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Lt. Col. Conricus: War must dismantle Hamas; tunnel flooding on table
The war in the Gaza Strip is continuing for its third month and Israeli military casualties are mounting. In an interview with The Media Line’s Felice Friedson, the Israel Defense Forces international spokesman, Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, discusses the short- and long-term goals of the war and says Israel is paying a heavy price, but its goals remain unshaken: Hamas must be toppled, he says, and the hostages being held in Gaza, who still include 17 women and children, must be returned. Israel has no other choice.
The Media Line: Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus is the international spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces. Thank you so much for taking the time to be with me here at The Media Line.
Lt. Col. Conricus: Thank you for having me, Felice.
TML: On the day that Israel declared war on Hamas, those speaking on her behalf stressed that the path to victory would be a slow one, deliberate and costly. Now, some 68 days into the conflict, observers are amazed that rockets continue to fly into Israel, and that the Hamas fighting remains pretty lethal. What “unexpecteds” have you encountered in the last two months?
Lt. Col. Conricus: So, we’ve been fighting for 68 days, since the 7th of October, and as we said from the beginning, even before we started ground operations in Gaza in order to dismantle Hamas, we said that we understand and know that it is going to be a long and difficult fight, that unfortunately we are going to have to pay a price in blood in order to achieve our goals, and that it will not be easy, but that our resolve is very clear.
And all of us, soldiers in the IDF, and officers, commanders, the High Command, all understand that we have to dismantle Hamas in order for Israeli civilians to be able to go home.
Now, we have seen Hamas continue to operate throughout the war, and we see that they still retain certain rocket firing and combat capabilities. Unfortunately, yesterday we had a mass casualty event in Shejaiya [in the northern Gaza Strip] where 10 Israeli soldiers were killed from the Golani Brigade and our elite aerial rescue unit, our tactical Air Force unit [669].
So there are still pockets of resistance in northern Gaza, and the fight isn’t over there. There are still rocket launches and there are still tunnels, and there are still terrorists there. Of course, greatly degraded, but still there. And in southern Gaza, specifically in Khan Yunis, the fighting is ongoing and it will take a lot of time and a lot of effort in order to dismantle Hamas, but we shouldn’t confuse time and patience with a lack of resolve.
The resolve is very clear, and we are going to defeat Hamas. There is no other option.
TML: Lt. Col. Conricus, looking at the bloodshed, the loss of lives of your soldiers, did you underestimate, did the IDF underestimate, the power of Hamas?
Lt. Col. Conricus: I think what we can say safely is that Hamas has prioritized their military capabilities over everything else, and we can see as our forces advance and as we clear areas, houses, neighborhoods, and parts of cities from Hamas terrorists after we defeat them and dismantle the enemy activity there, what we expose is hundreds of miles of tunnels, hundreds, almost a thousand, tunnel shafts. Some of them are very high-tech and high-level and a high finish of infrastructure. And we find house after house full of weapons, IEDs, explosives, rocket launchers, and anything that Hamas could get their hands on.
So what I think I can see is that I think it’s clear where Hamas priorities have been. They definitely have not been developing Gaza, caring for civilians, building civilian infrastructure, schools and hospitals and mosques and roads and clinics. No. It has been in furnishing themselves with tunnels and buying and smuggling weapons so that they can go on their continued jihad against Israel. That will now be brought to an end.
Hamas will be dismantled, and as our forces on the ground advance, we uncover what Hamas is leaving behind. We’re documenting everything, and we’re also sharing it with the world so that everyone can see where international aid has gone, where it was supposed to have gone above ground, and where it evidently ended up underground in the hands of Hamas.
TML: This has been going on for years, the smuggling of weapons, but do you believe the international community actually believes that today? You might be saying that here, and on many other international programs, yet public opinion doesn’t necessarily say that they agree with the reality on the ground.
Lt. Col. Conricus: I think that the polling indicates not quite what you say because I see very solid support among [the] US population, lots of sympathy towards Israel, the Israeli government even, and definitely Israelis. And there’s a distinction between those three.
And I think, according to the polls that I’ve seen, an overwhelming US majority, and I’ve seen polls of Western countries as well, an overwhelming US majority supports Israel’s quest to dismantle Hamas based on what they’ve seen, what Hamas did on October 7th. The atrocities, the murder, rape, the brutal executions, and the burning of corpses and all of those atrocities Hamas did that seem distant now.
