GOC Army Headquarters
Encyclopedia
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i GOC
General Officer Commanding
General Officer Commanding is the usual title given in the armies of Commonwealth nations to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC II Corps or GOC 7th Armoured Division...
Army headquarters , known unofficially as Mazi, is a multi-corps command headquarters
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
created in 1998, which amalgamates the ground forces of the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
. The current size of the Israeli Ground Forces is estimated at a rough 125,000 active soldiers and 600,000 soldiers in reserve.
Name
The GOC Army Headquarters is known unofficially as Mazi, the Hebrew pronunciation for an acronym for "Ground Arm Command" , which was the GOC Army Headquarters' previous name before being renamed to the current "Ground Arm" . After this renaming, the acronym Mazi officially refers to Commander of the Ground Arm . However, the old acronym Mazi still remains the popular name for the GOC Army Headquarters.Units and structure
- The maneuvering corps:
- Infantry CorpsIsraeli Infantry CorpsThe Israeli Infantry Corps is a corps in the IDF GOC Army Headquarters. It is a maneuvering corps which primarily relies on infantry troops. It includes several regular and reserve service units and brigades which are operatively commanded by the IDF’s regional commands.-Overview:The corps moves to...
- Armor Corps
- Infantry Corps
- The сombat support corps:
- Artillery Corps
- Combat Engineering CorpsIsraeli Engineering CorpsThe Israeli Combat Engineering Corps is the combat engineering forces of the Israel Defense Forces.The Combat Engineering Corps beret's color is grey and its symbol features a sword on a defensive tower with a blast halo on the background...
- Field Intelligence CorpsIsraeli Field Intelligence CorpsThe Israeli Field Intelligence Corps is the newest of the IDF GOC Army Headquarters' five corps, created in April 2000, and is tasked with collecting combat intelligence. It is responsible for intelligence units from the battalion level and up to the entire force. Accordingly, it is professionally...
)
In addition, Mazi includes four "staff divisions":
- Planning Division (Budget and Organization Planning)
- "Ground" Division (TrainingTrainingThe term training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and competencies as a result of the teaching of vocational or practical skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies. It forms the core of apprenticeships and provides the backbone of content at institutes of...
and DoctrineDoctrineDoctrine is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the body of teachings in a branch of knowledge or belief system...
) - Personnel Division
- Technological Division (MaterielMaterielMateriel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....
R&D and AcquisitionAcquisitionAcquisition may refer to:* Takeover, the acquisition of a company* Mergers and acquisitions, strategy of buying and selling of various companies to quickly grow a company...
)
The IDF's third arm
Under the IDF 2000 reforms, Mazi was set to become the IDF's third Arm, alongside the Air and Space ArmIsraeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
and the Sea Arm
Israeli Sea Corps
The Israeli Navy is the naval arm of the Israel Defense Forces, operating primarily in the Mediterranean Sea theater as well as the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea theater. The current commander in chief of the Israeli Navy is Aluf Ram Rothberg.-History:...
. Until the creation of Mazi, IDF ground forces were directly subordinate to the Chief of Staff
Ramatkal
The Chief of the General Staff, also known as the Commander-in-Chief of the Israel Defense Forces is the supreme commander and Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces. At any given time, the Chief of Staff is the only active officer holding the IDF's highest rank, Rav Aluf , which is usually...
through the Regional Commands (North, South and Central). The meaning of the reform was to subordinate the ground forces to one ground commander, who is a part of the Joint Staff, by the example of the Israeli Air Force and Navy; and unlike the United States Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
, where operational Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
, Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
, Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
and Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
units and other support units are subordinated to Unified Combatant Command
Unified Combatant Command
A Unified Combatant Command is a United States Department of Defense command that is composed of forces from at least two Military Departments and has a broad and continuing mission. These commands are established to provide effective command and control of U.S. military forces, regardless of...
s.
The proposed reform for the Ground Arm was rejected, and the ground forces remain subordinate to the 3 regional commands. Likewise with combat support and rear-line corps, which in part remain subordinate to respective Directorates. In times of battle, the Ground Arm Commander acts as an advisor to the IDF Chief of Staff on ground warfare.
As an IDF arm, the Ground Arm is meant to build of the ground forces' strength and working toward balance, combination, and coordination between the ground corps. It does so by instruction and training of individuals and units, writing and publishing the relevant doctrine, organizing the forces with respect for their missions and R&D
Research and development
The phrase research and development , according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of man, culture and society, and the use of this stock of...
and acquisition of materiel
Materiel
Materiel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....
. Its authority ranges up to the corps level. Above it, meaning the regional commands themselves, the authority is of the Joint Staff.
Heads of Mafchash and Mazi
- Dan ShomronDan ShomronGen. Dan Shomron was the 13th Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, from 1987 to 1991....
(1983–1985) - Amir DroriAmir DroriAmir Drori was an Israeli general, founder and the first director general of the Israel Antiquities Authority.-Military career:Amir Drori was born in Tel Aviv in 1937 and graduated from the IDF's Junior Command Preparatory School in Haifa. He was drafted into the Israel Defence Forces in 1955,...
(1985–1986) - Uri SagiUri SagiUri Sagie was an Israeli general who held several prominent posts including command of the Golani Brigade, of Israel's Northern Command, and the IDF Military Intelligence Directorate....
(1986–1991) - Emanuel SakelEmanuel SakelEmanuel Sakel is a retired Israeli general who held several prominent posts including command of the 252 Sinai Brigade, and the IDF GOC Army Headquarters. For his actions in the Yom Kippur War he received the Medal of Courage. After his military career, he became the CEO of the Trans-Israel...
(1991–1994) - Ze'ev Livne (1994–1996)
- Amos Malka (1996–1998)
- Moshe Soknik (1998–2001)
- Yiftah Ron-TalYiftah Ron-TalYiftah Ron-Tal is the Director of the Israel Electric Corporation, former head of the Israel Port Authority and former Major General in the Israel Defense Forces .Ron-Tal was born on Netiv HaLamed-Heh, a kibbutz in the Elah valley in central Israel...
(2001–2005) - Benjamin GantzBenjamin GantzRav Aluf Binyamin "Benny" Gantz is the current Chief of General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces.-Personal History and Military Service:Born in Kfar Ahim, Israel in 1959, Gantz was drafted into the IDF in 1977. He volunteered as a paratrooper in the Paratroopers Brigade, and in 1979 became an...
(2005-December 20, 2007) - Avi MizrahiAvi MizrahiAluf Avi Mizrahi is a general in the Israel Defense Forces and the current Head of Israeli Central Command .-Military career:...
(December 20, 2007 – 2009) - Sami TurgemanSami TurgemanShlomo Turgeman was born on July 11, 1964. He is a Major General in the IDF and is the current commander of the Ground Forces. His past posts include: head of the Armored Corps and head of the Operations Brigade of the Operations Directorate...
(2009-date)