IDF’s New Elite ‘Ghost Unit’ Finishes Training, Holds Exercise for General Staff
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by Benjamin Kerstein
The IDF’s new ‘Ghost Unit’ conducts an exercise. Photo: IDF Spokesperson’s Office.
The IDF’s newest elite unit finished its training on Thursday and took part in an exercise for the General Staff, marking a major step forward in realizing the army’s multi-year “Momentum” plan.
The Israeli military said in a statement that the multi-disciplinary unit, known as “Ghost,” brings many branches of the military together into a single operational entity, including intelligence, air force, cyber-defense and telecommunications.
During a visit to the IDF’s General Staff Forum, the unit demonstrated its abilities, attacking targets with live fire, using to newly-developed tactics in which ground forces direct air strikes in real time.
The aerial assets involved in the exercise included fighter jets, helicopter squadrons and drones. Armored, artillery and engineering forces also took part.
The “Ghost Unit” is intended to fight on any front and any terrain while maintaining high capabilities of locating and destroying the enemy.
Brig. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, whose division includes the “Ghost Unit,” said, “Over the past year, in-depth work has been done to ensure that the unit fulfills its mission.”
“This exercise is a significant milestone in the process of bringing this unit into operation, and represents progress in the development of innovative combat capabilities and methods, along with combining ground, air, intelligence and telecommunications forces,” he explained.
Air Force Brig. Gen. Noam Rif said, “The Air Force is a full partner in the multi-disciplinary unit and is an integral part of force and fitness building.”
“The unit combines air crews, drone operators and special air force fighters along with the leading squadrons, representing the range of tools possessed by the Air Force,” he added.
These capabilities, he said, were important to “combat in an urban setting, which the IDF expects to encounter in the next campaign.”
Watch a video of the “Ghost Unit” exercise below (via the IDF):
תקיפת מטרות בטכניקה חדשה ויכולות פורצות דרך:
הצצה מיוחדת לאימון של יחידת "רפאים"https://t.co/pGoxaYLs01 pic.twitter.com/z69eZTknFN
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) July 23, 2020
