The photo is of the Netanya offices of Elbit Systems, which has helped Israel make a fighting comeback.
This Week’s Sanity Report from Israel Feb. 4, 2024
Israel’s resilience in the wake of the Oct 7 onslaught has astounded many of its overseas supporters and opponents alike. Israel is making an astonishing comeback, as this week’s positive newsletter highlights.
On the Jewish New Year for trees, JNF-USA volunteers planted thousands of trees at the site of the devastated NOVA music festival. Israel’s largest printing press resumed operation 3 days after Hamas overran the kibbutz. The IDF brought back a tractor stolen by Hamas on Oct 7 from Gaza to its kibbutz owners. Wounded IDF soldiers are being brought back to health thanks to heroic rescues, surgeons using hi-tech medical technology, and empathic volunteers providing rehabilitation, respite, and emotional support.
Aside from the war, Israeli medical technology brought back the ability to communicate to a paralyzed Israeli woman. And an Israeli startup won an international award for regrowing human bone tissue. Meanwhile, two initiatives are restoring trust between Israeli Jews and Arabs.
Israelis are helping the USA bring its aging power grid back to life; and an Israeli startup is recycling waste into fashion products. Israel’s economy is certainly coming back, and a new Resilience fund is helping war-impacted startups make a comeback. Meanwhile El Al is increasing its flights to bring back tourists and to encourage international business.
The warm winter and welcome rains have brought back color into Jerusalem’s streets; Israel’s ice hockey team came back from being banned from a tournament, to winning all its 5 games; and Israel just celebrated the 20th anniversary of its greatest ecological comeback – the rehabilitation of the Hula Valley.
Finally, “they will all come to Jerusalem” – as the world gradually recognizes that the Jewish People have come back to their ancestral homeland, the Indigenous peoples of the world have opened an embassy in Jerusalem.
The photo is of the Netanya offices of Elbit Systems, which has helped Israel make a fighting comeback.
The highlights include:
- Kibbutz Be’eri re-opened its printing press 3 days after the Hamas attack.
- Thanks to Israeli tech, a totally paralyzed woman is “virtually” cured.
- The first Arab Israeli delegation to visit Auschwitz.
- Lab-cultivated coffee cuts water used in production by 98%.
- An Israeli startup delivers the world’s first fully electronic truck.
- Israelis win international gold medals in ice hockey and fencing.
- An embassy for indigenous people is to open in Jerusalem.
POSITIVE NEWS DURING A WAR
Helping wounded soldiers recover. New York based NGO Belev Echad (With One Heart) supports wounded IDF soldiers, providing respite, rehabilitation, and emotional support. Volunteers who make hospital visits are mostly army veterans who were themselves wounded in battle and have been through the recovery process.
https://www.jns.org/soldiers-
IDF recovers tractor stolen by Hamas. One of the videos that Hamas broadcast on Oct 7 was of a tractor that they stole from Kibbutz Nir Oz and drove through the streets of Khan Yunis. The IDF have since found the tractor, repaired it, and driven it out of the Gaza strip. It will return to work in a rebuilt Kibbutz Nir Oz.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Christian group supports with visit and donation. A delegation from the Christian Passages group traveled to Netiv HaAsara and Kfar Aza in the Gaza Envelope – two of the hardest-hit communities on Oct. 7, to express their friendship. They gave a donation of $250,000 to help each community rebuild.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
JNF-USA plants trees at ground zero. More than 100 Jewish National Fund-USA volunteers planted trees at Kibbutz Re’im, near the site of the infamous NOVA music festival during Tu B’Shevat, the Jewish New Year for trees. It was part of JNF-USA’s broader efforts to revitalize and renew the battered region.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
He raised the flag he lowered 19 years ago. Zvi, an IDF reservist volunteer, lowered the last Israeli flag in Gaza when he was the last IDF soldier to leave in 2005. He kept that flag for 19 years and has now raised it again in Khan Younis. https://www.
Bar Mitzvah boy treats soldiers to dinner. Amichai Jackson, from Elazar in the Gush, canceled his Bar Mitzvah party and used the money to prepare a lavish dinner for 200 IDF soldiers. He wasn’t sad about missing his party, “When I saw the soldiers eating and enjoying themselves, that was 1,000 times more meaningful.”
https://thejewishvoice.com/
Showing reality to overseas students. The Maccabee Task Force fights against Antisemitism on college campuses. It brought 40 US student leaders (Jewish and non-Jewish) to see wartime Israel for themselves and then use the knowledge gained to make a difference on campus when they return to the USA.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Kibbutz printing press reopened in 3 days. Kibbutz Be’eri was famous for having the largest printing press in Israel. Despite the devastating Hamas attack, by Oct 10 factory workers were back at work and within the week, President Isaac Herzog officially reopened the press in a special ceremony.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-
Displaced volunteer EMT is still working. United Hatzalah volunteer paramedic Vicky was evacuated from the upper Galilee to escape Hezbollah rockets. Now in a hotel in Tzfat she is the first responder for all residents, treating panic attacks, pneumonia, etc. She also co-ordinates doctors, insurance, incident training, and more.
https://israelrescue.org/
We shall not be moved. (TY Hazel) The residents of Hurfeish, a Druze town of 7,000 in the Galilee just 1.5 miles from the Lebanese border, refused to be evacuated. As the commander of the first response team said, “We’ll fight to the end. Whoever tries to infiltrate or harm us or the State of Israel, we’ll stop them.”
https://www.tabletmag.com/
Amazing rescue. The remarkable story (could be a movie) of I24 News employee Noam, who was shot in his car on Oct 7 while his 9-month-pregant wife Noa was under attack in their Kibbutz Mefalsim. Noam was rescued by two men, both who were shot but survived. He woke up in hospital in time to hold his newborn son.
https://www.i24news.tv/en/
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Partnering to develop solid tumor therapy. (TY OurCrowd) India’s Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories is partnering Israel’s Edity Therapeutics (see here previously). They plan to build a platform for developing intracellular proteins to destroy solid tumors. https://www.webwire.com/
“Locked in” woman can speak again. The Israel ALS Research Association IsrA.L.S. It has worked with Israel’s D-ID (see here previously) to develop a virtual avatar for Debbie, a woman with ALS who can only move her eye muscles. The AI technology recreated Debbie’s image, voice, facial and lip movements.
https://www.jpost.com/health-
3D printer helps rebuild shattered leg. (TY Yehoshua) Doctors at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital used a 3D printer from Israel’s Stratasys to reconstruct the fractured knee of wounded IDF soldier Shilo Segev. The printer model identified a lack of upper thigh bone which surgeons rebuilt using bone from Shilo’s pelvis.
https://www.jpost.com/science/
A better world for animals. University of Haifa’s Tech4Animals lab (see here previously) is developing AI-powered analysis of video, sensor, and audio data to determine animals’ emotional states. Its most advanced project is Cat Reader, a mobile app for detecting cat pain – initially for veterinarians, and later for cat owners.
https://www.israel21c.org/
https://www.nature.com/
Israel’s first Advanced Therapies Award. Israel’s Bonus Biogroup (see here previously) is the first Israeli company ever to receive an Advanced Therapies Award, winning in the Cell Therapy Biotech Innovation category. Bonus Biotech has two products in advanced human trials – MesenCure and BonoFill.
https://www.israel21c.org/
https://
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
A home for graduates with disabilities. The “Line for Life” Association has completed a new NIS 6 million home for its graduates. Situated in Kibbutz HaGoshrim, it will house eight individuals aged 21+ who will integrate into the local community, study at Tel Hai College, and then work in the surrounding communities.
https://www.jpost.com/
Knights deliver rice to Israeli food charity. The order of the Knights of Malta (full title “Maltese Knights Hospitaller of the Order of St John of Jerusalem”) delivered 24 tons of rice to Leket Israel to support the people of Israel during the ongoing war. It was financed by Governor of the Nevada Commanderie David Flippo.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-
Israeli Arabs visit Auschwitz. It was a historic event when the first Arab Israeli delegation visited the Auschwitz death camp on Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day). Israel-Arab Yussef Haddad features on this special documentary of the emotional journey of dozens of Arab Israelis to Poland to learn about the Holocaust.
https://unitedwithisrael.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Bedouin eco-village turns desert into oasis. Project Wadi Attir in the northern Negev (see here previously) aims to show the world that proper land stewardship and technologies can turn an unlivable place into an oasis. It opened an agricultural school in 2018, grows medicinal plants and produces health and skincare products.
https://www.israel21c.org/
Promoting Arab-Jewish unity. The non-profit Tsofen (see here previously) has launched a new campaign to promote unity among Jews and Arabs working in Israel’s high-tech sector. Its slogan is “working together – right now we are making a voice of partnership.” Startups Intuit, Hailo, and Sanofi have joined the campaign.
https://nocamels.com/2024/01/
Helping protect ships in the Red Sea. This article mentions five Israeli startups that either are being used or could be used to help keep cargo ships safe from attack in the Gulf. Windward, and theDOCK hub startups WaveBL, Hoopo, ConboAI and DockTech. They all have previously been included in this newsletter.
https://www.israel21c.org/5-
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Distinguished service award. Tel Aviv University Professor Isaac Ben-Israel, former head of Israeli Space Agency, is the first Israeli to receive the Distinguished Service Award from the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). It is for his outstanding contribution to astronautics (space sciences) and to the IAF.
https://www.aftau.org/news_
https://www.jpost.com/science/
Climate prizes. JNF-Canada, KKL-JNF and Startup Nation Central awarded their $1 million Breakthrough Climate Solutions Prize (CSP) to three Israeli projects: – two Technion professors (cyanobacteria in building), Tel Aviv University Prof Brian Rosen (green ammonia) and BGU Prof Menny Shalom (zinc-air batteries).
https://www.jns.org/1-million-
https://www.jpost.com/
EVs to be powered by nuclear fusion energy. (TY OurCrowd) Israel’s NT-Tao (see here previously) plans to use mini fusion power generation facilities as charging stations for electric vehicles. It aims to manufacture demonstration facilities by 2029 and to commercialize them in the 2030s.
https://asia.nikkei.com/
Helping the US modernize its power grid. Israel’s Exodigo (see here previously) is working on the US Department of Energy’s GOPHURRS project to modernize America’s aging power grid using underground technologies. The US is also funding Exodigo to provide 3D maps of the country’s power lines.
https://nocamels.com/category/
Hydrogen-powered drones just got more powerful. Since last featured (see here) in this newsletter, Israel’s Heven Drones has launched several new models of its hydrogen-powered drones. The early model flew for 100 minutes with a 7kg payload. Its new HD250 carries 10kg for up to 8 hours and can travel 466 miles.
https://www.israel21c.org/
New tech saves lives on the battlefield. Israel’s Ministry of Defense Directorate of Defense R&D (MAFAT) works with 200 startups plus universities to develop tech solutions to wartime challenges. New vehicles include remotely piloted troop carriers and bulldozers. New software includes AnyVision’s facial recognition system.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
Cell-based cultivated coffee. Israeli biotech Pluri (previously Pluristem) has launched its cell-based coffee. It is estimated to cut water usage by 98% compared to traditional methods of production. Pluri plans to spin out its cell-based coffee as a new subsidiary focused on developing innovative products for the coffee industry.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
Food-inspection system is now portable. (TY OurCrowd) Israel’s Neolithics (see here previously) has launched Neolithics Light. The portable, AI-powered, platform uses hyperspectral optics to automatically inspect fruits and vegetables for ripeness, nutrition levels, sweetness, and other indicators to eliminate waste.
https://www.food-safety.com/
Sustainable bags from fish skin. Israel’s Kornit Digital (see here previously) and Israeli design school Shenkar College, teamed up to create a way of transforming the waste into a useful everyday product – a handbag made from discarded salmon skin. The process used French maroquinerie leathercraft methodology.
https://nocamels.com/2024/01/
Tomatoes that use less water. Researchers at Tel Aviv University used CRISPR gene editing to reduce the time that tomatoes transpire – open their stoma to photosynthesis – which also causes evaporation. Less evaporation means less water needed for irrigation.
https://nocamels.com/2024/01/
https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Tech salaries up, inflation down. Israel’s tech sector continued to expand in 2023 with salaries increasing by around 3%. Although exports of services fell generally, in the tech sector they increased by 1.6%. Meanwhile Israel’s inflation rate fell to 3% – within the Bank of Israel’s target range, allowing it to cut interest rates.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Google’s AI startup lifeline. Google is launching a $4 million fund to provide a lifeline to around 20 cash-strapped Israeli startups developing artificial intelligence technologies. Google is also offering mentoring support to the selected startups to help with development, strategy, and marketing.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
But most of the multinationals are fine. The top 10 largest multinationals (MNCs) including Intel, Nvidia, Google, Microsoft, HP, Applied Materials, IBM, Philips, & Apple, employ 37% of Israel’s workers. 60% of all MNCs said the war had minimal impact on their Israeli business, with 30% reporting limited impact.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
El Al adds more US flights. El Al plans to add five weekly flights to Israel in the coming months. Two from Fort Lauderdale (pre-Passover); two to Los Angeles (to add to its current daily flights) and one more to Boston (to increase its schedule to four times a week). It will give El Al a total of 52 weekly flights to the US.
https://www.jns.org/el-al-to-
Rescuing vessels in the UK and Israel. Israel’s Sealartec (see here previously) is now plain sailing since it rescued its first floundering boat in 2019. It secured its first UK – giant BAe and now its ALR (Autonomous Launch and Recovery) system is used by several UK and Israeli companies with a US launch in progress.
https://nocamels.com/2024/01/
Drive by wire truck goes commercial. The P7-C Electric Commercial truck from Israel’s REE (see here previously) is now being delivered to customers. It is the first fully “by-wire” (i.e. electronic, not mechanical) vehicle certified by the US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and Environmental Protection Agency.
https://www.israel21c.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Keeping exotic mushrooms fresh. Israel’s StePac (see here previously) has customized its award-winning modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) films to preserve fresh whole exotic mushrooms, such as oyster, lion’s mane, shiitake, portabella and more. It slows deterioration and cuts waste of this highly perishable item.
https://www.stepacppc.com/
Exits, takeovers, and mergers – to 4/2/24: Israel’s Minute Media has acquired North America’s STN Video for an estimated $150 million.
Startup investment – to 4/2/24. Oasis Security raised $35 million; Aim Security raised $10 million; Joyned raised $8 million;
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
Jerusalem’s streets are blooming. (TY Sharon) Tu b’Shevat – the Jewish New Year for Trees – is always a more colorful spectacle in Jerusalem where the climate encourages the almond trees to blossom.
https://rjstreets.com/2024/01/
Tour Israel virtually. The Association for Americans and Canadians in Israel (AACI) is beginning its 2nd series of insightful, yet fun, educational Mini Virtual Study Tours. The next one “Ancient Synagogues in Israel” is on Mon Feb 26, guided by Aliza Avshalom. To register, contact Jeff Rothenberg at: [email protected]
https://aaci.org.il/virtual-
Israel’s greatest ecological turnaround. The 1950s draining of Lake Hula was a huge environmental mistake. Now, a photo exhibit celebrates the 20th anniversary of the successful reversal of the damage. Agamon Hula’s success serves as inspiration for future conservation projects worldwide. (See live video cameras at 2nd link.)
https://www.israel21c.org/10-
https://www.kkl-jnf.org/
Wheelchair medalist. (TY Hazel) Israel’s Guy Hasson was runner up in the final of the Quad Wheelchair Singles at Australian Open 2024. Just watch what he says when he collects his trophy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
A whitewash! The Israel Under-20 National Team was reinstated to the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Division III Group A tournament in Bulgaria after being banned for security reasons. The Blue & White team took home the gold medal, winning all five of its matches and has been promoted to Division II Group B.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-
https://www.jns.org/israeli-
Hatikvah in Qatar. (TY Hazel) Israeli fencer Yuval Freilich won the gold medal at the Epee Grand Prix in Doha, Qatar. Amazing to hear the Israeli national anthem in wartime in a country that doesn’t recognize Israel.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
THE JEWISH STATE
Masa program for young volunteers. The Jewish Agency’s Masa Israel Journey is bringing Diaspora Jews to Israel to volunteer for six weeks, to support the country’s south and evacuees. 100 have already arrived and are cooking for soldiers, packaging food, working in logistical centers, in agriculture, and teaching English.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-
Let’s talk. Nice article that combines Israelis caring for each other, messaging technology and transportation in Israel. A common experience in Israel, but quite rare overseas.
https://www.israel21c.org/
Indigenous embassy to open in Jerusalem. The Indigenous Coalition for Israel (ICFI) is opening an embassy in Jerusalem to recognize Jews as indigenous to Israel. ICFI includes Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Hawaii, Native Americans, Papua New Guinea, Samoa Singapore, Solomon Islands, Tahiti, Taiwan, and Tonga,
https://www.jns.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
How to help Israel. Here are some sites where newsletter readers can donate to Israeli organizations that provide vital help to Israelis at this difficult time. Many thanks to those who have already contributed and to those who are helping by donating their own valuable time and resources.
Friends of the IDF (US donors): https://www.fidf.org/
or IDF Soldiers Fund in Israel: https://www.ufis.org.il/en/
American Friends of Magen David Adom (US donors): https://afmda.org/
or Magen David Adom (Israel): https://www.mdais.org/en/
Zaka (US donors): https://donate.zakatelaviv.
or (Canadian donors): https://www.canadahelps.org/
United Hatzalah: https://israelrescue.org/
Leket Food Israel: https://www.leket.org/en/
JNF USA – https://my.jnf.org/gaza-
Orthodox Union – https://www.charidy.com/
Schneider Children’s Hospital: https://www.fos.org.il/en/
https://system.smartgiving.
https://chaischneider.org/
Hadassah Hospital Israel: https://www.hadassah.org/
Laniado Hospital (Netanya) https://my.israelgives.org/en/
And many more charities here:
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Buy Israel Bonds to support the Jewish State. (TY Larry B)
https://www.
USA – https://www.israelbonds.com/
Europe – https://israelbondsintl.com/
Canada – https://www.israelbonds.ca/
