Israel Cannot Pay Its Way Out of the Reserve Crisis |
Financial incentives may ease the burden of reserve duty, but they cannot replace a shared sense of responsibility.
A few days ago, Yinon Magal published a post that quickly went viral: “Good morning, Yinon. This morning we received another reserve duty grant, and on Sunday another 5,800 shekels will come in. The total grants I received for 210 days of reserve duty in a combat unit amounted to around 70,000 shekels. Add to that the Fighter credit card we received, with another 12,000 shekels for restaurants and hotel vacations. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich deserves a good word.” Magal later admitted he had been paid by Smotrich for the post.
The controversy surrounding the post is not merely about sponsored content. It reflects a broader mindset: the belief that Israel’s reserve duty crisis can be managed through money, benefits, and political campaigns.
I write this from personal experience. I served more than 400 days on the Lebanese front as a combat soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade, including during the ground operations in Lebanon. I saw firsthand what prolonged exhaustion does to people. The grants helped soften the economic blow, but no credit card restored the months people lost, the families they were........