The Israeli Occupation Army Radio revealed on Tuesday a shortage in the number of combat-ready personnel and tanks, stating that some reserve formations are in a state of "actual collapse."
اضافة اعلان
Under the headline "Army warns of reserve forces collapse," the radio station stated: "Here is what the situation looks like from the inside: empty brigades and battalions, not enough tanks, and attendance rates that do not reflect reality."
It added: "In recent days, a reserve armored brigade was deployed to take over a significant operational sector in the security zone in Lebanon. However, in reality, testimonies from commanders and soldiers tell a completely different story from what decision-makers claim; these are not full brigades, but rather far from it."
The report explained that the "army" no longer possesses a sufficient number of combat-ready tanks after many were damaged in battles and taken out of service, a situation that has "forced reserve tank companies to operate with fewer tanks."
Since October 2023, the Israeli occupation army has been launching multi-front aggression, most notably in the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, alongside mutual attacks with Iran and the Houthi group in Yemen, as well as repeated assaults on Syria and escalating military operations in the occupied West Bank.
The radio station noted that the "army" recalculates reserve forces' attendance rates in a way that makes them appear relatively high by fundamentally summoning fewer soldiers, while some of those called up only attend for limited periods.
It added: "Consequently, even units with attendance rates ranging between 50% and 70% are actually in a much worse situation at any given time."
Quoting an unnamed reserve formation commander, the report stated: "Reserve units today are empty; a battalion is not a full battalion, and a company is not a company in the true sense."
He continued: "The public and decision-makers hear about full brigades in Lebanon, but in reality, it is a much smaller unit. The number of soldiers, tanks, and vehicles is far lower."
He added: "Some reserve formations are in a state of actual collapse. There are units in better condition and others in worse, and everyone is doing their best, but it is difficult to sustain this situation."
The Occupation Army Radio provided another example from the field, stating: "A reserve company that recently concluded its operational mission in Lebanon was left with only one officer: the company commander was dismissed, and there is no first sergeant. (..) There is no chain of command in the company; it is managed haphazardly."
The Israeli army does not specify the number of its forces operating in Lebanon, the occupied West Bank, the Gaza Strip, or Syria.
These developments come as the Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported on July 10 that the Israeli occupation army had begun a broad reduction in reserve soldier call-ups, linking this to what it described as a "recession of wars across multiple fronts."
However, the Hebrew newspaper Israel Hayom reported on July 5 that the "army" is preparing to discharge thousands of reserve soldiers by the end of the month, in light of a financial crisis facing the military establishment.
The Israeli military establishment is confronting a severe funding crisis following an unprecedented surge in operation-related expenditures, leading to a deficit estimated at tens of billions of shekels (the dollar is currently trading at 3 shekels).
This coincided with deep disputes between the Israeli Ministries of Defense and Finance regarding the size of the war budget. The military establishment is demanding an increase to record levels to cover multi-front challenges, while the Ministry of Finance opposes this due to fears of a worsening deficit.
According to reports, a temporary compromise has been reached to inject conditional additional funding in exchange for reducing reliance on reserve forces and cutting operational expenses.
(Anadolu Agency)
