Israel Active

Argentina’s outspoken, pro-Israel president, Javier Milei, announced a steadfast alliance with Israel, pledging unwavering support in the fight for democracy and the battle against terrorism.

Argentinian Defense Minister Luis Petri visited Israel to advance cooperation on modernizing Argentina’s defense systems and strengthening bilateral security ties. The visit emphasized the two countries’ shared commitment to freedom, democracy, and combating dictatorships.

Four Israeli high school students won three gold medals and a bronze at the 2024 International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) in Egypt, placing them second of the 94 nations. For security reasons they competed remotely, and next year will be forced to participate only under the IOI flag.

A sold-out audience of 900+ supporters gathered in Greenwich CT for the “2024 FIDF Westchester and Connecticut Evening of Solidarity Dinner” to help raise funds for the IDF. Many combat IDF soldiers shared personal stories and how FIDF had helped them on the frontlines.

The “Sheba Impact” initiative together with ARC Innovation, and Ofakim LaAtid have launched dozens of startups in Israel’s periphery. In a recent competition for Druze-led startups, AIBRID (educational tech) won NIS 300,000. Other finalists were Swift, AgriEye, Preln and MultiKol.

This article emphasises the multi-cultural composition of Israel’s national soccer team. (See also the sports news below.)

Israeli NGO Innovation: Africa (see previously) has implemented award-winning remote monitoring systems to identify how much water the NGO’s solar-powered pumps have supplied to the 1,000 rural African villages where its technology has been installed. The answer - 77 million gallons in one month.

Three “critically endangered” hawksbill sea turtles, born and raised for 25 years in Eilat’s underwater observatory, have been released into the wild. Israeli conservationists will monitor if and how Nova, Israel and Yael - turtles living for decades in captivity - will survive in the wild.

Luxury and lifestyle travel magazine Condé Nast Traveler ranked breakfast at the five-star David Kempinski Tel Aviv hotel among the world’s best in 2024. Breakfast items included distinctly Middle Eastern dishes, such as baba ghanoush and fresh honeycomb, while overlooking the beach.

Senator John Fetterman (D-Pa.) gave a rousing response to an interviewer from the New York Times who criticized Israel’s use of pagers to combat Hezbollah terrorists. And he continued to defend Israel as the interviewer threw more provocative questions his way.