Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Israel hassigned the Artemis Accords, a document outlining the rules for space exploration, including mutual cooperation. Israel has thus become the latest member of what some are calling theArtemis Alliance, which includes Australia, Brazil, Canada, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, New Zealand, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Israels first high-profile space mission was the 2019Beresheet probe, an attempt to land on the moons surface. The mission was undertaken by a private group calledSpaceILwhich was a participant of the Google Lunar XPrize. The Beresheet mission failed, crashing onto the lunar surface.

Undaunted, SpaceIL is going to attempta second Beresheet mission, this time consisting of an orbiter and two landers. Another signatory of the Artemis Accords, the United Arab Emirates, is participating in the mission by providing instruments for the landers, making it the first Israeli-Arab space voyage in history. Beresheet 2 will be an example of how Israel and former enemies are now making alliances for their mutual benefit. The new lunar landing attempt is scheduled for 2024.

In the meantime, an Israeli startup company calledHelioshas signed an agreement with a German-based company called OHB SE to deliver a technology demonstrator to extract oxygen and metals from lunar soil on the LSAS (Lunar Surface Access Service) lander. The idea is to develop the ability for future lunar explorers to live off the land rather than to have materials shipped from Earth at great cost. The Israeli technology melts the lunar soil and extracts the oxygen and other materials through electrolysis. The mission is slated for 2025.

By signing the Artemis Accords, Israel will create opportunities for Israeli companies to participate in Americas return to the moon program. An Israeli company calledStemradhas developed an anti-radiation vest called AstroRad, in partnership with Lockheed Martin, that has already been tested on the International Space Station (ISS) and is slated to fly on the Artemis 1 mission. The vest will help protect future astronauts from radiation in deep space.

Moreover, an Israeli astronaut will likely fly on an Artemis mission to the moon at some point. NASA has already flown one Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, who perished on the ill-fated Columbia STS-107 mission. Another Israeli, former fighter pilot and entrepreneur Eytan Stibbe is slated to fly to the International Space Station in March 2022 as part of the private Axiom-1 flight. He will performa number of experiments using Israeli technologyduring his stay on the orbiting space lab.

The day an Israeli astronaut walks on the moon,possibly accompanied by a UAE astronaut, will be a singular event in the history of not only the Middle East but of the world. The event would signal the advent of Israel as a space power.

Why does Israel, which has problems closer to home, want to become a space power? The rise of Israel as a technology powerhouse presents part of an answer.

Israels participation in the Artemis Program, in the short term, will provide lucrative contracts for that countrys burgeoning tech center. In the long run, access to the moon, as part of the Artemis Alliance, will garner Israel a share of that worlds resources, which would also be useful for the countrys technology manufacturing sector.

Israel also will gain what some call soft political power by being part of Artemis. Israel is often talked about in international circles solely in the context of the Israeli-Arab conflict. As part of the Artemis Alliance, Israel will increasingly be considered a space power, a country that derives much of its strength and vitality through space activities. Other countries will discover the benefit of having Israel as a friendly, trading partner.

High tech will be the basis of Israels relationships with other countries, especially Gulf Nations such as the UAE, whose interests are also defined by a drive to create a commercial technology sector. Indeed, Israels relationship with the other countries that comprise theAbraham Accords, the Trump-era agreement that made peace between Israel and a number of Arab Gulf states, will be defined by a paraphrase of an old slogan from the 60s: Make money, not war. That is altogether a beautiful thing.

MarkR.Whittingtonis the authorofspace explorationstudiesWhy is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon?as well asThe Moon, Mars and Beyond,andWhy is America Going Back to the Moon?He blogs atCurmudgeons Corner.

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Israel signs the Artemis Accords in bid to become a space power | TheHill - The Hill

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

The wife of convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard was rushed to the hospital Saturday due to complications arising from COVID-19.

According to a statement calling for public prayers released by the family on Sunday, Esther Pollard, who has been battling cancer for several years, was hospitalized following a deterioration in her condition after contracting the coronavirus two weeks ago.

A spokesman for the family confirmed reports that Pollard is suffering from a case of sepsis brought on by her infection and told Haaretz that further updates would be made public when new information is available.

Esther and Jonathan Pollard were married while the latter was serving a multi-decade prison sentence in the United States, convicted on charges of espionage for Israel while he served as an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Navys counterterrorism center.

He served 30 years in an American prison and five years on strict parole before immigrating to Israel in December 2020.

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Esther Pollard, wife of Israeli spy, hospitalized due to COVID - Haaretz

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

A recent Heritage Foundation study found strong anti-Israel bias in the social media posts of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) officials at colleges and universities throughout the United States. These officials criticize Israel far more frequently and far more severely than they do China. Their posts about Israel exceed those mentioning China by a factor of three, and almost all of their statements about Israel express condemnation, whereas nearly two-thirds of their comments on China convey praise.

