IDF Northern Command chief: We are busy with Hezbollah in Syria

Maj.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi says northern sector changing rapidly, “and we must know how to change. (…) “The 50-day war against Hamas last summer – was “one round of fighting, and many more will follow it.

JERUSALEM POST – The Army made Kochavi’s comments, made during a speech to the 91st Galilee Division, available on Monday.

Addressing the division’s past and present commanders, Kochavi, whose past role was commander of Military Intelligence, said, “The most prominent sphere is the change this sector has experienced, and is experiencing. In our generation, under our watch, we are facing this challenge – and we must know to change.”

Kochavi said that the Northern Command “is busy today with Hezbollah in Syria, and this is how it will be in the next war.”

Participants of the event toured the northern border before being addressed by Kochavi, and received an assessment about the current situation, as well as operational responses to threats.

Brig.-Gen. Moni Katz, commander of the Galilee Division, which secures the border with Lebanon, said his division bears a heavy responsibility during both peacetime and times of conflict.

The event examined four key phases of the Galilee Division’s history: Operation Litani, launched in 1978 targeting Palestinian terrorist organizations in southern Lebanon, the first Lebanon War, the IDF’s 15-year presence in the Security Zone from 1985 to 2000, and the period beginning with the 2006 Second Lebanon War until the present day.

In February, Kochavi warned that Israel must expect many future rounds of fighting with its enemies following Operation Protective Edge last summer.

Kochavi said the 50-day war against Hamas last summer – was “one round of fighting, and many more will follow it.”