Refusenik imprisoned

Uri Natan, 18, who was to enlist in the IDF today, intends to announce his refusal to serve in the army, and after he makes his announcement he is expected to go to a military prison

Innocent citizen cruelly threatened

A patrol in the Bethlehem area. The commander takes an innocent civilian into an alley, points his gun at the civilian’s head, and says that he will kill him. After the man cries, the commander tells him that he’s just joking and that he can go.

Personal bags emptied

As part of the usual practice in arresting illegal residents who cross the checkpoint from the east, we would take them behind an abandoned building a short distance from the checkpoint and beat them

Shooting just for fun

While enforcing a curfew in a village…near the Dotan shore [an area of villages west of Jenin], I saw shots being fired at the tires of cars that broke curfew.

Smoke bombs and stun bombs thrown into bakeries as punishment for throwing rocks

In Telem, on our way back from an arrest raid in the area, we threw stun bombs and smoke bombs into four or five open bakeries in the village of Turkumiya because they had thrown rocks at the soldiers in the village.

Random gunfire in Rafah

We received a command one night to open fire every 15 minutes to deter them towards a false target. One time shots were randomly fired at Rafah, from a site looking down on most of the city.

Conduct inside homes during Operation Days of Penitence

During Operation Days of Penitence, our unit decided to take up residence in a private Palestinian house, whose residents were temporarily moved elsewhere

Severe clashes between a checkpoint officer and a mentally retarded boy

There was a physical clash between a mentally retarded boy and a checkpoint officer when the former refused to be searched and had to be handcuffed.

Setting an example

A reserve force arrived to take our place, but the soldiers did not have enough experience in checkpoint procedures, so they decided to teach the people at the checkpoint a lesson using punitive measures, to make an example out of them

Theft by the unit

Our unit stole a camera in Ramallah. We had a camera that belonged to the Palestinian Authority. We took it from Arafat’s compound during Operation Days of Penitence, and I think that the unit still uses it. Aside from that, I did not witness any theft, but there were stories

Beating a handcuffed prisoner

While patrolling outside the brigade’s military base, one of the patrol units saw a boy throwing rocks. They crept up behind him, and two soldiers caught him, beat him, and put him in the car

Crushing luxury cars in Ramallah

During routine patrols in Ramallah, the tank driver drove over three luxury cars. The driver was following the commander’s orders to drive over the cars

Using Palestinian laundry as toilet paper

After guard duty in a buildings that had been completely evacuated of its residents—I don’t remember where the residents had been taken—I went up to the top floor.

Maintaining one’s humanity

I served at the Ramot checkpoint for two very frustrating months, during which I tried to prevent Palestinians from crossing the checkpoint into Jerusalem, but they would just go around the checkpoint from the valley next to it

Cuffing a child as a temporary prisoner

While we were staying in a privately-owned house for surveillance purposes, the family that lived there was evacuated and was only allowed to enter once a day to take what it needed

Refusenik sentenced to prison for fifth time

Today, refusenik Alex Kohn was sentenced to prison for the fifth time for refusing to join the Israeli army. Kohn says he refuses to join the army because he “refuses to participate in the Israeli occupation

The first Israeli refusenik

Despite the sweltering heat and the distress of war, the courtroom was completely full on Monday, August 30, 1948. Joseph Abileah sat by himself on the defendants' bench in the Supreme Court of the recruiting center in Haifa and listened calmly to the judge's remarks

Who's the enemy here?

When I was serving in Hebron , I had, for the first time in my life, a very different feeling about being Jewish. I don't know why. I have no explanation for it, but I felt a distinct difference in the meaning of being Jewish.

We used to “dry out” people

I was serving in Jericho during the curfew. There was a level piece of ground the Palestinians used to cross through, to break the curfew. The IDF dug trenches there to stop them from leaving. I was the commander of a patrol unit that used to ride in a jeep. Our mission was to arrest anyone who broke the curfew.

Curfew: No one will pass

If I went to the sergeant now and said, “There's a woman here, her son is sick, and she wants to take him to the hospital,” and asked him if I could let her pass, he would ask me, “Well, how does this woman seem to you?” I would say that she looks okay, that she doesn't look suspicious

“We are going to go kill six in return”

There was an attack here, at Point 443, in which six engineer corps soldiers died. The terrorist came to one of the checkpoints, in the midst of heavy fog, and killed everyone. He entered the checkpoint easily and simply shot everyone and killed six

How they make the normal life of the population miserable

Occupation is waking up in the morning, giving orders to soldiers, and working eight hours in order to impose a curfew. Curfew, preventing the movement of terrorists—there are lots and lots of lovely military phrases that are translated into “civilian” terms

Rocks for the car windshield. Rocks for the head

The Jewish neighborhood is under the jurisdiction of Hebron's city council, which means—paradoxically enough—that the garbage collectors in the Jewish neighborhood are Arabs.

