Israel Active

US Christian Brian Mast, who lost both legs from a bomb-blast in Afghanistan, has joined the IDF’s Sar El volunteer program.  He puts his pro-Israel attitude down to his upbringing, military contacts with IDF personnel and warm relations with his Florida Jewish neighbors.

Irish Catholic Belinda Hickey visited Israel for the first time in 2006, when love for Israel was kindled in her heart.  Now she is a role model in courage as she promotes Israel in the face of anti-Semitism in Ireland.  

Israelis Michael (92) and Marion (90) Mittwoch have just celebrated the birth of a new great-grandchild – their 100th.  After escaping Nazi Germany, the Mittwochs immigrated to Israel where they became the first couple to be married at Kibbutz Lavi.  All children and grandchildren live in Israel.

Two hundred and twenty-six immigrants, 76 of which are children, landed in Israel on a special flight from Ukraine.  They included dozens of families of refugees from eastern Ukraine who were made destitute as a result of the ongoing fighting, and were forced to leave their homes.

Evelyn Gordon writes about some of the reasons that European Jews, despite all doors being open to them, are now choosing Israel to be their future home.

Select full screen view to see this amazing video tour of the highway to Jerusalem. It shows the new road construction in context with the Biblical sites mentioned along the way.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Taglit-Birthright Israel’s 15th anniversary event said to the youngsters, “In Israel, every Jew can say, ‘I am a Jew, Je suis Juif,’ out loud and proudly, without fear. Come to Israel. Come visit Israel. Come stay in Israel. Come make aliyah to Israel. This is your land.” =

Archeologists have discovered clay seals in Israel dating from the 10th century BCE – the biblical dating of the kingdoms of David and Solomon.  The find is evidence of a national government at a time when many scholars previously believed that there were only backwater chieftains.

After years of being educated to hate Jews, Mumtaz Halawa was shocked to learn he is Jewish. He changed his name to Mordechai (is better known as Mark), moved from Kuwait to Israel and settled in Jerusalem. 'I feel like Abraham,' he says.

As Israeli police were uncovering a weapons and drugs cache in Hebron, they heard noises and found a baby faun (a protected species) chained up inside a barrel.  The faun was transferred to the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo for medical treatment.  The poachers were arrested.