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Sue Surkes

Sue Surkes

The Times of Israel

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Retail chains found to be charging over double what they pay for imported grapes

Retail chains found to be charging over double what they pay for imported grapes

Agriculture Ministry mulling price controls after audit reveals grapes imported for NIS 14 per kilogram (less than $5) being sold for NIS 32 (more...

wednesday 40

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Featured Post

Featured Post

In a rare alignment, Israel’s Independence Day converges this year with International Earth Day. The timing is perfect. While wars, grief, and a...

wednesday 30

The Times of Israel (Blogs)

Sue Surkes

Despite cost of living hikes, Israelis are eating more beef, veal

Despite cost of living hikes, Israelis are eating more beef, veal

Annual per capita consumption of 20.2 kilograms of bovine meat last year was 7% up on the year before, Agriculture Ministry says; purchases set to...

20.04.2026 40

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

New drought-resistant wheat variety named after October 7 victim

New drought-resistant wheat variety named after October 7 victim

Hamas terrorists murdered agronomist Yakov Inon and his wife Bilha at Moshav Netiv Ha’asara. He was a consultant to the Volcani Instiute, which...

20.04.2026 40

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

New site offers travel by armchair to Eilat’s magnificent coral reefs

New site offers travel by armchair to Eilat’s magnificent coral reefs

Website aimed at raising awareness about Gulf of Eilat’s marine wonders; includes virtual safaris through different underwater habitats, a reef live...

19.04.2026 30

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

‘Test tube orgy’: Israeli scientists use yeast to assess humans’ mating preferences

‘Test tube orgy’: Israeli scientists use yeast to assess humans’ mating preferences

Weizmann Institute researchers find that yeast born to preferred partners are fitter than those from one-night stands, showing how we choose mates who...

18.04.2026 40

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

In turnaround, Energy Ministry calls to relocate, not close, Haifa’s Iran-targeted Bazan oil refinery

In turnaround, Energy Ministry calls to relocate, not close, Haifa’s Iran-targeted Bazan oil refinery

Ministry says 30 months of war underline need for continuing local production of petroleum products rather than dependence on imports, world supply...

17.04.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Rare pygmy hippo arrives in Israel to launch breeding program

Female undergoing acclimatization at Hai Park in northern city of Kiryat Motzkin, which has built a special enclosure; male hippo set to arrive in...

16.04.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Be’eri begins demolishing homes destroyed on October 7, choosing life over ruins

Gaza-border kibbutz, which lost more than 100 residents, tears down two shattered neighborhoods, starting with house belonging to Gat family, to move...

12.04.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

‘I live alone and I can’t run’: Elderly from the north become social welfare hot potato

The Tzalir Fund has evacuated and is looking after 1,200 frontline residents, most of them 75 and over, in five hotels. Its funding will end on April...

09.04.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Gaza border kibbutz redirects donations to help war-torn north

‘We feel what our brothers and sisters in the north are going through,’ says Kibbutz Nirim, which lost seven residents on October 7

09.04.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Weizmann Institute helps map Moon’s shadowy sources of ice

As Artemis II loops around Earth’s satellite and NASA prioritizes ice sampling for a lunar water supply, Israeli and US scientists are examining...

07.04.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Israeli lab decodes the building talents of a tropical ant

Scientists at the Weizmann Institute use time-lapse tech and geometry to probe the collective cognitive unit of weaver ants

01.04.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Chatbot aims to help rescuers defuse acute anxiety, right after traumatic events

Ben-Gurion University team hopes free trilingual AI application will be adopted widely in Israel, Diaspora, and Arabian Gulf

31.03.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

In mixed Haifa, weary residents face near-constant Iranian and Hezbollah missile fire

Christian, Muslim and Jewish businesses suffer alike as customers stay away, leaving many gasping for air — and grasping for their next paychecks

26.03.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Facing violence on all fronts, Arab Israelis are unprecedentedly open to mental health help

After 18 months of expanded activity in Arabic-speaking towns, the Community Stress Prevention Center in northern Israel starts to see stigmas...

25.03.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Road racket killing the mood for birds breeding in half of Israel’s open spaces – study

First-of-its-kind soundscape also suggests that traffic sounds may negatively impact 23% of environmentally protected areas

24.03.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Families uprooted from the Gaza border now find themselves in Iranian crosshairs

As many members of communities affected by the Oct. 7 Hamas atrocities are still in temporary living situations, constant missile fire from the Iran...

24.03.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Israel has sufficient oil and petroleum reserves, for now — energy expert

But with costs rising, gasoline prices could go up by NIS 1 per liter, or $1.21 per gallon, next month unless Finance Ministry cuts fuel tax to soften...

23.03.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Haifa refinery says more missile attack damage found near site, but most production online

Facility will take ‘few days’ to restore; Haifa’s deputy mayor urges government to close refineries as soon as possible: ‘Playing Russian...

20.03.2026 90

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

USA Today names Rachel Goldberg‑Polin as a Woman of the Year

Lauding mother of slain American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, paper says her ‘cadence, her analogies, her stories, remind us of what it’s...

19.03.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Divine Providence: Serving and former mayors of Rhode Island capital celebrate bar mitzvahs

Brett Smiley and David Cicilline join 11 others in a group ceremony after 18 months of study for those celebrating the rite of passage as adults

19.03.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Anxiety symptoms, lack of trust in adults, rising in children as war drags on

Veteran NGO reports marked return of symptoms such as bedwetting, nightmares, apathy and withdrawal in children who had already improved from previous...

18.03.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Arab Israelis experiencing higher distress levels in war than Jews — study

Survey undertaken during current Iran war shows Arabs feel greatest losses in economic stability, social connections, emotional resilience, faith and...

