Tal Mitnick, the first Israeli jailed for refusing mandatory conscription after the Hamas-led attacks of Oct. 7, leans back in his seat in the Saint Paul University’s auditorium in Ottawa.
On Dec. 26, 2023, Mitnick arrived at an enlistment centre in central Tel Aviv and publicly announced that he would refuse to serve with the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
“I had a choice: to be part of this force currently genociding my neighbours, that is killing people’s loved ones, or I had a choice to refuse,” he told CBC News.
He was detained for five consecutive 30-day sentences, the maximum sentence refuseniks get, in accordance with Israeli law.
The 19 year old, who was released from Israeli prison in July on medical grounds, is on a cross-Canada tour with fellow refusenik Einat Gerlitz, who refused military service in 2022. The pair are speaking about their experiences as conscientious objectors, a position which has drawn scorn in Israel and interest from North American audiences. The tour, organized by local chapters of Independent Jewish Voices, an advocacy group, runs in cities from Quebec to British Colombia throughout March.
The Hamas-led attacks of Oct. 7, 2023 killed some 1,200 Israelis, in what many consider the worst single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. The attack fuelled Israel’s invasion of Gaza, which has killed more than 48,500 Palestinians in the territory, according to local health authorities.
Some young Israelis feel a more pacifist approach would have been better for bringing lasting peace to both Israelis and Palestinians.
A small but growing number of Israelis are refusing mandatory enlistment or to return to their military duty after tours in Gaza. But few do so publicly. Military duty is compulsory for most Israeli men and women and refuseniks face jail time as well as social and professional blow back.
“Being the first public refuser [since Oct. 7] we didn’t know what the military would do with me,” Mitnick said. “I went back again and again, each time I got the maximum sentence until I reached 185 days.”
IDF ‘condemns refusals’
In a statement to CBC News, the IDF said mandatory recruitment is set in the country’s Security Services Law and the military is “committed to implementing the law and recruiting in accordance with it.” The statement goes on to say that it “condemns refusals.”
Regarding Mitnick, the IDF said a professional committee determined that there were “no conscientious reasons for his claims” to refuse enlistment. After he “vehemently” refused, he was sentenced to jail, the IDF said.
Mattan Helman is executive director of Refuser Solidarity Network, an organization which supports refuseniks during their sentences and provides information about their stories online. He said publicly refusing comes with consequences. But he encourages the practice to help spread the word that it is an option for Israeli conscripts, including those who condemn the scale of violence in Gaza and feel that the only way to get Israeli hostages back is through a deal with Hamas.
“We should look at it like an iceberg, there’s the ones who refuse publicly at the top of the iceberg that’s above the water, and the majority who refuse in a different way that is underwater,” Helman told CBC News via Zoom.
Although the RSN doesn’t have exact numbers on refuseniks, Mattan said there are “thousands” and the numbers have been increasing since Oct. 7, “especially with reserve soldiers.”
Surviving jail
On the day of his refusal, videos and pictures of Mitnick flooded social media. A protest outside his enlistment office saw people chanting and waving signs along with him.
“It was weird that the protest was centred around me, I’m not really used to things being centered around me,” he says. The teen said he shies away from the spotlight and admits it makes him “a little uncomfortable.”
But he said that moment represented a turning point for his life as an activist. This is where he met many of his current friends, supporters and people who would help him on his journey in jail and beyond.
“I’m very blessed to have found this activist circle of people that have the same opinions as me and support me,” he said.
The Weekend Morning Show (Manitoba)23:05Why two young Israelis refused their mandatory military service.
21-year-old Einat Gerlitz and 19-year-old Tal Mitnick refused to serve in the Israeli army, and as a result, were sent to military prison. They are in Winnipeg as part of their cross-Canadian “Refusenik Tour” hosted by Independent Jewish Voices Canada.
Mitnick said his time in jail revolved around his capacity to survive. His fellow prisoners didn’t know why Mitnick was incarcerated and he was careful in sharing his political opinions.
Some fellow prisoners eventually started to recognize him in jail, he said, adding that he denied being “that guy from the social media videos.”
Mitnick is a self-proclaimed leftist who was inspired by his father, a journalist who he said spent a lot of time in the Israeli-occupied West Bank telling stories from the Palestinian side.
“Politics was always a thing that we talked about in the house,” he said. “And it was very present in the fact that something had to change.”
As for what’s next, Mitnick takes a moment to formulate his thoughts as though he feels the weight of the question on his conscience.
“Inshallah,” he says, using the Arabic term for God willing. “The walls will fall and all will live in peace and freedom.”
