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ISRAEL

Malawi to open embassy in Jerusalem, making it first African country in Israel’s capital By Josh Plank

https://worldisraelnews.com/malawi-to-open-embassy-in-jerusalem-making-it-first-african-country-in-israels-capital/

“Looking forward to continue advancing with your government this important goal and our relations,” said Oded Joseph, Israel’s ambassador to Malawi.

Lazarus Chakwera, president of the southeastern African country of Malawi, announced his plan to open an embassy in Jerusalem during a State of the Nation address to the Malawian parliament on September 4.

“My administration recognizes that foreign relations have a significant role to play in promoting the socioeconomic development and growth of Malawi,” Chakwera said.

Lazarus Chakwera, president of the southeastern African country of Malawi, announced his plan to open an embassy in Jerusalem during a State of the Nation address to the Malawian parliament on September 4.

“My administration recognizes that foreign relations have a significant role to play in promoting the socioeconomic development and growth of Malawi,” Chakwera said.

“Our focus on the world stage will be reforming the foreign affairs ministry headquarters and its missions abroad so that our embassies are able to deliver on the ambitious objectives of promoting Malawi’s national interests globally,” he said.

The Left’s ‘moral’ crusade against Israel and Zionism Settlers, it is claimed, are undermining the “rule of law.” This generates self-doubt and feelings of guilt and shame. By Moshe Dann

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/the-lefts-moral-crusade-against-israel-and-zionism-641210

Accusations Israel is “occupying Palestinian territory,” “stealing Palestinian land” and building “illegal settlements” – which the ICC’s chief prosecutor, a Muslim, condemns as “war crimes” – are commonly used by Israel’s enemies to denounce and delegitimize Israel. Although thoroughly refuted, these legal arguments are effective weapons in the propaganda war against Israel.

Less controversial, however, is a moral argument which appeals to many, including marginal Jews and leftist Israelis who consider themselves to be pro-Israel and Zionists; this helps to explain why people turn against Israel. It is a generally accepted principle that one national group should not rule over and suppress minorities under its control. Used successfully against racist regimes in South Africa, Rhodesia and other countries, it is used to depict Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.

This crusade is also part of the Left’s media campaign against Israel (i.e. Jews) who target “innocent Palestinians,” such as the “al-Dura incident,” in which a child was killed by a Palestinian sniper but was blamed on the IDF. It is used to depict “Jewish settlers” (most of whom are religious) for violence against left-wing activists who attack Jewish-owned property and efforts by Jews to protect their homes and property.

They are powerful indictments because, even though they are untrue, they suggest that Israel is violating laws and human rights and, just as important, Jewish ethics and values – justice. Settlers, it is claimed, are undermining the “rule of law.” This generates self-doubt and feelings of guilt and shame.

GOOD NEWS FROM AMAZING ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN

 www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com 

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
 
More patients to receive Covid-19 treatment. Israel’s Pluristem (reported here previously) has launched an FDA-cleared Covid-19 expanded access program. It enables Pluristem to use its PLX-PAD cells to treat up to 100 more infected patients outside its current trials in the USA and Europe and compassionate use in Israel.
https://www.pluristem.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/PSTI-Expanded-Access-Program-last-version.pdf
 
Maintaining Covid-19 antibodies. Israel’s Elicio Therapeutics has published the results of a pre-clinical study of its ELI-005 protein subunit vaccine for Covid-19. It extended the life of coronavirus antibodies and may resolve the problem whereby patients who recover from the virus can be re-infected if later exposed to it.
https://jewishbusinessnews.com/2020/08/24/israeli-startup-elicio-therapeutics-fights-covid-19-with-immunotherapy/   https://elicio.com/
 
Breath test for Covid-19. Technion’s Hossam Haick, the Israeli-Arab Professor who invented the Sniffphone cancer detector (reported here previously) has led the development of another Israeli coronavirus breathalyzer test (see here for previous). The rest of his team is in Wuhan, China where Covid-19 likely originated.
https://jewishbusinessnews.com/2020/08/23/breathalyzer-tests-for-corona-virus-israel-scientists-say-yes/
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsnano.0c05657
 
