'Don't force religious soldiers to hear female singing'

IDF must ensure that religious soldiers not put in compromising situation, says Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger in religious ruling.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
yona metzger hat 298.88 (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
yona metzger hat 298.88
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski [file])
The IDF must ensure that religious soldiers are not forced to listen to performances by female singers, Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi Yona Metzger said in a religious ruling on Monday.
The IDF should notify the soldiers if such an event is to take place and allow them to avoid participating in it, he said.
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The statement came after an incident earlier this month in which nine officer cadets left an army event involving a performance by female soldiers, and some subsequently refused to return after their unit commander ordered them to do so. Four of the soldiers were expelled from the Officers Training School – better known as Bahd 1 – after refusing to apologize for the incident.
In an interview with Army Radio two weeks ago, Metzger said that the IDF was placing religious soldiers in an unfair situation.
"There are other halachically forbidden things and the IDF always takes them into consideration. Just as we are against religious coercion, we also need to avoid anti-religious coercion," he explained.