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The former IDF operative who thinks Israelis need to talk more about life in the occupied West Bank

Interview: Breaking the Silence's Merphie Bubis defended her group against accusations of being an 'enemy within'

April 14, 2019 06:24
The presence of Israeli troops in the West Bank is an emotive subject for both Jews and Arabs

ByRosa Doherty, Rosa Doherty

3 min read

Like many of her colleagues, Merphie Bubis has been accused of trying to destroy Israel’s reputation by sharing the testimonies of IDF soldiers who said they saw human rights offences while serving in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.

Ms Bubis, who is the group’s diaspora coordinator, is one of over a thousand former IDF soldiers to have given their testimony to a group called Breaking the Silence since 2004.

The group says it exists to “expose the Israeli public to the realities of everyday life in the Occupied Territories.” Critics accuse it of being “an enemy within”, seeking to delegitimise the state of Israel, especially within the international community.

But for Ms Bubis, whose job involves engaging diaspora communities, that criticism “is something quite bizarre.”