Sayeret Matkal

General Staff Reconnaissance Unit
Sayeret Matkal
Unit insignia
Active5th Company, Unit 154 (1957–1958)
Unit 269 (1958–?)
Sayeret Matkal (?–present)
1957–present
Country Israel
Allegiance Israel Defense Forces
Branch Military Intelligence Directorate
TypeSayeret
SizeClassified
Part ofIDF General Staff Headquarters
Aman (Special Operations Division (He))
Garrison/HQSouthern Israel[1]
Nickname(s)The Unit
Motto(s)המעז מנצח (Who Dares Wins)
ColorsMaroon beret
EngagementsWar of Attrition
Yom Kippur War
Palestinian insurgency in South Lebanon
Operation Entebbe
1982 Lebanon War
South Lebanon conflict
First Intifada
Second Intifada
2006 Lebanon War
2014 Gaza War
2023 Israel–Hamas war
Commanders
Notable
commanders
Ehud Barak
Yonatan Netanyahu
Nehemiah Tamari
Uzi Dayan
Moshe Yaalon
Omer Bar-Lev
Benjamin Netanyahu
Iddo Netanyahu
Insignia
Flag of the Intelligence Corps

General Staff Reconnaissance Unit[2] (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262), more commonly known as Sayeret Matkal[3] (Hebrew: סיירת מטכ״ל), is the special reconnaissance unit (sayeret) of Israel's General Staff (matkal). It is considered one of the premier special forces units of Israel.[4]

First and foremost a field intelligence-gathering unit, conducting deep reconnaissance behind enemy lines to obtain strategic intelligence, Sayeret Matkal is also tasked with a wide variety of frequently clandestine special operations, including black operations, combat search and rescue, counterterrorism, hostage rescue, humint, irregular warfare, long-range penetration, conducting manhunts, special operations, and special reconnaissance beyond Israel's borders. The unit is modeled after the British Army's Special Air Service (SAS), taking the unit's motto "Who Dares Wins". The unit is the Israeli equivalent of the SAS.[5] It is directly subordinate to the Special Operations Division of the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate.[6][7]

  1. ^ "בהשתתפות משפחות שכולות ומפקדי סיירת מטכ״ל: התקיים אירוע פרידה מבסיס סירקין". Israel Defense Forces. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Israel Special Forces: Sayeret Matkal". The Jewish Virtual Library (American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise). Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  3. ^ "סיירת מטכ"ל - יחידת העילית הבכירה של ישראל - הכל על היחידה". אדרנלין (in Hebrew). 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
  4. ^ "גיבוש מטכ״ל - תנאי קבלה, טיפים לגיבוש סיירת מטכל ועוד". Xpert כושר קרבי (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2020-10-19.
  5. ^ "Sayeret Matkal – Israeli Special Operations". Archived from the original on 2009-09-30. Retrieved 2008-07-27.
  6. ^ Sof, Eric (2013-05-15). "Sayeret Matkal: A Israel's Equivalent to the Delta Force". Spec Ops Magazine. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  7. ^ "Military Intelligence Directorate". www.idf.il. 29 December 2021. Retrieved 2023-10-23.

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