Today’s good-news story comes from Abu Ghosh, an Israeli Arab town about 6 miles west of Jerusalem where a very dedicated and loyal team work really hard in a Rescue Unit under the jurisdiction of the Home Front Command.
Contrary to popular belief, not all Arab citizens of Israel are against the State of Israel, and there are a substantial number who choose to give back to their country by joining the army; even though there is no compulsory conscription for non-Jewish citizens.
Quite a few choose to do National Service instead, and then there is the very important Rescue Unit that recognizes everyone as a fellow human regardless of nationality, religion or creed. There are 60 active members and at least four dozen more waiting to join the ranks of this uniformed yet civilian volunteer group that was formed in 2004 and has been doing fantastic work ever since.
Heading up this team is Imad Jaber who is a Muslim Arab. He takes pride in his identity and citizenship and despite the challenges he faces regularly as a minority in Israeli demographics, he says “To raise up a unit like this takes courage, it needs people that are humane. We’re not fighting against anyone. We don’t kill anyone, but the opposite. We are saving human lives.”
Click on the video below to watch more about this unique rescue unit.