These disturbing findings should surprise no one. U.S. campuses have become hotbeds of hostility toward the state of Israel as well as toward the idea of American exceptionalism, and in the radical religion of the campus, far-left professors are the priests and DEI officers are the choir.

This religion has its orthodoxies: America is systemically racist and defined by perpetual struggle of oppressed against oppressors; white privilegefor which Jews should be regarded as an exemplaris a chief source of oppression, and status-based intersectional categories of victimhood confer both justness and entitlement. Under this neo-Marxist paradigm, there is no hint of irony when officials putatively devoted to fostering diversity and inclusion insteadpromote hostility toward Israel or regard as obnoxious the idea that the allegedly privileged Jewish people have a right to national self-determination in their ancient homeland.

Alas, this nonsense is not confined to classroom discussions or social media posts. DEI training sessions have resulted in complaints of discrimination against Jews, and radicalized students indoctrinated in this ideology have made campus life more and more unbearable for their Jewish and pro-Israel peers.

A recent poll ofstudents active in Jewish organizations on campus found that 65 percent felt unsafe on campus because of physical or verbal attacks. Half felt the need to conceal their Jewish identity or support for Israel for the sake of their safety. In response to widespread harassment and discrimination directed toward Jewish students, President Donald Trump issued an executive order reiterating that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act protects Jewsjust as every other race, color, national origin, and ethnicityfrom discrimination at taxpayer-funded universities.

The anti-Semitism infesting many college campuses goes far beyond hate speech. Take the complaint filed by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law on behalf of Jewish students at the University of Chicago Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It cited numerous cases of pervasive anti-Semitic activity on campus, including criminal activity such as thefts overtly targeting Jews, car vandalism, and other property damage. Universities have a legal and moral duty to prevent such criminality and to respond when it occurs.

The poisonous environment at universities is a global phenomenon. During his previous diplomatic role, one of the authors of the Heritage Foundation study represented the United States in meetings with European Jewish student leaders. Like those in North America, Jewish and pro-Israel students in Europe report a campus climate of open hostilityone so bad that in many cases, they have had to conceal their identity.

From Berlin to Berkeley, many students feel they must purchase their personal safety on campus at the price of divorce from a key part of their Jewish identity, namely, a sense of Jewish peoplehood and a connection with the Jewish homeland. These students feel their universitys environment is telling them: Extirpate Israel and Zionism from your identity, and youll go unmolested on your campus; express the contrary at your peril.

Coercing Jews to abandon key aspects of their ethnic or religious identity is nothing new. In fact, it has a name: Anti-Semitism. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo set forth this basic truth in the clearest terms. Let me go on the record, he declared, anti-Zionism is antisemitism.Pompeo also rightly recognized that the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which runs rampant on campuses and isolates Jewish students, is anti-Semitic.

Fortunately, there are specific steps our schools can take to correct course and restore sanity to campus.

First, universities and school districts should adopt the standard definition of anti-Semitism put forth by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA). This Working Definition of Antisemitism has been adopted and promoted by the State Department through multiple administrations and is used by other agencies of the federal government. It has also been adopted globally, by thirty-five countries, over 250 provinces and cities and more than 350 educational institutions and other organizations. The IHRA Working Definition sets forth eleven contemporary examples of anti-Semitism. These capture both traditional manifestations of Jew-hatred and the more modern targeting of Israel and Zionism.

The IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is a tool of education, not censorship. Its adoption by universities and schools, and critically, its incorporation into educational programs and training, will promote understanding of Israel-hatred and other forms of anti-Semitism. By properly defining and recognizing anti-Semitism, universities will also be better equipped to respond to antisemitic incidents.

Second, universities should dramatically reduce the ever-multiplying throngs of DEI officers. A Heritage survey of sixty-five major universities revealed an average of forty-five DEI staff at each, with 163 at the University of Michigan. Overall, DEI personnel outnumbered staff focused on assisting those with disabilities (ADA compliance) by 4.2 to 1. At the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, DEI staff outnumbered those focused on students with disabilities by 13.3 to 1. On average, the universities employed 3.4 DEI staff for every 100 tenured or tenure-track professors.

Third, universities should striveor be required by donors and alumni to strivefor greater ideological balance in their faculty and programs. Genuine diversity requires diversity of background and viewpoint. Universities should also evaluate the current state of ideological bias among their faculty and programs. Across the U.S., programs at universitiesespecially in Middle Eastern Studies Departmentspromote blatant anti-American and anti-Israel viewpoints, whitewashing terrorism and suppressing alternative views.

