Let's all shoot the messenger
The letter from the 43 soldiers has caused a storm of controversy, with hostile comments greatly outnumbering supportive ones. Here is a sample.
1) Haaretz: Mutiny in the Israeli Stasi: exposing the occupation’s worst filth, a strong message of support from Gideon Levy;
2) Times of Israel: To serve and protest, a less hostile report;
3) JPost: Edelstein: 8200 conscientious objectors serving interests of Israel-haters, those who think the letter writers are cowards, traitors and left-wing extremists;
4) Ynet: Unit 8200 reservists react to refusal letter: You should be ashamed, Ynet first published the letter (in Hebrew only) and interviewed 6 of the refuseniks. Now it reports on anonymous objections from Unit 8200;
5) MEE: Unit 8200 refuseniks face ‘sharp’ action from army, wave of anger from politicians;
Palestinians are subjected to daily, intrusive searches by Israeli police, acting on intelligence provided by Unit 8200. Photo by Abbas Momani / AFP /Getty
Mutiny in the Israeli Stasi: exposing the occupation’s worst filth
The elite intel unit veterans took a milestone in announcing they will no longer serve the occupation. In their footsteps, perhaps, a few veterans of the Shin Bet security service will also come forward and talk about what they did at work.
By Gideon Levy, Haaretz
September 14, 2014
The 43 veterans of the elite intel unit who announced that they will no longer agree to serve the occupation have made a double contribution to Israeli society.
Like other conscientious objectors, including soldiers and military pilots, these members of Unit 8200 are courageous and moral. But their refusal has an additional dimension, the likes of which have never been seen before in Israel. They etched another scar into the ugly face of the Israeli occupation, deeper than the ones that preceded it, because it involves the darkest and most base sides of the occupation’s malignant routine. In a healthy society, the reservists’ action and their disclosures would have set off real shock waves. But in Israel, all the systems of defense, offense and propaganda, of ridicule and denial, have already been co-opted for the purpose of swiftly burying this important letter by objector-spies.
They, too, are among the finest of our youth, perhaps the best – almost like the pilots. Unit 8200, the largest unit of the Israel Defence Forces, has the right of second pick, after the air force, in selecting recruits. Their image is sparkling – and their future is assured; tech firms lie in wait for them. Their military service is free of risk and – like the pilots – they don’t see their victims up close. Until now, their service was nearly free of ethical qualms. They do not kill, beat or carry out arrests, they are jobniks, desk jockeys with prestige, the kind of child nearly every parent would want. Their weapon is their intelligence, their computer and other sophisticated instruments; their bunker is their office. A large part of their work, it must be stressed, is vital and legitimate. And still, Unit 8200 is Israel’s Stasi.
In contrast to the East German intelligence service, its Israeli successor targets not citizens of the state, but rather the Palestinians who are subject to its occupation. Anything may be done to them, using means the Stasi would have envied. Like the Stasi, it involves not only intelligence gathering and espionage, but also mechanisms to control, extort and exploit an entire nation. This is based on erecting an enormous army of collaborators and informers, recruited through the vicious exploitation of their weaknesses, needs, illnesses and sexual orientations.
Thanks to Unit 8200, an entire nation exists without the right to privacy. The great contribution of the new objectors is that they have told us about this. In their Arabic studies, they were taught all the forms of the Arabic word for “homosexual” – because they need it. They were required to find out about the sexual orientation, health and financial problems of tens of thousands of individuals. Perhaps there’s a nephew on Israel’s list of wanted terrorists, perhaps a cousin who’s wanted for questioning, offering an opportunity for extortion. Perhaps they’ll agree to talk about the next-door neighbor in exchange for a chemotherapy treatment; a report in return for surgery; snitching in exchange for an income boost; a bit of information in return for a night in Tel Aviv.
This despicable collecting work – there’s no other way to describe it – is done by soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces, and “every Jewish mother should know” this. They collect important security information, and alongside it also political and personal information, and they mark targets for assassination. A few of them tried to talk about it over the weekend, and the radio and television stations rocked with laughter. The commentators vied with each other for adjectives: “trippy,” “scandalous,” “negligible,” “spoiled brats” and, worst of all, “politicos” and “lefties” – in unison, of course. No one came to the defense of a group of people who, until Thursday, were a source of pride. Not even activists from the LGBT community, who are called in after any inappropriate comment about lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders. They have been silent about the persecution of their Palestinian counterparts by the state, which brags about its enlightened attitude toward the gay community.
