New rules allow soldiers to avoid opposite sex

IDF soldiers will now be able to completely avoid interactions with members of the opposite sex, according to a new directive handed down by IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot.

In a bid to be more inclusive of the ultra-Orthodox, the IDF has updated its Order for Joint Service to allow any soldier who feels that an event would go against their beliefs to submit a request to their commander to get out of it.

Soldiers can ask to not serve alongside members of the opposite sex, and the order further strengthens the rules against shared living spaces.

“We will allow all male and female soldiers to serve — in accordance with the law — without harming their way of life,” the amendment to the order reads.

The revised rule separates IDF events into two categories: formal and way of life.

Formal events — Independence and Memorial Day ceremonies, Holocaust Remembrance Day, services for fallen soldiers, Rabin’s memorial day — will be more difficult for soldiers to avoid, according to the order.

Way of life events — visits to cultural institutions or historic landmarks — will be based on “discretion” of the commander.

There have been a number of issues in recent years of soldiers refusing to attend events where female singers — considered verbotten for some ultra-Orthodox — are performing.

— Judah Ari Gross