Israel Active

A second rescue flight this month brought Israeli civilians from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Israel. Of the 89 passengers, there were 25 Olim (new immigrants). Meanwhile, the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews worked for months to bring in 53 Olim from Ukraine and 44 from Uzbekistan and Georgia.

All-star Rose Bowl NFL running back Yosef (Calvin) Murray and his wife Emunah (Jeri) were both born Christian. They were youth pastors at a Messianic church but “got too Jewish”. They converted to Judaism through the Chabad, made Aliya and now live in Ma’aleh Adumin.

Israel saluted the diaspora by projecting the flags of countries that are home to Jewish communities hard hit by COVID-19 on the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. Minister of Diaspora Affairs Tzipi Hotovely said, “Israel sends a big hug to our brothers throughout the world”

Aliya organization Nefesh b’Nefesh received 455 Aliya applications from the US in April. Another 642 have downloaded and are working on their applications. Both numbers are 50% higher than in April 2019. Meanwhile, 18 American new Olim have just arrived in Israel, on a NbN group flight.

Micha'el Derek Tanju was born in Darfur. At the age of 3 his parents were murdered by terrorists. He escaped to Israel in 2008. After graduating and National Service, he converted to Judaism and is currently studying computer science at the Jerusalem College of Technology.

The Western Wall (Kotel) Plaza in Jerusalem has re-opened to worshippers living outside the Old City. Up to 300 worshippers are allowed to pray in the Plaza simultaneously All must wear masks and stay in marked areas to maintain social distances.

An orthodox Jew from Jerusalem found a wallet with over 40,000 shekels ($11,000). He wouldn’t rest until he found the owner - a Palestinian Arab from Bethlehem - and returned the money to him.

In a display of appreciation, the Israeli Air Force gave a sky-high Independence Day salute to medical staff working on the front lines to combat the coronavirus. A squad of four stunt planes flew over the country’s hospitals and medical centers.

Aliyah to Israel is continuing as another nine Jewish Olim (immigrants) from Ukraine arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport on a flight arranged by the Jewish Agency for Israel and sponsored by the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ). Also 31 Brazilian Olim arrived on 10 flights over 50 hours.

This year’s Memorial Day and Independence Day moved from the Jerusalem streets to the clouds, to Zoom and on-line. At the Western Wall, the President and his honor guard wore masks. As Yom Ha’atzmaut began, many Israelis went out on their balconies to sing the national anthem "Hatikvah".