In a video column, Dr. Hanna Katan argued that soldiers should be strengthened by the public, not punished, because they defend the state and carry the values that founded it. She said the case of a Nahal Brigade fighter sentenced to 30 days in military prison for wearing a patch with the word “Messiah” was not just a mistake, but a painful sign of a lost moral compass.
Katan said that when Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir identified the soldier at his position, an immediate punishment system was set in motion. In her view, the response should have been to ask, understand and embrace the soldier, not diminish his dignity, spirit or faith. She said soldiers who display symbols of belief and mission do so out of deep commitment, not provocation.
She argued that the real problem is the opposite of what critics portray, saying these fighters do not need to be judged but to rely on a public that values them. Katan said the army can and should remain professional, united and equal, but that blind punishment does not solve anything and instead erases identity and morale.
According to Katan, it was a failure that a public outcry was needed to correct what she described as an obvious injustice. She concluded that this was not only one soldier’s injury, but the weakening of an entire spirit, and said Israel should stand with its fighters, strengthen them, and see them as an asset rather than a burden.
