Five Israelis start jail sentence for refusing to serve in the army

[Resistance]

I suggest we each take a moment or two of silence to honor these brave people. Anyone with me on that?

SpaceWar (AFP)

Five Israeli soldiers began a year-long jail sentence Wednesday for refusing to serve in the Israeli army on account of its occupation of the Palestinian territories, refusenik support group Yesh Gvul said.

The five, all aged around 20, began their sentence on Wednesday afternoon at "prison six", a military jail near the northern Israeli town of Atlit.

The five are among the signatories of a letter sent by over 200 secondary school students to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in September 2002 in which they said they would refuse to serve in an "army of occupation."

[wingnut]

1. They could sentence them

to be bus drivers.

[mmm]

2. These men are heroes

May peace be upon them

[methinks2]

3. Amen

O8) Blessed are the peacemakers.O8)

[Resistance]

4. It's because they fear us, say teenage refuseniks

The Guardian Special Report

Haggai Matar never expected that his sentence would be so harsh. But as the teenage refusenik reports to a military prison today, he says he will draw comfort from the judges' description of him as a threat to the survival of Israel.

"I take it as a compliment that they are so afraid of our ability to persuade others that they called us dangerous and have to lock us up," said Mr Matar, 19.

[Jackie97]

5. A year in jail....

is better than years of guilt for killing and sometimes murdering Palestinians. It's also better than being killed himself/herself.

I don't think that they're a threat to Israel's survival, but perhaps a threat to their occupation.