Religious Soldier Enlistments Up 1000 Percent in Six Years
Soaring enlistment of hareidi religious men bodes well for the IDF and for society in general, according to the army’s Human Resources branch director, Brigadier-General Amir Rogovski.
In the past six years, the number of hareidi soldiers has grown from 300 to 3,000, allowing them better job opportunities in the future and encouraging their integration into the general work force, Rogovski added.
“I think that the first place of tension between the hareidi religious community and general society is in the IDF,” he said. “Despite the tension, we see a lot of success, and 90 percent of the hareidi religious men who serve in the IDF enter the force after they are discharged.”
He also noted that contrary to popular opinion, most of the hareidi religious soldiers enlist under the age of 24.
Moreover, Rogovski pointed out that accusations that the IDF makes special concessions for the hareidi religious community are totally wrong when taking not consideration it changes its standards and demands for other sectors of society.
“We also make changes for olim [new immigrants],” he said. The IDF also has special units for young men who come from broken families and also for those with criminal records.”
“I don’t hear any complaints about special conditions for them,” Rogovski said.