Larry Abramson

Women In Combat: Some Lessons From Israel's Military

Larry Abramson — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:51:00 +0000

As the U.S. moves to open up combat positions to women, it's catching up with other countries that have been doing it for years.

But the experience in these countries, including Israel, suggests that access to combat jobs doesn't lead directly to equal treatment within the ranks.

In Israel, most men and women perform compulsory military service.

Women In Combat: Obstacles Remain As Exclusion Policy Ends

Larry Abramson — Wed, 15 May 2013 07:31:00 +0000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAy7eDS8JY0

Sequester Has Air Force Clipping Its Wings

Larry Abramson — Sat, 11 May 2013 09:30:00 +0000

The Pentagon says the automatic budget cuts known as sequestration could leave the U.S. with a military that is simply unprepared for the most challenging combat missions. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel told Congress in April that the military is eating its seed corn.

"The cuts will fall heavily on maintenance and training, which further erodes the readiness of the force and will be costly to regain in the future," he said.

Why Chemical Weapons Have Been A Red Line Since World War I

Larry Abramson — Wed, 01 May 2013 20:28:00 +0000

President Obama has said that the use of chemical weapons could change the U.S. response to the Syrian civil war.

With Obama In Ramallah, Palestinians Take To The Streets

Larry Abramson — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 17:27:00 +0000

NPR's Larry Abramson is covering President Obama's visit to the Middle East. He sends this dispatch from the West Bank.

There were a lot of irritated Palestinians in the streets of Ramallah today. But it's hard to pinpoint the cause. Were they mad at President Obama, at Israel? Or were they angry at themselves?

All week long, different groups staged demonstrations against the Obama visit, here in Palestine's defacto capital city, and elsewhere, including Gaza. Mothers of those in Israeli jails demanded the release of their children.

Israelis, Palestinians Spar Over Controversial Settlement

Larry Abramson — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 18:53:00 +0000

In practical terms, a project known as E-1 would provide 3,000 or so new housing units for Israelis in an area between east Jerusalem — which the Palestinians hope will someday be their capital — and the large Israeli settlement of Maaleh Adumim.

But numbers can be deceiving: Palestinians are renewing their objections to the growing number of Israeli settlements, and many fear E-1 could tip the balance in a way that makes an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement impossible.

To understand why the Israeli government wants to build E-1, climb to the top of Mount Scopus.

After Weeks Of Wrangling, An Israeli Government Takes Shape

Larry Abramson — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:21:00 +0000

Israel appears to have a new government, nearly two months after parliamentary elections.

Since the voting in January, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been trying to put together the pieces of a puzzle that just would not fit.

If he included traditional allies, such as the religious parties, he would close out a chance of forming a government with a popular political newcomer, Yair Lapid.

A former TV newsman, Lapid is secular and centrist.

Can Kidney Transplants Help Relieve Gaza's Health System?

Larry Abramson — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 19:09:00 +0000

It's no picnic being a kidney patient even in the best conditions. But coming in for dialysis in a place like the Gaza Strip calls for a special kind of patience.

Years of war have placed a constant stress on the health system there. Thanks to a host of factors, Gaza's main hospital, Shifa Hospital, regularly faces supply shortages of medications that kidney patients need to manage nausea and other symptoms.

Dialysis machines are in constant use, and it's tough to get the parts needed to keep all of them working.

Palestinians Still Feel The Squeeze Of The Restictions On Gaza

Larry Abramson — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 08:27:00 +0000

The streets of Gaza are busy, but they are also crumbling.

Since Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, Israel has maintained tight limits on shipments of anything that could be used for military purposes. That includes basic building materials that could be used for bunkers and rocket launching sites.

Ask businessman Ali Abdel Aal what's the toughest thing for him to find, and he'll tell you "cement and gravel."

Abdel Aal runs a busy shop selling building supplies in Gaza City. He says tunnels from Egypt help get around the Israeli restrictions.

Israel Restores Wetlands; Birds Make It Their Winter Home

Larry Abramson — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 10:46:00 +0000

Like many countries, Israel tried to drain many of its swamplands, then realized it was destroying wildlife habitats. So the country reversed course, and has been restoring the wetlands of the Hula Valley in the north.

The effort has had a huge and rather noisy payoff. Unlike many birding sites, where the creatures take off when you approach them, you can practically touch the cranes that inhabit the Hula Valley.

The thousands upon thousands of the common cranes are about as tall as a toddler and have a 6-foot wingspan.

A West Bank Story, Told Through Palestinian Eyes

Larry Abramson — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 22:33:00 +0000

The Academy Award-nominated documentary 5 Broken Cameras tells the story of Bil'in, a modest Palestinian village perilously close to an Israeli settlement in the West Bank.

After the Israeli government began putting up its West Bank separation barrier, Bil'in resident Emad Burnat picked up a video camera, and in 2005 began a multiyear documentary project.

Israelis say the barrier has been successful in preventing Palestinian attacks, including suicide bombings.

Women In Prayer Shawls Detained At Judaism's Holiest Site

Larry Abramson — Mon, 11 Feb 2013 22:12:00 +0000

Police in Jerusalem on Monday detained 10 women for wearing the tallit, a Jewish prayer shawl traditionally worn by men, while praying at the Western Wall.

The Women of the Wall have been fighting for years for permission to worship in the manner that men do at the Western Wall, the holiest site in Judaism for prayer. The stone structure is part of the retaining wall that surrounded the Second Jewish Temple, which was destroyed by the Romans in A.D.

How Do Israeli And Palestinian Textbooks Treat The Other Side?

Larry Abramson — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 22:31:00 +0000

There was some good news and bad news in a three-year study that tried to take an objective look at bias in Israeli and Palestinian textbooks directed against "the other."

The bad news isn't surprising: Each side depicts the other as "the enemy" and presents its own culture in positive terms. Both sides teach their children little about the other's religion, culture or economy.

Israeli Election Rekindles Debate Over Military Service

Larry Abramson — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 19:41:00 +0000

The rise of a new Israeli political party after last week's elections has set the stage for renewed conflict over the country's military draft.

That new party, Yesh Atid, or "There is a Future," campaigned on a promise to draft thousands of ultra-Orthodox students who are currently exempt from military service.

And with the number of ultra-Orthodox students in Israel on the rise given the community's high birth rates, this longstanding debate has become a critical post-election issue.

Outside Israel, many people think all Israelis, men and women, serve in the military.

An Israeli Political Newcomer, Who May Soon Be An Insider

Larry Abramson — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 22:12:00 +0000

Israel's surprisingly close parliamentary elections Tuesday have brought political attention to a man accustomed to the bright lights of television: former journalist and media personality Yair Lapid.

His Yesh Atid — or There Is a Future — Party got 19 seats in parliament, making it the second-largest voting bloc behind Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party, which won 31 seats.

Watching a video of Lapid talking to English-speaking voters in Tel Aviv last month, you can almost feel the audience fall under his spell.