Channel 12 News reports that IDF soldiers have been finding their official equipment to be expired, worn out, or otherwise unusable.
''There is not enough equipment to go around,'' one soldier tells, ''And what we are given was made thirty or forty years ago. Bullets and shrapnel go straight through the helmets we have been given.''
Other soldiers report having been given vests and helmets that were so worn they fell apart while in use, with one soldier showing that his helmet had been manufactured in 1978.
Advanced gear such as night vision equipment or thermal camera drones are also in short supply, with some units having to go without or make do with older and less effective models.
Many soldiers have been raising funds on their own or as a unit, with one soldier amassing more than three million shekels in donations, but many soldiers have found that costs for equipment in Israel can be prohibitively high. Israel has also seen a wave of donations from around the world aimed at providing the missing equipment, but on many occasions, equipment donated or ordered from outside of Israel is impounded in customs and does not reach the field.
In response, the IDF stated: ''We are unaware of any discrepancies in the equipment issued to any unit to execute their assignment. If individual cases are presented, they will be dealt with appropriately. The IDF works to ensure that all soldiers receive all the equipment that is necessary.''