Tomorrow I will refuse to enlist in the Israeli military

Hi,
My name is Yuval Dag. I’m 20 years old and I live in a moshav in the south of Israel. Tomorrow I will refuse to enlist in the Israeli military because I am not willing to take part in the Occupation of the Palestinian territories and give myself to the Israeli state.

Send Yuval a solidarity letter at this link

Yuval Dag

I grew up a zionist. The existence of Israel, as a state and as a society no matter its actions in the past and present, has always felt self-evident to me. I never questioned it. I participated in every national holiday and event with anticipation. I enjoyed the feeling of unity and fellowship.

One day, while roaming the internet, I encountered an “anti-Israel” comment. The moment I read it, I was filled with rage. How could it be that someone dares to criticize us? We are the victims and always have been. The commentators have no way of knowing what it is like to live in our reality. But as much as I was shaken by the comment, I was even more shaken by my own reaction. I found myself offended in the name of the state, without having ever developed a conscious stance and without ever having examined my own beliefs, all because of  my education and the social atmosphere I was living in. At that moment I realized that my outlook was not a product of my own critical thinking, but a product of indoctrination. At that point, I began a journey of disassembling my beliefs and examining them under a new light, in a non biased and independent form.

I began to see how, contrary to what I believed all my life, the two sides in the “Israeli-Palestinian conflict” are asymmetric, and the “conflict” itself is not a conflict, but an ongoing and prolonged war. I saw that we are not the victims, but the occupiers and oppressors. I began to understand the absurdity of how we treat human lives; when an Israeli citizen is murdered, the entire nation mourns, but when 7 Palestinians are murdered by the Israeli military in one week, we do not hear a word about it, and if we do, we hurry to question the innocence of the murdered or to justify the soldier who performed the killing and who should be blamed. For us, the status quo is a relatively peaceful life with the occasional “operation” in Gaza and a wave of terrorist attacks from the west bank, but for many Palestinians, military invasions, violence, killings and oppression is the norm. I realized that Palestinians in the west bank do not live alongside the Israeli military, but under its rule. Their basic daily schedule, from the moment they wake up, whether they can go to school or work, depends entirely on the military. In a moment's notice, due to “security” concerns, Israel can put entire villages and neighborhoods under a complete lockdown, even if it means denying medicine and food to tens of thousands of people.

I realized that Israel was built on expulsion and banishment, and that the only way for it to continue existing as an national home exclusively for the Jewish people is by crushing, oppressing and silencing any element that can potentially destabilize this status, whether this element is the lives of millions of people or a symbolic flag. Everyone has the right for sovereignty, both Palestinians and the Jewish people, but no sovereignty can come at such a heavy price at the expense of so many lives.

Finally, I understood what now seems obvious to me. The body responsible for executing this project that is built on explosion and can be enforced only through oppression, is the Israeli military. Unlike the common belief, the military is not driven by pure intentions and its crimes are not the result of a few rogue soldiers. It is a body that, time after time, demonstrates hostile, racist and clearly offensive policies. Terrorism, murder of civilians and journalists, pogroms, vandalism, displacement and prevention of basic and crucial infrastructure are daily occurrences which are perpetrated by the Israeli military in the West Bank, with its help, and under its rule.

No one can overlook what happened in Huwara. It was impossible to ignore the burnt houses, the shattered windows, the dozens of wounded, those who were murdered and the soldiers who stood by. It was also impossible to ignore the Israeli minister who called for the erasure of the village after the acts. Today, more than ever, it is becoming clear to the general public how closely Israel and its policies are connected to violence and to the occupation of the Palestinian territories. The occupation can no longer be seen as incidental. It can no longer be considered as a security need. The occupation is a political enterprise operated by the army, that harms the vast majority of people who live here. It serves a racist and colonialist agenda of Jewish supremacy. Even those who shut their eyes for all these years, who tried to ignore and suppress the existence of the occupation, cannot continue to ignore it after the pogrom committed by settlers under the protection of soldiers of the Israeli army. The fact that this violence, which originates with the government, has become so transparent and unapologetic, requires us to open our eyes and resist.

Resistance begins, first of all, with self-reflection and understanding. With the understanding that by wearing a uniform and symbols of a certain body, you choose to represent that body. With the understanding that enlisting in the army is a political choice, and its meaning is to support the military and political agenda, and to take part in it. The understanding that even a small cog contributes to the system's function. The understanding that one of the Israeli military’s most central missions and roles is to be an occupying and oppressive body. The understanding that even a good person serving as a soldier in this system causes harm and suffering to the people under occupation. The understanding that even tough conscription is the default, it does not mean that it is the moral and right thing to do. The understanding that no individual alone has the ability to change the policies of a military-political body. Self-reflection should occur when every boy or girl are called to enlist. It is our responsibility to take a deep look at ourselves and decide what we are willing to stand for.

I refuse. I refuse to give my body and my life to any system, for any country, and in the current situation, especially not to the state of Israel and the Israeli military. I call on everyone who is about to enlist to recognize and face the truth. Open your eyes and look at our reality. Set aside the Israeli society’s common narrative, which has a clear interest in turning everyone into soldiers. I believe that in this reality, our only choice is to refuse.

In solidarity,

Yuval

Send Yuval a solidarity letter at this link

Amidst an unprecedented wave of refusal, Nave Shabtay Levin is officially free!

Amidst a wave of refusal, during which thousands of Israeli soldiers issue statements of public refusal in protest of the Israeli government’s race to promote a cluster of anti-democratic laws, the conscientious objector Nave Shabtay Levin received an exemption from military service!

We are at a critical point for the refuser movement. Please make sure to share this link with everyone you know and to sign up for our updates so you can all become a part of our community.

Nave Shabtay Levin

Nave (19) received an exemption from the military after 7 months and 115 days of imprisonment. Nave first declared his refusal to enlist to the Israeli military last September, along with Einat Gerlitz, Shahar Schwartz and Evyatar Rubin, in protest of the occupation of the Palestinian Territories and the apartheid regime enforced by Israel over the Palestinians. All four were tried multiple times for their refusal to enlist and were sentenced to prison for months. The group received ongoing support from the Mesarvot network (Israeli support network for occupation refusers) since last summer and Nave is the last of the group to receive an exemption.

In a time of an unprecedented wave of refusal by reserve soldiers, it is important to note that Nave refused to enlist for mandatory service because of his understanding that there is no such a thing as a moral occupation or a moral occupying army. Once released he stated:

"As exciting as this refusal wave is, we need to remember that the fight against the occupation and capitalism is far from over. We have to continue our struggle, to fight to bring about the end of the occupation, the fall of capitalism and the liberation of Palestine."

We want to thank all of you, our international supporters, for showing solidarity with Nave and our struggle to end the occupation by conscientiously objecting to war crimes. It is important to remember we have strength in numbers. This is a time to get more people on our side. Please make sure to share this link and our updates with everyone you know so they can become a part of our community. These are crucial times and the bigger our community is the better support we can provide to the Israeli refusal movement. 

Israeli army is facing an “unprecedented crisis” as thousands of soldiers refuse; hundreds of thousands in mass protests

My name is Shimri Zameret and I am RSN’s board chairman. These are crucial times in Israel/Palestine and the Israeli refuser movement needs your help as thousands of soldiers have announced their refusal to serve in the Israeli army over the last two weeks. During the Second Intifada, as the Israeli army was killing thousands of Palestinians in its effort to suppress the uprising, I was part of a movement of Israeli youth and soldiers who refused to serve in the army. From the age of 18 to 20, during 2002-2004, I spent 21 months in prison in protest of the occupation and its brutal policies. It was one of the largest campaigns of conscientious objection seen in Israel. What we are seeing in the past 14 days is a far larger wave of refusal.

You can help us support the new wave of refusers by committing to a monthly donation here or by making a large single donation here.

