Ben-Gvir Proposes Overhaul of IDF Ethics Code, Replacing 'Purity of Arms' with 'Righteousness of Arms'

Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir is preparing a detailed policy paper for the Ministry of Defense that includes fundamental changes to the IDF's ethical code. The proposal centers on the value of victory and defeating the enemy, grounding the army's ethical authority in the Torah, Jewish morality, and Hebrew law. Ben-Gvir's plan suggests replacing the traditional concept of 'Purity of Arms' with 'Righteousness of Arms.' The new formulation would explicitly state that a soldier's moral value is based on the principle 'He who comes to kill you, rise early to kill him.' Phrases instructing soldiers to act 'only to the extent necessary' have been removed from the ethical code. Additionally, clauses explicitly prohibiting harm to 'non-involved' individuals and prisoners of war have been deleted. The reference to 'universal moral values' has been entirely removed, with a focus shifted to the tradition and heritage of the Jewish people.

The proposal redefines the IDF's core values to include striving for victory, defeating the enemies of the State of Israel and the people of Israel, and safeguarding the security of the state and its citizens. It also emphasizes service based on devotion to Israel as a Jewish state and a democratic homeland for the Jewish people. The new code includes a commitment to respecting the dignity of every person, regardless of origin, religion, nationality, gender, or status. The IDF is defined as the army of the people, a Jewish and state army, subject to the law and government, acting solely on professional and substantive grounds. This proposal has generated significant interest in political and security circles, presenting a fundamentally different operational and ethical concept from the IDF's ethical code of recent decades.