Israel Active

10% of the 2,000 companies presenting at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona were either based, or do the majority of their R&D work, in Israel.  This has led to the event being an opportunity for Israelis to show the positive side of Israel that few abroad are aware of.

For the third time in five years, Grand Chief Ron Evans of the Norway House Cree Nation in Northern Manitoba is taking a youth group on a leadership development tour of Israel.  Ron believes Israeli entrepreneurship can motivate his community’s youth to achieve more.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said that it was a pleasure to welcome “my good friend” Boiko Borissov, Prime Minister of Bulgaria, when he visited Jerusalem.  They discussed cooperation in the energy sector.  Bulgaria often votes for Israel in the UN.

“Simply Sing” is a Jerusalem-based cross-cultural project that has Jews and Arabs meet every few weeks for an evening of musical performances and singing. 250 attended the latest event at Jerusalem’s Museum of Islamic Art which featured three Jewish and three Arab Israeli musicians.

Jerusalem’s Alyn Hospital, Israel’s biggest rehabilitation center for physically challenged youngsters, aims to become the world’s first full-time “maker lab” to develop projects to help the disabled. Alyn just held its first-ever Makeathon, for developers of technology with global social benefits.

Israeli President Rivlin greeted, at his Jerusalem residence, seven newly appointed judges to Israel’s Sharia courts, saying the institution's viability served as a testament to Israel's strength in diversity. Israeli law recognizes Sharia courts’ jurisdiction on personal status issues within the Muslim community, including marriage, divorce, custody of children and inheritance.

Israel’s G.A.L. Water Technologies, with the Israeli Foreign Ministry, have donated a mobile desalination unit developed in Israel to Papua New Guinea. The Galmobile will provide the Pacific islands with clean drinking water from the ocean or any water source.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received an invitation from Kenyan President Kenyatta to visit Kenya this summer, in what would mark the first visit by an Israeli leader to Africa in 50 years. He intends to do so around the 40th anniversary of the raid on Entebbe. The announcement coincided with the launch of the new Knesset Caucus for Israel-Africa Relations.

Major Alaa Waheeb is the highest ranking Muslim officer in the Israel Defense Forces. Not only has he fought alongside Jewish soldiers, but he now trains them too. Here is his own story.

Please have a look at this handy little interactive map of the world from Freedom House, showing the freedom rating of each country. Use the + key to enlarge, otherwise it is impossible to find tiny Free Israel amongst some of the Worst of the Worst in the Middle East.