It’s been more than two months, but it’s still very fresh in Israeli collective memory. People saw that, and people understand what monsters Israel is dealing with, and therefore people all around the world support Israel in our quest to defend ourselves. And I understand that there are certain elites, and there are editors and there are politicians and people for whom it doesn’t fit with their worldview and agenda that Israel should be allowed to defend itself and to care for itself and for Israelis to live safely within their internationally recognized border without fear of being under persecution, rape and murder.
But that’s fine. They’ll continue to harbor their negative views, and we’ll continue to build our country, defend ourselves, and defeat our enemies as we have been doing since 1948.
TML: The United States was very strong in supporting the Israel Defense Forces’ actions in Gaza. There is a bit of a shift. You see President Biden putting on some very strong pushback at this point and he’s saying that [Israel] has to pull back. He’s telling everyone [to] wrap it up in some form. How is this going to impact what the IDF is going to do in the coming weeks? What’s the pressure point here?
Lt. Col. Conricus: I don’t see one, and on the ground in the IDF that is not the perception that we have. What I see in news events and what I see the president saying is, I stand with Israel, and I support Israel, and Israel needs to get rid of Hamas. Those are clear words that I understand.
I see a lot of journalists trying to corner the president and get other statements out of him, but I see a president steadfast in his support for Israel, unflinching and unmoving, and I think that is tremendous. That is the leadership that is so extremely important in times of war. And I see various other important American officials, including senior spokespeople like [John] Kirby taking a very clear moral position on what needs to be done, defeat Hamas, bring the hostages home, and do it in such a way that it minimizes collateral damage and damage to civilians, which is what we are doing.
We do listen to what our allies and friends around the world are saying. We do take into account the criticism that is voiced, and we do try to adapt, where applicable, our tactics on the ground in order to accommodate that, and of course, we communicate what we are doing on the battlefield to the world, so that the world can see how we are fighting, and also, very importantly, what type of enemy we are fighting. How the enemy uses cynically the civilians at their so-to-say disposal that they have in Gaza because it’s really how Hamas looks at civilian Palestinians.
They think of them as something disposable that they can use, in order to get public opinion swayed against Israel and for Hamas, and in some cases, it works and some people are calling for cease-fire, and some people are adopting Hamas’ talking points. I think that’s very unfortunate, but at the end of the day, our resolve is very clear.
We understand what needs to be done, and we also understand that really, frankly, we don’t have a choice. If we do not defeat Hamas, our people, Israelis, cannot go back to live safely in their homes, and that is a result that is unacceptable. And therefore we will continue to fight until Hamas is defeated and our hostages returned.
TML: There are still a lot of hostages left in Gaza. Are you closer to getting any of them out? There were those in the IDF that attempted to bring two back; they brought two hostage bodies back, and unfortunately others were killed. [Former Chief of General Staff] Gadi Eisenkot, his son was killed in that action. So what is it going to take? Is it going to be a constant race to see how you are going to get the hostages out, and yet you might lose more men in doing so?
Lt. Col. Conricus: It is a tremendous challenge. A tactical challenge. It’s a very difficult mission to deal with, because of how cynically Hamas is using the hostages as bargaining chips and as human shields. We have said very clearly from the beginning and continuously that we are going to spare no efforts in getting our hostages back, even if it means to conduct tactical operations which will put soldiers at risk. It is our commitment and our duty to bring our hostages back.
If it can be done through diplomatic means, great. If it cannot be done through diplomatic means, then we will do it in any other way that is possible. At the end of the day, our moral and professional obligation is to bring our people back.
TML: What are the numbers currently? How many women are being held today in Gaza?
Lt. Col. Conricus: As far as I know, there are 135 Israelis still held in Gaza, out of which 17 are women and children.
TML: Does that include the hostage body that just came back? Is it down to 134?
Lt. Col. Conricus: I know 135. That is the latest number I have based on the latest information.
TML: Was it 16 in terms of women at this moment?
Lt. Col. Conricus: As far as I know, we are talking about 17 women and children. I could be mistaken by one. These are moving figures after all, but in any case, the very important thing is that Hamas, they themselves violated the agreement that they pushed so hard in order to achieve in return for a temporary cease-fire or a pause in operations.
