A draft law within the coalition agreements between the blocs, which will form the upcoming Israeli government, sparked a debate in the Israeli army, which would fuel what the Israeli media described as a revolution within the military establishment.
According to Israeli media, “the coalition agreements seek to subject the position of the chief military rabbi of the army to the authority of the rabbinic authority, not to the army”.
The Israeli media pointed out that, based on the coalition agreements regarding the formation of the upcoming government, “a law will be enacted in the Knesset, which will strengthen the position of the chief military rabbi, by legitimizing his position in the text of the law, by defining the mechanism for his appointment and his independence”.
According to the law, “the chief military rabbi will be appointed by a committee headed by the Sephardic chief rabbi, composed of 5 rabbis, a politician and an officer.
They are a representative of the government, the director of a religious school, two other representatives of seminary organizations, the commander of the manpower division in the army, and the outgoing chief military rabbi.
Also, according to the law, “the rabbi will be subject to the Chief Rabbinate, and not to the Chief of the General Staff of the Army”.
The Israeli media spoke of “a divergence of viewpoints between the rabbinate and the army on various issues: such as embracing the Jewish faith, burying non-Jewish soldiers, military service for women, carrying out military activities on Saturday, which is sacred to Jews, and other issues”.
Israeli media are wondering about “the direction of the Israeli army,” which is “suffering under the weight of political divisions pressing on its neck”.
A report on the IDF and politics on the Israeli Channel 13, entitled The Israeli Army in the Minefield of Domestic Politics, stated that The Israeli army, the symbol of the Israeli consensus, is approaching a crossroads.
Brigadier General Amir Avivi, head of the security movement, confirmed that “there is a specific Israeli track to attack the army and create illegality for it,” noting that “the army receives attacks, while it must remain outside politics”.
Israeli media reported that there are “warnings of internal fragmentation and division in Israeli society,” noting that “politicians are trying to involve the Israeli army in that, and turn it into a punching bag”.
The writer and military affairs commentator on the Walla website, Amir Bukhbut, said: “It’s not possible to ignore or overlook the growing concern of hatred, division and fragmentation in Israeli society, and the attempt of politicians to turn the Israeli army into a punching bag,” calling on politicians to “remove the Israeli army from no controversy”.
