Israeli Military Police
Encyclopedia
For other uses, see Military Police Corps
Military Police Corps
The Military Police Corps is the uniformed law enforcement branch of the United States Army. Investigations are conducted by Military Police Investigators or the United States Army Criminal Investigation Command , both of which report to the Provost Marshal General.MPs are service members of the...

.

The Military Police Corps of the Israel Defense Forces
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...

  is the Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

i military police
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...

 and provost
Provost (military police)
Provosts are military police whose duties are policing solely within the Armed Forces, as opposed to Gendarmerie duties in the civilian population. However, many countries use their gendarmerie for provost duties....

. The military police serves the Manpower Directorate during peace time, and the Technological and Logistics Directorate during war.

The military police is a brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

-sized unit of about 4,500, headed by Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

 Meir Ohana. It is responsible for various law enforcement duties, including aiding IDF commanders in enforcing discipline, guarding the military prison
Israeli military prison
The Israeli Military Prison is a prison for guarding soldiers who committed crimes during their service. It is estimated that 15,000-18,000 Israeli soldiers go through an Israeli military prison or detention center every year.-Prison sector history:The need to create prisons in the IDF arose as...

s, locating deserter
Desertion
In military terminology, desertion is the abandonment of a "duty" or post without permission and is done with the intention of not returning...

s, investigating crimes committed by soldiers, and helping man the Israeli checkpoint
Israel Defense Forces checkpoint
A Israel Defense Forces checkpoint, usually called an Israeli checkpoint , is a barrier erected by the Israel Defense Forces with the stated aim of enhancing the security of Israel and Israeli settlements and preventing those who wish to do harm from crossing...

s in the Palestinian territories
Palestinian territories
The Palestinian territories comprise the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Since the Palestinian Declaration of Independence in 1988, the region is today recognized by three-quarters of the world's countries as the State of Palestine or simply Palestine, although this status is not recognized by the...

. Some of the above activities have contributed to the corps's deteriorating public image over the years.

The corps puts an emphasis on discipline and follows the principle of A Choice in Life, which says no to traffic accidents, narcotics, alcohol, suicide and improper use of weapons.

Founding and initial organization

The IDF
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...

's Military Police Corps traces its roots to a Jewish youth paramilitary organization called Notrim
Notrim
The Notrim were a Jewish Police Force set up by the British in the Mandatory Palestine in 1936 to help defend Jewish lives and property during the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. The force was divided into Supernumerary Police and highly mobile Settlement Police...

, founded in 1936. It was legal under British Mandate law, unlike its many counterparts such as the Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...

. Its original purpose was to defend and police Jewish yishuv
Yishuv
The Yishuv or Ha-Yishuv is the term referring to the body of Jewish residents in Palestine before the establishment of the State of Israel...

 localities during the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. In 1937, the organization was given permission to expand, due to lack of British manpower allocated for defending Jewish villages in Palestine.

During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the Notrim became part of the Jewish Brigade
Jewish Brigade
The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group was a military formation of the British Army that served in Europe during the Second World War. The brigade was formed in late 1944, and its personnel fought the Germans in Italy...

, where it grew and became more known among the Palestinian Jewish public. Many new recruits joined the organization, where they went through a filtering process where it was decided what unit they were to be placed in. In 1944, an order was given by the Haganah to create its own military police in the Jewish Brigade, and the task was given to a captain therein, named Daniel Lifshitz (later Danny Magen). Lifshitz and three sergeants from the brigade who served at a base near Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...

, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

 were the initial nucleus of the organization, and recruited soldiers mainly from within the brigade itself.
During Israel's fight for independence between 1945 and 47, the Jewish leadership created the Military Police out of the organization, which became a small contingent of four units (Disciplinary Military Police, Traffic Supervision Military Police, Investigations Military Police, and the Prison Division), each proficient in its respective field. Originally, this force consisted of only 160 soldiers and officers, personally picked by the first commander, Danny Magen. The force officially gained recognition in March-May 1948 as a result of the Riptin Commission and after the IDF formulated its disciplinary laws, and quickly expanded as the necessities of a military police service were made clear in the IDF. Originally, the traffic supervision units were organized into regions, serving in the most populated cities (Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Haifa), while the discipline supervision units were subordinate to the various IDF brigades, with each brigade having its own small unit.

The headquarters and training base for the corps were set up in the Kiryat Meir base in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

, then part of HaKirya
HaKirya
HaKirya, or The Kirya , is an area in central Tel Aviv, containing various government structures, including the major Israel Defense Forces base, Camp Rabin , named for Yitzhak Rabin...

 compound. The first military police course took place during Israel's founding, including about 150 recruits and ending on June 2, 1948, immediately joined the effort to fight the invading Arab forces. The first course for women ended on August 20, 1948.

On October 13, 1949, the name of the military police was changed from Military Police Service (Sherut Mishtara Tzva'it) to Military Police Corps (Heil HaMishtara HaTzva'it). The first permanent headquarters were created on the ruins of the Arab village al-Shaykh Muwannis
Al-Shaykh Muwannis
Al-Shaykh Muwannis was a small Palestinian Arab village in the District of Jaffa in British Mandate Palestine located approximately 8.5 kilometers from the center of Jaffa city in territory earmarked for Jewish statehood under the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine.The village had...

, today in Ramat Aviv
Ramat Aviv
Ramat Aviv is the name of several neighborhoods in the Northwest District of Tel Aviv, Israel:* Ramat Aviv Aleph * Ramat Aviv Bet * Ramat Aviv Gimmel...

 (northern Tel Aviv), and the MP training base was also moved there.

A dog handler unit was founded in 1949 in the corps, consisting of about 50 soldiers and several hundred dogs. Its case was located in Kiryat Haim
Kiryat Haim
Kiryat Haim is one of the five Krayot suburbs located north of Haifa, Israel. In 2003, Kiryat Haim had a population of 40,000. Kiryat Haim is within the municipal borders of the city of Haifa, and lies on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea.-History:...

. The unit trained dogs to guard, assault, detect explosives and injured/dead bodies. Despite its many successes, it was disbanded on February 15, 1954 due to a lack of funding. Today, a similar unit is operated by the Israel Border Police
Israel Border Police
The Israel Border Police is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav , meaning border guard, whilst its members are colloquially known as Magavnikim . Border Guard is often used as the official name of the...

.

World War II

The pre-IDF military police force in the Jewish Brigade
Jewish Brigade
The Jewish Infantry Brigade Group was a military formation of the British Army that served in Europe during the Second World War. The brigade was formed in late 1944, and its personnel fought the Germans in Italy...

 operated on the Italian front between March 3 and April 25, 1945, when the brigade was stationed there. They were trained at a British police academy
Police academy
A police academy is a training school for new police recruits, also known as a law enforcement academy.-Australia:Larger police departments usually run their own academies. States often run a centralised academy for training of personnel of law enforcement agencies within the state.Police...

 in the conquered territory near Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

, where they studied military law enforcement and motorcycle riding. The unit was responsible for placing road signs and doing regular police patrols. By the end of the war, the force consisted of 39 soldiers, excluding the commander, Danny Magen.

The force also aided Holocaust survivors in the liberated Nazi concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...

. A police force with the Star of David
Star of David
The Star of David, known in Hebrew as the Shield of David or Magen David is a generally recognized symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism.Its shape is that of a hexagram, the compound of two equilateral triangles...

 as part of its insignia increased the hope and motivation of the survivors. In addition, it participated in the interrogations of Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...

 members and Nazi war criminals.

1948 Arab–Israeli War

In the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the military police took both combat and supporting positions. In May 1948, the service was divided into regional fronts. The northern front, headed by future chief officer Yosef Pressman, consisted of 15 military policemen, most of them former Notrim
Notrim
The Notrim were a Jewish Police Force set up by the British in the Mandatory Palestine in 1936 to help defend Jewish lives and property during the 1936-1939 Arab revolt in Palestine. The force was divided into Supernumerary Police and highly mobile Settlement Police...

, and was based in the police compound in Afula
Afula
Afula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...

. It moved to Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...

 when the city was conquered from Arab forces. Among others, the northern front's job was to deliver the Napoleonchik
Canon de 65 M(montagne) modele 1906
The Canon de 65 M modele 1906 or was a French mountain gun which entered service with the regiments d'artillerie de montagne in 1906 and was one of the first soft-recoil guns in service. The carriage of the mle 1906 was hinged and could be broken down into four mule loads for transport...

 cannons, which turned the tide of several battles on the front. During Operation Brosh, a military police soldier managed to shoot down a Syrian plane using a Sten gun mounted on a jeep. The plane crashed near Ayelet HaShahar
Ayelet HaShahar
-External links:* * article written by Ellis Shuman, June 16, 2004, mentions the vote by members of Kibbutz Ayelet Hashahar to transform their cooperative into a moshav.**...

. The unit was also charged with stopping panicked Jewish residents of the Galilee from fleeing their homes, and Pressman personally stopped buses leaving Afula and Yavne'el
Yavne'el
Yavne'el is a moshava and a local council in the North District of Israel. It is named after a village in the tribe Naphtali , which was probably located on the tel north of the moshava. Located south-west of Tiberias, it was declared a local council in 1951...

, returning the men and evacuating the women and children to Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...

. After the completion of Operation Dekel
Operation Dekel
Operation Dekel , was the largest offensive in the north of Israel after the first truce of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It was carried out by the 7th Armoured Brigade, a battalion from the Carmeli Brigade along with some elements from the Golani Brigade between 8–18 July. Its objective was to...

, the military police was sent to Nazareth
Nazareth
Nazareth is the largest city in the North District of Israel. Known as "the Arab capital of Israel," the population is made up predominantly of Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel...

 to enforce martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...

, and worked directly under the military governor.

The military police was a major participant in Operation Shoter
Operation Shoter
Operation Shoter , also Operation Jaba, was a three-day Israeli operation during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War against an area called the "Little Triangle" south of Haifa. It was launched a week after the start of the second truce imposed by United Nations...

 ("Policeman"). The operation was conducted during a ceasefire, which prohibited military actions, and was disguised as a military police law enforcement operation against an Arab uprising in Israel proper. A bus carrying two military police platoons made its way to Fureidis
Fureidis
Fureidis is an Israeli Arab town in the Haifa District of Israel. It received local council status in 1952.-History:Fureidis was established in the 19th century. The name is believed to come from the Arabic , meaning little Garden of Eden, borrowed from the Persian paradise...

, where it prepared for an attack at dawn with the combat units. The attack failed and new recruits from the military police were called in as reinforcements. They reached a stalemate near Ayn Ghazal
Ayn Ghazal
Ayn Ghazal was a Palestinian Arab village located south of Haifa. Depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War as a result of an Israeli military assault during Operation Shoter, the village was then completely destroyed. Incorporated into the State of Israel, it is now mostly a forested area...

, and retreated on July 24 at 09:00. One military policeman was killed in action.

