Religious people already have many exemptions from regular army service. Israel doesn't force any religious women to go in the army. Why do they have to now start trying to kick out all women soldiers. What bothers me the most are the comments made by Weiss. He's insulting many women that are very capable of doing their jobs. It just shows me that they're trying to push a 'hidden' agenda that stems from sexist views

Will the members of the new Sanhedrin take the place of the woman? I doult it. It seems to me at times that Israel is on a suicidual course from these religious madmen.

O.K. so you want women to be expelled from the service. Where will your army come from then???? What about all those draft dodgers who claim to be studying at yeshivas?? No religious students, no women ... who will defend the country??? Certainly no you rabbi !!!!!

actually, i take that back. their agenda is not hidden. how much more obvious can they be that they are sexist and probably scared to see such women doing better and more service than them..

Why don't these rabbis stick to religion and leave the military decisions to the IDF? When are they going to wake up and realize the majority of Israelis don't really give a damn about the opinions of religious fanatics?

And how many male nurses do you think will be serving and saving lives? Idiots!

Hey these sanhadrin are a fringe group and NOT from the mainstream religious or Chareidi communitys! Their ruling affects abbsoloutly nobody! More so most of there kids serve in the army, as mst of them are not from the chareidi communiy!

Most Israeli Jews rather go to the “self-appointed” religious Sanhedrin than to the ultra-leftist-self-hating-Jewish judges in the so-called “high” corrupt court.

to believe that which you propose would require suspension of common sense and any values, values that are derived from reality. I served in the army 3 years, my roommate is in a elite unit and my other roommate is an officer training. They all agree with the ascertains that woman cannot serve in combat. The United States Army place woman in front line combat units (iraq) and the studies conducted concluded that as a tactical decision devoid of political interference, woman should not serve in front line combat. Now all the nuts in the world (RE: You) are outraged by such conclusions. instead of accepting reality, or even attempting to conform to it, you see it as some kind of violation of your rights and as a result begins a clamor and ruckus demanding legislation in the form of regulations...in order to regulate reality. facts need to be altered by law, and common sense is swept away in a deluge of lawsuits aimed at forging a society that runs on the fuel of your hot air.

especially seeing as women have made some of the toughest and most resilient leaders in world history. When Israel was ruled by Golda Meir, it kicked butt. Look how weak the leadership is now. When Britain was ruled by Thatcher, and Queen Elizabeth I, it kicked butt. When France was led in war by Joan of Arc, it kicked butt. In ancient times, Deborah led Israel to victory in war and peace. The only thing that makes the IDF a "post-Zionist army" , in the words of the "Sanhedrin" is Israel's failure to conscript the religious and give equal responsibilities to all.

"the studies conducted concluded that as a tactical decision devoid of political interference, woman should not serve in front line combat. " The IDF, and indeed all armies, have always avoided placing women on the front lines of combat, for one thing of fear of what might happen if they fell into the hands of the enemy. This is not the issue here. The issue here is the blanket statements made by Prof. Weiss, which are antithetical to Israel's policy since the very beginning: "Sanhedrin member Professor Hillel Weiss told Ynet that separating male and female soldiers would not due, and called to expel women from the army entirely. "

. . . If the self-appointed "Sanhedrin" want to interfere in army affairs, at least have the stones to recommend that every Haredi boy serve in the army (other than the half-dozen genius scholars of the generation).

Your rebuttal of #1 is ill-informed. You may be right about the combat issue. However, your limited 3 year experience and your limited understanding of elite forces from the man who you share your home with is greater than the understanding of military affairs of this so-called "Sanhedrin". They are not making a judgment based on military needs or findings or any military knowledge at all. They are making it purely on the basis that girls are "yucky" and "icky" and because they, personally, cannot control their animal nature in the presence of a woman. That's what people are outraged about - incompetent draft-dodgers trying to make military policy. And, by the way, 3 years in service does not make you an expert on the matter either.

Think before you talk. Israel would never have been born without woman fighters. At least support woman-only units. Deborah the Judge was a general who led men. Where were they?

Just as we need to avoid the extremes of the secular, we need to pull back from the extremes of the religious. A "ruling" like this from the self-appointed Sanhedrin just invites derision from everyone outside their quarter. No one will, or should, take this ruling seriously.

I'm not religious myself but if you read a little many of the Religous serbe in the best units in the IDF just look at the casualties during the war in Lebanon.You want to find people who don'nt serve in the IDF just look at secular on Dizengoff street.Olmert has 4 children how many served in the IDF?

