Members of the Zionist General Council Visit Confrontation Line with Lebanon, seen climbing watchtower on the border at Metulla.
Photo credit: Joe Malcolm

Interior Minister Natan Sharansky, Jewish Agency Chairman Sallai Meridor and Treasurer Chaim Chesler, yesterday issued a joint call to Prime Minister Ehud Barak and opposition leader MK Ariel Sharon, to rise above the political quagmire, and remove all obstacles to the establishment of a national unity government. The call was made at the opening session of the Zionist General Council held yesterday evening in Kiryat Shmona as a sign of solidarity with residents of the Confrontation Line settlements. More than 500 guests participated in the opening session, including delegates from all over the Jewish world.

Following the Zionist General Council, the Jewish Agency Board of Governors and Assembly will convene next week in Jerusalem. The gala opening of the Assembly will take place at the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount. The deliberations will include a discussion on the activities of the Jewish Agency in the fields of immigration, rescue, and absorption; Jewish identity; and unity of the Jewish people with Israel at is center. Both gatherings will focus on global Jewish issues such as the Law of Return, the Jewish people in 21st century, racism and anti-Semitism, women in Jewish life, Jewish identity, and restitution of Jewish property. The Assembly will be addressed by Prime Minister Ehud Barak and MK Moshe Arens, representing the Likud.

Members of the Zionist General Council who visited the border village of Rajar encountered burning tires as they toured the new border. The villagers said that the tires were intended to block the entry of UN officials: "The role of the UN is to unite the world into a global village, but instead they are turning a small village into a divided one." One of the villagers said that they will physically block any attempt to mark the new border if it passes through the middle of the village.

At the opening session, Chairman of the Zionist Executive and the Jewish Agency Sallai Meridor sharply attacked the national fatigue and pseudo-sophistication of post-Zionism. "What have we come to that Jews feel ashamed of the must just deed of the 20th century - the establishment of the State of Israel?" Meridor emphasized that the significance of a Jewish and democratic state lies in the building of a world center for the Jewish people, with absolute equality and affirmative action for the non-Jewish minority living in Israel.

Minister Sharansky emphasized that we are in a historic period with regard to the establishment of the borders of the country and noted that the Confrontation Line settlements will be the ones to determine our national borders.

Jewish Agency and WZO Treasurer Chaim Chesler praised the response of the Agency's overseas partners in deciding to wipe out NIS 160 million worth of debts owed by the Confrontation Line settlements and said: "We must make every effort to develop industry and agriculture in the region and to improve the quality of life."

Dr.Yitzhak Chen, chairman of the Zionist General Council warned that calls to close the National Institutions were designed to put an end to the Zionist idea. "If we do not have a strong Zionist movement, many Jews in the Diaspora will have nothing to rely on. Democracy does not mean suicide," said Chen.

In 2020 Israel will have the world's greatest concentration of Jews. By that date more than 6 million Jews will be living in Israel, compared with 4.9 million Jews currently living in Israel. The Jewish population will grow mainly as a result of natural increase. This forecast was presented by Professor Sergio Della Pergola of the Hebrew University at a conference held last weekend at Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and dealt with demographic scenarios for the Jewish people in the 21^st century. According to Della Pergola, if the current trends of natural increase and aliyah continue, most of the world's Jewish population may be in Israel by the year 2030.

At the conference, Professor Della Pergola presented a new series of predictions pertaining to development of the Jewish population in the world. These predictions, which were recently conducted by the Hebrew University's Institute of Contemporary Jewry, with the support of the Israel Humanitarian Fund, relate to the years 2000-2080. The predictions show that in coming years, the increase in the number of Jews worldwide will decline and that growth will take place primarily in Israel. The main factors contributing to the demographic danger of Diaspora Jewry are assimilation, intermarriage, aging and low birth rates. Della Pergola estimates that the number of Jews in the Diaspora will drop to 7.6 million, compared with 8.3 million who now live in the Diaspora.

Della Pergola added that close to 50% of Jewish youngsters aged 0-15 now live in Israel. In the year 2020 almost 60% of Jewish youth the world over will be living in Israel. Della Pergola said that as a result of these findings, the education system in Israel must worry about Jewish education in the country, but must also invest in Jewish education in the Diaspora, as the decline in the number of Jews in the Diaspora is the result of the loss of connection with our roots.The study's full findings will be published at the end of the year in the American Jewish Yearbook of American Jewry put out by the American Jewish Committee.

