IDF chief puts military on highest alert, orders leave freeze, ahead of Oct. 27 vote

Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir placed the military on its “highest state of alert” ahead of next week’s election and canceled soldiers’ leave, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israel’s enemies not to test the country.

Zamir held an assessment Monday morning with senior officers, during which he “stressed that the IDF’s mission is to enable the democratic elections to take place on schedule and safely,” according to a statement.

He said the military is “on the highest state of alert and will continue to maintain a high level of vigilance and readiness across all fronts” in the coming period, ahead of the October 27 vote.

Zamir ordered a leave freeze across IDF units starting Thursday, requiring soldiers to remain on base instead of taking planned leave, “subject to ongoing situational assessments.”

He also instructed the military to have more senior officers present in command centers “to ensure operational readiness and capability.”

A military official had said Sunday that the IDF was considering canceling all leave for soldiers on election day. The official did not cite a specific or immediate warning, but said the decision was being considered as a “measure of readiness and alertness given the sensitivity of the period.”

West Bank forces boosted; seen unlikely to halt settler violence

In addition, amid a surge in violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank, the Central Command, which oversees military operations in the territory, will be reinforced with troops from the Paratroopers Brigade headquarters and additional units “to strengthen the deployment in the area and increase the presence on the ground,” Zamir said.

The Paratroopers Brigade headquarters will serve as a dedicated task force headquarters in the area between the Samaria and Binyamin regional brigades, according to the military.

The military had already significantly bolstered the West Bank with additional troops recently, and still failed to crack down on settler violence. The latest move is seen as unlikely to boost those efforts, as Defense Minister Israel Katz has instructed the military to hand over all responsibilities for settler violence to the police.

Additionally, Zamir ordered that more forces be allocated to other fronts “according to operational needs, in the air, at sea and on land.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Israel’s enemies not to test the country’s resolve during a visit to an unnamed Israeli Air Force base Monday.

“I say to our enemies: Do not test us,” Netanyahu said in a video released by his office. “You will suffer harder blows than you have suffered until now.”

He emphasized the air force’s “readiness, determination and capability to strike our enemies whenever required.”

“We are determined to defend ourselves,” Netanyahu added. “Do not test us.”

Netanyahu issued a similar warning last month, when he said the country had indications that enemies might attempt an attack ahead of the election. Opposition leaders demanded security briefings and questioned whether the warning was politically motivated.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid said there was no reason to alarm the public after receiving a briefing following the warning.

At the time, according to security sources cited by Kan news, Haaretz and Army Radio, the IDF had not identified a specific threat of an attack ahead of the election, raised its alert level or mobilized additional troops in any sectors.

Earlier this month, Central Elections Committee Chair Justice Noam Sohlberg ordered the removal of a video filmed last month at an Israeli Air Force base from Netanyahu’s personal social media accounts, in which the premier warned of a possible attack on Israel ahead of the October 27 vote.

Sohlberg ruled that the video had “elements of election propaganda” and noted that Netanyahu “throughout the video used the first person a lot.”

The IDF is set to begin deploying at least 850 polling stations for soldiers on Tuesday at military bases and outposts across the country and beyond Israel’s borders. The stations will remain open through October 27, when the rest of the country votes.

In Israel, municipal and national election days are designated as national holidays to encourage voter turnout.