Israeli soldiers refusing to fight the Gaza war poses problem for Netanyahu

Tel Aviv: There is a growing discontent among Benjamin Netanyahu’s soldiers in continuing with genocide and related war crimes in Gaza, mass murdering Palestinians, The Wire reported.

Netanyahu has mobilised some 40,000 reservists for his Gaza offensive on Tuesday, and another 90,000 troops are due for mobilisation by the end of 2026, according to The Wire.

According to the news agency, Israel has mandatory national conscription for those leaving high school for a period of 18 to 36 months, though there are some exemptions. Also, there is a compulsory reserve duty for some units until the age of 40. Report suggests that after the October 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas, 3,60,000 reservists were summoned for duty, alongside the 1,00,000 high-school leavers on duty.

The mentioned one was one of the largest mobilisations in Israel’s history. However, nearly two years into the war in Gaza, commanders are struggling to find reservists who are willing to serve. When some calculations show a 30 per cent decline in reserve deployment, Israel’s national broadcaster Kan says it's closer to 50 per cent.

The Wire writes that irrespective of the reasons behind soldiers' unwillingness, the proportion of soldiers who express unwillingness to fight is posing a potential problem for Netanyahu in his venture to completely eradicate the Gazans.

It is learned that some high school refusers call themselves “conscientious objectors”, saying that they are refusing to join the IDF because of ideological contempt for the Israeli defence forces and are against Israel’s illegal occupation of Gaza.

The Wire quotes a 2021 letter by a group of high-school students, “It is our duty to oppose this destructive reality by uniting our struggles and refusing to serve these violent systems- chief among them the military.”