Fourth, universities should find ways to celebrate the contributions of the Jewish people, Jewish history, and the values of Judaism that have contributed so much to the United States and to civilization itself. Since 1980, every president of the United States has declared a period of time for doing exactly this. Each May is presidentially designated as Jewish American Heritage Month, but unlike similar months dedicated to Blacks, Hispanics, and other ethnic groups, there is little programming, educational materials, or awareness of Jewish American Heritage Month. At a time when Americas Jewish heritage is under assault, there is no excuse for neglect.

Let no one imagine that the indoctrination students receive on campus will not affect them when they enter the business world, civil society, or government. A British member of parliament (MP) who fled Jeremy Corbyns anti-Semitic Labour Party explained to one of the Heritage studys authors that the Corbyn disaster was bred on Britains university campuses. Nothing was done, said the former Labour MP, because campus culture was dismissed as a matter only for students. When the disease crept into the Labour Party, it was again dismissed, this time as simply the rantings of a far-left fringe. Finally, said the MP, they won; we lost, and I no longer have a political party.

As Americans, our future depends on the steps we take to correct this today.

James Jay Carafano is a Heritage Foundation vice president.

Elan S. Carr is a former U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism and a visiting fellow at Heritage.

Adam Milstein is the co-founder of the Israeli-American Council, where he serves as a board member and chairman emeritus.

Image: Reuters.

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University Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Staff Show Anti-Israel Bias - The National Interest

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Its rare that an Israeli song goes viral in the Arab world, but such was the power of comedian Noam Shuster-Eliassis recent satire, Dubai, Dubai.

Maybe it was because she crooned in flawless Arabic. More likely it was because of her biting punchlines about how Israel and the United Arab Emirates have in recent years normalized relations at the expense of Palestinians.

For decades, Arab countries would not entertain diplomatic relations with Israel until the rights and self-determination of Palestinians under Israeli occupation were realized. But the Emirates, which had quietly developed economic and military connections with Israel, stridently broke with that convention.

In 2020, the Trump administration shepherded the Abraham Accords, a series of diplomatic wins that Israel has signed with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, and Sudan. Boosters celebrated them as a breakthrough. It was the first time Israel had established new ties with Arab states since it made peace with the neighboring Kingdom of Jordan in 1994 and Egypt in 1979.

Dubai, Dubai is among the most public and blunt examples of a satirist lampooning the deal, since the UAE doesnt tolerate dissent and its power in the Middle East has stifled other public criticism. Thats how an Israeli number became an unlikely Arabic sensation.

Shuster-Eliassi jokes that its easier for Israel to make peace with a country 1,500 miles away than Palestinians next door. In Dubai, they forgot the siege on Gaza, she sings. How nice would it be if only all the Arabs were from Dubai.

Her Eurovision-style performance with backup singers framed by spectacular aerial views of the Persian Gulf megalopolis puts a catchy pop tune to incongruously sarcastic lyrics.

Dubai, Dubai resonated. The song, written by Razi Najjar for a comedy show this month on Israels Arabic network Makan, was picked up by regional TV giant Al-Jazeera and Arab news outlets, and then traveled all over social media. Shares and retweets filled a void in the otherwise rich field of Arabic satire.

Critics of the deal have noted that in the Abrahams Accords Israel merely formalized already existing contacts with autocratic governments, and the millions in those Arab countries had no say. Businessmen, social-media influencers, and some tourists now shuttle between Israel and the UAE, but this is a cold peace forged largely around the two countries shared anxieties about Irans regional power and interests in exchanging tech and financing. Polls suggests many Arabs oppose normalizing relations with Israel, but are afraid to express those opinions.

But despite that antipathy and a textured history of Arab satire, relatively few jokes, cartoons, or memes about the Abraham Accords have appeared in Arabic media. Those who take a stand, like a Jordanian cartoonist who mocked the deal, have been censored or arrested, chilling further discourse.

Much of this relates to the immense influence that the United Arab Emirates exerts across the Middle East, where many countries depend on its financial largess. Dubai, one of the Emirates six nation-states, is a repressive absolute monarchy with regional power. So dissident voices in the Emirates and the countrys partners have largely been absent. No one can say it directly, so this song gave everybody a chance to express how they feel about it without them actually saying it, said Khalid Albaih, a Sudanese cartoonist who lives in Qatar.

Shuster-Eliassi wants to draw attention to the dire situation in Palestine. My Palestinian friends are suffering and we are suffering because of the situation here, she told me. In the course of history, Im not going to be willing to be listed among the people who were just silent about these issues.

The Arab world has a long history of editorial cartoons and a rich legacy of satirists taking on the powerful, including humorists who have found ways to make fun of Israel and its policies without verging into anti-Semitic territory. But their relative quiet on this issue points to a larger trend.

The red lines are hazy. The website Al-Hudood, the Arab answer to the Onion, has satirized the Emirates, but its authors remain anonymous. Though some cartoonists, especially Palestinians, have published strong barbs about the Abraham Accords, such perspectives have been denied the biggest media platforms of the Arab world.

