About Netzah Yehuda
We are the home for the Haredi young man who chose to serve.
Since 1999, Netzah Yehuda has accompanied thousands of Haredi young men on a uniquely Israeli journey — one that bridges meaningful service in the IDF with an uncompromising commitment to Torah identity. Today, we are the umbrella organization for the Haredi service tracks in the IDF, operating under the Shomer Yisrael Alliance, and built around a single vision: that every Haredi young man can contribute to his country without losing himself in the process.
Our Story
Israel is a nation of innovation and opportunity — yet cultural and social barriers have left many in the Haredi community outside the cycles of service, higher education, and the workforce. The young men who do choose to enlist often pay a double price: educational gaps, lack of preparation for military life, and at times even rejection from their families and communities.
Netzah Yehuda was founded to give those young men a backbone. Not to “recruit” — but to make it possible. To create a continuous pathway that walks alongside the Haredi soldier from the moment he begins to consider service, all the way through his civilian career years later.
A 360° Framework
Our work is built on five core pillars that reinforce one another:
Guidance. Professional assessment for every candidate, matching him to the service path best suited to his abilities and circumstances — IDF, National Service, vocational training, or continued study.
Education. Six pre-military Torah academies (mechinot), three networks of Haredi Hesder yeshivot, and unique academic tracks ranging from optical engineering to cybersecurity.
Mentorship. 20 rabbinic mentors and professional support staff serving across more than 40 military bases nationwide — including our flagship Shabbat Netzah initiative, which brings the spirit of home to soldiers every weekend.
Welfare. 230 beds in dedicated Lone Soldier housing, professional psycho-social care, and family support. 27% of our soldiers are classified as Lone Soldiers — five to six times the IDF-wide average.
Veterans. An active community of 24,000 Veterans with employment placement, higher-education completion programs, and guidance through the transition to civilian life.
The Numbers Behind the Mission
- 24,000 alumni in our Achim LaDerech community
- 3,000 active-duty soldiers under our mentorship this year
- 1,170 young men guided by our Netivim program this past year
- 91% employment rate among our graduates — compared to 41.5% among Haredi men who did not serve
These numbers aren’t statistics. They are people. And behind each of them stands a story of choice.
Our Approach
We believe that integration and identity are not in conflict. That a young man can open a page of Gemara in the morning and put on his uniform in the afternoon. That a Haredi soldier can be a combat fighter, an officer, a cybersecurity researcher, a university student — all without losing the spiritual world he came from.
That means we work in a language the community understands. We coordinate with rabbis. We receive organic referrals through trusted Haredi WhatsApp networks. We partner with more than 90 yeshivot, high schools, and community organizations across Israel. And above all, we understand that every young man is a world unto himself — and that he must never be pushed into a path that isn’t right for him.
Leadership
Netzah Yehuda is led by a combined spiritual and professional team: Rabbi Tzvi Klebanow (President), Rabbi Yehoshua Pfeffer (Chairman), and Lt. Col. (Res.) Yossi Levi (CEO) — together with a board of business leaders and public servants from Israel and abroad. The work is carried out through eight professional departments and hundreds of staff, mentors, and volunteers deployed throughout the country.
Build the Future With Us
Every day in Israel, a young Haredi man makes the hardest decision of his life. We make sure he doesn’t make it alone.
Netzah Yehuda Organization 26 Bezalel Street, Jerusalem 9540107, Israel Tel: +972-2-651-2987 Email: info@netzahyehuda.org
Common Questions
What is the Netzah Yehuda Battalion?
Netzach Yehuda is the name of a number of IDF recruitment routes intended for the ultra-Orthodox. The most prominent route is service in the Netzach Yehuda Battalion, 97th Battalion, which belongs to the Kfir Brigade of the Infantry. The name “Netzach Yehuda” is an acronym for “Haredi Military Youth”, and Yehuda is named after the battalion’s founder, Yehuda Duvdevani.
Netzach Yehuda is a combat battalion in the 99th Division – the IDF’s multi – scene fire division. The battalion has received many honors and praise from its commanders throughout the years.
If I do not have a matriculation and studied in a yeshiva, am I eligible for a year of education?
Certainly!
The education year was designed to address those who did not achieve a high school diploma before military service. When a soldier reaches the third year of service, he completes his matriculation / preparatory studies, so that when he is released, the soldier is ready for civilian life like the rest of his peers in the State of Israel.
I want to enlist in the army, but am afraid of falling in my Yiddishkeit, what to do?
In ultra-Orthodox tracks in the IDF, there is full adjustment to the needs of the ultra-Orthodox soldier, such as gender, Shabbat observance, strict observance of prayers and school hours, and unique accompaniment of Rabbis and consultants of the Netzah Yehuda Association.
The army does not want to change the lifestyle of the ultra-Orthodox soldier, but to enable the preservation of values while serving and contributing to the people of Israel, and therefore all options can be used to preserve the spirit and values.
In addition, it is possible to go to preparatory frameworks for the IDF (the “Betzavta” Hesder Yeshiva and the “Netzah David” preparatory school) that offer value-based and mental preparation toward military service.