Following the publication in "HaYom": IDF changes its handling of Haredi deserters
After the method of obtaining exemptions using medical documents during designated recruitment days was exposed, the IDF changed the procedure. Now, deserters claiming serious medical issues fear they will be harmed by the new policy. The IDF's response has not yet been received.
Following the publication in "HaYom" regarding the phenomenon where Haredi deserters exploit designated recruitment days for the Haredi public to arrive at recruitment centers, declare their intention to enlist, and then present medical documents to receive an exemption from service, the IDF has changed the way these cases are handled.
The IDF has decided not to examine the medical documents presented by Haredi deserters at the initial stage. Instead, they first undergo the enlistment process, and only afterwards are the documents and medical claims they raised examined.
The goal is to prevent a situation where someone defined as a deserter arrives at a designated recruitment day, presents medical documents, and ends the process by receiving an exemption, thereby effectively turning the recruitment day into a bypass route for enforcement and recruitment procedures.
However, alongside the attempt to stop what the IDF views as an "exemption industry," the new policy may create an opposite problem: harming those who suffer from genuine medical issues.
"HaYom" has received details of two cases occurring today, in which Haredi deserters claim they suffer from serious and significant medical problems. Despite this, according to them, the army refuses at this stage to address the medical documents they presented — apparently due to the decision not to examine medical documents of Haredi deserters before completing the enlistment procedures.
Now the IDF faces the need to find a balance: on one hand, to prevent the exploitation of recruitment days and medical documents for the purpose of evading service; on the other hand, to ensure that someone suffering from a real medical problem is not harmed just because they belong to the Haredi public.
No response has yet been received from the IDF Spokesperson's Unit.
