Dozens of Hesder soldiers who served in the Kfir Brigade report that their requests to transfer to other units were not properly addressed, despite having approached their commanders. According to the soldiers, the integration of female fighters in the regiment made service impossible for them.
One soldier described his experience: “The regiment started as a regular regiment, and over time, girls joined the unit. At first in one company, then in another, and apparently this will continue to grow. We are not an insignificant group of soldiers who requested a transfer from the start, and we encountered constant refusal because we are in a ‘mix-gendered company’ and the girls are in other companies. In the last assignment, the whole regiment spent nearly a week in the same school complex, and the mixing was awful. For me, it reached a breaking point; it really became impossible to continue like this.”
Efrat Lupo, founder of the “Wives of Soldiers for the Kedushas HaMachaneh (Sanctity of the Camp)” movement under the Chotam organization, responded: “Enough with harming soldiers who observe religious traditions in the name of progress. The IDF must respect its soldiers who keep the commandments. There is no way to discuss the recruitment of Haredim without allowing observant soldiers to serve properly in the IDF.”
On the other hand, sources familiar with the matter claim that there is no deviation from the IDF’s gender regulations, and that the regiments comply with the guidelines regarding gender separation at the company level.
The IDF stated: “The IDF acts to the best of its ability to provide its soldiers with appropriate service, both regarding gender and in response to religious and cultural needs, within the framework of existing principles and capabilities. In the Ya’ara Division, there is a mixed-gendered framework at the company level, allowing service adapted for Hesder yeshiva soldiers.”