RUTHFULLY YOURS

 www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com 

Two simple words define Israel’s non stop scientific, technical, medical and social institutions. They are “L’Chaim- To Life.” From Azerbaijan to Zambia the lives and hopes of billions are enhanced by Israel’s dazzling contributions to every aspect of beneficial human endeavor. rsk

As evidence read Michael Ordman’s catalogue. Here are a few highlights:

Medical history made by Israeli spinal surgeons and heart valve implants.

Israeli aid organization is bringing relief to survivors of Maui wildfires.

Two Israeli renewable energy companies are powering ahead.

An Israeli jetpack lets you swim like a dolphin.

Positive economic news for Israeli unemployment, energy, and tourism.

Amazon announces major Israeli investment.

Israeli women win gold medals in judoka and windsurfing.

An Israeli Arab, a Druze and a Jew give inspiring messages.

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
 
First AR spinal surgery. Dr Cezar J. Mizrahi of Jerusalem’s Shaare Zedek Medical Center has performed the world’s first Augmented Reality-assisted robotic spinal surgery on a patient with an unstable spine fracture. Dr Mizrahi previously (see here) performed the world’s first robot-assisted lumbar spine fusion.
https://www.jns.org/jns/topic/23/8/21/312010/   https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-755470
 
First US heart patients to receive “forgotten” valves. (TY TPS) Israel’s Trisol Medical (see here previously) has successfully implanted its new Transcatheter Tricuspid Valves in two US patients. The valve is called “forgotten” as the aortic and mitral valves get most medical attention. 10 Israelis have already had the implants.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/major-milestone-as-israeli-heart-valve-implanted-in-first-us-patients
https://trisol-medical.com/   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cv9aHAjbnU
 
007 – license to kill cancer cells. (TY OurCrowd) Israel’s Edity Therapeutics reprograms immune cells to recognize tumors that hide from the body’s regular immune system. Edity’s ED 007 cell therapy inflames these tumors, triggering the body’s own immune system to kill the cancer without risk of side effects or rejection.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/meet-007-the-cell-with-a-license-to-kill-cancer-created-by-an-israeli-startup/   https://edity-tx.com/  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBEl1TwExmo
 
Chicken corneas fight cancer. Israeli biotech ExoProTher is developing an anti-cancer therapy using protein generated from the p53 gene in the corneas of chickens. The foreign protein binds to cancerous human p53 protein, destroying tumors without side effects. The cornea is highly cancer resistant and full of p53 protein.
https://nocamels.com/2023/08/new-protein-based-cancer-drug-does-not-affect-healthy-cells/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhR6-W6CM0E   https://www.exoprother.com/
 
Blood test and therapy diagnosis for bipolar disorder. Researchers at Haifa University have identified a blood test to diagnose patients who suffer from bipolar disorder. The test also can predict if the patient will respond to the most common treatment – Lithium carbonate. It can save misdiagnosis and wrong medication.
https://nocamels.com/2023/08/researchers-develop-blood-test-to-diagnose-bipolar-disorder/
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-023-02183-z
 
AI video analysis to determine Crohn’s therapy. Researchers at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center and Intel have achieved 81% accuracy in predicting if biologic therapy would relieve a patient with Crohn’s Disease. They used machine-learning to analyze videos of complete capsule endoscopies (CE) of the small intestine.
https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-750247
 
Skin care for cancer patients. EGFR inhibitors are common treatments for cancer but cause severe skin problems that cannot be fully alleviated. Israel’s EMRIS is developing a topical solution to block EGFRi monoclonal antibodies and allow the patient to continue treatment without the debilitating side effects.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1iz3yhj2
 
Preventing PE. Pulmonary Embolism (PE) is the third leading cause of cardiovascular-related death and the number one cause of preventable hospital death. Israel’s Althea Medical is developing an over-the-wire medical device that physicians can use to remove blood clots quickly and safely from arteries in the lung.
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjacbkk2h
https://www.peregrinevc.com/portfolio/althea-medical/
 
