ISR12105-12130 to 12134-11431-11973-12053-300602
20 June 2002


ISRAEL: Update on newly imprisoned conscientious objectors.


The wave of emergency call-ups for reserves has receded. The number of objectors currently being held in prison, to the best of our knowledge, is now 9 - five are reservists and the other four are draft resisters. This is a tall but more or less routine figure.
Objectors Yair Khilou (ISR11763) and Igal Rosenberg (ISR11885), on whose 4th and 5th imprisonment terms we have reported in recent co-alerts, have been released from prison and last week were finally exempted from military service altogether, on
grounds of incompatibility. Objector Daniel Weinbach (ISR12105), on whose third term of imprisonment we reported, has been sent to prison on 16 June for the 4th time.
This information indicates a general change in the army's policy towards draft resisters. Sergeiy Sandler's (New Profile) conjecture is that the army now works strictly according to the letter of internal military regulations - a draft resister is
discharged from the army after accumulating a total of 90 days in prison or above. As you might recall, up to recently the practice was that the objector has to accumulate three prison terms of any length before being exempted. What does not go 'by the book' are the various psychological manipulations used against the objectors in the course of their ordeal: military officials threaten them with prison terms of many moths and even
years, they try to make the objectors believe that they would be held repeatedly in prison indefinitely, and recently they also started sending them to mock discharge committees, so that they would believe that they are about to be discharged, and then suffer disappointment. Still, the objectors, as we saw, hold their ground, and whoever persists in the face of the military system will eventually succeed.


Daniel Weinbach (ISR12105) - 4th Imprisonment
Draft resister Daniel Weinbach, a 20-year-old immigrant from the former USSR, was sentenced on 16 June to 14 days in prison. This is his 4th prison term in a row. In a statement explaining the motives behind his objection he wrote:
"I, Daniel Weinbach, am unwilling to serve in the Israel Defence Forces. I am unwilling to take part in the genocidal war of occupation managed by our government.
"It has been going on for 35 years, more than 100 settlements with more than 200,000 settlers living in them. And after all this can we still say that we fight to attain peace, and that the Palestinian Authority will not rest until it will obtain all the lands of the State of Israel? It is we who do these things, and not them. It is we who take a little bit more from them
day after day.
"Every day, we (the Arabs and the Jews) drift further apart from each other, hatred becomes stronger and there is almost no hope for peace. A new generation is born to hatred and war. Do we expect them to live in peace with each other, when the only thing they see is hatred, when they live in frustration and without hope? The policy of the Israeli army only strengthens our control over the Occupied Territories and destroys the last
hope still left. And who will be harmed by all this in the end, I ask? The civilians on both sides.
"No! I shall not take part in all this. Only after more and more people like myself will come up on both sides, saying 'that's it! We've had enough!' only then will this all be over".
Daniel is expected to be released from prison on 28 June. There is a possibility that he be imprisoned again afterwards. His prison address is:


Daniel Weinbach
Military ID 7052543
Military Prison No. 4
Military Postal code 02507, IDF
Israel
(You can also send messages of support to Daniel by e-mail, at:
mailto: danvainbach@yahoo.com)


Rabia' Jihad Sa'ad (ISR12130)
Objector Rabia' Jihad Sa'ad (18) was sentenced on 12 June to 14 days in prison because of his conscientious objection to military service. Rabia' is the son of Jihad Sa'ad, who is currently the head of the Druse Initiative Committee - the veteran Druse objectors' group. The Druse objectors refuse
to serve in the Israeli army because it fights against their own Palestinian people. However, beyond these arguments, Rabia' Sa'ad is also a pacifist, who refuses to be part of any army whatsoever.
Rabia' is expected to be released from prison on 24 June, but it is highly likely that he will be imprisoned again several times. His prison address is:


Rabia' Jihad Sa'ad
Military ID 7232805
Military Prison No. 4
Military Postal code 02507, IDF
Israel


David Sonnschein (ISR12131)
David Sonnschein, aged 26, from Tel Aviv, was sentenced to 35 days in prison on 12 June due to his refusal to perform reserves service in the Occupied Territories. Sonnschein is one of the initiators of the Courage to Refuse declaration (also known as the Letter of the Combatants,  http://www.seruv.org.il).
Sonnschein's case might be especially interesting. His demand to have his case brought before a court-martial, rather than before an officer in a routine military disciplinary procedure, was turned down by the army. A formal court procedure would allow the defence to invoke the "black flag" principle (based on the Kafr Kassem trial verdict of 1957) which requires soldiers to refuse an order that is "flagrantly illegal".
The Courage to Refuse group has petitioned Israel's Supreme Court against the army's refusal of a court-martial, the hearing is supposed to be held as this co-alert is written.
If the original sentence imposed on David Sonnschein remains in force, he is due to be released from military prison on 13 July. His prison address is:


Lieut. David Sonnschein
Officers' Company
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


Gilead Svrisky (ISR12132) and Itai Svirsky (ISR12133)
Gilead Svirsky (31 years old, from Tel Aviv, married with two children) and his brother Itai, were both sentenced on 12 June to 28 and 21 days in prison respectively due to their refusal to perform reserves duty in the Occupied Territories. Both brothers are among the signatories of the Courage to Refuse declaration.
Gilead Svirsky is due out of prison on 7 July. Itai Svirsky is due out on 30 June. Their prison addresses are:


Sgt. Maj. Gilead Svirsky
Reserves Company
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


Lieut. Itai Svirsky
Officers' Company
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


