YNET NEWS
With a skirt and a rifle: Meet the IDF’s religious girl power
by Itzchak Tessler
October 14, 2015

Three young, motivated women explain why they decided to serve the State of Israel as combat soldiers instead of doing national service like other observant girls their age…In 2010, 935 young religious women joined the IDF. In 2013, the number jumped to 1,616. Every year, the army receives more and more religious female recruits, who are not only enlisting for traditional roles in the Education Corps, but are also joining combat units. This new trend should not be taken for granted, given the fact that one of the main statements issued by the Chief Rabbinate Council when Chief Rabbis David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef took office was that the Rabbinate “forbids IDF enlistment in any way…”…Meet Ornella, Sari and Hila, three religious female fighters who are convinced that despite the many difficulties, a religious girl who wishes to contribute to her people belongs in the army. READ MORE