The GOC Army Headquarters ( he, מפקדת זרוע היבשה, ''Mifkedet Zro'a HaYabasha'', abbreviated Mazi), is a multi-corps command

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) 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 to ...

created in 1998, which amalgamates the ground forces of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

. The current size of the Israeli Ground Forces is estimated at 126,000 active soldiers and 400,000 soldiers in reserve.

Name

The GOC Army Headquarters is known unofficially as ''Mazi'', the Hebrew pronunciation for an

acronym An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

for "Ground Arm Command" (, (, ''Mifkedet Zro'a ha-Yabasha''), which was the GOC Army Headquarters' previous name before being renamed to the current "Ground Arm" (). After this renaming, the acronym MAZI officially refers nowadays to "Commander of the Ground Arm" (, ''Mefaked Zro'a Ha-Yabasha''). However the old acronym MAZI still remains the popular name for the GOC Army Headquarters.

Units and structure

The Headquarters of the Ground Forces commands the following five corps: * Maneuvering Corps (Established in 2020) : ** Infantry Corps () ** Armor Corps () ** Combat Engineering Corps () **99th "HaBazaq" Paratroopers Division ( He) * Combat support corps: **

Artillery Corps Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, ...

() ** Combat Intelligence Corps () In addition, the Headquarters includes four "staff divisions": * Planning Division (Budget and Organization Planning) () * "Ground" Division (

Training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

and

Doctrine Doctrine (from la, doctrina, meaning "teaching, instruction") is a codification of beliefs or a body of teachings or instructions, taught principles or positions, as the essence of teachings in a given branch of knowledge or in a belief syste ...

) () * Personnel Division () * Technological Division (

Materiel Materiel (; ) refers to supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commercial supply chain context. In a military context, the term ''materiel'' refers either to the spec ...

R&D and Acquisition) ()

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 Force and the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...

. Until the creation of MAZI, IDF ground forces were directly subordinated to the

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

through the Regional Commands (North, South, and Central). The intention 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 and Space Force and Navy; and unlike most of the other armed forces, where operational

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

, and

plus other auxiliary support units, are all subordinated to unified commands. The proposed reform for the Ground Arm was rejected and the ground forces remain subordinated to the three regional commands. Likewise with combat support and rear-line corps, which are partly subordinated to the respective Directorates. In times of war, 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 individual units, planning and publishing the relevant doctrine, organizing the forces respectively for their missions, and R&D and acquisition of

materiel Materiel (; ) refers to supplies, equipment, and weapons in military supply-chain management, and typically supplies and equipment in a commercial supply chain context. In a military context, the term ''materiel'' refers either to the spec ...

. Its authority ranges up to the corps level. Above it, meaning the regional commands themselves, the authority is of the IDF Joint Staff.

_Commanders

_See_also

*_Military_equipment_of_Israel#Ground_forces_equipment.html" ;"title=" think noting the changes broadly (& still-mixed nature) is more accurate —User:El_C -->

Commanders

References

External links

Ground Arm website

{{Chief of the army by country 1998 establishments in Israel Israel Defense Forces National army headquarters, Israel Military units and formations established in 1998