By: Abi Wiseman
6:30 AM, 1,160 alive. October 7, 2023. 12 AM, 1,160 dead. Hostages taken, shots fired, and bombs were exploded. 1,160 dead…and more. We do not know for certain, but. without the help of the IDF, it could have been an even more deadly massacre. War had just begun. Parents in America with children getting ready to fight in Gaza, individuals seeing their friends flee to support their beloved country with their own experiences of having fought in past wars, and soldiers who were drafted back into the army making no excuse to stay and not fight. At TLS, three community members tell their stories of being in the Israeli army.
Most Israelis join the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) at age 18, in the hopes of being able to support Israel in any way possible. This includes applying for different jobs such as combat, medics, working in offices, fighting on the front lines, and more.
“I joined the army because it was part of the law in Israel,” Hebrew teacher Yaniv Cohen said. “I wanted to be part of the Israeli culture and be able to contribute to the country.”
Middle school Hebrew Teacher Einav Dahaman-Frumess explains the importance of serving her beloved country and recognizes the immense bravery it takes to serve.
“When I decided to join the army I knew I wanted to be in combat because I wanted to give all of my abilities to my country and push myself to do as much as possible for Israel,” Dahaman-Frumess said. “As a religious girl I didn’t need or intend to join the army; in fact, I already had received a job but I decided that is not how I want to fulfill my service for my country”.
Upon joining the Israeli army, all soldiers complete basic training where their physical and mental strength is tested. From there, the intensity of their training increases, mirroring the intensity of their chosen jobs.
“It took a lot of training to get to my position,” Dahman-Frumess said. “I had the initial screening, where I, along with hundreds of other females, for 2 days with no sleep and had to endure very difficult physical training. In the end, these Israeli commanders really tested you if you were even able to handle these kinds of challenges.”
However, over time, the Israeli Army has shifted its training, which has created a different experience for current soldiers serving in the IDF.
“When I first drafted I didn’t know Hebrew, so I drafted into a place called Michbe Alon, which is still the army but it’s just Hebrew classes all day but boot camp style,” said Leffell Alum Liam Shmul who is currently serving in the IDF.
When training to be a combat soldier, each day follows a strict schedule.
“7 AM was breakfast, 12 PM it was lunch and around 6 or 7 there would be dinner, but whatever training we did that day [even when in Gaza] Our commanders would always give us, on the dot, 7 hours of sleep,” Shmuel said.
During this intense training, commanders are very strict and demand perfection to exemplify discipline.
“Everybody had a timer on their watch and if they say ‘open watch’, you must open your timer and you would get 30 seconds to clean and organize your room,” Shmuel said. “And by the end of the time you must be in formation, if not, they mess your area up and you have to do it once more”.
Highlighting the intense and most difficult parts of training to be in combat (in the explosives unit), Shmul recalls the בחנס [BA-CH-NAS] which Shmuel recalls as being the hardest part of being a combat soldier.
“It’s about a kilometer and a half run and within that run there are obstacles you have to get over,” Shmuel said. “Obstacles like jumping over a wall, jumping over small ditches, you have to climb up a rope, and there are two sets of crawling. In the end, you have to be able to complete the entire obstacle course in under 10 and a half minutes, otherwise, you cannot become a combat soldier.”
The final part all combat soldiers have to experience to get their special Barrett is to complete a journey with their unit.
“A מסע כומתה [MA-SA, KOOM-TAH] is the journey for your Barrett,” Shmuel said. “that signifies their unit, and to get the Barrett you have to do a מסע…since I had to do mine when the war had already started, me and my soldiers had to do 20 kilometers through hills … the last 10 kilometers we had to carry stretchers with sandbags on them.”
On the other hand, Cohen has had his own unique experiences in the time that he served in the IDF. As a Combat Medic and a Medic Instructor, Cohen believes that having experience is the best way medics can “practice” to help people in real-life situations.
“My role as a medics instructor in the reserve forces allowed me to meet so many other interesting and new people from different backgrounds,” Cohen said. “For instance, lawyers, artists, chefs. They come to the army and they serve as medics and they bring their personalities.”
Being in combat with mostly male soldiers comes with difficulties. Dahaman-Frumess recalls the tough circumstances from when she was training with men in her unit.
“Being one of the only girls was not easy because you were looked down on and some of the men there didn’t think you had the same strength.” Dahaman-Frumess said.
Working for the rocket systems, Dahaman-Frumess found herself amid the War in Lebanon. This was her first real combat experience and she was caught off guard by the suddenness and swiftness of it all.
“The war just happened…all of a sudden you find yourself in battle, in the front lines,” Dahaman-Frumess said. “When in battle, you’re not thinking much, rather your functioning and focusing on defending you and your team safely, and you do…with all of the intensity with the training, when the time comes, you have the skills set to just function”.
Freshly coming out of Gaza, Shmuel recalls the dangerous and deserted land. Before his journey into these destroyed lands, Shmuel was notified that he would be in Gaza for seven days. Yet, he found himself working in Gaza for three weeks.
“Suddenly, the soldiers that just came out of Gaza (24 hours before they were about to go back in) and they said that I was going in Gaza as well.”
As a part of the combat explosives unit, Shmuel was equipped with the training and skills of throwing grenades, using machine guns and driving tanks. When in Gaza, his team was ordered to blow up certain houses and buildings, filled with weaponry and ammunition. After being on “standby” to go into Gaza, Shmuel recalls when he had just entered Gaza.
“My team and I were all in our transport tanks,” Shmuel said. “We were in the process of loading all the tanks up and suddenly there was this huge explosion and we all looked over and there was smoke coming from the transport tank and from a Guard officer…everyone had to get into the Puma and look around to see where the rocket came from. By the time I got to the Puma Guard officer, he had already been helped”
Feeling the aftermath of the battle, soldiers are given the chance to rethink their various and entirely different experiences. This aftermath consists strongly of heartbreak, gratitude, and grief for friends or relatives lost in the utter heat of battle.
“It’s what comes after the fighting,” Dahaman Frumess said. “At the moment you’re not thinking, you’re doing, you have a mission and you’re focused on the mission. Later, you’re processing everything and as anticipated, a lot of emotions are rising and that’s when things can become more challenging.”
Soldiers have noticed when reflecting on their army experiences, that they have set values that often include hard discipline.
“Army service has shaped who I am today in ways that there is not any other experience in my life that would have shaped me the way that I am,” Dahaman Frumess said.“I don’t think I would have been the same person without that kind of experience, and I’m proud of my service and what I have done and grateful for the opportunity I had to defend Israel and its people.”
Ultimately, as young adults and students, we must learn to become our own “soldiers” for everyone to stand up for what they believe in. That can include advocating for Israel in a variety of ways.
“Advocating and being present on social media, or being reachable,” Cohen said. “I think we hear the other side very loudly and everywhere, we can’t just hide or protect ourselves so we won’t get hurt we need to show presence and I think it’s very important that we will be present…and we won’t just try to avoid…we will speak up.”
