to see if i’m smiling on our way to Annapolis

An Israeli documentary ‘To See if I’m Smiling’ has been released – it tells the story of traumatized Isareli women soldiers years after leaving the army – traumatized because of the torture they have witnessed and did nothing about:

One posed for a photo as she scrubbed a Palestinian corpse. Another stripped a man to his underwear and then beat him. A third helped cover up the abuse of a young boy. The six Israeli women who feature in the documentary “To See If I’m Smiling” each wrestle with memories of their compulsory military service that they would rather erase.But after years of trying to bury the past, they have spoken out in a film that explores the darker side of Israel’s 40-year-old occupation of the Palestinian territories and examines its impact on a generation of young men and women. [Reuters]

The release comes just a few weeks before the Annapolis conference. Tamar Yarom, the director said:

“This country is in a coma. With all the bombs and attacks, we are numb,” she said. “People feel we are in a war of survival and it’s better not to criticize soldiers, because they are the ones protecting us.”

Err… sound familiar?

Let’s see how much we all smile on our way to Annapolis – a conference that Olmert pre-empted by saying that he is not going there to make any deals.

No. Of course not. They are all going there to make sure where they stand on Iran.