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As I write this update, Netanyahu’s government is ramming through its anti-democratic legislative agenda. Israel’s reserve army, a cornerstone of its defense policy, is in open rebellion. Just this weekend, as some 70,000 Israelis marched in sweltering heat from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, over 500 air force pilots formally announced that if the legislation passes, they will refuse to serve. On Saturday, they were joined by nearly 10,000 soldiers from other branches. Later in the day, dozens of former heads of the army and the security services published a letter backing the refusers. Never in Israel’s 75-year history has refusal to serve in the army been mainstreamed in this way.
PHOTO: The sign “We Won’t Kill and Die in the Service of the Settlers” greets tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters as they enter Jerusalem on Saturday night at the end of a march from Tel Aviv
At first glance, these developments might seem like a domestic spat with no relevance to the future of the Palestinians. Our Israeli partners, however, see the current turmoil as an outstanding opportunity to significantly expand the anti-occupation movement. They cite a number of factors.
Refusal to serve, until recently seen by the mainstream as tantamount to sacrilege, has been normalized as a legitimate form of civil resistance.
Centrist Israelis are increasingly realizing that without an end to the military occupation of the Palestinians there will be no democracy in Israel: A central pillar of the current Israeli government is a fascist party led by West Bank settlers, and many elements of its legislative agenda are designed to facilitate the occupation regime in the West Bank.
The Anti-Occupation Bloc of the democracy protest movement has experienced steady growth and its message -- No Democracy With Occupation -- is increasingly visible at the demonstrations.
In an effort to make the most of the current opportunities for change, Mothers Against Violence, a new voice for refusal in Israel and an RSN partner, have launched a new campaign: Get the Soldiers Out! Because of their unique position as mothers and grandmothers of soldiers, their calls for refusal have generated traction among audiences not normally associated with the anti-occupation positions.
They’re a very lean organization, however, and have requested our professional assistance. Drawing on the cadre of refusers we’ve supported over the past two decades, we’ve managed to recruit a number of mentors with the requisite experience and skills to help MAV build their capacity. Over the next six months, RSN mentors will work with MAV and a new group of reservist refusers to ensure that they have the tools to make the most of this political juncture’s potential to significantly expand the anti-occupation movement. We’ve just launched a crowdfunding campaign to support this effort, and hope to raise $20,000 to fund them through the end of the year.
In solidarity,
Mattan Helman
Executive Director
Refuser Solidarity Network