Tevet 16, 5769, 1/12/2009
A Day In The Life of the IDF in Gaza
by Tamar Yonah
Many of the soldiers who are in Gaza are still wearing the same uniforms they came in and unless they brought a change of socks and underwear… TMI That's what I heard being talked about on one of the news shows trying to describe what our poor soldiers were going through in Gaza. They have to sleep (if they even get a chance for sleep) on the cold tile or cement floors. If they are lucky they might find a couch or bed left in an apartment where the Arab families have fled.
Tank-istim (soldiers in the Tank Corps) have it very hard as well. They have to stay in their tanks for long hours, sometimes days. They have to eat, sleep, etc there. It's hard in the winter, having to sleep on cold metal floors. The rainy weather makes for mud and harder maneuvering.
Reservists are being called up to join the enlisted forces. Their mission: Find Hamas fighters, find tunnels, find weapons and neutralize.
Here's an arab school that the Hamas booby-trapped to kill IDF soldiers and/or to blame Israel in the media for 'targeting their children'.
Soldiers can't just walk into Arab homes through the front doors. Entering through the front doors could be deadly. They might be booby-trapped. Instead, entrances are blasted through the walls on the side of these Gazan houses. For an amazing story I told today on my show about a 'miracle' that happened in Gaza and that is making its rounds within the Israeli people, listen to my show today. It will give you goose-bumps.
The TV news today show IDF soldiers tired, but motivated and in good spirits. They are wearing all their gear; heavy backpacks, weapons, etc. They have to walk, hunching forward, to balance the weight of their packs. After entering an abandoned house to set down for a while, many of the soldiers lighten their load setting down where they find a corner in the house and rest. Some scenes show the soldiers standing together, prayer books in hand, and davening (praying) their morning, afternoon or evening prayers. Then it's time for the search and destroy (tunnel) mission. Look what our soldiers have to contend with when trying to find tunnels in the 'innocent' arab civilian's homes….
One soldier on the news this evening, named Itai, tells his strange story: After doing some time in Gaza, he returned home to his family's house in the south of the country. His 'welcome home' was a missile that slammed into his home. What didn't find him in Gaza, almost found him at home.
The news just had a report on that brought tears to my eyes, one that often happens when we find oursleves in a war situation. The country comes together. A project is underway for Haredi Jews to 'adopt' a soldier to pray for him and study Torah in his honor. An office was opened with Haredi women taking names by telephone, of mothers of IDF soldiers who are asking that their sons be prayed for. Names are taken and then given out to the Haredi community.
Another project reported on shows Israeli kids and youth packing boxes of goodies to Israeli soldeirs. Enclosed is a personal letter from the person who doanted the package with their phone number included. The news showed the packages being handed out to very happy and appreciative soldiers. One soldier read the letter from his package outloud for the cameras, and then seeing the phone number left there, whipped out a cell phone and called up the person to thank them. A young woman answered the phone and was so moved that he took the time to call and thank her. She said to this soldier -whom she doesn't know, that she prays that he return to his family safely and soon. Almost both of them were in tears. I know I was.
Later, a visit to the soldiers from the President of Israel had them saying a prayer and singing 'Am Yisrael Chai" The nation of Israel lives!
Please all, for one moment, let's all say or leave a prayer for the safety of our brave soldiers and all our brothers and sisters under missile and rocket attack.
