To watch the testimony of Col. Richard Kemp, Former Commander of British Forces in Afghanistan, talk about the extraordinary lengths the IDF took to prevent civilian casualties during the recent conflict in Gaza, please click here.

To read the full speech by Col. Kemp titled “International Law and Military Operations in Practice”, please click here.

I generally hesitate to republish intelligence data for obvious reasons, but the following article is a comfort to those who want to know how successful our country and our allies have been towards intercepting and stopping the Iranian bomb. Via NY Sun:

Israel and America are intensifying a clandestine war against Iran, claims Israeli journalist Ronen Bergman in The Secret War with Iran.

He suggests that the West has had some successes in the war to stop the Iranian bomb, reporting, for example, that in January 2007 Iran determined that some of its nuclear suppliers in Europe were fronts for Britain’s MI6 intelligence service.

Between February 2006 and March 2007, at least three planes “belonging to the Revolutionary Guards crashed in Iran, while carrying personnel connected with the security of the nuclear project.”

Specialized pipes for centrifuges sold to Iran have been modified, and specialized computers sold to Iran for its nuclear laboratories contained viruses that sabotaged the code.

The secret efforts appear not to be limited to modifying equipment: On January 18, 2007, an Iranian expert on electromagnetics who worked in an Isfahan enrichment facility, Ardeshir Hosseinpour, died in his apartment.

The author quotes the deputy director of the Israeli Atomic Energy Commission, Eli Levite, as saying in a closed forum that operations against Iran “gained time for us” and have “doubtless caused significant delays in the project. The process has led to the revealing of large parts of the program in the areas of sources of supply, of the infrastructure, and of the goals.”

Bergman reports that Israel first learned of the nuclear facility in Natanz in 1996, six years before the facility was first disclosed to the public. Two Israeli operatives, posing as tourists, arrived at the site and took soil samples, which they brought back to Israel in their shoes and which showed some radiation.

Finally! Jews who are not willing to compromise their Biblical birthright. Via INN:

The newly-formed HaTikva party, which is to be headed by MK Aryeh Eldad, issued a plea to the government Saturday evening to make a “goodwill gesture towards Jews” and call new elections now. “The Kadima government is busy creating a state for the enemy and making gestures to the chairman of the Palestinian terror authority,” party spokesman Dr. Ron Breiman said. “HaTikva calls for immediate general elections, to be followed by the establishment of a Zionist government.”

In competition with 67 cities, Jerusalem did succeed in becoming one of the cities appearing on the first edition of the new International Monopoly game.

Hasbro announced the cities appearing on the new game board include; Montreal, Riga, Cape Town, Belgrade, Paris, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, New York, London, Barcelona, Rome, Tokyo, Istanbul and Jerusalem.

Six months ago, a poll began circulating around the world, asking people to vote for cities to be included in the game. Kodkod, which represents Monopol, the Israeli Monopoly, called on Jews around the world to begin casting their ballot for the Jewish capital. Even the Foreign Ministry got involved, calling on Israelis to vote. At the end, Jerusalem is indeed one of 22 cities that have been selected in the new game.

Montreal is the most expensive property, followed by Riga. The least expensive are Gdynia (Poland) and Taipa (Taiwan).

Kodkod officials believe that in the 75 years since Monopoly was launched, over 750 million people have played the game, and it was purchased worldwide by over 250 million in 103 nations and 37 languages. Officials also report that to date, there are 200 different versions of the game.

http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/article.php?p=22541

Via Seaweed Gel from Israel Could Save 20,000 Heart Attack Patients in Britain:

Researchers at Israel’s Ben Gurion University developed a gel – derived from an ordinary type of brown seaweed – which helps to repair heart tissue damaged in a heart attack.
After an attack, scar tissue forms which tends to be thinner and weaker than the original. The left ventricle also becomes dangerously enlarged. The gel helps aid regrowth, thickening the tissue, and so lessening the risk of a further heart attack.

An updated list, albeit incomplete, via Israel21:

Israel, the 100th smallest country, with less than 1/1000th of the world’s population, can make claim to the following:

An Israeli ornithologist is utilizing barn owls to rid large cities of rodent problems.

An Israeli company has developed a device that helps nurses locate those hard-to-find veins.

Israeli actress Hanna Laslo took home the “Best Actress” award at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival this year for her performance in Amos Gitai’s “Free Zone.”

An Israeli system to help dyslexic readers is being used throughout the US and Europe.

Voice over internet protocol (VoIP) technology was pioneered in Israel.

The Israeli women’s national flag football team won the largest and most important open football tournament in Europe in 2005.

An Israeli FDA-approved device – the VelaSmooth – reduces the appearance of cellulite.

Israeli laser technology is powering the latest hair removal devices on the American market.

Intel’s new multi-core processor was completely developed at its facilities in Israel.

An Israeli doctor headed the Merck team that developed a vaccine against cervical cancer.

Prof. Robert Aumann is the fourth Israeli in the last four years to win a Nobel prize.

Israel’s premier basketball team Maccabi Tel Aviv beat the Toronto Raptors in an exhibition game in 2005.

