"If Hezbollah decides to use its full power, there will be no choice but to use the IDF as well – and quickly, not slowly," he said.
"We in the IDF must be able to remove threats quickly and I don't know how that can be done without using the ground forces. Is there a chance of defeating Hezbollah by bombs alone? Definitely not," he said.
The officer blasted the IDF for failing to train the troops over the past year and said the army had reached a "red line" as far as the soldiers' competence was concerned.
"From May 2013 to November 2014 we were in bad shape. When an infantry soldier (in Operation Protective Edge) sees a device he has to use for the first time in the gathering area [before going into action] it's unacceptable," he said.
