Today was another amazing day in Israel. Today we were focusing our attention on the
north of Israel and the complexities and beauty found there. Here is a perfect example. Here are some pictures of our beautiful
resort…
Which happens to be a stone’s throw away from the Lebanese
border where Hezbollah operates with the desire to destroy Israel. Today, this reality of where Israel falls on
the map, and the complexities of her stability was on the forefront of our
minds.
Our day started with breakfast, of course, and at Kfar Blum,
the food does not disappoint. Everything
is made fresh from scratch. Here is what
Hayley enjoyed.
Following breakfast we loaded our bus to head to our first
activity, a morning nature walk through the Tel Dan Nature Reserve.
Now I know what you are thinking. Isn’t Israel in the Middle East? Isn’t it all desert land? While the answer to this is yes, Israel is indeed
in the Middle East, the north of Israel is absolutely beautiful with
picturesque nature all around us. In
fact, we were even able to see some snow left on Israel’s highest mountain,
Mount Hermon. Uri shared that Israel
does have a ski season, and it typically lasts for about 8 days…
At the beginning of our walk, Uri shared that the Dan stream
is the most significant of the three sources of the Jordan River, fed by the
rain and snow that fall upon Mount Hermon.
Uri handed out nature guides to some of our walkers and we were off on a
beautiful stroll through the reserve.
Our walk led us to a pond where we were able to take off our
shoes and socks and wade in the water, much cooler than the water we felt in
the Jordan River yesterday.
As we dried off, Uri used Ben as our living map of Israel as
he pasted places on Ben’s body to show the locations.
Ben was a good sport, and thanks to Rebecca for being his
support that made sure he would not fall over.
Following this, we walked back to the parking lot where our off-road
jeeps were waiting to take us up into the Golan Heights. We left the Hula Valley and ascended high
into the mountains where we could clearly see the strategic necessity of the
Golan Heights in regard to Israel’s security.
We took a brief stop at an overview where we tasted some
delicious and sweet watermelon (everything is sweeter in Israel) and finished
our trip up to the top of the Golan Heights to a Syrian military outpost that
was taken by the Israelis during the Six Day War.
As we ascended the mountain, we could see many abandoned
military outposts and warnings about active mine fields (Israel has not located
all the mines placed by the Syrians).
Uri took us through the drama and fear that was the Six Day
War. We heard how tensions were mounting
as Israel’s neighbors threatened war and conquest. We learned of Eli Cohen, an Israeli member of
the Mossad who went undercover as a Syrian businessman and infiltrated Syrian
intelligence to the point of having a major impact on the war. He came to many outposts in the Golan Heights
(then held by Syria) and convinced Syrian leadership to help the soldiers
stationed there by planting eucalyptus trees around the outposts. This would provide necessary shade for the
soldiers and help them stay comfortable…
And would give Israeli airplanes easy targets to hit once the war began. Just aim for the clusters
of eucalyptus trees.
We learned how Israel, when facing certain attack on
multiple fronts, decided to take preemptive action and wiped out 85% of the
Egyptian air force while it was still on the ground. Uri shared that during this war it was
decided that they needed to solve the problem in the north once and for
all. For years and years residents in
the kibbutzim in the north would work in their fields with Syrian soldiers
stationed in the hills surrounding them shooting at them. And now the residents begged for the military
to do something to protect them or they would abandon their fields. The decision was made to take the Golan
Heights. Uri shared that the Golani
Brigade was given the task to take the Golan Heights. We learned of the soldier who’s job it was to
lay the explosives that would blow holes in the barbed wire fence and allow
troops to pass safely through on their way up the mountains of the Golan
Heights. As is common in combat, things
do not always go as planned. In one
particular case the explosive did not totally break apart the fence. With no time to waste as the bullets were
flying this soldier laid his body across the barbed wire fence and allowed his
fellow IDF soldiers to walk across his back and up the hill. This was just one of many selfless, heroic
stories that helped Israel to prevail and achieve her objectives. Uri climbed down the hill and tried to paint
the picture of what it must have felt like for these soldiers running up the
hill with the Syrians shooting down at them.
