POSITIVE NEWS FROM ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN
https://verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com/
Every week I look forward to Michael Ordman’s exhaustive compilation of positive news from Israel, the best antidote to columnists, academics, and newscasters who routinely defame, libel and slander the Jewish nation. Israel, an embattled democracy makes more contributions per capita to the health and aspirations of humanity, than any other nation. Read it all. rsk
POSITIVE NEWS IN A WAR
$1.7 million raised for Bibas family. In a public fundraising campaign, the Lehosheet Yad (Lend a Hand) foundation has raised more than $1.7 million in 24 hours from nearly 31,000 donors. It will help freed hostage Yarden Bibas’s recovery and establish a memorial for his wife, Shiri, and two young sons, Ariel and Kfir.
https://www.jns.org/bibas-family-fundraiser-exceeds-1-3-million-in-under-24-hours/
The 10,000th Birthright volunteer. New York’s Madison Stock is the 10,000th participant in the Birthright Israel volunteer program. Activities include food rescue operations to prevent shortages in the Israeli market and supporting kibbutz restoration projects in areas hardest hit on Oct 7 2023 and the subsequent war.
https://www.jns.org/22-year-old-is-10000th-participant-in-birthright-israel-volunteer-program/
IDF soldier makes connection in Sri Lanka. A Golani soldier wounded in Gaza, was vacationing in Sri Lanka and read the story of Purim in a synagogue. He suddenly realized that the scroll he was reading from had been dedicated to the memory of 3 IDF soldiers including has own Major, Moshe Bar-On who fell in the same battle.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/405368
Syrian Druze visit sacred site in Israel. Israel opened its border to allow hundreds of Syrian Druze dignitaries and leaders to visit Israel. They the Galilee tomb of the Biblical Yitro (revered as a prophet) for the first time since 1948. Amazing video. Useful article about the Druze at the second link below.
Aid for Syrian Druze. 10,000 packages of humanitarian aid (including oil, salt, flour, sugar, rice, and more) have been delivered to the Druze community in the battle areas of Syria. This was coordinated with the head of the Druze community Sheikh Muafik Tarif, and the Druze Religious Council, and the IDF.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/405309
How to navigate crises. Waze co- founder Uri Levine has published a new edition of his handbook for entrepreneurs, “Fall in Love With the Problem, Not the Solution”. It now has a chapter on how to navigate crises, such as Oct 7 2023 and the subsequent war, using interviews with CEOs and their roads to recovery.
Still happy despite the war. Israel remains in the top ten list of happiest countries in the world despite an anxious year with the wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Its 8th placed in the World Happiness Report 2025 is down from 5th in 2024 but still remarkable, considering.
https://www.jns.org/israel-8th-happiest-country-despite-war/
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Identifying gene on / off switches. (TY TPS) Researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hadassah Medical Center used DNA methylation (chemical tagging human DNA) to uncover insights into how genes are turned on and off. It could transform the diagnosis and treatment of genetic diseases.
Why people exercise. Tel Aviv University researchers used AI tools to discover what motivates people to exercise. They found that 23.9% of those who engage in sports do so to improve their appearance, 18.9% exercise to maintain their physical health, and 16.9% exercise to maintain their mental health.
https://www.aftau.org/news_item/tau-research-people-exercise-more-for-their-appearance-than-their-physical-health/ https://www.jmir.org/2025/1/e54489
More smiles soon. (TY Atid-EDI) Dror Ortho-Design has successfully completed user experience trials for its ZSmile platform (see here previously) ahead of commercial release. Feedback has been integrated for ZSmile to begin manufacture and distribution in Israel in the first half of 2025. 250 patients have already been treated.
Personal 3D models for pre-surgical training. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Stratasys and Europe’s Siemens have used Stratasys’ RadioMatrix™ materials and Digital Anatomy® technology with Siemens Healthineers’ algorithms to produce complex patient-specific anatomical models for pre-surgery planning and education.
