There is no greater sacrifice a government can place upon its citizens than asking them to fight and potentially lose their lives to protect the nation.
One openly gay Israeli soldier has spoken out against his country’s leaders for failing to return the act of bravery and respect.
Omer Nahmany, a 25-year-old Second Lieutenant in the artillery corps (seen above making bedroom eyes), wrote a jarring response on Facebook to his government’s failure to pass a batch of LGBTQ legislation, including one bill that would treat the families of fallen gay soldiers the same as those of straight ones.
In the post — translated by GayBuzzer — Nahmany says he feels “abandoned” by his country’s legislative officials.
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Related: Gay (And Straight) Israeli Jews And Arabs Kiss To Protest Book Ban
The so-called “bereavement bill” isn’t just symbolic — under current law, the family of straight soldier who dies in battle receives rights and benefits from the government that families of gay soldiers do not.
“The beauty of the military is that we’re all equal,” Nahmany writes. “We wear the same uniform, we eat the same food, we’re in the battlefield together, during training and – if needed – during wartime.
“There are no divisions between a straight soldier and a gay soldier. My soldiers can count on me to never abandon them in the field, and I can count on them.”
He adds: “But this week – I was abandoned in the field. Not by my soldiers or by my commanding officers, but by the Israeli government. The same government that asks me to go to battle and maybe lose my life, had refused to pass a law that would equate the status of a gay bereaved family to that of a straight family.”
In addition to that bill, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition government also rejected a ban on gay conversion therapy for minors as well as bill that would recognize civil unions.
Related: You Won’t Believe How Many Israeli Guys Identify As Bisexual
To add insult to injury, the three bills flopped just one day after parliament observed a “LGBTQ rights day” for the first time ever.
“This situation, where the state of Israel asks me to risk my life in battle but refuses to take a political risk for me on the benches of Parliament is insufferable and contradicts every value I was thought during my military service,” Nahmany continues.
“I’m supposed to go into battle knowing that I’m a second class citizen, only because I’m gay. That I’m good enough to die for this country, but not good enough to be an equal-rights citizen.
“Today I’m asking the country to fight for me, just as hard as I know I will fight for my country when I’m called.”
H/t: Attitude
joeyty
Good-looking guy.
DCguy
Good, if Israel keeps getting more right wing pretty soon it will be no different than any of the other governments around there.
Hopefully this soldiers commentary embarrasses Netanyahu and his coalition enough to get their heads out of each others asses.
Spike
Funny, everyone is so quick to claim that Israel is so LGBT tolerant because they have always allowed gays in their military. Turns out, not so much the case.
Billy Budd
He is gorgeous. I would be honored to be his husband even if I did not receive any pension from the government in case he died. Israel sucks. Religion-controlled governments are the worst.
DCguy
@Spike:
It is phenomenally more gay friendly than the surrounding countries, but that definitely mean there isn’t a ton of room for improvement.
DCguy
@DCguy:
Definitely = Doesn’t
MacAdvisor
@DCguy:
“Definitely = Doesn’t”
And Silence = Death
DCguy
@MacAdvisor:
Your point?
Hussain-TheCanadian
Damn what a cutey!
@DCguy: It’s true that Israeli state is the friendliest in the Middle east, along with Turkey towards the LGBT community, and largely depending on where you live in both countries, however the fear is, just like with Turkey, when you have a Right wing government in power, these small rights are easily taken away, and Israeli politicians have proven that they are not keen on LGBT rights.
I just hope it doesn’t get worse, it would be a shame.
Desert Boy
Omer Nahmany is HOT!
Pistolo
Netanyahu frightens me- he’s become ruthless, disaffected, and bloodthirsty.
adarlul
@Spike: More than 60 transgenders serve in the IDF this year, and the IDF pays for all medicine, hormones and surgeries those trans soldiers need. In addition to that, there is no Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. You can be out and no-one will harm you. I wrote my spouse as my husband in the IDF records. So yes, They’s much more to be done, but like everything in Israel – things are a bit more complex than they appear.
Stilinski26
Yes Israel is not perfect but then again which country is? Israel is still the only country in the middle east to accept and supports LGBT. Look at the difference openly gay soldiers serves in the army meanwhile homosexuality is still considered illegal in neighboring countries and are jailed and executed. That being said I hope government will begin to treat gays as equal.
Stilinski26
btw he is cute most Israelis are tbh.
Roey
Hi all.
A very important piece I thing. But I would like to correct something that got lost in translation…
The discrimination is not against the gay soldier but against his/her spouse.
The current situation in Israeli Army is that SAME SEX PARTNERS who are NOT married (yes, you can get registered as married to a same sex partner in Israel if you are official married elsewhere) are not recognized by the army as Common-law marriage.
It dose not suggest that the parents or siblings of a gay Israeli casualties of war are not getting the same benefits as other families.
If not mistaken, The Israeli Supreme Court already ruled against the state on such matters and the legislation that didn’t pass was supposed to align the law with that ruling.
Not a perfect situation, but quite remote from what it sounds like in the article.
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Daggerman
..what a gorgeous hunk! I do find it funny that all the anti-gay idiots should try and understand that GAY men usually are quite literally more good looking than they are! So therefore before anyone begins to criticize, they ought to think that who’s god’s gift to manhood and who’s not!!
riain
@Spike: In the so called Palestine they KILL homosexuals, you dumb ZONA!