JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Three Israeli soldiers serving in the Givati Brigade were sentenced to 10 days in military prison Sunday after refusing to board an armored vehicle with a female medic, a case that has reignited a broader dispute over religious accommodations for observant soldiers in the Israeli military.

The soldiers, who serve in the Rotem Battalion and are enrolled in the military’s Hesder program, refused to enter a Namer armored personnel carrier as their unit prepared for an operational mission in the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli reports.

The soldiers said their religious convictions prevented them from participating in the mission under those circumstances.

The punishment drew criticism from religious leaders and politicians, who accused the military of failing to honor arrangements designed to accommodate observant soldiers.

The Association of Hesder Yeshivas said the soldiers had acted in accordance with the military’s joint-service framework and questioned why they were punished for following religious guidelines.

מישהו בצבא איבד את זה לגמרי. צבא של מדינה יהודית לא מעניש חיילים על כך שהם מתנהגים כיהודים. שמירת תורה ומצוות לא תהיה עבירה בצה”ל. בממשלה הבאה נעם לישראל תשים לזה סוף: חופשי להיות יהודי – גם במדים. https://t.co/Nk0JO0VHwV

— אבי מעוז (@AVI_MAOZ) August 29, 2026

The military offered a different account.

The Israel Defense Forces said soldiers maintaining a religious lifestyle are generally entitled to perform operational duties in gender-segregated settings under the joint-service order, except in unusual circumstances. In this case, however, the military said the soldiers refused to participate in an operational activity and that the mission was ultimately canceled.

According to an Israeli military source cited in reports on the incident, the company commander spoke with the soldiers and explained the importance and urgency of the planned operation. The soldiers nevertheless maintained their refusal.

Military officials also involved the brigade’s rabbi, who reportedly determined that the operational circumstances justified carrying out the mission with the female medic aboard.

The dispute has exposed tensions surrounding the growing role of religious soldiers in the Israeli military, particularly as the country continues to debate the enlistment of ultra-Orthodox men.

MK Avi Maoz, head of the Noam party, strongly criticized the soldiers’ imprisonment and accused the military of turning against soldiers who had served in combat.

“You are turning your back on IDF soldiers,” Maoz said in a statement directed at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the defense establishment.

Maoz praised the soldiers for their service and said their punishment sent the wrong message to religious communities being encouraged to enlist.

He also urged the soldiers to remain steadfast in their religious convictions despite the sentence.

Rabbi Dror Aryeh, a rabbi associated with a Hesder yeshiva in Sderot, similarly condemned the military’s decision. He called the punishment an abuse of authority and argued that the soldiers had acted according to Jewish law and established procedures.

A group known as Wives of Soldiers for the Sanctity of the Camp also called for the soldiers to be released and for disciplinary action against commanders involved in the incident.

The group accused the military of mistreating religious soldiers and warned that such cases could discourage ultra-Orthodox and other observant Jews from joining the military.

Religious leaders also publicly rallied behind the soldiers.

Rabbi Hagai Lundin, head of a yeshiva in Holon, released a message of encouragement to the soldiers, placing their decision in the context of the Jewish month of Elul and the approaching Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah.

Lundin said the soldiers had faced a test of whether they would prioritize their religious principles over personal considerations and encouraged them not to be intimidated by the punishment.

The incident reportedly began as the Rotem Battalion was preparing for an operational activity in Gaza. A female medic was assigned to accompany the force inside a Namer armored vehicle.

Three soldiers refused to board.

According to reports, the soldiers were asked whether another member of the platoon would participate in the mission instead. They responded that no other soldier was willing to take the assignment under those conditions.

The refusal meant the planned activity could not proceed as scheduled, according to the military.

Reports also said rabbis at two Hesder institutions — Rabbi Tzvi Kostiner of the yeshiva in Mitzpeh Ramon and Rabbi Shlomo Shushan of the yeshiva in Beit She’an — had instructed students serving with the unit not to board a combat vehicle when a female medic was present.

The case comes as Israel continues to grapple with questions over military service, religious observance and the integration of men and women into combat and support roles.

Hesder combines Torah study with military service and has long provided a framework for religious Zionist men to serve in the IDF while maintaining intensive religious studies.

The military has sought to accommodate religious soldiers while maintaining operational requirements, but disputes have periodically emerged over gender integration, military duties and the boundaries of religious accommodations.

The latest case has quickly become a political issue, with religious leaders portraying the soldiers as examples of religious commitment and military officials emphasizing the need for units to remain operational.

The soldiers are expected to serve their 10-day sentences in military detention.