line of fire

i first ‘met’ ziv koren through his work displayed in the world press photo traveling exhibition displayed in tel-aviv. his shots simply stood out. i was captivated, as i hope you will be when through with this post.

numerous award winning israeli photographer ziv koren‘s 1995 photo of  an exploded bus, published on the cover of ‘time international’, was selected in 2000 as one of the 200 most important images in the last 45 years by the world press photo association, besides receiving several other rewards.

another of ziv’s images displayed in world press photo, a ‘dolphin’ submarine on its way from the german manufacturer to its new home in the israeli navy, also caught my attention.

a few years later, as uri was nearing his draft to navy officers’ course, he also decided to redecorate his room. he was looking for a photo that had to do with the navy. i suggested he contact ziv to ask about buying a print. an amusing email interaction took place between uri and ziv. eventually, understanding that uri was not in a position to purchase a print at ziv’s usual prices, ziv sent uri the full res image file, allowing uri to make a print and then delete the file - a present for uri’s upcoming draft.

i next met ziv at a course on documentary photography i did in tel-aviv, run by contact magazine. ziv was an instructor that either discouraged you to the point of despair or pushed you to the limits of your creativity. brutal in his critique ziv made sure my feet were on the ground and that subjective owner’s euphoria didn’t cloud my sense of reality and direction. i learned a lot from this photographer, i greatly respect him and  i admire his work!

today i ran into an online presentation that summarizes much of the work ziv has done over the last two decades in regard to the israeli-arab conflict. ziv has often placed himself on the edge of a knife to get the images he set out to achieve and his work is extraordinary.

do yourself a favor – follow the link below, click on the full screen icon at the bottom-right and and lock out everything else for 3:30 minutes.

line of fire

nir

40 years ago today…

“the armies of egypt, jordan, syria and lebanon are poised on the borders of israel…to face the challenge, while standing behind us are the armies of iraq, algeria, kuwait, sudan and the whole arab nation. this act will astound the world. today they will know that the arabs are arranged for battle, the critical hour has arrived. we have reached the stage of serious action and not declarations.”  -jordanian king hussein after signing a defense pact with egypt in 1967.

background:

a few years earlier in the 1960s pressure began to build. in may 1967 egyptian president gamal nasser began building up pro-war rhetoric in the media and then closed the strait of tiran to israeli shipping. the fatah group, headed by yasser arafat (recently deceased), began calling for war to eliminate israel. jordan signed a defense pact with egypt, readying itself for war. on june 4, iraq likewise joined a military alliance with egypt and committed itself to war stating “this is our opportunity to wipe out the ignominy which has been with us since 1948. our goal is clear – to wipe israel off the map.”

israel could not maintain total military mobilization indefinitely. when it became apparent that egypt would not stand down, israel attacked the egyptians beginning on june 5, 1967. in the first hours of the war, israel destroyed over 400 enemy aircraft to achieve total air superiority. israeli troops quickly conquered the sinai peninsula and gaza. jordanian artillery began firing at jerusalem on the first day of the war, despite a warning by israeli prime minister levi eshkol to stay out of the war, and then the jordan legion advanced and took over the headquarters of the un (governor’s house – armon hanatziv ) in jerusalem. after warning king hussein repeatedly to cease fire and withdraw, israel conquered the west bank and jerusalem. during the first days of the war, syrian artillery based in the golan heights pounded civilian targets in northern israel. after dealing with egypt, israel decided to conquer the golan heights. after just six days of fighting, israeli forces broke through the enemy lines and were in a position to march on cairo, damascus and amman. along with the territories conquered, israel now had close to a million palestinians under it’s rule.

jordanian police academy – ammunition hill outpost:

lyrics: Yoram Taharlev

It was the morning of the second day of the war in Jerusalem.
The horizon became pale in the east. We were in the middle
of the battle on Ammunition Hill. We had been fighting for 3 hours.
It was a stubborn battle. Murderous.
The Jordanians fought stubbornly. It was an exceptionally fortified area.
At a certain point in the battle only 4 soldiers remained with me.
We arrived there with a force of two platoons.
I did not know where the others were, as the line of communication with
Dudik the commander had been cut off at the beginning of the battle.
At that moment I thought everyone had been killed.”

At two, two-thirty
We entered via the stony ground
Into the fire and mine fields
Of Ammunition Hill.

