Israeli Reserve Soldiers Refuse Combat Duty in Gaza, Unveiling Weakness in Occupation Forces
Watan-In an indication of setbacks faced by the occupying army in the Gaza Strip during ground battles with Palestinian resistance, the official Israeli radio exposed that a number of reserve forces soldiers refused to comply with military service and participate in combat inside the Gaza Strip.
The radio reported that reserve forces were called up after the start of ground battles to participate in forming a new military battalion tasked with defending towns around Gaza and settlements in the West Bank.
Combat tasks without training
These soldiers were surprised during training and preparation operations when they were informed that they would enter Gaza to participate in combat activities, including what the Israeli army describes as “clearing homes of militants and searching for weapons and tunnels.” This was despite these soldiers not being subjected to suitable training for such tasks.
Several soldiers, in interviews with the Israeli radio, stated that half of the fighters in the battalion withdrew and refused to comply with orders.
Fiery comment from Fayez Al-Duwayri
In response, military and strategic expert Major General Fayez Al-Duwayri described the Israeli occupation army as lacking individual skills at the levels of leaders, non-commissioned officers, and officers. He stated that the refusal of Israeli reserve soldiers to participate in the fighting in Gaza is an indicator of weakness.
Al-Duwayri added that the training principles since 2006 have changed, adopting different approaches that focus on elite forces, especially the air force and elite forces, while neglecting ground forces.
