Merkava Tank

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The Merkava is a series of main battle tanks used by the Israel Defense Forces and the backbone of the IDF's armored corps. The tank began development in 1970, and its first generation – the Merkava mark 1 – entered official service in 1979. Four main variants have been deployed, with the Merkava mark 4 being the latest version. The Merkava was first used extensively in the 1982 Lebanon War. The name "Merkava" was derived from the IDF's initial development program name.