They were supposed to return 10 live Israeli civilians, women or children, every day. They failed to do so. They violated the terms of the agreement, and then they also started firing. And there is a lot of speculation as to why they did that. I’m not going to speculate about it, but a lot has been said about it.
But at the end of the day, contrary to Hamas claims, there are at least 17 women and children still held in Hamas captivity, 68 days after the war started.
TML: The Wall Street Journal just came out with a story that you are flooding the tunnels. It’s definitely something that has been discussed. Is there anything that you can share about this with the concerns that it can hurt the fresh water that the Gazans will need?
Lt. Col. Conricus: Yeah, you know Hamas has been digging tunnels for many years, and we have been developing different countermeasures and techniques in order to deal with tunnels, both those tunnels that were dug into Israel what we call terror tunnels in order to infiltrate into Israel, and also underground infrastructure that they have inside Gaza which is really the backbone of their combat network.
I can’t go into details. I can say that we are looking at different capabilities and different components. We want to turn the tunnels from an asset that Hamas has really to a liability and eventually to their graves, and that is our intention.
We are taking everything into consideration. The location of Israelis who may be held captive in certain areas, and other considerations; one of them you mentioned. But at the end of the day, these tunnels will hopefully be the undoing of Hamas.
TML: Looking ahead, is it too early to look ahead for an end game? Where will the Palestinian people be left? How will the Israeli borders be secure? There has to be a strategy that is being discussed at the moment.
Lt. Col. Conricus: I’m sure there is. Yes, and it’s an important part. The IDF is part of the discussions at the cabinet and government level. We voiced our input when asked, when solicited. And at the end of the day, the IDF will implement the directives given by the government.
I hope, as an Israeli, that a good and long-term solution can be found, one that first and foremost ensures the security and the sense of security for Israeli civilians that hopefully soon will be able to go back to their homes, rebuild their communities. Despite the heavy losses that they’ve sustained, despite the damage to their beautiful communities, they’ll have the power, they’ll find the power.
And with the help of the state and other people who will be helping, also the resources in order to rebuild those communities, and hopefully make them grow beyond what they were before. That is really reliant first and foremost on security being available and stable for those civilians to feel safe in order to return there.
And then I hope that the international community will see it fit to join in and help, for once fundamentally change the situation in Gaza. We will free Gaza of the terrorist organization that ruled with an iron fist, a heavy hand, over Gaza for the last 17 years, and that will be an opportunity for positive, more advanced forces in the region, for nations in the region to invest in what’s happening and hopefully bring about a positive and sustainable future for Gaza.
I care mostly about Israeli civilians and our security, but I also understand that if there’s prosperity and stability and education for human values and perhaps even democracy on the other side of the border, that’s probably a good thing for us as well. So I am hopeful that that will happen, and I’m hopeful that there will be international partners who will see it fit to rise to the challenge and do something good for a change when it comes to Gaza.
TML: What are the biggest obstacles that the IDF is facing now as they’re trying to wrap up this war, particularly in the north?
Lt. Col. Conricus: Yeah, I don’t think we’re quite there yet. Mentally, we are definitely not thinking about wrapping up. We are knee-deep in fighting, and there still is a lot of heavy lifting to be done. Hamas still has combat capabilities in southern Gaza and still needs to be eliminated.
We still need to take out the leadership, their command and control, and to dismantle and take away their military and administrative and financial capabilities. So that’s still ahead of us.
In the north, if you’re referring to Hizbullah, then there is also a very significant challenge. As I said before regarding Gaza, I think it’s very clear that we cannot ask our civilians to return to their homes and to be at risk of reliving the atrocities of October the 7th that happened along the Gaza border. And that the security situation needs to change.
The Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said so very clearly when he spoke with local leaders. Before we ask you to go back, before we tell you that it’s safe to go back, we will make sure that it’s safe and that the situation on the ground will not go back to what it was on October the 7th.
Obviously, the first choice that Israel [can take], or the first option that we will entertain, is not the kinetic military violence one. But if we are left with no other choices, if diplomacy fails, and other options will fail, then of course Israel will have to deal with the situation and will have to deal with the presence of this Iranian proxy at our doorsteps hundreds of yards away from Israeli communities. That is unacceptable, and it will not be the reality after the war.
Let’s hope that people, nations, and institutions that have an interest in the safety of Israelis and the integrity of the state of Lebanon will intervene soon enough, so as to avoid unnecessary bloodshed and destruction and the horrors that a war between Israel and Hizbullah may entail.
