Israel S Military Doctrine

This book discusses the existing literature on military doctrines in general, and offensive doctrines in particular, as well as on causes of their stagnation and sources of innovation. It provides the backdrop for an analytical historical review of Israel's offensive military doctrine.

This book examines the transition in Israel’s military doctrine and analyzes Israel’s conflict with hybrid forces since 2006 compared with the high intensity wars in 1948–1982.

Seeks to provide a contemporary picture of Israel's political-military doctrine. Focuses on its conditioning factors, such as Israel's view of the military threat to its security, the constraints under which it operates, and the assets it disposes of. Political-military elements of the doctrine include Israeli approaches to deterrence, war objectives, "defensible borders," and others; operational elements of the doctrine include emphasis on swift offensives, indirect approach, the special role of the Air Force and Armored Corps, and others. The study analyzes past posture and behavior, but discusses evolution and change only selectively with the purpose of elucidating the contemporary relevance of various themes and concepts.

A set of propositions and an accompanying theoretical framework that explains the cause-effect linkages between intrastate and interstate power realization that are characterized by militarization are developed. This model establishes the foundation for an explanation of how such power is used to deal with the state's Janus-faced security dilemma. To this end, the model provides the tools needed for such an inquiry from a conceptual and typological standpoint. The goal is to explain how the internal aspect of state power shapes the external one. It was determined that Israel and the primary Arab confrontation states provide important test cases based on the intense interplay prevalent between militarization processes and state power.

"[This book] is not a study in depth of the growth of Israel's armed forces, nor is it a historical analysis of the military doctrines which those forces developed. It is rather a sketch, a profile of the people and events which moulded first the resistance movement and then the army of the Jewish State"--Author's note.