After the Yom-Kippur War, the IDF sought a response to Russian armor. One of the solutions was the “Pere” tank – a modified M-60 Patton platform fitted with a multiple-tube antitank missile launcher, and one of the most closely-guarded secrets of the IDF
Moran was an Artillery Corps unit established around the “Pere” (Savage) platform, which operated in southern Israel. Its objective was to prepare for the crucial day when Egyptian armor columns once again march toward Israel. Beit-Or was the unit’s first commander. Later on, the Artillery Corps established the Meitar Unit, which operated the “Pere” platform in northern Israel, and eventually the Moran Unit was absorbed by the Meitar Unit.
Until 2005, the battalion was not involved in any operational activity and its entire function was to prepare secretly for a future armor-versus-armor war. With the exception of a handful of people who were familiar with the “Pere” system within the IDF, the platform remained strictly confidential. Eventually, the IDF acquired Merkava tanks, and the M-60 platform, on which the “Pere” platform was based, could no longer blend into the tank units without arousing suspicions on the enemy’s side. This may have been one of the reasons why the censors granted the request by the Israeli “Fresh” website to publicize this weapon system last July.
The Pereh had participated in all Israeli Defense Force operations of the last 25 years including the 2006 Lebanon War and Gaza War. Although pictures of the Pereh have been taken over the years, with some appearing in public briefly, Israeli censors have been diligent in suppressing such appearances. Pictures of the Pereh first released during Operation Protective Edge in July 2014, was the first occasion on which the censors allowed such pictures to pass without suppression, though no statement was made as to what the pictures were of.
The Pereh was retired from service in 2017, although it is unclear whether the Israeli Defense Force intends to abandon the concept, or if they plan using a more modern tank chassis in an updated version.
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