A video appeared on social media featuring an armed and masked infantryman standing in front of a concrete wall with a Hebrew inscription. In the video, he addresses the Prime Minister, urging him to let the army win and not hand over control of the Gaza Strip to any Arab government or organization.
He also calls for Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to resign, emphasizing that the army does not trust him and that he is incapable of defeating Hamas. The man expresses a similar opinion about the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the video's creator (or creators), stressing that he expects all involved organizations to treat any refusal to follow military orders equally. However, Yair Netanyahu, the Prime Minister's eldest son, shared the video on his account but later deleted the post.
Following the video's release on Friday, the Military Police launched an investigation. The man's identity was soon established, and on Sunday morning, he was detained for interrogation on suspicion of inciting mutiny.
In the video, the man declares: "We, the reservists, will not hand over the keys to Gaza to Hamas, Fatah, or any other Arab administration." He claims that, in his estimation, "100,000 reservists are ready for victory," which neither Defense Minister Yoav Gallant nor the Chief of Staff can achieve. According to the "reservist," he and his comrades "will follow only the one who leads them to victory." The speaker asserts that "the reservists will follow orders only from one leader – the Prime Minister."
An IDF representative commented on the video, stating, "The address recorded in the video is a serious violation of the IDF code and contradicts the IDF values, providing grounds for suspicion of a criminal offense." In this case, it concerns incitement to mutiny, punishable by up to five years in prison.
At the same time, the IDF has not yet confirmed or denied the man's claim in the video that he is a reservist.
