Israel's Military, Strategy & the IDF - Doctrine, Mobilisation, and Recent Lessons

Sponsored by Private Internet Access: www.piavpn.com/Perun
Description: Israeli Defence Force is arguably one of the more unique militaries around the world, combining a rapid mass mobilisation system with a strategy that prioritises a unique mix of offensive, defensive and industrial capabilities.
Now, with Israel mobilising those reserves and declaring a state of war, the capabilities of the IDF have taken on particularly pressing geopolitical significance, and so I thought it was time to take a closer look at the force, as we have previously for nations like Japan and the Republic of Korea.
In this video I look at the history of some major IDF operations, the development of Israeli strategy, doctrine, and capabilities and some initial observations arising out of the events of the last week.
I do want to say however, that as noted in the video, most of this presentation was prepared before the events of the last week in Israel and Gaza.
As a result, they focus on the IDF from a strategic and defence-industrial perspective with observations arising out of the recent escalation of open war between Hamas and Israel still being very much in their early, tentative stages.
I also want to stress that this video is not intended as a comprehensive study of the history of the region or Israeli-Palestinian relations. That does not mean that those issues or topics are unimportant - only that they are beyond the scope of this particular video.
Thank you for your continued support, and my best wishes to all civilians impacted by the recent and ongoing events.
Patreon:
/ perunau
Corrections & Caveats:
- All usual caveats and comments obviously apply, including but not limited to those specifically set out in this video.
- When talking about Israeli versions of the Mirage, the slide is in the correct order but I invert the names when discussing them. I should have said the Nesher is the original model, and the Kfir is the upgraded version.
- I would also again like to stress the intended limits of this video’s scope and reiterate that the absence of discussion on a point should not be taken as apathy with relation to it.
Reading and source notes:
Translation of IDF Strategy Document - 2016
www.belfercenter.org/sites/de...
US Integrated Country Strategy - Israel
www.state.gov/wp-content/uplo...
Arms transfer and expenditure data per SIPRI
www.sipri.org/databases/armst...
www.sipri.org/sites/default/f...
Platform and personnel figures per Military Balance 2022 (for reasons of consistency in method and source with other videos I’ve produced. These figures should not, in my view, be considered definitive)
Congressional Research Service Report on Israel (major issues and U.S Relations):
2023
crsreports.congress.gov/produ...
2018 (featuring the quote on nuclear ambiguity)
crsreports.congress.gov/produ...
Israel’s National Security Doctrine: The Report of the Committee on the Formulation of the National Security Doctrine Ten Years Later - Dan Meridor and Ron Eladi
www.inss.org.il/wp-content/up...
Saudia Arabia freezing Israel normalisation process
www.reuters.com/world/middle-...
Reporting on Israeli mobilisation
www.reuters.com/world/middle-...
CSIS on the recent apparent intelligence failure
www.csis.org/analysis/how-cou...
Putin Blaming USA for the present war
www.politico.eu/article/vladi...
Featured Reuters article on mobilisation
www.reuters.com/world/middle-...
Reporting on US sending aircraft carriers to the region
www.politico.com/news/2023/10...
Israel receiving Italian cannons for the Sa’ar class ships as discussed
www.navalnews.com/naval-news/...
Timestamps:
00:00:00 - Israeli Defence Strategy & The IDF
00:00:48 - What Am I Talking About?
00:03:10 - What This Video Is Not
00:04:06 - History
00:13:51 - Strategic Position
00:20:23 - The IDF Today
00:26:27 - The War-peace Continuum
00:30:58 - The IDF, Mobilised
00:40:46 - Nuclear Ambiguity
00:45:17 - International Relations
00:51:19 - Budgets And Military Industrial Complex
00:57:41 - Events As Context
01:00:49 - Observations
01:05:42 - What Next?
01:09:59 - Conclusion
01:10:47 - Channel Update

[@PerunAU]

Sponsored by Private Internet Access, Use the following link to access their promotional offer: www.piavpn.com/Perun I think we can all agree that one thing 2023 did not need is another war, but here we are. I had originally planned to release a video on the IDF in December, but after consulting my Patrons, decided that it might provide useful context for current events if it was released now. Please understand that while this video (like most of my work) focuses very heavily on military and industrial aspects, it should not be taken as apathy towards other important (particularly humanitarian issues). Please note one small correction - when talking about Israeli versions of the Mirage, the slide is in the correct order but I invert the names when discussing them. I should have said the Nesher is the original model, and the Kfir is the upgraded version. Thank you so much for your ongoing support, and for your always civil engagement in the comments section, and I will see you all again next week.

[@Syndr1]

Hi Perun, its cool, but i think i ordered the wrong Israeli Mirage Model Kit. I ordered the Kfir, and now i got to order the Kesher. Sigh. 😉

[@brianvogel9033]

P

[@erasmus_locke]

I don't know how you're able to put these videos out so often and with such high quality it makes me worried that you're overworking yourself.

[@kindnuguz]

I still feel this has kremlin influence all over it; if not ordered by Prigozhin as his last mission by word of mouth I'm sure you seen the massive attacks Russia launched just after this happened, just a coincidence? Anyways, thanks Perun

[@squirtearnest5197]

Thank You Perun I Love Your channel and how You break things down. I'm from Flint, Michigan and I learn alot from Your Channel. Especially when You said back in 2022 when the tanks rolled.

[@dylanreynolds4334]

I have a feeling that Perun is one of the few content creators who can say “please keep it civil in the comments.” and people will respect that.

[@edew9180]

I've noticed most comments to any video seem to be creator worship. I think KZbin is just deleting anything negative.

[@joevenespineli6389]

Well, I've been comment section crawling for a while now, don't need to dig that deep to find pretty uncivil discussions taking place. Usually in replies.

[@SatanicBunny666]

As someone who moderates a large subreddit where people discuss this topic with around 3/4rds of the subscribers that Perun has, I second your opinion. In the last 3-4 days alone, I've had to ban around 300 bots and trolls and in general just people completely in grip of emotion spewing out wild hatred about one side or another. The Russian propaganda ministry is about to have a field day using this to sow discontent and chaops especially in Europe.

