Aroma Goes Global

{image_1}Move over Starbucks! There's a new competitor on the block. Israel's popular Aroma coffee chain is exporting its special brand of Israeli coffee culture to cities around the world. “We just opened a third branch in Toronto, Canada and opened a third in New York. We are expanding in Europe. We have branches in Romania, Cyprus… and the next is in Kazakhstan,” Gil Kiriyati, Aroma's COO tells ISRAEL21c.

Try Moroccan! Spicy Moroccan Carrot Salad

{image_1}After the destruction of the Temple in AD 70—followed 60 years later by the Bar Kochba rebellion—the practice of Judaism was forbidden in Israel. Although Jewish people who remained continued to practice their religion in secret, it was impossible for Jerusalem to continue as the center of religious creativity. Eventually, it was replaced by Babylon. It was here that the gaonim (geniuses) of Judaic thought developed the standard edition of the Talmud (rabbinic commentary), known to this day as the Babylonian Talmud.

Animal Aliyah

{image_1} It was an emotional moment. Excited by a move to work as a journalist in Israel, my wife and I were taking the little one to the Middle East for the first time. Bringing our “baby” to the Holy Land was hardly painless. Over many months, we had to get her a passport, vaccinations, a kennel, and an abundance of paperwork. But watching as she wolfed down the kosher kebab they gave her on the flight to Tel Aviv, happy as a clam, we figured everything would be okay.

Holocaust Memorials

On January 27, many nations memorialize the Holocaust on International Holocaust {image_1}Remembrance Day, as designated in 2005 by the UN. This date marks the liberation of the largest Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz–Birkenau. Israel’s Holocaust Memorial Day, Yom HaShoah, falls in April just prior to Memorial Day and Independence Day. These quotes come from speeches made in January.

New Gas Masks Distributed

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Photo by Isranet

In February, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began the long-anticipated distribution of gas masks to all of Israel’s residents, according to a report on the IDF Web site. Though masks have been distributed before—most notably in conjunction with the First Gulf War in 1991 when Saddam Hussein fired Scud missiles at Israel—the masks have needed to be upgraded.

IDF Simulates Biological Attack

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In January, the Israel Defense Forces [IDF] Medical Corps held a drill to simulate a mass casualty biological weapons attack in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area.

UNIFIL Finds Bombs near Lebanon

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Members of the United Nations peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon report finding a number of bombs planted near the border with the Israeli town of Metula. Described as sophisticated and well made, the weapons each contained about 660 pounds [272 kilograms] of explosives and are believed to have been set to kill Israeli soldiers entering Lebanese territory, presumably in pursuit of cross-border raiders from Hizbullah.

Keeping a Strong Israeli Border Presence

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Israel will maintain a strong military presence along the eastern border of the Palestinian state—its border with Jordan—once it’s created, according to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He told foreign reporters in Jerusalem that “the ability to proliferate into contiguous areas thousands of rockets and missiles” creates a “monumental security problem.”

Prehistoric Building Found in Tel Aviv

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Tel Aviv is one of the new generations of Israeli cities, literally built out of the sand in the last century. However, archaeology shows that the Tel Aviv area was inhabited thousands of years ago, thanks in part to the discovery of the remains of a prehistoric building. The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) reported that the building is the oldest ever found in the area and is believed to be thousands of years older than the era of Abraham and the patriarchs.

New Medical School in Safed

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Photo by Isranet

Bar-Ilan University, Israel’s second-largest university, is expanding its reputation as a leading research institute by building a medical school in Safed, north of the Sea of Galilee.

Bridges for Peace IN ACTION: Practical Gifts for Practical Needs

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MAKING ALIYAH—THE DREAM of a Jewish family to return to Israel, the land of their forefathers—is an exciting event in the lives of new immigrants coming to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Tiberias, Haifa, Beersheva, and countless other communities across Israel. But such a drastic move also involves plenty of practical considerations. There’s only so much you can pack in your suitcase, after all, and though you might like to take the kitchen sink, airline baggage regulations limit how much you can put in your luggage!

Ashkenazi: We Won’t Rely on Foreign Armies

{image_1}ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES CHIEF OF STAFF GABI ASHKENAZI gave a speech in Berlin in October in which he promised never again to allow foreign armies to be the sole protectors of the Jewish people. “We will never look lightly upon those who scheme our demise. We will not deposit our security in the hands of foreigners, and we will allow no one to control the future of the State of Israel,” he said during a ceremony held at the ill-famed Platform 17 in Berlin, from which many Jews left for concentration camps.

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