IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir visited the 91st Division in the Northern Command today (Wednesday), where he conducted an operational assessment of the northern sector. During the visit, Zamir reviewed the forces’ deployment and approved the principles governing the IDF’s defensive posture in the area.
Zamir said the 91st Division stands on the front line of the defense of Israel’s northern communities and that the IDF is currently operating from forward defensive positions, including deep inside enemy territory beyond the border. He said forces continue working to eliminate threats and strengthen the protection of northern residents.
“The campaign is not yet over, and the challenges are still ahead of us,” the chief of staff said. He added that the IDF has achieved significant successes against Hezbollah, but made clear that the objective now is to prevent the terrorist organization from recovering and reestablishing itself in southern Lebanon.
“We have achieved many significant operational successes and weakened the Hezbollah terrorist organization,” Zamir said. “The IDF is determined to clear the area south of the Litani River of Hezbollah’s presence, while continuing to advance the overarching objective of disarming the terrorist organization.”
1+Zamir also made clear that Israel does not currently consider the Lebanese Armed Forces sufficiently effective on the ground to achieve that objective through the preferred diplomatic route. “This objective cannot be advanced through a desired agreement with the Lebanese government as long as the Lebanese Armed Forces do not significantly improve their effectiveness on the ground,” he said.
The chief of staff stressed that Israel would continue acting to prevent Hezbollah from recovering from the blows it has suffered. “We will not allow Hezbollah to rebuild its strength, restore its capabilities or reestablish terrorist infrastructure in the area,” Zamir said.
1+During the visit, Zamir was also presented with robotic capabilities and advanced weapons used by intelligence-gathering soldiers, the Yahalom special engineering unit and reservists in the division. The chief of staff used the demonstration to reveal another element of the IDF’s evolving battlefield strategy: Within months, the military plans to inaugurate a new Robotics Arm developing capabilities across all three operational domains.
“The battlefield is changing rapidly,” Zamir said. “This challenge requires us to remain in constant motion, learn quickly and continuously improve. As part of the lessons we have learned during the war, we are developing new capabilities and expanding our use of manned and unmanned systems in order to increase operational effectiveness.”
“In the coming months, we will inaugurate the Robotics Arm, which will develop capabilities in the air, at sea and on land,” he added. “What you see here is only the beginning.”