According to Al Jazeera, Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant has revealed that the Israeli army is in dire need of 10,000 additional soldiers immediately, according to a report by the Israel Broadcasting Authority.
Addressing the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Gallant stated that the army could potentially recruit 4,800 of those required soldiers from Israel's ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, community. This comes on the heels of a landmark ruling by Israel's Supreme Court last week, which unanimously decided to end the longstanding exemption of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men from military service.
The court's decision has upended a delicate political balance, as religious parties - key allies of embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - have traditionally opposed the conscription of Haredi Jews, who make up around 13% of Israel's population. In contrast, secular and nationalist factions have demanded that religious students share the "burden of war."
The urgent need for more troops underscores the strain on the Israeli military amid the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, which has been raging for over eight months. The situation has also led to a crisis within the army's command ranks, with around 900 officers reportedly requesting to review the termination of their contracts since the start of the war.
With public discontent growing over the government's handling of the Gaza offensive and Netanyahu's ongoing political scandals, the pressure to bolster the Israeli army's ranks has become increasingly acute.