Right-wing lawmakers on Monday condemned the military's decision to dismiss a prominent rabbi from his position in the reserves over controversial remarks about women's service, saying the move was akin to "declaring war against religious Zionism."
Rabbi Tzvi Kostiner, a longtime critic of women's military service, has been heading a military rabbis' training course for the past decade.
He recently unleashed a tirade in which he said the IDF was "waging a cultural war and trying to destroy families" by encouraging young women to serve in an ever-growing list of roles, including combat roles. His latest remarks appear to have crossed the line, resulting in his dismissal.
The IDF clarified that "Rabbi Kostiner remains in active reserve duty but it was decided that at this time, he will no longer head the rabbis' course."
Habayit Hayehudi MK Bezalel Smotrich decried the move, saying, "For decades, religious Zionism has instilled in its sons and daughters great motivation to contribute to the state, and the same rabbis have built glorious generations of fighters and officers. Now some people feel threatened by it and they declared a war on religious Zionism."
"Our high motivation [to serve in combat] is a result of years of education. The trampling of religious Zionism represents a severe blow to Israel," Smotrich added.
Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel (Habayit Hayehudi) also criticized the decision, saying, "Rabbi Tzvi Kostiner is known as a great rabbi who educates his students to love the people of Israel and the land of Israel. It is unthinkable for the military to dismiss prominent rabbis over legitimate comments."
Former Shas chairman Eli Yishai noted that "the defense minister insists that the IDF is the people's army and he insists the ultra-Orthodox [Israelis] must also serve, but when rabbis speak their mind, he dismisses them from the IDF."
"It turns out that freedom of expression is reserved only for artists and politicians – not rabbis," Yishai added. "The dismissal of Rabbi Kostiner is outrageous."
The move was also criticized by a former high-ranking military officer. "It's not Rabbi Tzvi Kostiner, it's also [former GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen. (res.)] Yom-Tov Samia, who the chief of staff reassigned as a reservist over his criticism of military policies in the Southern Command," Maj. Gen. (ret.) Gershon Hacohen told Israel Hayom.
Hacohen stressed that every case should be judged on its own merits.
"Unlike in civilian organizations, if a reservist wants to remain in active duty, he has to align himself with the military's positions," Hacohen said.
When it comes to ethical or leadership issues, it is permissible for soldiers to criticize the military after obtaining their superiors' approval, he explained. He added, however, that when the criticism is based on information learned during the service itself, the criticism should be made within the military forum to prevent sensitive information from getting out.
"I, for instance, leveled harsh criticism at Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi over the Harpaz Affair. But I based it on information that was public knowledge, not something I learned from the IDF. I asked to meet with Ashkenazi, so I could tell him what I thought in private but he didn't want to meet with me. It was his right – I was already a civilian at the time," Hacohen said.
The Harpaz Affair centered around a document forged by Lt. Col. (res.) Boaz Harpaz in an attempt to discredit Maj. Gen. Yoav Galant's 2010-2011 candidacy for the position of IDF chief of staff, and expose the murky personal and professional relationship between then-chief of staff Ashkenazi and then-Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
"Regardless of this [Kostiner's] specific case, such criticism should be expressed when it is a matter of public interest and when it is based on things that are public knowledge. And even then – it's best to first express it within the military," Hacohen said.
