The first-ever cadets in the IDF's ultra-Orthodox Hasmonean Brigade completed the first part of their officers' course this week. Following training and a 12-kilometer march in the Golan Heights, the cadets received their platoon commander pins on Wednesday. They will continue training for four more months before receiving their ranks and officer assignments within the brigade. The IDF says the course met professional standards while fully maintaining the Haredi way of life.
The first cadets of the IDF's ultra-Orthodox Hasmonean Brigade have completed the initial phase of their officers' course, receiving their platoon commander pins at a ceremony in the Golan Heights. The milestone comes after the brigade's first full officer training cycle produced 18 ground combat officers, as The Zioneer reported earlier on Friday (13:10 Jerusalem). Today's development confirms that those same cadets have successfully passed the first half of the course, which the military says met professional standards while fully preserving the Haredi way of life.
The course's basic phase concluded with a 12-kilometer march at Tel Faher in the Golan Heights, as first reported by The Zioneer on Friday (13:03 Jerusalem). Subsequent reporting, also at 13:10 Jerusalem, specified that the full course was conducted mostly at the brigade's training base at Taveez, outside the Bahad 1 officers' school, and certified 18 ground combat officers. The IDF then indicated the cadets would proceed to four months of branch-specific training—a timeline consistent with today's report that they face four more months of training before receiving their ranks and officer assignments within the Haredi brigade.
The Hasmonean Brigade is a central element of the IDF's effort to integrate ultra-Orthodox men into military service amid personnel shortages driven by the ongoing war, and despite opposition to enlistment from leading Haredi rabbis. As The Zioneer previously reported (Sun Jun 14, 09:35 Jerusalem), the first dedicated Haredi draft battalion began service at Tel Nof airbase, and the IAF intelligence directorate established its first Haredi desk (Mon Jun 29, 16:54 Jerusalem), reflecting a broader institutional push to create tailored frameworks for Haredi soldiers.
It remains unverified when exactly the cadets' four-month advanced training will end, or how many of the 18 officers from the first cycle will be assigned to command roles within the brigade. The IDF's public statements have not detailed the specific positions the new platoon commanders will fill, or whether this initial cohort will be expanded in future cycles.
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