First in Gush Dan: Home for haredi lone soldiers opens in Ramat Gan

The first home for ultra-Orthodox lone soldiers in Gush Dan was dedicated in a ceremony on Wednesday in Ramat Gan which was attended by both the city's mayor and deputy mayor.

The house, which is operated by the Netzah Yehuda organization, is the first of its kind in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. Netzah Yehuda operates 14 other such houses all over Israel.

"We are [working] on a new and unique campaign, in which we are [building] homes for lone soldiers in the name[s] of the heroic fighters of Netzah Yehuda and the ultra-Orthodox tracks in the IDF," said Netzah Yehuda CEO Yossi Levi. "This place will serve dozens of combat soldiers who are at the front lines and give their lives for the State of Israel. It is our honor to give them a home, a family, company and a hug. Our goal is that the ultra-Orthodox soldiers will be able to serve the people of Israel while diligently maintaining their lifestyle."

The Netzah Yehuda organization

The organization, according to its website, supports haredi soldiers throughout their military service, up to and including their discharge and integration into civilian life. 

Haredi IDF soldiers are generally Israeli-born and raised, but often, their families cut them off once they decide to join the army. Thus, they obtain the status of lone soldiers. Lone soldier housing for haredi soldiers aims to maintain ultra-Orthodox standards of living.

The new home is named after the late Pvt. Samuel Amoyal, a fighter in the Givati ​​Brigade. It is expected to house over 20 lone ultra-Orthodox soldiers at any given time.

"Ramat Gan is a city for everyone, even for lone soldiers - and today it [becomes a city] for the lone ultra-Orthodox soldiers," said Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama-Hacohen. "It is a great honor for us to be the first city in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area to open its doors to the lone ultra-Orthodox soldiers. In the days of polarization and separation, the home symbolizes the unity of the nation in the deepest sense. Ramat Gan is a home for all IDF soldiers, and I am proud to be the mayor of a city that is establishing a third lone soldiers' home within its borders."

This is the second ultra-Orthodox lone soldier home built in the last month. The other, under the custody of the NGO 'Osey Chail,' was built in Lod and named after the late Maj. Bar Falah who was a senior commander in the IDF's Oketz canine special forces unit and a deputy commander in the Nahal Brigade. He was killed on September 14, 2022, in an exchange of fire with two Palestinian gunmen near the village of Jalama, north of Jenin at the age of 30.