“The pilots’ letter,” published on September 24, 2003, was signed by 27 reserve pilots and former pilots already exempt from reserve duty. One of the signatories was a famous former pilot Brigadier General (res.) Yiftah Spector. In their letter, the pilots stated:

“We, veteran and active pilots alike, who served and still serve the state of Israel for long weeks every year, are opposed to carrying out attack orders that are illegal and immoral of the type the state of Israel has been conducting in the territories. We, who were raised to love the state of Israel and contribute to the Zionist enterprise, refuse to take part in Air Force attacks on civilian population centers. We, for whom the Israel Defense Forces and the Air Force are an inalienable part of ourselves, refuse to continue to harm innocent civilians. These actions are illegal and immoral, and are a direct result of the ongoing occupation which is corrupting all of Israeli society. Perpetuation of the occupation is fatally harming the security of the state of Israel and its moral strength.”[7][6]

The signatories clarified that they do not reject military service in the IDF but declared:

“We … shall continue to serve in the Israel Defense Forces and the Air Force for every mission in defense of the state of Israel.”

In response, the Chief of Staff announced that the pilots would be grounded and will no longer be allowed to train cadets in the country’s flight school.[8] In response to their letter, hundreds of IAF pilots signed a petition denouncing the pilots’ letter and their refusal to serve. Because of the harsh response, several of the pilots who originally signed the letter reneged and removed their signatures After more than 30 signed 4 later recanted one an El Al pilot was threaten with dismisal and another lost his civilian Job.[8] Later, in an interview given to Israeli journalist Dan Margalit, Yiftah Spector stated that the letter was misunderstood and that pilots should not refuse to perform “targeted killing” of “terrorist leaders”.[citation needed]

The commandos’ letter

This letter, dated December 2003, was signed by 13 reservists of Sayeret Matkal, an elite commando unit, serving in the West Bank and Gaza Strip (nine commandos in Sayeret Matkal, 2 soldiers who had been removed from reserve duty because of prior refusals to serve there, and 2 additional combatant soldiers).

Their letter, addressed to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, stated:

“We shall no longer lend a hand in the occupation of the territories. We shall no longer take part in the deprivation of basic human rights from millions of Palestinians. We shall no longer serve as a shield in the crusade of the settlements. We shall no longer corrupt our moral character in missions of oppression. We shall no longer deny our responsibility as soldiers of the Israeli DEFENSE force.”[7]