Against fortified bunkers
And 120mm mortars
One hundred and some boys
On Ammunition Hill

The pillar of dawn did not yet rise
Half the platoon lay, in blood
But we were already there
At Ammunition Hill.

Between the fences and the mines
We left only the paramedics
And we ran at the loss of senses
To Ammunition Hill

“At that moment a hand grenade was thrown from outside.
Miraculously, we were not wounded by it.
I feared the Jordanians would throw additional grenades.
Someone had to run above the trenches and to guard.
I had no time to ask who would volunteer.
I sent Eitan. Eitan did not hesitate for even a moment.
He climbed up and started firing his machine gun.
At times he would pass me, and I had to yell to him to stay in my line.
We proceeded in such a fashion for about 30 meters.
Eitan was covering for us from above, and we purified the bunkers from inside,
until he was wounded in the head and fell into the trench.”

We descended into the trenches,
Into the pits and the channels
And into the death in the ditches
Of Ammunition Hill.

No one asked a thing
Whoever went first fell
Much luck was needed
On Ammunition Hill

Whoever fell was dragged back
So as not to block the passageway
Until the next in line fell
On Ammunition Hill.

Perhaps we were lions
But whoever wished to live
Should not have been
On Ammunition Hill.

We decided to try blowing their bunker up with the bazooka bomb.
The bazooka made a few scratches in the concrete.
We decided to try explosives.
I waited above them until the guy with the explosives returned.
He would throw me bundle after bundle,
and I would place them one by one at the entrance of the bunker.
The Jordanians had a system: first they threw a hand grenade,
then they fired a round of ammunition, then they rested.
So, between the firing and the grenade I would advance towards
the entrance of their bunker and lay down the explosives.
I set off the explosives and went back as far as I could.
I only had four meters in which to move,
as there were Legionnaires behind me.
I do not know why I was awarded a Symbol of Merit.
All I wanted was to get home safely.

At seven, seven-twenty
to the police training school
Those who remained were gathered
from Ammunition Hill.

Smoke rose from the hill
The sun in the east rose higher
We returned to the city – seven
From Ammunition Hill.

We returned to the city-seven
Smoke rose from the hill
The sun in the east rose higher
Over Ammunition Hill.

Over fortified bunkers
And over our brothers
That remained there at the age of 20
On Ammunition Hill.

 

 private eitan nave:

on the 6th of june, 1967, in jerusalem, in the battle for ammunition hill, the paratroopers encounters stiff jordanian resistance and could no longer advance. without a moments hesitation, eitan nave jumped out of the trenches and provided covering fire from above, exposed to enemy fire. his actions enabled the paratroopers to advance while he ran decisively, striking down many legionnaires, above, without cover, alongside the force in the trenches, until he was killed by a jordanian bullet to the head.

for his actions, private eitan nave was awarded the medal of bravery, the highest honor awarded by the israeli defense forces.

the way to mt. scopus and the old city was now open. 37 paratroopers had fallen in the battle for ammunition hill and the jordanian police academy grounds.  the paratroopers who fought at ammunition hill were faithful to the combat principles of their training – courage, steadfastness, assisting one’s comrades under fire, initiative and ingenuity.

40 years ago today…

p.s. richard jones, u.s. ambassador to israel, as well as all europian union countries, represented by harald kindermann of germany, rejected invitations to participate in a special jerusalem day ceremony in the knesset, marking 40 years since the city’s unification. the boycott is due to the conflict over east jerusalem’s position as part of israel’s capital.

nir

oded balilty, pulitzer

oded balilty/ap

A lone Jewish settler challenges Israeli security officers during clashes that erupted as authorities cleared the West Bank settlement of Amona, east of the Palestinian town of Ramallah. Thousands of troops in riot gear and on horseback clashed with hundreds of stone-throwing Jewish settlers holed up in this illegal West Bank outpost after Israel’s Supreme Court cleared the way of demolition of nine homes at the site.February 1, 2006 - from The Pulitzer Prizes web page

amazing photo or not? not only do i find oded’s shot visually fascinating but it also conveys the essence of the struggle – ideological youth in an all out battle against government resolutions from a ‘nothing to loose’ standpoint (something i tried to convey in current affairs). the girl in the photo is named nili. she is not yet 17. nili says the photo did not bring israel worldwide honor and recognition – it brought disgrace. “when our leaders send our security forces to uproot and expel people, to destroy and demolish jewish life, it is not an honor” she wrote.

