The Cracks in Everything

Israel has been in a near-continuous state of conflict since the day of its proclamation, some seventy years ago. It has sustained its military through compulsory service. The overwhelming majority of those in its Defense Forces were born in Israel, raised alongside this notion of service. But theirs is not the only story of Israel’s soldiers. There is a group of young men and women, non-Israelis numbering in the thousands, who come from countries around the world and volunteer into this legacy. For them, the price of admission into Israeli society is this very service. They are called »lone soldiers.« Canadian photo-essayist Brant Slomovic considers their story through portraits and a survey of Israel’s landscape. He asks where they came from, who they are, and why they sought out Israel as their home.