It is being reported today in Israel's papers that the captive soldier, Gilad Shalit, has been injured in an IDF air strike.
Of course, no one has seen Gilad since his capture since Hamas, in total contravention of the Geneva Conventions, has never allowed the Red Cross to visit him.
I have thought for some time that he is already dead, and the letter his parents got was a forgery.
Just yesterday I said to Husband that Hamas would use the situation to declare that he had been killed by an Israeli bomb, thus making themselves look virtuous. Especially since they don't have world public opinion on their side.
I hope I'm wrong, and that Gilad is being kept in a safe place.
ANTIGONOS' BRAIN
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2 comments:
I hope you are wrong too. But it doesn't seem likely. It seems more cruel to give the parents hope.
Are all young people forced to do some time in the Army? We have not had a draft for Iraq "Thank God!"
Israel has universal conscription. Both boys and girls do army service, three years for boys, two years for girls, unless they opt for National Service, or claim exemption as full time Torah scholars [boys] or as religious girls [some do serve anyway]. Men, and unmarried women, stay in the reserves until either 45 or 50 [I forget; the age limit has changed]. Anyone who immigrates to Israel in his twenties, however, does a much reduced service, often only a couple of months, and women who immigrate after age 21 aren't called up at all.
The US can afford a professional army; there's no existential threat. We don't want to have a large standing army, but all our citizens have to be able to defend themselves.
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