TML: Videos are circulating showing Hamas taking over humanitarian aid that’s designated for their own people. What can you add to that in terms of what you’re going through in trying to get people to the right places, suggesting where it might be a safe zone, and also the obstacles there in terms of getting humanitarian aid to the population?
Lt. Col. Conricus: Hamas colors are shining through, and it’s another example of how they have absolutely no regard for Palestinian civilians. They are just using them as cannon fodder, as human shields, and as pawns in their political efforts against Israel. That’s very cynical, but it’s very obvious for anybody who is honest enough and can see.
Yeah, so the true colors of Hamas are showing. It’s evident that they absolutely have no regard for civilians, or Palestinian civilians. They continue to use them as their human shields and as expendable assets in their political game against Israel.
We see them looting UNRWA warehouses. We see them taking over humanitarian trucks and convoys. We see them stealing fuel. We see them stealing food and medicine that is intended through the generous aid of the US and the help of Egypt and many other parts of the international community they are intended for good humanitarian purposes. And many around the world hope that it will get to their civilian addresses.
But at the end of the day, Hamas has one goal. Their goal is jihad, holy war against Israel. They want to annihilate Israel. They want to do the October 7th massacre again and again and again, and for that aim they have no problem taking humanitarian aid, with stealing fuel, or with taking food that is intended for Palestinian children in hospitals in Gaza and bringing underground into their tunnels for their fighters to have instead of civilians. So it’s abundantly clear.
We’ve been saying all along that Hamas abuses the civilian population. Our hope is that more and more people around the world will see reality and acknowledge the fact that Hamas is violating everything that is supposed to be holy, and any of the basic tenets of humanity. They are committing crimes against humanity on a daily basis.
And I hope, really hope, that [the] UN and other humanitarian organizations will finally come around and speak the truth about what’s happening in Gaza and call Hamas out for what it is: a terrorist organization that brutally abuses the civilian population. And it is about high time that UNRWA and other organizations call [out] Hamas for what it is and start helping us save Palestinians from the horrors of warfare and get them out of the battle zone, provide them with international humanitarian aid, and make sure that it doesn’t go into the wrong hands of Hamas.
TML: The clock is ticking, and the families of the hostages are deeply concerned that they may not see their loved ones. It’s a big difficulty for the Israel Defense Forces, especially now when you are pushing forward with possibly flooding tunnels. What do you do? How do you secure those hostages at this moment?
Lt. Col. Conricus: As I said, it’s a very very sensitive topic, and an extremely complex and very challenging mission. Because of the sensitivity, I can’t go into the exact details of the tactics of it. What I can say is that it is a top priority of the IDF to get all of the hostages back. We spare no efforts [in] intelligence, manpower, [and] resources in locating the hostages and trying to bring them home.
Unfortunately, one effort that we conducted a few days ago ended with us only being able to return the bodies of hostages, but we will continue to collect intelligence, devise plans, and where feasible, execute plans in order to get the people back.
We are aware of the situation, and I think that one thing that should be said is that for 68 days these Israelis have been held in inhumane conditions and the Red Cross has not yet found the ability or the political will to actually go implement their mandate and visit these hostages. Many of them [are] women, children and civilians, but soldiers have rights as well under the Geneva Conventions. All of them are entitled to a visit by the Red Cross to make sure that they are receiving medical help, that they are safe, and that their basic needs are taken care of.
That is what’s supposed to happen. Sadly, it has not yet happened, and it wouldn’t be a minute too soon once the Red Cross actually gets access and implements its mandate.
TML: Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, international spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, thank you for your time. And I wish you strength.
Lt. Col. Conricus: Thank you. Thank you, Felice.
An American-Irish citizen who traveled to Lebanon and Syria in an attempt to join the Hezbollah terrorist organization and fulfill his desire to kill Jews was arrested on Monday for making false statements to FBI agents, the Western District of Pennsylvania US Attorney’s Office announced.
Jack Danaher Molloy, 24, had converted to Shia Islam in February and traveled to Lebanon in August. According to an affidavit, Molloy was in contact with several individuals who sought to help him with his quest to join the terrorist organization.
Molloy had difficulty in enlisting with Hezbollah because he didn’t know Arabic, and the terrorist organization wasn’t recruiting foreigners during the October 7 War with Israel in the wake of intelligence failures like the September pager bomb attacks.
