The Israel Defense Forces’ General Staff Forum met on Wednesday with other security agencies to discuss a coordinated response to drone threats along the country’s borders, the military said on Thursday.
The meeting, which the military statement described as a “training session,” included representatives of the Air Force, various additional IDF branches, Israel Police and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet).
Wednesday’s gathering marked the start of “a learning process and the rapid development of solutions to the drone threat along the various borders,” according to the military. As part of the session, talks were held on “inter-organizational cooperation and how to strengthen it.
“Possible operational and technological solutions were presented on the topic, including a demonstration of various systems, and brainstorming groups were held on continued handling of the phenomenon and potential responses,” the Thursday afternoon statement added.
A recent large-scale exercise held by the Israel Defense Forces in Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley showed that the army is unprepared for attacks by unmanned aerial vehicles, Makor Rishon reported last week.
The Nov. 10-12 “Lion’s Roar” drill included 40 operational scenarios, 11 of which involved gliders and attack drones. Participating forces failed to effectively neutralize the UAVs, senior officers told the newspaper.
Although soldiers struggled with the UAV threat early in the drill, troops adapted by increasing aerial vigilance and avoiding movement in large groups to reduce casualties, according to the Nov. 13 report.
The drill—which was based on scenarios more extreme than the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas assault, as well as attacks observed in the Russo-Ukrainian war—used drones with water balloons, simulating explosive warheads.
Small drones were used to simulate attempts to lure IDF soldiers and the destruction of critical infrastructure, as well as airstrikes on rear command posts, armored vehicles, casualty collection points and special-forces teams traveling in open vehicles, the report stated.
The senior officers acknowledged that the IDF’s existing drone defenses are not sufficient and said the threat must be addressed in the military’s upcoming multi-year plan. They added that developing offensive drone units could give Israeli forces similar advantages against enemy forces.
