Click Here to Read: What Jews Mean to America By Meir Soloveichik on the NR plus website on February 22, 2024. U.S. and Israeli flags are flown in preparation for a media event during Austere Challenge 2012 in Israel Oct. 24, 2012. Austere Challenge 2012 is a three-week bilateral exercise designed to increase air defense interoperability between the United States and Israel. (U.S. Air Force photo by Maj. Stephanie Addison/Released)