Mental health tech innovation. The 2025 Israeli Mental Health Technology Landscape Map, by Startup Nation Central and the ICAR Collective and Bezyl, highlights around 120 Israeli companies leveraging AI, automation, and digital platforms to enhance mental health care access and improve treatment outcomes.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/syxaay0sjg
https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/reports/mental-health-2025-landscape-map
1-2-3. (TY Yanky) Efrat and Daniel Cohen were delighted when their first child was followed by twins. Now Efrat has given birth to triplets at the Kaplan Medical Centre. Says Efrat: “The staff were amazing, supportive and attentive. We have given the grandmothers a heads-up – double shifts and night shifts if needed.”
https://www.ynetnews.com/health_science/article/bj124vnj1x
Remote healthcare in Virginia and North Dakota. (TY OurCrowd) Uninsured patients in rural southwest Virginia will receive remote medical monitors from Israel’s TytoCare (see here previously) to save hospital visits. Meanwhile, medics in North Dakota with TytoCare devices will visit patients discharged from hospital.
https://wtop.com/virginia/2025/03/bringing-the-doctor-to-your-doorstep-rural-virginia-clinics-expand-telehealth-access/ https://news.sanfordhealth.org/news/hospital-at-home-program-launches-at-sanford-fargo/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Lone soldiers resilience center. The new Lone Soldiers Program Resilience Center (see here) is an initiative of Nefesh B’Nefesh and Friends of the IDF, with Sheba Medical Center. It offers specialized therapeutic and emotional support to the 3,500 people who leave their family to make Aliyah and enlist in the IDF.
https://www.jns.org/new-center-in-israel-provides-support-services-for-lone-soldiers/
Women Leaders’ Summit. The Jerusalem Post hosts its fourth annual Women Leaders’ Summit on 25 Mar. It brings together some of Israel’s most influential women driving change. The summit highlights the strength, creativity, and leadership, of women in business, government, and technology.
https://www.jpost.com/conferences/article-843015
IDF’s first Haredi battalion commander. Major (res.) Yossi Levy will soon become the first haredi battalion commander in the IDF. He said, “I hope that one day young haredim will see me as a role model.” He is currently serving his fifth round of reserve duty and hopes to be the first of many Haredi commanders.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/405584
Judea and Samaria leaders visit UAE. A group of Judea and Samaria leaders made history by visiting Abu Dhabi on the first-ever organized trip by the Yesha Council to a Muslim country. They attended a traditional Iftar meal to break the Ramadan fast with Emirati committee chairman of defense, interior and foreign affairs.
https://www.jns.org/in-historic-first-judea-and-samaria-leaders-visit-uae/
A beeper for Senator Fetterman. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu gave Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) a silver-plated beeper as a souvenir of “Operation Beeper”. “When that story broke, I was like, ‘Oh, I love it,’” Senator Fetterman said. “Thank you for this.” The PM said, the real beeper was much lighter, but changed history.
https://www.jns.org/netanyahu-gifts-fetterman-silver-plated-beeper/
The sky is no limit. (TY Irene G) Another article (see here previously) about the recent Athens conference to discuss expanding the use of barn owls for pest control. Then 60 Palestinian Arab, Jordanian and Israeli experts met to discuss solutions to the Middle East’s water, energy, food-security and overall environmental problems.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00692-1
Israel offers flood relief for Argentina. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has offered Argentina assistance following deadly floods south of the nation’s capital of Buenos Aires. A storm hit Bahía Blanca, where 12 inches of rain fell in the city over several days; the historical monthly average is about 5 inches.
https://www.jns.org/israel-offers-assistance-to-argentina-after-deadly-floods/
Medics for Macedonia. Israeli medical experts are to travel to Macedonia to assist after a fire killed more than 50 people and injured dozens. The North Macedonian foreign affairs minister thanked his Israeli counterpart saying, “In these difficult moments, the solidarity of our partners and friends is truly invaluable to us.”
https://www.jns.org/israel-to-send-medical-experts-to-north-macedonia-after-deadly-fire/
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-846305
Pi-day record. March 14th is Pi-day as the date can be written as 3.14. This year it also coincided with Purim so may be a Purim “spiel” (i.e. a joke). Israeli theoretical physicist Yehuda Ashkelon has memorized the value of Pi to 25,333 decimal places in Spanish – a new Israeli record (9th globally) and a world record for Spanish.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-physicist-sets-national-pi-memorization-record/
Can Israel end global hunger? Optimistic article by the director of corporate development at ICL (Israel Chemicals Ltd) Group which has recently launched its new Research and Development (R&D) lab. She cites Israeli AI-driven crop monitoring systems, precision agriculture, and vertical farming to increase yields.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-845805
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
School students launch 9 satellites. Nine miniature satellites developed by Israeli high school students were launched into space from a SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket into a low Earth orbit. One satellite was developed by Druze students and is the first of its kind – launched as a delegation of Syrian Druze sheikhs visited Israel.
https://www.jns.org/israel-launches-largest-student-built-satellite-network/
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-846126
Recycling EV batteries. Israel’s Colmobil (see here previously) is spearheading the construction of an Israeli factory that recycles used Electric Vehicle batteries. It will be based on German technology as described here.
