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HAIFA (New York Times) Aug. 14 — The 20-year-old son of David Grossman, one of the nation’s most prominent writers and peace advocates, was killed Saturday in fighting in Lebanon.
Staff Sergeant Uri Grossman, 20, was killed in a missile strike, days after his father made an international appeal for peace.
Uri Grossman, a tank commander, was killed in fighting on 12 August (BBC News)
Uri Grossman, a tank commander, was one of 24 Israeli defence force soldiers killed in fierce fighting against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon on Saturday.
The family said in a statement that Uri had planned to travel and study theatre in November once he had served his time in the military.
Last Thursday, Mr Grossman gave a joint news conference with fellow writers Amos Oz and A B Yehoshua, calling on the government to stop fighting. The group urged Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to seek a diplomatic solution.
David Grossman, 52, slight and soft-spoken, is often described as the anguished conscience of Israel. He is the author of best-selling novels including as “The Smile of the Lamb” and “See Under: LOVE” and the book-length political treatise “The Yellow Wind,” about Israel’s occupation of the West Bank.
«« click image for Grossman's books
Throughout Israel’s first war in Lebanon, from 1982 to 2000, and during the first intifada in the late 1980’s, Mr. Grossman and his wife, Michal Grossman, were frequent participants in antiwar rallies and demonstrations. Often they were accompanied by their two young sons, Yonatan and Uri.
● Meretz, Peace Now to join anti-war protest
● Prominent authors to PM: Accept ceasefire plan
«« click to enlarge
Cindy Sheehan, peace activist, in Crawford
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."
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How do you ask a man to be the last man to die?
Jhon Kerry
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«« click for Der Spiegel interviewCARTER: Yes, as a matter of fact as you know ever since Israel has been a nation the United States has provided the leadership. Every president down to the ages has done this in a fairly balanced way, including George Bush senior, Gerald Ford, and others including myself and Bill Clinton. This administration has not attempted at all in the last six years to negotiate or attempt to negotiate a settlement between Israel and any of its neighbors or the Palestinians.
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
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Chief of Staff Dan Halutz has no intention of resigning following the public and political outcry against him after daily Maariv published a story that he had sold stocks several hours after a Hezbollah raid inside Israel on July 12. Halutz has rejected the criticism against him, calling it “malicious.” Senior General Staff officers said Halutz should resign immediately.
Dan HalutzAccording to the report, three hours after Hezbollah attacked an IDF patrol and abducted two soldiers , at 12 P.M., Halutz called his investment adviser at the Bank Leumi branch on Dizengoff Street in Tel Aviv and ordered him to sell the shares in his investment portfolio, worth NIS 120,000. Over the next two days the value of the stock in the Tel Aviv stock exchange lost 8.3 percent of its value.
During the hours that the chief of staff was avoiding financial losses, he was also participating in meetings with the General Staff and the defense minister, in which he recommended a heavy air assault against Lebanon, resulting in an escalation and a full scale war between Israel and Hezbollah.
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
A little different topic but I just read this on uruknet.info.
August 15, 2006
We’re counting from the day Germany declared war on the US (December 11, 1941) to VE day (May 8, 1945). This is 1244 days. The Invasion of Iraq began on March 20, 2003 at 21:34 EST when the US began their first air strike on Baghdad.
On August 15, 2006 21:30 EST the United States will have been at war in Iraq longer than it was at war with Germany in World War II.