Tel Aviv, Israel (AP) – When nearly 1,000 Israeli Air Form Signed an open letter last week Calling at the end of the war in Gaza, the army responded immediately, saying that it would reject any active reservist who signed the document.
But in the days that followed, thousands of retired soldiers and reservists through the army signed similar letters of support.
The growing campaign, which accuses the government of perpetuating war for political reasons and of not bringing the remaining hostages, has exposed the deep division and disillusionment The fights of Israel in Gaza.
By overflowing in the army, he threatened national unity and raised questions about the army’s ability to continue to fight in force. It also looks like Bitter divisions that broke out at the beginning of 2023 During the government’s attempts to revise the legal system of Israel, which say that many weaken the country and encouraged the attack on Hamas later that year which sparked the war.
“It is clear that the renewal of the war is for political reasons and not for security reasons,” a retired pilot was one of the initiators of the Air Force letter.
A return to war
The catalyst for letters was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Decision on March 18 to return to war Instead of sticking to a ceasefire that facilitated the release of certain hostages.
Netanyahu says that military pressure is necessary to force Hamas to release the remaining hostages. Critics, including many families from the hostages, fear that it will kill them.
A month after Netanyahu resumed war, none of the 59 hostages held by Hamas has been released or rescued, 24 of which would still not be alive.
In their letters, the demonstrators ceased to refuse to serve. And the vast majority of the 10,000 soldiers who signed are retired in all cases.
Nevertheless, Poran said that their decision to identify themselves as ex -pilots was deliberate – given the respect of the Jewish majority of Israel for the military, and in particular for hunting pilots and other prestigious units. Tens of thousands of academics, doctors, former ambassadors, students and high -tech workers have signed similar letters of solidarity in recent days, also demanding the end of the war.
“We are aware of the relative importance and weight of the brand of Israeli Air Force pilots and we have estimated that this is exactly the type of case where we have to use this title in order to influence the company,” said Poran.
Elusive war objectives
The war broke out on October 7, 2023, when Hamas led a surprise cross -border attack, killing around 1,200 people in southern Israel and taking 251 others hostage.
Throughout the war, Netanyahu set two major objectives: destroy Hamas and bring the hostages back to the house.
Israel’s offensive has reduced a large part of Gaza in rubble and killed more than 51,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, who do not make the difference between civilians and combatants.
While Israel has been subjected to strong international criticisms on the Devastation in GazaThe domestic opposition to the conflict reflects a widespread belief that Netanyahu’s war objectives are not realistic.
Almost 70% of Israelis now say that bringing the hostages to be the most important objective of the war, against just over 50% in January 2024, according to a study by Jerusalem Think Tank Israel Democracy Institute. Almost 60% of respondents said that the two goals from Netanyahu could not be made together.
The survey interviewed nearly 750 people and had an error of 3.6 percentage points.
Netanyahu’s opponents also accused him of regaining war on his hard line coalition partners, who threatened to overthrow the government if he finished the fighting.
Escape from politics
Many people have been surprised by the army’s Snap decision to reject Air Force reservists who signed the protest letter.
The army, which is compulsory for most Jewish men, has long served as a crucible and unifying force among the Jewish majority of Israel. Many key units count strongly on reservists, who should often be used well in the forties.
In a statement, the army said it should be “especially political disputes”.
As the protest movement increased, a military official said that the army took the letters “very seriously”.
He said he joined a list of challenges to call the reservists and that the army is working to support them. An increasing number of reservists have ceased to declare duties, citing exhaustion, family reasons and the financial burden on missing work.
“Any civilian can have their opinions. The problems arise when people use the army as a tool promoting their opinions, whatever,” said the manager, speaking on condition of anonymity under military directives.
The army dilemma
Eran Duvdevani, who organized a letter signed by 2,500 former paratroopers, told AP that the army was facing a dilemma.
“If he continues to release the pilots from service, what about all the others who signed the letters?” Will they also be returned from the service? ” He said.
He said he had organized the letter to show that “the pilots are not alone”. Their concern concerning the direction of war “is a generalized opinion, and you must take it into consideration”.
Although only a few hundred of the signatories are still actively used, the Israeli army has been extended by 18 months of fighting and is unable to divert anyone from the reserve service. Many Israelis are also furious that, while reservists are called on several occasions for the action, the The government continues to grant military exemptions to the partners realizing ultra-Orthodox in Netanyahu.
The number of Israelis who continue to go to the reserve service fell so low that the soldiers went to social networks to try to recruit people to continue serving.
The letters of protest illuminate widespread divisions
Eran Halperin, an expert in social psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, described the letters “the most important indication of the erosion of ethics in this particular war”.
Although the war has benefited from broad support at the start, doubts have grown up while so many hostages continue to languish in captivity and the Israeli balance sheet frames. Nearly 850 soldiers have been killed since the start of the war.
“It is very, very difficult to maintain and manage a war in such a violent conflict when there is such disagreements on the main questions concerning the war,” said Halperin.
In recent days, Netanyahu’s office has published a wave of messages praising meetings with hostage families, stressing that he does everything he can to hasten their return.
On Tuesday, he and his Minister of Defense visited the Northern Gaza, where Netanyahu congratulated the “incredible reservists” doing “wonderful work”.
Netanyahu’s office has published videos of him walking through the sand dunes surrounded by dozens of soldiers.
“We are fighting for our existence,” he said. “We are fighting for our future.”