Watering a desert. A 17 minute video that explains how Israel made the Negev desert bloom and produce 40% of the country’s food crops. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8HcGK6NoPU
Secure communications to IDF Special Forces. An elite IDF special forces unit has ordered advanced tactical communication systems from Israel’s Silynxcom (see here previously). It follows a successful field pilot in sensitive operational environments, and strong positive feedback on operational effectiveness and performance.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/b2icontent.irpass.cc/2916/rl142800.pdf
https://s3.amazonaws.com/b2icontent.irpass.cc/2916/rl143489.pdf
Technowarriers. Alumni of elite IDF units have founded Israeli defense tech startup Kela Technologies in the wake of Oct 7. They have developed an open (but secure) platform that enables Western militaries to integrate cutting-edge commercial technologies into military systems. It’s hi-tech, essential, and secret.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/backed-by-cia-defense-startup-emerges-with-tech-platform-for-modern-battlefield/ https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjyp9bhnjx https://kelasys.com/
A chatbot for accurate answers. StandWithUs, the international non-partisan education organization dedicated to supporting Israel and combating antisemitism, has launched SWUBOT (Beta), an innovative AI-powered assistant designed to educate, inform, and empower individuals around the world. Please try it.
https://www.standwithus.com/post/standwithus-launches-swubot-an-innovative-free-standwithus-ai-assistant-to-help-provide-quick-an https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rmKpkkDRI0 www.standwithus.com/swubot
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Economy grew in 2024. (TY Atid-EDI) Despite the war Israel’s GDP grew by 1% in 2024, above forecasts by the OECD, Moody’s and S&P. Signs of recovery were evident in the fourth quarter annualized growth of 2.5% driven primarily by a 9.5% jump in private consumption and a 14.7% increase in fixed asset investment.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israels-economy-grew-1-in-2024-above-expectations-1001502284
Deficit reduced again. Israel’s fiscal deficit narrowed in the twelve months to the end of Feb 2025, for the fifth consecutive month, to 5.3% of GDP, or NIS 107.9 billion. Tax revenues rose from record Israeli bank profits. Foreign exchange reserves rose over $4 billion to a near record $220 billion.
Thriving relations with Singapore. (TY Yanky) Singapore has emerged as an extremely attractive market for Israeli entrepreneurs in recent years, as tech relations between the two nations grow. Singapore has increased its investment in Israel’s tech ecosystem, especially in cybersecurity, AI, and fintech.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/b1l7y50bkg
$4.5 billion in Israel bonds. At the recent annual Israel Bonds leadership conference, Yechiel Leiter, the newly appointed Israeli Ambassador to the United States, highlighted Israel Bonds’ record-breaking global sales of some $4.5 billion since the beginning of the war on Oct. 7, 2023.
https://www.jns.org/at-annual-leadership-conference-israel-bonds-touts-4-5b-raised-since-oct-7/
The biggest exit in Israeli history. Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc. is to acquire Israeli-founded cybersecurity startup Wiz for at least $32 billion. It marks the largest acquisition in the tech giant’s history and over twice the previous record Israel exit (Mobileye by Intel for $15.3 billion in 2017).
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/jwnxv7xcm
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r11dljw3jg
United resumes flights. United Airlines became the first US carrier to resume its daily New York to Israel service since flights were suspended due to the Israel-Hamas war. It will start an overnight service on 29 March. Delta previously announced it will renew its New York to Tel Aviv service in April.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/405472 https://www.jns.org/united-restarts-flights-to-israel/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/airlines-flock-back-to-israel-with-resumed-services-in-coming-month/
Maritime tech hub. The port of Ashdod has launched a technology hub to find supply-chain solutions. It has already invested $3 million in Makalu Optics, Treedis, FLYZ Robotics, Spinframe, and Salvador Technologies.
https://www.israel21c.org/ashdod-port-launches-tech-hub-to-find-supply-chain-solutions/
Green hydrogen for Latvia. (TY OurCrowd) Israel’s H2Pro (see here previously) has signed an agreement with Latvenergo, Latvia’s national electricity company, to test the integration of H2Pro’s decoupled electrolysis technology for green hydrogen production with Latvia’s renewable energy sources.
