Israeli recruit Tal Mitnik, 18 years old, was sentenced to 30 days in prison yesterday, after he refused military service in protest against the war in Gaza. According to Israeli media, Mitnik is the first Israeli to refuse service in protest against the war in Gaza, as he is not convinced about participating in what he described as "a mass killing spree in Gaza."
Mitnik entered the recruitment center in Tel Hashomer yesterday morning and announced his refusal to enlist, accompanied by youth activists from the "Mesarvot" network, a group that supports conscientious objectors in Israel.
In a statement released earlier, Mitnik wrote: "This land has a problem, there are two nations undeniably connected to this place, but despite all the violence in the world, we have not been able to erase the Palestinian people or their ties to this land, just as we cannot erase the Jewish people or our connection to that same land."
He added: "The problem here is supremacy, the belief that this land belongs to one people only. Violence cannot resolve the situation, neither from Hamas nor from Israel, and there is no military solution to a political problem. Therefore, I refuse to join an army that believes it can ignore the real problem under a government that continues only in mourning and pain."
