"You find yourself standing just a few feet away from your target and suddenly, all you can see is what's in front of you. All of your senses become focused on one thing. It's a kind of tunnel vision, total concentration, and all you need to do is draw your weapon and pull the trigger," M., a special forces fighter with the IDF describes the absolute focus required when looking the enemy right in the eyes.
Even the slightest error in the type of mission M. and his comrades carry out can exact the ultimate price, which is why the members of the IDF's special forces units undergo a grueling series of physical and psychological evaluations before they are selected for their roles.
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The Israel Defense Force includes four elite special forces units: Sayeret Matkal, the deep reconnaissance and counterterrorism unit; the Shayetet 13 naval commando unit; the Shaldag air force commando unit; and Unit 669, the heliborne search, rescue and extraction unit.
Several special ground forces units operate alongside these four, namely, Duvdevan, which specializes in undercover urban warfare operations; Maglan, which specializes in operations deep behind enemy lines; Egoz, whose missions involve counter-guerrilla warfare; Rimon, whose forte is desert warfare; and Shayetet 7, the navy's submarine fleet.
For the most part, the IDF's special forces operate as part of the "campaign between the wars," a strategic concept that encompasses a host of covert and low-intensity military and intelligence efforts seeking to prevent enemy states and terrorist organizations from becoming stronger and thwarting their offensive activity.
The majority of the units' operations are clandestine and the public remains oblivious to their specifics. Moreover, given the unique character of their personnel and the unusual nature of their missions, it sometimes seems as if these units are removed from the IDF's regular forces.
Given the sensitive nature of their operations, the identity of the members of the IDF's special forces units is also a closely guarded secret. But what is it that makes them volunteer for such a highly dangerous service, which time and again places them in extreme situations that demand they achieve the impossible?
The makings of an elite fighter
"The IDF's special forces units are very different from one another," explains Col. Dr. Ariel Ben-Yehuda, head of the IDF Medical Corps Mental Health Division.
"A company commander in one of the elite units needs a different set of skills than, for example, a member of the military's bomb disposal unit. Different people seek different roles, and special forces have a great variety of missions, so while they are a cut above the rest, with the exception of high motivation, perseverance, and a strong sense of affinity with the mission at hand, you can't say they are all cut from the same cloth."
Ben-Yehuda, an expert psychiatrist and a former physician with Duvdevan, says the members of the urban warfare unit possess highly personal and professional aptitudes, "but most of all, they exhibit the ability to easily adapt to different situations, which is vital in their line of work."
A good way to get a glimpse into what makes these elite fighters tick is to look at the U.S. Navy's primary special operations force, the Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, which is regarded as the best commando unit in the world.
With a long list of successful missions under its belt, it is no wonder that the unit's SEAL Team Six was chosen to lead Operation Neptune Spear – that led to the 2011 elimination of Osama bin Laden, the founder of the Islamist terrorist group al-Qaida, which carried out the September 11 attacks in the United States.
Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, who teamed up with a Navy SEALs' clinical psychologist, have identified several common traits among its members, chief among them are mental resilience, meaning the ability to cope with and adapt to stress and crisis situations.
The study, conducted among 139 Navy SEALs ages 20 to 45, found that the more experienced the commandos, the more conscientious, hardworking, responsible and mission-oriented they were. They were also found to be less neurotic and less extroverted in their behavior, but more jaded, cynical, and socially abrasive under certain circumstances.
Given the demands these units pose, "a special forces fighter who doesn't have a positive view of life in general and of the mission in particular, and who can't think outside the box under stressful conditions, is highly unlikely to make it," a senior special forces officer told Israel Hayom.
Ben-Yehuda agrees, adding, "Team spirit and resilience is the strongest thing they have. In special forces units, the team is the smallest and most cohesive part, a family that is fostered throughout the service, during training and afterward."
Much of this resilience lies with the theory of "the private as a strategist."
"This type of fighter can make a decision that has strategic implications, sometimes in real-time and under stressful circumstances, due to the complexity of the situation and the quality of the objectives," Ben-Yehuda explains. "Special forces units train their fighters to make such decisions, which in turn develop the individual's abilities."
