Bennett: IDF will collapse without haredi enlistment, Netanyahu is dismantling military

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett warned that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) will collapse due to a lack of manpower if Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) individuals are not drafted into the military during the next government term following the October elections. In an address at Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, Bennett stated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is the greatest threat to the IDF's survival by leading mass draft evasion and dismantling the military.

Bennett emphasized that the IDF is already on the verge of collapse, citing the shortage of combat soldiers and the negative impact of long reserve-duty rotations on operational readiness. He called for a state commission of inquiry to investigate the government's failures surrounding October 7 and vowed to enlist everyone, stop funding draft evaders, and strengthen the IDF if he were part of the next government.

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