Today, world leaders are calling for an investigation into an Israeli attack on a flotilla of ships carrying aid. Ten people were killed in an act that French and Spanish leaders proclaimed “disproportionate” and Turkish leaders call “a barbaric attack.” Five Israeli soldiers were also wounded. The flotilla of ships was said to have been “looking for a fight” when it approached an Israeli blockade.

In other parts of Israel, a homosexual man previously denied access to his home country has recently been allowed to return with his twin children born of an Indian surrogate. Israeli family courts were waiting for the results of paternity tests proving the man was the twins’ biological father. In the past, Israeli courts have requested DNA testing to confirm the parentage of children born on foreign soil before allowing them to become naturalized Israeli citizens—but, India has since halted their surrogacy programs that had become popular for homosexual couples.

The issue of gays in Israel was recently addressed in Eyes Wide Open, the feature film debut for Israeli director Haim Tabakman. An official selection of the 2009 Cannes Film Festival and recently released abroad, the movie depicts a conflicted relationship between two Jewish men that’s said to treat the subject with “respect and compassion.”