How did they possibly survive and take the mountain? It was not just the training but also the
fact that they could turn around and see their homes behind them, and they knew
that they were the only thing in the way between the Syrian army and the
destruction of their homes in the Hula Valley.
This was quite the motivation and Israel won a huge victory.
We had a few minutes to explore the bunker, trying to
imagine the fighting that went on there. I had a private moment in front of the
memorial to the fallen soldiers who’s bravery ensured that Israel would expand
its borders to create a more secure future for the people living in the Hula
Valley (including our travelers who’s hotel is in the valley below).
We boarded our bus and headed to Mas’ade, a Druze village in
the Golan Heights, for a delicious lunch of some of the very best falafel we
have EVER eaten. And the kids loved the
ice cream!
Following lunch Moti took us to the Kuneitra overlook, less
than 2 kilometers from the Syrian Border.
For me, I believe it is important to see places like this and learn all
we can about the situation in Syria and the potential impact it has on
Israel. We met with Abraham Levine, a retired
major and senior intelligence officer with the IDF to learn about the war and
humanitarian disaster happening in Syria.
What we learned was, quite honestly, a little
frightening. We learned that the
situation is so complex, there is no simple solution. The war has left the people of Syria in dire
need of humanitarian relief, with more than 5 million refugees fleeing for
their lives. We learned how Israel has
gotten involved in a few ways. First,
when Iran (another hostile enemy of Israel) came in to support the Syrian
government as Syria’s closest ally, it put Israel much closer to Iran’s reach. In response, Israel has carried out military
strikes on advanced Iranian weapons that could be used against Israel. This is so dangerous as it could spark a war
with Iran, or, should Israel hit another target from, perhaps Russia, could
complicate matters worse. Hezbollah, a Lebanese
terrorist organization is also in Syria now, and Israel is watching closely to
be sure she stays safe…
Another way Israel has gotten involved is by taking injured
Syrians (from both sides of the conflict) and given them medical
attention. Major Avraham Levine shared
that Israel would ask no questions and take the injured through the border to
hospitals and give care. He shared that
when the injured Syrian would wake up, they would almost have a cardiac arrest
to learn where they were and learn that the enemy Israel was actually not torturing
them as they have been taught but helping them.
Unfortunately, Syria has closed its border and this no longer
happens.
We looked at the UN base in front of us, which was abandoned
for many years, and now is once again active.
We have no idea what the future looks like for Syria. We know that Israel needs to stay out of the
conflict but keep her eyes open. We also
learned a little about the issues that Israel faces with Lebanon and Hezbollah,
focusing a little on the tunnels Hezbollah has been digging under the border to
give access for a surprise attack on Israeli civilians. Israel is indeed living in a very dangerous neighborhood.
After this sobering discussion that left us with more
questions than answers, we went 5 minutes away to our next activity where we
split into two groups, one touring a chocolate factory and making chocolate
treats and one wine tasting. How
incredible to be doing such things while being so close to the Syrian border. I was happy to go with some of the adults to
the wine tasting while Hayley happily went to the chocolate factory.
The fact that we were wine tasting so close to Syria with
the war raging inside her borders was a frequent topic of our conversations
over our wine samples. Mostly it was
about the reality that Israel has to deal with serious security issues in order
to keep her people safe from harm’s way.
Following this we went back to the hotel and enjoyed a
delicious dinner. I then took the kids
to the pool for an hour of swimming while the adults of the trip stayed with Uri
and discussed several topics of interest.
It was a day filled with learning, sobering reality, pride in military
victory, stories of heroism, nature and just plain fun in the land we are all
growing to love more and more. Tomorrow,
we say farewell to the north and make our way to Jerusalem. I cannot wait to share this incredible city
with our travelers.
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