Heavy Hand Smacks Down Those Those That Expose IDF Crimes

The Israeli court's gag order on the Anat Kamm affair has been lifted. (See my previous postings on this here.)

Anat Kamm the 23 year old who leaked documents incriminating senior IDF officers of approving targeted assassinations of Palestinians, in violation of Israeli law, is being charged with “serious espionage” – for “gathering” and “divulging” classified information "out of ideological motivations and with the intent to damage the security of the state.” The prosecution is said to be asking for a 20 year sentence. Kamm has been under house arrest since December.

Haaretz journalist Uri Blau, currently in London, who received the documents and broke the story in Haaretz, is formally being sought for questioning. Informally he claims he has been told that as soon as he sets foot in Israel, he to will be charged with "crimes related to espionage"

This is a travesty. Think Daniel Ellsberg. Kamm and Blau should be given prizes for exposing the military's crimes and lies. The Israeli justice officials should be investigating the IDF generals (including the current chief of staff) who gave the illegal orders. But instead they are willing tools of the IDF and are helping to strengthen growing anti-democratic tendencies in Israel.

Right wing members of the governing coalition have called for both Kamm and Blau to be charged with treason (maximum penalty life in prison) and for patriotic citizens to boycott Haaretz.

Read more about this affair in these article: Haartez editorial, Uri Blau's statement, Akiva Eldar in Haartez, Abe Selig in the Jerusalem Post, Yaakov Katz in the Jerusalem Post, and the Magnes Zionists take on it.