Over the past two weeks, and for the first time in two decades, a new movement of army refusers has emerged in opposition to the plans of the far-right government, led by Benjamin Netanyahu, to pass a slew of anti-democratic legislation. The proposed laws, described as a “judicial coup” by opponents, will severely weaken the country’s courts, giving the ruling coalition almost unlimited power. While impacting the rights of women, LGBTQ people, secular people, and other minorities, it is Palestinians on both sides of the Green Line who will face the heaviest brunt of the legislation.

Against this imminent threat, thousands of Israeli soldiers and reservists have made public statements announcing their intent to refuse army service should the government’s legislation pass. One such statement had over 250 signatures of reserve soldiers, all from the army’s special ops unit, stating the legislation is intent on “making the judicial branch a political and non-independent branch, in other words an end for Israeli democracy.” A second, similar statement of refusal garnered over 500 signatures of reserve soldiers, all from  “Unit 8200”, an intelligence unit often compared to the U.S. National Security Agency. 

Meanwhile, according to media reports, almost every Israeli army unit — including the Sayeret Matkal commandos and other elite forces — is facing a revolt from within. Internal army chat groups are reportedly flooded with rank-and-file soldiers stating they either refuse or will refuse to serve if the judicial coup succeeds. 

Dissent in the air force — one of the Israeli army’s most revered divisions — has been of particular concern for the military leadership, according to reports in the press. In a message on an internal air force WhatsApp group quoted in Haaretz, one pilot announced that instead of serving one day a week as a reserve soldier, he will now use that day to demonstrate against the government. Another new refuser said that if the legislation is approved, the army’s ability to address security threats “will be damaged, without a doubt,” emphasizing that “There are whole units, especially in the intelligence area but also in the technology area, that are dependent on reserve service year-round.”  On Sunday, almost all the reserve pilots of Squadron 69, one of the air force’s most elite teams, declared to their commanders that they, too, would refuse service should the judicial plans go ahead.

Or Heler, a military correspondent for Channel 13 news who has been closely covering the current developments, warned that this historic revolt risks putting the Israeli army in an “unprecedented crisis.” He is right. And for us, the movement struggling to end Israeli rule over the Palestinian people, this crisis presents a moment of unprecedented opportunity.

Almost all Jewish Israelis are conscripted into the army at the age of 18, with men typically serving for 32 months and women for 24 months. Notably, though, almost all the Israelis taking part in the current wave of refusals are reserve soldiers — older Israelis who continue to serve in the army for either one month every year, or one day a week for many years, typically until the age of 40.

These reserve soldiers are called for regular training and are recruited in great numbers in times of war. But the army also relies on these soldiers for its day-to-day functions, especially in fields that require longer training and technical knowledge, such as intelligence gathering and the air force. Without them, the army cannot operate.

This wave of refusal is unfolding amid a larger campaign of  mass demonstrations and civil resistance actions across Israel. Protesters have blockaded major highways and train stations in Israel's biggest cities; surrounded and tried to nonviolently break into the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, during debates on the legislation; staged a national general strike; and organized weekly marches that have brought hundreds of thousands out onto the streets every Saturday. 

Just as important are the economic actions taken under the banner of this movement: Israeli citizens and individuals and Israeli companies have publicly divested from the Israeli economy, selling their Israeli currency and stocks and buying foreign ones. The ripple effect has been effective: during February, the Israeli shekel plunged 10 percent against the dollar, and many observers are warning of further economic damage and capital flight.

As a researcher on the use of civil resistance — the use of strikes, boycotts, mass protests, and other nonviolent actions to withdraw cooperation from oppressive regimes — in global justice campaigns, I can safely say that this level of involvement in civil resistance campaigns is unparalleled in Israeli history. According to media estimates, 2 to 4 percent of Israel’s population (between 200,000 and 400,000 people) have participated in at least three of the peak protests and strike days across the country. Never before has an Israeli movement included such a scale of participation, and at the same time used civil resistance as its primary tactic. With levels of active participation by citizens widely seen as key in predicting the chances of success in civil resistance campaigns, this is important news.

Such campaigns of civil resistance can have a transformative impact, as examples from recent history show. They include the ousting of President Slobodan Milošević by Serbian citizens in 2000; the revolt that led to the restoration of democracy in Nepal in 2006; the overthrow of authoritarian rulers in Tunisia and Egypt in 2011; the blockades of the World Trade Organization, International Monetary Fund, and G8/G20 summits; by the global justice movement over the past two decades, and the strategies employed by climate justice movements such as Extinction Rebellion, Just Stop Oil, and the Sunrise Movement.

Yet as successful as the Israeli protests have been in mobilizing people, some are also wary that they are missing a key underlying issue. Critics rightly point out that many of the individuals and groups leading the current opposition movement — including the army refusal campaigns — are primarily focusing their messaging on the impact that the far-right government’s legislation will have on Jews in Israel and the diaspora, while largely ignoring decades of anti-democratic and apartheid policies advanced by all prior governments against Palestinians on both sides of the Green Line. 

These critiques are important and legitimate. However, both strategists and experts on historical civil resistance movements stress that such campaigns were in fact often focused on “minor” or “symbolic” demands that helped make the greater injustice visible to larger parts of the general population. For example, the Indian anti-colonial movement's most widespread campaign was centered on fighting a tax on the production of salt, not on demanding an end to British rule. The U.S. civil rights movement also made national headlines through a campaign focusing not on voting rights first, but on segregation on public transportation.

Moreover, for hundreds of thousands of Israelis, young and old, participation in this protest movement will be a formative experience for the rest of their lives. And as we have seen with previous waves of army refusal, for many Israelis, the act of defying the military — one of the most central institutions in Israeli society and national identity — is often the first step toward abandoning the hegemonic norms in which they were raised, eventually leading to a total reshaping of their worldview. It is telling that many in the small community of Israeli activists that today devote their lives to campaigning against occupation and apartheid started as young army refusers or reserve soldier refusers in previous waves.

So yes, it is troubling that millions of Israeli Jews are only now seeing for the first time that the country’s ultra-nationalist and ultra-religious forces are an existential threat to society, including to the millions of Palestinians subjected to Israeli rule. That said, later is better than never, and this wave of refusal and protest may yet create a deep change in Israeli society. While it will likely take years to reach the surface and shape long-term policies, this period of mass refusal and civil resistance could be as transformative as the Israeli movements that emerged during the Second Intifada, the 1982 Lebanon war, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War.

Faced with this wave of refusal and resistance, I believe the role of the Refuser Solidarity Network and our supporters is to publicly endorse this wave of refusal and resistance, stand in solidarity with it, and especially support those refusers and protesters who see their actions as part of a bigger struggle for justice for Palestinians. The path ahead is neither safe nor certain, but for the first time in decades, I can honestly say that I see a realistic path toward ending the occupation in our generation.

Refuser Solidarity Network and our partners in Israel are going to support these new groups of refusers in any way we can. You can help us get the resources we need to do this. One great way is to create a plan to donate monthly to our work - if you do not have one already, please consider setting up a monthly donation plan here so you can help us plan for growing resistance in the months and years of struggle ahead. 

If you are already a monthly donor, please consider making a large single donation today here to help us in this period – as you can imagine this period will require hiring new people, a lot of legal aid, press and social media work to make sure the struggle ends in victory. Every donation can help in this period. 

In solidarity,

Shimri Zameret

Board chairman

Refuser Solidarity Network

Hundreds (!!) of Israeli soldiers stated they will refuse to serve in the army

In the past few days, hundreds (!!) of Israeli soldiers have expressed their refusal to serve in the army under the new ultra-nationalist and far-right government unless its anti-democratic policies are stopped. Press reported that almost every army unit, including the “elite” commando unit and the air force, is experiencing an internal revolt, with reserve soldiers refusing to serve in a state they view as anti-democratic. This wave of refusal became so alarming that the army's head general was forced to issue a statement saying that reserve soldiers should leave their political disagreements outside of the army. However, the refusers did not comply with this order and new statements are being published every day. In the next few weeks we will closely report these once-in-a generation events.

