Thousands of IDF Reservists and Yeshiva Students Converge for 6th Asufot Conference

After several delays caused by Operation Roaring Lion, the sixth Asufot conference was set to take place Thursday at Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh, bringing together thousands of hesder yeshiva students, rabbis and reservists from across the country.

The conference is expected to include students and rabbis from around 50 yeshivas, alongside soldiers and reservists serving in the IDF, in cooperation with the Military Rabbinate. Organizers described the gathering as a meeting point of Torah study, national responsibility and unity during a period shaped by war.

The Asufot conference was founded by the Asif organization, part of the Association of Hesder Yeshivas, with the goal of bringing together yeshivas from across the religious Zionist world.

This year’s gathering carries added weight because of the war and the losses suffered by the hesder yeshiva world, whose students and graduates have served heavily in combat and reserve units.

“When we founded the conference six years ago, we did not imagine where it would develop,” said Rabbi Itiel Sofer, one of the founders of the conference and a ram at Yeshivat Kerem B’Yavneh. “Precisely after the recent period, we saw that the thirst for shared learning has only grown. The yeshivas did not give up on this conference.”

The theme of this year’s conference is “Mekadesh Amo Yisrael.” Dozens of classes will be held throughout the day in nine parallel halls, covering topics including family life, halacha, Jewish thought and personal responsibility.

The program will also include practical sessions on halachic questions in the military, in partnership with the Military Rabbinate, as well as discussions on the integration of overseas students into the religious education system.

The day is expected to culminate in the traditional closing gathering, where thousands of participants will come together with senior rabbis of religious Zionism.

Kerem B’Yavneh heads Rabbi Gavriel Saraf and Rabbi Aharon Friedman said the conference reflects the connection between the study hall and Israel’s security reality.

“Our students left the batei midrash for the battlefronts and paid heavy prices for the people of Israel,” they said. “Now they are returning to the benches of the beit midrash with joy and a sense of mission.”

They said the sight of thousands of students and rabbis gathering around Torah study shows that the religious Zionist Torah world remains alive, committed and influential.