LEADIN

Israel's first whisky (also spelt whiskey) distillery is preparing to release the country's first Single Malt whisky.

100 bottles are set to be released by auction from The Milk and Honey distillery later this month.

STORYLINE

Smooth, honey-brown whisky (also spelt whiskey) is not the first thing that pops to mind when you think of Israel. But at The Milk and Honey Distillery, rows of casks proudly stamped "Tel Aviv" hold litres of the stuff.

The country's first whisky distillery is preparing to release Israel's first Single Malt whisky.

Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO, describes it as a young whisky with a lot of woodiness and fruitiness:

"It's complex for its age, as I told you the taste feels like more than three years, more like seven or eight and again the story is much more important in this case. This is the first ever single malt whisky that any distillery released from Israel."

While wine has been produced in the Holy Land for centuries with modern day Israeli wines recently gaining international renown, whisky production is new to the country.

Milk and Honey was created in 2012 and began distilling whisky in 2015. One hundred bottles of the Single Malt are set to be released at an online auction starting 11 August 2017, while the remaining 291 will be sold at a later date.

The drink is also "ultra-kosher" according to Attir.

"Kosher is one thing that we do here differently. We are like the ultra-kosher distillery you can find I guess in the world. Because whisky by definition is kosher but here it is much more. We don't work on Saturdays, we don't work on Yom Kippur or Passover and we want to symbolise our being Jewish or Israeli and then we called it the Milk and Honey Distillery," he says.

The Single Malt was made in Israel from start to finish, according to the company's website. The climate in Israel allows for a speedier aging process than for whisky made in colder climes, according to Ran Latowicz, an Israeli whisky connoisseur and bar owner.

"This whisky is unique because of where it comes from. It comes from a warm climate country which is a place that's a lot harder to make whisky. In colder climates like Scotland or Ireland, whisky usually ages for about seven to ten to twelve years before it's even bottled because this is just the way, you know, it gets to its full potential, at least to the beginning of its full potential. The warm climate thing in Israel speeds up the process and actually makes a three year old whisky feel a lot older," he says.

The distillery believes it is well positioned to ride a wave of international interest in new world whiskies and hopes this initial offering whets the appetites of aficionados everywhere.

"There's a huge demand nowadays for whisky from other places around the world, a new world whisky. There's more than 70 countries now with a minimum of one distillery and one of them is Israel. So the demand now is for new things, new stories, new markets, new tastes and I think we're going to be a part of this amazing wave," says Attir.

Israel may have long been known as the land of milk and honey, but now the company which uses that phrase as its name hopes to make it the land of Single Malt whisky.

Tel Aviv - 10 August 2017

1. Whisky (whiskey) being removed from cask and poured into glasses

2. Tilt up of whisky casks

3. More of casks

4. The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO Eitan Attir walking through warehouse

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"It's a young whisky, let's be honest, it's only three years of 3.2 actually but it's a very unique combination between two and a half years in a new American virgin oak, and seven months in an ex-bourbon one so it has a lot of woodiness and a lot of fruitiness inside as well. It's complex for its age, as I told you the taste feels like more than three years, more like seven or eight and again the story is much more important in this case. This is the first ever single malt whisky that any distillery released from Israel."

6. Pan left of casks

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"The Milk and Honey is the first whisky distillery here in Israel and we already set the first ever whisky single malt whisky and we're going to sell it in an auction, numbers 1 up to 100 out of 391 bottles from the single cask series are going for auction in whiskyauctioneer.com."

8. Various of barley and malt on production line

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"Milk and Honey is the name of the distillery actually and also of the whisky that was released because Israel is well known as the milk and honey land. So we are very, very proud of being Israeli. We are very proud of being Jewish. We want to shout it to the world about the Milk and Honey Distillery. Kosher is one thing that we do here differently. We are like the ultra-kosher distillery you can find I guess in the world. Because whisky by definition is kosher but here it is much more. We don't work on Saturdays, we don't work on Yom Kippur or Passover and we want to symbolise our being Jewish or Israeli and then we called it the Milk and Honey Distillery."

10. Various of signs showing production details in English and Hebrew

11. Pan left of warehouse

12. Establishing shot of Ran Latovicz, whisky expert

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Ran Latovicz, whisky expert

"This spirit is very complex, very…I call it an intelligent whisky. It's a whisky that develops. A whisky that you can keep it in the glass for 25 minutes and it develops again and I'm very excited, a lot of people all around the world are very excited to see where this spirit and where this whisky is going to be in about three or four, five years from now."

14. Close of whisky in glass

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Ran Latovicz, whiskey expert

"This whisky is unique because of where it comes from. It comes from a warm climate country which is a place that's a lot harder to make whisky. In colder climates like Scotland or Ireland, whisky usually ages for about seven to ten to twelve years before it's even bottled because this is just the way, you know, it gets to its full potential, at least to the beginning of its full potential. The warm climate thing in Israel speeds up the process and actually makes a three year old whisky feel a lot older."

16. Various of whisky production facility

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"There's a huge demand nowadays for whisky from other places around the world, a new world whisky. There's more than 70 countries now with a minimum of one distillery and one of them is Israel. So the demand now is for new things, new stories, new markets, new tastes and I think we're going to be a part of this amazing wave."

18. Whisky being poured from cask to glass

LEADIN

Israel's first whisky (also spelt whiskey) distillery is preparing to release the country's first Single Malt whisky.

100 bottles are set to be released by auction from The Milk and Honey distillery later this month.

STORYLINE

Smooth, honey-brown whisky (also spelt whiskey) is not the first thing that pops to mind when you think of Israel. But at The Milk and Honey Distillery, rows of casks proudly stamped "Tel Aviv" hold litres of the stuff.

The country's first whisky distillery is preparing to release Israel's first Single Malt whisky.

Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO, describes it as a young whisky with a lot of woodiness and fruitiness:

"It's complex for its age, as I told you the taste feels like more than three years, more like seven or eight and again the story is much more important in this case. This is the first ever single malt whisky that any distillery released from Israel."

While wine has been produced in the Holy Land for centuries with modern day Israeli wines recently gaining international renown, whisky production is new to the country.

Milk and Honey was created in 2012 and began distilling whisky in 2015. One hundred bottles of the Single Malt are set to be released at an online auction starting 11 August 2017, while the remaining 291 will be sold at a later date.

The drink is also "ultra-kosher" according to Attir.

"Kosher is one thing that we do here differently. We are like the ultra-kosher distillery you can find I guess in the world. Because whisky by definition is kosher but here it is much more. We don't work on Saturdays, we don't work on Yom Kippur or Passover and we want to symbolise our being Jewish or Israeli and then we called it the Milk and Honey Distillery," he says.

The Single Malt was made in Israel from start to finish, according to the company's website. The climate in Israel allows for a speedier aging process than for whisky made in colder climes, according to Ran Latowicz, an Israeli whisky connoisseur and bar owner.

"This whisky is unique because of where it comes from. It comes from a warm climate country which is a place that's a lot harder to make whisky. In colder climates like Scotland or Ireland, whisky usually ages for about seven to ten to twelve years before it's even bottled because this is just the way, you know, it gets to its full potential, at least to the beginning of its full potential. The warm climate thing in Israel speeds up the process and actually makes a three year old whisky feel a lot older," he says.

The distillery believes it is well positioned to ride a wave of international interest in new world whiskies and hopes this initial offering whets the appetites of aficionados everywhere.

"There's a huge demand nowadays for whisky from other places around the world, a new world whisky. There's more than 70 countries now with a minimum of one distillery and one of them is Israel. So the demand now is for new things, new stories, new markets, new tastes and I think we're going to be a part of this amazing wave," says Attir.

Israel may have long been known as the land of milk and honey, but now the company which uses that phrase as its name hopes to make it the land of Single Malt whisky.

Tel Aviv - 10 August 2017

1. Whisky (whiskey) being removed from cask and poured into glasses

2. Tilt up of whisky casks

3. More of casks

4. The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO Eitan Attir walking through warehouse

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"It's a young whisky, let's be honest, it's only three years of 3.2 actually but it's a very unique combination between two and a half years in a new American virgin oak, and seven months in an ex-bourbon one so it has a lot of woodiness and a lot of fruitiness inside as well. It's complex for its age, as I told you the taste feels like more than three years, more like seven or eight and again the story is much more important in this case. This is the first ever single malt whisky that any distillery released from Israel."

6. Pan left of casks

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"The Milk and Honey is the first whisky distillery here in Israel and we already set the first ever whisky single malt whisky and we're going to sell it in an auction, numbers 1 up to 100 out of 391 bottles from the single cask series are going for auction in whiskyauctioneer.com."

8. Various of barley and malt on production line

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"Milk and Honey is the name of the distillery actually and also of the whisky that was released because Israel is well known as the milk and honey land. So we are very, very proud of being Israeli. We are very proud of being Jewish. We want to shout it to the world about the Milk and Honey Distillery. Kosher is one thing that we do here differently. We are like the ultra-kosher distillery you can find I guess in the world. Because whisky by definition is kosher but here it is much more. We don't work on Saturdays, we don't work on Yom Kippur or Passover and we want to symbolise our being Jewish or Israeli and then we called it the Milk and Honey Distillery."

10. Various of signs showing production details in English and Hebrew

11. Pan left of warehouse

12. Establishing shot of Ran Latovicz, whisky expert

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Ran Latovicz, whisky expert

"This spirit is very complex, very…I call it an intelligent whisky. It's a whisky that develops. A whisky that you can keep it in the glass for 25 minutes and it develops again and I'm very excited, a lot of people all around the world are very excited to see where this spirit and where this whisky is going to be in about three or four, five years from now."

14. Close of whisky in glass

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Ran Latovicz, whiskey expert

"This whisky is unique because of where it comes from. It comes from a warm climate country which is a place that's a lot harder to make whisky. In colder climates like Scotland or Ireland, whisky usually ages for about seven to ten to twelve years before it's even bottled because this is just the way, you know, it gets to its full potential, at least to the beginning of its full potential. The warm climate thing in Israel speeds up the process and actually makes a three year old whisky feel a lot older."

