Israel Active

Yityish Aynaw wants to use her “Miss Israel” title to showcase Israel’s diversity. Along with her, several African-Israeli women have recently made a pop culture impact. Ethiopian-Israeli actress Ester Rada, 28, has just released her first solo rock record to positive reviews. And Ahtaliyah Pierce, a 17-year-old Black Hebrew Israeli, reached the semi-finals on Israel’s edition of “The Voice”.

You may have read that three sons of Hassan Sariye drowned off Ashkelon, but you may have missed that Yaakov Bruchim jumped into the dangerous currents to save two others. The emotional father Hassan said, “God took away three sons but gave us another.”

Muawiya Qabha saved Adele Briton, aged 3, who was critically injured by Palestinian Arabs throwing rocks. Qabha rushed to the scene of the attack, even though he was not on duty at the time. This week, he was a guest of honor at the Briton family’s Mimouna (post-Passover) celebration. Qabha also visited Adele in hospital.

60 youth villages in Israel educate an estimated 25,000 students per year, putting them on a path toward becoming productive members of Israeli society, despite troubled pasts and higher rates of unemployment and poverty among their families.

This is the title of an article by Mahdi Majid Abdullah, writing in “Elaph”, a pan-Arab newspaper based in the UK and Saudi Arabia. He begins “I regret with most remorse the daily hate I had of Israelis” and then includes a long list of Israel’s positive activities.

(Thanks to Haifa Diary) “Israel is my home and where my friends – Arabs & Jews – live. Israel is where I have rights and Israel is where my family lives. I’m proud to be Arab & Israeli.”

19-year-old Arab Christian Lina Mahoul from the northern town of Acre (Akko) won “The Voice Israel” television song contest with a touching version of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’. The three other finalists were all women and included a religious Jew, and an Ethiopian.

Jews living in Judea and Samaria had surplus bread that they needed to dispose of prior to the Passover holiday. Rather than burn it, they distributed them to needy Palestinian Arabs. It was the 3rd consecutive year that members of the Eretz Shalom movement sent this message of peace to their neighbors.

Due the number of wounded Syrians Israel has been treating, the IDF has set up a "military field hospital" in the Golan Heights. The hospital will treat injured Syrians near the border fence to avoid having to send serious cases on long journeys to hospitals inside Israel.

12-year old Aviva Krainess from Bet Shemesh lost most of her sight 5 years ago but never stopped dreaming of enjoying stories. Together with her father, they started Aviva Productions and Mind Theatre. It’s like a Hollywood movie where you create the pictures in your own mind.