Do Women Have to Serve in the Israeli Army?
Israeli law makes women aged 18 to 26 liable for call-up. In 2020 to 2022, 54.6% to 55.5% enlisted; religious declaration exempted 37.1% in 2022.
Women found fit at ages 18 to 26 may be summoned for military service under section 13 of the Defence Service Law, the Knesset Research and Information Centre stated in April 2024. The duty in the law is not limited to men. In the enlistment years 2020 to 2022, 54.6% to 55.5% of the women’s cohort enlisted, on IDF figures released under freedom of information and so the IDF’s own count. Arab, Druze, Circassian and Armenian women are not called up, under a standing IDF Personnel Directorate order rather than the statute.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 18 to 26 | Ages at which a woman found fit may be summoned under section 13 (men: 18 to 24) | Law in force, as quoted April 2024 |
| 54.6% to 55.5% | Women who enlisted, as a share of all women liable, on the IDF’s own figures | Enlistment years 2020 to 2022 |
| 44.5% to 45.4% | Women exempted, as a share of the same base | Enlistment years 2020 to 2022 |
| 37.1% | Women exempted by religious declaration, as a share of all women liable | Enlistment year 2022 (born 2004) |
| About 80% | Religious declaration’s share of exemptions given to 18-year-old women | Enlistment years 2020 to 2022 |
| 73,300 | Women aged 18, of an average cohort of 150,100; 50,400 of them Jewish women | 2022 |
| 67% to 69% | Men who enlisted, as a share of all men liable | Enlistment years 2020 to 2022 |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, Draft-Liable 18-Year-Olds and Enlistment Rates by Population Group, Update, April 2024, on IDF freedom-of-information data and Central Bureau of Statistics population data.
The Defence Service Law makes women aged 18 to 26 liable
Yes. Under the Defence Service Law [Consolidated Version] 5746-1986, every Israeli citizen who has turned 18 and has not been exempted is liable for enlistment, the Knesset Research and Information Centre stated in April 2024. The law sets a longer call-up window for women than for men.
| Provision | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Liable for enlistment | Every citizen aged 18 or over, not exempted | Every citizen aged 18 or over, not exempted |
| Call-up window under section 13 | 18 to 24 | 18 to 26 |
| Condition for summons | Found fit | Found fit |
Source: Defence Service Law [Consolidated Version] 5746-1986, as quoted in Hebrew by the Knesset Research and Information Centre, April 2024.
54.6% to 55.5% of women enlisted in 2020 to 2022
Just over half of the women’s cohort enlisted in each of the enlistment years 2020 to 2022, the Knesset Research and Information Centre reported. The rates rest on IDF data released under freedom of information, so they are the IDF’s own count, measured against every woman the law treats as liable. That base includes women who are not called up, so the 55% is not a share of Jewish women alone.
| Measure | Men | Women | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enlistment rate | 67% to 69% | 54.6% to 55.5% | 2020 to 2022 |
| Exemption rate | Not covered in this table | 44.5% to 45.4% | 2020 to 2022 |
| 18-year-olds, average | 76,800 | 73,300 | 2022 |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, April 2024. The 2022 cohort averaged 150,100 in total; 50,400 of the women were Jewish women. Women’s enlistment and exemption rates are shares of one base and together come to about 100%.
Religious declaration exempted 37.1% of women in 2022
A religious declaration was the reason 37.1% of all women liable in enlistment year 2022 were exempted, out of a total 45.4% exempt, the Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded on the IDF’s own figures. The paper reads religious declaration as the reason for about 80% of the exemptions given to 18-year-old women, and its share rose slightly from 2020 to 2022.
| Enlistment year (birth year) | Religious declaration | Total exempt |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 (born 2002) | 35.9% | 44.9% |
| 2021 (born 2003) | 36.3% | 44.5% |
| 2022 (born 2004) | 37.1% | 45.4% |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, April 2024, on IDF data; both columns are shares of all women liable in the year.
An IDF Personnel Directorate order leaves Arab and Druze women uncalled
Arab, Druze, Circassian and Armenian women are not called up under a standing IDF Personnel Directorate order, updated in March 2021, the Knesset Research and Information Centre reported. The order is the IDF’s own instrument, and the paper states it applies although the law’s definition of liability covers these groups. Anyone not called under the order may volunteer.
Within the Druze and Circassian communities the line falls by sex: men are called and women are not.
| Group | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Arab | Not called up | Not called up |
| Druze | Called since 1956 | Not called up |
| Circassian | Called since 1958 | Not called up |
| Armenian | Not called up | Not called up |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, April 2024, for the order; January 2025, for the Druze and Circassian men’s dates. Druze men were first called at the request of the community’s leaders, and Circassian men under the same arrangement.
