Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Tuesday the establishment of an assistance program for IDF reservists who were called up for Operation Swords of Iron.
The aid program is divided into four parts: rewards and grants, a solution for those who are employers or self-employed, a family and financial plan, and a supplementary plan.
- Rewards and grants - A monthly grant worth NIS 1,400 will be awarded to soldiers and NIS 800 to non-combat forces. In addition to this grant, another that's worth 4,500 will be given to those who do operational employment in 2024. A home economics grant will be given to soldiers over 45 days worth NIS 2,500.
- Employers or self-employed - Grants will include the expansion of the aid and compensations for reservists and their spouses. In addition, self-employed reservists will receive a special route for compensation - the reservist will be able to submit an application up to six months after the end of the reserve service. The state will reportedly set a one billion shekel fund loan for those who are self-employed. In addition, priority will be given to self-employed reservists and to businesses that employ reservists.
- Family plan - This will include a monthly grant for parents for children up to the age of 14 of NIS 2,500 per month per parent, as well as recovery days. A vacation voucher of up to NIS 4,500 will be given. In addition, there will be an extension of the maternity leave grant of 2,000 shekels.
- Supplementary plan- Includes emotional support, a grant for parents with special needs, and subsidizing tuition fees for soldiers who are students.
"On October 7, Simchat Torah, 300,000 reservists were called. The reservists left home, and their families," Defense Minister Gallant said at the beginning of his remarks.
The minister continued, saying: "For the past 81 days, they have been fighting shoulder to shoulder on all fronts. They demonstrate every day what we've known for many years. The reserve system is a unique asset for the country."
Gallant: 'Reservists deserve respect and compensation'
The defense minister went on to emphasize that as the reservists showed up, the state had an obligation to take care of their needs. And because of that, the government built a program to the extent of nine billion shekels. "A reservist needs three things: clear tasks, military resources, and appropriate treatment and compensation for them and their family," emphasized Gallant. "Reservists deserve respect and compensation. The program is appropriate treatment and compensation; it creates an economic safety net for the entire duration of this emergency call - and a grant unique to the reserves."
Then, Finance Minister Smotrich spoke. The minister opened his remarks by offering condolences to the families of those who fell in the war. Afterward, he praised the reservists, "Amidst all the difficulty, we discover a great light in the form of hundreds of thousands of men and women citizens who volunteered to serve in the reserves and defend our home. Together, shoulder to shoulder, of all ethnicities and all shades, against evils that only the battlefield can produce."
Smotrich noted that alongside all those reserve men and women, there are spouses, children, parents, and entire families who support them with mental, financial, emotional, and technical support. "Reservists, I look you and your family members in the eye and tell you clearly and simply: the State of Israel must do everything so that you receive the most expansive plan."