Israeli society is on the brink of total exhaustion [Interview]
– People of Israel really believe that Iran was close to building an atomic bomb. The Israeli military establishment pushes that line. But I, personally, don’t believe it. And even if Iran was making a breakthrough — honestly, I have no problem with that. It’s entirely rational for them to pursue nuclear weapons. People — including Israeli liberals — believe the official narrative. They come up with all kinds of excuses for the war on Iran, like quoting aggressive statements that Iranian politicians have made towards Israel. But we have equally aggressive statements from Israeli politicians against Iran over the years — says Ofer Neimar, an Israeli left activist involved in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.
Interview by Wojciech Albert Łobodziński. The talk took place on 14 June, immediately after first Israeli attacks on Iran and Iran’s response.
Wojciech Łobodziński: What’s the mood in Jerusalem among your neighbours, family, friends?
Ofer Neiman: The city is hushed. People are fearful. From what I see on social media, most people — as you’d expect — support the attack on Iran, at least for now. That’s no surprise, especially among the right-wing people. What is disappointing is seeing liberal Zionists supporting the attacks in their own ugly way. I mean, their way of supporting it is by celebrating the Israeli military — not Netanyahu — and saying this is the “real Israel,” the professional Israel, unlike Netanyahu, and unlike the ultra-Orthodox who don’t serve in the military. They claim this is the precious Israel we have to preserve, despite Netanyahu trying to tear it apart. In a way, these liberal Zionists are showing even more support for the military than the Israeli right wing.
There is a myth that Israeli air defence systems are impenetrable. And now Iran is able to make breaches in them. Yes, it happened before — like during the exchange last year — but this time Israeli losses are more significant. People have died.
This time it looks like the Iranians aimed much more directly at the military headquarters in central Tel Aviv. The IDF headquarters, the Ministry of Defence, the Air Force command are all located in one compound. That’s what they were targeting. From what I gather, they did hit the compound. Recently, the oil refinery in Haifa has been hit hard, as well as several residential buildings in cities across Israel.
The extent to which Iranian missiles pierced the Iron Dome, the Arrow, and whatever other systems they have — that’s shocking to Israelis. With people killed and so much destruction, some streets in those Israeli cities look like Gaza right now. People feel much more vulnerable. The Israeli systems intercept most missiles but the small number that make it through is devastating.
I’m quite certain it’s going to continue if Israel keeps bombing Iran. And the Iranians have more powerful missiles as well as low-flying cruise missiles they haven’t used.
Do people in Israel actually believe that Iran was that close to obtaining weapons of mass destruction — I mean, atomic bombs?
Yeah, absolutely — you tell people that, and they believe it. I mean, if you’re the Israeli military establishment, of course you push that line.
I, personally, don’t believe it. Even if Iran was making a breakthrough — honestly, I have no problem with that. Good for them. It’s entirely rational for them to pursue nuclear weapons.
I’m strongly opposed to nuclear weapons, especially in the Middle East, but given the circumstances, it’s both rational and legitimate for Iran to seek them — as long as there’s a genocidal, aggressive Israeli state here. Nevertheless, Israeli people — including liberals — believe the narrative. They come up with all kinds of silly excuses, like quoting aggressive statements that Iranian politicians have made. But in fact, equally aggressive statements were pronounced by Israeli politicians against Iran over the years!
The second aim of the Israeli government is regime change in Iran. Do you believe that’s possible?
I think it’s madness. It’s not going to happen. Look — when Israel is systematically killing children in Tehran and hitting refineries and infrastructure, that’s very different from claiming they’re only bombing military targets. From my limited perspective, I imagine that seeing what Israel is doing right now, many Iranians who oppose the regime — and I believe that might be the majority of Iranians — will come together to stand against this Israeli aggression.
If Israel thinks it can change the regime in Iran by killing children in Tehran — that’s madness. And the entire attack is a crime of aggression — a crime against humanity. And, at the same time, a political delusion.
The talking heads in the media landscape — do they really believe that Iran will somehow… blow up?
The media here parrot official Israeli talking points. You don’t hear anyone saying that things aren’t going well or that a regime change like this is impossible. It took them almost two years of genocide to start talking about the suffering in Gaza. And even then, it’s just a few voices and not showing the worst images.
For now, I don’t think you’ll see Israeli mainstream media criticizing the idea of regime change or saying this war is unjust. That will take more time — if it ever happens. However, the fact that Israelis are dying in cities across Israel is already forcing some commentators to ask a few questions, such as wondering why Israel is attacking Iranian infrastructure and not focusing on nuclear facilities.
