The promises were unequivocal, the declarations came from all sides, and equal sharing of the burden of military service was presented as one of the main issues on the agenda.
But now, as political positions shift and messages soften, Dr. Chana Katan is using her video column on Arutz Sheva - Israel National News to highlight what she says is being lost in the debate: The IDF needs more combat soldiers, and that need does not change according to political parties' interests.
Katan revisits statements made before the elections by left-wing parties and public figures about the conscription bill. She says they spoke of the need to share the burden equally, change the status quo and end a situation in which one segment of the public bears most of the responsibility for military service while others do not enlist. Now, however, in light of the shifts in political positions, she wonders what remains of those promises.
In her view, the gap between unequivocal declarations and a willingness to change positions raises questions about the role of political considerations in the conscription debate. But Katan does not limit her criticism to politicians. She seeks to shift the focus of the discussion from promises and backtracking to security needs themselves, which she says should underpin every decision on the issue.
Israel's security situation, she stresses, requires a significant increase in the number of people enlisting, particularly in combat roles. After the events of recent years, the IDF's need for additional personnel cannot be sidelined simply because the political establishment changes its priorities.
Katan emphasizes that the military's needs do not depend on any particular political configuration. Even when parties change their positions and election promises give way to other considerations, the need for more combat soldiers remains. Therefore, she says, the key question is not only who kept their promises and who backed away from them, but whether the conscription bill that moves forward will provide a meaningful response to security needs.
In this context, she sets out two goals that she believes should guide policymakers: increasing the number of IDF recruits and sharing the burden of service more fairly. A conscription law that does not broaden the ranks of those responsible for defending the country, she argues, fails to address the need that prompted the debate in the first place.
The central message of her column is that conscription cannot become another issue decided solely on the basis of political expediency. Katan seeks to move the discussion beyond the confrontation between right and left and return it to practical questions: how many additional combat soldiers the IDF needs, how to increase the number of people serving and how to ensure a fairer distribution of responsibility for security.
She says the security situation does not wait for political agreements. The conscription law must address the military's needs and the need for broader participation in defending the country, regardless of which position will serve any particular party after the elections.
Watch the Hebrew video: