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Israel Is Hot! And We're Not Talking about the Weather.
We're Talking Business, Investment and Money
by Israel HighWay Staff

The passengers arriving in Tel Aviv's airport this summer include increasing numbers of tourists and students on summer programs. But there is also a growing pilgrimage of investment bankers, hi-tech executives, and officials from American cities and states. Israel has become a powerful magnet attracting investment and potential business partners. The tiny country with a population smaller than New York City's and a land mass that could comfortably fit in almost any American state is a world leader in innovation.

Israel has a wide range of tech strengths, according to Red Herring, an authoritative technology magazine. "Among those growing strengths include medical technology, biotech, and nanotech. But the country hasn't lost its edge in security and the Internet, either," Red Herring reports in its cover story this week. "There are now 75 Israeli companies listed on the tech-heavy Nasdaq [stock market exchange] - more listings than any other foreign country but Canada."

Issue of the Week is continued below

Sderot Kids: We Don't Want to Move by Roee Mendel

Students from elementary schools across Israel wrap up the school year soon, but for Sderot students summer break is already here, and it is no reason to party. The non-stop Qassam attacks on the town and the public's struggle against them has forced schools to close early, as parents are unwilling to risk sending their children to the unprotected buildings that have already been the site of a number of rocket strikes.

Nir Ohana, a student from Sderot, says that just yesterday he saw a Qassam soar over his house and hit next to the local library. "The Qassam didn't fall 15 seconds after the Red Dawn siren like it usually does, but a whole minute after. So my mother and I thought it was a false alarm. We went to the window and saw a Qassam going right by our house."

Meanwhile more children said their families were considering moving away from the rocket-battered town. "My parents are already looking for apartments outside of Sderot and Ashkelon because of the Qassams," Danny Iskov said. "I don't want to leave my friends though." (Ynet News)

Hamas and Fatah Are Preparing for War by Avi Issacharoff

Hamas and Fatah are preparing for war. Militants are gathering intelligence ahead of an operation against each other, rather than Israel. Both sides are monitoring the movements of rival senior officials with roadblocks on the routes taken by military commanders. The recruitment, training, and arming of more than 4,000 Palestinians in forces associated with Fatah are meant to send a message to Hamas. "For every one of our men who is hit by Hamas fire, we will hit two of yours," a senior Fatah official told Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh last week. (Ha'aretz)

Israel Votes to Save the Whales by Adrinah Greene

Israel cast ballots to keep whales safe against Japanese proposals at the International Whaling Commission's annual meeting in St. Kitts and Nevis which began Friday. One measure, defeated 31-30, would have permitted a commercial moratorium exemption allowing countries to hunt 150 Minke and 150 Byrde whales in their own territorial waters. Another would have removed the prohibition on hunting dolphins and porpoises.

Israel joined the IWC two weeks ago at the invitation of the U.S. (Jerusalem Post)

German Exposé of Palestinian Media Hi-Jinx in Gaza Beach Tragedy by Thorsten Schmitz

The German Suedduetche Zeitung ran the following article with a detailed examination of the evidence in the Gaza Beach shooting. Seven casualties in Gaza beach: Was it a shelling attack by Israel? Or an exploding Palestinian land mine? An example of how Palestinians sometimes bend the truth.

Last Friday ten year old Huda Ghalia rose early, the summer holidays had begun. Huda's father Ali had promised his children to organize a picnic at the beach in northern Gaza last week. For the father, one of his two wives and five of the sons and daughters the picnic had a deadly end. Before 5 PM a shell exploded in the midst of the family. Seven humans lost their lives. The bloody picnic made Huda Ghalija famous within a few hours world-wide. This was owing to the cameraman Zakarija Abu Harbed. Cameraman Harbed had occupational luck: He was first at the place of the misfortune.

The Israeli Ministry of Defense concluded, after first evaluations of radar and satellite photographs, that the projectile, which led to the death of the seven Palestinians did not originate with the army.

Great importance is attached to Harbed's television pictures. These however raise more questions than they contribute to clarifying. The original photographs are in the meantime so doubtful that CNN shows them only in abbreviated form at its Website.

To the Sueddeutche Zeitung, Harbed explains that he had been informed afterwards about the explosion and driven to the scene by the rescue medics in the ambulance. In his pictures however, Harbed films the hysteria of the ten-year Huda, as if he were a witness of the detonation. Also he films the arrival of the medics, as though he was at the beach beforehand. Additionally, some of the dead and wounded are covered with cloths - who did that?

