IDF Women

Tensions rise in Givati unit after religious soldiers refuse mission involving female medic

Sources familiar with the details warned that the way the incidents are handled could lead to a broader crisis involving yeshiva student units in the IDF.

A Namer APC shows off its abilities traversing steep terrain
 THE ZIONIST identity didn’t overcome the Jewish identity, nor did the opposite occur: An IDF soldier puts on tefillin.

National-religious men overrepresented in IDF reserves as haredim stay absent, IDI analysis finds

Col. G, set to become the Israeli Air Force's first female brigadier-general, is seen in this undated image released by the IDF on July 14, 2026

In Air Force first, IDF promotes woman to brigadier-general, appoints her Washington attaché

Staff Sergeant Oren Metzuyanim, a 21-year-old lone soldier at the main rehearsal of the 78th anniversary Independence Day ceremony, held at Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, on April 19, 2026.

‘We're lone soldiers, but we're not lonely’: How the IDF supports fighters without families


Several haredi rabbis protesting women in IDF tank units skip meeting with IDF chief Zamir

While several prominent Hesder Yeshivot rabbis were present, The Jerusalem Post has learned that rabbis from one-third of Hesder Yeshivot who have announced a boycott of the move were not.

IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir seen on November 3, 2025

Equality NGO Forum Dvorah slams hesder yeshivot boycott over women's integration in tank units

Forum Dvorah, an Israeli women's rights NGO, criticized hesder yeshivot for boycotting the IDF Armored Corps over a pilot program involving women tank units.

Female IDF soldiers work on a tank; illustrative.

Editor's Notes: High Court ruling on women in tanks deepens religious divide in IDF - comment

Women who made history in tanks on Oct. 7 fought in all-female crews. Both camps in the Armored Corps dispute should be claiming that morning as a victory. Instead, both pretend it never happened.

DF armored forces at a staging area in southern Israel near the border with Gaza. January 01, 2024.

Tel Aviv Museum of Art gives voice to the female observers of Oct. 7

Ten testimonies were on display. There was no archival footage, no maps, no recreations – just faces. And yet the cumulative effect of an hour in that room was something closer to a reckoning.

THE EXHIBIT ‘Observation/The Field Observers of the Gaza Sector’ by Talya Lavie is currently on display at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

Under the radar: The program bringing ultra-Orthodox women into the IDF

Haredi women assist other like-minded women in joining the military, with exciting new avenues of exploration, and without compromising their way of life

Maj.-Gen. Amikam Norkin, former Israel Air Force commander, awards Esti Solomon the Above and Beyond medal for the program to integrate haredi women into the air force.

Captain Ella trades desk for the field as IDF's new Arab spokesperson

Lt. Col. Ella Waweya, aka ‘Captain Ella,’ was recently named as the next army spokesperson for the Arab world

Head of the Arabic media desk at the IDF Spokesperson Unit Major "Captain" Ella Waweya; highest ranked Arab Muslim IDF soldier. 20.7.2024.

Women's integration into IDF 'disaster': Rabbis send letter to Netanyahu demanding intervention

The letter came in response to the military’s new program, which would include women in the Armored Corps. It was written by leading rabbis in the religious Zionist sector.

 There is a high demand for combat roles among women in the November-December 2023 draft

Smotrich doubles down on refusal to enlist daughter, claims IDF is 'no place for women'

In an interview, Smotrich also addressed his comments on crime rates in Arab communities, saying, "There is a culture of murder, killing, and jihad in Arab society."

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich arrives to a conference of the Israeli newspaper Makor Rishon in Jerusalem, December 25, 2025

Finance Minister Smotrich says he won't educate his daughter to enlist in the IDF

The statement, made during a Religious Zionist Party Knesset press conference, comes as the government fast-tracks a haredi conscription bill.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich (RZP) speaks at a Religious Zionist Party press conference at the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 16, 2026.

Supermajority of Israeli Arabs support re-establishing Joint List for Knesset elections, poll shows

A new poll by ArPanel reveals strong backing among Israeli Arabs for a unified Joint List, with 82% in favor and a clear preference for new candidates in the upcoming Knesset election.

Arab MK Ayman Odeh (at the plenum) and MK Ahmad Tibi (in the foreground) attend a Hadash-Ta'al faction meeting at the Knesset, February 2, 2026.