Unwanted guests

During a shift exchange patrol in which my unit commander and I participated with Patrol 30 of Brigade 932, the unit commander and the patrol commander walked into the house of two elderly people without knocking and without there being any field necessity at all.

Update on jailed refuseniks

Three refuseniks we have reported on previously —Wissam Qiblan, Alex Kohn, and Misha Hadar—have been jailed again this week. Two others—Eyal Brami and Yahel Avigur—are currently at home, but it appears that within the next few days they will be thrown into jail again after their return to Tel Hashomer. Another refusenik, who refuses to serve in the reserves beyond the Green Line, is also being held in Prison 6

Reserve soldiers opposed to settlement outposts

It has been more than two months since Sasson's report was submitted to the government and it was decided to form a ministerial committee to examine how to implement the report's recommendations

Let every Hebrew mother know

It also happens in the preparatory training course for officers being groomed to join the future command chain of the Israeli army

The seeds of hatred

Some of the testimonials published by Breaking the Silence in the past few months on Maariv online dealt with events that occurred after horrible terrorist attacks. Soldiers discussing their desire for revenge were appropriate in that context.

Testimonies at the theater

From the reality on the ground to the Tel Aviv Theater: Starting next Thursday, April 7, as part of the Teatroneto Festival, a group of actors will begin a theatrical rendition of Breaking of the Silence.

Refuseniks get 21 days in prison

Refuseniks Alex Kohn and Eyal Brami, who went to the enlistment office yesterday, were sentenced to 21 days in prison. The two teenagers are refusing to serve in the Israeli army, claiming that it is a violation of the basic human rights of 3.5 million people “which no one has a right to deprive

Two refuseniks declare their refusal to enlist for the fourth time

Refuseniks Alex Kohn and Eyal Brami claim that there is nothing that will make them participate in the killing of innocents, and Brami refuses to wear the prison uniform.

Update on imprisoned refuseniks

Five objectors are currently imprisoned in Israel . All five are due to be released within a few days. All five are highly likely to be sent to prison again afterwards.

Three refuseniks to return to the induction center tomorrow

Tomorrow morning refuseniks Eyal Brami, Alex Kohn, and Misha Hadar will return to the army induction base in Tel Hashomer where they will announce their refusal to serve in the Israeli army due to its status as an army of occupation

“You don't need to shoot at the head”

For the first time since the organization's formation last June, members of Breaking the Silence participated this morning in a session of the Knesset Legislative Committee

Letter of draftees: “We won't join the army because of the occupation”

In a new letter of refusal, 250 high school students in the 11th and 12th grades declared that they will not join the military because they refuse “to participate in the policy of occupation and repression.” One of the letter's signatories—who is scheduled to be inducted into the military next week—told Yediot Aharonot online, “My parents do not support refusal of military service, but they support me because I'm their son, and they are standing behind me

To the Honorable Exemption Committee

1. For nearly 40 years, Israel has controlled the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. It exercises control over millions of Palestinians who live in these territories, deprived of all civil rights and most human rights, with no acceptable justification

A demonstration in support of Refusenik Misha Hadar

A demonstration in support of refusenik Misha Hadar will be held next Wednesday, April 6, at eight in front of the recruitment office.

Imprisoned conscientious objectors update

Following a relatively long period in which the Israeli military authorities generally avoided the imprisonment of conscientious objectors, it appears now that the old policy of imprisoning objectors has been restored. Especially now

Ben-Artzi will not be recognized as conscientious objector

The end of the struggle: The High Court of Justice rejected a petition filed by Yonatan Ben-Artzi to obtain an exemption from Israeli military service on grounds of conscience rather than unsuitability for service

An open letter to the Defense Minister, Mr. Shaul Mofaz

I was very disappointed when I heard that Wissam Qablan, Moshe Hader, and Alex Cohn had been sentenced to prison once again. These three men refused to serve in the IDF as long as it enforces the occupation

A letter from refuseniks up for the draft

The letter from high school refuseniks was published in October 2004. Given the mass murder occurring in the Gaza Strip at that time

In June 2001, ten people met in Tel Aviv, most from central Israel, to discuss new ways to fight the occupation. These ten people—among whom were members and supporters of Yesh Gvul and New Profile—remembered a long history of letters of refusal written to the heads of Israeli governments by those up for the draft

Refusenik Yahel Avigur sentenced to 28 days in prison

Yahel Avigur, a pacifist conscientious objector to military service from Qiriat Motzkin, near Haifa has been sentenced on Sunday (27 February 2005) to 28 days in military prison.

The arena of conflict over the appointment of officers in schools has expanded: Next week a group of young members of New Profile—a movement working for the demilitarization of Israeli society

“Since the Israeli army violates the law and democracy, my refusal to serve in the army is logical and correct. True, the decision to occupy was made democratically, but this does not make it a humane decision.

Eyes that see everything

Over the past four months we have published testimonies from soldiers who decided to break the silence, and talk about acts of abuse, and about the elderly who were accidentally killed, and about the family kicked out of their home so that the soldiers could watch a football match

Monstrous behavior with the neighbors of a wanted suspect

Rank of the field commander : Commander. If my memory does not fail me, more senior officers arrived during the incident, and there was movement among the commanders, but I don't remember who exactly was present at the time when the incident took place.

They shoot, they go up to the neighborhood of Abu Sinan

If shooting ever occurred, or there was an imminent fear of anything, we then—with permission from the commander of the brigade or his deputy—used to take one or two armored vehicles and head to Abu Sinan

Indiscriminately shooting a live bullet at children throwing rocks

This incident took place in one of the villages in Samaria —I don't remember its name—during a routine arrest operation that we used to carry out. During this operation I was part of the force that had been charged with guarding other forces in the brigade, who were carrying out some arrest missions.

Refusing an order to use gas bombs to disperse a demonstration

My colleagues in the brigade and I entered Tamoun, in the area of Nablus . It was afternoon, and the mission was to set up an inspection point—to suddenly set up a surprise checkpoint, for a limited amount of time, with the aim of making our presence known and, maybe, of arresting terrorists

CD theft

Soldier: I remember a laboratory that was used for forging and copying CDs in this one house. Oh, Ehud Banay, you're being robbed

Doors of houses destroyed when we could have just broken the locks

While searching the camp all day, the unit commander insisted that we destroy the doors and gates, even when it was unnecessary, due to the fact that we had tools available to break the locks

Houses demolished in conformity with the law

In an astonishing response to the pelting of the junction of Beitar-Gush Etzion with rocks, the commander of the Etzion brigade decided to demolish a home that had been expanded without a license

We acted primitively and without thinking

Commander Q, who had served on the Yael Unit, an elite combat engineering unit, said, “It took us a very long time to realize that by the time three years had passed we were no longer human

This is not what we send our children to the army for

Parents also want to break the silence now. The parents of regular soldiers, and of soldiers who have just finished their service in the IDF, want to support the members of Breaking the Silence , and speak for themselves about the effects that serving in the territories has had on their children.

Breaking the Silence—Project for gathering testimonies on violating shooting orders

Today, Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, said, “We must respond immediately to the sources of Palestinian shooting, even if this shooting comes from places that are inhabited by civilian residents

Tank shells were fired at solar-powered water heaters

During a routine ambush, with one tank, the gunner—with the commander's permission—fired in the direction of the water tanks which feed a number of houses in Deir al-Balah. Whether shot was fired with the aim of deterring

The commander of a field brigade violates orders for opening fire which he himself issued

During an operation to gain control over the PA compound—during which Arafat's room was removed, and the compound and surrounding streets were destroyed—some youths

A Commander steals money

Following numerous reports about pillaging that took place during operation Days of Penitence, I immediately decided to bring the soldiers of my unit out, and line them up in order to search their possessions

Last day for a checkpoint commander in the army, so he decides to let off some steam

The incident occurred at a checkpoint on Crossroad 1 in Nabuls, located at the entrance to the city. Palestinians were in a traffic jam as nobody was being allowed entry

A Barbeque

In brief, this is what happened. We were in one of the houses, and the whole brigade was there—inside as well as below the house

Border guards indiscriminately throw tear gas bombs in Hebron .