Harbed claims that Huda escaped serious injury, since she was bathing in the sea. In his photos, however, Huda is running around in dry street clothes. It is also strange why in Harbed's pictures we cannot discern a crater. The more cameraman Harbed is asked by Sueddeutche Zeitung in the telephone interview, the more he evades the issue.

Why didn't it occur to Harbed to calm the hysterical Huda down instead of pursuing her for several minutes with his camera? Harbed says: "She asked me to film her. She wanted to be shown to the world with her father and show the world what crimes Israel commits." The ten-year Huda, who lost seven family members, distraught in mourning, is supposed have given Harbed cinema direction instructions?

The fact that Palestinians in the Middle East war fabricate based on pictures or bring incorrect pictures into circulation is not new. (Suedduetche Zeitung, translated by Zionation blog)

See Also: From Gaza, Tragedy and Propaganda - by David Frum

Since 2000, hoaxing has emerged as a major tool of Palestinian propaganda. A U.S. Web site, SecondDraft.org, has compiled documentary footage to reveal a startling series of faked funerals, staged gun battles, and professional weeping grandmothers. (National Post/AEI)

Palestinian Youth Seek to Get Locked Up to Get Away
by Mark Mackinnon

Nablus teenager Mohammed Kharaz, 17, heard from a kid in his class that if you get yourself arrested by the Israeli army, they send you to a prison with digital television, interesting books, and even a decent soccer field. To Mohammed, it sounded like a dream vacation, so on Feb. 25, he tucked a kitchen knife under his shirt and headed toward an Israeli checkpoint [seeking arrest]. It played out just as his friend described."It's a real phenomenon," said Jacob Dallal, a spokesman for the Israeli army. He said soldiers had seen dozens of simiilar cases.

Prison life was a welcome break from the numbing routine of days sitting in school, evenings helping his father at the family's tailoring business and nights broken by gunfire. It was also a respite from his cramped family home where six people live in two small rooms, and from his father's insistence that the Western-dressed teenager abide by a strict interpretation of Islam.

"Ofer [Prison] was like paradise....We had a good time playing football and table tennis in the big courtyard. I started reading good books in there," Mohammed said. He was crestfallen when his father paid a $250 bond to get him released early.

Mahmoud Tabbouq wanted to go back to jail was to concentrate on his studies. His 17-year-old sister, Yusra, said that her brother, who was good in school, had spoken longingly of prison ever since he was released the first time. "He couldn't stand the guys from the refugee camps who were always carrying weapons. He felt like he was suffocating. He told me, 'I can't achieve in school with this chaotic environment around me.'" Her brother is now applying to take his high-school exams from behind bars, Yusra added. (Globe and Mail - Canada)

America Eats for Israel by Mollie R. Sharfman

On March 27, 130 kosher restaurants across the United States and Canada participated in America Eats for Israel, donating 10 percent of the day's gross revenues to charities in Israel.

"If there's one thing Jewish teenage boys love to do, it's eat," said Kevin Beckoff and Ephraim Tauber, sophomores at Torah Academy of Bergen County in Teaneck, N.J., who headed their school's participation in the program. "By simply eating lunch or dinner at the right places, we're fulfilling a great mitzvah - it's a two for one deal."

During America Eats for Israel, yeshiva high school students stood outside kosher restaurants and held signs that read "Eat Here for Israel Today!" The enthusiasm from their communities was palpable. People just kept coming and coming, hour after hour. If they weren't going to one restaurant, they were on their way to another one. Restaurants in Baltimore and Cleveland were filled to capacity and even had to turn people away.

America Eats for Israel was started last year by concerned Yeshivat Rambam high school students in Baltimore who desperately wanted to take action. "On a daily basis, as aware Jewish high school students, we hear of the terrible tragedies that plague our Israeli brethren and it is our responsibility as future Jewish leaders to get involved," said Shoshana Pachino, project coordinator at Yeshivat Rambam. America Eats for Israel 2005 raised $28,000 for the Terror Victims Association. Donations from this year's event will be given to the Terror Victims Association, the One Family Fund, and the Koby Mandell Foundation.

It was an incredible feeling of achdut (unity) to have brought together the Jewish community from coast to coast, north to south.

All of us have the responsibility to advocate for Eretz Yisrael and for all the people of Israel. "Kol Yisrael Areivim Zeh La'zeh" - Jews are responsible for one another. We need to help our brothers and sisters wherever they may be.

