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Israelis, on the Frontlines and at Home, Hit the Ballots
Benny Gantz, leader of Blue and White party, and his wife Revital stand next to a voting booth as Israelis began voting in a parliamentary election, at a polling station in Rosh Ha’ayin, Israel April 9, 2019. Photo: REUTERS/Nir Elias.
Tuesday finally marked the day of the Jewish state’s repeatedly-delayed municipal elections, initially planned for October but pushed back due to the war with Hamas. According to law, soldiers are able to vote all day at the various polling stations, including 12 in Gaza that were opened last week to allow those fighting in unpredictable situations to vote early.
An estimated 7.2 million Israelis, including almost 750,000 first time voters, are eligible to vote in the five year municipal election cycle – the next cycle only planned to be four years due to the delay. There are 242 municipalities with elections across the country, including over 11,000 polling stations. Included in the voters are 10,177 prisoners, according to the prison system, who can vote at one of the 61 polling stations set up in Israeli prisons.
Due to the complexity of counting ballots cast in the midst of battle, it is anticipated that results for the elections will not be announced for at least a few days. It is estimated that some 400,000 soldiers will be eligible to vote in the municipal elections, and per the IDF, roughly 30,000 soldiers voted prior to 10 A.M. local time.
President Isaac Herzog called on all Israelis to vote.
“The local government affects our lives in a very dramatic way, every life circle of Israeli citizens is handled by the local authorities,” he said. “Therefore, if we really want to influence the direction of our lives, it is best to go out and vote in the elections for the local authorities, this has been proven on several occasions And how in a war, in an emergency situation, we see the municipality and the local authority and council handling and facing a multitude of challenges and nothing more important than that.”
Members of hostage families are showing up at polling stations, hoping to voice their plight electorally.
“I also ask and tell everyone, you will see various booths and polling stations that represent the families of the abductees and above all our demand — demand and prayer to see the abductees and the abductees at home soon,” Herzog added. “Please, approach them, hug them, sympathize with them, and give a real sense of brotherhood and solidarity, that Israel guarantees each other – because there is no greater mitzvah than the redemption of captives.”
Even some soldiers are running in the election.
An estimated 4,000 reservists are on party lists across the country, many of whom are unable to leave their duty and campaign. This fact caused outcry by some politicians, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich who said in December that the elections must be further postponed.
Due to the war, 11 municipalities in the north and south are not casting ballots due to the fact that they have been evacuated. Their elections are scheduled for November 19, 2024.
The post Israelis, on the Frontlines and at Home, Hit the Ballots first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel
This laurel branch Hanukkah menorah, designed by artist Maurice Ascalon (1913-2003), won first prize at the 1950 Tel Aviv Design Competition. Between 2,000 and 4,000 of these were made by the Pal-Bell factory in Israel, and they were sold not only in Israel but in select department stores around the world, including Macy’s in New York and Harrods in London.
The shape of the oil containers resembles ancient Roman lamps, while the large pitcher is a reference to the single jug of oil that lasted for eight days that is at the heart of the Hanukkah story.
These hanukkiyot were manufactured out of cast bronze with a green patina that was created using reactive chemicals, a process developed by Ascalon, resulting in an antique verdigris look.
Ascalon, who was born in Hungary and originally named Moshe Klein, immigrated to Palestine in 1934 after training in Brussels and Milan. He started the Pal-Bell Company in the late 1930s for the production of ritual and secular decorative items. “Pal” is short for Palestine and “Bell” is short for bellezza, Italian for beauty and an allusion to his time in Milan where the artist learned and perfected his sculpting skills. During Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, Ascalon designed munitions for the Israeli army and, at the request of the Israeli government, retrofitted his factory to produce arms for the war effort.
Ascalon closed Pal-Bell and moved to the United States in 1956, where he taught sculpture at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles and opened Ascalon Studios, which produces large-scale sculptures for public spaces and houses of worship.
The studio, which is now run by Ascalon’s son David and his grandson Eric, was retooled during the COVID pandemic to manufacture safety boxes that allowed health-care workers to assist a patient on a ventilator while minimizing exposure.
Treasure Trove wishes you a happy Hanukkah , which starts on Dec. 25. This year, as Peter, Paul and Mary sang, “Light one candle for the terrible sacrifice, justice and freedom demand. Don’t let the light go out!”
The post Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd
Magdeburg Christmas market, December 21, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
i24 News – A suspected terrorist plowed a vehicle into a crowd at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg, west of the capital Berlin, killing at least five and injuring dozens more.
Local police confirmed that the suspect was a Saudi national born in 1974 and acting alone.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his concern about the incident, saying that “reports from Magdeburg suggest something bad. My thoughts are with the victims and their families.”
Police declined to give casualty numbers, confirming only a large-scale operation at the market, where people had gathered to celebrate in the days leading up to the Christmas holidays.
The post Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister
A person waves a flag adopted by the new Syrian rulers, as people gather during a celebration called by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) near the Umayyad Mosque, after the ousting of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, Photo: December 20, 2024. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo
Syria’s new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the insurgency which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.
Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria’s revolution, the source said.
Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed “the form of the military institution in the new Syria” during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.
Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Assad’s army.
Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.
Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step “comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”
Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the rebels’ Idlib government, the General Command said.
Sharaa’s group was part of al Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.
Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.
Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family’s decades-long rule.
Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad’s rule and establishing Islamic sharia law in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.
The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.
The post Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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