By Samuel Rubenfeld

Without lighting fireworks, University Jewish groups celebrated Israel’s 61st year of independence.

EMET Israel Advocacy and Hofstra Hillel put on a shwarma dinner with guest speakers from the Israeli military and from the newspaper the Jerusalem Post. Israeli-flag necklaces adorned the tables, while hummus and felafel snacks greeted the visitors.

“Israel is now the biggest Jewish community,” said Ben Zion Gruber, a retired colonel and brigadier commander in the Israeli Defense Force. He gave a presentation on ethics and morals in the IDF.

Gruber said the IDF fights its battles based on three principles: don’t hurt innocent people, use force in proportion to mission and collateral damage as per threat. “We risk our lives all the time to avoid collateral damage,” he said.

He also presented videographic examples of what Gruber called the tactics of terror, which includes taking children as human shields, fighting from mosques and other civilian places, and smuggling weapons across borders using underground tunnels.

Smuggling has skyrocketed since the Israeli pullout, Gruber said.

The tunnel Gruber discussed at length, runs from Raffah, at the southern border of the Gaza strip, to Egypt, adding that the tunnel is operated by four families involved in organized crime, who rent it to whomever they please, for proscribed periods of time.

Sophomore Robb Friedlander, a member of Hofstra Hillel, was one of the student club members who lectured about the importance of commemorating Israeli independence.