Har Bracha head Rabbi Melamed
Photo: Mati Elmaliach
Barak, cut ties with yeshiva
Photo: AP
Har Bracha soldiers wait for compromise
Students of yeshiva recently removed from military arrangement due to head rabbi's support of insubordination get 60 days to decide whether to abandon yeshiva in order to remain in hesder
Some 100 students and soldiers are already facing the dilemma of whether to abandon the yeshiva that the IDF and Defense Ministry cut ties with, or become regular soldiers and serve in the military for three years.
Even after an ultimatum was given to the students of the Har Bracha Yeshiva, which was deemed a supporter of insubordination, the Hesder Yeshiva Association still believes a compromise can be reached.
Solidarity
Kobi Nahshoni
Hesder yeshivot association says will do all it can to see Rabbi Melamed's seminary included in military arrangement; add he has aligned himself with group's sentiment towards IDF
The association confirmed on Wednesday that an order was given to the Har Bracha students to find an alternative yeshiva to study in within 60 days, but the association noted that this is a formality stemming from the defense minister's decision and was carried out in coordination with them.
The association said that the long period of time given to the students to decide whether they will continue their studies is meant to give way for further talks with the IDF authorities, in hopes of ending the affair and getting the Har Bracha yeshiva back into the IDF arrangement. The Har Bracha Yeshiva declined comment on to the report.
The West Bank settlement yeshiva has been in the eye of the storm in recent weeks, after a number of incidents were recorded in which soldiers from the yeshiva publicly declared their opposition to the evacuation of Jewish residents from their homes in the territories.
The yeshiva's head, Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, publicly announced his support of the insubordination to the defense establishment. This led to a historic move by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who removed the yeshiva from the arrangement with the military.
The arrangement allowed for the yeshiva students to perform year-and-a-half-long military service, and dedicate the rest of their time to religious studies.
This week hesder yeshiva heads convened and stated that Melamed had declared his objection to protests in the military, but the next day he clarified that he would not have condemned the Kfir Battalion soldiers who waved signs against the evacuation of settlements and would not recant on his position on insubordination.