16. Various of whisky production facility

17. SOUNDBITE (English) Eitan Attir, The Milk and Honey Distillery CEO

"There's a huge demand nowadays for whisky from other places around the world, a new world whisky. There's more than 70 countries now with a minimum of one distillery and one of them is Israel. So the demand now is for new things, new stories, new markets, new tastes and I think we're going to be a part of this amazing wave."

18. Whisky being poured from cask to glass

The head of the body which administers Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, on Tuesday objected to plans to install surveillance cameras at the shrine.

Abdel Azeem Salhab, the chairman of the Waqf Council which administers the walled Jerusalem shrine at the epicentre of Israel-Palestinian violence, said that Israel wants to install cameras there "for its own purposes and this will not happen".

Israeli and Jordanian officials said earlier that new surveillance cameras should be installed there within days, with the goal of streaming the footage live on the internet for maximum transparency.

The idea to install the cameras emerged during separate talks late last week between U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, and the three sides with a stake at the shrine: Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian self-rule government.

Kerry was looking for a way to lower tensions, but it's not clear if video cameras will achieve that.

The current round of violence began in mid-September, triggered in part by heated disputes over the Jerusalem shrine.

The compound is revered by both Muslims and Jews and a lightning rod for the clashing national narratives of Israelis and Palestinians.

Jordan, which controlled the site before Israel captured it in the 1967 Mideast war, serves as the custodian of the Muslim-administered site.

Under decades-old arrangements, Jews are allowed to visit, but not to pray at the shrine.

However, the number of Jewish visitors has doubled in the past five years, accompanied by statements from Jewish groups and several leading Israeli politicians demanding prayers at the site.

Such statements have fuelled Palestinian fears that Israel is trying to expand its presence at the shrine.

Israel adamantly denies such allegations, saying they amount to incitement to violence.

In mid-September, tensions started to soar, coinciding with an increase in the number of Jewish visitors during a period of Jewish holidays. Clashes erupted at the shrine between young Palestinian stone-throwers and Israeli security forces.

The confrontations quickly spread. In all, 11 Israelis have been killed, mostly in stabbings, while 52 Palestinians, including 30 said by Israel to be attackers, have been killed by Israeli fire.

Under the compromise brokered by Kerry, video cameras are to be installed inside the 37-acre (15-hectare) walled platform to help defuse tensions.

The details are to be worked out between officials from the site's administrator - the Islamic Trust, or Waqf - and Israeli authorities, said a senior Jordanian government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with briefing regulations.

He said he expects the cameras to be installed in "days, not weeks."

He said both Muslim clerics and Israeli officials will for now monitor the images, but that "the ultimate goal is for the footage to be seen on the internet, by everyone."

Israeli officials confirmed the plan, and in a statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said it hopes to start the process "as soon as possible."

Israel has welcomed the plan, saying the cameras will prove it is doing nothing wrong and expose violent activities by Palestinian protesters.

The Palestinians have given the plan a cool reception, saying Israel will use the cameras to arrest people and complaining that deeper issues have been ignored.

The Palestinians say the violence is the result of years of Israeli military occupation and a lack of hope for gaining independence after years of failed peace efforts.

The head of the body which administers Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa Mosque, on Tuesday objected to plans to install surveillance cameras at the shrine.

Abdel Azeem Salhab, the chairman of the Waqf Council which administers the walled Jerusalem shrine at the epicentre of Israel-Palestinian violence, said that Israel wants to install cameras there "for its own purposes and this will not happen".

Israeli and Jordanian officials said earlier that new surveillance cameras should be installed there within days, with the goal of streaming the footage live on the internet for maximum transparency.

The idea to install the cameras emerged during separate talks late last week between U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, and the three sides with a stake at the shrine: Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian self-rule government.

Kerry was looking for a way to lower tensions, but it's not clear if video cameras will achieve that.

The current round of violence began in mid-September, triggered in part by heated disputes over the Jerusalem shrine.

The compound is revered by both Muslims and Jews and a lightning rod for the clashing national narratives of Israelis and Palestinians.

Jordan, which controlled the site before Israel captured it in the 1967 Mideast war, serves as the custodian of the Muslim-administered site.

Under decades-old arrangements, Jews are allowed to visit, but not to pray at the shrine.

However, the number of Jewish visitors has doubled in the past five years, accompanied by statements from Jewish groups and several leading Israeli politicians demanding prayers at the site.

Such statements have fuelled Palestinian fears that Israel is trying to expand its presence at the shrine.

Israel adamantly denies such allegations, saying they amount to incitement to violence.

In mid-September, tensions started to soar, coinciding with an increase in the number of Jewish visitors during a period of Jewish holidays. Clashes erupted at the shrine between young Palestinian stone-throwers and Israeli security forces.

The confrontations quickly spread. In all, 11 Israelis have been killed, mostly in stabbings, while 52 Palestinians, including 30 said by Israel to be attackers, have been killed by Israeli fire.

Under the compromise brokered by Kerry, video cameras are to be installed inside the 37-acre (15-hectare) walled platform to help defuse tensions.

The details are to be worked out between officials from the site's administrator - the Islamic Trust, or Waqf - and Israeli authorities, said a senior Jordanian government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with briefing regulations.

He said he expects the cameras to be installed in "days, not weeks."

He said both Muslim clerics and Israeli officials will for now monitor the images, but that "the ultimate goal is for the footage to be seen on the internet, by everyone."

Israeli officials confirmed the plan, and in a statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said it hopes to start the process "as soon as possible."

Israel has welcomed the plan, saying the cameras will prove it is doing nothing wrong and expose violent activities by Palestinian protesters.

The Palestinians have given the plan a cool reception, saying Israel will use the cameras to arrest people and complaining that deeper issues have been ignored.

The Palestinians say the violence is the result of years of Israeli military occupation and a lack of hope for gaining independence after years of failed peace efforts.

AP TELEVISION

Jerusalem - 27 October 2015

1. News conference with Abdel Azeem Salhab, Chairman of the Waqf Council (Islamic trust which administers the Al-Aqsa mosque site), and other officials

2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Abdel Azeem Salhab, Chairman of the Waqf Council:

"The actions of the occupation authorities show that they are continuing with their policies to judaise the Al-Aqsa mosque. And anything that will encroach on Al-Aqsa mosque and its sanctity and the freedom of the Muslims to pray in it, is absolutely unacceptable. Israel wants cameras for its own purposes and this will not happen."

3. End of news conference

4. Al-Aqsa compound

Thousands of evangelical Christians from more than 80 countries descended upon Jerusalem this week to show their support for the Jewish state, including pilgrims and politicians from countries with a history of hostility toward Israel.

The celebratory summit reflects evangelical Christianity's dramatic growth worldwide and gives a boost to Israel at a time when, some argue, the country is increasingly isolated internationally.

Attitudes in Israel toward evangelicals are evolving, from scepticism about Christian Zionist motives, to the realisation that Israel cannot survive on the support of diaspora Jewish communities alone and is in no position to turn down the potential political and tourism boost the Christians can provide.

Evangelical Christianity is one of the world's fastest growing religious movements. Of the world's estimated two billion Christians, some 700 million are evangelicals, according to the pro-Israel International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, which organized the Jerusalem summit.

Evangelical movements are expanding most prominently in Latin America, Africa and Asia - regions that "hold great potential for the nation of Israel in political, diplomatic and economic terms," according to a position paper the group presented last year to Israel's Foreign Ministry.

Evangelicals at the summit boasted of their success at lobbying on Israel's behalf in the halls of parliaments around the world.

There are currently 32 pro-Israeli caucuses in parliaments worldwide, according to the Israel Allies Foundation, a Jewish-Christian pro-Israel political group that brought two dozen lawmakers from 18 countries to Jerusalem this week to meet with Israeli lawmakers and officials.

The annual weeklong summit is billed as the Feast of Tabernacles, the Christian term for the weeklong Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which in biblical times was marked by a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.

Thousands of evangelical Christians from more than 80 countries descended upon Jerusalem this week to show their support for the Jewish state, including pilgrims and politicians from countries with a history of hostility toward Israel.

The celebratory summit reflects evangelical Christianity's dramatic growth worldwide and gives a boost to Israel at a time when, some argue, the country is increasingly isolated internationally.

Attitudes in Israel toward evangelicals are evolving, from scepticism about Christian Zionist motives, to the realisation that Israel cannot survive on the support of diaspora Jewish communities alone and is in no position to turn down the potential political and tourism boost the Christians can provide.

Evangelical Christianity is one of the world's fastest growing religious movements. Of the world's estimated two billion Christians, some 700 million are evangelicals, according to the pro-Israel International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, which organized the Jerusalem summit.

Evangelical movements are expanding most prominently in Latin America, Africa and Asia - regions that "hold great potential for the nation of Israel in political, diplomatic and economic terms," according to a position paper the group presented last year to Israel's Foreign Ministry.

Evangelicals at the summit boasted of their success at lobbying on Israel's behalf in the halls of parliaments around the world.

There are currently 32 pro-Israeli caucuses in parliaments worldwide, according to the Israel Allies Foundation, a Jewish-Christian pro-Israel political group that brought two dozen lawmakers from 18 countries to Jerusalem this week to meet with Israeli lawmakers and officials.

The annual weeklong summit is billed as the Feast of Tabernacles, the Christian term for the weeklong Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which in biblical times was marked by a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.

AP TELEVISION

Jerusalem - 1 October 2015

1. Man playing Jewish trumped called "shofar"

2. Banner reading (English): "Israel you are not alone"

3. Man holding South Korean flag cheering

4. Various evangelical Christians dressed up in colourful regional costumes banging drums and performing

AP TELEVISION

Jerusalem - 29 September 2015

5. Pan to the right of evangelical Christians gathered at stadium, many waving Israeli flags

6. Evangelical Christians cheering Israeli president Reuven Rivlin as he takes to the stage

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Reuven Rivlin, President of Israel:

"Thank you for standing with us, thank you for standing with us."

8. Couple sitting, the man wrapped in Israeli flag

9. Medium of man with Israeli and Finnish flags

10. Set up of Jerusalem's International Christian Embassy Director Jurgen Buhler talking to guests

11. SOUNDBITE (English): Jurgen Buhler, Director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem:

"Those millions of Christians, they have a passion and a love for the Jewish people. They also do see something very interesting: it's that the ancient prophecies of the Bible, which some of them are 2,500, 3,000-years-old which speak about the time that the Jewish people will be exiled around the world, but one day they will come back to their land. So they read the scriptures, they see what is taking place today in Israel. They say: 'Wow, this is amazing; we see biblical prophecy being fulfilled in front of our eyes. So they want to get involved. They support Israel, they stand (by) Israel, and what we've seen over recent decades (is) that they even became a significant force within even parliaments around the world."

