Gaza :: The Disengagement

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Natan - age 19: Natan Blachman is from Beersheva, Israel. He was born in New York and moved to Israel when he was one year old. He is a student at a Hesder Yeshiva, a special program that combines Jewish study with army training. He will enter the Israeli army in March 2006. Natan is opposed to the disengagement plan and protested the plan before it was carried out. During the days before the evacuation, he tried to enter Gush Katif, walking through fields in the dark of night to avoid being seen by Israeli soldiers. He wanted to be with the people of Gaza during the disengagement to offer his support, but he was unable to enter until after the people had been evacuated. Following the disengagement, Natan is helping evacuees who relocated to his town. He plans to become an educator when he is older, because he sees it as the best way to make change.
	Working to protest the disengagement
	Trying to get into Gush Katif
	Helping after the evacuation
	Making change in the future

Tamar G. - age 20: Tamar Gordon is an officer in the Israeli Defense Force (IDF). She lives in Jerusalem, but she was born in the Phillipines, where her father was an ambassador for Israel. Her mother is American, and Tamar has spent some time in the United States, so her English is excellent. Tamar, who serves in the IDF’s liaison and foreign relations unit, was called on to help in Gaza during the evacuation of the Jewish settlements there. When Tamar finishes her active duty with the IDF in a few months, she hopes to travel and attend college.
	Feelings on being assigned to the disengagement
	Training for the disengagement
	How the people of Neve Dekalim treated the soldiers
	What she would do in that situation
	How special the Jewish people are
	Her hopes for Israel in the future

Shira - age 17: Shira Burstein lives near Jerusalem. She was born in Israel to an American mother and an Israeli father. She is against the disengagement and has protested against it. Before the evacuation of the settlements in Gaza, Shira travelled to Gaza to support the people there. In order to get in, she had to pretend to be someone else, but she felt the risk was worth it. Now she is helping evacuees who have had to leave their homes in Gaza. Her experiences make her question whether she wants to go into the army.
	Getting into Gaza
	A sense of community in Gush Katif
	How people felt before the evacuation
	Needing a miracle
	How could this happen?
	Soldiers should remember it forever
	Connecting people

Tamar K. - age 16: Tamar Kojman is an Israeli teenager living in the suburbs near Beersheva, Israel. She supports the disengagement, both for political and economic reasons. She plans to join the IDF when she reaches the age for army service.
	Her initial thoughts on the disengagement plan
	How she thinks the disengagement went
	What she would have done if forced to resettle
	Paying for past mistakes

Yoni - age 20: Yoni Weiss is an American who decided to join the Israeli army. He is currently serving there, and chose to work in the army during the disengagement. It was a difficult decision and a difficult time for him. (You’ll notice that he refers to the disengagement using the Hebrew word, hitnatkut.)
	Joining the Israeli army
	Staying during the disengagement
	Reactions to the disengagement

Yoni with his troop

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