Israel Active

Tel Aviv’s Aviram Carmeli is the king of Purim costumes, and each year his outlandish outfits are more elaborate than the last. They include a bearded Miley Cyrus on a wrecking ball, and Aang “The Last Airbender” on a giant flying buffalo. His video as Aladdin had 200 million views.

The number of annual Jewish births in Israel (including Judea & Samaria) surged by 73% from 1995 to 2024 compared to a 18% increase of annual Arab births in Israel during the same period. The Jewish fertility rate (3 births per woman) is also higher.

Aliyah organization Nefesh b’Nefesh (NbN) has launched its Zionist Education Initiative (ZEI) at its Jerusalem campus. It includes workshops on Zionism, Jewish history, and Aliyah; leadership training; dynamic programming for schools, camps, and communities; and exciting campus activities.   

Some 800 Haredi Jews prayed at the tomb of Rav Ashi on the border between Israel and Lebanon under the protection of the IDF. Rav Ashi (352–427 C.E.) is credited with compiling the Gemara, an essential component of the Talmud. The rare visit was on 7 Adar – the date Moses was born & died.

Religious Jews refrain from carrying items in public areas on Shabbat unless a special boundary is in place, like the one this IDF soldier is constructing at the Mount Hermon base.

Reservists from various IDF combat units brought Purim joy to Israeli children with severe physical and cognitive disabilities at Aleh’s facility in Bnei Brak. The soldiers rappelled down from the rooftop, each carrying Purim gift packages known as mishloach manot.

Israeli hostage Andrey Koslov revealed details of the daring IDF rescue of him and three other hostages from captivity in Gaza on Jun 8 2024.

Uri Patkin owns the strawberry farm Uri Tutim in Moshav Yesha near the Gaza border. Yesha’s emergency squad bravely fought off terrorists on Oct 7 2023, at a heavy price. Now Uri is once again farming his high-quality, long shelf-life, hanging strawberries.  

Ex-hostage Gadi Mozes has called on his fellow Kibbutz Nir Oz members to rebuild their destroyed kibbutz and help return it to its former glory. Mozes (80) has decided “to buckle down, to roll up my sleeves and to join all those who want our home, Nir Oz, to return to being a warm and vibrant home.”

A group of volunteers ages 55 and older recently participated in Jewish National Fund-USA’s inaugural Sunshine Volunteer Mission to Israel. They spent five days restoring Israeli communities destroyed on Oct 7 2023, fixed schools and playgrounds, helped farmers, prepared food for the IDF and more.