A Daily Analysis
By Marc Schulman

March 31, 2008 Poverty in Israel?

Understanding the issues of poverty in Israel is not easy.  According to recent figure 1/3 of Israeli children live under the poverty line.  Today a study came out that says that 60% of those who are poor in Israel, are either Haredi or Arab.  The study states that 1/3 of those who are poor are also hungry and going without enough food to eat.  The government released that information today.  At the same time, it rejected any plan to either help those who are feeding the poor or provide any additional aid to those organizations that are helping to feed the poor- which are currently breaking under the weight of the burden of feeding the poor.  Please do not forget, Israel is a country that has without doubt become ever richer in the past few years.

The richness of parts of Israeli society was on display on Israeli television tonight as the annual reports of Israeli companies were released today and with that, the reports of the salary of leading Israeli executives.  By American standards the number is not outrageously high.  The highest paid Israeli executive earned approximately 5 million dollars last year.   Of course, most of the super rich Israelis have made there money when they have sold out their shares in the companies they have worked for.

The Israel Defense Forces is preparing for a potential attack on Gaza by training for fighting in tunnels.  Israel encountered a series of tunnels in southern Lebanon during the war in the summer of 2006 and they were not all that successful.  The IDF has now developed a sophisticated plan that includes the use of remote cameras and robots, both of which scope out the tunnels before soldiers are sent in.