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ISRAEL

The Conundrum of Israeli-Arab Citizenship by Mordechai Nisan *****

https://www.meforum.org/61033/the-conundrum-of-israeli-arab-citizenship

Issued in the midst of a sustained attempt by the Palestinian Arabs to destroy it at birth, Israel’s 1948 declaration of independence urged them “to participate in the upbuilding of the state on the basis of full and equal citizenship and due representation in all its provisional and permanent institutions.”[1] The invitation to these inveterate foes to be fellow citizens was based on the belief that once their aggression had been defeated, they would resign themselves to a minority status in the nascent Jewish state.

Seventy-two years on, the fulfillment of this assumption seems as remote as ever. Not only has Arab integration in Israeli society not led to general acceptance of the legitimacy of Jewish statehood, but the more affluent and more established the Arab population has become, the stronger its Palestinian identification to the point of openly challenging the fundamental principles underpinning Israel’s existence.

This seemingly unbridgeable gulf between Israel’s Arabs and Jews raises the need for a profound redefinition of the concept of citizenship in a way that would satisfy the Arabs’ national identification and protect their civil and religious rights without enabling them to undo Israel’s Jewish national character.

Israel’s Arab Citizens and Their Political Leadership

Why Western Media is Biased Against Israel by Bassam Tawil

https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16078/media-bias-israel

Many foreign journalists seem to see the conflict along the lines of “good guys (Palestinians) versus bad guys (Israel).” They wake up every morning and search for any story that reflects badly on Israel. The foreign correspondents then hire Palestinians to assist them in spreading lies about Israel.

What is particularly disturbing about the dismissal of Hamad is that the Associated Press knew one of its Palestinian workers was engaged in anti-Israel activities, but failed to stop him. Hamad even ignored repeated warnings from his employers against pursuing political activities.

If Hamad had “repeatedly” violated AP policies by engaging in anti-Israel political activities, why was he allowed to continue covering Palestinian affairs even though his anti-Israel sentiments were known to his employers and everyone else?

The incident also shows that international news organizations evidently have no problem hiring anti-Israel activists as reporters and cameramen.

The AP evidently knew that Hamad was engaged in political activities. It nevertheless chose to turn a blind eye because Hamad was directing his hate only against Israel. As far as the AP is concerned, the moment Hamad spoke out against the brutality and repressive measures of the Palestinian Authority security forces, he crossed a red line. That is when he was informed of the decision to terminate his employment.

The problem is, there are many more Palestinian journalists like Hamad working for the international media in the Middle East. These journalists see themselves as soldiers serving the Palestinian cause, and their as duty bashing Israel on a daily basis.

When Palestinian journalist Eyad Hamad criticized Israel, his employers at the Associated Press (AP) summoned him for a hearing, which ended only with a warning.

When Hamad criticized the Palestinian Authority, however, he received a letter from the AP informing him that “your employment has been terminated.”

Ruthie Blum :Owing the ultra-Orthodox an apology Suddenly, the discussion is no longer about the identity of the coronavirus carriers; no accusations are being flung at them for the way in which they choose to observe their Judaism.

https://www.jns.org/opinion/owing-the-ultra-orthodox-an-apology/

Two weeks after Israel gradually reopened its education system, students and teachers around the country came down with the coronavirus, forcing thousands of their peers and family members into quarantine.

The main hotspot has been the Jerusalem high school, Hagymnasia Haivrit, in the capital’s Rechavia neighborhood, which had to shut down due to the more than 130 adults and teenagers who tested positive to COVID-19.

More than 17 additional schools also closed, some by ministerial order, and a few by parental decree.

If the trend continues, the Education Ministry may succumb to pressure from health officials to send everyone home to resume classes via Zoom—just like during the good old days less than a month ago.

Kids were honest about how this happened. Few adhered to social-distancing and mask-wearing regulations. Many greeted one another with hugs and kisses. The general feeling among all was that the crisis was over.

The thousands of beach-goers who descended upon the shores of the Mediterranean as soon as the government lifted restrictions on doing so exhibited a similar sense of freedom from lockdown bondage. Ditto for the diners and partiers who piled in to cafes, restaurants, bars and nightclubs with great fervor, but little attention to the government’s frequent urgent requests to practice social distancing, wash hands and wear masks.

