“I’m afraid to go home”: Website exposes Canadians serving in “Israeli” military

A website, findidfsoldiers.net, has ignited a heated controversy in Canada by compiling and publishing publicly available information on Canadians who have served in the “Israeli” military.

This project defines “Canadian” as someone who is a Canadian citizen, and/or has lived in Canada for a significant amount of time, and/or currently lives in Canada.

Launched on February 24, 2024, by The Maple, an online publication with a pro-Palestinian and anti-“Israel” stance, the site claims its purpose is to help readers understand the motivations of Canadians joining the “Israeli” military by aggregating details from public sources .

Davide Mastracci, The Maple’s opinion editor, has publicly accused “Israel” of planned genocide in Gaza.

However, the initiative has been met with strong accusations of "doxxing" from those listed and their families, who view the compilation as an act of intimidation.

Globally, there's a growing trend of legal complaints targeting “Israeli” soldiers based heavily on open-source material, leading the “Israeli” military to reportedly no longer allow soldiers to be identified by name.

Legal Ambiguity of "Doxxing"

A key point of contention is Canada's legal landscape. "Doxxing" itself is not a defined criminal offense in Canada . While the act of publishing private information for harassment is widely condemned, legal experts note that proving intent to harm is an "uphill battle" for potential lawsuits.

Mastracci asserts that every profile is "based entirely on public information gathered through simple Google searches from news articles, social media profiles, newsletters, websites, public directories and other sources," with each claim hyperlinked to its original public source. 

He emphasizes that the information's origin lies with the soldiers themselves, their family members, or media outlets where they "willingly shared their status as a soldier". The project, he suggests, implicitly challenges why such information was made public in the first place.

"I'm afraid to go home"

"I'm afraid to go home," one Canadian reservist expressed, while another, Nati Hubberman, a dual Canadian-“Israeli” citizen, recounted asking, "Is it safe for me to fly to Canada?" after seeing his name on the site, in statements made to “The Times of Israel”.

Canadians in Foreign Militaries and RCMP Scrutiny

Serving in foreign militaries, including the “Israeli” military, is generally legal for Canadian citizens.

The 1937 Foreign Enlistment Act primarily prohibits recruitment within Canada, not service abroad . The RCMP previously closed an investigation into alleged illegal “Israeli” recruitment in Canada without charges in June 2023 .

However, a separate, ongoing RCMP probe into "core international crimes" related to the “Israeli” aggression on Gaza, launched in early 2024, has added a new layer of anxiety.

While not a criminal investigation at this stage, the RCMP is collecting information and has not ruled out future prosecution if a perpetrator with a "nexus to Canada" is identified.

This has caused fear among Canadian reservists in the “Israeli” military, with some questioning if it's safe to return to Canada.