Israel Daily News Podcast

Thu. Jan 21, 2021

Knowledge is the best weapon!

#128

Cultural venues are opening start of February — but get your green passport ready. A new bee species is discovered in Israel & Rabbi Yehuda HaKohen offers his commentary and analysis on what New York Jews had to say about Biden’s inauguration.

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Music: Livchor Nachon cover, Mordy Weinstein, Nicole Raviv, Edan Tamler, https://youtu.be/ivUoekTlTyw

1. Prime Minister Netanyahu says that after a long third lockdown with closures throughout the country of Israel, he will likely re-open cultural venues in early February. The idea would be to cap venues at 75 people max capacity and force those who want to enter and participate in activities to provide their green passport, stating they had been vaccinated or a Covid-19 test result proving the person had tested negative within the past 72 hours before entering. Audiences will still be required to wear a mask. Officials announced last week a 70 million shekel cultural aid package which would be administered through local authorities and spent on cultural events. But theaters and art representatives say they wish the money would come straight to them instead of be funnelled through the government. Mayor of Tel Aviv Ron Huldai says he plans to allow theaters to draw open their curtains to all those who are vaccinated. The target date for reopening is the first week of February.
2. Israelis are not happy after finding out that while they were abroad vacationing in the United Arab Emirates, a new law was created forcing them to enter quarantine hotels. 5 people were arrested for reportedly disturbing the peace at a Jerusalem location where people were flipping tables over and destroying things out of anger. Travelers say there was no one to speak with when they arrived at the airport and that there was no contact or communication prior to landing. 2 people were written up by police for refusing to wear a mask on the flight. They said they were eating sunflower seeds and couldn’t.
3. Law enforcement may be ramping up on Orthodox communities in Israel who are not playing by the rules. During the lockdown, many schools remained open and officers shoed away when coming to oversee that things were operating as they should. Health officials are now calling for jailing offenders. Politicians who need the Orthodox vote have shot down suggestions to fine people not abiding by the safety precautions.
4. The Palestinians asked for it and they’ve got it. Russian vaccines also known as Sputnik 5 will be entering into the west bank and Gaza via the Allenby border crossing. The crossing is controlled by Israel and the State opened it up to allow these vaccines to enter. The shipment comes free, since Russia is donating the 5,000 shots to Palestinian health care workers. They are first in line to get inoculated. The Goldin family is petitioning that Palestinians don’t deserve the vaccines if it will come through any type of Israeli cooperation, until they receive the body of their son back. Hamas officials still have the body of Hadar Goldin and another young man Oron Shaul. They were both captured by Hamas in 2014 and never returned. The Goldin family says Netanyahu has forgotten its commitment to soldiers in order to escape international criticism.
5. United Airlines is set to launch a new flight path from NY to Israel. You’d be able to pre-order kosher meals and every flight is supposed to have kosher wine and wifi on board. That will start May 6th.
6. We now have a new flying insect to run away from while screaming and flailing our arms. It’s a bee that’s unique to Israel. In a recent publication, researchers from the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels have announced the identification of the Lasioglossum dorchini. The name comes from Dr. Achik Dorchin who curates a bee collection at Tell Aviv University’s museum of natural history. Beligian taxonomist Alain Pauly identified the species and says it is special to the sand dunes of the central coastal region of Israel and this was all due to an accidental discovery made by a Hebrew University Professor and PhD student, during the pair’s five-year long study into the effects of a restoration project in the Alexander Stream National Park north of Netanya. Not much is known about the new critter, but its discovery provides a glimpse of optimism for a world wide issue of declining populations of bees and other pollinators which are a critical element for 75 percent of the world’s crops. Approximately 1,100 of the world’s 20,000 different species of bees can be found in Israel.

Yehoshua Winter of Far Rockaway doodles on the subway. He answered questions for our report.

Yesterday I hit the streets to talk to members of New York’s enormous Jewish community. I asked them how they were feeling with the new president in office. We’re going to hear from Rabbi Yehuda HaKohen for some analysis on U.S. /Israel relations and we will also have him respond to what New Yorkers told me yesterday while I was reporting in Times Square, Manhattan. HaKohen is a leader in the Vision movement and works to empower young Jews to become active participants in the current chapter of Israel’s story. Click here for his commentary and analysis on why Biden will be better for Israel. Hint — it’s not what you think.