IDF allows a peek at its new top secret unit for advanced warfare

The Shiloah Brigade takes some of the best minds in the IDF to design new high-tech solutions to combat advances in warfare by Israel’s enemies.

By Paul Shindman, World Israel News

The IDF’s new Shiloah Brigade is using advanced technology to develop solutions to the threats to Israel’s security posed by Iran and its proxy terror groups – Hamas and Hezbollah, Walla News reported Wednesday.

In a rare glimpse into the workings of the top secret unit, some of the new experimental fighting methods and technological ideas were revealed. Formed last year, Shiloah has recruited some of the best minds in the Army and Air Force to develop new ways to maintain Israel’s qualitative edge in combat.

The specific details were not revealed, but it is known that Shiloah is implementing new combat and technology – including cyber and laser – to counter the threats from the rockets and tunnels used by the Hamas terror group in Gaza and Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, both of which are armed, trained and funded by Iran.

Shiloah is also dealing with the threat of ballistic missiles from Iran, widely suspected of being the delivery method for a future Iranian nuclear weapon from a regime that has repeatedly stated its goal of wiping Israel off the map.

“The IDF needs to have a body that is constantly attentive to innovation, as the latter yields many fruits that can and must be utilized to improve combat effectiveness,” IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi said at the dedication of the unit’s new headquarters last month.

Kochavi had hinted that Iranian ballistic missiles were on the agenda, saying the Shiloah Brigade is helping “the IDF’s campaign against steep orbit firing – the IDF needs to manage from morning till night… to respond to the steep orbit threat.”

The commander of the high-tech brigade, Brig. Gen. Eran Niv, at one point read his soldiers’ quotes from Harry Potter books to illustrate their ability to find solutions to complicated situations, the report said. Although it evoked some giggles, Niv elaborated that at the heart of the unit’s activity is the central need to formulate ideas and develop advanced fighting methods.

The brigade receives regular intelligence updates not just on the capabilities of Israel’s enemies, but also what those enemies are developing for the future.  This helps define operational problems posed by the enemy, which the IDF now has to solve, like the example of the enemy disappearing in tunnels or under the cover of buildings. Shiloah then develops sophisticated operational solutions for use in the field.

Planning takes place on both the tactical and strategic level. Tactically, Israel must determine which weapons and combat systems to use and refine them after receiving feedback in the field. Strategically, Israel must look ahead over the next 10-15 years with the goal of anticipating the enemy in advance and putting those advances onto the battlefield.

Current priorities of the the Shiloah Brigade include improving solutions to the Hamas and Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnels and the efforts by both terrorist groups to obtain more accurate rockets. Operation Northern Shield in 2018 targeted Hezbollah tunnels.

The unit is also refining new methods and technology to speed up the transmission of high-accuracy information directly to Air Force pilots, cutting down the number of steps needed to go from determining a target on the ground to the moment the fighter plane hits the target with smart weapons.

Aviv KochaviIDFweapons development