How the IDF turns young Jews into Israel's ambassadors

As Israel’s ongoing war with Hamas enters its fourth month, another front has taken center stage in the war of public opinion on college campuses and major metropolitan centers around the world, with millions of young Jews and Israel supporters continuing to defend Israel’s right to self-determination and the IDF’s morality.

A recent study by Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll found that among 18- to 24-year-olds, public opinion is split evenly, with 50% of American youth supporting the Hamas terrorist regime. This alarming statistic should come as no shock, considering the highly publicized hostility toward Israel, turning college campuses into hotbeds of antisemitism. 

Israel education and hasbara programs continue to provide the resources and information for Jewish youth to combat the attacks against the IDF’s morality, but the experiences gained by the thousands of Marva alumni have transformed these advocates into leaders. 

Turning pro-Israel advocates into leaders

Sitting on the front lines of the ideological war in defense of Israel, these ambassadors remain steadfast in their fight, equipped with the Ruach Tzahal, the IDF’s code of ethics, which each participant receives as they begin this life-changing journey to truly understand what makes the IDF one of the most ethical and moral military organizations in the world.

Marva Israel was established over half a century ago as a joint venture by the IDF Education and Youth Corps, the Defense Ministry, and the Jewish Agency, to connect young Jews throughout the Diaspora to the Land of Israel and to the state, the IDF, and the global Jewish community. 

Marva has emerged as a leader in experiential education, tackling the challenge of how to demonstrate the ethical dilemmas that soldiers face in the field, while also instilling deep-seated pride in the strength of the Israeli spirit, as well as the responsibility of IDF soldiers to uphold the values of Ruach Tzahal. 

Throughout the two-month intensive course, participants undergo a condensed IDF basic training and forge a lasting connection to the people and the Land of Israel. For the program’s vast corps of alumni, the experience is life-changing and has prepared them to become some of the Jewish state’s most vital advocates and ambassadors worldwide.

For Itamar Barak, 19, a pre-med student from Panama, Marva was an opportunity to connect to his Israeli roots and experience the IDF without the trepidations of leaving his family for an extended period. 

“I felt that I was missing out on an important experience by not joining the IDF. I had a friend who participated in a week-long IDF program, but the two-month course was a real-life experience,” Barak says, having participated in the program over the summer, just a few months before October 7. “Unlike other militaries, the IDF is a system that is designed for all citizens to be a part of it. I was astounded not just by the respect that the soldiers demonstrated for each other but [by] the respect they shared with their commanders and the mission of the IDF.”

Since the events of October 7, the lessons Barak learned in his time on the Marva program have taken on a completely different meaning. Carrying his Ruach Tzahal in his pocket, Barak constantly returns to the IDF code of ethics as his guiding light toward advocating for Israel in his home country of Panama. 

However, despite trying to spread the truth about the situation in Israel, Barak has been disheartened by the negative response from some in his community but remains steadfast in his role as an ambassador for Israel.

“These are the moments that bring us together as a family. We need to hold each other up and support one another, as Jews and Zionists, and keep everyone informed,” Barak says, “Everybody has it in them to start a movement, but sometimes they need a push to understand the situation better. This is what Marva did for us. It gave us a clear view [of] what goes on and also that it is important to know the whole story from all sides, so you can explain the real story.”

WHILE BARAK’S Panama community has demonstrated overall strong support of Israel throughout this troubling time, other alumni face a much more isolating situation. 

Ilya Sharav, 20, lives in Germany, and although he is a proud Jew, it is sometimes hard for him to be open about his Judaism. He was raised to be conscious about wearing his kippah in public, but throughout his time in Israel with Marva he would not take it off. With many anti-Israel demonstrations taking place throughout his home country, Sharav sees a responsibility to help others in his community, born from his newfound understanding of Israel and the IDF. Working as a counselor in the local Bnei Akiva youth movement, Sharav has begun using Ruach Tzahal as a teaching tool for the younger generation who are enduring ongoing antisemitism as a result of their support for Israel. 

“Ruach Tzahal is something that is so easy to teach to the children. In comparison to the armies of our neighbors, we value and celebrate life. It is all about living well and with dignity. It is something we can all connect to, and this really spoke to me,” Sharav says proudly. After working alongside IDF soldiers in the field, he now understands that defending Israel’s right to exist is not just a job for combat soldiers, but that each of us has a responsibility to contribute and help, to find our own opportunities in supporting Israel’s ongoing efforts, domestically and abroad.

FOR TALI FISKE, 19, that responsibility materialized on October 7, at the start of her freshman year at the University of Texas at Austin, having participated the previous year in Marva as part of the Young Judea Year Course program. Wanting a unique and challenging experience, Fiske had opted for the Marva course, a truly life-changing experience that had helped her grow her personal and Jewish identities. However, before October 7, she could never have anticipated the impact of those two months spent on the Marva program.

“Nothing [can] fully prepare you for the rise of antisemitism on campus since October 7, but this experience has helped me to have conversations and inform people when people are attacking the IDF,” Fiske explains from her college dorm.

“Because I went through some of the basic experiences of IDF soldiers and better understand the moral dilemmas they face, people trust me to explain the reality of what is happening. They come to me for support and [for] help [in] understanding.” 

While her platform may have started off small, Fiske quickly became a leader within her campus community, providing facts for her fellow classmates to combat misinformation and helping to arrange an event with the campus Chabad House – speaking to 650 students about her experiences and the situation in Israel as it unfolded. 

Providing a voice for many who feel lost or vulnerable, Fiske has a passion for Zionism, and her experiences as part of Marva have impacted countless others on her campus to stand up and speak out on behalf of Israel and the IDF. 

“I am here to help unify the Jewish people in my community. It really gets to me to see so many people saying the IDF is immoral, but I know in my heart because of what I experienced that this is completely false,” Fiske explains. 

“We would learn in Marva how to deal with antisemitism on campuses, but the point of the program is to become ambassadors for Israel, to spread correct information and light to others, so I feel that I was more prepared to deal with this than many of my classmates.”

As the calls for Israel’s destruction grow louder around the world, the young men and women who have completed the Marva program are a testament to the unwavering spirit of the Jewish people. 

As Marva prepares to welcome a new cohort of participants, the impact that this program has already made in the war of public opinion will carry on exponentially, continuing to provide a prevailing light throughout the world and inspire countless others to stand up for what they believe is right, demonstrating the bravery of the next generation of Israel ambassadors throughout the world. 