The global financial capitals of Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the UAE are synonymous with luxury, celebrity, and wealth. But neither are part of a democracy. The United Arab Emirates doesnt have a free press or free speech; while the country recently reformed some aspects of its criminal and financial laws, there has been no political reform.

In response to peacemaking with Israel, protesters took to the streets of the small kingdom of Bahrain, and Emirati exiles put together petitions and hosted seminars. There was opposition to the Abraham Accords, said Dana El Kurd, a scholar of authoritarianism at the University of Richmond. But in the Emirates, its so effectively controlled that people cant really speak up in opposition.

Its basically illegal to mock Emirati leaders. Vaguely worded laws prohibit disruptive propaganda intending to prejudice the public security, or to spread fear among people or to inflict damage to public interest. Even April Fools jokes are off limits. The government has shut down spaces that had long fostered independent voices, such as student unions and Islamist groups. Activists, like the democracy advocate Ahmed Mansoor, sit in the countrys jails.

Those who have denounced Emirates-Israel relations have faced consequences. After speaking out, poet Dhabiya Khamis was banned from travel. Last year, dissident Hamad al-Shamsi and other exiles established the UAE Resistance Union Against Normalization. The government then labeled them as terrorists, and the group cannot meet inside the country. This fear-infused atmosphere imposed by the government has prevented Emiratis from expressing their real position on normalization with Israel, al-Shamsi wrote.

The risks are real for Emiratis, and jokes about the Abraham Accords have been restrained in other Arab countries, too.

In August 2020, the prominent Jordanian cartoonist Emad Hajjaj drew a caricature of the Emirates exchanging peace for Israeli fighter jets. In the cartoon, a doves droppings land on the face of an Emirati who looks a lot like the Abu Dhabi crown prince. The image was considered illegal under Jordans counterterrorism law for disturbing relations with a partner country.

After several days in jail during a Covid-19 surge in his country, Hajjaj was released, but the arrest nevertheless sent a strong message.

Hajjaj told me that now he would not risk it again because the small country of Jordan depends on the Emirates financially and politically. A Jordanian cartoonist criticizing Emirates will not be tolerated unfortunately, he said. You cannot criticize the government of the Emirates.

He wishes that the Dubai, Dubai song could be broadcast throughout the Arab world.

Shuster-Eliassi was anxious when I spoke with her. Right-wing Israeli members of the Israeli Parliament had issued a complaint against the TV network for airing Dubai, Dubai, and she said that due to complications at the channel, her skit for last Thursdays show had been put on hold.

She understands that the muted response to the Israel-UAE accords is in large part due to restrictions on expression. The song is subtitled in Arabic, English, and Hebrew, she says, to made sure it could reach everyone, especially people who disagree with me and those who have critical thoughts about whats going on, but theyre unable to say it.

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Why Israeli comedians song Dubai Dubai went viral in the Arab World - Vox.com

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Jonathan Liews decision to attack my support for sports projects in Israel as sportswashing is perhaps the most ringing endorsement of why such bridge-building efforts are needed (Sportswashing is associated with certain countries why not Israel?, 24 January).

When our liberal and open country holds its massive annual Gay Pride parade the largest (if not the only one) in the Middle East, Israel is accused of pinkwashing. When Israel leads in environmental issues and breakthroughs in climate change technologies, Israel is accused of greenwashing. When our generous and supremely capable NGOs like IsraAid or Save a Childs Heart provide support to communities in need around the world, we are accused of aidwashing.

The reality is that for some, Israel must and can only be viewed through the prism of a conflict forced upon us. This kind of monochromatic myopia washes away the Palestinian leaderships decades-long refusal to make peace, as well as Hamass commitment to terrorism and outright refusal to recognise Israels right to exist.

My sports initiatives, on the other hand, look to move beyond the conflict, building lasting bonds of coexistence and understanding across our complex region. A recent initiative included saving 167 Afghan women mostly sportswomen from the Taliban, through a daring and complex operation, when most of the world stood silent.

I would presume that Mr Liew has not been to Israel, and has not seen for himself what is a complex and multifaceted society and reality. He is welcome to do so at my invitation. I just hope he wont accuse me of truthwashing.Sylvan AdamsTel Aviv, Israel

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Around 200 Bedouin and other activists demonstrated outside the Prime Ministers Office in Jerusalem Sunday morning to protest the Jewish National Funds forestation work in the Negev. The demonstrators demanded that the government end its policy of discrimination and neglect."

The protest was organized by the Higher Arab Monitoring Committee and the National Council of Arab Mayors. Protesters demanded that the government grant legal recognition to the Negevs unrecognized Bedouin villages and develop the area. They also demanded that everyone arrested during the protests of the past three weeks be released.

