Israel’s War Minister Yisrael Katz and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on December 5 a plan to extend mandatory military service to 36 months, Cradle newspaper reported on Saturday.
The move would extend the current length of military service from 30 to 32 months to a full 36 months, marking a major shift in how Tel Aviv intends to staff its military at a time of deepening political rifts and mounting pressure on the northern front.
Ministers said the extension would add “10,000 days of service per year” and could delay the discharge of soldiers who were due to complete their service in 2026.
The move also comes as the government is pushing a bill to exempt ultra-Orthodox groups, known as Haredim, from conscription, with the hope that regular soldiers will supplement the shrinking reserve army.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid denounced the deal as a “budget for corruption and draft evasion.”
The strain on staff has increased in recent months. Israeli Brigadier General Shai Taeb told lawmakers that the military is currently short 12,000 recruits, including 7,000 combat soldiers, and warned that strength is expected to fall further by early 2027.
Israel has begun to rely on foreign mercenaries to fill its ranks due to losses from campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, rising dropout rates and reservists’ reluctance to return to the military, leaving the military facing what authorities say is a “significant shortage” of qualified fighters.