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Elchanan Team was an operational team composed of brothers Elchanan and Menachem Kalmanzon and their nephew Itiel. The three fought for hours in battles against Hamas militants who carried out a massacre in Kibbutz Be'eri in the Gaza Strip area, The team rescued about 100 members of the kibbutz. In March 2024, it was decided to award the team the Israel Prize for Civil Courage for their actions in preventing the continuation of the massacre.
On the morning of 7 October 2023, Saturday, Simchat Torah, the 22nd of Tishrei 5784, the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant organizations launched a surprise attack on Israel. Under the cover of firing thousands of rockets, approximately 3,500 militants infiltrated from the Gaza Strip into dozens of Israeli communities and military facilities in the area of the Gaza Strip and its surroundings, engaging in firefights with limited security forces. The militant carried out massacres and rapes, murdering 1,150 people, including 779 [1] civilians, and abducting about 253 people, including women, elderly and infants, to the Gaza Strip. In the early hours, they were confronted by reserve forces, Israel Police officers, Border Police fighters, and IDF soldiers who were outnumbered. In the battles, about 1,550 [2] militant were killed on Israeli soil, and on the Israeli side, 55 [3] police officers, 10 [4] members of the General Security Service, and 301 soldiers were killed.
One of the largest massacres in the surprise attack was the Be'eri Massacre, in which about a hundred civilians and security personnel were killed.
When the brothers Elchanan and Menachem Kalmanzohn heard about the surprise attack on Israel on the morning of October 7, they independently arrived in the Gaza Strip area and took part in the battles before receiving official orders. They fought in Kibbutz Be'eri from 6:00 p.m., and their nephew Itiel joined them a little later. The team fought for about 16 hours under fire. At 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, they encountered a militant dressed in black who was hiding in the corner of one of the houses and opened fire on Elchanan with a burst of bullets. Elchanan shouted 'I've been hit' and fell near the entrance of the house. His teammates shot at the militant and rescued Elchanan, but the militant was not killed. Elchanan lost consciousness. After the arrival of an IDF force that provided cover, Elchanan was evacuated to a field hospital, where they waited for his evacuation by helicopter to a hospital, but they were forced to declare him dead on the spot. [5]
The Elchanan team rescued about 100 members of the kibbutz under fire and for many hours. [6]
In March 2024, Education Minister Yoav Kish decided to award the Israel Prize in the field of Rebirth and Civil Courage to the 'Elchanan Team' for their bravery in the battles on October 7.[8] The justification for the award stated: "Menachem Kalmanzohn, his late brother Elchanan, and their nephew Itiel Zohar left their home in Itamar on Simchat Torah to save the lives of residents of the communities in the Gaza Strip area. Despite being told they were not needed, they arrived at Kibbutz Be'eri and entered the besieged kibbutz time and time again for many hours, thus saving dozens of kibbutz residents. In the last house they entered, a militant lay in ambush and shot and killed Elchanan Kalmanzohn, brother of Menachem." [7] [8]
Alumim is a religious kibbutz located in the northwestern Negev desert in southern Israel, near the Gaza Strip. It falls under the jurisdiction of Sdot Negev Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 531.
Unit 5101, more commonly known as Shaldag, is one of the premier Israeli Air Force (IAF) Sayeret units. The unit is part of the 7th Special Air Forces Wing and is based in the Palmachim Airbase. The unit is led by an officer at the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Be'eri is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located in the north-western Negev desert near the eastern border with the Gaza Strip, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 1,071.
Re'im is a secular kibbutz in southern Israel, and one of the Gaza vicinity villages. Located at the confluence of Besor Stream and Gerar Stream in the north-western Negev desert, it falls under the jurisdiction of Eshkol Regional Council. In 2022, it had a population of 422.
Mefalsim is a kibbutz in southern Israel. Located near the Gaza Strip and covering 11,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 1,057.
On 7 October 2023, Hamas and several other Palestinian militant groups launched coordinated armed incursions from the Gaza Strip into the Gaza envelope of southern Israel, the first invasion of Israeli territory since the Arab-Israeli War of 1948. Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups named the attacks Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, while in Israel they are referred to as Black Saturday or the Simchat Torah Massacre, and internationally as the 7 October attack. The attacks launched the ongoing Israel–Hamas war.
