Sgt. Efraim Disen, a combat soldier in the Nahal Brigade, completed his service and returned to U.S., then decided to do it again.
Sergeant Efraim Disen, an American Jew who became a combat soldier in the Nahal Brigade, has done what may seem impossible: he enlisted in the IDF twice.
Efraim Disen (left) - IDF Website
The IDF Website reported that “For a long time, Efraim debated with himself about immigrating to Israel. When he finished high school in Chicago, he began to pursue studies in math and science and even completed a year and a half of university.
Disen told Rosa Lisninsky of the IDF Spokesman’s Unit, simply: “I decided that I wanted to enlist, so I enlisted.” He joined the foreign volunteers’ project, moved to Israel and enlisted in the Nahal Brigade, where he served for 14 months in the Shaham Battalion. After his service, he returned to Chicago.
“I began school and my parents were very pleased. I continued my studies for six months and then decided to return,” he explained.
His parents were not happy with the decision. “My mother wanted me to finish my degree, and in general to return to Israel and enlist again was a little weird,” he said.
But Efraim returned to Israel and went to the IDF induction center where he stated that he wanted to return to the Nahal Brigade. He was reassigned to the Shaham Battalion, where his friends from his previous term of service were surprised to see him.
“I wanted to enlist again,” he said. “The first time I thought it was like in the movies. Then I realized that the army is not a movie, but I still loved it.”
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By Gil Ronen
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