The IDF rabbinate has embraced new technology that will allow for rapid identification of the deceased in case of casualties.
A wearable computerized system, already in use elsewhere in the military, will be able to identify bodies with a quick fingerprint scan. Previously such scans took up to 12 hours.
“The improved technology will make the process shorter and more efficient,” Rabbi Yoav Oknin, head of the branch for identification and burial, told the IDF magazine B’Machaneh. “The tablets will provide reliable, professional quality identification and will allow families to be notified more quickly.”
IDF sources said the project was undertaken thanks to Chief IDF Rabbi Rafi Peretz’s insistence on putting the latest technology to use in the rabbinate. Rabbi Peretz has urged the IDF rabbinate to take the lead in the realm of halacha (Jewish law) as well, they said.