Lir Spiriton

Articles

lirs@shomrim.news

Revealed: How Fixers Fool the IDF into Issuing Mental-Health Exemptions for Haredi Youths

There is growing concern in ultra-Orthodox society that draft orders are on the way – leading to a spike in demand for the services of fixers who help families hoodwink the army and get mental-health exemptions. “If a young man was in Meron during the tragedy, for example, someone knowledgeable will sit with him,” one of them explains the method. “They’ll tell you which day to go to the enlistment office and when the better mental health officers are available.” A follow-up by Shomrim.

November 5, 2024

An Industry of Fake Mental Health Exemptions from Army Service is Flourishing in Ultra-Orthodox Israel

Although public discourse on equal military service for all Israeli citizens often centers on those exempted for Torah study, up to 20 percent of the exemptions granted to ultra-Orthodox youths are actually for mental health issues – three times the rate found in the general population. These exemptions are facilitated by rabbis, community intermediaries, and psychiatrists, who coach the young men on how to navigate the system and provide fabricated diagnoses. In some cases, the individuals are unaware of the diagnoses assigned to them and only discover later that they were labeled with conditions such as autism or schizophrenia.

October 10, 2024

Growing Up Without Knowing You Can Be Abused: ‘I Didn’t Understand What We Wanted and Then He Started Touching Me’

Around 400,000 boys and girls are enrolled in Israel’s ultra-Orthodox education system, where there is no sex education of any kind and it does not look like there ever will be. This leads to sexual abuse and coverups, problems in adult relationships, low self-esteem and many other issues. Two young men and one young woman, who grew up in the ultra-Orthodox community, open up to Shomrim about how this has upended their lives

August 27, 2024

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