The Israel Defense Forces last week completed a first-of-its-kind drill in the new battle order and fighting doctrine it plans to use if a war breaks out in the northern sector.
The IDF has conducted several routine drills in the northern sector in recent months as part of the new defense doctrine, which is based on the high probability that in another war, the IDF would be required to fight on multiple fronts.
Last week's drill was conducted as part of a large exercise on the Golan Heights, which the IDF said was "meant to improve the emergency and wartime readiness of the Northern Command and exercise multidimensional command and General Staff scenarios in the sector."
The drill, headed by the 36th Armor Division – the largest regular-service armored division in the IDF – included the deployment of thousands of Armor, Engineering and Infantry soldiers on the ground, alongside the extensive use of drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as cyber, intelligence-gathering and reconnaissance technology, and advanced air defense systems.
The IDF has defined a new, ground-oriented combat dimension, extending 1,000 feet into a potential battleground, across which troops can use intelligence drones and logistical UAVs and deploy electronic warfare technology.
"We want every officer deployed in the sector to be able to see the same images the commanders see as they advance," a senior defense official said.
Another defense official said the IDF is exploring the deployment of an "invisible electronic net" on future battlegrounds, with the aim of detecting and monitoring anything that may give out electronic signals. Those will be uploaded into a smart-trigger system that can process the information into a viable target within minutes.
