As I blogged on A Jewish Grandmother, the other day I spent a few hours in the Israel Museum. It was full of IDF Israel Defense Force soldiers. No, there wasn't a security emergency. Going to the Israel Museum and many other cultural and historic sites is part of "basic training."
Our soldiers come from all walks of Israeli society, plus many come from abroad and voluntarily serve in the army as lone soldiers. It's very common to see groups of soldiers touring around the country. I consider that one of the very special "only in Israel" aspects of living here.
IDF soldiers aren't just a "fighting force," they are an important part of Israeli society, whether Jewish or not. That's right. Many IDF soldiers aren't Jewish. Some aren't because they are descended from Jewish fathers, and neither their mothers nor they have converted, although they are very Israeli. And less well-known is the fact that Israeli Druze, Bedouin and even regular Israeli Arab Muslims serve in the army.
Life in Israel isn't what the international, very Leftist, media likes to portray. The truth is very different. The only apartheid here is in the areas controlled by Arabs and the PA-Palestinian Authority.
No comments:
Post a Comment