How Israel uses humiliation as a weapon of occupation

New military testimony highlights the use of bureaucratic power over Palestinians.   

When Joel Carmel went for his military service in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), he didn’t expect it to mean sitting at a computer processing permits, typing in Palestinian ID numbers all day.

“Before I went to the army, I considered myself a centrist, politically speaking. I knew broadly about the occupation and the combat side of things. But it was so boring, so bureaucratic … It wears you down,” the 29-year-old said.

“You don’t have time or energy to think of Palestinians as people. They are just numbers on a computer, and you click ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on their travel permit applications.”

The sprawling system of military government created by Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip is a world many Israelis are learning about for the first time, after the publication of testimonies from veterans exposing the “permit regime” that rules over Palestinian people and land.

While the 55-year-old occupation is perhaps the most well-documented conflict in modern history, less understood is the breadth and depth of the bureaucratic power wielded by Israeli military bodies.

The Israeli defence ministry unit known as the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) is largely concerned with issuing and processing paperwork: approving medical and work permits to enter Israel or travel abroad, controlling the flow of imports and exports, infrastructure planning and allocation of natural resources.

Testimonies from military conscripts who served in COGAT offices during the past decade have for the first time been collected by Breaking the Silence. The verified accounts of several dozen interviewees – including Carmel, who now works for the organisation – have been gathered in a new, freely available booklet titled Military Rule.