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Written by Silvia G. Golan

Published: 02 March 2023

From February 19-21, 2023, TIMEMUN, Israel’s oldest Model UN conference, celebrated its 23d year with an unforgettable conference. Over 300 top students from Romania, Sweden and the United States, as well as dozens of cities around Israel, joined the conference, which is hosted at the Walworth Barbour American International School (WBAIS). The delegates participated in 14 dynamic committees, with topics ranging from environmental issues and human rights to Star Wars and Harry Potter themed issues. 

At the opening ceremony, US Ambassador H.E. Mr. Thomas Nides went up on stage to be “interviewed” by WBAIS student Ethan Moncarz, along with Eliya Dvornikov from the French Israeli school Mikve Israel, and Nohad Awadieh from the Greek Catholic school in Shefa’amr. The ambassador’s casual approach entertained the students, with him “reversing roles” and interviewing the students at one point.

In addition to grappling with two intense issues, many of the committees were given a surprise crisis on the last day. For some it was a historical issue involving the Cuban missile crisis, while others dealt with a rise in tensions between Iran, Israel and Saudi Arabia. Many other delegates, for example from UNGAs, WHO, Human Rights and UNESCO, joined in a plenary session where they went through each committee’s resolutions and brought them to a vote.

Guest speakers at the conference included the Ambassador of India, H.E. Mr. Sanjeev Singla; Adam Schalimtzek from the Ministry of Environmental Protection; Professor Brandon Friedman from Tel Aviv University, WBAIS teacher Teresa Harings, researcher and filmmaker Yona Abeddour, Corey Gil Shuster from Tel Aviv University, Or Moshe from the British Embassy, and Yaari Cohen from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Or Moshe and Yaari Cohen also participated in a panel for teachers where they discussed how Model UN and diplomacy activities in high school have impacted their careers. Mr. Peter Vig from Malmo, Sweden also led a discussion on the use of education to counter stigmas and prejudices.

At the Global Village on February 20th, over 15 embassies, as well as several NGOs, participated, with stands providing information about the countries, activities and games, and snacks. Among the countries represented at the Global Village: Cyprus, Ecuador, El Salvador, India, Kenya, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova, Romania, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uzbekistan.

At the closing ceremony on Tuesday, February 21, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, H.E. Mr. Tor Wennesland, addressed the students. Mr. Wennesland commended the students on their dedication to diplomacy, and advised them on steps they could take to advance in careers in diplomacy and peacebuilding. Finally, students were called up to the stage to win awards for best position papers, best and outstanding delegates, best chairs, and best first time delegate. Two students were also called out as the winners of a sponsored trip to MUNOM, the Model UN conference in Malmo, Sweden, in fall 2023.

Diplomacy.co.il congratulates the delegates, advisors, chairs and secretariat of TIMEMUN 2023 for an unforgettable Model UN conference

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Written by Silvia

Published: 22 January 2023

YU Launches New Mental Health Therapy Center in Israel Center Fills Void for English-speakers Amid Mental Health Pressures Such as Covid

The exciting official inauguration of the new center was held Yesterday at 3 Natan Strauss Street, Jerusalem.

To fill a critical need for affordable, English-language mental health services in Israel, Yeshiva University (YU), together with Amudim Israel, has opened for the first time the Jerusalem Therapy Center.

The official thrilling inauguration of the new center was held yesterday at 3 Natan Strauss Street, Jerusalem.

Among the dignitaries that attended the event: The president of the Yeshiva University, Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, the Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, CEO and Co-Founder of Amudim, Rabbi Zvi Gluck; Executive Director YU in Israel,

Stephanie Strauss; Director of Amudim Israel, Yossi Golberstein ; Director of Wurzweiler YU in Israel, Nechama Munk;

 MK Michal Woldiger; Jerusalem's deputy mayor, Fleur Hassan Nahoum and more.

Providing professional care for English speakers, gap-year students, and Israelis, the Center will offer mental health counseling that has become ever more important during prolonged lockdowns and

affiliated stresses caused by the Covid 19 pandemic and other factors. 

The Center will be run in partnership with YU’s Wurzweiler School of Social Work and Amudim Israel, a social services organization serving individuals and families impacted by trauma,

addiction, and other complex mental health-related issues. Staffed by Wurzweiler graduate students, recent graduates, and other professionals who specialize in a variety of modalities and concentrations

such as addiction, anxiety, and trauma, the Center will address the pressing mental health needs of English-speaking immigrants — from those suffering psychologically from the pandemic to gap-year students

away from home for the first time and new immigrants struggling to adjust to life in Israel.

The president of Yeshiva University, Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, said that the important and exciting collaboration between the Amudim Association and Yeshiva University resulted in the establishment of the new Mental Health Therapy in Jerusalem,

which is an important pillar in Yeshiva University's projects and vision to strengthen the connection between the Diaspora and the State of Israel.

