49 Summer 2025 efforts to expose and destroy this infrastructure,33 which is likely why videos of demolitions posted by soldiers are so common. The materials presented by HRF usually lack the context needed to establish that a specific demolition was illegal. Moreover, even if one assumes that the IDF's overall policy on demolitions is excessive, responsibility for that policy cannot be pinned on an individual soldier carrying out a specific order. The weakness of this evidentiary base points to the campaign's true objectives. The Strategic Implications of the Campaign The frailty of the evidence provided by HRF for soldiers’ alleged “war crimes” indicates that its purpose is not to secure accountability, but rather to harass soldiers and create a broader deterrent effect. Only one of the incidents mentioned resulted in a court-issued arrest warrant, and even then, no arrest was made. An arrest is merely the start of a long legal process: an investigation must be launched, an indictment must be based on admissible evidence, not merely a few social media posts, and a trial must guarantee the accused a fair hearing under international human rights law.34 A fair process would end in acquittal if reasonable doubt exists – a long journey with a slim chance of “success.” However, the financial burden of this “fishing expedition,” once a complaint is filed, falls on the state and the soldier being investigated (and probably the State of Israel rendering legal assistance to him), not on HRF. What this strategy tangibly achieves are media events with significant ripple effects. Israelis who served in the war may now question whether they can safely travel abroad. Planned vacations or business trips may be avoided. This campaign may be intended to deter young people from enlisting or reservists from serving in combat roles, thereby weakening the IDF. Another tangible effect is the IDF spokesperson’s new policy of blurring the faces and hiding the full names of nearly all soldiers35 appearing in the media.36 This may be an unavoidable security measure, but it has negative side effects. It is difficult to create identification with role models when their faces are blurred, which harms morale both within the military and in Israeli society during a time of war. For example, last Independence Day, the faces of 120 outstanding soldiers receiving the President’s Award for excellence were blurred and their full names not disclosed.37 As one Israeli journalist noted, when soldiers mask their faces like guerrilla fighters, it implies they have something to be ashamed of.38 These implications echo the logic of terrorism: using the media to spread fear through actions that require minimal effort but generate maximum attention. In 1974, Brian Jenkins described this phenomenon: “Terrorism is aimed at the people watching, not at the actual victims. Terrorism is theater.” Criminal proceedings – with their 32. “The terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip exploit the civilian infrastructure for terrorist activities,” THE MEIR AMIT INTELLIGENCE AND TERRORISM INFORMATION CENTER (Aug. 12, 2024), available at https://www. terrorism-info.org.il/en/the-terrorist-organizations-inthe-gaza-strip-exploit-the-civilian-infrastructure-forterrorist-activities/ 33. For a recent example see: “IDF Troops Dismantled an Underground Terror Tunnel Route from which Terrorists Operated,” THE ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (May 19, 2025), available at https://www.idf.il/en/mini-sites/idf-pressreleases-israel-at-war/may-25-pr/idf-troops-dismantledan-underground-terror-tunnel-route/ 34. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, art. 14, Dec.16, 1966, 999 U.N.T.S. 171, available at https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/ instruments/international-covenant-civil-and-politicalrights (hereinafter: the “ICCPR”). 35. The exceptions are senior officers above the rank of brigadier general, or soldiers whose names are already public. 36. Emanuel Fabian, “Amid efforts abroad to prosecute combat soldiers, IDF to try to conceal their identities,” THE TIMES OF ISRAEL (Jan. 9, 2025), available at https:// www.timesofisrael.com/amid-prosecution-attemptsabroad-idf-to-conceal-identities-of-all-combat-soldiers/ 37. Compare the press release of the last ceremony with the one from 2023: “Meet the 120 Awardees of the President's Award of Excellence,” THE ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (May 1, 2025), available at https://www.idf.il/en/minisites/idf-press-releases-israel-at-war/may-25-pr/meetthe-120-awardees-of-the-presidents-award-of-excellence/. “The President’s Excellence Award Ceremony,” THE ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES (May 5, 2023), available at https://www.idf.il/en/articles/2023/the-president-sexcellence-award-ceremony/ 38. Menachem Horowitz, “Warriors without faces,” N12 (May 16, 2025), available at https://www.mako.co.il/ news-columns/2025_q2/Article-6bb944f1ddea691026. htm?pId=173113802_710878&fbclid=IwY2xjawKpK 5FleHRuA2FlbQIxMQB icmlkETFEeFlNNjJIUk5XT lBMNHB5AR7fma9ez6USCa-BQ50Z4GaE9zj0Sz1sRBFqiWCkSL73BEhVdW7kvNiZoXeDw_aem_ o7RAqhpZciel09WIlNyIgA
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