Israel Talks – Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmaut


Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmaut. Two of the most meaningful and emotional days in the life of an Israeli. Yom HaZikaron, or Memorial Day, begins at sundown on the 4th of Iyyar, and is observed for 24 hours. On this day, the lives of soldiers and civilians alike who have fallen due to terror. At 11 am, as the siren sounds, the entire country is still, standing silently and remembering those who gave their lives to give us the freedom to do so. This is arguably one of the most difficult days in the year for Israeli citizens, as there is not one who doesn’t have a life to honor.

 

As the sun sets on this painful day, the country transitions from the day of remembrance to a day of celebration. Yom HaAtzmaut is Israeli Independence Day, and it starts at sundown on the 5th of Iyyar. Just as Yom HaZikaron ends, the celebration of Yom HaAtzmaut begins. For me, and most Israeli citizen, this is a very confusing yet meaningful transition. We celebrate, not because we are forgetting the thousands of people who lost their lives in the last 72 years, but because we are commemorating the fact that they did not die in vain. It is not that we are putting the memories of those lost aside and celebrating with a blind spirit, but we are commemorating that their lives have led to a powerful people, in a strong and unified country.

 

During this 48-hour period, Israeli citizen and Jews around the world alike experience the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. One thing stays clear throughout the two days, and that is that the Jewish people are, and always will be, resilient and united, always remembering where we came from, and striving for a more peaceful future. עם ישראל חי

 

Israel Talks – Sheba Medical Center


As the largest hospital in the Middle East, Sheba Medical Center houses over 8,000 medical professionals and treats more than 1.5 million patients. Founded in 1948, Sheba strive to treat each and every patient with a holistic approach based on integrated research and clinical practices. Sheba Medical Center is located on a 200-acre campus in Ramat Gan. In 2019, Newsweek names Sheba as one of the top 10 hospitals in the world. Patients come from around the world in order to be treated at one of Sheba’s 159 different departments with top medical professionals. More recently, Sheba was named the hospital put in charge of the fight against the Coronavirus, and its staff have worked tirelessly treating patients, developing recovery techniques, and working to find a vaccine. One of the main departments of Sheba is the Cancer Center – leading the country in cancer research and treatment. In a given year, the Cancer Center treats around 50,000 patients, treating almost any type of known cancers.  “We take a truly comprehensive approach in our fight against cancer, putting our patients first and providing for not only their medical requirements, but for their psychological, social, and palliative needs with our many support services”. In addition to the state of the art Cancer Center, Sheba is also a teaching hospital, in which medical students from all over come to learn from the very best medical professionals and technologies. To learn more about the Sheba Medical Center and the work they are doing, head to https://www.shebaonline.org/

Israel Talks – COVID 19 and Israel


As the whole world is adjusting in order to slow the spread of the Coronavirus, Israel may be seen as one of the most intense and strict countries when it comes to restrictions. Starting March 9th, any person entering the country from abroad must self-quarantine for 14 days. The self-quarantine involves signing up on a website in order to let the government know you’ve arrived back in the country and are taking the proper steps to isolate.

 

On March 18th, the government announced that no non-citizen or permanent resident of Israel will be allowed into the country. This regulation will be in addition to the self-quarantine after arriving from abroad. Additionally, any visa that was set to expire after March 12th will be automatically extended to June 30th, with the idea that people may not be able to fly back to their home country.

 

With the virus continuing to spread, the Israeli government has made more efforts to protect its citizens. As in the states, the government requires people to be at least 6 feet apart (2 meters as they put it) and strongly recommend wearing a protective mask. Israel also has forbid people from going more than 100 meters (330 feet) from their homes. The few exceptions to the 100 meter rule are going to and from work, going grocery shopping, receiving medical or other vital services, donating blood, legal processes, and only a handful of other reasons.

 

In the place of work, 10 employees or 15% of the company (whichever is greater) are allowed to be in the workplace at any given time. An employer can increase this number to 30% of the company if the additional employees are essential for function of said company. However, the employer must make the temperature of every employee coming into work before they step into the workplace.

 

The Coronavirus outbreak has disrupted almost every aspect of life, with religious practice not being an exception. Cities like Bnei Brak and Jerusalem have additional restrictions in order to slow the spread in densely populated neighborhoods.

 

For more information on COVID-19 restrictions and policies in Israel, head to https://govextra.gov.il/ministry-of-health/corona/corona-virus-en/guidelines/#lockdown

Israel Talks – Mobileye


Mobileye is an Intel owned company that took the operative mechanics of the human eye and created a useful and effective driving aid. Advanced Driver Assist Systems or ADAS are used to facilitate a safer driving experience. The Mobileye is a piece of technology that either comes with a new car or is sold separately and installed into any car. The system is a single-lensed camera, which is able to identify both objects and textures. The objects, such as vehicles or pedestrians, trigger a sound from the Mobileye to alerts the driver of said object. The system can detect a possible forward collision in which it “indicates that under the current dynamics relative to the vehicle ahead, a collision is imminent.” The driver must take immediate action to avoid a collision. The change in texture is helpful in notifying the driver potential undetected lane departure without the use of a signal, or road signs that the driver may have missed. Mobileye is one of the leading technologies in autonomous driving. To learn more about the Mobileye technologies, check out their website at https://www.mobileye.com/.

