IDF reservists on Wednesday expressed feelings of doubt, anger, and betrayal following the firing of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant Tuesday night.
Some expressed doubt at the decision to fire the defense minister for seemingly political reasons in the midst of war, while others expressed frustration over the fact that Gallant was fired in part for opposing a bill that would exempt haredim from the IDF draft.
Many serving on his IDF team expressed confusion at the decision to fire Gallant now, a reservist currently serving in Gaza, who asked to remain anonymous, said.
“Many feel that [the firing] is playing politics and saving [Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s] coalition at the expense of those fighting right now,” he said, qualifying that there may be “valid strategy differences that pushed Netanyahu to do this.”
“Others have said that perhaps Gallant was holding back Netanyahu’s decision-making, and maybe [now] we’ll see more decisive action. But so far, it’s a minority position,” he added.
“This is the night of the great betrayal of the reservists who continue to work themselves to death while the ultra-Orthodox continue to dodge the draft and rob public funds,” said IDF officer in reserves and former Jerusalem City Council member Yovav Tzur on X/Twitter.
“The Right has decided tonight to betray the reservists – the wonderful Israelis who have served hundreds of days since the horrible failure that occurred under [the Right] on October 7,” he said.
Anger over lack of haredi draft
“They decided to give a treat to the haredi draft dodgers and stab us in the back with a knife while twisting it. We are the ones under reserve call-up orders or in between tours in Gaza and Lebanon.”
Another reservist who asked that her name not be used expressed frustration over the proposed bill and explained her decision to protest on Tuesday night.
“As a reservist, this bill is a finger in my eye. It feels that the country doesn’t care about us and is brushing us off,” she said.
“It’s a huge privilege to serve in the IDF, but it’s also a heavy burden,” she added, explaining that she completed a regular service of three-and-a-half years and has done over 200 days of reserve duty. “If I wanted a military career, I would have gone for a military career.”
“We need the state to actually support us,” she said, adding that she also wanted to see support from the public. “When we are left to fight alone on this, [the public] are literally leaving us alone on the battlefield. I have friends who are in reserves now and are very depressed because the state doesn’t care about them – and the feeling is that the public doesn’t really care.”
“If you care about reservists, if you care about soldiers, we expect to see you in the streets,” she added.