Leading rabbis from the Association of Hesder Yeshivas met with IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen Gadi Eisenkott on Tuesday evening to discuss ongoing concerns with the army’s treatment of religious soldiers. The rabbis comprise the association’s Army Committee, which includes Rabbi Haim Druckman, chairman of the Bnei Akiva Yeshivot and a leading figure in the religious- Zionist community.

Tuesday’s meeting, which was the first time Eisenkott has met with the committee, was expected to deal with concerns over a the new protocol for joint male and female service issued in October last year. The protocol tightened regulations allowing religious soldiers to be exempted from ceremonies and recreational activities involving women singing, or mixed gender events inappropriate for some soldiers.