On the Jerusalem front, a military police company, under orders from Moshe Dayan
Moshe Dayan
Moshe Dayan was an Israeli military leader and politician. The fourth Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces , he became a fighting symbol to the world of the new State of Israel...

 and the command of Capt. Ze'ev Katz, was responsible for rationing the sparse food and supplies between the besieged population. The company, whose authority had been expanded to include gendarmerie
Gendarmerie
A gendarmerie or gendarmery is a military force charged with police duties among civilian populations. Members of such a force are typically called "gendarmes". The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary describes a gendarme as "a soldier who is employed on police duties" and a "gendarmery, -erie" as...

 duties due to a lack of civilian police in the besieged city, also dealt with deserter location and crowd dispersal. On June 26, 1948, a mass Haredi rally against doing activities prohibited on Shabbat as part of warfare, was dispersed with nightsticks and live weaponry.

In the south, the military police participated mainly in Operation Yoav
Operation Yoav
Operation Yoav was an Israeli military operation carried out from 15–22 October 1948 in the Negev Desert, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Its goal was to drive a wedge between the Egyptian forces along the coast and the Beersheba–Hebron–Jerusalem road and ultimately to conquer the whole Negev...

 and Operation Horev
Operation Horev
At the end of Israel's War of Independence Operation Horev was a large scale attack against the Egyptian army in the Western Negev. Its objective was to trap the Egyptian Army in the Gaza Strip...

, mostly by placing road signs and guiding troop movement. In Operation Ovda
Operation Ovda
Operation Uvda was an operation conducted by the Israel Defense Forces during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, from March 5 to March 10, 1949. It was the last campaign undertaken by the IDF during the war and its objective was to capture the southern Negev desert, which was claimed by the Kingdom of...

, a squad of MPs joined the Negev Brigade
Negev Brigade
The 12th Negev Brigade was an Israeli infantry brigade that served in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. It was commanded by Nahum "Sergei" Sarig and consisted of four Palmach battalions...

 on their road to Umm-Rashrash. After the operation, they helped create an airstrip in the area.

Law enforcement operations 1948–56

Aside from its combat duties during the War of Independence, the corps was active in its standard policing duties, as well as enforcing martial law in Arab towns and villages
Arab citizens of Israel
Arab citizens of Israel refers to citizens of Israel who are not Jewish, and whose cultural and linguistic heritage or ethnic identity is Arab....

. Major operations and operations involving the civilian population were usually done in conjunction with the Israel Police
Israel Police
The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...

.

In August 1948, information came in that a large percentage of the deserters of the time was living in the Kerem HaTeimanim neighborhood of Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

. In an operation codenamed Masrek ("Comb"), a strict six-hour curfew was imposed and a joint force of the military police and the Israel Police conducted house-to-house searches. More than 200 people were investigated, most of whom were transferred to the absorption base
Meitav
Meitav may refer to:*Meitav, a moshav in north-eastern Israel*Meitav, a military unit in the IDF...

. Former Irgun
Irgun
The Irgun , or Irgun Zevai Leumi to give it its full title , was a Zionist paramilitary group that operated in Mandate Palestine between 1931 and 1948. It was an offshoot of the earlier and larger Jewish paramilitary organization haHaganah...

 members who refused to join the IDF following the Altalena affair
Altalena Affair
The Altalena Affair was a violent confrontation that took place in June 1948 between the newly formed Israel Defense Forces and the Irgun, a right-wing Jewish paramilitary group...

 were also arrested. The provisional military jail was overwhelmed with prisoners, and a mass-escape was staged on October 9, 1948. The prisoners returned voluntarily, but the event raised a scandal which saw the dismissal of several MP commanders, and the prison was handed over to the Kiryati Brigade
Kiryati Brigade
The Kiryati Brigade was formed in 1948 by David Ben-Gurion and was one of the original nine brigades that made up the Haganah. The Kiryati Brigade was initially responsible for securing the area in and around Tel Aviv...

 and Palmach
Palmach
The Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...

.

On September 17, 1948, after the murder of Count Folke Bernadotte by the Lehi
Lehi (group)
Lehi , commonly referred to in English as the Stern Group or Stern Gang, was a militant Zionist group founded by Avraham Stern in the British Mandate of Palestine...

, civilian and military police conducted a large-scale operation to arrest Lehi operatives in Jerusalem. Over a hundred members were arrested and taken through the Burma Road
Burma Road (Israel)
The Israeli "Burma Road" was a makeshift bypass road between the general vicinity of kibbutz Hulda and Jerusalem. It was built by Israeli forces headed by general Mickey Marcus during the 1948 Siege of Jerusalem...

 to the prison in Jaffa
Jaffa
Jaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...

.

Following a deadly traffic accident near Ness Ziona
Ness Ziona
Ness Ziona is a city in central Israel founded in 1883. At the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 38,100, and its jurisdiction was 15,579 dunams.-Nahalat Reuben:...

 on January 8, 1949, in which three IDF officers were killed, the military police initiated a nationwide law enforcement operation with the Israel Police, in order to curb traffic-related lawbreaking. It was codenamed Operation Mordechai (after Mordechai Nimtza-Bi, one of the officers killed in the traffic accident), which also served as the name for future missions with an identical purpose. During the original operation, almost 550 soldiers were caught and judged in a special ad hoc
Ad hoc
Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning "for this". It generally signifies a solution designed for a specific problem or task, non-generalizable, and not intended to be able to be adapted to other purposes. Compare A priori....

 court, and approximately 1,700 civilians were issued fines. Two other major traffic supervision operations were carried out by the Military Police Corps in 1951 - the first on February 18, 1951, and the latter, Operation Bi'ur Hametz (not to be confused with the capture of Haifa), on April 21. Operation Bi'ur Hametz was conducted on a Shabbat
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...

, specifically to check the driving habits on this Jewish holy day.

The military police was also called into action during the austerity period
Austerity in Israel
From 1949 to 1959, the state of Israel was, to a varying extent, under a regime of austerity , during which rationing and similar measures were enforced.-Rationale:...

 in Israel, to combat the increasing black market on October 5, 1950. Roadblocks were set up and military vehicles were pulled over. Construction materials, furniture, home supplies, clothes and food were found in large quantities. The Criminal Investigations Division led the investigation efforts, which helped put many contrabandists in jail. In 1952, the Aluf
Aluf
Aluf is the term used for General and Admiral in the Israel Defense Forces . In addition to the Aluf rank itself, there are four other ranks which are derivatives of the word...

 Moshe Dayan
Moshe Dayan
Moshe Dayan was an Israeli military leader and politician. The fourth Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces , he became a fighting symbol to the world of the new State of Israel...

 of the Southern Command ordered the military police to instill order in the immigrant camps and ma'abarot
Ma'abarot
The Ma'abarot were refugee absorption camps in Israel in the 1950s. The Ma'abarot were meant to provide accommodation for the large influx of Jewish refugees and new Olim arriving to the newly independent State of Israel, replacing the less habitable immigrant camps or tent cities...

 in the south of the country.

Two major operations for locating deserters were carried out on May 10, 1952 (Operation Tihur - "Cleansing"), and in June of the same year (Operation UVaArta Hametz - "(You) cleansed for Passover"). After the two, similar operations were carried out at set intervals, and named Operation Small Filter for local jobs, and Operation Large Filter for nationwide operations.

Other than large-scale enforcement operations, MPs were also engaged in many ceremonial policing duties. In 1948 it was responsible for accompanying the first President of Israel
President of Israel
The President of the State of Israel is the head of state of Israel. The position is largely an apolitical ceremonial figurehead role, with the real executive power lying in the hands of the Prime Minister. The current president is Shimon Peres who took office on 15 July 2007...

, Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Weizmann
Chaim Azriel Weizmann, , was a Zionist leader, President of the Zionist Organization, and the first President of the State of Israel. He was elected on 1 February 1949, and served until his death in 1952....

, and subsequently guarded other notables and events. The corps guarded the 1951 IDF parade
Israel Defense Forces parade
The Israel Defense Forces parade was an event during the first 25 years of the State of Israel's existence to celebrate its military might. It was cancelled after 1973 due to financial concerns....

, the ballot boxes for Knesset elections
Israeli legislative election, 1951
Elections for the second Knesset were held in Israel on 30 July 1951. Voter turnout was 75.1%.-Results:¹ Rostam Bastuni, Avraham Berman and Moshe Sneh left Mapam and set up the Left Faction. Bastuni later returned to Mapam whilst Berman and Sneh joined Maki. Hannah Lamdan and David Livschitz left...

, Would Zionist Congress
World Zionist Organization
The World Zionist Organization , or WZO, was founded as the Zionist Organization , or ZO, in 1897 at the First Zionist Congress, held from August 29 to August 31 in Basel, Switzerland...

 members, and sometimes the IDF Chief of Staff
Ramatkal
The Chief of the General Staff, also known as the Commander-in-Chief of the Israel Defense Forces is the supreme commander and Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces. At any given time, the Chief of Staff is the only active officer holding the IDF's highest rank, Rav Aluf , which is usually...

 and Defense Minister of Israel. MPs also accompanied the British General Robertson
Brian Robertson, 1st Baron Robertson of Oakridge
General Brian Hubert Robertson, 1st Baron Robertson of Oakridge, GCB, GBE, KCMG, KCVO, DSO, MC , known as Sir Brian Robertson, 2nd Baronet, from 1933 to 1961, was a British Army General....

 on his visit, and other notables in Operation Harari on July 29, 1952 and Operation Hospitality on May 17, 1953.

1956 Suez War

During the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...

 of 1956, military police troops operated near the front lines, putting up road signs and escorting convoys in the Sinai Peninsula
Sinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...

. Troops were allocated for finding IDF soldiers who lost their way. After the capture of Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...

 by the 27th Armored Brigade, MPs escorting the brigade were stationed in the city to enforce martial law, and were later replaced by MPs from the Southern Command, who were stationed there in three ad hoc outposts to prevent looting and unnecessary contact between the IDF and the local residents. The MPs who accompanied the 27th Brigade continued with it to the Sinai Peninsula
Sinai Peninsula
The Sinai Peninsula or Sinai is a triangular peninsula in Egypt about in area. It is situated between the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and the Red Sea to the south, and is the only part of Egyptian territory located in Asia as opposed to Africa, effectively serving as a land bridge between two...

 and helped evacuate the wounded in addition to their regular duties.

Until 1956, the issue of POW
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

s was only brought up briefly in 1948, and temporary quarantines were set up without proper administration. The corps assumed responsibility due to their experience with military prisoners, and POW camps were set up in Nitzanim
Nitzanim
Nitzanim is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located between Ashkelon and Ashdod on the Nitzanim dunes, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof Ashkelon Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 343....

 in the south and Atlit in the north, as well as a camp for officers in the Damun Prison. Temporary camps were erected in Nitzana
Nitzana
Nitzana may refer to:*Nitzana , a city of the ancient Nabataeans located in the Negev desert in Israel*Nitzana , a communal settlement near the ruins of the Nabataean city...

, near the border crossing with Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, and near kibbutz Magen
Magen, Israel
Magen is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the north-western Negev desert and covering 8,500 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 480....

. In all, approximately 5,500-6,000 Egyptian POWs were held in Israel during and after the war.

As a result of the war and its lessons, the corps underwent numerous changes, including vehicle renewal, uniform changes and training exercises. Prison Six
Prison Six
Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

 was constructed and better educational programs were introduced in the prisons.

Six-Day War and War of Attrition

In the Six-Day War
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 June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...

, military policemen were placed in every major road intersection, especially in captured territory, and guided military traffic. Road patrols were created to mark road sections damaged by the Arab and Israeli forces, as well as minefields, and alternate routes were laid out.

MP platoons were present in the ten major combat brigades, and accompanied them into combat in the Sinai Peninsula. Outposts were erected in Gaza
Gaza
Gaza , also referred to as Gaza City, is a Palestinian city in the Gaza Strip, with a population of about 450,000, making it the largest city in the Palestinian territories.Inhabited since at least the 15th century BC,...

, Mount Libni, Abu Rudeis, el-Arish, Qantarah and Sharm el-Sheikh
Sharm el-Sheikh
Sharm el-Sheikh is a city situated on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula, in South Sinai Governorate, Egypt, on the coastal strip along the Red Sea. Its population is approximately 35,000...

. From the moment an area was captured, MPs were ordered to make Hebrew road and direction signs, an operation which was completed ten days after the end of the war. A POW camp was built next to Mishmar HaNegev
Mishmar HaNegev
Mishmar HaNegev is a kibbutz in the northern fringe of the Negev desert in Israel. It is located on Road 264, about 2 kilometres south of the Bedouin city of Rahat and around 10 km from Beersheba and is part of the Bnei Shimon Regional Council...

, through which about 5,000 Egyptian POWs were moved to the permanent camp in Atlit. In total, 6,748 POWs were captured by Israel, of them 5,237 Egyptian, 899 Jordanian and 572 Syrian. The corps was also responsible for preventing the rampant Arab looting within the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

.

In the direct aftermath of the war, martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...

 was enstated in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...

, especially East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem or Eastern Jerusalem refer to the parts of Jerusalem captured and annexed by Jordan in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War and then captured and annexed by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War...

, and the military police was called in to enforce it. The corps worked under the newly-appointed military governor, then-Brigadier General Shlomo Lahat
Shlomo Lahat
Maj. Gen. Shlomo "Chich" Lahat is a former Israeli general and politician.Lahat was born in Germany and made Aliyah in 1933. He served in the Haganah and the Israel Defense Forces...

. The first MP base in East Jerusalem was located in the Saint George Hotel, and dealt with the prevention of looting, arrest of Arab militants, and blocking Israeli citizens from entering the newly-acquired territories. Martial law was also enforced by MPs based at Gadot on the Syrian Druze villages of the Golan Heights, after their capture.

During the War of Attrition
War of Attrition
The international community and both countries attempted to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict. The Jarring Mission of the United Nations was supposed to ensure that the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 242 would be observed, but by late 1970 it was clear that this mission had been...

, the corps took a more combat-ready approach, moving its training base to the newly-captured territories (near Kedumim
Kedumim
Kedumim , also spelled Qedumim, is an Israeli settlement and a town located in the Samarian hills of the West Bank that was founded during Hanukkah 1975 and now enjoys the municipal status of local council. Founded in 1975 by members of the Gush Emunim settlement movement, its current population is...

), and assisting combat units in training exercises. Between 500 and 1,000 prisoners were taken out of Prisons Four and Six to temporary camps in the Sinai to build the Bar Lev Line
Bar Lev Line
The Bar Lev Line was a chain of fortifications built by Israel along the eastern coast of the Suez Canal after it captured the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt during the 1967 Six-Day War.-Overview:...

. This worked so well that a permanent detachment of prisoners remained at Rephidim Air Base (Bir Gifgafa
Bir Gifgafa Airfield
Bir Gifgafa is an airfield in the Sinai, 90 km east of the Suez Canal. During the 1960s and 1970s it played a significant role in Arab-Israeli wars, at different times serving both Egypt and Israel....

) and assisted in various chores.

The IDF also set up checkpoints at the briges leading from the West Bank to Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...

, and military police were tasked with checking traffic and freight going through them for weapons and explosives. A special MP unit for guarding VIPs who passed through the area was created. A similar checkpoint and forward MP base was built at Quneitra
Quneitra
Quneitra is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in south-western Syria. It is situated in a high valley in the Golan Heights at an elevation of 1,010 metres above sea level...

.

Yom Kippur War

In the Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...

, the military police greatly assisted in the chaos of the surprise attack on Israel, guiding reserve reinforcements to their intended destinations. In the Sinai Peninsula, large quantities of military vehicles were to move quickly to the front lines, but the narrow roads and lack of direction created major traffic jams. MPs conducted battlefield circulation control operations in order to guide vehicle movement throughout the battlefield. The preventing of looting was also a major task, this was due to the chaos that was created as a result of the surprise attack during the initial stages of the war.

The corps took an active role on the southern front, joining with the major IDF divisions and even seeing combat. General Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....

 handed the MP company in his division a mission to deliver the mobile pontoon bridge
Pontoon bridge
A pontoon bridge or floating bridge is a bridge that floats on water and in which barge- or boat-like pontoons support the bridge deck and its dynamic loads. While pontoon bridges are usually temporary structures, some are used for long periods of time...

s from the bases at Refidim and Rumani on October 15. Every vehicle on the way was taken off the road, sometimes by force. A newly-arrived MP unit was then tasked with restoring order on the roads. It also constructed a temporary POW camp at Tasa. Another POW camp was erected on the Small Bitter Lake
Great Bitter Lake
The Great Bitter Lake is a salt water lake between the north and south part of the Suez Canal. It is adjoined by the Small Bitter Lake . Before the Canal was built, their site was occupied by dry salt valleys. Together, the Bitter Lakes now have a surface area of about 250 km²...

, by MPs who were part of Abraham Adan
Abraham Adan
Avraham "Bren" Adan is a former Israeli general who served in the military between 1947 and 1973.-Biography:Adan was born in Kfar Gileadi, British Mandate Palestine in 1926. He joined the Palmach in 1943...

's 162nd Division. and an outpost was built in Fayid after its capture.

On the northern front, the military police's initial task was to help evacuate the frontal bases and the Golan Heights settlements. The northern command of the corps was relatively organized for the war, because the unit commander took the warnings that war was impending seriously and ordered all furlough
Furlough
In the United States a furlough is a temporary unpaid leave of some employees due to special needs of a company, which may be due to economic conditions at the specific employer or in the economy as a whole...

s frozen. Even before the war started, work began on erecting two temporary POW camps - in Birya
Birya
Birya , also Biriya, is an agricultural village adjacent to Safed, Israel, under the jurisdiction of the Merom HaGalil Regional Council in the Upper Galilee....

 and Camp Yiftach. With the war's start, many MPs worked as part of the logistical support effort, while some aided the combat forces directly. At the end of the war, the MP company in the 149th Division (one of the main forces on the northern front) moved south and continued their reserve combat tour in the Sinai.

The Criminal Investigations Division (CID) was tasked by the head of the Manpower Directorate with finding Israeli MIA
Missing in action
Missing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...

s, estimated at about 900 at the time. They did so by getting testimonies, following the Arab media for news of POWs, searching for clues at the battle sites, as well as physical searches. As a lesson from the difficulty of the searches, the CID recommended that army boots be produced with a socket for an additional dog tag
Dog tag (identifier)
A dog tag is the informal name for the identification tags worn by military personnel, named such as it bears resemblance to actual dog tags. The tag is primarily used for the identification of dead and wounded and essential basic medical information for the treatment of the latter, such as blood...

, a recommendation accepted and practiced ever since.

Lebanon 1978–2000

The military police's mission in Operation Litani
Operation Litani
The 1978 South Lebanon conflict was an invasion in Lebanon up to the Litani River carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in 1978. It was a military success for the Israeli Defense Forces, as PLO forces were pushed north of the river...

 was to ensure order among the Arab civilian population in newly-captured territory in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

. The soldiers prevented looting, mainly between the Christian and Muslim populations, and rationed the sparse food supply. IDF troops were also guided by MPs in Lebanon, where Israeli forces were not present since 1949. A POW camp was erected in the Golan Heights, and roadblocks were set up on the Israel-Lebanon border and inside Lebanon to combat contraband.

The military police was involved in various ways in Operation Peace for Galilee
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War , , called Operation Peace for Galilee by Israel, and later known in Israel as the Lebanon War and First Lebanon War, began on 6 June 1982, when the Israel Defense Forces invaded southern Lebanon...

, although the bulk of its duties were according to standard procedure. The corps had ample time to prepare for the operation and very specific designations were made for it as a result of the lessons learned from the Yom Kippur War (see also: Sectors and operations during emergency). For the first time, it met a friendly population in Lebanon, which often cooperated with the IDF - this created a need for MP presence to prevent the soldiers from making illegal dealings with the locals. Placing road signs was also a major issue, as for the first time a major city (Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

) needed to be labeled, and enemy forces would certainly try to change the signs to mislead the IDF. To counter this, Graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....

 was used on the city buildings to indicate direction.

Military police bases were built inside new IDF bases in Beirut, Sidon
Sidon
Sidon or Saïda is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate of Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast, about 40 km north of Tyre and 40 km south of the capital Beirut. In Genesis, Sidon is the son of Canaan the grandson of Noah...

, Tyre and the Beqaa Valley
Beqaa Valley
The Beqaa Valley is a fertile valley in east Lebanon. For the Romans, the Beqaa Valley was a major agricultural source, and today it remains Lebanon’s most important farming region...

. A permanent POW camp was built in Ansar
Ansar, Lebanon
Ansar or Insar is a village in the Nabatieh Governorate region of southern Lebanon between Nabatieh and Tyr. During the Lebanese civil war in the 1980s it was the location of a detention camp for suspected Palestinian terrorists and allied Muslim militiamen captured by the Israeli military in...

, which operated until 1985. The base in Tyre suffered two explosions and MPs were killed in both - 12 in the first bombing on November 11, 1982, and several more on November 4, 1983. These events became known as the Tyre Catastrophes.

Some of the standard duties of the corps in Lebanon during and after war was regulating Israeli travel in the country. Many IDF soldiers sought to hike and vacation in Lebanon despite the dangers, and met with an agreeable local population that profited financially. MPs conducted patrols to prevent soldiers from going into dangerous areas, especially north of the security zone held by Israel.

Post-1983 era and the intifadas

The military police has not been involved in emergency protocol since Operation Peace for Galilee, even in the Second Lebanon War. However, major organizational changes were made in the corps following both the First Intifada
First Intifada
The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories. The uprising began in the Jabalia refugee camp and quickly spread throughout Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem....

 and the Al-Aqsa Intifada
Al-Aqsa Intifada
The Second Intifada, also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada and the Oslo War, was the second Palestinian uprising, a period of intensified Palestinian-Israeli violence, which began in late September 2000...

.

