Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir shakes up the IDF

Last week Thursday, IDF. Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir shocked everyone when he decided to uphold the policy of his predecessor, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi, and issue 24,000 draft notices to ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) youths.

According to a report by Avi Ashkenazi on the Maariv website, Zamir directed the Manpower Directorate to send an initial draft notice to every teenager at age 16.5, followed by a second notice, without regard to their sectoral background. Under Zamir’s decision, if these youths fail to report for either the first or second notice, the IDF will declare them deserters.

The report further notes that, under the new procedure, deserters will face criminal sanctions, including restrictions on leaving or entering Israel without being detained for investigation and brought before a judge on desertion charges.

This is a groundbreaking move, as it marks the first time that every Haredi teenager aged 16.5 is required to report to a recruitment office, regardless of whether they are classified as dedicated to full-time Torah study (“torato umanuto”).

A statement from the “Serving Coalition” regarding the mobilization of tens of thousands of reservists said:

“The time of Zamir has come! We salute Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir for the decision to send draft notices to every young man and woman. This is a courageous and fitting step: a beginning of correction.

Our blood is worth as much as anyone else’s. Only this way can we restore the sense of mutual responsibility that has been eroded.

On the very same evening, tens of thousands of reservists are called up for their sixth and seventh rounds, leaving home once again, while others continue to not show up.The government promises again and turns its back again; promises are worth nothing.

We will not abandon this front either. Draft for all: security for all. We fight together, we win together.”

After stirring controversy by issuing the draft notices to all Israelis aged 16.5, regardless of their background, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir continues to shake things up in the IDF with decisions that are sending shockwaves through the military.

According to Amir Bohbot’s report on Walla, Zamir is preparing to announce new General Staff appointments soon. This comes as Maj. Gen. (Res.) Sami Turgeman and a committee review the IDF’s investigations into the October 7 events.

The biggest question is what Zamir will do about the Head of AMAN. The IDF is watching closely to see if Zamir will back Shlomi Binder to keep his role or decide to replace him with someone new.

If Zamir chooses to remove Binder, sources in the IDF suggest that Northern Command Commander Maj. Gen. Uri Gordin is the top candidate to take over. If Gordin moves to AMAN, the Northern Command role could go to either Home Front Command Commander Maj. Gen. Rafi Milo or Northern Corps Commander Maj. Gen. Dan Goldfuss.

According to JPost, "The new IDF chief intends to limit the number of major generals in his general staff by reducing the rank of the officer commanding the Training Command, currently Zini, to a brigadier general."