During the
2006 Lebanon War,
five Merkava tanks were destroyed.[29] Only the
minority of the tanks used during the war were Merkava Mark IVs, as by 2006 they had still only entered service in limited numbers.
Hezbollah fired over 1,000 anti-tank missiles during the conflict against both tanks and dismounted infantry.
[29] Some 45 percent of all tanks and armoured vehicles hit with
antitank missiles during the conflict suffered some form of armour penetration.
[29] In total, 15 tank crewmen were killed by these ATGM penetrations.
[30] The penetrations were caused by tandem warhead missiles.
Hezbollah weaponry was believed to include advanced RussianRPG-29 'Vampir', AT-5 'Konkurs', AT-13 'Metis-M', and laser-guided AT-14 'Kornet'[31] HEAT missiles. The
IDF reported finding the state-of-the-art Kornet ATGMs on Hezbollah positions in the village of Ghandouriyeh.
[32] Several months after the cease-fire, reports have provided detailed photographic evidence that Kornet ATGMs were indeed both in possession of, and used by, Hezbollah in this area.
[33][34] Another Merkava IV tank crewman was killed when a tank ran over an
improvised explosive device (IED). This tank had additional V-shaped underside armor, limiting casualties to just one of the seven personnel (four crewmen and three infantrymen) on board. In total, five Merkava tanks
(two Merkava IIs, one Merkava III, and two Merkava IVs) were destroyed.[29] Of these two Merkava Mark IVs, one was by powerful IEDs, and the other by Russian AT-14 'Kornet' missiles. The Israeli military said that it was satisfied with the Merkava Mark IV's performance, and attributed problems to insufficient training before the war.
[35][36] In total, 50 Merkava tanks (predominantly Merkava IIs and IIIs) were damaged, eight of which remained serviceable on the battlefield. 21 tanks suffered armour penetrations (15 from missiles, and 6 from IEDs and anti-tank mines).
[29]
After the 2006 war, and as the IDF becomes increasingly involved in unconventional and
guerrilla warfare, some analysts say the Merkava is too vulnerable to advanced anti-tank missiles, that in their man-portable types can be fielded by guerrilla warfare opponents.
[37][38] Other post-war analysts, including David Eshel, disagree, arguing that reports of losses to Merkavas were overstated and that "summing up the performance of Merkava tanks, especially the latest version Merkava Mark IV, most tank crews agree that, in spite of the losses sustained and some major flaws in tactical conduct, the tank proved its mettle in its first high-saturation combat."
[39] On a comparison done by the armor corps newsletter, it was shown that the average number of crewmen killed per tank penetrated by missile/rocket was reduced from 2 during the
Yom Kippur War to 1.5 during the
1982 Lebanon War to 1 during the
2006 Lebanon War proving how, even in the face of the improvement in anti-tank weaponry, the Merkava series tanks provide increasingly better protection to its crew. The IDF wanted to increase orders of new Merkava Mark IV tanks, and planned to add the
Trophy (countermeasure) to Merkava Mark IV tanks, and to increase joint training between crews and Israeli
antitank soldiers.
[40][41]
Hizballa used IED's and anti tank missiles against IDF's armored vehicles from within houses and populated places in order to prevent retaliation.
in global the merkava 4 did very good against massive IED and missiles attacks
