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There are few signs in Jerusalem to show that
the Christmas season is here, apart from a few Christmas lights twinkling along
the section of the Hevron Road where it leads into Bethlehem. Jerusalem Christians have, however, not been
forgotten. In mid-December Mayor Nir Barkat toured the Christian Quarter of
Jerusalem’s Old City to give religious leaders and residents Christmas
greetings and good wishes for the New Year and in the days running up to
Christmas, a cheerful Father Christmas has been seen, walking along the Old
City walls with a large selection of Christmas trees, inviting Christians to
select one as a free gift from Jerusalem’s municipality. The Minister of tourism hosted a traditional pre-Christmas
reception for the leaders of the Christian churches and communities in Israel
at Jerusalem’s Mishkenot Shaananim. More
Christians than ever before gathered in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve to
celebrate, it was estimated that at least 70,000 people had visited the little
town by the end of the day.
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According to the Ministry of Tourism, 75,000
tourists were due to arrive in Israel over Christmas of which 25,000 are
Christian pilgrims. The Ministry of Tourism provided free transportation to Christian
pilgrims traveling between Jerusalem and Bethlehem.
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The collaboration between Israel’s Department
of Health and the West Bank is little known.
In 2011, 197, 713 healthcare permits were issued to Palestinians and
their companions, 21,538 Palestinian children were treated in Israeli hospitals
and 118 training courses took place in Israeli hospitals to provide training
and support for medical teams from the West Bank. The Civil Administration, along with Israeli
hospitals and donor organisations arranged various ‘fun days’ for Palestinian
children hospitalised in Israel. The
venues included the Jerusalem Zoo, the Safari Park at Ramat Gan, the beach at
Haifa, bowling in Holon, and a trip to see the snow on Mount Hermon which was arranged
by the Israeli Army Alpinist Unit.
(The Israeli Embassy, London)
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The recent heavy rains have gone some small way
to relieving Israel’s water shortage, Water Authority officials calling the
winter of 2012- 13 the wettest since 2004. The Jordan River is now fuller and
flowing faster than it has for 20 years and since the first of the winter’s
rainfalls at the end of October, the level of the Sea of Galilee, one of the
countries primary sources of water, has risen by 26 centimetres. Mount Hermon received 30-40 centimetres of
snow, unusual for so early in the year. In
the ongoing battle to provide enough water for Israeli citizens the Israeli
government together with Water Authority are building desalination plants and
cleaning contaminated and obsolete wells so that water can once more be pumped
from them and it is hoped that these measures will cover the water deficit
within two years. In recent years, 220
new water reservoirs have been built or are in various stages of completion, thanks
to these reservoirs, Israel currently recycles more water for agricultural
usage than any country in the world.
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During the recent attacks on Israel by thousands
of Grad Rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, the efficiency of the Iron Dome system
in intercepting very many of them was much praised. Few people have any idea
that parts for these state-of-the-art systems were manufactured by residents of
a home for people with mental disabilities.
Abie, Ida and Michael have been employed by the Rafael company in the production of the Iron
Dome system for over a year, as part of the company’s community outreach
programme. The Hostel’s manager stated that the residents delivered highly
accurate products that measured up to the company’s high standards and the
Social Affairs Ministry is very proud of the project, “We believe that everyone
is entitled to live and fulfill his or her potential,” said the Director
General of the Ministry.
(Thanks to Ynetnews)
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India is probably the country with the largest
cow population in the world yet most of its dairy farms operate using
antiquated methods this, however, is about to change as Israeli kibbutz members
have been called in and two Israeli companies have begun planning and
constructing 10 state-of-the-art dairy farms on the subcontinent. In Hinduism, cows are sacred animals and
there are specific laws for protecting them which the Israeli teams are having
to consider when designing the farms. So while ideas will be introduced to
increase the number of cows kept and the quantity of milk produced, the farms
will contain hostels where older cows can receive special care and alarm
systems will be installed to notify the farmers if a cow suffers even the
slightest distress.
(NO Camels)
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Click on this if you want to know how Israel
has been feeling in recent weeks.
