Didi here. More than 20 years ago, as a reservist in the Israeli army serving in the West Bank, I refused to be part of the Israeli occupation. When I joined Refuser Solidarity Network two years ago, one of the main things I wanted to do was to work and develop the reservist side of the movement – I refused as a reservist myself, shrouded with doubt and confusion, and I wanted to give people in my position the tools to refuse as well. Since the beginning of Israel's genocide in Gaza, I knew I had to grow the refuser movement among reservists, who make up most of the recruits serving inside the Strip. In only two years, our work–training organizers, bringing new people into this work, caused to the largest wave of refusers in Israeli history. Now, following the ceasefire, we've entered a crucial new phase. The momentum is undeniable, and we have a unique window of opportunity to grow this movement significantly and make it permanent. The critical need: hire a dedicated reservist organizer. We cannot let this opportunity pass. To ensure we can continue to support the hundreds of new refusers and seize this moment for radical growth, we need $50,000. Your donation will directly help us hire a reservist organizer and build the infrastructure they need.
Reservist refusers were historically the center of Israeli resistance to war and occupation, from the first Lebanon war to the second intifada. They’ve always been there: an internal wave to be reckoned with, a threat to all war efforts. However, over the last decade, few reservists refused publicly as the movement lost steam and coherence. After October 7thwe realized that we would not be able to end the genocide and the occupation without a strong reservist refuser movement. Many of my friends, in the midst of the nationalist uproar, were quick to join the reserves. But they also had doubts, fears, and questions about their service, especially as the genocide continued. From that we started to prepare and build the support infrastructure needed for reviving this movement, and to give resources to the sea of reservists who needed someone to give them a way out.
We started by working to establish “Ani Siravti”, a group of reservists who refused in 2003, and campaign about why they would refuse again. The goal was to seed the possibility that soldiers refuse. After a couple of months, it led to the first reservist's refusal letter and then the establishment of “Soldiers for the Hostages”, a group of soldiers who refused to take part in the war in Gaza. Before the ceasefire, they had over 365 public refusers, the highest number in decades. This resistance was one of the forces that brought the ceasefire. All that was possible due to the funding, strategising and emotional support they received from us, from you.
Now, we enter a new phase, using the momentum to sustain the movement and build it so there will always be a mass of reservist refusers to oppose wars, and to end the occupation. This phase is exciting and challenging, and we need to act fast; that is why we need your support. We need to build upon the existing infrastructure, keep refusers in the movement and continue to expand our circles. We plan to hire an organizer who will do exactly that, a refuser who will make sure the reservist refuser movement will always keep moving forward. We are asking for your support at this time because internal dissent is more important than ever. Help us seize this opportunity to challenge the Israeli war machine from within. Donate to our campaign today.