Israel Talks – MDA and COVID 19


Magen David Adom (MDA) is Israel’s national emergency response team for medical and natural disasters. Made up mainly of volunteers, MDA receives most of its funding from donations from organizations ad individuals from all over the world. 

 

In today’s current climate, MDA is working overtime, responding to tens of thousands of calls a day from citizens worried they have become infected by COVID-19, compared to the usual 6,000 calls they receive on a daily basis, with over 350 MDA staff or volunteers answering said calls. If the call is a normal medical emergency, the first dispatcher handles the case as normal, and sends the information out to necessary responders. However, if the call is COVID-19 related, it is transferred over to a specific set of dispatchers, highly trained to recognize symptoms within 30 seconds. 

 

Being Israel’s leading emergency response team, the information provided by MDA is the information the entire country adheres to – meaning that while we in the US may get different, and sometimes conflicting, responses and pieces of advice, Israel’s information and policies all come from the same place. In addition to advising citizens on how to prevent the spread, MDA is also responsible for the testing of the virus. They are training hundreds, if not thousands, of new people to test and treat the virus, including IDF reservists who worked in the medical field, medical school students, or just the average citizen looking to help. With all these people trained to administer the COVID-19 test, they are averaging about 2,000 tests per day. As of Sunday, March 15th, there were more than 400 cases in the country.

 

To hear how MDA is responding to COVID-19, watch this video https://vimeo.com/398363543.

For more information about how to stay healthy during the COVID-19 pandemic, go to https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/prevention.html

Israel Talks – Nefesh B’Nefesh


Nefesh B’Nefesh (NBN) is a non-profit organization who help to make the Aliyah process easier for Jews of the Diaspora. Aliyah, or going up, is the name for moving to Israel and becoming a citizen. Since 2002, NBN has helped people from all over the world integrate into Israeli society, helping with the language barriers, finding jobs and careers, financial support, moving logistics, and even the plane ticket to Israel. More than 60 flights from New York have been filled to the brim with Olim (or immigrants) totally funded by NBN.

They have helped over 60,000 people successfully move to Israel, with 6,300 being lone soldiers. In addition to just helping people move, they also help promote the cities outside of the center of Israel. Both the North and the South are wildly underpopulated compared to the center of Israel, and with the help of NBN, more than 7,000 people have moved to either end of the country, with a program they call “Pioneers to Israel’s Periphery”.

NBN is a one stop shop for New Immigrants (OIim Chadashim) with connections to different Ulpan (intensive Hebrew) lessons, army recruitment and placement, the government, and so much more. However, the help doesn’t stop once you move. NBN works constantly to make sure each and every new immigrant in Israel is getting the rights and benefits they deserve. In addition to all the benefits for Lone Soldiers (written about last week), Olim are also given a wide array of benefits from the government. For instance, Olim are given a large sum of money spread out over the first six months of living there. They also are given discounts to different taxes and home rentals. Depending on age, Olim are also offered a tuition benefit, in which they can get a next level education heavily subsidized. The benefits seem to never end, and NBN is there for you every step of the way, making sure you get what you are owed and are settling in as smoothly as possible.

If you or someone you know is interested in making Aliyah, or want to learn more about the Olim benefits or NBN in general, head to https://www.nbn.org.il/

Israel Talks – Lone Soldier Benefits


Being a lone soldier is hard, but the IDF does what it can to make life a little easier. A lone soldier (Chayal Boded) is a soldier with no familial support in Israel. This can be for a variety of reason – an immigrant who moved to Israel without their family, a soldier whose parents moved away from Israel, an orphan, or someone who is not in contact with their parents for different reasons. These soldiers are totally independent. Many soldiers come home from base on a Friday morning and need to do all the things a parent would normally do on the weekend home – laundry, grocery shopping, cooking Shabbat dinner, etc.

The army realizes all the hardships a lone soldier must overcome, and provides different pillars of support to make their army service a bit smoother. The biggest and most helpful benefit is the salary they receive. A lone soldier will receive a 150% salary of someone in the same position, giving them extra money to live. Additionally, a lone soldier gets 150 nis per month to be used at a supermarket chain to buy anything they need, predominantly groceries but it can be used for anything from the store.