That’s Israel for you. As long as the members of Unit 8200 were up to their arms in the filth of the occupation, they were considered principled young men and women, and were respected. But as soon as they decided they’d had enough, they became targets for ridicule and ostracism. The step they have taken is a milestone. In their footsteps, perhaps, a few veterans of the Shin Bet security service – the other pillar of the Israeli Stasi in the territories – will also come forward and finally talk about what they did at work. Their commanders already did, partially, in “The Gatekeepers.”
The military and media establishment will quickly stomp on the 43 objectors, but perhaps they will not be forgotten. From out of the deepest darkness, they broke the silence.
Members of Unit 8200 training in September 2012. Photo by Moshe Shai/Flash90)
To serve and protest
By Joshua Davidovich, Times of Israel
September 2014, 2014
EXTRACT
The weekend revelation that 43 veteran members of Intelligence unit 8200 — one of the most storied groups in Israel’s military — were refusing to serve in the territories over ideological grounds sent shockwaves through the press over the weekend, and as Sunday dawned over the front pages of Israel’s Hebrew newspapers, it seemed clear the affair was just getting its feet wet.
“We reservists in 8200 are ashamed of our refuser brothers,” reads the main headline of Yedioth Ahronoth, putting an exclamation point on the heavy criticism, covered in all three dailies, that the group has been subjected to since its letter came out.
The paper, which published the letter by the 43 in its Friday edition, follows up with a whip-crack of a statement by 200 other reservists who, well, you read the headline.
“We alumni of Unit 8200, soldiers in the past and present, wish to express shock, disgust and utter repudiation of the unfortunate letter by our comrades in the unit,” the counter-letter begins and doesn’t get any cheerier from there.
In Israel Hayom, Dan Margalit jumps on the opprobrium-wagon, spanking the refusers for their “spoiled protest” and pretty much accusing the 43 of being in league with Hamas: “For 14 years, Unit 8200 has defended my friend Aharon Peretz, who has absorbed rockets in the center of Sderot and has not run away. And also my beloveds, who risked their lives during the war by going into tunnels in Gaza so the terrorists couldn’t emerge in the hearts of Nahal Oz, or Sufa or Kfar Aza. Yet a tiny portion of the rich kids of the unit don’t want to take part, and we don’t have to force them.”
Despite the blowback, Yedioth’s Shimon Shiffer says the country should not take the easy way out by ignoring what these 43 reservists are trying to say.
“There are those who will say this is a group of spoiled reservists serving under better conditions who just ‘discovered’ the occupation. But I suggest not downplaying this discovery. Decision makers should stand before the signatories and explain why after 45 years of controlling the lives of Palestinians there hasn’t been found a way to separate from them or live with them,” he writes.
There’s a fat chance of that happening, given the response of Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who called the letter an attempt to harm the unit’s activities, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s non-response that the group would continue to do important work.
Yet Haaretz, which notes both, also records the backing given the group by lefty NGO Yesh Gvul, which released a statement criticizing Netanyahu and Ya’alon for “on one hand thanking the soldiers of Unit 8200 for their professional work, and on the other hand forcing them to continue carrying out war crimes.”
The paper’s Gideon Levy calls the unit the Stasi, and is beside himself with joy over the “mutiny” of some of its members. “As long as the members of Unit 8200 were up to their arms in the filth of the occupation, they were considered principled young men and women, and were respected,” he writes. “But as soon as they decided they’d had enough, they became targets for ridicule and ostracism. The step they have taken is a milestone. In their footsteps, perhaps, a few veterans of the Shin Bet security service – the other pillar of the Israeli Stasi in the territories – will also come forward and finally talk about what they did at work.”
….
Yuri Edelstein, conscientious objectors serving those who hate Israel. Photo by Marc Israel Sellem.
Edelstein: 8200 conscientious objectors serving interests of Israel-haters
Likud minister Livnat says letter by intelligence reservists refusing to serve is a well-funded left-wing extremist campaign; Meretz calls to end “occupation,” calls objectors courageous.
By Lahav Harkov, JPost
September 2014
Conscientious objectors from the IDF’s elite 8200 intelligence unit are motivated more by extreme left-wing politics than genuine concern for human rights, Likud politicians said Sunday, two days after 43 such reservists published a letter refusing orders in protest of the army’s conduct in the West Bank and Gaza.
Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein called the letter political, pointing to the timing of its release, after Operation Protective Edge, as problematic and saying the protesters are providing “an excellent service for those who hate Israel.”
“It pains me that there are people like this among us,” he stated.
“This is a clearly political declaration, which is meant as an attack against the IDF, that is published when the whole world is criticizing us harshly and baselessly, in a way that shows no understanding of the reality of our lives here,” Edelstein wrote on Facebook.
Edelstein praised 8200’s work as life-saving and essential to the IDF’s success.
“If there is reasonable and justified criticism, it should be examined, but not through mudslinging against the IDF and the State of Israel,” he wrote.
“Tell me who your lawyer is, and I will tell you who you are,” Culture and Sport Minister Limor Livnat wrote on Facebook, pointing out that the protesters are represented by attorney Michael Sfard, who also represents left-wing organizations such as B’Tselem, Yesh Din, Peace Now and “Courage to Refuse.”
“Sfard represents Palestinian prisoners…he stood behind petitions against the separation barrier, represented residents of [Palestinian village near the barrier] Bil’in and petitioned for the evacuation of Migron, the Ulpana neighborhood in Beit El and more,” Livnat wrote.
The minister called the reservists’ letter “nothing more than a cheap gimmick, a media spin and cynical and manipulative use of military service for purely political ends.”
X the way the letter was sent to the media and the interviews the reservists gave, in addition to the fact that they are represented by Sfard, shows that this is a well-timed, well-funded political campaign.
Likud Minister of Culture Limor Livnat, who asserted ‘the officers are part of a well-funded left-wing extremist campaign’; she does tend to discover treachery wherever two or three are gathered together. Last year she re-staffed the National Council for Culture and the Arts to ensure it wasn’t made-up of the usual left-wingers. As Haaretz said, ‘she seems to be trying to force her world view on the artists, who she identifies as her political enemies’.
“Don’t be too surprise if we find them, together with their lawyers, signing a petition [to the court] against soldiers or settlers who refuse to evacuate an outpost,” she added.
Coalition chairman Yariv Levin (Likud) and chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Subcommittee on Intelligence, a Unit 8200 alumnus, said he rejects all of the letter’s claims.
“Military service is a privilege,” he said, “and whoever refuses to help protect our country crosses the line from those who support Israeli democracy and the liberty it represents to those who support Palestinian terrorism, which attacks innocent Israeli citizens.”
Levin posited that the IDF is the most moral army in the world and added that he is certain that it does not waste its resources on harming or spying on innocent civilians.
The coalition chairman called for the IDF to dismiss the protesters from reserve duty immediately.
“These people don’t deserve the privilege of continuing to serve in Unit 8200,” he added.
Levin and opposition leader Isaac Herzog (Labor) both served in the intelligence unit in their mandatory service and reserve duty. On Saturday night, Herzog said he is “revolted” by those who wrote the letter, that 8200 saves thousands of lives and the protesters are only hurting Israeli civilians.
On Sunday, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni wrote on Facebook that she “opposes refusing orders whether the person is on the Right or Left. Period. There are other, appropriate ways to voice opinions and even criticism.”
Livni added that, as a member of the Security Cabinet, she appreciates the “life-saving information” gathered by Unit 8200 and encouraged it to continue.
Bayit Yehudi faction chairwoman Ayelet Shaked called the 8200 rebels “a bunch of hypocrites…who are slandering Israel in the world and acting as tools in the hands of those who seek to delegitimize Israel.”
MK Yoni Chetboun (Bayit Yehudi) said the army should dismiss the “spoiled” protesters from service.
“Our duty to the IDF isn’t a personal matter of ‘I feel like doing this, I don’t feel like doing that,'” he said. “Israel can’t allow itself this luxury. Those who refuse orders from either direction [left or right] must be denounced, no matter what their job or political stance.”
Ever the political nonconformist, MK Moshe Feiglin (Likud) defended the reservists, saying it is their right and responsibility to refuse an order they see as immoral. At the same time, however, he said it is the system’s job to punish them by law, and the protesters must happily accept that consequence.
“That is, in summary, conscientious objection,” he said. “The problem is when both sides don’t do their job and this important democratic device does not lead to a true examination of values.”
