IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir warned the Knesset once again that the IDF faces a manpower shortage and desperately needs new recruits amid a multi-front war and fierce Haredi opposition to the draft.

In a closed-door session of the Knesset Sunday, the IDF chief told lawmakers that “I am not dealing with political or legislative processes — I am dealing with multifront warfare and defeating the enemy.”

“In order to continue to do that, the IDF needs more soldiers immediately,” he said.

Zamir recommended moving forward with three-part legislation.

First, he said that mandatory service, which was shortened to 30 months in August 2024, should be lengthened to 36 months.

“Shortening regular service… will cause an unreasonable burden on the reserves. There are urgent security needs,” he said, explaining that the first group under the new law shortening service is eligible to be relieved of duty in January 2027, worsening the shortage.

Second, he suggested lengthening reserve service as well, based on need.

Third, he recommended advancing legislation to increase conscription, with a focus on the ultra-Orthodox sector.

The Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee says its goal is, in theory, to “regulate the status of full-time yeshiva students while recognizing the importance of Torah study,” but, in practice, it provides exemptions to full-time yeshiva students while conscripting those no longer studying. In addition, it has removed sanctions on draft evaders when they turn 26 and dropped a provision to monitor yeshiva students to ensure they are still studying.

The IDF says it needs 12,000 new recruits to relieve the strain on those serving for prolonged periods, with 80,000 Haredi men ages 18 to 24 believed to be eligible.

Zamir previously warned about the manpower shortage, saying in March that the system would collapse without a surge of fresh recruits. At the time he also recommended the extension of mandatory service and changing legislation to allow for more Haredi conscription.