IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir announced that the military will not wait for the next multi-year plan, but will immediately move to establish a new robotics and drone corps. The new corps will be led by a brigadier general and will be responsible for both force build-up and operational use.

This is a major strategic step. Once every few decades, a new weapon system changes the battlefield. Today it is drones — and very soon, ground robotics. Armies that fail to adapt in time risk becoming irrelevant. Israel entered the drone revolution late, but battlefield experience in Gaza and Lebanon, along with operations such as the Mossad’s drone activity during Operation Roaring Lion, show that Israel is quickly becoming one of the world’s most experienced drone powers.

The urgency is clear. Israel is under constant drone threat from Iran and its proxies, and must lead not only in intercepting hostile drones, but also in using drones and robots offensively. The IDF already has soldiers who have gained real combat experience in drone warfare, and this knowledge must now become an organized military doctrine.