i saw this photo in the press at the time, later at world press photo exhibition (took 1st place for people in the news) and now i think the pulitzer is well deserved! i know i’m not the first to write about oded balilty’s award but i wanted to be. i postponed this post emailing ap a request to display the image on my blog. no reply. so…

oded balilty is quoted in maariv as saying he felt he had it the moment he got the shot. he wasn’t dreaming of a pulitzer at the time but he knew he had a great shot. his interpretation of the shot is ‘david against goliath’. although he hasn’t met her he sees the girl in the photo as one of the bravest people he has ever seen. not in the political aspect but in the ideological one – her decisiveness to follow her heart.

fantastic shot! congratulations!

nir

59th

imagine a photo of a beautiful display of fireworks. shot from less than 50 meters away, they break up right above our heads and the ashes drop around us. the reds and greens light up the night sky with a magical luminance. can you see them? wow! a blue one! did you see it?

me neither. the moment the fireworks began tasha began trembling of fear. i had to hug and caress her instead of my camera. so, no fireworks.

i can show you tasha though…

israel today celebrates 59 years of independence! i want to share a letter written by dorit’s grandfather exactly 59 and 1/2 years ago;

 wikipedia background

Tel Aviv, Sunday, November 30, 1947 

Dear Viterbo,

I feel the need to send you and all my friends in Italy greetings from Eretz Israel in this dawn of hope and festivity. My thoughts run back to the years past when we worked, struggled, hoped together; to the friends and leaders who guided us.

The Jewish State is not yet an accomplished fact; but when, last night, after so many hours of anxious anticipation, we heard on the radio the voices of the delegates pronouncing their vote at the Assembly of the United Nations and then the proclamation of the results, we felt that something great was taking place, even if surrounded by so much pettiness.

The streets filled with people, joyous and almost incredulous. Groups of young people were running, singing, embracing each other, dancing the hora in the streets and squares.

No! It won’t be easy now: fighting, difficulties and danger are not over. The task facing us, materially and spiritually, is enough to make one tremble. But at least for a moment let’s indulge ourselves and our children in the joy of the dream made reality, even if there’s a good share of illusion.

Yesterday we were all together at Mario Ottolenghi’s house to celebrate Michael’s Bar Mitzvah. There were so many old friends and this gathering reminded me of other similar gatherings at our homes in
Italy, in a time that seems so long ago. Our friend Gad, Giorgio Sarfatti, said some simple words about the text Michael had just read quite well and he finished up by hinting at the possibility of the imminent proclamation of a Jewish State, saying that we should accept it with joy as a gift from the Lord, even if we know this State will be quite different from what we would like. It’s up to us to take action so that reality isn’t too far from the ideal. But is a father prevented from rejoicing upon the birth of his son because he knows how difficult it will be to set him on the path to the Lord, and for fear that he won’t become a good and decent man? Therefore, let’s greet this birth with joy, but without ignoring the gravity of the task that awaits us and without trying to avoid it.

I’m picking up where I left off this morning. The city is celebrating, even if news has already spread of some incidents and victims. You can see a new happiness in everyone’s eyes; something singing in our hearts. Outside Eretz Israel it’s not possible to feel this simple and complete happiness that comes from feeling yourself in unison with everyone you meet. We should thank those whose call led us into Eretz Israel even for this day alone. Everyone you meet greets you with a smile containing an intimate, though wordless meaning; the clerk in the shop, or the cashier at the bank, they can’t help giving you the traditional message Mazal Tov, good luck! The milkman, when bringing us the milk this morning, greeted us the same way, adding that now it was up to us to show we were worthy of this State, and that it would be necessary to find the road to an accord with the Arabs. My thoughts were on this too, last night, on our neighbours who live a few meters from our houses. We’ll have to find the way to an agreement.

In the streets the schoolchildren are singing. Trucks decked with flags and overflowing with young people are circulating through the streets crowded with people. Bicycles are draped in white and blue; flags, large and small, are everywhere. Even these white cement cubes that are the houses of Tel Aviv seem beautiful today standing out in the cloudless sky, bright and clear, almost as if to form an immense white and blue flag.

