This PDF 1.4 document has been generated by Adobe InDesign CS2 (4.0.4) / Adobe PDF Library 7.0, and has been sent on pdf-archive.com on 22/02/2016 at 07:22, from IP address 98.242.x.x.
The current document download page has been viewed 634 times.
File size: 42.19 MB (432 pages).
Privacy: public file
breaking the silence
occupation of the territories
Israeli soldier testimonies 2000-2010
breaking the silence
Forward
In June 2004, over sixty former soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces presented
an exhibition of written testimonies and photographs from their military service
in Hebron. The exhibition led to the founding of Breaking the Silence, an
organization that depicts the Israeli Occupation in the words of the soldiers
entrusted with carrying it out. From its inception, the goal of Breaking the
Silence has been to expose the day-to-day reality of military service in the
Occupied Territories. The organization interviews men and women who have
served in the security forces since the outbreak of the Second Intifada in
September 2000, and publishes their testimonies on its website, in booklets,
and in the media. The organization holds ongoing public events, lectures,
parlor meetings, and tours in the Territories in an attempt to encourage public
debate about events there.
To date, the organization has published six booklets: Breaking the Silence:
Soldiers’ Testimonies from Hebron, 2004; Testimony Collection #1, which
deals with cases of IDF soldier abuse, violence, and looting in the Territories;
Testimony Collection #2, which discusses rules of engagement in the
Territories; Soldiers’ Testimonies from Hebron, 2005-2007; Soldiers Tell About
‘Operation Cast Lead,’ Gaza, 2009; and Breaking the Silence - Female Soldiers
Testify about their Military Service in the Territories.
This volume contains more than 180 testimonies from 101 witnesses interviewed
by the organization - both women and men. The testimonies were selected as
representative of material contained in the more than 700 interviews conducted
by the organization since its inception. They describe Israel’s operational
methods in the Territories and its consequences. The witnesses represent
occupation of the territories
all strata of Israeli society and nearly all IDF units engaged in the Occupied
Territories. They include testimonies of commanders and officers as well.
All testimonies published by Breaking the Silence are collected by military
veterans and verified prior to publication, including the testimonies that appear
in this book. It should be emphasized that unless noted otherwise, the
testimonies published here are reported by eyewitnesses, and in their own
words. Minor alterations have been made to remove identifying details and
to clarify military terms. As in previous publications of the organization, the
identities of witnesses are kept confidential. Without anonymity, it would be
impossible to make public the information published here.
This book differs in content and scope from previous collections of testimonies
published by Breaking the Silence. Whereas earlier publications were devoted
to specific aspects of military force in the Territories, this volume describes
the IDF’s principal methods of operation, as well as the policies of the Israeli
authorities who control the Territories. Though the soldiers’ descriptions
are limited to their personal experiences, an evaluation of the entire body
of testimonies published here exposes the principles of Israeli policy in the
Occupied Territories. Contrary to the official Israeli position, which portrays
the IDF’s activities in the Territories as fundamentally defensive and intended
to prevent harm to Israeli civilians, the soldiers’ testimonies describe the policy
on the ground as an offensive one which includes expropriation of territory,
tightening control over the civilian population, and instilling fear.
Israel’s policy in the Territories is often referred to in public discussion by a few
breaking the silence
familiar terms. Each chapter in this book examines one of these terms, and
compares it with the testimonies of IDF soldiers.
Despite its scope, this book does not describe all the means by which the
State of Israel controls the Territories; it is limited to the information brought
to light in the soldiers’ testimonies. Likewise, the book does not consider
the variety of activities connected with the work of the General Security
Services (“Shabak”) and other intelligence agencies, nor is it concerned with the
operations and activities of the military courts, which constitute an important
component of the structure of military rule in the Territories. There are other
aspects of the military administration, besides the aforementioned, which are
not discussed in the book, and so this book should not be read as an attempt
to address all components of the Occupation. The goal of the book is to
explain the principal operational methods of the forces that are charged with
preserving the public peace and defending Israeli civilians.
