Israel21c
Israel21c

since 2001

Since
Follow
Ripening bananas hang in clusters in a banana plantation. Photo by aappp via Shutterstock.com
Earth
Going bananas for leaves as new source of protein powder
By Yulia Karra
A happy house cat. Photo by Yulia_Karra
Innovation
Engineered ‘cat parasite’ helps deliver drugs to brain
By Yulia Karra
Israel and Colorado may mutually gain from a partnership. Photo by Zachy Hennessey
Innovation
Why do we need a Colorado-Israel Chamber of Commerce?
By Zachy Hennessey
Amina Alhasoni being released from Soroka Medical Center. Photo courtesy of Soroka Medical Center
Life
Bedouin girl hurt in Iranian attack leaves hospital
By Yulia Karra
Eyal Gamba at a beach on the Mediterranean, finding strength through surfing. Photo courtesy Eyal Gamba
Tales from the Heart
My mission is on the battlefield of social media
By Eyal Gamba
Israel’s national women’s goalball team. Photo by Lilach Weiss Rosenberg/IPC
Life
Israel concludes 2024 Paris Paralympics with 10-medal haul
By Zachy Hennessey
From left, Flint Capital General Partners Dmitry Smirnov, Sergey Gribov and Andrew Gershfeld. Photo courtesy of Flint Capital
Innovation
Why this US VC fund likes Israeli startups best
By Yulia Karra
Masada National Park, the site of the Roman siege in 73 CE. Photo by Omer Ze'evi-Berger
Life
Roman Legion ‘came, saw, conquered’ Masada in just weeks
By Yulia Karra
The latest Brain.Q device in use. Photo courtesy of Brain.Q
Innovation
Dad’s quest to aid son leads to stroke-recovery technology
By John Jeffay
A swarm of jellyfish on their way to a Phish concert, probably. Photo by Nidhi Shah via Pexels
Earth
Turns out jellyfish can swim — they’re just really slow
By Zachy Hennessey
Coca-Cola fleets using the Rider Dome ARAS. Photo courtesy of Rider Dome
Innovation
Rider Dome helps bikers avoid accidents
By John Jeffay
Dr. Elena Kogan-Zehavi of the Israel Antiquities Authority, who uncovered one of the tombs about 30 years ago, standing in one of the preserved sites. Photo by Emil Aladjem/Israel Antiquities Authority
Life
1,700-year-old tombs with rare Greek drawings to be unveiled
By Zachy Hennessey
Yellow chairs to signify the missing hostages have become ubiquitous in Israel. Photo by Jose Hernandez/Camera 51 via Shutterstock
Life
The tiny moments of trauma in my post-October 7 life
By Zachy Hennessey
Photo by DC Studio on Freepik
Innovation
Acutely ill patients do better with hospital-at-home care
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Children at a school in the Eshtaol work village in 1950. Photo by Photo Zion/KKL-JNF Archive
Life
5 charming back-to-school photos from pre-state Israel
By Yulia Karra
Contact lenses. Photo by Natallia Photo via Pexels.com
Innovation
3D printing your own personalized contact lenses
By John Jeffay
Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, was abducted from a party in Israel’s south by Hamas on October 7. Photo courtesy of the Goldberg-Polin family
Life
Bodies of Hersh Goldberg-Polin and 5 others found in Gaza
By Yulia Karra
The history of the Gaza Strip is complex. Image by Rokas Tenys via Shutterstock.com
Explainer
How did we get here? A brief modern history of the Gaza Strip
By Naama Barak
A 3D satellite map showing the Gaza Strip highlighted in red. Image by Ali Chehade via Shutterstock.com
Life
A timeline of the Gaza Strip since 1906
By Naama Barak
Since her son Hersh was kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, his mother Rachel Goldberg-Poulin reads a psalm a day. The number on her shirt refers to the number of days Hersh has been in captivity. She says she will update and wear this number every day until he comes home. Photo by Noam Chen
Life
Rachel Goldberg-Polin: Fighting tirelessly to bring her son home
Asaf Yasur (in red) during one of his Paralympic taekwondo bouts. Photo by Keren Isaacson/IPC
Life
Israelis win gold in Paralympic swimming, taekwondo, rowing
By Zachy Hennessey
