After more than 14 months of intense fighting, the army’s burden has hardly decreased. Reservists have stopped counting how many times they have been called up, and regular soldiers are expected to extend their service for many additional months.
Meanwhile, the government is promoting a law that perpetuates the moral disgrace of haredi [ultra-Orthodox] draft evasion, even during wartime.
It is surprising and disappointing that the IDF, through silence and explicit statements, seems ready to support the government. The Chief of the General Staff, Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi must understand that without a firm directive requiring the enlistment of most haredim, the “People’s Army” will cease to exist.
After more than a year of fighting, the relative calm along the borders in recent weeks may be deceiving. The war is not yet over.
For the first time since the Yom Kippur War, the IDF holds territory in Syria while also maintaining a substantial presence in Lebanon, in the Gaza Strip, and, of course, in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), not to mention along Israel’s borders with Egypt and Jordan.
The scale of IDF forces required to address these security challenges is nearly unprecedented, and it will not decrease significantly in the coming months or even years.
The heavy security burden is borne by a group of reservists who have been fighting with only short respites, if any, since October 7, and they are no longer able to carry this load. Families are breaking apart, reservists are losing their businesses or being fired from their civilian jobs, and national security itself is being compromised.
Anyone familiar with the situation knows that entire companies that initially enlisted at 130% capacity during the war are now reporting significantly lower turnout rates. Teams that once numbered dozens of soldiers are struggling to meet minimum quotas.
Regular soldiers are also paying the price, facing unbearable workloads and extended service periods. Some new recruits are being required to commit to serve beyond the standard 36 months.
In the face of this severe crisis and to ensure its political survival, the government is advancing a law that perpetuates the disgrace of haredi draft evasion. The proposed draft law includes the enlistment of only a relatively small number of haredim, about 5% of those currently evading service.
Moreover, it includes no meaningful sanctions to compel haredim to enlist. This is yet another instance of Israeli-style deception designed to buy the haredim more time to avoid service.
Flaws in the proposed law
The proposed law is so flawed that even the Finance Ministry has issued a detailed opinion stating that if the government does not enact a conscription law with harsh penalties for haredi refuseniks, the economic harm to the state will be intolerable.
In light of all this, the IDF’s silence is particularly puzzling and troubling. Given the unprecedented manpower crisis, one would expect the army to have long ago informed the government that conscripting tens of thousands of haredim is a vital security necessity.
Instead, the army has resigned itself to an impotent inability to enlist a significant number of haredim. The government intends to legislate a haredi draft exemption law soon, and the appalling silence of IDF commanders is deafening and a moral failure.
How can they repeatedly issue call-up orders to reservists while supporting what amounts to an evasion law? It also poses a genuine security risk. As the percentage of reservists showing up for duty declines, the burden is falling on too few.
Imagine how reservists would feel if the army, in explicit statements or silence, supported a law exempting haredim from IDF service. This would harm unit morale and cohesion and diminish the willingness to continue serving.
There is genuine concern that young non-haredim slated to enlist will become less willing to do so. The “People’s Army,” which saved Israel on October 7 and throughout its existence, could collapse.
Hope that the government would prioritize the national interest over its political survival has long since faded. But if IDF commanders fail to understand the gravity of this moment, it could be the straw that breaks the back of all those who do serve.
It is the moral, ethical, and professional duty of IDF commanders to take a clear and unequivocal stand: a significant conscription law is an existential necessity.
Only a law that includes minimal exemptions for a few “exceptional Torah scholars” and mandates the enlistment of most haredim, alongside harsh penalties for draft dodgers, will preserve the “People’s Army.”
Only a conscription law with teeth will enable the continued defense of Israel’s security – and its prosperity.
The writer is the director-general of the Jewish People Policy Institute and a senior lecturer in law at the Peres Academic Center.