Yeruham teen wins annual Bible Quiz

Elhanan Bloch, 17, of Yeruham’s Amit Yeshiva High School, took first prize in the annual International Bible Quiz in Jerusalem on Thursday. Bloch won a scholarship for undergraduate studies at Bar-Ilan University, and received his prize from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Akiva Abramovitz of Brooklyn, New York finished in second place in the competition, a staple of Independence Day that is organized by the Education Ministry, the IDF, the Jewish Agency and the Jewish National Fund.

More than 50 teens from nearly two dozen countries participated in the competition.

Education Minister Gideon Sa’ar provided the opening remarks at the event, saying the contest “connects us to our roots as a people, to the foundations of our existence and our faith.”

Sa’ar also thanked Netanyahu — who was late to the competition because of his attendance at the Independence Day kick-off event at the President’s Residence –  for the “wonderful gift” he gave the people of Israel by recognizing the West Bank outposts of Rechelim, Bruchin and Sansana as Israeli communities for all intents and purposes.