In 1950, Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog and Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel, both chief rabbis, issued a ruling that forbade women joining the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). In the 1980s, Meir Kahane, a far-right rabbi, ardently opposed women serving in the IDF, and advocated alternative national service instead. , David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel were opposed to religious women serving in the military, as was Shmuel Eliyahu.
