As the primary for the Democrats party nears, competition for a few spots on the list is intensifying, and some candidates are making increasingly extreme statements in an effort to stand out. The report says several newcomers are promoting hardline positions, including opposition to military service and contacts with figures seen as hostile to Israel.
Attorney Ayelet HaShachar Saidoff, a candidate in the party, went further on Saturday night and publicly called for refusal to serve and for military mutiny. Activist Naor Narkis, described in the report as anti-religious, backed her position during a protest demonstration. Another candidate, Eran Etzion, a former deputy head of the National Security Council, recently said he met with Syrian and Saudi representatives.
The article also says retired Major General Nimrod Sheffer recently met with Jibril Rajoub, a senior Fatah figure, and later appealed to IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, asking him to refuse military demands from the political echelon that he said could serve Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Another candidate, attorney Nava Rozolio, argued there is no point appealing to right-wing voters, calling supporters of Netanyahu a population that is “brainwashed” and cannot be persuaded with rational arguments.
The Democrats party and party leader Yair Golan declined to comment. In her response, Saidoff defended her remarks, saying the situation in the north is not a “security belt” but a “belt of sacrifice,” and argued that Israeli children are being sent into danger while, in her view, the state pays an unbearable price in soldiers’ lives.