Boys and girls are going around with blue boxes to collect offers for Keren Kayemeth. Suddenly, the memory pops up in my mind of a day long ago, much more than thirty years ago, when I was a boy of fifteen and went from house to house delivering the white and blue Keren Kayemeth brochure. All my old friends will surely remember that day. And today I felt like a boy again; full of vitality, joy, confidence, as is possible only at fifteen. And today everyone feels that way; full of a joy and confidence that is rarely seen in Israel.

In the street I met a friend who is particularly competent in financial and economic matters and known for his prudence.  Mazal Tov! Mazal Tov! He said: “This country, believe me, can be the best in the world also from an economical point of view. It has all the ingredients to be so”. A little farther on a car passes me by, in the streets congested with cars and pedestrians. I see a white head stick out, a broad smile on an open and jovial face. And at the same time I feel some one pat me on the head and on the shoulder, as with a small boy. It’s Harzfeld,[1]the head of the agricultural settlement council. I don’t know how long it’s been since I’ve run into him, in nine years I’ve seen him five or six times; but it seems that he’s kept an incredibly vivid memory of our meeting in Italy, and of a trip we took with him and Enzo Sereni. “What are you doing? Are you working?” “Yes” “Why don’t we see you around? Come over to my place. I want to know what you’re up to”. Another pat on my shoulder and the car takes off, while Harzfeld throws himself back on the seat. And I walk away with an inexplicable lightness in my soul. In those few meaningless words, in that handshake, there was nothing; yet to me they seemed to have a deep value; who knows why? We felt united for a moment, and we needed to say so. Harzfeld planned and directed the building of dozens and dozens of new colonies; I did the same for a few houses. It seems that the humblest job, performed here, acquires a special value today, and even the fact alone of being here. Because all together, our force comes from this work and this presence. Not that they have a great value in themselves, but as the expression of a will and faith without which it would all be in vain.

If I had to say what is the characteristic that distinguishes today from all the other days I have lived up to now, I could not avoid thinking of this strange sense of lightness that I have never felt in any gathering of Jews. It’s the joy felt by children, self-confidence, confidence in help from above, the sense that everything will have to end up well (which is not a carefree unawareness of the dangers of the moment), they are the aspects of a youth that has not yet lost its enthusiasm, its unselfishness, its faith.
Israel is wonderfully young. So let’s not be afraid of the tasks ahead, but let’s not forget why they are so arduous.

I’m often reminded of Italy’s recent history, from the Risorgimento till today. The Italian people have many points in common with us, and from their history we too could learn something in the field of politics. If we aren’t blind we’ll be able to find the path to discipline and to union; but no sacrifice will serve if we are not faithful to the spirit of our tradition, the voice of our prophets.

Don’t ask me why I’ve written you. It was the fullness of my heart that wanted to find expression. It was the same mysterious force that today invited every one of us to smile to strangers as if to friends, great friends like brothers. Maybe tomorrow it will all be different. Today even Pacifici [cf. Introduction, note 3], if he had been here, would have said, as Rav Uziel[2] suggested, the prayer Shehecheyanu, “who has brought us to reach this day”.

Love to you and all my friends,

Gualtiero Cividalli

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Carlo Alberto Viterbo, lawyer from Florence, president of the Italian Zionist Federation (FSI) in 1921, then from 1931 to 1933 and then, after the war, together with the editorship of the weekly journal
Israel, until his death in 1974. In 1936, he led the first systematic exploration of the Falasha territory in
Ethiopia. Abraham Harzfeld, one of the main people in charge of the Agricultural Headquarters of the Histadruth. Meir Uziel,  Sephardic Chief Rabbi in Palestine.

---

from A Dream To Reality, Letters to the Children in Combat, Israel 1947-1948, by Gualtiero Cividalli
Edited by Francesco Papafava

roller coaster casualties of war

adolescence is a rough ride. anyone on that roller coaster, parents and siblings included, is going to get dizzy. as a parent it’s one of the greater challenges i’ve been through.

 

adolescents live with constant internal turmoil, battling a need to define their unique identity, to figure out who they are, their self worth, in their own eyes and to establish that in the eyes of friends and family. it is a time of struggle between being the child of a parent and being an independent adult – two things that usually seem incompatible. with so many battles raging inside a teen is it really a wonder parents can become casualties of war?  

 

nir

niralon.smugmug.com