Marrying Invalids: Yom Kippur War's Effect on Moods of Israel Couples
By MOSHE RON
TEL AVIV During the
months after the Yom Kippur
War, the officials of the Tel
Aviv rabbinate were over-
burdened with work. They
had to sort out the wedding-
records of the last years, in
order to transfer them to the
archives in the basement.
The Israeli population was
under the hard impression of
the war events and the
mourning of thousands . of
families. It was a somber at-
osphere and young couples
-ad even widows and di-
vorced people did not think
'n those months of being mar-
3d and building new homes.
During the last months life
got back to normal and this
had an immediate effect on
*the work of the rabbinate.
In the corridors of the
building on King David
Boulevard, one can meet
many couples, new immi-
grants and old residents, wi-
dows aj2d divorcees. Some
are making preparations for
weddings. There is life and
movement again in our "bus-
iness," the officials of the
building say with satisfaction.
Young men and women
give them their personal de-
tails, and the dates for
the wedding ceremonies are
fixed. The manager of this
department, young Rabbi
Yehuda Landon, who re-
ceives each couple, some-
times witnesses great sur-
prises. This month he re-
ceived dozens of youngsters,
who were injured during the
Yom Kippur War and are in-
valids. They planned to marry
a year ago after Sukkot. but
the war failed their inten-
tions.
They spent many months
in hospitals and many of
them, mostly tankists, who
jumped from their burning
tanks remained permanent
invalids, even though they
underwent several opera-
tions. The officials of the
rabbinate have to help the
youngsters fill in their pa-
pers, as they cannot stand on
their feet. Some of them even
) entered the building in wheel-
chairs.
Rabbi Landon is sometimes
deeply moved watching such
invalids. He is comforted
when he sees the young beau-
tiful girls who are willing to
marry such boys. They had
known them in most cases
before their injury and they
are full of bliss and happi-
ness standing or sitting in
the rabbinate's office with
their future husbands. They
are gay and full of laughter
in order to encourage the
boys.
Whenever such a young
couple appears before him,
the young rabbi thinks:
"Good God, who from them
is the bigger hero? The
bridegroom, who has jumped
during the Yom Kippur War
from burning tanks on the
Golan Front and brought the
massive attack of Syrian
tanks on Kuneitra to a stand-
still or the beautiful bride,
who looks with affection and
love into the face of her fu-
ture husband, which is mar-
red by wounds and scars, as
if he would look like an at-
tractive film artist?"
We could see in the build-
ing how young girls push the
invalid cars of their future
husbands. We knew about
hundreds of such couples who
live in Israel a nice family
life. The wives do not forget
for one day that their hus-
bands were war heroes, who
sacrificed their bodies for the
defense of Israel and that
owing to their heroism Israel
has pushed back the enemy
across the border and safe-
guarded the existence of the
state of Israel.
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Friday, Sept. 13, 1974-13
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Sadat Clarifies
Palestinian Rights
LONDON — President An-
war Sadat recently said that
the Palestinian Liberation
Organization could not claim
o represent the Palestinians
a Jordan, but did represent
"all Palestinians elsewhere,
including the West Bank and
the Gaza Strip," in an inter-
view with Beirut's As-Say-
yad weekly.
This was the first public
semi-retraction by Sadat of
the joint communique he is-
sued with Jordan's King Hus-
sein in Alexandria on June
18. In that statement, Jor-
dan's claim to represent Pal-
estinians "living in the Has-
hemite kingdom of Jordan"
was recognized.
Sadat also said that the
Arabs would go to war if
Middle East peace efforts
fail. He said the day Israel
declares general mobiliza-
tion, Egypt will do the same
for "we will not be stung
twice."
A NEW SONG:
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