Tens of thousands of reservists in Israel will return to active service in the coming weeks amid an intense debate in their ranks over the war in Gaza, which reflects wider divisions in the country.
Some will be forced to make their decision within days. The Israel Defense Forces began mobilising tens of thousands of reservists on Tuesday after calling up 60,000 for an expanded offensive in Gaza City, one of the few places in the devastated territory outside its control. More will be ordered to report to military bases if the fighting continues for many months, as analysts expect.
Many reservists interviewed by the Guardian last week said they would face “a hard choice” when asked to serve again, citing personal and ideological reasons. Few said they would refuse the call-up, however.
“We are willing to give up our lives … but the obvious truth is that we are dying now for no reason,” said Aviad Yisraeli, a combat medic who was in Gaza last month. “Militarily, there is nothing more to gain … but then it also seems a bad choice to end this war with Hamas with some part of power in Gaza and [holding] some of the hostages and with the kibbutzim [in southern Israel] still vulnerable. So these are hard questions.”
Many oppose the coalition government led by Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, and want the war to end now to bring back hostages still held by Hamas.
“I never trusted [this government] … Every time I’ve gone back to serve since March 2024, I’ve gone with a heavy heart,” said a 47-year-old paratrooper who has served 450 days since the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023 in which militants killed about 1,200 people and abducted 250. “So if I go, it will be out of commitment to my battalion – because it’s like family, and I feel a huge responsibility toward them.”
A poll in July found that three-quarters of Israelis favoured a deal to release the hostages and more than half said Netanyahu’s war leadership had been bad.
More than 63,000 people, mainly civilians, have been killed by the Israeli offensive in Gaza and most of the 2.3 million population have been displaced many times. Much of the Palestinian territory has been reduced to rubble.
Polling last week showed that nearly three-quarters of Jewish Israelis partly or totally agreed with the claim made by Israel’s government that “there are no innocents in Gaza”.
The paratrooper said: “After 7 October, I didn’t feel much conflict with Palestinian suffering … Gaza deserved to be struck for what happened on 7 October. I lived with that – the hostages come first. But still, their suffering weighs on me, even if less.”
Many reservists, like many Israelis, remain fully supportive of the offensive and said they had no doubts whatsoever that they should obey any draft orders.
“It is a long war but we have no alternative,” said Erez Eshel, a reservist colonel who has done 550 days of duty in the conflict. “Is it tiring? Yes. Is it painful? Yes. But for the sake of Israel and for the sake of democracies all around the world, there is no way we can stop in the middle.”
Eshel, who lives in the occupied West Bank and has three children serving in the IDF, added: “We are in a world war, a clash of civilisations … [and] when you speak to our warriors you get an answer of strength.”
Reservists constitute about 70% of the IDF’s full strength and about half of some combat units, experts say.
Reserve duty, like conscription, is a cultural institution among those eligible, mainly Jewish Israelis and some minorities. Lt Gen Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the IDF, last week described them as a “precious natural resource”.
But the huge demands of the conflict in Gaza, which has mobilised hundreds of thousands, with some serving up to 700 days, is unprecedented.
Many reservists have seen businesses and marriages collapse and about 12% show signs of PTSD, according to a recent survey. The cost to the economy is high. Such strains have sharpened divisions over the refusal of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community to serve in the military.
“We cannot accept a situation in which not all parts of society bear the burden. Conscripts, career soldiers, and tens of thousands of reservists embody the deepest expression of Israeli solidarity,” said Zamir while touring Gaza last week.
An unknown number of reservists avoid or postpone joining their units by telling commanders that they are sick or wounded or by simply explaining that they fear for their relationships or businesses.
“The number who refuse officially is very low at the moment but you can decide you don’t want to go to war for all sorts of reasons. You can refuse ideologically but [then] go to your commander and tell him your back hurts or your grandma isn’t well,” said Ariel Heimann, a reservist colonel and former head of the IDF reservist system.
He estimates that around half of reservists think “we have to continue and hit Hamas” while an equal number “protest [against continuing the war] on Saturday and go to fight on Sunday”.
High-profile petitions and letters calling for a swift end to the conflict have been signed by thousands of former military personnel, though fewer reservists.
Maor, a 34-year-old air force reservist who is organising a letter which has 350 signatures, said the war in Gaza had become pointless.
“After 7 October there was a really high motivation to defend the country and dismantle Hamas. They held hundreds of hostages and were shooting rockets at us. But … the war was not managed properly. There is no clear strategy,” said Maor, who served 200 days in a combat role.
Eyal Fidel, 30, has already notified his commander that he will not rejoin his artillery unit.
“There is a conflict between what the government want and what the people want. It is important to make a statement and I hope that to refuse publicly will make a difference,” Fidal said. “I am not a pacifist. We were attacked and I did go into the army and, yes, you should follow orders, but some orders are illegal and it is your duty to refuse them.”
Most reservists will not be sent to Gaza but will serve on Israel’s borders or be deployed in the West Bank. This will free up regular forces, including professional soldiers and those doing their mandatory service.
Heimann said that, although service was a legal requirement, “no one comes because of the law”.
He added: “Anyone can find an excuse – so of course the system would collapse if everyone did what they wanted, but they don’t and it doesn’t.”
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