idf soldier jailed for refusing to fight in lebanon
kudos to these brave men of conscience for refusing to fight in this unjust but apparently popular war.
Israeli Soldier Incarcerated for Refusing to Fight
Aaron Glantz, OneWorld US Thu Aug 3, 11:54 PM ET
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 3 (OneWorld) - Israeli authorities have sentenced an army officer to 28 days in a military prison for refusing to serve in the ongoing Israeli campaign in Lebanon.
32-year-old Reserve Captain Amir Paster, an infantry officer and student at Tel Aviv University, is the first Israeli soldier to be punished for refusing to serve in the current conflict and has received harsh criticism from the Israeli military for setting what it termed a bad example for his troops.
According to the soldier support group Yesh Gvul ("There Is a Limit"), Paster refused to serve on the grounds that Israeli operations were harming civilians, declaring at his trial "taking part in this war runs contrary to the values upon which he was brought up."
Supporters say Paster's act was courageous given that the vast majority of Jewish Israelis support the war.
"One poll showed 90 percent of Jewish Israelis support the campaign," journalist and Yesh Gvul activist Peretz Kidron told OneWorld, noting that has extended to groups like Peace Now and the pro-peace Meretz political party.
"A lot of people feel that the very existence of Israel is at stake, especially because the other side has also made indiscriminate attacks on Israeli centers," he added. [get real, folks. a few thousand lightly armed guerillas in lebanon does not constitute an existential threat to a regional superpower armed with nuclear weapons, fighter planes, helicopter gunships, tanks, and every kind of military advantage money can buy, backed by the US. this is ludicrous. the lopsided body counts prove it.]
Paster was the second Israeli reservist to publicly refuse to take part in the military campaign. On July 20th, 28-year-old TV producer Staff Sergeant Itzik Shabbat refused to served in the Occupied Territories to free forces in the standing army for the war in Lebanon.
"I know people will attack me and ask how could I not take part in this war when Qassams are falling on my hometown and Katyushas on the towns in the north," Shabbat told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. "In my opinion, only this type of opposition that I've chosen will put an end to the madness that is going on now and will shatter the false feeling that the entire home front supports this unnecessary war that is based on deceptive considerations."
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Israeli Soldier Incarcerated for Refusing to Fight
Aaron Glantz, OneWorld US Thu Aug 3, 11:54 PM ET
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 3 (OneWorld) - Israeli authorities have sentenced an army officer to 28 days in a military prison for refusing to serve in the ongoing Israeli campaign in Lebanon.
32-year-old Reserve Captain Amir Paster, an infantry officer and student at Tel Aviv University, is the first Israeli soldier to be punished for refusing to serve in the current conflict and has received harsh criticism from the Israeli military for setting what it termed a bad example for his troops.
According to the soldier support group Yesh Gvul ("There Is a Limit"), Paster refused to serve on the grounds that Israeli operations were harming civilians, declaring at his trial "taking part in this war runs contrary to the values upon which he was brought up."
Supporters say Paster's act was courageous given that the vast majority of Jewish Israelis support the war.
"One poll showed 90 percent of Jewish Israelis support the campaign," journalist and Yesh Gvul activist Peretz Kidron told OneWorld, noting that has extended to groups like Peace Now and the pro-peace Meretz political party.
"A lot of people feel that the very existence of Israel is at stake, especially because the other side has also made indiscriminate attacks on Israeli centers," he added. [get real, folks. a few thousand lightly armed guerillas in lebanon does not constitute an existential threat to a regional superpower armed with nuclear weapons, fighter planes, helicopter gunships, tanks, and every kind of military advantage money can buy, backed by the US. this is ludicrous. the lopsided body counts prove it.]
Paster was the second Israeli reservist to publicly refuse to take part in the military campaign. On July 20th, 28-year-old TV producer Staff Sergeant Itzik Shabbat refused to served in the Occupied Territories to free forces in the standing army for the war in Lebanon.
"I know people will attack me and ask how could I not take part in this war when Qassams are falling on my hometown and Katyushas on the towns in the north," Shabbat told the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. "In my opinion, only this type of opposition that I've chosen will put an end to the madness that is going on now and will shatter the false feeling that the entire home front supports this unnecessary war that is based on deceptive considerations."
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posted by scalene at 11:56 AM
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