25 Hesder Yeshivas Say They Will Not Send Students to the Armored Corps

The controversy over integrating female combat soldiers into the Armored Corps is widening. Thirteen additional Hesder yeshiva heads announced today, Thursday, that they will not send their students to enlist in the Armored Corps, two days after a similar call by 12 yeshiva heads. That brings the number of yeshivas joining the move to 25, about one-third of all Hesder yeshivas in Israel, according to a report on Channel 12 News.

The move comes after a pilot program to integrate women as combat soldiers in the Armored Corps was advanced, and against the backdrop of a High Court ruling on the integration of combat units. In their letter, the rabbis stressed that they are not calling for refusal to serve, and that yeshiva students will continue to serve in the IDF, but not in the Armored Corps. "We are pained by the feeble response of the State of Israel and the IDF," the rabbis wrote.

According to them, "bringing female soldiers into tanks together with male soldiers causes spiritual and practical harm to combat capability." Later in the letter, the rabbis wrote, "After careful consideration, we have decided that service in the Armored Corps is prohibited according to halakha." They demanded that the IDF find an alternative combat framework for combat-profile soldiers who are not suited to infantry service, in a way that would fit, in their words, "their combat spirit."

According to the yeshivas' statement, since each enlistment cycle allocates students to serve in the Armored Corps, the practical meaning of the move is an expected shortage of hundreds of fighters in the corps. The rabbis say the IDF is ignoring their appeals, as well as requests from the students slated for service.

Earlier this week, the IDF said, "As the people's army, the IDF sees paramount importance in integrating all sectors of the population, while making a great effort to preserve their lifestyles and needs, in a way that does not harm one population at the expense of another." It also said that the High Court did not instruct the IDF to enlist female combat soldiers in the Armored Corps, but rather to carry out the planned pilot on the issue. The army stressed that the pilot will be conducted in accordance with the joint service order, while meeting the required operational and professional standards, and that for now the issue has not yet reached the chief of staff.