Conscription in Israel

There is a mandatory conscription for all men and women in Israel who are fit and 18 years old, however many exemptions exist, especially for women. Men must serve 30 months while women serve 24 months, with the vast majority of conscripts being Jewish.

Many Israeli citizens are exempt from mandatory service:

• Non-Jewish Arab citizens
• permanent residents (non-civilian) such as the Druze of the Golan Heights
• Male Ultra-Orthodox Jews can apply for deferment to study in Yeshiva and the deferment tends to become an exemption, although some do opt to serve in the military
• Female religious Jews, as long as they declare they are unable to serve due to religious grounds. Most of whom opt for the alternative of volunteering in the national service Sherut Leumi

All of the exempt above are eligible to volunteer to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as long as they declare so.

Male Druze and male Circassian Israeli citizens are liable for conscription, in accordance with agreement set by their community leaders (their community leaders however signed a clause in which all female Druze and female Circassian are exempt from service).

A few male Bedouin Israeli citizens choose to enlist to the Israeli military in every draft (despite their Muslim-Arab background that exempt them from conscription).

Problem of so many exemptions.

Conscription in Israel during peacetime has been in place since 1949, a year after Israel was founded. While Israel is widely known for drafting women this does not occur on the same basis as men.

Various exemptions exist which allow a large minority of men, and most women to avoid mandatory military service. This is a growing political issue in Israel.

More than 20% of Israel's population is non-Jewish. In general, non-Jews are exempt from conscription in Israel. There are however two exceptions. Men from the Druze and Circassian minorities are required to service on the same basis as Jewish men. These provisions were added to Israeli law at the request of the leaders of these communities. Military service became mandatory for Druze men in 1956 and Circassian men in 1958.

Men and women who are exempt from mandatory military service may volunteer.

Jewish Israeli men are exempt as long as they are studying Torah. In practice many men study for so long that they are eventually too old to be called for military service. This occurs under the famous Tal Law and is very contentious in Israel.

Jewish Israeli women are exempted from mandatory military service if they are married or if they are religious, meaning that they strictly observe Jewish religious law.

There are now so many exemptions for both men and women that the proportion of the Israeli population that are required to serve in the military is now around 50%.

combat service for women

Mandatory military service

but is limited to Israelis of three ethnicities: Jews (both genders), Druze (male only), and Circassians (male only). Under Israeli law, only men are drafted from the smallest minority groups of the Druze and of the Circassians, whereas Jewish women are required to serve alongside Jewish men. While the largest minority group of the Arab citizens of Israel (both genders of the Arab-Muslims, and both genders of the Arab-Christians) are allowed to enlist voluntarily, they are not conscripted by law; and therefore the vast majority of them opt not to volunteer whatsoever.

Exemptions can be made for potential conscripts on religious, physical, psychological, or lawful grounds.

As of 2022, the minimum required length of military service is two years and eight months (with some roles requiring an additional four months of service) for all conscripted men, and two years (with some roles requiring an additional eight months of service) for conscripted Jewish women.[2]

In 2013, 26 percent of all potential conscripts were exempted from military service in the Israel Defense Forces; 13.5 percent for religious reasons, 4 percent for psychological reasons, 2 percent for physical health reasons, 3 percent due to existing criminal records, and 3 percent due to residing abroad.[3]

According to the Israeli Defense Service Law, which regulates duties and exceptions, all Israeli citizens who meet the conscription criteria are required to serve once they reach 18 years of age unless they qualify for any of the above-mentioned exemptions.

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