Molloy told an associate that he had been “told very politely that Hezb isn’t recruiting anymore” because “They can’t even trust Lebanese at this point” because of “too many security breaches.”
Contact warned him that his attempts to join might “escalate” to the point of him being suspected of being a Mossad agent.
“There are a lot of divisions you can apply for, but right now, they are not recruiting, they’re not accepting anyone, and due to the high number of Mossad agents and moles, appearing inside, sadly, so it’s gonnatake a while,” one contact told Molloy.
Molloy was also advised that boot camps and recruiting had been disrupted and that when the current “circumstances” were over, it would take three to four months before the group was organized enough to reopen to recruits.
Beginning training at a ‘young age’
An associate explained that Hezbollah operatives started with the organization at a “very young age,” going on to train at several different locations before being asked if they wished to become official members in the Shiite group’s military force. Joining Foreign brigades was difficult, requiring current members to vouch for him.
On October 9 Molloy went to Syria to join Hezbollah or another militia, but was told that the dynamics between armed groups in Syria made it “not very ethical” to join some Syrian resistance factions “due to the things that happened in Syria.”
Around this time, he told his mother that he was considering joining the Russian forces fighting against Ukraine in order to earn money, but he answered in the affirmative when his mother asked if his “master plan” was ” to join Hezbollah and kill Jews.”
On October 14, Molloy left Syria to return to the United States, assured by contacts that he would likely be able to join Hezbollah next year. Molloy landed at Pittsburgh International Airport on October 20, where he was questioned by FBI agents and lied about his intentions to join a US State Department-designated foreign terrorist organization.
Molloy told an associate that he had enrolled with the Iran-based online Al-Mustafa Open University, knowing its connection to Iran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. According to the affidavit, the Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned the university in 2020 because its branches facilitate IRGC Quds Force recruitment of international students.
Molloy, who had previously joined the American Reserve Officers’ Training Corps for two months, believed that his Irish background informed his hatred of Zionists and respect for Hezbollah.
The Irish and Hezbollah?
In October, he posted on X that “We Irish love Hezbollah, and personally, they were a major influence in me reverting to Islam and moving to Lebanon.”
“To me, I am continuing the fight my great-grandmother fought against the Zionists, but now Islamically,” he said to someone using Google Translate. “I have a very fierce hatred of these Zionists, and I need to fight…I have thought about this every moment of every day since I was 18, for 7 years now.”
Molloy’s computer and phone contained violent jihadist and Nazi images, including some depicting the execution of Jewish stereotypes. In one image, a character marked with a Nazi swastika shot a Jewish stereotype cartoon, and a similar representation of a Jew on his knees with a red inverted triangle above his head was shot execution-style in the back of his head.
One image on Molloy’s device depicted a Nazi SS soldier and a Jihadi with the slogan “one struggle” in English and Arabic. Another picture displayed Hezbollah fighters performing a Roman salute with the fusion of a Nazi and Lebanese flag in the backdrop. On the anniversary of October 7, Molloy created an email account called “k**ekiller696969” and, in 2019, used the address “glassofjuice88.” The latter phrase is a homophone for “Gas the Jews,” and the number “88” is a reference to a neo-Nazi numerical code for “Heil Hitler.”
The US Attorney’s Office said that Molloy faces the possibility of both a sentence of up to eight years in prison or a $250,000 fine.
On Sunday, I returned to The Jerusalem Post after being drafted as an IDF reservist for almost 80 days for my second tour of duty in Gaza since the October 7 Massacre. My anecdotal experience as an infantryman and perspective as a journalist in civilian life has given me a unique perspective on Gaza war issues, familiar and unexplored alike. These ten takeaways from someone who has been in the mud of the battlefield should be considered by policymakers and citizens in which much of the information about the war is second-hand information and hearsay.
1. The IDF is winning, and needs to be allowed to win
Compared to their operations during my first tour at the end of 2023, a sense that Hamas is collapsing has since developed. The terrorist organization once fielded ambush cells that conducted frequent hit-and-run anti-tank missile attacks and ambushes from a wide network of bunkers and tunnels for a guerilla defense in depth strategy.
Almost a year later, Hamas seems unable to operate on a strategic level, even from areas in which its battalions have remained structurally intact or reconstituted from degraded units. This is exemplified by Hamas’ inability to launch targeted reprisals for the death of military leaders, or even attempt traditional attacks on Jewish holidays or the anniversaries of October 7.
