Heads of religious pre-army preparatory academies (Mechinot) published a declaration this evening (Monday) joining a letter previously issued by the heads of the Hesder Yeshivas, calling on their students not to serve in mixed-gender units.
The letter, signed by 14 rabbis, states:
"We too join the call of the Yeshiva heads, and call on our students to serve only in units that are not mixed."
Among the signatories:
Rabbi Yigal Levinstein (Eli)
Rabbi Rei Peretz (Atzmona)
Rabbi Yaakov Feigenbaum and Rabbi Chaim Teitelbaum (Keshet)
Rabbi Ohad Mekaitan (Ateret)
Rabbi Barak Okebi (Lod)
Rabbi Lior Nagasa (Head of the Derech Avot Academy)
Rabbi Ofir Schwartzbaum (Head of the Lavi Academy)
Rabbi Zeev Sharon (Jaffa)
Rabbi Meir Katz (Peduel)
Rabbi Eliav HaCohen (Talmon)
Rabbi Moshe Hager and Rabbi Eitan Shalev (Yatir)
Rabbi Yochai Maimon (Yedidya Academy)
Rabbi Nir Rapp (Gabriel Academy)
Rabbi Boaz Sherman (Oz Shlomo Academy)
Rabbi Yotam Shorek (Ofakim)
Rabbi Adiel Azrad (Eitan Academy)
Rabbi Tumal Rachamim (Shuvu Achim Academy)
Last week, 25 heads of Hesder Yeshivas signed a letter announcing that they would halt the enlistment of their students into the Armored Corps.
The rabbis wrote:
"We are pained by the feeble response of the State of Israel and the IDF, who expressed no opposition to this move. As heads of yeshivas, we are aware of the heavy responsibility placed upon our shoulders. 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 its success in eradicating the enemy. Introducing female soldiers into tanks together with male soldiers causes spiritual and practical harm to combat capability."
The rabbis declared:
"Following sharp deliberation, we have decided that serving in the Armored Corps is forbidden according to Jewish Law (Halacha), and therefore we will not send our students to serve in the Armored Corps starting from the next recruitment cycle. The thousands of our students who enlist in combat units will continue to do so with a sense of mission and strength. However, the responsibility lies with the IDF to provide those with a combat medical profile—who are not suited for the Infantry—with a combat framework appropriate for their fighting spirit."
They added: "We now understand the Charedim. We are not sending our students to certain units because it is against Halacha while the Charedim see the entire IDF as being a place of great spiritual danger for their students. Halacha trumps army service. We also don't send our girls to the army because it is against Halacha. So in principle - we are completely in agreement with the Charedim. Our dispute is about the details. It is a shame that the Israeli army does not properly accommodate the religious soldier."
Note - The last paragraph is not part of the actual article.
