Israel Defense Force

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) (Hebrew: צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל‎, Tzva HaHagana LeYisra'el (help·info), lit. Defense Army for Israel), commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal (צה"ל), are Israel's military forces, comprising the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel. The IDF is headed by its Chief of General Staff, the Ramatkal, subordinate to the Defense Minister of Israel; the current Chief of Staff, since 2007, is Lieutenant General Gabi Ashkenazi.

The Israel Defense Forces were officially formed out of the Haganah at the order of Defense Minister David Ben-Gurion on May 26, 1948, as a conscript army, and incorporated the three Jewish underground organizations—the Haganah (including Palmach), Irgun and Lehi. It served as Israel's armed forces in all the country's wars—the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the 1956 Sinai War, the 1967 Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 1982 Lebanon War and the 2006 Lebanon War. While originally the IDF fully operated on three fronts—against Lebanon and Syria in the north, Jordan and Iraq in the east, and Egypt in the south—after the 1979 Egyptian–Israeli Peace Treaty, its activities have mainly been concentrated in southern Lebanon and the Palestinian Territories, including the First and Second Intifada.

The Israel Defense Forces differs from most armed forces in the world in many ways, including the conscription of women, and the structure, with close relations between the ground forces, air force and navy. Since its founding, the IDF has strived to be a unique army fitting Israel's specific requirements, and has also developed numerous local technologies, such as the Merkava main battle tank, Uzi submachine gun, and the Galil and Tavor assault rifles. It also has close military relations with the United States,^[2] including financial aid from the US, which also fostered development cooperation, such as on the F-15I jet, THEL laser defense system, the Arrow missile defense system, etc.

The IDF traces its roots to Jewish paramilitary organizations in the New Yishuv, starting with the Second Aliyah. The first such organization was Bar-Giora, founded in September 1907. It was converted to Hashomer in April 1909, which operated until the British Mandate of Palestine came into being in 1920. Hashomer was an elitist organization with narrow scope, and was mainly created to protect against criminal gangs seeking to steal property. After the Arab riots against Jews in April 1920, the Yishuv's leadership saw the need to create a nationwide underground defense organization, and the Haganah was founded in June of the same year. The Haganah became a full-scale defense force after the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine with an organized structure, consisting of three main units—the Field Corps, Guard Corps and the Palmach.

The IDF was founded following the establishment of the State of Israel, after Defense Minister and Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion published the order for its creation on May 26, 1948. The order called for the establishment of the Israel Defense Forces, and the abolishment of all other Jewish armed forces. Although Ben-Gurion had no legal authority to issue such an order, the order was made legal by the cabinet on May 31.^[3] The two other Jewish underground organizations, Irgun and Lehi, agreed to join the IDF if they would be able to form independent units. The Irgun also sought to make independent arms purchases, a dispute which led to the Altalena Affair, when an Irgun ship was shelled by the newly-created IDF. Following the affair, all independent Irgun and Lehi units were either disbanded or merged into the IDF. The Palmach, a strong lobby within the Haganah, also joined the IDF with provisions, and Ben Gurion responded by disbanding its staff in 1949, after which many senior Palmach officers retired, notably its first commander, Yitzhak Sadeh.

The new army organized itself during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, when Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Transjordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Yemen declared war on Israel. Twelve infantry and armored brigades were created: Golani, Carmeli, Alexandroni, Kiryati, Givati, Etzioni, the 7th and 8th armored brigades, Oded, Harel, Yiftach and Negev. After the war, some of the brigades were converted to reserve units, and others were disbanded. Directorates and corps were created from corps and services in the Haganah, and this basic structure in the IDF still exists today.

Immediately after the 1948 war, the Israel Defense Forces shifted to low intensity conflict against Arab infiltrators from the surrounding states, a trend that continues to this day. The 1956 Suez Crisis was the IDF's first test of strength after 1949, and the new army proved itself by capturing the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt, which was immediately returned. Following the conflict, infiltrator activity and organization increased and Israel engaged in a border war, which saw infiltration followed by retaliation, until the Six-Day War of 1967. In the war, Israel captured the Sinai Peninsula, West Bank and Golan Heights from the surrounding Arab states, changing the balance of power in the region as well as the role of the IDF. In the following years leading up to the Yom Kippur War, the IDF fought a War of Attrition against Egypt in the Sinai and a border war against the PLO in Jordan, culminating in the Battle of Karameh.

The surprise of the Yom Kippur War and its aftermath completely changed the IDF's procedures and approach to warfare. Organizational changes were made and more time was dedicated to training for conventional warfare. However, in the following years the army's role slowly shifted again to low-intensity conflict, urban warfare and counter-terrorism. The battle against the PLO peaked with the 1982 Lebanon War, where the IDF ousted Palestinian guerilla organizations from Lebanon. Palestinian militancy has been the main focus of the IDF ever since, especially during the First and Second Intifadas, causing the IDF to change many of its values and publish the IDF Spirit. The Shi'ite organization Hezbollah has also been a growing threat, against which the IDF fought a full-scale war in 2006.