Magach

The first M48 Patton tanks acquired by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) were purchased from West Germany in the early 1960s (M48A2 variant) in a secret arms deal, followed by deliveries from the United States after 1965 (M48A1 and M48A2C[1] vehicles) when Germany cancelled further deliveries after the deal was exposed.

A Magach is converted into a Pereh tank destroyer by replacing the main battle gun with an anti-tank guided missile launch station.

The original turret is enlarged to install a launcher under armor for 12 "Tamuz" Spike NLOS missiles, which can destroy targets out to 25 km (16 mi).

Disguised as a standard tank, the Pereh is fitted with a fake cannon barrel to the front, but can be identified easily by the curved antenna mounted at the rear on the roof of the turret, which is erected in firing position; additional features include add-on frontal armor and stowage boxes on the turret sides.

[5] However, as the word is very rarely used and is not known to many Hebrew speakers, several popular explanation backronyms of the name exist: Magach should not be confused with the Sabra series of upgrade packages for the M60A1/A3, which were developed for export to Turkey.

Sabra includes upgrades similar to those of the Magach 7, but an essential difference is that it is armed with the MG251 120 mm smooth-bore gun (the same as used by the Merkava 3).