ABSTRACT
In many ways Israel has been a model of women’s rights in the Middle East. Jewish women were given suffrage after the nation’s founding, and Israel boasted one of the first female prime ministers and mandatory female draft. But the importance of religion and the military in Israeli life has resulted in some discriminating laws and mores that have prevented Israeli women from achieving full equality. The nation’s embattled history has also meant that feminism, even among women, has always taken a backseat to state interests.
