The Media Line: ‘The Government Has No Mandate’: Reservists Lash Out Over Gaza Call-Ups

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‘The Government Has No Mandate’: Reservists Lash Out Over Gaza Call-Ups

Thousands of Israeli reservists called up for another Gaza operation say fatigue, inequality, and loss of trust in leaders have left them disillusioned

By Gabriel Colodro/The Media Line

Tens of thousands of Israeli reservists are once again receiving call-up orders. Some are on their fourth or fifth tour in less than two years, while others are being pulled “out of the graph” unexpectedly, leaving their families in turmoil. The government calls it a historic necessity; many soldiers call it something else entirely.

“The government has no mandate to perform such a military action with reservists and even with regular soldiers,” said Oren Shvil, a lieutenant colonel in the reserves and a leading figure in Brothers and Sisters in Arms, a protest movement born out of Israel’s 2023 demonstrations against the judicial overhaul. “A government with no support cannot draft the reservists for so much time, calling them to risk their lives for a questionable purpose.”

In the coming weeks, the Israeli Defense Forces are expected to launch Gideon’s Chariots II, the second stage of their campaign in Gaza. The plan, presented by Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir to Defense Minister Israel Katz, foresees the largest mobilization of reservists since October 7: more than 60,000 called up now and another 20,000 kept on longer, with follow-on rotations and replacements expected to push the total above 100,000—many already exhausted from months of combat duty.

The first stage will involve evacuating Gaza City’s civilian population—an estimated 800,000 to one million Palestinians—toward the southern Al-Mawasi zone. Afterward, the army intends to encircle and enter Gaza City itself, dismantling what it says is the last organized Hamas presence. Letters have already been sent, and reservists who have just completed long tours in Gaza are being told their service will stretch on for many more weeks. In some cases, duty will approach four months. In brigade WhatsApp groups, commanders are warning soldiers and families to brace themselves mentally.

For Brothers and Sisters in Arms, the operation has no justification. “We see this war as a political war,” Shvil told The Media Line. “There is nothing to do in Gaza. Hamas is destroyed. The release of the hostages is the first and most important priority.” While acknowledging the army’s technical readiness, he said morale has collapsed. “The soldiers understand that this war has no purpose.”

What angers his group most is the inequality of burden. “We will not act against this recruitment,” Shvil said, “but we are acting against what is happening with the recruitment of the ultra-Orthodox society. There are about 80,000 who are not joining the army, and they should be doing that by law.” He argued that extending mandatory service and repeated mobilizations reflect political cowardice. He also expressed unease with the humanitarian plan: “I’m not comfortable at all with evacuating such a big quantity of civilians. Nobody is comfortable with that. I think that our government is not considering all aspects of that action.”

Another voice comes from Miluimnikim (Reservists), founded after October 7 by former Communications Minister Yoaz Hendel and senior officers, including Maj. Yoav Adomi. Speaking to The Media Line, Adomi said his group focuses less on political mandate and more on the crushing human toll of inequality. “If we are being called by our country, we will attend,” Adomi said. “But the problem is that from one end, they are calling us and we are attending, and from another, they are doing absolutely nothing to bring the ultra-Orthodox into the army.”

Adomi, deputy commander of an infantry battalion under Division 5, has just returned from three months in Gaza. He described what he calls the “hiring down” of troops: “A combat soldier on his fourth round is not as alert as in his first round. And after 100 days of reserve duty, you’re not as alert as you are after one week, two weeks. And the results are human life.” Fatigue, he added, is compounded by uncertainty. “This lack of clarity is devastating. You cannot plan your life. The wife asks you when you’re coming home, but you don’t know. The boss asks when you’re coming back to work, but you don’t know. The lack of clarity is really the number one enemy.”

From Adomi’s perspective, the question is not whether Gaza City should be entered but how, and with what clarity of goals. He warned that unless evacuations are rigorously screened, Hamas fighters will slip away with the population. “Without screening one by one, you’re not doing anything. Hamas will migrate with the population, enjoy the humanitarian aid, and leave guerrilla squads to confront the IDF.” His frustration runs deep: “The whole purpose was to create enough impact to release the hostages. This didn’t happen. They talked about separating Hamas from the population. This didn’t happen either. So why would it be different this time?”

Both organizations stress that they are not opposing the IDF itself. They describe the army as highly professional and remain committed to serving. Their criticism is aimed squarely at the political leadership, which they accuse of mismanaging the war and forcing reservists to bear a disproportionate share of the burden.

If one word links both organizations, it is trust—or rather, its absence. “You need solid trust between the nation and its leaders, between the troops and their leaders, to win,” Adomi said. “The problem today is that the government is not only untrustworthy, but those responsible for October 7 remain in their positions and continue to decide the next steps of the war.” Shvil described it as a matter of legitimacy: “They have no mandate because they do not have public support. This coalition is a minority at the moment in the Israeli public.”

The result is that reservists are caught between duty and disillusionment. “We are supporting the fighting of Hamas and releasing the hostages,” Adomi said, “but there are so many better ways to do it. So what has changed?”

Brothers and Sisters in Arms and Miluimnikim share a grievance: that the burden of defending Israel falls disproportionately on a shrinking part of society. They diverge sharply, though, on the legitimacy of the Gaza City campaign. For Shvil, the war is already lost politically. For Adomi, it is dangerously mismanaged but still necessary, provided the government acts with clarity. Both point to the same figures: 80,000 ultra-Orthodox who evade service, while their peers serve repeated tours. Both speak of fatigue, uncertainty, and the erosion of trust.

As Israel prepares to launch Gideon’s Chariots II, the army is confident of its readiness, the government promises to reshape Gaza forever, and the reservists themselves voice the doubts that could prove to be the country’s most important battleground.