Middle East

U of Haifa’s School of Social Work faculty to help provide post-fire counseling

HAIFA (Press Release)–The University of Haifa’s School of Social Work has set out to provide assistance to the Regional Council of Hof Hacarmel in the wake of the massive fire. Hof Hacarmel is the regional council responsible for managing much of the area affected by the great fire in the Carmel Mountains over the past […]

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Middle East

Haifa fire controlled; experts suggest letting landscape recover on its own

By Judy Lash Balint JERUSALEM, Monday, Dec 6 — Light rain and a change in the direction of the wind overnight signaled the end of the 4-day fires in the Carmel Forest. This morning, as grey skies and cooler temperatures blanketed the country, officials announced that the foreign fire-fighting help would be heading home and

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Middle East

Haifa fire burned more this time than all fires in region since 1978

HAIFA (Press Release)– “Since 1978 the Carmel Mountains have seen some 500 small and medium fires and 9 large-scale conflagrations, which are considered such when over 100 hectares are burnt. All these fires together burnt some 3,000 hectares of forest, while the present fire has burnt some 5,000 hectares,” says Dr. Leah Wittenberg of the Department

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Middle East

Israel’s defensive shield against missiles changes Middle East’s strategic calculus

By Barry Rubin HERZLIYA, Israel — A factor up until now neglected in the Middle East strategic picture is Israel’s development of a strong, multi-level missile defense system aimed both against short-range rockets fired by Hamas and Hizballah as well as to guard against a future Iranian nuclear long-range threat. Many, unconsciously perhaps thinking of

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Middle East

U.S. once again declines to build embassy in Jerusalem

   WASHINGTON, D.C. (SDJW)—With expressions of warmth and friendship, the United States has dispatched aid to Israel to help that nation fight what has been described as the worst wildfire in its history. At the same time, in cold, formalistic words, President Barack Obama announced on Friday what his predecessors also have announced every six months

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Middle East

U.S. dispatches airborne assistance and materials for Israel’s wildfires

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Press Release) – The U.S. Government, led by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), is immediately dispatching U.S. Department of Defense aircraft to aid in the suppression of the raging wildfires in Israel.  Three U.S. Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard C-130 Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) aircraft will depart the

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Middle East

U.S. Ambassador picks wrong mosque in London to visit

By Barry Rubin   HERZLIYA, Israel–Almost a decade after the September 11 attacks, the U.S. government seem unable to tell the differences between moderate and radical Muslims, much less understand that it should support the former against the latter group. So when the U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom visits a mosque, you just know this nice

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International, Middle East, USA

Israel’s firefighting resources prove woefully inadequate

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–While the macro picture widely purveyed is global warming, the micro weathers determine who gets what. Europe is reporting record cold and snow, but it is still summer in this corner of the Middle East. Daily temperatures are ranging above 20 C (high 60s low 70 for Americans out of sync with the rest

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Ira Sharkansky, Middle East