Mattan here. I am the executive director of RSN, and in 2017, I refused to oppress Palestinians and subsequently spent 110 days in jail. I write to you in the middle of our mid-year campaign in order to address Israel’s assault on Iran.

In the last couple of weeks, new signs appeared that signals Israel’s inability to carry on the genocide on Gaza for long. More and more people started to refuse and resist the war. The Israeli army did not have enough soldiers to stay in Gaza for long, the majority of Israelis wanted a hostage deal and withdrawal from Gaza, and in politics, the coalition was at a breaking point and started to prepare for an election.

Then Israel attacked Iran… I want to be clear: The new war with Iran has nothing to do with the security and safety of the Israeli people. It is about remobilising Israelis to the army and helping the prime minister to stay in power by avoiding elections. It is about continuing the genocide without resistance from Israelis and the world. All eyes are on the war with Iran while people forget about Gaza.

Our partners on the ground know that. “The goal of the war is to help the government to continue eliminating our hostages and continue with war crimes in Gaza. I am calling to everyone who can to refuse,” said Asaf Yakir, a reserve soldier who refuses to fight in Gaza or Iran and is part of Soldiers for the Hostages. Soldiers for the Hostages publicly declared that their position has not changed: “We refuse to take part in this war.” Joining them are another 41 soldiers from intelligence and cyber units who recently published a refusal statement.

The goal of the war is to halt the resistance against the genocide in Gaza. We will not let the government stop us. We will not take part in this war, we refuse! We will resist until we end the genocide and the occupation, and all regional wars of aggression. The Israeli government has found a base of support among the general public for this new front, even among those that began to oppose the genocide in Gaza.

But the reality is more complicated: many people, especially those who oppose the prime minister, see the war as inevitable. This is an opp[or]tunity, [because] this new war can make [us] resist even more. Right now, we are working hard to shift the general public to resist the war. This war is not inevitable, it will not make anyone safer, and it is only an extension of the criminal genocide in Gaza. We need to stop the war, both in Gaza and in Iran, for the sake of the Palestinian people and our own futures.

We need you with us more than ever, […]. Help us put a stop to this endless war and genocide, help us to support the Israeli resistance to end the atrocities, the genocide and the occupation! We were already close to putting it to a stop, and we still can. Together we can end it!

In solidarity,

Mattan Helman
Executive Director
Refuser Solidarity Network

(Taken from an email sent to me by the Refuser Solidarity Network.)