Israeli Occupation citizen Hillel Rabin has just left prison, where she has spent a total of 56 days since August for refusing compulsory military service out of her adherence to nonviolence, but she says, "I am the happiest person in the world."

Rabin, 19, chose not to hide her conviction in "rejecting violence," stressing that she is convinced of peace and that violence and wars are not justified, while being ready to bear the consequences of that. Consequently, Rabin served 56 days in prison and was interrogated four times, during which she demonstrated that her refusal to perform military service was not motivated by "political considerations."

Had she not been able to prove this, she would have returned to prison for 80 days.

"My lawyer called me this morning and told me you are free," said Rabin, after her release from the prison in the coastal village of Atlit. The army plays a central role in Israeli Occupation society, reaching an impact on the social status of youth and future employment prospects.

"The army is one of the most intuitive things in Israel," Rabin told AFP, as her mother hugged her after she passed through the prison gate. "You grow up knowing you will be a soldier, you will shut up and do your job."

In the Occupation, females who reach the age of 18 are required to perform two years of military service, compared to at least 32 months for males. Women and some men in the ultra-Orthodox community and 1948 Palestinians are exempt from military service.

One of them could be exempted from military service if he proved that he is studying full-time in a Jewish religious school, while others cite their psychological problems to avoid doing the service.

As for Rabin, she chose not to hide the reason behind her refusal to perform military service.

"I could not choose the easiest way," she says, "I could lie and say that I am crazy (...) I am not crazy, the situation here (...) is crazy."

According to the "Yesh Ghouful" or (There is a limit) organization, in 2019 five Israelis who refused to serve in the military were imprisoned for "conscientious objection."

The Israeli Occupation army did not comment on AFP's question about the case of the young woman Rabin, but indicated that those who refused the service could "present the reason for their refusal before a committee" which in turn would issue a "recommendation" to the recruitment center.

Prison No. Six is a military prison for those who violate military regulations and instructions of the Israeli Occupation army.

Iran Hillel does not care about the charges of "treason" and death threats against her on social media. "I decided not to allow their hatred to affect me," she says.

She notes that the members of the Military Investigation Council focused during their interrogation on the efforts of Iran, the occupation's archenemy, to acquire a nuclear weapon.

Whether she would refuse military service if she was born in a country other than the Israeli Occupatipn, she says, "I refuse to serve any army in the world."

For Rabin, the reality in Palestine strengthens her convictions.

Rabin has been exempted from conscription, and she says she plans to volunteer for civil service like helping children in need.

- Various voices -

In 2002, the Israeli Occupation Supreme Court recognized the possibility of excusing a person from service, but at the same time distinguished between pacifism and "selective conscientious objection" that threatens "to weaken the bonds that unite us as a nation."

"Israel does not want to hear different voices," says Irit Rabin, Hillel's mother, who herself served in the army.

The mother, who seemed proud of her daughter’s struggle, added, "We did not push her to do this (...). We told her you have to decide, you have a natural right to choose your steps."

The mother addresses her daughter, "You have served your country in a very special way."