In 1988, during the First Intifada, Ofer Prison
Ofer Prison
Ofer Prison , formerly officially known as Incarceration Facility 385 , is an Israeli incarceration facility located in the West Bank, between Ramallah/Beituniya and Giv'at Ze'ev...

 and Ktzi'ot Prison
Ktzi'ot Prison
Ktzi'ot Prison is an Israeli detention facility located in the Haluza sand dunes region. It is Israel's largest detention facility in terms of land area, encompassing ....

 were rebuilt, and Megiddo Prison stopped accepting Israeli military prisoners and changed its designation as a full-fledged incarceration facility
Incarceration facility (Israel)
An incarceration facility is the official name given by the Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Prison Service to one of several prisons in Israel used to hold Palestinian prisoners - either under sentence or under administrative detention....

 for Palestinians. Smaller detention facilities were built in the bases near Dhahiriya
Ad-Dhahiriya
ad-Dhahiriya is a Palestinian city in the Hebron Governorate, 23 km southwest of the city of Hebron in the southern West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, ad-Dhahiriya had a population of 28,776 in 2007.-History:According to Conder, Claude Reignier and H.H...

, Tulkarem, etc. A special department in the corps headquarters was created to deal with Palestinian prisoners, and a special forces unit called Force 100 was founded to deal with rebellions in the prisons, and operated until 2006. A professional course for jailors who worked in these prisons was also created.

A reserve military police unit, the 794th Battalion, was moved to the new Home Front Command, founded on February 17, 1992. The unit's responsibilities were guiding traffic in the rear front, especially in the corridor between Acre
Acre, Israel
Acre , is a city in the Western Galilee region of northern Israel at the northern extremity of Haifa Bay. Acre is one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites in the country....

 and Ashkelon
Ashkelon
Ashkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...

.

Another event that shook the corps was the Prison Six
Prison Six
Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

 rebellion, which caused the complete re-evaluation of the concept of imprisonment of Israeli soldiers and led to major changes in the prison sector.

Basic training

See also: Recruit training
Recruit training
Recruit training, more commonly known as Basic Training and colloquially called Boot Camp, is the initial indoctrination and instruction given to new military personnel, enlisted and officer...

, Tironut
Tironut
Tironut is the Hebrew name for the recruit training of the Israel Defense Forces . In the IDF, recruit training comes in many difficulty levels, each corps or major unit having their own training program. After the tironut, a recruit is certified as a rifleman of a level that depends on the...

.

In the Israeli Military Police, recruits must complete the Extended Rifleman 02 basic training, which is 6 weeks long, making it one of the easiest basic training programs in the IDF. It is however one of the most difficult types of basic training that is considered non-combat. Recruits must also pass a test in basic law enforcement (after 2–4 days' worth of lessons) in order to finish the training. Military police recruit training puts a special emphasis on discipline.

While traditionally there were two companies in each round of recruits - a male company (Pashatz - Plugat Shotrim Tzvai'im) and a female company (Plugat Shotrot), starting February 2006 the male and female recruits form one training company, although each platoon has recruits of only one sex; commanders however are of both sexes. Another company, however, has been formed for recruits being trained to check Palestinians at checkpoints, which undergoes Rifleman 03 (more advanced training). The company is called Course Company .

All military police recruits are trained in a base called Bahad
Bahad
Bahad is a military training base in the Israel Defense Forces. Each Bahad deals with a certain field, such as law enforcement or logistics. Generally, each Bahad belongs to a certain corps and conducts all courses required by the corps in question...

 13 (Bsis Hadrakha 13, lit. Training Base 13), which is part of the larger Area 21 (a.k.a. Camp Mota Gur), near Netanya
Netanya
Netanya is a city in the Northern Centre District of Israel, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is located north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa between the 'Poleg' stream and Wingate Institute in the south and the 'Avichail' stream in the north.Its of beaches have made the...

. Bahad 13 was established in Tzrifin
Tzrifin
Tzrifin is an area in Gush Dan in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities....

 in 1954, based on the previous training base in Tel Aviv. From there it moved to a location near Nablus
Nablus
Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...

 and Kedumim
Kedumim
Kedumim , also spelled Qedumim, is an Israeli settlement and a town located in the Samarian hills of the West Bank that was founded during Hanukkah 1975 and now enjoys the municipal status of local council. Founded in 1975 by members of the Gush Emunim settlement movement, its current population is...

 in 1969, shortly after the Six-Day War. It was relocated to Camp Mota Gur in 1995.

At the end of the training, recruits swear themselves in at the Western Wall
Western Wall
The Western Wall, Wailing Wall or Kotel is located in the Old City of Jerusalem at the foot of the western side of the Temple Mount...

 in Jerusalem, which is considered extremely prestigious in the IDF. Those who finish basic training must take a "basic course" in order to be able to take up their respective positions, which usually takes place in Bahad 13 as well. Formerly, each recruit also took a 1-month course in basic law enforcement and received the rank of Private First Class
Private First Class
Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term...

 (turai rishon) at the end, a rank which has been discontinued.

Courses

Bahad 13, the military police training base, offers a multitude of courses, basic or otherwise. Many of the courses are carried out in conjunction with other military schools and training bases, such as the school for military law.

Basic courses

  • Detectives' course
  • Intelligence gathering course
  • Investigations course , with the school for military law
  • Jail instructors course
  • Law enforcement and traffic course
  • Squad commanders course , with Bislamach, the school for Infantry Corps professions and squad commanders. Consists of a preparation course in Bahad 13 and the actual course in Bislamach.

Other courses

  • Preparation for officers' course
  • Corps officers' course completion
  • Military Police Corps NCO course , a.k.a. Sergeants' course
  • Senior discipline NCO course
  • Company commanders' course

Former courses

These courses, as well as the units they provided a service to, were disbanded after the transfer of prisons for Palestinian detainees held in Israel to the Israel Prison Service
Israel Prison Service
The Israel Prison Service , commonly known in Israel by its acronym Shabas , is the prison service of Israel. It is responsible for maintaining civilian prisons in Israel, as well as detention centers for security prisoners. It is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Security...

.
  • Force 100 course , including Lotar course
  • Palestinian detainee jailors' course


The following course was intended for major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...

s, however, it has since been replaced by the course in human resources in Bahad 11.
  • Senior company commanders' course

Sectors

The military police has a multitude of sectors (migzarim), which carry out the responsibilities highlighted above. In addition, an instruction and training sector is present, like in all other IDF corps, and operates similarly to the others (see training above).

Law enforcement and traffic

The law enforcement and traffic (Shitur VeTa'avura) sector is responsible for enforcing the discipline and proper image of soldiers, and road patrols to insure proper driving by the IDF soldiers. Soldiers in this unit often wear a combination cap instead of the standard blue beret.

General law enforcement missions and other missions undertaken by policemen in this sector include:
  • Traffic supervision patrol - the most common military police task, which involves driving through a specified set of roads and looking for traffic infractions made by military vehicles.
  • Vehicle checkpost - military policemen check drivers' licenses and permissions for use of military vehicles.
  • Discipline supervision – military policemen check the appearance of the soldiers.
    • Operation Appearance – a codename for an extended discipline supervision operation undertaken in many posts simultaneously (usually major transportation hubs and major military bases), sometimes involving all the law enforcement bases at the same time. A similar operation that involves immediately judging the soldiers is called Operation Good Manners . This was put on hold in 2005 but resumed in 2010.
    • Operation Iron Triangle – a codename for an extended discipline and traffic supervision operation undertaken in the three largest rear-front IDF bases (Tel HaShomer, Tzrifin, and the General Staff base) by the three MP bases in the area - MP General Staff, MP Dan, and the Yamlat unit.
    • Operation Night Kingdom – a codename for an operation for enforcing vehicle discipline, such as insuring that soldiers' family members don't drive military vehicles without accompaniment, etc.
  • Radar gun
    Radar gun
    A radar speed gun is a small doppler radar unit used to measure the speed of moving objects, including vehicles, pitched baseballs, runners and other moving objects. Radar speed guns may be hand-held, vehicle-mounted or static...

      inspection - military policemen set up speed trap
    Speed Trap
    Speed Trap is a live jazz album by Peter King, recorded at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in September 1994, and released in 1996 under the Ronnie Scotts Jazz House label...

    s in order to catch speeding military vehicles using the LTI 20-20 radar gun. This is done as part of another mission, usually a patrol. Sometimes civilian vehicles are pulled over as well, but the military police has no immediate authority to issue reports on them, and the responsibility is moved to the Israel Police
    Israel Police
    The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...

    .
  • Working with the National Traffic Police
    National Traffic Police
    The National Traffic Police is the main Israeli traffic law enforcement unit. It was founded in September 1991 and in 1997 subordinated to the newly created Traffic Department of the Israel Police.-Units:...

     to catch military vehicles for misconduct.
  • Transfer and guarding of injured enemies - done in conjunction with the Israel Border Police
    Israel Border Police
    The Israel Border Police is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav , meaning border guard, whilst its members are colloquially known as Magavnikim . Border Guard is often used as the official name of the...

    , military policemen guard injured Palestinians in Israeli hospitals (mainly Hadassah Ein Karem Hospital) before they are released and sent to prison. This responsibility passes to the Israel Police after 48 hours, but in practice may still be taken up by the military police for months.
  • Conveyance of Palestinian families - when the families of Palestinian prisoners held in Ofer and Ktzi'ot prisons are allowed to visit, they are taken by bus from the checkpoints to the prisons, accompanied by military police patrol cars.


There is a special unit called the Yamlat (Yehida Meyuhedet LeFikuah Ta'avura - Special Unit for Traffic Supervision), founded in 1980 and located in Tzrifin, which is the main law enforcement unit. It has a law enforcement company and a company responsible for transferring prisoners between jails and detention centers. The law enforcement company is also responsible for honor guard
Honor guard
An honor guard, or ceremonial guard, is a ceremonial unit, usually military in nature and composed of volunteers who are carefully screened for their physical ability and dexterity...

s, and is considered the Chief Military Police Officer's personal unit. Another mission which it specializes in are dummy kidnappings, called Operation Emulate/Dummy ( Mivtza Medame), where an undercover police car picks up hitchhiking
Hitchhiking
Hitchhiking is a means of transportation that is gained by asking people, usually strangers, for a ride in their automobile or other road vehicle to travel a distance that may either be short or long...

 soldiers and reports on them (it is illegal for soldiers in uniform to hitchhike for security reasons).

The checkpoints department (security examinations sector) is also professionally subordinate to the law enforcement and traffic sector.

Report statistics

Below are some of the 2006-07 statistics for amounts of reports against soldiers for various misconducts, handed out by military policemen in the law enforcement sector:
 2006 amount2007 estimate
Operations Appearance 6,787 7,488
Operations Iron Triangle 6,671 5,310
Increased enforcement operations 295 (5 operations) 178 (3 operations)
Dummy kidnappings 678 576 (77 to combat and 499 to non-combat)
Speeding tickets 1,178 (~1,100) 1,866 (~1,800)
Total 32,765 30,837

Prison service

See also: Israeli military prison
Israeli military prison
The Israeli Military Prison is a prison for guarding soldiers who committed crimes during their service. It is estimated that 15,000-18,000 Israeli soldiers go through an Israeli military prison or detention center every year.-Prison sector history:The need to create prisons in the IDF arose as...


