The Israeli military tested its ability to wage a simultaneous war on seven fronts during a surprise exercise launched by Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir at dawn on 6 September 2026, alongside a large-scale drill in Eilat and the Arava, amid challenges including troop shortages, the depletion of reserve forces and funding for arms plans.
The drills simulated raids on communities, hostage-taking, fire into the interior and attacks on strategic sites as part of a readiness test for surprise, multi-front attacks and the ability of forces and commanders to carry out orders and respond operationally in real time.
Surprise test for commanders and units
The units and commanders taking part in the “Dawn 2.0” exercise were called up without prior warning, except for a limited number of officials who knew about the test. The scenarios included the infiltration of 10 gunmen into the Hanita settlement in the north, a breach near Route 60 and the Shilo settlement in the West Bank, and incidents along the Gaza Strip border, in addition to attacks on settlements and fire reaching the interior.
Special forces and the air force took part in a scenario to regain control of a settlement, while military officials monitored how orders were carried out and the speed of the response on the ground.
Israel is going through a “tense and combustible period on all fronts,” and readiness for a surprise attack has become the army’s baseline posture.
This was the second version of the test, following a first exercise conducted on 10 August 2025. The army said the previous version produced lessons concerning the distribution and deployment of forces and the speed of response, making the new drill a test of the procedures adopted over the following year.
Scenario for a large-scale attack on Eilat
Alongside the surprise test, the 80th Division conducted an exercise in Eilat and the Arava between 6 and 9 September, with the participation of the police, navy, air force and rescue services. Its scenarios included the infiltration of gunmen from Jordan into a residential community in the Arava, the seizure of a police station and a hotel, and the storming of a military site and hostage-taking.
The exercise also included infiltration operations by paraglider and personal watercraft from Jordan and Egypt. Eilat police chief Alon Kalfon said the forces simulated a large-scale infiltration into the city “from 360 degrees,” while Southern District police commander Haim Boblil said Eilat must be able to confront an attack independently because the arrival of special forces from central Israel could take at least three hours.
One of the maritime scenarios hypothetically ended with the infiltrators reaching the shore and casualties being reported.
Military plan collides with personnel shortage
The drills are part of the chief of staff’s “Hoshen” multiyear plan for 2026-2030, which the army announced in January was based on investigations into the 7 October 2023 attack, the subsequent war and its assessments of the next war. The plan covers 12 areas of force-building, including human resources, stockpiles, technology and border defense.
But implementing this doctrine faces a manpower crisis. Zamir told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in May that regular soldiers and reserve forces were suffering from continued depletion and that the army needed to expand rapidly. He also warned that reducing regular service to 30 months in January 2027 would reduce strength by the equivalent of one company from each battalion and increase reliance on reserve forces.
The army estimates the shortage at about 15,000 soldiers, including between 7,000 and 8,000 combat troops. The average deployment of a reserve battalion during 2025 was about 140 days, compared with a target of about 60 days in 2026, while response rates fell to about 80% during 2024 and 2025 after exceeding 100% following the October 2023 attack.
Disputes over the cost of readiness
The personnel crisis coincides with financial disputes over the cost of readiness. According to figures reported by Israeli economic outlets, the 2026 defense budget rose from 112 billion shekels in the initial agreement to 143 billion, then to 158 billion after the addition of 15 billion shekels, alongside other arrangements worth about 25 billion.
The defense establishment is also seeking commitments of about 85 billion shekels through 2029 to replenish stockpiles and build force capacity, without agreement on a funding source, while discussion of another 25 billion-shekel gap was postponed until October.
These demands place plans for readiness on multiple fronts under constraints related to the provision of troops, stockpiles, aircraft and border-protection systems.
