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The Canadian Jewish News. Thursday, June 26, 1986-Page 3
Took part in Entebbe rescue
Israeli doctGr has seen his share of the action
PAUL LUNGEN
TORONTO -
In his dark blue suit and eyeglasses. Dr. Eran D(ilev doesn'tlook the part of a , hero.^
But then again, many Israeli soldiers and ex-si'>ldiers in civilian clothes don't look much like heroes.
No different with Dolev. f except for one. point: Dblcv's contribution to the State of Israel-sweUbcing. is not just a minor one — he always seenis to be .. where the action is. f:. ■ In 1974. as medical commander of the northern command, he led the medical teahi th^t treated the school children held
hostage and, shot by PLC terrorists in Ma'alot.
During the Yom'Kippur AVar. asHedical officer of the southern command. Dolev saw service in that life and death struggle. :
But perhaps the: niost ex -citing, and certainly the most, unique aspect of his long military-medical ser-vice with the Israel Defence Forces was his participation in the riveting rescue operation in Entebbe.
Dolev. at that tiine a lieutenant-coUiinel in the IDF"s medical corps, later to become surgeon-general; was asked to put together the medical team'* that accompanied the: IDF commandos.to Uganda to rescue the 110 Jewish pass-
cngcDx^ held hostage by PLO arid West German terrorists.
"-Jn Toronto recently to . help promote awareness of Tel Hashome.r Hospital — the medical centre which ■ supplied half the medical : team on that mission — : Dolev. 47. described the rescue, though; 10 years later, he waS careful hot to spell out the exact com--position and numbers of the commando team.
On li^riday, July2, 1976 at about 11 a.m. Dolev got "the First hint" about the' upcoming mission. Twenty-four hours later he and hi.s handpicked team of surgeons, medical orderlies and one psychiatrist were airborne,
Dr. Erah Dolev
winging their way to Entebbe to take part in the rescue of the Air France, passengers held hostage in the Entebbe airport terminal,. . Dolev .who had joined.
MD concerned about Refusenik
JANIGE ARNOLD
MONTREAL -
. .4 Montreal doctor says a iSoviet Jewish woman, sufferrag . fram cancer should be permitted to come to Canada for treatment not available in the Soviet Union.
Dr. derald Batist, a Montreal General Hospital oncologist, examined Tanya Bogomolny. . who -underwent a radical .mastectomy tor breast cancer in Jaiiuary, during ,a \ isit ti) her Moscow home in" .April.
/ Batist believes. Bogomolny nCed not, have undergone such .y drastic surgical procedure and is experiencing- adverse physical and psychological e:.ffects as a.result. "It is not current practice at most, medical centres in North America to perform radical niasteciomies, except in a. minority of well defined ciises,".' saidBatist.
Bogomolny, a 47ryear-old translator,,is the wife of Benjamin Bogomolny, who has earned an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records as "the most patient Refusenik'' because he first applied t6 emigrate 20 years ago,
Tanya initially applied . for an emigration visa 12 years ago; all of the members of her irnmediate family, left the Soviet Uiiion five years; ago. The Bogomolnys received their latest: refusal only this month.
Benjamin Bogolmolny has a .sister. . Bathsheva . Lapa. living in Montreal whom he has not seen since , 1970 when she, her parents and two other daughters were penhitted to go to Israel. Benjamin was recently discharged from the army at the tin\e and was told he was a •'security risk."
Batist. who acts as physician to several other Refuseniks as well, said Mrs. Bogomolny was in ''obvious extreme emotional distress and appeared physically . tired and anemic, arid was having persistent pain in her l&ft-arm-' when he saw \m in April. She is currently
'receiving, .'chemotherapy, but has not been seen by a Soviet cancer specialist.
"The care of cancer patients is complex arid involves both medical and psychological aspects. In reviewing Tanya Bogomolny's treatment thus far I am very concerned," said Batist.
