Singing for Covid-19 relief
Popular Israeli singer Ishay Ribo performed at an event in New York to raise money for the coronavirus relief efforts of Israeli social and educational NGO Migdal Or (“Tower of Light”). Ishay recently recovered from Covid-19. Keynote speaker was Gilad Erdan, Israel’s new ambassador to the US.
4 Israeli women lawmakers
33 out of the 120 Israeli Members of Knesset (Parliament) are women. 4 of the first-time female Knesset Members include the first female Ethiopian-born MK and minister, the first female ultra-Orthodox Jewish MK and minister, the first female Druze MK, and the first MK wearing a Muslim hijab.
Israel and UAE make peace
US-brokered talks have culminated in an historic teleconference between Israeli PM Netanyahu and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed where the two leaders agreed to a full recognition and peace between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. It includes embassies and direct flights.
Colombia’s Jerusalem innovation center
In a video conference with Israel’s Prime Minister, Colombian President Ivan Marquez announced his country is to open an innovation center in Jerusalem. A new free trade agreement has just come into effect between Israel and Colombia - South America’s third-largest economy.
Israeli runway protection for Qatar
Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Qatar is to deploy the RunWize Foreign Object & Debris (FOD) detection system provided by Israel’s Xsight Systems (reported previously). HIA is ranked as one of the best airports in the world and is Qatar Airways’ international hub.
Enabling Arabs & Israelis to do business
Israeli Jew Yosef Mahfoud Levi founded Insijam (Arabic for “harmony”). Levi was born to a Yemenite family and grew up speaking Arabic. He learned the Bedouin dialect and teaches Arab culture. Insijam establishes Arab-Israeli business & cultural channels across the Middle East.
Meal for Two
Israeli restaurants and the public are encouraged to join the “Meal for Two” initiative of Israeli charity Leket. Citizens donations are used by restaurants impacted by corona to cook a meal for needy Israelis.
Promoting more women health executives
Four female senior Life Science executives have founded the We@Heathtech program. Its aim is to propel junior women managers into executive positions in the health tech sector. It involves mentoring and an eight-month program of lectures and networking events.
Israel wins International University Math competition
The Israeli national student team (5 from Tel Aviv University, one from Bar-Ilan) took first place at the International Mathematics Competition for University Students. The event, held online, involved 546 students from 96 universities around the world.
Food packages to student families in Addis Ababa
The Israeli embassy in Ethiopia sent food packages to 250 families of students at the School of St Yared in Addis Ababa. Each package included a month’s supply of oil, pasta, rice and soaps. The embassy previously sent medical equipment and PPE to the capital’s hospital.