VFI News May 10, 2022

Murderous Attack in Elad

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A total of 16 children were left fatherless Thursday night, May 5, after a terrorist attack in Elad in which Yonatan Habakkuk, father of five, Boaz Gol, father of five, and Oren Ben Yiftach, father of six, were murdered.

The three men were killed by terrorists armed with knives and axes in the central Israel city. Four others were also injured. Others are now dealing with the shock and trauma the attack caused.

One of the victims in Thursday's terror attack drove the terrorists to the scene of the attack under the impression that he was helping by offering him a ride, it was revealed on Friday afternoon. When they arrived, one of the terrorists attacked and killed him.

The families of the three victims are trying to cope with the deaths of their loved ones.

Thousands of people attended the funerals of those killed in the attack in Elad on Friday. Yonatan Habakkuk's funeral left his hometown of Elad towards the Yarkonim Cemetery in Petah Tikva, where he was buried. At the same time, the funeral of Boaz Gol set out from Elad to Jerusalem, where he was laid to rest. Oren Ben Yiftach's funeral took place in Lod, his hometown. (JPost / VFI News)

“God, we ask that You comfort these families and fill them with Your peace during this time.”

The articles included in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Vision for Israel. We try to provide accurate reporting on news pertinent to Israel, the Middle East, the diaspora, and Jewish issues around the world—and we hope that you find it both informative and useful for intercessory prayer.

Fresh clashes broke out Thursday, May 5, between Palestinians and Israeli police at the Temple Mount after the flashpoint Jerusalem holy site was reopened to Jewish visitors amid threats by the Gaza-ruling Hamas.

The Temple Mount was shuttered to Jews on April 21 until the end of Ramadan, as part of a years-long policy of barring non-Muslims from the compound for the final days of the Muslim holy month. This year’s closure came after days of clashes at the Temple Mount that began the morning of April 15, when Friday prayers for Ramadan, Passover, and Good Friday all coincided.

Non-Muslims were again allowed back on the Temple Mount as of 7 a.m. Thursday, as groups of Jews lined up at the Mughrabi Bridge, from where non-Muslim visitors are required to enter the holy site.

Video from the Temple Mount showed Palestinians shouting chants in Arabic as Jewish visitors passed by, including “God is great” and “with spirit, with blood, we’ll redeem Al-Aqsa!”

Scuffles erupted shortly later, when police said dozens of rioters began yelling “incitement” and hurled rocks and other objects toward officers, who responded with riot dispersal means.

Police later said they arrested 21 suspects that took part in the morning clashes. (TOI / VFI News)

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. - James 4:1-2a

The U.S. will have a hard time stopping Middle Eastern nations from pursuing nuclear capabilities should Iran obtain a nuclear weapon, and it must work to repair relations with allies in the region to downplay concerns, experts told Fox News Digital.

"It's obvious that if Iran becomes nuclear, they will threaten the very existence of all the Sunni states and neighbors in the Gulf," Brigadier General (reserve) Amir Avivi, founder of the Israel Defense & Security Forum, said. "Nobody will have the right, not the U.S., not Europe, not anybody will have the moral right to tell anybody in the Middle East not to be able to defend itself."

As the U.S. continues to thrash out a new Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) – also known as the Iran nuclear deal – the greatest concern remains Iran’s ability to obtain nuclear weapons. The old agreement that protected the world from Iran’s nuclear capabilities was dismantled by GOP ex-president Donald Trump. The plan limited Iran’s nuclear capabilities for a period of 10 years on centrifuges and 15 years on the amount of enriched uranium it can possess.

Critics argue the plan only delays the pathway rather than stops it while providing Iran with upfront, permanent benefits; supporters believe the gap will allow a new generation to take power and make new agreements. It’s a gamble that countries in the region do not appear to support. (FOX / VFI News)

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” - Matthew 5:9

The Kremlin escalated its ongoing diplomatic feud with Israel Tuesday, May 3, when the Russian Foreign Ministry accused Jerusalem of supporting a “neo-Nazi regime” in Ukraine.

