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Memorandum No. 159, Tel Aviv: Institute for National Security Studies, September 2016

Issues related to the notion of a “people’s army,” and in particular, questions related to the nature, scope, and elements of service in the IDF, have been on the Israeli public agenda since the establishment of the State of Israel. Public awareness regarding the issue of “equality in sharing the burden” has grown in recent years, including the period of the Israeli social justice protests of 2011. This issue was also deliberated by the Israeli government and the High Court of Justice (HCJ), and at the present time, in the twentieth Knesset, it appears that this issue will remain a focal point of division between different groups within the Israeli public and Israeli politics, and that the changing political reality in the country is what will ultimately shape the practices that develop. In parallel, a social and political discussion is underway regarding the format and scope of implementation of the National Civilian Service Law, which primarily promotes the service of Arabs and Jewish religious women within the existing civilian frameworks.
The opinions expressed in INSS publications are the authors’ alone.
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