The Central Command (, ''Pikud Merkaz''), often abbreviated to Pakmaz (פקמ"ז), is a regional

command Command may refer to: Computing * Command (computing), a statement in a computer language * command (Unix), a Unix command * COMMAND.COM, the default operating system shell and command-line interpreter for DOS * Command key, a modifier key on A ...

of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

. It is responsible for the

units Unit may refer to: General measurement * Unit of measurement, a definite magnitude of a physical quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law **International System of Units (SI), modern form of the metric system **English units, histo ...

and

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

s located in the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

(under the

West Bank Division The Israeli 877th "Judea and Samaria" Division (, ; also known as the West Bank Division) is a regional division of the Central Command. It is responsible for Israeli military activity in the Judea and Samaria Area. Division organization 20 ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, the

Sharon Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name. In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...

Gush Dan Gush Dan (, ) or Tel Aviv metropolitan area is a conurbation in Israel, located along the country's Mediterranean coastline. There is no single formal definition of Gush Dan, though the term is in frequent use by both governmental bodies and the ...

, and the

Shephelah The Shephelah () or Shfela (), or the Judaean Foothills (), is a transitional region of soft-sloping rolling hills in south-central Israel stretching over between the Judaean Mountains and the Coastal Plain. The different use of the term "Jud ...

. The

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

of the central command is the one who is authorized to declare new cities in the

Judea and Samaria Area The Judea and Samaria Area (; ) is an administrative division used by the State of Israel to refer to the entire West Bank, which has been occupied by Israel since 1967, but excludes East Jerusalem (see Jerusalem Law). Its area is split int ...

History

During the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...

, the Central Command was in-charge of the war efforts against

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, particularly on the road to

, occupying the "Small Triangle" (east

Lod Lod (, ), also known as Lydda () and Lidd (, or ), is a city southeast of Tel Aviv and northwest of Jerusalem in the Central District of Israel. It is situated between the lower Shephelah on the east and the coastal plain on the west. The ci ...

, and

Ramla Ramla (), also known as Ramle (, ), is a city in the Central District of Israel. Ramle is one of Israel's mixed cities, with significant numbers of both Jews and Arabs. The city was founded in the early 8th century CE by the Umayyad caliph S ...

. During the

Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...

, the Command led the occupation of the

from Jordan. As of the

First Intifada The First Intifada (), also known as the First Palestinian Intifada, was a sustained series of Nonviolent resistance, non-violent protests, acts of civil disobedience, Riot, riots, and Terrorism, terrorist attacks carried out by Palestinians ...

, the Command primarily engages in security and

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (alternatively spelled: counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, relates to the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to co ...

activities, as well as more conventional military measures, in the West Bank. Towards the end of 2010 the deployment of IDF troops in and around the West Bank reached a new quantitative low with only half the number of infantry battalions serving where "dozens" were required during the first Intifada.

Command organization 2025

Israel Central Command - Organization 2023

Central Command, in

Neve Yaakov Neve Yaakov (; also ''Neve Ya'aqov'', lit. Jacob's Oasis) is an Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem, part of the Israeli-occupied territories, north of the settlement of Pisgat Ze'ev and south of the Palestinian locality of al-Ram. Establishe ...

** 96th Division "Gilad" ***

417th Territorial Brigade – Jordan Valley sector **** 41st Border Infantry Battalion "Jordan Lions" **** 47th Border Infantry Battalion "Valley Guards" **** 5016th Reserve Infantry Battalion "Reim" **** 5035th Reserve Infantry Battalion "Habokea" **** 9992nd Reserve Infantry Battalion **** 5025th Reserve Field Intelligence Battalion **** 7078th Reserve Counterterrorism Unit "Yatam amakim" (Anti-Terrorism Rapid Response Unit) *** 182th Infantry Brigade "Uri" (Reserve) *** 185th Infantry Brigade "Tel Hai" (Reserve) *** 186th Infantry Brigade "Jezreel" (Reserve) *** 187th Infantry Brigade "Jonathan" (Reserve) *** 189th Infantry Brigade "Negba" (Reserve) ** 98th Division "Ha-Esh"/"Fire" *** 35th Brigade IDF

35th Paratroopers Brigade "Shfifon/Flying Serpent" *** IDF Brigade 55 Tag

55th Paratroopers Brigade "Hod Ha-Hanit/Spearhead" (Reserve) *** Komando

89th Commando Brigade "Oz/Courage" *** Logo hativa 551

551st Paratroopers Brigade "Hetzei Ha-Esch/Fire Arrows" (Reserve) *** Kela david

214th Artillery Brigade "David's Sling" ** 99th Division "Ha'Bazak/Flash" (Reserve) *** YiftachBrigade

11th Commando Brigade "Yiftach" (Reserve) ***

179th Armored Brigade "Ram" (Reserve) *** Logo hativa 900

900th Infantry Brigade "Kfir" *** Hativa-646 New Logo

646th Paratroopers Brigade "Schualey Marom" (Reserve) *** 340 logistika

Division Logistic Brigade *** 340signal

807th Division Signal Battalion ** Logo ugdat eyosh

877th Division "Judea and Samaria" *** 421px-YoSH h-Efraim 2

421st Territorial Brigade "Ephraim" –

Qalqilya Qalqilya or Qalqiliya () is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, which serves as the administrative center of the Qalqilya Governorate. The city had a population of 51,683 in 2017. Qalqilya is surrounded by the Israeli West Bank barrier, Israeli We ...