CEO and Co-Founder of Amudim, Rabbi Zvi Gluck, said that "Creating this center will surely help many who need it and did not have access previously. Amudim Israel's partnership with Yeshiva University is only the beginning

of a long road, working together to provide much-needed services to those in need".

Nechama Munk, a director of Yeshiva University’s Wurzweiler School of Social Work :“Our community is in real need of mental health services. One of our basic values is to help those in need,

and the Therapy Center will be here to offer relief and hope. Getting good, affordable treatment is challenging for all Israelis, and even more so when your mother tongue isn’t Hebrew.”

In the photo (33): Left to right: The president of the Yeshiva University, Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, the Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Lion, CEO and Co-Founder of Amudim, Rabbi Zvi Gluck

Visit the YU Web site at www.yu.edu.

Photo credit: Michael Katz

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Written by Silvia G. Golan

Published: 27 February 2023

President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, awarded a high order of the Karađorđe’s Star to Mr. Alexander Nikolić, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Serbia in the State of Israel and Director of the Representative Office of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia in Jerusalem

 The medal was awarded to Nikolić for his exceptional achievements in developing friendly relations between the Republic of Serbia and the State of Israel.

       So far, a few Israelis have received Serbia’s sublime orders. Nikolić grew up in the Jewish community of the former Yugoslavia and was one of the editors of the English language book edition of the selected works of Dr. Kalmi Baruh in the field of Ladino culture and the Judeo-Spanish language. The medal was awarded to Nikolić during the state ceremony that takes place every year on the main national holiday of Serbia – “Statehood Day” at the Presidential Palace in Belgrade, by the President of the Republic of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, in the presence of Israel’s Ambassador to Serbia, Yahel Vilan, ministers of the Serbian Government, headed by the Prime Minister, Ana Brnabić, and Serbian Patriarch Porfirije.

Photo courtesy Presidency of the Republic of Serbia

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Written by MDA Spokesperson

Published: 31 October 2022

Three disasters, three scenes, and 1,200 emergency personnel MDA participated in an international multi-casualty incident drill in Spain

Magen David Adom joined an international multi-casualty drill that took place yesterday. Three different scenes representing three different sized incidents were practiced. As part of the drill concluding the annual disaster workshop arranged by the Madrid Municipality, 1,200 emergency personnel, including staff from MDA alongside EMS crews from other countries such as Great Britain, The Netherlands, Mauritania and Norway took part in the exercise. Other participants included the city emergency and security services, several hospitals, military forces, the Spanish National Police and the Civil Guard.

During the drill that lasted 70 minutes, the emergency crews were called to deal with scenarios including shootings, explosions and hostage situations in three different scenes: a hotel, a bus and a supermarket. Some 100 patients were evacuated to hospitals under police escort, with routes being cleared by the respective agencies, where hospital staff took over the treatment. 600 medical staff took part in the exercise, along with 60 ambulances, fire trucks, police cars, 3 helicopters, a plane, rescue dogs and attack dogs.

The exercise was preceded by a session arranged by MDA and SAMUR Proteccion Civil Madrid, within the European Union's "No Fear" project. Chaim Rafalowski, Disaster Management  Coordinator in MDA spoke during the session about the complexities of treating patients at scenes of disasters and terror attacks: "Part of the aims of this exercise is to understand that in today's reality, emergency medical teams who arrive at these complex scenes are faced with a real life-threatening situation. We must prepare the teams to comprehend what they are facing, how to make educated decisions to ensure their safety and how to save lives while under threat – in the best way possible."

At the end of the exercise, SAMUR Proteccion Civil (who organized the conference and the simulation exercise) education and research manager Dr. Ervigio Corral Torres commented that "Magen David Adom's team's professionalism is an example to teams from other countries, both in dealing with complex scenes and also with patient treatment."

Paramedics Haim Levin and Odai Bsoul from the MDA exercise delegation: "The exercise was of a very high standard and very professional. Each team received a local ambulance and was sent on a drill of a shooting by terrorists. We were dispatched and joined local Madrid commanders and treated the injured along with another crew. We shared knowledge with the local and the international crews. During the exercise we treated patients alongside a Dutch crew with a Spanish commander – the cooperation was incredible, despite the language barrier and differences, and we worked well together. It's an excellent feeling to represent the organization and to be there with MDA symbols. There was a great deal of interest from the international rescue teams, and many of them had heard of MDA."

Magen David Adom Director General Eli Bin: "Magen David Adom is always ready to help and lend a helping hand anywhere in the world. Multi-casualty disaster management has unfortunately become MDA's expertise over the years, and we share our knowledge and experience globally, anywhere where we can help save lives. I am grateful for any activity that allows others to learn from MDA's knowledge, and are happy for the improved patient experience, both in Israel and across the world." 

www.mdais.org

Photo Zaki Heler / MDA Spokesperson