FROM OUR ARCHIVES

50 YEARS AGO

January 24, 1968 The Israeli-Egypt prisoner-of-war exchange ended as Israel sent back 680 Egyptians and received two officers in return. In all, Israel returned 5,420 prisoners of war. One Israeli soldier claimed that as soon as the Egyptian prisoners of war were returned to Egyptian authorities “they are beaten up. They may leave Israel healthy, but they arrive home bruised.” However, he did not have any facts to substantiate his statement. One Egyptian, who was also returned to Egypt, boarded an Egyptian boat with a huge plastic bag stamped with a Magen David Adom. (He probably received it as a gift from the MDA during Ramadan.) His fellow Egyptians pointed this out to him. He turned pale, took the plastic bag, dumped its contents out on his suitcase, and tossed the empty bag into the Suez Canal.

Druse villagers on the Golan Heights could finally move freely in Israel and work and do business there. The possibility was also raised for young Druse from the area volunteering for service in the IDF. Complaints were made by the Druse community of discrimination by Tnuva in marketing their produce.

15 YEARS AGO

January 24, 2003 Friday night would mark the beginning of Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon’s second of three Shabbatot in space. Before the flight Ramon said, “I’m planning to make a symbolized kiddush – a very small prayer with a glass of wine on Friday evening if time is available.” But once in space, Ramon said, “The only thing I did have is a kiddush cup, but I even missed that for Friday. I hope I’ll do it next Friday.” NASA has strict flight rules about what is allowed on spacecraft. Alcoholic beverages of any kind are prohibited. In addition, it is impossible to pour or drink with a cup in the absence of gravity. Ramon said regarding kiddush, “We’ll figure out how to do it.” He noted, “I’m secular but I’m going to respect all kinds of Jews all over the world. I will try to make some symbolic traditions in space as was already done by astronauts like Dave Wolf, for instance, who used a dreidel.”

10 YEARS AGO

January 24, 2008 Palestinian gunmen blew up large parts of the wall separating the Gaza Strip from Sinai, enabling tens of thousands of Palestinians to cross freely into Egyptian territory. Palestinian and Egyptian sources estimated that some 300,000 Palestinians entered Egypt during the day. Eyewitnesses said the Egyptian authorities had been caught by surprise by the large number of people entering Sinai by foot, donkey carts and cars. Although many had returned home by nightfall, the sources said thousands planned to spend the night in Egypt. Many Gazans were seen returning home with flour, cigarettes, chickens, soft drinks and motorcycles. “We want to buy food, we want to buy rice and sugar, milk and wheat and some cheese, Ibrahim Abu Taha, a Rafah resident said. Abu Taha said he could get the basic foods in Gaza, but at three times the cost. Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak said he had ordered his troops to allow the Gazans to cross into Egypt “because they are starving.”