The prison service (Kli'a) sectors guards Israeli military prisons. It is divided into two: the service responsible for guarding prisons and detention centers with Israeli prisoners, and the service responsible for guarding the two detention centers containing Palestinian detainees, Shomron and Etzion. When the military police controlled the major detainment prisons, Megiddo, Ofer
Ofer Prison
Ofer Prison , formerly officially known as Incarceration Facility 385 , is an Israeli incarceration facility located in the West Bank, between Ramallah/Beituniya and Giv'at Ze'ev...

 and Ktzi'ot
Ktzi'ot Prison
Ktzi'ot Prison is an Israeli detention facility located in the Haluza sand dunes region. It is Israel's largest detention facility in terms of land area, encompassing ....

, each of the two sub-sectors has a unique training course. As of 2007 however, all jailors undergo the jail instructors' course. The actual jailors, or jail instructors, are considered IDF commanders for all intents and purposes, although as of August 2007, are no longer distinguished by the green aiguilette worn by most commanders and instructors in the IDF. Instead, a new red and blue aiguillette was made for them, different in design than that of the law enforcement sector.

The prisons are run by jail instructors are responsible for instructing Israeli prisoners (soldiers who committed crimes or infractions), making sure they don't escape, and rehabilitating as many as possible.

The prison service sector started out as the Prison Division until it became a separate sector in 1974. It was originally responsible for maintaining the provisional military prison in Tel Aviv, until Prison Four
Prison Four
Prison Four , officially Confinement Base 394 is an Israeli military prison for Israeli soldiers, located in the military police compound in Tzrifin , Israel....

 was built. Various services were introduced into the sector with time, such as education in 1977 and gahelet in the 2000s, as programs for rehabilitation. Additionally, the Prison Six
Prison Six
Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

 revolt in 1997 revolutionized the IDF's approach to military prisons, and many new measures were introduced, in order to improve the conditions of prisoners and jailors alike, as well as make it harder for prisoners to escape and stage further revolts.

When the military police was responsible for jails containing Palestinian detainees (until 2006), there were two additional subsectors (see also: Incarceration facility (Israel)
Incarceration facility (Israel)
An incarceration facility is the official name given by the Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Prison Service to one of several prisons in Israel used to hold Palestinian prisoners - either under sentence or under administrative detention....

):
  • Palestinan detainees jailors (Metaplei Atzurei HaShetahim or M. Atzhashim) are mostly responsible for making sure that the prisoners do not escape.
    • Company for Special Missions was a company in each prison responsible for protecting the jailors from harm as well as transferring the Palestinian prisoners to courts and other outside locations.
  • Force 100 (Koah 100), a combat-certified unit responsible for suppressing uprisings mainly by both Palestinian prisoners. The unit consisted of less than 100 soldiers and was used in full only in extreme cases of violence and prison rebellions.

Criminal investigation

The Criminal Investigations Division is a brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

-level unit in the IDF responsible for all criminal investigations involving military personnel. The unit primarily deals with the use of drugs in the army, and theft of and dealing in army weapons. Other investigations include corruption, sexual harassment and assault, suicides, killings and abuse of civilian Palestinan population (done by a special unit that works in the West Bank), and treason. The unit also deals with traffic accidents involving military vehicles.

The investigations division was originally made up of poorly trained soldiers, as well as civilian lawyers, who relied solely on military law, which was based on British law and not always realistic or up to date. Only in 1995, the Military Judgement Law was formulated and organized military protocol.

The CID mainly dealt with theft and smuggling charges. Originally its headquarters were located in Camp Dora in Netanya
Netanya
Netanya is a city in the Northern Centre District of Israel, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is located north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa between the 'Poleg' stream and Wingate Institute in the south and the 'Avichail' stream in the north.Its of beaches have made the...

, but as part of the initial organization of the corps, they were moved to Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...

, and bases were built in Jerusalem, Camp Beit Lid and the base near Qastina
Mal'akhi Junction
The Malakhi Junction, also known as Qastina for the Arab village which once stood there, is a major road junction in Israel, between Highway 40 and 3. It is located on the 37th kilometer of Highway 3....

. The military police command saw the importance of the investigations division and decided that only high school or higher graduates (at that time, most soldiers had not finished 12 years of high school) should be taken into the division, and their training was conducted by the much more professional Israel Police
Israel Police
The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...

. Slowly, the investigations division became a professional sector and is now considered the most prestigious sector in the military police.

The division was involved in investigating the Kafr Qasim massacre
Kafr Qasim massacre
The Kafr Qasim massacre took place in the Israeli Arab village of Kafr Qasim situated on the Green Line, at that time, the de facto border between Israel and the West Bank on October 29, 1956. It was carried out by the Israel Border Police and resulted in 48 Arab civilians dead, including 6 women...

 during the Suez War and the 1954 Lavon Affair
Lavon Affair
The Lavon Affair refers to a failed Israeli covert operation, code named Operation Susannah, conducted in Egypt in the Summer of 1954. As part of the false flag operation, a group of Egyptian Jews were recruited by Israeli military intelligence for plans to plant bombs inside Egyptian, American and...

 in 1960.

With the introduction of the computer in the IDF in the late 1970s, tracking stolen goods and weapons became significantly easier, and in 1980 a sharp drop was registered in successful weapon thefts.

The division has several specialized and/or elite units:
  • A secret unit called Yamlam , founded in 1982, which conducts high profile investigations. Some are done together with the Israel Police
    Israel Police
    The Israel Police is the civilian police force of Israel. As with most other police forces in the world, its duties include crime fighting, traffic control, maintaining public safety, and counter-terrorism...

     and the Shabak.
  • CID Traffic Accidents , which investigates traffic accidents pertaining to military vehicles. The unit is based in Tzrifin.
  • National Unit for Fraud Investigations , which investigates white-collar
    White-collar worker
    The term white-collar worker refers to a person who performs professional, managerial, or administrative work, in contrast with a blue-collar worker, whose job requires manual labor...

     crime, mainly by high-ranking officers and NCOs.
  • The Unit for Internal Investigations , which was founded in 1994 and is not officially subordinate to the CID. It is responsible for investigating certain crimes committed by soldiers in the Military Police Corps. The unit consists mainly of reservists formerly from the CID, and is directly subordinate to the Chief Military Police Officer.

Intelligence and detection

Intelligence and detection is a sector responsible for gathering intelligence for the numerous military police sectors (this varies in nature across sectors), operational protection of military policemen during their missions, and the location and arrest of AWOLs. Before 2006, this sector was intelligence-only and the operational part was subordinate to the CID and the law enforcement sectors. It is currently professionally subordinate to the head of the CID. The sector traces its roots to the Recruitment Police , a small unit of the corps, founded in 1948.

In military prisons, intelligence collectors are responsible for working with collaborators within jails to find out information about potential suicides, rebellions, etc. therein. In the CID, they gather intelligence about soldiers who have committed crimes, in order to locate and arrest them and/or find evidence against them. In the law enforcement sector, a small team of intelligence collectors aids the detectives in each law enforcement base.

Detectives are the operational force of this sector. They aid the CID and law enforcement sectors in various missions, and are generally known for brute strength.

In the law enforcement sector, there is a small contingent of detectives in each base - a unit referred to as HaMahlaka LeItur UMa'atzar (abbreviated to לאו"ם, Le'om), meaning The Division for Identification and Arrest. It is responsible for catching deserters (generally, those AWOL
Desertion
In military terminology, desertion is the abandonment of a "duty" or post without permission and is done with the intention of not returning...

 for over 45 days) and 'shirkers' (those who haven't shown to military duty at all), as well as protecting military policemen during major discipline supervision operations. In the CID, they are generally responsible for protecting the actual investigators and intelligence collectors, as well as searches and other order execution.

Security examination

Security examinators is a sector founded in 2004, although it had been in planning since 2002 and the order for its founding was laid down on January 13, 2003. The sector's soldiers check non-Israelis at Israel Defense Forces checkpoint
Israel Defense Forces checkpoint
A Israel Defense Forces checkpoint, usually called an Israeli checkpoint , is a barrier erected by the Israel Defense Forces with the stated aim of enhancing the security of Israel and Israeli settlements and preventing those who wish to do harm from crossing...

s (including border checkpoints with enemy states). It expanded rapidly in its initial few years, with a new headquarters built especially for it (but now used only by the Ta'oz Battalion) between April 2004 and 2006 in Camp Mota Gur, next to Bahad 13. It is considered a combat support
Combat support
In the United States Army, the term combat support refers to units that provide fire support and operational assistance to combat elements. Combat support units provide specialized support functions to combat units in the areas of chemical warfare, combat engineering, intelligence, security, and...

 unit with high risk, but a low-prestige unit within the corps. Even so, it is more highly respected by non-MPs than traditional military police units.

The first security examination course at Bahad 13 took place in November 2003. The course lasts four weeks plus a week of basic Arabic lessons.

The sector is divided into two battalions—Erez, which monitors most checkpoints around Jerusalem, and Ta'oz, manning all other military police-run checkpoints. The Erez battalion lists three companies; Alef (A), Bet (B) and Gimel (C). The Ta'oz battalion lists the following companies: Eyal (אייל), Maccabim (מכבים), Reihan (ריחן), Sahlav (סחלב) and Shomron (שומרון). Other than these battalions, soldiers in the sector also help man crossings at Ghajar
Ghajar
Ghajar is an Alawite village on the Hasbani River on the border between Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied portion of the Golan Heights. It has a population of 2,000.-Early history:...

 and Rosh HaNikra (Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

), Quneitra
Quneitra
Quneitra is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in south-western Syria. It is situated in a high valley in the Golan Heights at an elevation of 1,010 metres above sea level...

 (Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

), and Erez
Erez Crossing
The Erez Crossing is a pedestrian/cargo terminal on the Israeli Gaza Strip barrier. It is located in the northern end of the Gaza Strip, on the border with Israel.It is part of a complex formerly including the Erez Industrial Park....

 and Kerem Shalom (Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

).

Since its founding in 1995, the Erez Battalion was under the jurisdiction of the West Bank Division
West Bank Division
The Israel Defense Forces Judea and Samaria Division is a regional division in the Israeli Central Command responsible for Israeli military activity in Judea and Samaria....

 and was operated by multiple corps, with the military police sending some soldiers. What is currently known as the Ta'oz Battalion was, in turn, called the Checkpoints Unit ( Yehidat HaMa'avarim). During 2004-2006, Erez was transferred to the military police and included in the sector (officially subordinated to the corps in February 2006), while the prior MP checkpoint unit was renamed to Ta'oz Battalion.

The ma'avarim shoulder insignia was unveiled in a ceremony in July 2004. The two hands on it symbolize the striving for co-existence between the two sides. The eye represents the constant watch for those who wish to harm this co-existence. This insignia is now only used by the Ta'oz Battalion, with Erez having a different emblem.

Sectors and operations during emergency

During an emergency such as war, when there is a general reserve call-up, the Military Police Corps changes many of its designations and its structure. Although the reserve force in the corps is comparatively small (approximately 4,000-4,500 troops at any time), the reservists take up most of the emergency positions and many of the regular units are incorporated into the reservist force.

