42 reservists in Israel reported to have 'refused to fight in Gaza'

According to a report by the Haaretz newspaper, 42 reservists serving in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) signed a letter at the end of May refusing to fulfill their military duties for the first time since the attacks on Gaza began.

In the letter, which 10 soldiers signed with their full names and the rest with their initials, the Israeli soldiers stated, "The six months we spent participating in the war proved to us that military action alone will not bring back the kidnapped people (Israeli hostages). Even if we pay the price for our stance, we will not return to military service in Gaza."

The Israeli soldiers stated that they refuse to participate in the ground offensive that the Israeli army has been conducting in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip since May 7, adding, "This attack, in addition to endangering our lives and the lives of innocent people in Rafah, will not bring the kidnapped (Israeli hostages) back alive. Rafah or the hostages? We choose the hostages."

The soldiers who refused to fight in Gaza declared, "For this reason, following the decision to enter Rafah at the expense of a hostage exchange deal, we, as male and female reservists, declare that our conscience does not allow us to ignore the lives of the kidnapped and sabotage another deal."

It was noted that 16 of the soldiers who signed the letter serve as reservists in the army's intelligence unit, 7 in the Home Front Command, 2 in special forces, and the rest in armored, engineering, and infantry units.

Tal Varidi, a 28-year-old reservist who works as a teacher and signed the letter, stated that "he would join the army if called to serve in northern Israel (on the Lebanese border), but would not fight in Gaza again."

Expressing his discomfort with Israel launching a ground offensive in Rafah instead of making a hostage exchange deal, Varidi said, "After the operation in Rafah began, I realized that this went beyond what I considered morally right; it cannot be justified."

26-year-old Yofel Garin, a reservist in the Paratroopers Brigade of the Israeli army, expressed that he had doubts about continuing his reserve service even before October 7, 2023, due to his opposition to the occupation and Israel's policies in the West Bank.

Garin noted that on October 8, 2023, he set aside his moral doubts and agreed to serve in the army.

Stating that Israeli soldiers burned the homes of Palestinians, Garin said that when his platoon commander gave the order to burn a house containing Palestinians, the Israeli army crossed a red line and it was time for him to leave the army.

Garin stated, "I talked to the commander and tried to understand the reason, asking, 'Was the house the home of a Hamas member?'" and that the commander replied, "The house needs to be burned so that no military equipment is left behind and the army's combat methods are not revealed."

The Israeli reservist added that he was not convinced by his commander's answer.

29-year-old Israeli reservist Michael Ofer Ziv explained that he felt confused when he saw Israeli warplanes bombing Gaza while he was at headquarters.

Ziv assessed, "It is very difficult to determine what is justified and what is not. In the war, 30,000 people are not killed directly, but most are left under the rubble during aerial bombardments. What is happening is random firing."

Israeli reservist Ziv stated that he realized how many civilians every bomb he saw could kill.

Stating that the Israeli army could "do anything" to achieve goals such as "finishing Hamas and bringing back the hostages," Ziv said, "Burning buildings without operational necessity is contrary to military orders and the values of the Israeli army. But buildings are already being blown up and destroyed."

The Israeli army had announced that it had called up 360,000 reservists after launching its attacks on Gaza.

In the attacks Israel has carried out on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 37,658 Palestinians have been killed, including at least 15,694 children and 10,279 women, and 86,237 people have been injured.

While it is reported that there are still thousands of dead under the rubble, civilian infrastructure is also being destroyed by targeting hospitals and educational institutions where the public has taken shelter.

News Source: AA