26 youngsters from a Jewish orphanage in Moscow this week arrived in Israel for a month-long convalescent visit in Israel. The children will be hosted here by the Association of New Immigrants from the FSU, headed by MK Sofa Landver, in conjunction with the Jewish Agency and Moscow's Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt. The visit was the initiative of Moscow businesswoman Zlate Chazanov, who will be leading the group of children.

The youngsters, aged 9-18 will be housed at Kibbutz Givat Brenner near Rehovot. Jewish Agency Treasurer Chaim Chesler said that the visit will focus on tours of historic sites in Israel and explanations of the various study possibilities in Israel: "These are Jewish youth whose future lies in Israel and we hope that they will be able to quickly integrate into the Jewish Agency's youth programs." The children will enjoy a variety of cultural activities, tours all over the country and special educational programs prepared for them by the Jewish Agency. The children will be informed about the Naaleh program and will meet with other youngsters who are already studying in this program in Israel.

Zlate Chazanov, who is accompanying the children, is the wife of Genady Chazanov, a Jewish comedian who is well-known in the FSU and among olim from the FSU. She heads the Jewish lobby for orphans and children in distress in Russia and is active in the upkeep of the Jewish orphanage in Moscow. As a result of her activities, Moscow municipality allocated a building for the orphanage and has assisted in several projects for the children, who come from all over Russia and the FSU.

The Association of Immigrants from the FSU is one of the largest immigrant organizations, whose operations are funded by the Jewish Agency and Ministry of Absorption. The organization has 50 branches and assists new immigrants in their first steps in Israel. The organization has successfully gained the support of dozens of Israeli companies and bodies Israel for the Moscow Orphans Project, who have assisted the efforts on behalf of these children in various ways.

Kids from Moscow Cool Off at the Pool. Looking on are: Jewish Agency Treasurer Chaim Chesler and MK Sofa Landver.
Photo credit: Israel Sun.

Hadassah, the Women's Zionist Organization of America, has decided to withdraw from the American Zionist Movement (AZM). The decision, effective immediately, was announced by Bonnie Lipton, National President of Hadassah. The vote to discontinue membership came after careful deliberation by Hadassah's Greater Metropolitan Area Board, acting on the recommendation of the organization's National Executive Committee.

"We no longer feel that the AZM best serves the interests of Hadassah's Zionist goals or the future of American Zionism," said Lipton, who noted that the organization no longer represents a broad spectrum of American Zionist organizations.

In a letter to AZM national president Mel Salberg, notifying him of Hadassah's decision, Lipton states that this step is not a reflection on Salzberg's leadership, The letter adds: "We will continue to rigorously pursue our Zionist mission - hands-on, practical Zionist activity and activism that strengthens the Jewish people and the infrastructure of Israel, through our many projects and programs in Israel."

Hadassah will remain a participant in the World Zionist Organization, and a member organization of the World Confederation of United Zionists. "As such, we will continue to be intimately involved in shaping the future path of the world Zionist movement," stated Lipton.

Immediately following the vote, Lipton left for in Jerusalem at the head of a delegation of 16 Hadassah leaders to attend the meetings of the Zionist General Council, the Jewish Agency Board of Governors, and the Assembly.

• 800 youngsters from the FSU are due to arrive in Israel in August 2000 as part of the Jewish Agency's Selah program. An additional 300 youngsters will arrive within the framework of the Chalom program.

• 1171 olim will be arriving in Israel this week, 969 from the FSU. The rest will be coming from France, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Germany, South Africa, England, Australia, Canada, the US, Ethiopia and India.

• 440 olim from Argentina arrived in Israel during the first five months of the year, compared with 354 olim during the same period last year.

• $250,000 - budget for the "Excellence in Education" program for the year 2000, which develops novel education methods and new educational contents for Jewish primary schools in Argentina. The program is funded by the Jewish Agency, the Pincus Fund, the Joint Program for Jewish Education and the JDC.

• $140,000 - Jewish Agency budget for the year 2000 for running the "Jewish Teachers Center" in Buenos Aires. The center acts as an information and pedagogic center as well as training Jewish teachers in both formal and informal education.

