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Israel to simulate war with Hezbollah in Cyprus
Part of Chariots of Fire, troops from IAF, Navy and elite commando units will simulate war deep inside Lebanon.
www.jpost.com
Hundreds of IDF troops from elite commando units will be heading to Cyprus this week for a joint drill simulating war deep inside Lebanon against Hezbollah.
The exercise in Cyprus, called Agapinor-2022, is part of the IDF’s month-long Chariot of Fire drill which aims to improve the military’s capabilities in an intense, multi-front and prolonged war on all its borders. The drill, beginning on Sunday, will last until June 2nd.
Forces from the Cypriot National Guard will join the IDF troops as well as several Israel Air Force platforms and Israeli naval units that will also take part in the exercise in Cyprus which will last until June 2.
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The commando forces are expected to train on high-altitude terrain as well as in urban and open areas on the island which will act as Hezbollah territory in Lebanon.
While the two countries have carried out several drills in recent years, according to local Cypriot news website Philenews, the exercise is the largest joint military exercise with Israel.
Ahead of the drill that he is expected to visit later in the week, Defense Minister Benny Gantz spoke with his counterpart Defense Minister Charalambos Petrides on Sunday.
The two men “discussed its relevance to our operational readiness,” Gantz wrote on Twitter, adding that he “emphasized the strategic bond between our countries, which contributes to regional stability.”
Cyprus said that the drill “highlights the excellent relations between the two countries in recent years in the field of defense and security.”
Shared interests
Israel and Cyprus and neighboring Greece are close allies and share a number of strategic interests. While all have shared economic interests, such as the ambitious project to build an undersea gas pipeline from Israel to Cyprus to Crete to mainland Greece, the three countries also hope to keep the Russian-Iranian-Hezbollah axis from growing.In light of new rapprochement between Israel and Turkey, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reportedly sought an explanation for the drill during his recent visit to Israel. According to Kan Public Broadcaster, Jerusalem informed Ankara that the massive training exercise in Cyprus was related solely to military training.
Turkish troops invaded and occupied the northern part of the island of Cyprus in 1974 and tensions between Larnaca and Ankara remain tense.
In March Cypriot military chief, Lt.-Gen. Demokritos Zervakis, visited Israel for the first time and met with senior IDF officials, including Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kohavi, and held “strategic-operational meetings” that focused on “opportunities to expand cooperation between the two militaries,” the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said at the time.
Thousands of soldiers and reservists are taking part in the drill dubbed “Chariots of Fire,” which will see all commands including the Air Force and Navy, and regular and reserve forces taking part.
The goal of the three-week-long drill is to improve the readiness of the entire military and examine the ability of troops to carry out a powerful and prolonged campaign against enemy forces on various fronts simultaneously. According to the IDF, the drill is unique and unprecedented in scope and will enable the army to maintain a high level of readiness in an ever-changing region.
During the drill, the Air Force will also drill on striking targets far from Israel’s borders while troops continue to contend with a multi-front war on its borders.
The Arabs with help from Iran should start long term insurgency against Israel from Lebanon and Syria. In ten years Israel will be on its knees for the final shot.
