The Ministry of Defense says Israeli satellites already serve civilians at home. According to the ministry, during Operation Roaring Lion the satellites surveilled hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of Iranian territory every day. Their tens of thousands of images guided strike planning and allowed immediate battle-damage assessments after each wave. They also acted as a critical early warning system for the home front.
Maj. Gen. (res.) Isaac Ben-Israel, who once chaired Israel's space agency, told JNS in June that Israelis would not have received the missile alerts they came to rely on "without those space activities."
Outlets differ on what to call the new formation. Ynet reported that the unit is expected to be established in the coming months as part of the military's multiyear plan. Ynet and i24NEWS describe it as a Space Brigade. JNS and VINnews refer to it as a Space Division.
The IDF announced Monday that Brig. Gen. S., whose full name was not released, will lead it. Walla reported that Brig. Gen. S. previously headed Unit 9900 in Military Intelligence and is highly regarded among the IDF's senior leadership. Two lieutenant colonels, identified as N. and S., will head departments within the unit and will be promoted to colonel. All of the appointments still require Katz's approval.
According to the IDF, the unit will direct force development and operations, centralize knowledge and training, and treat space as a dedicated military profession. The military said it now regards space as an active combat domain whose importance will grow in the coming years. It added that over the past year it has approved projects involving space-based sensors aimed at Earth, along with space warfare capabilities.
The IDF has not disclosed which capabilities will exist once the unit is established. It has also not given a timetable for the full range of systems Katz described. Katz argued that military space investment could boost Israel's technology sector, entrepreneurship and advanced manufacturing, and could carry over into civilian space technology.
Earlier this month, a senior IDF official told Israel Hayom that satellite communications are run from several secret bases across the country. "Space is no longer the future. It is an actual theater of war," the official said.
i24NEWS reported that several Houthi ballistic missiles have been intercepted outside Earth's atmosphere since the war began on October 7, 2023.
The space unit was one of several structural changes announced Monday. The IDF is also forming a robotics unit led by Brig. Gen. Y. Ynet calls it a Robotics Brigade, while VINnews calls it a Robotics Division. The army is also reopening the 500th Armored Brigade, which was closed in 2003, under Lt. Col. R., who will be promoted to colonel. The military said the overall package includes one new brigadier general and 36 new colonels.