[@Ag3nt0fCha0s]

*commences trolling you*

[@cyrneco]

It's possibly also because of the format and content. I doubt many trolls or knuckle draggers looking for keyboard fisticuffs are into well researched lectures longer than ten minutes and without clickbait titles.

[@Chrischi3TutorialLPs]

What does Israeli and Russian mobilization have in common? Booked out flights to Tel Aviv

[@jamesgornall5731]

Im laughing and simultaneously weeping with sadness

[@Dhouston1125]

less jews - less problems

[@tarstarkusz]

quit it with the antisemitism.

[@macmcleod1188]

​@tarstarkusz its not anti-Semitic. He saying when Israel mobilizes, they're people respond to the call. And when Russia mobilizes, all men between the ages of 18 and 30 who can leave Russia do so. It's a joke on Russia's lack of patriotism.

[@kleinweichkleinweich]

good one

[@rifroll1117]

Special thanks to Perun for carefully picking the specific topics he feels qualified to talk about and reminding the audience of any caveats or limitations to his analysis in every video. It’s a level of objective humility we never get anywhere else

[@Claymann71]

Australian PowerPoint Man is expected to be as effective as he can be & honest when he doesn't know enough, in his honest opinion. 💪 My favorite Sunday routine, after watching Fareed Zakaria. Tbh, I think APPM is more informative these days. 👏

[@rknowling]

Well said!

[@skywillfindyou]

He's not qualified. Just an enthusiast.

[@Theo-vn9hm]

​@skywillfindyou He has on multiple occasions referred to a background in defense economics. He has not to my knowledge specified exactly what he has worked on or where though

[@KN-xl6lw]

Epistemological modesty ('We don't know what we don't know") is the hallmark of the best scholars

[@kylewhite5695]

Being the type of channel that doesn’t want to cover a situation until it stabilizes makes you one of the few people I trust to accurately cover developing events. Keep up the good work man.

[@Sombomombo]

Right? The first breath of non-flavourtexted air I've had since this cooked off. Such a relief.

[@nurseSean]

He also states that when he is out of his area of expertise he consults with others. It shows.

[@SamtheIrishexan]

The good thing about looking at a military is any good one is apolitical and you dont have to touch the arguments surrounding any military besides to maybe detail types of threats. But dont need to name the threats.

[@judithbradford9130]

I'm being an absolute pest to everyone I know praising this channel. it's a problem!!

[@Yuhyuhmuhmuh]

​@@SamtheIrishexanno military of this earth is apolitical

[@AnimarchyHistory]

Perun is not only an excellent professional. But a very VERY brave man.

[@lorenzooliveira1157]

Hi Animarchy! Also yeah, but I believe that this comment section will be civil about the topic. :D

[@Sinyao]

​@@lorenzooliveira1157didn't even last half an hour tbh

[@connycontainer9459]

@@Sinyao It's ok given that the bar is pretty low on the internet. Could have been worse.

[@a.nelprober-rl5cf]

Brave for making anonymous KZbin videos? Okay, bub.

[@emergcon]

Yeah, there is a israel solidarity demonstration today in my city. I am not going because this would be way to dangerous for me.

[@IrishTechnicalThinker]

From someone who's from Belfast and knowing what sectarianism can do to communities, my heart goes out to all innocent people killed on both sides.

[@cyrneco]

The Irish are uniquely equipped to understand what's really going on in Palestine.

[@DogeickBateman]

@@cyrnecoAnd Israel

[@cyrneco]

@@DogeickBateman I did say Palestine, I meant the geographical region.

[@unggrabb]

Religion poisons everything

[@ShamanMcLamie]

One big difference between Israel and Ireland is that Neither Ireland, nor Britain posed an existential threat to each other. Whoever got Northern Ireland in the end, there would still be an Ireland and UK. The same can't be said for Israel and Palestine. Most Palestinians want to see Israel gone from the world and many Israelis are seriously considering taking huge swaths if Palestinian land and that prospect seems more likely than ever. I don't see how this conflict ends eithout ethnic cleansing.

[@jloiben12]

I know Perun says it as a joke but the business of militaries is fascinating

[@KN-xl6lw]

It's his day job, after all. 😅

[@kemarisite]

​@@KN-xl6lwwe suspect. To the best of my knowledge (and I'm the kind of nerd who puts Perun on in the background as I do data entry at work), he's never actually admitted to what his day job is.

[@douglasmfunk1691]

Nerd on, Perun!

[@lorenzooliveira1157]

@@kemarisiteI think he’s not SUPPOSED to say what his actual job is, since he seems to work for the Australian military in the same manner that he does on KZbin, albeit with state info in mind.

[@garrettkajmowicz]

Unfortunately, it's a part of the conversation which never seems to be addressed in mainstream publications. Sure, the new fighters/tanks are sexy, but how they get to be produced and sustained is both more important and talked about less.

[@mikeborsos8621]

Big compliment to you, @PerunAU. Having a similar background to you and combined military background, plus dealing with the Middle East since 25+ years, I have to say that you don’t disappoint. Hooked with your first videos in February / March 2022, I know what a high degree of effort, professionalism and transferable skills you put into your videos. They are well structured and easy to dissect. A hats up to you. Thank you to down under from Europe.

[@mikeborsos8621]

It might be notable, although, heavily influenced by the former mandate power UK, the Zahal adopted the German principle of Auftragstaktik (mission command) very early on. Even the HDv 100/100, the basic German field manual developed over two world wars and an interwar period, influenced the IDF from the beginning. As a measure of success you can find the Mitla Pass operations in 1956 or the liberation of Jerusalem in 1967 under Motta Gur. His unit was comprised of reservists (55th reserve para bde).

[@okre567]

My man's working overtime, it's difficult to keep up and be knowledgeable about every single conflict. Thanks for the effort, and keep the powerpoints coming!

[@jtgd]

A living war and economic strategy encyclopedia

[@MrGaky]

Im from israel, its amazing how many details you got correct, a lot of news people and youtube people usually get a lot of stuff related to the israeli military wrong, but you were spot on down to the age of the reservists. Very well done again you do not disappoint.

