City Notes: Yazidi Nobel nominee will give first Israel address

CENTER

Yazidi human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Nadia Murad is due to relay her personal experiences for the first time in Israel on July 25 at Tel Aviv University.

The 24-year-old UNODC goodwill ambassador was kidnapped and held by extremist group Islamic State in August 2014 before she was returned to her home village of Kocho in Iraq’s Sinjar district in January of this year.

Murad’s family belongs to the ethno-religious Yazidi minority, which has faced a United Nations-recognized genocide at the hands of Islamic State since 2014. The ISIS atrocities included the forced conversion, massacre, expulsion, sexual exploitation, slavery and torture of the Yazidi people. Murad was one of the thousands of Yazidi women abducted by ISIS. Since her escape, she has become a public advocate for the Yazidi community, telling her story on the world stage.

“The Yazidi Genocide: My Story,” an event organized by Israeli NGOs IsraAID and the Combat Genocide Association, runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the university’s Museum of The Jewish People.

For more information and registration, contact info@israaid.org.

Tel Aviv animation festival to draw crowds

Tel Aviv is set to host its 16th annual Animix Israel International Animation Festival, showcasing the fields of animation, comics and caricature in the Holy Land, August 2 to 6 at the city’s Cinematheque.

Attendees will have the opportunity to meet famous comics artists, attend lectures about animation, join workshops and watch animated films.

In past years, 15,000 to 20,000 people from across the country and guests from abroad have attended the festival.

Along with dozens of animation film screenings and serving as a networking platform for professionals in the field, the festival features the Assif award ceremony, known as the Oscars of the local animation scene.

The festival is produced in cooperation with the Culture and Sport Ministry’s Film Council and the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality’s Department of Performances.

Ticket prices vary per event. For a readout of admission costs in Hebrew: www.animixfest.co.il or (03) 606-0800.

Jazz sounds by the sea at Apollonia National Park

The Apollonia National Park on the Herzliya coastline is opening to the public for an enchanting summer of jazz among ancient Roman ruins every Thursday night throughout July.

The park’s iconic Crusader fortress that dates back to the 13th century will serve as the scenic backdrop for the sounds of music by the sea.

The event will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. until July 27. Entrance to the park costs NIS 22 for adults and NIS 9 for children.

NORTH

Pick lychees in the Western Galilee

One can literally eat the fruit of their labor at the lychee-picking festival, which started July 12 and will run until mid-August at Kibbutz Matzuva in the Western Galilee.

Upon arrival, visitors will receive refreshments and an explanation by Bialik Sulimani, whose family tends the farmlands hosting the festival, about the fruit farm, the origins of the lychee and its medicinal properties. Afterward, visitors will receive a basket for picking the tropical tree fruit.

The farm covers an area of 100 hectares and houses 30 species of trees along with the lychee tree. Visitors are welcome to roam the farm’s trails and make use of other activities for the whole family at the grounds, including a painting corner, a petting zoo and food vendors.

The event runs Sunday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Entrance costs NIS 30 for participants age 3 and up and there is a NIS 25 fee per kilogram of pickings.

For more information: goo.gl/nykjrg or 077-996-4628.

Mount Hermon race offers uphill challenge

Runners looking for a challenge this summer can take part in a race to the top of Israel’s tallest mountain – Mount Hermon.

The Hermon Uphill Race will set out on the morning of July 28 through the brush-laden slopes of the northern peak. The race includes three challenging tracks categories: Nordic walking, running and extreme mountain running.

For more information and registration: 050-285-0282.

SOUTH

Dance for life in the Negev’s Shanti House

As the summer temperatures rise, so will the scene at the Desert Shanti House Youth Village in the Negev when it hosts a two-day music festival July 28 and 29.

The “Dance for Life Music Festival” is geared toward providing a space for self-reflection and expression through the medium of dance.

The venue, located near Mitzpe Ramon, will open its gates to the public across the sweeping open expanse of the desert in an event featuring music, dance, artists, arts and crafts and workshops.

Tickets cost NIS 365 and are available at: 052-449-9807 or www.secrettelaviv.com/tickets/dance-for-life-music-festival-the-desert