Palestinian state and track record: impact on US interests Yoram Ettinger

https://bit.ly/2ZTG08Y

Western foreign policy and national security establishments – government, media and academia – have been overwhelmingly preoccupied with assessments of future track record of the proposed Palestinian state. They have sidestepped the Palestinian past track record.

While a future track record is subjective, intangible, precarious and speculative, a past track record is objective, tangible, proven, and certain. 

Major decisions – such as medical reports, investing, hiring, recruiting, buying and job application – are based, primarily, on well-documented past track records. They are not centered around hypothetical future track records.

A confirmed past track record – rather than a conjectural future track record – is critical to making well-grounded, trust-worthy decisions. This is certainly pivotal to responsible foreign policy-making, which attempts to enhance future national security by avoiding past mistakes.

Dr. Albert Ellis, one of the world’s top psychologists, considered the study of past track records as an essential undertaking for an improved future: “The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.”  This is as applicable to foreign policy and national security policy-making as it is to psychology.

ISRAEL- AMONG THE TEN MOST EDUCATED NATIONS IN THE WORLD

https://www.traveltrivia.com/most-educated-countries/XqgZkXU1XQAGkiL1

For most countries, the average education level of the population can be an indicator of its financial stability and literacy rates. It can even contribute to how healthy the country is overall. With all of this in mind, do you know which countries rank as the most educated in the world? While you might be able to guess a few, there may be some countries on the list that surprise you. Here are the top 10 most educated countries, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

1.Luxembourg, 2.Norway, 3.Finland, 4.Australia, 5.United States,
6.United Kingdom, 7. South Korea, 8. Israel, 9. Japan 10. Canada

The education system in Israel is different from those in most of the world, but it still ranks as one of the best. In Israel, most schools are divided by the student’s faith. It is also not uncommon for schools to include weapon training. Because of its strong focus on education, the country has more university degrees per capita than any other country in the world. According to the OECD, nearly 25% of all residents have a bachelor’s degree or higher.

GOOD NEWS FROM AMAZING ISRAEL FROM MICHAEL ORDMAN

http://verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com/

ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS

Gaucher’s treatment also works for Covid-19. In animal tests, Israel’s Institute for Biological Research has found two treatments for the genetic disorder Gaucher’s disease are also effective against Covid-19 and other viruses (e.g. West Nile). Cerdelga is already approved for Gaucher’s and Venglustat may be fast-tracked.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/gauchers-disease-drugs-also-fight-covid-19-israeli-defense-lab-finds/

Testing Nitric Oxide treatment on Covid-19 patients. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Beyond Air develops LungFit  – a revolutionary Nitric Oxide (NO) generator and delivery system. The US FDA and Health Canada have approved the use of LungFit in COVID-19 treatment trials in both countries.

https://www.beyondair.net/news-media/press-releases/detail/101/beyond-air-to-initiate-clinical-study-evaluating-high  https://www.beyondair.net/news-media/press-releases/detail/105/beyond-air-receives-approval-from-health-canada-to-study

Israeli-Italian partners for Covid-19 treatment. Israeli biotech Kamada (see here) has partnered Italy’s Kedrion to develop a human plasma-derived Anti-SARs-COV-2 product. Kamada will use its proprietary IgG platform technology and Kedrion will provide plasma from donors who have recovered from the virus.

https://www.kedrion.com/kedrion-and-kamada-announce-collaboration-anti-covid-19-igg-0

Patch for monitoring Covid-19 patients. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s G Medical has received Emergency Use Authorization from the US FDA for its Vital  Signs Monitoring System (VSMS) ECG Patch. It can be used to monitor Covid-19 patients whose treatment includes medication that may cause life-threatening arrhythmias.

https://gmedinnovations.com/products/#prod  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRaL2OzzGoY

Treating diabetic children in Texas. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s DreaMed Diabetes (reported here previously) is integrating its Advisor Pro software at Texas Children’s Hospital. It allows diabetic children to be monitored remotely and avoids the risk of them (and their parents / guardians) being infected in hospital with Covid-19.

https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/company_page/dreamed-diabetes

https://dreamed-diabetes.com/advisor/

The ICU of the (near) future. HealthSpace 2030, Israel’s high-tech Intensive Care Unit of the future was unveiled in the ARC center of Sheba hospital. 11 technologies integrate augmented reality, communication, monitoring, AI, sensing, and robotic technologies to maximize care and comfort while minimizing risk to staff.