The brains and beauties of the IDF with stupidities and ugliness. If we follow all of what all the rabbis say. We will find our self dispersed and wandering the earth another 2000 years.

that predominantly represents the left, it is only appropriate that there be a self-appointed Supreme Court to represent those who wish to be guided and judged via a Torah perspective. Considering the position of the secular Supreme Court not to allow house searches assisted by terrorist's neighbours which saves soldiers' lives, and considering their rulings regarding the seperation fence wherein they hold Palestinian rights above the secuirty of Israel's citizens, this initiative by the Jewish Court is mild at best. And it is refreshing to see that security, morale, and discipline, is beginning to be raised above petty "rights". With rights come obligations and the first obligation of the IDF should be to protect its citizen lives.

valuable points in the book that the planners at the Pentagon would not consider since population demographics was the obstacle to an all male military. The unescapable demographics are too many women in the country and not enough eligible willing males to serve in a voluntary military. Israel faces similar challenges. Putting women in combat when they do not have the testosterone to give them courage and denser bones which means physical strength and they disrupt male bonding, is condemned in the Bible. That is what the Rabbis are trying to point out. They want what is best for Israel and the Bible says in Proverbs, the last chapter, that men should not give their strength to women. The word strength in that verse is defined as army, defenses, fortifications in Young's and Strong's Concordances. Deuteronomy warns that it is an abomination to the Lord for a woman to wear that which pertains to men which Proverbs indicates is combat army, defences and fortifications. Women can serve the military in paramilitary organizations or in a separate women's military that helps the male military in occupations such as medical, clerical, and non-combat support technical. Women who are US Navy medics in US Marine units in Iraq are serving well and bravely. One such women just got the Silver Star, the third highest military award in America and only the second woman to get the award in US history to my uncertain knowledge on that. An article said that was the case. But the ideal military does not put women into combat because of many factors such as physical strength differences, the disrupting effect on males bonding, etc. We do not live in an ideal world. In Israel in 1948, women were put into all aspects of military service, equally with males. That resulted in higher deaths among the men because they jeopardized their missions to protect the women and Arabs fought harder against units with women out of fear of being humiliated by a defeat from such a unit. The Rabbis want what is best for the nation and that is seen as offensive to women's opportunities and sacrifices in the military. The US military now has twenty per cent females except for the US Marines which is mostly combat and limits women to four per cent by law. They have male or female US Navy medics attached to their units, but the medics are in the Navy, not the Marines. Without a military draft, the military cannot be staffed with as many males as the leaders would like in America or Israel. So a less than ideal situation religiously has become accepted by the government and most people except the men who feel their lives are put in greater danger by having women in combat units as teachers and combatants in some cases.

i am studying political science. my hobby is strategy and military warfare. Nothing I have learned in either schools of study suggest that placing woman in front line combat is a good idea

It failed to stop terrorists from bombing and murdering babies. It murdered babies itself. It failed to stop rockets from being launched in Lebanon, Gaza. It failed to release the soldiers. It abducted peaceful civilians. Oh it succeeded in transferring Jews!

Apparently they are not trying to get out of there duty to the country like SHAS and the rest of those who care only for entitlement and nothing for sacrifice, It is you who have allowed this defeatest, dem, left govt to remain in power I sau Shame on Shas and these rest of these so called orthodoxy who will not serve.

It is ironic that they oppose women in the armey while some 50000 of their young men avoid service by entering yeshivot. Do the Jewish people need 50000 rabbis? Israel could probably use 50000 more soldiers. If the rabbis want women out of the army give up the Tal deferments and take their place,

Self appointed? ROFLMFAO! OK I'm the self appointed ruler of the world.. so what does that and $10.00 get me? Hey Judge, get a grip on it cause if you weren't in Israel you would be comited to some place like Bellview or the "South Florida Hospital center for the totally moronic insane! Put on that old Napiolian hat and start to dance you old shagitz!

To all the right wing nut jobs who can't read: The rabbi didn't simply recommend removing women from combat. He recommended expelling women from every unit of the military. Since there are many noncombatant positions that can readily be filled by women in the military, there is no logical reason to expel them. Additionally his call for gender segregated national service is also purely a result of his own radical religious agenda and has nothing to do with efficacy of women in public service.

Can we stop the religious Jew bashing here - praying to G-d as commanded by the Holy Torah is another form of service. And frankly, barely a day goes by that we don't hear stories about female soldiers serving in the US army being tramatized by sexual assaults, harrassment and the like. Lie to yourself that this isn't happening to young Jewish girls in the IDF - The Sanhedrin isn't being sexist, just realists.

warfare must be the primary occupation and I believe even the ancient priests knew the arts of warfare. It was part of being a man.