to ISIS, turn to Islamic ruled or western manipulated nationd in Africa or Asia. Israel is a bastion of freedom, democracy, self determination and goodness. And like every other nation it grapples with it’s flaws and its deficiencies. Read More

How Israel became a social gaming hub

(photo: Plarium) 

By Deanna Dweck, Plarium - June 5, 2015

Originally appeared here on Venture Beat

At one time, gaming innovators and enthusiasts journeyed to California’s Silicon Valley to devise their technological visions of the future. Now, the tide is shifting to Israel.

Currently, the country of 7.7 million people boasts more than 200 game companies and hundreds of tech companies, according to Invest in Israel. By 2013, 70 percent of the fastest- growing gaming companies on Facebook were in Europe. Half of the top 10 are based in Israel, and according to the Israeli Ministry of Economy, the country’s gaming industry is estimated to be worth up to 2.5 billion shekels ($730 million).

But how did this social gaming powerhouse happen?

Widely recognized as “The Startup Nation,” Israel’s reputation as a tech haven has given credence to its rise in the gaming industry in particular, and the reasons why are easy to fathom. Like the United States in the 19th and early 20th centuries, Israel, in its short history, has been a magnet for immigrants from across the globe.

These newcomers have brought with them not just diverse skills and talents but also a deep understanding of the tastes and interests of the communities from which they come. This understanding has given them a key advantage: Israelis are naturals when it comes to developing products that must jell with a global audience in order to succeed, because they themselves are a microcosm of that audience. Games bring people together, no matter their race, color, or creed. Read More

Touma-Sliman becomes first head of a permanent Knesset committee from Arab party

(photo: JOINT ARAB LIST)

By Lahav Harkov - June 3, 2015

Originally appeared here in The Jerusalem Post

Israeli Arabs have been Supreme Court justices and government ministers, but on Wednesday they reached a new position in the legislative branch, when MK Aida Touma-Sliman (Joint List) became the first Arab party lawmaker to head a permanent Knesset committee.

Touma-Sliman took the helm of the Knesset Committee for the Advancement of the Status of Women.

The new MK founded the Arab feminist organization Women Against Violence; was one of the founders of the International Women’s Commission for Just Palestinian- Israeli Peace; was the editor- in-chief of Al-Ittihad, the only Arabic-language daily newspaper in Israel; and was the first woman on the High Follow-Up Committee on the Arab Population of Israel.

“I hope to successfully lead processes that will affect all of society, policy and laws,” she said after being elected to the position unanimously, as most committee heads are. Read More

Israeli "RayGo" Keeps Your Eyes On The Road, Saves Lives

By Jonathan Neff - June 1, 2015 

Originally appeared here on NoCamels  

We’ve all been guilty of it at some point: Texting while driving, or driving while “intexticated.”

Unfortunately, this type of momentary distraction is the cause of half of all car crashes, according to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Now, Israeli startup ProjectRay is developing a gadget that will help you avoid texting while driving, potentially saving the lives of thousands of people.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, there are close to 33,000 fatal car accidents in the US every year. Since the risk of getting into a car crash is 23 times higher when texting, ProjectRay – which previously focused on communication tools for the blind – has decided to put an end to the problem, by freeing your eyes to focus solely on the road ahead.

Founded in 2011, Project Ray recently completed a successful Indiegogo campaign for a new product called RayGo. It is a simple, five-button Bluetooth device that clips to the steering wheel (or handlebar for cyclists), which allows for voice control of your smartphone. RayGo lets you safely use your favorite apps like Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, Gmail and Skype while driving or biking. Read More

IsraAID sending team to join Texas flood relief effort

(photo: ERIC KAYNE/AFP)

By Nathan Wise, Reuters - May 30, 2015

Originally appeared here in the Jerusalem Post

The Israeli organization IsraAID will be sending a team to help relief efforts in Texas, where massive flooding has killed at least 21 people and spurred evacuations.

“IsraAID will be mobilizing its relief team from Israel to support the thousands of people impacted by these latest storms,” said Shachar Zahavi, IsraAID’s executive director.

A team of 10 IsraAID volunteers will depart on Sunday for Texas, where they will help with removing debris from damaged houses, Zahavi told The Jerusalem Post.

The organization will be partnering with US disaster relief organization Team Rubicom and will be helping people in the Austin area. The work will assist homeowners to turn to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to receive assistance, Zahavi said. Read More