Host Simon Spungin is joined by Haaretz’s Anshel Pfeffer and ultra-Orthodox journalist and activist Pnina Pfeuffer to discuss the aftermath of the Mount Meron tragedy, in which 45 people were crushed to death at a Jewish festival.
Want to get an email every time a new episode is available? Click Follow on top of this article, or Register with one of the podcast providers – and you ll never miss out
We ask: Will Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the political and religious leaders of the ultra-Orthodox community establish a commission of inquiry to investigate the incident, or are they too scared of the Pandora’s Box that could open?
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel s diplomatic reporter
In this Jan. 25, 2011 file photo, demonstrators deface a poster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Alexandria, Egypt. (AP Photo)
Ten years ago, in late 2010 and early 2011, the Arab world experienced a series of convulsions that tore apart the Middle East as we knew it. Starting in Tunisia, where a young fruit vendor named Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire to protest corruption and police abuse, angry demonstrations spread throughout the region. Some of the world’s longest-ruling leaders were toppled within months. There was a sense of optimism, that the long-suffering citizens of Arab nations were finally rising up to demand basic human rights and dignity in secular, youth-led popular uprisings.
50 shares
Ultra-Orthodox Hayat brothers practice Capoeira, a Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance, acrobatics and music, in the Western Wall in Jerusalem s Old City. (Nati Shohat /FLASH90)
1. Symbolic bombshell: A High Court ruling that people who convert to Judaism in Israel through the Reform and Conservative movements must be recognized as Jews for the purpose of obtaining citizenship through the Law of Return is regarded as a major bombshell Monday, upending years during which Israel’s Interior Ministry refused to take such a step.
The deal is predictably celebrated by the non-Orthodox and deplored by the ultra-Orthodox, and is also thrust almost immediately into the political sphere, coming a few weeks before Israel goes back to the polls. With Conservative and Reform Jews making up just a tiny slice of Israel, most news reports focus not on the historicity of the ruling, but the fight surrounding it.
Dosis a un 20% de la población, 50 000 pinchazos al día: así ha conseguido Israel su esprint en la vacunación eldiario.es - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from eldiario.es Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
3 shares
A medical worker prepares a COVID-19 vaccine in Ichilov Hospital in Tel Aviv on December 20, 2020. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
1. Immunity now: Israel’s vaccine drive is racing ahead a day after a new shipment of shots was flown in, putting it on the path to become the world’s first immunized nation.
Channel 12 news reports that Israel will be getting 400,000-700,000 coronavirus vaccine doses from Pfizer-BioNTech each week until the adult population is immunized, as part of a deal with the company under which it gets health data from Israel’s massive medical database.
According to the report, health authorities are seeking to administer 200,000 shots a day.