VFI News July 31, 2020

Increasing numbers of Israelis have reported feeling anxiety and concerns over their ability to pay their bills during the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported on Sunday, releasing the results of a poll measuring what it called “civil resilience.”

According to the CBS study, conducted earlier this month, 42 percent of Israelis (around 2.4 million people) reported feeling anxiety, up 9% since a previous survey conducted as the country eased its national lockdown in mid-May.

Meanwhile, 21% of respondents reported experiencing a feeling of depression (up from 16% in May) while 19% of the population expressed feelings of loneliness, and 26% said that their mental health had “worsened” or “significantly worsened” during the crisis.

Furthermore, 8.5% of respondents aged 21 and up said that their non-mental health had deteriorated, a figure which rose to 13% for those 65-years old and up. (TOI / VFI News)

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Messiah Yeshua. —Philippians 4:19

“God, we ask that you hear the cry of your people and that you continue to provide for them as you have since the beginning.”

Yamina Party chairman and former Defense Minister MK Naftali Bennett called on the government to alter its strategy for handling the coronavirus crisis, pushing for a more proactive approach aimed at “eradicating” the pandemic.

In an interview, Bennett blasted Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz, accusing them of failing to work aggressively to end the ongoing crisis.

“The two prime ministers are busy fighting each other,” Bennett said.

The former Defense Minister said that Israel must work quickly to end the pandemic, pointing to the ongoing economic recession – possibly the worst in Israel’s history.

“The prime ministers are busy fighting each other, and they have put politics ahead of the State of Israel. That is very serious, but right now we need to fix it, to crush the coronavirus, and to start fixing our economy. We have no time, this is urgent.” (INN / VFI News)

You shall serve the Lord your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you. —Exodus 23:25

“God, we ask that you instruct those in charge to set their differences aside, so that they may work for the good of your people—and prevent further suffering.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu has instructed Minister of Tourism Miri Regev to prepare an outline for airplane trips from Israel to Cyprus, Greece, and other "green" states with low coronavirus morbidity rates.

In turn, Regev instructed the Ministry of Transportation, Civil Aviation Authority, and National Aviation Network to quickly arrange an outline for reopening the skies with the Ministry of Health and National Security Council for approval by the Coronavirus Cabinet.

According to the operating plan formulated by the Ministry of Transportation, incoming passengers will be divided into those arriving from "green" and "red" countries, with those from "green" countries defined as having a low morbidity rate, required to quarantine for just five days upon landing, and those from "red," or high-risk countries, obliged to perform a virus check before boarding.

The Ministry of Health is currently examining the plan and is expected to submit an expert conclusion. This will allow a final outline for operating flights during the pandemic to be drafted. (INN / VFI News)

Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. —Psalm 37:5

Israeli medical imaging technology start-up Nanox Imaging Ltd.—based in Neveh Ilan—has secured $110 million in funding to support the roll-out of the Nanox.ARC in countries worldwide, the company announced on Tuesday.

The Series B funding round was led by Israeli-based A-Labs Advisory and Finance Ltd., as lead advisors. Throughout Nanox's earlier funding rounds, the company secured around $55 million.

Nanox.ARC, in collaboration with its companion cloud-based software Nanox.Cloud, is a novel digital x-ray device intended to provide end-to-end medical imaging services—including image repository, radiologist matching, online and offline diagnostics review and annotation, and connectivity to diagnostic assistive artificial intelligence systems, as well as billing and reporting, according to Nanox founder and CEO Ran Poliakine.

According to Poliakine, the Nanox System “will promote early detection of medical conditions that are discoverable by x-ray” screenings—including x-ray based imaging modalities such as CT, mammography, fluoroscopy, and angiogram. (JPost / VFI News)

“God, we ask that you continue to bless those who work in medicine—in Israel and the world over—so that the most vulnerable among us might find hope for a better future.”

On Wednesday, Iran upped the rhetoric with images of masses of missiles, which it claims are the first of their type being shot from underground areas.

Iran is using the naval drill to put US forces on alert and test them, similar to what Hezbollah is doing to Israel at the same time. The second day of the 14th Great Prophet drills, an annual event for Iran on the southern coast, illustrated “one of the important and strategic achievements of the IRGC Air Force as it is firing ballistic missiles from deep underground,” the report says.

This final stage of the military drills included the use of drones in areas around the Straits of Hormuz. These were IRGC drones and Tasnim News says they attacked the model aircraft carrier and damaged the bridge of the ship. In addition, 22 Sukhoi aircraft strafed targets on an island.

Iran says it combined its air force and naval units as part of the drill, part of a strategy that could be used to confront enemies. Obviously, Iran’s message here is to the US and US ships in the area. (JPost / VFI News)

Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword. —Matthew 26:52

“God, we ask that you speak sanity to the Iranian leadership—that you would help them grasp their responsibility to serve their people, more than their own violent agendas.”

About 1,300 years ago, a 25-meter-long ship sank just a few dozen meters from the coast of Israel. Most likely, nobody perished in the incident.

But its plentiful cargo included 103 amphorae filled with all forms of agricultural products, numerous daily objects used by the crew, and many other unique features, such as several Greek and Arabic inscriptions. They were swallowed by the sea and the sand, which preserved their secrets for centuries.

The shipwreck has been excavated by the University of Haifa’s Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies since 2016. It has offered archaeologists unique insights into the life of the region at the time of the transition between Byzantine and Islamic rule, trade routes, and ship construction. (JPost / VFI News)

The remains of a 1,300-year-old church featuring fine mosaic floors were uncovered in the village of Kfar Kama in the Lower Galilee, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on Tuesday.

“The church, measuring 12 × 36 m., includes a large courtyard, a narthex foyer, and a central hall,” IAA archaeologist Nurit Feig said in a press release.

“This church presented three apses [prayer niches], The nave and the aisles were paved with mosaics which partially survived. Their colorful decoration stands out, incorporating geometric patterns, and blue, black, and red floral patterns. A special discovery was the small reliquary, a stone box used to preserve sacred relics.”

The church was first found during the excavation ahead of the construction of a playground in the village at the initiative of the Kfar Kama Local Council and the Jewish National Fund.

The researchers also uncovered several rooms adjacent to the church and additional chambers yet to be excavated were revealed by a ground-penetrating radar inspection operated by Dr. Shani Libbi. (JPost / VFI News)

One of the largest collections of royal Kingdom of Judah seal impressions has been uncovered at a massive First Temple-period public tax collection and storage complex being excavated near the new United States Embassy in Jerusalem. The main Iron Age structure is exceptional in terms of both its size and architectural style, said Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologist Neri Sapir, who co-directed the excavation.

Uncovered only three kilometers (1.8 miles) outside the Old City, the compound is believed by Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologists to have served as an administrative center during the reigns of Judean kings Hezekiah and Menashe (8th century to the middle of the 7th century BCE).

Over 120 jar handles stamped 2,700 years ago with ancient Hebrew script seal impressions were discovered at the site, clearly indicating the location’s use as a storage and tax center, according to an IAA press release Wednesday. Prevalent among the stamped inscriptions is “LMLK,” “Lamelekh,” or “Belonging to the King,” a way of marking that the foodstuffs stored in the jars had been tithed to the Judean ruler. (TOI / VFI News)