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After
finishing an extensive period of service on
the front lines of the Jordan Valley action area,
the 'Netzach
Yehuda' Battalion, Kfir Brigade's Ultra Orthodox battalion,
set out on a front-line service trek. The total
distance is 14 km, and the course
finishes at the Mazada fortress by the Dead Sea. At
the end, all of the warriors and soldiers
of the command gathered for morning prayer services,
with the view of the Dead Sea.
Photo
by Abir
Sultan / IDF Photo. |
Israel's
60th Independence Day
"The
ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly..."
Isaiah
33:7 - In memory of those who have fallen while on duty
in the Israeli Foreign Service
(IFM)
Israel Independence Day is celebrated annually, according
to the Hebrew calendar, on 5 Iyar, the anniversary of the
establishment of the State of Israel. As this date falls
this year on the Sabbath, celebrations have been moved up
to Thursday, May 8 (3 Iyar). The day preceding this celebration
is devoted to the memory of those who gave their lives for
the achievement of the country's independence and its continued
existence.
On
Yom Hazikaron, Remembrance Day, which will begin on Tuesday
evening, May 6, the entire nation remembers its debt and
expresses eternal gratitude to its sons and daughters who
gave their lives for the achievement of the country's independence
and its continued existence. It is a day of collective
and personal anguish mingled with awe and honor for the
fallen. (Full
Story)
A
Musical Salute: In Honor of Israel's 60th Anniversary
(IDF) Military
orchestras will play the melody of peace in honor of the
60th anniversary of Israel's independence. For the first
time ever, the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) has organized
a unique performance by the IDF orchestra and ten other military
bands from around the world. The performance will take place
on Independence Day in Haifa and guarantees to be an unforgettable
musical and visual show.
The
performance will include a parade of orchestras in which
each orchestra will play its repertoire of songs. At the
end of the parade, a joint performance will take place,
in which the IDF marching song will be played, as well
as the song "We Brought Peace Upon Us," and "Hatikva," the
Israeli national anthem. (Full
Story)
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Israel
Foreign Minister Livni's Independence Day Address at the President's
Residence
" In
my view, seeking peace is one of the sources of our national
strength. It is integral to our children's education, it is
the most popular word in Jewish prayer, in our songs, in our
literature and poetry and in the speeches not just of our politicians
but of our army generals. "
Israel
FM Tzipi Livni
FM
Livni addressed the President of Israel, members of the
Diplomatic Corps and other distinguished guests on the
occasion of Israel's 60th anniversary: (Full
Address)
Responding
to Hamas Attacks from Gaza - Issues of Proportionality
(IFM)
Israel is in a conflict not of its own making - indeed it
withdrew every Israeli soldier and all 9000 Israeli civilians
from the Gaza Strip in its 2005 disengagement initiative.
But it is forced to act in self-defense to protect itself
from deliberate missile attacks on its civilians by the Hamas
terrorist organization.
Although
Hamas makes no effort to comply with international law,
Israel is committed to limiting itself to a lawful response.
This means that, while Hamas uses civilians both as a shield
and a target, Israel seeks to limit injury to civilians
on both sides. (Full
Story)
Address
by Israel's Vice PM and FM Tzipi Livni to the 8th Herzliya
Conference
"Not
only can Israel not allow a terrorist state to rise by
its side, but the international community also cannot afford
another terrorist state in its midst"
"I
believe that Israel does not have to apologize for
its existence or for defending its citizens, and Israel
will continue to take action and fulfill its duty toward
the
citizens of the State of Israel, even at the price
of condemnation. " - Israeli
Vice President and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni
Address
by Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs
Tzipi Livni to the 8th Herzliya Conference (Translated from Hebrew)
(IFM)
Good evening, everyone. This conference is a mark of
Israel’s
national resilience. I believe that national resilience
is first of all a true ability to cope with difficult situations,
challenges and threats. It also means the public’s
sense of confidence in the government’s ability
to cope with these threats, and cohesiveness around
a common
goal. All of these bear great significance for leadership
and government.
(Full
Address)
Two
Senior Terror Operatives Arrested in Territories
(IDF)
On Friday morning, during a joint operation to arrest wanted
persons performed by the elite duvdevan unit and the ISA, Ahmed
Muhammad Sanakara was killed. He was armed with a Kalashnikov
rifle when the forces came to arrest him. Additionally, the
force arrested four wanted operatives of the tanzim terror
organization, who had been recently plotting a terror attack.
Sanakara,
21, was the most senior wanted operative in the Territories.
As a member of the tanzim terror organization, he was responsible
for dozens of IED and shooting attacks targeting IDF forces
in Nablus. He acted as perpetrator and dispatcher, and prepared
the explosive devices in various attacks. In November of 2005
he took part in the laying of an IED in the Balata refugee
camp which lead to an IDF officer being injured. (Full
Story) EU
to Fund Visits by European Students to Holocaust Memorial
Sites
(IFM)
The European Union will fund visits by European students
to Holocaust memorial sites, announced Franco Fratini, Vice
President of the European Commission,
at the opening of the Second Israel/EU Seminar on Combating Racism and Antisemitism.
At
the opening of the Second Israel/EU Seminar on Combating
Racism and Antisemitism (22 January), Franco Fratini, Vice
President of the European Commission, said that Europe
is not antisemitic territory, but antisemitic activity
is growing on the continent. "We see antisemitism
as contradicting the values on which the European Union
was founded, and we are committed to fighting this phenomenon
with all the necessary educational and legal means." (Full
Story)
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The
Myth of the Demographic Machete
By
Yoram Ettinger
(AIDRG)
According to a groundbreaking AIDRG study, there
is no need to retreat from Judea & Samaria Jewish
geography , in order to secure Jewish demography.
