More Israeli reservists are refusing military deployment to Gaza

Amna Nawaz:

Meanwhile, Nick, I know tomorrow, as you know, marks two years since those horrific Hamas attacks in Israel. And your team have been working on stories to mark the week. Tell us about those.

Nick Schifrin:

Yes, as you know, Amna, October the 7th is really a day before and a day after for the Middle East, when history split.

And we wanted to do a series of stories from the region. A new poll finds that two-thirds of Israelis now say the time has come to end the war in Gaza. That's the highest number since the beginning of the war; 27 percent — you see that in red down there — say it's not time to end the war.

And that divide in Israeli society is reflected inside Israeli's military, where some reservists say the war must be fought and won, and others are refusing to serve.

Above Israel's largest port, the words on the hostage poster declare "We'll bring them back and we will rise." But Israeli military reserve Captain Ron Feiner believes the war in Gaza is leading the country astray.

Capt. Ron Feiner, Israeli Defense Forces Reservist:

After I understood that this government is not going to listen to the voice of most of the people in Israel and they are willing to keep the war going forever, I decided that I can't — I just can't show up.

Nick Schifrin:

Since October the 7th, Feiner led Israeli infantry units on three deployments, including into Lebanon. But when he was called up a fourth time, he refused and, with 400 other soldiers, signed a petition that declared: "The war in Gaza is a death sentence for our kidnapped brothers and sisters" and for Feiner a possible death sentence for his men.

Capt. Ron Feiner:

I decided to refuse only after I understood there is no other way to stop this war and also help them.Like, my soldiers under my command that we used to fight together in Lebanon, I really care for them. And I also want to save their lives.

And I actually realized that, to save their lives, we have to stop the war.

Nick Schifrin:

In Israel's multiple wars since October the 7th, about half of the troops have been reservists, who traditionally hold territory after it's captured by active-duty troops.

The price that reservists have paid in Israel's longest war has been heavy, and that has led to a no-show rate reported by Israeli media of more than 40 percent.

Capt. Ron Feiner:

There is a huge amount of people in Israel that are not willing to show up anymore.

Nick Schifrin:

For his refusal, Feiner went to prison, released only because Israel went to war with Iran.

Capt. Ron Feiner:

I'm ready to go to prison again. I think this is a price that is OK to pay for this kind of goal, which is, for me, so important and so urgent.

Master Sgt. Raphael Becache, Israeli Defense Forces Reservist:

I have seen what's happening on the ground, and I understand that right now what we are doing is not any more helping to bringing back the hostages.

Nick Schifrin:

Raphael Becache is a master sergeant in the Reserves and a tank gunner who until August fought on Gaza's front line. He's been called up three times for a total of 300 days, deployed to both Gaza and Lebanon. And he too signed a petition demanding the government make a deal.

Master Sgt. Raphael Becache:

I was very tired of not being listened by the government to do the job, sacrifice everything and not feeling that the government really care about us.

Nick Schifrin:

Becache lives in Be'er Sheva, about 25 miles from Gaza, and considers himself a strategist. He says that Israel is fighting a guerrilla war against Hamas and cannot accomplish militarily its dual goals of defeating Hamas and saving the hostages. He also warns, Israel is facing a social crisis tearing at the very fabric of Israeli society.

Master Sgt. Raphael Becache:

In my company only — and I know it's in other places in the army — a third of the people who were married got divorced during the war.

Nick Schifrin:

And yet he is a proud Israeli immigrant whose family moved here from France. He expects to be called up again soon and has decided, despite reservations, he will still serve.

Master Sgt. Raphael Becache:

We can try our best as civilian, like I'm doing with you, like I'm doing in everywhere in Israel, trying to push for this operation not to happen and to bring back the hostages in another way and to get out of Gaza. But when the army give an order, I think the role of a solder is to listen.

Israeli Intelligence Officer:

Some experiences, they just change you.

Nick Schifrin:

This 22-year-old reservist is an intelligence officer. She spoke to our producer Karl Bostic and asked we keep her anonymous. After October the 7th, she volunteered for the Reserves and has since served 420 days.

Israeli Intelligence Officer:

I think it's important that we have a strong army, but, in this situation, where the government wants this war to go on forever, I have a responsibility to use every power I have to stop this war. The government will see it and will say (EXPLETIVE DELETED) the reservists aren't joining. I'm sorry that I cussed.

Question:

And if they call you up, what will you do?

Israeli Intelligence Officer:

I will do whatever I can to not go. If we continue, it will go on forever.

Nick Schifrin:

She also calls the scale of Gaza's destruction unacceptable.

Israeli Intelligence Officer:

There is a lot of suffering in this world, but this is not far away. This is not in some other land which I can choose whether to care about it or not. What's happening in Gaza, my country is doing it. I care deeply, and a lot of people I know care deeply.

And we are not ignorant to it, and we are not cold to it, and we care.

Nick Schifrin:

And she cares for her fellow soldiers. She says the war has distorted Israel's natural rhythm of life and death, and that young people especially have had to accept the pain of loss.

Israeli Intelligence Officer:

I'm 22. I have been to three funerals these last two years. And people my age dying, people I know, it's just a part of life at this point. And it's not something we can accept. The fight for a better future, for peace, for equality will continue after this war. And if I have to fight it for the rest of my life, I will.

Nick Schifrin:

But Israel's government and other reservists believe the fight that is necessary is the one to defeat Hamas.

Michael Lapin, Israeli Defense Forces:

For me, I don't think it's a question. It's an obligation to serve my country.

Nick Schifrin:

In the last two years, 23-year-old Michael Lapin has deployed five times for a total of more than 300 days. Like all Israelis, he was touched by terror. His grandmother lived in Nahal Oz, overrun by Hamas on October the 7th. He believes the Israeli military and the cause for which it fights is moral.

Michael Lapin:

We're talking about a strip, a very small area, with a lot of tunnels, with a lot of population. And we're trying the best to taking care of the civilians, but both make sure Hamas is not going to rule ever again.

Nick Schifrin:

He too is also learning to live with the pain of loss. But he has no doubt, if he's called up for a sixth time, what choice he will make.

Michael Lapin:

As a brigade, we lost eight soldiers at 10 days. I lost my captain. That's some things that never leaves you. I will go and I will serve until I'm not needed anymore.

Nick Schifrin:

Lapin's day job is at a Tel Aviv sports and live music bar that's a favorite for foreigners, Mike's Place, right next to the beach. And between pours, he acknowledges how the war has divided Israel and its reservists.

Michael Lapin:

What can I get you?

Nick Schifrin:

He refuses to judge anyone who refuses military duty.

Michael Lapin:

I think everyone suffered a lot since the beginning of the war. And if some people say enough for them, it's enough. So I respect that. And I thank them for their service. Nobody like wars. Wars is not a good thing. But, at the end of the day, we want the end of Hamas and we want to live in peace without any wars.

Nick Schifrin:

And that is perhaps where Israel is unified, saving hostages, hoping to recover from the war's damage and ensuring the war never happens again.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Nick Schifrin.