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- Israeli army chief: ‘The popular army model is the only one that can succeed’
Israeli army chief: ‘The popular army model is the only one that can succeed’
‘For 75 years, the People's Army model has proven that there is not and should not be a substitute’
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi reacted Thursday to the controversy surrounding a new bill to exempt the ultra-Orthodox from conscription.
"There will be no replacement for the conscription model of the IDF," he said in a lengthy speech in Latrun at the opening of a new project known as the "March on the Paths of the IDF," in which thousands of soldiers will take part in a march along significant routes in the history of the IDF.
The proposed bill would lower the age of exemption for ultra-Orthodox men to 23 or 21, down from 26. By doing so, the government hopes to encourage more seminary students to enter the workforce instead of staying to study until the age of exemption. Academic deferments are used by the religious youth to dodge the universal draft.
"For 75 years, the model of the People's Army has proven beyond doubt that there is no substitute and that there must be no substitute. This is the secret of the IDF's strength, the secret of the nation's strength," he said in front of an audience of soldiers.
"We will put on our uniforms and leave all disputes outside so that the citizens of Israel and its young people know that we have a common denominator: the security of the state. For this, we will all stand up, defend the country and risk our lives, standing together. There is only one path for the IDF and one army, and we will travel it together," concluded Herzi Halevi.