Hesder yeshiva council says it is working with the IDF to block mixed combat service

The Council of the Hesder Yeshivot Union said it is working with senior Religious Zionist rabbis to prevent men and women from serving together in maneuvering combat units, and stressed that a letter circulated in recent days about the Armored Corps does not reflect its position.

In a letter sent to yeshiva heads, council members said they have been acting in various ways since the High Court ruling to stop a situation in which female combat soldiers would be integrated alongside observant male fighters. They said the effort is being carried out together with rabbis from the Religious Zionist sector, including heads of advanced yeshivot and preparatory academies from different streams within the national-religious public.

The council said there have been many meetings in recent weeks in which it made clear that shared service of male and female fighters in a maneuvering unit is not possible for soldiers who observe Jewish law. The members said they are in continuous talks with the IDF in order to make it possible for observant soldiers to enlist in the Armored Corps while remaining faithful to halacha.

“We will do everything possible to allow our students to enlist in the Armored Corps in the coming draft without harming their values,” they wrote. They also emphasized that the public letter published in recent days regarding enlistment to the Armored Corps was not issued by the council, and said issuing such a letter runs counter to their position. The letter was signed by the yeshiva heads who sit on the council.