Speaker tells of brother held hostage by Hezbollah

By Kristen Natividad

Guest speaker Gadi Goldwasser spoke to USC Law students Sept. 29 about his experiences as the brother of an Israeli citizen held hostage by Hezbollah this past summer.

The presentation luncheon, made possible by the Jewish Law Students Association, allowed students to hear a personal account of the incident.

“The media shows only part of the story, not the whole reality of what goes on,” Goldwasser said. “The damage done by this event is unexplainable.”

His brother, 31-year-old Ehud Goldwasser, was one of two soldiers captured by Hezbollah on July 12. The Israeli Institute of Technology employee also was a student who had earned a degree in environmental engineering and had just began working on his master’s degree. He is also a lover of music, nature and photography.

Gadi Goldwasser says he  was especially affected by his older brother’s disappearance because of the close bond they shared.

“I was quite alone,” said Goldwasser, whose parents moved to South Africa some years ago. “Everything I needed, I looked to my older brother for.”

As a former soldier with the Israeli army, Goldwasser said he was able to look past the limited depictions of the news media and see the situation in a more realistic sense. Living in the northern part of Israel also forces him to experience it firsthand everyday.

“My house is near a radius of so many hits a day,” he said. “But it’s a reality, something we face everyday. It’s our home, we see no other option.”

Goldwasser stresses the importance of American awareness of the subject because it could happen to anyone, he said.

“The guys who kidnapped my brother are the same guys who blew up the Twin Towers on September 11 right under your noses,” he told students. “They’re the same extremist terrorists, and that’s why each of you is related to this issue. They aim at the free world, and we are all a target.”

According to recent news reports, Israel is trying to gain the release of Ehud and his fellow prisoner. They are being held captive in Lebanon.

Goldwasser hopes that USC Law students will endeavor to learn as much as they can about the war.

“If we stay united and focus our energy on the cause, the effort will be much greater,” he said.