As Moslems and Jews prepare to celebrate important festivals in their respective calendars, the first item noted how the Palestinian economy is moving forward. The two major factors have been reduced violence, ensuring increased Israeli cooperation and input.

Here, I consider how Israel has long been known as one of the key hightech centres of the world. Siemens, Microsoft, Google, Intel and many other multinationals have strong r&d centres in the Holy Land. More recently, Jerusalem has led the revolution in new solar and water technologies.

Just take some specific items of news from the past week alone.

Techcrunch is a premier competition for start ups. 4 Israeli or Israel-connected companies were in the top 6 places. This includes the eventual winner, Red Beacon, connecting consumers to local services.

N-trig, a major player in the touch screen market, has secured a major contract with Lenovo, China. N-trig’ duo sense, 4-fingered application will enable the latest notepad features.

Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics Ltd is about to commence a pre-clinical safety trial for the company’s innovative therapy for ALS – Lou Gehrig’s disease. The CEO announced that they will use a locally based contract research organisation (CRO),as it will be better received by regulatory authorities.

And the list goes on – Israeli tech having a direct impact on the lives of millions around the globe. Imagine what would happen (or not happen) if this Middle East version of Silicon Valley did not exist.

A year ago, the credit crunch grabbed the world. Today, the Tel Aviv stock exchange is 10% higher than 12 months ago.