With America Eats for Israel you can start doing your part with a delicious meal at your local kosher restaurant. To be a representative in your school for America Eats for Israel 2007 or to just help out, e-mail us at americaeatsforisrael@yahoo.com.

Mollie R. Sharfman is a senior at Yeshivat Rambam in Baltimore. (New York Jewish Week, Fresh Ink for Teens)

Junior Peace Talks Planned by Itamar Eichner

Some 12 Israeli and Palestinian teens, who will undergo a series of tests reminiscent of the reality-show A Star Is Born, will set out for a summer camp in Finland shortly where they will hold a children's parliament. The role of the teens will be to sit around the discussion table and bring up new ideas for peace in the area. The idea has been put forward by the Children's United Parliament of the World, an independent body based in Finland.

Israel's Education Ministry has already located 20 youths aged 14 to 16 in a Jerusalem school which will shortly arrive for tests at the Foreign Ministry. Out of them, 6 teens who can speak English and have wide general knowledge will be chosen. (Ynet News)

Bridging the Gap - In Abraham's Image

One year after having experienced one of Israel's most successful coexistence educational programs, a group of Arab and Jewish children is being given the opportunity to reunite at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. Hundreds of Jerusalem's Arab and Jewish 4th and 5th grade students have met in the museum this year as part of the unique educational project, 'The Image of Abraham,' created by the museum. The children come from Rehavia in Jerusalem, Armon Hanatziv and Jabel Mukaber.

The innovative project combines educational and social challenges for all involved and opens the door for understanding and mutual respect where no other project succeeds. The program is based on a common understanding of a common heritage, Abraham the Patriarch. The project enables the children to meet, communicate and to overcome negative stereotypes. Through learning about themselves, and each other, they are able to understand their similarities and respect their differences; a vital ingredient for building a future where peaceful coexistence can be realized. (Canadian Jewish News)

KC Teens Will Be Off to Israel by Rick Hellman

Some 30 Kansas City Jewish teens are heading to the Jewish state for educational and touring experiences this summer. That's way up from the second-intifada nadir of 2002, when The Chronicle could find just two local teens planning to go on organized summer trips to Israel.

And yet Marcia Rittmaster, director of youth and informal education at Reform Congregation Beth Torah, where three young members will be going to Israel this summer, said she sees the lure of the free birthright israel trip (It's offered to Jews 18-26 who haven't gone on an organized trip before) holding down participation in Israel summer programs for high schoolers.

"Here is what I am seeing: Many kids are waiting for birthright," Rittmaster said. "I try to tell them 10 days is different than five and a half weeks. But free is also different than $6,000," which is how much some Israel summer programs cost.

Todd Cohn, the adviser for the Kansas City chapter of the National Conference of Synagogue Youth, said 14 members are going to Israel this summer on NCSY programs (pictured). And another eight or nine teens will embark on full-year study programs in the fall, Cohn said. "That is way more in NCSY programs than our city has ever seen before," Cohn said. (Kansas City Jewish Chronicle)

A Life-Changing Trek by Sarah Schwartz

Waking up on that beautiful, sunny June 6 morning I did not realize that I was about to experience one of the most moving and significant days of my life. It started as just another morning on my six-week school trip to Israel.

That morning our madrichim (counselors) informed us that it was Yom Yerushalayim (Jerusalem Day) and that we would be going on a very long and memorable walk with the Israelis in our dorm. I did not have special expectations because we went on trips weekly. Little did I know that this would be the most meaningful day I spent in Israel.

Babies, elderly people, Israelis, Americans, seminary students, and others were there. All were dancing and singing. From a distance, all that could be seen were Israeli flags with orange Gush Katif strings attached. There were men dancing on rooftops and women circle dancing on the streets. I felt surrounded by love for Israel.

Girls and boys separated as they danced to "Od Avinu Chai" along with other popular Jewish songs. The feeling of ruach was growing; Jews were singing their hearts out in the excitement and in their love of Yerushalayim. I began to feel a connection to the city and its people, my friends and I began to rejoice in the dancing. I sang and laughed as I walked through the streets.

Unfortunately I was not in Yerushalayim to celebrate Yom Yerushalayim this past May 26. However, I was able to draw a deep connection to the day and to the Israeli soldiers who bravely fought to gain the most holy place on Earth. I thank and salute them.

