UA students learn the lives of Israeli soldiers

Matt Heistand Arizona Daily Wildcat (From left) Lt. Yaron Ziv and 2nd Lt. Miriam Ziman from the Israeli Armed Forces speak to students yesterday evening in the Hillel Foundation building. Ziv and Ziman spoke about all aspects of Israeli life, including the military and the politics involved between Israel and the United States.

Israeli high school students face one choice after graduation - the armed forces.

Twenty UA students interacted with 2nd Lt. Miriam Ziman and Lt. Yaron Ziv from the Israeli Defense Force yesterday at the Hillel Foundation.

The lieutenants, on a month-long tour as defense force representatives, touched on topics such as military life, Israeli politics, global policies and President Clinton.

"We want get to know people and keep up contacts between Israel and the U.S.," said Ziman, 20.

The event, sponsored by the Jewish Hillel Foundation and the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, exposed UA students to the reality of life in Israel and the Middle East.

The lifestyle differences between Israeli and American young people is interesting, Hillel Program Director Jonathan Kaplan said.

"Israelis are holding a gun and risking their lives while here in this country, we are going off to college," undeclared freshman Kevin Lichtenthal said.

After Israeli girls complete high school, they spend one year and nine months in the military. Boys are required to serve three years.

They are taught to use guns and save people's lives in basic training, Ziman said.

"Every citizen from when they are little children know that we are a small country and must defend our turf - we have few soldiers and every one of us is important," said Ziman, who is working to be an officer.

Her job is to provide food and transportation to soldiers, maintain gas stations and equipment and work expenditures into a budget she must balance.

Ziv, a navy lieutenant, oversees the mechanical functioning of the ship. He is an engineering specialist and officer of the control room.

"I really enjoy sea time when we go sailing for simulation exercises," he said.

Ziv, 23, moved to Israel from Belgium after college to join the Navy.

"In Belgium I was in a Jewish community, but it was not socially acceptable to meet other people outside the community."

The adjustment to Israeli life was difficult because of the quicker-paced lifestyle, he said.

The students showed support for a new peace agreement between Israel and Palestine. The two countries have battled over the West Bank territory in Gaza, spurning centuries of antagonism. Israel recently conceded 13 percent of the territory it regarded as crucial to national security.

"Most Israeli citizens want peace and we know we have to compromise - you can't get what you want unless you give back," Ziman said.

Eighty percent of Israelis support the peace process, which is a significant increase from past years, Ziv said.

Both Ziv and Ziman pressed for mutual trust and negotiations.

"There is lots of poverty and if people don't see the prospect of good future, they have nothing to loose so they send suicide bombers," Ziv said.

The Israel and Palestine governments need to cooperate to improve the economic situation in the West Bank and prevent terrorism, he said.

For young Israelis, terrorism breeds stronger feelings of protecting their country. The events have less of an affect on Americans who read about the them in the newspaper, said Joel Dembowski, an accounting and finance sophomore.

An alliance between the United States and Israel has been instrumental in keeping peace in the region, Ziman and Ziv said.

"Clinton has a personal interest to push for peace - he is very popular in Israel," Ziv said.

The Monica Lewinsky scandal receives little attention in Israel because they care about and like what he is doing for world peace, Ziv said.

The U.S. military has exchange programs with allies to maintain personal communication lines - to recognize allies not just by name but by face, said Troy Mattern, a UA Reserve Officers Training Corps staff sergeant.

The U.S. provides $3 billion in financial aid, helps prevent nuclear proliferation, shares technology and gives moral support to Israel, Ziv said.

"Being a superpower, the U.S. wants to have influence in the Middle East because it is very volatile," Ziv said.

Sara Pear, a political science and Judaic studies sophomore, lobbied in Washington D.C. last May on behalf of American policies in Israel.

Students in the discussion are aware of what is happening in Israel, but hearing testimony from the soldiers gives people another perspective, she said

Eric Grosman, a retailing and consumer studies junior, said he enjoyed the program and the views expressed by the soldiers.

"I have heard a lot of Israeli speakers but I have never heard their views on the U.S.," he said.

Genevieve D. Cruise can be reached via e-mail at Genevieve.D.Cruise@wildcat.arizona.edu.