Israeli women soldiers recount army trauma in film

One posed for a photo as she scrubbed a Palestinian corpse. Another stripped a man to his underwear and then beat him. A third helped cover up the abuse of a young boy.

The six Israeli women who feature in the documentary "To See If I'm Smiling" each wrestle with memories of their compulsory military service that they would rather erase.

But after years of trying to bury the past, they have spoken out in a film that explores the darker side of Israel's 40-year-old occupation of the Palestinian territories and examines its impact on a generation of young men and women.

"It's easy to finish your military service and push it to the back of your mind," said director Tamar Yarom. "But these girls are telling their personal stories -- which are not always very nice -- to show people what is going on." More...