18.03.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

3,500 people evacuated, 10,946 damage claims filed since start of latest Iran war

State comptroller report shows most evacuations from Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Beit Shemesh and Beersheba, with half of damage claims coming from Tel Aviv...

18.03.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Foot-and-mouth disease outbreak closes two nature reserves to public

With two wild gazelles already dead, Nature and Parks Authority, Agriculture Ministry, draw line around northern Israel region hit by new strain of...

17.03.2026 60

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Family fundraises for poodles badly hurt in Iranian missile attack

Surgery for Tsili and Gili expected to cost tens of thousands of shekels, and owner Danielle Haroush ‘can barely make ends meet,’ says sister

16.03.2026 50

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

War will not interrupt annual migration of millions of birds through Israel — expert

Even the conflict will not stop birds from rushing to get the best nesting spots in their usual breeding areas, says KKL-JNF chief ornithologist

10.03.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Traumatized nation: Organizations step into breach left by overwhelmed mental health system

Post-October 7 initiatives sprang up like mushrooms after the rain. Now, not-for-profits are building coalitions, mapping who is providing what to...

10.03.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

SPNI calls to freeze ‘land grab’ retroactively legalizing Galilee farm buildings

Nature society says Agriculture Ministry plan to legitimize illegal structures on lands equivalent in size to Tel Aviv-Jaffa includes areas in nature...

09.03.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Employers of Filipina caretaker killed by Iranian missile remember ‘angel on Earth’

Mary Anne Velasquez de Vera was pregnant with first child when killed by an attack on Tel Aviv. ‘The public should know how special she was,’ says...

02.03.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Israeli who survived 9/11 and October 7 now faces down Iranian missiles in Dubai

Chicago native Deborah Benson-Ben Aderet is stranded in the United Arab Emirates while her two daughters weather the war in their southern Israel home

02.03.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Not waiting for state okay, 2 kibbutzim buy lockable, bulletproof doors for safe rooms

Armor-plated doors haven’t yet been approved by army for home use, but opting for survival over protocol, Nahal Oz and Kerem Shalom install them...

26.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

The way the kurkar crumbles? As deteriorating cliffs pose a danger, politics bogs down repairs

After part of a coastal rock face collapses in Herzliya, those tasked with protecting these ridges call for cash – and a single coordinating body to...

26.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Heeding green groups’ demand, High Court orders government to justify climate targets

Following Monday hearing on green groups’ petition, court demands the state define its ‘bottom line’ for emissions cuts, report on climate steps...

24.02.2026 90

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

In first, environmental NGOs petition High Court against government’s climate policies

Petitioners demand interim injunction to compel government to explain why emissions cut target for 2030 is 27% and not 43%, as set by the UN to cap...

23.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Rising Mediterranean pushes groundwater up into Tel Aviv basements

Water Authority’s head of hydrology urges planners, developers to prepare for a rarely discussed climate change threat to urban infrastructure

23.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Israeli researchers find humans, turtles, share key brain function going back 320 million years

Turtles found able to grasp that same object seen from different angles is not a different object, an important trait for defense against land-based...

19.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

State report finds Israel unprepared to ensure gas keeps flowing during emergencies

State comptroller appears to urge government to rethink decision to close Haifa refinery, but office claims it is just seeking to guarantee energy...

17.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Climate change likely to bring more dust storms, earlier in the year, expert says

Assaf Hochman of Hebrew University’s Earth Sciences Institute warns increase in dust clouds will affect Israeli agriculture, public health

16.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

New postage stamp salutes elite IDF engineering unit Yahalom

Marking 30 years since establishment, unit has operated in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, destroying tunnels, helping to rescue hostages and handling...

16.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Qasr al-Yahud baptismal site reopens after NIS 25 million facelift

New-look Christan holy site in West Bank includes wide wooden deck for safe access to water, new shower and changing facility, a prayer pergola, and...

11.02.2026 90

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Customs agents nab infected lemon tree, averting ‘disaster’

Resident of central Holon in his 70s tries to smuggle sapling from Thailand infected with disease that has wiped out citrus groves across US, Asia,...

11.02.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Red tape, lack of coordination, delaying Gaza border rehab, state comptroller finds

Audit says funds sitting unused or going to waste due to bureaucracy, failure to consult with locals; state also criticized for not helping those...

10.02.2026 40

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Rights groups call on Interior Ministry to freeze deportation of Ethiopian migrants

With Foreign Ministry warning against travel to Tigray, groups say Ethiopia still too volatile to be safe

10.02.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

US soldiers who served near Gaza adopt abandoned dogs

After service members bonded with three adult dogs and seven puppies during war, 2 animal rights groups partner to fly the animals to the new owners,...

09.02.2026 80

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Trading security for spirituality, former official co-launches pilgrimage route to Jerusalem

After an epiphany on a dreary morning, Golan Rice quits El Al job, sets out to co-found the Way to Jerusalem for pilgrims from all walks of life to...

07.02.2026 90

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Amid Finance Ministry dairy reform, besieged Gaza border farm’s fate is curdling, says CEO

Outgoing head Avi Fraiman, who has spent 43 years working at Kibbutz Alumim’s milk farm, says the government should target big food cartels...

04.02.2026 70

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Shoppers face empty milk shelves as dairy farmers ramp up fight against proposed reform

Producers agree to resume raw milk supply to processing companies for the time being, though protest convoys to Jerusalem still planned for Wednesday

04.02.2026 100

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes

Farmers threaten to stop supplying milk in protest at dairy reform

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich hits back at ‘communist’ industry, says when there is real competition from imports, such threats will...

02.02.2026 90

The Times of Israel

Sue Surkes