Zamir to the Cabinet: The Army Will Collapse and Reserves Will Not Withstand the Huge Burdens

SadaNews - The Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, Eyal Zamir, warned during a meeting of the security cabinet (the Cabinet) about the "collapse" of the army, due to its obligation to fight on multiple fronts, in addition to laws that have yet to be enacted, such as conscription of Haredim into its ranks.

This came during the cabinet meeting held yesterday, Wednesday, which included Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and leaders of security agencies, according to what the newspaper "Haaretz" reported on its website today, Thursday.

The spokesperson for the Israeli army, in his daily press conference on Thursday evening, in response to a question about Zamir's warnings, stated that "the army is short of 15,000 soldiers, including 8,000 fighters."

The newspaper's report noted that Zamir chose during the cabinet meeting, which was held to discuss the situation of the war last night, to "warn participants about the escalation of terrorist operations (carried out by settlers) in the West Bank."

He added that the Israeli army has transferred another battalion to the West Bank "to confront this threat, while the Central Command (of the Israeli army) believes that another battalion is needed to complete the mission."

In the same meeting, the cabinet approved, in continuation of previous decisions, the establishment of dozens of settlement farms and additional outposts in the occupied West Bank.

Zamir warned that this step does not align with the needs of the Israeli army in terms of manpower, and that the scale of required forces is limited, while the army needs to be deployed across several active fronts, including Lebanon, where several divisions are currently stationed, and the Gaza Strip, the Syrian border, and the West Bank.

The Chief of Staff added that the government "is not addressing any of the solutions proposed on the agenda; such as a different conscription law, extending service in regular forces, and amendments to the reserve law."

On this matter, he stated: "I raise before you ten red flags (indicating the seriousness of the situation in the army and the shortage of its forces); at this rate, the Israeli army will collapse upon itself."

According to Zamir, "The Israeli army will not be prepared for its routine missions in a short time. The reserve soldiers will not endure."

"A Condemnation of the Government in Time of War"

For his part, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid commented on the Chief of Staff's statements regarding the Israeli army, saying that "the Chief of Staff warns of the collapse of the army, but the government ignores him."

He added that "in the next disaster, the government will not be able to claim ignorance; it is responsible."

Meanwhile, the head of the "Kahol Lavan" party and former Minister of Defense, Benny Gantz, stated that the Chief of Staff's statements "constitute a serious condemnation of the government in time of war."

He added: "It is the same government that talks on one hand about ‘changing the Middle East,’ and about another long week of wars, and which promotes illusions of great victories, while continuing on the other hand to encourage mass evasion."

Gantz continued: "You will not be able to cover this up, and you will not be able to claim ‘we did not know’ when the next disaster occurs."