The latest incendiary remarks appeared in a post on the Foreign Ministry’s Telegram channel, a day after Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid demanded an apology from his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, for his “unforgivable and outrageous” claim that Adolf Hitler had “Jewish blood.”

Moscow doubled down on Lavrov’s stance in the Telegram statement, arguing that Lapid’s “anti-historical statements to a large extent explain the commitment of the current Israeli government to support the neo-Nazi regime in Kyiv.”

Russia has sought to justify its unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by claiming that the country is controlled by neo-Nazis.

Numerous critics in the international community have dismissed this reasoning by noting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is Jewish and a descendant of Holocaust victims. (NYPost / VFI News)

“God, we ask that You stop the lying tongues, that You would bring peace to all of your children and end this terrible war.”

This beautiful hymn is a prayer from Deuteronomy 26:15, expressing a great desire that God would look upon us with an eye of love, complacency, and delight—and to grant the promises that He has made to us for abundance and prosperity. Enjoy this warm, personal communication with God, set to serene scenes and timeless tones from the Land.

Israelis hit parks, beaches, nature sites, and other open spaces for barbecues and other festivities on Thursday, May 5, as the country celebrated its 74th Independence Day.

In an annual highlight on Thursday morning and early afternoon, Air Force aircraft flew over much of the country, a popular and iconic feature of celebrations.

The flyover included F-15, F-16, and F-35 fighter jets; Lavi training aircraft; C-130 cargo planes; a Boeing refueling plane; Black Hawk, Sea Stallion, Panther, and Apache helicopters; and Israel Aerospace Industries Heron drones. It will be the first time IAI drones participate in the flyover.

This year, the military added a flyby over the West Bank city of Hebron and the adjacent settlement of Kiryat Arba. It marks the first time the flyby passes over that particular area, but not the first time for all West Bank communities. The IDF said the move was not a political statement, but related to the size of the community.

Other events Thursday included the annual International Bible Quiz in Jerusalem, which saw a new host in Ofer Hadad, after longtime stalwart and Hebrew language aficionado Avshalom Kor retired. (TOI / VFI News)

Thus says the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.” - Isaiah 49:7

Passengers who land at Ben Gurion Airport starting on May 20, 2022, will not be required to perform a PCR test, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz announced Sunday, May 8, in agreement with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

The decision was made in light of the decline in morbidity data and at the end of discussions that took place between the professionals in the Health Ministry and the staff of the Airports Authority. It was agreed that the professionals would formulate a mechanism for maintaining the suitability of the testing system at Ben Gurion Airport, in order to allow it to be reactivated quickly if necessary, in full or in part.

In addition, the Health Minister and the Chairman of the Constitution Committee, MK Gilad Kariv, agreed that starting this Tuesday, May 10, foreigners flying to Israel will also be allowed to use an antigen test instead of a PCR test if they so choose before boarding their flights.

A tourist who chooses the antigen alternative will be required to perform the test in the 24 hours prior to their departure to Israel. (INN / VFI News)

“God, thank you for keeping your children healthy and we ask that You prevent further illness.”

Some of the innovative scientific developments behind leading food technologies, as well as new cancer treatments, will take center stage at the upcoming Biomed Israel summit next week, an annual conference on life sciences and health tech that brings together scientists, healthcare professionals, entrepreneurs, and investors from dozens of countries across the world.

This year, the three-day conference is marking its 20th anniversary with 10 different tracks — infectious diseases, robotics in the medical field, and AI and machine learning, among others, in addition to precision cancer diagnostics and therapies, and “bio food” and its impact on human health. Each track will be chaired by a professional leader in their relevant field and the conference, which organizers say expects about 6,000 people, will also host an exhibition where hundreds of Israeli companies can present their products and technologies.

Dr. Tammy Meiron, CTO at Israel’s Fresh Start Food Tech Incubator and the chair of the food tech track, told The Times of Israel that the sessions will focus on “bio-food technologies and how we adapt biotech into the food tech arena to produce more sustainable food.”

