Israel woman refuses to serve in IDF

The military has sentenced conscientious Objector Yasmin Ricci-Yahav to 20 prison days for her refusal to join the military. This is Yasmin’s 5th prison term, and at the end of it she would have served 74 prison days

In a video published before her current imprisonment, a very courageous and principled Yasmin explained (in Hebrew):

“It is never easy to return to prison, but I believe that with everything that happened last week, it is important to find alternatives to the use of force that tends to be our default, but only brings more violence and suffering. We must find a way to break out of this cycle”

Yasmin is 18 from Mevaseret Zion, and was first imprisoned for her refusal in August 2019. She declared her refusal saying: “I hope my refusal will contribute to the struggle to build a better future that is not only safe for the state of Israel, but also inspires hope and is full of patience and compassion.”

Yasmin Ricci-Yahav is supported by Mesarvot – a political refusal network that brings together initiatives, refusal letters and movements from the past few years. The network supports military refusers that choose not to serve in an occupying military, also taking into consideration the negative gendered effects of conscription on Israeli society. The movement operates in collaboration with Yesh Gvul movement.

Support Yasmin by LIKING the Mesarvot Facebook Page.

Yasmin Ricci-Yahav, October 2019. Conscientious Objector refusing to serve int he IDF because of the attacks Gaza. Courtesy of Mesarvot

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Ray Hanania is an award-winning columnist, author & former Chicago City Hall reporter (1977-1992). A veteran who served during the Vietnam War and the recipient of four SPJ Peter Lisagor Awards for column writing, Hanania writes weekly opinion columns on mainstream American & Chicagoland topics for the Southwest News-Herald, Des Plaines Valley News, the Regional News, The Reporter Newspapers, and Suburban Chicagoland.

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