The Four Mothers from the Lebanon War

Evelyn Hammerschlag, Beit Hillel, northern Galilee.

Originaly written January 1998, some months after the movement was
founded,  for the jewish newspaper "Nueva Sion", Buenos Aires, Argentina.

February 1997. A late afternoon with thunderstorms. We had already heard
much aereal activity that day, in the northern Galilee, near the Lebanese
border ( were we live ). This allways gives a premonition of oncoming
troubles.
And, at that moment , the terrible accident happened: two helicopters,
carrying some dozens of soldiers each -on their way to Lebanon - crashed
one into the other, disseminating their pieces and human cargo on the roofs
and tree tops of a nearby "moshav"....
These 73 victims were now added to so many others falling every year, in
this useless stay on Lebanese soil.
Anguish, despair, impotence.....These were the feelings.......
And there, this night, in one of the kibutzim in Galilee - four mothers of
boys
the same age of those who fell this evening - met. They sat together in
sadness and asked themselves: " anguish, despair.....BUT WHY
IMPOTENCE??? Perhaps WE could do something so all our sons woud not
be cannon- fodder in a laberint without a way out, which has no political
meaning four OUR PEOPLE??"
And this was the beginning of their movement. This night it was settled. Out
of
this terrible sadness, and strong feeling that SOMETHING HAS TO BE
DONE!
They began to manifest on route crossings, and other corners were they and
their placards were seen: " Retiring from Lebanon in Peace", "Finding
political Solutions to get out of Lebanon"...
I saw them, I heard about them, and feeled deeply identified.
My own son, was serving army on Lebanese soil, for one and a half years
now, as a paramedic.There are many nights, when we hear the helicopters
above our home's roof....going for wounded soldiers...That keeps us awake
and worried...
But, if I joined the movement, it was for ALL of them.
Today,  the movement counts with some hundreds of activists, all over the
country. After some months, we were known, heard, we were a reality, a
presence. All this was achieved in a short time.
There are interwiews with politicians of all currents, personally or on TV
debate programs. We make people, think, discuss...also if they have
opposite ideas. In Januca time we lighted enourmous  8 armed chandeliers,
reminding our "feast of the oil and the lights miracle", and inviting people
to
wish por peace.
Of course, we can't allways count with the help and understanding of all
those surrounding us: in the northern town of Kiriat Shmona ( near the
Lebanese border, and nearby I live ), most of the population is right
winged.
And there also exists an existencial fear about what could happen in this
area
in the moment when our "tsahal" retires and leaves "jisbala" on his own.
Sometimes people scream at us : "Our sons should be heroes!!" "They
should fight!!"
We have to cope with them, try to explain some facts, try to bring them to
an
understanding instead of screaming blind clisches...
The important thing is not to get "accustomed" to this situation, summing
joung victims nearly every day, during years, of this useless war. People's
-
and specially the government's ideas - have to been strongly shaken. There
are minds to be opened, to look into the eyes of solutions, of promoting
PEACE !!
Only in 1997, 39 soldiers fell on Lebanese soil, many were wounded...and 73
were killed in the helicopter crash..
We dont want heroes in a war which is not our's, in a place were we
got stuck deeper and deeper, and were we should't be!!
We hope for peace, and should all our sons return home healthy and
safe. (in SHALOM)