Feb

28 2023

Lunch & Learn: Women in the IDF

1:00PM - 3:00PM  

Contact Yahelle Yaccoby
8015810102
YYaccoby@shalomutah.org

Lunch & Learn: Women in the IDF

February 28th @1 PM

Park City, Address Given after registering

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is one of two military forces in the world where service is mandatory for women. Historically, women have always been an integral part of Jewish resistance and defense – from the days of the paramilitary Jewish organizations pre-Israel, through the formation of the IDF and its development, with women serving in a wide variety of combat positions. Ninety percent of positions are open to female candidates. The remaining 10%, however, are the subject of an ongoing controversy within the Israeli security establishment – should women be integrated into a 100% of IDF positions in the name of full gender equality?

Join us for an overview of the service of women in the Israeli security forces, from its history, through my personal experience as an officer in a mix-gender combat infantry battalion and in an elite IDF unit.

Maya Skurnik served in the IDF as a commander and officer for 6 years prior to her work here as the Israeli emissary for the Federation through the Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI), bringing Israeli culture and education to the Jewish community in Utah.