On Saturday I sat with other members of the conservative synagogue in Madison, Wisconsin, listening to Yonatan Shapira, a pilot in the Israeli Air Force since 1991 before he was dismissed after refusing to serve in the Occupied Territories.
It was a controversial event. Shapira calls the bombing of the Occupied Territories illegal and immoral, and he makes a point of bringing his views to ardently pro-Israel groups, as well as pro-Palestinian activists. Tempers run high all around him. But the soft-spoken Shapira hits notes people on both sides seem able to hear. And this is perhaps the most compelling thing about him. As one of the members of Brit Tzedek v'Shalom (www.btvshalom.org), the Jewish peace group that brought him to town, said, "Hearing him humanizes the Israeli side. And that's important because getting beyond dehumanization is critical in getting to peace."
Shapira sees the humanity of Palestinian civilians--the children who are "collateral damage" of missions his fellow pilots are asked to fly as no different than the humanity of Israeli civilians. And many of his colleagues in the Air Force feel the same way.
In October 2003, Shapira and 26 other pilots signed a letter refusing to participate in aerial attacks on populated areas of Palestine, saying the attacks did not serve Israel's security. "These actions are illegal and immoral, and are a direct result of the ongoing occupation which is corrupting all of Israeli society," the letter states. "Perpetuation of the occupation is fatally harming the security of the state of Israel and its moral strength."
I was impressed by Shapira's answer to one of the members of the Madison congregation, who told him he had every right to make his appeal to Israel's conscience at home. But here in the United States, especially in a liberal university town, he may be bolstering noxious anti-Israel and anti-Jewish sentiment.
Shapira listened, nodding, and then he explained: He has spoken to many groups of Europeans and Palestinians and others hostile to the Israeli government. Afterwards, audience members came up to tell him how much better they felt toward Israelis after hearing "a regular Israeli guy" like him. It makes sense. After all, refusing to admit doubt about the justice and morality of bombing civilians is hardly a path toward reconciliation or understanding.
Among Israelis, as a pilot, Shapira was a rock star. "Girls like you. Their mothers and grandmothers like you," he joked. He and his 26 co-refusers traded in this popularity to speak their conscience. Because of that, they are uniquely effective messengers.
Yonatan Shapira's decision to refuse orders is hard to argue with. The grandson of Holocaust survivors, he says he loves Israel and believes he must uphold the Jewish values he was raised with. That means, he says, the deliberate bombing of civilian residential areas, in order to kill suspected militants, is out of the question. He also says that he was taught in the Air Force that it is every soldier's duty to disobey illegal orders, and so he feels that he is acting not only within his moral rights but within the law. So sure is he, he says he has invited prosecution, believing that the Israeli courts would find his refusal to be correct. The government has avoided a direct legal confrontation, which he takes as a sign that it feels its case is weak.
Israeli soldiers who are putting their lives on the line to defend the settlements are increasingly aware of both the strategic and the moral unworkability of the occupation, Shapira said in his talk. The doubts of the soldiers about the morality of their mission undermines Israel's strength, he went on.
But his audience of American Jews demanded to know about the threats to "drive the Jews into the sea" and the refusal of many Palestinians and surrounding Arab countries to acknowledge Israel's right to exist.
Shapira replied that Israel still has the strongest Army in the region. "We could take over Syria in three days," he says. Abandoning the occupation will not make the Army suddenly weak.
Ultimately, most Israelis believe that a two-state solution, with the border between Israel and Palestine roughly tracing the 1967 borders, is inevitable, Shapira pointed out. The only question is how long will it take, and how many more people will die.
For his part, Shapira is determined to do what he can to stop the killing sooner, rather than later. Hearing him gave me hope.
Ruth Conniff is Political Editor of The Progressive. This blog post was written March 7, 2005
| Background material from |  |
The Pilots' Letter
"We, Air Force pilots who were raised on the values of Zionism, sacrifice, and contributing to the state of Israel, have always served on the front lines, willing to carry out any mission, whether small or large, to defend and strengthen the state of Israel.
