High Court Rejects Petition to Allow Chametz at IDF Bases on Pesach

ISRAEL (VINnews) — The Israeli High Court has upheld the ban on Chametz at IDF bases during Pesach.

The court rejected a petition on Sunday seeking to limit the Pesach chametz restrictions, which are based on Halacha, only to common dining areas.

The ruling found that any possible infringement on the rights of those who wished to consume Chametz on Pesach (not in accordance with Halacha) is not comparable to the needs of the military and those keeping Pesach.

The petition argued that the military’s ban on chametz violated “Human Dignity and Liberty” by infringing on the constitutional right of autonomy of choosing their food and freedom of religion of soldiers.

Justices Yitzhak Amit, Alex Stein and Gila Canfy-Steinitz unanimously rejected the petition. They determined that the [supposed] violation of the rights of soldiers who wish to eat chametz” is limited, because it applies to only a few days of the year – compared to the obligation to provide kosher food to all soldiers.

The court further determined that “this ruling has a relatively low impact on the soldiers, and it is only for a few days of the year, and within the framework of military service, which by nature already involves extensive denial of freedoms. Also, the number of soldiers affected by the restriction is relatively small, since many soldiers go on leave or are allowed to leave their base during the day, and others anyway avoid eating chametz in the base for diverse reasons.”

In addition, it was determined that “there is important public interest – the IDF’s compliance with its obligation to provide kosher food to its soldiers on Passover and ensuring unit cohesion. It was found that the IDF’s position regarding the ban on the introduction of chametz is necessary in order to ensure that all food served in the IDF during Passover is kosher, and in order not to make it difficult for observant soldiers to stay in the living quarters with soldiers who own chametz, thereby harming the normal routine of life in the units during the holiday, as well as military cohesion.”