USCENTCOM Commander Visits Israel

On Dec. 11-13, Gen. Kurilla visited Israel at the invitation of LTG Herzi Halevi, Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). In addition to meeting with LTG Halevi and his staff, Gen. Kurilla met with the Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz, Maj Gen Ori Gordin, the Commander of the IDF's Northern Command, and Maj Gen Tomar Bar, the Israeli Air Force Commander. The leaders discussed a range of regional security issues, to include ongoing situation in Syria, and preparedness against other strategic and regional threats.

Gen. Kurilla visited Northern Command headquarters to gain a deeper understanding of the current situation in Lebanon and ongoing efforts toward a lasting cessation of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon. Gen. Kurilla also visited an IDF airbase and was briefed on unique IDF capabilities.

Gen. Kurilla reiterated the ironclad military-to-military partnership between the U.S. and Israel.

"My visit to Israel, as well as Jordan, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon over the past six days, reinforced the importance of seeing the current challenges and opportunities firsthand through the eyes of our partners, commanders on the ground, and Servicemembers. We need to maintain strong partnerships to confront current and future threats to the region," said Gen. Kurilla.