When the going gets tough, Israelis get funny
We end the week with two quick examples of Israeli humorous spoofs that appeared in an otherwise very sober few days
This was not an easy week for Israel. There was the tragic explosion of Israeli explosives, caused by our own munitions, that killed six combat engineers; tragically, additional soldiers died in other locations during the day. And yesterday, far from the battlefield, Israel was fighting again, this time in the Hague, defending itself against charges brought by South Africa that Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza. The case has Israeli officials worried—a negative ruling by the court could have problematic repercussions of numerous sorts. A potential hostage deal got some attention, but as of this writing, there is no concrete progress—and the hostages, in conditions that one shudders to imagine, approach their 100th day in captivity.
As sobering as all this is, the war in Israel is beginning to feel less like an acute crisis and the beginning of a “new normal.” How long that “normal” will last, no one can say. And the tragic losses continue to rip the hearts out of Israelis of all persuasions.
Yet, perhaps because the acute sense of crisis has abated, Israelis are beginning to allow themselves sorts of humor that one probably would not have seen a few weeks ago. Today, to close out our week on Israel from the Inside, we share two spoofs that have gone a bit viral on Israeli social media.
I first saw the humorous video below covered in Yisrael Hayom. As the story was told there, Hanan Isaacson (32), from Beit Shemesh, was called to military service, like many thousands of others, on October 7. He has been stationed largely in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), at times not far from Ramallah. And throughout, he has been taking videos to share what he and his fellow troops are experiencing.
The video below, filmed in the Ramallah area, understandably went viral. Isaacson and his friends found an old sofa in the area, and decided to perform a new opening for the now classic American TV series “Friends,” with the iconic sofa and the same melody.
Isaacson said that they came across the sofa during a foot patrol, and upon seeing it, the idea came to them. It took, he said, just a few minutes to film and a few more minutes to edit. Then he uploaded it and the rest is history.
For those who don’t recall the original opening from Friends, we’re providing that below. Then comes Isaacson’s spoof, brought to you from the IDF on the outskirts of Ramallah.
Filming and editing by Hanan Isaacson. Video via Israeli social media.
And then there is IDF Spokesman, Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, who has the the army’s face to the Israeli public. Hagari has been much admired for his no nonesense presentations, his clear enunciation, and the regularity of his appearances. But of course, since this is Israel, he has also been imitated and spoofed to no end.
Leket is a fabulous organization (that my wife and I have long supported) that, in its own words, “is the leading food rescue organization in Israel. Unique among all other organizations that serve the poor in Israel and food banks worldwide, Leket Israel’s sole focus is rescuing healthy, surplus food and delivering it to those in need through partner nonprofit organizations.”
The seriousness of its work, however, has not robbed even Leket of a sense of humor, as seen in this ad below. As the ad is a spoof on Hagari, we’re providing a brief Hagari appearance, posted by the IDF, and then the Leket ad/spoof follows.
We can end this week by hoping that with time, the ratio of sober news to Israeli humor will gradually shift in the direction of the latter.
Shabbat Shalom.
I loved the Friends spoof. It’s a testament to the human spirit that creativity can emerge even in wartime. Much love to all the IDF soldiers including my son who is a Tzanchan reservist.
While one should not want to begrudge members of the IDF moments of levity, restorative sanity and breathing space for comradeship during what is an unimaginably difficult period in every possible way, the “Friend’s” video was beyond distasteful. It trivializes the degree of loss, fear for the entire region. I can only assume it is or will play poorly outside of Israel (and perhaps within; if I had a relative who is or was a hostage or an IDF soldier who has been killed, or a Palestinian who shares our anger and horror toward Hamas and their fear of the IDF, I suspect I’d feel as though acid was being poured on my spiritual wounds). There are enough people (Jewish and non) outside the region who are under the impression we are indifferent to the impact of this war. Jews are being threatened and attacked physically and socially outside of Israel and Jewish men dancing with guns and sitting on a stained sofa in an area where Palestinians have lived is, at best “unprofessional” and tone deaf; at worst, it shows an incredible indifference toward the scale of trauma and grief. Unfortunately, it reminds me of the disgust I have felt when Palestinians and others who call for the destruction of Israel and the annhilation of Jews dance when a Jew is murdered. We need to be better than that (and this extends to those Settlers who have appropriated such behaviours, too.) During a tie of constant and immediate losses of life is never an occasion to dance.
Sorry, Marc, it feels deeply unJewish and very unfunny.