Battle rages as high school grads hold IDF-refusal ceremony – analysis

A group of high schoolers at the Gymnasia High School in Herzliya on Sunday held an impromptu event to sign a document declaring that they would refuse to serve in the IDF to protest the judicial overhaul as well as “the occupation.”

The event had been technically canceled in an internal battle between the high school’s principal and its Parents Association, as the parents wanted to avoid potentially losing government funding for holding the anti-IDF event. Additionally, controversy over  the signing ceremony led the group to delay filing the document to the IDF to a later date.

A statement signed by the high schoolers involved in the protest said, “As young women and men about to be conscripted into Israeli military service, we say NO to dictatorship in Israel and in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We hereby declare that we refuse to join the military, until democracy is secured for all who live within the jurisdiction of the Israeli government.”

They added, “In view of this, we have no choice but to take extreme measures and refuse to serve in the army. A government that destroys the judiciary is not a government that we can serve. An army that militarily occupies another people is not an army that we can join.”  

Last week, over 200 high schoolers from a variety of schools – though with the Gymnasia leading the way – who are supposed to be on the path to being drafted in the near future to the IDF announced that they would refuse their call-up because of the judicial overhaul and “the occupation.”

The group, affiliated with the “bloc against the occupation,” has unleashed a new unpredictable dynamic in the battle over the judicial overhaul and the IDF, both because it jumps into the controversial Israeli-Palestinian conflict and because it deals with the mandatory draft.

Until now, groups like “Brothers in Arms” who have led the protests against the judicial overhaul, have explicitly repudiated taking stances on foreign relations issues and have been laser-focused on the judicial overhaul issue.

Their strategy has been to serve as a “big tent” which can be a home for both traditional right and left wing voters (regarding foreign affairs), but all of whom support an independent judiciary and are concerned by the prospect of unlimited executive branch power.

In addition, the focus of the protests has been threats to quit serving by seasoned reservists, many of whom either have no formal legal obligation to continue to serve, or who at least informally can quit at any time, given that less than 2% of the Israeli population does reserve duty.

The new campaign could pose a messaging dilemma for the protest leaders since the high schoolers are mandated to serve by law, something all of the reservists have already done.

A representative for Brothers in Arms said they have no connection to the group, and will proceed with their own separate campaign which is dedicated to blocking the judicial overhaul.

For the IDF, the new group could pose a major new challenge by reducing enthusiasm for mandatory service, something which to date has not been a big problem, despite 10,000 reservists quitting or threatening to quit.

From the August draft numbers, the IDF presented statistics showing even some growth in interest in being drafted to certain combat units.

However, the IDF is concerned about the long-term impact of negative attitudes toward IDF service on future high schoolers. This is because such future high schoolers could spend a longer time getting mixed messages about IDF service than those graduating high school soon, many of whom were already hooked into the idea of IDF service before the judicial overhaul debate started.

How would the IDF handle this?

The group, affiliated with the “bloc against the occupation,” has unleashed a new unpredictable dynamic in the battle over the judicial overhaul and the IDF, both because it jumps into the controversial Israeli-Palestinian conflict and because it deals with the mandatory draft.

Until now, groups like “Brothers in Arms” who have led the protests against the judicial overhaul, have explicitly repudiated taking stances on foreign relations issues and have been laser-focused on the judicial overhaul issue.

Their strategy has been to serve as a “big tent” which can be a home for both traditional right and left wing voters (regarding foreign affairs), but all of whom support an independent judiciary and are concerned by the prospect of unlimited executive branch power.

In addition, the focus of the protests has been threats to quit serving by seasoned reservists, many of whom either have no formal legal obligation to continue to serve, or who at least informally can quit at any time, given that less than 2% of the Israeli population does reserve duty.

The new campaign could pose a messaging dilemma for the protest leaders since the high schoolers are mandated to serve by law, something all of the reservists have already done.

A representative for Brothers in Arms said they have no connection to the group, and will proceed with their own separate campaign which is dedicated to blocking the judicial overhaul.

For the IDF, the new group could pose a major new challenge by reducing enthusiasm for mandatory service, something which to date has not been a big problem, despite 10,000 reservists quitting or threatening to quit.

From the August draft numbers, the IDF presented statistics showing even some growth in interest in being drafted to certain combat units.

However, the IDF is concerned about the long-term impact of negative attitudes toward IDF service on future high schoolers. This is because such future high schoolers could spend a longer time getting mixed messages about IDF service than those graduating high school soon, many of whom were already hooked into the idea of IDF service before the judicial overhaul debate started.

JPost