Sarah Schwartz is a junior at the Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School in Livingston, N.J. (New York Jewish Week, Fresh Ink for Teens)

Bronfman Youth Fellowships Awarded to 26 High School Students

For the 20th consecutive year, The Bronfman Youth Fellowships in Israel has selected a group of 26 high school students to be Bronfman Fellows. The Bronfman Fellows participate in an intensive five-week program of study and travel in Israel designed to develop future community leaders committed to Jewish unity. The program is funded by The Samuel Bronfman Foundation (TSBF).

This year's Bronfman Fellows were selected from 12 U.S. states and Canada, following a rigorous application process. They represent diverse Jewish backgrounds including Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, Reconstructionist, unaffiliated and other. Traveling throughout Israel, the Fellows participate in seminars and dialogues with diverse rabbinic faculty. Fellows also spend a week with a group of Israeli peers who have been chosen through a parallel selection process as part of the Israeli Youth Fellowship. (pictured: members of last year's mission) (Newswire)

Hebrew Academy of Greater Hartford Graduating Class Discovers the Beauty of Israel

In between stops for falafel and shwarma, the eighth grade class of the Sigel Hebrew Academy of Greater Hartford spent every moment of their recent two-week trip to Israel exploring the splendor of the Jewish state, where they celebrated both Yom Hazikaron - Israel Memorial Day - and Yom Ha'atzmaut - Israel Independence Day.

Among the highlights: a hike up Har Ben-Tal, an abandoned Syrian outpost in the northeastern corner of the Golan Heights, and its sister mountain Har Avital, an Israeli military installation; a "joy" ride ziplining and rappelling down Manara Cliff; a "disco" boat ride along the Kinneret - the Sea of Galilee; a visit to the spiritual city of Tzfat; an archaelogical dig in the ancient tunnels of Bet Guvrin; a walk along the walls of the City of David and through the Jewish Quarter of the Old City; prayers at the Kotel - the Western Wall - and an exploration of the tunnels that lie beneath it; an afternoon splashing around in the waterfalls of the Ein Gedi oasis, and floating in the healing waters of the Dead Sea; a hike up the fortress of Masada; an exploration of the Negev desert, baking pita bread and planting fruit trees. (Jewish Ledger)

See also: Israel HighWay, May 25

Agent Predicts: Lior Eliyahu Will Play in the NBA
by Joseph D. Robbins

After decades of waiting for the first Israeli to reach the NBA, the 2006 NBA Draft features two players going head-to-head hoping to secure the honor.

Yotam Halperin and Lior Eliyahu (pictured) both have strong shots of being taken in the draft, which will be held on June 28 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, but Eliyahu's agent indicated Tuesday that the young forward may decide to wait another year before trying his luck. The decision will be an issue of "the likelihood of him getting drafted," agent Steve Heumann said. "As we get closer [to draft day] we will have to decide if the offers we get from teams are good enough, and then Lior and I will sit down and decide whether he will stay in," or wait another year.

Eliyahu, 20, has blossomed the last two seasons with Hapoel Galil Elyon-Golan after averaging 15.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and being selected for the FIBA EuroCup All-Star game. (Jerusalem Post)

World Cup Star Helps Show There Is More to Life in Israel
by Jeremy Last

One thing few people expected was to see an Israeli flag waved straight at the television camera by one of the Ghanaian players celebrating the goal. Hapoel Tel Aviv's John Pantsil didn't stop there. At the end of the game he proudly paraded around the pitch holding the blue-and-white flag in the air.

Pantsil is one of three Israel-based players in the Ghana squad. His celebration was clearly planned in advance (he appeared to have kept the flag hidden in his sock) and was hoping for an opportunity to show the world how much he cares about and loves the country he lives and works in.

What was most impressive about what Pantsil did was the purity of his intentions. Explaining his actions the defender told one Israeli sports Website: "I love the fans in Israel. I have played at Hapoel and Maccabi Tel Aviv and the fans always made me happy so I wanted to make them happy." That was it. Pure and simple.The flag waving spoke volumes about Israeli football and this country. (Jerusalem Post)

Israel World Champion in Strategy Games by Moran Zelikovich

Israel may not be taking part in the Soccer World Cup, but in thinking games its students are world champions. Last week, four Israelis from the Har-Schania school in the northern regional council of Misgav won first place in the first Olympics for thinking games, which took place in the University of Oxford in Britain.

