‘His sin is greater than he can bear’ - Ultra-Orthodox rabbis rage against attempts to increase Haredi IDF enlistment

Two of the leaders of the so-called Lithuanian branch of Ultra-Orthodox Jews, Rabbi Hirsch and Rabbi Lando, recently published a letter of protest regarding attempts by the IDF to increase the number of Haredi recruits. 

In particular, the rabbis drew attention to two tracks in the IDF: one called “KodKod” and the other called “Ma’alot Tzur,” tracks tailored to ultra-Orthodox recruits, in which recruits often do not wear military uniforms. 

The letter was released after the coalition government did not move to advance the Haredi draft exemption law, and while the IDF has begun programs aimed at increasing Haredi enlistment. 

In the letter, Rabbi Hirsch wrote to the council of community rabbis affiliated with the Lithuanian movement. 

“Behold, it has sadly come to my attention that as part of the efforts to bring about the enlistment of the sons of Torah, various tracks have been established and given names such as ‘Kodkod’ and the like, and recently additional enlistment tracks were added in the south, in Netivot and Be'er Sheva,” Rabbi Hirsch wrote. “Now certainly all these tracks are an inseparable part of the army, and one who goes there is essentially surrendering himself to the control and authority of the military regime and becomes like any regular soldier in every respect, just like going to the army, which has no permissible aspect whatsoever.” 

Rabbi Lando added his own message to Rabbi Hirsch’s letter, writing, “Let every person who joins the aforementioned tracks and the like know that, beyond the disaster he is bringing upon himself with his own hands, upon himself and upon the members of his household, heaven forbid, others may be drawn after him, and his sin is greater than he can bear.” 

The letter from the two rabbis was delivered to a gathering of rabbis and heads of yeshivot currently taking place to warn against recruitment into ultra-Orthodox courses. The council also saw warnings against the Kodkod and Ma'alot Tzur courses after announcements by the military that these courses could lead to post-service jobs and that they are completely ultra-Orthodox. 

Following the posting of the letter to social media, right-wing opposition leader Avigdor Liberman posted an attack of his own against the Ultra-Orthodox leaders, accusing them of dishonesty.  

He reiterated his demand that refusal to serve should result in a loss of voting rights. 

“The ban by Rabbi Landau and Rabbi Hirsch on enlisting into tracks adapted for Haredim proves that all the discussions about the ‘Enlistment Law’ were a show intended to buy time and extract more budgets from the pockets of hard-working and serving Israeli citizens,” Liberman wrote on 𝕏. “In the next government — this ends. No enlistment? No vote!” 

At the same time, Rabbi Shmuel Bezalel, a member of the Shas Party's Council of Torah Sages, called the attempts to recruit Haredi “the snake of death.” 

“The snake of death is biting into the yeshiva world! It shocks the yeshiva world, it's really Amalek!" Rabbi Bezalel declared. 

The debate comes as reports in Hebrew media indicate that the military’s efforts to increase Haredi enlistment have not been widely successful. Israeli journalist Yaakov Hershkovitz, who writes for Israel Hayom, reported that in a recent recruitment day, the number of recruits fell well below IDF expectations in several units. 

According to him, the military had anticipated about 140 recruits for the Netzach Yehudah haredi battalion; however, only 85 men enlisted. Similarly, only 71 soldiers enlisted in the Hasmonean Brigade, while the IDF anticipated over 100. However, the Hetz (Arrow) Haredi unit in the Paratroopers saw 27 recruits, which was in line with expectations. 

The IDF is expected to host several additional recruitment drives for the ultra-Orthodox community over the next few days, despite the ban issued by the rabbis.