There is also a second narrative, saying that the whole crisis was manufactured by Netanyahu to save his government from collapsing.
Well, there’s a crisis here around drafting the ultra-Orthodox into the military. As you know, most ultra-Orthodox 18-year-olds don’t have to serve, or they join the army for a very short period. There’s a lot of anger in Israeli society about that — people say, we’re dying in Gaza, and they’re not even enlisting.
The ultra-Orthodox parties want to keep these exemptions. Other parties wish to see more ultra-Orthodox young men enlisting. The ultra-Orthodox parties were threatening to withdraw from the government if Netanyahu didn’t guarantee some sort of exemption.
We’re talking mainly about United Torah Judaism, which itself is divided into two factions, and also Shas. The vote was on — I’m not sure of the exact technical term — sort of adjourning the Knesset plenary, or dissolving the Knesset. That requires 61 votes. The opposition and their supporters — including some ultra-Orthodox within the coalition — only had 53 votes. The coalition had 61 votes against, so the bill didn’t pass.
The Knesset Speaker, from Netanyahu’s Likud party, announced some sort of legislation draft that would resolve the issue, but we’ll wait and see. Of course, now with the war, Netanyahu will get more time if he needs it.
Are people mainly angry about the exemption, or is it more about the military genuinely requiring more soldiers?
Currently, it’s a huge problem. People have always been angry about this, but now — with the war and so many soldiers dying — it’s different. The military is really short on soldiers; they’re having big difficulties. So yes, they require more soldiers. The military is pushing hard for more extensive draft measures.
When you look at the numbers, they don’t seem that high. The official communiqué states that the losses do not exceed 900 soldiers killed, and around 6-7 thousand injured.
Yes — but that’s already a considerable number. Around ten thousand soldiers have been wounded. Plus, you have people with mental health issues, soldiers not showing up, or those seeking psychiatric help. The IDF says they’re short on something like 10,000 to 20,000 soldiers. That’s what they claim they need.
There’s a lot of talk about a psychological crisis in Israel right now — alcohol abuse, drug use, cocaine, other substances. That’s becoming very visible in daily life?
Yes. In daily life — you can feel it. Personally, I avoid most public places for too many reasons. But overall, you can say people are anxious. I try to limit my outings to quieter places. If you look at drivers on the road — people have always been edgy here, but now it feels worse. Just reading the news: there’s more violence, more people being stabbed, more women killed by their spouses. It feels even crazier now.
And I just found this figure: since July 2024, over the past year, the IDF has tried to draft 10,000 ultra-Orthodox men — and only 205 have actually been drafted. That’s about 2%.
Why is the ultra-Orthodox community so opposed to it?
It goes back to their view that it’s more important to study Torah in the yeshiva — that this is what protects the Jewish people. And now, moreover, who wants to go serve, work hard, and get killed?
Originally, it was something like a small favour Ben-Gurion did to one of the ultra-Orthodox rabbis. After the Holocaust — most yeshivas in Eastern Europe had been destroyed — the rabbi asked Ben-Gurion to grant a temporary exemption from military service for a few hundred yeshiva boys each year. And then, things just grew. Now it’s no longer 400 — it’s more like 10,000 or even more each year.
And there’s another factor: the community leaders are genuinely afraid — and for good reason — that if 18-year-olds serve in the IDF, their eyes will be opened to the wider world. They might abandon the ultra-Orthodox way of life. It would be harder to control them because they’d be drawn to broader Israeli society and no longer be religious.
But with this escalation, is there any kind of mass mobilization, are people showing some new spirit — the sense of truly being at war? On the Iranian side, you could see people out on the streets demonstrating their support for the government. And across much of the Middle East, we saw similar scenes.
Most Israelis just do whatever the government tells them. I don’t think we’re going to see any mass protests against the war with Iran, at least for now. The number of people willing to go out and demonstrate right now is minimal. I mean, I hope to be surprised — but for now, it’s difficult to imagine large protests against the war.
Furthermore, the police are cracking down on any small protest against the war. They claim the slogan “Stop the War” is illegitimate. This is Israeli democracy in action. The liberals who have been protesting against the government for various reasons are supporting the IDF. But under this support there is a claustrophobic sensation of doom, helplessness, and clinging to the simplest force uniting the fragmented Israeli society — the army.
Nonetheless, in some parts of the country the situation is calmer than it used to be, for example in the north? Interestingly, Hezbollah declared they were not going to participate in the escalation?
