The bill extending mandatory military service to 32 months was approved on Thursday for a second and third reading vote in the Knesset plenum.
Earlier in the week the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee approved the bill for second and third readings. According to the wording of the temporary order, the reduction of service to 30 months, which was supposed to apply to recruits from 2024 who are scheduled to be discharged in January 2027, will be postponed and will instead apply to recruits from June 2029, who are scheduled to be discharged in January 2032. The proposal stipulates that compensation will be provided for the additional months of service: the closer the discharge date is, the higher the compensation will be.
During the committee discussions, the IDF made clear that extending service to 32 months is insufficient and that it requires service to be extended to 36 months. Head of the Planning and Personnel Directorate, Brig. Gen. Shay Tayeb, said: “The regular forces are reaching the limits of their capacity, and the reserve forces may also reach that point, and even collapse.”