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Photo: Bamahane
Brig. Gen. Eyal Karim
Photo: Bamahane

IDF chief rabbi opposed mixed-gender service in 2000

A group of religious Zionist rabbis expose document signed in 2000 by current IDF Chief Rabbi Brig. Gen. Eyal Karim, in which he said mixing genders should be 'strictly and absolutely prohibited.'

Current IDF Chief Rabbi Brig. Gen. Eyal Karim signed a position paper 17 years ago stating that the mixing of sexes in the IDF—including in a professional framework of mentor and apprentice—should be "strictly and absolutely prohibited" and could possibly divide the IDF.

 

 

Karim joined some 20 rabbis identifying with Religious Zionism in the paper, which was exposed by rabbis belonging to the Liba Center, who are opposed to joint service in the IDF.

 

IDF Chief Rabbi Brig. Gen. Eyal Karim
IDF Chief Rabbi Brig. Gen. Eyal Karim
 

 

The document's release comes just before the upcoming August conscription, where for the first time ever, female conscripts will be drafted into IDF armored units—a prospect Liba Center rabbis are not prepared to accept.

 

In the document, the signatories emphasized that the IDF should be "kosher" in regards to observing Shabbat, food and modest dress. The rabbis, which included the heads of yeshivas and pre-IDF preparatory academies, stated, "The mixing of boys and girls in the same company as soldiers, commanders, fitness instructors and the like, should be strictly and absolutely prohibited.

 

Making matters more embarrassing for the IDF, Rabbi Karim and Rabbi Shlomo Inbar, both approached former Chief Rabbi of Israel, Eliyahu Bakshi-Doron, and asked him to intervene immediately against the "severe blow to modesty in the IDF."

 

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit issued a response to the document, saying, "The purpose of the Joint Service Ordinance is to ensure the designation of the IDF as the people's army. According to this ordinance, soldiers of all religions, sexes and communities serve based on the values of human dignity and the spirit of the IDF.

 

"The document in question is many years old and on the eve of his election, Karim made his position on the service of women in the IDF clear. He has participated in the formulation of orders regarding the integration of women in the IDF in a respectful and egalitarian manner and without harming the feelings of those serving.

 

"In regards to the Joint Service Ordinance, the order states that a soldier will not be a sent to a battalion against their will, so that all can serve in accordance with their beliefs."

 


פרסום ראשון: 07.30.17, 21:27
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