The Israel Defense Forces on Monday announced it was canceling a practice of adding four extra months of service for conscripted troops, but that it would extend deployment time for special forces units in the future, as the military looks to rebalance service terms to address a manpower crisis during the conflict in Gaza.

Since the beginning of the war, the IDF has delayed the release of conscripted ground troops and seamlessly transitioned their service into reserve duty for four additional months.

Starting in November, the IDF said it will cancel those extra four months, meaning that soldiers who were drafted in March 2023 will be released in November rather than March 2026.

However, soldiers in the special forces units who are currently in training will be required to serve an additional four months as “career soldiers,” starting in March 2027.

Additionally, troops who draft to special forces units in the future will be required to sign on for an additional eight months (in reconnaissance units) or a full year of service (in the commando units) as career soldiers.

Last month, the military said it was set to extend the service time for troops in selective units — including special forces, commando units, and the infantry brigades’ reconnaissance units — by a year, beyond the 30 months they currently serve, per a commitment that those soldiers had made upon enlisting. The policy in practice had not been enforced, and after outcry, the military backtracked from the move. Instead, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir appointed a committee........

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