Grandma's army

  The “Israeli Defense Forces”   is the only army in the world to be named as such. Since its inception, it has never been Israel’s intention   to be the aggressor or to start a war.   Israel is not looking to enlarge its territory, to become an Empire, or to make converts.   There are 56 Islamic countries, 125 predominantly Christian countries - how dare the Jews claim the right to have a country of   their own, and such a big one! People are used to the Jews being helpless, homeless, and defenceless.   That has been our role in the world for the last 2,000 years. For days, the civilized world has been steeped in stories of the unbelievable barbarity perpetrated by Hamas in Israel. And yet, there is still an international political regime, including academia, that romanticises so-called Palestinians and now blame Israelis for being brutalised. How can one rationalise the murder of close to 1,400 individuals, including rape, decapitating babies...

A WAR OR NOT A WAR? It was neither the intention of Israel or Lebanon to start a war between the two countries. However, a military conflict began in July 2006 when Hizbollah terrorists ambushed an Israeli army border patrol, kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing three others. Stuart Palmer, one of my fellow residents in “Protea” (senior residence home), coined the above title in a booklet of his personal reflections. Stuart and his wife were living in Haifa, which was in the line of fire (together with Tiberias, Nazareth, Safed ), when the “war” broke out. [Since retiring, Stuart has become the Northern Area Director of ICAN (Israeli Citizens Action Network) and a member of BIG (British Israel Group), whose organisations are actively involved in advocating Israel’s position in the conflict with the Palestinians and now Hizbollah.] According to Stuart’s well-researched booklet: In the space of a few days, two million Israelis became under the threat of the thousands of ro...

This week is almost the culmination of the “most Israeli time of year” – we still  have “Jerusalem Day” and Shavuot on the horizon. Coming after the festival of Passover - a particular Israeli phenomenon is the sudden transition from Remembrance Day, dedicated to our fallen soldiers, to Independence Day. From a day of national bereavement to the very next day - the celebrations of the Day of Independence. This year it will be the 70 th anniversary of the State of Israel. Almost every family in Israel knows personally a fallen soldier or victim of terrorism. There are a number of soldiers, however, who transcended the personal and became national symbols of heroism. One in particular stands out. Major Ro’i Klein , deputy commander of the prestigious Golani Brigade, was killed during fighting with Hizbullah guerrillas in the Lebanese war in  July, 2006.The battalion commander, Lt. Col. Yaniv Asor led Company A and Ro’i Klein, his deputy, took charge of Company C...