The head of the IDF's Manpower Directorate, Maj.-Gen. Moti Almoz, has launched an investigation into who allowed Israeli pop singer and IDF soldier Noa Kirel to wear a US army uniform during an advertisement she recently starred in, Channel 13 reported.
Kirel, who made headlines in recent months for choosing to draft to the IDF despite her career, recently starred in a promotional video for the new Israeli streaming service Yes+, which pictured her draft into the US army. The controversial video gained negative traction once it had aired, due to Kirel's status as a popular public figure and because was seen wearing a foreign army's uniform. Military commentator Yoav Limor wrote on Twitter, "Kirel's advertisement is a disgrace, the use of the uniforms is a disgrace, the fact that the IDF does nothing about it is a shame. I really appreciate her decision to volunteer, but if that's the price then thanks but no thanks." "The advertisement got to me because of the use of a uniform and a weapon that wasn't for the benefit of the IDF," said former IDF spokesman Avi Benyahu to Channel 12. Benyahu claimed that the IDF Spokesperson's Unit did not know what the advertisement content was when they permitted Kirel to take part, according to Channel 12."Any advertisement that a soldier is given permission to perform in on behalf of the army, should be submitted for approval by the IDF Spokesperson's Unit, in order to make sure the advertisement is consistent with the values of an IDF soldier. The Spokesperson's Unit did not know about the advertisement, it wasn't passed through them," he claimed.
Following the investigation, the IDF refined procedures and determined that permissions following Kirel's work outside of the army would be better looked into before taking on a project, especially regarding uniforms and insensitive advertisements.