IDF trips that see Israeli officers traveling to Poland death camps and Holocaust commemoration sites are vital in boosting the soldiers’ Shoah knowledge and sense of pride, a newly released survey found.
Some 99% of poll respondents characterized the trips as extremely vital, while 75% said the trips greatly contributed to expanding their familiarity with the Holocaust.
Meanwhile, 79% of respondents said the trips made them feel proud to be Israeli.
The survey was held last year and publicized in a conference titled "The Future of Memory and Shoah
Commemoration Projects," held by the Ariel University Center.
A total of 160 IDF officers were interviewed as part of the poll.
The IDF’s Chief Education Officer, Eli Sharmeister, said that some 25,000 IDF officers and non-commissioned officers went on the army’s Poland trips thus far.