Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi’s Landmark Speech

IDF Chief of General Staff Aviv Kochavi's January 26 speech conveyed important messages to multiple audiences. The most notable was that the IDF is preparing for action against Iran’s nuclear program even if it has to do it on its own.

How Israel Is Adapting to the Growing Threat of Terror Armies

The Israeli defense establishment is playing a central role in the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic while also carrying out its many daily security missions. Yet at the same time, it is in the middle of an intense race against time. The goal of this race is to adapt to the growing threats posed to the country’s home front, and to strategic targets such as ports and power plants, from the terror armies located on Israel’s doorstep—threats that will remain long after Israel is able to place the pandemic behind it.

Israel’s “West Point” Increasingly Shapes the IDF Ground Forces

The Israel Defense Forces’ Tactical Command College (TCC), the Israeli equivalent of the West Point military academy, is increasingly shaping the professional cadre of the Israeli military’s ground forces and leaving its mark on future military leaders.

The IDF Must Revamp Its Strategies

If the IDF continues to operate according to its old conventions while Hezbollah continues to adapt itself to new realities, it could find itself defeated. IDF commanders need new capabilities to safeguard and support the forces on the ground.

Should the IDF Manage the COVID-19 Crisis?

The claim that management of the COVID-19 crisis by the IDF’s Home Front Command would have resulted in a far better outcome is based on the illusion that all emergencies have a common denominator that enables organizations to prepare for and deal with them effectively. But this is a false assumption.

Golda Meir: The Civilian Who Exposed Israel’s Lack of Preparedness for the 1973 War

Although Israeli PM Golda Meir lacked military knowledge, her questions during government discussions on the eve of the Yom Kippur War exposed the fact that deterrence and early warning, the two cornerstones of Israel’s security conception, had not been adequately addressed. If the IDF officers and the many bithonistim (officials with a security background) in her government had heeded her questions, the war could have gone very differently and perhaps even have been averted.

The Long Roots of the Yom Kippur War Debacle

The IDF’s difficulties at the outset of the 1973 Yom Kippur War stemmed from an inherent command flaw rather than an intelligence failure as is commonly believed. The roots of this flaw date back to 1957, when Chief of Staff Moshe Dayan decided on an early retirement age for IDF personnel so as to enable them to embark on a second career. Defense Minister David Ben-Gurion, who saw the dangers of the decision, opposed it but did not use his authority to revoke it.

IDF Budget Uncertainty and the Momentum Plan

Momentum, the IDF’s ambitious new multi-year force build-up program, will require a long-term budget framework if it is to achieve its goals—but clouds of uncertainty have gathered around it in the shadow of a massive government deficit.

The Intelligence Dimension of the IDF’s Flight from South Lebanon in May 2000

The extent of the current military threat to Israel posed by Hezbollah is the outcome of the hasty Israeli withdrawal from the security zone in South Lebanon in May 2000. Then-PM Ehud Barak appears to have made this fundamental decision without consulting Israeli intelligence.

Israel Versus Anyone: A Military Net Assessment of the Middle East

This assessment of Israel's military capability relative to the threats it faces is based on historically proven combat data, which in turn reflects the impact of human and technical quality on military combat effectiveness. This study also reflects a unique understanding of the significant variation in the efficiency of alternate national defense systems and the realistic impact of time on the generation of regional military power.