In a rare public family rift, the great-grandson of influential Rabbi Ovadia Yosef has denounced ultra-Orthodox military exemptions while detailing his own 110-day combat deployment in Gaza.
Rabbi Yair Paran, who commands a Golani Brigade medical evacuation unit, criticized Shas leader Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef's statement that "even idle students shouldn't join the army." Paran called his relative "one of the biggest desecrators of God's name this year."
"Rabbi Ovadia consistently taught that those not studying Torah must serve," Paran told 103FM. He revealed serving over 200 reserve days last year, including during December's Sajayia battle where his unit evacuated wounded soldiers after nine were killed.
The reserve commander described evacuating critically wounded soldiers under fire, calling the satisfaction from saving lives "enormous." Yet returning home has proven challenging. "My three-year-old asks every night if I'll still be home tomorrow," he said, noting his high school teaching position and family relationships need rebuilding.
Paran advocates cutting state funding to religious institutions: "We can't finance dormitories for draft dodgers and yeshivas where deserters study."
He proposes jailing those who ignore draft notices, arguing the 70-year exemption system creates an immoral divide where "some families must visit Mount Herzl while others are exempt."
His stance has divided the influential Yosef family, with Paran revealing some relatives secretly serve while others oppose him.
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