Israel is grappling with growing war fatigue after more than a year of the Gaza conflict, the Washington Post reported on Sunday. The absence of hundreds of thousands of men called up for military service is taking its toll on the country's economy, the newspaper noted.
The Jewish state launched its military campaign in Gaza following the surprise cross-border incursion by Hamas on October 7, 2023. The militants killed around 1,200 people and abducted 250, including a large number of civilians.
Israel’s heavy aerial bombardment and subsequent ground operation in the densely populated enclave have killed more than 44,000 Palestinians, with over 104,000 wounded, according to the Hamas-controlled health authorities in Gaza. Palestinian officials claim that most of the victims have been civilians.
The newspaper claims that “increasingly, some [Israeli reservists] are choosing not to report for duty, putting further strain on an overextended military.” It quoted Nadav Shoshani, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), who estimated last week that the military’s enlistment numbers had decreased by about 15% since last October.
The conflict, which is already the longest in Israel’s modern-day history, has also seen “unprecedented” losses, according to the newspaper. The IDF’s tally indicates that at least 804 military personnel have perished since the outbreak of hostilities, with more than 5,400 sustaining injuries.
An anonymous Israeli reservist serving in the special forces told the newspaper that his 12-man unit was now down to five after seven of his comrades had refused to show up.
“I feel like the government is making me ask my wife for a weekend with the boys in Vegas, but actually it’s to go for weeks into Lebanon to defend the country,” he said.
The Washington Post also claimed that many Israeli women have had to reduce their work hours as they are having to manage their households and children single-handedly.
This, coupled with the large number of male reservists being called up for extended periods, has adversely affected productivity in the country.
Gayil Talshir, a political analyst at Hebrew University, concluded that “wherever you look – the economic crisis, the toll on the reservists and their families, and of course the dead and the wounded – Israeli society is definitely at the edge of its capacity.”
Meanwhile, amid looming personnel shortages, the IDF is planning to extend mandatory service, as well as increasing the maximum age for reservists, the Washington Post reported.