The controversy surrounding testimonials of conduct unbecoming by the Israeli Defense Forces during Operation Cast Lead in Gaza was the focus of a heated Knesset discussion Wednesday, demonstrating once more the polarity within the Israeli parliament.
The military launched an official inquiry into allegations made by soldiers who claimed that innocent people were targeted during the Israeli offensive, but Judge Advocate General Brigadier-General Avi Mandelblit later determined that the accusation had no merit and closed the case.
The plenum's debate saw Knesset Member Michael Ben-Ari (National Union) spar with his Arab peers, calling the latest reports on the Israeli operations "an expression of the decay spreading through Israeli society.
"This phenomenon of snitching is meant only to hurt our national resilience," he continued. "Snitching by B'Tselem activists, by the people of Gush Shalom, who couldn’t run to the International Crimes Court in The Hague fast enough with names of IDF officers, by settlement hater in Peace Now and by the women of Machsom Watch, who risk the lives of soldiers stationed in checkpoints on a daily basis and facilitate the smuggling of explosives."
'A question of measure'
Ben-Ari further claimed that Danny Zamir, headmaster of the Rabin Military Academy at Oranim, where the forum which gave birth to the testimonials was held, had "incited our fine boys" to perjure themselves, and urged the government to "dismantle the academy and press charges against the man who compromised the nation's security."
The National Union MK also attempted to stop Hadash Chairman Mohammad Barakeh from addressing the plenum. "Shut up, Kahanists have no say here!" sniped Barakeh. "Terrorist!" retorted Ben Ari.
As for the testimonials, the Hadash chairman said they came as no surprise: "We witnessed these war crimes on live television. We expected there to be a real investigation, but we knew that any probe the military conducts of itself will remain in-house. The military doesn’t want the truth to come out."
Commenting on the ruckus, MK Ilan Ghilon (Meretz) said that "while I'm no pacifist and I do think a country not only the right but the duty to defend itself, it all comes down to the question of measure of force."
Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai (Labor) admitted that "there are always exceptions to the rule," stressing that the IDF's ethics are unquestionable and that he has "first hand knowledge that the protocol and orders are very clear and are implemented accordingly."
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