[@user-sc7fk5ys6x]

A couple salient details to add from on site: Apparently a reason why people were caught off guard on the Gaza front is because an attack almost exactly like this has been expected from Lebanon/ Hezbollah for a couple months now. So the focus of awareness was on the north. Second point to add is that the attack on the military base near Gaza employed fairly sophisticated RF jamming which prevented the base from getting out the call for reinforcements. This puts the technical operations level on par with respectable nation states, and somewhat ahead of what has been seen in Ukraine where RF communications seem to generally keep working in war zones. Lastly there is a certain irony in Israel’s having just last year equipped the similarly brutal and similarly technology-bending attack(s) by Azerbaijan against Armenia. This makes Israel’s unpreparedness to face such attacks on itself that much more surprising.

[@MiggerPlease]

No one cares about Ukraine anymore

[@johnathanwalker8395]

Free Palestine. End the apartheid.

[@SwordOfApollo]

​@@johnathanwalker8395 21% of the Israeli population is Arab. Arabs have equal rights and serve in the Israeli Knesset (parliament.) There is no apartheid, only a bunch of Islamic fundamentalists who want to live under Sharia and don't want to live among Jews.

[@imgvillasrc1608]

@@johnathanwalker8395 Palestine should first prove that it can nation-build before being free.

[@bro_dBow]

It should be noted that military training in Israel is like public education that is HUGE in carrior development and employment and society unity. The personnel testing is amazing in finding one’s best job in the military translates into civilian employment.

[@Jaxck77]

This. National service in Israel is a huge reason why new business creation is so much stronger in Israeli society than other developed nations. People get jumbled together with other people regardless of background but with comparable skills & interests. This creates a breeding ground for like-minded people to have connections necessary for successfully launching new businesses. A similar thing occurs in miniature around major employers with porous operations, such as Microsoft creating a massive community of small startups that support Microsoft’s operations. This community of startups matures however into providing services to other segments of the tech industry and is the reason big tech is so much bigger in some cities in the US than others.

[@adamredwine774]

It also plays a major role in the economic disparity between the largely secular society that almost universally serve compared to the ultra-religious and Muslim communities that largely don't. The lack of service in these groups greatly impedes their later job prospects.

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

@@adamredwine774 the hesedic and orthodox problem in Israel, and their military exemptions and religious fundamentalism, is a massive issue that often goes under-discussed.

[@adamredwine774]

@@boarfaceswinejaw4516 Maybe not in the West, but is discussed ad nauseum in Israel. It is a major topic of political debate.

[@boarfaceswinejaw4516]

@@adamredwine774 oh i dont doubt that. Israelis are very politically active as shown with the massive protests towards Netanyahu, who might be forced to resign in the near future. but my focus was on the west in this case, since western support of Israel has the unfortunate effect of legitimizing bad standards (this applies universally to governments supported by other governments abroad).

[@DutchSkeptic]

"No civilian anywhere should have to live in fear or terror." - Perun 2023 Truer words were never spoken.

[@LuisLopez-zh9kh]

How about: " Stop being imperialist cunts"? 😮 Mind blowing stuff.

[@nomercynodragonforyou9688]

@@LuisLopez-zh9kh And don't mass kill civilians!

[@boogiewoogie9770]

That should be the case for everyone. Or at least attempt to reduce civilian casualties as much as possible. Neither side appears to be doing so. Therefore the moral high ground is lost militancy increases and the sense that there is no option but to resist evil increases. @@nomercynodragonforyou9688

[@LuisLopez-zh9kh]

@@nomercynodragonforyou9688 Israel is just as guilty targeting civilians directly and indirectly.

[@p.strobus7569]

@@LuisLopez-zh9kh Everyone in this conflict is guilty of targeting civilians.

[@seangannon6081]

Videos like this are prime examples of why KZbin and independent, knowledgeable creators are the future of news, educational content and entertainment. The situation happened like a week ago and we’ve already got an extremely well researched and produced, informative hour long video on a very specific and niche subject. Top notch as always Perun.

[@braxxian]

That’s true. However as the Russia/Ukraine war is proving KZbin is also awash with propaganda channels that give anything but reliable analysis as they clearly support one side or the other. Perun is a rare breed.

[@TacticalVanguard]

Only for the few who will be lucky due to their algorithm 😢😂

[@richardarriaga6271]

​@@TacticalVanguardSome channels are underrated while the main page is often cringe- SSniperWolf for example.

[@DingleberryWhite]

A few videos ago I wrote a comment asking for a video on the IDF. To my deep regret this topic got pushed forward due to the horrific events. I’m an Israeli and I was very uncertain about watching this video, since we are still in the midst of this whole nightmare, and I don’t have the capacity to handle what might be misinformation. Especially if it comes from a source I genuinely admire like Perun. I decided to go ahead and watch it because I do trust this channel to paint an accurate picture with relevant information and to avoid contaminating it with personal opinions and unfounded claims. Perun, you did not disappoint and I admire you all the more for it. This video was exceptional and you got so many small details exactly right. Thank you for this video and keep up the amazing work!

[@lorenzooliveira1157]

Stay safe, amigo!

[@lisinsignage]

Thanks for your touching comment. We probably have a full range of opinions in the people commenting here but seems we all respect Perun for his fantastic work and each other, which is really great in this extremely polarizing times and environment 👍

[@Emanon...]

Claim that aren't unfounded: Israel is an occupying nation. Their settlements are illegal. The siege of Gaza the last 18 years constitutes a warcrime. Settlers and Palestinians, living in the same territory are, by law, not granted the same rights constituting an Apartheid regime. We'll see how your original comment has aged after the inevitable killing of civilians by your government. Not for justice, mind you. For revenge as your government has already expressed.

[@Emanon...]

