Israel Update – March to April 2007 by Daniel Weisberg
As you may or may not be aware, Monday 23 April 2007 (4 Iyar) is Yom HaZikaron (Israel’s Memorial Day). It is devoted to the memory of those who have given their lives so the State of Israel can exist today. Israel’s Independence Day (5 Iyar) (Yom HaAtzmaut) begins the minute Yom HaZikaron ends. The switch from sorrow to joy is quite sudden and dramatic. This year, Yom HaZikaron will end Monday evening with the traditional torch-lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem, followed immediately by the opening of the festivities of Israel's 59th Independence Day. No other country has such a sudden change in emotion.
On Yom HaZikaron, a two-minute siren will sound at 11 A.M. Something quite amazing about Israel is that the whole country comes to a standstill. On the motorways, in homes and at the 43 military cemeteries throughout the country.
Yom HaZikaron will be for the following that were killed:
- 22,305 killed in battle since the establishment of the first Jewish neighborhoods outside Jerusalem's Old City wall in 1860. (The date of the beginning of the count of fatalities).
- 233 who in 2006 / 2007 have been added to the list. The 233 includes injured veterans of the Israel Defense Forces who died this year.
- 119 were killed during the Second Lebanon War, which lasted 33 days.
- 66 civilians killed in hostile actions, 57 of them during the war, when thousands of rockets were fired from Lebanon on Israeli communities.
- 1,635 civilians killed in hostile actions since the establishment of the State of Israel.
“A father should not say Kaddish for his son; a brother and sister should not have to bid a last goodbye to their 19-year-old brother”
-Eitan Baron
Israel has recently settled back into “normal” life after Pesach, a festival of which 99% of Israelis report to celebrate in some way or another. “Normal” life for Israelis now has several issues to contend with:
First, there's Iran. A problem because it’s a fundamentalist, religious, and powerful country that has the resources to develop whatever weapons it wants and has the will to do that. The current leadership of Iran calls for the elimination of Israel as a state. It’s not calling for the destruction of the people, but for the creation of a Palestinian state in place of the State of Israel. And when asked in detail, the Iranian president does not say he will eliminate the country through nuclear capability, but he says that he will aim to destroy its will and motivation through terrorism, with Hezbollah on the northern border and Hamas on the southern border.
Next, Hezbollah, presumably gathering strength.
Hamas and Fatah have formed a unity government, which several years ago no-one would have thought possible. There are plenty of Israelis, though not most, who think we should start dialogue with Hamas.
The University of Haifa published results of a study indicating that 28 percent of Israeli Arabs think the Holocaust didn't happen. The poll showed that among Arab high school and college graduates, the figure was even higher, 33 percent.
Going further back, in early March, 27 members of the German Bishops' Conference visited Israel. First they went to Yad Vashem, and were duly moved and appalled; but then, on a visit into the occupied, they comparing the Warsaw Ghetto and the "Ramallah Ghetto."
Then there is something that you may not have heard about / paid much attention to, and this will be on television 6.30pm Monday 23 April ITV. Since 2002, Israelis have arrested 5,200 children (those younger than 18) in the West Bank and Gaza. The majority of cases are due to stone throwing, strengthening the Israeli case and argument of “The stone-throwers of today are the suicide bombers of tomorrow”. The story that ITV will present is that of Ayat, a 15 year old girl arrested at a check point in January for attempting to stab a soldier with a cooking knife. She has been imprisoned by the Israeli Army, and is due for trial. She has been unable to see / make any contact with her family since January and she has to wear shackles with two armed guards at her side. She is just one of thousands that are tried in these custom-built Palestinian-juvenile court rooms. These court rooms and trails held there have been real struggles for human rights activists. The trials are almost illegal under both international and Israeli domestic law as both state that children should only be arrested, tried and imprisoned as an absolute last resort (note that this means juvenile trials are still allowed). Human rights activists cannot do anything, the UN has failed (as always) to react and Israel defends these trials by stating that its actions against teenagers are a necessary part of its fight against continuing Palestinian attacks.
Relevant Statistics time:
- The IDF state that there have been 29 suicide bomber attacks and 40 failed attempts carried out by Palestinians under the age of 18 since 2000.
- Since 2001, Israeli authorities have arrested 5,200 Palestinian teenagers.
- 123 Israeli children and 926 Palestinian children have been killed since 2000.