Lior Raz attends a rally against the government's intention to close public TV station KAN, in Tel Aviv, January 25, 2023. Photo by Tomer Neuberg/Flash90
Life
14 things you didn’t know about Fauda star Lior Raz 
By Yulia Karra
A crowded silent disco of sunflowers. Photo by Designecologist via Pexels
Earth
Crowded sunflowers dance to soak up more sunlight
By Zachy Hennessey
Autism awareness collage by Freepik.com
Innovation
New autism interventions could spring from Israeli research
By Yulia Karra
Qaid Farhan al-Qadi with his brother at Soroka Medical Center following his rescue from Gaza. Photo courtesy of the Al-Qadi family
Life
Troops rescue Israeli hostage from Gaza tunnel
By Yulia Karra
Paralympian Amit Hesdai. Photo by Lilach Weiss Rosenberg.
Life
Meet the Israeli athletes heading to the Paris Paralympics
By Zachy Hennessey
Prof. Mira Barda-Saad from the Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences, Bar Ilan University. Photo courtesy of BIU
Innovation
Nanoparticles can revive exhausted cancer-fighting immune cells
By Nicky Blackburn
Cocoa beans are stressed by climate change. Photo by Pablo Merchán Montes on Unsplash
Earth
New drought-resistant cocoa could spark a revolution
By Zachy Hennessey
A poignant message perched on a piano in Hostages and Missing Square in Tel Aviv. Photo by Abigail K. Leichman
Life
Finding an unstoppable spirit of resilience at Hostage Square
By Jonathan Frenkel
A faster, cheaper, more accurate way to grade diamonds. Photo courtesy of Sarine
Innovation
AI system grades diamonds faster, cheaper, better
By John Jeffay
Image by ibrandify on Freepik
Innovation
New method predicts risk of pulmonary embolism in patients
By John Jeffay
Watermelon... the most unlikely symbol of the Israeli-Hamas conflict. Photo by Kaiskynet, via Shutterstock
Life
Army chef goes viral with watermelon videos
By Yulia Karra
Yavok Krawec, also known as Bboy Poter, is a four-time Israeli breaking champion. Photo courtesy of Yakov Krawec
Life
Where were Israel’s Olympic breakdancers?
By Zachy Hennessey
Gait analysis and training with a VR touch. Photo courtesy of GaitBetter
Innovation
Fall prevention system now covered by Medicare
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Illustration via Freepik
Life
Genetically diverse groups make better decisions
By Yulia Karra
Image by Brett Hondow from Pixabay
Innovation
Johnson & Johnson pays $1.7b for innovative Israeli heart failure treatment
By Zachy Hennessey
Stock photo from pitch deck. Photo via Shutterstock.com
Life
People-focused social media posts change minds about Israel
By Abigail Klein Leichman
An Airbus 320-200 takes off from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Photo by Felix Tchvertkin, via Shutterstock
Travel
Airlines flying to Israel now and those returning soon
By Zachy Hennessey
MediWound’s burn treatment NexoBrid on a conveyor belt. Photo courtesy of MediWound
Innovation
How war propelled tissue repair startup to global success
By Yulia Karra
Photo of a dandelion by Edson Silva on pexels.com
Earth
Robotic weeder set to transform agriculture
By Yulia Karra
A viewer silhouetted against the supermoon rising over Jerusalem's Old City walls on August 19, 2024. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90
Earth
Rare blue supermoon illuminates Israeli skies
By Yulia Karra
Flytrex image: screenshot
Innovation
Flytrex drones deliver 100K of bananas, ice cream, fries and nuggets in US
By Abigail Klein Leichman
MDA paramedic Adam Sfadi with his daughter Vinis. Vinis was killed by a Hezbollah attack on northern Israel, July 27, 2024. Photo courtesy of the Sfadi family
Life
Paramedic saves lives after finding daughter dead in Hezbollah blast
By Yulia Karra
Nagham Haj Ali at Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa. Photo courtesy of Nagham Haj Ali
Life
Arab Israeli influencer fosters coexistence
By Yulia Karra
The 48, 2024
Life
The 48 – 2024
By ISRAEL21c Staff

