Hava Inbar

Lt. Col. Hava Inbar
Celebrating the first female military judge in the world from Haifa Office (ca. 1969)
Native name	חוה ענבר
Born	Krynki, Poland
Died	January 2024 Israel
Allegiance	Israel
Service / branch	Military Advocate General
Rank	Lieutenant colonel
Unit	Northern Command
Known for	World's first woman military judge
Alma mater	Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Hava Inbar (Hebrew: חוה ענבר; died January 2024) was a Holocaust survivor who went on to become a Lieutenant Colonel of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and served as the first female military judge in the world.

Biography

Inbar was born to Hindka Nisht in Krynki, Poland, to the Nisht (Niv) family. During the Holocaust she was incarcerated in Auschwitz concentration camp. At age 16 she was interested in a career with the diplomatic corps but decided to instead pursue a career in law. She eventually immigrated to Israel where she studied law at Hebrew University of Jerusalem before going on to serve as a defense lawyer for Northern Command of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) for ten years across numerous cases.

Inbar became the world's first female military judge when she was given a judgeship in the Haifa Military Court in September of 1969, while still a master sergeant. She was quickly met with praise for her sense of humor, outspoken advocacy on behalf of the IDF, and ability to get religious soldiers and Druze to appear in court despite feared cultural reservations about her appointment. During her time as a judge, Inbar ultimately attained the rank of lieutenant colonel.

She was living in Ramat Hasharon, where she died in January 2024.