12. Buhler talking to guest

13. SOUNDBITE (English): Jurgen Buhler, Director of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem:

"To see today, we have around 40, I believe even 50 members of parliament from more than 25 nations which have come to the Feast of Tabernacles. They are meeting with lawmakers here in Israel; they are gathering together as a group, strategising what they can do. For example, some of the European parliamentarians, they are looking at what they can do to challenge the boycott law which is being prepared right now in the European Union, which some of them feel that this is a flashback to what was happening 70 years ago, when people were told not to buy Jewish goods anymore. So they are talking together (about) what they can do in order to challenge those laws. So this is a very practical step."

14. Wide of South African lawmaker Kenneth Meshoe with other guests

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Kenneth Meshoe, South African lawmaker and head of the African Christian Democratic Party:

"Whenever there was a clash between the Palestinians and Israel, everybody would condemn Israel and forget that Israel is never the aggressor. But Israel always responds and when Israel responds, many do not want to look at who caused the trouble, but they would just condemn Israel and they would say that the action is disproportional. But when aggression is started by the other group, they would be quiet. And that is very wrong."

16. Woman dancing in front of stage area as band is playing

Israel's Prime Minister has said his country is "in the midst of a campaign against terror in Gaza."

During his cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on Sunday, Benjamin Netanyahu commented on the deadly violence that has taken place near the Israeli-Palestine border during the past months.

"It won't end with a single strike" Netanyahu said Sunday morning, adding, "our approach is clear, a complete ceasefire. We won't be satisfied with less than that."

He also stated that the Israeli military so far has destroyed "hundreds of Hamas military targets."

Three Palestinians were killed on Friday by Israeli fire during a Hamas-led protest along the Gaza border.

The incident came as Gaza's Hamas rulers and Israel honoured a cease-fire Friday that ended two days of an intense flare-up in violence.

During Sunday's meeting, Netanyahu also spoke about mass protests taking place in Tell Aviv on Saturday evening against the new Nation-State law, which critics say marginalises Israel's non-Jewish citizens.

"We received conclusive evidence of opposition against the existence of the state of Israel, and the necessity of the nation-state law. We saw PLO flags yesterday flying in the heart of Tel Aviv," Netanyahu told cabinet ministers.

Saturday's rally marked further fallout from the explosive Nation-State law and came a week after thousands of Druze, also members of the Arab minority, packed the same city square last week.

Israel's 1948 declaration of independence defined the country as a Jewish and democratic state and the government says the recently passed bill merely enshrines the country's existing character.

But critics say it undercuts Israel's democratic values and sidelines the country's non-Jewish population, namely the Arab community that makes up 20 percent of the country.

Jerusalem - 12 August 2018

1. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arriving for cabinet meeting

2. Pan left from Netanyahu over cabinet ministers during meeting

3. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister:

"We are in the midst of a campaign against terror in Gaza. There is an exchange of blows, and it won't end with a single strike. Our approach is clear: a complete ceasefire. We won't be satisfied with less than that. Until now we have destroyed hundreds of Hamas military targets, in every round of attacks, the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) has inflicted another heavy toll on Hamas. I won't disclose our operational plans here; they're ready."

4. Cutaway of cabinet meeting

5. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister (speaking about mass protests in Tel Aviv on Saturday against a contentious new law that critics say marginalises Israel's non-Jewish citizens):

"Yesterday we received conclusive evidence of opposition against the existence of the state of Israel, and the necessity of the Nation-state Law. We saw PLO flags yesterday flying in the heart of Tel Aviv, in the heart of Tel Aviv. We heard the chants 'With blood and fire we will redeem Palestine.' Many of the protesters want to cancel the Law of Return (a law which gives Jews the right to come and live in and gain citizenship in Israel), they want to annul the anthem, they want to fold up our flag, they want to nullify Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people and turn it - as some of them say - into an Israeli-Palestinian state, others say a state of all its citizens. Precisely for this reason we passed the Nation-state Law. We are proud of our country, we are proud of our flag, we are proud of our anthem. Israel is a Jewish and democratic state. Individual rights of its citizens are well anchored in the basic laws and other laws, and now it's clearer than ever that the nation-state Law is needed to ensure the future of the state of Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people. We passed this law and we will keep this law."

6. Mid of meeting

Tens of thousands of members of Israel's Druze minority and their Jewish supporters packed a square in central Tel Aviv Saturday night to rally against a contentious new law that critics say sidelines Israel's non-Jewish citizens.

It marked the first time in recent memory that the Druze - who are considered fiercely loyal to the state of Israel - staged a large public protest.

Hundreds of brightly colored Druze flags, rarely seen outside the community, fluttered in the square along Israel's national banners.

Nearby City Hall was also lit up in the Druze colours.

The rally marked the biggest backlash yet against a recently passed law that enshrines Israel's Jewish character and downgrades the standing of Arabic from an official to a "special" language.

The law has outraged Israel's Arabic-speaking community, which includes the Druze and makes up about 20 percent of the population.

Critics say the law undermines the country's democratic values.

The Druze serve in the military, unlike most of the country's Arab citizens, who overwhelmingly follow Sunni Islam and have close family ties with Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territories.

Over the years, members of the Druze community have risen to prominence in the military and in politics.

On Saturday, Tel Aviv's Rabin Square was packed with Druze protesters bused in from all over Israel, and their Jewish backers, including former senior members of the defenfe establishment.

The crowd chanted "equality, equality."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Cabinet ministers have met with Druze leaders to try and pacify their concerns.

But recent meetings did not go well.

According to Israeli media, Netanyahu abruptly ended a meeting with retired brigadier general Amal Assad and other Druze officials this week after Assad warned the new law would "lead to apartheid."

Israel's 130,000 Druze live mostly in the north of the country.

Tel Aviv - August 4 2018

++NIGHT SHOTS++

1. Various of Druze demonstration with Druze as well as Israeli flags being waved

++DAY SHOTS++

2. Demonstrators

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Amal Assad, retired brigadier general:

"We gathered here all of the Israeli citizens to change the bad law for the Israeli country, for the state of Israel, for the Jewish people, and for all the minorities. It's a bad law and we are all equal, Jews, Arabs, Druze, everybody. We are brothers, we defend this country and we'll build it and we will continue to live here together"

4. Mid of demonstration

5. Mid of front of demonstration, with Nadia Halabi, from Northern Israeli town of Daliyat al-Carmel standing with other protesters

6. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Nadia Halabi, protester:

"We are loyal to the state of Israel, we the Druze have been loyal to the state of Israel for 70 years, and we will continue to live here and serve in the army for another 700 years, but we won't accept that Benjamin Netanyahu split us, and will divide the Israeli society. I am a proud Israeli and I am also a proud Druze. When we're looking at the national law that he (Netanyahu) made, he created this problem, if not, we wouldn't be here, all the Druze from all over Israel. Long live Israel."

7. Mid of demonstration

LEADIN:

Two prominent rock singers from Israel and Iran are collaborating - despite major hostility between their countries.

They'll perform an iconic peace anthem called 'The Hope Song' at a concert in Tel Aviv this week, in a call for unity.

STORYLINE:

Aviv Geffen breaks into the opening lyrics of 'The Hope Song', one of the signature hits he wrote after the the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995.

It became something of a peace anthem and has been referred to as the Israeli version of John Lennon's 'Imagine'.

However the call for peace and hope is taken to a new level as the artist to his left joins the song.

Shahin Najafi meshes its Hebrew lyrics with Farsi - the language of Israel's long term enemy Iran.

Najafi is an Iranian dissident musician who had to flee the Islamic Republic because of his activism and was later issued a death sentence for a song about a Shiite cleric that was deemed to be blasphemous.

Now based in Germany, he still has a strong following among those opposed to the regime in Iran.

He's rehearsing with Geffen for a concert later this week in Tel Aviv - believed to be the first joint Israeli-Iranian collaboration.

The two artists hope to prove that despite the bitter enmity between their countries, the people could unite in the name of a better future.

"We can talk, we can hug and touch each other and sing, it's okay you know. So for us it's a great message to the people around the world", says Geffen.

"Naturally I have a very good feeling about it", adds Najafi. "I am very happy that I have this opportunity to come to Israel in the name of art and besides Aviv. We are going to sing together for democracy, freedom and against war."

In its early years, Israel actually had close ties to Iran and the country featured a thriving Jewish community. But following the Islamic revolution in 1979 they quickly devolved into bitter enemies, with the new Iranian leadership often referring to Israel as the "little Satan" and threatening to annihilate it.

In recent years, Israel has regarded Iran as its most dangerous adversary because of its nuclear program, its development of long-range missiles and continued support for militant groups along its border. Meeting with Israelis, let alone visiting the country, is considered an offence that could have severe repercussions.

In Israel, Geffen is cloaked in a rebellious image that earned him a title as the voice of a younger generation in the early 1990s when he would appear on stage in makeup, often without a shirt, and challenge his fans by screaming "do you want a change?"

His songs dealt with charged issues like suicide, religion, drugs and military service, which is compulsory in Israel but he himself skipped.

He performed at a peace rally in 1995 shortly before Rabin was assassinated by a religious extremist Jew opposed to his peace efforts, and Geffen's songs came to symbolise that era.

In recent years, he has been a vocal critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he has called a 'tyrant' who needs to step down.

But Geffen acknowledged that his political activism paled in comparison to Najafi's ordeal.

"I think Shahin is one of the bravest artists I ever met who is fighting on his own ideas and he's got loads, loads of people from Iran who are supporting him and some of his fans were thrown into jail because of his ideas and vision. So for me it was like a miracle to bring him here to Tel Aviv, to Israel just now, you know, because of all the history between us and Iran. To show the people that the people in Iran and Tel Aviv and Israel are getting together along really, really well", he says.

