Uproar over the E-1 Corridor

{image_1}The day after the United Nations voted to upgrade Palestinian status to that of a non-member observer state, Israel announced that “…it was advancing plans to build 3,000 housing units in Jerusalem and the West Bank [Judea and Samaria]” (Ynetnews). The outcry from the world was immediate and harsh. Nations were most upset with Israel’s plans to build in the E-1 corridor, an area in biblical Judea originally assigned to the tribe of Judah. Israeli ambassadors to Britain, France, and several other nations were called on the “diplomatic carpet” and required to listen to objections over Israel’s actions. What is behind the furor and indignation brought about by the seemingly mundane activity of building homes?

The Changing Face of Egypt

{image_1}The last pharaoh to rule Egypt was Cleopatra VII who committed suicide in 30 BC. In the ensuing years, the country would be governed by the Romans, the Persians and then the Islamic Empire. Conquering the region in AD 642 and reigning for the next 600 years, Muslim leaders would establish Islam as the primary religion in the country and Cairo as the seat of the Caliphate. In 1517, however, they would be unseated by the Ottoman Turks who would govern until 1882. Under this new leadership, Egypt would undergo dramatic change, fluctuating from a prosperous country with international trade partners to a nation in decline and back again. The Black Death would claim the lives of 40% of the population in 1350, and famine in the 18th century would take another 20%. With the defeat of the Egyptian army in 1882, Great Britain would then rule the country for 70 years. The Egyptian revolt in 1952 would finally gain independence for the nation and result in the establishment of the Arab Republic of Egypt.

Building a Home Where the Antelope Roam

{image_1}When tractors broke ground at the Gazelle Valley in Jerusalem in January 2013, a new and unique chapter in the city’s efforts to “go green” began. After a decades-long fight to keep developers away from the site, Israel will finally get its first wildlife nature park located within a city, and Jerusalem will have preserved a precious open space in its urban heartland.

Whistle—Sharak

{image_1}The Bible is filled with graphic depictions of the ways in which God communicates with His people. We are told that He calls to us, speaks as to a friend, thunders, roars, and even whispers in a still small voice. But many people are surprised to learn that He also says He whistles. The Hebrew word sharak (שרק) appears 19 times in the Bible and technically means to whistle, to hiss scornfully, or to pipe. It is sometimes translated to signal or to summon.

Israel’s Sweetest Solar Energy

{image_1}The Bible calls Israel the Land of Milk and Honey. [Israeli entrepreneur] Shimon Klier has invented a new kind of solar energy panel that collects the sun’s rays to directly heat homes in countries that have the largest energy bills. The inspiration for the collector came by way of the honeybee.

Turning Israeli Roofs into Green Habitats

{image_1}Anybody can plunk down some potted trees and pretty planters on a roof, but a rooftop garden does not offer the same environmental and ecological benefits as a “green roof”—a layer of low-maintenance vegetation that insulates the building underneath and reduces flash flooding on paved streets below by acting as a sponge for rainfall.

Blood Test for Alzheimer’s

{image_1}“Today, one of the main weaknesses in the Alzheimer’s area is that patients don’t find out until it’s too late,” says Ilya Budik, CEO of NeuroQuest, an Israeli company developing a novel blood test for early detection of the most common cause of dementia worldwide. “There are many new therapies under development, and the most successful trials are showing the earlier a patient is treated, the better likelihood of responding to the treatment,” he says.

One Solution to the Israel-Palestinian Conflict

{image_1}In Israel today, there are many who strongly advocate a “land-for-peace” deal with the Palestinians. The argument is simple—the Palestinians want their own state, and like so many other territorial disputes, this too can be resolved in a grand compromise. The sad reality is that Israel received the worst run of suicide bombings and general terrorism from the Palestinians after they made their most extensive “land-for-peace” offer to Yasser Arafat in 2000. Then, when they actually gave up land in Gaza, Israel received in return more rockets, the election of the Hamas terrorist organization by the Palestinians, and two wars. Yet many in Israel today see all this conflict as needing to be resolved, hoping that a final compromise via a full-fledged “two-state solution” will end the violence. It seems the only thing they fear more than the risk of terrorism is that Israel will be forced to accept the Palestinians as citizens in one state and that somehow a growing population of Arabs will democratically end the Jewish nature of Israel once and for all. Because of this, the “one-state solution” is perhaps the greatest fear for Israel’s political left-wing. Other Jewish Israelis believe the “one-state solution” is the only real hope for a Jewish Israel to survive.

Rare Archaeological Artifacts Found Near Jerusalem

March 29, 2013

{image_1}Israel’s Antiquities Authority (IAA) archaeologists have uncovered a rare temple and religious figurines dating back some 2,700 years to the Judean period. The unique discoveries were made at Tel Motza, west of Jerusalem, during emergency archaeological work taking place ahead of new road construction of the Tel Aviv–Jerusalem Highway 1.

World’s First King Herod Exhibition

{image_1}The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, premieres the world’s first exhibition on the life and legacy of Herod the Great, one of the most influential—and controversial—figures in ancient Roman and Jewish history. The landmark exhibition, “Herod the Great: The King’s Final Journey,” will present approximately 250 archaeological finds from the king’s recently discovered tomb at Herodium, as well as from Jericho and other related sites, to shed new light on the political, architectural, and aesthetic impact of Herod’s reign from 37 to 4 BC.

Many Israelis Update Gas Masks

{image_1}The defense establishment’s concerns about the potential threat of chemical weapons from Syria and Hezbollah have not gone unnoticed by the Israeli public. The Israel Postal Service reported the number of Israelis changing their nonconventional warfare protection kits nearly tripled in the month of January alone.

IDF Sets up Cyber War Room

{image_1}Syrian hackers are working for President Bashar Assad's regime; criminal elements worldwide are trying to down banks' websites; and Israel has also recently experienced an unprecedented cyber attack as retaliation for the Israel Defense Forces’ [IDF's] Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza. The IDF's Computer Services Directorate responded to the rise in the number of cyber attacks in Israel by setting up a special cyber war room meant to protect its computer systems by detecting virtual attacks by hostile elements and launching a counter attack.

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