A delegation of soldiers and officers participated last night (Wednesday) in the evening of the annual salute of the Friends of the IDF - FIDF - in New York, which took place this year in a limited format due to the corona plague.
This is one of the most prestigious events among the Jewish philanthropic community in the United States, held with the aim of expressing appreciation to IDF soldiers.
Two of the guests of honor at the conference were a father and son, whose names are not allowed to be published due to their military service - Lt. Col. (Res.) Y., a veteran combat navigator, and Corporal Y., his son, who serves as a soldier in the Iron Dome battery. The two fought, one from the air and the other from the ground, as part of Operation Wall Guard. "I did a long service in the army, and now I am doing reserve duty as a fighter pilot in the F-16 squadron," Lt. Col. Y. tells "Israel Today."
Corporal Y., who enlisted in the IDF a year ago after a year of service in a youth village at risk, worked with his friends in the Iron Dome battery near Ashkelon and the Gaza Strip.
At the same time, his father made raids and attacked inside the Strip.
"When you go on a mission you are very focused, and there is no time to think about other things," says the father.
"After an activity, when I heard that following my attack, or other attacks, there were rocket launches at population centers and an iron dome intercepted most of them.
Corporal Y. has similar memories. "We did not stop hearing the planes during the operation, and I wondered where my father was," he says. "I was very happy that we both took an important part in the operation.
That is the most significant thing in my life so far. "