Following a petition to the High Court filed by a fighter in the undercover unit, the Israel Police has conceded that there was no reason to bar women from joining its Border Guard West Bank undercover unit.
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Up until now, women could join other undercover units in the organization, but under the revised position, prospective female recruits would be allowed to join if they meet the relevant criteria for other applicants and only if there is more than one woman who passes the threshold, "in view of the characteristics of service in these units, including a prolonged stay in hostile territory.
T' has been serving for several years as a fighter in the Border Police's undercover unit in the south – the Sinai undercover unit. She also passed all the required screenings for the role. At one point, T' requested to move to the undercover unit in the Judea and Samaria area. However, she was allegedly told that the unit was closed to women even if they had the necessary skillset.
Through her attorneys, the fighter filed a petition to the High Court, saying, "The petitioner was informed that the Border Police commander wants women to serve in the West Bank undercover unit, but at this stage recruitment to the unit is not allowed due to the opposition of a small part of the fighters to the addition of women."
In the meantime, T' moved to a fighter position in the Ramah Battalion operating in the Ramallah area of the West Bank. In addition to the claim, according to the fighter's testimony, that she was refused to move to the West Bank undercover unit for gender reasons, the petition does not provide evidence for this. In its response, the police did not address this testimony but provided other considerations for not assigning her.
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