We bring you the words of Niron Mizrahi, 27 y/o from Kfar Masaryk, as was published publicly in his facebook page, calling the Israeli public to refuse: 

It's time to refuse. 

I, Sgt. Niron Mizrahi, Military Number 8065754, armored corps fighter and combat medic, hereby announce the termination of my reserve service in the Israel Defense Forces, and call for massive refusal by the entire secular-liberal public in the State of Israel.

****

I am 27 years old, studying for a bachelor's degree in secondary education and the teaching of history, the Bible and Israeli culture. I grew up and was educated in Kibbutz Kfar Masaryk in the Western Galilee, I finished 12 years of school with a full matriculation, I volunteered for a year of service at a boarding school for at-risk youth in Pardes Hana, and in 2014 I enlisted in mandatory service as a soldier in the Armored Corps.

For three years I guarded the State of Israel on its borders with Syria and Gaza, I patrolled and made arrests in the West Bank, and today I understand that I can no longer stand idly by.

I can no longer stand idly by and see how my country sends young people like me to commit war crimes in the name of Zionism, the flag and religion, and in the name of a divine promise - imagined or not - to take part in the expropriation of land, the destruction of culture, and in one of the remaining colonialisms in modern times.

I can no longer stand on the sidelines and see how my country takes away rights and freedoms from another people and condemns people to the disgrace of hunger and miserable lives, traumas, suffering, poverty and death in the name of religious fundamentalism.

I can no longer take part in the messianic and delusional ambitions of racist nationalists and religious fanatics such as Simcha Rothman and Itamar Ben Gabir, who dream and work for the vision of the Temple and a religious Jewish kingdom from the Jordan river to the sea, and are willing to harm other human beings in order to fulfill their doctrine.

I can no longer stand by while a criminal leads the country towards a legal dictatorship and a constitutional crisis, and introduces Jewish terrorists into the Knesset, all to escape the threat of judgment.

The narrative of "maintaining security" collapsed a long time ago. There is no safeguarding of security here, there are terrorist attacks every Monday and Thursday, and a military operation every four years, and just as ultra-Orthodox men and religious women are allowed not to enlist for one reason or another, I, we, too - the secular-liberal public - have a moral obligation to refuse service in the Occupied Territories.

I ask that you not treat me as a ranting radical child. I am a mature and thoughtful person, with values and ideas that I have gathered and developed throughout my life, and I have come to this decision in an informed and sober way.

History is full of difficult and bloody conflicts, much more so than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Most of these conflicts were resolved through talks and negotiations. I don't know of a way to resolve conflicts between people that doesn't include dialogue. Violence and terrorism lead to more violence and terrorism and are never the solution.

We did not come into the world to fight and kill each other.

The value of life is more important than anything, and I understand that my continued participation in the cycle of violence and in perpetuating the Israeli occupation of the West Bank territories and the Palestinian people, holds back the resolution of the conflict.

I apologize if I have disappointed or hurt someone. I do not apologize for my truth.

Shahar and Evyatar are finally free, after more than 120 days in prison!

We are happy to report that after over 120 days in prison, Shahar Schwartz and Evyatar Moshe Rubin finally received an exemption from military service! Congratulate Shahar and Evyatar on receiving an exemption by clicking on this link.

Shahar (18 y/o) and Evyatar (19 y/o), the conscientious objectors who refused to participate in war crimes by an occupying army, and who were supported, throughout, by Mesarvot (an Israeli support network for draft refusers who oppose the occupation), received an exemption from the Israeli military on the basis of the "Severely bad behavior" clause.

We want to thank you, all of our international supporters, for your solidarity and for the hundreds of support letters you sent to the refusers during their time in prison.

Congratulate Shahar and Evyatar on receiving an exemption!

Here is what Shahar and Evyatar have to say: 

Shahar Schwartz after 130 days in a military prison:

"I'm glad that the long months in prison are over, where I learned up close what it is like to lose your freedom. This experience only strengthened my opposition to the predatory regime enforced by the Israeli army in the Palestinian Territories, and I continue to believe that oppression should be resisted even at personal cost.”

Evyatar Moshe Rubin after 122 days in a military prison:

"In an age where access to information is so widespread, refusal becomes an increasingly powerful tool. To me, the great battle regarding Israel is a battle for information - if only everyone knew the truth about the history of this country, about the terrible crimes that are committed here every day to maintain the racial dominance, the apartheid regime in the occupied territories would not last until the end of the year. As a result of my incarceration, I saw not only many of my friends in Israel being exposed to new content and information, but also people abroad, an equally important arena for this struggle, who are more and more aware of the situation in Israel due to the publications and widespread support for refusers, especially on social media."

Congratulate Shahar and Evyatar on receiving an exemption!

Shahar and Evyatar were indeed released, but the refuser Nave Shabtay Levin (19 y/o)  is still incarcerated, after being sentenced to an additional 45 days in prison.

Millions of Palestinians throughout the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are also not free. Mesarvot, Refuser Solidarity Network and conscientious objectors throughout Israel will continue to fight and to raise our voices against the policies that keep them imprisoned and oppressed, and against the Israeli army that carries out those crimes. 

Shahar, Nave, and Evyatar are nearing 100 days in prison, but Einat Gerlitz is finally free!

We are happy to report that after multiple prison sentences Einat Gerlitz was finally recognized as a conscientious objector, and received an exemption from military service. She is free to continue her activism to end the occupation from outside of prison. Congratulate Einat on her exemption by clicking here and read her release statement below.

Einat Gerlitz

Read Einat’s release statement: 

Four months ago, I was jailed for the first time for refusing to enlist in the Israeli army with my friends Shahar, Evyatar and Nave. 

Since, I had spent 4 sentencing terms to a total of 87 days in prison. Now that I am officially exempted, I feel we must continue the struggle for genuine freedom for everyone. Even though, and especially because, this struggle takes a toll on us.

Congratulate Einat on her exemption

In prison, I saw a glimpse of what life is like under complete military control: a feeling of constant surveillance and ongoing threats. That experience strengthened my conviction that no one should ever deny freedom to anybody else. That is the essence of our struggle against the Israeli occupation and apartheid over the Palestinians.

I am proud to be another member of a long lineage of Israeli refusers who were never afraid to question Israeli conventions and to speak the truth. It is our responsibility to change the situation. As young Israelis we must see that the militarism surrounding us also imprisons us. Nobody's free until everybody's free.

Congratulate Einat on her exemption

I was released. But my refuser friends Shahar Schwarz, Evyatar Moshe Rubin and Nave Shabtay-Levin are still imprisoned. I call for their immediate release.

In solidarity,

Einat

Shahar Schwartz, Evyatar Moshe Rubin, and Nave shabtay levin continue their struggle to be released from recurring incarcerations in military prison, for refusing to serve the occupation. Thus far Evyatar was sentenced to a total of 109 days in prison, Shahar was sentenced to a total of 112 days in prison, and Nave was sentenced to a total of 85 days in prison. Refuser Solidarity Network and Mesarvot continue to support their actions and broadcast them throughout the world. They need you too. Write a support letter in this link.

Evyatar Moshe Rubin (19 y/o) has been in prison for 65 days

Evyatar Moshe Rubin (19 y/o from Jerusalem, Israel) is spending his 65th night in military prison. Èvyatar refused to enlist to the Israeli military, refused to support the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the Zionist project as a whole. He was tried 4 times and was sentenced to a total of 92 days in prison and will likely be sentenced to jail time again. Read his full statement below: 

Evyatar Moshe Rubin

The default choice in Jewish-Israeli life in the Middle East is to serve in the Israeli army. Almost every teenage boy in Israel is part of an education system that emphasizes the significance of the military service and its contribution to the national culture and to the state security. Despite all this, my decision not to enlist in the army feels completely natural to me. I have no doubts about it. The Israeli army is, in effect, a zionist army. Its purpose is to ensure a Jewish majority in this country, and to ensure that this majority will control all its institutions - the police, the justice system, the welfare system, the education system, the government and more. Even if Druze, Arab, and other non-Jewish citizens of Israel are allowed or at times even required to serve in the army, the army remains, at all times, a zionist army for Jews.

