Israel teenagers refuse to join military
presstv.ir
Sun Mar 9, 2014 9:58AM GMT
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Dozens of Israeli teenagers have refused to enlist in the military in protest against crimes committed by Israel against Palestinians.
In a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, the teenagers announced their refusal to do military service.
“Their refusal is designed to protest the continuing occupation and the intrusion of the military into civilian life, something which further entrenches chauvinism, militarism, violence, inequality, and racism,” the organizers of the letter said in a press release, in an apparent reference to Palestinians.
“My refusal is a way to express opposition to injustices committed by us and in our name every day,” said Mandy Kartner, one of the signatories to the protest letter.
Shaked Harari, another signatory, said, “My friends and me refuse to be cannon fodder.”
The letter also called on “all Israeli youths to carefully examine the significance of serving” in the military.
Israeli men and women are called up for military service at the age of 18, but most ultra-Orthodox Jews are exempted from the service.
Last week, hundreds of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews took to the streets in al-Quds (Jerusalem) to protest against Tel Aviv’s plans to enroll them into the military.
The demonstration came in response to a draft law that would end military exemptions given to seminary students.
An Israeli parliamentary committee recently came up with a military bill that is expected to pass later this month and is expected to be implemented from 2017. It will set quotas for ultra-Orthodox men to join the military or civilian public services.
Supporters have hailed the bill as a historic step. However, ultra-Orthodox leaders argue that such a move would deny them the right to devote themselves full-time to the study of religious scriptures |
