Pressure to Silence Rabbis Who Opposed Female Integration in the Armored Corps

A letter circulated among heads of hesder yeshivas is calling on rabbis not to join a protest against the integration of female combat soldiers in the Armored Corps, arguing that it could harm contacts with the IDF. Sources familiar with the details say pressure was exerted by senior IDF officials on Eliezer Deutsch, a senior figure in the hesder yeshiva association.

The unusual letter, circulated in recent hours among heads of hesder yeshivas, has drawn sharp criticism and raised questions about rabbis' freedom of expression on issues involving the IDF and women's service in combat units. The letter, signed by members of the Hesder Yeshivas Council, calls on rabbis to "not act." It claims that the initiative against integrating women does not represent the council and could damage its position vis-a-vis the IDF.

However, sources familiar with the matter say that behind the scenes, pressure was exerted by senior IDF officials, including the chief of staff and the head of the Personnel Directorate, on a senior figure in the hesder yeshiva association named Eliezer Deutsch, who yielded to the pressure that was brought to bear and demanded that the rabbis issue the letter.

According to them, the message conveyed to the yeshiva heads was clear: prevent the rabbis' protest from expanding and reduce as much as possible any additional signatures on the letter. The letter distributed to the yeshiva heads said they should refrain from joining the letter of opposition, among other reasons, because of concern over harming working relations with the IDF. It was also claimed that publishing the letter could "harm the efforts" being conducted with the army on the issue.

Critics of the move argue that the very attempt to prevent rabbis from expressing a public and Torah-based position on such a significant value-laden issue constitutes a violation of freedom of expression. As reported first by Channel 14 News, heads of large hesder yeshivas, where hundreds of students preparing to enlist in the IDF study, signed a letter in which they officially declare that they will no longer send their students to enlist in the Armored Corps.

The controversy intensified further with the addition of 11 more hesder yeshiva heads, along with two rabbis who asked to remain anonymous, to the letter calling on students not to enlist in the corps because of the advancement of female combat integration. Among the new rabbis who signed the letter are Rabbi Michael Aharonov of Moshav Maale Ephraim, Rabbi Elisha Yinon of Afula, Rabbi Shlomo Sasson of Beit She'an, and Rabbi David Amitai of Yeshivat Avinoam. The list of additional signatories also includes Rabbi Eyal Yakubovich of Safed, Rabbi Yehoshua Schmidt of Nachalat Yosef, Rabbi Shlomo Binyamin of Yeshivat Lev Ladaat, Rabbi Eliyahu Mali of Jaffa, Rabbi David Turgeman of Dimona, and Rabbis Eran Tamir and Avihu Fishpader of Ashkelon.

In their sharp letter, the yeshiva heads make clear that the High Court of Justice's decision requiring the IDF to integrate female combat soldiers into maneuvering armored units led them to the conclusion that service in this corps is prohibited under Jewish law. The rabbis said the decision was made after serious deliberation, and they officially declared that they will no longer send their students to serve in the Armored Corps starting with the upcoming enlistment date. They also raised serious claims that the army is completely ignoring them and the requests of the students due to enlistment.

On the other hand, the IDF is trying to calm tensions and stresses that even if the planned pilot for integrating women is approved, men and women will not serve together in the same company. IDF Spokesperson’s Unit clarified that the High Court did not order the enlistment of female combat soldiers broadly, but rather instructed that the pilot be carried out as an initial trial for review, and that the matter and its decisions have not yet been placed before the chief of staff for discussion and a final ruling. The army maintains that the pilot will be carried out with strict adherence to the joint service order and in compliance with all required operational and professional standards.