Thursday, August 28, 2008

Israel Update 8/28/08

QUICK READING LIST
- Who Revived the Electric Car?, Tamar Snyder, Jewish Week, 8/6/08: http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c36_a13109/News/New_York.html
- Betancourt calls for Gilad Shalit's release, Reuters / YNetNews, 7/20/08: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3570722,00.html
- Why Gentile Americans Back the Jewish State, Walter Russell Mead, Foreign Affairs, July 2008: http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20080701faessay87402/walter-russell-mead/the-new-israel-and-the-old.html
- Land without regret, Hillel Halkin, National Post (CA), 5/6/08: http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/story.html?id=494303
- Must Read (short): Five hours at Tel Aviv airport, Nicolien Den Boer, Radio Netherlands, 4/9/08: http://www.radionetherlands.nl/specialseries/mideastdiaries/080409-tel-aviv-airport
- At 63, Israeli immigrant solves 38-year-old math riddle, Aaron Heller, USA Today, 3/20/08: http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/mathscience/2008-03-20-road-coloring-problem-solved_N.htm
- A Moral Outrage, Mort Zuckerman, U.S. News & World Report, 3/14/08: http://www.usnews.com/articles/opinion/mzuckerman/2008/03/14/a-moral-outrage.html

RESOURCE: VIRTUAL JERUSALEM
Take a virtual tour of the City of David: http://www.cityofdavid.org.il/hp_eng.asp

VIDEO: GAZANS TRAIN FOR WAR
Watch this short CNN video about how some Palestinians in Gaza are spending time during this "truce" with Israel: making rockets and training for war --
http://ws.collactive.com/points/point?id=SceCQyymTxR7
- Watch also:
http://uk.reuters.com/news/video?rpc=401&videoId=88018&feedType=VideoRSS&feedName
- Read also: Gaza summer camps teach kids to fire rockets: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3575660,00.html

VIDEO: WHAT ISRAEL IS REALLY LIKE
Nice short video ad, brought to you by AJC, in honor of Israel @ 60: http://www.gmmb.com/client_view/AJC/AJC_landing_page/flash/index.html
- See also this color flyer, on the same topic: http://www.theisraelproject.org/atf/cf/%7b84DC5887-741E-4056-8D91-A389164BC94E%7d/20080731%20WINNER%20TOMMY%20HUYNH.PDF

CHARITY: SHALVA
Please consider donating to Shalva, an organization that provides comprehensive programs to physically and mentally challenged children in Israel: http://www.shalva.org/frame.htm

QUOTE OF THE DAY: HAMAS SON SPEAKS
Masab, the son of West Bank Hamas leader Sheikh Hassan Yousef and a convert to Christianity: "You Jews should be aware: You will never, but never have peace with Hamas . . . They believe that tradition says that the Prophet Mohammed fought against the Jews and that therefore they must continue to fight them to the death . . . An entire society sanctifies death and the suicide terrorists. In Palestinian culture a suicide terrorist becomes a hero, a martyr. Sheikhs tell their students about the 'heroism of the shaheeds.'" "Send regards to Israel, I miss it. I respect Israel and admire it as a country," he says.
- http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1007097.html

NEWS: DAILY HEADLINES
Check here for daily headline news from Israel, in English: http://www.jerusalemonline.com/

Thursday, August 7, 2008

Israel Update 8/7/08

QUICK READING LIST
- Green giant, Kobi Ben-Sihon, Haaretz, 5/18/08: http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/984030.html
- Israel wins significant EU upgrade, Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post, 6/16/08: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1212659748504&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
- See also: Europe and Israel: Strengthening the Partnership, Nile Gardiner, Testimony before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, 7/9/08: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Europe/wm1984.cfm
- Google Earth: A New Platform for Anti-Israel Propaganda, Andre Oboler, JCPA, 6/26/08: http://jcpa.org/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=1&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=376&PID=0&IID=2250&TTL=Google_Earth:_A_New_Platform_for_Anti-Israel_Propaganda_and_Replacement_Geography
- Israeli expertise in ritual helps Africa combat AIDS, Joel Greenberg, Chicago Tribune, 7/8/08: http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/health/chi-circumcise-08-jul08,0,2114726.story
- In honor of the upcoming Olympics: Neal Amdur, NY Times, 7/13/08: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/sports/olympics/13ladany.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

CHARITY: BEIT ISSIE SHAPIRO
Beit Issie Shapiro is a center in Ra'anana, Israel that uses state of the art therapies to make a difference in the lives of children with special needs: http://www.afobis.org/

WEBSITE FOR STUDENTS
For students interested in Middle East politics and diplomacy, check out this upcoming conference in Tel Aviv: http://mesc.web.officelive.com/default.aspx

REACTIONS FROM THE PRISONER SWAP
- For Israel, prisoner swap evokes raw memories, Aaron Heller, AP, 7/15/08: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gGxpzWERVNq09cHSTuA2GNHHsB3QD91UMDB00
- A strange kind of hero, Editorial, Boston Globe, 7/18/08: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2008/07/18/a_strange_kind_of_hero/
- A moment of moral clarity, Gil Troy, Montreal Gazette, 7/18/08: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/editorial/story.html?id=d58f760a-55aa-45bf-aa5c-85bcda0cd072
- Watch also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS6NyrexKlk

SPECIAL: ISRAEL IN PICTURES
See: http://gilad.deviantart.com/gallery/ and http://ws.collactive.com/points/point?id=4QeSDQPDGZ4O (be patient and enjoy the slideshow!)

QUOTE OF THE DAY: BLAME HAMAS
These quotes are a little old, but still ring true:

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said militant Palestinians, not Israel, are to blame for deteriorating conditions in the sealed-off Gaza Strip. "The responsibility for what is happening in Gaza should be put directly on the shoulders of Hamas . . . It is the policies of Hamas that have led to its own isolation . . . There have been efforts to make certain that humanitarian assistance is getting through," Rice said. "We have worked very diligently with the Israelis," she added. "Of course we're very concerned, but let's put the blame where it should be, and that's on Hamas."
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hKO6E2Vs5MktD_-DXHsbQ6tnT1-QD8TIRM3O1

At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Secretary Rice said, "We believe that Hamas has acted in a way in Gaza that has made it very difficult for the Palestinians, the innocent Palestinians who are unfortunate enough to be in Gaza."

And White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said, "The Palestinians living in Gaza are living under chaos because of Hamas. The blame has to be placed fully at their feet." http://news.monstersandcritics.com/middleeast/news/article_1388167.php/US_blames_Hamas_for_Gaza_&quotchaos%22__2nd_Roundup_

GOOD NEWS!
- Israeli Economy Weathers Global Storm: http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2008/gb20080520_712676.htm
- Microsoft opens new R&D facility in Israel: http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/05/21/microsoft-sets-facility-israel
- Tourists Flock to Israel: http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2008/gb20080521_370198.htm?chan=globalbiz_europe+index+page_top+stories

MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION: THE 'BIG LIES'
Brought to you by Honest Reporting: http://www.honestreporting.com/a/bigLies.asp