Barak says that the phenomenon does not exist at all hesder yeshivas, but only at a few isolated ones where extremist rabbis incite the soldiers, and so the IDF should continue the hesder system. But the hesder idea is invalid in principle. There is no reason in the world for religious young men to serve in the army for only a year and a half, instead of the three years served by their secular brothers. Why doesn’t the IDF afford such conditions to those who go on to study engineering or computers? Are they less important than Talmud? We should know that in all hesder yeshivas, and not only those of “extremist rabbis,” the students undergo brainwashing against yielding any piece of holy land in the territories, and they listen to their rabbis before they obey their commanders.

There are entire battalions in the army today comprised solely of hesder yeshiva soldiers, who are likely to change sides and fight against the evacuation of settlements. The very fact that they belong to a large, strong and united community, broadly backed by a supportive population, by rabbis and politicians, arouses the suspicion of a mutiny. And so all the hesder yeshivas should be dismantled, and all religious young men sent to a full, three-year tour of duty, just like their secular friends. After their mandatory service, they can go and study whatever their hearts desire. It is true that the Kfir battalion’s signs of protest do not yet constitute a mutiny, but we must not underestimate them. They teach us what is liable to happen, and the wisest course is to take preventive steps. But in order to do so, we need a different defense minister, one who puts the interests of the State of Israel before any other considerations.

With Israeli society as fractured as it is (and with the growing rift between Israel and Judea (or Little Israel and Greater Israel)), it’s time to completely disband the entire hesder yeshiva system, along with any other ideologically homogeneous units in the IDF. As Nehemia Shtrasler correctly points out, there is no longer any good or sufficient reason that those studying Talmud should serve only 18 months instead of 2 years. IDF leadership needs to ensure that there are no homogeneous units within the IDF, even down to the level of section or platoon. The continued existence of these militias or private armies is a far greater threat to the unity and effectiveness of the IDF than anything it has faced since the sinking of the Altalena. Act now, and let there be only one law and one defence force for all of Israel.
In many countries (even today), a group of soldiers announcing their intention to defy orders or mutiny in this manner would earn some a place in front of a firing squad. We’re not there yet, but the danger to the integrity of the IDF and the State of Israel itself should not be underestimated.