Gaza losses push Israel to extend mandatory army service to 36 months
Israeli forces suffer from manpower shortages after ten months of fighting the Hamas armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, in Gaza
Ministers in Israel’s Security Cabinet voted to extend mandatory military service to 36 months, citing manpower shortages caused by losses suffered in the war on Gaza, Ynet reported on 12 July.
The decision will be presented for government approval on Sunday and later submitted for Knesset legislation.
The extension to 36 months will last for eight years, after which it will be reduced to 32 months again, depending on security conditions.
Compulsory military service was reduced from 36 months to 32 months in 2014, but the Israeli army needs additional manpower after suffering significant losses in 10 months of battling fighters from Hamas’ armed wing, the Qassam Brigades.
Despite successfully destroying large swathes of Gaza and killing tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians, the Israeli military has not been able to defeat Hamas and dismantle its fighting brigades.
Ynet notes that since 7 October, the Qassam Brigades have killed hundreds of Israeli soldiers and injured thousands more who are not expected to return to the battlefield.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has emphasized the need for more soldiers in recent weeks, including from among Israel’s ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) Jewish population.
On Tuesday, Gallant announced that the military will begin drafting Haredi men starting next month. The ultra-Orthodox community has strongly resisted being drafted into the army, stating that the religious study of the Torah takes precedence over fighting for the state.
Israelis who do serve in the army have become increasingly critical of the Haredi since the start of the war in October, saying they do not share the burden of defending Israel.
The ultra-Orthodox were legally exempt from the draft as long as they were enrolled to study at a religious seminary, a yeshiva, rather than working. In practice, ultra-Orthodox men have received exemptions even if they were not studying.
However, Israel’s High Court ruled last month that there was no longer any legal basis to exempt Haredi yeshiva students from mandatory military service. The attorney general ordered the government to immediately begin the conscription process for 3,000 Haredi men of the roughly 63,000 now eligible for the draft.
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