This weekend (20-22 April 2007), IDF troops shot dead a Palestinian teen who had hurled a firebomb at a military vehicle northwest of Ramallah in the West Bank. IDF troops also killed two Palestinian militants, including a top bomb maker, during an arrest raid in the West Bank city of Nablus, Palestinian officials said. Eight Palestinians were then killed during a 24-hour surge in violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, including two militants killed early Sunday during an arrest raid in the West Bank city of Nablus. The fighting also included a Palestinian rocket attack on the Negev town of
Sderot that damaged one home but caused no injuries. Hamas then quoted “we are calling on the Hamas armed wing and Palestinian resistance groups to be united in the trench of resistance and to use all possible means of resistance and to respond to the massacres." The Palestinian unity government, which includes Hamas, has called for an expanded truce.
Here’s the relevant and topical Jew bit:
According to the Haggadah, all this is to be expected:
(Open the door to let Elijah in)
"In every generation, they rise up to destroy us, and the Holy One, Blessed Be He, delivers us from their hands."
We then ask hashem to “spill out His wrath upon the gentiles who know Him not.” Is this what we should be saying at the seder table? Do we know we are saying this at the seder table?
More news:
Arrow Three is being developed in Israel at the moment. It is an anti-missile system designed deal with the threat from Iran. Right now the Arrow system has a footprint of approximately 150 km, meaning the system can intercept anything that attacks Israel at the range of 150 km. The missile could come from Iran, which is 1,500 km away. They are still working on it.
If you type Israel Update into Google, Habonim Dror’s Israel update is 6th on the list: You should make use of that.
More updates:
Ariel Sharon’s condition has improved, but he is not expected to make any sort of decent recovery.
Right-wing activists have planned an extensive advertising campaign calling for the release of Yigal Amir (the assassin of Yitzchak Rabin).
Israel will plant 4 million trees on the Jordanian and Egyptian borders with the help of Keren Kayemet LeIsrael. Zionist knowledge: Agriculture minister of Israel is Shalom Simhon.
Israel claims to have discovered and destroyed an Iranian plot to recruit Israelis as spies. Iran has a 25,000 strong Jewry. 135,000 Israelis trace their roots to Iran. Apparently 100 Israelis have visited family members in Iran over the past two years.
Remember Rabbi Menachem Mender Schneerson (the famous Lubavitch Rebbe who was thought to be the messiah). Well, for 3 weeks his face accompanied by the statement “A Palestinian state is a disaster for Israel” will appear on buses in Jerusalem.
Hezbollah's deputy leader, Sheik Naim Kassem said that the negotiations mediated by the United Nations to secure a prisoner swap between Hezbollah and Israel are "serious."
The statement was significant as Hezbollah officials rarely broach the topic of negotiations with Israel. Kassem also stressed that Israel Defense Forces soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Elad Regev, whose capture by Hezbollah on July 12 triggered a 34-day war between Israel and the guerilla group, would be released only in exchange for the release of all Lebanese prisoners held in Israel, including Samir Kuntar (serving a 542-year prison sentence in Israel for killing three Israelis during an attack in 1979). Israel says it will not release Kuntar until it receives information about Ron Arad, an air force navigator who went missing after his plane was shot down over Lebanon in 1986. His fate is still unknown. During his visit to Lebanon last month, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon expressed disappointment that there had been no progress toward the release of Goldwasser and Regev. The UN is useless.
Moshe Katsav (President) has a second rape allegation made against him. He denies all charges.
And the most pressing issue: The Saudi Peace Plan.
Ehud Olmert stated that he will meet with the Arab nation leaders about the plan. Unfortunately, the only states that will be willing to talk at the moment are Egypt, Jordan and Qatar. These states already have decent relations with Israel. Despite this, the discussions are a step in the right direction
The proposal states:
Israel to withdraw from all territories seized in 1967 – INCLUDING East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights.
Arab states offer diplomatic relations – INCLUDING recognising Israel’s right to exist AND secure its borders.
Bit of chinuch for you:
THE WAVES OF ALIYAH
Aliyah (Hebrew: ?????, "ascent" or "going up") is Jewish immigration to the Land of Israel (and since its establishment in 1948, the State of Israel). The opposite action, Jewish emigration away from Israel, is called Yerida ("descent").
Aliyah is a fundamental concept of Zionism. Israel’s Law of Return permits the Jew the legal right to assisted immigration and settlement in Israel, as well as automatic Israeli citizenship. What you define as a Jew is a good debate. According to some commentaries, Aliyah is a commandment in the 613 commandments. Aliyah can be voluntary immigration due to ideological, emotional, practical reasons or mass flight. Many Israeli Jews can trace their family’s routes from outside Israel. Even though Israel is commonly recognised as “a country of immigrants”, it is also a country of refugees.
