This blog was the first English-language source which reported that Israeli journalist Anat Kam was secretly arrested by the Israeli police for allegedly leaking top secret IDF memos describing the army’s flagrant disregard for an Israeli Supreme Court ruling. The latter provided limitations on the IDF’s use of targeted assassinations against Palestinian militants and the memos documented the army’s violation of the judicial decision. I reported that not only was Kam’s arrest secret, but the reason for her arrest too was embargoed by the Shin Bet.
After I read every Hebrew source about this affair and wrote my own post, a number of these sources disappeared. It turns out that Anat Kam herself and others on the Israeli left have urged those who have published to remove their material. Indymedia Israel did this (see cached version). Kam asked the Hebrew Wikipedia to remove the article about her and it did. As a member wrote quite sensibly (in Hebrew) in response:
If Shimon Peres told you to remove his Wikipedia article, would you?
For a few days I also did so after an Israeli peace activist told me that Kam was negotiating with the Shin Bet and hoped if little was made of this affair that she might get off with no jail time. I took my post down. Then I wrote to Avigdor Feldman asking him to confirm that he wished me to do so. I never received a reply. I republished my post.
Aside from the Shin Bet’s egregious behavior, several developments in this case have troubled me. First, I discovered that Anat Kam had published a tart dismissal of the Israeli conscientious objector movement. I wondered how someone who allegedly leaked top secret documents discrediting the Israeli army’s policy on a item of major national security significance could also disparage the very peace movement which these memos would assist.
I also noticed that at a Hebrew language website which had archived all online sources dealing with this case, someone sounding very much like Kam, but using the pseudonym “Noa,” railed against the website owner for maintaining the archive. I should add that I have other confirming evidence that the commenter was Kam. Among other disparaging statements she made about him:
You know Anat Kam? You tried to make contact with her? Or did you take on yourself the decision to be the Prince of Human Rights and Democracy and to claim you know what would be best for her?
…And further, I haven’t even begun to count to the number of times you were an accomplice to violations of the gag order (linking to articles which commit such a violation makes you into a criminal accomplice. It’s a good idea to examine the law from time to time.)”
On reading this, Aryeh Amihay, owner of the website took the entire archive post down. He too was intimidated by the veiled threat in the comment. So someone will have to explain to me how this sort of behavior serves anyone’s interests, even Kam’s. I fully understand that she is only 23 years old, faces very serious charges, and is under enormous pressure from the security establishment. I understand how this can turn one from being a principled person attempting to do good into someone seeking to save their own hide. In fact, I had experience with another whistleblower who, after being caught, acted in almost precisely the same way. This appears to be part of human nature, the instinct for self-preservation. So I am trying not to be judgmental on that score. But this seems to go far beyond what is required under the circumstances.
So I’d recommend that those on the Israeli left who’ve cooperated with the wall of silence reconsider their decisions. I continue to believe that silence doesn’t serve the greater good of Israeli democracy. I don’t even believe it serves Anat Kam’s interests, but as she herself says, that’s for her to determine.
I don’t know what motivated Anat Kam allegedly to leak the IDF memos. I would hope her actions were based on a citizen’s disgust with the army’s brazen disregard for the rule of law. But it occurs to me, and I freely concede and even hope I am wrong, that the leak may’ve been motivated by an aspiring journalist who found herself in a position to advance her career by making such material public through Israel’s leading daily newspaper, Haaretz, and a respected investigative journalist, Uri Blau. I also note that following her army service she went to work for Walla, an internet portal owned by Haaretz. Coincidence?
There are aspects of this case which still have not come to light. Anat Kam is not the alpha and the omega of this story. More than this, I can’t say at this time. I look forward to being able to say more at a later date.
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If the archive blogger you mentioned censored himself, why don’t you make a new archive?
My 3 blog posts pretty link to much of the material in Aryeh’s archive. Besides, he may decide to put the material up again once he’s more confident that Anat Kam was blowing smoke at him.
I am following this story closely. It is both fascinating and perplexing.
Keep plugging the story, Richard. It is interesting to me that l’Affaire Kam has become a story about her silencing and the silencing of human rights bloggers and news outlets than about the leaked item itself. which is the IDF resorting to violation of the law in order to waste human beings who it deems a “threat”. Frankly, I think it’s only the beginning – it starts with Arabs. But we have seen what they do with vanunu. Or naomi Chazan. Or the Dubai debacle.
