“The belief that men and women are the same is popular but not accurate,” he said. In the city of Safed, Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu has spoken out against allowing women to serve in certain combat units and is especially critical about drafting religious women. Not every Orthodox woman’s story is as smooth. She said her experience has inspired her two younger sisters to sign up. “There were certain people in my neighborhood who did not approve of me choosing to serve, but my immediate family was supportive,” Asner said. “The first time in my life that I picked up the phone on a Saturday, I had to switch something in my brain,” said Asner, who served in the military spokesman’s unit from 2014 to 2016. “I was the only person in my unit who observed Shabbat, and I had no place to light my candles,” said Netta Asner, who immigrated to Israel from the United States with her family when she was 8.īut she said the hardest part of her military service was fulfilling her duties on a Friday night or Saturday - the 24 hours when religious Jews observe the Sabbath and must refrain from writing, using electronics or doing anything that might constitute work. If women manage to overcome pressure within their family or community, they still face the challenge of practicing their faith while serving in a secular military. Within the modern-Orthodox community, many frown upon women who want to serve, even as men are encouraged to try out for the most competitive units. The IDF has become more flexible in accommodating modern-Orthodox women, who increasingly are choosing to serve in the military out of a sense of duty to defend Israel, military officials and soldiers say.īut the path from a modest, observant life to the military is not easy. These figures have almost tripled, from 935 in 2010 to 2,499 last year - a welcome development for a military whose recent efforts to draft ultra-Orthodox men have been largely unsuccessful.īat Tzion Michlashvili, a combat soldier who was raised in a religious household, is one of a growing number of “modern Orthodox” women who opted to serve in the military. Since 2010, the Israel Defense Forces has recorded a surge in the number of religious women who want to serve.
Young, religiously observant women, known in Israel as modern Orthodox, traditionally have opted to enroll in national service, volunteering in schools or the community for a year or two, instead of the military. Israeli Arabs, both male and female, are not required to serve, and the same goes for the ultra-Orthodox. They are religiously observant recruits, and although they are eligible for a faith-based exemption, their numbers are growing.Īll Israelis are drafted into the military at age 18, with a few exceptions. TEL AVIV - Within a few weeks of starting their military service, many Israeli women head to a tailor to have their oversize uniforms altered to be more form-fitting or more fashionable.īut a cadre of women soldiers instead is opting for flowing pants or a modest knee-length skirt.