In its recent landmark decision, Israel’s High Court ruled to begin drafting Chareidim into the Israel Defense Forces, sparking widespread concern and confusion among the Chareidi community. To clarify the implications of this ruling, veteran Chareidi journalist Yanky Farber, a long-time resident of Bnei Brak and fluent English speaker, has created a video explainer for Yeshiva World News (YWN) readers.
Farber, well-versed in the intricacies of Israeli politics and Chareidi affairs, delves into the specifics of the court’s decision and its ramifications for Kollel Yungerleit and Yeshiva Bochurim. His expert analysis aims to provide clarity and insight into this critical issue affecting the Chareidi community.
Watch the video to gain a deeper understanding of the Supreme Court’s decision and its potential impact on the future of Chareidi participation in the IDF.
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12 Responses
A primary issue the Gedolim have with the IDF is that they’re not accommodating the lifestyle needs of Torah observant Yidden. Integration with the female soldiers and Minyanin and Kashrus and yes, even Shabbos.
This was amazing!!! Please do come back and tell us more. I live in Israel and have boys turning 16 and 18 so it’s very nogeah for me and my husband is in Kollel so… I also like that my family in the USA can become educated. They have the wrong idea and I would say even here many people don’t know the numbers and the impact of these new laws. Thank you. I will look out for more videos by you.
Does anyone else recognize the fact that the same week Israel stopped the funding to the yeshivos etc… the US with held armed forces?
The yeshiva guys are keeping the war going!!!
Thank you YWN for arranging for Yanky to address some of the issues that are going on in Israel. It gave clarity to the situation and doing it in video format was helpful.
I would be interested in him doing this more. It can be regarding this particular issue and other things going on in Israel. Americans (or at least me) have difficulty understanding some basics that are happening there.
For example, I would like more clarity of why the IDF wants Charedim to join the army considering the points Yanky made that they aren’t interested in accommodating their needs?
As well, granted that there was an agreement between the Chazon Ish and Ben Gorion (I think) that Charedim don’t join the army, how is this fair to the general israeli public who are mandated that their children do sign up and risk their lives while watching a whole sect not need to do the same?
Thank you YWN again for arranging this.
So it appears that the Rabbanim are leading from behind in this one. Bachurim who are working will likely end up drafting in large numbers now that the IDF is looking at tax data and is actually coming after them. They will have no choice but to get on board or lose control completely (similar to how the Lakewood Vaad lost complete control once they kept telling people to vote for candidates that the community did not want to vote for).
Now a better question to ask is how Bachurim who are not learning can justify not going to the army. The army very much needs manpower. This is evidenced by the fact that they are calling up hesder Bachurim a year earlier in the cycle, the fact that they are not letting released soldiers get any time off before immediately throwing them back in the fighting and the fact that many men in their twenties and thirties cannot hold down jobs now because half their time is spent in miluim. Forget about the argument that “Torah is saving everyone.” What do those that are not learning say to justify not helping. Especially with the multitude of Charedi units today (where they may learn more than they are today – at least has a mandated hour or learning. You get kicked out of the unit if you don’t learn).
To say that the Rabbanim won’t allow it because they are afraid Bachurim will leave Yeshiva is finally speaking the truth and it is an incredibly self serving bid to hold on to power at the expense of putting the country in incredible danger. That is the way the rest of the country views it and then truth is that they are right.
Now wonder they are so angry about it.
Yanky explained it very well, and respectfully. Yes, please have him post more conversations as they become pertinent.
Dear MayBeWong,The whole ” risking their lives” argument is facetious. More Israelis have been murdered in terrorist attacks ( including October 7) ,than in fighting wars for several decades now! And the religious population gets targeted for the non- mass terror attacks out of proportion to its population because they are dressed as Jews. The secular population want haredim to be in the IDF so they will want to be part of “Israeli society”, and what haredi wants to be part of a culture that has absorbed many of the worse aspects of Eurotrash and American lowlife cultures? Not for my kids!!
@MayBeWrong
i just wanted to clarify that the claim:
“how is this fair to the general israeli public who are mandated that their children do sign up and risk their lives”
is a completely false claim being that at least 80% of the soldiers in the idf never risk their lives whatsoever being that most of the idf are noncombatants, furthermore when a soldier is drafted into the IDF he is given the choice to VOLUNTEER for a combat position if he dosn’t volunteer then he gets a non-dangerous position like most of the soldiers, which means that no soldier was ever “mandated” to risk his life in the IDF (except maybe by peer pressure in certain communities)
(and most parents of soldiers sleep well contrary to the common propaganda)
This was very informative, and explained a thing or two. One thing I understood between the lines is that assuming the Chariedi communities stay strong in their resolve against enlisting, the financial consequencs of defunding yeshivos and losing eligibility for discounts in daycare and property tax(arnonah) may be the hardest consequence on a daily basis. But these are “only” financial issues. If we had to choose a consequence for not joining the army, isn’t this what we would choose? “Don’t give us your money, and we won’t enlist, and we’ll all live happily ever after.”
There seems to be a double standard where the frum society doesn’t “hold” of the Zionist government and considers them to be the root of many evils (myself included), but then ironically expects them to value Torah study etc…. Notwithstanding the issue of giyus which I’m confident the chareidim will not fall for, even at the expense of going to jail, maybe we’ll be better off on the financial front, not being “dependent” on the very body we so despise.
The charedi sector does more for the Iszraeli economy than any other.
The sheer volume of foreign money it brings in, is staggering. Whereas regular exports bring in foreign money, (agriculture, hi-tech etc.) it’s not pure profit. What the Charedi public imports is pure profit. All the yeshivos, koellim, mosdos, meshulochim zedoko organizations etc.
And they encourage huge tourism (think Simchas Beis Hashoeiva, the Kosel, Yeshivas Mir, the seminaries, etc. etc.)
They cost the government far less than the other sectors (crime rate – almost 0%, drug addiction, drunk driving, murders etc. etc.)
they use public transport and make the whole system far more worthwhile. This also means they cause less gas-emissions etc.
They volunteer in unproportional figures too. Hatzala, Yad Sara, Ezer Mitzion etc. etc.
Then they want to get a few benefits here and there, and suddenly they are named leeches….
Thank you Hashem, Israel, for providing all this support to Bnei Torah until now.
Now would be the time to double down on Torah’s study’s protection.
Dear yeshivaguy1,
I don’t know how you can name yourself “yeshivaguy” and straight up argue with all the rabbanim! This what they hold and that’s the truth! Who do you think you are to argue like that!!!
, a distraught chaver.