Military Intelligence has boosted its ranks with additional officers to fill new positions in its
research, analysis and technological units due to the ongoing upheaval in the
Middle East and the perceived increase in threats to Israel.
On Thursday,
Military Intelligence marked the graduation of another course of new
intelligence officers. A senior officer said that the course was the largest in
the directorate’s history and saw a 25 percent increase in the number of
participants.
“MI is growing due to the changes in Israel’s strategic and
operational positions, the need for more technology and the increase in the
areas of interest that we follow,” the officer said.
According to the
officer, among the new areas of interest that Military Intelligence has added to
its list are Sudan, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Jordan. In addition, it has
beefed up the unit that had previously covered the Sinai Peninsula.
He
said that Libya and Sudan were of interest since they are both countries used to
smuggle weapons to the Gaza Strip. Military Intelligence’s interest in the Sinai
has grown due to the instability in the peninsula, the increase in terror
activity there and the Egyptian government’s lack of control.
Turkey,
which has cut off diplomatic and military ties with Israel, is also looked at
differently today, he said.
“The changes require MI to grow and develop
new capabilities to a resolution that it didn’t need to before,” he
said.
The officers who graduated on Thursday were part of the three-month
course at the the directorate’s training base near the Glilot junction, which is
mandatory for soldiers who graduate from the IDF’s Bahad 1 Officer Training
School before taking up their new command posts.
“During the course, we
focus on three main issues – command and leadership values, interpersonal skills
and professional capabilities,” he said. “We basically reveal all of MI to them
and show them new topics that they will have to deal with like
cyberwarfare.”
The officer said that Military Intelligence was also
working to create capabilities that would enable it to analyze public and
population trends.
“We deal not only with terror groups but also with
public opinion and the Arab street. One way to do this is to follow trendsetters
to understand what will happen,” he said.