In July, 17 members of the Israeli Defense Force Special Operations units attended the mouthful of an acronym for two other acronyms called the (IDF)-SOCOM Senior Seminar (ISOSS) at McDill Air Force base in Tampa, Florida. The seminar has run for twenty years, but this was the first time that it was hosted by Special Operations Command-Central (SOCCENT).
In years past, 10th Special Forces Group, which is normally regionally oriented to Europe, would also cover down on Lebanon and Israel as a part of their area of responsibility. 5th Special Forces Group, which was responsible for covering the Middle East, steered clear of those countries in the past, ostensibly because of political concerns about the optics of having the same soldiers bounce between working with Arab armies and Israeli troops at the same time.
But times change, this area of operations is back in the hands of Central Command and SOCCENT. During the three-day event, a variety of briefings about challenges in and around Israel were given, and the IDF officers were given a "tour of SOCCENT’s Spartan Forge rapid robotics fabrication facility. They were shown how the command organically manufactures drones, quadcopters and other robotics," according to a press release.
"The strategic value of ISOSS has moved forward dramatically, working with SOCCENT. This has become a venue for operational planning and a platform for future operations between the two SOF communities. ISOSS is that doorstep," explained the leader of the Israeli delegation named Maj. Gen. Nimrod Aloni.
The keynote address was given by retired General Tony Thomas about the future use of Artificial Intelligence on the battlefield. "We have to incorporate AI in everything we do, whether it’s for the operator or the enabler," Thomas told the delegation.
Meanwhile, the IDF has been fighting one battle in Gaza and another in the media as they have there have been allegations that the Israeli military is committing a genocide against the Palestinian people. In 2024, the International Criminal Court issued indictments for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on war crimes charges.