A Staggering Loss

August 11, 2011

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

Last weekend, the U.S. suffered a painful blow in Afghanistan when terrorists shot a rocket-propelled grenade at a helicopter carrying 30 members of U.S. special operations forces. The rocket hit its mark, and all the soldiers — including members of the Navy Seals' Team Six — were killed in the ensuing explosion and crash.

Team Six, you may recall, is the same group that executed the daring raid several months ago that resulted in the death of arch-terrorist Osama bin Laden. They are the elite of elite military special operations' forces, chosen only for the most dangerous, risky missions. As one military official put it, fighters of this skill and caliber "aren't just made overnight."

The death of all these men is a loss not just to the U.S., but to the world. There are few who possess the skill, raw courage, and strength to fight in one of the most desolate and dangerous parts of the world against terrorists motivated by hatred and religious fanaticism. The terrorists they face are the enemies of all that we in the West hold dear — the precious blessings of liberty, democracy, and freedom. They fight, in short, for us.

All freedom-loving countries must realize that they stand on the same side in this battle, and that a loss for one is a loss for all. For most of us, the loss will be far less personally felt than it will be for the families and loved ones of the soldiers who died. But each and every soldier — whether he is a U.S. soldier hunting down Taliban leaders in the desolate wastes of Afghanistan, or an Israeli soldier executing a raid on a terrorist hideout — acts as a bulwark against terror and chaos. How easy this is to forget as we go about our daily lives — but how crucial it is to remember if we are to give our fighting men and women the respect and recognition they so richly deserve.

We all owe a debt to these men who gave, in the immortal words of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, "the last full measure of devotion" in the cause of freedom. May they rest in peace, and may their families and loved ones be strengthened and comforted in their time of sorrow. And may the soldiers of the U.S. and Israeli armed forces — and the soldiers of every nation committed to the fight against the forces of terror and darkness — be given the protection of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, of Whom the Bible says, "You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance" (Psalm 32:7).