Gazi strip Israel vs Hamas PLO 1956-57

[Box and one]

My father born in Italy came over to the US when he was 4, lived in Little Italy in the Bronx ,graduated Teddy Roosevelt HS on Fordham road. Graduated No 1 in his class offered a full scholarship to Manhattan College despite living one block from Fordham Univ. Graduated in the class of 1936 with honors Got his BA or BS and became a Italian-Spanish teacher in NYC His 1st teaching job was at his Alma Mater Teddy R High school He taught there until 1942 and was drafted . He was accepted and was made an officer in the US Army . In August of 1943 he married my mother in the Bronx. His parents my grandparents didn't approve of my mother because she was a Calabrian and didn't have a good job They felt their son married someone beneath my fathers status. They married without his parents attending the wedding. My mothers apartment house on 187th street had a butcher on the 1st floor Although there was a food ration in the US because of the war they had a big wedding and all the meat and food you could eat. They were married aug 22 and on Aug 23rd my father was at Fort Dix in NJ getting ready for North Africa . He was part of General Clarks 5th Army They had one night together and my mother would not see my father until 1946 Although my father never officially knew where they were going he knew he was a part of AMG. Allied military Government and because he spoke fluent Italian he was either going to Italy or Spain .
I have to go I tell this story because he is connected to the Gazi strip working for the United nations later. back later sorry

 

[Box and one]

After serving in Italy with AMG during the war his job was as the Germans retreated Italy his AMG group would enter each Italian city and established a democracy . Arrest all the fascist sympathizers and create a a safe and friendly environment . Because he was of Italian descent and spoke better then any Italians he was accepted by the locals He would 1st summon the priest and local leaders. They needed 1st aid for diphtheria and a few trucks of Flour were given to the bakeries , Once you got the bakeries going and food most of the Italian population was happy. Many partisans that hid in the caves from the Germans came back to the villages My father had to find out what Italians had helped the Germans. Many were arrested and had to be protected because the Italians wanted to kill and hang those that aided the Germans . The pulitzer writer John Hersey wrote his novel " A Bell for Adano" about someone like my father. Hersey followed an AMG officer that my father knew and then wrote his novel They made a movie about the book My father said they romantized the book and movie but didn't like the lead actor John Hodiack because he wasn't an italian I have to go now Sorry The connection is after the war my father in 1957 was a part of the UNEF United Nations Emergency Force He was stationed there in 1957-58 and 59 They were fighting back then and today its still going on Going to watch the eclipse with grandkids Then go to Tex St game back tonight to finish this up

 

[yyz]

Intriguing stuff!

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[Box and one]

Sorry for the delay What I was trying to say was in 1957-58 my father who joined the United Nations after the war even though he got his teaching job back in NYC MY father stayed in Italy after the war and was a part of an AMG educational group of Americans to change the Italian School Curriculum back to democracy and take all of Mussolini's fascism out of there text books. He was stationed in Rome and was a part of educators that were British,Australians and Canadians . He was also a part of an investigation of the Ardeatine cave Massacres that occurred prior to the US troops entering Rome. The United Nations was being formed and head quartered in San Fransciso in 1946 They moved to NYC that year so when he returned he was offered a position with the UN. When I was 5 yrs old living in NYC he was then stationed in Cuba for a year
and then in 1956 was assigned to Naples Italy to form a UNEF military base After one year in Naples he then started the UN base in Pisa Italy . He hired over 50 local Italians for the UN base from cooks,maids, drivers,security etc Pisa became UNEF's military headquarters and was attached to the US Army base Camp Darby.. Thats where I grew up and went to elementary,middle and 1st year of HS. We stayed there 10 years before he was reassigned to UN head quarters back in NYC .
But he was in the Gaza strip between Egypt and Israel and an old British WW2 army base became the UN base. He became the logistic officer between the US Army and UNEF forces. The Israeli government didn't want the UN there and at one point attacked a UN convoy killing UN soldiers.
Its still a hot bed today and to see it on the news you would think there was a solution , But in 1957 and then the "6 days war" in the 60's and today the Gazi strip is still crazy. In 1965 he was also sent to the Congo . In 1967 we returned to the US. He accepted another assignment to Vienna Austria for UNICEF but had a heart attack . Mom my was against moving again and after being in Italy on the Mediterranean for 10 years she didn't want to go to Austria. He stayed in NY because of medical conditions and finally retired . They bought a house in New Jersey and he got his Teaching license back to teach . He became a substitute teacher at the HS across the street , He go his 1936 teacher certification back from NY which transferred to New Jersey . He had a stroke at the age of 89 after being a permanent sub in Oradell NJ. He worked the day he had the stroke . Unreal .. The Italians called it " La Dolce vita " A sweet life.. and he had it and I wish he could see my two daughters teach now because his DNA transferred to me and then to my two teaching daughters. He never got to see me become a principal but think he is up there with St Peter looking down. THe whole point I was making before my fathers story was the middle east , I grew up with Gazi headlines and still today its in the headlines.

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

If you don't understand the whole situation in Israel, this video does a great job of explaining it.

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[Box and one]

Think it was hard back in the days since the Ottoman Empire ,then the Romans etc I do remember my father saying " their all crazy" He used to go to Lebanon and said it was a beautiful city and country. But he said both sides would never have peace because of their religion beliefs. He also said the UN were referee's not peace makers even though he worked for the United Nations. Wish he was alive today and would wonder what he would say today. He talked about it so much but when your 9 or 10 yrs old it was hard to comprehend what was really going on. I have his UNEF white army jeeps models ,his UN blue hat and a UN arm band about 3 camel seats,and some other things he brought back from the middle east. I also have a group of UN soldiers marching. He always collected toy soldiers and bought them home for me. I still have that collection ..