Born in Bandar-e Anzali, in the Gilan province in northern Iran, Najafi made a name for himself as an underground musician who took on controversial issues such as sexuality, politics and God. Under threat of persecution, he fled in 2004.

The "fatwa" death sentence against him was issued after his most controversial song, Naghi, in which he exhorts a Shiite Imam to solve some of the problems plaguing Iran.

The religious edict still stands, as does a 100,000 US dollar bounty on his head. He's often described as "the Salman Rushdie of music".

"I think that life is dangerous and my situation is such that I believe in what I do and I am fighting for what I believe in in general. For democracy, for freedom and for peace and I'm ready to die for it. I am very happy that there is this opportunity for two artists to come together and work together and bring the message of friendship to both the people of Iran and Israel."

Najafi, who learned to sing the chorus of 'The Hope Song' in Hebrew, worked off a translation of the lyrics to create the Farsi segments of the collaborative version.

The duo will also perform 'Good Morning Iran', a song Geffen wrote about Israeli politics.

Tel Aviv, Israel - 27 February 2017

1. Various of Israeli singer Aviv Geffen (left) and Iranian singer Shahin Najafi performing 'The Hope Song' in Hebrew and Farsi

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Aviv Geffen, Israeli singer:

"We can talk, we can hug and touch each other and sing, it's okay you know. So for us it's a great message to the people around the world, if it's let's say (Roger) Waters with the BDS supporting or to the people or to Bibi Netanyahu and Trump with his ridiculous vision. People can talk, people can make music together and it's all fine. We got no problem at all."

3. Cutaway USB stick with Peace sign attached to it

4. SOUNDBITE (Farsi) Shahin Najafi, Iranian singer

"Naturally I have a very good feeling about it. I am very happy that I have this opportunity to come to Israel in the name of art and beside Aviv. We are going to sing together for democracy, freedom and against war."

5. Geffen and Najafi performing 'Good Morning Iran'

6. Pull out of drummer

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Aviv Geffen, Israeli singer

"I think Shahin is one of the bravest artists I ever met who is fighting on his own ideas and he's got loads, loads of people from Iran who are supporting him and some of his fans were thrown into jail because of his ideas and vision. So for me it was like a miracle to bring him here to Tel Aviv, to Israel just now, you know, because of all the history between us and Iran. To show the people that the people in Iran and Tel Aviv and Israel are getting together along really, really well."

8. Geffen and Najafi performing 'Good Morning Iran'

9. SOUNDBITE (Farsi) Shahin Najafi, Iranian singer

"I think that life is dangerous and my situation is such that I believe in what I do and I am fighting for what I believe in, in general. For democracy, for freedom and for peace and I'm ready to die for it. I am very happy that there is this opportunity for two artists to come together and work together and bring the message of friendship to both the people of Iran and Israel."

10. Close of tattoo on hand of Najafi

11. Aviv Geffen singing 'The Hope Song'

12. Aviv Geffen and Shahin Najafi performing 'The Hope Song' and hugging at the end

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: AP CLIENTS ONLY

SHOTLIST:

AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Jerusalem - 28 March 2016

1. Wide of conference

2. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Reuven Rivlin, Israeli President:

"The BDS (Boycott Divestment and Sanctions) is a movement who's foundation is based on the principle of not accepting the existence of the State of Israel. Of course it's not accepted by all the countries in the world, to see Israel as an awe-inspiring phenomenon."

3. Cutaway

4. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Reuven Rivlin, Israeli President:

"We need to differentiate between criticism and deligitimisation, criticism is not deligitimisation. Friends can criticise each other. Between friends we can agree to disagree. Our duty is to show that the foundation of the BDS is rooted in hatred against the State of Israel."

5. Cutaway

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Ron Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress:

"No university would allow a professor to come into a classroom wearing a swastika. Why then should universities give cover to professors who follow jihadists talking points? Schools that condone hate speech should be exposed. Alumni and donors who care about Israel need to make their voices heard. They should pressure university boards of trustees to punish hate speech against Israel."

7. Cutaways

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Lars Faaborg-Andersen, EU Ambassador to Israel:

"Not even the Israeli government claims that the West Bank is part of Israel. So why would products coming from the West Bank be labelled as made in Israel? We have no problem with those products they just have to be correctly labelled. Saying for example, that they are made in the West Bank in the settlements. The West Bank is not part of Israel as we see it and therefore products coming from the West Bank cannot be marketed as made in Israel. It's as easy as that. It's about consumer legislation."

9. Cutaway

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Lars Faaborg-Andersen, EU Ambassador to Israel:

"(The) BDS phenomenon is a rather marginal one and one which at this point in time has a very little affect on Israel and a very little impact on Israel. That means that we have of course to stay vigilant in order to ensure that it does not get further boost and does not get further support. But I think it's important to keep a sense of proportion here and ensure that we are not talking up this phenomenon rather than talking it down thereby giving it a platform that it really doesn't have."

13. Wide of conference

STORYLINE:

The President of Israel Reuven Rivlin on Monday decried the international Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in a conference organised by the daily Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronoth.

The conference, which gathered prominent Jewish figures and politicians, focused on the BDS movement, an international movement which seeks to pressurise Israel into withdrawing from the West Bank and end its occupation.

Ron Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress, called for an end to the boycott of Jewish professors in university campuses.

He also urged the Jewish community to pressure universities to punish hate speech against Israel.

Lauder was referring to a growing aspect of the BDS movement which targets the world of academia and tries to shut down Jewish professor and scientists from taking part.

The head of the European Union in Israel, Lars Faaborg-Andersen, also took part in the conference, and brushed aside any links to BDS and a recent decision by the EU that bans products made West Bank settlements as Israeli products.

===========================================================

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

Some of Yemen's last remaining Jews have arrived in Israel after a clandestine operation retrieved them from the war-torn country, an Israeli nonprofit group said on Monday.

As part of the mission two people who arrived in recent days and a group of 17 Yemenite Jews landed in Israel late on Sunday, according to the Jewish Agency, which works closely with the Israeli government and acts as a link to Jews around the world.

Among the new arrivals was a rabbi who brought an ancient Torah scroll with him.

The Jewish Agency would not disclose details of the secret mission, which it said was a "complex covert operation."

The new arrivals leave behind a civil war raging in Yemen and a spate of anti-Semitic attacks in the country, which the Jewish Agency said was endangering the community.

Hundreds of Jews have arrived in Israel from Yemen in recent years, but the most recent arrivals could mark the end of this immigration.

The 50 remaining Jews - who mostly live in the capital Sanaa in a closed compound next to the US embassy and enjoy the protection of Yemeni authorities - want to stay in the country, the agency said.

Some 50,000 Jews have arrived to Israel from Yemen since 1949 and have become an integral part of Israeli society.

Some of Yemen's last remaining Jews have arrived in Israel after a clandestine operation retrieved them from the war-torn country, an Israeli nonprofit group said on Monday.

As part of the mission two people who arrived in recent days and a group of 17 Yemenite Jews landed in Israel late on Sunday, according to the Jewish Agency, which works closely with the Israeli government and acts as a link to Jews around the world.

Among the new arrivals was a rabbi who brought an ancient Torah scroll with him.

The Jewish Agency would not disclose details of the secret mission, which it said was a "complex covert operation."

The new arrivals leave behind a civil war raging in Yemen and a spate of anti-Semitic attacks in the country, which the Jewish Agency said was endangering the community.

Hundreds of Jews have arrived in Israel from Yemen in recent years, but the most recent arrivals could mark the end of this immigration.

The 50 remaining Jews - who mostly live in the capital Sanaa in a closed compound next to the US embassy and enjoy the protection of Yemeni authorities - want to stay in the country, the agency said.

Some 50,000 Jews have arrived to Israel from Yemen since 1949 and have become an integral part of Israeli society.

Beer Sheva, Southern Israel - 21 March 2016

1. Various of woman and child who arrived from Yemen in clandestine operation

2. Yaakov Dahan reading from scroll

3. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Yaakov Dahan, arrived to Israel from Yemen in clandestine operation:

"I came to Israel, the land of our fathers. In Yemen there was fear, we were afraid, there's war."

4. Dahan showing scroll

5. Dahan's family sitting outside at absorption centre

6. Close of Torah scrolls

7. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Yaakov Dahan, arrived to Israel from Yemen in clandestine operation:

"Book of Torah, scroll, this Book of Torah is very ancient. I think its 800 year old, I was told by my grandfather it's very ancient."

8. Dahan showing Torah

9. Men eating bread

10. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Ariell Di Porto, director at the Jewish Agency for Western countries and countries in turmoil:

"They were in great danger and we did everything to bring them (to Israel). And in recent months we took Jews out from there (Yemen). We brought the Rabbi's children and more Jews a few months ago until it was finalized last night with the arrival of the group of 17 finally arriving in Israel."

11. Children playing outside

12. Family at absorption centre

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: AP CLIENTS ONLY

SHOTLIST:

AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Jerusalem - 25 February 2016

1. Tilt down from Western Wall to Reform rabbis praying

2. Reform rabbis lifting up Torah scroll

3. Pan from female rabbi to Torah scroll

4. Pan of rabbis holding prayer service in area where new egalitarian prayer area will be erected

5. Various of prayer service

Jerusalem - 24 February 2016

6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rabbi Steven Fox, chief executive, Central Conference of American Rabbis

"We are a significant population and we represent a significant population and that there is an ever-growing population in Israel that identifies as reform; that the numbers we hear are just booming; that the percentage of people say I am Reform or I identify Reform is increasing dramatically."

Jerusalem - 25 February 2016

7. Various of Reform Jews praying at Western Wall, where new prayer area will be built

8. Ultra-Orthodox men and women walking outside Western Wall

Jerusalem - 24 February 2016

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rabbi Steven Fox, chief executive, Central Conference of American Rabbis

"I'm an American so I can speak for the United States - how do you ask us to constantly say to our people 'advocate, go to your Senators, go to your Congress people, go to the President,' not just on the big issues like last summer, the Iran deal, but on day to day issues, on funding, on defenCe on security agreements and at the same time have these ministers who say to our people ' you're not really Jewish' or 'you don't have a place here in Israel'."

