The IDF does not conscript Arab citizens of Israel who are Muslim or Christian, however, they may choose to volunteer for military service.
The State of Israel requires every Israeli citizen over the age of 18 who is Jewish, Druze or Circassian to serve in the Israel Defense Forces (although there are some notable exceptions).
The IDF does not provide precise numbers of Christians serving in its ranks, but the forum says the rise is significant and that there are currently 300 Christians serving in the IDF, 157 of them in the conscript army.
Through an arrangement established during the founding of the state, Haredi men have enjoyed a de facto exemption from the mandatory IDF or non-military service requirement that legally applies to all Jewish Israeli citizens.
Not only is Israel considered Christianity's place of birth, but it helps Christians connect with their religion which is why it is vital for any Christian to make at least one trip to Israel in their lifetime. Visiting the Holy Land does help one visualize and reimagine the events that they read in the bible.
About eight-in-ten (81%) Israeli adults are Jewish, while the remainder are mostly ethnically Arab and religiously Muslim (14%), Christian (2%) or Druze (2%). Overall, the Arab religious minorities in Israel are more religiously observant than Jews.
(Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria and Yemen do not recognise Israel as a state.) (Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan do not recognise Israel as a state.) (None of these countries recognise Israel.)
Under Israeli law, only men are drafted from the less numerous Druze and Circassians, whereas Jewish women are also required to serve alongside Jewish men. Muslim and Christian Arab citizens of Israel (both genders) may enlist voluntarily, but they have never been conscripted by law.
Regular service
National military service is mandatory for all Israeli citizens over the age of 18, although Arab (but not Druze) citizens are exempted if they so please, and other exceptions may be made on religious, physical or psychological grounds (see Profile 21).
IDF recruitment of foreign citizens is possible via the Volunteers from Abroad (Mahal) track for Jews living abroad. However, in recent years, additional enlistment tracks have been established for foreign citizens who are not Jewish. One prominent example is the IDF enlistment track for great-granchildren of Jews.
The United States has the largest Christian population in the world, followed by Brazil, Mexico, Russia, and the Philippines.
Iranian Christians tend to be urban, with 50% living in Tehran. Christianity remains the second-largest non-Muslim minority religion in the country.
Christianity (Hebrew: נצרות, romanized: Natsrút; Arabic: المسيحية, romanized: al-Masīḥiyyāt) is the third largest religion in Israel, after Judaism and Islam. At the end of 2022, Christians made up 1.9% of the Israeli population, numbering approximately 185,000. 75.8% of the Christians in Israel are Arab Christians.
Another major difference is that, unlike the vast majority of Jewish Israelis, Arab citizens do not have to serve in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the country's military. They can still enlist, and some do, especially Druze and Circassians, but some are stigmatized in their communities as a result.
A smaller number of them have also signed a public letter in which they state their intent to refuse any service in the army. Such a behaviour has usually resulted in repeated jail sentences of several weeks. One of the most prominent Shiministim that went to jail is Omer Goldman.
Israel is the only country in the world that has used missile defense systems in times of war. These systems do more than just save lives. They also give the country's leadership “diplomatic maneuverability,” the opportunity to think and strategize before retaliating against rocket attacks.
The Israeli military ranks 18th among 145 considered nations on a list of the world's mightiest armed forces according to the 2023 GlobalFirepower (GFP) index.
There is a long history of Americans serving in the IDF. First, Israelis are required to serve in their military, so young Americans living there with dual citizenship must do so as well. And it's not illegal under U.S. law.
The Army, Navy and Air Force all have policies protecting the religious expression of service members — including Sikhs and Muslims — with few exceptions, such as the wearing of turbans in combat. The Marine Corps, however, does not.
Twenty per cent of Israel's population is Arab but only about 1% of them serve in the army. Enlisting is controversial in many of their communities.
The Qur'ān enjoins the performance of prayers even during military operations (Q 4:102), albeit in a modified way. This type of prayer is called Ṣalāt al-Khawf, “the prayer of fear,” and it has been described as a uniquely Islamic prayer.
Sixteen Arab and OIC countries do not accept Israeli passports. These are Algeria, Bangladesh, Brunei, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
Israel and North Korea do not have official diplomatic relations, and unofficial communications between the two countries are hostile. North Korea does not recognise Israel, denouncing it as an "imperialist satellite state".
After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Iran severed all diplomatic and commercial ties with Israel, and its theocratic government does not recognize the legitimacy of Israel as a state.