@@johnhudson2210 Three factors: Methods. Time. Ideology. They have been an occupying nation since 1948, definitely since 1967. Which other country founded by the UN has occupied territory since its inception? The UN charter established the illegality of obtaining territory through war - and Israel did this by war crimes and ethnic cleansing. Secondly, the very same international order from which Israel derived its legitimacy, has been ignored repeatedly by Israel, be that numerous GA or SC resolutions. No other country has willingly broken so many resolutions in the history of the UN. Thirdly, the settlements are illegal because it constitutes illegal transfer of population to a territory not owned by Israel. Imagine if a foreign country suddenly moved a million people into your neighbourhood, prevented your movement, denied you your rights but not theirs, and suddenly claimed that this wasn't in fact your home because they moved in? Which nicely brings me to the fourth point: Apartheid. The Israeli state is not based on a pluralistic secular democratic basis, but an "Undisputed Jewishness of the state". It's enshrined in their basic laws now. (Not the constitution as Israel is based on the UK model of not having an actual constitution...) It's pretty weird because there's no such thing as a "Jewish ethnicity" from a genetic or national point of view. Jewish people, culture and religion, sure. But it's not an ethnicity if you can convert into that ethnicity and suddenly become eligible to a house and citizenship if you're willing to throw out a Palestinian family out if their home... There is open discrimination in a so-called open society. Example: The Palestinian Israelis have no citizenship. They're "Israeli nationals" a lesser status which is inherited to their children. Israelis and Palestinian are not allowed to legally marry and any children from that union will lose their "Israeli citizenship" and instead become "nationals" Now, with regard to your final point: Is Israel worse than many other countries? Yes. Because the racial/ethnic discrimination and domination under apartheid is enshrined in their laws. Zionist ideology is literally based on the idea of a Master Race ie "Chosen People" and Lebensraum "A Promised Land". And their marriage laws is basically a re-enactment of the "Nurnberg laws". Read up on the above and read the Talmud. Israel is based on Judeo-Supremacy imposed on other people and regions where any rational person would argue that they have no legal claim to. 90% of Israel in a recent poll supports or very much supports the actions of the government in Gaza - including cutting water, food, electricity, fuel and attacks on hospitals, ambulances and journalists. That's a tacit approval and admission of support for war crimes. Israel has all the hallmarks of the worst aggression and racial supremacy ideologies in modern history, but because of their tragic history (thanks, Germany) have somehow bamboozled the world to believe they are in fact the victims. It's absurd beyond belief.

[@RK-cj4oc]

Shut up. How many Christian and jews no longer live in the arab nations? How many Druze,Turkmen and Kurds ​are gone now? Why do you bots never mention that. @@Emanon...

[@amitnachman3840]

As an IDF reservist I have to say this is an amazingly well informed video.

[@livethefuture2492]

Well all i say is good luck to you. Stay safe and hope this is all resolved quickly...or at least with minimal casualties as possible.

[@rcomid]

good luck to you from iran

[@valroniclehre193]

So does the impending genocide and current genocidal actions bother you at all?

[@oleglovky]

​@@valroniclehre193you mean the genocidal actions carried out by Hamas?

[@ffff7164]

Yankee go home.

[@Jopey_Meow]

It's wild that your channel has become the go to for current world conflict. You're so awesome at this stuff and I'm so glad you decided to create a KZbin channel. When this conflict broke out, I tried to watch some videos, looking for a Perun-like breakdown, but there is no substitute. You have a unique voice on this platform. Thanks for what you do.

[@user-sc7fk5ys6x]

Warographics is one channel that also does some pretty good commentary.

[@alex70j]

​@@user-sc7fk5ys6xit's too viewer's based, Simon changes his script depending on his viewers demographics and information KZbin provides to creator's, he drops many details and events, even those he covered on his other channels, like big media corporations ironically.

[@imgvillasrc1608]

@@alex70j Eh, it's good general information regardless so us average joes can understand the topic in more detail.

[@SatanicBunny666]

So when this conflict started, I told a friend who's also a subscriber: "I have no idea where this is all headed, but I do know what Perun will be uploading next Sunday." Thank you again for such an in-depth and topical video at a time where it is badly needed. Much appreciated and I'm looking forward to potential follow-ups as the situation evolves. Sincerely, The Nostradamus of KZbin

[@marcusott2973]

There was an Austrian emigree, that was one of the officers that built up IDF artillery in 1948. He had started his career as a Fähnrich at the K&K Artillerie Schule, and went on to serve im WW1 on the Austrian side. The stark contrast between the highly formalised imperial Austrian Army, and the early IDF must have been mind boggling.

[@YoonbeenPark]

I'm sure there were plenty of poorly maintained and operated Austro-Hungarian units during WWI, especially given its poor wartime performance and history of inter-ethnic conflicts within the Imperial military. At the very least, the early IDF must have reminded him of the Imperial Army as it disintegrated near the end of WWI, along with the Austro-Hungarian state.

[@avroday949]

@@YoonbeenPark their poor performance was largely due to ethnic segregation in the military, Starvation, and Conrad Von Hotzendorf who started ww1 then gambled his troops in daring gambles that all turned up short.

[@lo1lawl]

IIRC? The Austrians were not exactly known for being great soldiers in WWI or WW2... Unless I'm sorely mistaken?

[@marcusott2973]

@@YoonbeenPark as far as my memory serves me, he served in a quite prestigious unit, exclusively armed with modern Skoda guns on the Isonzo. Still I believe quite the opposite to be true, the early IDF, with their high motivation, can do attitude, flat hierarchy and non existent formal discipline is just about as far removed you can get from the crumbling imperial army. Which at the end was just held together by bureaucracy and formality.

[@marcusott2973]

@@avroday949 Some units especially those fighting in the mountains served exceptionally well, others were so bad, it was almost worse than having no troops.

[@Steyr32]

No military conflict is safe from the eyes of Perun 💀

[@badluck5647]

I look forward to the day he retires due to a lack of content.

[@PerunAU]

So do I

[@kemarisite]

​@@PerunAUfor some reason this brought to mind Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality series, in which the Incarnation of War passes to another if there is a moment when no war is going on. Then Mars can pass his red sword to another and Perun can go back to being a gaming channel.

[@artnull13]

Have we had a review of the Burma conflict yet?

