Tel Aviv leads in IDF mobilization with 42,000 reservists serving since Oct. 7

Tel Aviv has the highest number of Israel Defense Forces reservists mobilized since the outbreak of the war, with some 42,000 residents serving over the past two and a half years, according to data released by the military on Tuesday.

Jerusalem ranked second, with roughly 23,000 reservists, followed by Rishon Letzion, with about 16,000, Beersheva with 15,000 and Haifa with 14,000, the IDF said in a statement on the occasion of Reservists Appreciation Day.

Measured by the share of each city’s population, Tel Aviv also had the highest rate of reservists at 8.7%, followed by Beersheva (6.8%), Rishon Letzion (6.2%), Haifa (4.7%) and Jerusalem (2.2%).

According to the IDF, tens of thousands of new reservists have rejoined the military since the start of the War of Redemption, which was sparked by Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre on the southern border.

The data showed that the average length of active reserve service was roughly 94 days in 2024 and about 78 days last year. Around 37% of reservists who served during the war are parents, the military said.

The male and female reservists “left their daily routines, families and workplaces to answer the national call, driven by a sense of mission, responsibility and deep commitment to Israel’s security,” it stated.

“During the month dedicated to honoring reserve service members, we salute the reservists and their families for their dedication, sacrifice and willingness to answer the call time and again, whenever and wherever needed, in support of the security of the State of Israel and its citizens,” added the statement.

IDF figures previously showed that Religious-Zionist towns, many of which are located in Judea and Samaria, were leaders in the average number of days of military reserve duty served per resident.

Israel’s Religious-Zionist sector is also disproportionately represented in IDF combat units, resulting in inordinately high numbers of soldiers from this community having been killed or wounded during the war.