Abir Sultan . Spontaneous Funny and Fleeting Moments of Life by Abir Sultan Ultra orthodox Jewish men as they dance and celebrate Simhat Torah at the close of the Succot holiday in Mea Shearim in Jerusalem on 20 October 2011. Simchat Torah celebrates the ending of one cycle and the beginning of the new cycle of reading the Torah (the Jewish holy scrolls used in every synagogue). Ultra Orthodox Jewish women during a ceremony called the 'Redemption of the first born donkey' or in Hebrew 'Pidyon Peter Chamor' in the Mahane Yehuda neighbourhood of Jerusalem on May 13, 2009. The tradition of the Redemption of the first born donkey is part of the 613 laws commemorated in the Jewish Bible. A Jewish Ultra orthodox teacher leads his young students through the streets of the neighbourhood of Meah Shearim, to see a Kaparot ritual before the upcoming Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. It is believed that one transfers one's sins from the past year into the chicken. The chicken is later slaughtered and given to charity. September 14, 2009. An Ultra Orthodox Jew searching for his ancestors’ names on a grave buried over one hundred years ago in the Jewish graveyard on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, July 7, 2009. Ultra-Orthodox Jews standing next to a mural of the Old City of Jerusalem in the Western Wall wearing the traditional fabric shoes (leather is forbidden). July 20, 2010. The reflection of dozens of Jewish ultra orthodox men are seen through a window from which a young Jewish ultra orthodox boy wearing handcuffs looks out, during a protest which was participated by tens of thousands of ultra orthodox Jews,  in Jerusalem. The protest was regarding the Jerusalem Supreme Court’s decision against discrimination between “Ashkenazi Jewish” and “Sephardic Jewish” girls in a school in the West Bank settlement of Immanuel. 17 June, 2010. A Jewish ultra orthodox woman holds a chicken over her head as part of a Kaparot holiday before the upcoming Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, in the Jewish ultra orthodox neighborhood of Meah Shearim. It is believed that one transfers one’s sins from the past years into the chicken. The chicken is later slaughter and given to charity.  September 23, 2009. Jewish Hasidic community members living, sleeping, eating and praying in a cave at the old Arab house in Lifta, Jerusalem.  August 17, 2011 .  Lifta was an Arab village on the western outskirts of Jerusalem. The village was located north of the road leading to Jaffa and Tel Aviv. During the War of Independence, the Arab villagers fled. Israeli soldier standing on a hill, watching a food supply drop during a massive Israeli army exercise in Northern Israel. Israeli soldiers run past a helicopter during the Second Lebanon War. Israeli soldier standing on an armoured personnel carrier behind a mosque in the village of Maroun al-Ras, Lebanon during the Second Lebanon War. A view of the inside of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem's Old City during the ceremony of the Holy Fire.  Worshippers hold up candles as they light them from the 'Holy Fire'.  April 23, 2010. A Greek Orthodox monk looks out from a cave opposite the Mar Saba monastery, situated in the Kidron Valley east of the West Bank town of Bethlehem, on 17 December 2010. Samaritans pray during a pilgrimage marking the holiday of Passover on Mount Gerizim on the outskirts of the West City of Nablus.  April 16, 2009. The Samaritan religion is descended from the ancient Israelite tribes of Menashe and Efraim, and the community numbers today around 700 people, half at Mount Grizim in the West Bank and the others in Holon near Tel Aviv in Israel. Ethiopian Jewish men take part in a prayer of the Sigd holiday on a hill overlooking Jerusalem.  Nov. 20, 2006. The prayer is performed by Ethiopian Jews every year to celebrate their community's connection and commitment to Israel. About 80,000 Ethiopian Jews live in Israel, many of them came in massive Israeli airlifts during times of crisis in Ethiopia in 1984 and 1991. Palestinian Muslim worshippers on their way to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound for the Friday prayer of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Jerusalem's Old City on August 12, 2011.  Israeli army and police were deployed in force around the city. Israelis walking against a painting wall during an exhibition entitled "Even I was A child" for which Israeli artists presented art works of their childhood, Tel Aviv.  Oct 07, 2010. Young drunk punks embrace on the ground during a night out in Tel Aviv. Israeli child dressed up in costume for the Purim holiday next to a painted wall in Gilo Neighbourhood near Bethlehem on Feb 23, 2010. An aerial view of tourists bathing in the mineral rich waters of the Dead Sea at the resort area of Ein Boqek, Israel, 09 November 2011. The Dead Sea is one of the 28 finalists in the New Seven Wonders of the Natural World global online campaign whose winning list will be decided via mobile phone voting. MARCH 2012 BACK ISSUE Back to current issue