Israel’s Independence Day

THE State of Israel celebrated its Yom Ha’atzma’ut (Independence Day) yesterday, May 9, commemorating the declaration of independence of Israel in 1948 when David ben Gurion publicly read the Proclamation of the establishment of the State of Israel and the end of the British Mandate in Israel.

Israel’s Independence Day falls on the 5th day of the Jewish lunar month Iyyar. This year, the Yom Ha’atzma’ut began at sundown May 8 and ended last night. The celebration is preceded by the Yom Hazikaron, the country’s Memorial

Day for fallen soldiers. Just a few minutes at sundown after the tribute to their fallen soldiers, an official ceremony began on Mount Herzi highlighted with speeches of the highest officials of the land and a ceremonial lighting of the twelve torches which symbolize the Twelve Tribes of Israel.

The celebration continued the next day with parades and a place crosscountry fly-over of military jets and helicopters. Yom Ha’atzma’ut is also a family day, when they flock to the Israel’s national parks for picnics and barbecues.

Israel is located in the Middle East, along the eastern coastline of the Mediterranean Sea, bordered by Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. It lies at the junction of three continents – Europe, Asia, and Africa.

The Philippines and Israel have enjoyed warm and friendly bilateral relations. In the creation of the State of Israel on November 29, 1947, our country was the sole Asian nation that voted in favor of the United Nations resolution creating the state of Israel. Full diplomatic relations between the two countries were realized upon the signing of the Treaty of Friendship on February 26, 1958. In 1962, the Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines in Tel Aviv and the Embassy of the State of Israel in Manila were opened. The relationship between the two countries were further solidified during the visit of President Rodrigo R. Duterte to Israel in September, 2018, when the two heads of state signed agreements on temporary employment of home-based Filipino caregivers, scientific cooperation, and collaboration and promotion on bilateral direct investment.

We congratulate the people and government of Israel led by President Reuven Rivlin on the occasion of its Independence Day.