Latest posts by Gilad Lotan
Israel: Intense Emotions Over the Hezbollah Prisoner Exchange
Wednesday, July 16th, was a day of mourning all across Israel. Hopes for the slight possibility that the approved prisoner exchange deal with Hizbollah will bring the two abducted soldiers, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev, back home alive were shattered as their coffins were transported across the border. Gilad Lotan brings us reactions from the Israeli blogopshere.
Israel: Iranian Grad Missiles Hit Ashkelon Mall
Hours after President George W Bush arrived in Israel, Iranian Grad missiles penetrated the roof of an Ashkelon mall. Four people, including a mother and her toddler, were seriously wounded. In addition, 87 others were transferred to a hospital. Gilad Lotan brings us the reactions of the Hebrew blogosphere.
Israel: Knesset Freezes Talkback Law for Web-Comment Censorship
The Knesset has decided to freeze legislation regulating readers' ability to respond to articles via the so-called “Talkback Law”, in an effort to allow web sites to practice self-regulation. The Talkback Law, submitted by MK Israel Hasson (Yisrael Beiteinu), passed its preliminary reading. It would make web sites responsible for the talkbacks (user generated comments) of its readers as though they were articles of the site itself.
Israel: Modern Day Exodus, on African Refugees and their Right for Medical Care
Around 6,000 African refugees escaped the horrors in their countries, and seek refuge in Israel. Many of them live in harsh conditions and can be spotted shivering cold on the streets of southern Tel-Aviv. The insensitive behavior from the side of the Israeli government comes only tens of years after the holocaust, when Jews came to the same plot of land, seeking refuge from the horrors of Europe, writes Gilad Lotan, who shows us how a group of bloggers are volunteering to draw a smile on the faces of countless of destitute refugees.
Israel: Teenage Girls Usage of Mobile Phones for Dating
Playing with fire? That is what some Palestinian teenage girls do when they accept mobile phones from boyfriends, and have to hide them away from their parents and families, according to a new study, which Gilad Lotan writes about today.
Israel: Israeli Startup Falsely Accused of Rigging Zimbabwe's Elections
On Friday, March 28th, an online newspaper called "Zimbabwe Online" published an article accusing Cogniview, an Israeli startup company, of helping Robert Mugabe rig the Zimbabwean elections. A lengthy response was published on Cogniview's blog, denouncing the story as blatantly false, and proposing a possible scenario of how their Open Source PDF converter was linked to Zimbabwe's elections, writes Gilad Lotan.
Israel: Bedouin Youth Use IM to Bypass Cultural Prohibitions
Instant Messaging is opening new windows for a Bedouin community in South Israel, writes Gilad Lotan, who tunes into a fascinating research and brings us its findings in this post.
Israel: Palestinian Gunman Kills 8 Students in Mercaz Harav, Jerusalem
A gunman entered the prominent Jewish seminary, Mercaz Harav, in the heart of Jerusalem on Thursday night, killing at least eight students and wounding some nine others. Gilad Lotan reviews the Hebrew blogosphere for reactions.
Israel: Ashkelon is ‘on the map’
Following the recent missile attacks on Ashkelon, many worried bloggers react, describing their experiences with terror and fear, within this deteriorating situation that seems ever more hopeless. Gilad Lotan brings us the story from the Hebrew blogosphere.
Israel: Kosovo or Palestine, the Balkan is Here!
Kosovo has declared its independence. While the Israeli government has yet to announce its stance, several Hebrew bloggers have been reacting and comparing the political fatigue in the Balkans to that back home. Gilad Lotan has the story.
Israel: Two Sderot Kids Severely Injured by Hamas Missiles
Every day the Hebrew blog portal Israblog hosts a discussion on a new topic, called the hot topic. This encourages bloggers to take part in the conversation around a specific topic. From politics to personal matters, submitting an entry tagged with the hot topic raises its readability, and places it on a relatively seen page; an incentive for people to participate.
Israel: One Wall Down, a New Reality in the Middle East
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians poured into the Egyptian side of Rafah as the wall on the Egypt-Gaza border was brought down by Hamas over a week ago. Egyptian attempts to revert the situation to its previous state where they hold little or no responsibilities, have failed. Many bloggers have been writing about this new reality in the Middle East, having immense implications on both Egyptian politics and Israeli security.
Israel: Law for Censorship of Web Comments Passes Initial Knesset Voting
Israeli web culture is known for having an active talkback (web commenting) scene. Every major news site allows users to submit comments for every single one of its stories. Israeli culture at its best and worst thrives through discussions held within these spaces; discussions which are planned to fall under future censorship, according to the Talkback Law, proposed by Knesset member Israel Hasson. The proposal passed initial voting in the Knesset yesterday, January 16th.
Israel: Gilad Shalit for prisoners with blood on their hands
Gilad Shalit is an Israeli soldier who was captured in a cross border raid by Palestinian militants on 25 June 2006, and has been held hostage by the Hamas ever since. There have been numerous diplomatic efforts to negotiate an exchange between Israel and the Hamas: hundreds of Palestinian prisoners for Gilad's release. Following is what bloggers writing in Hebrew have to say about the situation.
Israel: Teacher's Strike Over
An agreement between the teachers union and the Ministry of Finance was signed just a mere 15 minutes before the Israeli Labor Court's restraining order was activated, in what has ended the longest strike in Israel's education system (over 60 days). Teachers received a raise in their salaries and the prime minister's personal promise to reduce the number of students in a classroom. Read reactions from the Israeli Hebrew bloggers here.
Israel: Hanukkah, festival of light and cultural wars
Hanukkah an all-time favorite Jewish holiday, has interesting historical value dealing with issues relevant to Israeli culture and sense of identity. Hanukkah commemorates the victory of the ancient Israelites over the Greeks in a series of battles taking place around the year 165 BC. The battles were not about territory nor resources, but dealt with freedom; the right to practice religion and follow the Jewish faith. Gilad Lotan shows us how the struggle continues today.
Israel: Jony Jerusalem, AIDS activist
Jony Jerusalem is the online name of an AIDS activist in Israel. He lives in Jerusalem and has been an HIV carrier for the past five and a half years. Frustrated by the lack of information online, he created the website Israelpositive. On December 1, Jony launched a new a social networking website for HIV positive carriers.
Israel: Blogger's Views on the Annapolis Summit
The Annapolis Conference, held on November 27, 2007 at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, ended with the issuing of a joint statement from all parties. Over the past week, Israeli bloggers shared mostly pessimistic voices around the topic of this conference. Many are cynical to the possibility of peace emanating from these leaders who have little support from their people.
Israel: Arab Citizens of Israel Oppose National Service
The complex social struggle of Israeli-Arabs comes to life in this translation of Hebrew blogs by Gilad Lotan. Should Israeli-Arabs be exempt from the compulsory military service or will engaging in national service compromise their stance?
Israel: When Yigal Murdered Rabin
Last week marked the 12th anniversary of the murder of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Gilad Lotan translates a blog from Hebrew which sheds light on the celebrations which broke out at an ultra-orthodox community when the news was announced.
Israel: Sderot's Invisible Wounds
How long does it take before the remote feels closer, and how can invisible wounds draw more attention? Both remoteness and invisibility take a lead role in the story of this Israeli city, Sderot, located at a distance of one km from the Gaza strip. It is far enough from the central Israeli metropolis to be forgotten, yet due to recent campaigns, has been coming up in local news more and more frequently.
