Active Duty and the IDF?

[Books]

I was just curious about this strange topic, but one of my older friends got signed up for some program with the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) that would essentially draft him over from the United States to Israel in a time-of-war emergency. Right now he is at a university doing his thing like everyone else there, but he has that "tag" on him that obligates him to fight for "his" country (Jews automatically get citizenship in Israel when they apply) even though he is American.

I am not sure the specifics of the thing, it seems like it has to be out-of-line with interenational policy somewhere, but I've heard many Jewish families doing similar things over here.

So, my question is, what if you were a United States Marine, and you had this obligation, would have to complete your obligation to the Corps first? I've never heard of anything like a foreign draft before, but what are the limits of it? If I were to sign up for this strange program, would I be disallowed from joining the Corps?

[Echo_Four_Bravo]

If you enlist in the American military they are not going to let you out to go fight for another nation.

As for the draft, all citizens of Israel must serve in the military. If your friend is a dual citizen it is possible to avoid the service as long as he stays here.

I would advise against signing up for the program, because it could at the very least cause problems for security clearances. It would be best to not be a dual citizen for that matter.

But, other than the Marines, I would put the IDF toward the top of the list. They're good at what they do, and the way they are organized means their reserve forces have trained together for years. I wouldn't want to end up on the wrong side of them.