Mandatory Extension: Recruitment Crisis Shrinks Israel’s Military Options

12th July 2025

3 minutes read

Mandatory Extension: Recruitment Crisis Shrinks Israel’s Military Options

Amid a worsening recruitment crisis, the Israeli military is now considering extending mandatory military service to include additional combat units.

This comes as the armed forces experience unprecedented personnel depletion since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, alongside mounting public criticism and widespread anger from soldiers’ families.

Battlefield Exhaustion

According to a report aired Friday by Israel’s Channel 12, “The Israeli army is considering adding another year to mandatory service for additional combat units,” following an earlier decision to apply the extension to all reconnaissance battalions in the infantry brigades.

The move coincides with a controversial government initiative in the Knesset to exempt tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) yeshiva students from military service.

The report highlights deep internal concerns within the defense establishment about the collapse of human resources, as career soldiers leave en masse and fewer recruits opt to stay. As a result, military leadership has called on senior sergeants and their deputies in infantry units to postpone their discharge and continue serving.

Thousands of soldiers are expected to soon receive official notifications delaying their discharge for an additional year.

Frontline Testimonies

From the battlefield, officers in the Nahal Brigade reported to the Southern Command leadership disturbing scenes of extreme pressure. One officer noted: “Soldiers are literally fighting over every seat inside the armored vehicle.” This physical manifestation of psychological stress reflects the severe exhaustion troops are experiencing after nearly two years of continuous combat.

In a fierce protest letter sent by several soldiers’ families to the IDF Human Resources Directorate, they wrote: “You have turned our sons into scapegoats, burdened endlessly. They said their children had been subjected to traumatizing experiences that would haunt them for life, with no clear vision to end their suffering.

Elite Units Were the First Affected

Although the army denies having a final, comprehensive decision, the extension has already been implemented in elite units, notably the Yahalom unit, which specializes in combat engineering. The policy is expected to expand soon to units like Maglan, Duvdevan, Egoz, and artillery divisions.

The plan would increase mandatory service from 32 to 44 months—from roughly 3 years to almost 4 years—representing a major shift in Israel’s military service framework, long criticized for its discrepancies with Haredi exemptions.

Gaza Draining the Army: Calls for an End to War Grow

The strain on personnel and operations is no longer just an internal management issue—it has become a central factor prompting the military to reconsider the viability of continuing the Gaza war. As negotiations stall and operations drag on without decisive results, more voices within the military are now calling for an end to the conflict to restore operational and human balance.

Military sources warn that the crisis could lead to a long-term erosion in the army’s efficiency, with both regular and reserve forces shrinking, even as operational demands increase—not only in Gaza but also in northern Israel, amid rising regional tensions.