sector *** 426px-YoSH h-Etzion

426th Territorial Brigade "Etzion" –

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

sector *** 431px-YoSH h-Menashe

431st Territorial Brigade "Menashe" –

Jenin Jenin ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and is the capital of the Jenin Governorate. It is a hub for the surrounding towns. Jenin came under Israeli occupied territories, Israeli occupation in 1967, and was put under the administra ...

and

Tulkarm Tulkarm or Tulkarem (, ''Ṭūlkarm'') is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the West Bank, the capital of the Tulkarm Governorate of the State of Palestine. The Israeli city of Netanya is to the west, and the Palestinian territories, Palestinia ...

sectors *** 434px-YoSH h-Yehuda

434th Territorial Brigade "Yehuda" –

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

sector *** 442px-YoSH h-Shomron

442nd Territorial Brigade "Samaria" –

Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...

sector *** 443px-YoSH h-Beniamin

443rd Territorial Brigade "Benjamin" –

Ramallah Ramallah ( , ; ) is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, that serves as the administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusalem, at an average elevation of abov ...

sector and Road 443 ** Pakmaz signal

372nd Signal Battalion "Segev" ** Handasa pkmz

Central Command Engineering Unit 802 ** ModiinMerkazNew

Central Command Intelligence Unit ** Mz pkmz

Central Command Military Police Unit 391 ** Refua pkmz

Central Command Medical Unit ** Yahsham650

Central Command Maintenance Unit 650 ** Lahish

Central Command Training Base "Lahish" ** Almar 5004

5004th Logistic Unit

Commanders

All commanders of the Central Command were ranked

Aluf ( or "first/leader of a group" in Biblical Hebrew) is a senior military rank in the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) for officers who in other countries would have the rank of general, air marshal, or admiral. In addition to the ''aluf'' rank, fo ...

( Major General). * Zvi Ayalon (1948–1952) * Yosef Avidar (1952–1953) *Zvi Ayalon (1954–1956) * Zvi Zur (1956–1958) * Meir Amit (1958–1959) * Yosef Geva (1960–1966) * Uzi Narkis (1966–1968) * Rehav'am Ze'evi (1968–1972) * Yona Efrat (1973–1977) * Moshe Levi (1977–1981) * Ori Orr (1981–1983) *

Amnon Lipkin-Shahak Amnon Lipkin-Shahak (; March 18, 1944 – December 19, 2012) was an Israeli military officer and politician. He served as Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, as a Member of the Knesset, and as Minister of Transportation and Minister of ...

(1983–1986) *

Ehud Barak Ehud Barak ( ; born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli former general and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Israeli Labor Party, Labor Party between 1997 and 20 ...

(1986–1987) *

Amram Mitzna Amram Mitzna (; born 20 February 1945) is an Israeli politician and former general in the IDF. He is a former mayor of Haifa (1993–2003) and Yeruham (2005–2010) and led the Labor Party from 2002 to 2003. In 2012 he joined Hatnuah. Youth, e ...

(1987–1989) *

Yitzhak Mordechai Yitzhak "Itzik" Mordechai (; born 22 November 1944) is an Israeli former general and politician. He served as a member of the Knesset between 1996 and 2001, and as Minister of Defense and Minister of Transport. He retired from political life ...

(1989–1991) *

Danny Yatom Danny Yatom (; born 15 March 1945) is a former Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for Labor. In 1996–1998, Yatom was head of the Mossad and between 1999 and 2001, he served as Prime Minister Ehud Barak's Chief Of Staff an ...

(1991–1993) * Nehemiah Tamari (1993–1994) - KIA *Danny Yatom (1994) * Ilan Birn (1994–1995) *

Uzi Dayan Aluf (Major General, res.) Uzi Dayan (; born January 4, 1948) is a former general in the Israel Defense Forces and an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset for Likud from 2020 to 2021. Biography Uzi Dayan is a nephew of Moshe ...

(1996–1998) *

Moshe Ya'alon Moshe "Bogie" Ya'alon (; born Moshe Smilansky; 24 June 1950) is an Israeli politician and former Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, who also served as Israel's Defense Minister under Benjamin Netanyahu from 2013 until his resignation ...

(1998–2000) * Yitzhak Eitan (2000–2002) *

Moshe Kaplinsky Maj. Gen. Moshe Kaplinsky (Hebrew: משה קפלינסקי; born January 20, 1957) is an Israeli army general and businessman who was CEO of the Israeli subsidiary of Better Place. Most recently, he was Deputy Chief of the General Staff of ...

(2002–2004) * Yair Nave (2004–2007) * Gadi Shamni (2007–2009) * Avi Mizrahi (2009–2012) * Nitzan Alon (2012–2015) * Roni Numa (2015–2018) * Nadav Padan (2018–2020) * Tamir Yadai (2020–2021) * Yehuda Fox (2021–)

References

{{Authority control Central Command (Israel) Regional commands of Israel

History

Command organization 2025

Commanders

See also

References