An Israeli teenager was sentenced last Tuesday to 30 days in prison for refusing to enlist in the Israeli army that is launching an attack on Gaza, a war that the teenager condemned as “a campaign of revenge… not only against Hamas, but against the Palestinian people.”
Tal Mitnick, an 18-year-old from Tel Aviv, entered the Tel Hashomer recruitment center with other members of the Mesarvot Network, a group of young men conscientious objectors to military service; He announced his refusal to be conscripted into the Israeli army, attributing his decision to his dissatisfaction with the war on Gaza and the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine.
He explained in his refusal letter that he did not want to participate “in the continuation of repression and the continuation of the cycle of bloodshed, but rather to work directly for a solution.”
Mitnick’s 30-day prison sentence is considered exceptionally long; Israeli refusers are usually imprisoned first for a period ranging from 7 to 10 days, with the possibility of adding up to 200 additional days for those who insist on refusing even after their initial release.
Many observers believe it is likely that this teenager will be punished due to his outspoken criticism of Israeli government policies and practices.
Tal Mitnick, an activist in the Mesarvot network, showed up today at Tel Hashomer base and was sentenced to 30 days in military prison. Listen to what he had to say before he walked in.
Support him and other refusniks: pic.twitter.com/zu1XZJqmhG
— Mesarvot מסרבות (@Mesarvot_) December 26, 2023
Mitnick expects to be imprisoned for an additional period after serving his first month behind bars. In a statement posted Tuesday on social media, the teenager strongly criticized “the idea that this land belongs to only one people.”
He added, “I reject the idea that more violence will bring security, and I refuse to participate in a war of revenge… We must realize the fact that after weeks of the ground operation in Gaza, in the end, there must be negotiations, an agreement, and the return of the hostages.”
Haaretz newspaper reported that Mitnick was – before surrendering himself to the recruitment office – accompanied by several dozen demonstrators who brought drums, banners and loudspeakers to express their opposition to the war, and to call on teenagers who were going for their first call to the Israeli army to military service to refuse it.
Israel has two options to move forward, according to Mitnick. “Either what the right presents in terms of genocide or ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, or what the vast majority of Israelis see, who I hope will be against the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, and will be in favor of resolving this conflict by peaceful means by recognizing that there is 7 Millions of Palestinians live in this land, and 7 million Jews, and no one is ready to go anywhere else.”
He concluded by saying that the only way we will be able to have security is to give everyone equal rights and give people a safe place to live.