[@AdurianJ]

Israel based their mobilisation system on the Swedish system developed during WW2. This allowed for effective callup of troops on a case by case basis and for those troops to be combat ready in 24-72 hours. In Israel they reported to their regiments for mobilisation but in Sweden the system was decentralised with each individual company mobilizing in a different spot to prevent a surprise attack from halting a mobilization which had been the case in Norway on 9th of april where most regiments got overrun.

[@hypothalapotamus5293]

In Norway's defense, nobody thought the Germans would do large amphibious operations within spitting distance of the British home fleet.

[@tonysu8860]

Congratulations on producing such relevant content in the most timely manner possible. Absolutely must-read or view content for every journalist reporting on the current Israeli-Gaza conflict and any journalist that doesn't listen or read this presentation risks doing an infeiror job due to lack of understanding many critical issue relevant to the conflict.

[@Goals764]

As I'm a former military veteran I've learned many basic fundamental aspects of effective combats in battlefield and what causes military combats not effectively performing well, i never seen his contributions to any military experts and episodes in the KZbin who had accomplished more than Perun, I'm proud and appreciated your sacrifice and the knowledge you honor to us, Now sitting on calm situation drinking vodka to listen long waiting Saturday video of Perun Big power analysis, thank you so muchmy friend 🙏👍

[@HeroInHelp]

Why is your screen name *what it is*?

[@Hashi88.]

​@@HeroInHelpyou mean what, my real name what's written is a joke and political fan like.

[@mattrogers1149]

Every Sunday another quality Perun video drops. As reliable and impressive as ever. All of this on top of his day job. I'm continually impressed and thankful for the content. I've learned so much and have a better understanding of the world as a result. Somehow through all today's conflict, this channel and positive message for humanity gives me hope for the future.

[@itstoolateicutthecheese6422]

My guy truly is a shining example of how helpful and meaningful KZbin content can be.

[@WhiskyCanuck]

Following up on the topic of the Lavi: a video about the whens & whys of countries (and sometimes companies) cancel major weapons development programs might be of interest (whether before deployment or well before the initial planned production). Besides the Lavi you can look as Seawolf, Zumwalt, A-12, supersonic strategic bombers, etc. (my Canadian citizenship oath requires me to mention the Avro Arrow in this context as well). Maybe it's too simplistic though... "costs too much and it's mission is obsolete" covers most of them, with a healthy dose of "it doesn't work".

[@piedpiper1172]

Tbf, some successful programs probably could have been cancelled earlier with “it doesn’t work.” Because they didn’t, until they did. Most of those probably weren’t really worth it though.

[@yakovdan]

Israeli here, it's a superb video, as always. Despite personally being relatively well-versed, I still learned a couple of things, like that RAND study. Also, the presentation is entertaining as usual and most welcome respite in these dark times.

[@lorenzooliveira1157]

Stay safe, amigo. Hope things end quickly

[@jackthorton10]

Best of luck… 🤞 stay safe

[@ElectronFieldPulse]

Good luck man, I hope you stay safe.

[@yakovdan]

Thanks for the warm wishes, everyone. Personally, I make a few runs a day to the building's bomb shelter and that's the worst of it. But my partner was mobilized and I am very worried about her.

[@bzipoli]

stay safe ❤️🇮🇱

[@jloiben12]

From what I have been able to see, the Iron Dome has done what it is supposed to pretty much as expected

[@Willie5000]

Pretty much, it’s just the sheer volume of rockets going through through that’s overwhelmed the defense grid and allowed some of them to go through.

[@Muljinn]

Applicable to any defensive system; throw enough stuff at a wall and it will crumble.

[@daniellarge9784]

The future will be directed energy weapons. It's the only way to deal with massed rockets and drones.

[@robertoburkes817]

Got me thinking if somebody launches hundreds or thousands of nukes instead. Just a dozen getting through would do major damage and destroy most countries. Just one or two getting through could damage or shut down the whole defense system and leave a country vulnerable or completely defenseless for follow up attacks.

[@gigitrix]

@@robertoburkes817that’s how most nuclear scenarios are predicted to work. French “warning shot” doctrine aside very few nuclear powers see any value in trying to crack one off by itself

[@Trilandian]

Israeli viewer here. Been hoping for an IDF video for a long time. Wish it'd come under better circumstances, but what can you do... Either way, great work as always.

[@LMB222]

Remember, we are with you.

[@IDFArmor]

@@LMB222thank you

[@romanmanner]

Good luck from America. Just remember: when you look into the abyss, the abyss looks back into you.

[@exhebetche]

The machine shop I worked at chose to patronize Iscar tools, an Israeli company. They were some of the best material removal and finishing tools we had for lathe work. It was widely speculated that there were the 'export, commercial' grade tools, and 'non-export, protected intellectual property, possibly domestic DIB use only' tools for the Israeli defense industry. It was awesome to learn about Israel's DIB from the GOAT 😁.

[@BeCurieUs]

I am thankful for this channel in these troubling times. And, ironically, troubled by its growing relevance.

[@XDSDDLord]

The Iron Dome may not have been designed to deal with saturation attacks, but so far, it has done a damn good job of it in the South. The North would be a different matter.

[@jackthorton10]

All we can say as of present is that it could have been so much worse…

[@LeonAust]

Lazer rocket defence is fast becoming a real thing and this could improve the economical aspects of Iron Dome in the future.

[@thermiteturtle3486]

Really want to thank you Perun, I've had severe news fatigue as of late from all these major conflicts going on at once, your concise breakdowns that focus in on important and convoluted topics really help put at least a little bit of things into a rational context

[@Otek_Nr.3]

News fatigue is a nice way of putting it. It seems like there has only disastrous suffering in the news for the last few years, and whenever you take a closer look at the causes and possible resolutions, you get swept up in a wave of unreconcilable disagreements... Especially the Palestine - Israel conflict seems anything but black and white, and I have no idea what the morally correct choice is on any of the questions it poses.

[@Otek_Nr.3]

@@mozesmarcus461 if the attack was just against the Hamas, then I would absolutely agree, but it isn't. Israel is justified in retaliating against the horrid act of terrorism the Hamas committed, no doubt. But they are hitting civilian targets with seeming disregard for human lives. And the ethnic cleansing they've been doing for years now just doesn't paint them as some unblemished hero. There is a lot of religious hate on both sides, and that's just not a good basis for peace.