History
Aliyah trends tend to show most Aliyah is over Pesach and Yom Kippur. This is traditionally associated with “Next year in Jerusalem” (L’Shana Ha’aba B’yerushalayim)
Pre-Zionist Aliyah (1200-1882)
Aliyah was due to the status of Jews across Europe. Persecution was rife. Jews were expelled from England (1290), France (1391), Austria (1421) and Spain (1492). The messiah was a strongly believed figure especially amongst French, Italian, Germanic State, Russian and North African Jewry. This belief encouraged many to take the journey to the “Holy Land”.
Success was mixed. For example the “Aliyah of the 300 rabbis” in 1210 has no written results. It is thought that the Crusader invasion of 1229 killed many or they were expelled by the Muslims in 1291. However, it is known than many who made Aliyah following Kabbalist and Hassidic ideologies have founded the populations of Jerusalem, Tiberius, Hebron and Shwarma in Tzfat.
Zionist Aliyah (from 1882)
1882 was the arrival of the Bilium from Russia, beginning Zionist Aliyah.
The First Aliyah (1882-1903)
Approximately 35,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine (at the time it was a province of the Ottoman Empire). The majority came from the Russian Empire. Some minority from Yemen. Many established agricultural communities, now:
- Petach Tikva
- Rishon LeZion
- Rosh Pina
- Zikron Ya’acov
Yemenite Jews founded Silwan. It is south-east of the walls of the Old City on the slopes of the Mount of Olives.
The Second Aliyah (1904-1914)
40,000 immigrated, mainly from Russian Empire following Pogroms and anti-Semitism. This was the group with the socialist ideals and they founded Kibbutz Degania in 1909. They also formed self-defence organisations, such as “HaShomer” (The Guild of Watchman) to counter any Arab hostility. They founded Ahuzat Bayit (a suburb of Jaffa), which grew into the city of Tel Aviv. This was also the Aliyah that created many modern-day Israel ideas:
- The national language of Hebrew
- Newspapers and Literature in Hebrew
- Political parties and workers organisations established
- Neil Harris
The Third Aliyah (1919-1923)
40,000 Jews, mainly from Russian Empire arrived due to:
- World War I
- British conquest of Palestine
- Establishment of British Mandate
- Balfour Declaration
These people were known as the chalutzim (pioneers). They were trained in agriculture and capable of creating self-sustaining economies. Jewish population reached 90,000 by 1923. The Jezreel valley and the Hefer plain marshes were drained and used for agriculture. An elected assembly was made and a national council. Also “Haganah” (“The defence”) was created.
The Fourth Aliyah (1924-1929)
82,000 Jews arrived, mostly due to anti-Semitism in Poland and Hungary. The immigration quotas of the US kept Jews out of there. The 4th wave was made up of middle class families that moved to growing towns, establishing small businesses and industry. Of these, 23,000 returned home or left.
The Fifth Aliyah (1929-1939)
With the rise of Nazism in Germany, a new wave of 250,000 immigrants arrived. The majority of these (174,000) arrived between 1933 and 1936. After this time, increasing restrictions on immigration by the British made immigration illegal. This was called Aliyah Bet. The 5th Aliyah was driven mostly from Eastern Europe and made up of professionals, doctors, lawyers and professors from Germany. Refugee artists introduced Bauhaus to Palestine. (Cool Zionist knowledge: Tel Aviv has the highest concentration of Bauhaus architecture in the world). The Palestine Philharmonic Orchestra was founded. The Haifa port and oil refineries were competed to add to the predominantly agricultural economy. In 1940, the Jewish population was 450,000.
Tensions started to grow between Arabs and Jews leading to the Arab Riots in 1929. Many died and depopulated the Jewish community in Hebron. This was followed by “the Great Uprising” of 1936-1939. The British released the White Paper of 1939, restricting Jewish immigration to 75,000 for 5 years, then preventing any more.
Aliyah Bet: Illegal Immigration (1933-1948)
The British government limited Jewish immigration to Palestine with quotas. Due to the Nazi party / power in Germany, illegal immigration was rife. It was organised by the “Mossad Le’Aliyah Bet, as well as the Irgun. Immigration was mostly by sea, and occasionally through Iraq and Syria. Beginning in 1939, Jewish immigration was restricted even more due to the White paper (75,000 immigrants 5 years, then prohibiting any more) The British made it illegal to dell land to Jews in 95% of the mandate. During WWII, and for a few years after, Aliyah Bet was the main form of Jewish immigration to Palestine. During the 14 years of the British “prevention” of immigration, 110,000 Jews immigrated to Palestine. In 1945, the reports of a 6 million death toll caused Jews to turn against the British mandate, and illegal immigration escalated even more so as Holocaust survivors joined the Aliyah.
