Searching, extracting, and destroying CBRN weapons and explosives
Tactical emergency medical service and
medevac when injured by CBRN weapons, and after incidents associated with defusing and disposing of bombs or high-yield explosives
Commando-style raid operations
Counterinsurgency and counterterrorism (CT)
Military special operations against guerrilla warfare[dubious –
discuss]
Yahalom is a classified unit and almost none of its special activities are exposed to the public. Public accounts of its activities usually just credit a "combat engineering force"; a term that can equally describe regular Engineering
sappers,
IDF Caterpillar D9 operators and infantry engineering companies.
Jane's Defence Weekly has claimed that Yahalom are working closely with
Sayeret Matkal and
Shayetet 13, by providing them with demolition, explosive and sabotage skills.[citation needed] Most of the equipment that Yahalom has developed for its missions is classified. Yahalom maintains secrecy to make it more difficult for enemies to develop countermeasures.
Sub-units
Yael ("
Ibex") - a commando demolition unit that conducts long range sabotage,
combat engineering,
counter terror, and maritime engineering missions. The YAEL team has destroyed military and civilian infrastructure that have been identified as hiding weapons caches, tunnels used to smuggle weapons, and firing positions.[citation needed]
SAP ("EOD Unit") - an EOD unit that removes
land mines and missile
warheads, handles
nuclear,
biological and
chemical (
NBC) threats, performs
bomb disposal, and accompanies special operations units on missions where their units are at risk of encountering explosive booby traps. YACHSAP is constantly engaged in defusing large IEDs that
Hezbollah has set along the
Israel-Lebanon border and bombs Palestinians have planted in the
West Bank and the
Gaza Strip.[citation needed] They often use
armored bulldozers when executing those missions. SAP is initials for Bomb disposal.
Samur ("
Weasel") - a commando unit whose expertise is finding and destroying and if needed fighting in
smuggling tunnels and hidden weapon caches.[3] The unit dates back to 2004 when the IDF merged the
Southern CommandPhiladelphi RouteSmuggling tunnel experts team into Yahalom to form the Samur platoon.[citation needed]. Samur is also initials for Slikim (Caches) and Minharot (Caves or Tunnels)
Midron Mushlag ("Snowy Slope") - a unit whose expertise is penetrating buildings using hot breaching techniques using explosives charges, or cold breaching techniques using hydraulic expanders, crow bars and lock picks.
Hevzek ("Flash") - a unit that operated military
robots - defunct.
SAPIR ("Sapphire") - Aerial ordnance EOD Unit, stationed at major
IAF bases and tasked with removal of air ordnance such as bombs, missiles, rockets, etc. It is also tasked with safe removal of unexploded enemy ordnance inside the base perimeter. SAPIR is initials for SAP (Bomb disposal) and Avir (air.)
Sayfan ("Avocet") -
CBRNE unit, trained to respond to threats from weapons of mass destruction, mostly focused on chemical weaponry.
Givol ("Flower stem") -
CBRN disposal unit, composed of reserve service personnel.
Yahalom operates remote-controlled
robots inserted into tunnels, obviating the need for human operators to risk their lives. EOD robots for handling
improvised explosive devices (IEDs), bombs and
explosive charges, and advanced EOD vehicles are standard equipment for all engineering units handling explosives. The
Israel Border Policebomb disposal experts use similar equipment. Yahalom also uses the up-armored
IDF Caterpillar D9bulldozer and the remote-controlled Raam HaShachar ("Morning thunder") version of the D9 (which were found extremely useful for special operation and CT duties), an armored
excavator with drills, the
IDF Pumacombat engineering vehicle (CEV), and
Nakpuma, a
NakpadonAPC modified to Yahalom's requirements.
In order to be accepted into the unit one must enlist with the
Israeli Engineering Corps and go through basic training ("
Tironut"), where commanders identify the best trainees and select them for "Gibbush" (a grueling five-day test of physical and mental condition in intensive field trials). The best graduates of Gibbush are invited to join the unit and received advance training, which takes another year. Because the training takes a total of 1.4 years, the volunteers must agree to serve an extra year (in addition to the mandatory three year service in the IDF). The training includes training in engineering,
explosive ordnance disposal, advanced combat and
counter-terrorism.