Retired Major General Eliezer Merom today (Sunday) slammed Israel’s lack of preparedness for the growing threat of Hezbollah drones, criticizing the military for ignoring warning signs from European battlefields.
“I have to say honestly, and it pains me to say this, but I think we fell asleep on watch a bit,” Merom said, referring to the development of the drone threat. He said the threat has been visible for a long time: “This threat existed in Ukraine for a very long time, and we saw it. We saw it on open networks. There are thousands of videos that were published two years ago and more, of small drones like these attacking forces.”
Merom explained that the war between Russia and Ukraine served as a live laboratory for the drone threat, where both sides used these weapons against each other. He emphasized that Ukraine developed various defense systems, and although they’re “not always the most perfect and not always the best,” Israel must “make sure to get our hands on them and learn from them.”
As for the current situation, Merom argued that Israel must act quickly to close the gap: “What we didn’t learn in the last two years, we need to learn now in a short period of time and produce results.” He said that until advanced technological solutions are found, the IDF must implement interim solutions in the field to protect soldiers.
These solutions include using simple measures and changing operational behavior: “In the meantime, at least right now, we need to do our best in the interim phase—and that’s nets, shotguns, and wherever possible find shelter.” Merom also stressed the need to reduce troop exposure: “Wherever IDF soldiers don’t need to be, they shouldn’t be in open terrain.”