Good morning dear readers!

The new year has arrived, and with it a new decade. These are the first lines being written by the Israel Today editorial team in the 2020s. We’ve actually been preparing for this since last summer, when our new website went online. But now things are really going to change. We have big plans and plenty of surprises for 2020. More details will following in the coming days and weeks. For now, allow us to wish you a Happy and Peaceful New Year!

Another year of elections

As far as the situation here in the country is concerned, nothing seems to have changed. We remain stuck in election limbo. An entire year of political campaigning. A year ago, none of us could have imagined that we’d now be awaiting a third national election in that same time span. I remember being annoyed that my youngest son had missed the chance to vote in the first of those three elections in April 2019 because he turned 18 only six days after the polls closed. Now, he’s getting ready to vote in his second national election already. Simply unbelievable.

But has the situation changed or improved at all? Will a third election solve the problems of the first two? I admit that I like exercising my democratic right to vote, but everything has its limits. This can’t go on forever.

Will 2020 be the year that Israel’s government finally gets back to work?

Tragedy on the roads

In the meantime, Israel is also plagued by a problem of a different sort: traffic accidents. No fewer than 349 Israelis didn’t get the chance to welcome in the new year after losing their lives on Israel’s roads in 2019. That’s 33 more traffic deaths than in the previous year. It’s a tragic number, and more frustrating is that we don’t seem to learn from our mistakes. Here’s to hoping that we also see improvement in this area in 2020.

An abundance of rain!

Now for a bit of good news – the Sea of Galilee has risen significantly over the past few days. Since last Wednesday, Israel’s largest fresh water reservoir has gone up by a whopping 24.5 centimeters (9.65 inches)! That was thanks to heavy, nearly unprecedented winter rains.

The coming days promise a bit more rain and snow on Mt. Hermon, which will make all of the Israeli ski enthusiasts happy. 

The entire editorial team of Israel Today wishes you a wonderful New Year’s Day and a successful 2020. We look forward to moving ahead with you in the coming year.

Shalom from Jerusalem!