ABSTRACT
Serving in the Israel defense forces at the age of 18 is compulsory for all Israeli Jews, both men and women, and for some of the Druze, Circassians, and Bedouins. The soldiers-instructors also share with the students their personal experiences from their own service, in order to personalise the process and increase the students’ motivation to serve. Without marking the ethnic positioning as a variable that evaluates and asserts social realities, the class positioning remained the only explanation to the standpoint toward the military service. Even though ethnicity played a role in other events that clashed with nationality, when meeting with the Israel Defense Forces combat soldiers, ethnicity was downgraded and placed outside of the discussion. By choosing class, the students also saved themselves from the impossible position of declaring that they were “nationally disabled” by their own (ethnic) identity.
