This is the Forward’s coverage of the Israel Defense Forces, the combined military forces of Israel.
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The Schmooze Majority of Israeli 18-Year-Olds Not Drafted Into Army
It is common knowledge that all 18-year-old Israeli males serve in the Israel Defense Forces for three years, and all females for two years. Only that common knowledge is wrong. Israel’s Channel 2 News reports that in an interview with Israel Defense magazine, the IDF’s top human resources commander, Brigadier General Amir Rogovsky, said that…
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Opinion Demography as Destiny: Israel’s Growing Right Shapes Law, Military
The increasingly progressive Atlantic Monthly correspondent and former Forward staffer Jeffrey Goldberg (for the last time, no, we’re not the same person) posted a link on his blog Tuesday to an online essay — which he called “hard to disagree with” — by senior research fellow Hussein Ibish of the American Task Force on Palestine….
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The Schmooze IDF Gets Text Savvy for Emergency Situations
Things not gr8. Go 2 shelters. Yes, it’s the Middle East SMS-style. The Israel Defense Forces has just started testing a new text message process for communicating emergency instructions to civilians. Citizens across Southern Israel have been receiving trial texts. It’s a big step forward in emergency preparedness — especially given that Israelis are so…
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The Schmooze Rabbi and Father of 11 on Trial for Molesting IDF Officer
Editor’s Note: Yesterday Bidany was found guilty of the charge of molesting a female Israeli Army officer. A female IDF officer is not taking an alleged case of misdemeanor sexual contact sitting down — especially not while sitting on an airplane. The NY Daily News reported that the 23-year-old officer, who commands a missile defense…
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The Schmooze Gal Gadot Talks Growing Up In Israel & Her Controversial Maxim Photo Shoot
Every high-speed action flick needs a scantily clad woman to help kick some criminal butt. In the case of the newly released “Fast Five” and following Wonder Woman that woman just happens to be a former Miss Israel. Model and actress Gal Gadot, a veteran of the Israel Defense Forces and numerous magazine covers, plays…
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Opinion As Egypt Erupts, Barak Sows Chaos in IDF Senior Command
Small minds might expect that with everything going in Egypt, Israel’s senior defense officials would have spent the last week focused on what happens next along Israel’s long, undefended southern border. But of course, that’s not how things work these days, now that Israel has Ehud Barak, the most decorated soldier in Israel’s history, as…
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Life Why My Mother Spent Her 89th Birthday at a West Bank Checkpoint
My mother recently celebrated her 89th birthday in a most unusual place for a party — the Tayasir Checkpoint, situated in the northeastern West Bank, halfway between Nablus and Jenin. Barren hills, not yet softened by the green grasses that grow in winters with good rainfall, crowd around an intersection of two roads. One road…
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The Schmooze From IDF Lieutenant to Producing the Golden Globes
Orly Adelson’s employees do not salute her when they report for work in the morning. “I would like that, but they won’t,” she said, laughing at the thought. Adelson is president of dick clark productions, the company that produces shows such as “So You Think You Can Dance,” “Shaq Vs.,” the Academy of Country Music…
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