The emergency doctrine of the corps traces its roots to a document based on lessons learned from the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, after which the first emergency training was conducted in February 1951. A more detailed work titled "Military Police in the Field" was published to MP officers in December 1953.

While regularly, the corps serves under the Manpower Directorate, during an emergency it moves to the Technological and Logistics Directorate. There are two types of military police units during an emergency: frontal and rear. The frontal units serve under five of the six regional logistical support units , while the rear units are under the direct command of the three regional commands.

Emergency operations of the corps mainly include directing traffic at major roads and intersections, law enforcement, erecting road signs in conquered territory, and the guarding and transfer of POW
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

s.

Frontal units

Each frontal military police unit is the size of a battalion, commanded by a lieutenant colonel. It is called Military Police Unit , and exists in four of the six logistical support units. It is completely absent in Regional Logistical Support Unit 5004 (belonging to the Central Command), because there is no front in the IDF Central Command since the peace treary
Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace
The Israel–Jordan Treaty of Peace was signed in 1994. The treaty normalized relations between the two countries and resolved territorial disputes. The conflict had cost roughly US$18.3 billion...

 with Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...

. In Regional Logistical Support Unit 5003 (southern Golan Heights), only the law enforcement and traffic directing company of the Military Police Unit is present.

The Military Police Unit is divided into two companies: the law enforcement and traffic directing company, called Military Police Company , and the POW transfer and guarding company, called Frontal POW Company .

Military Police Company

The Military Police Company is responsible for all the law enforcement and traffic directing missions, as well as erecting road signs, assisting troop movement, and operating Frontal Supervision Points , which allow combat troops to receive orders and directions in conquered territory.

Ideally, each Military Police Company consists of 3 platoons, each consisting of 3 squads. A squad has a commander, an all-terrain vehicle
All-terrain vehicle
An all-terrain vehicle , also known as a quad, quad bike, three wheeler, or four wheeler, is defined by the American National Standards Institute as a vehicle that travels on low pressure tires, with a seat that is straddled by the operator, along with handlebars for steering control...

 driver and two ATVs, and six military policemen. The company also has one medic and one mechanic.

Frontal POW Company

The Frontal POW Company is responsible for taking prisoners of war from the combat units, transferring them to temporary camps (each camp is erected by the company in four days and can contain up to 500 POWs), then sorting and transferring them to permanent regional (command) POW camps within 72 hours.

Each company lists 3 platoons: a transfer platoon, an absorption platoon which sorts prisoners (this platoon also has medics, intelligence gatherers and translators for correct absorption and sorting), and a platoon responsible for the temporary POW camp.

Rear units

The rear unit of the Military Police Corps during wartime is called the Command Law Enforcement Unit. It is a brigade-level unit headed by a colonel. There is such a unit in the Northern, Central and Southern commands. In the Central Command, the unit is subordinate to the Regional Logistical Support Unit 5004. Each Command Law Enforcement Unit cosists of three battalions:
  • Law Enforcement Battalion: headed by a lieutenant colonel, this unit is responsible for all law enforcement duties on the inside of the country. It functions similarly to the regular law enforcement units.
  • Command POW Camp: headed by a lieutenant colonel. Each POW camp is permanent and can contain up to 3,500 prisoners. The Northern Command camp is located at Camp Elyakim, the Central Command camp is in Ofer Prison
    Ofer Prison
    Ofer Prison , formerly officially known as Incarceration Facility 385 , is an Israeli incarceration facility located in the West Bank, between Ramallah/Beituniya and Giv'at Ze'ev...

    , and the Southern Command camp is in Ktzi'ot Prison
    Ktzi'ot Prison
    Ktzi'ot Prison is an Israeli detention facility located in the Haluza sand dunes region. It is Israel's largest detention facility in terms of land area, encompassing ....

    .
  • Military Police Command Unit: one of the three regular, non-reservist law enforcement units (390, 391 and 392), headed by a major in an emergency. In the central command, this unit (391) is not subordinate to the Command Law Enforcement Unit.

National POW Camp

The National POW Camp is a unit which takes in all POWs from the Frontal POW Company who are either injured or are considered quality soldiers (officers, pilots, senior NCOs, etc.). The quality POWs are sent to the national camp in Prison Six
Prison Six
Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

. The 393rd Reserve Battalion is responsible for guarding them.

The injured POWs are the responsibility of Reserve Unit 5014 and are sent to one of four hospitals: Kaplan Hospital (Rehovot
Rehovot
Rehovot is a city in the Center District of Israel, about south of Tel Aviv. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 112,700. Rehovot's official website estimates the population at 114,000.Rehovot was built on the site of Doron,...

), Asaf HaRofe Hospital (Rishon LeZion/Be'er Ya'akov), Tel HaShomer Hospital
Sheba Medical Center
The Chaim Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer , also Tel HaShomer Hospital, is the largest hospital in Israel.-Overview:The hospital was named after Chaim Sheba, the founding director. It was established in 1948 as the country's first military hospital to treat casualties of Israel's War of...

 (Ramat Gan/Tel HaShomer
Tel HaShomer
Tel HaShomer is a district in Gush Dan in central Israel. It is located east of Ramat Gan, and is bordered to the north by Kiryat Ono, to the east by Yehud, and to the south by Or Yehuda...

) or Barzilai Hospital (Ashkelon
Ashkelon
Ashkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...

).

Insignia

The Israeli Military Police wears a blue beret, introduced in 1998, and its symbol is a flame. On the beret, the flame is surrounded with a banner-like curve, which says Heil HaMishtara HaTzva'it (military police corps). The military police pin image consists of blue bricks and the letters Mem
Mem
Mem is the thirteenth letter of many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic...

 and Tzadik
Tsade
' is the eighteenth letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew ' and Arabic ' . Its oldest sound value is probably , although there is a variety of pronunciation in different modern Semitic languages and their dialects...

 (Mishtara Tzva'it, i.e. Military Police).

The shoulder insignia varies based on the soldier's position, although it is always on a blue and red background (See Shoulder insignia below).

Most military policemen also wear a blue and red aiguillette
Aiguillette
An aiguillette is an ornamental braided cord most often worn on uniforms, but may also be observed on other costumes such as academic dress, where it will denote an honour. Originally, the word "aiguillette" referred to the lacing used to fasten plate armor together...

, which has two forms - vertical (for law enforcement, investigations, etc.) and horizontal lines (for the prison service sector). Some wear a green aiguillette (indicates a commander, also formerly used by the prison sector). The aiguillette is worn over the left shoulder, and attached to the left shirt pocket.

Uniform

The ceremonial dress of the Military Police Corps is a regular uniform, with a white peaked cap
Peaked cap
A peaked cap, forage cap, barracks cover, or combination cap is a form of headgear worn by the armed forces of many nations and also by many uniformed civilian organizations such as law enforcement agencies...

, a brassard with the letters Mem
Mem
Mem is the thirteenth letter of many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic...

 and Tzadik on the left arm, and a white belt. This dress is also worn on duty, mostly by MPs performing discipline patrols in public places (train and bus stations, entrances to large bases, etc.) In the past, a white helmet with the letters Mem and Tzadik was used in place of the peaked cap.

Jail instructors on duty wear only the brassard, as well as a black leather belt, along with a work uniform and optionally a prison sector cap, with sergeants wearing a similar blue brassard. The security examination (checkpoints) sector wears a sector cap, as well as a black brassard with "MP" written in Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...

, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...

.

Flag and emblem

The military police flag is a standard 3:4 banner, divided into blue and red halves with a diagonal line.

The military police emblem, designed in 1949, consists of a shield and five flame tongues which, according to the creators, represent the five unbreakable truths of the military police: Purity of the arm, purity of arms
Purity of Arms
The code of purity of arms is one of the values stated in the Israel Defense Force's official doctrine of ethics, The Spirit of the IDF....

, purity of heart, purity of action and purity of the eye. By contrast, the military police pin, or hamatzon, has only four flame tongues. A sixth flame tongue is sometimes added to specific unit insignia, symbolizing the purity of scale.

Training insignia

Recruits and other trainees in the military police, as all IDF trainees, wear improvised shoulder ribbons to indicate their platoon. Until 2006, The male recruit company Pashatz (Plugat Shotrim Tzvaiyim) wore single-colored bands, while the female company (Plugat Shotrot) wore dual-colored bands. The male company's symbol was a dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...

, while that of the female company was a lioness'
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...

 head. In February 2006, the two were merged into the Pashatz, and a checkpoint
Israel Defense Forces checkpoint
A Israel Defense Forces checkpoint, usually called an Israeli checkpoint , is a barrier erected by the Israel Defense Forces with the stated aim of enhancing the security of Israel and Israeli settlements and preventing those who wish to do harm from crossing...

 company called Palmas (Plugat Maslul) was created.

Shoulder insignia

Most units or major bases in the military police have their own shoulder insignia:
  • Bahad 13 - a book with a sword and flame. This is worn by the personnel at the Bahad 13 base as well as all soldiers who take a professional course at Bahad 13.
  • Me'avhenim Bithoni'im (Ta'oz Battalion) - an eye with two hands and a flame. This is worn by all personnel in the Ta'oz Battalion, a unit which checks Palestinians at Israeli checkpoints not encompassing Jerusalem.
  • Me'avhenim Bithoni'im (Erez Battalion) - an eye with two hands and a flame, as well as an ornament at the top, which represents the mountains of Jerusalem and the walls of the old city. This is worn by all personnel in the Erez Battalion, a unit which checks Palestinians at checkpoints encompassing Jerusalem.
  • Prison service (Kli'a) - the hamatzons brick background with a book and a flame. Worn by all personnel in military jails.
  • Criminal Investigations Division (Metzah) - an eye with weighing scales, a magnifying glass and a key. Worn by all policemen in the investigations department.
  • Headquarters (Mekamtzar) - a regular flame on a red and blue background. Worn by all personnel working in the Mekamtzar (military police command headquarters). Also worn by Yamlat soldiers.
  • Northern command - the symbol of the northern command (a deer) on a red and blue background. Worn by military policemen (law enforcers) in the northern command.
  • Central command - the symbol of the central command (a lion) on a red and blue background. Worn by military policemen (law enforcers) in the central command.
  • Southern command - the symbol of the southern command (a fox) on a red and blue background. Worn by military policemen (law enforcers) in the southern command.

Vehicles

During the initial stages of the corps's founding, most of the vehicles therein were reconstructed from scrapped British vehicles, and served various purposes. More vehicles were eventually brought to the Israel Defense Forces, and the military police started using several main types of vehicles: patrol cars and motorcycles, vans for faster transit of personnel, as well as limited prisoner transfer, and prisoner transfer trucks and buses. Leased vehicles without army markings are used for covert missions. Following is a list of vehicles used by the corps as of 2008.

Motorcycles

  • Honda CBX750
    Honda CBX750
    The CBX750, or RC17 is a Honda motorcycle sold primarily in Europe, South Africa and Australia. Manufactured from 1984 to 1988, the CBX750 was developed from the CB750, in parallel with the VF750, a wholly new design...

     with a 4 cylinder engine (750), not used anymore.
  • Harley Davidson with an Evolution engine
    Evolution engine
    The Evolution engine is an air-cooled, 45-degree, V-twin engine manufactured since 1984 by the Harley Davidson Motor Company for the company's motorcycles. It was made in the displacement for Harley Davidson Big V-twins bikes, replacing the Shovelhead engine, until 1999 when it was replaced by...