Innovation

Photo by Katrin Bolovtsova on Pexels.com
Innovation
AI-based legal tech trawls data to find the next big lawsuit
By John Jeffay
A new technology to discern when someone’s telling the truth. Image by Freepik
Innovation
An AI lie detector for today’s deepfake world
By John Jeffay
A woman's hand holds a pill. Image by vika_glitter from Pixabay
Innovation
Study: Female ER patients get less pain meds than needed
By John Jeffay
Photo by Luke Chesser on Unsplash
Innovation
COPD flareups could be predicted via smartwatch 
By Brian Blum
Image by Freepik
Innovation
Bojangles serves drive-thru diners using Israeli AI
By Zachy Hennessey
Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay
Innovation
If your fat is VAT fat, you could be at higher risk
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Innovation
The versatile hospital worker that NEVER calls in sick
By John Jeffay

Earth

A close-up of the gorgeous swallowtail butterfly. Photo by Inbar Shlomit Rubin/KKL-JNF
Earth
Migrating swallowtail butterflies flock to Hula Valley
By Zachy Hennessey
Earthquake fault line in Turkey. Photo by Boyoz via Shutterstock.com
Earth
Meet the company using AI to detect earthquakes faster
By Zachy Hennessey
Future vaccine could save fruit and veg from rot. Photo by Pixabay
Earth
A vaccine could keep fresh produce healthier
By John Jeffay
Fried foods are routinely cooked in reused oil. Photo by Parilov via Shutterstock.com
Earth
New powder removes carcinogenic elements from fried foodcar
By Abigail Klein Leichman
CAP Chip: ZutaCore’s HyperCool plate. Photo by Gal Baraf
Innovation
Why keeping AI cool is a vital strategy to save Earth’s climate
By Zachy Hennessey
A flock of pelicans migrating over Israel. Photo by Yuval Dax
Earth
11 fabulous wildlife photographs
By Zachy Hennessey
Better Juice's low-sugar sorbets and fruit ice creams. Photo courtesy of Better Juice
Innovation
Food-tech startup Better Juice to offer low-sugar sorbets 
By Yulia Karra
Genetically modified potatoes grown at PoLoPo lab. Photo by Tal Shahar
Earth
The startup making egg protein from potatoes
By Yulia Karra
The Black Soldier Fly: the key to a viable insect protein market? Photo by Ronen Goldman
Earth
Why we’ll all be eating bugs by 2030
By Zachy Hennessey

Israel's unexpected heroes

  • Rachel Edri pictured as a superhero with a cookie. Digital photo created by Guy Aga
  • Oz Davidian, a courageous rescuer on October 7. Photo: screenshot
  • Shlomo Ron, who took a bullet to save his family. Photo: screenshot
  • IDF Spokesperson Daniel Hagari gives a statement to the media in Tel Aviv on October 16, 2023. Photo by Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90
  • Ben Shimoni, killed on October 7 as he tried to rescue others. Photo: screenshot
  • Medic Staff Sgt. Dor Ashkenazi, left, and paramedic Sgt. Almog Oren. Photo courtesy of IDF Spokesperson's Unit
  • From left, Ha’Achim founders Asaf Doktor, Yotam Doktor and Yaron Ramon. Photo courtesy of Ha’Achim
  • Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Noam Tibon. Photo courtesy of IDF Spokesperson via Wikimedia Commons
  • Cpl. Amichai Rubin, 23. Photo courtesy of the Rubin family
  • Bedouin minibus driver Yussef Alziadna. Screenshot taken from X (Twitter) @rcuvnegev
  • Dr. Bahir Sirhan from the Galilee Medical Center treats relatives hurt by a missile launched from Lebanon. Photo by Roni Albert
  • Sami Elkrenawi, a Bedouin Arab hotel owner sheltering hundreds of southern evacuees free of charge. Photo courtesy of Sami Elkrenawi
  • Beraha Astruk, head ophthalmology nurse at Galilee Medical Center. Photo by Roni Albert
  • EMT Moshe Weitzman. Photo courtesy of United Hatzalah
  • Eran Smilansky killed terrorists and rescued fellow kibbutz members on October 7, 2023. Photo by John Jeffay
A CELEBRATION OF COURAGE
The everyday people who became heroes
By ISRAEL21c Staff

Life

The three-level parking garage/emergency hospital under Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa is the world’s largest underground medical center. Photo courtesy of Rambam Health Care Campus
Life
Anticipating attacks, Israeli hospitals go underground
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Prof. Salman Zarka during an emergency drill at Ziv Medical Center, December 11, 2022. Photo by David CohenFlash90
Life
Isolated northern Israeli hospital readies for war
By Yulia Karra
Up north, visitors used to enjoy the best of Indian cuisine in a picturesque Israeli setting. Photo courtesy of Kalu Baba
Life
Indian eatery from missile-hit north opens Tel Aviv pop up
By Naama Barak
Burying the time capsule in the forest. Photo by Nicky Blackburn
Tales of the Heart
Why now IS the time to bury a time capsule in Israel
By Nicky Blackburn
Image by Luce Morin via Shutterstock.com
Life
12 tips to deal with the stress of uncertainty
By Nicky Blackburn
The famous Kikar Hakadurim in Lod, in all its orb-covered glory. Screenshot via Google Maps
Life
Meet the unassuming traffic circle with its own TikTok account
By Zachy Hennessey
Jerry Seinfeld during a Tel Aviv meeting with families of hostages in December. Photo: screenshot
Life
13 celebrities who’ve visited Israel since October 7
By Yulia Karra
Lose yourself in a good book this summer. Photo by Jure Divich via Shutterstock.com
Life
Beat the summer heat with these 10 engrossing books 
By Naama Barak
The open fields of the Western Negev before October 7. Photo by Or Adar
Life
New before and after Oct. 7 photo exhibit will unsettle your soul
By Yulia Karra

