"This is why we need to split up our capabilities between a conventional
war scenario to one that we are fighting against a non-conventional force,"
Mizrachi said.
Over the last year, Israeli military sources have reported Syrian
deployment of troops and heavy weapons in southern Syria near the Israeli
border. The sources said Syrian troops, disguised as civilian police, have
established positions in dozens of villages as part of an effort to prepare
for a future war with Israel.
"The Syrians have learned from [the Iranian-sponsored] Hizbullah on how
to use a civilian shield," a senior officer said. "We expect Syria to do the
same thing in any next war."
[On Sept. 9, the Israel Army's Northern Command held a major exercise
along the border of Lebanon and Syria that combined air, ground and naval
forces. Officials said the exercise sought to determine interoperability
amid a range of attack scenarios.]
In his address to the Latrun Conference on Maneuver in Complex Terrain,
co-sponsored by the U.S. Joint Forces Command, Mizrachi, appointed the next
head of Central Command, said Israel faced a more dangerous adversaries,
particularly Syria. He said the next war would require massive numbers of
ground forces.
"A war cannot be won without moving forces on the ground," Mizrachi
said. "Even today there are people who believe that it is sufficient to
threaten to use the forces but in the Middle East his is not enough. Only a
ground maneuver will end the conflict and win the war."