The Netiv HaAsara massacre occurred during the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. Thirty-five Hamas militants, some via paragliders and most via car, attacked Netiv HaAsara, an Israeli moshav close to the border fence. The militants killed at least 20 people, including in some cases members of the same family. Before the massacre, the moshav was home to approximately 900 residents.
On 7 October 2023, in the opening attacks of the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, Hamas militants carried out a massacre at Be'eri, an Israeli kibbutz near the Gaza Strip.
On 7 October 2023, as part of the surprise attack on Israel, Palestinian militants from the Gaza Strip, led by Hamas, invaded the Nir Oz kibbutz in southern Israel. They killed scores of kibbutz residents, burned homes, and abducted civilians. According to the Israeli military, up to 150 militants participated in the massacre.
On 7 October 2023, a sudden assault was launched on Israel by Hamas militants originating from the Gaza Strip. They targeted Kissufim kibbutz located in the Southern District of Israel. As a result of this violent attack, at least four kibbutz security team members, four other residents, six Thai laborers and eight Israeli soldiers were killed, while at least four individuals were additionally abducted and taken to Gaza.
The Nahal Oz attack was an assault on the kibbutz of Nahal Oz and the adjacent military base near the northern Gaza Strip on the morning of 7 October 2023 as part of a 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel. In the attack, more than 60 Israeli soldiers and more than a dozen kibbutz residents were killed. Some soldiers and residents were kidnapped and taken to the Gaza Strip.
On 7 October 2023, a surprise assault was launched on Israel by Hamas militants coming from the Gaza Strip. One of their targets was Nirim, a kibbutz located in the southern part of Israel, about 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the border with Gaza. At least five kibbutz civilians died, many were injured and an unknown number of civilians were kidnapped and taken hostage to Gaza.
On 7 October 2023, seven female Israeli tank crew members from the Caracal battalion fought against Gazans who they alleged were Hamas continuously for 17 hours. According to the IDF, the young women were the first ever female tank crews in the West to engage in active combat. According to Israel, they killed 50 militants.
Asaf Hamami was an IDF officer with the rank of colonel, serving as the commander of the Southern Brigade in the Gaza Strip. Prior to that, he served as the commander of the Negev Brigade, commander of the Oz Brigade training school, and commander of the Tzabar Battalion.
The kidnapping of Yarden Roman-Gat occurred during the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and the subsequent Gaza Strip hostage crisis. Yarden Roman-Gat, a 36-year-old woman who is a dual national of Germany and Israel, along with her husband Alon and their 3-year-old daughter Gefen, were abducted by Hamas militants from their home in Kibbutz Be'eri on October 7, 2023, during the Be'eri massacre, and taken towards the Gaza Strip border. Yarden's act of self-sacrifice in saving her daughter during their escape attempt, and her subsequent two-month-long captivity in Gaza, garnered significant attention and an international campaign to release her and other hostages held in Gaza.
Barak Hiram is an IDF officer with the rank of Brigadier general, currently serving as the commander of the 99th Infantry Division. Previously, he served as the commander of the Golani Brigade, the commander of the live-fire training center in the IDF, the commander of the Golani Brigade, the commander of Golani's training base, and the commander of Battalion 51.
In specific cases there were incidents of friendly fire in the 2023 Israel–Hamas war. The vast majority of casualties in the conflict were killed by the opposing side, i.e. Israelis killed by Palestinian militants and Palestinians killed by the Israeli military.
The Hamas most wanted cards are decks of playing cards which include Hamas members wanted by the State of Israel.
Operation Golden Hand was an IDF operation in cooperation with the Shin Bet and Yamam for the rescue of two hostages who were kidnapped to Rafah during the Nir Yitzhak attack on 7 October, 2023. The operation commenced on February 12, 2024, at 1:49 AM during combat in the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war, and ended successfully with the rescue of the hostages, along with a soldier who was lightly injured during the operation. The coordinated early morning airstrikes that were used as cover for the operation reportedly caused the deaths of at least 94 Palestinians according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between military and civilian casualties.
Iron Sword War Memorial Day is a national Memorial Day commemorating the fallen victims of the surprise attack on Israel on the 22nd of Tishrei 5784, the holiday of Simchat Torah, October 7, 2023, and the soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces who fell during the ensuing Iron Sword War. Due to the fact that the 22nd of Tishrei is the holiday of Simchat Torah, and the 23rd of Tishrei is the Isru Chag of Sukkot, the Memorial Day was set for the 24th of Tishrei.
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