Jerusalem - 22 February 2016

10. Set up shot of Yariv Levin, Israeli Tourism Minister, in his office

10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Yariv Levin, Israeli Tourism Minister:

"I think it's very very important that we'll be aware to the problem of assimilation and do our best efforts in order to solve it, rather than creating other problems that aren't necessary."

Jerusalem - 25 February 2016

12. Various of male and female rabbis taking part in prayer service

13. Establishing shot of Anat Hoffman (first right), Israeli activist for religious pluralism

14. SOUNDBITE: (English) Anat Hoffman, Israeli activist for religious pluralism:

"When a revolution happens it's a little bit like an earthquake and there are aftershocks, so these are expected aftershocks that people are saying 'oh, there's just one way to be Jewish and if you shake that the whole Jewish structure will fall apart.' I have faith that Judaism can withstand the possibility that there's pluralism, equality, tolerance. I think it's part of Judaism."

15. Pan of Reform rabbis singing at Western Wall

16. Woman wearing prayer shawl and skullcap praying at Western Wall

STORYLINE:

A recent gathering of American Reform rabbis in Jerusalem was marred by comments by Israeli leaders denigrating the group, reflecting an awkward relationship that many fear is alienating the world's second-largest Jewish community from Israel.

The Reform Movement is the largest stream of Judaism in the US, claiming to represent 1.5 (m) million people, and its members provide a key source of financial support and political advocacy for Israel.

But the movement is marginal in Israel, where religious affairs are dominated by the Orthodox rabbinical establishment.

Israeli lawmakers, both secular and ultra-Orthodox, have repeatedly disparaged the group, questioning their Judaism and accusing them of promoting Jewish assimilation.

"How do you ask Jews around the world to support Israel politically, economically, socially," asked Rabbi Steven Fox, the chief executive of the Central Conference of American Rabbis; "and at the same time you have these ministers who say to our people 'you're not really Jewish' or 'you don't have a place here in Israel?' That incongruity is a real problem for us", he added.

Fox's group held its septennial convention in Israel last week and represents 2,000 rabbis.

In the US, Reform synagogues are commonplace, characterized by practices such as mixed-gender prayers, services led by female rabbis and members who drive to synagogue on the Sabbath.

Such customs violate Orthodox norms, and in Israel, Reform Judaism is often seen as a curiosity, threat or something that should not be taken seriously.

Over the years, Reform rabbis have made small gains in Israel, and last month, the movement was jubilant over perhaps its greatest victory, after Israel announced that it would create a special mixed-gender prayer area at the Western Wall.

The new area will also permit women to wear prayer shawls and skullcaps, a rite reserved for men under Orthodox custom.

The announcement came after three years of painstaking negotiations between Israeli officials and the liberal streams of Judaism and appeared to mark a historic turning point in relations between Israel and diaspora Jews.

But right after the plan was approved, Israel's secular Tourism Minister Yariv Levin said the Reform movement was a "waning world."

He accused the movement of tolerating intermarriage, encouraging assimilation and predicted the mixed-prayer area would become unnecessary within two or three generations.

Even after Reform rabbis criticized him, Levin expressed no remorse.

"It's very important that we'll be aware of the problem of assimilation and do our best efforts in order to solve it," he told The Associated Press.

For decades, American Jewry - the second largest Jewish community in the world after Israel - has served as a bedrock of support for Israel.

But there are signs of that support softening, particularly among younger and more liberal Jews.

Reform leaders say that the harsh reactions from ultra-Orthodox leaders are an unfortunate but expected response to the gains the movement has made.

Beyond the Western Wall compromise, the Reform rabbis say they do see signs of progress.

Israel's Supreme Court ruled this month that the country's ritual baths must accept all converts to Judaism, even those who have undergone non-Orthodox conversions outside the country.

They also point to the movement's small but growing base in Israel as a sign that the movement is finally gaining traction in the Jewish state.

===========================================================

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

The coastal city of Netanya calls itself the Israeli Riviera, and walking along its main pedestrian boulevard, one would be hard pressed to tell it apart from its twin city of Nice in France.

Barely a word of Hebrew is spoken, and property advertisements, restaurant menus and cafe conversations are all in French.

An increase in anti-Semitic attacks by Muslim extremists in France, home to the world's third largest Jewish population, has led to an unprecedented wave of immigration to Israel.

Netanya, with its seaside chic and established French-speaking community, has become their top destination.

Last year, for the first time, France was Israel's top source of immigrants, according to the Jewish Agency, a nonprofit group that works closely with the government and acts as a link for Jews around the world.

A record 7,200 French Jews arrived in 2014, double the number for the previous year.

Of those, about 2,000 came to the Mediterranean city of Netanya.

The surge, which marked the first time in Israeli history that more than one percent of a Western country's Jewish population immigrated in a single year, started even before the shooting rampage that killed four Jews in a Paris kosher supermarket in January and devastated the community's already shaky sense of security.

For Fanny Rhoum, a 33-year-old mother of two, whose children used to go to school across from the Hyper Cacher, the supermarket where the attack happened, that was the tipping point.

Three days after the attack, she came to Israel to start planning her move.

She arrived this week on a special flight from Paris with another 200 immigrants.

Jeanette Malka, 63, said she had waited for her retirement to move to Israel and now hopes her children and grandchildren will join her.

Jews have been targeted in Belgium, Denmark and other European countries, but France has seen the worst of it.

Jews have increasingly reported assaults and intimidation, mostly from Muslim extremists.

While some attacks have been linked to anger at Israeli policies toward the Palestinians, most have been of an anti-Semitic nature.

France's Jewish community of 500,000 is the largest in Europe.

Though Jews make up less than one percent of the population, French officials say more than 50 percent of all reported racist attacks in 2014 were directed against them.

The Jewish Agency for Israel says many immigrants also come to Israel out of Zionist fervour or for economic reasons.

Unemployment has hovered around 10 percent in France since 2009, compared to less than five percent in Israel.

But while annual migration numbers have historically hovered between 1,000 to 2,000, the agency says the exodus really kicked off after the 2012 shooting attack against a Jewish school in Toulouse that killed three children and a rabbi.

Following the January killings at the kosher supermarket, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rushed to Paris and openly urged the country's Jews to move to Israel.

The Jewish Agency reports that 2015 has already seen a 10 percent jump from last year's record numbers.

European Jews are divided on the question of immigration to Israel. While maintaining close ties to Israel, their community leaders have urged people to stay in their countries.

The trend has also been deeply troubling for the French government, with top officials pleading with Jews to stay and warning that a mass migration of the community would be seen as a failure of the republic.

France takes pride in its inclusiveness and the Jews' 2,000-year history in the country.

Arriving in Israel, the French immigrants have brought with them that history - as well as a French sense of style, culture and food, and nowhere is that more on display than in Netanya.

Entire neighbourhoods have become French-speaking and the busy central promenade bustles with cafes with customers smoking, drinking coffee and eating croissants.

Most of the newcomers speak nothing but French, and the city has adjusted accordingly, launching a French language website and ensuring there are French speakers in schools and workplaces to help ease the transition.

Netanya, central Israel - 29 July 2015

1. Fountain on Independence Square

2. Children playing around fountain

3. People walking in street

4. Pull out from French menu outside cafe to people sitting

5. People sitting in cafe

6. New immigrant from France receiving her Israeli identity card from government official

7. Pan of Israeli identity cards on table

8. French immigrant Fanny Rhoum and her husband receiving their Israeli identity card

9. SOUNDBITE (French) Fanny Rhoum, 33, French immigrant to Israel:

"The attack (on the Hyper Cacher in Paris) was the tipping point. When there was the Charlie Hebdo attack, I thought it was horrible. It's horrible what I'm going to say, but I said to myself, it's not only us who are concerned any more, it's everyone. But when the attack on the Hyper Cacher occurred I said to myself that there will always be something hanging over our heads, so it made it (our departure) closer. Three days after the attack I was here, I came here, I was too afraid. I wanted to come here and see what would happen and we started looking (for a flat) and all the rest, every event made our departure closer."

10. Cutaway of girl holding Israeli flag

11. SOUNDBITE (French) Fanny Rhoum, 33, French immigrant to Israel:

"We had become paranoid. We had become paranoid about everything and nothing. So it was stressful every day. It was stressful and we feel... Here we get the feeling that we can protect ourselves, but there, we had the impression that we were on our own and if, God forbid, something happened, we would have to manage."

12. Zoom in on French immigrant Jeanette Malka, and her husband Chaim, receiving their Israeli identification cards

13. SOUNDBITE (French) Jeanette Malka, 66, French immigrant to Israel:

"When we have children, and our grandchildren are in Jewish schools, yes, yes it really scares us. And when you see the soldiers and your grandchildren are asking you, 'Grandma, why are the soldiers here?' What can you tell them? That's the problem. So yes, it pushed us to leave."

14. Netanya street

15. Estate agent's window with signs in French

16. Poster in shop window reading (French): "SIM cards and phones sold here"

17. Freddo Pachter, head of Netanya's French absorption project, outside cafe

18. SOUNDBITE (French) Freddo Pachter, head of Netanya's French absorption project:

"It is important for an 'Oleh Hadash' (Hebrew - meaning new immigrant to Israel), for a new immigrant, to arrive in a city where there is an integration programme, it is better to land softly than to do it the hard way, and for this purpose, the Ministry (of absorption) and the municipalities are putting lots of resources in place."

19. Sea with flags in foreground

20. People walking on steps down to beach

21. Pull out from boats to wide of beach

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide of people marching holding Israeli and United States flags, large banner reading (English): "Christians United for Israel"

2. American televangelist John Hagee holding Israeli and US flags

3. Various of people marching

4. Hagee marching

5. Pan of march

6. Security vehicle

7. Wide reverse shot of march

8. Tilt down from Israeli and US flags to Hagee

9. Reverse shot of Hagee standing at podium facing crowd

10. SOUNDBITE: (English) John Hagee, American televangelist:

"You are united in the belief that Jerusalem is the city of God. It is the place of our spiritual heritage. It is the place where Jeremiah and Isaiah uttered moral and spiritual principles that shape the standards of righteousness for the nations of the world. We are united that Jerusalem is the only city on Earth that by its very existence declares there is a God, we are united that the Jewish people are a chosen people, they are a cherished people, they are the apple of God's eye, they are a covenant people and that eternal covenant to the land of Israel has never been broken and stands today."

