12 Hesder yeshiva heads threaten to stop sending soldiers to the Armored Corps

Twelve heads of Hesder yeshivas announced tonight, Tuesday, that they will stop sending their students to the Armored Corps, starting with the next enlistment and ahead of the expected induction next week. This comes in the wake of a High Court of Justice ruling that women fighters must be allowed to be integrated into the corps.

In a letter sent by the yeshiva heads, they demanded that the army find a solution for students whose profile does not allow service in the infantry. "We, the undersigned, heads of Hesder yeshivas, whose students are on the front lines of combat, view with great severity the High Court of Justice's decision to compel the IDF to integrate female fighters into the maneuvering Armored Corps," the signatories wrote. "The IDF is the army of the people of Israel, and the sanctity of the camp is the foundation of the IDF's spirit and of success in defeating the enemy. The inclusion of female soldiers in tanks together with male soldiers causes spiritual and practical harm to combat effectiveness."

The yeshiva heads also added that, "after serious consideration, we have decided that service in the Armored Corps is forbidden according to halakha, and therefore we will not send our students to serve in the Armored Corps starting with the next enlistment."

The Devorah Forum, which brings together women with backgrounds in national security and foreign policy roles, responded to the publication of the letter and wrote that "extreme rabbis are calling for refusal to serve in regular IDF service": "In the middle of a war, when the IDF is dealing with a manpower shortage and needs every able soldier and soldier, there are those who continue to run a campaign against women's service."

According to the forum, the pilot for integrating female soldiers into the corps is not a High Court decision as claimed, but rather an IDF initiative. "The pilot for women in the maneuvering Armored Corps has not yet begun, and in any case mixed tank crews are not expected because the IDF operates according to the joint service order. Instead of running campaigns against women, it would be better for the extreme rabbis to direct their energy toward encouraging enlistment from all sectors of Israeli society," said the Devorah Forum.

The Bonot Alternativa organization said: "The 'women or ultra-Orthodox' ultimatum is taking another step tonight in an attempt to thwart any possibility of drafting ultra-Orthodox men. This is a challenge to state security and national resilience. The IDF and public officials need to put an end to the extortion that is taking place on the backs of deserving female fighters."

IDF Spokesperson: The contribution of female soldiers is proven

The issue of expanding the integration of female fighters into additional tracks in the army has recently returned to public debate. In February, IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Efi Defrin addressed the campaign against female fighters in the IDF. In a post on X, Defrin wrote: "Women's contribution to combat is not a slogan, and not only a value-based statement. It is a proven operational fact. That is why it is difficult to understand, and especially difficult to accept, attempts to undermine their place, their contribution and their necessity."

About two months earlier, the commander of the Ground Forces concluded the pilot for integrating female fighters into the elite Yahalom unit as successful. So far, several female fighter teams have completed the demanding course in the unit. The female fighters perform a different role from that of male fighters, and their operational purpose is related to operating unique technologies. For this reason, their training track is different from that of the men, and is also physically easier בהתאם to the roles assigned to them. In addition, this is a "gender-specific team", so the women train separately from the men.