Israelis on social media troll 'draft-dodger' supermodel Bar Refaeli

Refaeli paid homage to fallen soldiers on Instagram, igniting a backlash from users reminding her of how she avoided mandatory military service.

Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli (photo credit: REUTERS)
Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Israeli supermodel Bar Refaeli posted an item on her Instagram account on Tuesday to honor the memory of the country’s fallen soldiers – only to be met with a backlash from users who pointed out that she evaded military service.
As Israel marked Remembrance Day, Refaeli uploaded an image of a candle with the Hebrew title Yizkor, a special prayer for the dead, along with Hebrew text.

 

יִזְכֹּר עָם יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת בָּנָיו וּבְנוֹתָיו הַנֶּאֱמָנִים וְהָאַמִּיצִים, חַיָּלֵי צְבָא-הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשׂרָאֵל, וְכָל לוֹחֲמֵי הַמַּחְתָּרוֹת וַחֲטִיבוֹת הַלּוֹחֲמִים בְּמַעַרְכוֹת הָעָם, וְאַנְשֵי קְהִילוֹת הַמּוֹדִיעִין, הַבִּטָּחוֹן, הַמִּשְׁטָרָה וְשֵׁרוּת בָּתֵּי הַסֹּהַר, אֲשֶׁר חֵרְפוּ נַפְשָׁם בַּמִלְחָמָה עַל תְּקוּמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְכָל מִי שֶׁנִּרְצְחוּ בָּאָרֶץ וּמִחוּצָה לָהּ בִּידֵי מְרָצְחִים מֵאִרְגּוּנֵי הַטֶּרוֹר. יִזְכֹּר יִשׂרָאֵל וְיִתְבָּרַך בְּזַרְעוֹ וְיֶאֱבַל עַל זִיו הָעֲלוּמִים וְחֶמְדַת הַגְּבוּרָה וּקְדֻשָׁת הָרָצוֹן וּמְסִירוּת הַנֶּפֶש שֶׁל הַנִּסְפִּים בַּמַּעֲרָכָה הַכְּבֵדָה. יִהְיוּ חַלְלֵי מַעַ‏רְכוֹת‏‏‏ יִשְׂרָאֵל עֲטוּרֵי הַנִּצָּחוֹן חֲתוּמִים בְּלֵב יִשְֹרָאֵל לְדוֹר דּוֹר.

A photo posted by Bar Refaeli (@barrefaeli) on

The gesture was not appreciated by her Instagram audience, which castigated her eschewing compulsory military service in the Israel Defense Forces.
When Refaeli was 18 years old, she married an older man, thus neutralizing her eligibility for mandatory two-year army service.
“If only you had given two years of your life, then people would leave you alone,” one Instagram user wrote.
“You refused to enlist in the military and you married a family acquaintance,” another troll wrote. “Then you also said that you didn’t understand why it was necessary to die for the state.”
“It’s a good thing there were other suckers here who enabled you to live here,” the troll wrote, adding the hashtag #Shame.