Nearly 200 Southeast Asians, including 2 Singaporeans, served in Israeli military: IDF data

There were 111 Filipinos, 71 Thais, four Vietnamese, two Singaporeans and one Indonesian enlisted in the Israel Defence Forces as of March 2025, according to official data obtained by an Israeli non-governmental organisation. Advertisement Asia Nearly 200 Southeast Asians, including 2 Singaporeans, served in Israeli military: IDF data There were 111 Filipinos, 71 Thais, four Vietnamese, two Singaporeans and one Indonesian enlisted in the Israel Defence Forces as of March 2025, according to official data obtained by an Israeli non-governmental organisation. Israeli military vehicles drive past destruction in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Gaza border in southern Israel, Jan 21, 2026. (Photo: Reuters/Amir Cohen) New: You can now listen to articles. This audio is generated by an AI tool. Jack Board Jack Board 19 Feb 2026 07:26PM Bookmark Bookmark Share WhatsApp Telegram Facebook Twitter Email LinkedIn Set CNA as your preferred source on Google Add CNA as a trusted source to help Google better understand and surface our content in search results. Read a summary of this article on FAST. Get bite-sized news via a newcards interface. Give it a try. Click here to return to FAST Tap here to return to FAST FAST BANGKOK: Nearly 200 Southeast Asians were among more than 50,000 service members in the Israeli military holding more than one passport, according to official data obtained by an Israeli non-governmental organisation.There were 111 Filipinos, 71 Thais, four Vietnamese, two Singaporeans and one Indonesian enlisted in the Israeli military as of March 2025, according to numbers obtained by the NGO Hatzlacha, a volunteer emergency medical service, through Israel’s Freedom of Information Law.Those from the United States made up the largest group of Israeli military service members holding dual or multiple nationalities. At least 12,135 of them hold dual Israeli-US citizenship, while another 1,207 hold at least another passport.The next largest groups were from France (6,464 holding dual or multiple nationalities), Russia (5,169), Germany (4,193) and Ukraine (3,266). Subscribe to CNA’s Morning Brief An automated curation of our top stories to start your day. This service is not intended for persons residing in the E.U. By clicking subscribe, I agree to receive news updates and promotional material from Mediacorp and Mediacorp’s partners. Loading Among those from Asia in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) data released and reported last week were 201 people holding Indian passports, 76 Japanese, nine each from Hong Kong and South Korea, seven from China, three from Taiwan and two each from Nepal and Sri Lanka.Experts say the IDF data has raised questions about the foreign nationals’ legal liability in the Gaza conflict, which has killed more than 72,000 Palestinians since October 2023, according to local health authorities.Israel conducted its military assault in Gaza after militant group Hamas launched attacks in southern Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage, according to Israeli tallies.US President Donald Trump’s administration, teaming up with Qatar and Egypt, negotiated a ceasefire in October 2025. Around two dozen world leaders or other senior officials are now gathered in Washington to inaugurate the US-led Board of Peace focused on Gaza reconstruction, but whose ambitions reach further.The International Criminal Court is investigating alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza.Separately, allegations of genocide against the Palestinian population in Gaza are being examined at the International Court of Justice in a case brought by South Africa.There have been no reported convictions so far of dual nationals for war crimes in Gaza. However, legal complaints have been lodged in several countries, including France, Italy, South Africa and Belgium, and some authorities have opened preliminary investigations. In response to queries from CNA, Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs said it is aware of a foreign news report stating that two Singaporeans were among those who fought for the IDF during the conflict in Gaza.“MHA does not have any substantiated information at this point that any Singaporean is/was fighting as part of the IDF,” the spokesperson added.Singapore does not allow dual citizenship, but minors can hold two passports until they turn 21. The government may withhold an application to renounce citizenship if a male citizen has not carried out his National Service liabilities.In response to the data obtained by Hatzlacha, Indonesia's foreign ministry said on Tuesday (Feb 17) it could not immediately confirm or deny the reports of the individual but is ready to coordinate further with the law ministry and take follow-up measures in accordance with relevant laws, reported news outlet Jakarta Globe.Indonesia does not have diplomatic ties with Israel and advocates for Palestinian independence. It is also on the US-led Board of Peace.Munira Mustaffa, principal consultant of Malaysia-based security consulting firm Chasseur Group, said a thorough investigation would be needed to determine the relevant circumstances and whether the individual was a trained comb