Social media, occupation, racism; it's just becoming a truly unique glimpse into Israel/Palestine and the depths of settler-colonial racism;
'I would gladly kill Arabs - even slaughter them'
In new bid to defend publishing controversial images, former IDF soldier Eden Abergil writes on Facebook 'In war there are no rules.'
By Haaretz Service
Eden Abergil, the former Israel Defense Forces soldier who has been criticized for publishing controversial images on Facebook, allegedly wrote on her Facebook page on Thursday that she would "gladly kill Arabs – even slaughter them."
In case you've forgotten...
Israeli soldier Eden Abergil poses in front of blindfolded and handcuffed Palestinian men in a photo posted on her Facebook account (via Sachim blog)
Israeli soldier Eden Abergil poses mocking a blindfolded and handcuffed Palestinian man in a photo posted on her Facebook account (via Sachim blog)
"That looks really sexy for you," says a comment posted by one of Abergil's friends on the social networking site, alongside a picture of the soldier smiling in front of two blindfolded men. Abergil's repose, posted below, reads: "I wonder if he is on Facebook too - I'll have to tag him in the photo." Because Abergil was discharged a year ago, the army has no power to prevent her from publicizing the photographs.
The pictures have since been removed from the site - but not before being duplicated across the web by a variety of bloggers and news sites. The IDF said in a statement: "These actions are ugly and callous; details of the incident have been forwarded up the chain of command." Israeli blogger Lisa Goldman contacted the former soldier via Facebook, who replied: "I don't speak to leftists."
Well, in the latest news, Eden has started to elaborate on her initial disdain for 'leftists;'
Since the photos were published by blogger Ido Keinan earlier this week, dozens of people have uploaded images on to their own Facebook pages depicting similar situations. Abergil responded on Facebook;
"I can't allow Arab lovers to ruin the perfect life I lead," she allegedly wrote. "I am not sorry and I don’t regret it.""I am in favor of a Jewish-Zionist State," she added. "I defend what has been rightfully mine for ages," she wrote.
here's a more direct quote
Eden Abergil: I’m for a Zionist Jewish state! I’m protecting what was mine since forever!! I won’t get with you into religious statements etc but I’m declared and defined as a proud Jew and as a proud Jew it’s my duty to fight for everything that belongs to me there’s a picture of me they published that says it all in my opinion "if it wasn’t for her they’d murder your mother" and I’m not talking just about me but about all the soldiers guarding and protecting us!!! There are no laws in war!! I hate Arabs and wish them all the worst and it would be fun for me to kill them or even massacre them you can’t forget what they’re doing nevermind the reason I’m just on the side of the Jewish people!!! And this will last forever.
As shocking and horrifying as her her pictures and comments are, we shouldn't fool ourselves; this is not an exception by any means.
The head of the Public Committee Against Torture, Ishai Menuchin, also commented, saying that "these terrible photographs reflect a norm in the way Palestinians are viewed, as an object and not as humans. It is an attitude that ignores their feelings as humans and their individual rights."
And of course, there are the other pictures that Breaking the Silence has provided us;
The Breaking the Silence organization published Tuesday more photographs of IDF soldiers posing next to bound and cuffed Palestinian detainees. Some of the images show troops posing with the bodies of killed Palestinians. In some cases, soldiers smile to the camera as the picture is shot. The group published the photos as part of a new Facebook campaign dubbed "the norm denied by Avi Benayahu," countering the IDF spokesman's claim that such photographs are unusual.
The group also has a message for Benayahu: "Do not underestimate the intelligence of the Israeli public. Clarify that this is a widespread phenomenon, and not an unusual event with one soldier."
"Taking responsibility is not blaming the lowest ranks, but dealing with the low moral situation of top commanders that are responsible for norms in the entire army," Breaking the Silence writes.
When you get down to it, it is just one of many ways to degrade and humiliate an entire civilian population. It is the trademark of the colonial occupier, the settler-colonialist;
"This is not very different to what was exposed at Abu Ghraib in Iraq," said Mustafa Barghouti, secretary general of the Palestinian National Initiative. "It is not an individual act, or a personal act or a lack of judgment, but a part of the constant racist behaviour that is implanted in the Israeli army and a whole philosophy of discrimination against Arabs and Palestinians. The most important characteristic of this treatment is humiliation."
And from Max Blumenthal;
Eden Abergil, The Product Of A Blindfolded Society
Is there anything shocking about the Facebook photos showing the Israeli female soldier Eden Abergil posing in mocking positions next to bound and blindfolded Palestinian men? While her conduct was abominable, I did not find it especially distinct from the documented behavior of Israeli soldiers and Border Police in the Occupied Territories.
Below is a photo I took in Hebron in June before soldiers demanded that I stop shooting (I will release video from Hebron as soon as I get the chance). Scenes like these can be witnessed on any given day in the West Bank. Not only do they show the dehumanization that the Palestinian Morlocks are subjected to on an hourly basis, they depict the world where Abergil spent what she called "the most beautiful time of [her] life." It is easy to see how young Israelis (or anyone) would be sapped of their humanity in such an environment.
I end with the irreplaceable Gideon Levy, commenting mainly on the predicament of Palestinian citizens of Israel. He asks at the end of the article, what do you expect them to do if all avenues for peaceful change and access are closed off to them:
"Arabs, get out"
The lives of Arab Israelis bear no resemblance to the lives of a Jewish Israeli. He is born into crowded conditions and neglected neighborhoods. In 62 years, the state has not lifted a finger to help the Arab populace, which constitutes a full fifth of the state's citizens, to establish a single new settlement.
Day and night they hear that they are a 'demographic threat' or a 'fifth column,' that the Negev and Galil must be 'Judaized,' that they must be expelled from their lands. Now they hear that the Knesset must be purified of their representatives, as well.
It's likely to happen. In a society whose institutional defenses of democracy have started to deteriorate, nothing is safe any more. One day, perhaps we will no longer have Arab MKs, or at least none that represent their constituents. And on that day, Arab Israelis will know that their exclusion from their state has become total and complete. And what do the inciters believe will replace Hadash, United Arab List - Ta'al, and Balad? You know the answer very well. The answer is frightening and dangerous.