An Englishman abroad - Jonathan Kestenbaum's Soldiers Diary in Israel
An Englishman abroad - Jonathan Kestenbaum's Soldiers Diary in Israel
The paradoxes in Israel never cease to amaze me. A country in conflict yet all its songs are about peace. There are soldiers everywhere yet a recurring sense of insecurity.
And overriding all is the constant nagging specter of an occupation that won't go away, and doesn't get talked about.
Jonathan Kestenbaum educated in London and currently a Fellow at the Hebrew University was called to do a reserve stint in Kabatiya. A sensitive and thoughtful young man in his 20s, the reflections of four weeks in the West Bank have carried around the world in a way that few protests before it have done.
Perhaps it's the simple prose of this soldier's diary or Kestenbaum's unusual status as an English Jew on the front lines. But whatever the reason, the "Soldiers Diary" has been carried in The Guardian, The New York Times, the Telegraph and most interestingly in Israel's English language paper The Jerusalem Post.
It was Kestenbaum's decision to publish the soldiers view within Israel which has caused such a stir. There has probably never been such a strong document of protest written by a first hand observer. He pulls no punches in exposing the moral tragedy of the occupation. His descriptions of curfews are particularly painful. And it was this which has provoked such interest around the world.
Jonathan Kestenbaum is no mere peace activist. His diaries seem to have crystallized other protests across the country and something seems to be stirring. The rumor is that Kestenbaum was to be court marshaled for "blowing the whistle" but the authorities backed off when sensing that he has become an inspiration to the youthful protesters of the left.
One thing is for sure, Jonathan Kestenbaum's diary will be seen as one of the most noble and courageous acts in the pursuit of peace.