Yom Ha’atzmaut

2018 marked the year of Israel’s 70th Anniversary as a modern nation. One for Israel examines 70 things the world can be thankful for, from technological breakthroughs to ancient wonders, natural beauty and social achievements.

1. It really is a land of milk and honey! Israeli cows are the most productive in the world. An average Israeli cow produces about 25,500 pounds of milk each year, and Israel has been sharing its know-how with other countries like Vietnam to boost milk-production.
2. Israelis have literally made the desert bloom, producing vast amounts of fruit, vegetables and flowers in the Negev and the Arava desert areas. Israel exports more than $1.3 billion worth of agricultural products every year, and a record-breaking pepper was grown in the Arava desert!
3. Hebrew, one of the two official languages in Israel (the other being Arabic) is the only language in the world that was ‘dead’ but has been brought back to life.
4. Every week, the country slows right down for Shabbat, the national day of rest. Transport stops, shops are closed, and families gather for the traditional Shabbat meal.
5. Israel has one of the highest standards of living, in terms of education, life expectancy, safety for minorities and economic prosperity, in the Middle East.
6. Israel is home not only to Jewish people from many different countries and cultural backgrounds, but also to Arab Muslims, Christians, Armenians, Druze, Bedouins, refugees from Sudan and other African countries, people of the Bahai faith, and others.
7. In times of international crisis and disaster, Israel’s emergency teams are usually among the first there on site to help.
8. Albert Einstein was asked to be Israel’s first president! He declined.
9. Christians can worship Jesus in freedom and safety in Israel – a liberty not available to many in the Middle East.
10. Unlike leaders of other nations in the Middle East, Israeli leaders are subject to the rule of law and are even sent to jail when convicted of criminal offences, as ex-President, Moshe Katsav, found out.
11. Israel is one of only two countries that entered the new century with a net gain of trees.
12. Israel has the only theater company in the world that is comprised entirely of deaf and blind actors, and our banknotes have Braille on them for the blind.
13. You can see the original wall from the time of Nehemiah in Jerusalem and walk through the water tunnels King Hezekiah constructed in the City of David.
14. You can see the remains of the second temple that Yeshua walked in.
15. You can ride a boat on the sea of Galilee, and see ancient boats that are thousands of years old.
16. You can swim with dolphins in Eilat, and ski on the top of snowy Mount Hermon.
17. The Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth. Dead Sea mud has minerals that nourish the skin and people flock from all around to try out their healing and health benefits.
18. Israel produces the most scientific papers per capita per year in the world.
19. There are many problems in Israel, but the population is free to discuss them and protest publicly, and the Israeli press do not hold back at all in their criticism either! This is a fruit of a free and democratic country.
20. Thousands of Syrians (technically “enemies” of Israel) have been treated in Israeli hospitals in the last couple of years.
21. In fact children from many neighbouring countries – Syria, Gaza, Iraq, Kurdistan, and other places – have received life-saving medical care in Israel.
22. The revolutionary “drip irrigation” method invented in Israel has shown the way for many water-deprived nations to improve desperate situations.
23. Israel was the first country to ban size 0 models.
24. Israeli women have equal rights, and some of the best educational opportunities in the Middle East.
25. Golda Meir was the third female prime minister in the world, and 44% of Israel’s registered lawyers are women.
26. Israel was legally established four times over: The San Remo Article 22 of 1920 ratified the Balfour Declaration as internationally binding law, the League of Nations 1922 ‘Mandate for Palestine’ was unanimously approved by all 51 states of the League, UN Resolution 181 to partition Palestine was passed in 1947, and the Declaration of Independence in 1948.
27. There are 137 official beaches, and the Red Sea has beautiful coral reefs full of exotic fish for fun snorkelling and diving experiences.
28. In order to protect its citizens from attack, Israel developed the revolutionary ‘Iron Dome’ defense system, which accurately shoots down missiles fired at Israel – while they are still in the air!
29. Studies show that Israel is one of the best places to raise children, and that it is one of the happiest countries in the world.
30. For the population size, Israel has the highest ratio of university degrees.
31. The Technion University in Haifa is one of the top 100 universities in the world, and among the top 25 engineering schools.
32. Israeli beauty, Linor Abargil, won the title of Miss World in 1988 after having just survived a rape attack abroad. She went on to become a campaigner against sexual violence.
