“We will all travel.” A Jewish rabbi raises an uproar over the recruitment of religious people into the occupation army

The Chief Rabbi of the Sephardic Jews in Israel (the Eastern Jewish sect), Yitzhak Yosef, said that if the religious people were forced to serve in the military in the occupying army, they would all travel abroad, which sparked reactions within the government and the War Council.

The Chief Rabbi of the Sephardic Jews in Israel (the Eastern Jewish sect), Yitzhak Yosef, threatened that religious Jews would leave the country if they were forced to perform military service in the occupying army.

Youssef said yesterday, Saturday, that if the religious people were forced to serve in the military, they would all travel abroad.

Israeli Channel 12 quoted Youssef as saying: “If they force us to join the army, we will all travel outside the country, buy tickets and go,” referring to religious people.

He added, denouncing: “There is nothing like this. The secularists are putting the state at stake.” He continued: “They must understand this, all the secularists who do not understand this matter.”

He stressed, "The government must know that the study and prayers of religious institute students are what grant protection to the army."

The Chief Rabbi's statements came against the backdrop of the ongoing controversy in Israel over the law on conscripting religious institute students into the Israeli occupation army, which is opposed by the extremist religious parties.

The rabbi's statements sparked widespread reactions in Israel, and the minister in the Israeli government's war council, Benny Gantz, said that everyone should participate in military service in this "difficult time," including the Haredim (religious Jews).

For his part, the head of the "Israel Our Home" party, Avigdor Lieberman, accused Rabbi Yitzhak of endangering Israel's security.

As for Israeli Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, he said: “We believe in resolving the conscription issue through understanding, and serving in the army is a great privilege for the Jew who defends himself and his country.”

The issue of recruiting the Haredim who evade military service under the pretext of devoting themselves to studying the Torah has always been a thorny issue in Israeli society.

There is currently a political division in Israel over the conscription law, between those calling for the Haredim to join the army in light of the war on Gaza and those who oppose that.

This controversy comes at a time when the occupation army continues its devastating war on the Gaza Strip for more than 5 months, amid massacres that have left to date more than 31,000 martyrs, more than 71,000 injured, massive destruction of infrastructure and hospitals, and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.