Scores of Israeli intelligence veterans rally after refusniks’ letterSeptember 15, 2014 - 12:20 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Scores of veterans of elite Israeli intelligence unit 8200 rallied to its defence Sunday, Sept 14 after 43 comrades said they would no longer take part in its "injustices" against millions of Palestinians, Agence France-Presse reported. The open letter, which was sent to Israel's political and military leadership last week, was one of the most high-profile expressions of conscientious objection in years. The signatories -- reservists and former members of 8200 -- said the intelligence collected by the unit "was an integral part of Israel's military occupation", and that they would refuse to continue to serve. They charged that information gathered by Unit 8200 was used by civilian intelligence agencies to coerce Palestinians uninvolved in militant activity, and urged other members of the intelligence corps "to speak out against these injustices and to take action to bring them to an end". But in a letter of reply on Sunday, 200 veterans of the unit denounced their former comrades' refusal to serve. "We wish to express shock, disgust and complete disassociation from the regrettable letter that was written by our comrades from the unit," they wrote in the letter, excerpts of which were published in the top-selling Yediot Aharonot newspaper. "Political refusal to serve has no place anywhere, and particularly so in Unit 8200. The moment we, as soldiers in the reserves, are called to the flag, we set aside our political inclinations and opinions, and come to serve the state." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said any form of refusing military service was "condemnable", calling the refuseniks' move "political" and based on "unfounded accusations". "This is unacceptable," he said at a cyber security conference in Tel Aviv. Commentators said that the fact that the refuseniks were members of one of Israel's most prestigious military units made their conscientious objection all the more remarkable. "The Unit 8200 letter represents a watershed moment in the expressions of military refusal in recent decades," wrote Shimon Shiffer in Yediot Aharonot. "This time, we are talking about intelligence gatherers who are refusing to spy on millions of Palestinians." Unit 8200 carries out electronic communications monitoring and surveillance, similar to work performed by the US National Security Agency and Britain's GCHQ. The unit is one component of the broader military intelligence corps and shares information with Israel's civilian intelligence agencies. The refuseniks' letter drew criticism from both the government and the opposition. Photo: Reuters Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Biden honors resilience of Armenian people on April 24 U.S. President Joe Biden has issued a statement on the 109th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Macron says France commemorates 109th anniv. of Armenian genocide Today France commemorates the 109th anniversary of the Armenian genocide of 1915, Macron says. Freedom House concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia Freedom House urged Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment. |