IDF orders October 22 leave freeze and reinforcements ahead of election

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir has ordered a leave freeze in military units from Thursday, October 22, subject to continuing security assessments. The instruction forms part of a package announced on October 19 to strengthen readiness ahead of Israel’s election.

The measures include reinforcements and a greater presence of senior commanders in operations rooms, headquarters and units. Zamir told a multi-front assessment that the military’s task was to allow the election to take place on schedule and safely.

On October 20, the following day, he visited a Gaza Division command exercise examining emergency readiness and the implementation of operational plans.

Reinforcements for Central Command

The announced package assigns the Paratroopers Brigade headquarters and additional allocated forces to reinforce Central Command. The headquarters is to operate as a task-force brigade headquarters in the area between Samaria and Binyamin in the West Bank.

The instruction concerns the headquarters and forces assigned to it. It does not announce the deployment of the entire Paratroopers Brigade. The IDF also said other fronts would receive additional forces according to operational needs, across air, sea and land missions.

No comprehensive personnel totals were published. The greater senior-command presence is intended to support operational readiness and proficiency, according to the military.

Gaza exercise tests emergency plans

The exercise Zamir visited on October 20 incorporated lessons from the October 7 attack and simulated defensive and offensive scenarios, the IDF said. He examined force readiness and held an assessment with brigade commanders on preparations for war and different operational contingencies.

Zamir emphasized the need to recognize gaps in the military’s understanding of threats and ensure that instructions are implemented at the level of individual outposts and forces in the field. He also said defenses had been strengthened and forces reinforced across multiple fronts during the preceding week.

Readiness during the election period

The chief of staff linked the preparations to enabling an election free from external interference. His remarks were made in the context of military defense and counterterrorism. The reviewed statements did not disclose a specific attack plan or an intrusion into election systems.

As of October 21, the leave freeze was an order scheduled to begin the following day. Its implementation remains subject to assessments; the published announcements did not specify every exception or an end date.