Basically, for Jewish people. Israel also has a large Arab popn, and seems for them is voluntary. Alon will know the exact rules.
My memory of crossing the border from Jordan, was all the immigration officials/border guards were young women - so presumed that was some way they could do their service without really being in the army.
Presumably at 18 Hemed was already a very handy footballer, so if he'd sought to sign with an overseas club he could have maybe 'got around the system', and avoided being called up??
Conscription exists in Israel for all Israeli citizens over the age of 18 who are Jewish (both genders), or Druze and Circassian (male only); Arab citizens of Israel are not conscripted. Arab citizens can enlist if they want to but are not required by law. Other exceptions are made on religious, physical, or psychological grounds. As of 2020, the normal length of compulsory service was two years and six months for men (with some roles requiring an additional four months of service), and two years for women (with some roles requiring an additional eight months of service).[1]
My memory of crossing the border from Jordan, was all the immigration officials/border guards were young women - so presumed that was some way they could do their service without really being in the army.
Presumably at 18 Hemed was already a very handy footballer, so if he'd sought to sign with an overseas club he could have maybe 'got around the system', and avoided being called up??
Conscription exists in Israel for all Israeli citizens over the age of 18 who are Jewish (both genders), or Druze and Circassian (male only); Arab citizens of Israel are not conscripted. Arab citizens can enlist if they want to but are not required by law. Other exceptions are made on religious, physical, or psychological grounds. As of 2020, the normal length of compulsory service was two years and six months for men (with some roles requiring an additional four months of service), and two years for women (with some roles requiring an additional eight months of service).[1]
In 2013, 26% of potential conscripts were exempt from military service: 13.5% for religious reasons, 4% for mental health reasons, 2% for physical health reasons, 3% due to criminal records, and 3% due to residing abroad.[2]