Physical fitness is not the deciding factor: Instead of a 100-meter (328-feet) sprint or a long-distance jump, players sit at a table and compete in strategic games, such checkers and mazes. "It was really easy," concluded Tomer Levin, one of four members of the Israeli delegation. The young students obtained 24 of the 24 possible points.

Four teams (Israel, Spain, and two British teams) competed against each other in four thinking and strategy games. Next year, 12 teams from around the world will compete. (Ynet News)

Jewish School Band Cuts CD Album

The "Neurim" Quartet of the Beit Sefer Menachem Jewish School of S. Petersburg has issued a CD. This vocal quartet was founded in 2003 by the Jewish school. This is only one of the many creative projects run by this educational institution.

The band involves students of older grades – Anna Koroteyeva, Taya Svistova, Mikaela Snitko and Rivka Sysalova. Yilia Degtyaryova is the director of the quartet. The audio disc features four series of songs: Songs of Israel, Songs of Jerusalem, Shabbat Songs and Songs in Yiddish. (Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS)

Hamas Must Accept Minimal International Ground Rules Editorial

There is something very important that the outside world, particularly the Arab and Islamic world, can do to help the steadily deteriorating Israeli-Palestinian situation. It can make plain to the Hamas-led government of the Palestinian Authority that if it means to become the legitimate international voice of the Palestinian people, and a true government in the community of nations, it will have to accept the minimal international ground rules already in place. These include renouncing terrorism, acknowledging Israel's existence as a sovereign nation, and abiding by formal agreements previously signed by lawful Palestinian negotiators. (New York Times)

Iran Dilemma Leaves Many Open Questions by James Besser

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's threats against Israel: Can Israel afford to take the chance that it's just rhetoric - especially when a single nuclear attack could wipe out a substantial part of the tiny Jewish state?

The dilemmas facing Jewish leaders are compounded by the daunting realities facing U.S. policymakers. Sanctions are difficult against a country that holds the developed world over a barrel - or, more precisely, millions of barrels of oil. Diplomatic pressure works only when the most powerful, richest nations are united - something unlikely to happen as long as so many have so much to gain by appeasing Tehran. And international diplomatic pressure loses much of its force without a credible threat of military action, something that is diminishing every day the Iraq war continues.

The result is a cautious, pragmatic and very nervous approach by Jewish leaders. Most are willing to give the administration time to pursue its latest diplomatic strategy, even though few give it much chance of succeeding. Many believe there is little choice but to continue pressing the administration to remain tough with Iran, without explaining what "tough" means in a context of limited, imperfect options. None but the most hard-line are pressing for a military solution that has grave risks for this nation, for an Israel that would be the first target of Iranian retaliation and for an American Jewish community that could get the blame for the conflict.

Most will continue trying to temper their reactions to Ahmadinejad's bellicose, belligerent rhetoric, on the chance it's all part of his diplomatic game - but still speak up on the horrifying chance it is not. (Jewish News Weekly)

Exploring the Strength of Ties to Jerusalem by Daniel Pipes

Historically, the religious standing of Jerusalem for Muslims waxed and waned six times through 14 centuries. British rule over the city in 1917-48 galvanized a passion for Jerusalem that had been absent during the 400 years of Ottoman control. Throughout the Jordanian control of the walled city in 1948-67, Arabs largely ignored it. Jordanian radio broadcast Friday prayers not from Al-Aqsa mosque but from a minor mosque in Amman. The PLO's founding Covenant, which dates from 1964, contains no mention of Jerusalem.

Muslim interest in the city revived only with the Israeli conquest of Jerusalem in 1967. By 1990, the Islamic focus on Jerusalem reached such a surreal intensity that Palestinian Arabs denied the city's sacred and historical importance to Jews.

The Camp David summit of July 2000 saw the Israeli government put forward its demands for sovereignty over parts of the Temple Mount. As Dennis Ross, an American diplomat present at the summit, put it, Arafat "never offered any substantive ideas, not once" at the talks. However, "He did offer one new idea, which was that the Temple didn't exist in Jerusalem, that it was in Nablus." With this, Jerusalem's pseudo-history became formal Palestinian Authority policy. (New York Sun)

Issue of the Week continued

Israel made front-page business news recently when American billionaire Warren Buffet (pictured) paid $4 billion for an 80 percent stake in Israeli tool-making company Iscar. This was the biggest deal in Israel's history and focused considerable attention on Israeli companies.

