Why we return over and over to serve in the IDF

The Blog post below is short…as I am currently in the IDF on my tenth deployment, in my third consecutive year, on yet another holiday not at home.  When asked why my fellow soldiers and I keep returning over and over to milluim (IDF reserve duty) I formulated the following fourteen point answer:

1. We recognise that this the right thing to do.
2. We acknowledge that these are the values we were raised on.
3. We feel it is an honour to serve our people and our country.
4. We cannot say, “let someone else do it” (or nothing would get done).
5. We realise that there is an existential threat over our very existence.
6. We understand that this is yet another “we do not have a choice” war.
7. We know that there are tens of thousands of Ultra-Orthodox draft-evaders.
8. We are fighting for our family.
9. We are fighting for our hearth and home.
10. We are fighting for our people.
11. We are fighting for our country.
12. We are fighting for our beliefs and values.
13. We are fighting for western civilisation.
14. We are fighting for the forces of light and right.

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The above contains thoughts from my latest book, “Heroes of PALMAR, How One IDF unit Revolutionised Combat Medicine in Gaza” (Gefen:2026).  Available on Amazon.com or Gefen.com.