“There’s a growing consensus that, due to the climate crisis, we have to find better ways to feed the growing [world] population. There are increasing demands for food and there are ethical aspects of growing our food from animals,” said Meiron.

“This younger generation is more aware of this [issue], and it’s also the first generation to come to realize the dangers of the climate crisis,” she added. These dangers have been described as a “code red for humanity” that requires urgent action by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

“We have a window of about 10 years. It is critical that we deliver solutions in food tech,” she said.

Meiron is an experienced food tech professional, having headed the protein department at US biochemical company Sigma Aldrich (later acquired by Merck) where she led production on more than 450 different proteins and enzymes, before joining Fresh Start in 2019.

The food-tech incubator, based in the northern Israel city of Kiryat Shmona, is a project led by the Israel Innovation Authority together with Israeli company Tnuva, beverage firm Tempo, Israeli investment company OurCrowd, and Finistere Ventures, a global investor in food tech and agritech.

“We incubate companies for 2-3 years and bring them to the next level of investment. So far we have supported eight companies and intend to support at least 40 by 2028,” she explained.

Fresh Start is currently working with seven companies including one that is developing cell-cultured fish and two that are working on sugar reduction technologies. (TOI / VFI News)

Remembrance Day is one of the most difficult days on the Israeli calendar. For 24 hours, people gather in collective mourning for the country’s fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism. Two sirens mark the day, one at nightfall and one the following morning. The country’s cemeteries are packed with families and friends of fallen loved ones, and with those who did not know them, but still wish to remember them.

Then, as the sun begins to dip and the sky begins to darken, a change occurs. Firework displays are prepared, grills are fired up and the country shifts into celebrating Independence Day. After 24 hours of shared sadness, the country turns to 24 hours of shared celebration.

The holidays of Remembrance Day and Independence Day are not one after the other by coincidence. Rather, they follow the belief that without one we cannot have the other, and that the shared grief must turn into shared joy, to honor what was saved and created by those who fell protecting it.

But how does this affect us psychologically? Is it really something that can be done with ease, this shift from intense grief to happiness? What toll does it take on the human mind and body to make this transition? Can we trick our brains into feeling happy?

A common belief is that faking a smile can actually make you experience real happiness. A 2013 study carried out by researchers at the University of Cardiff in Wales found that a surprising side-effect in people who had undergone Botox injections was that the inability to frown appeared to actually make them happier.

Other similar research has backed up this idea that faking a smile or being unable to frown, can cause real happiness.

Remembrance Day is a painful day for many people. It can be a day in which intense trauma is relived – whether it is the trauma of learning of the loss of a loved one, or the trauma of actually watching their death, as is the case with many IDF veterans who lost friends in military operations.

So how do people reliving and re-experiencing trauma manage to “switch it off” in order to celebrate Independence Day?

Psychologists believe that with trauma comes a certain level of dissociation, ranging from a mild feeling of disconnection from the body to depersonalization and out-of-body experiences. However, while dissociation can be harmful and damaging, it can also play into the way we experience joy, allowing people to still feel positive emotions, even after extensive trauma.

Left untreated, post-traumatic stress can result in a person learning to shut off their emotions at will, whether they feel anger, fear, or sadness. However, because a person cannot select which emotions to shut out, positive ones such as joy, curiosity, and excitement also become blocked out. Only through correct treatment can a person restore the ability to feel the full extent of their emotions without being overwhelmed by them.

This process, although lengthy, will also allow a person to develop a healthy relationship with dissociation, allowing them to feel their full range of emotions, while still being able put them at the back of the mind when needed. This allows them to shift dissociation in a healthy and fluid process.

This is one way in which a person might be able to shift from the intense sadness of Remembrance Day to the celebratory atmosphere of Independence Day. (JPost / VFI News)

The suggestions, opinions, and scripture references made by VFI News writers and editors are based on the best information received.

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