Israel prides itself on being a 'Jewish and democratic' state. But this definition fundamentally excludes all non-Jews and turns them into second-class citizens, guests in a country that is not their own. To ensure the continuing validity of this definition, it is necessary to guard the existence of a permanent Jewish majority in Israel, and to ensure that this majority continues its racially dominant rule through election results, for otherwise the state be Jewish, but it would not be ‘democratic.’ As a result, non-Jewish populations are relegated from the onset to the position of secondary citizens, and their ability to bring about political changes that would impact their status is blocked. According to this logic, since this country belongs first and foremost to those of Jewish origin, a Jewish majority must be guaranteed at all times, or the country would cease being Jewish.

The Israeli army plays a crucial role in preserving the Jewish majority by any means it perceives as legitimate. Today, when the Israeli government is working toward the future annexation of the West Bank into the Israeli state, the army must ensure that there is no significant non-Jewish population that can challenge democratically the character of Israel as a Jewish state. The Israeli army, which claims to be the "Israeli defense forces", works continuously to thin out the Palestinian population whose only crime is to have been born to the wrong family, in the wrong city. The army does this by declaring as “military training areas” agricultural land, grazing lands and residential areas, forcing the Indigenous population from those areas so that ‘the army can train,’ although it is clear to all that there is no genuine military need for those areas. When Jewish citizens seek to enter the West Bank for "religious” or political purposes, the army is there to "protect" them - that is, to impose lockdowns on the Indigenous population, and parade military convoys in front of their homes to deter them. The army "confiscates" the water of the residents in the Negev area, it evicts citizens from their homes, it prevents residents from walking freely in their cities, and does everything within its power to disrupt the routine of life in the West Bank. The final goal of it all is to bring about ethnic cleansing and to establish a Jewish majority in these areas, and this all takes place in broad daylight. Ultimately, Israel’s goal is to rule as much territory as possible, with the minimum possible number of Palestinians residing in them.

Despite the substantial number of such acts, and despite the brutality with which they are carried out, within Israel itself there is little awareness of them. Those who know of such acts and support them as means for establishing a "Jewish state in the historical land of the Jewish people" advocate a nationalist and extreme worldview, in which a religious belief in an ancient kingdom from 2000 years ago is more important than human beings who are attempting to live their lives. This perspective divides the world into races, of which only one is a chosen and deserving race, and that ‘chosen race’ is entitled to carve out a living space for itself and its people, and to ensure its complete rule over its "promised land". Needless to say, I strongly oppose this point of view, and see it as fundamentally racist and as a burden on humanity.

It is also important to note the army, which views itself as a merely defensive army, "Israeli Defense Forces", does not act in defense of the State of Israel. For decades now, the State of Israel has addressed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict solely through military force. Beginning with the 1948 war, where Israel turned nearly a million Palestinians into refugees; through the 1956 Sinai war in which Israel invaded Egypt to eliminate parts of those refugees who became the Fedayeen; The '67 war; the '73 war; the first Lebanon war in 1982; two intifadas; a second war in Lebanon; and countless "operations" in Gaza (“Defensive Shield” in 2002; “Cast Lead in 2008-2009; "Protective edge" in 2014; and finally the Gaza operation in August 2022).  This will never end, because whoever conquers a people will always encounter resistance, and so there will always be another Intifada, another “terrorist organization,” and more military operations.  Israel will continue to try to wipe the Palestinians off the map because it has no choice if it wants to remain "Jewish and democratic".  Otherwise, with the annexation of the West Bank a significant Jewish majority in the country will not be certain.  And this will all stop only after everyone loses.

In Israel, Jewish people like to say that "there is no partner for peace", to justify the merciless brutalities for which the army and the government are responsible. Despite that, the latest polls show that there is twice as much support among Palestinians for a peace process, for the existence of a bi-national state, for coexistence, and for a life of brotherhood rather than war, than there is among the Jews in Israel. The Israel government is the one that insists on fighting, and it is the one that will always insist on fighting as long as it pursues the nightmare dream of the Jewish kingdom that was promised in heaven.

Enlisting in the army means endorsing these goals. It means endorsing the ethnic cleansing of non-Jews, or at the very least the endorsement of an endless “holy” war. To those who prefer to view the army as “Defense Forces,” and who wish to highlight the ways in which it protects Jews by preventing terrorist attacks, I can only recommend that they observe that for every attack the army prevents, it enables twice as many attacks on Palestinians by settlers in the West Bank. For every missile that hits Israel, three hit Gaza. For every Israeli-Jew killed, five Arabs are killed. I wish to see the end of this terrible cycle of bloodshed. Despite all this I am optimistic, and I believe that the end of the bloodshed, as distant as it may seem, is inevitable .

To summarize, the systematic oppression of Palestinians in Israel ultimately stems from one central source - Israel's demand to be a 'Jewish and democratic' state. This demand comes at the expense of everything: life, liberty, peace, and equality. This is extreme nationalism that yields nothing but hatred. However, a general trend can be seen worldwide against such extreme nationalism. Slowly humanity as a whole is turning its back on nationalistic evil, even if sometimes it seems that for every two steps forward there is one step back. Notions that a hundred years ago would have been considered completely absurd – universal democratic rights, recognition of the rights of the LGBT community, of racial minorities and of women - today seems almost obvious. The wise see that this war can never end; there will always be more justice to fight for. Whoever fights for such justice, for the ultimate truth that all people are brothers, will always seem ridiculous at first, for they seem to demand the impossible. But, as can be seen time and time again in history, our worldview is always vindicated. I truly believe that everyone who trembles with rage when faced with injustice will sooner or later conclude that refusing to serve in the Israeli army is the only right choice.

We have reached the midpoint of our year end campaign to raise essential funds needed to support occupation objectors like Evyatar and make sure the statements of these inspiring young people are heard and shared around the world. This work is crucial to show that Israelis stand in solidarity with Palestinians and to ensure no refuser is left alone. 

Please donate as generously as you can. Right now we are at 25% of our goal to raise $20,000 by the end of December. Every dollar makes a difference and supports the refusal movement in Israel. 

In solidarity,

RSN team

This is my 46th day in prison, help me reach more people

Hi friends,

This is Nave. I am an 18 years old Israeli conscientious objector. I wrote to you last after serving my first 10 day prison sentence for refusing to serve as a soldier for the Israeli army and further fuel the occupation of the West bank and the Gaza strip. Since then things have gotten worse. I was already tried 3 times and served 46 days in prison. With me are 3 of my friends - Einat Gerlitz, Shahar Swartz and Evyatar Moshe Rubin.

Nave, 18 y/o

But this struggle is not about us. This is about the continuous oppression and abuse Palestinians endure at the hands of the Israeli government, military and police. What we, Israeli conscientious objectors, go through by being imprisoned is a fraction of the human rights violations Palestinians face. Whether by ethnic cleansing, settlers attacks, violence towards children, abusive employment of Palestinian workers by Israeli businesses, and by Israeli weapon companies profiteering off of the Occupation.

We need you, now. We know that a big part of what makes a difference is international pressure in collaboration with Israeli activists. We need to make sure our opposition to these atrocities is heard around the world. This is why we make sure to write to you each time another refuser is sentenced to prison. Please donate whatever you can to make sure we can continue this effort in addition to our work within Israel. 

We need $20,000 and so far have raised $2711. Each dollar makes sure we are more capable of educating the world on Israeli resistance to the occupation. As right-wing backlash to our work, in Israel, continues to stifle our movement, your financial support is more important than ever to make sure our mission is fulfilled. Let's work together and build a just future for all.

