We may be basking in temperatures above 30 degrees centigrade, but thousands of our feathered friends have already begun their autumn migration through Israel. http://www.jpost.com/HealthAndSci-Tech/ScienceAndEnvironment/Article.aspx?id=233894

Shalom Kadosh is the first Israeli to join the prestigious “Club des Chefs des Chefs” – which comprises 30 top chefs including those cooking for the heads of state of France, England and the USA. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4108639,00.html

This week’s archaeological discovery was a Roman marble statue of the Hercules, from the shoulders down. It was unearthed in the Jezreel valley, during the building of a new rail line. http://www.jpost.com/NationalNews/Article.aspx?id=233968

Transportation minister Israel Katz announced major extensions to railway lines to connect outlying towns and provide citizens with a fast commuter service to the centre of Israel. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146839

So kids are finding at the A-Ba-Ga-Da exhibit in the Diaspora museum in Tel Aviv. Climbing walls, slides, slot machines, computers and a dog that says words when you put letters its mouth. http://www.israel21c.org/briefs/hebrew-language-exhibit-is-hot-ticket

Gesher (Hebrew for ‘bridge’) has been working for a decade to bring Jewish and Zionist identity and unity to trainee IDF officers. Here Exec director Ilan Galdor describes Gesher’s program. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgdRFEa2z_Q&feature=player_embedded

The 15th of Av is the traditional Jewish date for finding a partner. Some sixty singles gathered at Zedekiah’s Cave in Jerusalem for a special speed-dating marathon. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4109253,00.html

Glenn Beck’s Aug 24th Jerusalem “Restoring Courage” rally has received the blessing of Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/146670