1948-1950
After Aliyah Bet, immigration did not stop, but numbering the aliyot did. A major wave of immigration of over 500,000 Jews went to Israel between 1948 and 1950, many fleeing renewed persecution in Eastern Europe and increasing hostile Arab countries. This is often termed the period of “Kibbutz Galuyot” (“Ingathering of Diasporas)
Middle Eastern Jews
1949-1950 was Operation Magic Carpet, in which the entire Yeminite Jewry (49,000) immigrated to Israel. Most of them had never seen an aeroplane before, but believed in a Biblical Prophecy. “God promised to return the Children of Israel to Zion on Wings” (Isaiah 40:31). Magic stuff!
In three and a half years, the Jewish population of Israel had doubled, and inflated by 700,000 immigrants. Huge numbers of refugees were temporarily settled in “Ma’abarot” (Cities of Tents). The population of these was gradually absorbed into Israeli society until 1958, when it was complete.
Many Israeli immigrants were Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews who left Arab countries to move to Israel. In many cases they had been persecuted and sometimes forced to leave their homes. 114,000 Jews came from Iraq in 1951 Operation Ezra and Nehemiah. 30,000 Iranian Hews immigrated to Israel following the Islamic revolution. Most Iranian Jews settled in the US.
Ethiopian Aliyah
Operation Moses brought Ethiopian Jews in November 1985 until January 1986. In these 6 weeks, 6,500 to 8,000 Ethiopian Jews were flown from Sudan to Israel. An estimated 2,000 to 4,000 Jews died en route to Sudan or in Sudan.
In 1991, Operation Solomon was launched to rescue Beta Israel Jews of Ethiopia. In one day, 14,325 Jews were flown from Ethiopia to Israel. The date was May 24. Good knowledge.
There are currently over 100,000 Ethiopian Jews in Israel. Mazel tov.
Soviet Union and Post-Soviet Aliyah
A mass emigration was undesirable for a Soviet Regime. Family reunification and a petition from a relative abroad had to be reason for Aliyah. The result was often a formal refusal. Israel set up Lishkat Hakesher in the early 1950’s to maintain contact and promote Aliyah with Jews behind the Iron Curtain.
In 1967, after the 6-day war, the USSR broke off diplomatic relations with Israel. Anti-Zionist propaganda and Zionology were accompanied by harsher discrimination of the Soviet Jews. By the end of the 1960’s, Jewish cultural and religious life in the Soviet Union has become almost impossible. The majority of Soviet Jews were assimilated and non-religious. The new wave of state-sponsored anti-Semitism and a sense of pride for a victorious Jewish nation over Soviet-armed Arab armies stirred up Zionist feelings.
After the Dymshits-Kunznetsov hijacking affair, strong international condemnations caused the Soviet authorities to increase the emigration quote. In 1960-1970, the USSR let only 4,000 leave. In 1970-1980, 250,000 left. Many who were allowed to leave chose other destinations over Israel, notably the US. In 1989, 71,000 Soviet Jews were granted exodus of the USSR. (12,117 of these came to Israel). Since the dissolution of the USSR, over 1 million Soviet Jews have come to Israel.
Recently
Since the mid-1990’s, there has been a steady stream of South African Jews, American Jews and French Jews who have made Aliyah of purchases Israeli property. Many French Jews are aware of anti-Semitism in France.
The Bnei Menashe Jews (from India) were only recently discovered and recognised by mainstream Judaism as descendants of the 10 tribes. They started Aliyah in the early 1990’s and continue to arrive. Organisations such as Nefesh B’Nefesh and Shavei Israel help with Aliyah by supporting financial aid and guidance for those making Aliyah.
This year (2007), Ha’aretz reported that Aliyah in 2006 was down 9% from 2005. Only 19,264 people immigrated to Israel in 2006. It’s the lowest number of immigrants since 1988.
Argentine Aliyah
Argentina had a political and economic crisis in 1999-2002. It wiped out billions of dollars and most of Argentina’s 200,000 Jews were affected. Some chose to start over in Israel. More than 10,000 have come to Israel since 2000.
French Aliyah
From 2000 to 2005, 11,148 Jews made Aliyah from France.
With the start of the 2nd Intifada in Israel, anti-Semitic incidents have increased in France. The human rights commission (get ready for it: Comission nationale consultative des droits de l’homme) reported 6 times more anti-Semitic incidents than in 2001.
North American Aliyah
There are approximate 110,000 North American immigrants in Israel. There has been a steady flow since 1949. North Americans tend to immigrate for religious, ideological or political purposes, not financial ones.
And finally...
According to the most common traditional ordering of the books of the Bible, the very last word of the Bible (i.e. the last word in the original Hebrew of verse 2, Chronicles 36:23) is “veya’al”, a verb form derived from the same root as “Aliyah” meaning “Let him go up”.
Now you can go to bed
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