Israel Prepares for ISIS Threat from Sinai

March 30, 2016

A tense quiet has characterized the Israel-Egypt border for the past year, as the threat of the Islamic State has grown, leading the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] to realize that it could end up affecting Israel directly—specifically its southern towns. The IDF has taken this danger to heart, and has been preparing.

The IDF Southern Command has changed its war plans three times, updating them to fit the expected threat. Troops are focusing more on fighting in urban areas and protecting southern Israeli agricultural farms, which may be vulnerable to infiltration by ISIS elements.

The number of IDF troops along the border has been greatly reinforced: tanks and artillery batteries have been spread throughout the area, and joint army-air force drills are being conducted.

One of the main visible changes is the type of vehicles infantry forces are using: the Jeeps and Humvees have been reinforced, and equipped with rooftop machine guns.

“The bottom line is that ISIS isn’t right outside our gates yet, it’s concentrating its forces fighting against the Egyptians, but that’s out of choice,” said a senior IDF official. “In the last six months, the Egyptians have gone through a maturation process. They grew to understand that the rules have changed, meaning it’s no longer armies fighting each other, but an army facing a terror organization.”

“We in the IDF have improved our lethality. We also understand that the threat has changed, and have made moves that will answer the blows that have yet to land. All along the 220 kilometer [137 mi] border, we’ve significantly improved our defensive array, before the enemy even moves towards us. This shift is expressed in all fields, according to the threats faced,” he added.

 

Source: Excerpt of an article by Matan Tzuri, Ynetnews

Photo Credit: Idobi/wikipedia.com