The Knesset Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee, headed by MK (Blue & White) Gabi Ashkenazi, a former IDF Chief of Staff, convened on Monday morning to discuss a KAN Reshet Bet News report that numbers pertaining to chareidi enlistment in recent years have been forged to the betterment of the chareidi community.
Ashkenazi began the meeting explaining he called the session to delve into the report towards determining what occurred, adding IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Aviv Kochavi appointed a committee to probe the matter as well. Ashkenazi added that while the committee could wait for the official IDF report, he decided to probe the matter as well.
MK (Yesh Atid) Elazar Stern told the committee that if the erroneous numbers were reported regarding the enlistment of any population other than the chareidim, one would not be pointing an accusing finger at the IDF instead of the population group. He added the roshei yeshivos are interested in seeing fewer chareidim serving in the military, as they receive funding for each and every talmid. “We hear voices against their indication from this building too…” added Stern, referring to chareidi MKs.
IDF Chief of Manpower, Major-General Moti Almoz added, “I would like to state in my opening remarks that I feel compelled by the circumstances to be here and report. During the collection of 2018 data, which generated the event, we are dealing with the chareidim but the story here is the credibility of the IDF. I will disclose all the facts, even if they are not complimentary.
“I am solely responsible for this. No one under me is responsible. I am happy to provide accurate figures, but the Chief of Staff assigned a committee to probe this…You will have to understand that how we arrived at these numbers is probably different compared to what we do from here and how to check the data.”
Almoz explained the facts refer to two different periods, between 2011 and 2013, there were induction goals without a law, and after that, there was a law to back it. In 2016, there is an important fact. The IDF submitted a most detailed report regarding ages, indicating that there are numbers complying with goals and other numbers which fail to meet induction goals.
He explains the numbers until 2015 were interpreted correctly and there was a lengthy process involving the Ministry of Education, and one may rely on those reports. However, it is possible that there are errors, but when one sees the process that involved the Justice and Education Ministries, one sees how the numbers were probed and that every effort was made to deliver accurate correct figures.
The problems according to Almoz are in 2016 and 2017. The process of gathering data in 2018 was halted. It is understood something is wrong with the figures released, primarily revealing the population in question does not meet induction goals.
Almoz explained the matter was publicized in the news just as the military realized what occurred and the need to make it known to the community at large. He cites the report given to the Knesset Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee in 2017 was also erroneous regarding the chareidim, as that tzibur failed to meet the draft quota.
He explained in 2017, 300 persons from a non-chareidi group were added to the chareidi induction numbers, and they are now probing to determine what occurred.
Almoz is confident there is no problem with figures released until 2015 but this is not the case regarding 2016 and 2017.
One is reminded veteran military correspondent Carmela Menashe released the report and explained someone forged chareidi induction numbers to show the community met the induction quotas, but this was not the case.
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
A bit of honesty is needed here. The brass hats in the IDF do not want Hareidim in the army. The politicians forced them to take them. A Hareidi soldier cost more to train and maintain than a secular soldier. He already has a value system and the IDF is not going to turn him into a compliant drone. So of course they will take in as few as possible and fudge the numbers to pacify the politicians.