• $550,000 - Jewish Agency budget for the year 2000 for renovating absorption centers and building new classrooms and youth clubs.

The first Keren Hayesod-UIA office opened this week in Budapest, in an effort to raise funds from the Hungarian Jewish community for local needs as well as the needs of the Jewish people in other parts of the Diaspora and in Israel. The inauguration ceremony took place as part of the European Keren Hayesod conference, which opened last week in Budapest and was attended by Hungarian president Arpad Goencz and Keren Hayesod leaders led by Daniel Liwerant and Avi Pazner. The opening ceremony of Keren Hayesod's world conference took place today at the amphitheater in Mt. Scopus in Jerusalem.

Keren Hayesod is the organization responsible for raising funds among Jewish communities outside North America. Hungary was the location of one of the first offices to be opened by Keren Hayesod-UIA after it was established in 1920. The office closed before the Second World War and reopened this week. The Budapest office is the first to be opened in Eastern Europe since World War II.

Gustav Zoltai, chairman of the Hungarian Jewish Community, who was elected to the position of Chairman of Keren Hayesod Hungary, reports that the Jewish community in Hungary numbers 90,000. 90% live in the capital, Budapest. 20,000 community members are Holocaust survivors, some of whom live alone and in poverty. According to Zoltai, the community, aided by the Jewish Agency, has placed considerable emphasis on Jewish education. Upon assuming his new position, Zoltai intends to remind every Jew of the importance of charity.

Eliezer Gilead, head of the Jewish Agency delegation in Hungary adds that there are 19 synagogues in Budapest, three Jewish schools representing the three streams of Judaism, three pre-schools, a Jewish university, a Jewish hospital, two retirement homes, youth clubs and a community center.

The Jewish Agency provides the Jewish community in Hungary with assistance in stregthening Jewish education and encouraging aliyah. To this end it runs 40 Hebrew ulpan classes all over Hungary, and helps train Hebrew teachers for the Jewish education network which encompasses 1400 children. Since the beginning of the year, 40 olim from Hungary have arrived in Israel.

The town of Beit Shean has received an infusion of new blood from Russia and Belarus. This week the first group of 58 olim from these two countries were absorbed in the town, including doctors, engineers, software experts, metal workers and even veterinary surgeons, as part of the Jewish Agency's Aliyah 2000 program.

The olim will be granted a special absorption basket which includes assistance in the areas of housing, education and employment. During their first six months here, they will attend a Hebrew ulpan, and will then settle into the local workplace according to their skills. The olim will also be entitled to subsidized housing provided by Amidar as well as informal education benefits.

The new immigrants were identified in their native countries at the beginning of the year, as part of the Jewish Agency's Aliyah 2000 program. Within this framework, Beit Shean Mayor Pini Kabalo traveled to the FSU and met with potential aliyah candidates, advising them of the absorption possibilities in his town. As a result of the visit, 25 families decided to make aliyah to Beit Shean. 18 of them were absorbed in the town this week and the rest will arrive during the course of the month. The project includes further meetings with aliyah candidates from other countries in the FSU and Latin America.

Sagi Melamed, director of the Jewish Agency's Beit Shean region, reports that Beit Shean currently has a population of 17,000. Over the past decade the town has absorbed 1,000 olim, mostly from the FSU and some 250 from Ethiopia.

The town of Beit Shean and the Beit Shean Valley Regional Council are partners with the Cleveland community in the Jewish Agency-United Jewish Communities Partnership 2000 program. Two years ago the Cleveland community adopted the Jewish community in St. Petersburg and the three communities are now strengthening their ties via advanced technology.

This month Jewish Agency Chairman Sallai Meridor inaugurated the "Sha'ar Le'Aliyah" educational center in Kiev. The center, which is equipped with advanced technologies, will house Hebrew ulpan and Jewish studies courses, youth and student clubs, a library, computer rooms, a synagogue and the offices of the Jewish Agency shlichim.

The center will also hold entrance exams for students applying to universities in Israel, on-line via the Internet. Within two hours of transmitting the exam, each candidate will receive a response as to whether or not they have been accepted. According to Eli Yitzhaki, head of the Jewish Agency delegation in Ukraine - "this place propels Jewish Agency activity in Kiev to the 21st century and also provides a warm home for all Jews in the city."