Air transportation for cancer patients. United Hatzalah, Lahak Aviation and Sheba Medical Center together have launched a pilot service to bring cancer patients from remote parts of Israel to hospital for treatment. Previous dangerous and stressful 3–4-hour journeys are reduced to a safe, comfortable 40-minutes.
https://israelrescue.org/blog/caring-for-israels-periphery-one-cancer-patient-at-a-time/
 
Mental health therapy in the Gaza envelope. (TY Mara) Local mental health therapists at the Jewish National Fund-USA’s Eshkol Resilience Center in Sderot provide support for residents of the Gaza Envelope region.  They help their community cope with difficult times in one of the fastest-growing regions in Israel.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/politics-and-diplomacy/article-747637
 

https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/376071

The protest movement in Israel has succeeded in mobilizing many thousands of people against the current government. It claims to be “protecting democracy” by trying to stop judicial reforms. Its agenda, however, includes a wide range of issues and seeks to implement “liberal and Progressive” policies that are often in conflict with traditional Jewish values and Zionism. The struggle, therefore, is not only about judicial reforms, but Israel’s identity as a Jewish state.

The word “Jewish” appears many times in Israel’s Declaration of Independence; “democracy,” however, doesn’t appear once. The reason is that the drafters – while respecting democratic norms and values – wanted to protect Israel’s uniqueness as the “homeland of the Jewish people,” and Zionism. This priority has been questioned in the past by Israeli leftists, and has now become the raison d’etre of the current protest movement.

What has emerged as a protest movement against the government and judicial reforms is the extent to which the Labor Party and its affiliates control social and economic institutions. The Histadrut, for example, which controls nearly all labor organizations in Israel, wields enormous power and influence. Support for the protest movement by former and current military leaders who identified with the Left has created havoc in the IDF. The entire judicial system has been compromised. Most Israeli colleges and universities are complicit. The media is leading the bandwagon of disinformation.

The crisis in Israeli society was examined by Rabbi Prof Eliezer Berkovits in two important essays he wrote nearly 50 years ago: “On Jewish Sovereignty” (1975) and “The Spiritual Crisis in Israel” (1979) which are included in his “Essential Essays on Judaism” (2002) edited by David Hazony.

In the first, he wrote about the Covenant which links the Jewish people with God, and with Eretz Yisrael as the place where their destiny would be realized. “Those Jews who separate Judaism from Zion, Tora from the land of Israel, gives up both Tora and the land … They have surrendered, as a matter of principle, Judaism’s raison d’etre, which is fulfillment in history.”

https://www.jns.org/column/israel/23/8/23/312985/?_se=cm9sYW5kLm0uaG9ybkB0LW9ubGluZS5kZQ%3D%3D&utm_campaign=Evening+Syndicate+Wednesday+8232023&utm_medium=email&utm_source=brevo

Siblings Alma Hernandez and Daniel Hernandez Jr. are current and former Democratic members of the Arizona House of Representatives.

One of the privileges of serving in elected office is the opportunity to stand up for what we most passionately believe in. We are the youngest woman ever elected to the Arizona House of Representatives and co-founder of the first LGBTQ caucus in the Arizona legislature, respectively.

Long before we began our service in the Arizona House, we were shaped by our heritage as Jewish- and Mexican-Americans. We are proudly progressive and proudly pro-Israel, and we are thrilled to have had a chance to share that message with 400 student leaders at the Israel on Campus Coalition National Leadership Summit earlier this month. The young people we met there deeply inspired us. We saw a new generation of diverse pro-Israel leaders rising to meet the demands of our times, answering the same call we heard at their age.

We grew up in a vibrant Latino family in Tucson, Arizona just 60 miles from the southern border. Our mother was born in Nogales, Mexico, giving us deep roots in the immigrant experience. Our identity is layered, as our maternal grandfather was Jewish. Alma converted in 2015 and celebrated her adult bat mitzvah two years later. Daniel has not taken that step but has been active in Jewish community life, attending synagogue on the High Holidays and preparing family meals for Passover and Hanukkah.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ9nS6GBsEU&t=1s

Israel’s use of the F-35 benefits the US

A recent mega-billion-dollar increase in the export of Lockheed-Martin’s F-35 combat aircraft is due to overcoming a series of pivotal glitches. This was achieved by Lockheed-Martin, as well as by Israel’s air force and aerospace industries (especially the innovative Israel Aerospace Industries – IAI), known as the cost-effective and battle-tested laboratory of the US defense and aerospace industries and armed forces.

