"Magnificent own goal": Netanyahu's puzzling decision that will cost the IDF billions | Alon Ben David

Alon Ben David claims that Prime Minister Netanyahu voluntarily gave up half of the American aid for the next decade, a decision that will cost the IDF billions. Meanwhile, the IDF is grappling with enormous costs of reserve months, personnel attrition, and a survey indicating difficulty in retaining career soldiers.

In his column in Maariv, Alon Ben David claims that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a puzzling decision, voluntarily giving up half of the American aid for the next decade. According to him, senior Israeli officials working with the Trump administration are convinced that the administration was willing to approve an aid agreement of the same scope, but Netanyahu declared a year ago that Israel would settle for half. The difference, he says, will be paid out of taxpayers' pockets. Meanwhile, the column describes the enormous costs of the IDF's strain: a month of reserves costs about 2.1 billion shekels, equivalent to seven F-35 aircraft. A survey conducted by the IDF among spouses of service members found that in 75% of families, daily routines have changed, and only 10% of spouses answered positively to the question of whether the service allows them to invest in their personal careers. Ben David warns that the IDF is about to lose many good people, and that there is a need to reduce forces both to save resources and to retain its personnel.