Recommendations of the 'Nagel Committee': Recruitment of Arabs and Haredim and an additional billions

January 6, 2025   

The Nagel Committee, appointed by the government to examine the defense budget and the military force building, submitted its recommendations today (Monday) to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Netanyahu said upon receiving the report: "The work you have done is preparing us for what is to come; a close circle, a distant circle, and everything in between. Also in the types of armaments and the question of Israel's armament independence. Our internal organization; the question of the underground; many other questions that are detailed here in the report. We will study it, and we will also bring it to decisions." At the top of the committee's recommendations is an increase in the defense budget for 2025 by 9 billion shekels for the purpose of strengthening, including 3 billion shekels that will come from the defense budget that has already been approved by the government and stands at 16 billion shekels, and an additional 6 billion shekels that will come as an addition from the state budget. With reference to the coming decade, it was recommended to increase the defense budget by approximately 250 billion NIS, with the army budget being increased by an average of 25 billion NIS in each of the years. The committee's report states that "the October 7 disaster did not occur due to a lack of budget, nor because of the size of the army," but immediately afterwards it adds that the continuation of the war "sharpened needs and gaps and presented problems that cannot be ignored." These, according to the committee members, were mainly in the area of ​​force building, its size, and readiness for war. The committee also recommended that all citizens of the country be mobilized, including Arabs and Haredim. However, the committee refrained from explicitly naming the need for Haredim mobilization. The report states: "The committee believes that all citizens of the state have equal rights and obligations and are required to bear the burden of service," but immediately adds: "The committee recommends making the necessary change gradually, in accordance with the IDF's recruitment and absorption capabilities and needs." The report also states: "The committee sees a right and an opportunity in emphasizing the importance of the 'People's Army' model, now more than ever." The committee called for extending military service in the IDF to 36 months. "In light of the changing security reality and the lessons of war, IDF representatives presented a vital operational need to immediately increase the scope of manpower in compulsory service." The report also notes that Iran is the main enemy of the State of Israel - "including the possibility of a broad and comprehensive war," and therefore "the IDF should direct a significant portion of its force-building resources in this direction.".