An 'exhausted' IDF holds Lebanon and Syria as Israel counts the damage

Summary

After the war, Israel's military holds security zones in Lebanon and Syria while the home front counts the cost. Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir is reported "raising 10 red flags" over an "exhausted" force: roughly 100,000 reservists were called in March atop 50,000 already on Gaza duty, and a new "reservists' party" is in talks with Benny Gantz. The home front logged more than 45,000 claims and around NIS 5bn ($1.47bn) in property damage, with direct missile damage above $1.1bn; four were killed in Haifa and two in Yehud, and debris fell near Jerusalem's holy sites. In Syria, the IDF operates at least nine bases in occupied territory and struck Syrian government sites over the Sweida Druze, with Defence Minister Katz setting no withdrawal timeline. The strain feeds both the war budget and Netanyahu's political exposure.

By the numbers

• ~100,000 — reservists called in March, atop ~50,000 on Gaza duty.
• 10 — "red flags" the chief of staff is reported to have raised.

• 45,000 / ~NIS 5bn — home-front damage claims / property-damage value.

• $1.1bn — direct missile damage; ≥9 IDF bases in occupied Syrian territory.

Why it matters

A military stretched across three fronts and a population counting tens of thousands of damage claims set the ceiling on how long Israel can sustain open-ended deployments in Lebanon and Syria. Reservist fatigue is becoming a political force of its own, and the rebuild bill lands on a budget already at a record deficit.

What to watch

• Whether reservist strain forces a drawdown in Lebanon or Syria.
• The "reservists' party" and its effect on the election.
• Reconstruction spending in the north and south feeding the deficit.