Israel – now Yesh Gvul is harassed

Press Release 26/6/09

Three members of the Yesh Gvul forum – Micha Rachman, Mordechai Zeldon and Peretz Kidron – have been summoned to interrogation by the Israeli police. The alleged grounds for the investigation is the suspicion that the group and its members engage in “incitement to evade military service”, do so consistently and “promise financial incentives” to that end.

The charges are blatantly absurd – no YG activity or publication has ever “incited” against service with the army. The group campaigns against the occupation and against abuses committed by the army in enforcing the occupation, and soldiers who refuse to take part in illegal actions gain moral and political support from YG, but we have raised any objection or opposition to military service as such.

Accordingly, we can only deduce that the police action constitutes political harassment, designed to overcome growing public unease over the role of the army and the systematic abuses it commits in enforcing the occupation regime.

We hope the police and their political bosses will lose no time in dropping a ludicrous investigation which has no factual basis. But should they persist, we hope our friends and wellwishers join us in protesting this illegitimate use of resources by a police force which consistently fails to take action against right-wing extremists, racists and settler violence.

We will keep you informed of developments.

Best Wishes
Yesh Gvul