UK uses Israeli colon cancer risk software. (TY Hazel) Barts Health, one of the largest providers to the UK’s National Health Service, has selected the ColonFlag software from Israel’s Medial EarlySign (reported here previously) to identify members at high risk for developing colon cancer – the UK’s 4th most common cancer.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/uks-barts-health-to-use-israeli-tech-to-flag-patients-at-risk-for-colon-cancer/
 
Stimulating the brain to help quit smoking. The US FDA has approved the use of the Deep Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) system from Israel’s BrainsWay (see here) to treat cigarette smokers who seek to quit. The patient wears a helmet containing a patented H-coil that generates a magnetic field for 20-minutes.  
https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3846389,00.html
 
First delivery of burns treatment. Israel’s Mediwound (reported here previously) has delivered its first batch of its Nexobrid treatment for burns to BARDA (the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority) for the US Department of Health’s emergency response preparedness.
http://ir.mediwound.com/news-releases/news-release-details/mediwound-and-vericel-announce-acceptance-first-delivery
 
DayTwo wins Roche Diabetes Care Innovation contest. Israel’s DayTwo (reported here previously) won the 2020 Roche Diabetes Care Innovation Contest. Its virtual pitch convinced the judges that its personalized nutrition solution, using microbiome data, could best integrate with Roche Diabetes Care.
https://www.israel21c.org/daytwo-wins-roche-diabetes-care-innovation-contest/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_n3H8XlIGo
 
The patient room of 2030. (TY Stuart Pl) This video simulates how the futuristic patient rooms at Israel’s Sheba hospital integrate artificial intelligence, robotic technologies, wearable devices, virtual reality and other smart technology to simulate the most extreme medical situations, including the current coronavirus pandemic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdQEVGHP3NE
 
 

Blind eye to incitement Why abuses of power are ignored or encouraged Melanie Phillips

https://melaniephillips.substack.com/p/blind-eye-to-incitement?token=eyJ1c2VyX

Why do so many well-meaning people committed to ending abuses of power ignore the evidence of who is actually committing these abuses and blame their victims instead?

An official investigation funded by Britain and the European Union into textbooks used in Palestinian schools has descended into farce.

In April 2018, finally responding to concerns about anti-Israel incitement in Palestinian-Arab schools, the United Kingdom pushed the EU to commission a report on Palestinian textbooks from the Georg Eckert Institute for International Textbook Research in Germany.

In April last year, the Institute published as a preliminary what it called its “Inception Report.” This, it said, developed a framework for “an academically rigorous review” of “how peace, tolerance and an understanding of the other are incorporated into Palestinian textbooks.”

This report, however, was itself riddled with so many mistakes that the European Union ditched it. Bafflingly, however, the EU has continued to use the Georg Eckert Institute to finish the project.

Its final report is due out next month. But it has now produced an interim report, which the EU is choosing to keep secret.

The Real Palestinian Tragedy by Khaled Abu Toameh

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16456/palestinian-tragedy

Unlike their leaders, however, the Palestinians living in Syria and Iraq do not appear to be worried about the Israel-UAE accord. These Palestinians have more existential concerns — such as providing shelter for their children and safe drinking water for their families. They are disturbed about the homes they have lost, and they are in a state of anguish about fate of their missing sons.

The Palestinian families complained that the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international organizations, including the United Nations, have refused to assist them in their search for their beloved ones.

Palestinian writer Nabil Al-Sahli said that the 4,000 Palestinians who remain in Iraq are facing an “ongoing tragedy.” He said that according to some studies, at least 20,000 Palestinians have been displaced from Iraq to 40 countries around the world because of the “massacres” committed against them by sectarian militias.

By extreme contrast [to Syria and Iraq], the UAE and other Gulf states have long opened their doors to Palestinians and provided them with jobs and high living standards. Puzzlingly, Palestinian leaders have plenty of time to castigate the UAE, but no time at all to comment on the systematic abuse and killing of Palestinians in Syria and Iraq. For the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, the true tragedy is when an Arab expresses willingness to make peace with Israel.

Palestinian leaders are so committed to condemning the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for its normalization agreement with Israel that they have no time left to notice the horrific suffering of their people in some Arab countries, particularly Syria and Iraq. Specifically, these leaders seem unperturbed that in some in Arab countries, Palestinians are mysteriously disappearing.

