A number of anti-Israel social media accounts have claimed that some of our paratroopers stole grapes from palestinian lands, including a photo of the supposed thieves in action:
Not surprisingly, the truth is something else entirely. According to journalist Carmela Menashe, the soldiers volunteered to harvest grapes in Yitzhar, albeit in violation of procedures.
More here (auto-translated):
Last week, the fighters were on a half-day respite as part of “Education and Heritage” and searched for an idea about the value of the mission and found it in Yitzhar, in the vines of one of the settlers they knew and for several hours assisted in the vineyard harvest.
A military source told the news here: “The soldiers were not forced to work, it was voluntary. Everything was in a good atmosphere and there were no soldiers resisting. The mistake was in the bureaucracy, the approvals were not received from the required levels, it is a malfunction with learning. “
In contrast, a senior officer said that “the fault is beyond the matter of permits, the fault is in the perception, soldiers engaged in ongoing security can not and should not rub shoulders with the civilian population for whom they are responsible.”
The IDF spokesman said in response: “As part of the education day, the crews of the team fighters chose to volunteer for agricultural activities. After investigating the case, it became clear that the volunteering was carried out not in accordance with the orders as required. Procedures have been refined on the subject.”
So the soldiers were actually harvesting for Jewish residents of the area, not stealing from palestinian Arabs. In fact, according to the report linked to above, the vineyard belonged to a victim of palestinian Arab terrorism: Ariel Ben Sheetrit, a farmer who was injured as a reservist in a shooting attack while guarding and went into rehabilitation to return to full function.
These liars are the pits.