Sundays demonstration is part of an ongoing protest that began with the JNFs tree-planting operation in the Negev three weeks ago. The plantings sparked clashes between police and demonstrators, and more than 60 Bedouin were arrested. Some have since been released.

Umm al-Fahm Mayor Samir Mahamid, who attended the demonstration, said his councils goal is to bolster Arab residents of the Negev. The protesters have a clear message, he said let residents of the Negev live with dignity.

Mahamid demanded that the government treat the Bedouin as residents and human beings and speak with them as equals, adding that he hoped both left and right would work together to truly solve the humanitarian problem in the Negev.

Ibrahim al-Turi, a social activist from the Negev, said he was afraid some Arab leaders agreed with the governments policy. Like Mahamid, he said the demonstrators message is clear there is no negotiating over the Negevs land, and nobody has the right to bargain over them. This land belongs to the residents, not the politicians, he continued, and the protesters wont abandon their struggle.

The Bedouin living in the Negev had said that the JNFs forestation plan was being carried out in fields occupying their farming and herding zones, where residents had planted wheata month prior.

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Bedouin protest in Jerusalem demands end of 'neglect' in Israel's south - Haaretz

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Hundreds attend former chief justice Miriam Naors funeral in Jerusalem

Hundreds of mourners gather to pay their last respects to former Supreme Court chief justice Miriam Naor who died earlier this week at the age of 74 as she is laid to rest in her native Jerusalems Sanhedria cemetery.

A wide range of officials attend the ceremony, including Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, President Isaac Herzog, current Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut, Opposition Leader Benjamin Netanyahu, Justice Minister Gideon Saar, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and Acting Knesset Speaker Eitan Ginzburg.

A little over four years ago, when she left the Supreme Court, Miriam said the following: Even today, as the decades have passed and I have served in all the courts, I am grateful that my path led me to being a judge, says Herzog. Now that we say goodbye to you prematurely, we can fully say that you have fulfilled your role to the end. Spreading light into the distance. You will be remembered by the future generations of Israel as the queen of justice.

Speaking after Herzog, Bennett begins his eulogy with a quote from Ecclesiastes: Words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard.

This is what Miriam Naor did. In the decades she served, her words were wise and clear, and they were heard calmly, he says. One of the most significant judges of our time.

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A warning sign: Israel reaches all-time low in annual corruption index - The Times of Israel

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

The Israel Police official in charge of crime in the Arab community, Maj. Gen. Jamal Hakhrush, is expected to be dismissed from the force for allegedly leaving an active homicide scene in 2020.

Hakhrush, who is the highest-ranking Arab officer on the police force, was at the scene of the killing in his hometown of Kafr Kara in the north at an iron workshop where he had come to pay a bill. Security camera footage recently obtained by Haaretz shows him stepping over the alleged homicide victim, Ghazi Amara, on a stairwell and leaving.

His dismissal is expected either as a result of a future decision by a special committee that Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai has convened to investigate Hakhrushs conduct or through an order from Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev.

After Haaretz disclosed the existence of the security camera footage about a week ago, Bar-Lev asked for his immediate suspension.

Bar-Lev became even more concerned when it became apparent that Hakhrush, who is 65 and is due to retire shortly anyway, had lied in the account that he gave to the media in which he claimed to have remained at the scene and secured it. Additional camera footage showed him riding away from the scene in a car.

The chairman of the investigative panel, Maj. Gen. (ret.) Aharon Aksel, is due to submit its recommendation to the commissioner on Thursday. The committee, which in addition to Aksel consists of four police officers, would be expected to accord major weight to 24 minutes of footage from a police body camera showing Hakhrush riding away. Hakhrush has denied any wrongdoing.

The panel is also tasked with examining why the acting police commissioner at the time, Motti Cohen, did not deal with Hakhrush immediately following the incident, when he and his bureau purportedly knew what had happened. Now the police are attempting to pin the blame on Cohen, who retired from the force a year ago. According to a senior police source, Cohen had seen the footage from the homicide scene.

Aksel and Cohen are friends who served together in the Tel Aviv district at the beginning of the last decade Aksel as commander of the Ayalon region and Cohen as commander of the adjacent Yiftah region. Their friendship could be a problem under the circumstances.

Police sources say that Cohen, who has not spoken publicly about the incident since the news broke, will say that he had clarified the matter with Hakhrush and had accepted his account that he had secured the scene.

Senior officers on the force have urged Hakhrush to resign rather than incurring further embarrassment. In addition, if he is fired rather than retiring voluntarily, his pension benefits could be hurt, police sources said.

Its better for him to voluntarily end his career at 65 following substantial service rather than being remembered as the major general who stepped over [a dying man] and left the service in shame, a senior police officer told Haaretz.

