Tag Archives: Ethiopia news

News

Analyze This: Last Ethiopian Immigrants to Israel?

By CALEV BEN-DAVID
Photo by Ricki Rosen (The Jewish Journal)

The Jerusalem Post – Aug 6, 2008

The announcement by the Jewish Agency that the age of Ethiopian aliya is now ended with the last official airlift of olim from that nation on Tuesday should not be taken too literally.

Even the JA admits that among the some 9,000 remaining Falash Mura still hoping to immigrate, about 1,500 might yet qualify on grounds of family reunification or for other reasons.

As to the rest, fierce debate still rages between the Ethiopian advocacy organizations and their political supporters calling for their transfer here, and opponents such as Housing Minister Zev Boim, who two weeks ago charged that American Jewish groups, “who knew how to bring other Jews to their communities [in the US] and spent a lot of money doing so, don’t behave that way with Ethiopian Jews. So they shouldn’t come here and tell us what to do and how to act on this issue.”

This issue will probably work itself out in the coming years with some kind of compromise over the last Falash Mura in Ethiopia, possibly with final passage of a Knesset bill designed to ease their immigration here. Read more at The Jerusalem Post.

News

Obama Reaches Out to Ethiopian American Voters

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Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff

Published: Wednesday, August 6, 2008

New York (TADIAS) – In a letter sent to the Democratic support group Ethiopians for Obama (E4O), the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee reached out to Ethiopian American voters and acknowledged their growing support for his campaign.

“Ethiopian Americans have contributed so much to our country and our culture, and it is an honor to have so much support from your community”, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois said in his letter.

“We are working to break all records for voter participation in this election, and I hope you’ll become a part of that effort by registering and voting.”

“I am committed to renewing America’s global leadership and helping people like those I met when I traveled to Africa in 2006, not just because it is right, but because it will help America as well”, the letter continued.

“But in order to do this, I need your help and participation first. I need you to stand up and be counted as an American demanding change.”

The Senator concludes his letter by encouraging Ethiopian Americans to get inloved at the grassroots level of his presidential campaign.

“If you have any questions about voting or you want to get involved in our campaign, I hope you’ll talk to your local organizers”, he said. “Thank you again for reading this letter and for voting. Together, we will create the change we seek.”

The letter was sent to Tadias by members of E4O (Ethiopians for Obama):
obama-letter_inside.jpg
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Related:
Ethiopian Americans May Swing the Vote in Virginia (TADIAS)
Obama Team Hires Ethiopian-American Congressional Staffer (TADIAS)

News

Ben-Gurion University Begins Project to Eliminate Intestinal Worms in Ethiopia

Source: A. Lavin Communications

August 5, 2008

NEW YORK – A professor at The Faculty of Health Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) is beginning an intensive program in Ethiopia this August to eradicate intestinal worms which affect as much as 50 percent of the population in Africa.

BGU Professor Zvi Bentwich, who heads the Center for Tropical Diseases and AIDS in Israel (CEMTA), believes there is a possible connection between the AIDS epidemic in Africa and intestinal worms, one of the many Neglected Tropical Diseases which affect nearly one quarter of the world’s population.

Prof. Bentwich believes that intestinal worms can affect the immune system in such a profound way that it has a major impact on one’s susceptibility to HIV and tuberculosis, and in coping with these diseases when they are already there. “As head of the largest AIDS center, I dealt with a large number of Ethiopian HIV and AIDS patients, and through them became aware of the magnitude of this problem in Ethiopia,” he says.

The first stage of the operation to deworm about 30,000 people from three separate locations in Ethiopia begins in August. In the fall, the research project will focus on the town of Mekele in northern Ethiopia with approximately 250,000 inhabitants.

The program combines the provision and administration of antihelminthic medications, a few pills every four to six months, with hygiene education and information on how to protect populations from exposure to the parasites.

“NTDs are one of the most evident hallmark signs of poverty and neglect, significantly contributing to the persistence of this situation in a very large number of countries in Africa, Asia and South America,” Bentwich explains. “They have been largely neglected by the Western developed countries, since they are practically nonexistent there. “It costs much less than what it takes to fight the more recognized epidemics like AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.”

BGU is partnering with Global Network for the Fight against Neglected Tropical Diseases to help populations across Africa, including Ethiopia. The project is being funded by an international coalition of nonprofit organizations.