Meretz leader Zehava Gal-On said that the 8200 protesters acted bravely, making a values-based decision even though they know they are breaking the law, and are willing to pay the price.
According to Gal-On, “a government that refuses peace condemns its soldiers to face difficult moral dilemmas and carry on their consciences harm to innocent people, especially in a war between a military power and a civilian population.”
“Is it not time for the government to face the content [of the letter] and not be shocked and insulted?” Gal-On asked. “The soldiers are saying ‘we are serving, we want to serve, but we don’t want to violate human rights because of political decisions not to end the occupation. Take politics out of our service.'”
Similarly, MK Nitzan Horowitz (Meretz) said he admires the protesters for taking a difficult step that carries a high price, and would feel the same about someone on the Right.
“I think we need to be considerate of [the 8200 objectors] as much as possible and not pounce on them out of a desire for revenge. Mostly, we need to listen to them,” he wrote on Facebook.
Horowitz said he opposes refusing orders on principle, but the focus should be that Israel is “ruling millions of people under a stranglehold. This is bad for Israel in every way – morally, socially, economically, diplomatically and from a defense standpoint. Of course it is a disaster for Palestinians, but I am looking at us first because I am Israeli and Jewish and my country and people are most important to me.”
Unit 8200 reservists react to refusal letter: You should be ashamed
After 43 officers from IDF’s top intel unit send letter vowing to refuse to report for duty related to occupation, over 200 soldiers, officers from unit respond, saying ‘Refusal to serve on basis of politics has no room in IDF and certainly not in 8200.’
By Elior Levy, Ynet
September 14, 2014
Over 200 former soldiers and officers from the elite military intelligence Unit 8200 have responded to a letter signed by a group of reservists who said they would not report for reserve duty related to the occupation of the Palestinians, saying they are “ashamed” of their comrades.
Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter
The letter and full interview with the group was first published by Ynet and its sister print publication Yedioth Aharonoth Thursday. Saturday the group responded to the wave of criticism their letter inspired.
Unit’s soldiers respond: ‘You should be ashamed’
In the response letter sent to the head of the unit and the IDF’s military intelligence, the signatories noted they reject any form of refusal to serve and vow to report for reserve duty.
“We wish to express our dismay, disgust and complete disavowal of our friend’s unfortunate letter,” they wrote.
“Refusal to serve on the basis of politics has no room in the IDF and certainly not in Unit 8200. When we as reserve soldiers are called to serve, we put our orientations and political opinions aside and serve our country.”
They also denied the original letter’s original claim, namely that the unit is involved in immoral spy tactics against innocent Palestinian civilians and thus serves a tool of political oppression.
“As people who know from their own experience what the unit has done over the years, we cannot make peace with the accusations of lake of ethical and moral standards in the unit’s work. Over the years we have witnessed countless incidents in which our work has saved lives on both sides. Moreover, when ethical dilemmas arose, we saw they were seriously and maturely addressed in accordance with international law and the IDF’s ethical code,” the letter read.
L. who signed the response letter, told Ynet that though he understood the signatories did not want to “be perceived as traitors, but they have lost their minds. They want to tell the world what happens inside a top secret unit for political proposes. They should have addressed this internally.”
H. another responder who served during Operation Protective Edge, admitted the work entails ethical dilemmas, but said they should not be aired publically.
“It’s true there are moral dilemmas involved in our work, but it is also shameful to tarnish the unit while it cannot defend itself publically because of the top secret nature of its works. That’s the reason we have responded,” he explained.
Breach in the fence
The letter has inspired the ire of Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who slammed it as aiding those out to delegitimize Israel and the IDF. Sunday saw with it a new wave decrials from the IDF’s top brass.
Brigadier General (res.) Hanan Gefen, who served as Unit 8200 commander in the past, slammed the letter Sunday, saying “the letter is a transgression of the ethical and personal code of 8200’s people, this is the first time something of this magnitude has happened. ”
Gefen said the letter was “motive by a perverse political agenda. The more we examine this, the more we will see we should not be given these people a platform to sound their views. ”
According to Gefen, “never has someone breached the fence is such a way… everyone at 8200 fought for the right to be in 8200, and whoever doesn’t want to be, won’t be.”
He called for a “drastic and dramatic” response to the letter, and said he doubts “there is any politician, even Arab, who would support this letter.”
