Tainted Views

Heroes Remember

Tainted Views

Transcript

When I found out I was going to the Middle East as probably most Canadians are, I was very pro-Israel and I went over there with that mind set. And because of the things that I saw and, of course, there are two sides to every story, I came back I was very, probably tainted against Israel and it took maybe 15 years since, you know, after I came back to bring it back into perspective because I saw so many things on one side and none of the things on the other side that it was unbalanced and it took a long time to realize there's two sides to every story and there's no right or wrong over there. They have been fighting for four thousand years and it probably will continue and the impact that we had basically might have made it better for a few individuals while we were there, but I don't know if we did anything that solved anything.

Description

Mr. Gallant tells us how his postings in the Middle East changed his preconceptions.

Fred Gallant

Born into an Acadian family in Mont-Carmel, Prince Edward Island, Mr. Gallant joined the Army and rose to the rank of Captain. He served two tours in Cyprus as part of the United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) during the 1970s and 1980s as Battery Captain. His methods helped many soldiers and his interventions most likely saved the lives of his own, and many Greeks and Turks. Years later, now a Major, he became a UN Military Observer as part of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO), maintaining the peace between Israel, Lebanon and Syria. He worked in all three middle eastern countries and has some eye opening stories to tell.

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