In solidarity,

Nave

I have been sentenced to 102 days in prison, need your help

Hi,

Einat here. You might remember me from the previous letter I wrote you. I’m a 19 y/o occupation objector. Growing up in Israel, I was expected to enlist in the Israeli military at the age of 18. I refused to fuel the occupation over the Palestinian territories and as consequence I am continuously imprisoned by the military. I am currently serving a fourth prison sentence and have to date spent 63 days in jail. 

Einat Gerlitz

It's time all young Israelis take responsibility for the society we live in. We have the opportunity to use our privilege as Israeli jews and stand in solidarity with Palestinians. That is why I decided to refuse military conscription. I refuse to be a part of the violent system that arrests Palestinian children, enables settlers violence towards Palestinians and denies an entire people basic human rights and freedom. 

Fortunately for me, I am a part of a community of youth occupation objectors, supported by Refuser Solidarity Network and Mesarvot. We all support each other during our ongoing  jail sentences. We don’t care how long we will be imprisoned as long as we take a clear and peaceful stand against the occupation. But we need your help. 

We are doing what we can within Israel, but it is clear we need global public pressure in order to reach the Israeli government. This is where you come in. We need your help in sustaining and expanding our work and to get our messages through to as many people as possible. 

We need to reach $20,000 in order to continue collecting and publishing refuser testimonies throughout 2023. We cannot allow the world to think that all Israelis support the atrocities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. By donating, even a small amount, you will be helping to amplify a clear voice within Israel of Israelis standing in solidarity with Palestinians and promoting peace. Make a donation today and to keep our movement alive.   

In solidarity,

Einat

We continue bringing you updates and messages from Einat, Shahar, Nave and Evyatar. A group of 18 and 19 year old Israelis who are being imprisoned repeatedly for being occupation objectors. Last week, each of the four refusers received a jail sentence of 30 days for refusing to enlist in the Israeli army and 15 days for being AWOL. In total, Einat was sentenced to 102 days in prison, Shahar was sentenced to 105 days in prison, Evyatar was sentenced to 95 days in prison and Nave was sentenced to 80 days in prison.

Donate to our 2022 End-of-year campaign to make sure all Israeli youth refusers have the support they need.

In the photo left to right: Shahar, Nave, Einat, and Evyatar, moments before being tried a fourth time for refusing to serve the occupation.

Israel forces Ukrainian refugees to enlist into the Israeli army — you can help

Hi

My name is Inna. I am New Profile’s Counseling Network legal aid coordinator. I am writing to you with an urgent request to support our work of providing legal consultation and representation to Ukrainian refugees who are forcibly drafted to the Israeli military. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, we are the only organization in Israel assisting Ukrainian refugees, fleeing the horrors of war, in obtaining an exemption from the compulsory military service in Israel.

Inna, New Profile

New Profile is a feminist and de-militarist movement founded in 1998. We believe that militarism, which is deeply rooted in Israeli society, makes society more violent, sexist, and racist. Furthermore, it blocks the path to peace and to ending the Israeli occupation of territories captured in 1967, and perpetuates human and women rights’ violations in Israel and Palestine. A substantial part of our work is the Counseling Network, which since the establishment of New Profile to date has supported over 22,000 youths who independently chose not to serve in the Israeli Military. 

Most of the updates you get from Refuser Solidarity Network are about the handful of Israeli youth who refuse military draft publicly, publish a public statement, talk to the press about their refusal, and get imprisoned. The work of our counseling network is complementary to that, by supporting the dozens of thousands of youth who refuse “under the radar,” in a non- public way. Typically, the youth we support come from marginalized backgrounds. We help them go about obtaining a military exemption via ongoing support, free legal aid, and additional resources and information.

I am an immigrant from Russia. I came to Israel at the age of 21. Because of this, I was able to experience first-hand the layers of discrimination of Jewish society in Israel, which is still trying to melt—into a single mass—the Jewish people living on "their own land." I quickly found out that every citizen who does not meet the ideas of the occupation regime, about how a "real Jew" and "real Israeli" should be, instantly becomes demonized. A good citizen, in the eyes of the state and most of Israeli society, is one that takes part in the occupation of Palestine and serves in the Israeli military. The "real Jew" and "real Israeli," according to the system, must be a loyal soldier of the occupation.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, countless refugees from Ukraine have arrived in Israel. A short period of time after arriving in Israel, those of the appropriate age are required to enlist in the Israeli Military. These are people who fled war, lost relatives, and experienced severe traumas from the brutal war taking place around their home—bombs, shootings, rape, and political prosecution. These are not people who are supposed to enlist in any army, but refugees who deserve healing and rest.

We can't handle the flow of immigrants. There are only two members in our Counseling Network who speak Russian, including me, and a volunteer. I work in a part time position - fifteen weekly hours. As part of my work, besides the direct legal and emotional support of the counselees, I protect their interests by directly contacting the internal military systems to take care of their needs and regularly visit our counselees imprisoned in military jails. We are struggling to fundraise in the current socio-political environment. We need your help to raise funds in order to hire an additional legal aid coordinator and, in doing so, help immigrants who choose not to serve in the Israeli army receive an exemption.

New Profile, following the decisions of the UN European and International Commissions on Freedom of Conscience and the Right to Conscientious Objection, believes that anyone who declares that they are unwilling or unable to perform military service has the right not to serve.

We believe and know that the demilitarization of our society can end the long years of injustice and occupation, and change the country into a more equal, free, and democratic place.

Since our mission is perceived as radical, both in Israel and abroad, it is hard for us to find new funds to support our work. With your help, we will be able to continue to support young refugees struggling with an extremely rigorous, bureaucratic, and violent system. 

In solidarity,

Inna

The Israeli military imprisoned me for 10 days for staying true to my moral compass

Sliman abu ruken, a 19 years old Druze enlistment refuser, had spent 10 days in military prison. With support by the Mesarvot network he received his military exemption three weeks ago. This is his statement: 

Recently I refused enlistment to the Israeli military after the first semester in a military academic course, since I realized that I can’t serve the military system and stay true to my moral compass - a moral compass driven by an understanding that our identity as humans is stronger than any other identity, and that a brutal, discriminatory treatment of other people, just because they are different than us, is unacceptable.

Sliman abu ruken

The fact that the army imprisoned me for being loyal to my sense of morality has strengthened the insight that I cannot serve in it. I’ve experienced the military’s apathy towards the soldier (or the would-be soldier), the system’s apathy towards the individual who cannot and does not want to serve it.

In prison, I’ve gotten the tiniest taste of the Israeli military’s punishment for the Palestinians in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip, a severe life sentence they received simply for existing as different humans. The means of punishment include a complete denial of freedom of movement, freedom of speech and any possibility of deciding how my day will go. On top of that, I’ve experienced a total indifference towards my basic mental needs during my imprisonment.

My time in prison made me appreciate my family and friends, things I took for granted, but which are taken away daily from millions of people who are forcibly separated from their loved ones, who need several different documents to visit friends and receive medical care, whose way of life is constantly disrupted by Israeli policy determined without their choice, arbitrary policies which can sometimes deliberately seek to undermine their daily lives in order to force them into isolated enclaves and further the illegal settlements. These are millions of humans whose existence and needs Israeli society chooses to ignore, using a system that simultaneously denies their basic legitimate rights and works to dehumanize them.

The refusal and the process of learning about the reality and the crimes committed around me, crimes which Israeli society works to hide and whitewash, made me understand that I am morally obligated to learn more and to take action; at the very least, to not ignore the reality and serve the system responsible for these wrongs. This is the obligation of every person with a moral compass, every person who believes that no group has the right to oppress and humiliate another. 

Thank you to my family, to the Mesarvot network, without which I wouldn’t have been able to survive this period, and to all the people surrounding me who’ve supported and empowered me.