IDF Spokesperson’s Unit chief Brig. Gen. Moti Almoz also commented on the letter, writing on his Facebook page on Sunday that “there is no room in the IDF for refusal to serve.”
Almoz called the move an “exploitation of military service in order to express a political position. We see the incident as severe and serious disciplinary action will be taken.” The IDF Spokesperson also noted that “only 10 out of the 43 signatories on the letter actually belong to the circle of control.”
Unit 8200 refuseniks face ‘sharp’ action from army, wave of anger from politicians
Army, politicians and veterans in Israel decry open letter from members of elite military intelligence team detailing ‘abuses’ of occupation
By Middle East Eye and agencies
September 14, 2014
The 43 members of the elite Israeli intelligence team, Unit 8200, who signed an open letter of conscientious objection face “sharp and clear” disciplinary action from the army.
The letter, in which scores of reservists said they would not serve because of “abuses” committed against Palestinians, will be treated with the utmost severity, according to a statement posted on Facebook by Israeli army spokesperson Motti Almoz.
“There is no place for refusal in the [Israeli army]”, he wrote, accusing the reservists of exploiting their military service to “express a political stance.”
Almoz also alleged that only 10 of the letter’s signatories had actually been involved in the kind of work described in the letter.
However, the reservists hit back, accusing Almoz of manipulating the situation and making allegations that the refuseniks are unable to refute because of security restrictions.
The open letter, which was sent to Israel’s political and military leadership last week and released to media on Thursday, was one of the most high-profile expressions of conscientious objection in years.
The signatories – who are reservists and former members of 8200 – said that the intelligence collected by the unit “was an integral part of Israel’s military occupation,” and that they would refuse to continue to serve.
The letter sought to change a common perception in Israel, where military service is mandatory, that a role in military intelligence is less harmful than that of a front-line soldier.
They charged that information gathered by Unit 8200 was used by civilian intelligence agencies to coerce Palestinians uninvolved in militant activity, and urged other members of the intelligence corps “to speak out against these injustices and to take action to bring them to an end.”
Veterans rush to defence of Unit 8200
Almoz’s comments came as scores of Unit 8200 veterans rallied to its defence on Sunday, and politicians across the board criticised the refusal to serve.
In a letter of reply on Sunday, 200 veterans of the unit denounced their former comrades’ refusal to serve.
“We wish to express shock, disgust and complete disassociation from the regrettable letter that was written by our comrades from the unit,” they wrote in the letter, excerpts of which were published in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot newspaper.
“Political refusal to serve has no place anywhere, and particularly so in Unit 8200. The moment we, as soldiers in the reserves, are called to the flag, we set aside our political inclinations and opinions, and come to serve the state.”
Commentators said the fact that the refuseniks were members of one of Israel’s most prestigious military units made their conscientious objection all the more remarkable.
“The Unit 8200 letter represents a watershed moment in the expressions of military refusal in recent decades,” wrote Shimon Shiffer in Yediot Aharonot.
“This time, we are talking about intelligence gatherers who are refusing to spy on millions of Palestinians … about refusal by the soldiers to resign themselves to the day-to-day reality in the territories.”
Unit 8200 carries out electronic communications monitoring and surveillance, similar to work performed by the US National Security Agency and Britain’s GCHQ.
The unit is one component of the broader military intelligence corps and shares information with Israel’s civilian intelligence agencies.
Anger from politicians of various stripes
The refuseniks’ letter also drew criticism from politicians across the board, from both the government and the opposition.
Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon described it as a “foolish and offensive attempt” to harm the unit.
The speaker of the Knesset, Yuli Edelstein, said that those who signed the original letter of refusal had “done a great service to haters of Israel.”
Opposition leader Isaac Herzog, himself a veteran of Unit 8200, said he opposed soldiers refusing to serve.
“I’m not saying that there are no mistakes. It is certainly possible that there were,” he wrote on his official Facebook page.
“But there are ways to complain and ensure such claims are examined and discussed,” he said.
“There are ways to effect change… but not by encouraging and calling for a refusal to serve or through publishing damaging statements around the world.”
A second Labor party official, Shelly Yachimovich, was less measured.
“Why didn’t you refuse at the time of truth? … Cowards.”
It is as yet unclear what kind of punishment the Israeli army is threatening the refuseniks with.
Israeli army soldiers can face jail if they disobey a direct order, but not for refusing reserve duty, according to an army sergeant who spoke to al-Jazeera.