Israel has decided to continue granting tourists a VAT tax exemption for the 2013-14 year, the cabinet announced Monday. The idea to remove the exemption was floated through the government in a bid to raise revenue, but the finance committee passed its annual budget this week without implementing the measure. Instead, a 2 percent spending cut was issued as part of the 388 billion shekel, of $106.7 billion, budget plan. “[This is a] responsible decision not only for the 200,000 people working in the …More

A Ben Gurion University delegation from the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR) toured the Galapagos Islands in April. The delegation, led by Professor Ariel Novoplansky, signed a cooperation agreement with the Directorate of the National Park to promote the conservation of the endangered biological diversity of the islands. The Israeli delegation had been invited by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Environment and the Directorate of the Galapagos National Park. During their visit, the group …More

“There’s a Jewish freethinker’s saying about Paris,” Saul Bellow wrote in the novel “Ravelstein,” “wie Gott in Frankreich [“like God in France”]. Meaning that even God took his holidays in France. Why? Because the French are atheists and among them God himself could be carefree, a flâneur, like any tourist.” Paris is one of the most touristy cities in the world, and for good reason. As a tourist you might stroll the narrow streets of the Marais in …More

British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking has canceled a planned visit to Israel in June because he feels he should respect a Palestinian call to boycott Israeli academics. Originally believing the decision to be based on health reasons alone, the University of Cambridge released a statement Wednesday explaining that Hawking decided not to attend the fifth annual Israeli Presidential Conference “based on advice from Palestinian academics that he should respect the boycott.” The original statement by the …More

At the Western Wall on Friday night, a group of stars from the hit American TV shows "Scandal," and "Once Upon a Time" found themselves immediately recognized by religious Jewish prayer-goers. "People approached us at the Western Wall, saying they watch our shows," said Katie Lowes, who stars in the new American political thriller television series, "Scandal," created by "Grey's Anatomy" head Shonda Rhimes. "It has been an amazing experience, visiting across Israel. But the visit to the Western Wall and the …More

Things haven’t changed that much since 1580, when British sailor Sir Francis Drake called this city on South Africa's southwestern coast as “the fairest Cape in the whole circumference of the earth.” Latter-day travelers seem to agree. In 2012 alone, Cape Town was named the second-best city in the world by readers of Conde Nast Traveller, the favorite city worldwide in the London Telegraph's travel awards, and the best beach destination in Africa by the World Travel Awards. If anything is …More

Jorgen Nilsson, an officer in the Swedish military and a Knight Hospitalier in the Order of St. Lazarus, has arrived in Israel after a six-month journey on foot from his home in Sweden, Israel Hayom reported. Nilsson arrived in Jerusalem on Sunday, where he was given a medal of honor on behalf of the city. He took more than 7 million steps in a walk through Denmark, Germany, France, Italy and Greece on his way to Israel, and timed his journey so that he would arrive for the start of the First International …More

Ben-Gurion Airport workers will launch a sympathy strike for the employees of three Israeli airlines, shutting down the airport for at least several hours. The strike in sympathy with the workers of El Al, Arkia and Israir will start at 5 a.m. Tuesday, the Histadrut labor union announced. All El Al flights scheduled to leave Israel before 9 p.m. Tuesday have been canceled. The general airport strike comes after Israel's Cabinet on Sunday approved an "open skies" agreement with the European Union. Employees of …More

A legislative effort led by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee to enable Israelis to enter the United States without visas may be stymied by the government--Israel’s government. The hitch is Israel’s inability or unwillingness to fully reciprocate, something required for visa-free travel to the United States. Israel, citing security concerns, insists on the right to refuse entry to some US citizens. AIPAC is pushing for an exemption for Israel from this rule. But congressional staffers say …More

Founded in 1930, the Gran Templo Paso in Buenos Aires is one of the oldest synagogues in Argentina and one of the most beautiful in Latin America. Located on the Paso Street from which it gets its name, in the neighborhood of Once, the conservative shul has a proud history and vibrant present. The synagogue is an important cultural institution in Once, the neighborhood in the city’s Balvanera district that is the traditional home of Buenos Aires Jewry—an Argentine Lower East Side of Manhattan. From …More

Stephen Hawking, the internationally renowned British theoretical physicist and popular science author, is scheduled to visit Israel this summer, the Jerusalem Post reported. Hawking will travel to Israel to take part in the 5th annual Israeli Presidential Conference, titled “Facing Tomorrow.” The conference, which was inaugurated in 2008 by Nobel Prize Laureate and Israeli President Shimon Peres, gathers the world’s top leaders and intellectuals in Israel for discussions on everything from …More

Maya Yarowsky, NoCamels - Israel Innovation News Many of the frustrations that come from living in big cities are ultimately tied to our vehicles. Dirty and dusty air, foggy skies, crowded streets, fights over parking spots and traffic jams can all damper our moods. For many, other methods of personal transportation, such as bicycles and Segways, have become preferred solutions. Taking easy transportation into a new direction, Israeli-native Amir Ziad invented a personal transportation vehicle called MUVe that …More