Druze soldiers who 'cursed Israel' and 'supported Palestinian resistance' face disciplinary action

A group of Druze soldiers in the Israeli military are under fire after a video emerged where they allegedly praise Palestinian fighters in Jenin and cursed the army.

The four young men speak to the camera in Arabic about the recent Israeli assault on Jenin, where fierce resistance from local Palestinians saw a humiliating retreat from the West Bank city.

"God supports Jenin, God supports Palestine," the soldiers said in the video as they laugh, The Times of Israel reported. "Israel can go to hell."

The four men, believed to be serving in a logistics corps and based in southern Israel, were arrested and then released, the Israeli military said.

"[The] soldiers' behaviour contravenes IDF values, and they will be disciplined," a spokesperson for the Israeli army said in a statement.

A lawyer for one of the soldiers said the video has been heavily edited.

"In most of the conversation the suspects came to the defence of the IDF soldiers. It is appropriate that the treatment be only disciplinary and not criminal," the lawyer said.]

The video relates to Monday's siege of Jenin, which saw seven Palestinians shot dead by Israeli forces and military helicopters used by Israel for the first time in the West Bank in over two decades.

Israeli troops poured into Jenin but as Palestinian fighters fought back, the soldiers made a hasty exit from the city. The resistance of Jenin's residents was widely celebrated by Palestinians in the West Bank and elsewhere.

חיילים תועדו מברכים את ג'נין ומקללים את ישראל, דובר צה"ל: "יטופלו משמעתית" @amirbohbot pic.twitter.com/M9azh1CJCr

— וואלה! (@WallaNews) June 20, 2023

While Muslim and Christian Palestinian citizens of Israel generally do not serve in the Israeli army, Druze make up a significant contingent in the military and intelligence, some rising to high ranks.

Despite being perceived as "loyalists", Druze citizens of Israel have still faced racism and protested the nation state law, which rights groups said discriminate against non-Jews.

The chair of Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Likud MK Yuli Edelstein, described the soldiers as "brats".