In June 2016, Israel became the first country to use the highly-computerized F-35 operationally. Israel soon became successful in solving initial glitches, that caused concern among prospective buyers.  

The battle-tested Israeli laboratory – which communicates 24/7 with Lockheed-Martin (as it does with a litany of US defense contractors) – solved most of the operational and maintenance glitches by marshalling its intrinsic features, which have been the derivatives of the uniquely challenging and threatening Middle East environment: optimism, patriotism, defiance of odds, out-of-the-box thinking, risk-taking, do-or-die state of mind, can-do and frontier-pioneering mentality.  

The scores of Israeli solutions to the F-35 glitches – in the area of data gathering and processing, electronic warfare and firing control accuracy – have been shared with the US manufacturer and the US Air Force, sustaining the F-35 superiority over its global competition; sparing Lockheed-Martin mega-billions of dollars in research and development; enhancing the manufacturer’s competitive edge; increasing exports by a few additional billions; and expanding the employment base of Lockheed-Martin and its multitude of subcontractors.

The critical upgrades in the current F-35 – achieved by the manufacturer and its Israeli battle-tested laboratory – have produced a combat aircraft, which is substantially superior to the original generation.

In fact, the enhanced performance of the F-35 demonstrates Israel’s role as an important source of US’ weaponry modernization, reduction of the unit cost, and expanding job creation in the US.

Similar mega-billion-dollar benefits to the US economy and defense have been generated by the hundreds of Israeli solutions and add-on, which have upgraded the performance of the technologically less-challenging F-16 (Lockheed-Martin) and F-15 (Boeing).  In fact, all US manufacturers of military systems employed by Israel have benefited in a similar manner.

Moreover, some 250 commercial US high-tech giants (e.g., John Deere, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson, Texas Instruments, Intel, Nvidia, General Motors, Microsoft, AT&T, IBM, Dell, Google, Facebook, Intuit, etc.) have established research and development centers in Israel, leveraging Israel’s brain power and innovative spirit, in order to sustain their global lead, yielding a consequential increase in global sales.

Similarly, the US defense and aerospace industries established their own Israeli research and development centers through the hundreds of US military systems, which are employed – and systematically improved – by the Israel Defense Forces, yielding to the US consequential benefits to its economy and defense.

US-Israel mutually-beneficial two-way-street

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/19916/lebanon-iran-hezbollah-war

Hassan Nasrallah, Secretary-General of the Hezbollah terror group, recently threatened to send Israel back “to the Stone Age” if it goes to war with Lebanon — meaning defend itself against an Iranian-Lebanese attack.

While Nasrallah’s threat to destroy Israel is not new, he surely knows a thing or two about sending countries back to the Stone Age. His Iran-backed group, which functions as a state-within-a-state in Lebanon, is responsible for turning the Arab country into a failed state.

Two days after Nasrallah made his latest threat against Israel, Lebanon witnessed widespread blackouts, forcing Beirut Airport to run on electric generators.

“On the other side of the spectrum is the understanding that Lebanon was coerced into collapse by Hezbollah and its regional broker, Iran.” — Fadi Nassar, assistant professor in political science and international affairs, Lebanese American University; Saleh El Machnouk, lecturer in political science, Saint-Joseph University, Beirut; mei.edu, March 24, 2023.

“Lebanon has been hit by a debilitating new wave of hyperinflation, the imposition of its judiciary over the local investigation into the Port of Beirut blast, and a European investigation into the Central Bank.” — Fadi Nassar and Saleh El Machnouk; mei.edu, March 24, 2023.

“Hezbollah and [former Lebanese president Michel] Aoun have destroyed everything that made Lebanon great. The Arab world’s banking capital is bankrupt. Tourists don’t frequent destabilized states run by terrorists. Former regional partners refuse to have anything to do with us. Our celebrated culture is trampled underfoot by barbarian theocrats. Beirut no longer has a viable port.” — Baria Alamuddin, award-winning Lebanese journalist and broadcaster, arabnews.com, September 27, 2020.

