4,000-year-old Graves Found

During the recent construction of the Holyland Park Project near Jerusalem’s Malcha shopping mall, archaeologists identified several graves from the Intermediate Bronze Age (2200–2000 BC). Each of the 40 “shaft graves,” typical of the period, extended about 2 meters (6.5 feet) down and opened into individual burial chambers. Pottery found inside the graves indicates that they were reused by later inhabitants of the area during the Middle Bronze IIB period (1750–1550 BC). Since the graves were determined not to be Jewish in origin, they will be carefully documented, the finds removed for further study, and the bodies reinterred before construction resumes.

Mount Hermon—Israel’s One and Only Ski Resort

I enjoy seeing the look on people’s faces when I tell them that the first time I ever went snow skiing was in Israel, and only one day after Hizbullah fired a couple of rockets at the mountain.

Temple Rededication

The word hanukkah means “dedication.” After the Jewish revolt in 165 BC against Syrian-Greek forces, the Temple in Jerusalem was left desolate, having been desecrated when juice from cooked pigs was poured over its altar. The book of 1 Maccabees describes the extent of the damage: “They saw the Temple laid desolate and the altar profaned and the gates burned and the courtyards overgrown with plants as ‘in a thicket’ or like ‘one of the mountains’ and the chambers laid in ruins.”

New Bike Trails in Israel

A new bike trail will allow bicyclists to ride across the Jewish state. The first 30 kilometers [18 miles] was opened during the holiday of Sukkot [Feast of Tabernacles]. The trail is being built by Derech Eretz, the operator of the Trans-Israel Route 6 Highway, Israel’s first toll road. Bicyclists were just one of the many groups opposed to the construction of the highway, which covered many of their favorite trails with asphalt. Now, the company intends to return some of what was taken.

Al-Qaeda – Offer That Can’t Be Refused

An Al-Qaeda video released in September called on Americans and the rest of the Christian world to “repent” and convert to Islam. “This is the invitation that precedes the attack. ”

Lebanon PM – “No Agreement with Israel”

A defiant, belligerent Prime Minister Fourad Siniora vowed that he would not hold “direct or indirect contacts” with Israel. He said, “Lebanon will be the last Arab country to sign a peace agreement with Israel after 300 million Arabs citizens sign up. There will be no agreement with Israel before there is a global peace deal that is just and lasting.”

Hezekiah’s tunnel

When I heard there was a Bridges for Peace trip planned for Hezekiah’s Tunnel, I packed my backpack full with the necessary gear: a flashlight, camera, an extra pair of shoes and shorts, and a water bottle. When the day arrived, I was the first to arrive at our designated meeting point just inside the Dung Gate of the Old City, the exit from the Western Wall plaza. The majority of the participants were in what I call the “Silver Years Club,” all with a spirit of adventure.

Nobel Prize Winner – Israel’s Survival Questioned

Professor Robert Aumann, the Israeli-American who won the Nobel Prize for economics last year, warned that Israel may not be capable of continuing its existence long term. Aumman moved from the United States to Israel in the 1950s.

Israel – A Technology Powerhouse

The World Economic Forum published its yearly 2006–2007 report, in which it ranks Israel as one of the world’s most competitive economies ahead of Canada, France, and South Korea.

Egg-Lemon Soup

A simple but delicious Middle Eastern soup for a cold winter night’s meal by Hanukkah candlelight!

Ahmadinejad – “God Told Me We Would Win”

While the West is preparing to impose sanctions on Iran, due to the country’s failure to suspend its nuclear activities, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is still optimistic. “We shall win,” he was quoted in the Iranian media as saying and added, “One day I will be asked whether I have been in touch with someone who told me we would win, and I will respond, ‘Yes, I have been in touch with god [Allah].’”

By Dudi Cohen, Ynetnews.com

A Hanukkah Miracle

“Whosoever preserves a single soul, Scripture ascribes merit to him as though he had preserved a complete world.”
—Mishna, Tractate Sanhedrin