It was at surveillance site in the heart of a Palestinian neighborhood taking up an entire floor in a Palestinian house. There was a commander, two Hebron Brigade fighters, and two snipers present at the site

VCR and clothes stolen from Ramallah

A few months after operation Days of Penitence, I found a video player in one of the rooms of my unit, and I asked the young men where they had gotten it from

This second part of the article entitled, “We are now officially the state of Sodom and Gomorrah ” deals with the refuseniks

An article by Yossi Melman was recently published in Haaretz about documents that were allowed to be published from the state's archives, concerning the first part of the 50s in the 20 th century

Letter from High School Seniors

We, young Israeli men and women who believe in the values of democracy, humanism, and pluralism, announce that we refuse to participate in any way in the policy of occupation and oppression chosen by the government of Israel . We come from a variety of backgrounds, but we are all convinced that these values are the foundation of a just society

Parents' petition calling for refusal to serve in the territories

The parents of four soldiers founded a movement calling for refusal to do military service in the territories. Thus far, the four have succeeded in gathering more than 100 signatures on a petition scheduled to be released to the media in the coming days.

“Do you feel cold, tired, hungry and depressed? Then you're immoral”

First Sergeant (res.) Alon, a former fighter in the Golani Brigade's Egoz Special Forces Unit, said, “You should know that a soldier thinks about nothing but the time allotted for sleeping, food, and vacations. A soldier never thinks about anything on the moral level.

Hitting the target

The soldiers call it “hitting the target”: In the beginning, they fired according to orders on only specific targets. A few weeks later, things changed. They started getting bored and were looking left and right for “challenges” to improve their aim.

Shooting without orders turns the gun into a toy

They shoot for no reason and without waiting for approval—I mean us, we combat soldiers with the Israeli army in the territories.

Jewish children's violence in Hebron

I served in the field with new recruits in Hebron in a settlement security unit. On my first day there, we went on patrol with the head of the squadron, who showed me the military buildings and sites, so that I could figure out who was against whom and what was going on.

We are guilty

“We did things that maybe we shouldn't have done. We made mistakes. We were kids. But why must we speak of these things now. Why must we intensify hatred of the state? It is better to be silent about some things. The world should not know about them.

Gush Shalom: The majority of the country's leaders and thousands of IDF officers and soldiers have “bloodstained hands”

The recent controversy over the release of prisoners described as “having blood on their hands” is based on hypocrisy and demagoguery, trying to portray Israel as a country of high morals. In reality, many of the country's leaders, including the Prime Minister himself, have blood on their hands.

“The blood of ten-year-old girls plagues our conscience”

A. served in a special unit that, he alleges, used to shoot at anything that moved. “There is an entire generation like me who walk around carrying bombs,” he said.

Testimony: A military doctor gives a lesson in anatomy using a Palestinian corpse

The Breaking the Silence organization has collected new testimony from Israeli soldiers regarding serious actions carried out during the course of the fighting in the territories.

“There's a difference between our refusal and their refusal”

There is no comparison between the left's refusal to serve in the army and the right's refusal—at least, this is what leftist refuseniks say.

Breaking the Silence: Fighters talk about what is happening in the territories

Description of incident: During a routine reconnaissance check (in which the tank was taking part), the gunner, under orders from the commander, fired towards water tanks on the roofs of many homes in Deir al-Balah

Description of incident: At night, we received orders to fire every 15 minutes. The aim was deterrence and the targets were false targets (such as the wall of a building or an earthen mound).

Appeal for dismissal of Dan Halutz and launching of criminal probe

Hard to believe, but true: former Air Force Commander and current Deputy Chief of Staff Gen. Dan Halutz based the importance he gives human life on race during a conversation with a pilot who met with him after signing the pilots' letter

Women's Draft Resistance in Israel

Israel is the only country in the world that practices conscription for women. It is thus also the only country in the world where women's draft resistance exists. The movement of women draft resisters in Israel is constantly on the rise, but no data are available as to its exact extent.

Sharon : IDF soldiers are the most moral

In an interview with parliamentary correspondents, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said this afternoon, “Israeli soldiers act with the utmost morality during operations.” Sharon made this statement following recent incidents in which Israeli soldiers have been accused of killing Palestinians for no reason

Now the mothers' letter

After the letters sent by the pilots, fighters in the General Staff's special reconnaissance unit, and high school students in their final year announcing their refusal to serve in the occupied territories, it's now the turn of parents. Some 60 parents—most of them mothers—are about to release an open letter calling on 12th graders to refuse to serve in the territories.

No one wants to be the last person to die in Gaza

Reservist sentenced to 28 days in prison for refusing to serve in Gaza . He says most soldiers in the squadron avoided service. The IDF remembers the days before the withdrawal from Lebanon

Five refuseniks released

“All in all, we have been through a difficult experience that began two years ago,” Haggai Matar told Ynet after their release from prison. “I hope with all my heart that it's over. While prison changes people, we do not intend to join the service and we hope that the Israeli Army understands this.”