Such a perceived need is based on the assumption that
Jews
are, ostensibly, doomed to become a minority between
the Jordan River and the Mediterranean.
However,
this assumption is crashed against the rocks of reality,
as evidenced by the 2006 “Green
Line” data, published by Israel’s Central
Bureau of Statistics (ICBS). In 1995, Jewish births
constituted... (Full
Story)
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Shavuos: Sssssh-vuos,
the Undated Anniversary
By
Joe Bobker
Shavuos
is a late-Spring, early-Summer yomtov, and our only festival
with no well-defined date, despite its association with
a singularly imposing theophany, Sinai; a time when "no
bird put forth their song, no bird took wing, no ox gave
bawl, no angel moved a feather...the sea did not roar…no
creature said a word."
In
Torah vocabulary God is only "heard" via an
echo, known as a bat kol, literally "the
daughter of a voice;" and only "appears" via
indirect anthropomorphic images such as a dream or vision. (Full
Feature)
1000
Children Create a Human
Israeli Flag...in South Africa
World
Bnei Akiva and Jewish Agency Shlichim (emissaries) around
the globe have been preparing for Israel’s 60th Independence
Day for months. In the South African branch of World Bnei
Akiva, the emissaries decided to implement all the Israel
education that the children have received throughout the
year and create a huge Israeli flag. (Full
Feature)
A "Hollywood",
FL Production: Israel 60
World
Bnei Akiva and Jewish Agency emissaries around the globe
have been working for months towards the big day: Israel’s
60th Independence Day!
Aviel
Schary, World Bnei Akiva and JAFI emissary in Hollywood
FL took part in a project organized at Browser Mimonodies
Academy, Hebrew Day school: “The staff tried to
think of the most creative way to get the students involved.
Therefore, we decided to create a huge photo, writing
ISRAEL 60 using the students as letters!” (Full
Feature)
Feeling
Good in Israel
(Jewish Agency Israel) Twenty one year old Yonas Shiferaw
was born in the mountainous southern region of Ethiopia.
When he was seventeen, his family moved to Addis Ababa and
his father found a job working for the municipality. The
family lived in their own home, not in the Ethiopian compound,
and Yonas completed high school.
In
August 2004, Yonas, his parents and two brothers made aliyah.
Their first home in Israel was the Jewish Agency for Israel’s
Absorption Center in Haifa. Seeing that Yonas completed
high school, he was recommended for Kedma, an educational
advancement program for young Ethiopians. (Full
Feature) Click
here for Archived Features | |
| City,
State |
Candle
Lighting |
Havdalah |
New
York, NY
|
7:49pm |
8:50pm |
Los
Angeles, CA
|
7:31pm |
8:32pm |
Parshat
B'har
May 16, 2008
11 Iyyar 5768
| City,
State |
Candle
Lighting |
Havdalah |
New
York, NY
|
7:56pm |
8:56pm |
Los
Angeles, CA
|
7:36pm |
8:37pm |
Parshat
Bechukotai
May 23, 2008
18 Iyyar
5768
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Click above to view a LIVE shot of the Western Wall.
The
REFORMulation of Judaism
In
response to the frequently asked question “Why could he or she do
things that you can’t do? Aren’t you both Jewish?”
(Full Feature)
Classic
Rug Collection Introduces Lakiya Rugs at Jewish Marketplace
Hand-Made Bedouin
Rugs to Make their Official Bow at the Javits
NEW
YORK, New York -- Classic Rug Collection, Inc., will introduce its “Lakiya
Collection,” a series of flat-woven wool rugs and accessories,
at the Jewish Marketplace.
(Full Feature)
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| Joe
Bobker's newest book "And You Thought There Were Only
Four" answers every question you could ever ask (and
more) on the freedom holiday of Pesach and the Exodus.
From presenting intriguing facts such as the history of "Operation
Matzo Ball" during WWII, to tackling some of the toughest
questions surrounding Passover, its traditions, and history,
Joe Bobker covers hundreds of topics and comprehensively
backs each answer up with both rabbinical and biblical
evidence. "And You Thought There Were Only Four" will
satisfy every curiosity you ever had on one of the most
important holidays of the Jewish year.
Get
it Here on
Amazon |
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Acting
PM Olmert's Remarks at the Laying of the cornerstone of
Intel's FAB-128 plant in Kiryat Gat. FAB-128 is Intel's
second Kiryat Gat plant and is due to begin production
in the second half of 2008. Intel is expected to directly
hire more than 2,000 workers, as well as 2,000 contractors,
to work at the plant.
State
of Israel Photo |
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Shmuel
Rabinovich, the rabbi of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest
site, is given letters addressed to God by postal office
spokesman Yitzhak Rabihaya, left, to place them into the
cracks of the Wall, in Jerusalem's Old City. Israeli postal
workers say that hundreds of letters written to God, most
addressed simply to Jerusalem, arrive in Israel each year,
frequently around Jewish and Christian holidays such as
Chanukah and Christmas. The letters are collected, read,
and periodically taken to the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
Photo
by Oded Balilty / AP Photo |
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| Former
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (L) shakes hands with
Italian
Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini during their meeting in
Jerusalem.
Photo
by Ronen Zvulun / Reuters
Photo |
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