A video of Gilad

October 1, 2009 - 1:46 AM by David · 4 Comments
Filed under: A New Reality, General, Israeliness, Life, War 

giladThe news that Hamas is going to hand over a one-minute video tape of captive IDF soldier Gilad Schalit has been dominating the news today.

According to the Egyptian and German teams that helped broker the deal that will see 20 Palestinian female prisoners released from Israeli jails in exchange for the tape, it will provide enequivocal evidence that Schalit, who has been in captivity for more than three years, is alive and reasonably well.

It will be the first time that Schalit’s family will be seeing images of Gilad since he was captured in Gaza by Palestinian gunmen.

While it’s a far cry from seeing him released, I’m sure the family will be spending sleepless nights until they receive the tape on Friday. They issued a statement Wednesday night saying, “We wish to stress that although this is a first step in the right direction, the family will not rest until Gilad is freed after almost 1,200 days in which he has been held in a Hamas prison. Both sides must continue the determined process that has recently begun until the final result is quickly achieved.”

It’s bound to be quite a shock when they do finally see the video, as it’s certain that the Gilad Schalit who’s been held prisoner for so long will bear little resemblance to the 18-year-old boy that the country has come to know as their own in the ensuing three years.

The intensity with which the story was covered on Wednesday reflected the emotional baggage the entire country carries with it having lived with the burden of one of its soldiers held prisoner. In times like this, it’s almost safe to say that the cliche that we’re all one country is really true.

Let’s hope the release of the Gilad Schalit video is beginning of movement that will quickly see the release of Gilad Schalit, the human being.

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Friday, Friday in Israel

February 20, 2009 - 10:36 AM by David · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Israeliness, Life, Politics, War 

shabbatThings seem to be going from bad to worse on this Friday, as we head into Shabbat.
Or, at least back to the way things were just a couple months ago, before Operation Cast Lead.

According to news reports this morning, at least 10 mortar shells have fallen on the Western Negev. At the same time, Israel’s chief negotiator in trying to get Gilad Schalit freed, Amos Gilad, has cancelled a planned meeting in Cairo, following the Israeli cabinet decision to tie a cease-fire arrangement with Hamas to the release of Schalit.

And it looks like we’re headed for a narrow Right-wing coalition under Binyamin Netanyahu, following reports in the papers this morning that Kadima leader Tzipi Livni said she wouldn’t let her party be the token centrists to make the coalition more palatable to the world.

Maybe a Right-wing government is what is needed, since we haven’t accomplished much in the last 10 years or so under various moderate leadership. Who knows?

That’s why I’m dealing with the Friday errands that we all surround ourselves with here, to take our minds off the mess. It’s a red-letter day in our household as our 14-year-old son has relented to getting his first haircut in a couple years. So hurray for that!

And then we’re going to bring our puppy to the vet for a third round of shots (hopefully one that will inject him with a going outside to the bathroom ethic).

But the highlight of the day is that our oldest daughter just returned home from her last day of her army service. She’s sleeping it off now, but tonight over Shabbat dinner, we’ll celebrate, and I’m making a Pillsbury chocolate cake with my own secret recipe homemade frosting. And a secondary celebration will take place for daughter # 2 who just received a letter from the army that she’s been accepted for an elite combat track when she’s inducted later this year. Great for her, that’s going to be three years of no sleep for her worried parents.

So, we take our happiness where we can, even as the news around us looks bleak. After all, those everyday treasures are the real reasons we’re living here anyway. Shabbat Shalom.

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