Senior police officials expressed the hope that Hakhrushs retirement would end the affair and make an additional police investigation of his conduct unnecessary, but for the time being, Hakhrush has apparently been unmoved by those urging him to retire. He has insisted that he acted as expected of him and has offered theories about connections between the controversy and a settling of scores among police brass.

The implications of the affair are expected to be significant for the police. This could be the beginning of the end of the division that Hakhrush has headed devoted to combatting crime in the Arab community.

Senior officers expressed doubts about the expected effectiveness of the branch when it was established, calling it unnecessary and a waste of resources that would be better invested elsewhere. It has a budget estimated at tens of millions of shekels, mainly going to pay for personnel to beef up the intelligence network and the units in the various regions dealing on a daily basis with Arab community crime. According to these officers, the division, which has no police of its own in the field, was custom-made for Hakhrush himself.

This branch was superfluous from the first moment and now, after Hakhrush leaves, theres no need for it at all. A station commander doesnt need a whole division to tell him that theres a conflict between two clans. He knows that himself, a senior officer said.

The burgeoning crime in the Arab community has been in the headlines for quite some time. The establishment of the branch in August at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Bar-Lev was mainly a declaration to the Arab community that the government was trying to deal seriously and consistently with the issue.

From Day One, the division has been busy, and among the steps that it has taken was an indictment against the head of the Hariri crime family. But its successes has mainly been thanks to other units where considerable resources have been invested. The division itself has primarily dealt with the collection and analysis of information about disputes in the Arab community, in an effort to intervene before additional blood is shed.

You dont need an entire division for that, a senior officer said. They should provide these research forces to the advisers to the district commanders or have them report to the intelligence and investigation division.

Hakhrushs division was also tasked with other objectives that could have been done at the regional or district levels without additional oversight. They include encouraging young Arabs to join the police force; advancing the construction of police stations in Arab towns; and analyzing the sentiments of young Arabs on social media, including the collection of information about planned protests and disturbances of the peace.

In fact, Hakhrush has not been the most significant figure in the division. He has mainly been its public face, as the highest-ranking Muslim officer on the force. The most active figure has been Commander Yigal Ezra, who is considered an authority on the Arab public and has a direct line of communications to the commissioner.

The shots fired at Hakhrushs home in September and the ensuing investigation led to the conclusion that he had been involved in internal disputes in Kafr Kana, a finding confirmed by intelligence from a number of sources. In August, shots had been fired at Hakhrushs daughters house, apparently in an effort to sent a message to her husband, who is known to the police.

Even following Hakhrushs expected departure, it isnt thought that Shabtai, the police chief, would be in a hurry to dismantle the division, the establishment of which he views as a personal achievement. Yet it is clear to everyone that the division wont survive long after Shabtai himself retires.

Hakhrushs expected departure is prompting major speculation regarding who his successor would be. The thinking is that he would probably be replaced by a Muslim or Druze officer. The name most frequently touted is the deputy commander of the northern district, Brig. Gen. Shuaa Tahuka, the highest-ranking member on the force from Israels Circassian community, which came to the country from the Caucasus region.

But his appointment could hit a snag due to his involvement in overseeing last years Lag Baomer observances at Mount Meron, where a stampede resulted in 45 deaths. So far, he has not been summoned to testify before the state commission investigating the disaster.

In addition to the Hakhrush incident, the police are facing major scrutiny over allegations of its warrantless misuse of NSO spyware against civilians not suspected of criminal wrongdoing. The string of controversies undermines public trust in the police.

It may also inflict damage within the police. A recent internal survey among 25,000 members of the force revealed that about a third of the lower-ranking officers (up to the rank of chief inspector) expressed high intensions of leaving. And the recent controversies wont help the police in their efforts, which on the whole have failed so far, to recruit a strong cadre of new officers.

For the time being, the police are being spared further potential damage due to the unexpected death of retired Supreme Court Justice Miriam Naor, who was heading the inquiry on the Mount Meron disaster. Shabtai had been due to testify this week before the commission. He was expected to attempt to evade responsibility for the disaster, claiming that the northern police district had been in charge of the event. His testimony could have sparked renewed tension among top police officials and mutual finger-pointing.

Despite the delay in his testifying, the disaster remains a cloud hanging over Shabtai, who will wrap up his first year on the job at the helm of a police force in crisis and that lacks the confidence of the public.

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The cloud over the head of the Israel Police Arab crime division could spell its end - Haaretz

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

This is a time for drinking copious quantities of tea during cold winter days, attempting to stay cozy in Israeli houses that many find woefully underheated.

But how about settling yourself into an overstuffed chair and tucking into a full afternoon tea, that well-loved British tradition of a 4 p.m. cuppa, crustless sandwiches, scones and cake?

Done.

Afternoon tea can be taken at several locations in Jerusalem, from high-end versions at Jerusalems Waldorf Astoria and King David hotels to a cozier option at Kumkum in Jerusalems Baka neighborhood.

