Basic Law: The Military חוק יסוד: הצבא
Codifies the constitutional status of the Israel Defense Forces, anchors the IDF's subordination to Israel's elected civilian government, and bans private armed forces. It replaced the improvisational 1948 IDF Ordinance with a stable constitutional framework.
Ключевые положения
- The IDF is the army of the State
- The army is subject to the authority of the Government, with the Minister of Defense in charge on the government's behalf
- The Chief of the General Staff is the supreme commander of the army, subordinate to the Government and subject to the Defense Minister
- Forbids forming or maintaining any other armed force except by law
- Service is by conscription, with terms set by law
Контекст
Passed on 31 March 1976 in the wake of the Yom Kippur War and the Agranat Commission, which found that despite Israel's existential reliance on the IDF, no clear constitutional statement of civilian control over the military existed. The law was deliberately spare, just a handful of sections, to provide constitutional anchorage without micromanaging military affairs, leaving operational matters to the professional command.
Заметные поправки
- 2012: Conscription framework revisited after the Supreme Court invalidated the Tal Law arrangement
- 2024-2026: Renewed legislative debate over the service framework, including proposed Basic Law bills that would recognize long-term Torah study as a form of meaningful national service alongside military service
Сегодня
After the October 2023 Hamas invasion and massacre, the IDF mobilized one of the largest reservist call-ups in its history, with hundreds of thousands of Israelis answering the call to defend the country across the Gaza, Lebanon, and multi-front campaigns that followed. On 25 June 2024 the Supreme Court ruled unanimously (9-0) that the state could no longer maintain blanket Haredi draft exemptions absent statutory authority, and the Knesset has since debated competing frameworks, including Defense Minister Israel Katz's January 2025 outline gradually raising Haredi conscription targets while preserving exemptions for elite Torah scholars, and MK Yuli Edelstein's August 2025 bill. As of mid-2026 no comprehensive amendment has passed, and the question of how to honor both Israel's security needs and the Haredi community's centuries-old Torah-study tradition remains the central live debate around the law.
Почему это важно
Anchors the constitutional principle of civilian control over one of the world's most operationally tested militaries, a force that has defended Israel's democratic survival against repeated invasions, terror campaigns, and a regional axis of hostile states. It is the legal pivot for every recurring debate over who serves, who commands, and how the IDF integrates Israel's diverse Jewish and non-Jewish communities into the national defense.
Сослаться на эту страницу
Basic Law: The Military (1976). Государство Израиль. https://thestateofisrael.com/ru/basic-law/the-military