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This paper argues that Israel’s continuing, violent conflict with its Arab neighbours, is of special, highly influential relevance to the issue of gender relations. Viewed by many Israeli Jews as a struggle for the very existence of the Jewish state, this conflict has overshadowed most other civil and social issues, rendering them ‘secondary’ to the primary concern of securing the safe existence of the State. As we attempt to demonstrate throughout this essay, this perception has pushed such pressing issues as gender equality and women’s rights aside, marking them ‘less important’ than the national conflict, thus allowing for the perpetuation of discriminatory, sometimes rather repressive treatment of women in Israel. The most blatant expression of this is the turning of the struggle for civil marriage and divorce into a non-issue. The paper opens with a short introduction of the relevant political context, followed by a discussion of women’s positivist and legal status. An analysis of the women’s movement, highlighting the emergence of religious feminism, concludes our discussion.