Militaryחוה ענבר

Hava Inbar

Hava Inbar was an IDF officer who in 1969 became the first woman in the world to serve as a military judge.

1938 to 2024First female military judge worldwidePresident of Haifa Military CourtMilitary defense lawyer, Northern Command

Died: 14 January 2024, Ramat HaSharon
Occupation: military officer, judge
Education: The Faculty of Law, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, The David and Yolanda Katz Faculty of the Arts
Rank: Lieutenant Colonel

Hava Inbar was born in 1938 in Netanya

Hava Inbar was born Hava Avitov in Netanya in 1938. Her father was Rabbi Eliyahu Avitov, and her mother Ida was an educator and Zionist activist who came from Krynki, Poland. She grew up in Netanya, edited her school newspaper and was a member of the Working and Studying Youth movement.

At 16 she first considered a diplomatic career but chose law instead. She enlisted through the academic reserve and studied law at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, finishing in 1958. During her studies she married Amnon Inbar, then an officer.

From December 1958 she worked as a military defense lawyer in Northern Command, and in 1963 she became the command's defense counsel. In September 1969 she was appointed a judge at the Haifa Military Court. She later presided over that court and headed the legal department of the Soldiers' Complaints Commission until 1979.

After leaving the army she studied art at Tel Aviv University. She was a member of the Soroptimist club in Netanya from 1970. She lived in Ramat Hasharon, where she died in January 2024.

Milestones in Hava Inbar's life

1938
Born in Netanya.
1958
Completed law studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
1963
Became defense counsel of Northern Command.
1969
Appointed judge at the Haifa Military Court.
1972
Promoted to lieutenant colonel and made president of the Haifa Military Court.
1977
Promoted to colonel and named head of the legal department of the Soldiers' Complaints Commission.
1979
Left the IDF.
2024
Died in Ramat Hasharon.

Hava Inbar served in the military

She served in the IDF legal system from 1958 to 1979, as a defense lawyer in Northern Command and then as a military judge and court president in Haifa. She reached the rank of colonel in 1977, the first woman outside the Women's Corps to do so.