He does hot believe that she has been singled out tor inferior care because .she is a Refusenik, but rather that she has received typica.) treatment and Soviet medicine i.s not as ;idvanc-ed as it. is in the West. He called her' surgery "crude."'
. He gives Bogomolny a less than 60chance of living 10 years, and says .she should be allowed to go abroad now to seek, any -alternative therapy she wants, as well as to spend hi:r remaining years with her familv.
Dr. Phil Gold, physi-i:ian-in-chief of the Montreal General Hospital, has offered Benjamin, who is studying medicine at night while working at odd jobs during the day, an honorary position in the hospital's department of medicine.
* 'One of the most critical paths to peace of mind for both patients and their farhilies; is being able to say, whatever happens, that ho stone wais left unturned, that every treatment option was considered. -Without this knowledge, the patients feel lost arid the surviving family feels haunted.," said "Batist. '-..V
"Given the protracted refusal by the Soviet authorities to allow emigration, Tanya Bogomolny is quite literally faced with the prospect of dying in Moscow, separated from her loved ones."
Benjamin, 40, is also not in the best of health arid has recurring stomach ulcers, said Batiste. The Bogomolnys haye no children.
Tanya Bogornolny was one of three Refuseniks suffering from cancer who held a press conference in Moscow June 12 appealing to be allowed to go abroad
for medical care. Benjamin Chamey, Inna Meiinan and ■ "Bogomo 1 n>' relcased a let-ter addressed to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in which theystate. '"We have all bt^:n tofd that there is no hope for us, and thai t'unhcr trcaimeni will be
useless...
; "We feel we have a fight to live. But,if our diseases are fatal, then we surely have the right to seek; alternative treatment wherever it is available, especially since our Soviet doctors cannot provide it;":'
IS
TORONTO -
Ralph Snow was elected president-elect of B'nai B/rith Canada at thebrgan-izat ion's recent 23rdannual ' convention in Montecello, ; NY. (CJN June 19): He will assume the presidericv in ■ June. 1987. :' ' \
A Holocaust survivor. Snow now serves as treasurer of B'nai B'rith Canada. He is al.<»o the national chairman responsible for treasury gifts, the general campaign chairman for the Charles Gold-lust Human Rights Centre, and serves on a number of B'nai B'rith com-mittees.
Snow has served as a; past-president of the Beth Emeth Bais Yehuda Synagogue, the chairman of the Ezra and Kadima Schools, vice-president of the Reena Foundation, and chairman of that foundation'sjperson-
Raiph Snow
nelconimittee. Hehasbeen a member of the executive of Toronto State of Israel Bonds. Canada-Israel Cultural Foundation, the Weiz-mann Institute and the Technion.
Snow is a co-owner of the Nags Head Taverns and a board member of the Metropolitan Toronto : Hotel Association. ^
the IDF paratroopers in : 1965 following medical .schoiyl. had picked his lO-nian team with one . thing.in mind: to find people; he knew from exr; perierice would perform their duties under fire.
He had no trotible recruiting; he said. Quite the bpp<isite. ".My only trou-.ble was explaining Why sorrie were not picked." A,s for himself. "I thank providence. God. I had a chance to participate."
Despite only 24 hours notice arid only one night of training for the resciie, Dolev was confident of the mission's success. Ori the flight down. 'M felt great . enthusiasm. I was .sure we were going to give the. world the best present for the 4th of July."
The element of surprise he was counting on;was complete, with all; the terrorists killed before they ; could blow up the terminal and kill the hostageS: , But; three from the hijacked plane died in the crossfire, he recalls. When ihelsraelitroop.s: burst; into the area where they were being held, they yelled, in Hebrew to keep down. But some didn't heedthe w'ar-. ning., stood up. and were .shot, Two hostages;died immcdjatcly:, one. for whom there was no hope, died, later..
Elsewhere, the mission commander. Ypnathan Netanyahu, was shot in the . heart and"grea| ves.sels" and had no chance for.survival. Dolev says.
