Upon completion of his officer training, Chaim Grossman, a new officer in a combat unit of the engineering corps, declared: "To be an officer in the IDF is to give 100% - and then some." The twenty-year-old Grossman began his path in the military in a preparatory training course for Jews and Druze. (The Druze, who practice a secret religion, are Arabic speakers and full Israeli citizens. Their population in Israel is 143,000 and they live in the north of the country.)
"For all kinds of reasons, I never thought I would serve in a combat unit. When I finally succeeded in reaching such I unit, I realized that my success would depend on utilizing all of my abilities to the fullest."