Unlike their leaders, however, Palestinians living in Syria and Iraq do not appear to be worried about the Israel-UAE accord. These Palestinians have more existential concerns — such as providing shelter for their children and safe drinking water for their families. They are disturbed about the homes they have lost, and they are in a state of anguish about fate of their missing sons.

A Kobe Bryant fan and the concept of ‘kavanah’ – opinion-Ruthie Blum

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/a-kobe-bryant-fan-and-the-concept-of-kavanah-opinion-641036

Shame on Israelis for elevating American hysteria to a higher plane than Jewish wisdom and, more importantly, common sense.The Jewish concept of kavanah – intention – refers to a worshiper’s sincerity during prayers and the fulfilling of commandments. Though scholars disagree on the extent to which certain rituals are meaningless without the necessary purity of heart and mind, the idea that a person’s intentions are often as relevant as his actions is pretty universal.

Even courts of law examine intent – such as “malice aforethought” – when determining a defendant’s guilt or innocence.

One exception among many at the moment – thanks to the cancel-culture climate in the US – concerns the use of “blackface,” dark makeup applied to white skin for theatrical or costume-party purposes. In the mid-19th century, minstrel shows popularized this custom, and by the early 20th century, it became its own art form. Al Jolson, the “king of blackface performers,” is the name most associated with the practice.

Today, any blackface is considered racist and therefore taboo, regardless of the kavanah of those accused of having violated it, even in the distant past – no matter what its aim. In a McCarthy-like sweep of self-censorship, Hollywood and Broadway not only have been removing all vestiges of blackface, but have been engaged in a kind of ongoing breast-beating far more intense than any Yom Kippur service.

David O. Selznick’s 1939 film, based on Margaret Mitchell’s novel, Gone with the Wind, and Disney’s 1946 partly animated musical movie, Song of the South, are examples of blockbusters that portray blacks in a cringe-worthy stereotypical fashion – something that is understandably offensive to African-Americans. Blackface, too, is and always has been an atrocious form of comedy.

A New Middle East of Arab-Israeli Rapport? Not So Fast By P. David Hornik

https://pjmedia.com/columns/p-david-hornik/2020/09/03/a-new-middle-east-of-arab-israeli-rapport-not-so-fast-n881184

In a “major boon for Israeli air travel,” The Times of Israel reports, “Saudi Arabia [has] announced that it will henceforth allow flights from ‘all countries’ to cross over its airspace on flights to or from the United Arab Emirates.”

Israeli leaders “understood this to mean,” TOI goes on, “that Israeli flights can head to and from the Far East via Saudi Arabia and UAE, drastically reducing travel time.”

In other words, it’s assumed that “all countries” includes Israel, whose planes — until this week — had never been allowed to traverse Saudi airspace. Enthusiasm doesn’t appear to have been dampened by the fact that the Saudis couldn’t somehow eke out the word “Israel” in their announcement.

It didn’t seem to dent the enthusiasm of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who called the announcement a “huge breakthrough”:

“For years, I have been working to open the skies between Israel and the East. It was spectacular news two-and-a-half years ago when Air India received approval [from the Saudis] to fly directly to Israel,” he said in a filmed statement, standing near a huge map.

“Now there is another tremendous breakthrough: Israeli planes and those from all countries will be able to fly directly from Israel to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, and back. Flights will be cheaper and shorter, and it will lead to robust tourism and develop our economy.”

A Great Step Forward for World Peace – and Who Seems Determined to Ignore It by Richard Kemp

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16448/israel-uae-world-peace

Some months ago, in talks with leaders in Saudi Arabia as part of a delegation from former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Friends of Israel Initiative, together with their Executive Director and former Spanish National Security Adviser Rafael Bardaji, I heard first-hand how open the Saudis were to the prospect of embracing Israel in the future.

Of far greater significance, however, is the looming threat to the region from Iran and, to a lesser extent, Turkey. Most Arab countries see common interests with Israel in the face of the mullahs in Tehran with their imperial aggression in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and beyond, coupled with insatiable nuclear ambition.