By and large, they do not operate at night or the light of day, clinging even closer to the low visibility of dawn and dusk, whereas their operatives would once more openly operate in daylight hours due to being able to escape underground after an attack. It appears that their tunnel networks have been greatly compromised, as they have had to travel along roads and weave between buildings.
Their legitimate operations focus on IED and lone sniper attacks rather than using heavier munitions, but a greater focus has been filming any engagement so that they can edit the footage so they can claim to foreign supporters and Israeli citizens that they have destroyed Israeli vehicles. Stealing humanitarian aid has apparently not been enough for some Hamas battalions, as in one case they have resorted to sending plainclothes operatives to loot food and supplies from abandoned IDF positions. Their mortar bombs fall far less accurate than they once were, and we did not encounter any enemy drone activity.
The Netzarim security corridor seems relatively safe, with paved roads, and outposts enjoying electricity provided by power lines. While many soldiers left Gaza positive about the IDF’s advancements, the path of victory is long and the journey should not be confused with its destination. Many soldiers have mixed their sense of Hamas’s significant degradation with the feeling that the military is being held back from decisive action, entering and leaving areas to allow Hamas to retain territorial control.
2. Gaza has suffered heavy damage
The extent of the damage to infrastructure hasn’t been completely appreciated by the general public, and Israeli and international leaders will need to develop extensive plans to rebuild the territory. Whole neighborhoods have been leveled during direct combat, the search and destruction of tunnels and booby traps, and the establishment of defensible positions.
If buildings have not been damaged by their proximity to explosives or pocked by suppressive fire, they have had their outer walls shaved away to reveal the possible presence of terrorists. Concrete rubble and trash are strewn along wide fields in the Gaza Strip and will need to be collected and moved before some areas are traversable, let alone livable. The IDF Spokespeople will also need to prepare to explain the extensive damage to civilian infrastructure.
3. Gaza was far from an ‘open-air prison’
One of the great shames about the extensive damage to Gazan infrastructure is that it was not the desolate “open-air prison” that it had been advertised as in anti-Israel propaganda.
While there certainly were residents living in desperate conditions, the houses, apartments, and villas that we cleared and took position had a decent and even opulent quality of life. All the homes we saw had televisions, computers, refrigerators, decorations, and food stores in line with an Israeli suburb. Our impression was not one of squalor, but normal conditions.
In rural areas villas and mansions oversaw sweeping vineyards on one side and a view of the ocean on the other, and in urban areas large schools, restaurants and other facilities. The lost potential and degraded conditions in Gaza make Hamas’s decision to attack Israel and weaponize their territory rather than develop what they held a shame all the greater.
4. Hamas weaponized Gaza
Much has been said about Hamas’s use of civilians as shields to deter IDF operations — A detained civilian told our troops that he was unable to travel from the North to South along humanitarian corridors because he had to bribe Hamas operatives who were bent on keeping civilians around them as cover. Yet the civilians are just one aspect of Hamas turning Gaza into a weapon to try to destroy Israel.
Tunnel networks are not just placed around or under civilian objects, terrorist infrastructure is integrated into civilian infrastructure in a way that makes the two indistinguishable. Civilian homes are turned into lookout and reconnaissance outposts, with members of families hired by terrorist organizations to provide intelligence, as was exemplified by the capture of spotters captured by a neighboring battalion. Armories are hidden within houses, to be accessed by plainclothes terrorists when they have the need to shed the veneer of being civilians.
Tunnel entrances can be found in the first floor of apartment buildings, not just in their backyards. Other homes are booby-trapped, leading to widespread suspicion of each home as being laced with explosives. With Gaza being weaponized in such a fashion, it has led military units to take precautions and actions that damage buildings and homes so that they can stay alive.
5. The IDF is not conducting a genocide
The purpose of our operations were not geared toward the elimination of Gazan civilians. There were never orders to kill civilians wantonly, and there were debates on if we had enough information to use deadly force and when it was legitimate to open fire. Civilians were allowed to pass by our positions along humanitarian corridors unmolested. These elements would not be found among a force that is devoted to mass murder or genocide. Civilian casualties are tragic, and unfortunately, they always occur in war, which is why such conflict should be avoided in the first place.
6. The IDF needs to restore discipline
While IDF soldiers are not engaged in mass war crimes or genocide, there is inappropriate and even criminal behavior. Other soldiers have shared with me stories of when they have seen looting, and I had to stop someone who had been temporarily attached to our battalion from taking a necklace from a house. While my battalion did not bring our cellphones into Gaza until our last week, when we were moved back to a rearguard outpost, we have seen the widespread use of phones by other neighboring units.
This is all the more shocking not just because posting on social media can be used by enemies to geo-locate positions and gather intelligence, but the violent machismo and inappropriate fooling around in videos and photographs discredits the moral legitimacy of the military and creates an overly relaxed and familiar environment that can get people killed. While journalists have to answer to the IDF censor, it felt to many of us that the IDF has done little to crack down on soldiers who are acting as poor spokespeople and even documenting what appear to be crimes.
Even small issues such as unsanctioned edgy uniform patches lead to a breakdown in discipline, which may lead to even greater behavior unbecoming of the IDF’s ethics. IDF leadership seems unwilling to want to deal with the overly involved families and loss of manpower that comes with disciplining inappropriate behavior.
7. Trust has been eroded in military leadership
The failures of the October 7 Massacre have led to a distrust of military brass among many soldiers and reservists that I have spoken to. It has become a common refrain among the ranks to not trust anyone above the rank of a battalion commander.
High-ranking officers are viewed critically as out-of-touch “October 6” officers who care more about the advancement of their careers through checking task boxes on their clipboards rather than actually changing the reality on the ground.
Reservists and mandatory soldiers alike are results-oriented, and if they feel that officers are more focused on satisfying their superiors rather than the realities on the ground, their orders will have less validity. Military brass, like the political leadership, need to prove to their men that their sacrifices for victory will not be in vain.
8. Reservists are frustrated with domestic squabbles
As news broke that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, fierce debate broke out in the company about the legitimacy of the move. While Netanyahu’s camp claimed that there were professional differences over strategy that could not be overcome, and that the prosecution of the war required Gallant’s firing, too much suspicion and bad blood had been developed about political plays within the current government.
Many believe that the move was done to save the coalition because ultra-orthodox parties threatened to leave because of Gallant’s work towards drafting haredi youth. Such suspicions have been informed by some politicians continuing to pursue their prior political interests, such as major judicial reform proponents calling to renew the process.
While Israeli soldiers are fighting and dying, they don’t feel that politicians are with them and take the war seriously. This distrust extends to the opposition as well — with many of the same actors that were involved in the anti-reform camp pushing for hostage deals at varying cost, many soldiers have expressed to me that they can’t help to wonder if they are motivated by the good of the nation or their own political agendas.
9. The IDF needs more soldiers
As the war and debate about who has drafted has continued, reservists have become increasingly frustrated that some demographic groups are benefitting from the blood and toil of reservists while not contributing to the endeavor themselves. My battalion deputy commander and company commander have become involved in movements calling for a more equal draft.
The need for an increased draft comes as current reservists face multiple tours and are pushed off retirement. Our battalion saw a drop off in reenlistment as some reservists had to deal with crumbling families, businesses, and health. Many reservists came despite these challenges — the sacrifices that they have made are beyond just the risk of death and injury.
10. Soldiers deserve victory
The sacrifices that were made by reservists and mandatory soldiers were made under the implicit promise that they would be in exchange for victory. The state has to consider in its policies and strategic decisions not just the feelings of hostage families and residents who have to return home but also those who have willingly given everything for them and the state.
Reservists want resolution to the problems that led to October 7, they don’t want this war to become yet another round in ongoing conflict. While we will continue to fight for Israel, we don’t want to have to come back to Gaza and Lebanon in a few years time — for not just our sake, but also for that of all Israelis and Palestinians.
Three soldiers became the latest targets of anti-Israel organizations seeking to doxx and level legal challenges against Israeli servicemen abroad.
The Belgium-based Hind Rajab Foundation (HRF) called for the arrest of three Nahal Brigade soldiers for alleged war crimes after they entered the Netherlands on Thursday. The March 30 Movement branch submitted a complaint the same day, charging that the Granite battalion soldiers had been involved in operations in which Gazan homes were burned and the Rafah crossing was damaged without any military necessity.
The disruption of the Rafah crossing constricted the flow of aid in an act of “weaponized famine,” the group said.
