The Cabinet, today, Sunday, in the framework of IDF Reserves Appreciation Day, unanimously decided that an active IDF reservist will henceforth be defined as a soldier who has served at least 20 days over a period of three continuous years, instead of ten days in one year.

The Cabinet also decided to extend the time in which an active reservist will be eligible for benefits for this period from one year to three years.

Following are Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s remarks at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting:

“Today, the Cabinet is marking IDF Reserves Appreciation Day. I think that, perhaps, this is the most Israeli thing there is.

In order to defend our state, we need not only regular forces, but also reserves. Men and women sacrifice their time every year in order to defend the country. There is a component of mutual guarantee here, a common denominator familiar to us all. This is fundamental; they do this with the assistance of their families as well.

Large sections of the nation share this burden of defending the country. We know that we are succeeding in ensuring that for both the reserves and regular forces there will be a more egalitarian division of the burden.

To this end we have established the committee to advance equality in sharing the burden among the citizens of Israel. This committee meets on an ongoing basis; I receive its reports. The committee will put forth a proposal that I think will resolve a considerable portion of these problems so that we may continue bearing this burden of defending the state in a more responsible and just manner.

Today we salute men and women reservists and the families that support them; all parts of the nation share in this salute.

I thank you. Thank you very much.”

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)