11. Cutaway of crowd waving flags

12. SOUNDBITE: (English) John Hagee, American televangelist:

"We are united to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, according to Psalms 122. We're united to speak out in defence of Israel according to Isaiah 62 and one. We are united to financially support Israel, according to St. Paul's writings in Romans 15. We are here to celebrate Israel's 60th birthday."

13. Pan from crowd cheering to Hagee at podium

14. Wide of crowd waving flags

STORYLINE

American televangelist John Hagee led several hundred flag-waving followers from the US across downtown Jerusalem on Monday, a colourful display of support illustrating the growing alliance between Christian evangelicals and Israel.

Hagee, who calls himself a Christian Zionist, pledged his unconditional backing for the Jewish state and its people.

He also vehemently denied he is anti-Catholic, telling reporters that comments attributed to him were either false or mischaracterised.

US presidential candidate John McCain recently distanced himself from a Hagee endorsement because of what Catholics allege to be disparaging remarks the pastor made about them, including suggesting that Catholic anti-Semitism shaped German Nazi ruler Adolf Hitler.

Some dovish Israelis are equally uncomfortable with Hagee and other evangelists because of their support for West Bank Jewish settlements and

criticism of peace efforts with the Palestinians.

Hagee, who heads a mega-church in San Antonio, established "Christians United for Israel" two years ago.

More than 75,000 Christian leaders, representing tens of (m) millions of Americans, have joined.

About 1,000 followers are on a 10-day visit to Israel to show their support and pledge funds to Israeli causes.

Police blocked traffic on Jerusalem's busiest street as followers waved flags from all 50 US states and chanted slogans such as "we love you, Israel," "Israel is not alone" and "God bless Israel," as slightly bemused Israelis watched.

"You are united in the belief that Jerusalem is the city of God. It is the place of our spiritual heritage," Hagee told the flag-waving crowd.

"We are united that Jerusalem is the only city on Earth that by its very existence declares there is a God," he said.

Many Israelis and Jews are troubled with the source of the unbridled support - a belief by some evangelical groups in a final, apocalyptic battle between good and evil, in which Jesus returns and Jews either accept Christianity or perish.

Israel's government has so far chosen to enjoy the generous financial and political support of leaders like Hagee, and worry about the second coming later.

Hagee, on his 24th visit to Israel, has met with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu during his stay.

In this trip alone, Hagee's group pledged 6 (m) million US dollars in donations, and it plans a large lobbying march to Washington in July calling on the administration not to pressure Israel into making any concessions to the Palestinians.

At a solidarity event on Sunday in Jerusalem, Hagee insisted that the contested city remain united and under Jewish control.

Palestinians claim the eastern part of the city, captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war, as the capital of their future state.

SHOTLIST

1. Relatives waiting to receive new arrivals at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv

2. Woman holding welcome balloon waiting for her relatives

3. Family members hugging as they are reunited, people waving at new arrivals

4. Various of people hugging and dancing

5. Close-up of Iranian-Hebrew dictionary inside airport cart

6. Zoom in to luggage being taken from hall

7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Michael Jankenowitz, Jewish Agency spokesman:

"Today the Jewish Agency brought 40 Jews from Iran. The total number that the Jewish Agency has brought this year is 200 individuals. This is an increase from the 65 who made (inaudible), immigrated to Israel in 2006. The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is supporting every immigrant with a grant of 10-thousand US dollars to assist in his or her absorption into Israel, above and beyond what is made available by the state of Israel."

8. Family members hugging and crying as they are reunited

9. Wide of hall

STORYLINE

Greeted by joyous relatives and a crowd of Israeli TV reporters, about 40 Iranian Jews landed in Tel Aviv on Tuesday, leaving behind their lives in the Islamic state for new homes in Israel.

The new immigrants took a covert route, facilitated by the Israeli government and backed with funding from American evangelical Christians who see their efforts as a fulfilment of biblical prophecy.

Relatives screamed in delight and threw candy at the newcomers as they emerged into the airport reception hall after a long bureaucratic procedure.

The sensitivity of the operation was in evidence throughout.

No details about their route of exit from Iran were given, but it was assumed they came through a third country.

The newcomers were also mobbed by Israeli reporters and TV camera crews.

Their arrival was the top story on the evening newscast of Israel's Channel 2 TV.

TV pictures broadcast locally did not show their faces, reflecting concern that publicity could lead to harm of Jews still in Iran.

The operation was sponsored by the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, a charity that funnels (m) millions of dollars from evangelical donors each year.

Michael Jankelowitz, a spokesman for the Jewish Agency, which deals with immigration, said more Jews have arrived in Israel from Iran in 2007 than in any other year since the 1978 Islamic revolution there, and the group of 40 was the largest.

Altogether this year about 200 Iranian Jews have arrived in Israel of a total of about 25-thousand Jews in Iran.

"This is an increase from the 65 who made (inaudible) immigrated to Israel in 2006," he added.

Other experts, as well as Jews who have arrived quietly from Iran in recent months, discount the dire warnings, saying Jews are living relatively comfortable lives in Iran now.

"The International Fellowship of Christians and Jews is supporting every immigrant with a grant of 10-thousand US dollars to assist in his/her absorption into Israel, above and beyond what is made available by the state of Israel," Jankelowitz said.

Iran's Jewish community is protected by the Islamic Republic's constitution and has one representative in the 290-seat parliament.

Nonetheless, the Jewish community has led an uneasy existence under Iran's Islamic government.

In 2000, Iranian authorities arrested 10 Jews, convicted them of spying for Israel and sentenced them to prison terms ranging from four to 13 years.

An appeals court later reduced their sentences under international pressure and eventually freed them.

No comment was available on Tuesday from the Iranian government or the Jewish lawmaker.

SHOTLIST

Palestinian side of Erez crossing, between Gaza strip and Israel - October 2, 2007

1. Wide of released Palestinian prisoners crossing the Israeli border into the Gaza Strip

2. Mid to pull out of prisoners being greeted as they pass through the border

3. Prisoners walking out of crossing gate, ducking down to escape Israeli fire, AUDIO: gunfire

4. Medium of released prisoner carried on relatives' shoulders

5. Medium of prisoner hugging with relatives

6. Various of Palestinian prisoner, Abdel Hadi Hassanen, hugging family members

7. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Abdel Hadi Hassanen, released prisoner:

"We are very happy to meet our relatives, but our happiness is not complete because our prisoners and the sons of this nation are inside jail until now."

8. Group of Palestinians running with and hugging released prisoner

9. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Hassan Hassanen, father of prisoner who was released:

"I'm the happiest person in the world. It is like I'm walking on air."

10. Released prisoners going on bus

11. Mid of packed bus.

STORYLINE

Israel sent another 29 Palestinian prisoners back to the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, completing a release meant as a goodwill gesture ahead of a U.S.-sponsored Middle East peace conference later this year.

The release of the Gaza prisoners was held up for a day after Israel's military chief expressed reservations over the move.

In the first stage of the release, Israel freed 57 prisoners to the West Bank on Monday.

On Tuesday, as the Gaza prisoners walked through the Erez border crossing, they were greeted by a large crowd of relatives.

When ecstatic family members rushed toward the terminal, Israeli soldiers briefly opened fire, wounding two people, witnesses said.

The army confirmed a large group approached the border, and it fired into the air, and then at people's legs, to disperse the crowd.

The army said one person was wounded.

As the released prisoners left the terminal, relatives hugged them and carried them on their shoulders.

One released prisoner, Abdel Hadi Hassanen, said he was happy to see his family again.

"But our happiness is not complete because our prisoners and the sons of this nation are inside jail until now," he said.

The prisoners were overwhelmingly members of Fatah, the moderate movement of President Mahmoud Abbas, which lost power to the militant group, Hamas, in June. The crowd sang Fatah songs and held yellow Fatah flags.

With the November summit approaching, Israel is trying to bolster Abbas in his standoff with Hamas.

None of the freed prisoners were affiliated with the Islamic militant group, which Israel considers a terrorist organisation.

Abbas now rules from his West Bank stronghold and he has little influence over the goings-on in Gaza.

Israel approved this week's prisoner release, which coincides with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in an effort to build trust ahead of the summit. But after Monday's release in the West Bank, the Gaza portion was mysteriously delayed for unspecified "technical" reasons.

Israeli officials said President Shimon Peres, who must authorise sentence commutations, did not sign off on the Gazans' release until late on Monday.

Security officials said military chief Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi sent Peres a letter saying it was "immoral" to release Gazans held by Israel while Hamas-linked militants in Gaza continue to hold Corporal Gilad Shalit.

Peres' office would not comment.

Militants linked to Hamas captured Shalit in June 2006 after they tunnelled under a fence separating Gaza from Israel and attacked an Israeli army base. Two other soldiers were killed.

The release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails is for Palestinians key for reconciliation between the people since Israel holds about 11-thousand prisoners.

SHOTLIST

1. Exterior of courthouse

2. Medium of security man guarding entrance

3. Lawyers and journalists at entrance to hearing on lifting of gagging order

4. Cameramen and reporters surrounding National Democratic Assembly (Balad) party members of the Knesset and lawyers in court hall

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Paz Mozer, lawyer representing Israeli media demanding to lift the gag order:

"The suspicions against Bishara is about aiding and obeying an enemy during war and some more offences that are concerning Israeli security."

6. Medium of lawmaker from Balad party Jamal Zahalka surrounded by press

7. SOUNDBITE (English) Jamal Zahalka, lawmaker from National Democratic Assembly (Balad) party:

"The accusations and the police statement are false, are lies. Dr. Bishara and Balad denies all these accusations."

8. Zahalka with media

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Jamal Zahalka, lawmaker from National Democratic Assembly (Balad) party:

"This is not an attack on Balad party, it is an attack on all the Arab citizens in Israel, which are described officially by the Israeli intelligence as a strategic threat to Israel as a Jewish state. When you describe 20 percent of the citizens as strategic threat then the acts will come, and it's coming now by fabricating accusations against Dr. Azmi Bishara."

10. Court hallway

STORYLINE

Israeli police said on Wednesday that a fugitive Israeli Arab leader, who has antagonised the authorities by meeting some of Israel's enemies, was suspected of aiding Israel's enemies and other security-related crimes.

