Israeli Defense Minister Voices Concern over Army’s Efficiency

Israeli reservists block the entrance of a military base in protest against Netanyahu’s government plans for the judiciary on July 18. (AP)
Israeli reservists block the entrance of a military base in protest against Netanyahu’s government plans for the judiciary on July 18. (AP)
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Israeli Defense Minister Voices Concern over Army’s Efficiency

Israeli reservists block the entrance of a military base in protest against Netanyahu’s government plans for the judiciary on July 18. (AP)
Israeli reservists block the entrance of a military base in protest against Netanyahu’s government plans for the judiciary on July 18. (AP)

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to convene on Monday in a “secret meeting” that tackles the crisis in the Israeli military as more officers and soldiers fail to show up to service.

The Times of Israel reported that the meeting aims to discuss the crisis resulting from the protest of officers against the amendment of judicial laws.

The secret meeting would mainly discuss the “efficiency” of the military, said a Knesset member.

The session was presented as a “political and security session” to discuss the efficiency and readiness of the Israeli military to carry out regular and emergency missions.

In a call with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Gallant stressed that “his chief mission, together with the heads of the security establishment, is to unite the ranks and maintain the army’s readiness due to the many security challenges.”

A total of 600 reservist soldiers of the Air Force abandoned the military, according to a statement by the anti-overhaul protest movement “Brothers in Arms”, in protest against passing the controversial “reasonableness” judicial bill.

A letter signed by 1,142 volunteers at the Air Force had threatened days ago to resign if the bill was passed.

The Brothers in Arms consists of pilots, members from the drones’ body, control body, and the operations center, and members from the special unit. They are all active in the Air Force Reserve.

The Israeli military said that the reserve forces' non-compliance would undermine the troops’ efficiency.

“If reservists do not report for duty for a long time, there will be damage to the army’s competence. This is a gradual process that will be affected according to the reporting for duty of the reservists,” Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari said.

Some 10,000 Israel reservists will suspend their volunteer reserve duty.

The reservists warned that they won’t be able to serve in an “undemocratic Israel.”

The rebellion in the military continues despite calls by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leaders to keep the army outside discussions.

“Days of controversy and crisis require emphasizing the shared and the unifying [tasks]... defending the country is our deep commitment,” military chief Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said in a statement.

He continued that the Israeli military is “ready for any challenge, this is our imperative to assure the existence of the state.”

The army’s protective force is made up of “every soldier, every commander, in the reserve and standing army, who work together for a common goal,” he added.

The crisis in Israel isn’t restricted to the military, given that several syndicates have started a partial strike while the labor union Histadrut threatens with full shutdown.

“There is a significant risk that political and social tensions over the issue will continue, with negative consequences for Israel’s economy and security situation,” Moody’s warned in a report.

Moreover, several senior scientists on the Israel Atomic Energy Commission have threatened to resign to protest the government’s judicial overhaul.

The scientists are among several dozen experts who are “responsible for the development of Israel’s nuclear capability,” Channel 13 reported.

The report said the scientists had been discussing their possible resignations in recent weeks, but there was no collective protest action, and that each of the scientists would decide on the matter individually.

The scientists were still deliberating the matter with each other and their predecessors, along with “heads of the scientific military community,” but have not breached the subject with their superiors, Channel 13 reported.



Türkiye Releases Over 120 People Charged with Taking Part in Protests

09 April 2025, Türkiye, Sisli: Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu shout slogans during a rally to protest against his arrest in front of the Sisli Municipality in Istanbul. Photo: Tolga Uluturk/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 April 2025, Türkiye, Sisli: Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu shout slogans during a rally to protest against his arrest in front of the Sisli Municipality in Istanbul. Photo: Tolga Uluturk/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
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Türkiye Releases Over 120 People Charged with Taking Part in Protests

09 April 2025, Türkiye, Sisli: Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu shout slogans during a rally to protest against his arrest in front of the Sisli Municipality in Istanbul. Photo: Tolga Uluturk/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
09 April 2025, Türkiye, Sisli: Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu shout slogans during a rally to protest against his arrest in front of the Sisli Municipality in Istanbul. Photo: Tolga Uluturk/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Türkiye on Thursday freed more than 120 people detained during last month's mass anti-government protests.
Courts in Istanbul released on bail 127 defendants, most of them university students, who were arrested at their homes on March 24 after taking part in demonstrations sparked by the jailing of the city’s opposition mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, The Associated Press reported.
Imamoglu, who was arrested on March 19 on corruption and terrorism charges, is seen as the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 22-year rule.
More than 2,000 people were detained for taking part in the country’s largest mass demonstrations in more than a decade. Of those, some 300 were jailed awaiting trial.
Those freed on Thursday are charged with participating in banned protests. One court released 102 suspects, many of them students with upcoming exams, after considering the time they had spent in prison, the low risk of absconding and on condition of not traveling abroad. A separate court released a further 25 people on condition that they report to police regularly.
The releases follow a campaign by parents to have their children set free, with many holding daily vigils outside a prison in Silivri, west of Istanbul.
Among those released was prominent demonstrator Berkay Gezgin, a 22-year-old student who met Imamoglu on the campaign trail in 2019 and coined the slogan “Everything will be fine,” which the Istanbul mayor later used in his campaign.
The defendants’ cases will be heard in June and September at Istanbul’s Caglayan Courthouse.