Taking You Into the War

August 30, 2006 - 6:15 PM by Sarah

This is just too compelling not to share . . . .

Lisa has gone to the trouble of uploading a 25-minute news segment from Israeli television, in which . . . well, here’s Lisa’s description:

[Veteran Journalist] Itai Anghel accompanied regiment 931 of the Nahal Brigade (infantry) to a battle that took place on the night of August 6-7 in Houleh, a Hezbollah-controlled village in Lebanon that is about 2 kilometres north of the border with Israel. Anghel documents the fierce battle that took place using a camera equipped with a night vision lens. I think it is quite possibly the most significant piece of reporting to come out of the war.

Itai generously sent me a link to his report that includes English subtitles. You can watch it below (length, 25 minutes).

A few things to know before you watch: With the exception of the officers – Avi Dahan and Biche – all the soldiers are reservists in their 20′s and 30′s who did their three-year mandatory army service (ages 18-21) in the unit; in other words, they are civilians who responded to emergency call up notices. A small bit that was edited out includes an exchange between Itai and the reservist with glasses, during which the latter explains that in civilian life he lives on a kibbutz and leads nature hikes. There are a couple of minor errors in the translation but they don’t detract from the impact of the report, which is compelling and intense. Note especially Itai’s observation, in voice over narration, at the very end. (I won’t spoil it for you, but I think it says a lot about how people can draw very differing conclusions from the same events).

Eli Lake wrote an article about the report for the New York Sun, here.

The segment is in Hebrew with English subtitles, but still best watched with the sound on.

Israelity has agreed not to post the video here. Hop on over to Lisa’s site and watch it there – it is 25 minutes well spent.

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