Haredi Men Don't "Feel Like" Serving in the IDF

According to estimates, at least 35,000 young Haredi men of conscription age are neither serving in the army nor studying full-time in yeshivas. They’re dubbed "the dropouts": some work, some study only a few hours, and others do nothing at all. The obvious question arises: if they’re not studying, why aren’t they enlisting?

Channel 12 researched the subject and met people on the ground. Here's what they discovered:

Itamar, a 22-year-old Haredi event producer and PR specialist, claims the attempts to draft him are hurting his income: "They’re driving me crazy with exemptions and draft notices. I work abroad too, and because of you, I’m losing business. I’m really stressed about the draft; I don’t know what’ll happen with my company." When asked why he doesn’t enlist, he replied: "The army doesn’t really want soldiers, it wants to change my lifestyle. Even if you force me to enlist, I’ll only be a soldier on paper."

Itamar’s defiant words echo those of senior rabbis who repeatedly insist that "even a lazy person must not join the army." This stance has been backed by Cabinet member Aryeh Deri, who has said, "Anyone who joined the army ended up without a kippah." Ultimately, the "dropouts" say: "The army isn’t for us."

Yoni Levi, a 19-year-old recording studio owner, also believes there’s no chance of enlisting and remaining Haredi: "You can’t be Haredi and be in the army, it’s contradictory. If I go, a Haredi woman won’t want to build a home with me." When asked what he’d say to mothers whose sons are fighting in Gaza while he sits at home, he responded: "There’s something here she can’t understand. When I sit and study Gemara even for an hour a day, it’s exactly the same as if I’m saving the world and the State of Israel right now."

Even when presented with adaptations the IDF has made, such as hesder yeshivas or the establishment of the Haredi "Hasmonean" Brigade, they outright reject them. Itamar claimed his Religious Zionist friends who enlisted "are no longer on the same spiritual level." About the "Hasmonean" Brigade, he said he considered joining but ultimately decided, "That’s not what I need."

At Mount Herzl, where Itamar volunteers to prepare sandwiches for soldiers visiting the site, a moment revealed the deep rift between the general public and those dodging service. Rachel, another volunteer, couldn’t fathom why Itamar doesn’t enlist: "My kids serve three years with no choice, and you have the option to dodge. It’s not fair." Her voice broke as she mentioned the funeral of Abraham Azoulay, z"l, a soldier killed just three months after his wedding: "At his grave, the rabbi shouted ‘the groom leaves his chamber’, that’s a mitzvah."

Itamar admitted: "The right move after October 7 was to enlist." But when asked the simple question "So why didn’t you enlist?", he gave the same answer: "Because you didn’t give me a solution." Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of reservists continue to pay the price, while tens of thousands of Haredi youths of conscription age remain at home.

Editor's note: I acknowledge the risk that Haredi men could return from a regular army unit 'less religious', but I outright deny the possibility it could happen in the Hashmonaim Brigade, which leads to the question: Who is really to blame for the draft crisis? The senior Haredi leadership, at a time when Israel is fighting for its life. Of course, they say they are fighting for it too, in a different way. But prayers alone don't win wars. They don't seem to get this, or they are happy to let others pay the price.