Israeli high school seniors have more on their minds than prom and final exams.
With a mandatory three-year military service looming after graduation, Jewish teenage boys, and increasingly girls too, are gearing up for the draft, getting into shape and trying to improve their chances of acceptance into elite combat units. Girls serve two years, but very few are placed in combat positions.
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military later this year participates in a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Military service has long been a national rite of passage in Israel, with high school students competing to get into the most prestigious combat units. Some train solo, others in groups, to be ready for the pre-draft workouts the military holds for those who want to become air force pilots, naval officers or infantry commandos.
The military is Israel’s most admired institution, and men serve in reserve units well into their 40s. Ultra-Orthodox Jews and Arabs are largely exempt.
Among secular youth, it is customary to spend afternoons and weekends in military-style training preparations.
One such group of about 400 seniors from around the country has been doing strength and endurance training with a military veteran to prepare for the rigors of the army, including running through an obstacle course.
“The mandatory military service is one of the experiences that most shapes the lives of Israelis,” said Nir Cohen, 31, a former paratrooper who runs the “Excellent Training” program. “We try to prepare them both physically and mentally.”
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year crawl out of mud up to a grassy embankment a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military later this year drags a tire through mud at a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military later this year takes part in an exercise during a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military later this year pauses in mud during an exercise at a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior crawls through mud during an exercise takes part in a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year, lie in foxholes during privately run military combat fitness training in Shefayim, central Israel, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year are splashed by a sea wave during privately run military combat fitness training in Shefayim, central Israel, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year walk into the sea carrying weighted bags during privately run military combat fitness training in Shefayim, central Israel, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An exhausted Israeli teen is helped by an instructor during an exercise at privately run military combat fitness training in Shefayim, central Israel, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military participate in an urban fighting drill as part of privately run military combat fitness training, in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military participates in an urban fighting drill as part of privately run military combat fitness training, in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military participate in an urban fighting drill as part of privately run military combat fitness training, in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military participate in an urban fighting drill as part of privately run military combat fitness training, in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors train on usage of the AK-47 assault rifle as part of privately run military combat fitness training to prepare for national military service in Netanya, central Israel, Feb 17, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior poses for a photograph as he wears a mask during urban fighting drill as part of privately run military combat fitness training to prepare for national military service in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior rests during urban fighting drill as part of a privately run military combat fitness training to prepare for national military service in Kibbutz Mizra, northern Israel, March 24, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors are instructed on the AK-47 assault rifle as part of a privately run military combat fitness training to prepare for national military service in Netanya, central Israel, Feb 17, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
An Israeli high-school senior preparing to join the Israeli military later this year participates in a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year, take part in a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Israeli high-school seniors preparing to join the Israeli military later this year huddle during an exercise at a privately run training camp for military combat fitness near Yakum, central Israel, Feb. 13, 2015. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
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