Israel Active

Israeli-Arab Salah Hasarma made history when he took over as coach of Israeli soccer club Kiryat Shmona (K8) in the Europa League qualifying game against Czech team Slovan Liberec. Although K8 lost, their Israeli-Arab striker Ahmed Abed scored a vital away goal.

An OECD report praises Israel in its efforts to deal with Israeli-Arab unemployment. Whilst recommending further improvements, it noted the important role of Israeli employment centers in advancing employment for the Arab and Beduin sectors.

Excellent article by Fred Maroun.

The Israeli government is to create a savings account for every Israeli child, regardless of religion that will be worth up to 18,000 shekels (around £3000 or $4700) on the child’s 18th birthday.

Five young agronomists from Rwanda have spent a year studying Israeli agriculture. The most significant project was how to grow spirulina algae, a superfood that contains all the essential nutrients a human body requires. It could save millions of Rwandan children from malnutrition.

The Druze village of Beit Jann achieved Israel's highest rate of matriculation certificate eligibility among high school students in the 2013-14 school year, having come in at third and second places in the last two years.

Top women in the fields of mobile, tech and startups attended “Speed Mentoring Night with Women who Inspire and Mentor in the Startup Nation” at the Google Campus in Tel Aviv. 120 hopeful female entrepreneurs benefited from 5-minute mentoring sessions. And Israel has the world’s 7th most women startup leaders.

Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics reported that the number of Israeli graduates has increased five-fold since 1990. In the last academic year, one and a half times as many women as men were awarded an undergraduate or Masters’ degree.

The BBC failed to mention in its Panorama program that the Jerusalem light railway also makes it easier for Arab residents of Jerusalem to travel around the city to hospitals, shopping malls or other areas that Arabs freely access alongside their Jewish neighbors.

Thanks to International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ), many Druse students received University scholarships in memory of former Druse IDF officer and Majdal Shams mayor Maj. Salim Shufi. The current mayor said the event gave the students a sense of pride.