Yeeha! Israel’s BeeFree Agro (see here previously) delivered its first fleet of “autonomous flying cowboys” in January to a paying customer in Brazil, where it currently manages around 3 million cattle. It is also in trials or negotiations with with three of the “big four” multinational meat processors.
https://www.israel21c.org/autonomous-flying-cowboys-manage-livestock-more-efficiently/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsNvpXFelec
Exits, takeovers & mergers – to 23rd Mar 25: Google’s parent Alphabet acquired Israel’s Wiz for $32 billion. Insurance giant Munich Re (subsidiary ERGO) is acquiring Israeli-founded startup Next Insurance for $2.6 billion in cash. US AI specialist Tray.ai has acquired Israel’s Vanti.ai (Vanti Analytics) for tens of millions of dollars.
Startup investment – to 23rd Mar 25: Rapyd raised $500 million;. Vega Security raised $65 million; Kela Technologies raised $39 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
Modi’in – a new tourist destination? The city of Modi’in, between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, has opened its first hotel – the 85-room Jacob. “The Chanukah city” is where the Maccabees lived and are buried. It is also Israel’s only “learning city” and is regarded as the world’s first and most modern “green city”.
https://www.jns.org/modiin-israels-new-tourism-destination/
Topping the Pizza lists. (TY Yanky) Two Israeli pizzerias were included in this year’s list of the 50 best pizzerias in the Asia-Pacific region (see here previously). La Piedra, Jerusalem, rose to 37th from 39th in 2024 and Haifa’s NeoPolitan won 25th place and the New Entry of the Year award.
https://www.50toppizza.it/50-top-pizza-asia-pacific-2025/
Gal Gadot gets her star. Nearly two years after it was announced (see here previously) Israeli actress Gal Gadot was honored with the 2,804th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The unveiling (see 34th minute of the video) was enhanced 3 minutes later when the Israeli mother was joined by her husband and 4 children.
https://walkoffame.com/press_releases/hollywood-chamber-of-commerce-to-honor-actress-gal-gadot-with-star-on-the-hollywood-walk-of-fame/ https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/405570
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsDYYciyqAw
The wheels are turning. The bicycle path connecting Herzliya and Tel Aviv has opened. The 14 km-long path runs along the Coastal Highway and passes near key locations. Mayor Fisher said, “it is possible to travel from Herzliya to Tel Aviv in just 20 minutes, while maintaining fitness and health and enjoying an open-air ride.”
https://www.jpost.com/consumerism/article-844915
THE JEWISH STATE
Family link for Panama’s Ambassador. Ezra Cohen is Panama’s envoy to the Jewish state. His father came to pre-state Israel from Colombia, fought in Israel’s 1948 War of Independence and was held prisoner by the Jordanians for nine months. When presented to Israeli President Herzog, he responded to him in fluent Hebrew.
https://www.jns.org/panamas-ambassador-to-israel-closes-a-family-circle/
Muss Matters. The Alexander Muss High School in Israel has just launched its monthly podcast Muss Matters. Students share stories, perspectives, and experiences that bring Israel to life. Episodes include Jewish history, prophecy, where Jewish journeys start, and Zionism and the Shoah post-Oct 7.
https://www.amhsi.org/muss-matters-podcast
From generation to generation. The Jewish Futures Project has shown that children of Birthright Israel participants are more likely to be raised as Jews, have had a Jewish circumcision or a baby-naming ceremony, and be enrolled in formal and informal Jewish education compared to the children of nonparticipants.
https://www.jns.org/new-study-details-impact-of-birthright-israel-trips-on-children-of-participants/
https://www.brandeis.edu/cmjs/birthright/jewish-futures/jewish-futures-2024.html
Happy Purim in Jerusalem (TY Sharon) See the innovative Purim costumes and parade floats in Jerusalem.
https://rjstreets.com/2025/03/17/its-purim-in-jerusalem-best-costume-and-parade-photos/
Rappelling superhero firemen bring Purim joy. Firefighters from the Jerusalem District Fire and Rescue Authority dressed as Batman, Superman, and Spiderman to give Purim presents to children and youths. They descended from the rooftop of the Feuerstein Institute, an educational center for individuals with disabilities.
https://israfan.com/p/firefighters-superheroes-purim-jerus
Political opponents exchange Purim gifts. Israeli lawmakers from the coalition and opposition exchanged mishloach manot, gift baskets filled with food, on the last working day before the Purim holiday. “Purim is a holiday of unity,” explained National Unity Party Chairman Benny Gantz.
https://www.jns.org/knesset-members-gift-purim-baskets-ahead-of-joyous-jewish-holiday/
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