During Saddam’s rule, the air force and the army used different radios locked to different frequencies, in order to avoid a coordinated assault during a coup.
That said, the Israelis were and are always outnumbered and generally outgunned for the first 15 years, but they always devoted themselves to training, and of course have always been fighting for their homes and lives. As you said, when they call up the reserves, it’s basically the entire population fit to fight, making their army one of the largest in the world.
They also are much better educated in general, and study the hell out of things. The IDF discovered that the old rule of thumb about water requirements in desert warfare was a fraction of the actual amount, and just pushing up their water ration makes their soldiers seem like tireless supermen during combat. A good chunk of the Egyptian KIAs in 1967 died of thirst trying to flee (mostly on foot) across the Sinai.
I saw that too while training Iranian “officers” at A&M from 1974 through 1978. Worthless.
Also, the Soviets “knew” that Israel/Israeli attitude/economy was going to pro-Soviet because of several assumptions.
Soviets had just fought Nazi Germany -> The Jews (Israeli) would support those who fought the Germans/Nazis.
The Jews/Israelis were heavily in to collectivism/national/socialist functions and business setups -> The Israelis would become socialists and almost immediately good Communists.
The American and European Jews were (as they a
re now!) secular Jews in many areas. NOT religious Jews! Therefore, they (as frequent communists and almost always socialists in the other countries around the world, Israel would almost immediately become a good communist state next to the oil fields of the Arabs, south of Turkey, on the Mediterranean next to the Suez canal.