THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Friday, September 9, 1983 15 YK War Still in Israel's Psyche By BARBARA SOFER World Zionist Press Service o o• • JERUSALEM — For Is- raelis, the notion that an entire decade has passed since the Yom Kippur War is at least as hard to believe as for Americans above age 30 to absorb that 20 years have passed since President Kennedy's assassination. In the same way that Ameri- cans still reflect on where they were when they heard the news, the Israeli's im- ages of the traumatic first days of the war are very fresh. The synagogues empty- ing out of fighting-age men, strictly Orthodox Jews driv- ing to battle on the holiest day of the year, the .dark- ness of the streets during black-out, the long evenings around the television fol- lowing the news. There were countless tales of heroism, and there was the wailing of young widows on the sloping green hills of the military cemetery in Jerusalem and similar sites all over the land. The most popular song was the sentimental ballad, "The Last War," and many believed the lyrics: this was going to be the last war Is- rael -would fight. The fact that the Yom Kippur has now become "the last war" in a different sense makes our memories of it even more poignant. Rather than distancing the Yom Kippur War, the Peace for Galilee" opera- tion has brought back vividly our memories of the Yom Kippur War. For those of us on the homef- ront, we found ourselves once again reluctantly putting on our best cop- ing behavior — assuming extra jobs, organizing child-care, baking cakes for soldiers, walking with our transistor at the ready, one e#r always cocked for a news report. Unlike the Yom Kippur War, the Lebanese war had no shortages of fuel or basic services —just ever-present anxiety, like learning to live with a heart condition. For the soldiers who took part in the wars there was less time for impressionistic images. But for them, too, the Yom Kippur War has not been consigned to an historical event which our armor corps will grows more obscure. have protection. This "On the contrary," said time we will not undere- Dr. Abraham David, 40, stimate the enemy and who fought in the Six-Day the threat he poses. The War, the Yom Kippur War Yom Kippur War has, for and in the war in Lebanon, better or worse, become "the experiences of the Yom part of how we look at the Kippur War are still very present." much with us, part of our Dr. David's daughter was daily consciousness." born while he was fighting Dr. David is a good in the Yom Kippur War. example of Israel's fight- She was named Hemda, ing forces. An historical "pleasantness," a word librarian by profession, associated with the prayer his career pursuit is iden- for future days of pleasant- tifying puzzling medieval ness when there will be no manuscripts that have more war. stumped other resear- Freckled, red-haired chers. He is the devoted father of five, deeply reli- Hemda is turning 10 this gious and a lover of Yom Kippur. Like the rest of the people of Israel, she classical music. In the Six-Day War he will pray that the time will was in the front lines fight- come soon when war will ing,Jordan, in the Yom Kip- not be part of the present, pur War he was in the Sec- but a subject to be studied ond lines in the Jordan Val- from her father's history ley and on the Suez Canal, books. after the crossing by the Is- Great evils enforce great raeli Army. In Lebanon, he was an army historian, re- lessons. cording the events of the battle for future genera- tions. "The blow of that Yom Kippur, that the Israeli Army could be surprised in such a sophisticated man- ner, has left a permanent mark on our national self- confidence and can be ob- served 10 years later," said Dr. David. "Before Yom -Kippur we really did see ourselves as invincible. On the other hand, the fact that the army did score an ex- traordinary victory despite the initial underdog posi- tion was reassuring, creat- ing an ambivalence about how we look at the war." "The ambivalence goes further. The war was tragic for us on a personal level — some 3,000 dead, (some six times more than in Leba- non) and for me, like most Israelis, among them close friends. But on a national level the war was an open- ing for the peace process with Egypt,' which might never have taken place if the Arabs had not regained their own pride from the ini- tial victories." "Fighting in Lebanon brought back memories of Yom Kippur. We were saying "this time we have the initiative and will not wait to be surprised by our enemies. This time 1 I — DOG SPAY • Less than 5 yrs. old • 65 lbs. and under With Coupon Reg. uh..$45 yv COUPON L CAT CASTRATION I $ 1500 I With 'Coupon Reg. $25' COUPON COUPON COUPON COUPON NEVITHOURS! 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