Delta, a Ukrainian-born
former IDF soldier, headed a force of 40 men and women, most of whom are
not Jewish, against gov’t forces
By Cnaan Liphshiz
February 28, 2014, 9:37 PM
He calls his troops “the Blue Helmets of
Maidan,” but brown is the color of the headgear worn by Delta — the nom
de guerre of the commander of a Jewish-led militia force that
participated in the Ukrainian revolution. Under his helmet, he also
wears a kippah.
Delta, a Ukraine-born former soldier in
the Israel Defense Forces, spoke to JTA Thursday on condition of
anonymity. He explained how he came to use combat skills he acquired in
the Shu’alei Shimshon reconnaissance battalion of the Givati infantry
brigade to rise through the ranks of Kiev’s street fighters. He has
headed a force of 40 men and women — including several fellow IDF
veterans — in violent clashes with government forces.
Several Ukrainian Jews, including Rabbi Moshe
Azman, one of the country’s claimants to the title of chief rabbi,
confirmed Delta’s identity and role in the still-unfinished revolution.
The “Blue Helmets” nickname, a reference to
the UN peacekeeping force, stuck after Delta’s unit last month prevented
a mob from torching a building occupied by Ukrainian police, he said.
“There were dozens of officers inside, surrounded by 1,200 demonstrators
who wanted to burn them alive,” he recalled. “We intervened and
negotiated their safe passage.”
The problem, he said, was that the officers
would not leave without their guns, citing orders. Delta told JTA his
unit reasoned with the mob to allow the officers to leave with their
guns. “It would have been a massacre, and that was not an option,” he
said.
The Blue Helmets comprise 35 men and women who
are not Jewish, and who are led by five ex-IDF soldiers, says Delta, an
Orthodox Jew in his late 30s who regularly prays at Azman’s Brodsky
Synagogue. He declined to speak about his private life.
We have special forces soldiers doing what is called a
Any questions?
2 comments:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/03/07/the-ukrainian-pendulum/
"The American soldiers are “military advisors”, ostensibly members of Blackwater private army (renamed Academi); a few hundred of them patrol Kiev while others try to suppress the revolt in Donetsk. "
Thanks for the link Bourgeois Reactionary; very informative.
Welcome to the blog.
Post a Comment