https://www.israel21c.org/hospital-icu-of-the-future-prepares-israel-for-second-corona-wave/

Cancer treatment gets $0.9 million boost. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s VBL Therapeutics (reported here previously) has been awarded a grant of up to $0.9 million by the Israel Innovation Authority.  It will support the Phase 3 study of VBL’s lead candidate VB-111 for the treatment of platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.

http://ir.vblrx.com/news-releases/news-release-details/vbl-therapeutics-awarded-32-million-nis-non-dilutive-grant  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnNsZYrpT_w

Funding for 16 research projects on personalized medicine. The Israel Precision Medicine Partnership (IPMP – reported here previously), has granted another NIS 60 million to 16 projects researching into specific targeted personalized medicine that can treat ailments such as autism, cancers and trauma.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/16-israeli-research-projects-on-personalized-medicine-get-millions-in-funding/ 

Personalized pregnancy care. Israel’s NUVO has partnered with Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital to develop an AI platform for accurate decision-making about pregnancy complications. NUVO has also just received US FDA approval for its INVU device (reported here previously) to be used in monitoring maternal fetal heart rate.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nuvo-group-announces-partnership-with-hadassah-hebrew-university-medical-center-to-develop-innovative-pregnancy-population-management-platform-301058487.html

A better medical trial experience. Israel’s Habitu (see here) develops a platform specifically targeting clinical trials and patient support programs in community-based healthcare. It provides flexible, continuous, emotional, professional and procedural support to patients, leading to more efficient trials and lower drop-out rates.

https://www.habitu.health/

Heart stent gets Breakthrough status. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Endospan (reported here previously) has been granted Breakthrough Device Designation from the U.S. FDA for its NEXUS Aortic Arch Stent Graft System.  It already has the CE Mark of European approval.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200419005001/en/FDA-Grants-NEXUS%E2%84%A2-Aortic-Arch-Stent-Graft

Decoding the immune system. Israel’s Immunai is developing a technological platform that aims to map the entire immune system for better detection, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. It uses single cell genomics that could in the future unlock the secrets of infections, cancer and autoimmune diseases.

https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3822891,00.html  https://www.immunai.com/

The Land of Milk and Honey – Trashed by the Palestinians. By Victor Sharpe

Milk and honey” refers to the nectar of the fruit, and a land “flowing with milk and honey” is an expression used for a particularly fertile land that could produce abundant produce and fruit. The saying is used several times in the Bible, each time conveying the richness of the Promised Land – The Land of Israel.

A land flowing with milk and honey is now a blessed reality in the reborn modern State of Israel, miraculously restored and reconstituted by its own indigenous Jewish folk after 2,000 years of exile. It is now once again a sovereign Jewish nation in its ancestral and Biblical homeland. The precious land, neglected and wasted for so long, and which had endured successive alien occupations down the centuries, has been lovingly redeemed by the pioneering Jewish Israelis whose Zionist endeavor and undertaking banished the malarial swamps, turned the desert green and restored the hills and valleys to their verdant beauty.

Tragically the fraudulent Arabs, who call themselves Palestinians, show no love for the land or for nature’s bounty that the Jewish villagers and farmers have recreated throughout Israel and, in particular, within the Jewish heartland of Judea and Samaria. This is the very land a hostile world still insists on erroneously calling by its Jordanian Arab name, (the West Bank) after Jordan’s illegal occupation from 1948 to 1967.

The Morality of Israel’s ‘Annexation’ Reclaiming ownership of indigenous lands – and governing those outside the process of history. Jason D. Hill *******

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/05/morality-israels-annexation-jason-d-hill/

With some degree of the annexation of Judea and Samaria imminent in the next few months in Israel, recent statements by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (who oversees a massive kleptocratic terrorist regime that endorses a massive Pay-for-Slay program that provides Palestinian suicide bombers, terrorist murderers, and their families with lifelong financial security), sound more like conceptual inanities than they do reasoned disagreements by a serious politician.
 
