"The IDF Doesn't Want Charedim"

The wrong conclusions

Various people were triumphantly crowing about a report by the Knesset’s Research and Information center at the behest of a Likud MK. The report stated that since Oct. 7th, 4000 charedim had submitted requests to enlist in the IDF, and the IDF rejected 3,120 for a wide range of reasons, mainly “medical unsuitability”. Of those 880 found to be fit for conscription, only 540 were actually absorbed by the IDF - representing just 13.5% of those seeking to enlist.

This report is presented by supporters of Bibi to argue that the entire campaign to draft charedim is just a left-wing desire to topple the government. And it’s presented by charedim to argue that since the army doesn’t even want charedim, nobody should object to their continuing their lifestyle.

Both of these responses are exceedingly disingenuous.

Before discussing why, I will first say that I am skeptical about the report, since it was commissioned by a Likud MK. And Rabbi Karmi Gross, who runs a small charedi hesder for a technology track, says that the IDF is exceedingly happy with his recruits and wants as many as he can provide. I’ve also heard the IDF claim that they are ready to already absorb 3000 charedim into combat units.

But even if we assume that the report is valid, the implications are not at all what is being claimed.

The army most certainly needs more manpower. This is for numerous reasons: to replace all those killed or injured, and to meet the increased requirements that are now realized to be necessary. And it’s also to be able to reduce the amount of time for which reservists need to serve by spreading it among more people. When reservists have to serve for months at a time, this creates a crushing burden on their families and their careers. Many people have already lost their business as a result of all the months that they have to spend in reserve duty. It’s not a “Leftist” campaign to topple Bibi - plenty of people on the right, including the religious right, are just as upset about the unfair distribution of the burden, which is set to grow even more extreme.

Now, it could well be that although there is a need for more manpower, charedim do not make for good soldiers. I just heard from a physician who works in the charedi sector that the lack of appropriate medical care is appalling, and not because of the physicians - the population itself is just negligent. They named diabetes, heart disease, mental health issues, and dental abscesses as just some of the problems. And of course, charedi yeshivos do not do sports or any kind of physical exercise, and often even discourage such things. There may well also be problems of motivation and/or discipline for charedi recruits. And there are challenges in accommodating various requirements for kashrus and suchlike.

But if that’s the case, then it’s hardly a vindication of charedim! It would signify a deep flaw in charedi society if they make themselves so physically and/or temperamentally unsuited to army service, and so uninterested in figuring out a way to make it work, that everyone else has to instead increase the length of time that they spend in service and reserve duty. And it would mean that the charedim have a deep debt to the rest of Israeli society, rather than be treated as privileged people who should be funded by the rest of society. It would also mean that charedi society has a responsibility to change such that they can share the responsibility of national defense. If they aren’t willing to do that, then maybe they should look into the viability of moving to a country which doesn’t have such needs and is happy to support a willfully uneducated and underemployed population. They will learn that it’s not an easy thing to find.

It might be easier for the IDF to increase the burden on everyone else rather than draft charedim, but it’s not easier for everyone else. There’s no getting around the importance of shared responsibility.

UPDATE - Not surprisingly, it turns out that the report is massively distorted. The 4000 applicants were mostly people in their 40s applying for Shlav Bet - two weeks of low-level training. That’s not what the IDF needs - it needs 18-24 year old who can be trained for combat.