Israel’s Gaza City push faces dissent as some reservists refuse call-up

TEL AVIV – Since completing nearly three months of deployment in Lebanon during Israel’s war with Hezbollah, Israeli reservist Natan Ruchansky has refused a fresh call-up order for Gaza, declaring himself a conscientious objector.

The 36-year-old film director and father of two was summoned before a military disciplinary panel on Sept 4, removed from his battalion and stripped of combat duties.

His refusal places him among a small, but vocal minority of reservists opposed to Israel’s continued offensives in Gaza.

“We see the insane international damage it causes, the economic damage and the mental and physical harm to many of our friends among the reservists and regular conscripts,” Mr Ruchansky told AFP in an interview.

While serving remained “part of my identity”, he argued that the nearly two-year-old war in Gaza has “no connection to defending our country” whose safety he said is of utmost importance.

Israel has intensified operations in Gaza City, the Palestinian territory’s biggest urban centre, despite mounting pressure at home and abroad to end the wider campaign.

Israeli media reported that around 40,000 reservists were being mobilised in the first wave.

Commanders often accept reservists stepping back due to the toll prolonged fighting takes on their health, families and livelihoods.

But declared conscientious objection is rare and, in a few isolated cases, can lead to jail terms.

Mr Ruchansky is part of Soldiers for the Hostages, a 400-member group formed in May 2024 over concerns for hostages held in Rafah in southern Gaza after Israel invaded the area.

Sense of duty

The group held its first public event in Tel Aviv on Sept 9 to call on reservists and active-duty troops to defy conscription orders.

“As IDF veterans who served in this war and care for the future of our country, it is our patriotic duty to refuse to take part in this war,” said sergeant and combat medic Max Kresch at the news conference, referring to the Israel Defence Forces.

The group has moved to expand its activities beyond social media for the first time in response to the announcement of the Gaza City offensive.

“We are the same reservists and soldiers who dropped everything on Oct 7 and rushed to the fronts,” Mr Kresch said, referring to the Hamas-led attack in 2023 that sparked the Gaza war.

“It is precisely from that same sense of duty that we are driven to refuse, and to use our voices loudly, to resist (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu’s attempts to sacrifice everything for his own political survival,” he added.

The activists know their numbers remain small, but say their goal for now is to reach out to soldiers who question the purpose of continuing the war.

“We don’t measure our impact by how many we are,” member Shaked Rogel said, “but by the fact that we give a voice to soldiers who would otherwise feel they are completely alone”.

The group has started a hotline to support troops considering whether to refuse call-up orders.

Another group, the recently formed Reservists to End the War, which does not explicitly call on troops to refuse service, has been gathering signatures for a petition urging leaders to stop the Gaza City assault.

On a Saturday night in Tel Aviv, group member Dan Gavrieli stood on a pavement with a megaphone, urging passers-by to give their signatures to the document, which also demands the hostages’ return.

“Dear reservists, there is no other time to sign! Join our petition,” he called.

“Political steps are needed now to translate the price we paid into real change,” the petition reads. “This is exactly what we went to fight for.” AFP