The three soldiers were named on social media, and their pictures were shared by the foundation. The doxxing came days after the group filed a complaint to the International Criminal Court against a soldier and called for his arrest while he was visiting the United Arab Emirates.
Many of the foundation’s accusations do not list specific actions by soldiers but place them within Gaza or the West Bank during operations.
Other allegations and doxxing, such as those against an Israeli reservist officer who had to flee Cyprus in mid-November, are based on video and photographs posted by the soldiers on social media. Ynet reported that the officer coordinated his departure from the country with the Israeli Foreign Ministry after the HRF called on Cypriot officials to arrest him over two videos in which he allegedly burned and called to destroy Gazan civilian objects.
Following the November 21 ICC issuance of arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, the foundation called on the international body to also issue warrants against 1,000 IDF soldiers listed in an October 8 dossier it filed to the ICC.
The HRF claimed that it had gathered 8,000 pieces of documentation detailing the destruction of infrastructure, occupation of civilian homes, looting, participating in a blockade of Gaza, and targeting civilians. The documentation reportedly included soldiers boasting “about their war crimes on social media, sharing photos and videos of their participation in the destruction and occupation of Palestinian homes and properties.”
Some of the soldiers had dual citizenship, including 12 French, 12 American, four Canadian, three British, and two Dutch citizens.
More than one group targeting Israeli soldiers
The HRF is not the only group doxxing IDF soldiers who have participated in the war.
The Israel Genocide Tracker X/Twitter account, which has over 160,000 followers, shares the names and pictures of soldiers who had allegedly been in Gaza. Many of those identified by the account are dual-nationals, such as an American-Israeli Golani Reconnaissance battalion sniper doxxed on Saturday.
“We firmly believe that every soldier who entered Gaza is complicit in the genocide,” the group said in a social media post last Monday, defending their operations from those arguing that the account’s posts interfered in ongoing legal and journalistic investigations.
“We will soon release comprehensive lists of soldiers’ names to support international legal actions. We are already collaborating with various human rights organizations that rely on our data to pursue justice.”
Telegram channels published a file allegedly containing the personal information of several thousand soldiers and security officials last Sunday.
The viability of the legal cases against these soldiers is unclear, according to legal experts, with the main objective being the intimidation of IDF soldiers.
Universal jurisdiction
NGO Monitor legal adviser Anne Herzberg said that it is difficult to know if individual cases are actionable without knowing their specifics, but there was concern that courts in countries with weak judicial systems and inadequate due process could be exploited, and warrants could be issued based on “flimsy evidence” and “no advance notice.”
“Anti-Israel NGOs have pushed universal jurisdiction cases against Israeli military and government officials for years as a complement to their lobbying for ICC proceedings,” said Herzberg.
“The shift by these groups to the targeting of thousands of lower-ranking dual-national Israelis has two purposes. First, these cases are about generating negative PR – to internationally tarnish the IDF by delegitimizing and criminalizing IDF service. The second purpose is to deter dual nationals from serving in the IDF for fear they might be subject to criminal proceedings if they return to their countries of origin.
“This second purpose constitutes a military and national security threat and should be taken very seriously by both Israeli and Western officials. It should come as no surprise that several of these NGOs have links to the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, or other terror organizations.”
International Legal Forum CEO Arsen Ostrovsky said that these lawfare campaigns were “entirely without merit and no more than political stunts” but noted that “given the changing political climate and growing hostility against Israel in some parts of Europe, there is no guarantee that some countries will not entertain this charade in the future.”
“As a response to this growing threat, Israel should consider adopting a US-style American Service-Members’ Protection Act, which authorizes the use of all means necessary to secure the release of American soldiers and persons taken captive by, on behalf, or at the request of the International Criminal Court, in this case being equally applicable if IDF soldiers (or former soldiers) were detained on the instructions of the ICC and/or individual countries,” said Ostrovsky.
“The United States, which is currently putting a devastating sanctions framework [together] against the ICC over their issuing of arrest warrants against Prime Minister Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, should sanction any country that not only seeks to apply the ICC warrants but takes individual actions to arrest IDF soldiers.
“And lastly, Israel should also make it a priority to sign bilateral immunity agreements with other countries, acknowledging the independence of Israel’s judicial system and undertaking not to arrest any IDF soldiers, whether current or former, thereby allowing Israelis the ability to travel freely, without fear of arrest.”
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