Israel

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.

Syrian Rebels Release U.N. Peacekeepers Near Golan Heights

Bill Chappell — Sun, 12 May 2013 12:08:00 +0000

Four Filipino peacekeepers are now free, days after being abducted by Syrian rebels. They had been patrolling near the area that divides Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The rebels said Wednesday that the four had been held for their own protection. But Filipino officials say they were used as human shields.

"The people that abducted our peacekeepers were actually under siege and they are using our people to get themselves out of the situation they find themselves in.

Kerry's Agenda: Priorities Emerge With Travel

Michele Kelemen — Sat, 11 May 2013 09:30:00 +0000

Transcript

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

The U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, has been in the Middle East, Rome and Russia this week trying to find some kind of diplomatic end to Syria's civil war. He's also been trying to revive Israeli/Palestinian peace talks. Mr. Kerry has been the U.S.

Scientist Stephen Hawking To Boycott Israeli Conference

Wed, 08 May 2013 22:44:00 +0000

British physicist Stephen Hawking has stepped into a political black hole.

He announced this week that he was withdrawing from a conference in Israel to protest that country's treatment of Palestinians, throwing his weight behind an academic boycott of the Jewish state.

What Did 'Prisoner X' Do? There May Be An Answer

Tue, 07 May 2013 17:23:00 +0000

If you've followed the story of "Prisoner X," the mysterious Israeli-Australian national, who allegedly committed suicide in an Israeli prison after being secretly held, you have no doubt asked yourself: What did Ben Zygier, who worked for Israel's spy agency, do for the country to imprison him and then keep everything about his arrest — or even his existence — secret for years?

The Australian Broadcasting Co., which unearthed Zygier's story to begin with, just