In Rememberance

In Israel, today (from sunset yesterday until sunset today) is known as Yom HaShoah, or Holocaust Memorial day. While many Jews around the world have buried the holocaust into the deepest recess of their memories, preferring to dwell on it as little as possible, the Jews in Israel clasp firmly to the memories of the Holocaust as a piece of history and self affirmation – that the state of Israel needs to exist in order to safeguard the Jewish people because no one else will. During the day, the entire country will stop for two minutes when the sirens sound for a steady two minutes. It is differentiated from the sound of the incoming missiles in that the missile alarm fluctuates in frequency (getting higher and lower), whereas today and on Yom Hazikaron the siren carries a steady note.

I wrote about this last year, but in a year a lot occurs, and a lot is forgotten. Today, a lot of people are exposed to incredible posturing and empty threats. In every day conversations, people might say ‘ I could kill... you are so dead...’ without any real meaning. Indeed North Korea appears to be antagonizing for war, and in Iran the leaders have been threatening to wipe Israel off the face of the earth without much apparent follow-through.  In Israel, this phrase is cemented into the conscious and is taken as a very literal threat . This morning, for the fourth time in a week, rockets have shot across the border from Gaza into Israel. Despite this, The hackers known as Anonymous have made a concerted effort over the past few days to ‘remove Israel from the internet.’ Among their complaints is that Israel has not complied with the ceasefire . While Israel has indeed conducted air strikes since the ceasefire, these have been in retaliation for rocket attacks (which continued hours after the ceasefire).

The timing of this act, like any act of terrorism, is not left to chance. It is specifically chosen for its importance and symbolic significance. While I think many will disregard this, in light of other attacks that people praise (the Westboro Baptist Church), the connection between attacking the Yad Vashem site, facebook or ‘Larger than Life’ (a charity fund for children with cancer), and the Palestinian cause eludes me. But as I said, I don’t think any inconsistency will bother most people since what affects them most directly will always trump something completely unrelated.

On a much more personal note, my trip in Israel is drawing to a close. I have finally received word that I have completed all the necessary requirements to graduate, so just a bit more time of work (and travel I hope), and I’ll be coming home.