Welcome back to the news round up of some of the more interesting stories from this past week. The picture seen above is an Israeli F-16 preparing to bomb the Syrian nuclear facility in 2007. Picture courtesy of the IDF.
Israeli jet in action- Nir Ben-Yosef
It was the biggest news of the week in Israel: the public announcement and confirmation of what was widely known; that ten years ago, Israel destroyed a nuclear reactor that had been built in Syria by the North Koreans. It was a very carefully planned attack using seven planes flown by highly trained Israeli Air force pilots. The success of the mission is another of the many outstanding feats of the Israeli Armed Forces.
The commanding officer that provided the announcement, Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot said clearly, “The message of the attack on the reactor in 2007 is that Israel will not accept the construction of a capability that threatens the existence of the State of Israel. That was the message in ’81. That was the message in 2007. And that is the message to our enemies for the future.”
The clear message sent is that Iran’s nuclear program will be the next target if they don’t cease their operations now. They may be small but they are mighty.
Ian Austin, Dudley North representative in Parliament.
It never ceases to be inspiring to see the difference that one person can make.
The son of a Holocaust survivor, Ian Austin, from Dudley in the West Midlands, England, was deeply impacted by his father’s experience during World War II and has made it his mission to fight against racism and anti-Semitism.
His father was shipped out of Czechoslovakia to Britain in 1939 by his mother and was taken in by a schoolteacher, Philip Austin. Losing all connection to his Jewishness, he later married, adopted 4 children with his wife and raised them without any influence of Judaism.
However, the Jewish connection was never far off and Ian remembers his father speaking of the Holocaust and how he never saw his mother or two sisters again. Waving goodbye to them when he left that day on the train to Britain, he didn’t know then that they would later die at Treblinka concentration camp.
“The impact of racism and fascism were the first political things I thought about as a teenager and led to my interest in politics,” Austin recently told The Times of Israel.
Now a strong voice for the Jewish community in Great Britain, Austin is apalled by the rising anti-Semitism and stands against it. His latest comments on IAW (Israel Apartheid Week), that took place recently, were a ringing testament to the truth, even in the midst of those that try to drown it out.
“Israel Apartheid Week is a complete disgrace,” says Austin. “Apartheid was a strictly enforced system of racial segregation where black people and white people weren’t allowed to get married or live in the same areas. Israel could not be further than that. In South Africa, the legal system enforced racism and segregation; in Israel it does the opposite.”
Aviram Reichert, Israeli pianist.
Israeli pianist Aviram Reichart showed off his undeniable talent to South Africa at the Stellenbosch Piano Symposium a few days ago. He was one of two international guests to take part in this event. The Stellenbosch International Piano Symposium has been presented biennially since 2006 by the Department of Music of Stellenbosch University. The main purpose of the symposium is to bring together international and national pianists through master classes, lectures and concerts. (http://www.pianosymposium.co.za)
Reichert is a much sought after teacher and soloist and has played with the major symphonies in South Africa, Korea, Tokyo, the United States and of course, his native Israel. Today, Reichert is a frequent soloist with the leading orchestras in Israel, including the Israel Philharmonic, Haifa Symphony, Israel Chamber Orchestra and the Jerusalem Symphony.
An experienced pianist of some 20 years he has won many awards and been lauded for his incredible technique and intelligent interpretations of even the most complex of musical pieces.
Passover is fast approaching. With Jews living across the world and descending from various traditions and cultures, it is a fascinating experience to take a few moments and see how various Jewish people celebrate the Passover in the midst of their unique cultures and history. It is a common belief that Elijah the Prophet travels the globe visiting each Passover table and he must marvel at the range of traditions and customs that each community brings to their Seder experience.
“Seder” means “order” literally and refers to the order in which the meal is eaten and the recounting of the history of the Exodus is read. The focus at Passover is not just to remember the Exodus from Egypt and the suffering of being slaves, but also to transmit this to the youngest at the table. The children can take part in many different ways and the adults make it a project to re-create the experience of readying themselves to flee. For example, the Tunisian Jews place a small fish bowl on the table with live fish swimming around to symbolize the fish that were seen swimming on either side of the Hebrews as they walked through the Red Sea. And the Iraqi Jews have a member of the family dress up as a nomad and knock on the door looking for a bit of food. He is asked where is he traveling from and going to and what supplies is he carrying? This prompts the segue into singing the traditional Four Questions.
The Abayudaya at prayer in their synagogue in Puti next to Mbale. A visiting rabbi joins them.
The Abayudaya Jews in Uganda associate Passover with the fall of the brutal dictator, Idi Amin, and the first Passover they celebrated openly only 2 days after his fall. Each year since then, they celebrate Passover with a dual remembrance, Egypt and Idi.
You can read more at the article linked in the title and learn about the interactive and fun ways that Jews from all over the world bring the Passover holiday to life.
Acclaimed reggae musician Ziggy Marley is making a triumphant return to Israel this summer with two
shows. Marley, the son of legend Bob Marley, is clearly a fan of the Jewish state, as this will be his third time performing here. He’ll be playing at the Barby in Tel Aviv on July 31 and the Zappa Shuni Amphitheater in Binyamina on August 1.
“I’ve been connected to Israel from when I was a child,” he said, when he accepted the Shalom Peace Award in 2015. “I feel a very spiritual and personal connection to that land and the people of that land. So this is our blessing and we will continue to have that connection no matter what anybody says or does, and continue to support Israel.” The Jewish National Fund nominated and bestowed the honor on Marley.
You can follow the link in the title to the original story and other links to purchase tickets.
