The Chief of the IDF’s General Staff, Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, awarded the Technological Array Prize to ten IDF officers in a ceremony held Tuesday, the IDF Website reported.

In the first such ceremony in a decade, the Chief of Staff honored the accomplishments of the prize recipients, all of whom are leaders in technological innovation within the IDF.

Speaking at the ceremony, Lt. Gen. Gantz discussed the importance of technological innovation with the IDF. “As the commander of the IDF, I see us as partners in this mission and in this idea, for the sake of the State of Israel’s national security in the broadest sense,” he said.

“When the race of arms and development doesn’t slow for a moment, in a strategic environment full of challenges requiring us to prepare well for possible scenarios, there is a critical need for the preservation of the IDF’s technological superiority. We need a strong, sophisticated, advanced, innovative, and leading technological array, which will continue to be more and more of a basis of our qualitative advantage.”

The Technological Array Prize was awarded to leaders representing each of the IDF’s forces: two from the Israel Air Force, two from the Teleprocessing Branch, one from the Technology and Logistics Corps, one from the Navy, and two – one military officer and one civilian employee – from the Military Intelligence Directorate.

In addition to the award recipients, two other officers were each honored with a decoration from the Chief of Staff.