Amid renewed interest in total defense frameworks within European strategic communities, this article explores the intersection of civilianled resistance to external armed aggression and the broader concept of national resilience in contemporary warfare. Through a comparison of two case studies–the grassroots resistance of Ukrainian civilians to Russian aggression since February 24, 2022, and the mobilization of Israeli civilians in response to the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023–this article assesses the strategic and operational relevance of civilian resistance within total and comprehensive defense models.

Furthermore, our findings validate the applicability of total defense in the context of protracted conflicts while also revealing internal tensions and complexities. The study underscores the decisive role of decentralized, civilian-led resistance in absorbing the initial shock of aggression and shaping the early trajectory of war. However, it also argues that while civilian engagement is indispensable during the initial phase, it later becomes only one component within the broader framework of national resilience. Nevertheless, in the mid- and protracted stages of a conflict, the soft-power factor of civil society’s will to fight is vital to sustain hard-power military capacity and societal functioning over time. Ultimately, the Ukrainian and Israeli experiences point to the need to reconceptualize civilian resistance as a foundational, not auxiliary, pillar of national resilience and total defense, particularly in an era marked by the “civilianization” of armed conflicts and the resurgence of long wars.