Chief Rabbi Urges Against Punishing Soldiers Refusing Duty With Female Medic

Israel's Chief Rabbi, Kalman Meir Bar, has appealed to IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and Defense Minister Israel Katz to halt legal proceedings against soldiers from the Givati Brigade. The soldiers reportedly refused to deploy on a mission in Gaza because a female medic was assigned to their team. In a letter addressed to the military leaders, Rabbi Bar argued that soldiers should not be punished for adhering to religious codes of conduct. He questioned why religious soldiers lack a say in matters of joint service, stating, "Why on the issue of joint service does a religious soldier have no right to speak?" The Rabbi urged them to revise regulations concerning joint service to accommodate religious soldiers' needs and beliefs, emphasizing that Jewish tradition also dictates codes for a Jewish army.