Israeli military reservists sing together as they sign pledge to suspend voluntary military service if the government passes judicial overhaul legislation near the defence ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel July 19, 2023. REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo

The Israeli military may arrest reservists who have pledged not to report for duty as part of protests at the government’s judicial overhaul plans, Army Radio reported on Thursday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanded a crackdown.

The seeping of the constitutional disputes into the conscript military has jarred Israelis who long saw it as an apolitical melting pot for a fractious society. On both sides of the schism, worries have been voiced about war-readiness.

A short dramatic film being circulated on-line showed an infantryman in battle desperately radioing for air strikes, only to be asked by the pilot: “Are you for or against the reforms?”

Culture Minister Miki Zohar posted the film but then removed it after the military spokesperson denounced it as “meant to create rifts within the IDF (Israel Defence Forces)”. Still, Zohar insisted on Twitter, the film had a “message of unity”.

The military spokesperson’s office has not formally provided figures for the reservist protests. But Army Radio, a popular Israeli broadcaster managed by the Defence Ministry, said “a few hundred” reservists had announced they would refuse call-ups.

Most of these are from the air force, Army Radio said. After ending their commissions, air force pilots and navigators are required to do weekly training and, according to veterans of the corps, make up around half of crews sent on combat sorties.

Sanctions being considered include arrest, suspension and dismissal, Army Radio said – but noted that, because air force reservists are designated as volunteers, they may be treated differently to reservists whose call-ups are obligatory.

On Monday, Netanyahu said his government would act against what he described as insubordination in the ranks that risked inviting attack by Israel‘s foes and undermining its democracy.

Protesters say his religious-nationalist coalition has lost its democratic mandate by trying to curb judicial independence with reforms that Netanyahu – who is on trial on graft charges he denies – argues will balance out the branches of government.

According to military data published by Globes newspaper in March, 4% of Israelis aged 22 to 45 are called up as reservists.