The Changing Nature of the Israeli Reserve Forces: Present Crises and Future Challenges

Abstract

The Israeli reservists played a major role in the protest movements that developed after the 1973 War and the First Lebanon War (1982–85). In other cases, debates about moral and political issues within the Israeli political system included petitions and rallies conducted by groups of reservists. How can scholars explain the special standing of the Israeli reservists within Israeli society? Why, during the 1970s and the 1980s, did the protests of the reservists lead to significant changes in the Israeli political and social arena, while this was not the case in the aftermath of the Second Lebanon War? The article explores these dilemmas by presenting different facets of the Israeli reserve army and its role in civil–military relations in Israel. The rationale for the establishment of the reserve army in Israel is discussed and is followed by an analysis of the changes the reserve forces have gone through since the establishment of the state.