Israel needs good fighters with literally self sacrifice whether religous or non-religious. What does this nonsense about women singing have in common with a good soldier. If by religous principle these people are forbidden from listening to women why in the earth do we want to force something against the conciense. If G-D forbid a war breaks out we need soldiers with a clear mind clear concience with all the help from G-D. I hope for the benefit of the army Gantz will do what is best for the army not for some political nonsense.

Make all able bodied men do the same three years and under the same conditions. Same for subsequent reserves duty.No special deals for anybody. Other ways will lead to civil war.

and equipped yet the army's first priority seems to be sure they are properly entertained. Are you people a joke? Grow up and prime your army for what has to be done. Its time to send the singing troops home and get the army to do what it needs to do.

I respectfully ask why Orthodox Jewish people spending their life studing the Torah do not appear to give much time studying their Prophets - G-d's Word to them. This question is for my own understanding, as I have been told that 80 to 90% has already come true which does not leave much more to follow.

Growing up "traditional", I never understood the obsession with hearing a woman singing. Right now I'm listening to Van Morrison's "Days Like This" and in the choral backing there are (gasp!) women singing! If these "yeshiva bachurs" can't handle it, give them a set of earplugs. What happens when these hesder soldiers go into battle? Forget booby-trapped streets. All the enemy needs is some Arab woman singing on a loudspeaker and they'll have to break off from the "immodesty". Is that what it's coming to? "Don't be ridiculous," they might say. So why does hearing their fellow soldiers sing drive them to distraction?

Also, take blindfold for eyes. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil as the saying goes.

Raful had his eyes on the prize and he did not waste resources. He brought artists as reservists when needed. And, he had us all follow discipline and respect and talk, behave, and dress to proudly represent the IDF. An army without discipline could easily fail. Therefore, shame on the yeshiva students for challenging authority in the IDF in this particular way, who they and their rabbis think they are? why do they get a special deal anyway? I do not care if they are right or not, just do what you must do as a soldier.

I am really sick of it! Why are there people who are mentioning the possibility of a civil war? Was the time of peace too long for you? Bored? Wanna have a little war? Please stop this! Nobody needs this!

The purpose of any army, and especially the I.D.F., is to DEFEAT THE ENEMY! Simple as that! Ideally, in a true Jewish army, women should not serve at all -- definitely not in combat units! (In a 'milchemet mitzvah', women can serve in the rear troops, supplying the soldiers with food and water, etc.,as our wise Sages have declared). But our REAL problem is this:, Israel needs a Chief of Staff who cares more about defeating the enemy than 'democracy', 'women's rights', and finding favor in the eyes of the secular leftists and the ever "impartial" media. In short, Israel needs a God fearing, Torah observant Chief of Staff, and the fact that we don't have such a Chief of Staff, is even more serious of a problem than women serving in the army!

The Arab countries threaten Israel with annihilation and the IDF has to be concerned about women singing ? Something is going terribly wrong in Israel. I certainly hope I am wrong but I have a dreaded feeling that if Israel should be attacked the country will not be ready to withstand the attack nor launch a counter attack.

Please don't be concerned about the capabilities of the IDF.When it comes to defending Israel they will be like "demons".

officer, or cadets has no freedom to chose events. Gantz is spreading confusion and bolts between violating basic tenets of democracy, forcing religious soldiers to voilate their covenant in non - combat engagement and smoochy - poo kissing orthodox's behind. He is unfit as a leader.

Yoni If we give up all those silly things like democracy and human rights, what do we have left to defend ?

I thought the purpose of the IDF was to defend the nation of Israel, not to launch some Lady Gaga's show business career!

Oh Al do stop spreading gossip will you. Our soldiers in the IDF are NOT poorly fed. Chalas!

The minute war starts here, the IDF will forget all this crap about women singing etc. & go into action like it always has done so in the past. No need to have sleepless nights!!

the Hesder soldiers are handling this anti-religious, secular coercion well. the ruing by the chief rabbi of the army is anti- religious, and against halacha. Hershkowitz had no right to try and intervene and ask the Hesder soldiers to not follow halacha. we live in a Jewish state, there should be no question about a soldier's personal need to follow halacha, this is not an issue of pichach nefesh, it is not an issue of embarassing someone, if if is handled the way it has been handled for years, and not the bruhaha, the army and this chief rabbi want to handle it. stop secular coercion!

The purpose of our army is to defend Eretz Yisroel, the homeland of the Jews. If very religious Jews that follow the Halacha are not allowed to observe their religious rules while they defend that country, what have we achieved? We always complain that the very religious do not serve in the army. Why make it impossible for them. Why discriminate against our own people?

and those who choose to forget, Singing has been an integral part of ZHL. All the lehakot inspired Jewish soldiers through victories and defeats, they helped the country survive wars and sing its glories. The feminine presence in these bands was essential then and is essential now. Those who are too weak to resist the temptation of a woman singing have no place in a fighting force. Move to the 21st century or go live somewhere else.

