Hesder Yeshiva Heads Say They Will Stop Sending Students to Tanks

A group of Hesder yeshiva heads announced Tuesday that they will stop sending their students to serve in the IDF Armored Corps beginning with the next enlistment cycle, following the decision to integrate female combat soldiers into tank units.

The move comes about a week before the expected processing of students for the upcoming draft and follows a High Court ruling requiring the IDF to include women in the maneuvering armored forces.

In a letter sent by the rabbis, the yeshiva heads said they view the decision as a serious breach and called on the IDF to provide alternative combat placements for students whose medical profile does not allow them to serve in infantry units.

“We, the undersigned heads of Hesder yeshivas, whose students are on the front lines of the fighting, view with great severity the High Court’s decision to force the IDF to integrate female soldiers into the maneuvering Armored Corps,” the letter said.

The rabbis also criticized the response of the state and the IDF, saying they had failed to oppose the move strongly enough. They wrote that the IDF is the army of the Jewish people, and that the sanctity of the military camp is part of the army’s spiritual foundation and combat strength.

According to the letter, placing male and female soldiers together in tanks creates both a halachic problem and a practical concern for the force’s combat effectiveness. “After serious consideration, we have decided that service in the Armored Corps is forbidden according to halacha,” the rabbis wrote. “Therefore, we will not send our students to serve in the Armored Corps from the next draft.”

At the same time, the rabbis stressed that their students will continue to enlist in combat units and serve with commitment. They said thousands of Hesder students will continue joining the army, but argued that the IDF must create a suitable combat framework for religious soldiers who are fit for combat but not suited for infantry service.

The letter was signed by a number of prominent Hesder yeshiva heads, including Rabbi Shachar Imbar of Alon Moreh, Rabbi Yehoshua Van Dijk of Itamar, Rabbi Baruch Wieder of Yeshivat Hakotel, Rabbi Noam Waldman of Kiryat Arba, Rabbi Eliyahu Rachamim Zini of Or Veyeshua in Haifa, Rabbi Yaakov Yedid of Karmiel, Rabbi Elyakim Levanon of Alon Moreh, Rabbi Chagai Londin of Holon, Rabbi David Fendel of Sderot, Rabbi Yossi Rodriguez of Ayelet Hashachar in Eilat, and Rabbi Tal Shaulian of Holon.

According to the report, three additional Hesder yeshiva heads joined the letter but asked that their names not be published.