The Israeli Air Force reservists want to refuse to serve

Hundreds of reservists could stop working to protest the plans of the right-wing theocratic government.

Resistance to judicial reform being pushed by the Israeli government is growing: According to media reports, hundreds of Air Force reservists no longer want to appear on duty in protest of the right-wing theocratic government’s plans. And Israeli media reported on Wednesday evening, quoting military departments, that there were also pilots among them.

Experts have been warning for some time that turning down a few hundred reservists could severely limit the Air Force’s operational capacity. However, the Army has reportedly stated that it can currently maintain its operational readiness.

Haaretz reported that some reservists will stop their service immediately, while others will only stop if a controversial law is passed. This is part of the plans of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to pass it within a week. Then it should no longer be possible for the Supreme Court to assess decisions of the government or individual ministers as “inappropriate”.

At the beginning of the year, judges rated the appointment of Schas party chairman Ari Deri as interior minister because of his criminal past as “inappropriate.” As a result, Netanyahu had to fire his close friend. Observers expect that the coalition wants to reverse this with the new law. Critics fear the possibility of arbitrary dismissals of opponents of government policy in key positions.

Thousands of reservists from various branches of the military have threatened to withdraw from their duties if part of the judicial reform is passed. More could follow. Netanyahu recently called the conscientious objection request and the conscientious objection itself “illegal”. Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets for months to protest the controversial judicial reform.