Israel Active

Thankfully, this refers to the first time in history that two Israelis have faced each other in a National Basketball Association game when the Houston Rockets outplayed the Dallas Mavericks 113-105. Forward Omri Casspi scored 12 points for the Rockets whereas guard Gal Mekel scored 11 points for Dallas.

The Tel Aviv Night Run had a carnival atmosphere as 20,000 runners wearing pink T-shirts enjoyed a well-organized nocturnal 10km jog through Tel Aviv’s streets.

Five years ago, in an explosion in Gaza, newlywed Aharon Karov was declared dead. Now he’s raising money for OneFamily Fund, the organization that helped him get back on his feet. He has just completed the New York Marathon in 4hrs 14min 31sec.

Grammy Award-winning musician Lionel Richie and X Factor celebrity Simon Cowell helped raise $20 million at a Friends of the Israel Defense Forces gala. Cowell personally contributed $150,000 and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews donated $4.5 million.

British (Welsh) singer Tom Jones played to full houses at Nokia Arena in his two concerts in Tel Aviv. He even sang “My Yiddishe Momme” in his second concert.

American singer and dancer and TV personality Paula Abdul met Israeli President Shimon Peres on her first ever visit to Israel. “I'm so overwhelmed with gratitude to be here,” Paula said. “I know already when I have to leave I won’t want to.”

Singer-songwriter Lou Reed who died on Oct 27, last came to Israel in 2008, as a “guest artist” at his wife Laurie Anderson’s concert. A new genus of velvet spider found underground in Israel’s Negev desert last year was named Loureedia annulipes after the former Velvet Underground leader.

For the 9th year in a row, the Red Sea competition took place in Eilat. Integrating elements from photography, high-tech, tourism and diving industries, the event is one of the world’s leading underwater photography competitions.

Pop sensation Rihanna took the stage Tuesday night in Park Hayarkon, Tel Aviv in front of over 50,000 fans. The show was part of her “Diamond Tour” - she previously performed in Tel Aviv in 2010 and refused to be intimidated by a BDS campaign that tried to persuade her to cancel her concert.

For brothers Arie and Gil Gat, there’s no contradiction between being devout Jews and covering rock hits on Israel’s ‘Rising Star’ TV show.