The Israeli Ministry of Defense decided yesterday, Monday, to summon reservists who had previously been exempted from service in past years, due to a shortage of soldiers after a new security assessment.

The ministry explained in a statement published on the "X" platform (formerly Twitter) that Defense Minister Yoav Gallant ordered the re-summoning of those who were in reserve and had previously been exempted due to a reduction in troop numbers, and who are still of service age, according to the "Al Jazeera" news network.

The statement added that the decision was made based on a new assessment of the situation and the scale of activities of regular and reserve forces, as part of the army's plan to increase the number of recruits.

The army has already begun contacting the relevant candidates who previously served in the main formations, and suitable candidates will be tasked with returning to service in various units as needed for operational purposes.

In turn, the Israeli newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth" reported that the decision includes the reactivation of 15,000 Israelis who completed their regular service and were exempted from reserve service after being discharged from mandatory service 14 years ago, and they will be summoned to perform reserve duty 3 times in the next year.

The newspaper stated that "the decision will apply to those aged 35 or younger, as they will be returned to reserve service after having previously received an exemption from it."

Last month, the head of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in the Knesset, Yuli Edelstein, announced his intention to promote a bill that allows the conscription of reservists exempted from service, due to the army's urgent need for additional soldiers.

In June, the Israeli government approved a bill that temporarily raises the age for exemption from reserve service, and according to this law, reservists will serve until the age of 41, instead of the current 40, and reserve officers will serve until the age of 46, instead of 45.

Meanwhile, the Israeli security establishment warned that not extending the age of exemption could lead to difficulties in completing routine security tasks in the war on Gaza, according to the Israeli site "Walla."

This comes amid the ongoing war Israel has waged on the Gaza Strip since October 7, which has resulted in the martyrdom and injury of more than 132,000 Palestinians, most of them children and women, and over 10,000 missing, alongside widespread destruction and worsening famine.