Increasing numbers of Israeli soldiers are becoming disillusioned with fighting in Gaza and other areas of conflict in Lebanon and the West Bank, leading some to refuse to return to the battlefield.
According to a report in Israeli outlet HaMakom, interviews with over 20 parents and fighters in a range of battalions have revealed increasing disatisfaction in the ranks.
Among the Nahal Brigade, soldiers spend five weeks fighting in Gaza before returning home to rest, something they have done 11 times so far since the beginning of fighting October 2023.
However, according to HaMakom, during the 11th deployment only six soldiers of a platoon of 30 showed up, with the others coming up with excuses.
“I call it refusal and rebellion,” said Inbal, mother of one of the soldiers in the platoon, speaking to HaMakom.
“They keep going back to the same buildings they’ve already cleared, only to find them booby-trapped again. In the Zaytoun neighbourhood alone [in Gaza City], they’ve been there three times. They understand that it is futile and pointless.”
‘The platoons are empty; those who aren’t dead or physically wounded are mentally broken. Very few come back to fight’
– Israeli soldier
All the interviewees in the report spoke anonymously over fears they would face harassment from the military.
“What kills them is the conditions and the duration of the fighting with no end in sight. You never know when you will get out and it’s been like this for a year,” another parent, Eidit, said.
The Israeli military has published the names of over 750 troops killed since the war began in October last year, including more than 350 who were killed during ground operations in Gaza.
At least 43 Israeli troops have been killed in attacks and ground operations on the northern front of the war along the Lebanese border.
Another soldier told HaMakom that missions were being “done halfway” as a result of the lack of manpower.
“The platoons are empty; those who aren’t dead or physically wounded are mentally broken. Very few come back to fight, and even they aren’t fully okay,” they said.
