JERUSALEM NEWS
NEWS AND INFORMATION
Events, happenings, and Opinions Concerning
Israel, Israelites, Judah, and Everyone Else
Jerusalem News-743
Jerusalem News-743
Date 11th March 2008, 4 Adar-2 5768
Contents:
1. THE SCANDINAVIANS RETURN TO ISRAEL
2. Poll: Antisemitisim in Canada, Quebecois Worse
3.'German children tired of Holocaust'
4. The Mercaz HaRav Attack
(a) Yitzhak Dadon
(b) David Shapira
(c) Pictures of Some of the Children Who Were Killed
5. Arabs in Israel: Those Who Support the State Compared to Those who Do Not.
1. THE SCANDINAVIANS RETURN TO ISRAEL
From: imra@netvision.net.il
PRESS RELEASE
Lydia Weitzman, Foreign Press Adviser to the Ministry of Tourism
Email: tourism.gov.il@gmail.com
www.tourism.gov.il
9 March 2008
THE SCANDINAVIANS RETURN TO ISRAEL
10,000 tourists expected to arrive on about 60 charter flights from
Stockholm and Helsinki to Tel Aviv and Eilat during 2008-9.
The second largest wholesaler in Europe,
Dutch company Neckermann Thomas Cook, will market tour packages to Israel
from October 2008
The intensive marketing activities of the Ministry of Tourism in the
Scandinavian countries have borne fruit, with agreements reached in air and
wholesale travel.
The Finnish company Matka Vekka recently announced that, for the first time,
it will market vacation packages to Eilat and tours around Israel, in the
belief that the tourism potential in Eilat has yet to be exploited in the
Finnish market. This is in addition to the weekly charter flight that will
fly from Helsinki to Eilat (via Ovda) from October 2008 through to end April
2009, a total of 26 charter flights carrying more than 5,000 tourists. Matka
Vekka, which has been marketing vacation packages to various destinations
around the world, has 32 travel agencies in Finland, as well as 8 new
planes.
In addition, the Swedish company Sabra Tours has announced that it will be
returning to Israel with 33 charter flights from Stockholm to Tel Aviv, in
cooperation with Israir, from March-November 2008. Despite the "security
net" arrangement with the company, travel industry professionals estimate
that, due to the recent increase in demand of 20% on last year's
reservations, the full capacity of some 4,500 tourists will be met.
The activities of the Ministry of Tourism in the Netherlands have also borne
fruit, with the recent announcement that the second largest wholesaler in
Europe, the Dutch company Neckermann Thomas Cook, is returning to Israel
after ceasing operations in 2000. The company has decided to offer a 5 day
touring package to Israel from October 2008 through to end April 2009, with
tourists flying from Amsterdam to Taba and crossing the border into Israel.
During 2007, about 45,000 tourists visited Israel from Scandinavia. In
January 2008, 2,205 tourists came to Israel from Scandinavia, an increase of
16% over January 2007. Director-General of the Ministry of Tourism Shaul
Tzemach: The increase in tourists from Scandinavia is an expression of
confidence in Israel and its tourism product. The entry of tourism
wholesalers and new airlines is expected to encourage others in these
markets to begin operations in Israel."
The Ministry of Tourism is continuing to work with the Scandinavian
countries, renewing contacts with the Pentecostal Church, one of the largest
in Scandinavia. Senior members of the church, accompanied by journalists,
are expected to visit Israel in May as guests of the Ministry of Tourism for
the launch of the 60th anniversary celebrations. Christian community leaders
in Scandinavia will be briefed on Israel so that they can transmit this
information to their local communities, and the first activities of this
type took place last month in Finland. 32 new group leaders are expected to
arrive in Israel within the next few months for similar briefings.
2. Poll:
Antisemitisim
in Canada, Quebecois Worse
From: Yocheved Menashe <menashe@MAIL.H-NET.MSU.EDU>
Subject: H-AS HENRY: Quebecois attitudes toward Jews
From: "Brian Henry" <brianhenry@sympatico.ca>
The most recent poll of Canadian attitude toward Jews again shows a large
discrepancy between Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.
I've previously written about the Quebecois problem here:
http://tinyurl.com/yxlwegIn that article I suggested that while the new
antisemitism expressed as loathing for Israel was growing in Quebec,the
old xenophobia might be dying off. This latest poll suggests I spoke too
soon. Yours, Brian Henryeditor & writerbhenry_ed@hotmail.com Toronto,
CanadaQuebecers' view of Jews sets them apart, poll finds By DAVID
LAZARUS, Staff Reporter, Canadian Jewish News
Thursday, 28 February 2008
MONTREAL - A recent nationwide poll commissioned in the aftermath of
Quebec's "reasonable accommodation" commission hearings on minorities
reveals a striking disparity between Quebecers' attitudes toward Jews and
those of other Canadians.
The poll, commissioned by the Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) and
conducted by L ?ger Marketing between Jan. 31 and Feb. 4, asked 1,500
Canadians whether they agreed with, disagreed with, or didn't know/had no
opinion on a series of statements regarding Jews and anti-Semitism.
