Israeli military amazed, 'jealous' at U.S. war against Iraq

TEL AVIV — Israeli defense officials and military commanders have expressed amazement over the capture of one of the largest and most powerful Arab countries by what they say amounted to fewer than three U.S. Army divisions.

The officials said the U.S. strategy of avoiding enemy troop concentrations as well as exploiting combat air supremacy comprises methods far more advanced than those employed by the Israeli military.

"This has been a very strange and unprecedented war and it will take us awhile to learn what took place," Yuval Steinetz, chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, said. "We will have to learn from this war and draw the conclusions."

"I am jealous of them [U.S. military]," Maj. Gen. Dan Harel, head of the Israel military's C4 directorate, said. "They have advanced in areas that we were leading in only a few years ago. They have the ability to put everything together in command and control. Our navy and air force have systems. but we have to integrate them."

Officials and military commanders agreed that the U.S. war in Iraq overshadowed the 1967 Israeli victory over four Arab countries, including Iraq. They said the United States sustained about 100 casualties in three weeks of fighting that resulted in the capture of Baghdad and most Iraqi cities. In contrast, about 600 Israeli soldiers were killed in the six days of the 1967 war, most of them in the ground battle with Egypt in the Sinai Peninsula.

"In the 1967 war, we also had complete supremacy, but we lost several hundred soldiers," Steinetz said. "This is where technology comes in."

Steinetz, regarded as one of the most prominent Israeli strategists in government, said Israel will have to understand the significance of technology in combat. He said Israel's military must absorb the U.S. model of avoiding direct engagement with enemy troops.

Israeli officials said the military will have to learn the war strategy espoused by the late British general Basil Henry Liddell Hart. In a series of books, Liddell Hart advocated the "indirect approach" to warfare where attacking forces avoid enemy troop concentrations and focus on key targets that could result in the downfall of the regime. The approach stresses maneuver, cunning, and forces the enemy to prepare for multiple contingencies.

The Israeli model has focused on air supremacy, speed and direct confrontation with the enemy. Strategists said this approach led to nearly 3,000 casualties in the 1973 war, with many of the soldiers killed in waves of assault on Egyptian armored units in the Sinai Peninsula.

For some strategists, the lesson is clear: Israel needs to deploy fewer and faster forces backed by a range of air power. Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Moshe Ya'alon said the war in Iraq would require significant revisions of Israel's security doctrine. Ya'alon said this would affect the force structure of the military.

"The [next] conflict will not engage air forces against ground forces," [Res.] Col. Shmuel Gordon, an air force pilot and a leading military strategist, said. "The conflict will be between air forces across the services and special operations forces against ground forces."

Israeli commanders, who are currently drafting a multi-year plan for procurement and force development, agreed that the U.S. war in Iraq would serve as a model for future engagements. But they stressed that such a war requires the procurement and absorption of advanced technology from the individual soldier to the division level.

Harel called Tikshuv, said the budget cuts over the last two years have prevented several projects meant to integrate the armed services. He said the war in Iraq has stressed the need for the full integration between the air and ground forces.

The C4 directorate, formerly a part of the Technology and Logistics Directorate, has been authorized to digitalize the military. This includes the integration of all ground force assets through fiberoptic cables, cellular and broadband communications and the expansion of military satellite communications.

Israel's Ground Forces Command has launched a project called Digital Ground Warfare, or Tsayad, which is meant to integrate all units of the army and allow the General Staff to obtain a realtime picture of the battlefield.

But commanders said the project has been hampered by a lack of funding. "All this takes several hundreds of millions of shekels," Harel said. "You have just have to concentrate this funding and put it in the right place."

But commanders said the military has sustained a $600 million shortfall in its budget for fiscal 2003. This has slowed down progress in virtually every new procurement program based on local contractors. Elbit Systems has been entrusted to administer the Digital Ground Warfare program.

"The Israel Defense Forces has already demonstrated leading-edge capabilities in connecting real-time intelligence to firepower in its targeted anti-terror operations in the territories," Harel said. "But these capabilities are not yet widespread in the ground forces."

For his part, Gordon has urged the military to study the U.S. battle for Baghdad. In a report, Gordon, who has served as a consultant to the Israel Air Force and Defense Ministry, said the U.S. capture of the Iraqi capital has "historic importance to the development of the Israel Defense Forces."

"If air power and special forces are given the opportunity, the conclusion is sharp and clear," the report said. "But if such an opportunity is not implemented to allow for their dominance, the revolution will be delayed."

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In a series of books, Liddell Hart advocated the "indirect approach" to warfare where attacking forces avoid enemy troop concentrations and focus on key targets that could result in the downfall of the regime. The approach stresses maneuver, cunning, and forces the enemy to prepare for multiple contingencies.

“Battles are won by slaughter and maneuver. The greater the general, the more he contributes in maneuver, the less he demands in slaughter.” -Winston L. S. Churchill

I'm not sure Israel will be able to emulate our military. For one they just don't have the money, but more importantly, they are too thoroughly hated by their neighbors. Part of the reason the Iraqi's were so easily defeated is because they saw us as potential liberators. None of Israel's enemies will view them this way and that will make it dificult for Israel to duplicate our success.

The really amazing thing is, we never used our most advanced resource, the 4th ID.
Even if the Israelis catch up with what our "involved" forces have done, they still have not seen what our most modern component can do.
From what I understand, it is an entirely different level from what was seen so far in Iraq.

Israel military amazed

This analysis might also be subtitled "Rummy vindicated" and posted to Wesley Clark and the other (re)tired generals with demands that they can begin eating crow any time (see Cagel's editorial cartoon to that effect). If any of the recipients are considering political fund drives, they could charge admission to such public humiliation - the results might equally amaze them.

Rummy's version of "lightning war" blasts the next best thing even further back into the last century. We were on "warp drive" while others were seemingly only contemplating getting out of bed.

Our total success dismays and confounds our enemies, gives confidence and a sense of achievement to our troops, and swells all of our hearts with pride.

Such overwhelming success by experts in any field is astounding, but the last three weeks has been simply awesome. A hearty WELL DONE to our military forces.

What we saw during Gulf War I was our military doctrine ( high tech ) versus Soviet doctrine ( throw a lot of low tech iron at the problem )-- and we all know how that turned out.

What we have just seen in the 3-Week War is Information-Tech,
( Some are calling it Hyperwarfare... )
or 21st Century warfare versus 20th Century...

What I would suggest, and call your attention to, is the fact that we, and Israel, are capable of waging 21st Century warfare, and the entire Arab world is not.

Proven fact, by recent events.

Believe me, lessons are being drawn, across the world...

What I would suggest, and call your attention to, is the fact that we, and Israel, are capable of waging 21st Century warfare, and the entire Arab world is not.

The Arab world is not really any longer capable of waging even 8th century warfare.

I absolutely agree with you, backhoe. I think that the 'jealous' part is really admiration, and a realization that Israel has been so involved in a ongoing, endless war she hasn't noticed the new military thinking in America. But she will noooow! Yep. Part of Russia's irritation is that they helped Iraq right up to the last minute, and maybe beyond, and Iraq still got beat! France, Germany, et al, just hate it that not only are they militarily weak, but they ain't NEVER gonna catch up, no matter what they do. They've missed the boat.

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