Breaking the Silence considers exposing the truth about Israel’s policy in the
Occupied Territories to be a moral obligation and a necessary condition for a
more just society. To ignore testimonies of the Occupation given clearly and
unambiguously here is to surrender a fundamental right of Israeli citizens - the
right to know the truth about their own actions and the actions of those who
operate in their name. We demand accountability regarding Israel’s military
actions in the Occupied Territories perpetrated by us and in our name.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank those who contributed to and
assisted with the publication of this book.
occupation of the territories
Table of Contents
p. 4-6
Forward
p. 16-22
Introduction
Chapter 1: Intimidation of the Palestinian Population – “Prevention”
p. 26-30
Introduction
p. 32-35
Images
p. 36
Testimony 1
I didn’t know what a “demonstration of presence” really meant
p. 37-38
Testimony 2
Stun grenades at three in the morning
p. 38
Testimony 3
To create a lack of sleep for the village
p. 39-40
Testimony 4
They called it an “arousal operation”
p. 41-43
Testimony 5
They beat him up, smashed his head with the butt of their weapons
p. 43-45
Testimony 6
The deputy brigade commander beat up a restrained detainee
p. 45-46
Testimony 7
A bound man, they kick him in his stomach and head
p. 46-47
Testimony 8
The unit commander used a guy as a human shield
p. 47-50
Testimony 9
We would send neighbors to disarm explosives
p. 50-54
Testimony 10
p. 54-55
Testimony 11
Testimony 12
p. 55-57
I couldn’t believe how an order to kill someone could be carried out
in a minute
A death sentence for an unarmed man
The battalion commander gave an order to shoot at those trying
to recover the bodies
p. 57-58
Testimony 13
He took down an eleven year-old boy
p. 58-59
Testimony 14
Her limbs were smeared on the wall
p. 60-62
Testimony 15
We sent him to open the house for us
p. 62-63
Testimony 16
The commander from the special forces put the barrel into his mouth
p. 63-67
Testimony 17
The brigade commander explained: “You go up to a body, put the
barrel between its teeth, and fire”
p. 67-69
Testimony 18
The objective is maximum kills
p. 69-70
Testimony 19
They told the force to shoot at anyone in the street
p. 71-72
Testimony 20
Every kid you see with a stone, you can shoot
p. 72-73
Testimony 21
The battalion commander was violent and encouraged violence
p. 73-74
Testimony 22
The battalion commander marched him barefoot
p. 75
Testimony 23
At the end of the incident he had deep cuts on his feet
p. 76-80
Testimony 24
We assembled all the men in the stadium
p. 81
Testimony 25
Disrupting the everyday life of residents
p. 81-82
Testimony 26
In the middle of the night with stun grenades and flash explosives
p. 82-83
Testimony 27
Slapping, pushing, all kinds of things like that. Everyday
p. 83-85
Testimony 28
Purposeless arrests
p. 85-86
Testimony 29
The investigator gave him a deadly beating
p. 86
Testimony 30
The guys slaughtered his chicken
p. 87
Testimony 31
The guys set up like a pipe, to pee
p. 87-89
Testimony 32
To take control of some family
p. 90-91
Testimony 33
Moving Human Shield
p. 92-93
Testimony 34
We once caught some kid
p. 93-96
Testimony 35
You could do whatever you want: no one would ask
p. 96-98
Testimony 36
We crushed tens of cars
Testimony 37
p. 98-99
The commander decided: every car we pass, we’ll put a burst of
gunfire in
p. 99-104
Testimony 38
I shot at an ambulance with a machine gun
p. 104-105
Testimony 39
It definitely happened that we sent half a block there flying
p. 105-107
Testimony 40
They threw a grenade at him, and then they put a bullet in his head
p. 107
Testimony 41
The commander said: “I want riddled bodies”
p. 107-110 Testimony 42
p. 110-113
Testimony 43
The division commander said: “You are measured by the number of
people you kill”
The punishment for killing a child: one hundred shekel fine
bts_book2011.pdf (PDF, 42.19 MB)
Use the permanent link to the download page to share your document on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or directly with a contact by e-Mail, Messenger, Whatsapp, Line..
Use the short link to share your document on Twitter or by text message (SMS)
Copy the following HTML code to share your document on a Website or Blog