Abbas said last week that he was terminating all agreements with Israel and the United States as a result of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to extend Israeli law to parts of Judea and Samaria under the stewardship of the Trump peace plan. Well, no one really cares if he terminates any agreement with the United States. The PA is irrelevant to the United States except as a disgraceful moral stain on our foreign policy record for having financed a terrorist rogue political institution for decades. What would be truly humorous, were it not backed with the routine rampant anti-Semitism and support of the European Union, is his statement on the order of: Israel has “annulled” the Oslo Accord with its intention to apply Israeli law in occupied Palestine.
 
No Abbas, the Palestinian National Authority and other militant groups acting under its aegis long ago nullified the Oslo Accord with the Second Intifada when it sought to repay Israel’s generous peace-and-land offerings by repeated bloody attacks against the state of Israel and her people from September 2000 until February 2005. By all accounts, the Intifada lasted for 4 years, 4 months, 1 week, and four days. Four years of bloody murder and unleashed terror against Israelis for their generosity.

Raised In Unreality Tabitha Korol

https://www.trevorloudon.com/2020/05/raised-in-unreality/

This is another in a series of children’s propagandist storybooks distributed to libraries nationwide and in other countries, another facet of the many war strategies used against the west, overtly about Israel, but covertly about changing opinions and accepting Islam.  The facade of victimhood is usually at play; one need only be alert to recognize how it’s employed.  

*****

Tasting the Sky, by Ibtisam Barakat, is a story told through the memories of a three-and-a-half-year-old girl in Ramallah, West Bank, the heartland of Biblical Israel and known through the centuries as Samaria.  it is categorized to be read by Middle Graders, ages 6 and up, who know nothing of the region’s history.   Without guidance, analysis, and clarification, they would conclude that Israel is the interloper and Palestinians the natives, and by extension, western civilization is evil.  This is Islamic indoctrination, inappropriate for distribution.

It begins with a sketchy historical note that the conflict over the State of Israel, the background of the story, continues to this day, but the conflict’s origin is ignored.  For over fourteen centuries, Arabs have been following Mohammed’s decrees by attacking and slaughtering the Jews within the land and brutalizing Christians, Romans, Persians, Ethiopians, Berbers, Turks, Visigoths, Franks, Egyptians, Indians, and more, elsewhere.  Unable to deny 1400 years of Jewish presence in the land, the Arabs embellish the discord with lies of shared history, prophets, and archaeology.  But the land has only ever been the ancestral homeland of the Jews, who reestablished their national independence in Israel after 2,000 years, its legality endorsed by the United Nations, in 1948.  Israel also received the recognition of Yusaf Diya al-Khaldi Mayor of Jerusalem (1899), Lord Robert Cecil (1918), Emir Faisal, leader of the Arab World (1919); and Sir Winston Churchill (1920).

Israel’s Annexation Plan of the Jordan Valley European thinking, Abdullah’s reaction, and Israel’s rights. Joseph Puder

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/05/israels-annexation-plan-jordan-valley-joseph-puder/

The new Israeli government is considering extending Israeli law and sovereignty to the Jordan Valley, which is within area C of the Oslo Accords. The Accords, which gave Israel both military and administrative control in the area, also contains a large bloc of Jewish-Israeli communities. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, on a short visit to Israel (April 22, 2020) told reporters: “As for annexation of the (Jordan Valley) West Bank, the Israelis will ultimately make those decisions.” He added, “That’s an Israeli decision. We will work closely with them to share with them our views in a private setting.”

Reacting to Israeli intentions, a senior official at the European Union (EU) has warned that Individual member-states within the EU are already looking to apply sanction against Israel should Israel annex the Jordan Valley. The EU requires full consensus among its 27 members in adopting foreign policy measures. Austria and Hungary have blocked a call by Luxembourg and Ireland to consider an Israel annexation of the Jordan Valley a ‘violation of international law’ as defined by the United Nations (UN). The anti-Israel bloc at the EU believes that Israel’s intended action is comparable to Russia’s annexation of Crimea. But, while Crimea was part of the sovereign nation state of Ukraine, Palestine is not a recognized state by the UN. Still, there might be bilateral sanctions imposed by anti-Israel states within the EU such as Ireland, Luxembourg, and Sweden. 

While the German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas understands that there is no comparison between Russia’s action in 2014 in annexing Crimea, and Israel’s intended annexation of the Jordan Valley Jewish settlements, he nevertheless agrees that it will be a violation of international law.