The Israeli army has used as much ammunition in less than three years of war as it did over the previous three decades, the Israeli newspaper Maariv reported, pointing to mounting strain on its personnel, equipment, and finances.
Israeli Air Force activity during the period was also equivalent to roughly nine years of operations under normal conditions, whilst tanks and armoured personnel carriers have gone through thousands of engines, the newspaper said.
Maariv said military hardware could be replaced or repaired but warned that the toll on personnel was far harder to reverse.
The army alone, excluding other Israeli security agencies, has lost 1,138 personnel, whilst 11,730 others have been recognised as suffering physical or psychological injuries, according to the report, with thousands more suffering psychological trauma likely to be added.
Personnel fatigue
Signs of strain are also emerging among career soldiers, with a significant number offered command positions opting instead for less demanding rear roles or leaving military service altogether.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army is keeping an average of 53,000 reservists on active duty each day.
Maariv said a single month of reserve service last year cost around 2.1 billion shekels ($703 million), equivalent to the price of seven F-35 fighter jets or 70 Merkava tanks.
Israeli forces are currently deployed across what the newspaper described as three "security belts" in Gaza, Lebanon, and Syria, in addition to the occupied West Bank, which consumes the largest share of military manpower.
Five Israeli battalions are deployed along the so-called yellow line in Gaza, covering roughly 60 percent of the enclave, alongside two reinforced battalions on the border.