     (883)

General purpose vans

  • Ford Transit
  • Ford E350
    Ford E-Series
    The Ford E-Series, formerly known as the Econoline or Club Wagon, is a line of full-size vans and truck chassis from the Ford Motor Company. The E-Series is related to the Ford F-Series line of pickup trucks. The line was introduced in 1961 as a compact van and its descendants are still produced...

     "Econoline"

Prisoner transfer

  • International
    Navistar International
    Navistar International Corporation is a United States-based holding company that owns the manufacturer of International brand commercial trucks, MaxxForce brand diesel engines, IC Bus school and commercial buses, Workhorse brand chassis for motor homes and step vans, and is a private label...

     DT 466
  • International RE Series bus

Regional units

The following units are part of the corps, but are only professionally subordinate to the Chief Military Police Officers's headquarters. Instead, they are under the jurisdiction of the regional Aluf
Aluf
Aluf is the term used for General and Admiral in the Israel Defense Forces . In addition to the Aluf rank itself, there are four other ranks which are derivatives of the word...

im (chiefs of the northern, central and southern commands). The units are headed by officers ranked lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...

, and deal mainly with law enforcement and the arrest of AWOLs, but also employ small detention centers for Israeli and (in the case of the central command) also Palestinian prisoners. Each unit is divided into several bases: its headquarters, and territorial MP stations spread out across the country.

The military police base at the General Staff (Matkal) base (Camp Rabin/HaKirya) in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

 is also only professionally subordinate to the corps's headquarters, and directly serves the commander of Camp Rabin, ranked colonel.

Northern command

  • Northern Command (390) headquarters
  • Military Police Golan Heights (Camp Filon), Golan Heights
  • Military Police HaAmakim (Camp Shimshon)
  • Military Police Haifa (Camp Jalame), Haifa

Central command

  • Central Command (391) headquarters (Camp Anatot), near Jerusalem
  • Military Police Dan (Camp Yaakov Dori
    Yaakov Dori
    Yaakov Dori was the first Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces .Born in the present day Ukraine as Yakov Dostrovsky , son of Tzvi and Myriam, his family emigrated to Ottoman Palestine following the anti-Jewish pogrom in Odessa in 1905...

    ), Tel HaShomer
    Tel HaShomer
    Tel HaShomer is a district in Gush Dan in central Israel. It is located east of Ramat Gan, and is bordered to the north by Kiryat Ono, to the east by Yehud, and to the south by Or Yehuda...

  • Military Police HaSharon (Camp Mota Gur), near Kfar Yona
  • Military Police Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (Camp Anatot), near Jerusalem
  • Military Police Yoav (Camp Bar Lev), near Kiryat Mal'akhi

Southern command

  • Southern Command (392) headquarters (Camp Nathan), Beersheba
    Beersheba
    Beersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....

  • Military Police Beersheba (Camp Nathan), Beersheba
  • Military Police Eilat (Camp Yotam), near Eilat
  • Military Police Urim (Home Front Command
    Israeli Home Front Command
    The Israeli Home Front Command is an Israel Defense Forces regional command, created in February 1992 following the Gulf War, which was the first war since the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in which centres of civilian population faced significant threat....

     South Headquarters), near Ofakim

Units subordinate to the corps commander

The following units are headed by lieutenant colonels (except the Yamlat, which is under a major), who are in turn directly subordinate to the Chief Military Police Officer.
  • Prison Four
    Prison Four
    Prison Four , officially Confinement Base 394 is an Israeli military prison for Israeli soldiers, located in the military police compound in Tzrifin , Israel....

     - Confinement Base 394 (Camp Yadin), Tzrifin (prison sector)
  • Prison Six
    Prison Six
    Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

     - Confinement Base 396, Atlit (prison sector)
  • Erez Battalion (security examination sector)
  • Ta'oz Battalion (security examination sector)
  • Bahad
    Bahad
    Bahad is a military training base in the Israel Defense Forces. Each Bahad deals with a certain field, such as law enforcement or logistics. Generally, each Bahad belongs to a certain corps and conducts all courses required by the corps in question...

     13 (Camp Mota Gur), Kfar Yona (training base)
  • Yamlat 8225 (Camp Yadin), Tzrifin (law enforcement sector)

Corps headquarters

The Chief Military Police Officer's headquarters is located in Camp Ya'akov Dori (Tel HaShomer
Tel HaShomer
Tel HaShomer is a district in Gush Dan in central Israel. It is located east of Ramat Gan, and is bordered to the north by Kiryat Ono, to the east by Yehud, and to the south by Or Yehuda...

). Aside from the aforementioned units directly subordinate to it, there are a number of units within the headquarters, which mainly oversee the professional side of the corps.

There are 2 main brigade-level military police units in the headquarters (the Operations Division and the Criminal Investigations Division (CID)) and a number of staff units common to most corps. The Criminal Investigations Division is both a professional and operation unit, while the Operations Division is a professional guiding unit. The internal investigations unit, headed by a lieutenant, is also directly subordinate to the Chief MIlitary Police Officer.

Staff units

Following are the staff units present in most IDF corps which are also present in the military police corps' headquarters (the commander's rank is in parentheses):
  • Human resources branch (lieutenant colonel)
  • Computers sector (major)
  • Communications sector (major)
  • Logistics sector (major)
  • Hasbara
    Hasbara
    Public diplomacy in Israel refers to public relations efforts to disseminate information about Israel. The term is used by the Israeli government and its supporters to describe efforts to explain government policies and promote Israel in the face of what they consider negative press about Israel...

     department (captain)

Operations Division

The Operations Division is headed by a colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

 and comprises 3 main branches, which are further divided into specialized departments (the commander's rank is in parentheses):
  • Law enforcement and operations branch (lietenant colonel)
    • Law enforcement and traffic department (major)
    • Security examination department
    • Crime department
    • Deserters department (lieutenant)
    • Military police operations room
  • Prison service branch (lieutenant colonel)
    • Confinement bases department (major)
    • Detainees department
    • Prison sector headquarters/operations room
  • Doctrine, training and computers sector (major)

CID (Metzah)

The Criminal Investigations Division is a single unit (Unit 6015), both professional and operational, subordinate to the Chief Military Police Officer. Under the CID however, there are regional sub-units, similar to the regional units of the law enforcement sector, which are further divided into territorial stations, often within close proximity to the corresponding law enforcement bases.

Northern Command
  • Metzah Biranit (91st Division), Biranit
    Biranit
    Biranit is a military base in northern Israel. It is the headquarters of the Galilee Division of the Israel Defense Forces, and is located around a kilometre from the Lebanese border between Sasa and Netu'a....

  • Metzah Haifa (Camp Jalame), Haifa
    Haifa
    Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...

  • Metzah North Headquarters, Haifa
  • Metzah Ramat HaGolan (Camp Filon), Golan Heights


Central Command
  • Metzah Center Headquarters (Camp Yadin), Tzrifin
    Tzrifin
    Tzrifin is an area in Gush Dan in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities....

    • Central Unit
    • Central Traffic Accidents Unit
  • Metzah Dan (Camp Yadin), Tzrifin
  • Metzah Jerusalem (Camp Anatot), Jerusalem
  • Metzah Sharon VeShomron (Camp Mota Gur), Kfar Yona
  • Metzah Yoav (Camp Bar-Lev), near Qiryat Mal'akhi
    Qiryat Mal'akhi
    Kiryat Malakhi is a city council-governed municipality in Israel's Southern District, from Ashkelon. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 20,600. Its jurisdiction is 4,632 dunams...



Southern Command
  • Metzah Arava (Ovda Airforce Base), Arava
    Arabah
    The Arabah , also known as Aravah, is a section of the Great Rift Valley running in a north-south orientation between the southern end of the Sea of Galilee down to the Dead Sea and continuing further south where it ends at the Gulf of Aqaba. It includes most of the border between Israel to the...

  • Metzah Be'er Sheva (Camp Nathan), Be'er Sheva
    Beersheba
    Beersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....

  • Metzah South Headquarters (Camp Nathan), Be'er Sheva
  • Metzah Urim, near Ofaqim
    Ofaqim
    Ofakim , is a city in southern Israel, 20 kilometers west of Beersheba. It was founded as a development town on April 19, 1955. In 2008, Ofakim had a population of 24,800. The mayor is Zvika Greengold.-History:...



Central Unit for Special Investigations
  • Yamlam, Green House (Jaffa
    Jaffa
    Jaffa is an ancient port city believed to be one of the oldest in the world. Jaffa was incorporated with Tel Aviv creating the city of Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel. Jaffa is famous for its association with the biblical story of the prophet Jonah.-Etymology:...

    )

Training

Bahad 13, which was founded in Tzrifin
Tzrifin
Tzrifin is an area in Gush Dan in central Israel, located on the eastern side of Rishon LeZion and including parts of Be'er Ya'akov. The area proper is defined as an 'area without jurisdiction' between the two cities....

 in 1954, was moved to a base near Kedumim
Kedumim
Kedumim , also spelled Qedumim, is an Israeli settlement and a town located in the Samarian hills of the West Bank that was founded during Hanukkah 1975 and now enjoys the municipal status of local council. Founded in 1975 by members of the Gush Emunim settlement movement, its current population is...

 and Nablus
Nablus
Nablus is a Palestinian city in the northern West Bank, approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 126,132. Located in a strategic position between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a Palestinian commercial and cultural center.Founded by the...

 in 1969, and later moved again to Camp Mota Gur near Kfar Yona in 1995.

Law enforcement

Like today, 3 law enforcement stations existed in the Northern Command unit (390) of the military police. In the beginning 2000s, it was decided to move all 3 of these bases into larger ones for economic reasons:
  • Military Police Gadot, near kibbutz Gadot - moved to Camp Filon (MP Golan Heights)
  • Military Police Nesher, near Nesher
    Nesher
    Nesher is a city in the Haifa District of Israel. In 2011, Nesher had a population of 23,000. The mayor of Nesher is David Amar.-Etymology:...

     - moved to Camp Jalame (MP Haifa)
  • Military Police Tiberias, near Tiberias - moved to Camp Shimshon (MP HaAmakim)


Following Operation Peace for Galilee, the corps also set up bases in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

 along with other Israeli Security Forces
Israeli Security Forces
Security forces in Israel include a variety of organizations, including law enforcement, military, paramilitary, governmental, and intelligence agencies.-Military:...

 units. A base existed in Tyre and Sidon
Sidon
Sidon or Saïda is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate of Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast, about 40 km north of Tyre and 40 km south of the capital Beirut. In Genesis, Sidon is the son of Canaan the grandson of Noah...

, each.

Prior to 1980, a military police base was located in Tel Aviv and was responsible for the area, and another one in Tzrifin. During that year, when the Yamlat was founded, the Tel Aviv base was deemed no longer necessary. It was moved to Tel HaShomer and renamed Military Police Dan. The Yamlat unit replaced the old base in Tzrifin as a law enforcement unit, while other designations (such as the base's detention center) were taken up by the central command unit's headquarters on the same site.