In solidarity,

Sliman

The Israeli army is going to send me to jail again for objecting to the occupation

We continue to bring you reoprts of the four youth occupation objectors who are being sentenced to prison again and again for their refusal to enlist in the Israeli army and take part in the Israeli occupation over the Palestinian Teritorries. Einat Gerlitz (19), Shahar Schwartz(18) and Evyatar Moshe Rubin (19), were all tried a second time for their refusal and each received a 20 day prison sentence, after already serving 7-10 days after their first trial. Nave Shabtay Levin, (18), served 10 days in prison and is going to refuse enlistment a second time in the next few days. He is expected to be imprisoned again. Today we bring you Nave’s full refusal statement.

Donate to make sure the refusers’ voices continue to be heard worldwide

I held a gun in my hands before I was 10 years old. 

You could say I was raised in the Israeli army, or at least in the spirit of the Israeli Army. My father, who was a military officer during most of my childhood, took my sister and me to his military base on weekends. There I held a gun, entered tanks, and collected gun bullets lying on the ground. As a child, that was cool! I also grew up without a grandfather. From very early on, on every national Memorial Day, I would skip the school ceremony to attend the grave of my grandfather who was killed in the 1973 war (The Yom Kippur War). I was nurtured on the glory of the army and  on war-related bereavement.

Nave Shabtay Levin (18)

But as the years went by, I became more aware, and I started to attend demonstrations against the occupation with my mother. When I was at high school we started visiting Sheikh Jarrah, where I met families that stood to lose all they had, and to end up in the streets with their children as a result of the Jerusalem municipality campaign, jointly with the settlers to empty Jerusalem of Palestinians. Among other things, I saw a fence that settlers had build through a private Palestinian backyard, and the police who were securing it, prevening all from entering, until we ourselves yanked it from the ground. In Sheikh Jarrah, the police stopped and interrogated me for the sole reason that I had a Palestinian flag. Almost weekly, police violently seize flags from the protestors. 

Although I was raised in a militaristic family, where the army was a sacred cow, and although I was told in school that soldiers are heroes, I never wanted to enlist in the army. My unwillingness to enlist, was transformed over the years to the act of active refusal of the draft and the more I realized what soldiers really do. I realized that there is an entire system, military, economic and ideological, whose task is to preserve the occupation and the oppression of the Palestinians.

Support the refusers! send a letter to Israeli PM to stop the occupation!

This year, during the Jewish holiday of Simchat Torah, tens of masked settlers went to Masafer Yatta, threw stones at the Palestinian residents, at their children and at their houses. Windshields were smashed, and many people injured, including a three-year-old child who was injured in his head. This event was not unique. It was just one more day in the violent reality that the population in Masafer Yatta endure, where attacks by settlers are a daily occurrence.  

And where is the army in this story? The same one I was expected to enlist in? Where are the heroic soldiers that we hear of? In almost every violent incident perpetrated by settlers the army, under the best of circumstances, does nothing. More frequently, however, it enables, supports and even provides weapons and backup to the settlers. This is the occupation – this violence is not a bug, it is a feature. The state, the army, and the settlers have the same purpose – in Masaffer Yatta and throughout the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories:  the creation of territorial continuity in Israeli control that cuts the West Bank into pieces. These aims – territorial control and the removal of the Palestinians – has led to the biggest population transfer since 1967, taking place as we speak in Masafer Yatta.  The army and the settlers are equal partners in this project.

Support the refusers! send a letter to Israeli PM to stop the occupation!

The occupation and the oppression of the Palestinians are closely linked to Israeli capitalism. For the Israeli elites, the occupation is profitable. Israeli Weapon companies make millions from selling weapons to regimes such as Yemen and the United Arabs Emirates. Weapons that are sold after they were tried on Gaza and the West Bank – and are promoted by the misery, the poverty, and the death that it had created. As well, the occupation is profitable  – as a device to abuse Palestinian workers. Israeli corporations and wealthy people employ Palestinians both, in the occupied territories and inside Israel, and abuse them with long working hours and low salaries, taking advantage of the fact that the Palestinians have no way to secure their rights. In that way the rich profit directly from the oppression of the Palestinians people. 

The narrative of the country perpetuated through the educational system provides a narrow colonialist view on history and on the reality in the state of Israel. It tells us that  the country was built by heroic pioneers, without ever discussing what and who was here before. It tells us about villages and cities that were built, but not how Palestinian lands were bought and their inhabitants banished. It creates a false unity of Jewish interests with the Jewish rich, rather than with the Palestinians. It tries to make us think that the occupation benefits us, the Jewish workers, in order to eliminate any possibility of true solidarity with the Palestinians or bringing an end to the occupation – all of which stands to hurt in their pocket. 

We live in a country that call itself self enlightened and liberal, "the only democracy in the middle east", but at the same time, runs a murderous apartheid regime and commits war crimes regularly and systematically. Israel implements policies of house demolitions, journalists’ killings, of breaking into homes, mass arrests, the arrest of children, collective punishments; illegal settlements, a siege on Gaza and much more on a daily basis. This country exploits our personal loss and pain over the people we loved and who died because of this cruel reality, to further its propaganda.

As humans we must resist this reality. As humans we must refuse to demolish homes, arrest children, and refuse the destructive reality that Palestinians live in. As humans we must  make amends for the wrongs of the past of the occupation and the Nakba.

As workers we must show solidarity and cooperation with Palestinian workers, and fight against the rich that profit from our expolitation.

As potential army inductees, this is our opportunity not only to serve the country and the army. It is our opportunity to support the fight for justice, peace, and equality. Whether through psychological disqualification, by appealing to the army’s conscientious objection’s committee or through serving jail sentences, we refuse to serve in the occupation army. We must fight for a better future. It will not be easy. Our opponents are strong. However, where there is oppression, there is also brotherhood and solidarity, and that no one can take from us.

In solidarity,

Nave

I am in prison for opposing the Israeli occupation

Conscientious objector Einat Gerlitz, 19, is currently serving a 7 day prison sentence for her refusal to enlist in the Israeli army and take part in the Israeli occupation over the Palestinian Teritorries. In addition to Einat, two other conscientious objectors, Nave Shabtay Levin (18) and Evyatar Moshe Rubin (19), are currently imprisoned and another, Shahar Schwartz(18), whose statement was sent last week, is awaiting trial for the second time after he was jailed for 10 days. Today we bring you Einat’s refusal statement. 

Send the four refusers a letter of support

Einat Gerlitz

Hi,

My name is Einat Gerlitz, I am 19 years old, and I just completed one year of civil service. 

At the age of 16, when the enlisting process started and discussions turned to what would be a  "meaningful army service". I asked myself what a meaningful service might mean. 

In high school I was a youth activist on issues of climate change, and through this activism I met youth from all over Israel. I met Palestinian youth from Sakhnin, and together we thought about the future of our generation in the reality of the climate crisis. Through my connection with them I learned about the experience of Palestinians who live in Israel and that encouraged me to learn about the hard life of Palestinians who are under Israeli occupation. I knew there is a violent regime in the west bank, but I did not know how that statement translated into an everyday reality. The acquaintance with the Palestinian activists led me to start asking questions and to wonder about the connection between serving in the Israeli army and the violent regime of the occupation. 

I wondered how I could work  in solidarity  with Palestinians, while at the same time being part of the army that violently controls them. As time went by, I was exposed to the hidden realities of the occupation. To the reality of hundreds of children being arrested by the army every year, and by the effect of these arrests on the children's future; the reality of soldiers who prevent Palestinians from accessing their land and limit their ability to earn a living; the reality of the support that the army gives settlers’  violence against Palestinians. I realized that to serve in the army is a political choice, and I chose to refuse. 

Send the four refusers a support letter

My friends say that serving  in the army is a lifetime opportunity. But I think that the act of refusing is my chance to use my privilege as an Israeli Jew in order to actively change our cruel reality. This reality hides behind the one-sided Zionist narrative that we learned. The generations before us did not build the nation on empty lands, but they built the nation on top of Palestinians who lived there before. We are not better than the Palestinians. They deserve the same basic democratic rights, the same independence, the same access to water, freedom of movement, education, and a secure life.  