Captain A., a former Duvdevan fighter, who currently serves as a mental health officer with the Commando Brigade, the contingent under which Maglan, Duvdevan, Egoz, and Rimon operate, noted that "this is an important ability for the fighters to have. We examine it in training for the various warfare specialties, as it helps fighters deal with complex situations."
The ability to "fly solo," so to speak, is doubly important when it comes to airborne missions, as is the case for Unit 669, which leads all airborne search, rescue and extraction missions.
"Handling unexpected events and situations is at the heart of our operations and our fighters must find something to ground them in the midst of all the uncertainty," Captain D. of Unit 669 explains.
"There's a tremendous difference between an operation that fighters know is expected to end at a certain point and one in which you have no information – will it take place, when and for how long. Unit 669 deals with a wide array of scenarios, like water, rope work, working with helicopters, and warfare," he continued. "We can carry out a civilian extraction, such as the incident at Tzafit River, with no military aspect to it, and then turn around and extract troops under enemy fire. For this reason, our fighters must have an extensive set of skills and the ability to adapt to uncertain conditions, which are traits we hone during their training."
The human psyche is not a fan of uncertainty, "which is why the selection and training process is lengthy, as is the process of preparing for specific missions," Ben-Yehuda said. "The value of extensive preparations lies with the fact that they promote elite fighters' mental well-being and resilience, which also helps prevent a host of other issues."
The X factor
The fighters' mental resilience is just as critical, if not more, when it comes to the military's most expensive instrument of war – the submarine fleet.
The members of the Israeli submarine fleet face a unique challenge: not only are they required to serve in a confined environment, they do so away from Israel's borders, where they must gather vital intelligence, assist other forces and if need be, mount offensive maneuvers.
"The social aspect is very important to us. We want team members to possess mental resilience, reliability, and precision," explains Major D., a physician in Shayetet 7.
"We're constantly preparing for scenarios of uncertainty, even in our medical training. You don't just learn how to carry out a task in a routine way; you constantly look for other angles."
The unique aspects of submarine service make teamwork even more important, D. said, noting that submarine teams "form dramatic friendships. The fact that a fighter lives in a small space with the same group of people for a long period of time and under stressful conditions is a very special thing."
A recent study by Professor Shaul Kimhi, of the Academic and Technology College of Tel-Hai, tried to delve into how fighters cope with the extreme conditions posed by submarine service. It found that, for example, submarine crews are characterized by positive thinking, optimism and a sense of humor, as well as with a certain degree of cynicism, which appears necessary to maintain their sanity under extreme conditions.
The study also found that submarine crews are driven by a sense of commitment to their mission, high standards, and discipline, and that the social dynamics in submarines is characterized by the desire to avoid conflicts and maintain a positive atmosphere as well as social cohesion in an effort to deal with being away from their family and friends for extended periods of time.
The study also found that the crews perceive the submarine as a dangerous place, but manage to diminish the sense of danger by developing confidence in the vessel's technological capabilities, as well as in their own ability to control potential dangers.
"Mental strength is developed proactively and stems from a profound sense of competence," a military behavioral psychologist explains, "and this mental strength is probably the X factor – the ability to function optimally and complete the mission regardless of what's going on around you – that sets the best of the best apart from everyone else."
Improving fighters' mental resilience is the work of a relatively new branch in the IDF, established in late 2017. The Mental Fitness Branch aims, as indicative from its name, to make soldiers more emotionally immune to extreme stress-related syndromes like post-traumatic stress disorder, by using a special battery of mental resilience exercises that are uniquely adapted for every unit.
"There are many types of pressures and there is a scientific method of evaluating the correct course of action for dealing with each one. They key factor here is gradual exposure: mental strength must be fostered gradually, otherwise, you can inflict damage. It's not for nothing that the most grueling part of the training, such as training soldiers what to do in case they are captured by the enemy, is held at the end of the training process," Major A. said.
According to Ben-Yehuda, this type of special training has been proven to foster lower rates of PTSD among special forces members, "but despite their training and the highly cohesive units in which they serve, we must remember that no one is immune to battle fatigue, not even the best fighters in the world."
