IDF sees surge in female combat soldiers amid ongoing war and security demands

Nearly 8,500 women served in IDF combat units in 2025, according to fresh data from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). This figure is roughly double the number of female combat soldiers in 2020 and nearly ten times higher than a decade ago. The sharp increase occurred last year, when some 5,000 women enlisted in combat units.

During the Second Lebanon War in 2006, women made up around 3% of Israeli combat reserve soldiers. That figure rose to 8% during the 2014 Gaza war. In the current war, which began with Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, the share of female combat soldiers has surged to approximately 20 – meaning one in five IDF combat soldiers is a woman. There are currently six female combat battalion commanders.

In June 2025, a female IDF officer spoke to the Wall Street Journal, which conducted the investigation of the rise in the number of women in Israeli military combat roles. 

"Today, we’re not seen as a supplement to the force – we are the force," the female IDF officer explained. "We discovered just how capable we are – and now the system knows it, too," she added.

Some 65,000 women have served in the IDF reserves since the Oct. 7 attack. By comparison fewer than 7,000 women served during the 2014 war with Hamas.

Israeli military officials have noted that female soldiers display endurance under combat demands comparable to that of their male peers. The attrition rate among female soldiers currently stands at 15%, compared to an overall attrition rate of 16%.

The new IDF data also reveals an increase in the number of religious women who enlist to the military. Some 4,000 religious women enlisted in the IDF in 2025 compared to fewer than 1,000 at the beginning of the previous decade and 2,000 in 2020. 

The increase in the number of female combat soldiers comes amid calls from the Israeli military that it needs more combat soldiers to meet Israel’s security challenge in the multifront complex post-Oct. 7 reality. 

The Israeli military has also pushed for enlisting more ultra-Orthodox men into IDF combat roles. Last month, IDF Chief Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir hailed the ultra-Orthodox Hashmonaim Brigade soldiers as modern Maccabees during a Hanukkah military event. 

“The brigade’s operational activity over the past year proves that it is possible to integrate combat service while maintaining an ultra-Orthodox way of life. The IDF is the army of the people, and it has a duty to welcome all communities of society. Many missions lie ahead. We are working to expand the ranks of the IDF and to further recruit ultra-Orthodox individuals in order to ensure our readiness for future challenges – we cannot exist without a strong, alert, and capable military,” Zamir stated.

Earlier this month, 42 children of migrants in Israel petitioned the Israeli Supreme Court in Jerusalem, demanding the right to serve in the Israeli military. “Israel is our homeland,” they stated. Most of the migrant children were born and raised in Israel and view themselves as Israelis. They emphasized that military service is a pathway to broader acceptance in Israeli society.