JWR Only in the Middle East!

Home
In this issue

July 2, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: The hallmark of a person

Abe Novick: Up, up, and aliya

July 1, 2009

Rabbi Avi Shafran: The Road Taken

The Kosher Gourmet by Marialisa Calta: Get into the holiday spirit with these Star-Spangled desserts

June 30, 2009

Rabbi Binyomin Ginsberg: What makes a great parent?

Caroline B. Glick: Ideologue-in-Chief

June 29, 2009

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Beware of 'Caveat Emptor'

Steven Emerson: ACLU pushing for more money for Hamas

June 26, 2009

Rabbi Yoni Posnick: Learn the secret to a healthy marriage from a scriptural villain

Caroline B. Glick: Barack Obama vs. International Law

June 25, 2009

Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf: The Absurd Power of Truth

Jordan "Gorf" Gorfinkle's strip: Everything's Relative

June 24, 2009

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Advancement of technology is a wake-up call for humanity

The Kosher Gourmet by Andrea Weigl: Summer on a stick: Making frozen treats can be easy, creative and fun

June 23, 2009

Martin M. Bodek: 'On Surnames': And so, We Begin

Caroline B. Glick: The Obama Effect

June 22, 2009

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Working for a corrupt firm

N. Richard Greenfield : Where are American Jews?

June 19, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Emotion v. intellect

Caroline B. Glick: Israel's rare opportunity

June 18, 2009

Jonathan Rosenblum: Sometimes it is more essential to define the nature of evil than good

Jordan "Gorf" Gorfinkle's strip: Everything's Relative

June 17, 2009

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Language of Confusion

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: Nothing pleases Dad more than a thick, juicy onion-smothered steak. Add home-Baked Potato Chips and …

June 16, 2009

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Career v. Careersism

Caroline B. Glick: Obama's losing streak and Israel

Richard Z. Chesnoff: ‘Palestinians’: Never Missing an Opportunity …

June 15, 2009

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu: How Judea and Samaria can become 'Palestine'

Daniel Pipes: Where Netanyahu's speech failed

June 12, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: Some big thoughts about not acting so big

Caroline B. Glick: Obama's High Commissioner

June 11, 2009

Victor Davis Hanson: Our historically challenged President

Mitch Albom: Beware the True Believers

Lewis Grossberger: What we learn from the new Hitler photos

June 10, 2009

Mort Zuckerman: What Obama and his advisors won't -- or refuse to -- grasp about Israel and the Muslim world

The Kosher Gourmet by Steve Petusevsky Lotsa pasta: Tips, techniques and (amazing) taste

June 9, 2009

Anne Bayefsky: Obama's stunning offense to Israel and the Jewish people

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: America's first Muslim president?

June 8, 2009

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Merchant must take responsibility for careless shopper?

Mark Steyn: A superpower that feeds on mediocrity cannot survive for long on leftovers from the past

Richard Z. Chesnoff: How do you say 'kumbaya' in Arabic?

June 5, 2009

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: In quest of spirituality

Caroline B. Glick: Obama's Arabian dreams

Charles Krauthammer: The Settlements Myth

June 4, 2009

Paul Greenberg: The War Comes to Little Rock

The Kosher Gourmet by Judy Hevrdejs: Splash it on! Tap your inner jazz musician and improvise when stirring up a vinaigrette

June 3, 2009

The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Q. Should terrible teacher be exposed?

Jonathan Rosenblum: The Israel Lobby: Missing in Action

June 2, 2009

Dennis Prager: The Speech President Obama Won't Dare Give in Egypt

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Pressure on Israel raises war risk

Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review June 17, 2004 / 28 Sivan, 5764

The Mommy who busted the bomber

By Toby Klein Greenwald


Printer Friendly Version

Email this article



A story that did not make the news has implications for us


http://www.jewishworldreview.com | My friend, Shlomit (not her real name), doesn't look like your typical terrorist hunter. She wears a sheites (wig worn by religious women as a sign of modesty) and arch supports. In addition to her regular job, she scoots around the country, giving a lecture here, taking a class there. She cooks for families in distress and she bakes cakes to pass out to soldiers manning roadblocks. She's always on a diet.


But last week, Shlomit became a hero.


Shlomit was driving on a main highway in Israel, on her way to a town inside the green line, to visit her married daughter and grandchildren. She found herself behind a large garbage truck, but, not being in a hurry and preferring not to pass on a busy road, she drove contentedly along behind him, listening to a CD of Devora Gila, a religious female Joan Baez-type singer. The yellow license plate on the truck in front of her indicated that it was owned by an Israeli. The cars of Palestinian drivers living under the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority have white or green plates. There are, however, Arab-owned vehicles with yellow plates — those belonging to Arab residents of East Jerusalem.


After a while Shlomit noticed that other cars were flying by them, but a car with white plates remained steadfastly behind her. She was sandwiched between the two.


After a while, the garbage truck pulled over to the side of the road and Shlomit passed it. Something made her glance up at her rear view mirror, and she saw that the Palestinian car was also pulling over. Shlomit saw the driver get out and hand a small package to the driver of the garbage truck.


This, she thought — the transfer of something from a white-plate to a yellow-plate driver — was a little odd.


So Shlomit, being a good citizen, upon reaching a roadblock several miles up the road, told the story to a soldier manning the post.


"Would you mind sticking around for a few minutes?" he asked.


"No problem," said Shlomit and settled down with a cup of coffee kindly offered by the young man in the bulletproof vest and helmet.

Donate to JWR


A few minutes later the garbage truck rolled into the roadblock lane. Having yellow plates, it should have passed through fairly easily. But the soldiers, tipped off by Shlomit, examined his cab even more carefully than usual. They found the little package and opened it.


It contained explosives. My friend Shlomit probably saved some lives that day.


The story could end here, but it doesn't. There is a story behind the story.


Shlomit, being the road traveler she is, always carries two items in her car, in addition to her green leather purse and a water bottle. She has an instant camera and the soldiers' "bill of rights". It explains what rights a soldier has when checking an individual and someone tries to question the soldier. "I see the 'Machsom [Roadblock]-Watch' women harassing soldiers all the time," she says. "I also noticed, over time, that the day after the media reports that soldiers at a certain roadblock caught terrorists before they infiltrated, the 'Machsom-Watch' women are there, harassing the soldiers.


"In effect, the statement these women are making," says Shlomit, "is that they would have rather the bombers got through and murdered Jews."


This is the reason that Shlomit won't say at which roadblock they caught the "garbage bomber" — in order not to provide the harassers with another IDF target. When Shlomit gets to a roadblock where soldiers are being harassed, she photographs the harassers and hands the soldiers a copy of their bill of rights, along with her chocolate cakes.


The moral of the story, says Shlomit, is, "Be vigilant. If you notice something unusual on the road or anywhere else, don't hesitate to point it out to a soldier, policeman or security person."


Life or death can be only a heartbeat away.


How does she feel, knowing she probably saved lives that day?


"I didn't do anything," says Shlomit. "It was all the hand of G-d."


And off she drove, into the sunset.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and in Washington consider must-reading. Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

Toby Klein Greenwald is a journalist, a community theater director and the editor of WholeFamily.com. She lives in Efrat. Comment by clicking here.

© 2004, Toby Klein Greenwald