33. Dr Nof Atamna-Ismaeel, an Israeli Arab microbiologist from Baqa al-Gharbiyye is Israel’s new ‘Masterchef’ and dreams of opening a Jewish-Arab cooking school.
34. Israel ranks 19th among 187 nations on the UN’s Human Development Index, which places it in the category of “Very Highly Developed”.
35. The cell phone was developed in Israel.
36. Anti-virus software was also developed in Israel.
37. Many medical breakthroughs were successfully pioneered and developed in Israel, including treatments that battle HIV and cancer, and help for those with epilepsy, autism and dyslexia, to name a few.
38. Israel is ranked first place in the world in the survival of cancer patients.
39. Flowers are exported from Israel in vast numbers, and we have become a major player in the global floral industry.
40. The percentage of Israelis engaged in scientific and technological inquiry, and the amount spent on research and development in relation to gross domestic product is amongst the highest in the world.
41. Israel produces 95% of its own food requirements.
42. A company called Biobee breeds and sells insects as a form of pest control, reducing the need for chemical pesticides. Their ‘good bugs’ keep other bugs from harming the crops. They also breed bumble bees to naturally pollinate in the greenhouses and fields.
43. The cherry tomato was genetically developed in Israel, and is grown in the desert for a sweeter taste!
44. Israeli researchers have successfully cultivated a plant from 2,000 year old seeds from a date palm.
45. Israel is on the cutting edge of solar power technology, and 90% of Israeli homes have water heated by solar energy.
46. The city of Haifa has the shortest underground funicular system in the world, going up and down Mount Carmel in just six stops!
47. The public transportation system is cheap, efficient, and has free wifi.
48. A group of Israeli artists started ‘bus stop libraries’, providing free books at bus stops for people to read and exchange.
49. You can read the verse from Leviticus on some buses and stations: “You shall rise before the aged and show deference to the old”.
50. Many of the streets are named after Biblical heroes like King David, Solomon, Samson.
51. There is a national Bible quiz, and Benjamin Netanyahu’s son won it one year.
52. The Prime Minister goes to a regular Bible study and it is not uncommon from him to quote the Bible in speeches.
53. Israel is a country that loves to read – it publishes more books translated from other languages in the world.
54. Israel has won a disproportionate number of Nobel prizes for its size and small population, and has won more than all the other Middle Eastern countries combined.
55. Many smartphone apps like Whatsapp, Viber and Waze were invented in Israel.
56. Israeli company EWA developed the technology to produce drinking water out of thin air. A condenser absorbs the air’s humidity, holds it in silica based gel granules, then condenses it into water. Better still, 85% of energy used is pumped back into the system.
57. Israel has one of the highest rates of entrepreneurship in the world, giving it the nickname, ‘Start-up nation’. It has the highest rate of entrepreneurship among women and people over 55 in the world.
58. The city of Beersheba has the highest number of chess grandmasters per capita in the world.
59. Eilat and the south of the country are a bird-watchers’ paradise – Israel has one of the highest levels of bird traffic in the world per square kilometer, with more than 500 million migrating birds cross its airspace.
60. Stargazing from the Israeli desert is a sight to behold.
61. Israel produces many award winning wines.
62. Israeli children are 10 times less likely to suffer from peanut allergies due to early introduction to the nationally beloved peanut-puff snacks ‘Bamba’.
63. There are 273 kibbutzim in Israel – where everyone works together, lives communally and shares the benefit of their collective labour. These kibbutzim were particularly important in helping the country get established in the early days of its development.
64. Israel has the largest number of museums per capita than anywhere else in the world.
65. Israel has the highest percentage in the world of home computers per capita.
66. Voice mail, instant messaging and USB flash drives all began in Israel.
67. Israel was the first country to sign up to the Kimberly process, the international standard that certifies diamonds as being ‘conflict free’.
68. Alexander the Great is said to have entered Israel in 333 BCE via the caves at Rosh Hanikra, and Napoleon and King Richard the Lionheart paid visits to the country with hopes of conquest.
69. Israel has miraculously won every battle pitched against it, with hostile nations seeking to destroy it since its inception. Although the Israel’s defence forces are strong, many supernatural miracles have helped Israel to avoid annihilation.
70. The number of Messianic believers who know Yeshua as their Messiah has trebled every decade since 1948, and is now over 30,000.

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