“We came here without anything and started our life from zero,” Roni Akele, Director of the Israel-based organisation, the Ethiopian National Project (ENP) said. Akele, who himself arrived to Israel decades ago during Operation Moses – a covert evacuation of Ethiopian Jews from Sudan during the civil war in 1984 – is testament to the strides that many within his community have made. Overcoming the many hardships of integrating into high-tech Israeli society from a developing country, Akele has since made it his mission to ensure that young Ethiopian-Israelis have the best chance of building a bright future for themselves and grabbing opportunities with both hands. Education, education and more education, sits at the very core of his work.

The ENP, alongside a number of other organisations, work to motivate the younger generation by providing opportunities from neighbourhood outreach support and scholastic assistance to parent empowerment courses and community leadership training. “The young generation work day and night to change their reality, that makes a big difference and a big chance in our community,” Akele continues, proudly referring to the 5000 Ethiopian students enrolled in their schools integration program.

Not without challenges, of course, over the years since their arrival, many Ethiopian-Israelis have had to confront major barriers. From doubts by religious figures regarding their Judaism to the disposing of blood donations by Israeli hospitals over fears of disease – many have felt consistently sidelined, like outsiders in a new land and shunned by society. And last month, with the fatal shooting of 19-year-old Soloman Tekeh by an off-duty police officer, thousands of Ethiopian-Israelis came out in force to protest ongoing bouts of seemingly institutionalised police brutality towards the community. Israel, a country that has felt the deep pain of immigration in the past, has been criticised by many for not doing enough to change reality.

Alongside this, many Ethiopian-Israelis grapple with obstacles to full-employment, housing inequality policies guided by the government and failure to integrate individuals into the higher ranks of the army (a litmus test for assimilation in Israel). All of which contribute to an ongoing socio-economic disparity and continued segregation between them and other groups.

“When I see where we are, we are everywhere. Members of Knesset, members of municipalities, doctors, engineers, social workers and even in the high-tech area,” Akele said with great pride. Whilst the challenges are very real, the progress and integration into the mainstream segments of society has been noteworthy. A true accreditation of the talent and motivation of this very special community.

Pictured below are Ethiopian-Jewish Israeli children.

Fewer parties set to stand in Israel’s September elections

When Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a government following April’s elections, the Knesset dissolved itself, triggering a fresh set of elections. Several factors made it difficult for Netanyahu to find enough coalition partners prepared to work together. For example whereas Yisrael Beitenu (led by Avigdor Lieberman) wants to end the current exemption from conscription for yeshiva students, the religious Haredi parties, not surprisingly, oppose this move. And, although there are signs that the Labor Party is moving to the right, it still refused to enter into negotiations with Likud.

Fewer parties than ever before will be contesting September’s elections. The main players include Likud, the centrist Kahol Lavon alliance (which includes Benny Gantz), the United Right (led by Ayelet Shaked), the predominantly Arab Joint List, Yisrael Beiteinu, the ultra-Orthdox Shas and the Labor-Gesher alliance.

Avigdor Lieberman is being described as the kingmaker of this election. Although Lieberman is generally viewed as firmly on the right, he has recently been hinting at the possibility of working with the more centrist Benny Gantz if Netanyahu won’t cooperate with his secularising agenda.

Palestinian girls combat gender stereotypes

A project in Ramallah is using cinematography to engage with some of the problems facing girls and young women in the West Bank. The scheme is being run by the Teacher Creativity Center, and a similar initiative is now being implemented in Gaza. Teenage girls are being given the tools and skills to share their experiences through film, and articulate some of the problems they face. A particular concern was the way in which a ‘culture of shame’ inhibited them from practising sport in public view.

Fidaa Bani Odeh, a teacher of artistic education at the school and supervisor of the cinema club, told Al-Monitor,

“The girls decided to highlight female students’ [obstacles and difficulties] to practice sports in the school playground when they exercise in their sports clothes. The playground is visible from the street and the girls do not want to be seen in sports clothes. Even if some girls are OK with that, their families are not.”

The films produced by the girls galvanised the community to solve the problem by building a more secluded sports area where they could practice. Other topics covered by the project include the problem of child marriage, girls’ aspirations for a university education, and the discrimination faced by girls using social media.

You can read more.

British MP raises concerns about healthcare for Palestinian children

Labour MP Rosena Allin-Khan is also a medical doctor, and earlier this year she visited hospitals in Jerusalem and the West Bank in order to understand more about the situation facing children separated from their parents while undergoing treatment. Security concerns can make it difficult for parents to stay near their sick children, and this situation leads to great distress. Allin-Khan pursued her concerns with the foreign secretary and then with Sharon Bar-LI, Israel’s deputy ambassador to the UK. Allin-Khan was invited to discuss the issue further at the Israeli embassy in London, and the MP felt that the meeting had been a constructive one. She tweeted:

 “It was a pleasure to meet @SharonBarli again at the Israeli Embassy to continue our constructive discussions about access to healthcare for Palestinians. I look forward to continuing to work together on such crucial humanitarian issues.”

However this led to Allin-Khan being targeted by people who perceived her willingness to liaise with the Israeli authorities as proof that she was a ‘direct collaborator in apartheid’. Much of the abuse she received was clearly antisemitic. She responded,

 “This behaviour does nothing to help the Palestinian cause. I have been there, called out what I’ve seen and spoken in the press. Am I now not meant to work to improve this dreadful situation?”

You can read more.

Picture by Gus Campbell Wikipedia.