For a long time now, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit has been trying to convince the public that integrating women into combat battalions is vital, and successful thus far. TV screens and newspaper pages are filled with photos of girls in camouflage paint in an attempt to paint the picture that the mixed battalions in question are high-quality and meet all combat standards. Recently, we learned that outgoing commander of the elite Sayeret Matkal Unit, Col. H., and his deputy support recruiting women for the Sayeret, saying that the unit was "missing" what they could offer. But is that the case?
If we take into account reports from this past year about the "success" of attempts to integrate women into combat positions in the Armored Corps, we find that it is very problematic. Unfortunately, it seems as if the pilot that put women in tank units wasn't even a partial success, despite what was reported. In effect, all the female soldiers who took part in it, failed. The physiological differences between them and the men won out, and the motivated, courageous female soldiers couldn't meet the physical demands of the training. The same thing happened with the female soldiers in the mixed-gender Caracal infantry battalion.
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There, too, the women were required to meet the demands of infantry riflemen, just like the men, and now that has been dropped to the standard for combat intelligence or combat engineering troops – meaning they carry fewer magazines in their belts. This happened because of the high number of female soldiers who dropped out during training because of physical injuries. There was an enormous number of stress fractures and other injuries. The IDF's solution, when faced with these sad figures in 2017, was to make the training easier for everyone, thereby lowering the operational level of all the soldiers in the battalion.
While the question of physiological differences between the sexes is often relegated to a niche argument, it's time we talk about the difference between men and women when it comes to courage, the ability to handle danger, defend their partners, and seek to confront the enemy in battle.
A series of studies conducted at the University of Haifa by Professor Zeev Weinstock and his team, which includes myself, examined the answer to the question about social views of gender differences when it comes to the aforementioned questions in a few different societal groups in Israel (Jews, Muslims, Druze).
The research showed that while men and women were in favor of integrating women into combat roles in the IDF, when it came to practical issues, such as whom you would choose to defend you if you felt threatened, the answer was different. Most women reported that they would opt for a male bodyguard, and men said they didn't need protection at all. Other comparative questions found that members of both genders think that men are the ones who should be brave, take risks, and defend women. No one thought the opposite. And when asked directly, "Who do you think is better suited to combat roles in the army that require face-to-face confrontation with the enemy?" most answered "men." In the moment of truth, most of the answers expressed opposition to sending women into battle.
The answer to the question of female combat soldiers has been shaped by gender ideology that aspires to equality between the sexes. The answer to questions about how individuals deal with difficulty, however, exposes a tendency to functional pragmatism, that acknowledges the physical differences between the sexes. That explains the discrepancy between the responses.
The current discourse, led by radical pragmatism, expresses a desire for total equality between men and women. But when that discourse encourages young women to test themselves in combat roles like the Sayeret Matkal, the result – aside from physical injury – is that they wind up not fulfilling their potential in other important jobs.
The battlefield doesn't go easier on one sex than another, and no person is capable of changing physiological and social facts. Many IDF generals know this to be true but are attacked whenever they express their deep concern. The desire to see women reach top-level roles in society is, no doubt, a positive goal, but not at any price. IDF commanders must take a brave stand against people seeking to promote an agenda and stop putting female soldiers' health at risk, and instead focus on security and victory.
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