In a letter, Rabbi Dov Wolpe, head of the "Eretz Yisrael Shelanu" group, protested to Defense Minister Ehud Barak the awarding of a medal to Israel Air Force pilot Yiftach Spector, who in 2003 declared that he would refuse to serve in Judea and Samaria. Spector, who, in the midst of the intifada, signed the infamous "pilot's letter" declaring that he would not serve in Yesha, and was even suspended from the IDF, according to new reports at the time Rabbi Wolpe quoted.

Spector was awarded a medal last week by IAF Commander Ido Nechushtan. He was quoted as saying after the ceremony that, unlike others who signed the letter, he did not regret doing so. In the letter, Rabbi Wolpe said that the move, approved by Barak, "raised serious questions about how you use your authority as Israel's defense minister."