Far-right researcher gives lecture to soldiers at IDF base, despite not being on approved list of speakers

Far-right former intelligence analyst Eliyahu Yosian lectured to soldiers at an army base in the West Bank yesterday, although he is not included in the IDF’s list of approved lecturers.

The Times of Israel learned that Yosian was invited by commanders to speak to reservist soldiers at the Samaria Regional Brigade. During the lecture, Yosian made controversial and political remarks.

In response to a query from The Times of Israel, the IDF says, “The lecture was not approved through the accepted channels.”

“This was an error, and the relevant procedures have been clarified,” the military says.

The IDF says it has a list of approved lecturers, and “lectures are delivered by a variety of people from the public.” A military source confirms that Yosian is not on the list of approved lecturers.

Yosian, born in Iran, is known for his extreme views.

After the October 7, 2023, onslaught, Yosian said “there are no innocents, there are 2.5 million terrorists,” and that Israel should have killed “at least 50,000 Gazans” within the first hours of the Hamas attack.

He has, in the past, also called secularism and liberalism a “cancer in the body of the Jewish nation.” In June, Yosian said former Supreme Court president Aharon Barak’s body should be burned upon his death, and that he should not be buried in Israel.

Yosian has lectured on army bases several times in the past.

In November 2023, Yosian, while speaking to soldiers at a base in the Jordan Valley, was taken off stage by a brigade commander after he made extreme comments. In June, a lecture by Yosian before soldiers was nixed after Channel 13 news contacted the IDF. In both cases, the military said the lectures had not been approved through the proper channels.