IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir announced on Thursday that the military has halted this year’s round of women who were training for the past six months to become combat drivers.
The statement said that a revised pilot program, amended and tailored specifically to standards aligned with expectations for women’s physical prowess, will be rolled out next year.
The decision is controversial, as the High Court of Justice has pressed the military to open more, not fewer, tracks for women in combat. Also, women have been successful in several special forces units, such as Oketz, which works with dogs; the Yahalom combat engineers; and the 669 rescue unit. The Jerusalem Post has even interviewed women who are now commanders in some of these units and are training new rounds of women. In November 2024, a woman was even accepted to the ground forces’ most elite unit, Sayeret Matkal. (Read More)