[@Finkaisar]

Its not just that destroying rocket with a more expensive missile, its also the cost of repairing whatever that rocket would hit

[@ingeteloo3065]

yeah absolutely, there's also the psychological effect of security, which absolutely serves a military purpose, by emboldening popular faith in the state and military, as well as a sense that the enemy is weak. which is arguably a vulnerability, because once attacks are enough to semi-regularly overwhelm the targeting system, the effect of even just one or two direct impacts is so devastating to the general illusion that has been constructed.

[@mattfantastic9969]

These are by far the calmest comments to have ever existed under a video with Israel in the title. Good job gang.

[@leuk2389]

Curious to see how long that will last

[@kenhelmers2603]

Thanks Perun, there is no other place for many of us to hear this information!

[@JohnAugustSydney]

I've long been puzzled by Israel's nuclear ambiguity, and your video helped clarify that ( of course, I could have actively sought out an answer, but I wasn't *that* puzzed). Also, it was intriguing to hear of Israel's ambiguous relationship with the US - I thought it was a lot more straightforward. Anyway, definitely intriguing.

[@wiktornyckowski]

Actually, these two topics do have something in common. During Yom Kippur war, US was initially extremely reluctant to provide anything to Israel - anything at all, even simple weapons or bullets. The reasons were all to obvious - OPEC countries threatened to cut from oil anyone who dares support Israel. Out of the sudden, at some point US "just like that" changed their stance overnight and instead, limited itself from that point on to simply asking questions like "so, what is it that you need next over there in Tel Aviv?" and deliver everything on the previous day the latest, sort of... There is precious little US documents pertaining to this topic, declassified so far, but one leaked satellite photo apparently shows Israeli Jericho program prepped and ready to launch. Something like an unmistakably clear message "if we are forced to go, so be it, but we sure like hell won't go alone". That were the darkest days of the Yom Kippur war, Israel fighting alone against entire military might of USSR (in the hands of their Arab puppets) at its peak of power. Allegedly, looking at the bare gates of atomic hell cracked open, suddenly changed US mind so that they did accept any and all consequences to avoid nuclear Ragnarøk. A bold, even crazy bold move by Israelis bought them life - and eventually peace treaty with Egypt, in due course. Gods favor the bold, they say...

[@JohnAugustSydney]

@@wiktornyckowski There was the story of Mordechai Vanunu, who Israel abducted and imprisoned, and bears on this issue and how Israel dealt with its nuclear ambiguity. Still, as an Australian I'm aware of Monash, the Australian Jew whose combined arms tactics were the inspiration for the German Blitzkrieg, and also the Zion Mule Corps, than participated in the Gallipoli campaign.

[@mattywanders]

Isn't it crazy how many of us nerds love to tune in for slideshow lectures? Keep crushing it Perun!

[@TroyHardingLit]

It's been a LONG time since I last sat by my computer hammering the refresh button quite this hard.

[@oneangrylion9697]

Glad to see I wasn't the only one.

[@smatthewson2613]

Me too!@@oneangrylion9697

[@attalan8732]

Same

[@Rob_F8F]

Thanks for covering a rapidly developing story. Yours is certainly one of the more unbiased and fact-based pieces. Many, many thanks.

[@bryanpratt5850]

Thank you Perun for all the work you put into this video.

[@syrehn7684]

My favourite youtuber comes through once again, Ive been watching since your first defense related video. I love the intellectually honesty and accurate reporting, one of the very few people i trust to cover military topics accurately and without bias. Not using any psychological trickery or lying through omission, clearly stating the goals of the video and not clickbaiting. All the best man! Im supporting you on Patreon now too, as the 3,333 member lol.

[@Stepheno0125]

Perun you are killing it. Thanks for the detailed analysis!

[@MattttG3]

You are the BEST! Exactly what we wanted for this weekend! ❤❤❤

[@mitchdriver3875]

Just what i needed and and a phenomenally quick response. Thank you Perun!

[@ag7898]

I was traveling through Israel with my temple group back in the last 90s and can 100% vouch for the "picking up and giving rides to hitchhiking IDF soldiers." For a sheltered kid from Northern CA, that was definitely an experience!

[@jasonmccallum3289]

Pretty impressed with the comment section for respecting his wishes and being civil ❤

[@kraag6641]

My Sunday morning Perun is always what I need to get the day started. Thank you for all you do.

[@WitOn4Wheelz]

Absolutely awesome video much like the rest of what you produce. You are an amazing asset to KZbin and to all of us viewers forget to watch this material and learn so much more than we will ever learn there any and all of the mainstream media television news stations and more. Thank you for my education!

[@ElementalNimbus]

Mostly commenting to add to the engagement metrics, as everything I have to say is already said elsewhere in the comments. In short, this is a hard topic and I appreciate you working so hard to bring clarity to a situation that is anything but. That said, please make sure you are taking care of yourself and your own mental health. Topics have been heavy lately and the world feels like it is teetering on the cliff to oblivion. Even for someone familiar with the topics and well adjusted, there is always a cost to this coverage. I just want you to keep checking in with yourself and that you feel free to take the time off if you need it.

[@TheDutchGun]

Thank you Perun. I always look forward to an informative Sunday morning lecture from you. This attack and new war is a tragedy for everyone involved, and I have a feeling we'll be seeing repercussions from this even for years.

[@kjj26k]

The coming operation alone is going to last years, the repressions of it will probably let as long as recorded history, though they will quickly be indistinguishable from the consequences of other events.

[@Charl-Viljoen]

Perun, many thanks for the effort. Much appreciated!

[@CrookedSkew]

Another masterclass. Thank you Perun.

[@nicholasgribanovskiy4369]

Love watching your stuff, really high quality content with barely any bias and great analysis skills. Keep up the great work!

[@Erika.D84]

I love your videos. Great analysis, excellently summarized... One of a kind content and it makes me feel stupid which is great because that tells me i' m actually learning something.

[@K0sm]

Thank you Perun to show that it is possible to methodically analyze a very polarizing conflict without lacking empathy for all the people affected by this tragedy.

