On February 20th, 1985, a discussion took place in the Israeli Knesset regarding the issue that rabbis were putting psychological pressure upon orthodox Jewish women to not enlist in the IDF, due to the inappropriate intermingling of the sexes that goes on there.

During the discussion, which became quite heated, accusations flew back and forth with regards to just how appropriate it was to mix the genders in IDF units. Several Knesset members brought up the staggering statistic that around 4,000 abortions take place amongst female soldiers in the IDF annually. It seems that the concerns of the rabbis were at least warranted if not completely justified.

The heated discussion even turned to the question of what the Ministry of Education was doing to educate young women who upon graduation from high-school, would enlist in the military.

According to army regulations, a woman who becomes pregnant and wishes to keep her baby will usually be released from the military before she gives birth, as it is frowned upon for pregnant women to serve in the military.

29 years later, these issues are still very much the same. An estimated 3,000 – 4,000 abortions still take place yearly among female soldiers of the IDF. Besides for the exorbitant financial costs involved, what is most astonishing is that despite this being an issue for almost 30 years now, there is still no one helping these women or educating them about other options besides abortion.

The EFRAT/Save a Jewish Baby (SAJB) organization, Israel’s premier pro-life organization since 1977, has attempted to reach out en masse to female soldiers. “We honor very much the wishes of the woman who is having the pregnancy and we will offer them all the help that we can, whether they are a soldier or any other woman,” Dr. Eli Schussheim, founder and director of EFRAT/SAJB, told Breaking Israel News.

“If the woman is in a situation where she is being pressured by her family to either have an abortion or to leave the house, we help the woman find places to live, and often we talk with the families as well to help the situation, and usually they are happy with the grandchild once they are born,” Dr. Schussheim said. “With regards to soldiers, if they decide to have the child then they are released from the army and we do not interfere with the military’s decision, but we help and support the woman with whatever she needs.  We have had many soldiers in the past who have decided to continue their pregnancies.”

Dr. Schussheim explained the extra difficulties facing a soldier’s decision to keep the child of an unexpected pregnancy. “The pressures for a chayalet [female soldier] are more intense and come from every direction. Her family, her officers…The pressure is incredible for a young girl.”

EFRAT/SAJB has come up with a unique method to help female soldiers who find themselves with an unexpected pregnancy. To help the soldiers make informed decisions, the organization pairs  them up with women who have been in their shoes before. Selfless volunteers from EFRAT/SAJB meet with each woman who approaches the organization on a one-on-one basis and helps talk them through some of the difficulties facing her in order to empower the soldier to make the decision that is best for her.

“We are the most feminist movement out there, as we honor the true wishes of the mother, whether to have the child or not. Not only will we help her and give her all the financial aid for two years, but we also offer counseling and help from women who were in their situation. A woman who was in that exact position is the best person to help someone out of that position,” said Schussheim.  “We have not had a single person who regrets not having an abortion. And that is not something which can be said for any other medical issue on the planet.”

When asked what can be done to help stem the tide of abortions in the military, Schussheim suggested a reform in education of girls in high-schools before going in to the army.

“The education ministry does not educate our girls before they go to the army or give them the knowledge or tools they need to equip them to deal with the situation properly.  They simply don’t know how easy it is to get pregnant and how difficult it is to decide what to do once they are pregnant in the army. We are the only ones who work to prevent such unwanted or unexpected pregnancies by disseminating information to the soldiers before the situation happens,” Schussheim explained.

“We used to go and talk with groups of soldiers, and in those talks I learned just how little the girls know about the the dangers of becoming pregnant. Some of the soldiers thought we were there to try to make them religious and had no idea what we were really about or about what can happen when a soldier becomes pregnant while in service,” he added.

The EFRAT/SAJB foundation has come a long way in helping female soldiers decide to follow through with their unexpected pregnancies. However, much more work needs to be done to curb the pressure on these women to resort to abortions. EFRAT/SAJB stands ready and willing to help comfort and provide for any woman, whether they are in the military or not, who wishes to make use of their services and choose life.