Kumkum, the Hebrew term for a kettle, serves a classic British afternoon tea at all times of day, with excellent scones, whipped cream and jam, dainty crustless sandwiches of cream cheese and salmon, egg salad, and cucumber and a homemade Scandinavian spread, along with pastries, fresh fruit and a small tea cup filled with finely chopped salad the Israeli touch served on a tiered tower.

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Customers choose from a selection of white, green, black, oolong, jasmine and herbal teas sourced locally from Kibbutz Beit Alfa. Theres a daily soup as well, for those who need something to fill out this light meal.

The tiered tower of scones, cream, fruit and cakes at Kumkum, a tearoom in Jerusalems Baka neighborhood that opened in July 2021 (Courtesy: Kumkum)

Elisheva Levy, the chef at Kumkum, is a British-born Israeli who studied pastry-making. She partnered with Michal Wosner, an attorney who dreamed of opening a teahouse and who owned the perfect space beneath her home on Bethlehem Road.

She just had this dream that she would be able to come down in the morning and have a cup of tea, said Levy, although she very rarely does.

The two partners opened Kumkum in July, and Levy has been serving afternoon tea to native Sabras, British- and American-born Israelis and what Levy calls the maternity-leave crowd, who come in the morning.

They host speakers several times a month as well, which fills the (very) small space as well as the outside garden.

Israelis come for the experience, and Brits and Americans come for the memory, said Levy.

Theyre still tweaking certain items on the menu, such as a BBC-sourced recipe for scones, and moving from sour cream to whipped cream, with hopes to make clotted cream a three-day process in the near future.

The NIS 140 ($44) tea tower for two is also available for delivery, not including tea or soup.

The menu is similar at the Waldorf Astorias Kings Court lounge, where a rectangular three-tiered tower overflows with squat scones, both with and without raisins, and a delectable selection of tiny, creamy pastries, including Ferrero Rocher mille-feuilles, salted caramel mini eclairs, lemon and honey madeleines, chocolate ricotta brownies and delicate pistachio and berry lemon cakes, all elegantly served on porcelain china.

I always start my tea with the scones, said Waldorf pastry chef Idan Hadad, who loves working with the fine chocolates and creams used to create afternoon tea. When its warm from the oven, you get the real taste of it. That, followed by a good sandwich, something sweet and close it all with a hot cup of tea.

The Waldorf waiters set timers at the table to let guests know when exactly to pour their tea, which they select from a menu of strong black and green teas and lighter white and herbal ones.

Otherwise, youre happily on your own with a NIS 255 ($80) tower for two, served daily from 3:30 p.m. until 6:30 p.m.

Afternoon tea at Jerusalems King David Hotel includes a shot of Turkish coffee and baklava as a postscript (Courtesy: Sivan Farag)

Cross the street to the King David for its High Tea, (although its technically afternoon tea), served in the historic lobby Sunday through Friday, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., where the NIS 120 ($37) tea service can also include a glass of champagne, for an extra 10 shekels ($3).

Teatime at the King David includes bite-size, crustless sandwiches made with smoked salmon, cucumber and cream cheese, and Camembert and onion jam, along with scones, tiny fruit pies and a particularly lemony mascarpone confection.

Unlike the teas at Kumkum and the Waldorf which are loose and served with a strainer, the King David teas are selected from a box of teabags from Palais des Thes, a French tea company. A small cover keeps the teacup warm while the tea is steeping.

For a local touch, guests are served a shot of Turkish coffee along with sweet, sticky baklava and a square of Turkish delight after their tea.

If youd rather take your afternoon tea at home, weve got you covered.

Kumkum sells bags of the Beit Alfa teas, and you can make a stop at Betea House at 18 Shlomtzion Hamalka Street in downtown Jerusalem, a vintage store specializing in tea sets, to buy a teapot and cups.

The aforementioned Palais des Thes has two outlets in Tel Aviv, one in Sarona Market and the other at 131 Dizengoff Street, with a wide selection of teas and an expert staff along with a website and an app.

Pink Luk and Nadi Biran of Ho Yum Tea, a Tel Aviv teahouse focused on tea tastings and experiences (Courtesy: Ho Yum Tea)

For those who dont feel knowledgeable enough to make informed tea choices, theres Ho Yum Tea, a tearoom in Tel Avivs Florentine neighborhood run by Nadi Biran and Pink Luk hes Israeli, shes Chinese who aim to connect to local tea lovers and expose others to Chinese culture.

The tearoom just happened, said Biran. We needed to focus on why we drink certain teas and how to drink it.

The couple offers weekly tastings and events about Chinese culture, and have an online shop with teas from China, and soon from India as well, always aiming to go more hardcore in tea, said Biran, with traditional and ancient types of tea.

