Lebanese in the Israeli Army?
2/15/2026 10:15:00 AM
For the first time, the Israel army has revealed detailed official data on the number of soldiers holding foreign nationalities.
The newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Israeli military figures show that 50,632 soldiers hold other nationalities in addition to Israeli citizenship.
According to the data, the army includes 12,135 soldiers holding United States citizenship, the highest number by a wide margin compared to other nationalities, in addition to more than 6,100 French nationals and over 5,000 Russian nationals.
The list also includes thousands of recruits from Germany, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Romania, Poland, Canada, and Latin American countries.
The diversity was not limited to Western countries, as the list also included Arab nationalities, among them Yemen, Tunisia, Lebanon, Syria, and Algeria, though in limited numbers.
The newspaper added that, among Arab countries, Morocco ranks first, with 104 soldiers in the Israeli army holding Moroccan nationality, compared to one soldier holding Algerian nationality. Tunisia and Yemen are equal, with 22 soldiers each, followed by Iraq with 17 soldiers. Next comes the Jordan with 6 soldiers, then Lebanon with 4 soldiers, and both Syria and Egypt with 3 soldiers each. Finally, among Arab countries, Mauritania has one soldier, the same number previously mentioned for Algeria.
The data also indicates that 4,440 soldiers hold two foreign nationalities in addition to Israeli citizenship, and 162 soldiers hold three or more foreign nationalities.
The newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Israeli military figures show that 50,632 soldiers hold other nationalities in addition to Israeli citizenship.
According to the data, the army includes 12,135 soldiers holding United States citizenship, the highest number by a wide margin compared to other nationalities, in addition to more than 6,100 French nationals and over 5,000 Russian nationals.
The list also includes thousands of recruits from Germany, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Romania, Poland, Canada, and Latin American countries.
The diversity was not limited to Western countries, as the list also included Arab nationalities, among them Yemen, Tunisia, Lebanon, Syria, and Algeria, though in limited numbers.
The newspaper added that, among Arab countries, Morocco ranks first, with 104 soldiers in the Israeli army holding Moroccan nationality, compared to one soldier holding Algerian nationality. Tunisia and Yemen are equal, with 22 soldiers each, followed by Iraq with 17 soldiers. Next comes the Jordan with 6 soldiers, then Lebanon with 4 soldiers, and both Syria and Egypt with 3 soldiers each. Finally, among Arab countries, Mauritania has one soldier, the same number previously mentioned for Algeria.
The data also indicates that 4,440 soldiers hold two foreign nationalities in addition to Israeli citizenship, and 162 soldiers hold three or more foreign nationalities.