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IDF Chief says Israel at 70 is an invincible country
In a series of interviews to mark Israel’s 70th anniversary, Israel Defence Force (IDF) Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot said Israel is an “invincible country” with enormous disparities over its enemies.
Eisenkot was described by Yediot Ahronot as “tense but optimistic” about the state of Israel’s security moving into its 70th year. Eisenkot said in the interview that “in the 70th year of its existence, the State of Israel has an improved strategic balance with enormous disparities over its enemies. The 70-year-old Israel is an invincible country.”
He described Iran as Israel’s “central enemy” while concluding that the chance for conflict this year was the highest in comparison to the rest of his time as Chief of Staff.
With tensions mounting on the Gaza border, he said: “A large part of the army will be invested there on [Passover] eve …We won’t allow [Gazans to stage a] mass infiltration into Israel and to damage the fence, and certainly not to reach the communities. The instructions are to use a lot of force.” He told the newspaper Maariv: “We are reinforcing the barriers and a large number of IDF soldiers will be stationed in the area to prevent any trespassing attempts into Israeli territory. Our main goal is to prevent civilians, especially women and children from being harmed. We are adamant about preventing any incidents.”
Eisenkot also confirmed that the Israeli Air Force had resumed operations in Syria since Israel lost an F-16 last month. He also promised to dismantle all the tunnels along the Gaza border by the end of 2018.
In response to the forthcoming release of Elor Azaria, the soldier who shot and killed a Palestinian attacker in Hebron who was already severely wounded and incapacitated, Eisenkot said: “The last thing I would want is for people to say he is a hero. This is not how a hero looks.”