The IDF has begun forming a new multi-theater maneuvering division, the first of its kind in seven decades, in a move aimed at strengthening the ground forces amid evolving security challenges.
The new division, designated the 38th Division, will consolidate training and operational units from several of the IDF's ground force training bases.
Named in homage to the historic 38th Division commanded by Ariel Sharon during the 1967 Six-Day War, the new unit is the first maneuvering division to be established by the IDF since the 1956 Sinai Campaign. The original 38th Division was later redesignated as the 146th Division.
The new formation will unite units from multiple key training commands, including the soon-to-be-reestablished Artillery Training Brigade at the Shivta artillery base; the 460th Armored Training Brigade at the Shizafon base; the Combat Engineering School (known by its Hebrew acronym, Bahalatz); and the officer and squad commander training schools at Bahad 1 and Bislah, the IDF's primary training centers for officers and combat leadership.
Brig. Gen. Sharon Altit, who currently heads the Training Division within the Ground Forces Command, will lead the 38th Division. He will be responsible both for force development and, in times of war, for operational deployment of the training brigades under his command.
So far, around 1,200 reservists have been assigned to the division’s headquarters, which will operate out of the Julis military base near the southern city of Ashkelon. Over the next year, the division will conduct a series of training exercises, including a full divisional drill, as it becomes fully operational.
Military officials said the move is part of a broader effort to reinforce the IDF’s ground maneuvering capabilities. “In wartime, maneuvering divisions operate with six to eight brigades under their command,” an IDF source said. “But that structure has made it difficult to give each brigade the operational attention and resources it needs. The 38th Division will help alleviate that burden.”
The new division is being launched alongside parallel force buildup initiatives, including the reactivation of the 500th Armored Brigade, the ultra-Orthodox Hasmonean Infantry Brigade and new combat engineering battalions.
Many of the armored platforms used in training brigades — including Merkava Mark IV tanks, Namer and Puma armored personnel carriers — are considered mechanically worn due to extensive use in drills. However, in wartime, these vehicles are expected to be reactivated after undergoing engine replacements and receiving new armored platforms, including the IDF’s next-generation Barak tank and the new SIGMA 155 self-propelled howitzers, which are slated to arrive first at the Shivta base.
IDF officials noted that since the October 2023 war, these platforms have undergone roughly 15% in upgrades. They also emphasized that the new division’s forces will have operational plans for rapid-response defense scenarios, such as a surprise attack resembling the Oct. 7 assault by Hamas.
“Even the advanced training battalions from the armor and engineering brigades — which consist of soldiers with just four months of service — will be activated in future maneuvers, as was the case in the last war,” the IDF said.
Despite the new division being a combined-arms unit, Brig. Gen. Altit will continue wearing the camouflage beret of the Kfir Brigade, where he began his combat career and later served as brigade commander. The division’s official Hebrew name has yet to be announced.