Also this issue: The Price Is Wrong -Bruce Schimmel The War at Home -Howard Altman Letters to the Editor

March 20-26, 2003

slant

Refuse

One Israeli soldier's decision not to serve in the occupied territories.

by Amir Rosenfeld

I began my army service in August 1991. The first intifada had been raging for almost four years. The occupied territories had long since become a battleground between Palestinians opposing the occupation and Israelis fighting to stop the insurrection. My first experience in the occupied territories was during the advanced infantry-training period. Our mission was to prevent any anti-Israeli activity. The orders we had gave us complete control over the Palestinian population. We were 18-year-old rulers of the land.

Much has happened since then. Palestinians bring terror to our doorstep on a daily basis. Hundreds of Israelis have been killed and thousands wounded in Palestinian terrorist attacks. Suicide bombers are their weapons of choice. They have a horribly shortsighted leadership, they use abhorrent tactics of assassination and suicide, and they are deliberately preventing any peaceful agreement.

But the daily life of a Palestinian is quite different from mine. Extremely long curfews are a normal army routine. They can last months with only an occasional few hours or a day to shop for essentials. Children and parents are imprisoned in their homes. Roadblocks halt the lives of the entire population. People are unable to get to their workplaces or schools. Pregnant women give birth at home or on the roads. Cancer patients die of irregular treatment. Too many innocent Palestinians are killed as a result of clashes with Israeli military. Houses are demolished, olive trees are uprooted, and soldiers are allowed to fire at virtually anything they find suspicious. There is no more room for escalation save for public massacres and population transfer.

The fear that soldiers feel for their lives while serving in the territories, the hatred they acquire and the absolute power they have over the population is a recipe for moral disaster. When you are there, you are simply drawn into the situation. There is no such thing as a benign, moral occupation. It is an oxymoron. The only conscientious solution is to avoid it. That is why I signed the refuser letter. I was banished from my unit as a result.

But other aspects of the occupation are even more disturbing: Remaining in the occupied territories will bring the demise of Israel. Within two decades there will be more Arabs than Jews between Jordan and the Mediterranean. More than 75 percent of them are in the occupied territories. In many measurable parameters Israel is rapidly becoming a Third World country. The attitudes acquired by soldiers and Israelis due to the occupation are reflected in a progressively violent society. Our qualitative advantage, which has kept us alive, is deteriorating. Our democracy is being challenged by public sentiments of hatred, fear and revenge and by lack of rational thinking. Morale is hurt because we are not really fighting for our homes. Being killed by a sniper in the streets of Gaza is not equated with heroism while defending the country. Motivation is on the decline. The number of persons who find excuses to be released or be exempt from the army is always on the rise. Fewer people, Israeli and foreign, believe in our cause.

Regardless of who is to blame, regardless of whether we have a right to be there or not, we must end the occupation or Israel will be destroyed. It will cease to be a democracy and it will cease to be a safe haven for the Jewish people.

We have an alternative. We are the stronger party in this conflict. We have all the necessary military might. It is time to take our fate into our own hands and break loose from the stronghold of extremists on both sides. We should unilaterally evacuate the occupied territories and end our investment in our self-destruction. Most settlers came to the territories looking for a peaceful life in the countryside, enticed by huge financial benefits and cheap housing offered by the Israeli government. If they were to be offered a financially backed option to return into Israel the vast majority of them would leave the territories immediately. Also, we should build an impassable barrier to prevent the free passage of Palestinians into Israel and to greatly reduce their ability to terrorize us. Brought on by severe public pressure, the construction of the barrier has already begun, despite the opposition of the settlers. This barrier should be along the Green Line, but with modifications that will appease the majority of Israelis, such as including East Jerusalem.

When the occupation ends and a borderline stands, the Palestinians will be free to choose: They could decide to let go of some of their dreams and to create a country for themselves in the territories they control, or they could decide to continue fighting for the rest of Israel. It will be their choice. But much like Israel’s previous conflicts with the Arabs, if they decide to fight for our land and our homes, they will surely lose. But whatever the Palestinians’ decisions or actions may be -- by evacuating the territories and ending the occupation, Israel will have reversed its currently somber-looking future.

Amir Rosenfeld commanded a platoon numbering more than 100 soldiers and subordinate officers. If you would like to respond to this Slant or have one of your own (850 words), contact Howard Altman, City Paper executive editor, 123 Chestnut St., third floor, Phila., PA 19106 or e-mail altman@citypaper.net.