Jewish Agency Chairman Sallai Meridor cuts the ribbon at the inauguration ceremony. Beside him is Steven Pfeifer, US ambassador to Ukraine, and Eli Yitzhaki, head of the Jewish Agency delegation in Ukraine. Also in the picture are Ana Azari, Israel’s ambassador to Ukraine, and Amos Lahat, director of the Jewish Agency’s FSU Department.
Photo credit: Jewish Agency Kiev Office

Roy Barnes, Governor of the State of Georgia, this week paid a visit to the Yokneam- Meggido area together with a delegation of 50 industrialists and economists from Georgia. The visit was designed to develop ties between the business communities in Yokneam and Meggido and those of Georgia. The Jewish community in Atlanta, capital of Georgia, is a partner of Yokneam-Meggido within the framework of Partnership 2000.

The Governor's visit to the north of Israel is part of a weeklong visit to Israel organized by the American Jewish Committee in conjunction with the Foreign Ministry and the America- Israel Chamber of Commerce. During his visit to Israel the Governor was briefed about Israeli society and the Peace Process. He met with President Ezer Weizman, Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Prime Minister Barak's political advisor Danny Yatom and US ambassador Martin Indyk. Barnes visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum on Mt. Herzl and met with new olim. He toured the Golan Heights and met with IDF representatives in the area.

On his visit to the Yokneam-Meggido partnership area, the Governor of Georgia was accompanied by Elliot M. Arnovitz, first vice-president of the Atlanta Federation. Members of the US economic mission, including representatives of the communications company Lucent, Bell South and Nortel, met with industrialists from the Yokneam and Meggido areas in order to examine the possibilities of developing business ties. The guests also toured software, communications and medical industry plants in the area and met with Simon Alfasi, head of the Upper Yokneam Municipality, Chaim Chakim, head of the Meggido Regional Council, and Meir Nitzan, director-general of the Jewish Agency's Israel Department..

Debbie Simmons-Cohen, director of the Yokneam-Meggido Regional Development Unit, said that the visit to the area was the initiative of the Jewish Agency-UJC Partnership 2000 program. Within the framework of this program, over the last two years ties have strengthened between the business communities in Yokneam and Meggido and those in Georgia. According to Simmons-Cohen, interest has already been shown in such ties, and three hi-tech companies from the area will shortly be opening branches in Atlanta, Georgia.

British opposition leader, William Hague, visited the Confrontation Line area earlier this month on a fact-finding mission. Sefton Bergson, United Jewish Israel Appeal community representative in Israel, reports that Hague met with young adults from Great Britain in Israel on Jewish Agency programs.. These included participants in the Education Department's Institute for Youth Leaders from Abroad, a year-long program to train informal educators, as well as several United Jewish Israel Appeal volunteers from the Association of Jewish Sixth Formers, now completing their last year of high school. They spent four months working in the border-line settlement of Shlomi within the Partnership 2000 framework, performing a variety of community volunteer activities ranging from teaching English in local schools to renovation projects.

Mr. Hague, who was accompanied by his wife, as well as Lord Sebastian Coe and several prominent members of the Conservative Friends of Britain, was last in Israel nine years ago. He showed great interest in the work of the volunteers as well as the bond between the UK Jewish community and the Confrontation Line, particularly following the withdrawal from Southern Lebanon and the accompanying uncertainty. He noted that the program "provides a learning experience unparalleled elsewhere - certainly as powerful as any time in an academic establishment."

The group presented Mr. Hague with an Israeli flag, whose colors are also those of the Conservative Party.

Over the summer, dozens of cartons will arrive in Israel containing photocopies of records documenting the past 150 years of Jewish Bulgarian history. This is the result of some five years of painstaking work, locating and photocopying every available document.

The Jewish Agency emissary in Sofia, Ori Konforti, notes that every Jewish community in Bulgaria had a community archive. When he arrived in Bulgaria in 1996, he began to photocopy all documents from municipal archives as well as Jewish community archives, relating to Jews birth certificates, marriage certificates, death certificates, etc. This initiative was prompted by the large number of forgeries discovered in documents in an effort to establish a Jewish identity that would enable people to immigrate to Israel. Bulgaria has a very high assimilation rate, with intermarriage reaching 95%.

