THE IDF DUVDEVAN UNIT

From: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT-ERRI Risk Assessment Services-Monday, August 11, 1997-Vol. 3 - 223

THE IDF DUVDEVAN UNIT
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst

The soldiers of Israel's most secret army battalion learn how to speak Arabic, know how to apply stage makeup and often drill in a movie-set-style West Bank village that is made out of plywood. They are a feared unit whose main mission is to stalk and snatch Palestinians wanted for violence against the state of Israel.

Though successful, there is a debate about these undercover units that were created almost ten years ago during the Palestinian intifada against Israeli occupation. Some human rights groups even say that the units are illegal and operate without restraints. One Israeli group, called Betselem, said that 161 Palestinians have died in IDF undercover ambushes.

But West Bank army commander Major-General Gabi Ofir says that the units are crucial to Israel's security and calls them the "spearhead in the war against terror."

The undercover unit is called Duvdevan -- the Hebrew word for "cherry." A typical team consists of eight soldiers. An Israeli military correspondent recently spent some time with the unit and described the members as serious, level-headed people who survived a difficult selection process that weeds out 99 out every 100 applicants. The correspondent said, "They don't hate Arabs. They try hard to understand them. But they are dealing with terrorists and are determined to catch them."

Rare film footage was recently taped that showed a Duvdevan training exercise in a fake Palestinian village that was made out plywood facades with a donkey in a pen and a mosque muezzin wailing over a loudspeaker. Behind the facade, the soldiers changed from their olive uniforms into jeans, shirts and sneakers and had fake beard stubble applied to their faces by a makeup artist.

In the exercise, Palestinians stoned an Israeli army jeep and burned a tire in the village street. Suddenly, two of the protesters jumped the ringleader of the group, locked him in a choke hold, threw him into a white Mercedes automobile and sped away -- waving their guns in the car window to keep the crowd away.

Duvdevan soldiers are trained for quick surprise raids. They are not meant to be used in long-term undercover assignments. That's because it is reasoned that Palestinians would be able to quickly spot a non- native Arab speaker. In training, the Duvdevan soldiers learn useful Arabic phrases that will help them conceal their true identity during the few moments needed to get close to their target.

One member of the unit told how he was usually disguised as a Palestinian woman. He would have to shave, apply foundation and eyeliner and partially veil his face. he would wear a floor-length traditional robe that had enough room to hide a gun. The gown had snaps on it that would allow the soldier to quickly rip it open once a chase began and he had to move quickly.

Sometimes the disguises don't work. One time, there was an incident where a fake moustache came unglued on a soldier while they were in the middle of a group of Palestinian stone-throwers. The team barely managed to escape from the crowd.

At the height of the 1987-1993 Palestinian uprising, the undercover units reportedly were able to track down and arrest dozens of wanted Palestinians.

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