As I said in a couple of comments on your previous post – everything indicates that Israel is sliding from a country of common law to one ruled by the law of the mafia. The intimidation into silence of those who seek to bear witness – through an arbitrary “gag order”, the flaunting of the law of their own supreme court and the viciousness of the attack on the web site you brought up above are all pointing to the slippery slope.
I am not surprised the israeli bloggers would comply with pleadings followed by demands, followed by veiled threats. Which, if not resulting in the desired action, will no doubt be followed by more dire consequences. This entire affaire is an reminder of the way in which the stasi secret police escalated its modus operandi as well. I have absolutely no doubt that in due course more real israeli people, not just virtual news, will start disappearing.
I confess to worrying a bit about your own exposure. Just think – the people who resort to assassination, mafia-style hits, murder of children in gaza, and forcing women to give birth at check points – what’s rights of any kind to them? or borders? or shared religion? Please do not put anything past them and take all the precautions you can. Oh yes, and it may be a good idea to forget Israeli state’s tenuous connection to jewishness and watch The Godfather again (all parts). Sometimes, it’s a good to remind ourselves what mentality we are dealing with (as opposed to what we wish to believe).
First of all, you can’t be sure, she made that threat, but that’s irrelevant in my opinion. Someone is obviously trying to bury this story at all costs.
It’s important to remember that the truth and justice are bigger than ambition and personal agendas and will sometimes emerge from unexpected sources in mysterious ways. However, once they do, they must be furthered at all costs with limited extreme exceptions. I suspect that you might be right about Kam’s motive not being so altruistic, but as usual, I encourage you to rely on your integrity and loyalty to the truth and justice first, because in the end these deserve our protection as they do benefit the greater good in our society, and even more so in this case.
Things happen for a reason. It’s all good in this case! She can’t put the genie back in the bottle, and if someone is holding something over her head, they too realize that fact, and they can’t use that against her. This is now out of her control, and out of the Shin Bet’s control. But of course, they will use all means to silence the truth, and in doing so further expose their contempt for the law.
Hi Richard,
Thanks for following this story so closely. But really, as Dana above me says, why are you cooperating with focusing only on Kam’s case and not the actual severe issue she exposed? Don’t you agree that it’s in the interest of the army to do exactly that?
Israeli and foreign press should be centering on the fact that Israel routinely covers up premeditated assassinations, authorized by GOC Central Command. Anat Kam is a small, albeit important, case in an enormously rotten system. By the way, the very fact that she is being penalized is ok, as she transgressed military law. I support her brave journalism and think her lawyers should defend her on grounds of public interest, but don’t forget she did after all break the law, possibly in order to serve the public good. The problem is the media blackout. And as you say, there may be several reasons for that.
An aside – you and I may believe that Ha’aretz is the leading Israeli daily in terms of quality and ideology, but it certainly isn’t so objectively. The leading daily is Yediot/Ynet.
I’ve tried to focus on a very complicated story & include all the major elements. In the many posts I’ve written I think I’ve covered virtually anything of importance including the very important issues of IDF criminality, rule of law, perversion of democracy. I’ve also warned not to make Anat Kam into a martyr or even the hero of the story. In fact, I just spoke to an American journallist writing about this who wanted to focus on Anat & her personal story. I think that’s secondary at least right now & until we know more about her motivations in doing this.
But I take yr pt. & will try to focus on the important issues you’ve reminded us about.
And yes, I know that Haaretz is not the most popular paper in Israel in terms of size of readership & never meant to imply that.
Thank you for reporting this case.
That the authorities are threatening Uri Blau is extremely worrying. I found my self disagreeing with the following though:
“First, I discovered that Anat Kam had published a tart dismissal of the Israeli conscientious objector movement. I wondered how someone who allegedly leaked top secret documents discrediting the Israeli army’s policy on a item of major national security significance could also disparage the very peace movement which these memos would assist.”
But the main reason anyone might have access to those documents is because she was part of the Israeli army. As almost all Israeli’s are. That is why it is hard for such deliberate break of Israeli court decisions to go unnoticed. See, for instance, Shovrim Shtika.