For now, the northern border is quiet. That said, there are ongoing issues. Israel is still occupying parts of Lebanese territory. Hezbollah is demanding an Israeli withdrawal, and so is the Lebanese government. I think Hezbollah’s position is: If the Lebanese government can resolve this politically, that’s fine. But if they can’t, then at some point there could be military retaliation for Israel occupying parts of Lebanon.
And what about the socio-economic situation, is it deteriorating further?
Prices keep going up. I think last time I mentioned the price of Lindt dark chocolate. Before the genocide started, it was approximately 12 or 13 shekels for a 100-gram bar. Now it’s 22 or 23 shekels, which is 5.54 euros. So, prices are rising. Some people have lost their jobs — even those who’ve done long military service as reservists. Some people’s businesses have collapsed.
It’s hard to say there’s a feeling of total economic collapse, but the economy is not doing well. People have less money, and the outlook isn’t good. There’s almost no tourism. Most international airlines have stopped flying to Israel — some have pulled out indefinitely.
There’s this sense of siege. The Houthis — the Yemenis — are specifically targeting Ben Gurion Airport. At least one missile or rocket has landed there; we’ve seen the footage. It was pretty frightening. There’s a sense of siege and crisis.
A lot will depend on what the military elites decide. If there’s criticism within the system against Netanyahu — well, maybe that could change things. But for now, they’re all coming together: the Air Force, the intelligence agencies, the Ministry of Defence — all saying this is justified.
But there are also reports that the heads of the security and military establishment don’t trust Netanyahu. They don’t know what his real intentions are.
So, what you’re describing is a society in deep crisis.
Yeah, absolutely. And also in denial — denial about the deep hole we’re in, denial about the Gaza genocide, even though they know enough. They know Israel is committing something terrible. They can’t claim ignorance — but they try to deny it anyway.
They’re in denial about the fact that Israel has lost its future. It’s a society that’s reverting to a primitive stage — crude violence, hatred, racism, and a lot of denial.
And the developments in Gaza — are they present at all in the media? I mean, what we’re seeing now, you can’t really call it a war any more. Most of what’s happening looks like hungry people fighting for food. The IDF has largely withdrawn, and now there are what — mercenaries, hoodlums, gangs armed by Israel. One could presume the IDF is tired, that people are tired of taking part in what’s going on in Gaza. What’s the perspective on that?
There is some discussion — about soldiers being burned out, exhausted, suffering from collapse. But the main thing about Israel’s presence in Gaza right now — there are several aspects.
First, Israel has now admitted that it’s using the gangs — apparently supported also by the United Arab Emirates. The army is still inside Gaza, but they’re not in charge of distributing aid. Even before, they weren’t really in charge; that was left to international agencies.
Now it’s this very shady “Gaza humanitarian front” with U.S. mercenaries. It’s apparent that both the IDF and some Palestinian collaborators are using violence — actually shooting at Palestinians gathering to receive aid, for various reasons. I’d even say that some shooting is done just to try to break the spirit of the Palestinians.
Of course, you won’t hear anything about this from the Israeli media. The focus is entirely on Iran — on our suffering, on poor little Israeli victims.
Yes, there’s still armed Palestinian resistance — some soldiers are being killed or wounded every week. But it’s a genocide. Calling it a war is misguided. Still, this is how Israelis will refer to it — as a war, certainly not as a genocide.
And what’s the situation in the West Bank right now?
We’re not hearing enough about the situation in the West Bank, but what Israel is doing there is strongly inspired by what it’s been doing in Gaza. Israel has been flattening — razing — entire areas within refugee camps. They’re basically destroying the refugee camps because these are centres of resistance.
There’s horrific settler and IDF violence against small Palestinian communities in the Jordan Valley and the South Hebron Hills — basically just trying to expel them. They’re killing their sheep, stealing their water, terrorizing them in the middle of the night.
I think the world should pay more attention to what’s going on in the West Bank. There’s ethnic cleansing and other crimes against humanity happening there right now.
The IDF imposed a state of siege yesterday.
Currently, there’s essentially a complete siege or closure imposed on all Palestinian communities in the West Bank — it’s been like that for the past 48 hours or so.
And I should add: there’s a huge economic crisis there. People have been unable to work for almost two years. Some had jobs in Israel — unskilled labour, skilled labour — and they’ve lost those. People have burned through their savings.
It’s a time bomb. People have run out of money. There’s so much poverty in the West Bank, and I think that’s something people really need to know about.
I’m afraid that it will be the next place of the next escalation, and maybe, the next part of the ongoing genocide.
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