Israel Active

The Israeli town of Sderot is growing and thriving thanks to its resilience center that treats residents traumatized by thousands of missiles fired by Gaza terrorists. Sderot is now building a Resilience Incubator hub for developing resilience tech and training medics in high-risk international cities.

Israeli airline El Al has restarted its 2011 program to inform people about Israel with the personal stories of flight attendants, pilots etc. They include Dimitriy – a Ukrainian-born flight attendant who recently flew on El Al flights to rescue Ukrainian refugees.

Dr. Abdulla Watad (35) of Israel’s Sheba Medical Center is set to become Israel’s youngest medical professor at Tel Aviv University. A resident of the Israel Arab town of Jatt, senior rheumatologist Dr Watad has written 200+ scientific papers.  

The Israeli mission to the United Nations will host the first Israeli Cyber Summit at the United Nations in New York City on 23rd Jan. “Stronger Together: Collaboration for a Cyber-Safe World” will focus on defensive cyber action to protect critical civilian infrastructure.

At last, Israel is to establish a Public Diplomacy Ministry, to be headed by Galit Distel Atbaryan. Maybe we will start to hear positive news from an official source.

Please read Robert Sarner’s ToI interview (also ) with George Deek – Israel’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan since 2019 (see previously). Ties include tourism, cultural, scientific, and Israeli help clearing around 1 million mines in the Karabakh region.

Three Israelis were included in TC Candler’s 2022 list of the World’s 100 most beautiful faces. They are (2021 ranking) Yael Shelbia 7th (6); Gal Gadot 12th (15); and Eden Fines 72nd (97). TC Candler’s list began in 1990 and also has a 100 Most Handsome Faces list (but no Israelis yet).

The non-profit Appleseeds helps 80,000+ Israelis each year develop essential digital literacy skills. It also sponsors Israel’s Net@ movement which gives technical training to disadvantaged Jewish, Christian, Druze, and Muslim youths. Meanwhile Israel’s 44 Ventures funds “forgotten” entrepreneurs.

Volunteers from Israeli emergency NGO United Hatzalah have distributed some 100 powerful electric generators to schools, orphanages, and medical clinics in Kyiv, Uman, Lviv, and Odesa. Hundreds more are to be supplied in the coming weeks. (Also, see previously).

Israel, the UAE, Egypt, Bahrain, Morocco, and the US held the inaugural meeting of the Negev Forum in Abu Dhabi (see previously). Six working groups focused on food security and water technology; clean energy; tourism; health; education and coexistence; and regional security.