IDF kicks off recruitment for field units under coronavirus restrictions

New recruits were asked to arrive without accompanying family members or friends to avoid unnecessary gatherings.

Elite troops of the IDF will contribute to Israel's fight against coronavirus (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
Elite troops of the IDF will contribute to Israel's fight against coronavirus
(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
The IDF draft for its field combat units kicks off on Sunday under the shadow of coronavirus, the IDF Spokesperson Unit said.
Due to the pandemic, the IDF has had to modify its recruitment schedule and activities, such as reducing the number daily new recruits to help prevent gathering. 
Three new locations were designated as recruitment centers in order to reduce pressure on the existing Tel Hashomer recruiting center in Ramat Gan. These include the Israeli Air Force Center in Herzliya, the Yahud Memorial Site for Fallen Soldiers from IDF's C4I Corps and the Yad La-Shiryon Armored Corps Memorial Site at Latrun, near Jerusalem. 
New recruits were asked to arrive without accompanying family members or friends, as was done in the two previous enlistment cycles during August and March. 
The IDF noted that all recruits will go through medical examinations on the day of their enlistment, including a detailed inquiry about their recent interactions with others and their medical condition. Every recruit will be required to sign a health statement. 
Monitors will provide assistance to recruits and make sure that social distancing guidelines are kept at every station of the enlistment chain. The number of stations was increased and divided in order to allow for orderly conduct while avoiding a large number of recruits at every station at any given time. 
The IDF stressed the importance of the cooperation of new recruits and their families. 
"New recruits are requested to avoid attending big recruitment parties and other events that pose an increased danger of being infected. Family members are asked to say goodbye at home and to refrain from arriving at the recruitment centers," an IDF Spokesperson's Unit statement read.
According to data released by the IDF, the November-December enlistment cycle includes 63% male recruits and 37% female recruits. Some 364 recruits are olim (new immigrants), including 221 men and 143 women, coming mainly from Ukraine, the US, Ethiopia, France and Russia. The cycle also includes some 117 lone soldiers.