IDF hails soldiers who saved army camps on Oct. 7

The report on Camps Yiftach and Erez also slammed troops who stayed in bomb shelters and did not engage the enemy.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

The IDF hailed a handful of soldiers Tuesday for their heroism in its report released Tuesday on the fierce battles with Hamas terrorists that took place in and near Camp Yiftach during the invasion of Oct. 7, 2023.

The base, near Israel’s northern border with Gaza,was on a relaxed Sabbath footing when Hamas started firing thousands of missiles at 6:29 a.m. as cover for its invasion, prompting most soldiers to enter bomb shelters.

Five men went to reinforce the front gate, which was being guarded only by Cpl. Naama Bonny, a non-combat soldier. They carried only personal weapons and wore no protective gear.

At about 6:56, a fierce battle began as several squads of terrorists began trying to gain entry to the camp.

Within five minutes, the officer on duty ordered that an announcement be made over the public address system for all armed troops to report to the gate.

One sergeant left his own guard post to run to the battle, and three men from a combat engineer’s force left their shelter as well, but the rest of their force, seven men, stayed in the shelters.

The report harshly criticized their inaction, calling it a “professional and ethical failure” and “inappropriate behavior, to say the least.”

In contrast, it praised the others’ “prolonged, determined defense at the guard post [which] significantly contributed to halting the infiltration.”

By 7:45, only two soldiers and Bonny remained at the gate facing some 27 attackers, as the others had been wounded or killed.

Throughout the fighting, Bonny used her mobile phone to report the dire situation at the base, both to nearby IDF forces and MDA emergency responders.

One soldier went to bring desperately needed ammunition, and then the squad commander ordered the last fighter, Sgt. Ilay Bar Sadeh, to retreat with Bonny. He refused to leave the post, and both of them were killed by the terrorists about 30 minutes later.

After stealing fallen soldiers’ weapons and a Hummer, about a dozen terrorists started driving it toward Gaza.

At the security fence, a female IDF lookout spotted them and activated an automated firing system, killing some and forcing the rest to flee on foot.

Reinforcements arrived at 11 a.m. and fought off another wave of attackers, preventing a takeover of the base.

Camp Yiftach was finally declared clear of terrorists at 5 p.m.

The report also noted heroic acts in other northern Gaza Command battles.

Capt. Itai Maor and two soldiers were on a routine jeep patrol near the Gazan border when they received a warning of a possible infiltration soon after Hamas began launching it missiles.

Without waiting for orders, Maor rushed to the site and and confronted two terrorists trying to blow up the fence to clear the way for a Nukhba force to invade Netiv Ha’asara.

When the soldiers opened fire, the attackers fled.

The patrol then responded to reports of shooting at Zikim Beach, where dozens of terrorists who had infiltrated from the sea ambushed them.

Taking cover in training huts at an IDF firing range, the three fought until they ran out of ammunition, killing many before being overwhelmed and killed, the report said. Their actions significantly slowed the attackers’ advance, it noted.

At the northern Erez command center, most soldiers took cover in shelters as rocket fire began.

But Golani squad commander Ofir Zioni and another soldier went to the shore, where they fired at a motorboat full of terrorists, deterring them from landing.

Zioni correctly understood that the base was in danger and went back.

A total of seven boatloads of terrorists had landed and were storming Erez.

Zioni took up a position near a shelter and fired at one terrorist after another, holding them off alone until he was killed.

His comrade and another soldier replaced him at the post until they were injured.

Their combined actions, the report said, saved Erez from being captured.

The report also highlighted the bravery of civilians in the area, particularly the brothers of a base cook who arrived in the midst of the battle and evacuated the wounded in their car under heavy fire.