Therefore, I choose to refuse to take part of an army that control the Palestinian people and deprive them of their freedom. 

In my act of refusal, I take responsibility for the society I live in. I want to live in a society whose people do not surrender to silencing. I want to live in society that knows how to acknowledge the experiences of different people even if it destabilizes its official narrative.

Send the four refusers a support letter

I call on my age group to open their eyes and ask questions - does violent control over civilian population can bring security? Do not weapons and violence increase hatred and desire for revenge? Who would you be if you grew up with the threat of guns and with nightly searching operations in your neighborhood? I refuse because I want to remind you that there are children living there, on the other side of the wall. Children like you and like me. 

In solidarity,

Einat

This week: 4 (!) Israeli refusers imprisoned - here is their message to you

We bring you today a special message from four youth refusers - Shahar Schwartz (18 year old), Einat Gerlitz (19), Evyatar Moshe Rubin (19), and Nave Shabtay Levin (18) - who declare this week their refusal to join the Israeli army and take part in the Israeli occupation over the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Shahar has refused before and was sentenced to 10 days in military prison. Einat refused Yesterday and was sentenced to 7 days in prison. Evyatar and Nave are refusing today and will likely be imprisoned. We reach out to you today because they need your help in getting their message across to Israeli officials. Click here to help them.

Left to right: Evyatar, Einat, Nave and Shahar

Hi

Israel will be holding parliamentary elections in November, and we need to make sure our Prime Minister and parliamentary candidates for office understand the occupation needs to end NOW. We will not accept nor participate in human rights violations. We have written the following statement and we need your help to make sure it reaches these Israeli politicians.

We, Israeli youth, refuse to join the Israeli army and take part in the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza strip. We call out to all citizens of Israel to open their eyes and see the policy of oppression over the palestinian people carried out by the Israeli government. We object to the militaristic education forced on us by the same oppressive policies, we object to the educational system teaching us to hate our neighbors, and we object to the social norms that prohibits the educational system from sharing the true reality in the Palestinian territories with children and youth. We feel it is important to show there is another way. We all have the option to refuse to take part in the oppression and in the occupation and we can all make sure human rights, including physical and emotional security, are provided without discrimination. Therefore we demand the following from the Israeli government: 

Stop the killings of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Stop the ethnic cleansing in the territories and the transfer of Masafer Yatta; Stop the siege of the Gaza strip; Stop home demolitions; Stop administrative arrests and arrests of minors; Stop supporting settler's violence towards Palestinians and start acting against it. 

We demand a stop to the Israeli military presence in the Palestinian territories and we demand giving the Palestinian people the right to independence. We, Israeli youth, born and raised in Israel, call on the Israeli public to see there is a better way to treat our neighbors, a human way that guarantees human rights for all. We demand an end to the Israeli occupation over the Palestinian territories and we declare today our refusal to take any part in it. 

Will you help us make sure the Prime Minister and the parliamentary candidates who are running for office hear our message loud and clear? We need you to send them an email saying that you support our statement, asking them to listen to us. The more emails sent the louder we will be heard. Click here to support our statement.   

In solidarity,

Shahar Schwartz, Evyatar Moshe Rubin, Einat Gerlitz, Nave Shabtay Levin

Today is my enlistment day to the Israeli military. I am going to refuse enlistment and will be sent to jail

Hi, 


My name is Shahar Schwartz. I am 18 years old. Today is my enlistment day to the Israeli military. I am going to refuse enlistment and will be sent to jail.

Write Shahar a support letter

When I was 10 years old, during the Gaza war in 2014, I was home alone when I heard the missile alarm. It wasn't the first time I experienced it in my life but it was the first time I was alone. I live in an old house that doesn’t have a shelter so I sat in the hallway and waited for the alarm to stop. It was the scariest moment of my life. Fortunately for me, I live in central Israel, and wasn't in real danger, but as a child all I felt was great fear.

Shahar Schwartz

This is the reality forced on children by the war we’re living in. Children in Gaza do not have shelters or missile defense technology like the iron dome to protect them. For them it's not just one moment of terror before they can go back to normal life - it is their everyday life. Children in the West Bank live in an ongoing war, unlike me who experiences it every few years during a military operation. Israeli kids who live near the border with Gaza also suffer greatly from this reality, which is fully created and operated by the army. Israeli youth join the army when they become adults, after their fear and trauma has turned into hatred towards the other side.

Write Shahar a support letter

During the summer of 2019, when I was 15, I participated in an Israeli-Palestinian summer camp in the US. There I heard Palestinians my age share how the Israeli military, which is made up of young Israelis like me, oppresses the Palestinian civilian population on a daily basis – by check points, street patrols, home demolitions, and arrests of children. Many Palestinians only know Israelis through the actions of the occupation. Similarly, many Israelis only know Palestinians through media reports about bombings, or through enforcing the occupation as soldiers. The Israeli Military policy is actively preventing any possible change.

I refuse to enlist in the Israeli military because it sustains inequality and oppresses any hope for a positive change. Even though the state of Israel did not officially annex the Palesitnian territories, it effectively controls them and denies Palestinians their rights to independence while trampling  their basic human rights. Young Israelis who serve in the army are the ones who actively oppress the Palestinian people and enable settler violence against them. I refuse to partake in this. 

Write Shahar a support letter

Due to my refusal to join the army, the military will interfere with my human rights and imprison me. I am willing to pay this temporary price of freedom, a price Palestinians pay their entire lives, because I refuse to cooperate with the system responsible for it. I am also willing to suffer the social price - to be marked as a traitor in Israeli society, in which I’ve lived my entire life. I believe I am doing the right and moral act in the current political situation. I hope that my actions will influence others who are in a situation like mine. I hope it makes people see the crimes the military is committing and the suffering it causes, and makes them consider what part they want to take in this conflict. I hope to see the day in which Palestinian and Israeli children will not have to live in fear, but will be able to live in peace. 

In solidarity,

Shahar

Thank you for your support during the attack on Israeli conscientious objectors

My name is Yuval, I’m 27 years old and in 2013 I refused to join the Israeli army. Nowadays I am a steering committee member and responsible for social media in Mesarvot, an Israeli network that supports refusers to military service. I want thank you all for your support! Thanks to you we succeeded in our campaign to raise money to increase our visibility, which means that we can spread the refusers’ voice louder throughout the Israeli society. Please answer this short survey to let us know how else you’d be interested to help our work.

Yuval Gal Cohen

It is a lonely and not an easy experience to be a draft refuser in Israel. In the Israeli society, the Israeli occupation and refusal to serve in the army are taboo topics, and the refusal to serve is perceived as betrayal. This hostility towards us is harsh and we are constantly under attack by the political right. It was heartwarming and exciting for us to get such support from around the world. Your solidarity is truly helpful in sustaining and developing our activity within Israel. Going forward, we would love for you to be involved in our activities. There are many ways you can support Israeli conscientious objectors, even from your own home. Please fill up this survey to share with us your thoughts and ideas.

During our Campaign last month a ultranationalist right-wing settlers organization sent a letter to officials in Israel asking them to stop our work. They claimed that because we support refusers we are an illegal organization and the government should shut our activity down. They try to shut us down, delegitimize and divide us from the anti-occupation movement. I was a part of the team that worked on that campaign and I can tell you that I was terrified. I was terrified because this is not only a threat to our work in general and an in-person threat to all Israeli refusers, but also a threat to our freedom as citizens to criticize our governmental policy, especially when horrible war crimes have been legitimized for decades. However, it also shows that even though we are a small network, our work is important and we do influence the Israeli society, and pose a real threat to the settlers.

