Israel Active

A rising number of Israeli students are completing academic degrees. Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics announced that for the 2021/22 academic year 88,200 Israeli students successfully graduated. Those with master’s degrees increased by 4.5%. Most graduates were women.

The Presidential Medal of Honor is awarded to those who have made an extraordinary contribution to the State of Israel, the Jewish people, and all humanity. 2023’s recipients included Arab VP of Hebrew Uni Mona Khoury-Kassabri (see ) and ex-soccer captain Bibras Natcho - a Circassian Muslim.

Surgeons from Israel’s Save A Child’s Heart in Holon saved the lives of two young boys from the Kingdom of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) with VSD (ventricular septal defect - a congenital hole in the heart). The boys were from the same village but hadn’t known each other. They do now!

The number of disposable plastic bags distributed by large Israeli retailers in 2022 is 73% less than in 2016 just before a NIS 0.10 charge was applied. On International Plastic Bag Free Day, the Environmental Protection Ministry announced that this saved over 4,000 tons of plastic waste in 2022 alone.

The Israeli embassy in majority Muslim Senegal provided poor families sheep for the holiday of Tabaski – the Wolof name for Eid al-Adha. These gifts have been an annual tradition since 2006.

Jerusalem philanthropist David Hager has been awarded the President’s Badge of Volunteering for co-founding the Nachal Haredi unit of the IDF. Also, his work for the Netzach Yehuda Association, which has integrated over 16,000 haredi service graduates into the Israeli economy and society.

Members of Rescuers Without Borders (see previously), together with Judea and Samaria Rescuers Without Borders, visited the city of Sderot as part of their mission to fit and make eyeglasses for survivors of the Shoah.

Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska and Israel’s First Lady Michal Herzog visited the rehabilitation department of Sheba Medical Center and patients at the Safra Children’s Hospital. Mrs Zeleneska hopes to model Israel’s program for treating amputees, paralyzed patients, and children in Ukraine.

"Rich cultural heritage, kind people, and abundance of food, shopping, and learning" were cited as the reason why The Travel blog ranked Tel Aviv as the happiest city in the world. It also noted that Tel Aviv has become "a global hot spot for spring break and vacationing as a whole."  

The South Pacific island country of Fiji has announced that its first embassy in Israel will open next year. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen welcomed the announcement, calling Fiji a “true friend” of Israel.  Fiji’s will be the 98th embassy to the Jewish state.