Cable 09TELAVIV1694_a : IDF TO INVESTIGATE COMPLAINTS OF CRIMINAL CONDUCT BY ITS FORCES DURING OPERATION CAST LEAD, 2009 July 30
▻https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/09TELAVIV1694_a.html
The allegations of criminal conduct by various organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the International Red Cross have been persistent since the conclusion of “Cast Lead” in January 2009. Individual Palestinians also testified to IDF abuses such as looting, beatings, vandalism of property and the use of the local population as human shields. But by far the strongest reverbration in Israel was that created by the Israeli organization “Breaking the Silence”, which collected testimony from 26 unnamed IDF soldiers. All of the soldiers had been involved in Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, and testified to instances where Gazans were used as human shields, incendiary phosphorous shells were fired over civilian population areas, and other examples of excessive firepower that caused unnecessary fatalities and destruction of property.
et pour ce qui est des méthodes de la propagande militaire israélienne :
Brigadier General Avi Benayahu, the IDF military spokesman, is a seasoned player when it comes to handling the media. “Breaking the Silence” constituted a very different challenge, however, as the testimony was by Israelis who had served in the operation being criticized. Their allegations were not easy to dismiss, and Benayahu was careful not to refute them outright or imply that they were untrue or misleading. Instead, he pointed the finger at the methodology of the organization that had gathered their anonymous testimony, denouncing “Breaking the Silence” for making general allegations and failing to investigate the details. As part of his campaign to discredit “Breaking the Silence”, the IDF Spokesman claimed that it had been masquerading as a non-profit organization when in reality it was a registered (for profit) company, even quoting its putative registration number in a live interview with Israel Army Radio. ("Breaking the Silence" has not to our knowledge responded to the allegation. According to the media, the GOI has expressed its dissatisfaction with some European governments who have reportedly channeled funds to “Breaking the Silence.”) Finally, Benayahu lambasted the organization for failing to submit its report to the IDF with a sufficient delay ahead of publication — it gave 24 hours — so that the military could investigate the testimonies. In other words, the IDF was outraged that “Breaking the Silence” went public rather than give the IDF “first refusal” on a military investigation that is public only in terms of its findings.