The announcement was made after a month-old gag order on a police investigation was partially lifted, after a ruling at a court in Petah Tikva, an Israeli city north-east of Tel Aviv.

The allegations against Doctor Azmi Bishara threaten to further polarise Israel's Jews and minority Arabs, who make up 20 percent of the population and have suffered from second-class status since the state was established six decades ago.

Bishara abruptly left the country a month ago in the midst of a police investigation.

He resigned from parliament over the weekend, accusing authorities of persecuting him for his vocal criticism of the Jewish state.

The gag order had banned publication of any details of the police investigation, but it was eased on Wednesday after lawyers for Israeli newspapers and Bishara's National Democratic Assembly (Balad) party petitioned the court to have it lifted.

Bishara is under suspicion of crimes against Israel's security; aiding the enemy during war - including passing information to the enemy; contacting foreign agents; and receiving significant amounts of money from abroad in violation of anti-money-laundering laws, a police spokesman said.

Some of the alleged offences were carried out during Israel's war against Lebanon over the summer, he said.

Bishara was questioned twice before he fled the country, the spokesman said, adding the lawmaker had failed to keep pledges to return for further questioning.

He said the allegations were serious, but it was not immediately clear what penalties Bishara would face if formally charged and convicted.

Bishara has said recently he would return to Israel, but on Wednesday his lawyer said a final decision had not been made.

Bishara, who is in Doha, Qatar, dismissed the allegations as a political witch hunt.

In Petah Tikva, a Balad lawmaker said the accusations against Bishara were "false."

"This is not an attack on Balad party, it is an attack on all the Arab citizens in Israel, which are described officially by the Israeli intelligence as a strategic threat to Israel as a Jewish state," said Jamal Zahalka.

"When you describe 20 percent of the citizens as strategic threat then the acts will come, and it's coming now by fabricating accusations against Dr. Azmi Bishara," he added.

Bishara accused Israel of using him to cover up for failures during last year's inconclusive war against Hezbollah.

The information that remains classified is to be disclosed next Wednesday, the court ruled.

The 50-year-old Bishara, a Christian native of the northern Israeli town of Nazareth, had been a member of Israel's parliament since 1996.

His resignation from the parliament took effect on Tuesday, 48 hours after he submitted it at the Israeli embassy in Cairo.

Jewish critics repeatedly have accused Bishara of taking advantage of the country's freedoms to undermine it.

He has met with some of Israel's bitterest enemies, including the Syrian and Hezbollah leaders.

He also has spoken out in favour of Palestinian rights and advocated replacing Israel with what he called a binational state that would include citizenship for the roughly 3.4 million Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Israel rejects this plan, saying it would spell the end of the Jewish state.

LEADIN

An interfaith group from the Gulf state of Bahrain has paid an unprecedented public visit to Israel.

The group says the visit is not political but it has still angered many in the Arab world.

STORYLINE

"We are so proud and so grateful that the group came despite all the hullabaloo of the last few days". Those are the words of Rabbi Abraham Cooper from the US-based Jewish human rights group, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, as he welcomes an interfaith group from the Gulf state of Bahrain to an event in Jerusalem.

The hullabaloo he refers to is last week's announcement by Donald Trump that the US will recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel - and the violence that followed that seismic shift in policy.

The group from the Gulf flew to Israel on Sunday as guests of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, in an unprecedented public visit which has generated uproar across the Arab world.

The trip comes at a time that Israel is boasting of warming, albeit covert, ties with moderate Arab countries in a shared front against archrival Iran. But the heavy criticism toward the group unleashed on Arab social media, along with the low profile they have taken, shows the limits on how far that goodwill can go.

The 25 participants include Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, and both Sunni and Shiite Muslims. While organisers and participants say the trip is non-political and unconnected to the government, it nonetheless is a possible test case for other Gulf Arab nations in seeing what could happen if they recognise Israel.

"People have been asking us, 'Oh why are you here now after there was an announcement that was made by the White House?' says Betsy Mathieson, President of This is Bahrain.

"We have nothing to do with politics," Matheison insists. "And if every time somewhere in the world a politician or a leader made a political announcement, or there was a new governmental issue, we would never get any of our work done."

But the early results seem decidedly mixed.

Shortly after the group arrived, it was forced to issue a statement on the state-run Bahrain News Agency that it "does not represent any official entity" in Bahrain after uproar on social media. People were especially angry that the visit came so close to President Donald Trump's comments.

The US President's statement has enraged Palestinians, who seek the city's eastern half as capital of a future state.

Throughout their time in Israel, the group has avoided the spotlight. Several Bahraini citizens in the group chose not to attend a dinner alongside the walls of Jerusalem's Old City to light candles for the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah on Tuesday. The few Bahrainis who did attend either refused to speak to The Associated Press or did so only if they were not identified.

Roughly half of the members of This is Bahrain that took part in the trip were Bahraini citizens. Israel and Bahrain do not have diplomatic relations, although the two are rumoured to be nurturing close covert ties. Israel's Interior Ministry said the participants entered the country legally after their arrival was coordinated in advance with Israeli authorities with the assistance of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, says the fact that the group arrived, defying expectations they would cancel because of Trump's statement, "speaks volumes."

"We're looking for the normalisation. We're not waiting for politicians, and we're going to try to stick to that narrative," he says.

Bahrain and other Sunni Arab states see themselves as sharing regional interests with Israel when confronting Shiite power Iran. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly touted Israel's warming ties with Gulf Arab states in recent months. On Sunday, Netanyahu asserted that "many of the Arab countries now recognise that Israel is not their enemy but their indispensable ally." This shift, he said, "could help pave the way to an ultimate peace between us and our Palestinian neighbours and between us and the rest of the Arab world."

Netanyahu acknowledged last week that Israel won't be able to sign peace treaties with Arab countries without a deal with the Palestinians, but also implied that ties have already been established and have plenty of room to grow. "Peace treaties, no. Everything else below that, yes, and it's happening," he said just hours before Trump's declaration on Jerusalem.

The island nation of Bahrain, east of Saudi Arabia in the Persian Gulf, has long been seen as more liberal than its larger neighbour, but has faced major criticism in recent years for how it put down its 2011 Arab Spring protests with the help of the Saudi kingdom and the United Arab Emirates.

The tiny state is ruled by a Sunni king but has a majority Shiite population. According to the Bahraini government, 70 per cent of the population is Muslim and the remainder adheres to various faiths.

Shiites and others demonstrated in 2011 seeking more political freedoms. An official investigation found the government demolished 30 Shiite religious structures following the demonstrations, ranging from mosques to meeting halls and shrines, as part of a broader crackdown on dissent.

Bahrain is home to a small Jewish community, but no members of the community took part in the trip.

Jerusalem - 12 December 2017

1. Pan from Rabbi Abraham Cooper holding candle to group of visitors from Bahrain (English) UPSOUND "We are so proud and so grateful that the group came despite all the hullabaloo of the last few days."

2. Cooper speaking to group at candle lighting ceremony

3. Close of candle

4. Pull out of Cooper lighting candle

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Betsy Mathieson, president, "This is Bahrain"

"We're thrilled to be here in this beautiful city of Jerusalem. We've been so warmly received and we've been visiting the holy sites and making new friends and sharing our message of peaceful coexistence."

6. Group member lighting candle

7. Close of candle

8. Another group member lighting candle

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Betsy Mathieson, president, "This is Bahrain"

"People have been asking us, 'Oh why are you here now after there was an announcement that was made by the White House?' The thing is, as I said, we have nothing to do with politics. And if every time somewhere in the world a politician or a leader made a political announcement, or there was a new governmental issue, we would never get any of our work done. So you know, political things can change in a heartbeat, but what will not change is the message of This is Bahrain, and our message is one of peaceful coexistence. So we can't allow world leaders or politics to derail our mission."

10. Group members lighting candles

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associated dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center:

"I think that most observers here, in the days leading up to their arrival, assumed that there would be a postponement or a cancellation. That they came speaks volumes."

12. Pan left of group members watching Rabbi Abraham Cooper sing

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associated dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center:

"We're looking for the normalisation. We're not waiting for politicians, and we're going to try to stick to that narrative and we give them tremendous credit."

14. Various of group members around dining table at ceremony

++NIGHT SHOT++

15. Jerusalem's Old City walls

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide of Jerusalem market

2. People in market

3. Sculpture with Star of David and menorah, important symbols of Judaism

4. Top of mosque with crescent moon of Islam

5. Wide of Arab neighbourhood in Jerusalem

6. Youth in street

7. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Abed, Arab resident of Jerusalem:

"The state of Israel is not only for Jews. There are several sects that live in it - we, the Arabs, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Circassians. It's not only for the Jews. They shouldn't say that the state of Israel is for Jews only. It should be a state for all its citizens."

8. Set up of Arab Israeli Member of Parliament Ahmed Tibi

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ahmed Tibi, Arab Israeli Member of Parliament:

"They are asking and demanding from us to be loyal to those who are victimising us. We can't agree to that. The international community should say 'no' to this, and I think it may raise the question that the Arab states should conditionally demand from Israel that any agreement with Israel should include total equal rights for the Arab citizens of the state of Israel."

10. People getting on bus

11. Jerusalem

12. Set up of Professor Mordechai Kremnitzer, Vice President of the Israel Democracy Institute

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Professor Mordechai Kremnitzer, Vice President of the Israel Democracy Institute:

"One of the speculations is that Bibi (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) wants to appease Yisrael Beitenu, Lieberman's party, in order to win their goodwill for a possible extension in the freeze of settlements, but this was denied and maybe minister Netanyahu thinks it's a good idea."

14. Exterior of Israeli Democracy Institute

15. Various newspaper headlines on Netanyahu backing plan to make citizens swear loyalty to the Jewish state

STORYLINE:

Israel's prime minister has agreed to hold a vote on a controversial citizenship bill in what appears to be a move aimed at garnering support for an extension of a West Bank settlement slowdown.

Under heavy international pressure, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been sounding out key Cabinet ministers on the matter, but needs the support of his right-wing coalition partners to extend the settlement slowdown.

But so far, he faces a majority against extending the building restrictions.

Israel is under intense international pressure to extend the slowdown to allow peace talks with the Palestinians to continue.