Women singeing is just the tip of the iceberg. What about accepting orders from a female officer, or treating a wounded female combatant? The ban against singing is just the tip of the iceberg; the real problem is their attitude toward women in general and their following rabbi’s dictums instead of the law or military rules. This whole business started many years ago when the Gur Hassidim banned listing to a women singing solo and has now expanded to include a ban of women to be on the stage at all. These solders’ may be good fighters but in the long run they can undermine the whole IDF. The chief rabbis of Israel have denounced this ban as there is no Torah requirement not to listen to a women’s voice. This so called Halacha has been introduced by the rabbis who fear that their brand of Judaism is in danger of disappearing. Perhaps in would be good for all if these who wish to impose 16th century idea in the 21st century fade away.

the real problem! Israel is a democracy, granting freedom to everybody, not only to religious men!

The IDF will turn tail and run for their lives - maybe they're all gay. Is that a prerequisite of their particular religious persuasion or are they just brain-washed in misogamy.

Man, you are really starting to pay the price for indulging the religious crew in every way over the decades. With their growing numbers, this kind of nonsense will be without end.

The real problem is that Israel is not a real democracy. So many social problems here have over the years been given patchwork solutions that simply cannot be maintained in a modern forward looking society. People that want to do religion can do so in their own time and at their own expense . There is absolutely no reason why secular people should be supporting the personal whims of the "believers"and this of course includes equal opportunity service in the military.

cannot and never will be able to surpress the beliefs of people from outside, by force. If you can't do it by slooooooow persuasion, education then you obviously should quit trying. First we, the secular majority, have to remove the Followers of an Imaginary Friend from the Corridors of Power. Then slowly remove the financial crutches the "religious" in this country shamelessly obtain from the rest of us. That will force them to stick their heads out of their ghettoes& gey som real job in the real world, then maybe....... As for soldiers now, leave them without a song in their hearts, if that's what they ask for.

the number one rule in the army. from the moment a recruit is drafted he is "brainwashed" into respecting discipline. This is called "boot camp" ie, do as you are told, even if you think it is ridiculous and not serving any purpose, it is a form of indoctrination, orders must be obeyed, even silly ones, so that when the time comes you obey without question. This was carried to such extremes in The British and American militrary that disobeying orders on the battlefield was punishable by firing squad,and it was carried out several times in WW1 and even in Israel on one occassion in 1948. Of course this is extreme and no longer exists nor do I advocate it,rather I bring it as evidence of the importance of obeying orders and discipline. If one order is disobeyed and disregarded then it is only a matter of time until the next one, this is the reason and logic behind the principle.

Joan - email me if you are interested in a respectful answer to your question from an Orthodox Kiwi

#19 What's your point? If you asked combat soldiers in 1950 what they wanted, they would say "lehakat hanachal" so they could drool at the women, make sexist remarks and see something else than sand and grease. But it isn't 1950. This whole issue now is jobnik vs kravi. Soldiers have TVs, smartphones, DVDs and go home every 2 or 3 weeks. Ask todays combat soldiers now, they would say more sleep, more ammunition for training, al ha-esh, and tickets for football matches. There is no kravi soldier in the IDF who wants to be forced to see a third rate jobnik singer "entertain" them, even if her feelings are hurt. #20: kambatz, sambatz, all the sniper, demolitions and tank instructors and most medic instructors are women. No religious soldier has ever made problems in such cases. It is only when they are forced to consume "entertainment".

Interesting how, in the U.S. army, a religious Jewish soldier who wanted to wear a kippa -- against army rules -- went to the Supreme Court and won. Recently, another religious Jewish chaplain who sports a beard -- against army rules -- went to court and won! All you leftist Hellenists can't stand your own Jewishness, but instead have adopted a new god -- democracy! Democracy, women's rights, etc. is important, but the Torah of God -- AND HIS RABBIS -- is above all other human law! If our wise and holy Sages said that listening to a women sing at a live performance is PROHIBITTED, they knew what they were talking about! Their wisdom is what preserved the Jewish nation for thousands of years! If the secular society had a good track record, and could prove that their lifestyle was more successful in protecting the Jewish family than halacha, there might be room to reconsider things. But, hey guys, take a look at yourselves and your society! 7 out of 10 marriages end in divorce, 3 out of 4 men AND WOMEN have admitted to cheating on their spouses -- in short, the fabric of the Jewish family is DISINTEGRATING, and FAST! Of course, Tom and Sagi, I can already hear your screaming "But the religious Jews divorce and cheat also!". But let's be honest guys, there's NO COMPARISON! The numbers speak for themselves. So, at the very least, preach what you pray! Democracy? Freedom of speech and thought? Let the religious soldiers live according to their beliefs and Jewish law!

If secular commanders can demand religious soldiers violate Torah then religious commanders can order secular soldiers to follow Torah. So if you like this rule you will love when a religious commander makes Torah study mandatory and only gives shabbat passes to soldiers who observe shabbat.