Dispatch from Jerusalem

Palestinian Human Rights Abuses Increase

{image_1} A Palestinian rights group is charging that human rights abuses have increased in both the West Bank [Judea and Samaria] and Gaza Strip since Hamas routed Fatah in Gaza last year. The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights (PICCR) charges that both Fatah and Hamas “use the law as a tool to justify practices and policies each side uses to challenge the other.” The group says that the abuses include torture and the deaths of prisoners in detention.

JNF Says “Happy 60th Israel”

{image_1} The Jewish National Fund gave the Adulam Park to the State of Israel for its 60th anniversary, as reported in the Good News section of the last Dispatch from Jerusalem, the Jewish National Fund gave the Adulam Park to the State of Israel for its 60th anniversary. Since then, we have received further information about the park. Located near the Valley of Elah, where David fought Goliath, the park covers some 50,000 dunams (12,500 acres) and will be developed with bike and hiking trails and other outdoor activities.

Coexistence Through Medicine

{image_1} Palestinian Bedouin Nadia Aieed, 32, was bitten by a very poisonous saw-scaled viper. Her mother’s screams caught the attention of some Israeli farmers working nearby, who rushed her to a clinic. Within minutes, an Israel Defense Forces ambulance arrived with two paramedic soldiers dressed in military uniform, but the Palestinian women were desperate and gave it no thought. They just needed help—fast!

Shekel Goes International

{image_1} The Israeli shekel joined the foreign exchange market’s CLS [Continuous Linked Settlement] Bank global settlement system on May 26, making it available for international payment instructions.

The State of Negotiations

{image_1} Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), the President of the Palestinian Authority, is described by many as a moderate man. That assessment is based on the observation that he is rarely seen making inflammatory calls for violence and his public comments have, from time to time, opposed the murder of innocent people. In the international arena, his champions include US President George W. Bush and the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. They insist Abbas is the appropriate partner for peace and have worked to establish that prospect in their advice to Israel.

A Vintage Homecoming

By Ron Ross, BFP Israel Mosaic Radio Host

{image_1} When Yaniv Cohen walked into the UK offices of Nefesh B’Nefesh (NBN, “Jewish Souls United”), he planned to seek their help to make aliyah (immigration to Israel). He wanted to join more than a million Jewish people who have made that same choice in the past 10 years. It is part of a miracle that clearly fulfills Bible prophecy. NBN is committed to promoting aliyah from North America and the United Kingdom.

Iran Supports Terrorists in West Bank

{image_1} Iran continues to have a foothold with terror groups partly based in the West Bank [Judea and Samaria], according to the recently released US Country Reports on Terrorism for 2007. In addition to supporting Hizbullah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, Iran also is involved with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a terror group with past links to Mahmoud Abbas’s (Abu Mazen’s) West Bank-based Fatah party, as well as the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. According to the US report, Iran supplies the various Palestinian terror agencies with “extensive funding, training, and weapons.”

The Sun—a Humble Servant—Shemesh

By Teri Riddering, Coordinator, BFP Spanish Resource Center

{image_1}In Hebrew, words have a very intriguing way of interrelating, depending on the basic structure of the word and the different connotations of the same root letters. For example, the Hebrew letters shin-mem-shin [שמש ] form shemesh, the word for “sun,” and shamash, the word for “servanthood.” The vowels are different, but the consonants are the same, forming what is called a root word. Looking at words that share the same root letters is something that is commonly done in the Hebrew word study of the Scriptures by Jewish scholars. So, is there a relationship between shemesh and shamash?

Golda’s Kitchen Cabinet

{image_1}
“When the word ‘greatness’ comes to mind,
Golda Meir comes immediately to the forefront. Her commitment to her
Land and to her people was the paragon of human dedication. Her
complete involvement, tempered with love, fired by fierce devotion,
caused the world to know that she was a true mover of
mountains.” What a great description of Israel’s
fourth prime minister, who was only the third woman in the world to
hold such an office. David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first prime
minister, called her the “only man in the
government”!  

In a Dry & Thirsty Land

By Joshua Spurlock, BFP Israel Mosaic Radio

{image_1} Exposed shorelines on the Sea of Galilee and the possibility of an estimated 150,000 tons (136,000 metric tons) of fruit lost due to water cuts sound pretty drastic, but are these the worst aspects of the current water crisis in Israel this year? Far worse is the prospect that it may not end next year either.