[Tal Mitnick is the first Israeli conscientious objector to be
imprisoned since Oct. 7. He explains why the current war has only
reaffirmed his convictions.]
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INTERVIEW: ISRAELI TEEN SAYS, ‘I REFUSE TO TAKE PART IN A REVENGE
WAR’  
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Oren Ziv
December 28, 2023
972 Magazine
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_ Tal Mitnick is the first Israeli conscientious objector to be
imprisoned since Oct. 7. He explains why the current war has only
reaffirmed his convictions. _

Tal Mitnick, photo: Oren Ziv

 

On Tuesday, Dec. 26, 18-year-old Tal Mitnick from Tel Aviv became the
first Israeli to refuse mandatory military service since
Israel launched its assault
[[link removed]] on
the besieged Gaza Strip more than 80 days ago. Mitnick was summoned to
Tel Hashomer recruitment center, where he declared himself to be a
conscientious objector, and was sentenced to 30 days in military
prison.

Mitnick is one of 230 Israeli high schoolers who signed an open
letter
[[link removed]] in
early September, prior to the war, announcing their intention
to refuse their draft orders
[[link removed]] as
part of a mobilization against efforts by Israel’s far-right
government to restrict the judiciary’s power
[[link removed]]. Connecting
the judicial coup to Israel’s long-standing military rule over
Palestinians, the high schoolers — who organized under the banner of
“Youth Against Dictatorship” — declared that they would not join
the army “until democracy is secured for all who live within the
jurisdiction of the Israeli government.”

At the beginning of December, Mitnick appeared before the army’s
Conscience Committee — consisting of several military
representatives and one academic representative — which rejected his
request for an exemption from military service. Upon declaring his
refusal on Tuesday, Mitnick was immediately taken to Neve Tzedek
military prison near Netanya to begin his sentence, after which he
will be ordered to report again to the recruitment center. In recent
years, conscientious objectors have been put through several periods
of imprisonment, some reaching up to 100 days
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more
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incarceration.

Noa Levy, an attorney representing Israeli draft refusers on behalf of
the Mesarvot [[link removed]] network, told
+972 and Local Call that since the beginning of the war, the army has
largely chosen not to imprison citizens who had announced their
refusal to serve. “Tal is not the first objector whose enlistment
date was after the start of the war,” she explained. “Before him,
there were dozens, both reserve objectors and regular service
objectors. But the army found other ways to deal with them and did not
send them to prison.”

In a message that sharply diverges from the mainstream Israeli public
discourse amid the army’s ongoing assault on Gaza, and at a time
when anyone in Israel who expresses even mild opposition to the war is
facing persecution
[[link removed]] and repression
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Mitnick told +972: “My refusal is an attempt to influence Israeli
society and to avoid taking part in the occupation and the massacre
happening in Gaza. I’m trying to say that it’s not in my name. I
express solidarity with the innocent in Gaza. I know they want to
live; they don’t deserve to be made refugees for the second time in
their lives.”

[Tal Mitnick holds up a sign that says "We'll die before we enlist"
inside the anti-occupation bloc at an anti-government demonstration in
Tel Aviv, April 29, 2023. (Oren Ziv)]
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Tal Mitnick holds up a sign that says
Tal Mitnick holds up a sign that says “We’ll die before we
enlist” inside the anti-occupation bloc at an anti-government
demonstration in Tel Aviv, April 29, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

In a statement of refusal published ahead of his incarceration,
Mitnick described the Hamas-led October 7 attack
[[link removed]] on
southern Israel as “a trauma unlike any other in the history of the
country,” but asserted that the army’s bombardment of Gaza is not
the answer. “There is no military solution to a political
problem,” he wrote. “Therefore I refuse to enlist in an army that
believes that the real problem can be ignored, under a government that
only continues the bereavement and pain.

“I refuse to believe that more violence will bring security,” he
continued. “I refuse to take part in a revenge war.”

Shortly before entering prison, Mitnick spoke to +972 about his
decision to refuse, the fear of entering prison in the current
political climate, and the message he aims to convey to the public in
Israel and in Gaza.

HOW DID YOUR DECISION TO REFUSE ENLISTMENT COME ABOUT? 

Even before the first draft notice, I knew I was not interested in
enlisting. I knew I wasn’t willing to serve in this system that
perpetuates apartheid in the West Bank and only contributes to the
cycle of bloodshed. I understood from the very privileged position I
find myself in, having a supportive family and environment, that I
have an obligation to use it to reach other young people and to show
that there is another way.

When I talk to my friends — some of whom serve and some of whom
received exemptions — about why I’m not going to the army, they
understand that it comes from a humane perspective of consideration
for the other. No one thinks I support Hamas or want [my friends] to
experience harm. There are people who believe that military activity
will bring security; I believe that my public refusal is what will
influence and bring the most security.

[Young protesters burn their draft orders for the Israeli army during
a protest against the government in Tel Aviv, April 1, 2023. (Oren
Ziv)] [[link removed]]
Young protesters burn their draft orders for the Israeli army during a
protest against the government in Tel Aviv, April 1, 2023. (Oren Ziv)
Young protesters burn their draft orders for the Israeli army during a
protest against the government in Tel Aviv, April 1, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

HOW DID THE PROTESTS AGAINST THE JUDICIAL OVERHAUL HELP YOU SHAPE YOUR
WORLDVIEW?

Before the protests, I viewed political activism as something very
distant, and I didn’t think it was possible to make an impact as an
individual. When the protests began and I saw they included members of
Knesset going out to the streets, I realized that politics is closer
to me than I thought, that it can reach every corner of the country,
and that it is possible to have an influence. That’s where I
understood that my actions can affect the reality we see here, and I
have an obligation to act for a better future.