No Israeli body here publishes women’s term of service or national service
Neither of the Knesset Research and Information Centre’s papers on conscription, of April 2024 and January 2025, states how long compulsory service lasts for women. Neither gives a count of exempt women who perform civilian national service.
| Question | What the two papers publish |
|---|---|
| Length of compulsory service for women | No term stated |
| Exempt women in civilian national service | No count given |
| Women’s enlistment after 7 October 2023 | Latest enlistment year is 2022 |
Source: Knesset Research and Information Centre, April 2024 and January 2025.
Every rate here is a share of all women liable
- Each women’s rate is a share of all women liable in the enlistment year, including women not called up under the IDF order. It is not a share of Jewish women.
- The 37.1% is a share of all women liable; the about 80% is a share of exempt women. The two denominators may not be swapped.
- The enlistment and exemption rates are the IDF’s own figures, released under freedom of information; the cohort sizes rest on Central Bureau of Statistics population data.
- An enlistment year is not a calendar year: 2022 is the main enlistment year for women born in 2004.
Questions readers ask
Can a woman be called up after age 26?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre quotes section 13 of the Defence Service Law as allowing the call-up of a woman found fit aged 18 to 26. The paper quotes no call-up provision for women beyond that window.
Do married women have to serve?
Marriage appears as an exemption ground: the Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded 0.4% of women liable in 2022 exempted as married or deceased, a single combined category in the IDF’s own data.
How many women are exempted on mental-health grounds?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded 3.7% of all women liable in enlistment year 2022 exempted on mental-health medical grounds, and 1.3% on other medical grounds, on the IDF’s own figures.
Are women living abroad exempt?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded 2.2% of all women liable in enlistment year 2022 exempted as abroad, on IDF data.
How many 18-year-old women are there in Israel?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported an average of 73,300 women aged 18 in 2022, of whom 50,400 were Jewish women, in a cohort of 150,100.
Do more men or women enlist?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported men’s enlistment at 67% to 69% and women’s at 54.6% to 55.5% in the enlistment years 2020 to 2022, each as a share of all those liable of that sex.
What share of women’s exemptions are religious?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre states that religious declaration is the reason for about 80% of the exemptions given to 18-year-old women.
Is the religious exemption growing?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre reported religious declaration at 35.9% of women liable in 2020, 36.3% in 2021 and 37.1% in 2022, and states that its share rose slightly over those years.
Is the women’s enlistment rate for Jewish women only?
No. The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted the rate against all women liable, a base that includes women not called up under the IDF Personnel Directorate order.
Does the law exempt Arab women?
No. The Knesset Research and Information Centre states that Arab women are not called up under a standing IDF Personnel Directorate order, which applies although the law’s definition of liability covers them.
Can Arab or Druze women volunteer?
Yes. The Knesset Research and Information Centre states that anyone not called up under the IDF Personnel Directorate order may volunteer.
Do Druze men have to serve?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre recorded that Druze men have been called to compulsory service since 1956, and Circassian men since 1958.
How long do women serve in the IDF?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre published no term of service for women in either of its conscription papers of April 2024 and January 2025.
Do exempt religious women do national service instead?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre published no count of exempt women in civilian national service in either paper.
What does “enlistment year 2022” mean?
The Knesset Research and Information Centre counted 2022 as the main enlistment year for those born in 2004, so it is a cohort year, not a calendar year.
Sources
- Knesset Research and Information Centre, 2024. Draft-Liable 18-Year-Olds and Enlistment Rates by Population Group, Update (Hebrew). Written by Oriana Almasi, approved by Yuval Vurgan, 4 April 2024. https://fs.knesset.gov.il/globaldocs/MMM/2e7046f7-7df2-ee11-8162-005056aa4246/2_2e7046f7-7df2-ee11-8162-005056aa4246_11_20527.pdf. Official or primary record.
- Knesset Research and Information Centre, 2025. Conscription and Exemption from Conscription for Men in Different Population Groups: Arrangements and Data (Hebrew). Written by Oriana Almasi and Asaf Wininger, approved by Yuval Vurgan, 6 January 2025. https://fs.knesset.gov.il/globaldocs/MMM/32b8ae93-49cc-ef11-a856-005056aa1f91/2_32b8ae93-49cc-ef11-a856-005056aa1f91_11_20777.pdf. Official or primary record.
