Questions Being Asked: Women in the IDF
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A History of Controversy and Service
INTRODUCTION
Note to educator: These discussion questions encourages learners to think about why women serve in the IDF, and why it matters.
Share this background with your learners:
Military service is compulsory for able-bodied female citizens of Israel, with specific exemptions. Since 1948, Israelis of military age, beginning at 18, have been conscripted into the IDF. For more information, refer to the unit’s introduction and the FAQ: Women in the IDF.
Ask learners:
What do you think are some of the main arguments in favor of women serving in the IDF? Who do you think supports these different arguments?
Note to educator: It’s important to tease out two main categories of arguments here. 1) Women serving in the IDF is essential to promoting Israeli democracy and equality—if men have to serve, so must women. 2) Service in the IDF, particularly in certain elite units, opens doors to later educational and career opportunities; some Israeli women, then, see military service as an important stepping stone.
Sections in this Resource
GENDER EQUALITY AND THE IDF: A HISTORICAL LOOK
Note to educator: This activity offers learners a historical look at women in the IDF. The activity unpacks how that service and its meaning have evolved over the years.
SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION
Have learners read the following:
Taken from this article.
- “In October 1949, approximately a year and a half after the establishment of the State of Israel, the Institute for Applied Social Research conducted a poll asking the public whether it was in favor of equal rights for women, and indeed 92% were in favor. However, opinions were divided on the question of whether women should be drafted during peacetime (in other words, whether there should be mandatory conscription for women): 52.5% were in favor and 47.5% were opposed.”
- “Israel’s leaders were unequivocal in this regard: David Ben-Gurion believed that the state should demand as much from women as from men and grant them equal rights.”
- “Despite Ben-Gurion’s firm stance regarding gender equality, women were allowed to serve in the army only as office workers, nurses, and teachers—positions traditionally perceived as feminine roles.”
- “Indeed, after the War of Independence and against the backdrop of the capture of about 100 women soldiers by enemy forces, 1 the Defense Service Law established three categories of roles that would not be assigned to women: professions that require physical abilities, professions in which the conditions of service are not suitable for women, and combat roles.”
In small groups, ask learners to consider the following questions:
- In 1949, did Israelis consider military service a precondition for gender equality?
- What IDF roles were open to women in 1949? Why do you think these roles were open to women?
- What IDF roles were closed to women in 1949? Why do you think these roles were closed to women?
Note to educator: For comparison, in the United States, women’s roles in the military began in earnest in 1861 at the outset of the Civil War: about 3,000 women served as nurses for the Union Army. 2 It was not until 1948, when President Harry S. Truman signed the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act, that women were allowed to enlist in the US military. Unlike Israel, American women have never been subject to the draft.
Next, show learners this clip (6:54-7:57).
Ask learners:
- Why did Alice Miller want to join the air force?
- Why did the Israeli Air Force prevent women from joining?
Share the following quote with learners:
“For all practical purposes, the court’s ruling [on the Alice Miller case] ordered the IDF to integrate women into its ranks not only as a function of defense and security needs, but also based on the commitment to the principle of equality.”
CLOSING DISCUSSION
Ask learners:
- How did Israel’s definition of equality, with regards to the service of women in the IDF, change between 1949 and 1995?
Note to educator: The important shift to highlight is that, in 1949, mandatory service for all was the main criterion for equality, while in 1995, equal opportunity in roles within the IDF became an essential stipulation.
CONTROVERSIES OF EQUALITY: GENDER AND RELIGION
Note to educator: This activity explores one of the controversies regarding expanded service of women in the IDF.
OPENING DISCUSSION
Begin by framing the activity as follows:
Since 1995, when Israel’s Supreme Court mandated that women be integrated into all areas of the IDF, military leadership has justified this integration in two ways: the IDF is a people’s army (i.e., equality) and national security is of the utmost importance—the IDF cannot afford to exclude half of the country’s population from important roles. However, in the past three decades, there has also been an uptick in the service of religious men in the military. As a result, religious Jewish men—many of whom demand religious accommodations, such as female modesty requirements and separate living and work areas—have drawn outrage from mainstream Israeli women who object to these demands on grounds of discrimination.
Have learners read the following:
(Below is an argument from the perspective of religious men who opposed the integration of women into all IDF roles.)
“The campaign, led primarily by the national-religious sector, cited both factors—the model of the people’s army and defense needs, which had been the primary motivations for integrating women into the IDF when the state was established—as fundamental reasons to oppose the integration of women into various units. Time and again, the religious officials justified their opposition to the integration of women into operational units by stating that such integration, influenced as it was by radical feminist agendas, violated the principle of a people’s army [because it did not accommodate the religious needs of these men] and jeopardized the operational capabilities of the IDF and the defense of the state [because it would lead to less religious men being able to serve in certain roles]. For example, one of the pamphlets distributed as part of this campaign stated: “The army is not a tool for promoting agendas, but rather—a people’s army.”
Ask learners:
- According to this perspective, why does the integration of women into more IDF roles threaten the army’s commitment to equality? How might it negatively impact defense needs?
- What values are in conflict here?
Note to educator: The goal here is to help learners understand that both sides of the debate are drawing on the language of equality to support their arguments.
OCTOBER 7 AND WOMEN IN THE IDF
Note to educator: This activity looks at the cultural response to the women who have fought in the war against Hamas since October 7. The activity focuses on a feminist rendition of an older song by popular Israeli singer Ester Rada.
OPENING DISCUSSION
- Begin by playing the song Ein Lach Ma Lidog (אין לך מה לדאוג), You Have Nothing to Worry About. The song can be found here.
- Next, give learners the following background on the song, as well as the lyrics.
- The original version of this song was written during the Yom Kippur War to raise the morale of (mainly male) soldiers. It was written in the form of a letter from a male soldier to his female partner at home. In the wake of October 7 and Israel’s war with Hamas, Ester Rada recorded a new rendition of the song that salutes the efforts of female soldiers, particularly reservists. Her rendition is performed from the perspective of a female soldier writing home to her male partner. For more on the two versions, explore this resource.
Ask learners:
- How do Ester Rada’s revised lyrics reflect women’s growing integration to the IDF?
- What meanings do these new lyrics take on in the wake of October 7 and the role that Israeli women have played?
Note to educator: Soldiers in the Border Defense Corps, a unit made up of young, female soldiers and commanders (referred to as tatzpitaniyot, meaning “spotters”), raised the alarm to the possibility of an attack by Hamas in the weeks before October 7. These soldiers have alleged sexism was a factor in their being ignored. For more information, see here.
1 Rosenberg-Friedman, Lilach. Religious Women Fighters in Israel’s War of Independence: A New Gender Perception, or a Passing Episode? Nashim: A Journal of Women’s Studies & Gender Issues. 2003.
2 United Service Organizations. “Over 200 Years of Service: The History of Women in the U.S. Military.” 2023.
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