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Source: https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-809494
American IDF Soldier Who Fought in Gaza Now Fights for Truth on U.S. Campuses
(Jerusalem Post) Rebecca Szlechter - Sam Fried, originally from Queens, NY, joined the Israel Defense Forces in 2020 and served in the paratroopers until 2022, when he returned to the U.S. to start a career in finance. After Oct. 7, Fried said, "I felt it was my obligation to be one of the fighting Jews in history. Here I am with history reaching its hand out to me and saying, 'This is your chance to defend your people.'...History is giving me this opportunity, so obviously, I had to take it." Fried rejoined the same combat team he had been with during his active service, now in reserves, as a sharpshooter, spending two months in Gaza, and came back to America after his team was released. He began going to debates, visiting protest encampments, and trying to engage in dialogue. At Queens College, there was a mob of over 200 people threatening and cursing at him. When asked about the hostility he faces, Fried answered, "It's very simple. We are speaking the truth. We are on the right side of history. These people are lying, conflating truths, and revising history. We cannot let them. The most common misconception about the IDF is that we want war. We are a defense force."