The right wing is scared of us and this is why they try to shut us down. That is the power of civil resistance, that is the power of refusing. With your help we can now reach more people, raise our voice so everyone knows about the Israeli occupation, and everyone knows that they have the option to refuse. We would love for you to become an active member of our community in any way you like. Please answer this short survey to share with us the ways you are interested in getting involved in our work.

The support we got from you is a reflection for us of how much people care about our work and how important it is. Let's continue working together to make sure no refuser is left alone.

In solidarity,

Yuval

Right wing extremist group attempts to stop support for conscientious objectors and shut down Mesarvot

Hi

My name is Yasmin. I refused Israeli military conscription in 2019 and nowadays I am the coordinator of Mesarvot (which supports youth conscientious objectors in Israel). I am writing you this urgent letter because we are currently under attack by a right wing group who are attempting to shut down Mesarvot and silence the voice of the refusers.

Yasmin, coordinator for Mesarvot

A couple of weeks ago we initiated a crowd-funding campaign in Israel addressed at left-wing friends and supporters, with the goal of reaching $11,500. That would allow us to hire a spokesperson, to raise public awareness of the refusers, and to hold events for the general Israeli public.

Toward the end of our campaign, when we have already managed to raise $9,300 we were attacked by right wing extremists who were trying to silence us. They pressured us by publishing articles in the media accusing us of illegal actions by supporting army refusers. Even worse, they sent a letter to officials in Israel asking them to stop our work, all actions that stand to gravely harm our organizational infrastructure. We need your help to raise the money we still lack to hire for a spokesperson and to demonstrate that attempts to silence us will only make our voices louder.

We hope this hateful attack won’t hurt our efforts to promote a more peaceful society in Israel, but we are not sure which sanctions may be imposed on us going forward. With that being said, nothing will keep us from supporting these youths who are following their conscience and who are refusing to serve a violent system that harms civilians under the guise of “self-defense”. They are the ones doing the right thing!

The refusers' actions have created shockwaves in the Israeli public, who have normalized life in a highly militarized atmosphere and who regard the military as sacred. We believe that these shockwaves are vital in order to awaken the Israeli society from the normalization of the reality of apartheid and military occupation. Even though we have great international support, the walls surrounding us within the Israeli society are getting thicker. A spokesperson could help us reach a wider audience and increase our impact.

We need your help; with everything that has happened, we are not sure our campaign in Israel will be enough to counter this vicious attack and raise locally the full amount of money we need. That is why we are turning to you, as one of our international supporters, to ask for your support. Would you be willing to help us raise the needed amount of $2,200? Every dollar you can contribute is crucial! You can also share this information with people you know will support us in our struggle. With your help we can make sure the the voices of the refusers, those who have spent time in jail for the values we all believe in, are heard loud and clear throughout Israel and in the rest of the world

In solidarity,

Yasmin

Free after 28 days in Jail!

Hi

I’m happy to let you know that after 28 days in Israeli military jail I am finally free! My name is Yoav, I’m a 19 years old Israeli. I wrote to you in May about my refusal to become a soldier of the Israeli occupation and to enforce appartheid on Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza strip. I want to thank you for supporting me! I received over 400 support letters during my stay in jail and it really meant a lot to me. 

I would also like to take this opportunity to invite you to a free webinar this Wednesday, June 22nd, with my dear friends Shahar Perets and Eran Aviv. In the webinar Shahar and Eran will share their stories of refusing to do military service, as well as discuss current developments in the conflict in Israel/Palestine, with their particular significance for us as young people. Please register at this link and share it with your friends and family

When I first set out on my journey of conscientious objection I was unaware of what a long and hard process it would be. I first refused in December and was given the following options: Service in a non-combat position; seeing a psychiatrist; or going to jail. After receiving support from Mesarvot, I was able to push for a meeting with the committee that is in charge of granting exemptions from military service based on conscientious objection. 

I got to plead my case in front of the committee in February. Afterwards I was notified that I only received an exemption from carrying a weapon during my military service. A month later when I was called back to begin my service I refused again, because even without a weapon I am not willing to take any part in the oppression of the Palestinian people carried out daily by the Israeli army. 

That time I was sentenced to 8 days in military jail. After my release I was asked to report back to the enlistment center. I refused a third time and was sentenced to 20 days in jail. At that point I appealed the committee’s decision to give me an exemption only from carrying a weapon and finally, after serving 28 days in jail, I was granted a complete exemption from service! 

Looking back at the whole process, it was all worth it. Refusing to serve is the most powerful act I could take to counter Israeli militarism and show solidarity with Palestinians. 

I was held by police at the pride parade for holding up the Palestinian flag

Hi,

My name is Ayelet. I’m a 16 years old trans teen and an activist in the Mesarvot network, an Israeli Network supporting war resisters and political objectors. Last Friday (June 10th), at the Israeli pride parade in Tel Aviv, I was arrested for holding the Palestinian flag with the slogan “there is no pride in the occupation” in Hebrew (see below picture of my sign).

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I made this sign not only to show my objection to the Israeli occupation of the West bank and the Gaza strip, but also to protest the way the Israeli government uses the LGBTQ+ community to justify the occupation. The government uses Pinkwashing - displaying superficial support for LGBTQ+ rights in order to justify horrible actions. In actuality, Israel supports gay rights only when people from our community are supportive of the state’s actions. For example, a trans woman who is a soldier will be able to receive hormonal treatment, but a trans woman who is an army refuser will be sent to a men’s prison for her refusal. 

I attended the Pride parade with the intention to protest the way the Israeli state is using my community, the LGBTQ+ community, to appear progressive without actually showing support for our rights. For instance there is no option for same sex marriage, no access for gay people to adopt children, and accessing gender affirming healthcare is incredibly difficult. The police officers pulled me out almost immediately, about 5 minutes after I joined the march and held up my sign, and threatened me with an arrest. 

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Zionism means wanting a Jewish state in the land of Israel. In the Israeli political ethos, the idea that this notion could be immoral is unthinkable. The fundamental problem with it is the fact that a Jewish state, by definition, discriminates against people who are not Jewish. Especially in this piece of land where people with different religions, ethnicities, and cultures have been residing for centuries. Meaning, Zionism is the desire to settle an already populated country and discriminate against all who lived there before you. 

This ideological foundation has created a downward spiral - The 1948 Nakba and the 1967 occupation are the clear continuation of the Zionist ideology. Today, in the occupied territories of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip there are 4.5 million Palestinians living under military law. They can’t vote in the Israeli elections even though Israel has complete control over their lives. In contrast, Israeli settlers living in the same territory have full citizenship rights. Also, We can’t ignore the fact that Israel’s control over the Palestinian territories undoubtedly fits the definition of colonialism - “The policy or practice of aquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting its economy”. 

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All of the above is why last Friday, I, a trans teenager, chose to attend the Tel Aviv Pride parade with a sign that shows the Palestinian flag with the inscription: No pride in the occupation. 

To be clear - I was arrested at a demonstration for holding up a sign. The police read me my rights and did not let me go. They accused me of “incitement”, for holding a Palestinian flag in a public space. It is important to say that even though some of the Knesset members are working on passing a law that would make it illegal to hold a Palistinian flag in public property, such a law has not yet passed, meaning I did nothing illegal. 

Ultimately, the police did not take me with them back to the station but held me for about an hour at pride and then they released me. It is important for me to mention that I had it easy with the cops. More than most people would. If I was a Palestinian boy this whole story would have taken a horrible turn for the worst. I was released quickly because I am an Ashkenazi (white Jew) kid from Tel Aviv that doesn’t even have an ID yet and the police did not consider me a threat. 

I want you all to know - We live in a country where people are arrested for protesting. We don’t need to shout or even say anything, it is enough to hold a Palestinian flag next to an officer to be arrested - that’s how much they are scared of the Palestinian flag and Israeli solidarity with Palestinians. But no arrests or pinkwashing can hide the truth about the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

In solidarity, 

Ayelet