Netanyahu's hardline foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, is among opponents of a freeze.

Bringing the citizenship bill, sponsored by Lieberman, to a vote on Sunday could soften that opposition.

The bill would amend a loyalty oath for new immigrants to describe Israel as "Jewish and democratic."

While largely symbolic, it is likely to anger the Palestinians and Israel's own Arab minority.

Abed, an Arab resident of Jerusalem, was one critic.

"The state of Israel is not only for Jews. There are several sects that live in it - we, the Arabs, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Circassians. It's not only for the Jews. They shouldn't say that the state of Israel is for Jews only. It should be a state for all its citizens," he said.

Arab Israeli member of Parliament Ahmed Tibi said that Arab Israelis could not agree to "be loyal to those who are victimising us."

"The international community should say 'no' to this, and I think it may raise the question that the Arab states should conditionally demand from Israel that any agreement with Israel should include total equal rights for the Arab citizens of the state of Israel," said Tibi.

The Israeli cabinet is set to vote on the amendment at Sunday's cabinet meeting, and is expected to approve the move.

SHOTLIST

1. Exterior shot of Supreme Court

2. Justina Chipana Castro, who converted ten years ago, sitting in the court room

3. Close-up of Chipana Castro's star of David pendant, tilt up to Chipana Castro's face

4. Judges walking into the court room

5. Wide of judges seated in courtroom

6. SOUNDBITE: (Hebrew) Justina Chipana Castro, converted ten years ago:

"I don't know what to say. It has been so long so many years, and finally, I am so excited, finally, it is going to be so good."

7. Rabbi Ehud Bandel, president of the Masorti (Conservative) movement in Israel, looking over ruling

8. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rabbi Ehud Bandel, president of the Masorti (Conservative) movement in Israel:

"Well the decision is that the petitioners are recognised fully as Jews and as Israeli citizens according to the Law of Return, which is indeed a victory. But it is not, unfortunately, the end of this saga because the question with regards to the recognition of conversions, Reform and Conservative conversions, performed here in Israel is still pending."

9. Group of people talking inside court building

10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rabbi Moshe Weiss, Orthodox leader against the court's decision:

"The consensus was even if you are not traditional or religious, but in order to keep Jewish people together as one standard, it was very important to keep one standard of Judaism. That was on the basis of Torah and Mitzvot (commandments). The Supreme Court has taken into account other issues as far as civil liberties. But nevertheless, the majority of the people look at this as a threat to the continuity to the unity of the Jewish people in the state of Israel."

11. Rabbi Ehud Bandel looking over papers

12. Close up of Supreme Court sign on building

STORYLINE:

Israel's Supreme Court agreed on Thursday to recognise non-Orthodox conversions to Judaism performed partially in Israel, giving a limited victory to the Reform and Conservative Jewish movements which have been marginalised by the religious establishment.

Under current practice, Israel recognises only conversions performed by Orthodox rabbis inside Israel, although people converted by non-Orthodox rabbis outside the country are eligible for citizenship under Israel's "Law of Return."

The court ruled on a case brought in 1999 by 17 foreigners who studied for Reform or Conservative conversions in Israel, but had the ceremonies performed abroad in an attempt to get around the limitations in so-called "bypass conversion."

Petitioners like Justina Chipana Castro, who converted 10 years go, were thrilled.

Israeli authorities had objected to their conversions, saying the Law of Return does not apply to foreigners already living in Israel.

But the ruling on Thursday accepted the conversions, granting legal recognition to the bypass conversions.

Rabbi Ehud Bandel, president of the Masorti, or Conservative, movement in Israel, said while the ruling was a victory, it was not the end of the "saga" because the court had not ruled on whether those who complete their conversions in Israel, under Reform or Conservative supervision, would be recognised as Jews.

Orthodox religious leaders slammed the ruling, saying it would cause an irreparable split in the Jewish nation.

"The majority of the people look at this as a threat to the continuity to the unity of the Jewish people in the state of Israel," said Rabbi Moshe Weiss.

Orthodox rabbis said the other movements' conversion processes simply don't meet Orthodox standards, and politicians have warned that thousands of foreign labourers in the country might undergo lax conversions just to qualify for citizenship and other social benefits.

The conversion battle cuts to the heart of the identity of the Jewish state and was being watched by Jews outside Israel, where the Reform and Conservative movements are more widely accepted than they are here.

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: AP CLIENTS ONLY

SHOTLIST

AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Jerusalem - 21 April 2015

1. Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, Ecumenical and Foreign Relations Director at the Jerusalem Armenian Patriarchate, walking towards monument dedicated to the Armenian massacres of 1915

2. Shirvanian standing in front of monument

3. Shirvanian standing next to monument with visitors

4. Various of entrance to the St James Armenian Convent

5. Set up shot of Shirvanian

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, Ecumenical and Foreign Relations Director at the Jerusalem Armenian Patriarchate:

"We are very pleased that at this point, now, the Israeli government has taken the measure of sending an official delegation to participate in the commemorative events of the first century (meaning 100 years since the) genocide in Yerevan."

7. Tilt up from wooden church doors to mural

8. Close of mural

9. SOUNDBITE (English) Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, Ecumenical and Foreign Relations Director at the Jerusalem Armenian Patriarchate:

"It is very important that Israel recognise the Armenian genocide because, we the Armenians and the Jewish people have suffered the same fate and the Armenian genocide has served as a predecessor to the Jewish Holocaust by having Hitler plan to annihilate six million Jews, so Israel should have been actually one of the first countries to support and recognise the Armenian genocide, but due to its political and military and economic considerations as allies with Turkey, so far Israel has refrained from taking that official step."

10. Shirvanian outside church

11. Sign reading (Hebrew, Arabic and English): "Armenian Orthodox Patriarchate Road"

12. Banner on exterior of church reading (Armenian, English, Arabic and Hebrew): "I remember and demand"

AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Mevaseret Zion, outskirts of Jerusalem - 21 April 2015

13. Representative of Israeli delegation to ceremony and Israeli Member of Parliament Nachman Shai, looking at map of Armenia

14. SOUNDBITE (English) Nachman Shai, Israeli Member of Parliament, Representative of Israeli delegation to the Armenian ceremony marking the centenary of the 1915 massacre of Armenians:

"Israel should obey to its own conscience and to its own values, and we as Jews, and this is the state, the national state of the Jewish people, should accept the very fact that there was a genocide and to change the traditional policy toward this issue."

15. Cutaway of Shai

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Nachman Shai, Israeli Member of Parliament, Representative of Israeli delegation to the Armenian ceremony marking the centenary of the 1915 massacre of Armenians:

"This is a landmark also that we actually upgrade our attitude towards the history of the Armenians, and what I suggested is just to recognise it was a genocide, but I'm not in a position to carry that message I hope very much that the government of Israel, the sooner the better, will look at this series of tragedies and will change the policy and will just give it the right name which is genocide."

AP TELEVISION - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Jerusalem - 21 April 2015

17. Various of banner outside Armenian church reading (Armenian, English, Arabic and Hebrew): "I remember and demand"

STORYLINE

There are growing calls in Israel for the country to call the mass killings of Armenians during World War I a genocide.

In the first gesture of its kind, Israel is dispatching a pair of lawmakers to this week's remembrance ceremony in Yerevan to convey the Jewish state's sympathies.

However, the low-level delegation is under strict instructions to refer to the killings as "national tragedy" rather than "genocide".

Fearing repercussions from its once strong ally, Turkey, and wary of breaking ranks with American policy, Israel has refrained from using the "genocide" label.

Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, a top official at the Jerusalem Armenian Patriarchate, said he was pleased Israel was sending a delegation to the ceremony but it was high time for it to take a stronger stance.

Israeli Member of Parliament Nachman Shai, a representative of Israel's delegation to the ceremony, said it was time for Israel to rethink its approach and acknowledge that genocide did indeed take place.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks in 1915.

Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll has been inflated and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

===========================================================

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

An Israeli activist who works with a progressive Jewish advocacy group said on Sunday that she was "outraged" after an Israeli official stated the government had frozen a long-overdue plan to open a mixed-gender prayer area at Jerusalem's Western Wall.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered top aides to formulate a new plan.

Anat Hoffman, the Executive Director of the Israel Religious Action Center activist group, called the reported freeze "cowardice".

Sunday's decision dealt a blow to efforts to promote religious pluralism in Israel and is likely to upset liberal streams of Judaism that represent most Jews in the United States.

Israel approved a plan in January 2016 to officially recognise a special mixed-gender prayer area at the Western Wall - the holiest site where Jews can pray.

But the programme was never implemented due to opposition by powerful ultra-Orthodox political parties.

Under ultra-Orthodox management, the wall is currently separated between men's and women's prayer sections.

FILE: Jerusalem - 13 April 2017

1. Various of Jewish worshippers attending priestly blessing at Western Wall

Jerusalem - 25 June 2017

2. Anat Hoffman, Executive Director of Israel Religious Action Center (IRAC) speaking on phone

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Anat Hoffman, Executive Director of Israel Religious Action Center:

"I'm outraged by this government decision, I think it shows cowardice. For two years we negotiated in good faith with the government of Israel, we reached a compromise, this wasn't easy, I have a parking spot at the prime minister's office because we negotiated for two years. They've made a decision, overwhelming majority voted 15 to 5 to implement the compromise, and then today they decide that it is null and void, that they're not going to implement it, that equality is out the window, and the women ministers in our government, sat there and voted for it."

4. Hoffman talking on the phone

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Anat Hoffman, Executive Director of Israel Religious Action Center:

"We will continue to pray there, and we will do it fearlessly, despite the incitement against us, but if there's going to be bloodshed at the Wall, and if one of us is going to be injured, this is on (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu's hands, and if there's a rift between Israel and North American Jews, and Jews of the diaspora, it's on his conscience, because this compromise would have brought peace and harmony to the Jewish people. We have our faith in the supreme court of Israel. The supreme court of Israel may force Netanyahu's hand, to bring equality to the Wall as well."

FILE: Jerusalem - 13 April 2017

6. Various of women attending priestly blessing at Western Wall

7. Men praying at Western Wall

8. Wide of Jewish worshippers attending priestly blessing at Western Wall