A former soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces, Merphie Bubis, spoke about her experience in the Israeli Civil Administration and the favoritism with which Israeli citizens and settlers were treated as compared to Palestinians. J Street U Brandeis hosted the lecture on Monday, Oct. 15.
J Street U Brandeis, a Jewish organization at Brandeis, advocates for a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict and an end to the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza territories. They describe themselves as a “pro-Israel, pro-Palestine, pro-peace” organization.
Bubis served for two years in the Civil Administration, a military unit that managed the infrastructure of the occupation, including movement to and from the Occupied Territories, water, electricity and more bureaucratic matters like travel papers.
As a soldier, Bubis said her main role was to protect Israeli citizens, but she often ended up protecting Palestinians from violence by Israeli citizens.
She told a story in which Israeli settlers uprooted trees and attacked a Palestinian village. Fighting broke out, and while the Israelis responsible were taken to the police station in an ambulance, seven escaped and no one searched for or attempted to recapture them.
Bubis also quoted other former soldiers, who were told that their responsibility was to protect settlers. Bubis agreed with their statements, saying “As soldiers this is something that we’re told constantly, that it’s actually not our job, and even if we witness this kind of violence, we should not be even attempting to enforce the law on Israeli civilians.”
Bubis recounted several incidents when she was called to respond to a report and called the authorities, the Israeli police, who did not adequately respond to the situation.
“They [Israeli soldiers] inform us about settlers throwing stones, young teenagers. And as soldiers they’re not actually supposed to enforce the law or do anything to stop the Israeli civilians. The only thing that they can do at that moment is call the Israeli police. And the police simply do not show up.”
“After about thirty minutes the soldiers report back saying that the children apologized and they were sent home. That’s a very different outcome versus Palestinian children [or] teenagers who were caught throwing stones in the West Bank. They can easily find themselves managing the bureaucracy of the military court system and also potentially sitting for months in a military prison.”
Bubis also mentioned that the settler movement, which encourages Israeli settlers to move into the West Bank, caused conflicts she had to mitigate. J Street U Brandeis taped posters to the wall of Lurias in Upper Sherman, where the event was held, describing the settler movement.
“Over time, and especially as Israel politics has shifted rightward, the settler movement has become an institutionalized part of Israeli society. Support comes in the form of building permits, public investment, and even incentives for Israelis to move into the West Bank,” one of the posters read.
It continued, “As the settler population swells, any scenario of a Palestinian state that encompasses the entire West Bank dwindles. It’s simply not plausible to remove more than 400,000 residents from their established communities.”
The event ended with an opportunity to sign a petition that would ask Brandeis Hillel to include voices from Palestinians on Birthright, a trip that gives Jewish students the opportunity to travel to Israel.
