Israel: can the army survive the pressure from within?
JVL Introduction
The pulverisation of Gaza and the brutal occupation of the West Bank is taking a terrible toll on the Palestinian people with no end in sight despite the “ceasefire” and this will always be our primary focus but it is instructive to look at what is happening within Israel too. It seems Israel does not care about its own soldiers, despite the centrality of the military within Israeli society. TRT World reported in July 2025 on the spike in suicides by soldiers, mostly linked to the “war” in Gaza.
This article highlights the rise in resignations among career officers to which can also be added the sharp decline in reservists willing to show up for duty as reported in September, for example, here .
That article in “the Conversation” notes that: “…reports suggest that commanders are now struggling to find enough reservists willing to serve. Some calculations show a 30% downturn in reserve deployment. Kan, Israel’s national broadcaster, puts the decline closer to 50%.
Reasons vary among those who choose not to fulfil their reserve duty. A report from left-wing Israeli media outlet, +972mag, calculates that only about 1,500, roughly 1.5%, of soldiers who refused between October 2023 and April 2025 did so out of ideological and ethical concerns.
The majority have refused because they have grown weary of a war that has failed to achieve a resolution nor succeeded in returning the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas. Many are suffering from exhaustion, both physical and emotional”
To this can be added the ongoing rejection of conscription into the military by the 13% of the Israeli population that are strictly orthodox Haredim, which could even potentially lead to the downfall of the Netanyahu led government.
LL
This article was originally published by Middle East Monitor on Tue 16 Dec 2025. Read the original here.
Israeli army warns of ‘mass personnel exodus’ amid surge in resignations: Report
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“… only about 1,500, roughly 1.5%, of soldiers who refused between October 2023 and April 2025 did so out of ideological and ethical concerns.”
1.5% refused out of ideological and ethical concerns Well that’s a pitiful %. And an undisclosed % of that 1.5% refused for ethical concerns. The ‘peoples’ army (and IAF) still seems to be on board with the ethical ‘the most moral army in the world’ aspect f the genocide. I thought that ‘.revenge is a dish best served cold’. The genocide in Gaza is white hot. The exception that proves the rule. Jewish/Hebrew exceptionalism at its most sanguinary. I’ve contacted the publisher of Assad David’s book to ask if the author is contemplating having his book translated into English, or French. I will keep JVL posted of developments. The most startling revelation for me at least was the extent to which the messianic extremists have reportedly pulled off a ‘coup’ in the IDF and now wield very real power in terms of the IDF’s modus operandi. The Trump ceasefire is going to come to nowt not because Hamas are playing hardball about disarming… but because the composition and terms of reference of the so-called ISF become more Kafkaesque by the hour. It’s a turkey (pun intended). A resumption of the War on Gaza with all its horrors and breaches of international humanitarian law, given the light that David has shone on the IDF, bodes ill for the Gazan masses. And will have ‘collateral’ consequences for the Jewish diaspora.
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