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For most families in Israel, serving in the military is not only a required duty it’s also of great honor and prestige. “Shministim” is the equivalent of high school seniors in Israel. So at the age of 18, after graduating from high school, young Israelis serve in the military for 3 years before continuing their education. After the WhoProfits.org meeting with Dalit at the Zochrot office we met with two young female Israeli conscientious objectors: Netta Mishly and Raz Veron, both of whom rejected to serve in the Israeli military at the age of 18. Both of these young women discussed what led to their conviction of refusing to serve in the Israeli military and the reactions they received from their family and society.

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Tags: Shministim, WhoProfits.org

Today we visited the office of Zochrot in Tel Aviv where we met three different Israeli activist groups, all of which are working from within Israel in addressing the occupation.

1. At the Zochrot office we met Eitan who informed us about their work. As an Israeli organization that raises awareness about the Nakba, (“catastrophe” of 1948, i.e. Israeli Independence Day), primarily within Jewish Israeli communities, Zochrot leads tours to destroyed and depopulated Palestinian villages and supports dislocated Palestinian refugees (who still reside in Israel) to symbolically reclaim their land by placing signs with their villages’ original names throughout Tel Aviv. There are actually 7 different villages upon which Tel Aviv was built. Some of the remnants of these villages are still visible, but many Israelis simply aren’t aware or could care less about their presence.
2. Also at the Zochrot office we met with Dalit from WhoProfits.org, a project of the Coalition of Women for Peace. WhoProfits.org specifically focuses on researching and exposing the Israeli occupation industry; quite literally, identifying who profits from the occupation of Palestine. Their website is essential in organizing a BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanction) campaign against Israel on university campuses.
3. Shministim, a group of young Israelis who have refused to serve in the Israeli military (which is required for all citizens of Israel). Most have spent time in Israeli prisons.

I’ll post the meeting minutes from each of these in the coming days.

Tags: Shministim, WhoProfits.org