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Oz Commando Brigade

The commando brigade, also known as "Oz", was established on December 27, 2015 following the directive of the Chief of Staff, Major General Gadi Eisenkot, as part of the multi-year "Gideon" program. On the flag of the brigade was emblazoned the slogan: "Your hand was in the back of your enemies". The main mission of the brigade was to operate with speed, power and operational flexibility against the enemy - both at the front and in depth.

The commando brigade serves as the elite brigade of the ground forces, and was an available, independent, fast and dynamic brigade that emphasizes innovation and technology. In accordance with its operational needs for strengthening and building the brigade, the Yaftah Unit, the Weapons Development Unit, and the Air Medical Unit (YRA) were also subordinated to it. The brigade's fighters specialize in close contact warfare (threats of infiltration, kidnappings, IEDs), in complex targets and in carrying out long-term raids, all while operating in any context for which they are required: from specific surgical operations to high-intensity operations.

The brigade brings together three of the elite field units of the IDF: Walnut, Magellan, and Dovdevan. Each of the elite units has a different operational specialization and its own special course of action.

The Egoz unit was established in 1995 and was named after the mythological "Egoz" cruiser. The unit was established in order to bring about a transformation in the IDF's capabilities against the terrorist organization "Hezbollah", and to this day it specializes in guerrilla warfare - mainly along the northern border of the country. The essence of Agoz was also expressed through the unit's slogan: "I will pursue my enemies and I will get them and I will not return until they are all gone."

"Agoz" specializes in combat in tangled terrain, in ambushes, camouflage, as well as in small-scale warfare - short-range combat in which the quality and professionalism of the fighter was the main ingredient for its success. The unit operates at any time, in any arena and in any sector while focusing on the northern sector. The unit also has a unique military platoon - the unit's development platoon, which was responsible for finding creative solutions and technological innovations for problems that arise in the field, and providing protection against new ways of attack by the enemy.

In the 1990s, the IDF was sitting deep in the security line posts in southern Lebanon, and almost every day there were security incidents that included massive rocket fire at the IDF posts and clashes with Hezbollah terrorists who were in the area. So it was decided to establish a special unit - the 'Nut Patrol', which will specialize in 'guerrilla' fighting in the northern sector - and will end the stubborn struggle against Hezbollah in Israel's favor.

Until the trrops got to Agoz, all their training was focused on the Gaza Strip, and they didn't know the Northern Strip at all. They arrived as war machines, 'refrigerators,' who thought no one could beat us. But upon arrival at the new unit, it became clear that in order to adapt to the Lebanese sector, they had to lose weight and had two months to become 'cats'. "Nut warriors" need to be flexible and fast, able to jump over rocks and pits, walk crouched for hours in tall vegetation and ambush the enemy in complete silence from a thicket and hit him hard. They have to be invisible on the one hand, but deadly on the other. This was what will separate life from death during service.

After four challenging months, the unit began to operate and bring impressive results. They would carry out special missions on a daily basis and encounter the enemy many times. The abilities we acquired meant that almost every encounter ended with Agoz having the upper hand. In September 1997, a week after the 'Flying Disaster' in which 11 fighters of the 13th Fleet were killed, the company received the order to go on Operation 'Wild Landscape'. It was a relatively simple operation, prepared for in maybe a day. The idea was to leave with a force of three teams from Rihan outpost towards some wadi, where Hezbollah terrorists were often running around. We had to place five charges there and carry out an ambush that lasted three days. It was another normal day at work. ix months later, in June 1998, Israel and Hezbollah agreed on a prisoner exchange deal, under which the body of the late Itamar Eliya returned home in exchange for the return of Hadi Nasrallah's body.

Along with the similarities between the fighters of the past and the younger generation that serves in it today, there have also been quite a few changes in Agoz. In recent years, the unit operates frequently in Judea and Samaria and in the Gaza Strip sector, which officially made it a sector-wide commando unit. This definition even sharpened even more with the establishment of the commando brigade at the end of 2015 and the incorporation of a nut into it, after years in which the unit sat under the northern Golani brigade. The transition to commando strengthened the ability to deal lethally with any threat, in any sector that was required. Over the years, the unit transformed from a fairly small outfit with one significant mission and specialization, to one of the leading commando units in the IDF. With the powerful fighters, the special means of warfare, the dedicated operational skills for all combat divisions, and in addition the operational envelope provided by the new brigade - there was no challenge today that the Nut unit will not find a solution to."