We, veteran and active pilots alike, who served and still serve the state of Israel for long weeks every year, are opposed to carrying out attack orders that are illegal and immoral of the type the state of Israel has been conducting in the territories.
We, who were raised to love the state of Israel and contribute to the Zionist enterprise, refuse to take part in Air Force attacks on civilian population centers. We, for whom the Israel Defense Forces and the Air Force are an inalienable part of ourselves, refuse to continue to harm innocent civilians.
These actions are illegal and immoral, and are a direct result of the ongoing occupation which is corrupting all of Israeli society. Perpetuation of the occupation is fatally harming the security of the state of Israel and its moral strength.
We who serve as active pilots - fighters, leaders, and instructors of the next generation of pilots -- hereby declare that we shall continue to serve in the Israel Defense Forces and the Air Force for every mission in defense of the state of Israel."
Signed: Brigadier General Yiftah Spector, Colonel Yigal Shohat, Colonel Ran, Lieutenant Colonel Yoel Piterberg, Lieutenant Colonel David Yisraeli, Lieutenant Colonel Adam Netzer, Lieutenant Colonel Avner Ra'anan, Lieutenant Colonel Gideon Shaham, Major Haggai Tamir, Major Amir Massad, Major Gideon Dror, Major David Marcus, Major Professor Motti Peri, Major Yotam, Major Zeev Reshef, Major Reuven, Captain Assaf, Captain Tomer, Captain Ron, Captain Yonatan, Captain Allon, Captain Amnon"
Note from Gila Svirsky
Friends
Here is the best gift imaginable for Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, which begins this Friday: The refusal to serve of 25 Israeli Air Force pilots. To understand why this event will shock Israelis in the morning newspapers, you have to know that Air Force pilots are the heroes of Israel, epitomizing the best, brightest, and bravest. Below is my quick translation of the internet article prepared by Yediot Aharonot, Israel's largest circulation newspaper by far. It gives much more insight than the dry Ha'aretz article. Read it and savor the impact that this will have, undermining support for the occupation. This letter is a blessing. May it catalyze a speedy end to the occupation, and presage the dawn of reason and, ultimately, peace. In the Middle East and everywhere.
Shalom / Salaam from Jerusalem,
Yediot Aharonot report
Air Force Pilots in Reserves: We Refuse to Attack in the Territories.
Pilots in Reserves and Air Crew sent the following letter today to Air Force Commander, Dan Halutz: "We are opposed to carrying out attack orders that are illegal and immoral of the type the State of Israel has been conducting in the territories." Twenty five pilots, former pilots, and air crew sent a petition today [Wednesday, 24 September 2003] to General Dan Halutz, Commander of the Air Force, in which they declared that they will not participate in attack missions in the territories.
An article to be published in the weekend magazine of Yediot Aharonot reports that the most outstanding name among those who signed is that of Yiftah Spector, a Brigadier General in the reserves. Spector is a mythological pilot in the Air Force, who commanded squadrons and bases, participated in the bombing of the nuclear reactor in Iraq, and was a candidate for corps commander. Young pilots are raised on battle stories about Spector and on books that he himself wrote. He still flies in the Air Force as a trainer in the reserves for the flight school.
According to those who signed the letter, "gray refusal" is already widespread in the Air Force, and includes even pilots in the standing army. There are dozens of pilots who refuse to participate in assassinations, but get out of them quietly in private arrangements with the commander of the squadron. The weakness of the list of refuseniks, so far at least, is that only two pilots of attack helicopters signed the letter. Pilots of attack helicopters are those who carry out almost all the assassinations.
In a response to Channel 10, the Commander of the Air Force said, "This is not an earthquake in the Air Force, and it's important to keep this in proportion. This is the first I hear of a letter like this. We have the most humane and moral army there is. This is political refusal. I don't understand how one can refuse in advance to carry out an order that was not yet given. Political refusal is the mother of all dangers to this nation. Refusal should not be a part of our language..
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