Instructions available on the web
Photo: Zwika Tishler
Avoiding army service
Photo: IDF Spokesperson Unit
Israeli websites offer 'manual for draft-dodging'
Several Israeli websites feature guidebook instructing teenagers on how to obtain exemption from army service by posing as depressed, suicidal. 'No mental health officer can resist someone who memorized this manual,' says one draft-dodger
As more and more teenagers are dodging army service, and concerns are growing as to the implications of this growing phenomenon on the IDF and Israeli society, some are actively working to help even more young Israelis avoid recruitment.
Target 21 is an Israeli website that provides full and comprehensive instructions to high school students and active soldiers on how to obtain exemption from service on mental grounds. The site is named after the code "Profile 21" used to classify candidates for service who suffer from physical or psychological disabilities that render them unfit to serve.
The site, which was originally only available in Russian, has recently been joined by several other websites that also refer to the guidebook. The guidebook can be downloaded in full from the internet.
'Disheveled appearance' can help
"No mental health officer or psychologist can resist someone who memorized this guidebook," said P., a 19-year-old from Tel Aviv who managed to obtain an exemption. "The guidebook helped me prepare for all the meetings in the army and all the conversations. I knew exactly what to say to the mental health officer and to my personal psychologist."The manual recommends to those wishing to obtain the desired "Profile 21" to pose as depressed and suicidal. "It's best to give short answers… speak in a low voice or mumble and describe psychosomatic symptoms such as headaches, stomach aces and back pains, or having problems sleeping due to thoughts about the army."
Interviewees are also advised to look down during the conversation and obsessively play with a watch or a necklace, thus adopting behavior patterns "typical of the suicidal character." A scruffy appearance, including unclean clothes and an unshaven face can also help, says the instruction book.
'I would help anyone wishing to avoid service'
Rami, who runs the website Military Zone, which also features the guidebook, proudly declares that at least 4,000 people visit his site every month. "I personally know of dozens of high school students who managed to get an exemption from service with the help of this manual."Another site that supports those wishing to avoid army service and that also refers to the guidebook belongs to the New Profile organization. "It is every person's right to refuse to do army service," said Sergei Sandler, 32, a philosophy and math post-grad student and a math and English teacher active in the group.
"I would help any teenager who wishes not to serve in the army, even if his only reason is that he 'doesn't feel like it.' I know hundreds of surfers who consulted our site and the Target 21 instruction book in order to avoid service," he stated.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said in response that "the IDF denounces the draft-dodging phenomenon and addresses it by motivating candidates to complete meaningful service in the army."
