Israel Active

Israeli humanitarian NGO IsraAID has dispatched an emergency response team to Mozambique, to help victims of the cyclone that devastated the country. IsraAID will distribute relief supplies, deliver psychological first aid and restore access to safe drinking water to affected communities.

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin met with a delegation of 21 State Comptrollers, representing 42 countries in Europe and Asia. They were in Israel attending Israel’s State Comptroller’s conference on global issues and best practices in state auditing.

The IDF’s Special in Uniform program integrates young people with autism and other disabilities into the Israel Defense Forces and, in turn, into Israeli society. US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman said that the US wants to implement a similar model in the US army.

Josie taught Hebrew to migrants to Israel from Eritrea and Sudan between Sept 2018 and Jan 2019.  Here is an account of her experiences.

21st March is World Down Syndrome Day and coincided with Purim this year.  Israel together with Singapore initiated World Down Syndrome Day in 2006 Israel’s Yated Association provides parents with reliable information about raising children with DS. Please donate if you can.

McDonald’s Israel has installed sensors from Israel’s RightHear near entrances, restrooms, elevators and stairs in nearly all its 180 Israeli branches. It is the world’s first restaurant chain to offer full access to customers with orientation challenges.

In 1972, a Korean toddler and her baby sister were abandoned by their parents. Taken to separate orphanages, they were adopted by different families in the US and Belgium. 47 years later, they were reunited, thanks to a DNA test they both independently took with Israeli company MyHeritage.

Robert Sarner describes interesting street tours of Paris by two Israelis. They highlight the street art and graffiti, now widely seen as part of a city’s visual identity and cultural expression.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is to visit Israel from March 31 to April 4. Mr Bolsonaro has repeatedly promised to relocate the Brazilian embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. “The decision is taken; it’s only a matter of when it will be implemented” he said on TV in Feb.

Liberian President George Manna Weah, came to Israel with a large delegation of ministers and aides. President Weah is a former soccer star, considered to be among the best of Africa’s players. Israeli President Reuven Rivlin said he watched him play for Chelsea in 2000.