According to the poll results, 41 per cent of Quebecers agreed, and
another 41 per cent disagreed, with the idea that "Jews want to impose
their customs and traditions on others." By comparison, only 11 per cent
agreed and 74 per cent disagreed in the rest of Canada.
To another statement - "Jews want to participate fully in society" - 41
per cent of Quebecers disagreed and 31 per cent agreed, compared with a
mere eight per cent disagreeing and 72 per cent agreeing among other
Canadians.
On the idea that "Jews have made an important contribution to society," 35
per cent of Quebecers disagreed and 41 per cent agreed, compared with only
10 per cent disagreeing and 74 per cent agreeing in the rest of Canada.
The rest here:
http://www.cjnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14099&Itemid=86
Brian Henry
Writer/Editor
Toronto, Canada
3.'German children tired of Holocaust'
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1205162816661&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
By ETGAR LEFKOVITS, BERLIN
4. The
Mercaz
HaRav
Attack
(a) Yitzhak
Dadon
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Yeshiva student who shot attacker recounts moments of horror; 'I was studying
when shots rang out'
http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=38484
[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: For some reason, Israel Radio is frequently not
mentioning the role of Dadon in killing the terrorist and only mentions the
IDF officer who lives near the yeshiva and joined Dadon.]
'I shot terrorist in head'
Yeshiva student who shot attacker recounts moments of horror; 'I was
studying when shots rang out'
Aviram Zino YNET Published: 03.06.08, 22:42 / Israel News
www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3516039,00.html
A yeshiva student who shot the Jerusalem terrorist says he was busy studying
when suddenly shots rang out, prompting him to grab his gun and eventually
kill the Palestinian attacker
"We realized something happened so I cocked my handgun," Yitzhak Dadon told
Ynet Thursday evening.
"I went up on the roof and waited for the terrorist. Meanwhile, I saw blood
and shattered glass," Dadon said. "The terrorist continue firing in the air,
so I waited to see him again, and then I shot him twice in the head."
Dadon says the terrorist continued firing even after he was hurt.
"He kept on firing until an IDF officer arrived and shot him again," Dadon
said.
The gunman infiltrated a rabbinical seminary at the entrance of Jerusalem
and opened fire after nightfall Thursday, police said. The ZAKA emergency
response service has confirmed at least eight people have been killed.
Paramedics said they treated several people for injuries - among them four
in serious to critical condition.
(b) David
Shapira
An officer and a hero
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1204546442479&
pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
By REBECCA ANNA STOIL
Captain David Shapira
|
As the tragic events of Thursday began to become more clear, it became
increasingly obvious that the hero of the evening was Paratroopers Capt. David
Shapira, a father of two young children who proved to be the right man in the
right place during the bloody attack.
Shapira was supposed to have been at his base, but he left to perform errands
for his battalion, trading places with another officer for the weekend.
The 29-year-old operations officer in the 890th Battalion had just bathed his
children, and had put one of them to sleep when he heard explosions coming from
the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva across the street.
Although he first thought the noise was from pre-Purim firecrackers, he quickly
realized that the explosions were gunshots. Grabbing his service weapon, he ran
out of the house toward the yeshiva where he himself had studied.
RELATED
Police probe response to J'lem attack
All Merkaz Harav wounded out of danger
At the entrance to the yeshiva in the capital's Kiryat Moshe neighborhood,
Shapira ran into a group of police officers who were standing outside the
building, listening to the gunshots from inside. They warned him not to go in,
but Shapira pushed them aside and entered.
The officer tracked the terrorist to the library, and, according to his own
account, got within two to three meters of his target. Shapira shot 16 bullets
at the terrorist, immediately neutralizing him.
And then - like any good officer - Shapira notified his commander. He called the
head of the 890th Battalion, and informed him that he had neutralized the
terrorist - and was searching the area to make sure that other terrorists had
not taken cover in the building.
And with that - at least from the perspective of the young officer - his role
was over. He and his wife, Hodaya, who is in the late stages of pregnancy,
planned a quiet weekend together.
But on Friday, Shapira received a phone call from an admirer with roots deep in
the Paratrooper's longtime rival, the Golani Brigade.
Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi called to express his admiration
for Shapira's actions - and to hear firsthand an account of the events of the
night before.
Ashkenazi expressed admiration for the "fast and correct" way in which the
captain responded to the attack, adding that this is how he expects "any officer
to behave, whether in his unit, on the roads or on leave."
"In your actions," Ashkenazi told Shapira, "you brought expression to the values
of the spirit of the IDF. You demonstrated personal leadership, determination,
calmness, bravery and pursuit of your enemy until he was neutralized."
(c) Pictures of Some of the Children
Who Were Killed
Some of the Victims of the Mercaz HaRav Attack
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Unarmed Youthful Students of Mercaz HaRav Who Were Shot Down in Cold blood for being Jewish
|
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For Names and Short Biographical Details go to Israel Ministry of Foreign
Affairs site and click on the pictures:
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+since+2000/
Terror+shooting+at+Mercaz+Harav+Yeshiva+in+Jerusalem+6-Mar-2008.htm
5. Arabs in Israel: Those Who Support
the State Compared to Those who Do Not.
Our World: Whither Israeli Arabs?
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1205162814617&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
By CAROLINE GLICK
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