Since the explosion at the Port of Beirut [which killed more than 200 people, injured thousands more, and displaced half of Lebanon’s capital city], Hezbollah has been trying to obstruct the investigation into the incident by the Lebanese authorities.

“All indications, signs, and collected evidence of weapons and explosives, prove beyond the shadow of a doubt, that Hezbollah, backed by the mullahs in Iran, have turned Lebanon into a massive arms and explosives warehouse.” — Mohammed al Shaikh, Saudi political analyst, alarabiya.net, September 29, 2020.

“Hezbollah’s militia, as was publicly and boldly recognized by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, is trying to convert Lebanon into an Iranian mullah’s province, from which he receives his arms and all the funds and equipment he requires. Hence, the crimes committed by Hezbollah, including the Beirut explosion, are in fact an extension of Tehran’s orders… Although they cannot be publicly vocal about it, all the Lebanese hold Hezbollah responsible for the port bombing. People know that if they do express their opinion, physical liquidation awaits them….” — Mohammed al Shaikh, alarabiya.net, September 29, 2020.

Nasrallah and his masters in Iran care nothing about the suffering of the Lebanese people. What they care about is power, spreading their control to other Arab countries, and fulfilling their ambition to destroy the only successful and democratic country in the Middle East: Israel. Besides Lebanon, Iran’s terror proxies have also wreaked havoc in Syria, Yemen and Iraq. How ironic that Nasrallah, the terrorist leader who has decimated his own country, is now, with the backing of Iran, threatening to take another state back to the Stone Age.

https://www.jns.org/jns/idf/23/8/20/311744/

Anti-judicial reform protesters have turned the Israeli army into a political tool, and if the military doesn’t put a stop to it it risks losing the national consensus, says Brig. Gen. (res.) Ari Singer, former commander of the Israel Defense Forces reserves (2017-2021).

Protest leaders are conducting a “propaganda and influence operation” to topple the government, and appear willing to sacrifice the army’s reputation to do it, according to Singer. “It’s called psychological operations, or psyops, and it’s being carried out brilliantly by those leading the protests. It’s like they read the 101 manual on subversion,” he said.

The army doesn’t appear to recognize what’s happening, he continued, which is why it hasn’t adequately confronted the threat. “The army has to emphasize that it’s not a political tool. Once the army was taken hostage by the demonstrators, it should have reacted.”

Reservists opposed to judicial reform threaten to stop reporting for duty. Protest leaders have used those threats as ammunition against the government, claiming its pursuit of judicial reform risks national security.

Refusing to serve is generally regarded as unethical by Israelis, but former high-ranking officers have provided cover by issuing statements supporting “all protest actions—including the immediate suspension of volunteering.” Those threatening to stop reporting for duty also enjoy favorable media coverage, noted Singer.

Recently, the Hebrew press has been flooded with stories about potential damage to IDF readiness. The alarm prompted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to hold a meeting last week with IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and other top officers on the army’s “fitness and cohesion.” Military fitness was also the topic of a confidential Aug. 16 Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee meeting.

The army’s reluctance to speak out forcibly risks its reputation within Israeli society, according to Singer. By seeming to tolerate those threatening refusal, it appears to be taking sides in the debate, he said, adding that the Air Force has already suffered a blow to its prestige. The army has so far focused on operational fitness, saying it’s ready for battle. But Singer says that’s too narrow a view. “We’re talking about long-term motivation, or trust. Do I trust the army? You can build trust for years but lose it in days,” he said.

Singer, who began his military career in the armored corps, served 40 years in the reserves, eventually commanding it.

https://verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com/

In the 20th Aug 23 edition of Israel’s good news, the highlights include:

Three Israeli medical breakthroughs to combat diseases in the heart, lungs, and brain.

Israeli firefighters helped extinguish forest fires in Greece and Cyprus.

An Israeli innovation boosts production of hydrogen from water.

Israeli robots can protect fish stocks or teach English.

New Israeli trade agreements with Vietnam and Ivory Coast.

