Grandma's army

  From the early hours, on the Sabbath of January 8 th , pilots were already strapped in their cockpits. They were waiting for the inevitable reprisal attack from the humiliated RAF. The hours crept by as the tension mounted. Contrary to the demands of the RAF squadron leaders who were begging for the go-ahead to launch a massive retaliatory strike against Israel, RAF headquarters withheld permission. Instead, the British Foreign Office fired off a furious protest to the Israeli government, demanding compensation for the loss of airmen and aircraft. Truman was condemning  the British for interfering in the Middle East conflict. The British House of Commons was in an uproar. While they were debating the issue, Winston Churchill demanded an explanation for the unreported downing of another British warplane shot down over the coast of Israel the month before ! Although the British Air Ministry tried to dodge the question, Churchill continued to probe. When finally admitting th...

I was informed of the engagement of my second grandson I wrote about   just a few hours after sending off my last blog. After completing his officer’s course and before beginning his task   as commander of his special brigade my grandson Meir, nicknamed “Memi” was given a few days’ vacation. He proposed to his girlfriend of 5 years while they were scuba diving in Eilat. “Meir” in Hebrew means “lighting up”. His future wife’s name is “Or”,   which is the word for “light” in Hebrew. Hopefully it will prove to be a “match” made in heaven. I am living in a senior residence complex and one of the most outstanding people living here is a man - of many parts - called David Darom. Apart from his worldwide   expertise on knives, hand guns and the flora of Israel, he   has perhaps more   first-hand knowledge about Eilat than anyone else. David Darom was the first student in Israel to study marine biology   at the Hebrew University. Conse...