Straying grape
The Jerusalem Post usually differentiates its articles as either news items or opinion pieces. However, in “Tough to be politically correct” (Grapevine, April 2), Greer Fay Cashman strays from her usual reporting on social events and the world of culture into the much more difficult arena of security issues, where she seemingly conflates facts with opinions.
Ms. Cashman should rest assured that the IDF is the most moral army in the world. This fact is continually attested to by senior experts from the US and the UK, whose armies are also significantly involved in asymmetrical warfare.
Her piece speaks of a few “rotten apples” (fact or opinion, we don’t know), but these are often dealt with in a formal and independent judicial system, as we too well know from the so-called Hebron shooter case – and this only further speaks to the army’s morality.
Of course, it has to be extremely disturbing to be woken in the middle of the night for a house search, along with one’s husband and young family, as was reported for Rania Wasfi. But Ms. Cashman does not tell us what happened with the searches carried out at neighbors’ homes, whether these were also by “bad apples” or whether, as in the case of Ms. Wasfi’s family, the neighbors were also “innocent.”
She continues by saying there should be a more civilized way of carrying out these searches. It’s hard to disagree. Short of having the terrorists identify themselves, though, perhaps Ms. Cashman could identify the other “innocent” families, with the remainder being subject to search.
Unfortunately, this is part of living in the difficult neighborhood of the Jenin refugee camp, which has been the source of countless terrorist actions designed to kill innocent Israelis. DAVID SMITH Ra’anana
Greer Fay Cashman responds: I
wonder how Mr. Smith would respond if the shoe were on the other foot. As for his contempt for “rotten apples,” he should listen to Israel Radio defense reporter Carmella Menashe. Being the most moral army in the world does not mean it is totally moral – it is simply more moral than others.