Understanding the conflict

Israel may be in a seven-front war, but everyone knows that Iran is the main aggressor. What comes next in this difficult and dangerous game? Image by Vetpixi, via Shutterstock
Explainer
Impact and implications of assassinations in Beirut, Tehran
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Thousands attend the funeral service of Druze children killed in Majdal Shams, July 28, 2024. Photo by Jamal Awad/Flash90
Life
Druze tragedy in Golan Heights: Who are the Druze in Israel?
By Zachy Hennessey
The history of the Gaza Strip is complex. Image by Rokas Tenys via Shutterstock.com
Explainer
How did we get here? A brief history of the Gaza Strip
By Naama Barak
A 3D satellite map showing the Gaza Strip highlighted in red. Image by Ali Chehade via Shutterstock.com
Life
A timeline of the Gaza Strip since 1906
By Naama Barak
A Yemenite soldier fighting against Houthi militia in Taiz. Photo by akramalrasny via Shutterstock.com
Explainer
What do the Houthis have to do with the Gaza war?
By Naama Barak
Iran: once an Israeli friend, now a foe. Map image by Below the Sky via Shutterstock.com
Explainer
How Iran became Israel’s greatest foe
By Naama Barak
IDF Chief of the General Staff Herzi Halevi and CENTCOM Commander, General Michael Erik Kurilla, conducting a comprehensive situational assessment with IDF officials on the IDF’s readiness in case of Iranian attack, April 12, 2024. Photo courtesy of IDF
Explainer
After Iran’s missile strikes – what comes next?
By Abigail Klein Leichman
Collage of book covers by ISRAEL21c
Life
8 must-read books on the Israel Iran conflict
By Naama Barak
Sunrise above golden Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Old City of Jerusalem. Photo by Sergei2 via Shutterstock.com
Life
Why Temple Mount in Jerusalem is such a flashpoint
By Naama Barak
The Israeli-Lebanon border along the coastal road. Photo by Northfoto via Shutterstock.com
Life
Does Hezbollah pose a bigger threat to Israel than Hamas?
By Naama Barak
Israeli tanks in Metula, near the border with Lebanon, northern Israel, October 11, 2023. Photo by Tomer Neuberg/Flash90
Explainer
What’s Hezbollah got to do with the war in Gaza?
By Naama Barak
Billboards such as these are placed across America to warn of the global threat posed by Hamas. Photo courtesy of JewBelong
Life
Experts warn Hamas in a holy war against all Western civilization
By Abigail Klein Leichman

Educate yourself about Israel

Life
Apply to join ISRAEL21c’s CreatorClub

Travel

An Airbus 320-200 takes off from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. Photo by Felix Tchvertkin, via Shutterstock
Travel
Airlines flying to Israel now and those returning soon
By Zachy Hennessey
Covid convinced Americans of the importance of travel insurance, say Faye’s founders. Image by mdjaff on Freepik
Travel
The company that’s redefining US travel insurance
By Yulia Karra
Tel Aviv’s Yarkon Park. Photo by Boris-B. via Shutterstock.com
Travel
9 fun things to do in Yarkon Park in Tel Aviv
By Elana Shap
Top things to do at Timna Park
Travel
Top things to do at the Timna Park desert wonderland
By Naama Barak
View of the port at Caesarea. Photo by Seth Aronstam via Shutterstock.com
Travel
Israel’s top 7 Jewish historical archeology sites
By Yulia Karra
Ice cream in a luna park of tastes is served at Cremerie De L’éclair. Photo from the chain’s Instagram page
Travel
Where artisanal ice cream fans can find their fix
By Elana Shap

Latest stories from ISRAEL21c

You can help us tell Israel's story better!

In an era rife with political division, ISRAEL21c stands apart — we place people over politics, and introduce readers to life in Israel beyond salacious headlines. We maintain a paywall-free platform so our journalists can share the positive impact Israelis have on our world. That's because of people like you. If you believe more people should hear these stories, then please make a gift today and support our work.

Make a gift