IDF to gradually let troops go home in slight return to normal amid virus crisis

The Israel Defense Forces on Monday announced it would begin releasing combat troops and other soldiers for leave next week after keeping them on base for roughly a month, in an apparent sign of a slight return to normal amid the coronavirus pandemic.

On March 15, the military told troops serving on so-called “closed bases” — mostly combat units and soldiers in training courses — that they should prepare to remain on base for at least a month in an effort to prevent them from contracting the virus and infecting their fellow soldiers.

On Monday IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi accepted the proposal of his deputy, Maj. Gen. Eyal Zamir, who has been tasked with leading the military’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, to allow these troops to go home for short furloughs “in a gradual and monitored way,” the military said.

The IDF said this would begin on Sunday, starting with combat troops on operational deployment, followed by units performing exercises and finally those in training courses.

The IDF said troops would only be allowed to leave if their unit could maintain “full operational fitness.”

The troops would travel to and from their bases on buses operated by the military due to the decreased public transportation.

“The soldiers will be briefed on strictly maintaining IDF and Health Ministry medical orders. When they return, the troops will be questioned and tested [for the virus],” the military said.

The IDF said when soldiers returned, they would continue to operate in distinct “capsules,” or shifts, in order to ensure that if troops in one shift become infected with the disease, the others will not, and the IDF will be able to continue to operate fully.

Last week — ahead of the Passover holiday — the military also released soldiers with administrative jobs from “closed bases,” allowing them to celebrate the festival at home.

The military has sought to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in its ranks in recent weeks by minimizing contact between troops and civilians. However, maintaining “social distancing” between soldiers has proven a difficult goal to accomplish, with multiple cases reported in the pres of troops gathering in large groups and failing to keep a distance of two meters (six feet) from one another.

As of Monday night, 128 soldiers and civilian employees of the IDF were sick with the coronavirus, all of them with light symptoms. Another 40 have had the disease, but recovered.

In addition, 1,872 troops and civilian employees were in quarantine, according to the IDF.