Several other passengers received "superficial"' wounds, arid many suffered psychological- shocks, which the psychiatrist identified for future, treatment. But. going dowri to Entebbe, the medical crew of' • ■ surgeons, and orderlies; -were prepared for a medical; disaster, for niassive.casualtie;^ and.the need to perform emergen-' cy stirgery on a riumber of people:
'Luckily, that never transpired. ■
What was it. like return-; ina to a hero's W'elcbme in Israel? ■
'M went to sleep." Dolev ; deadpans. " I was up for 48 ; : hours."
■ For Dolev, "Entebbe was an example for the free world of how to act agairtst terrorism."
While questions about the Entebbe raid were no
doubt on the minds of the 80 or so people who met Dolev at a.reception at the ; horiie of Dr. Fred Langer. Dolev has lately been inr terested in a related aspect of terrorism — the medical side....
: During part of hi.s whirlwind 46-hour stay in Toronto. Dolev found time lb address the doctors at the : Hospital forSickChildreri about the: medical aspects of terrorism — preparing for it and reacting; medically, to a terrorist incident. ■
Dolev, on sabbatical at the Bethesda,Md. med^ ical school for the U.S. niilitary, also spoke to the health professions section of United Jewish Appeal, w:hich co-sponsored his Toronto visit. He also met With prominent Canadian businessmen to describe the work of Tel Hasho-mer, and he wais interviewed by Global Television.
All that publicity.makes Dr. Gidi Koreri sriiile. Koren. one of ..Tel HashOmef's alumni working in.TororilO; said bring-in u . the forriier IDF
surgeon-general to Toronto focused attention on T.el Hashomer becau.se tlie Entebbe medical teani was drawn in. large part from the hospital personnel, and because when in Israel DoleV. works but bf Tel Hashomer.
The hospital,.; Israel's largest; treats both civilians : and the military. Recent budget austerity riieasures compelled the hospital -to look abroad for financial, support; ;.
Sirice its inception about 1'/: years; ago, the Canadian' Friends. of Tel Hashomer have rai.sed more ;thari'$100;000; With no professional staff to pay. .almost every cent raised^ goes lb Israel. Koren said.
Organizers expected to. ; rai.se ■$20-$30.000 during Do.lev's visit, money eai--marked for a sophisticated tnonitor for high risk patients and for other"eager-ly needed equipment."
Ne.xt on the agenda for the Friends of Tel Hashomer js a; Rosh Hashanah program.
For more infotmationi^ contact ihe Friends at (416) 633-56^6:; . ,
The bank- known for dependability. Gonsolidated assets exceeding Can. $14 billion. Over 270 subsidiaries/ branches and off ices in Israel.and abroad.^
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hrce Caplan to resign
TORONTO -
Elinor Caplan stepped . down froni her three provincial cabinet posts last w'eek following charges that her husband appeared to have indirectly, profited from a governmerit contract,
*'I have taken note of the fact that honorable members of the opposition do not appear to accept what I have put before them.'' Caplan told the Legislature wheri she tried to explain her.situation."! feel that I cannot carry on tny responsibilities as a
minister of the crown;
"I therefore have tendered my resignation to the . premier pending an independent examination of this matter."
. While not informed in advance of Caplan's intention to resign. Premier David Peterson supported his minister, saying that' there is "no question I will welcome her back" if .she is cleared by. a Legislature committee.
"I think she did the right thing given that a minister of the crown has to have the confidence of the
House in order to carry on." the premier said.
To fill the holes in his cabinet created by the resignation, Peterson nam-, ed Education Minister Sean Conway acting minister of government services, Environment Minister Jim; Bradley as acting chairman of cabinet, and Trea.surer Robert Nixon as acting chairman of management board.
. An investigation before the public accounts committee is expectedJoJ)egin in a few weeks aridT'ould last up to a month.
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