Israel Active

Israelis watching the skies just after sunset may see a fiery object just to the right of the setting sun. Dr. Igal Patel, chairman of the Israeli Astronomical Association, says it is the comet Panstarrs C/2011 L4. But Passover is when Elijah is supposed to announce the final redemption - so who knows?

A report, by Natixis Global Asset Management (NGAM) puts Israel as the 12th best place in the world for retirees. Using UN and World Bank data, Israel comes ahead of Canada, the USA and the UK in the “safety net” the government provides to pensioners, to live better and healthier lives.

The founder of www.theisraelcampaign.org Kasim Hafeez writes about the double standards used by human rights activists in relation to Israel and any other country. Kasim ran in the Jerusalem half marathon to raise funds for the Michael Levin Lone Soldier Center.

Israel has begun a project to rid the area of Eilat of over 10,000 defensive landmines placed near the city in clearly marked minefields during the sixties and seventies. The recovered land will be returned to the city for use in housing and agriculture.

Israel’s Transportation Ministry has approved a new project to pave 400km of cycling trails across the country. The project's main goal is to minimize accidents involving cyclists on interurban highways. The ministry also hopes more people will use this eco-friendly mode of transportation.

The Israel Institute opened its doors in the US capital last week with a novel mission: to advance the scholarly study of modern Israel in the United States and around the world.

David Brent is a NASA engineer who will shortly become an American Israeli. It is a lot easier than becoming an Israeli American. He explains that in Israel, the laws of physics are reversed. It is easier to go “up” (Aliyah) than to go down. David is coming home.

Seven descendants of Kaifeng Jews, an ancient community from China’s Henan Province, have come to Israel and reclaimed their Judaism thanks to the charity Shavei Israel. At its height, 5,000 Jews lived in Kaifeng. Today, about 1,000 Chinese can trace their roots to them.

Nadav Shragai, writing in Israel Hayom, urges that we must provide US President Obama with an historical, religious, legal and emotional tour of the Jewish State. He needs to be shown that the Jewish bond to our land pre-dates WW2 by more than three millennia.

I reported a few weeks ago about the IDF officer whose arm was blown off by Gaza terrorists but who returned to present his battalion with its combat medals. Well here is the video. He praised his soldiers and then quoted Psalm 121 “He who neither slumbers nor sleeps will guard over Israel”.