During his term of service, Konforti had access to archive throughout Bulgaria, thanks to a well-honed network of contacts. He discovered scores of forged documents, thereby saving Israel hundreds of thousands of shekels in absorption costs. Having the documents in Israel will expedite the processing of aliyah requests.

One hundred new immigrants will arrive in Israel on the same flight as the documents, as well as 50 tourists, coming to Israel to volunteer in the army as part of the Sarel program. Ori Konforti will also be on the flight, returning home at the end of his term.

Jews first came to Bulgaria during the Roman period. Bulgaria, under the leadership of the king, was the only country besides Denmark that refused to deport its Jews during the Nazi era. In the late 1940s, 35,000 to 40,000 Jews, representing 85% of Bulgaria's Jewish community, immigrated to the newly established State of Israel.

An estimated 2000 to 2500 Jews live in Bulgaria today, and an additional 4000 or so or eligible for aliyah within the framework of the Law of Return. More than 80% of Bulgarian Jews live in Sofia. The recently renovated neo-Byzantine synagogue in that city, built in 1878, is one of the largest and most beautiful synagogues in Europe. Adjacent to the synagogue is a museum commemorating the deliverance of Bulgarian Jewry from the Nazis.

There is a Jewish school in Sophia, which is supported by the JDC, as well as Beit Ha'am, a Jewish center, which houses the city's social, cultural, and welfare services to its Jewish residents. In recent years, an average of 300 Jews make aliyah annually.

The L. A. Pincus Fund for Jewish Education in the Diaspora has announced that the second annual Max M. Fisher Prize for Jewish Education in the Diaspora will be awarded to two French educators -- Rabbi Shimon Marciano, principal of the Otzar HaTorah school in Creteuil, and Mme. Rachel Cohen, headmistress of the Alliance school in Pavillons sous Bois. Both have achieved outstanding success in connecting their schools to their communities and strengthening the Jewish day school movement and Jewish life in France.

Since 1974 when Rabbi Marciano opened Otzar HaTorah with six students in a three-room apartment, the school has expanded to an enrollment of 1,400, on several levels, encompassing kindergarten through 12^th grade on two campuses. The school, which is part of a network of educational institutions that originated in Morocco and was later established in France, maintains a high standard in both general and Jewish studies. A visit to Israel is part of the school curriculum, and many graduates make aliyah. A thriving Jewish community has developed around the school in Creteuil.

Mme. Cohen has served for 21 years as headmistress of the Alliance school, located in an underprivileged area outside Paris. To encourage families to live closer to the school, which initially served children of North African immigrants, she turned the school into an open house that functions as a community center after school hours (a project supported by the Pincus Fund.) Community activities include study circles for adults and children, study tours to other Jewish communities in Europe, and celebrations of Jewish holidays. Mme. Cohen and her family live on the school's campus.

The Max M. Fisher Prize, established in 1999 in honor of Max Fisher's 90^th birthday and in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Jewish education, will be awarded to the two educators at a luncheon on June 26^th during the Jewish Agency's Board of Governors meeting. Max Fisher was the first chairman of the Jewish Agency Board of Governors. He is also founding chairman of the Pincus Fund, which was established in 1977 through the joint efforts of the Jewish Agency, the World Zionist Organization, and the Government of Israel.

One hundred philanthropists from Toronto attended a Family Philanthropy Forum in Toronto sponsored by the UJA-Federation there. Community donors were given an opportunity to obtain constructive and progressive advice about philanthropic giving.

According to speaker Peter Karoff, who heads the US-based Philanthropic Initiative, the key to successful philanthropy lies in the passions and belief systems of donors, rather than the benefits of attractive tax breaks. "It isn't the legal or tax aspects that really motivate giving - it's the fundamental values of the donor," said Karoff. "Go through a 'discovery' process with your family to find out what your passions and values are, and then create a mission statement about how you want to give."

Karoff also suggested forming community Learning and Giving Circles that focus on the individual areas that interest donors. He also advised families to sit down and discuss what their giving priorities are, with each family member - including children and their spouses -- getting one vote.

