All packed and ready to go…

Posted on April 3, 2011 by idfspokesperson

After a quiet weekend, with only a few minor incidents in my AOR I spent the majority of the day with family. I packed my uniforms, my sports gear and camera.

After contemplating what books to take with me I decided on two. The first, recommended by the “Witness in Uniform” staff, If This Is a Man by Primo Levi. This is a book about the daily life in Auschwitz concentration camp translated from Italian in to Hebrew. The other book I am taking is “Israel against Iran” by two colleagues and friends of mine Yaakov Katz & Yoaz Hendel, also in Hebrew (yet to be translated). I have also begun reading this book and I can’t help connecting between the two. The life under those that wished to erase all Jews from the face of the earth on one hand, and on the other the Israeli determination and steadfastness to stand up to those that wish harm on our nation.

Earlier today Former South African Judge Richard Goldstone published an op-ed in the Washington Post. In his article he wrote numerous points that are all noteworthy, but the bottom line is that Hamas is a terrorist organization which shuns off its responsibility as the government of the Gaza Strip. Goldstone concluded that “If I (Goldstone P.L.) had known then what I know now, the Goldstone Report would have been a different document”. And indeed blaming Israel with the plight of the people of Gaza without holding Hamas accountable is just the same old blood libel all over again. Goldstone should therefore retract his report and I would suggest that he clarify what exactly he expected from a terrorist organization whose main mission is to remove Israel from the face of the earth (sounds familiar vis-à-vis “Witness in Uniform”).

My final thoughts though before I embark on this journey are with the brave soldiers of the Israeli mission to Japan. Keeping in mind where Israel was less than seventy years ago and where we are now helping human beings worldwide survive natural disasters. Today is a good day to be Israeli. Bon voyage.

Peter, 2 April 2011

We have a mission for you Peter…

Posted on April 3, 2011 by idfspokesperson

Carmit, our Personnel Officer. informed me in an extremely impersonal way (e-mail) that I am scheduled to join an IDF mission. Now I know what you are thinking, “why on earth is Peter telling us about going on an IDF mission, aren’t those type of things secret?” This is not just any other mission, this is a mission I was handpicked to join. This mission I have been told is a once in a lifetime experience and one that is beyond borders and will require air support to get there.

I thought to myself – this is something I should volunteer to do. “What are the details?” “What is the action plan?”

“All in good time” was the answer I got. “You are to be in Jerusalem on the 7th of March. Briefing will begin at 0730″.

Unaware of what the plans, target and mission were I jotted down the date and address and continued my schedule as usual, dealing with the daily challenges the media deal me.

I arrived at Yad Vashem late due to horrendous traffic on the way to Jerusalem. I quickly found a parking spot and remember my first visit to the Holocaust museum some 15 years ago. The resemblance of Yad Vashem then to how it looks now is completely different. The amount of investment in the remembrance of those six million Jews has changed the face of this chilling place. One thing always stays the same, the pine trees lining the road to this solemn place.

This is the first time I have participated in an official delegation of the Israel Defense Forces to Poland. “Witness in Uniform” is the name of the mission. Some 250 participants from all over the country, from various backgrounds, from different military units all gathered in preparation to make a historic trip to a place that is so central in the history of the Jewish people and the State of Israel.

Before leaving for Poland the IDF invests three days to further educate us in Holocaust knowledge. The importance of such a mission was not clear to me at first, and to begin with I quite honestly didn’t want to go. I consider myself both well educated and well read on issues to do with the Holocaust, but with each preparatory briefing the importance of such a mission and journey to Poland became apparent to me.

The first preparation day includes a pep talk by the delegation commander. A tour of the new (five year old) museum of “Yad Vashem”, a briefing about the Jews of Poland, a meeting with a survivor.

I seriously recommend visiting the museum. If you haven’t visited it since the reopening, you must go there. Everything we saw is original and interactive. I always remember coming out of Yad Vashem in a deep depressed mood. After my last visit I felt much more enlightened, much more knowledgeable and extremely distant from that old feeling. It was a change for the best.

After the briefing about the Jews of Poland, we had a short recess and when we came back in to the auditorium a small elderly lady was sitting in my seat. I didn’t say anything just moved over and found another place to park by behind.

A few minutes later the little lady named Ariela Palas was asked to take the stage. She told her chilling account of her memories from the war. With a French accent she told us that at the age of about 8 years old she was put in a home for “unwanted children”. Separated from her brother & sister Claude and Nicole brother and sister and placed in temporary homes and lived in a small village in the south of France under an assumed identity believed to be Catholic. She told us of the fear she lived in her longing for her family, her brother and sister. Six years later her father came and found her. Her story left a number of us weeping softly. Today Ariela lives in Jerusalem where she established her family in the late sixties. “I am proud to stand here in front of you soldiers, it is an honor to share my story with you”.

Two more full days from 0730 – 1930 filled with information, visits at various sites at Yad Vashem such as the Hall of Names, Hall of Remembrance, Valley of the Communities amongst others. More and more information dealt to us all to try and prepare us for the trip.

The Commander of the mission concluded the third preparatory day that “we have done our best to prepare you for the voyage, but truthfully nothing can prepare you for what you are about to experience”. Early in the morning I will be flying out of Ben Gurion Airport and heading out to Poland in my military uniform.

Witnesses in Uniform: Posts by Maj. Peter Lerner

Posted on April 3, 2011 by idfspokesperson

Major Peter Lerner is the spokesman for the Central Command. During this week (April 2-9, 2011), Maj. Lerner will be blogging his experiences from the “Witnesses in Uniform” program, a special program run by the IDF as a way to contribute to commemorating the Holocaust and heroism in the army. Multiple times a year the IDF selects officers from units all over the army and sends them on a one-week journey to Poland. On the trip the delegation members visit extermination camps, concentration camps and memorials to the victims of the Holocaust and the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe. Delegation members include IDF officers, Holocaust survivors, wounded soldiers and members of bereaved families.

“Witnesses in Uniform” was established in 2001 and since then 22 thousand commanders have participated in the program. In 2009, approximately 3,600 commanders from all IDF units took part in the program. The program offers a different perspective to those who were born in the State of Israel and take it for granted. The journey is a major part of the efforts to commemorate the Holocaust and heroism in the IDF, serves as a means of expanding the participants command and ideological identity, and reinforces the sense of mission toward the state and the army.

Maj. Lerner currently serves as the spokesperson for the Central Command. Since 2002 Maj. Lerner has held a variety of positions in both the IDF and the Civil Administration. He has served as a senior field liaison officer for coordinating and facilitating international humanitarian aid operations and economic development programs in the Palestinian territories. He was also formerly the spokesman for the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Maj. Lerner’s posts will be uploaded with a delay of 24 hours for security reasons.

Hamas Kidnapping Attempts During Upcoming Holiday Thwarted

Posted on April 2, 2011 by idfspokesperson

Over the weekend, in a joint IDF-ISA activity, an IAF aircraft targeted a Hamas terror squad in the southern Gaza Strip, following the squad’s intentions to execute kidnappings during the upcoming Passover holiday in the Sinai Peninsula and in Israel. A hit was confirmed.

Hamas continues to operate in every way possible in order to harm Israeli civilians.

The IDF will respond with strength and determination to any attempt to use terror against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers. The IDF holds the Hamas terrorist organization solely responsible for any terrorist activity emanating from the Gaza Strip.