The Israeli newspaper "Haaretz" reported that dozens of reservists are refusing to return to the Gaza Strip, asserting that the military operation in Rafah endangers their lives and the lives of innocent people, and will not recover hostages. At the end of last month, 41 reservist soldiers who have served in the Israeli military since October 7 signed the first "refusal to serve" letter issued by reservists since the war in Gaza began.
The report explained that ten of the signatories wrote their full names, while others wrote only the initials of their names. The letter stated: "The six months we have participated in the war effort have proven to us that military action alone will not bring the captives back home." Regarding the military operation in Rafah, they said: "This invasion, in addition to endangering our lives and the lives of innocents in Rafah, will not return the captives alive... either Rafah or the captives, and we choose the captives. Therefore, after the decision to enter Rafah in a kidnapping deal, we the reservists declare that our conscience does not allow us to jeopardize the lives of the captives and ruin another deal."
The newspaper reported that 16 of the signatories serve in the intelligence unit and seven in the home front command. The remaining signers serve in infantry, combat engineering, and armored units, with two serving in elite units - commandos. One of the seven serving in the home front command mentioned that many reservists in the command have been called up for combat missions such as "seizing lines" in the West Bank, due to the transfer of many regular soldiers to the Gaza Strip. Most of the signatories who spoke to "Haaretz" acknowledged that their positions are unusual among reservists.