[@jasonmann9497]

great video, very informative and respectful towards the currently unfolding situation! Thank you for continuously delivering great analysis!

[@aprodaniel6570]

Hello Perun:) Excellent work on this short time frame, but I would like to add a couple of corrections: -The Nesher is a domestically produced Mirage V, which ofc totally had nothing to do with the French Mirage V which was offered and specifically outfitted for the Israeli needs. Because of the Weapon embargo, the Mirage 5 couldn't be sold to Israel so this "completely new" now Israeli jet was born. BUT it used a French, not an American engine. -Kfir is a further development of the Mirage III and 5 because of the aftermentioned weapon embargo, which uses a derivative of the F4 phantom II engine. It also has similarities with the Mirage 5, but F4-s were already operated by Israel, after the US decided to offer the aircraft specifically because of the embargo in 1968. Nevertheless development continued and just 5 years later in 1973, the Kfir made its first flight using the now well renowned far more powerful American engine. The F4 was a very large and heavy plane, so putting one of its very powerful engines in a single seater much smaller plane offered great flight characteristics. Unfortunately when most of your plane is an engine they had to skimp on some things like powerful radars and avionics, but the strengthened airframe and strong engine offered great capacity for carrying ground attack ordnance.

[@noneofyourbusiness4133]

This needs to get a heart or a pin.

[@dogcat145]

interesting to get your opinion on the (Apartheid Era) South African Cheetah (Mirage 3 upgrade) that certainly has similarities to Kfir and it is no secret that Israel certainly assisted SA (missile boats...)

[@aprodaniel6570]

@noneofyourbusiness4133 @dogcat145 I am sorry guys, I misremembered some things. I corrected it and some typos. I kinda typed the whole thing a bit hastily when I was at work.

[@debtobin9937]

Thank you for your continued clarity. Your effort to speak to us is beyond appreciated. I hope for the best for you. And for all civilians, especially the children caught in something beyond their understanding in any and all conflicts.

[@duhaneyparkclassics7484]

Thanks once again for the information Perun. Fantastic analysis as always.1❤from🇯🇲

[@wolfumz]

Blessings to Perun. I didn't know i needed this video until I saw it. So refreshing.

[@zanzastrow5600]

Perfect! I was waiting for this one. Thank you for all you do!

[@irgendwieanders2121]

"Come in and find out..." is a strange but seemingly strangely effective nuclear deterrent strategy

[@Majromax]

For Israel's particular strategic considerations, yes, but only because it wants/needs to control nuclear proliferation in the region. If it openly acknowledges it has nuclear weapons, then that's even more reason for other countries in the region (currently Iran) to make nuclear armament a top priority. Then, Israel understandably fears that some of its neighbours might not be deterred by MAD. This situation is not a generic one. If Ukraine had nuclear weapons, for example, it would want to make their existence very clearly and publicly known to deter precisely the kind of invasion it experienced. _Its_ most threatening neighbours were already nuclear-equipped, so there would be no benefit to ambiguity.

[@waterishdrake8693]

Been waiting for this all week.

[@BalbazaktheGreat]

Excellent work, as always.

[@phillippetersen8402]

As always, a solid approach and analysis of the military considerations in a complex situation. As a military budget analyst myself, I always appreciate your videos. Thanks for doing them.

[@janetwilliams7705]

So much of Israel’s history you covered here has happened during my lifetime (I am in my early seventies). Thank you so much for your straightforward and informative refresher. I appreciate you.

[@paulvarn4712]

Same here. Not enough people in the US have the required historical background for a balanced perspective and rational decision making in a crisis. Whatever radical voice is the loudest at the moment prevails.

[@polarstorm5986]

Also old enough to remember stuff. Israel isn't the good guy here (neither are the other sides). Not critizizing the video, just angry about all the stupidity (including the religous foundation) ongoing for decades (centurys) and western interests and everything. Damn it... I'am also so sick of the role my own country (Germany) plays in this. "Israels security is state reason" our polititians say, hell NO it isn't! It all started because of felt "guilt" back in the day, 80 years have past since then, maaaaybe (not maybe, definetly!) we should question our motives and why we constantly support Israel. Are there good reasons or not? When we have done that we can decide if we further want to support or not.

[@oohhboy-funhouse]

@@polarstorm5986 The more you learn about Israel, the more you get angry at the Israeli government. Hamas has committed the crimes, the Israeli government set the conditions that fuel the existent of groups like Hamas. Just as Putin is NATO's top salesman, the Israeli government and people like Bibi are Hamas best salesmen.

[@polarstorm5986]

@@oohhboy-funhouse Yeah i know, the whole situation is so fucked up and so many different interest are in there and so much guilt on all sides. One could say: "They deserve each other." And we (the west) are also guilty and...ah whatever, you get the point.

[@requious84]

Greatly appreciate your analysis. Informative and balanced.

[@johnhinkey5336]

Excellent as usual! Very informative and definitely helps put the current events in some context.

[@HBK-6S]

Just a minor correction: the Nesher was the Mirage V clone, Kfir is the re-engined one.

[@JosephKano]

My usual Monday morning commute listening. Very good presentation. Thank you for your compassion for the innocents.

[@renevillalvazo8279]

another amazing video Perun. Keep them coming !!

[@ProcintUS]

My absolute favorite PowerPoint Guy-ism is a long list of the same word with varied inflection. M1, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, M113...great stuff.

[@lhead85]

Excellent and balanced as always. Cheers

[@ngreen1596]

I'm very happy with your decision to cover this. Thank you.

[@scruu993]

Perfect overview as always

[@recurvearcher6542]

Hi Perun, Thank you. Refreshing, mind provoking, intuitive, informative, educational and much more. As complex as IDF and it's history is, you have managed to give clarity. Perhaps one of the most troubled locations on this planet, numerous countries and leaders have endeavoured to reach treaties and failed, every person who knows this place feels deep sadness for the suffering being experienced, and asks why. Great posts

[@megleslie]

You sound so tired, Perun. Please remember to look to your own wellbeing, us strangers on the internet will survive if you need to take some time. I know you greatly value your normally (impressively) reasonable and otherwise amusingly deranged comment section, but if this one becomes ungovernable please don't hesitate to turn it off. Thank you for all the work you do, and I dearly hope that one day your commentaries can all be retrospectives.

