During the two-week conflict, Iranian drone attacks surged to more than 1,000

By Hezy Laing

The IDF recently disclosed that its new electromagnetic spectrum unit successfully downed dozens of Iranian drones during the two-week Iran–Israel war.

The IDF’s electromagnetic warfare capabilities, deployed by the 5114th Spectrum Battalion, were long kept secret to preserve a strategic advantage and prevent adversaries from developing countermeasures.

However, this week the IDF publicly acknowledged the unit’s existence and its role in drone defense—highlighting the crucial role of secrecy in the realm of electronic warfare.

Electromagnetic spectrum units primarily rely on advanced electronic warfare (EW) systems to disrupt, jam, or hijack the communication and navigation signals drones depend on.

These non-kinetic systems are especially well-suited to address the growing threat of drone warfare.

During the two-week conflict, Iranian drone attacks surged to more than 1,000—a volume that posed an unprecedented challenge and required deploying every available layer of defense.

Israel’s traditional multi-layered air defense system (Iron Dome, David’s Sling, Barak, and others) is optimized for intercepting rockets and missiles—not swarms of small, low-cost drones.

As a result, spectrum warfare units became an essential, cost-effective complement to traditional systems, particularly in neutralizing swarm attacks that might otherwise overwhelm kinetic interceptors.

Only recently has the technology matured to a point where large numbers of hostile drones can be detected, tracked, and neutralized in real time and at scale.

The intensifying drone threat accelerated Israel’s deployment and integration of these advanced spectrum warfare tools.

Israel is widely recognized as a global leader in electromagnetic and electronic warfare—especially in counter-drone capabilities—thanks to its fusion of cutting-edge technologies, battlefield experience, and seamless coordination across its layered air defense architecture.