IDF Spokesperson's Unit

Unit logo
IDF Spokesperson's Unit military photographer

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit (Hebrew: דובר צה"ל‎‎, Dover Tsahal, abbr. Dotz) is the unit in the IDF Operations Directorate, responsible for information policy and media relations.[1] The unit is led by the IDF Spokesperson, a brigadier general and member of the General Staff, and by the Deputy Spokesperson, a colonel. The current Spokesperson is Brig. Gen. Moti Almoz, who replaced in this position Yoav "Poli" Mordechai in October 2013.[2]

Overview

“ The purpose of the IDF Spokesperson's Unit is to report on the accomplishments and activities of the IDF to the Israeli and international public, to nurture public confidence in the IDF, and to serve as the IDF's primary professional authority on matters of public relations and distribution of information to the public. ”
— [3]

History

The first IDF Spokesman was Lt. Col. Moshe Pearlman, a journalist and immigrant from Britain who was appointed in 1948 with the establishment of the State. After the first several years of activity, the IDF Spokesperson's office was upgraded to unit status, under the authority of the Military Intelligence Directorate of the IDF. It was further upgraded to a full brigade in 1973.

In 1979, Brigadier General Yaakov Even opened the film and photography departments in the IDF Spokesperson's Unit which in turn opened the first International School for Combat Journalism and Photography in 2007.

During the Gulf War in the 1990s, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit was repositioned to directly report to the IDF Chief of Staff. The head of the unit at the time, Brig. Gen. Nachman Shai, changed the unit's uniform tag to the one it has today. It was later placed under the Operations Directorate during changes to the army made in 2000. In the year 2006, the Chief of Staff concentrated the Spokesperson's Unit as the professional military authority in matters of public relations. Within this concentrated framework, new branches, fields, and positions were opened within the unit.

Despite its presence on the front lines since 1948, the unit has only suffered one combat fatality, Sergeant Lior Ziv, a photographer who was killed during military operations in 2003.

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit commonly use a member of their staff to address the media. Lt. Col. Peter Lerner of the IDF is currently employed by the unit when addressing British and English speaking news agencies, he was born and educated in London.

Leaders

IDF Spokesperson 2001-2013 Yoav Mordechay.
current IDF spokesman Moti Almoz.

Structure

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit is responsible for the IDF's information policy and media relations in both peace and war time. The unit is divided into several sub-units which deal with various areas of activity including domestic and foreign press liaison, public relations, information, photography, film, video, organization and training.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 "Israel Defense Forces: Spokesperson's Unit". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  2. ↑ Miskin, Maayana. "DF Gets New Spokesman". Arutz 7. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 "IDF Spokesperson's Unit". Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  4. ↑ Zitun, Yoav. "Brig.-Gen. Almoz assumes duties as new IDF spokesman". Ynet News. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  5. ↑ Morris, Don. IDF PR is on the move, "Doc's Talk", June 20, 2010.
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