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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
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Israel
Index
The Defense Service Law required that each male conscript, upon
completion of his active-duty service, had an obligation to perform
reserve duty (miluim) and continue to train on a regular
basis until age fifty-four. Very few women were required to do
reserve duty but were subject to call-up until the age of
thirty-four if they had no children. The duration of annual reserve
duty depended on security and budgetary factors, as well as
specialty and rank. After 1967 reserve duty generally lengthened as
the IDF experienced a growing manpower need. The average length of
reserve duty was temporarily increased from thirty to sixty days in
early 1988 to help deal with the Palestinian uprising. After about
age thirty-nine, reservists no longer served in combat units.
This comprehensive reserve system, the most demanding of any in
the world, was vital to Israel's defense posture. It allowed the
country to limit the full-time manpower within the IDF, thus
freeing vitally needed people for civilian tasks during most of the
year. Because of the reserve system, the IDF could triple in size
within forty-eight to seventy-two hours of the announcement of a
full mobilization. The system was burdensome for most Israeli
citizens but provided a source of escape from everyday routine for
some. Most Israelis regarded reserve duty as a positive social
phenomenon, making an important contribution to democracy by
reducing class distinctions. Nevertheless, it was undeniably a
source of discontent to many, especially those assigned to
dangerous and disagreeable patrol and policing duties in southern
Lebanon and in the occupied territories. In the past, evasion of
reserve duty had been regarded as a violation of the individual's
duty to the nation, verging on treasonous behavior. In September
1988, however, the media revealed the existence of a bribery ring
of doctors and senior IDF personnel officers that sold medical
exemptions for sums ranging from US$300 to US$500. The lengthy
military obligation was also believed to be a major cause of
emigration, although the number who had left Israel for this reason
could not be accurately estimated. The IDF required Israeli
citizens of military age to obtain the permission of their reserve
unit before traveling abroad.
Data as of December 1988
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