Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu addressed the recent wave of protest letters circulating in the name of reserve soldiers, dismissing them as a political stunt orchestrated by a vocal minority. Speaking on Friday, he portrayed the campaign as a rehashed effort aimed at undermining his administration.
“Again the same letters,” said Netanyahu, “Sometimes in the name of pilots, of Navy veterans, and so on. The public no longer buys into their propaganda lies that are so impressive to the media. These letters were not written in the name of our heroic soldiers. They were written by a small group of thorns, who are operated by foreign-funded organizations with one goal – to overthrow the right-wing government.”
He insisted that the effort does not reflect the broader population of soldiers, but instead represents a small and detached faction. “This is not a wave. This is not a current. This is a small, noisy, anarchistic, and disconnected group of retirees – most of whom haven’t served in years.”
Netanyahu also claimed that these actions send the wrong signal to Israel’s adversaries and undermine national strength. “These thorns are trying to weaken the State of Israel and the IDF, and they are encouraging our enemies to harm us. They have already sent a message of weakness to our enemies once. We will not let them do it again.”
He went on to state that the military will not tolerate insubordination under any circumstances. “The citizens of Israel have learned the lesson – refusal is refusal, regardless of what fancy name is given to it. Anyone who encourages refusal will be dismissed immediately. The IDF fights, the IDF wins, and we are all behind it.”
This came as a new group of dissenters, this time from within the Intelligence Corps, released a protest letter. It was signed by a combination of reservist officers, current personnel, and veterans, calling on the government to prioritize securing the release of hostages, even if it means halting the war in Gaza.
In the statement released by Intelligence Corps members, which closely echoed previous protest letters, they expressed alarm over the war’s direction and purpose. “We identify with the serious and worrying assessment that at this time the war mainly serves political and personal interests and not security interests. The continuation of the war does not contribute to any of its declared goals and will lead to the deaths of hostages, IDF soldiers, and innocent people. We are concerned about the erosion of reservists and the increasing rates of non-compliance with reserve duties and are worried about the future impacts of this trend.”
The signatories further argued that a negotiated deal is the only way to bring the hostages home safely. “Only a deal can return hostages in peace, while military pressure mainly leads to the killing of hostages and endangers our soldiers. Every day that passes jeopardizes their lives, every additional moment of hesitation is a disgrace.”
Separately, roughly 1,900 academics from Israeli universities and colleges signed a petition echoing the sentiments of the Air Force protest letter. They wrote, “At this time, the war mainly serves political and personal interests and not security interests.” The document concluded with the same line found in the Intelligence Corps’ letter: “Every additional moment of hesitation is a disgrace.”
{Matzav.com}