“Soldiers of the Hagana sprang into action throughout the Holy Land.” David Ben-Gurion, Israel: A Personal History (1971). (Ba-Machaneh, 1947)
“Hagana night patrol in the Tel Aviv–Jaffa area.” David Ben-Gurion, Israel: A Personal History (1971). (Ba-Machaneh, 1947)
“Jewish forces on the attack in Upper Galilee in the War of Independence.” David Ben-Gurion, Israel: A Personal History (1971). (Ba-Machaneh, c. October 1948)
Our soldiers prevailed not by the strength of their weapons but by their sense of mission, by their consciousness of the justice of their cause, by a deep love of their country, and by their understanding of the heavy task laid upon them: to insure the existence of our people in their homeland.
Yitzhak Rabin, 1967
“Before entering the town of Gaza at sunset on June 6, a soldier in camouflage uniform washes down the day’s first meal with coffee brewed inside his Centurion tank.” Charles Harbutt, National Geographic (December 1967)
“In the Gaza cleanup, a young soldier cocks his Uzzi submachine gun.” Charles Harbutt, National Geographic (December 1967)
“Flagman waving Israeli colors in the lead half-track directs the dusty dash through the Negev.” Charles Harbutt, National Geographic (December 1967)
“Treading hallowed ground, Israeli fighters—and a girl volunteer out of uniform—turn sightseers at the golden Dome of the Rock. By the third day of the war their forces had won all of Jerusalem.” Charles Harbutt, National Geographic (December 1967)
“Sobs of thankfulness rack an Israeli soldier as he prays at the Wailing Wall.” Charles Harbutt, National Geographic (December 1967)
“Clad in armor, the Jews return to their Wall.” Associated Press, Lightning Out of Israel: The Arab-Israeli Conflict (1967)
“A pause for prayer at the Wailing Wall.” Associated Press, Lightning Out of Israel: The Arab-Israeli Conflict (1967)
When a person doesn’t have gratitude, something is missing in his or her humanity.
Elie Wiesel, 2000
The faithful soldier. (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, 1973)
Heavy with duties, soldiers enter Lebanon. (Michael Zarfati, 1982)
Brotherly rest amidst Lebanese haze. (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, 1982)
When evildoers approach me to devour my flesh; my tormentors and my foes against me—it is they who stumble and fall. Though an army would besiege me, my heart would not fear; though war would arise against me, in this I trust.
King David, Psalm 27:2–3
A casual moment in the foreground of three millennia. (Rina Castelnuovo, 2008)
Soldiers welcome a purple dawn, and its Creator, together. (Pavel Bernshtam, 2011)
The desert blooms. (Tzachi Yaffe, 2016)
Israel reflected in its protector. (Tzachi Yaffe, 2016)
Embrace of fortitude. (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, 2023)
