Occupation Refuser Aviv Sela was sentenced Wednesday, April 5 2006, to 21 days imprisonment in a military jail #4 after he announced his refusal to be enlisted for regular mandatory service in the IDF. Dozens of friends, family members and supporters demonstrated in support of Aviv Wednesday morning at the gate of the national conscription center.

In his letter to the Minister of Defence Aviv wrote:

`I, Aviv Sela, hereby present you with my request to be exempted from military service on grounds of conscience, according to section 36 of the 1986 law of military service (meshulav version). I would like to ask you to refer this request to the authorized exemption committee.

Though I did not grow up in an activist or political family, my family believed in humane values and in human equality and respect. My parents are not active in peace or

human rights organizations: their one political activity is going to the ballot box.

The more I saw of the occupied territories, the more clearly could I see the complexity of Palestinian society. When you are inside Israeli society you get the impression that Palestinian society is an extremist terrorist society. Once you are able to put aside these simplifications, you discover a complex society, with various factions and different ideas, and a variety of modes of struggle. This is how I got to know about non-violent protest, Palestinian protest, conducted either indirectly or directly, which has gained widespread publicity in Israel and internationally.

These visits I made to the occupied territories gave me a better insight into what was happening on the other side of the Green Line and they are a major part of how I have come to understand the Israeli government`s policy in the territories as illegitimate and something I cannot be part of`.

The authorities at Military Prison No. 4, where CO Aviv Sela is held, notified him that he is not allowed to send or receive letters in prison. That is illegal, and we are working on restoring Aviv`s right to receive letters in prison. But in the meanwhile the prison authorities offered Aviv to receive faxes for him. You can send messages of support (especially if they contain more than a line of text) to the following fax number:++972-3-9579348.
 
Write letters to Aviv Sela
military ID 6883615, POB 02507 Zahal (IDF).

Write letters to the Authorities
It is recommended to send letters of protest on behalf of the imprisoned refusers, preferably by fax, to:
   Mr. Shaul Mofaz, Minister of Defence, Ministry of Defence, 37 Kaplan St.,
   Tel-Aviv 61909, Israel E-mail: sar@mod.gov.il or pniot@mod.gov.il
   Fax: ++972-3-696-27-57 / ++972-3-691-69-40 / ++972-3-691-79-15

   Another useful address for sending copies isthe Military Attorney General:
   Chief Military Attorney, Military postal code 9605, IDF, Israel
   Fax: ++972-3-569-43-70

   Write letters to your local Israeli embassy.
   It is very effective to send protests to your local Israeli embassy. You can find the address of your local embassy on the web.
 

source: http://www.yeshgvul.org.il