The army offers lone soldiers four different living options, from which the soldier can choose which they prefer. They can live on a kibbutz, in an army owned apartment, in a “soldier house” (a dorm style living), or in a rented apartment. While living on a kibbutz and in an army owned apartment all of the expenses are covered except for meals, a soldier will not need to pay any of the bills. In the soldier house, breakfast and dinner are included as well, with no bills being paid here either. Each of these three options are offered in a variety of regions and cities all over the country, but not every city. For a rented apartment, the soldier will be responsible for finding a place and signing a lease. Soldiers are given 1,300 nis a month that goes towards rent and utilities. The apartment can be located anywhere in the country.

Depending on amount of time in the army, the soldier will get a day off a month or every two months to take care of any errands they have to run. The day off is mandatory within the period of time allotted to that soldier, and there is no way an officer can make a soldier miss it. These days are helpful for soldiers who need to go to the bank, deal with their phone company, get a passport or driver’s license, or anything of the sort.

A lone soldier will also receive extra money when they are not on their base for more than 3 days at a time. This practice was put in place in order to cover the expenses of meals that the soldier would normally have covered if he/she was on base. Lone soldiers also receive discounts on bills throughout the cities they live in, i.e. water bills, electric bills, city tax, etc.

A lone soldier who has moved away from their home in order to draft have additional benefits as well. Each year of service, a lone soldier is given a month vacation to visit his/her family in their home country. This month is on top of the vacation days normal soldiers are allotted. During the second year of service, FIDF (Friends of the IDF) fully subsidizes the cost of the flight.

Additional benefits include: assistance moving to a new apartment, ease of receiving a work permit (a permit needed for soldiers to have an additional job during their army service), travel in an emergency abroad, availability to stay at a soldier house for free when needed, gifts from the army and certain units for both Passover and Rosh Hashana, and many more. The government has many additional benefits available for lone soldiers.

To find out more about lone soldier benefits and who is eligible, check out https://www.nbn.org.il/aliyahpedia/army-national-service/pre-draft/chayal-boded-lone-soldier-benefits/

Israel Talks – Rosh HaNikra


Just outside a kibbutz in northern Israel, near the border with Lebanon, is a natural beauty for all ages. The Rosh HaNikra Grottoes were formed from a combination of factors, both the harsh Mediterranean waves hitting the soft, chalky coast, and shocks from under the Earth’s surface ripping open the bedrock. As a result, caves and tunnels were formed. Filling with both rainwater and water from the sea, the Grottoes have radiant blue water all year round.

At first, the grottoes were accessible only to skilled divers, but with demand of the natural wonder rising, new systems were put in place. The steepest cable car in the world was designed to make the grottoes reachable to everyone. As the number of visitors kept growing, trains, bikes, and other adventures were made available to explore deeper into the caves and the surrounding area. The grottoes are an indescribable phenomenon, only believable once seen with your own eyes. To learn more about the Rosh HaNikra Grottoes, go to http://www.akko.org.il/en/Rosh-Hanikra-Tourist-Site- or check them out for yourself the next time you are in Israel!

 

Israel Talks – Save a Child’s Heart


Save a Child’s Heart is an Israeli non-profit who work to provide life-saving medical care to all children, regardless of background. They do an excellent job showcasing the values of Israel by providing life-saving open heart surgeries to children of developing countries. The countries where the children come from do not have the medical or know-how or updated technology to provide this life saving care. Both child and care-giver travel to Holon, Israel, where they receive the necessary medical attention from the world’s top cardio doctors. We often hear about Israel in the context of conflict, but Save a Child’s Heart does not care about religion, ethnicity, gender, or nationality; but instead, but what is most important is saving lives. Additionally, they provide the medical training to doctors-to-be from other countries, who can then return home and provide the care themselves. To date, Save a Child’s Heart has saved over 5,000 children from more than 50 countries. 50% of the children saved are from the surrounding Arab countries and the West Bank. To learn more about Save a Child’s Heart, go to https://www.saveachildsheart.org/.

Israel Talks – MBKI


My Brother’s Keeper International (MBKI) is an American non-profit looking to increase educational services for communities stricken by conflict and poverty. The non-profit partners with different Israeli companies, government officials, and educators to find solutions to the education issues faced in these communities.

One practice put in place by MBKI is providing hot lunches to students in need, with the motivation being that “Children who are hungry cannot learn”. They provide a kosher lunch for children whose family is unable to afford a consistent meal, working with local eateries to give the students the nutrients they need. At the beginning of each year, school professionals work the MBKI field employees to identify and evaluate students’ needs, and based on the information, MBKI offers anywhere from 40-100% of the cost of the meal.

Another one of the many programs MBKI has to offer is a Kindergarten Adoption program, in which donors from the US or Europe pairs up with a kindergarten in a low-socioeconomic of Israel. The donations are used in a multitude of ways, providing support after a full assessment is done by a MBKI field employee. The support needed ranges anywhere from school supplies to field trips, supplementing the schools in anyway deemed necessary.

The Kindergarten Adoption and hot lunches are only two of the many various programs MBKI provides to families, students, and schools in need. To learn more, check out the website at https://www.mbki.org/