The unit's headquarters, which were formerly in Military Police Tzrifin, were moved to Camp Anatot between 2004 and 2007, a relatively new base between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adummim
Ma'ale Adummim
Ma'ale Adumim is an Israeli settlement and a city in the West Bank, seven kilometers from Jerusalem. Ma'ale Adumim achieved city status in 1991. In 2011, the population was 39,000. Ma'ale Adumim is the third largest Israeli settlement in the West Bank after Modi'in Illit, and Beitar Illit. The...

. The creation of Anatot also saw the relocation thereto of Military Police Jerusalem, previously located in Camp Schneller
Schneller Orphanage
Schneller Orphanage was a Christian orphanage that operated in Jerusalem from 1860 until World War II. The orphanage grounds, located on Malchei Yisrael Street in central Jerusalem, became a British military base known as Camp Schneller. After 1948, the compound housed offices of the Israel...

 in the city proper.

Another base in the central command was located in the Jordan valley
Jordan Valley (Middle East)
The Jordan Valley forms part of the larger Jordan Rift Valley. It is 120 kilometers long and 15 kilometers wide, where it runs from Lake Tiberias in the north to northern Dead Sea in the south. It runs for an additional 155 kilometer south of the Dead Sea to Aqaba, an area also known as Wadi...

, called Military Police Jordan. It was dismantled due to lack of necessity.

Prior to the corps's re-organization following the Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...

, a military police base existed in the Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

, called Military Police Gaza. It was dismantled as part of the handing over of the strip to the Palestinian Authority
Palestinian National Authority
The Palestinian Authority is the administrative organization established to govern parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip...

, and split into Military Police Urim and Military Police Erez. MP Erez was later merged with the Sirpad combat unit and moved to a new base (see next section).

Combat units

Following the Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...

 and the tensions between the Jewish and Palestinian civilian populations in the Palestinian Territories, three combat companies were founded in the military police, which kept the order in the Jewish settlements. Sahlav (lit. orchid
Orchidaceae
The Orchidaceae, commonly referred to as the orchid family, is a morphologically diverse and widespread family of monocots in the order Asparagales. Along with the Asteraceae, it is one of the two largest families of flowering plants, with between 21,950 and 26,049 currently accepted species,...

, a.k.a. 60th MP Company) and Sayfan (lit. gladiolus
Gladiolus
Gladiolus is a genus of perennial bulbous flowering plants in the iris family...

), which were subordinate to the central command unit (391), were located in the Hebron
Hebron
Hebron , is located in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judean Mountains, it lies 930 meters above sea level. It is the largest city in the West Bank and home to around 165,000 Palestinians, and over 500 Jewish settlers concentrated in and around the old quarter...

 area and the Binyamin area, respectively. The third company, Sirpad (lit. nettle
Nettle
Nettles constitute between 24 and 39 species of flowering plants of the genus Urtica in the family Urticaceae, with a cosmopolitan though mainly temperate distribution. They are mostly herbaceous perennial plants, but some are annual and a few are shrubby...

), was founded on the principle of the first two, and was subordinate to the southern command unit (392). It was located in the Gaza Division
Gaza Division
The Israel Defense Forces Gaza Division , is subordinate to the Southern Regional Command. Its area of operation is the Gaza Strip and the area surrounding it...

's base, but later relocated to Nisanit
Nisanit
Nisanit was the largest Israeli settlement in the northern tip of the Gaza Strip in a mini-settlement bloc including Elei Sinai and Dugit. While Nisanit was under the municipal authority of the Hof Aza Regional Council it was not physically in the Gush Katif bloc where the bulk of the 'Gush Katif'...

 (Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip
thumb|Gaza city skylineThe Gaza Strip lies on the Eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The Strip borders Egypt on the southwest and Israel on the south, east and north. It is about long, and between 6 and 12 kilometres wide, with a total area of...

), after a merged with Military Police Erez.

As the tensions between Jews and Arabs in the Palestinian Territories increased, these companies started to make arrests and conveyance of Palestinians, contrary to their original designations. As a result, following the onset of the Second Intifada, Sayfan and Sirpad were disbanded due to the lack of operational necessity (many of their missions were taken up by the Ofer
Ofer Prison
Ofer Prison , formerly officially known as Incarceration Facility 385 , is an Israeli incarceration facility located in the West Bank, between Ramallah/Beituniya and Giv'at Ze'ev...

 and Ktzi'ot
Ktzi'ot Prison
Ktzi'ot Prison is an Israeli detention facility located in the Haluza sand dunes region. It is Israel's largest detention facility in terms of land area, encompassing ....

 prisons, and the Israel Border Police
Israel Border Police
The Israel Border Police is the gendarmerie and border security branch of the Israel National Police. It is also commonly known by its Hebrew abbreviation Magav , meaning border guard, whilst its members are colloquially known as Magavnikim . Border Guard is often used as the official name of the...

), while Sahlav continued working until December 2005. The Sahlav company was the first IDF unit to provide combat training for female soldiers, long before the Caracal Battalion
Caracal Battalion
The Caracal Battalion is an infantry combat battalion of the Israel Defense Forces, composed of both male and female soldiers, of both Jewish and Arab descent. It is named after the Caracal, a small cat whose sexes appear the same. As of 2009, approximately 70% of the battalion was female...

 and similar units were founded.

Leadership

The Military Police Corps is headed by the Chief Military Police Officer , a title similar to the UK/US Provost Marshal
Provost Marshal
The Provost Marshal is the officer in the armed forces who is in charge of the military police .There may be a Provost Marshal serving at many levels of the hierarchy and he may also be the public safety officer of a military installation, responsible for the provision of fire, gate security, and...

. The CMPO and most of the other military police leadership operate in the Mekamtzar (Chief Military Police Officer Headquarters).

The Chief Military Police Officer position was established in 1950 and a rank of colonel designated to it. The first official holder of the position was Yosef Pressman. In 1974, the rank of Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

 was designated to the position, and then Chief MP Officer Colonel Zalman Vardi was promoted to this rank.

List of Chief Military Police Officers

RankNameYearsAccomplishments and events during tenure
Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...

Danny Magen 1948 – May 1950 Founding of the corps, 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...

, founding of Prison Four
Prison Four
Prison Four , officially Confinement Base 394 is an Israeli military prison for Israeli soldiers, located in the military police compound in Tzrifin , Israel....

Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

Yosef Pressman May 1950 – May 1951
Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

Baruch Yitzhar May 1951 – October 1954
Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

Tzvi-Shimshon Shafir October 1954 – September 1960 Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...

, founding of Prison Six
Prison Six
Prison Six , officially Confinement Base 396 is an Israeli military prison located near Atlit, Israel, on Oren Junction.It is the second military prison for IDF soldiers, after Prison Four in Tzrifin . Prison Six can contain about 350 prisoners.Prison Six generally contains prisoners from the...

Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...


later Maj. Gen.
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

Raphael Vardi September 1960 – August 1962
Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

Israel Karmi August 1962 – September 1971 Six-Day War
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 June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...

, War of Attrition
War of Attrition
The international community and both countries attempted to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict. The Jarring Mission of the United Nations was supposed to ensure that the terms of UN Security Council Resolution 242 would be observed, but by late 1970 it was clear that this mission had been...

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Zalman Vardi September 1971 – April 1976 Yom Kippur War
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, Ramadan War or October War , also known as the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the Fourth Arab-Israeli War, was fought from October 6 to 25, 1973, between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria...

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Benjamin Inbar April 1976 – October 1977
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Baruch Arbel October 1977 – September 1980
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Haim Granit September 1980 – April 1982
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Meir Geva April 1982 – August 1985 First Lebanon War
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Amir Elimelekh August 1985 – March 1989 First Intifada
First Intifada
The First Intifada was a Palestinian uprising against the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian Territories. The uprising began in the Jabalia refugee camp and quickly spread throughout Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem....

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Shalom Ben Moshe March 1989 – November 22, 1991 Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

, changes in MP appearance and removal of the white helmet
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Mordechai Birn November 22, 1991 – March 16, 1995 Oslo Accords
Oslo Accords
The Oslo Accords, officially called the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements or Declaration of Principles , was an attempt to resolve the ongoing Palestinian-Israeli conflict...

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Nir-Am Goldbroom March 16, 1995 – July 30, 1998
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Yoram Tzahor July 30, 1998 – 2002 Second Intifada
Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Miki Bar'el 2002 – September 15, 2005 Operation Blue-White, Israel's unilateral disengagement plan
Israel's unilateral disengagement plan
Israel's unilateral disengagement plan , also known as the "Disengagement plan", "Gaza expulsion plan", and "Hitnatkut", was a proposal by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, adopted by the government on June 6, 2004 and enacted in August 2005, to evict all Israelis from the Gaza Strip and from...

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Ronny Benny September 15, 2005 – September 10, 2009 Transfer of Megiddo, Ktzi'ot and Ofer prisons to the IPS
Israel Prison Service
The Israel Prison Service , commonly known in Israel by its acronym Shabas , is the prison service of Israel. It is responsible for maintaining civilian prisons in Israel, as well as detention centers for security prisoners. It is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Security...

Brigadier General
Brigadier General
Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Meir Ohana September 10, 2009 – date  

Notable military policemen

Below is a list of notable Israelis in non-military fields who served in the Military Police Corps.
  • Nadav Hanefeld, a basketball player
  • Rami Hoiberger, an actor and comedian
  • Zion Marili, a soccer player
  • Shimon Mizrahi
    Shimon Mizrahi
    Shimon Mizrahi is an Israeli lawyer and the chairman of the Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball Club.-Professional career:...

    , the chairman of Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball Club
  • Hila Nahshon, a television hostess and model
  • Avraham Poraz
    Avraham Poraz
    Avraham Poraz is an Israeli lawyer and former politician.- Biography :Poraz was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1945 and immigrated to Israel in 1950...

    , a politician, Knesset
    Knesset
    The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...

     member and government minister
  • Yona Yahav
    Yona Yahav
    Yona Yahav is an Israeli lawyer and politician. Formerly a member of the Knesset for the Labor Party, he is currently mayor of Haifa.-Biography:...

    , a politician and Knesset member; mayor of Haifa
    Haifa
    Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...

    since 2003

Public image and relations with other units

The military police has been suffering from a negative public image almost since its inception, mostly for reporting on soldiers for minor misconducts which cause their punishment, usually in the form of confinement to the soldier's base or to a military prison.

The corps's deterrence power has weakened however, together with the overall level of discipline in the IDF, although there is no proof of a link between the two. In 2007, military policemen (in all sectors) suffered 64 physical attacks - 53 on duty, and 11 off-duty. Jail instructors are generally assaulted off-duty, while the opposite goes for policemen in the law enforcement sector.

Further reading

  • Harel, Zvi (1982) - IDF in Its Corps: Army and Security Encyclopedia (Vol. 16) - The Military Police
  • Asher, Danny (2008) - Red and Blue - A Corps's Story 1948–2008

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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