Sergeant Major T., a combat dog handler from Oketz, who was severely wounded in southern Lebanon, met for the first time again with Sergeant Major S., a combatant from the Nachal Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, about two months after the battle in Beit Lif where they fought side-by-side and lost four of their comrades. On that day, T. was hit by shrapnel in his back and legs. “From the moment the incident ended, we started thinking about him,” testifies the reconnaissance unit fighter about his friend, “We constantly thought: ‘How is he? Has he woken up yet?’ Even before that, he had become part of us, but circumstances only strengthened the bond.”
This was at the beginning of the ground operation in southern Lebanon, as part of Operation ‘Lion’s Roar’. The Nachal Brigade then received its first mission – to clear the Shiite village of Beit Lif, with the reconnaissance unit fighters leading the advance. Sergeant Major T. and his dog joined them. One of the objectives they received was to take control of four observation posts to enable progress within the village. The force positioned itself and began an attack that lasted several days: “At one point, we encountered an ambush set by Hezbollah Radwan Force operatives, with the aim of dismantling and destroying it. While we were advancing forward, we were engaged from two fronts.”
“I remember the moment I was wounded,” recalls Sergeant Major T. “I took a bullet in the shoulder that exited through my back, and shrapnel hit my legs. My head stopped thinking at that second, and I started doing everything I could to save my life. I managed to retreat a bit and waited for help.” Under enemy fire, several other fighters were wounded, and in an instant, the reconnaissance unit’s mission changed: now, they had to evacuate their comrades – as quickly as possible.
They describe those moments as passing quickly, with actions performed on autopilot. “You don’t think about the meaning of what’s happening around you or its consequences, you just act,” Sergeant Major S. tries to explain. “I remember it as if it happened now, that our commanders in the field managed to grab us for a second amidst the gunfire and shouted to us, ‘We are under attack! Team 300 is hit, get to the front!’ – that’s a sentence etched in my mind ever since.” During the battle, four of the reconnaissance unit’s fighters fell: Captain Noam Madmoni, may he rest in peace, who led the forces in a charge forward to rescue the wounded; Sergeant Major Ben Cohen, may he rest in peace; Sergeant Major Maxim Antis, may he rest in peace; and Sergeant Major Gilad Harel, may he rest in peace.
“The atmosphere among us was always joyful. Even at the height of the fighting. We were always laughing,” says Sergeant Major S. about his friends. “We always knew that every day, when we completed the mission, we would all sit together again, share experiences, and process what we had been through together. And we thought about that even there in the hardest moments, as we advanced forward to rescue them.”
They moved in pursuit of their comrades, into the heart of the fighting, and there, some of them were also wounded. “Essentially, two points of occurrence were created. One deep in the territory and the second slightly behind it,” describes the fighter. “From that stage, we also focused on these two incidents, and began evacuating the wounded and casualties from the axis while returning fire to the enemy.”
“There were two teams here, and when one was hit, the other immediately jumped in without even thinking to rescue them,” he continues. “And this testifies to the sacrifice and the deep connection with each other. Even today, we don’t give up on the atmosphere among us. We remember the funny moments with our fallen friends, and thus continue their path with us.”
“Maxim, with his infectious joy, who always led our conversations with humor, or Gilad, who excelled in everything he did and fought for everything until the end. And Ben, who always smiled, even when things were toughest, and pushed us forward. And Noam, may he rest in peace, who led us in combat during the incident, immediately charged towards the wounded to save them, and in those moments was hit by enemy fire.”
Captain Noam Madmoni, may he rest in peace
Sergeant Major Ben Cohen, may he rest in peace
Sergeant Major Maxim Antis, may he rest in peace
Sergeant Major Gilad Harel, may he rest in peace
