Israel Active

Twenty-nine disabled Uruguayan Jews arrived in Israel for the first time in their lives. The visit was organized by the Israel Experience organization, and made ??possible by Avital Sharansky, after she visited Uruguay's Jewish community a few months ago.

The new Beit David Museum in Tel Aviv – dedicated to the House of David – is honouring the holiday of Shavuot, which also marks King David’s 3,025th birthday. The museum has 1st and 2nd Temple exhibits, plus ancient slingshot stones like the one with which David killed Goliath.

The Young Israel Movement has dedicated a new Torah scroll to the IDF’s Iron Dome anti-missile unit. Together with $1billion investment voted by the US House of Representatives, the Iron Dome system could soon improve on its 90% success rate in shooting down rockets from Gaza terrorists.

Michael Freund, Chairman of Shavei Israel writes about the latest Government decision to bring remaining members of the Bnei Menashe tribe from India to Israel. The “lost” tribe of Menashe was exiled by the Assyrians 2700 years ago.

The cherry crop is so huge that farmers had to take the rare step of thinning the fruit before it ripened in order to allow each cherry to grow and to avoid overweight tree limbs crashing to the ground. As it says in this week’s Torah portion – “ The land will give its fruit and you will eat your fill”.

“Israel in the Digital Age” is the most comprehensive survey ever of how engaged Israelis are with social media. It portrays a nation that takes full advantage of all the Internet has to offer. Nearly one third of the ultra-Orthodox population is online. Also, Arabs blog more than Jews.

Is this good news, you ask? Yes – because Israel is steadily integrating its Ethiopian community into regular State education. Just an example of the ways a news story can be treated.

Archaeologists from The Hebrew University have found 3000-year-old artefacts that shed light on the design of the First Temple in Jerusalem. The models utilize important architectural designs written in the Torah that describe how the Temple should be built.

Renowned jeweller Henri Padani has passed away aged 92. He fled Antwerp with nothing when World War II began. Post WW2, he came to pre-State Tel Aviv working as a fruit picker and a barman. His pre-war jewellery design skills slowly allowed him to build a flourishing business and a home.

Celebrity hairstylist Vidal Sassoon, who was committed to fighting anti-Semitism and fought in Israel's War of Independence, has died age 84. Sassoon passed away on the eve of the Jewish minor festival of Lag B’Omer – the day when traditionally Jewish boys have their first haircut.