Yoseph (Sefi) Sendik (ISR11431) - 2nd Imprisonment
Yoseph (Sefi) Sendik, aged 38, was sentenced on 5 June to 28 days in Prison.
To the best of my knowledge, Sefi Sendik is the first reservist since the beginning of the Intifada to be sent to prison for the second year in a row for his refusal to serve in an army of occupation. He was previously incarcerated for 14 days in August 2001.
According to the report from Yesh-Gvul, one day before reporting for duty, Sendik was approached by a senior officer (in a discreet conversation at a Tel Aviv cafe) with a tempting proposition: he was offered a post with the Rear Command, in civil defence duties which would "not offend his conscience". The offer seemed an honourable climb-down from Sendik's refusal
position, but it was conditional: he was forbidden to speak to the press!
Sendik rejected the condition. On reporting for duty, it turned out that the offer had been a trick. He refused again and was promptly jailed.
"If this is not a local initiative, the exercise with Sefi may represent an overall change of tactics by the army in its treatment of the refuseniks.
The harsh crackdown of April (69 jailed!) having failed to break their spirits, the army may now be trying to tempt individuals (officers?) with cushy jobs, anything, as long as they break ranks with a refusal community now numbering over 1000" - writes Yesh-Gvul in its report. On our part we can add that objector Yair Khilou, before being finally exempted from military service, has also experienced something similar, although perhaps
in a less serious tone. An officer in the Induction Base warmly recommended Yair to approach a Mental Health Officer (the most popular way out of the army for avoiders of military service, which, however, can hardly involve any publicity) and has solemnly promised Yair that such a move will lead to his immediate exemption from military service. Naturally, Yair did not listen to this kind advise, and no doubt wisely so.
Sefi Sendik is expected to be released from prison on 30 June. His prison address is:


Lieut. Yoseph (Sefi) Sendik
Officers' Company
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


Uri Dotan (ISR12134)
Uri Dotan, a student, was sentenced on 2 June to 35 days in prison for his refusal to serve in reserves in the Occupied Territories. His scheduled release date is 3 July. His prison address is:


1st Sgt. Uri Dotan
Reserves Company
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


Ilan Windholtz (ISR11973) - 3rd Imprisonment
Objector Ilan Windholtz, aged 18, was sentenced on 26 May to 28 days in prison. This is his third consecutive prison term. In a brief statement he prepared for the occasion of his first imprisonment he wrote:
"I, Ilan Windholtz, hereby declare that I am unwilling to serve in any military unit, combatant or non-combatant, which fortifies our control over the Territories and/or the Palestinian people, and protects and strengthens the settlements and the occupation. I therefore request to be exempted from
service in the Israeli army on grounds of conscience and ideology - an ideology opposed to the conceptions held by the Israel Defence Forces and the governments of the State of Israel since 1967. I am willing to bear the consequences of my stand, imprisonment included".
Ilan is due to be released from prison on 20 June. It is quite likely that he will be imprisoned again afterwards. His prison address is:


Ilan Windholtz,
Military ID 7265473
Military Prison 4
Military Postal code 02507, IDF
Israel


Victor Sabransky (ISR12053) - 2nd Imprisonment
Victor Sabransky, an 18-year-old draft resister from Haifa, was sentenced on 23 May to 28 days in prison. This is his second prison term in a row. In a letter to the Minister of Defence announcing his objection Victor wrote: "I was raised on democratic values... I believe in full equality among people... I am sure the main reason I have not yet declared refusal is the
fear... and the social pressure applied... by the Israeli society to enlist in the State's military forces... I am not a soldier at all, I am still a boy and I was born into this world to live and not to die in the Territories for the misguided policy of the State and the Military..."
Victor was expected to be released from prison on 17 June. His prison address was:


Victor Sabransky
Military ID 7312440
Military Prison No. 6
Military postal code 01860, IDF
Israel.


War Resisters' International calls for letters of support to all imprisoned conscientious objectors.


War Resisters' International calls for letters of protest to the Israeli authorities, and Israeli embassies abroad.


War Resisters' International calls for the immediate release of all imprisoned conscientious objectors.


Andreas Speck
War Resisters' International


ADDRESSES
=========


Mr. Binyamin Ben-Eliezer,
Minister of Defence,
Ministry of Defence,
37 Kaplan st.,
Tel-Aviv 61909,
Israel.
e-mail: mailto: sar@mod.gov.il or mailto: pniot@mod.gov
Fax: ++972-3-696-27-57 / ++972-3-691-69-40 / ++972-3-691-79-15


Commander of Military Prison No. 4,
Military Postal Code 02507
IDF, Israel
Fax: ++972-3-957-52-76


Commander of Military Prison No 6
Military Prison No 6
Military postal number 01860,
IDF
Israel.
FAX: ++972-4-869-28-84



Addresses of Israeli media:
Ma'ariv:
2 Karlibach st.
Tel-Aviv 67132
Israel
Fax: ++972-3-561-06-14
e-mail:  editor@maariv.co.il


Yedioth Aharonoth:
2 Moses st.
Tel-Aviv
Israel
Fax: ++972-3-608-25-46


Ha'aretz (Hebrew):
21 Schocken st.
Tel-Aviv, 61001
Israel
Fax: ++972-3-681-00-12


Ha'aretz (English edition):
21 Schocken st.
Tel-Aviv, 61001
Israel
Fax: ++972-3-512-11-56
e-mail:  letters@haaretz.co.il


Jerusalem Post:
POB 81
Jerusalem 91000
Israel
Fax: ++972-2-538-95-27
e-mail:  news@jpost.co.il or  letters@jpost.co.il


Jerusalem Report:
Fax: ++972-2-537-94-89


Radio (fax numbers):
Kol-Israel ++972-2-531-33-15 and ++972-3-694-47-09
Galei Tzahal ++972-3-512-67-20


Television (fax numbers):
Channel 1 ++972-2-530-15-36
Channel 2 ++972-2-533-98-09





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