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Thursday, April 25, 2013

Thursday Links Part 2

From Ian:

Elie Wiesel, history's witness
His impassioned writing and speaking have won him a Nobel Peace Prize, and a large place in the public intellectual discourse about the Holocaust and the human condition.
Muslim Arab Bedouins serve as Jewish state’s gatekeepers
[Lt. Col.] Mazarib is a Bedouin, a Muslim Arab who grew up in northern Israel, intimate with its green, hilly landscape from an early age.
“This is our country,” he states simply in perfect Hebrew with a light Arabic accent. And its Jewish symbols, such as the Star of David or the theme of the national anthem, do not perturb Mazarib. “The flag of England also has a cross on it, and the Jews there are fine with it,” he says during a tour of the Bedouin Heritage Centre which houses a memorial to the 182 Bedouin killed fighting for Israel. (h/t Zvi)
IDF Chief Gantz to Druze Community: We Are Brothers in Arms
Israel’s Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, sent a letter to Israel’s Druze community Wednesday in honor of the Druze holiday of Nabi Shu’aib, a celebration of the Islamic prophet Shu’aib. In the letter, Gantz praised the Druze community’s long-standing commitment to the State of Israel’s security.
BBC recognizes that the Mavi Marmara was not an “aid ship”
Whilst additional amendments would have contributed to bringing this report and others into line with the standards of accuracy demanded by the BBC Editorial Guidelines, this is nevertheless a (small) step in the right direction.
BBC promotion of PA narrative on Jewish heritage sites
By lending oxygen to the long-existing Palestinian Authority campaign to distort history and deny Jewish connections to what objectively (whatever one’s opinions of the desired form a negotiated settlement to the conflict should take) cannot be seen as anything other than a geographical area steeped in Jewish heritage, Berg is severely compromising the BBC’s reputation for impartiality.
New App Warns Drivers: Arab Mob Ahead
Only in Israel: a new app for android phones lets drivers know if they are about to drive into a mob of Arabs armed with firebombs and rocks.
Such ambushes have killed and maimed many Israelis over the years, including a baby girl, Adelle Biton, who has been barely clinging to life in the Schneider Children's Hospital since last month.
Tunisia ups security ahead of annual Jewish pilgrimage
Visitors to arrive Thursday at 2,500-year-old El Ghriba synagogue on Djerba Island; in 2002 a terrorist bomb killed 21 at the site
Thailand Seeks Israeli Security Solutions
A group of 33 Thai Members of Parliament are in Israel Wednesday to learn about Israeli defense systems for use in Thailand.
The MPs’ visit is intended to lay a framework for trade in defense and security equipment between Israeli companies and Thailand.
Israeli ‘smell technology’ bans bugs from food, crops
It’s not just the ick factor: Insects are responsible for a great deal of economic damage. According to the United Nations, between 5 and 10 percent of the world’s post-harvest produce was rendered unusable last year due to insect infestation. That’s on top of as much as 15% of crops lost due to destruction by insects out in the field.
Top Azeri Diplomat Praises Ties With Israel on First-Ever Visit
Mammadyarov, Azerbaijan’s first foreign minister to visit Israel, met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres and other Israeli officials during his April 21-23 trip, saying the visit will help expand ties further, his office said today by e-mail.
The visit marks a turning point in Azerbaijan’s relations with Israel after the former Soviet republic has in the past refrained from high-level visits under Iranian pressure. (h/t Zvi)
Israeli biotech company sold for $480 million
OPKO Health Inc. chairman Dr. Phillip Frost: "Prolor's drug-product candidates for growth hormone deficiency, hemophilia, obesity and diabetes ... are highly valuable assets that will complement OPKO's strategy."