Michael Oren combines his expertise as a historian and his work as Israel’s ambassador to the United States in “The Ultimate Ally.” Drawing on his own Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present, Oren demonstrates the deep roots of America’s attachment to Israel. Providing a powerful response to the realist critique of American support for Israel, Oren’s essay also highlights some unfamiliar details, such as these:
Israel not only enhances America’s defenses — it also saves American lives. A kibbutz-based company in the Galilee has provided armor for more than 20,000 U.S. military vehicles. “Two days ago, my patrol was ambushed by insurgents using 7.62mm PKM Machineguns,” David C. Cox, a platoon sergeant in Iraq, wrote the manufacturers. “None of the rounds penetrated the armor of the vehicle, including one that would have impacted with my head.” Marine gunner Joshua Smith, whose Israeli-armored vehicle tripped an IED near Marja, Afghanistan, described how his unit “walked away smiling, laughing, and lived to fight another day.” Military medical experts from both countries also meet annually to discuss advances in combat care. One such breakthrough was a coagulating bandage, the brainchild of a Jerusalem start-up company, a million of which have been supplied to U.S. forces (and even applied by a Tucson SWAT team medic to stanch the life-threatening head wound of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords).
Please read the whole thing.
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