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Photo: Yoav Galai
Olmert in his Sukka
Photo: Yoav Galai

Olmert meets with immigrant soldiers

Fifty soldiers, all new immigrants to Israel, visit sukka of prime minister, who speaks with soldiers, saying that only in Israel can Jews fight for their lives. Soldiers shared their experiences of making Aliya to serve in IDF, discuss war

Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was in good spirits Monday, meeting with some fifty soldiers, all new immigrants, who came to visit with him in his sukka at his official residence on Balfur St. in Jerusalem.

 

Olmert spoke with the soldiers, saying that the Zionist dream should be fulfilled: "Anyone who doesn't understand the strength of the Jewish people does not understand that no matter what may happen in the future – the people of Israel will prevail. There is no country in the world that children come to it to fight for its safety besides Israel. There is only one home for our people. This is our home. It is not a simple or easy home, there are many problems, we are the most threatened country in the world and we have many enemies. It is tempting to think that life may be more comfortable in Baltimore or Los Angeles but history teaches us that no place will be safer than our country. This is the only place where Jews can fight for their lives."


PM Olmert with the troops (Photo: AP)

 

Olmert later said that Israel has no future without aliya. "It is the foundation of our existence. It is not easy to love living here, we are people who like to complain about ourselves and the country but deep inside there is no place we love more than Israel," he said.

 

Afterwards the soldiers had a chance to speak their minds. Tzvika Pinsky, a 30 year-old soldier, who made Aliya when he was 28, told Olmert that he didn't understand all of the criticism being directed at the government: "I was in Lebanon. I read the papers now but I think that we won the war." Binyamin Ben-Ari who came from Pheonix, USA, told the PM: "My entire family served in the US Marines, my brother is serving in the Marines in Iraq today but I chose to come here and serve in the IDF."

 

Marina Melnik came to Israel in 1990 from the the former Soviet Union: "My uncle was imprisoned for teaching Hebrew. During the days of the Iron Curtain if anyone would have told us that the entire family would come to Israel – we would have laughed," she said. Anna Zoberman who emigrated from France seven years ago told Olmert: "During the war I was visiting my parents. I saw my friends on TV, female soldiers who usually serve as teachers, helping out in bomb shelters. Despite my family's wishes I came back early," she said.

 


פרסום ראשון: 10.09.06, 20:35
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