Ima Mechaka Babayit

Ima Mechaka Babayit was the slogan for the MIA (Missing in Action) campaign. In English, it means ‘Mother is Waiting at Home’; a reference to the families desperately waiting for news of their sons’ fate.

Yo back in the eighties an atrocity occurred

Four men abducted, you may well have heard

See I think it’s time for awareness to be raised

Of the plight of the Israeli M.I.A.s

1982’s the first date to remember

Three boys taken – Katz, Baumel, Feldman

And then after only four more years

Ron Arad’s kidnapping caused more Israeli tears

The worst part of it is the huge frustration

At the kidnappers refusal to give any information

About their prisoners status, their health and wellbeing

We don’t even know for sure that they’re living

It’s disgusting how they cause so many people so much anguish

Any sort of news we’d be desperate to have it

But no, it seems that it’s just too much to ask

The mothers have to stay waiting, kept in the dark

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Ima mechaka ba’bayit

We’ve gotta keep trying

So we can stop these mothers crying

We’ve got to put our time and the money that we earn

Into making sure that the M.I.A.s return

Home, to their parents, to their wives,

Let them have a family and live a normal life

We’ve gotta get them back to where they belong

End this injustice, right this wrong

Just over one year ago the situation was compounded

On the Lebanese border security was flouted

Three more taken, this time by the Hizbollah

Their names – Adi, Benny and also Omar

And who looked on while terrorists stole our men?

It was those lovely soldiers representing the UN

I thought they were there in place as our friends

To help save us from terror, not to watch but protect

But no, we can’t even expect that much

We should’ve learnt by now that the UN hates us

A clear indication of its ingrained impurity

Is that Syria has been put in charge of security

Now things had got worse, it wasn’t four but seven

The lack of cooperation by the captors was so vexing

And three more families were missing a member

Their hope was failing, the fire was down to its embers

And what do we learn coming into November?

Israeli intelligence discovered that we’d never

See these three again, their lives had ended

Hizbollah had given false hope, they’d lied and pretended

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So now that you’re clear on the current situation

You might ask what’s the point in a continued altercation?

If three have gone for a year and already have died

What’s the chance that the other four are still alive?

This may sound insensitive but perhaps they’re not

But even so there’s no reason why we should stop

Our campaign, even if it’s just for the remains

So we can bury them in Israel, in proper graves

To let the families know for sure

Whether to celebrate, or whether to mourn

If it’s the latter, at least they’ll get some closure

It’ll will be such a relief, to finally know the

Truth, to be able to continue with their lives

Without having to wonder if the soldiers have survived

How can you help? Start by wearing a blue ribbon

Then you might want to sign or even start a petition

Write a letter of support to the families

Take the initiative, organise some rallies

What it all comes down to is raising awareness

Make important people really start caring

Write to Kofi Annan, make him earn his prize for peace

By getting him to fight for the M.I.A.s release

And if at any point you require motivation

Just think of the mothers, sitting there, waiting

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