Notwithstanding the economic, technological and security imperatives that lie behind the evolving Middle East relationships, great credit must go to the men behind the Abraham Accord…. Mohammed bin Zayed… [and] Benjamin Netanyahu… know only too well that such actions carry with them serious risks to themselves personally and to their nations.

This week, we witnessed a symbol of perhaps the greatest step forward in world peace for decades. The first-ever direct passenger flight from Israel to the United Arab Emirates flew down the length of Saudi Arabia’s airspace. After Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, the UAE has become the third Arab state to normalise relations with the State of Israel under the new Abraham Accord.

Next month, the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize winner will be announced in Oslo. Will it go to the architects of the Abraham Accord, a momentous achievement in itself, and also a major development in a regional geopolitical realignment that is not only good for peace and prosperity in the Middle East but in the world? We knew what the answer would be to that question even before it arose. (Those who point out the deadline for 2020 nominations has passed need not expect to see it in 2021 either.)

Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, might well have caught the eye of the Nobel selectors, but unfortunately his partners in this enterprise are US President Donald J. Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Both are despised figures for the wokerati in Oslo and the fellow travellers they are desperate to impress. Compared to the perceptions of these leaders among the hard left who dominate all discourse on “peace”, their achievements on the world stage are irrelevant.

Palestinians: Never Missing an Opportunity to Miss an Opportunity Rejecting peace for an entire century. Joseph Puder

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/09/palestinians-never-miss-opportunity-miss-joseph-puder/

Israel’s legendary Foreign Minister Abba Eban had famously quipped that “the Arabs never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.” It is the most fitting attribute for the Palestinians. Historically, they have said no to the British Peel Commission of 1937, which promised them a state on 75% of mandatory Palestine. The Yishuv, Palestine’s Jews, who were originally called Palestinians during the British Mandate (1920-1948) said yes, despite of being offered a small piece of the second partition of Palestine. In the first partition of Mandatory Palestine, in 1922, Winston Churchill, then British Colonial Secretary, sliced off 34,495 miles originally slated to be part of the Balfour Declaration for a Jewish homeland, to create the Emirate of Trans Jordan. Of the remaining 10,309 miles, Jewish Palestine would be allocated a measly 2,577 miles.  

Instead of accepting self-determination for his people, Haj Amin Al-Husseini, the Arab-Palestinian leader also titled Mufti of Jerusalem, and Hitler’s ally, ordered the Arab Revolt (1936-1939). Arab-Palestinian violence was repaid by British appeasement in the form of the White Paper, which shut the doors of Palestine to European Jews in the face of the looming Holocaust. In 1947, the Palestinian Arabs said no once again when offered an independent state by the United Nations General Assembly. Instead, they launched a war of annihilation against the newly born Jewish state of Israel, which accepted partition, and declared statehood on May 14, 1948.

Opinion: Israel’s Supreme Court cruel to the kind in politically charged decision David Isaac

https://worldisraelnews.com/opinion-israels-supreme-court-cruel-to-the-kind-in-poli

Israel’s Supreme Court appears to be on a mission to erase any doubts within the Israeli public that it has been corrupted by politics.

In less than three weeks, Israel’s Supreme Court went from bleeding hearts to hard-hearted. After refusing to destroy the home of a confessed Arab terrorist, the High Court ruled on the destruction of 56 homes of innocent, law-abiding Jews.

Israel’s Supreme Court appears to be on a mission to erase any doubts within the Israeli public that it has been corrupted by politics. Not being lawyers, we won’t parse the rulings in too great detail, partly because it’s not necessary. The contrast is so stark.

In the first case, the court ruled that the home of a terrorist should not be destroyed (a punitive measure adopted by the IDF) because his wife and eight children live there and had nothing to do with the crime. In June, the terrorist had dropped a rock from a height, killing an IDF soldier.

Justice Manni Mazuz wrote, “The serious harm done to innocent family members cannot be ignored — those to whom no involvement in the attack is attributed.” Justice George Kara agreed: “Justice will come to the attacker when he gets his punishment. But the consequences of his actions should not be cast on those who have not sinned.

Jump ahead, and in under two and a half weeks, the court is arguing that 56 Jewish homes in Mitzpe Kramim, a Jewish settlement in the Binyamin region of southern Samaria, have got to go.