Finding His Purpose

"A Religious War in Israel's Army"; By Ethan Bronner; WK1

Conflict in Israeli society garners front page of the Week in Review, perpetuating NYT's reputation for giving Israel bad press. 

Moreover, Ethan Bronner has finally found his purpose for reporting on the collection of testimonies that were leaked to the press last week about the conduct of certain Israeli soldiers during January's Gaza Offensive: Right-wing religious leaders caused the misconduct of a number of Israeli soldiers. 

In rather understated language, EB describes the "war in Israel's army." When depicting the real, and often violent, conflict between Fatah and Hamas, Bronner characterizes it as "splintering," but the disagreement between religious and secular in Israel is a "war."

On his third day of reporting on the testimonies, EB reveals key biographical information about the man, Dany Zamir, who leaked the testimonies to the press. Zamir "was sentenced to prison for refusing to guard a ceremony involving religious Jews visiting the West Bank city of Nablus."

In a classically equivocal statement, EB writes, "For some, that refusal is a badge of honor; for others it is an act of insubordination and treason." Even those who consider it "a badge of honor" recognize that it is also "an act of insubordination." 

My impression is that the center in Israeli society considers such an action extremist, just as it regards the non-participation of soldiers in the 2005 Disengagement from Gaza.