Naavah Rosenblum, a member of the Mothers of Combat Soldiers headquarters, told Dr. Chana Katan about a personal story that brought her to become a member of the organization, and the overarching goals the organization promotes - protecting IDF soldiers and calling to fight until victory.
“I was a mother to soldiers before I joined the organization. We have been following this, living this, for three months. ‘Cleared for publication’ began to mean something different for us. I felt that I needed to do something, to support them and be with them. I am not a military woman and have no way to help professionally, but I think that from a public point of view, it is right to make heard the voices of the soldiers’ mothers.”
She explains the decision to activate the organization: “The organization was created during Operation Defensive Edge in 2014, and now is being established anew. The soldiers are the emissaries of the nation of Israel, and we truly feel it. One of my sons wrote to me, ‘I am a soldier, and my mother is too, with the same goal.’ The organization presents two messages of not insignificant importance, these being that the lives of our soldiers are more important than the lives of the enemy population, and that the fighting must continue until victory. Hamas brought us a terrible war and we are obligated to win it. This must be a victory, with the mindset of victory.”
“Victory, for us, means quiet from Gaza, which will not present a threat, and that residents can return to their homes. We need to reach a decisive victory with a mindset of victory, and mainly to unite around the idea that this time we will win, and the entire world will see clearly that we have won and succeeded in bringing the hostages home quickly.”
“The organization not only publishes these messages, but also gives support to mothers. We have a schedule for visiting the wounded in hospitals all over Israel, in which mothers give support to the wounded and their families. There is considerable admiration for our position.”