The Magistrate Court in Be’er Sheva on Tuesday evening accepted a request by local police to ban a scheduled lecture by Shovrim Shtika (Hebrew for Breaking the Silence) at the Ashan Hazman pub (the name is Hebrew for ‘the smoke of time’) in the Negev capital. Police claimed that the pub owner did not meet the security requirements and there was a real concern for the public peace and security. Local right wing groups planned to demonstrate in front of the pub and police were afraid that the event would develop into violent confrontations. Earlier this week, police arrested a young man who threatened the pub owner demanding that he cancel the lecture. The court based its decision on the high crowd density expected during the event, and the fact that the owner planned to hold the event without appropriate security arrangements. The organization announced that the lecture was moved to a private house in the city.
According to its website, “Breaking the Silence” (BtS) “collects testimonies of soldiers who served in the Occupied Territories during the Second Intifada.” The website claims the “testimonies portray a … grim picture of questionable orders in many areas regarding Palestinian civilians [which] demonstrate the depth of corruption which is spreading in the Israeli military. … Israeli society continues to turn a blind eye, and to deny that which happens in its name.” Its 2014 documented income from foreign sources was roughly $1 million. The Breaking the Silence 2013-15 donors include: Human Rights and International Law Secretariat (joint funding from Sweden, Switzerland, Denmark and the Netherlands), Trocaire (Ireland), Dan Church Aid (Denmark), Broederlijk Delen (Belgium), Christian Aid (UK), Switzerland, France, CCFD (France), Medico International (Germany), Misereor (Germany), AECID (Spain), EU, ICCO (Netherlands), Norway, Open Society Institute, New Israel Fund, and two grants from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund totaling $145,000.
According to court minutes, the event registered more than 250 people despite the fact that the pub may only accommodate 40. “There is a concern there will be pressure that would lead to a greater number of people entering than the place may contain,” read the minutes. “This is an indication a real threat level which prohibits conducting the event without adequate security arrangements and without complying with the other conditions imposed by the Israeli police.” It was also noted that the owner said he planned to open his business without proper security.
Breaking the Silence said in response that only 40 guests were expected at the event, which was to include a lecture by a soldier who “broke the Silence.” The NGO accused Be’er Sheva police of capitulating to the right wing, canceling what was intended as an introduction lecture for the organization.
Breaking the Silence is one of the most frequently cited anti-Israel sources in the UN’s “Schabas committee”investigation of the IDF’s conduct during the 2014 Gaza war.