Ep 388 Thu. July 7th, 2022

Antony Blinken congratulates new PM Yair Lapid; Israelis might need to start wearing masks inside & should theater be regulated by the Culture Minister?

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Today is Thursday, July 7th, 2022 in the Gregorian calendar and the 8th of Tamuz 5782 in the Hebrew calendar. Now, let’s get to the news.

1. United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken called up the new Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid to congratulate him on the role. That happened during a phone call yesterday. Blinken sent Lapid his well wishes as he took over for Naftali Bennett who was in the seat during the government before it fell. Blinken also affirmed the United States’ commitment to supporting Israel and its security during that call. This message of support comes a week before United States’ President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit Israel.
2. Covid-19 cases are on the rise yet again. Yesterday, COVID czar Salman Zarka announced health officials will reevaluate the indoor mask mandate due to an increase in positive cases. Recently, the daily caseload jumped to more than 12,000 positive cases with more than 370 of them seriously ill. In his press briefing, Zarka emphasized the need to protect elderly and at-risk populations with face masks. Israel ended its indoor face mask requirement in April, but given this sixth wave of COVID-19 cases, he’s already asking the public to take it upon themselves to begin wearing their mask indoors.
3. There is a mysterious stomach illness at a hotel in Eilat and the Health Ministry is not sure what is the cause for the stomach cramps and nausea. A guest says people were vomiting everywhere in the hotel including the lobby and elevators, the rooms. After the illnesses began Tuesday, two checks of the hotel kitchen found nothing suspicious and the hotel’s food has also been sent out for testing. More than 90 people have joined a WhatsApp messaging group called “Vomiting in Eilat” to confer and discuss their symptoms. The Health Ministry is conducting an epidemiological investigation into the stomach issues. Stay tuned for updates.
4. An update on the infamous Visa Waiver Program: the program would allow Israelis and U.S. citizens to visit each other’s countries without needing to secure a visa. The program already exists for more than 40 countries around the world. Officials from both countries say they’ve taken a step to push it forward, signing an agreement they needed to get done before the program started. It included signing an information sharing agreement between the embassies. Now, the last leg is actually getting Israeli officials to create legislation through the Knesset to make this happen, but since the government in Israel has collapsed and is currently defunct, this last leg will be on hold.
5. An interesting story came up today about a theatrical show in Be’er Sheva in the south of the country that was canceled. One report says it was canceled because it only sold 3 tickets. One report says it was canceled because of harsh criticism by right wing groups. The controversial musical called “Basic Instinct,” has been running since 2019 with a break for covid and features three actresses in pink Israel Defense Forces uniforms sharing their experiences being female soldiers serving in the contentious West Bank area. The show was set to open June 16th, but was canceled that morning. A right wing organization is taking credit for the show’s cancellation and left wingers are calling on the culture minister to intervene. Culture Minister Chili Tropper essentially said, “trust me, you don’t want the government getting involved in artistic decisions.” Miri Regev who had the role before him, had she succeeded, would have created a law to allow her to withhold public money that is meant to go toward cultural organizations if she deemed that the art was going against the principles of the state of Israel. What do you think about that?
6. A recent victory for Israel! For the first time in Israeli history, a rider on Israel’s team won a stage of the Tour de France on Wednesday. Simon Clarke hails from Australia, but was given the chance to ride for an Israeli biking team called Israel Premier Tech. Clarke thanked the Israeli team after his victory. In an interview on the tour’s official website, Clarke said, “I had no team, and Israel-Premier Tech rang me up. I was given that chance.” “Today is the reality check that everything can happen if you take the opportunity.” Clarke won stage 5 of the tour after a 97.5-mile run from Lille to Arenberg, 12.5 of those miles consisting of cobbled mining roads. Clarke says he gave his bike the biggest throw when he was close to the finish line and passed up another biker named Taco. Clarke won with just 50 meters between Taco. Israel’s Tourism Minister sent out a congratulatory Tweet to celebrate the historic win.
7. An ancient mosaic depicting a biblical story of two heroines has been uncovered in the Galilee. Archaeologists discovered this ancient Jewish artwork while digging at a 5th century Galilee synagogue. The mosaic is nearly 1,600 years old and is the earliest known depiction of two biblical heroines, Deborah and Yael. The artwork portrays a story from the Book of Judges about these two women. In the story, the prophetess Deborah predicts a woman named Yael would defeat Sisera’s army. Yael does kill Sisera using a tent peg and bashing it into the side of his head. That scene is shown in the mosaic. According to University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, the story may have had special resonance for the 5th century Jewish community of the Galilee, as it took place in the same region. The recently discovered artwork has been removed from the site for conservation.