Defense Minister Benny Gantz took part in a ceremony today at the Defense Ministry where 32 IDF officers and senior sergeants were given certificates of excellency for their service. Gantz spoke to the soldiers about their service and how he plans on ensuring that more people from the poorer sectors of Israeli society and the periphery will be included in the ranks of the IDF career service in the future.
Gantz spoke about how hard it is for the military to compete with the financial opportunities offered by the private sector. “The IDF cannot and should not compete with large companies and the private market. The sense of mission, responsibility, fulfillment, and the variety of options are what we offer you,” he said.
Every military in the free world has the same problem. Their best trained and most productive members tend to leave for high paying jobs with private companies.
The Minister of Defense also spoke about the diversity within the ranks of the IDF. “The diversity you express is not only a means of strengthening society, but first and foremost a security-social need,” he said. “Diversity is the way to reach out to anyone who can contribute, even if they did not know or originally thought about it. Diversity is the exploitation of the abilities and talents that Israeli society has been blessed with. Is the ability to hear people think differently, and come up with other solutions. Diversity unites society behind the army, even on difficult days. ”
To deal with the issue, Gantz said that he and the IDF Chief of Staff have a goal for a more balanced representation of the different sectors of Israeli society among the different units. He pledged that a third of the IDF technology units’ employees will come from the social and geographical periphery of the State of Israel. “That is why we are promoting women to key positions, and developing routes that will also allow more Arabs, ultra-Orthodox, religious women and sons and daughters of all religions and denominations to serve and volunteer,” he said. “This is the reason for strengthening the national project of the IDF crossing to the south.”
Gantz also commented on Twitter about plans for dealing with the continued Coronavirus crisis. He said that he has ordered the extension of the recruitment orders for 403 IDF reserve paramedics who are currently assisting with the Ministry of Health’s vaccination program. Gantz also ordered the continued reinforcement of hospitals with 120 Home Front Command assistance units.
“In light of the concentration of red cities in the Arab sector, we will work to focus effort in the sector, along with the assistance of the defense system to the funds and hospitals,” said Gantz.