State watchdog slams IDF for letting troops fund-raise for arms

The state comptroller on Monday took the Israel Defense Forces to task over unregulated fund-raising activities, saying that IDF soldiers seeking direct donations to pay for weapons or other equipment is a clear violation of army regulations.

Not only are individual fund-raising initiatives against official IDF procedures, said Yosef Shapira in a scathing report, but the phenomenon sidesteps army supervision and negatively impacts the morale of soldiers.

IDF regulations stipulate that any contributions to the IDF must go through the Association for the Well-being of Israel’s Soldiers, a long-standing national institution better known by its Hebrew name, “Ha’aguda Lema’an Hahayal,” Shapira wrote in his report.

Using the Yiddish term for a beggar, Shapira said the “schnorrer” practice inherently means the donations are distributed to IDF units unequally, and has resulted in ill will between soldiers in different units.

“This harms equality among IDF units and soldiers, creates inappropriate pressure on parents of soldiers and relatives to donate, and damages the good name of the IDF as a military that can provide the basic needs of its soldiers,” added Shapira.

He went on to warn that accepting equipment or weapons on behalf of the IDF could constitute a security risk.

“The IDF must immediately take measures in order to rigorously enforce the eradication of this phenomenon and to work to better supervise and control the donations to the army,” Shapira wrote. “These [donations] should be rooted in efficiency, transparency, proper administration, and integrity.”

During Israel’s 2014 war with Hamas in Gaza, the army was criticized when it emerged that a number of individual soldiers had turned to online crowdfunding sites to pay for additional equipment and supplies during the 50-day conflict.

In his report, Shapira also slammed the Defense Ministry for appointing senior officials in “an unfair manner.”

The comptroller said tenders for certain Defense Ministry positions — including the leader of a ministry delegation to Europe and the head of the construction branch — were not conducted in a fair and transparent way.

Candidates for senior posts are often chosen personally by the director of the ministry, instead of by a panel.