The Gaza Debates

Earlier this week, the Israeli human rights group Breaking the Silence released a report containing the anonymous testimonies of 54 combat soldiers who served in 2008-2009 Gaza War, codenamed Operation Cast Lead by the Israeli military.  The testimonies detail numerous human rights abuses and violations of international laws of war including the use of human shields, the disregard for civilian casualties, and the use of white phosphorous, all of which contradicts the official version of events put forth by the Israeli government.  During the three week conflict more than 1,100 Palestinians were killed along with 13 Israelis, and the UN estimates that 50,000 homes, 800 industrial properties, 200 schools, 39 mosques, and 2 churches were damaged or destroyed.  Because of the level of destruction, many concerns have been raised about the proportionality of Israeli military actions and the possibility that war crimes were committed by both sides.  In the case of Israel, the report issued by Breaking the Silence appears to add another layer on to that debate, and is raising new questions and counterarguments.

This is not the first report to allege the possibility that Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) committed war crimes during the Gaza offensive.  Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have both raised concerns about IDF actions during the war and called for an international investigation, as did numerous human rights activists which led to the creation of a UN fact-finding commission led by Richard Goldstone to investigate acts committed by both sides of the conflict.  However, this report is gaining more attention because of who wrote it – IDF troops who supposedly witnessed these events first hand.

Israel has long touted itself as having the most moral army in the world, a claim that has come under strain in recent years.  Breaking the Silence itself was created by IDF combat veterans who served during the Second Intifada that started in 2000, and they are not the only ones questioning Israel’s official version of what happened during Operation Cast Lead.  In March, Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz published several testimonials from soldiers who graduated from Yitzhak Rabin pre-military prep course at Oranim Academic College and served during the Gaza War.  The version of events from these earlier testimonials matches up with what Breaking The Silence published on Wednesday.

However that does not mean that everyone is accepting this version of the story either.  Despite the general respect that Breaking the Silence has earned in Israel as a human rights organization, a spokeswoman for the IDF questioned the report’s credibility.  Major  Avital Leibovitch told reporters, “How do you know these people are soldiers?  I don’t know who they are.  This is not credible and this is not reliable.  And this puts under considerable doubt the intention of the organization.”  Likewise, the NGO Stand With Us International, which aims to combat what it sees as anti-Israel bias, launched a website yesterday called “Soldiers Speak Out” with 14 video testimonies by former combat soldiers who claim that none of the abuses or illegal tactics reported in the report occurred, and claim greater credibility than the written testimonies since the narrators are all freely identified.

The debate over what actually happened in Gaza is still in its early stages, and will most likely continue in the months to come.  Acting without the cooperation of Israel, the UN fact-finding mission finished hearing public testimonies in Gaza and Geneva earlier this month and has not yet released their findings.  The IDF at this point does not seem willing to reopen the investigation into their actions during Operation Cast Lead, but that may change if public sentiment supports it.  Regardless of the outcome, it is likely that the debate itself will have a significant impact on future events and policies in the region.