The Buffett purchase "is an important endorsement of the Israeli economy," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told the U.S. Congress last month. "It is recognition that what unites us, Israel and America, is a commitment to tap the greatest resource of all - the human mind and the human spirit."

Many American state and municipal officials have understood the remarkable rise in Israeli technological and security know-how. Almost every week governors and mayors from across the U.S. visit Israel to explore business ties. One mayor, Kevin S. Smith from Anderson, Indiana, said, "I can't overemphasize the value of the competitive drive I discovered in Israel," Smith, who led a trade mission to Tel Aviv and Ra'anana in March, explained, "Companies are developing quality products and services to compete in the global business arena. It's a winning combination."

The State of Illinois signed a cooperation agreement with the Israeli government this week, recognizing the mutual economic interests in the two regions, particularly in the field of homeland security.

Thirteen U.S. states currently maintain trade offices in Israel.

Who Benefits? Everybody

According to Jon Medved, a senior partner at Israel Seed Partners, a Jerusalem-based venture capital firm, Israel's expanding growth in the business sector helps America and makes it a two-way partnership. "It is a virtuous circle," says Medved. "There's no 'nasty globalization' here where a multinational corporation sets up shop in a foreign country and makes off with all the jobs. Israeli companies are creating jobs and economic growth wherever they go. The question is no longer 'what can the U.S. do for Israel.' Israel comes to the table now with something very real to offer," he says.

Medved hints at what many see as a paternalistic attitude in America's relationship towards Israel. Some look at the $2.5 billion aid that America provides Israel every year and see Israeli-American relations purely through that prism. However, when this figure is compared to the $20 billion in trade between the two nations it is obvious that this is a relationship based on mutuality.

In fact, recent trade figures demonstrate that Israel's exports to the U.S. are growing at an amazing rate. During the March-May 2006 period, Israeli exports to the U.S. rose a staggering 50%.

Israel is America's largest trading partner in the Middle East, even taking into account the oil imported from Saudi Arabia. According to the Association of America-Israel Chambers of Commerce, "America-Israel relations are based on common values; democracy, free markets and the rule of law. Business is the manifestation of the strong values shared by Americans and Israelis."

The Secret to Israel's Success Isn't So Secret

Much of Israel's successes have been as a result of necessity. Ever since Israel's founding, enemies have sought its destruction, and Israel has often turned to its scientists and engineers to provide it with the technological edge that meant the margin of victory - in the form of better armor, a safer tank, or a missile that could shoot down attacking missiles.

One example of this was Israel's invention of the drone, the unmanned aerial vehicle. This equipment was created in the wake of the Yom Kippur War. Today, the drone - a virtual spy in the sky - is a key component in any tactical or strategic battle.

Israel Aircraft Industries Corporate vice president Dany Kleiman told CNN that his company's products were typical of Israel's accomplishments. "In order to buy from Israel and be sole source for U.S. prime customer or any customer you must be very strong in quality, very strong in delivery and most important, you need to come with the most innovative product to make sure you can capture the eye of a customer," Kleiman said.

Shlomo Dovrat, a high-tech entrepreneur, said the "conveyor belt" of young entrepreneurs leaving Israel's military service is one reason why Israel has proportionately twice the number of engineers of the United States or Japan.

Not Just on the Battlefield; In the Operating Room, Too

Israel's medical research and medical device industry is also second to none. Yuval Binur, chairman of Accelerated Technologies, predicts future opportunities in the medical devices field in the development of better diagnostic tools and the replacement of surgery with less invasive procedures.

According to Red Herring, "Israel's venture [investment] industry has also experienced growing success in the life sciences field, specifically with medical devices. Nearly 25 percent of venture funds are going into life sciences, almost double the level of five years ago."

Some of Israel's advances in the medical field include a breath analysis test for liver disease, a mini-camera that travels through the stomach to test for cancer, and a vaccine against cervical cancer.

Israel is a technological and business power-house competing far above its weight. Consider the fact that Israel conducts almost 40 percent of the number of technology deals that all of Europe does. While many see Israel as a war-torn and embattled nation, those in the know are opening their wallets with the knowledge that Israel is a place of innovation and profitable investment. (The Israel HighWay)

Additional Reading

Israel well-positioned to compete against India and China, by David Wanetick (Israel21c)

NASDAQ will launch Israel index (Israel Hi-Tech)

The Israeli life science juggernaut, by Michael Rosen (Wisconsin Technology)

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