Religious Protesters Rally Against IDF Soldiers' Punishment

Hundreds of people demonstrated outside Prison 10 on Tuesday evening to protest the detention of religious Givati Brigade soldiers. These soldiers reportedly refused to board a military vehicle with a female paramedic. Among the attendees were senior reserve officers, rabbis, yeshiva deans, public figures, and the soldiers' families.

Avi Maoz, chairman of the Noam party and a Knesset member, spoke at the rally, calling for the soldiers to be recognized rather than punished. "You should receive a medal, not a punishment. You should be the model for every soldier in the IDF. You are a pillar of fire in the forefront of the struggle for Jewish identity and for the spirit of the IDF," Maoz stated. He praised the soldiers' service, saying, "Fortunate are you Givati soldiers who came from the study hall to a mitzvah war. Fortunate are you who were chosen as an outstanding platoon, who fought our enemies in Lebanon and Gaza, and who do not bend your Torah and values in the face of all pressures, threats, and punishments."

Maoz further quoted a biblical verse, stating, "For the Lord your God walks in the midst of your camp to save you and deliver your camp to be holy." He added, "This is the supreme value that should lead the army of the Jewish state."

Other speakers at the event included Rabbi Rafael Jahami, head of the Teshuva movement "Shaarei Da'at"; Rabbi Dror Aryeh from the Sderot Hesder Yeshiva; Rabbi Aviad Gannot, chairman of the "Torat Lechima" organization; Noam party candidate Yiska Haimov; and Efrat Lupu from the "Nashim Le'maan Kedushat HaMachane" organization.