Givati Brigade: Difference between revisions
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They also participated in the ground phase of [[Operation Cast Lead]] in Gaza (ended in 2009). |
They also participated in the ground phase of [[Operation Cast Lead]] in Gaza (ended in 2009). |
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===2010: Givati Brigade soldiers convicted of abuse of 9-year-old Palestinian boy === |
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In November 2010, two Givati Brigade soldiers were convicted of forcing a 9-year-old Palestinian boy to open items thought to contain explosive materials. Their punishment was demotion. [http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/idf-court-demotes-soldiers-convicted-of-gaza-war-misconduct-1.325850 (Haaretz)] |
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== See also == |
== See also == |
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Revision as of 21:03, 21 November 2010
| Givati Brigade | |
|---|---|
 Members of the Givati Brigade praying at the Western Wall, 2010 | |
| Active | 1948 |
| Country | Israel |
| Branch | Israeli Defence Forces |
| Type | Marines |
| Role | Infantry |
| Part of | 366th Armor Division, Israeli Southern Command |
| Motto(s) | "With me to Givati", "Any Place, Any Time, Any Mission" |
| Colors | Purple berets, purple and white flag |
| March | "Mi She-Halam Givati" ("Those who dreamt Givati") |
| Mascot(s) | Fox |
| Engagements | Independence War (Operation Nachshon, Operation Yoav); Second Intifada (Operation Rainbow Cloud, Operation Days of Penitence, Operation Summer Rains, