This Week’s Sanity Report from Israel Sept. 1, 2024
Another emotional rollercoaster week. This newsletter was compiled before the sad news this weekend.
Thanks to Sharon for the photograph of Jerusalem children cooling off in the Lions fountain in Bloomfield Garden.
The highlights include:
- IDF rescued a Moslem Bedouin hostage from a Hamas tunnel in Gaza.
- Pre-emptive strike on Hezbollah rocket launchers saves countless Israeli lives.
- Israeli cancer treatment achieves almost 100% success.
- Arabs praise IDF rescuers of Moslem hostage and Jewish doctors who treated him.
- Israelis provide technology and training to US Department of Defense.
- Three more Israeli tech companies help conserve global water resources.
- Israel’s economy is showing remarkable resilience.
- A Jewish seal from the 1st Temple period was found by the ruins of the 2nd Temple.
POSITIVE NEWS IN A WAR
Bedouin hostage rescued after 326 days. (TY WIN) 52-year-old Bedouin Muslim Quaid Farhan Al Qadi and father of 11, was rescued by IDF forces from a tunnel in Rafa, Gaza after Israel received intelligence about the presence of living hostages in the area. Farhan’s brother said “Baruch Hashem” (Blessed is G-d) on the news.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Soul food for the IDF. Shlomi, a former IDF soldier wounded in the Lebanon War, rises at 5 a.m. to buy the freshest ingredients for his food truck, now based at the ill-fated Nova dance party location. Shlomi feeds 250-400 soldiers every day since the Gaza war began. The IDF provides sustenance, but Shlomi provides soul food.
https://www.
Shawarma still turning in Kiryat Shmona. (TY Yanky) The shawarma spit is still turning in Toby Abutbul’s fast-food restaurant, Baguette Shlomi in Kiryat Shmona. Toby is determined to remain in the Northern Israeli town and keep his restaurant running – a reflection of the resilience of many Israelis during the war.
https://www.jta.org/2024/04/
No holiday for Hassidim. (TY Yanky) The Rebbes of the Belz and Sanz Hassidim are forgoing their vacation this year. Both sects encourage their followers to serve in the IDF. “How can I travel for rest and vacation when we are fighting a battle on all fronts and soldiers are sacrificing their lives”, said the Belz Rebbe.
https://www.
Bedouin girl leaves hospital. Amina Alhasoni, the 7-year-old Bedouin Muslim girl critically wounded in Iran’s April 13 missile attack on the Jewish state (see here previously) has been released from Soroka Medical Center in Beersheva. Amina underwent numerous neurosurgeries during her three months in hospital.
https://www.jns.org/months-
https://x.com/IsraelWarRoom/
Blind grandfather presents grandsons with IDF berets. In a poignant ceremony, a visually impaired grandfather had the unique honor of presenting his grandsons, who serve in the IDF, with their hard-earned berets. Warning – video may cause excessive eye moisture!
https://unitedwithisrael.org/
Adir’s diamonds. Israeli jeweller Alon Mesika has donated over 100 engagement rings in tribute to his son Adir, murdered by Hamas on Oct 7. Each ring, valued up to 8,000 shekels, went to an IDF soldier planning marriage. “Adir is not going to build a family in Israel, but because of him, a lot of people will”, said Alon.
https://israfan.com/p/father-
The miracle of Aug 25. 15 minutes before Hezbollah planned to launch over 6,000 missiles at Israel, the Israeli Air Force destroyed most of the rocket launchers aimed at central Israel. Hezbollah fired some 320 rockets which caused limited damage, including to a chicken coup, which was mocked on Arab social media.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
Praise for non-Jews defending Israel. Master Sgt. Ashraf al Bahir said that it was a “great honor” for Israel’s Bedouin community that he was able to travel to Washington with Israel’s Prime Minister, who highlighted his bravery, and that of other non-Jewish soldiers, in his address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress.
https://www.jns.org/muslim-
Ethiopian Israeli ran 12km to defend Israel. 2nd Lt. Avichail Reuven is another IDF soldier praised publicly by Israel’s Prime Minister during his speech to Congress. On Oct 7 Avichail, who has no car, ran 12 kilometers (8 miles) from his parents’ home in Kiryat Malachi, to the Gaza border to help fight off the terrorists.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
ISRAEL’S MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Almost no re-ocurrence after freezing tumors. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s IceCure Medical (see here previously) presented the results of its three clinical studies using ProSense to treat breast cancer. Of the 389 patients treated, The ipsilateral tumor recurrence rate was 0.26%, resulting in a 99.74% recurrence-free rate.
https://www.prnewswire.com/il/
Breakthrough device treats heart failure. Israel’s Restore Medical (see here previously) has been granted Breakthrough Device Designation by the U.S. FDA for its transcatheter Pulmonary Artery Banding (PAB) system designed for patients suffering from left ventricle failure who currently have limited treatment options.
https://www.ajmc.com/view/fda-
Israel approves oxygenation system. (TY Atid-EDI) Israel’s Ministry of Health has approved the ART100 Extra-Corporeal Membrane Oxygenation and Cardiopulmonary Bypass system from Israel’s Inspira Technologies (see here previously). The ART100 helps increase the level of oxygen in patients’ blood.
https://www.prnewswire.com/
MDA partners midwives in Northern Israel. Magen David Adom is partnering with the Israel Midwives Organization to help women deliver their babies safely even when war prevents immediate transport to hospital. Midwives are matched to expectant mothers. Equipment is funded by the Jewish Federations of North America.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
How cells coordinate activity. Researchers from Israel’s Ben Gurion and Canada’s British Columbia universities have discovered the pathway for cells to coordinate activity such as tissue repair. 3 to 8 local cells send Calcium ion signals to “hot-spots” inside lymph nodes, which then trigger actions and send signals back.
https://www.bgu.ac.il/en/news-
https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.
Preventing adverse medication interactions. Israel’s FeelBetter (see here previously) has validated its AI algorithm, using Israeli patient records, to predict and reduce the risk of multiple medicines causing side effects. FeelBetter has just partnered New Jersey’s Atlantic Health Systems with its half a million patients.
https://nocamels.com/2024/07/
High-school space experiment. 4 years ago, six Israeli 9th-grade students put an experiment about brain disease progression aboard the International Space Station. The results have just been published in the June edition of Astrobiology. If repeated, it could have major implications for neurodegenerative disease treatment.
https://worldisraelnews.com/
https://www.liebertpub.com/
Still smiling. If you wanted to know what happened to Aerodentis (see here previously) from Israel’s Dror Ortho-Design, there is good news. Aerodentis has been rebranded as Zsmile and its orthodontic system that straightens your teeth while you sleep is about to launch commercially. https://www.zsmile.com/
ISRAEL IS INCLUSIVE AND GLOBAL
Israel’s inclusivity goes viral. UAE analyst Amjad Taha shared a picture with his 500,000+ followers on X of rescued hostage Qaid Farhan Al-Qadi in hospital being treated by a Jewish doctor wearing a kippah.He wrote: “First, in the Middle East, this is a moment for all to celebrate. Congratulations to Israel and to humanity.”
https://www.
Medical charity serves Druze town. Israel’s largest volunteer charity Yad Sarah recently opened a branch in the Druze town of Majdal Shams. The timing means the charity is able to provide vital medical equipment to residents recovering from Hezbollah’s rocket attack that killed 12 children and wounded many more.
https://www.jns.org/wire/yad-
Israeli Arabs move into hi-tech. Very informative personal stories of how Israeli Arabs are joining the Israeli hi-tech industry. They are supported by programs such as Samana by Portland and A-Tech by Elevation and Atidna (supported by Israel Innovation Authority).
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Religious women develop life-saving systems. 120 religious Jewish women took part in the 7th annual “Hack.Her.It” competition at the Jerusalem College of Technology. The winner built a radio-wave tracking device for travellers. Others built communication devices, aids for amputees, and a safety system for the eldely.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
Teaching the US how to minimize casualties. (TY Nevet) IDF Surgeon-General, Brigadier-General Professor Elon Glassberg is finishing a 34-year military career. His new job is to share with US military medicine experts how Israel reduced the fatality rate of wounded soldiers from 15% in the 2006 Lebanon war, to 6.5% in Gaza.
https://www.thejc.com/lets-
Critical connectivity for US DoD. (TY Atid-EDI) DataPath, a subsidiary of Israel’s Gilat Satellite Networks, has received over $9 million in orders to support U.S. Department of Defense end users’ critical connectivity requirements in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.
https://www.gilat.com/
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
11 Olympiad medals at Math & Physics. (TY Yanky) At July’s International Math Olympiad in the UK, Israelis won two gold, two silver and two bronze medals against teams from 108 countries. At the European Physics Olympiad in Georgia, Israelis won a gold and four silver medals against participants from 55 countries.
https://allisrael.com/israeli-
https://www.imo-official.org/
Bamba prevents peanut allergy. It’s official (I thought it already was!) that eating Bamba, Israel’s peanut-butter-flavored snack, is proven to reduce peanut allergies in children by 75 percent, according to a recent study of over 500 participants, in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Next year. Yoav Turgeman, CEO of Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, stated that Rafael’s groundbreaking Iron Beam laser missile defense system will be operational and in IDF hands by next year. He made the announcement at the Farnborough International Airshow in England. It cannot come soon enough!
https://worldisraelnews.com/
Blowing in the Wind. (TY Yanky) Also at the Farnborough Airshow, Israel Aerospace Industries unveiled its WIND DEMON air-to-surface cruise missile that should make Iran and its proxies wary about attacking Israel.
https://www.iai.co.il/about/
https://www.iai.co.il/p/wind-
How a locksmith developed Israel’s Arrow system. Dov Raviv made Aliyah from Bucharest in 1947 and trained as a locksmith. His parents persuaded him to enrol at Israel’s Technion where he switched to aerospace engineering. He later became director of Israel Aerospace Industry’s Arrow Interceptor development.
https://ats.org/our-impact/
GenAI for agriculture. (TY OurCrowd) Israel’s Taranis (see here previously) has launched Ag Assistant, the agriculture industry’s first generative AI-powered agronomy engine, aiming to transform crop input and farm management decision making. Ag Assistant uses crop intelligence, plus historical data, weather maps and more.
https://www.taranis.com/
Saving every drop of water. Israel’s LeakZon has developed cutting-edge AI technology to drastically reduce water loss in public and private water utilities.
https://www.prnewswire.com/il/
Partnering for sustainable agriculture. Israeli companies Rivulis and Phytech have announced a strategic partnership. Rivulis will integrate its cloud-based precision irrigation subsidiary, Manna, into Phytech. It will provide farmers with a comprehensive view of their entire irrigation and fertigation system.
https://www.rivulis.com/
ECONOMY & BUSINESS
Economy continues to grow. Israel’s housing sales increased by 37% between March and May. Apr 2024’s average monthly wage was 7.3% higher than the previous April. Average wealth rose 14% in 2023, well above the worldwide growth rate of 4.2%. Israel is now ranked 18th in the UBS Global Wealth Report.
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
https://en.globes.co.il/en/
Unemployment drops to new low. The Central Bureau of Statistics reports that Israel’s unemployment rate in July fell to 2.8%, down from 3.1% in June. 63% of Israelis aged 15 and older participate in the labor force.
https://www.jpost.com/israel-
Startup investment up 36%. The IVC & LeumiTech Israeli Tech Review reports that 226 Israeli startups raised $4.78 billion in H1 2024 – 36% more than in the first half of 2023. Startup Nation Central also reported strong support for Israeli tech startups. Calcalist reported that Israeli startups raised $556+ million in June.
https://www.israel21c.org/
https://www.calcalistech.com/
https://finder.
NIS 35 million for high-tech in Negev and Galilee. The Israel Innovation Authority has launched a NIS 35 million fund to encourage high-tech companies to expand into Israel’s Northern and Southern regions. It is part of a program called “Leap to High-Tech” that will help companies open new branches and hire local talent.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Tax benefits for immigrant home buyers. To encourage immigration, Israel is to expand tax benefits granted to new citizens who purchase their first home in the Jewish state. On homes valued between 1.98 million and 6 million shekels they will now pay 0.5% purchase tax instead of previously 5% (8% for veteran citizens).
https://www.jns.org/israel-
Elbit gets NIS 1.5 billion contract. Israel’s Defense Ministry has awarded Israel’s Elbit Systems a 10-year, 1.5 billion contract to build and operate a state-of-the-art munitions factory. Its strategic aim is to give Israel military autonomy in the face of slowdowns and stoppages of arms exports from Western countries.
https://www.jns.org/elbit-
Billion dollar revenue. Israeli work management company Monday.com (see here previously) has reached $1 billion in annual recurring revenue (ARR). The company said it recently achieved this financial milestone, a decade after it launched its Work Operating System (Work OS) and 8 years since it reached $1 million in ARR.
https://www.calcalistech.com/
Exits, takeovers & mergers – to 1/9/24: Israel’s Check Point has acquired Israel’s Cyberint Technologies for $200 million; Computer giant Cisco is to acquire Israel’s Robust Intelligence.
Startup investment – to 1/9/24: Cytactic raised $16 million; IR-Med received $0.5 million from the Israel Innovation Authority.
CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT & SPORT
Summer festivals in Jerusalem. (TY Sharon) Israel’s capital hosts several end of summer festivals. They include Hutzot Hayotzer Arts and Crafts (Mitchell Park), kosher food stalls (Old City walls); concerts (Sultan Pool) Cocktail festival (First Station); and Shakespeare (Bloomfield Garden).
https://rjstreets.com/2024/08/
https://www.jpost.com/must/
Balloon story in New York. (TY Chava) 30 Israeli artists worked with artists from Europe and the Americas to bring the Balloon Story to the NYC Park Ave Armory (2 Jul – 25 Aug). Visitors were taken on an interactive, “It’s a Small World”-style tour through various “lands” made entirely of a total of 700,000 inflated balloons.
https://www.jta.org/2024/08/
https://balloonstory.com/new-
Top 10 Middle East cities. (TY Atid-EDI) 186,000+ of the readers of prestigious American tourism magazine “Travel + Leisure” voted Jerusalem 3rd of the top ten cities in the Middle East and Africa. Tel Aviv was 8th. The cities were selected on the basis of sites, culture, food, friendliness, shopping and value for money.
https://www.ynetnews.com/
Kickboxing champion. (TY Stuart Plaskow & AACI Netanya) Netanya’s Polina Grossman (age 25) won the gold medal in the under 70kg women’s kickboxing World Cup in Budapest Hungary.
https://setopen.sportdata.org/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
Gold taekwondo Paralympics medal. Israel’s Asaf Yasur (see here previously) beat Turkey’s Ali Can Ozcan 18-12, to win the gold medal in the men’s taekwondo under-58kg class at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
THE JEWISH STATE
1st Temple seal discovered near Temple Mount. An extremely rare and beautiful stone seal from the First Temple period, about 2,700 years old, was discovered near the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount.. It depicts a winged figure, plus an inscription engraved in paleo-Hebrew script – “To Yehoezer, son of Hoshayahu”.
https://www.
Finding lost property. Dozens of volunteers helped the widow of a fallen soldier locate his wedding ring that she wore around her neck, but fell off onto a beach in Ashkelon. And then Ma’ale Adumim residents found a toddler’s implant, worth NIS 40,000, in the garbage at the city’s Magic Kass amusement park.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
Volunteer EMT saves entire family. Yechiel Stern, a United Hatzalah volunteer emergency medical technician, climbed a burning building in Jerusalem. Stern scaled the building and holding onto the railing with one hand, he helped the family climb down the building. The roof of the building then collapsed in the blaze.
https://www.jns.org/watch-
https://x.com/EliBeerUH/
Mezuzot installed at Air Force base. Prior to the Israeli Air Force attack on the Houthis in Yemen, teens from CTeen, USA affixed 100 mezuzot (mezuzahs) to the doors at the Ramon Air Force base in southern Israel. 48 hours later, the IAF conducted one of its longest-range daylight missions. All its aircraft returned safely to base.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
https://www.cteen.com/
The largest influx of Olim in one week. More than 600 new olim are scheduled to arrive in Israel on 14 flights between August 22-28. Five Aliyah flights landed in Israel from North America on Aug 22 – the most in one day since Oct 7. Some 2,000 new immigrants are expected to arrive over the summer.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/
250 emissaries. A group of 250 shlichim (“emissaries”) gathered for a ceremony in Jerusalem on July 11 before leaving to represent Israel in dozens of religious communities worldwide. Their aim is to strengthen Israel-Diaspora ties. The event was organized by the Religious Zionist Shlichut Center, founded by World Mizrachi.
https://www.jns.org/wire/
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/
Rambam Medical Center (Haifa) https://aforam.org/ways-to-
https://www.rambam.org.il/en/
Hadassah Hospital Israel: https://www.hadassah.org/
Laniado Hospital (Netanya) https://my.israelgives.org/en/
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/
