Military reservists' protest of judicial overhaul hurting Israel's deterrence

More than 6,000 reserve soldiers had signed a petition by Monday evening saying they won’t show up for duty in protest against the government’s judicial overhaul plan. Also on Monday, some 200 reservist military doctors sent a letter to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant saying they won’t show up for duty if the government doesn’t halt the judicial reform. Last week, 37 of the 40 pilots comprising the reserve force of the strategic 69th air squadron announced that they would not show up for their regular weekly training day on March 8. The “Hammer” squadron, as it is known, consists of F-15I fighter jets capable of reaching Iran. 

The widening fissures in Israeli society stemming from the government’s judicial overhaul blitz and signs of insubordination among fighters and officers in most combat and elite units of the Israel Defense Forces are already affecting Israel’s deterrence capacity. IDF chief Lt. Gen. Herzl Halevi seems far more concerned by these troubling signs emerging in recent weeks than he is by the immediate threats to Israel’s security on several fronts.

About half of the Israeli air force's pilots are reservists and they form the experienced backbone of its operational capacity. Sitting out the weekly exercises does not count as refusing an order because the activity is considered voluntary and not mandatory. Nonetheless, the pilots’ protest is a sign of the cracks undermining Israeli resilience and preparedness. On Tuesday, the pilots told their commanders they will come to the airbase to discuss the issue.

“We live in a vicious neighborhood, inside an aquarium,” a senior Israeli security source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. “The enemies around us are watching and drawing their conclusions. As of now, their willingness to break the aquarium’s glass walls is rising. They see what is going on inside, and are starting to toy with the idea.”