Ben Gvir Moves to Expand Gun Licenses for Hesder Yeshiva Students

The National Security Committee, chaired by MK Tzvika Fogel, held a discussion on expanding the criteria for obtaining an individual firearms license for hesder yeshiva students who do not live in eligible communities. The committee, headed by MK Tzvika Fogel of Otzma Yehudit, discussed this morning broadening the criteria, threshold conditions and standards for granting gun licenses to hesder yeshiva students who do not live in, or fight in, an eligible community.

During the discussion, the committee chairman, MK Fogel, proposed expanding the regulations to allow hesder yeshiva students to qualify, and emphasized their contribution in the war relative to their numbers and the number of fallen from hesder yeshivas. The deputy director general for firearms licensing and supervision, David Weizman, said the professional position of the division is to support expanding the criteria: "Regarding the hesder yeshiva students, the proposal is welcome. We need to understand how to make it precise."

According to him, "I think that hesder yeshiva students, like the other fighters in the army, are a significant power component in the public sphere. Unfortunately, the cemeteries are full of this segment of the population. Minister Ben Gvir's policy will of course decide how to do this." As a reminder, at the end of 2025 we reported that the minister for national security, MK Itamar Ben Gvir, initiated a dedicated staff work process to examine the possibility of easing the granting of an individual firearms license to hesder yeshiva students who do not live or study in communities defined as eligible.

An adviser to Minister Ben Gvir detailed the number of fallen from hesder yeshivas, noted that hesder yeshiva students from the hesder yeshiva in Kiryat Shmona were added to the city's standby squad, led by Minister Ben Gvir, and said: "These are people who will receive the weapon, we are simply proposing to advance the receipt of the weapon by a year or two." A representative of the IDF said that the IDF position on the hesder yeshiva students has not been formulated under that name, as has the Justice Ministry. In conclusion, the committee chairman decided that a further discussion on the issue would be held last week.