From protest to duty: How Gaza war Recast the Israeli Reservist Ethos

 As Israel expands its Gaza campaign, reservists who once questioned the system now report for duty.

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Less than two years ago, some Israeli reservists threatened to put down their rifles. They marched in Tel Aviv, signed letters of protest, and warned that serving under a government dismantling the country’s democratic foundations would be a betrayal of their values.

Today, many of those same reservists are packing bags and crossing back into Gaza.

“I’ve been called up three times already,” says Liel Friedmann, a 38-year-old infantry reservist from Tel Aviv. “People ask, ‘Why are you going again?’ But this isn’t a social club. There’s no one else. That’s the truth.”

Friedmann, who spoke  just hours before deployment, reflects a broader transformation among segments of Israeli society once aligned with protest. His voice—anxious but resolved—embodies the fatigue of war and the burden of necessity.

“I try not to think too much about civilian life when I’m called,” he says. “The second round, a few months ago, felt pointless. It was like we were just stretching the war out. But now it feels more focused, like there’s a goal.”

That goal—at least in the eyes of Israel’s military establishment and right-leaning security circles—is the complete dismantling of Hamas and the return of 59 hostages still believed to be held in Gaza. To achieve that, the government is now calling up tens of thousands of reservists in what may be the most extensive reserve mobilization since October.

According to Lt. Col. (res.) Yaron Buskila, secretary-general of the Israel Defense and Security Forum, this call-up is not a matter of policy—it’s a matter of survival.

“This is not a choice. It’s a necessity,”  “There is no way to defeat Hamas or to bring the hostages home without reserve forces. Negotiations could drag on for years—and that would only endanger the hostages further.”

As tens of thousands of Israelis report for duty once again, the picture is complex. Loyalty to the country does not mean loyalty to its leaders. For some, the uniform is a burden. For others, it’s a line of defense—for their families, for democracy, and for the right to keep fighting for both.