Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman spoke with Galei Tzahal (Army Radio) on Tuesday morning. He explained that his Yisrael Beitenu party was a leader in the matter of inducting all citizens into the IDF.
Speaking to Razi Barkai, Lieberman explained “there cannot be citizenship without loyalty”, rejecting any attempt to explain away why chareidim cannot be inducted at the age of 18. He rejects the option of giving chareidim until age 22 or 23 until entering the IDF. The foreign minister feels all eligible citizens of the state, Arabs and Jews alike must serve – without exception.
Lieberman adds that from his perspective there is no reason why chareidim cannot serve in Laniado Hospital or other accepted institutions that permit them to remain in their world. He insists on all citizens serving at age 18, Jews and Arabs alike, without exception – adding this refers to 18,000 Arabs and 8,000 Jews annually, and in reality, the majority of the eligible inductees is from the Arab sector, not among the chareidim as the media makes it appear. “There are hundreds of Arabs today in Israel Police receiving a salary and there is no reason this is not expanded”.
When asked how he can realistically expect to bring chareidim into the IDF at age 18 because rabbonim will not permit it, he explained there will be no excuses and he will not support any delay to 22, 23 or any age. “The chareidim are willing to join because they understand this is the ticket out of the ghetto and poverty… In my opinion the rabbonim understand that if they enlist, they [the rabbonim] are going to lose control and that is their fear”.
Galei Tzahal:
The Arabs will complain they are targeted by government discrimination and do not get housing, jobs, or a city like chareidim.
Lieberman:
This is simply not true and in fact, today there is reverse discrimination which works in their favor towards obtaining projects and funding far greater than other minority populations.
Lieberman spoke of the Arab MKs who advance a terrorist agenda in Knesset and feels it is time to bring this to a halt and demand loyalty from all citizens, without exception.
The foreign minister understands the summer session of Knesset is going to end soon and this means time is working against his efforts, adding “Yisrael Beitenu does not wish to topple the government” but there is a limit. The Knesset session ends on July 27, 2012 and Lieberman feels this law must be advanced before that date, adding he knows with absolute certainty there is a majority favoring an all-inclusive draft in Knesset.
Regarding so-called “sanctions” he feels the terminology is incorrect. He explains that now, a chareidi male can avoid the draft and receive a stipend in beis medrash and this must end. He backs a law that anyone avoiding military or national service will not receive any governmental assistance, will not qualify for a government job or entry to a university as some of the consequences that must be implemented with the new law.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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4 Responses
From Jewish virtual library
Terms of Service in the IDF
Compulsory Service: All eligible men and women are drafted at age 18. Men serve for three years, women for 21 months.*
“Deferments may be granted to qualified students at institutions of higher education. New immigrants may be deferred or serve for shorter periods of time, depending on their age and personal status on entering the country.”
MEANING THAT you can go to college and get a deferment
Leiberman is plain wrong
That’s probably true. For the last century (i.e. since the assasination of Jacob Israel De Haan by the secular zionists), the gedolim have been directing of policy of trying to avoiding conflict with the zionists. Leave us to attend to Torah and Mitsvos in peace, and we won’t interfere with your medinah. Only a few marginalized “hot heads” have sought out confrontation. Mass conscription would discredit that policy.
I’ld guess that a third of the Hareidim would end up supporting a policy of open resistance (the “I guess Neturei Karta was right all along” approach), and the remaining two-thirds would end up merging with the “HarDal” movement (as in “I’ll be glad to defend Jews – if someone wants to tear down some Jewish homes, maybe we can rally to prevent them).
If the zionists get their goal of destroying the moderate, peace-loving, Torah-focused hareidi community – they will come to rue the day they created mortal enemies out of what had been a quaint harmless marginalized community.
Liberman has deep understanding of torah values same as the avarage kollel guys understaing how to launch spaceships
האט אהר גזוגט
The Arabs in the Mishtara are biased towards their own kind. There have been many stories recently about their unfair treatment of Yidden in situations where Yidden and Arabs were involved. For example: Arab bullies taunted a young, frum Israeli girl in a playground. After the girl ran back to her dira and told her father what happened, the father called the police and then went to the playground to speak to the cops. He was arrested by the responding Arab cop for allegedly harming one of the Arab youths because the cop saw a scratch on the boy. The father never laid a hand on or had any contact with the Arab boy. These are the groisse mentchen Lieberman is talking about.