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Posted By admin on January 30, 2022

Pandemic aside, millions of tourists typically head to Israel each year. But almost all of them fail to find one of the Holy Lands hidden wonders: a network of hiking trails that threads across a dazzling variety of landscapes, rivaling the great trail systems of Europe.

Approximately 6,000 miles of hiking trails lace a country the size of Massachusetts, spanning deserts and coastlines, farm fields and forests. Until very recently, all the maps, guidebooks and almost all the websites were solely in Hebrew, which deterred widespread international interest.

Israelis love their country and these trails are almost like a private space for them; they dont think of them as a commodity for tourists to explore, said Binghamton University Assistant Professor of Israel Studies Shay Rabineau.

The trail system is the topic of his new book, Walking the Land: A History of Israeli Hiking Trails, which will be published this year by Indiana University Press. The book explores the environmental relationship between the Israelis and their country, but also the trails intersection with national identity, territory, politics and the military. For Israelis, hitting the trails has a meaning beyond just a great hiking trip, he said.

Binghamton University Assistant Professor of Israel Studies Shay Rabineau on a hike in the Sinai Peninsula. Image Credit: provided photo.Now associate director of the Universitys Center for Israel Studies, Rabineau first discovered the trail system just after college, when he spent a few years leading Holy Land tour groups in the country.

Even after having extensively traveled the country over a period of three years, I literally didnt know that any of these trails existed, he recounted.

He learned about the trails from Israeli friends after he asked them about good places to hike. In 2006, Rabineau took his brother and best friend to walk on the Israel National Trail, a 631-mile-long trek that runs from the Lebanese border at Dan in the north to Eilat, located on the southernmost tip of the country on the Red Sea.

The Israeli National Trail is that countrys equivalent of the Appalachian Trail, although it lacks the amenities such as official campgrounds of its older American counterpart. Hiking the National Trail is a rite of passage for Israelis after they finish their military service, Rabineau said.

Hikers often rely on an informal system of trail angels who volunteer their help in towns along the way. The key to accessing that hiking culture: knowing Hebrew.

Its a slice of Israeli geography but also a slice of Israeli culture because you just get to meet all kinds of people if you have access to this information, he said.

Looking at the number of trails per square kilometer of land area, Israels system is on par with countries like Germany and Switzerland, considered the origins of the European hiking tradition. While trail-marking in those countries goes back 140 years, Israel built its system rapidly from the early 1960s through the late 1980s, in terrain far different from its European counterparts.

But its roots are decades older.

Before Israels establishment, the Zionist movement had been trying to build a quasi-state under British rule after the first World War. The population in what was then known as Palestine was about 90 percent Arab, although that was shifting as Jews emigrated from Europe.

They brought hiking with them as a popular pastime. It also proved a cheap and effective way to familiarize themselves with the landscape and begin asserting control over territory.

Before Israel became a state, it didnt have the capacity to build an army but it could build a cadre of elite hikers. Future members of the special forces, these young men and women knew the land intimately and used their hikes as clandestine reconnaissance missions starting in the 1930s.

Jewish hikers marked the first trail in the future national system in 1947, literally one week before war broke out between Jews and Arabs, which culminated in the creation of the state of Israel.

A black blaze at the place overlooking the Dead Sea where the first Israeli national hiking trail was marked in 1947. Image Credit: provided photo.The trail-marking was intended to keep hikers safe while finding their way through the desert. Through the years, some hikers lost their lives after running out of water, falling off cliffs or in connection with weapons-training out in the desert. There was another reason, too.

The other thought was that marking a path would also mark territory and make this a place where Jews were free to walk, Rabineau said.

If one looks closely at the history of the 1948 war or the Six-Day War in 1967, almost all the Israeli military leaders came from these hiking and scouting clubs. The Israeli military uses hiking as a prime training tool until this day, doing long treks on the trails toting full equipment.

Rather than the scenic hills outside cities that draw families and picnickers, the trail system began in the frontier-area border zones. The first trails laced across the Judean Desert east of Jerusalem, where David hid from King Saul in Biblical times and Jewish rebels hid from Roman legions. Bedouin treasure-hunters searched for Dead Sea scrolls there, and hikers were hit by sniper fire in the 1960s.

The Judean Desert is this space empires had always failed to control, Rabineau said.

Over time, the network of trails spread inward, eventually penetrating the metropolitan areas of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Haifa. But amid the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, trails are still political and national phenomena, and they remain spaces where Israelis seek to answer existential questions about themselves and the Jewish state.

Rabineau thought back to his own experience on the trails, which exposed him to an Israel that few foreigners have the opportunity to experience.

You spend a lot of time in the desert, but you also visit little villages and small towns. You sleep on soccer fields and the corner of peoples farms, Rabineau said.

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