Women in the IDF
Women in the IDFFlash 90

Avraham Lipshitz, CEO of Israel’s national religious education system (Hamad) responded in an interview with Arutz Sheva to the petition sent at the beginning of the week to the Education Minister by dozens of parents whose daughters study at national religious schools, in which they called on the Minister to prohibit organizations encouraging girls to enlist in the IDF from conducting activity inside those schools.

According to Lipshitz, what was written in the petition was not correct. “It is nice that parents are involved in the education of their children, especially in important matters, and the Education Minister will respond however he responds. But I can say that in national religious education, and thus the Hamad council has decided in the past, we guide our girls to undertake significant national service for the State of Israel. In addition, we accompany girls who go to the Army with love and warmth. They are all our daughters. As far as I know, there is no infiltration of organizations that push girls to enlist in the IDF. We have a situation where girls who decided to go to the Army are accompanied and guided by the educational institutions so that they get proper guidance before entering the IDF.”

Lipshitz emphasized that, on occasion, schools invite organizations like “Aluma” to guide girls who have decided to enlist. “The schools want this guidance and invite [such groups] so that the girls will be aware of their rights and of how to prepare for the draft. The Aluma organization doesn’t come into the school and carry out a witch hunt. It just accompanies those who have decided to enlist. As far as we’re concerned, the idea is to volunteer in national service for the Nation of Israel and not within the framework of the IDF, but whoever decides to draft to the IDF - we accompany her. We educate the girls to idealism, giving, and love, for the Land, the Homeland, and it’s important that the girls go into national service, [but] of course whoever goes into the IDF receives complete help and support.”