. HUMAN RIGHTS .
An article from Haaretz
Nearly 1,000 Israel Air Force current and former reservists published a letter on Thursday morning (April 10) calling for the return of all hostages even at the cost of ending the war.
In the letter, signed by reserve and retired aircrew fighters, they wrote: “Currently, the war serves mainly political and personal interests, not security interests. The continuation of the war does not contribute to any of its declared goals and will lead to the deaths of the hostages, Israeli soldiers and innocent civilians, and to the attrition of the IDF reserve forces.”
IAF Commander Tomer Bar speaks at a graduation ceremony for Air Force pilots, in June.Credit: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit
The signatories to the letter added that “as has been proven in the past, only a deal can bring back the hostages safely, while military pressure mainly leads to the killing of the hostages and the endangerement of our soldiers.”
They also called on all Israeli citizens to mobilize to action and demand the end of the war and the return of all hostages. “Every day that passes puts their lives at risk,” they wrote.
The 970 signatories include many active reservists, some of them senior officers and pilots, and some who are no longer in active reserve duty.
After the full list of the signatories was leaked earlier this week, senior air force officers of the rank of brigadier general held phone calls with the signatories to urge them to retract on orders from IAF commander Tomer Bar.
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How can a culture of peace be established in the Middle East?
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On Tuesday, Bar met personally with reservists from the force to warn them against signing the letter, which was drafted and distributed by former air force members.
At these meetings, Bar warned that if they signed the letter, they would be dismissed from service. But he agreed with reservists that it would make sense to sign a cease-fire and hostage release deal in the near future.
IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir also participated in one of these meetings.
Only 25 of the 970 Israel Air Force reservists who signed the letter protesting the renewed fighting in Gaza agreed to a retraction, despite being told they would be ousted if they didn’t.
Moreover, eight additional reservists added their signatures to protest the ouster threat, while additional reservists have yet to decide to retract their signature from the letter.
The letter’s drafters criticized Bar harshly during one meeting for threatening to oust the signatories. They said this crossed a legal and moral red line and infringed on the reservists’ right to voice their political opinions.
But Bar said this wasn’t a punishment. Rather, he said, “anyone who signs a text claiming that renewing the war is primarily political and undermines the hostages’ return isn’t capable of carrying out his missions in the reserves.”
Bar also charged that signing such a letter during wartime is illegitimate. He added that the Air Force is convinced its airstrikes aren’t hitting any hostages, and that in his view, military pressure on Hamas will further their release.
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