“Beautiful” debut Israeli concert by Christina Aguilera.

Record number of twins born in 24 hours at Jerusalem hospital.

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

A miniature human heart, grown from stem cells. (TY WIN) Researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Israel’s Technion Institute have created a tiny functioning human heart, smaller than a grain of rice. It will help scientists study the heart and develop new treatments for cardio-vascular diseases.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-researchers-grow-miniature-beating-model-of-a-human-heart/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-eKR6AQPZQ  https://www.nature.com/articles/s41551-023-01071-9

Short-circuiting the lung cancer gene. (TY JNS & Israel21c) Researchers at Israel’s Weizmann Institute have found that Erbitux – a therapy for colon and neck / head cancer – can also cure lung cancer in non-smokers with a mutated EGFR gene. They have also identified a biomarker to identify those patients.

https://wis-wander.weizmann.ac.il/life-sciences/select-group-study-may-bring-improved-therapy-preselected-lung-cancer-patients  https://www.cell.com/cell-reports-medicine/pdf/S2666-3791(23)00295-1.pdf

Busting the protein link to Alzheimer’s. Israeli biotech MemoryPlus has developed a peptide to block the interaction of proteins PTEN & PSD-95, that causes memory loss in Alzheimer’s patients. The disease makes excessive PTEN, which attacks PSD-95, weakening the brain’s synapses. The peptide also lowers PTEN levels.

https://nocamels.com/2023/08/protein-busting-drug-could-be-new-era-for-alzheimers-therapy/

https://shiraknafo.com/   https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/memoryplus

The power of enzymes. (TY Yehoshua) Israel’s Enzymit is developing enzymes to enable some life-changing chemical reactions (see videos). First, though, it has synthesized hyaluronic acid – a natural biopolymer used to heal eyes, wounds, inflammation, and more. This avoids the use of animal tissue or costly alternate processes.

https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/technology-science/1690889148-israeli-startup-enzymit-achieves-breakthrough-in-hyaluronic-acid-production   https://enzymit.com/   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94pdvpoyaaw  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnPgbJu_sG4

Making science fiction a reality. Israeli-founded Bionaut Labs (see here previously) has safety-tested its micro robot containing a magnet, that can travel via spinal fluid, directly to the brain, to deliver therapy or perform surgery. It can also navigate to any part of the body. Bionaut plans to begin human trials in late 2024.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/spotlight/400m-apple-face-id-inventors-create-tiny-robot-to-treat-brain-disease/

https://www.ourcrowd.com/companies/bionaut-labs  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PrPbevTDqE

Heart diagnosis AI that any doctor can use. Doctors at Israel’s Sheba Medical Center have developed AISAP POCAD (AI Point of Care Assisted Diagnosis) to diagnose a patient’s cardiac problem As Soon As Possible. The AI system uses any manufacturer’s supplied combination of handheld ultrasound probe and digital tablet.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/sheba-startup-uses-ai-to-help-doctors-image-and-diagnose-cardiac-issues-in-minutes/   https://www.aisap.ai/   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JdoIQXNPz8

European grant for preemie formula. Israel’s ELGAN (see here previously) has been awarded a $2.5 million grant by the European Innovation Council (EIC). It will help ELGAN clinically test its ELGN-GI oral formula for the treatment of intestinal malabsorption that prevents preterm infants from absorbing nutrients.

https://nocamels.com/2023/07/startup-treating-newborns-in-serious-condition-raises-2-5m/

World-first newborn surgery saves baby’s ovaries. (TY Israel21c & JNS) Surgeons at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem detected twisted fallopian tubes in a fetus during a routine ultrasound of the mother. They immediately delivered the baby and performed a complex operation to save her ovaries.

https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/article-753159

More heart ops for children from South Sudan. Israeli NGOs IsraAID and Save A Child’s heart returned to South Sudan to assess children who needed heart surgery (see here previously). They screened 74 children including 4-year-old Gladys who was in urgent need. Gladys was rushed to Israel for surgery.

https://www.israel21c.org/israeli-ngos-screen-south-sudan-kids-for-lifesaving-surgery/

https://saveachildsheart.org/children-in-israel