Israel Active

Shalom, an EMT with Israel’s United Hatzalah was in the vicinity of the recent fatal Jerusalem bus crash but had no medical equipment at the time. He saved a young victim with severe injuries by stemming the blood flow from one of her legs by tying his tzitzit (small prayer shawl) around it as a tourniquet.

Israel’s SavorEat has finally done it. It has just launched kosher 3D-printed, plant-based vegan, gluten-free, allergen-free pork patties. They contain pea and other plant-based proteins with sunflower and coconut fats.  (Ed - I wonder if they will be as popular as the facon-burger!)

Many Rabbinic texts are difficult to read, even for Hebrew speakers. Rashi script, no punctuation, and abbreviations are just some of the issues. Israeli-American computer scientist and Talmud scholar Prof. Moshe Koppel has launched Dicta Maivin (dictation expert) to resolve those problems.

Archaeologists have found a rare collection of knuckle bones used for gambling and divination in Southern Israel, dating back approximately 2,300 years to the Hellenistic period.

Five intact large storage jars have been unearthed at Shiloh in Samaria, under the floor of a building from the Talmudic period (200-400 CE). Previous finds date from the Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, and Early Muslim periods. Shiloh was the site of the Tabernacle c.1250 BCE.

The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) brought 84 new South American immigrants to Israel. Originally from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, and Peru, their reasons for Aliyah varied, but for most it was to have a better quality of life.

Israel is just a sliver on the map in the Middle East, but has earned a global reputation for effectively and sacrificially helping other nations in times of crisis - even enemy countries like Syria. Judaism emphasises giving help to others, so a Jewish state will always make it a priority.

An 1,850-year-old bronze coin depicting the Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius has been found in the sea, near Haifa. Antonius repealed the cruel edicts of Emperor Hadrian, which encouraged Jews to return to their homeland and establish post-Temple Judaism.

The Israeli government has approved an “historic” plan to develop the southern section of Jordan River. It will increase water levels and eliminate pollution. A new desalination plant will ensure a constant flow of water, turning the area into a diverse biological ecosystem and a tourist destination.

The Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center on the campus of Tel Aviv University has been designated a protected historic site by the Council for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in Israel. Built in 1998, the building is currently the “youngest” in the country to hold this status.