IDF updates captivity training following Shalit debriefing

The IDF has updated its methods for training soldiers on what to expect if they are taken prisoner of war, based on lessons learned from Gilad Shalit who spent five years in Hamas captivity.

Captivity training mentally prepares pilots and soldiers in elite units operating behind enemy lines for the horrors of captivity and to enable them to hold on to their secrets for the critical first few days, during which the secrets they possess could put other Israeli lives in danger.

Shalit, who was abducted in 2006 while serving in a tank regiment and released in October 2011 in a prisoner exchange with Hamas, was debriefed following his return to Israel and the information he provided will now be used to shape POW training.

In the past the POW training gained a reputation for challenging participants with physical and mental abuse, including starvation and even electrocution. The current course is reported to have toned down the more extreme physical abuse, and a team of mental health professionals carefully monitor participants during the week. Following the course, servicemen are granted a rest and recuperation period before being allowed to go on a short leave.

According to a Haaretz report, army officials were impressed with the enormous amount of information that Shalit provided and his excellent attention to detail. The information Shalit provided was used by a special team, headed by Major-General Noam Tivon, to find ways of dealing with kidnapped soldier situations.