The coalition negotiation zigzagging in Israel has left Shas in the government, Meretz ministers found themselves out after Minister of Education Yossi Sarid's decision not to be a partner in submitting to Shas demands. In addition to their monetary demands, Shas leaders also demand to be full partners in the diplomatic process.

Kofi Anan, UN Secretary General yesterday met with the prime minister to determine the final marking of the border with Lebanon.

A week of murderous violence: shootings, stabbings, strangulation and fist fights. 10 people have been murdered in Israel over the last week. Barak: "We must put an end to this violence."

A high-ranking delegation this week paid a visit to Turkey to examine the possibility of importing water, due to forecasts of a shortage of drinking water in coming years in Israel.

Julia Rosenfeld, a Russian hammer-throw young-league champion, has joined the Maccabi Tel Aviv Association following a visit to the Jewish Agency's aliyah fair at Nizhniy-Novgorod in Russia. 16-year old Rosenfeld intends to represent Israel as part of the Maccabi delegation to the world youth championships to be held in Chile next September. She will arrive in Israel next month to compete in the national championships and will then immediately begin training for the world championships.

A month ago the Jewish Agency organized an aliyah fair in Nizhniy-Novgorod which was attended by more than 2,500 Jews from the town. Julia Rosenfeld, who visited the fair with her father Yuri, in order to take a look at study programs in Israel, approached one of the stands. It emerged from her conversation with Galina Grossman, the Jewish Agency's Aliyah Department representative, that Julia is a top athlete and it was immediately decided to contact sports organizations in Israel.

When Eldad Bukspan, chairman of Maccabi-Tel Aviv heard about Julia's achievements (hammer throwing to a distance of 55.58 meters.) - she was immediately invited to Israel to join the Maccabi team and participate in the Israeli youth athletics championships and world youth championships in Chile. According to Bukspan, Julia's performance easily puts her in the category of the world's top athletes. In Israel, the best performance for adult women in hammer throwing is 46.83 meters.

The Jewish Agency has already begun to prepare the Rosenfeld family for aliyah and Buskpan, who in addition to his position as chairman of Maccabi Tel Aviv also owns a civil engineering company, has promised to help Julia's father, an architect, to find work in Israel. "Maccabi Tel Aviv invests considerable efforts in bringing Jewish sports personalities to Israel. Over the last decade the association has absorbed 35 sportspersons and trainers in the various fields of athletics who have been integrated into the highest levels of Israeli sports", said Bukspan.

21 students in a hotel industry course, which opened this year at the Jewish Agency's Yafit Absorption Center, will shortly begin earning the practical aspects of reception and housekeeping in the hotel industry in Arad and the Dead Sea area. The hotel industry course is run by the Arad Hotel Industry School at the Yafit Absorption Center, which is a branch of the Beersheva Technological College.

According to Avishai Fital, director of the absorption center and the Hotel Industry School, the course lasts 18 months, during which time the students are trained for all sectors of the hotel business in Israel. This is the Ministry of Labor's longest training course, and includes training in four key areas - cooking, reception and clerical work, housekeeping, and special events. The student population is varied and includes new immigrants alongside veteran Israelis and soldiers who have recently completed their military service. Fital emphasized that graduates of the course will receive a diploma in all four areas.

The 21 students participating in the first course are currently completing the theory part of the course, which entails training in reception and housekeeping. They will now start a period of practical training at hotels in the area. When they complete this stage, which will last nine weeks, the students will return to the classroom to study cooking and restaurant management after which they will proceed to practical training in these areas.

145 olim and students live at the Jewish Agency's Arad Absorption Center. Programs at the center include the WUJS program for Jewish students from all over the world, a Hebrew ulpan, the Hotel Industry course and other courses in the hotel business.

Ingredients: (4-6 portions)

2 pounds. cherries
4 cups sugar
Juice of ½ lemon

• Remove the pits from the cherries
• Layer the cherries and sugar in a deep bowl, cover with plastic and leave overnight.
• Pour the cherries and sugar into a large pan and bring to the boil. Simmer on a low flame until the sugar is completely dissolved, add the lemon juice.
• Bring to a strong boil and cook until the bubbles are transparent the liquid evaporates partially.
• Transfer the cherries to clean, dry jars and cover with syrup.
• Store in a dry, dark place.

B'Te'avon! Bon Appetit!