AirTrain JFK – the 8.1-mile light rail labrynthe that connects JFK Airport to New York City’s mass transit – is protected by the Israeli-developed Nextiva surveillance system.

Bill Gates called Israel a major player in the high tech world.

The Weizmann Institute of Science has been voted the best university in the world for life scientists to conduct research.

An Israeli ‘super-sensor’ has been installed in Sealy mattresses to control snoring problems.

Hawaiian singer Don Ho underwent an Israeli-developed stem cell treatment to strengthen his heart.

Israeli company Ultrashape has developed a safe replacement for liposuction – a unique new body-contouring device that “blasts” unwanted fat from the body.

Israeli researchers have discovered the molecular trigger that causes psoriasis.

A 100-member Israeli delegation flew to Kenya in January, 2006 to rescue survivors of a building collapse.

Israeli research has shown that dancers display consistent differences from the general population in two key genes.

Israeli research shows that we can find out more about what is buried beneath the earth’s surface by launching a satellite into the sky.

An Israeli company has unveiled a blood test that via the telephone diagnoses heart attacks.

The Israeli-developed Ex-Press shunt is providing relief for American glaucoma sufferers.

An Israeli research team has found that the combination of electrical stimulation and chemotherapy makes cancerous metastases disappear.

Israel has designed the first flight system to protect passenger and freighter aircraft against missile attack.

Jewish and Arab students at Hebrew University participate in the ‘Billy Crystal Workshops – Peace Through the Performing Arts’ project.

Israel has the highest ratio of university degrees to the population in the world.

Israel produces more scientific papers per capita than any other nation by a large margin – 109 per 10,000 people – as well as one of the highest percapita rates of patents filed.

In proportion to its population, Israel has the largest number of startup companies in the world. In absolute terms, Israel has the largest number of startup companies than any other country in the world, except the US (3,500 companies mostly in hi-tech).

Israel is ranked #2 in the world for venture capital funds right behind the US.

Israel has the highest average living standards in the Middle East. The per capita income in 2000 was over $17,500, exceeding that of the UK.

Israel’s $100 billion economy is larger than all of its immediate neighbors combined.

On a per capita basis, Israel has the largest number of biotech start-ups.

Israel has the largest raptor migration in the world, with hundreds of thousands of African birds of prey crossing as they fan out into Asia.

Twenty-four percent of Israel’s workforce holds university degrees – ranking third in the industrialized world, after the United States and Holland – and 12 percent hold advanced degrees.

Israel is the only liberal democracy in the Middle East.

In 1984 and 1991, Israel airlifted a total of 22,000 Ethiopian Jews at risk in Ethiopia to safety in Israel.

When Gold Meir was elected Prime Minister of Israel in 1969, she became the world’s second elected female leader in modern times.

When the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya was bombed in 1998, Israeli rescue teams were on the scene within a day – and saved three victims from the rubble.

Israel has the third highest rate of entrepreneurship – and the highest rate among women and among people over 55 – in the world.

Relative to its population, Israel is the largest immigrant-absorbing nation on earth. Immigrants come in search of democracy, religious freedom, and economic opportunity.

Israel was the first nation in the world to adopt the Kimberly process, an international standard that certifies diamonds as “conflict free.”

According to industry officials, Israel designed the airline industry’s most impenetrable flight security. U.S. officials now look to Israel for advice on how to handle airborne security threats.

Israel’s Maccabi basketball team won the European championships in 2001.

Israeli tennis player Anna Smashnova is the 15th ranked female player in the world.

Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers was produced by Haim Saban, an Israeli whose family fled persecution in Egypt.

Israel has the world’s second highest per capita of new books.

Israel is the only country in the world that entered the 21st century with a net gain in its number of trees.

Israel has more museums per capita than any other country.

Israel has two official languages: Hebrew and Arabic.

Israeli scientists developed the first fully computerized, no-radiation, diagnostic instrumentation for breast cancer.

An Israeli company developed a computerized system for ensuring proper administration of medications, thus removing human error from medical treatment. Every year in U.S. hospitals 7,000 patients die from treatment mistakes.

Israel’s Given Imaging developed the first ingestible video camera, so small it fits inside a pill. Used the view the small intestine from the inside, the camera helps doctors diagnose cancer and digestive disorders.

Researchers in Israel developed a new device that directly helps the heart pump blood, an innovation with the potential to save lives among those with congestive heart failure. The new device is synchronized with the heart’s mechanical operations through a sophisticated system of sensors.

With more than 3,000 high-tech companies and start-ups, Israel has the highest concentration of hi-tech companies in the world (apart from the Silicon Valley).

In response to serious water shortages, Israeli engineers and agriculturalists developed a revolutionary drip irrigation system to minimize the amount of water used to grow crops.

Israel has the highest percentage in the world of home computers per capita.

Israel leads the world in the number of scientists and technicians in the workforce, with 145 per 10,000, as opposed to 85 in the U.S., over 70 in Japan, and less than 60 in Germany. With over 25% of its work force employed in technical professions. Israel places first in this category as well.