The IDF is objectively considered one of the most capable armies in the world, but it has proven unprepared for the realities of the modern battlefield.
The first hours of Hamas’s massive attack on Israel already allow us to draw the first conclusions from the battlefield, which for years was considered extremely specific and based on the IDF’s total superiority over all possible opponents, especially over militants from the Gaza Strip.
However, the outright massacre by the terrorists, along with the massive rocket fire, already allows us to draw the first conclusions.
And we should start with the fact that the current events have obviously come as a surprise to Israel’s security forces. And the first is the failure of intelligence. Despite the fact that Israel had been building its network for decades, which allowed it to prevent attacks and neutralize terrorist threats in advance, the system failed.
The Hamas attack itself was prepared in advance and was characterized by massive and coordinated efforts. Mobile groups on cars and motorcycles rushed through the fortified border of the Gaza Strip, heading for the nearest settlements. Paragliders and boats were used. At the same time, a massive missile attack was carried out, which also means the concentration of both missiles and launchers.
Israeli police estimate the force of Palestinian militants at 60 people in 14 areas in southern Israel. pic.twitter.com/9fktz1K1pc
– Clash Report (@clashreport) October 7, 2023
In other words, preparations for this attack required a long-term application of considerable effort. But this was not noticed by Israeli intelligence, or no decision was made to take preventive measures.
Thus, even with an extremely powerful intelligence service, which has been working very successfully for many years, it is always possible to “overlook” even an obvious threat.
Overloaded Iron Dome
Despite Israel’s sophisticated missile defense system and the Iron Dome, a missile interceptor specialized in intercepting rockets that has a proven efficiency of 80-90%, Hamas was able to attack cities with rockets and hit critical infrastructure, such as the Rutenberg power plant, which accounts for 20% of the country’s generation.
The reasons for this are massive. Any anti-aircraft system can be overloaded by concentrating the attack. And this is exactly what Hamas did, launching, as it claims, 5,000 rockets. At the same time, the IDF’s estimates are more than revealing – 2,200 rockets fired.
Massive rocket barrage fired towards Israel by Palestinian groups. pic.twitter.com/Rz8L19GWSV
– Clash Report (@clashreport) October 7, 2023
And even if 90% of the 2,200 missiles were intercepted, 220 of them still broke through the missile shield. At the same time, such a massive launch is not only about the ability of the systems to intercept some of the targets, but also about the presence of the missiles themselves, after which the launchers must be reloaded and become helpless.
Shot from a Merkava drone
Objectively, one of the world’s most protected tanks, the Merkava Mk 4, was destroyed by Hamas militants using a drone. The drone’s “drop” hit the engine compartment, which is located in the front of the tank, and caused a fire, leading to the loss of the tank.
At the same time, Merkava Mk 4 is equipped with the Trophy active defense system, which is supposed to intercept shells, missiles and rocket-propelled grenades on approach, but cannot see and react to the danger of an attack from the air.
#BREAKING Hamas armed drone strike on Israeli Merkava 4 tank. pic.twitter.com/e8gph7tYVK
– Clash Report (@clashreport) October 7, 2023
This proved once again that a modern tank on the battlefield needs protection from this type of threat. And Israel had time to adapt the Trophy to counter this threat, as it was more than logical for militants to use drones for strikes.
And we are not talking about isolated cases of armored vehicles being attacked. Hamas also uses drones to drop bombs to hit IDF soldiers.
More footage of Hamas using armed drones on IDF forces. pic.twitter.com/T0Ubt4A4YF
– Clash Report (@clashreport) October 7, 2023
That is, the fact that drones have really changed the battlefield, which was evident in the war in Ukraine, was ignored by the army, which is considered one of the most combat-ready in the world.