WERE YOU DEBATING WHETHER TO DO IT NOW, GIVEN THE CURRENT
ATMOSPHERE? 

Yes, there were doubts. I always knew that the army doesn’t have a
consistent policy regarding conscientious objectors, that the response
can change in a moment – to release all objectors or to imprison
them for a long time — and I was prepared for that. After October 7
and the [government’s] attack
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the peace movement, on Jewish-Arab partnership, and on Palestinian
citizens expressing
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and solidarity with the innocent in Gaza, even on demonstrations, it
has become frightening. But now is precisely the time to show the
other side, to show that we exist.

DO YOU THINK THERE’S ANYONE IN THE COUNTRY WILLING TO LISTEN TO SUCH
MESSAGES RIGHT NOW?

We all know that we need another way, especially after October 7. We
all know that it simply doesn’t work, that Benjamin Netanyahu is not
“Mr. Security.” Managing the conflict is a policy that hasn’t
worked and eventually collapsed
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We can’t continue with the current situation, and there are two
options now: the right suggests transfer
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genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza; the other side says there are
Palestinians here, living between the Jordan River and the
Mediterranean Sea, and they are entitled to rights. Even people who
voted for Bibi, and even those who supported the judicial reform, can
connect to the idea that everyone deserves to live justly, that
everyone deserves a roof over their heads, and support shared
existence here.

AFTER OCTOBER 7, MANY WHO WERE ON THE LEFT CLAIMED THEY “SOBERED
UP”. DID THIS AFFECT YOU?

There is no justification for harming innocent civilians. The criminal
attack on October 7, in which innocents were killed, is illegitimate
resistance to the oppression of the Palestinian people in my eyes.
However, outlawing legitimate resistance such as protests, or
declaring human rights organizations as terrorist organizations
[[link removed]], leads
people to dehumanize the other and to actions targeting civilians.

[Israeli protesters demonstrate outside the Israeli army's
headquarters in Tel Aviv, calling for a ceasefire in the war on Gaza,
October 28, 2023. (Oren Ziv)]
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Israeli protesters demonstrate outside the Israeli army's headquarters
in Tel Aviv, calling for a ceasefire in the war on Gaza, October 28,
2023. (Oren Ziv)
Israeli protesters demonstrate outside the Israeli army’s
headquarters in Tel Aviv, calling for a ceasefire in the war on Gaza,
October 28, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

October 7 did not change my perspective; it only reinforced it. I
still believe it is impossible to live with the siege on Gaza and an
occupation, and not feel [any consequences]. I believe that many
people finally understand this. The idea of “out of sight, out of
mind” doesn’t work. Something needs to change, and the only way is
to talk, to reach a political settlement. I’m not saying it will
solve everything, but it will be another step toward justice and
peace.

WHAT WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE AT THE CONSCIENCE COMMITTEE? 

The pre-committee interviewer was aggressive. She questioned my
nonviolence because I opposed the government’s actions and the
occupation. Essentially, due to my opinions, she told me that I am not
a conscientious objector because these were political views.

In the end, I went through the pre-committee, and appeared before the
committee itself less than a week after the interview, while many
people usually wait half a year. It was a hostile interview: me
opposite four people.

They attacked my opinions. They asked me what I would have done on
October 7, and how I would have handled the situation. They constantly
interrupted me, and said they would phrase the question differently. I
tried to continue answering, but they said I wasn’t responding to
them. I am not the leader of Israel; they can’t place me in that
position.

They asked me how my refusal is different from the refusal
of Brothers in Arms
[[link removed]] [a group
of army veterans who declared their refusal to show up for reserve
service in protest against the judicial coup]. I replied that I
appreciate them and think it’s important that there are people who
have a red line for service — but I set my red line before that, and
I hope their red line moves in the direction of my red line.

Two days later, they told me I hadn’t passed the committee. I
wasn’t surprised. I didn’t receive any explanation, they just
called and told me the result.

HOW DO YOU PLAN TO PASS THE TIME IN PRISON? 

I have a few long books, which I hope they will allow me to bring in:
“Drinking the Sea at Gaza” by Amira Hass, a history of the CIA,
and a history of the Mizrahi Struggle by Sami Shalom Chetrit. I spoke
with conscientious objectors who were in prison before; it is
definitely not a summer camp, but from what I understand, it is
possible to cope with it. You just need to speak in the right way and
not think that you are above anyone else.

_A version of this article was first published in Hebrew on Local
Call. Read it here
[[link removed]]._

_Oren Ziv is a photojournalist, reporter for Local Call, and a
founding member of the Activestills photography collective._

_ABOUT 972 MAGAZINE: _

_OUR TEAM HAS BEEN DEVASTATED BY THE HORRIFIC EVENTS OF THIS LATEST
WAR – THE ATROCITIES COMMITTED BY HAMAS IN ISRAEL AND THE MASSIVE
RETALIATORY ISRAELI ATTACKS ON GAZA. OUR HEARTS ARE WITH ALL THE
PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES FACING VIOLENCE._

_We are in an extraordinarily dangerous era in Israel-Palestine. The
bloodshed unleashed by these events has reached extreme levels of
brutality and threatens to engulf the entire region. Hamas’
murderous assault in southern Israel has devastated and shocked the
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wreaking destruction on the already besieged strip and killing a
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backed by the army, are seizing the opportunity to escalate their
attacks on Palestinians._

_This escalation has a very clear context, one that +972 has spent the
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* Tal Mitnick
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* Israel
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* Gaza
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* Conscientious Objectors
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