[@matthewlawton9721]

To a point that exhausted tone is his 'normal' as far as his youtube content goes, and sardonic exhaustion resonates a lot with us absolute rubes who are trying to make sense of the world, thus partly contributing to his wider success. That said, I definitely don't want him putting videos out under the illusion of pressure; most of us would rather wait a little longer and get a quality peice from a well-rested expert than a rushed production from a harried researcher.

[@akwakatsaka1826]

Absolutely top notch analysis as always !!!

[@zigorro3478]

PowerPoint man returns on a dark day always love a perun upload

[@jtgd]

Thank you. My brain will Nom nom. Please consider doing lectures about the Palestinian (Hamas and PA) strategy for defense and offensives, the Israel-Hamas war so far, and the strategy of hypothetical war between Israel and Iran You would make my year

[@PerunAU]

My ambition is to cover Iran, but finding a way to do that full justice on YT is something that will require considerable thought so it may not land until 2024. The limited volume of reliable published doctrinal and strategy documents, let alone those in English, is also a challenge.

[@burhanbudak6041]

@@PerunAU Iran as a topic does make sense, they must be training Hama's and hizbullah

[@badluck5647]

​​@@PerunAUIran is building a defense industry under sanctions that is supposed to take on American. I am definitely looking forward to that video.

[@jtgd]

@@PerunAUI agree. I was thinking about researching the conflict myself, then I remembered lots of documents are in 2 different languages, and not easy ones to learn. I appreciate and admire your work 😊

[@wandzaa]

​@@burhanbudak6041who is training Israeli nazi terrorist IDF?

[@nurimagen314]

as an Israeli, thank you for actually sticking to a subject that you are knowledgeable about, it's been exhausting seeing foreigners online spouting their uninformed "takes", both pro israeli and pro palestinian

[@charlesbrightman4237]

CURRENT TRUTHFUL ANALYSIS: FUTURE FOR EARTHLINGS: Social Conditioning, Brainwashing, Wishful Thinking: a. God truly exists besides just as a concept alone. b. Universe had a beginning. c. Due to God's existence, we have an actual eternal conscious existence throughout all of future eternity. Appears to be real reality though: d. God does not actually exist except for as a concept alone. e. Universe always existed in some form and never had a beginning. f. When we die, we are dead for all of future eternity. We will forget everything we ever knew and experienced and will be forgotten one day in future eternity as if we never ever existed at all in the first place. All of life itself on and from this Earth are going to die and go extinct one day, currently no exceptions. It does not ultimately matter that any of us exist much less however we exist while we exist. Life itself is ultimately meaningless in the grand scheme of things and life itself is a waste of spacetime in this universal existence. (At least on and from this Earth, but possibly throughout all of existence, depending upon what is really true). * A key to future eternity can apparently be found in eternity past. ** Above subject to revision as new information might dictate.

[@johnathanwalker8395]

Free Palestine. End the apartheid.

[@neshirst-ashuach1881]

What does "free Palestine" actually mean? Like, give a specific policy you'd like to see implemented.

[@johnathanwalker8395]

@@neshirst-ashuach1881 Free from the overlordship of the Israeli, free as they were under Ottoman rule

[@neshirst-ashuach1881]

@@johnathanwalker8395 I'm assuming you're being sarcastic? For those who many not understand the sarcasm, the ottoman empire was not a democarcy, no one was "free" under it. It was an empire and treated its Arab lands in the same way European empires treated their conquests, and many Arabs hated it. Thats how Britain got so many Arabs to rise up against the Ottoman empire in WW1 - by promising them their own, independant, countries if they fought the Ottomans. Its a funny joke because absolutely no-one in the region wants to be part of a foreign empire, its one of the few things everyone agrees with. Jokes aside, please give me an actual policy, what does "free Palestine" mean to you?

[@Metalhead_69]

I've been waiting for Perun's analysis since the beginning of the new war. It was worth waiting

[@suhan8382]

Great video as always 🇹🇷🫡 Thank you Perun

[@ioantabacariu8903]

Been looking forward to this ever since the poll came out.

[@stc3145]

Hope one day you can do a video on the Scandinavian countries.

[@martinjrgensen8234]

Finland is the only scandi country that is even remotely interesting to cover. Maybe Sweden due to its decades long neutrality.

[@stc3145]

​​​@@martinjrgensen8234No small countries are interesting especially now that all will be in Nato

[@notaname8385]

Such a solid opener. I love your video structures ❤

[@broworm1]

Thanks for these angles, handled very respectfully.

[@TiddlesTheBearBaiter]

GREAT presentation. I particularly appreciate your phrasing when considering the plight of civilians everywhere. Let's hope for a rapid conclusion and minimal civilian casualties.

[@joelthomastr]

15:46 "Israel's strategic buffer has about as much depth as your average Fast and Furious storyline" 😂🤣💀

[@seanpreston3653]

Thoroughly accurate and well done as always Perun. 🍻

[@m.gardner6173]

Thank you very much for all you efforts to keep us informed.

[@priyan605]

Been waiting for this one

[@thegrimcritic5494]

I have always been utterly fascinated with the IDF, so seeing you discuss them in a video is just an early Christmas present for me. Super excited for this one, Power Point Slideshow Man.

[@johnwilliams3878]

Well done and thoughtfully put together! ❤❤❤❤

[@erikrojas8829]

Thank you for answering some of the questions I had over the IDF

[@eliroven]

Again, love teh witty humour: "...and when it comes to nuclear weapons, that is a case of solving for X that you dont want to get wrong." Thank you! 🤣🤣

[@marakevans3984]

Quick comment: The disclaimer was spot on. Might save that for a script to use later.

[@Warpcaller]

Great job, keep the great content coming!

[@reppkis]

In the days after this erupted onto the news of the World I was thinking 'man it would be good if Perun would throw us a look at it'.... When this was posted I was amazed. Thank you so much, yet again. Bloody legend mate.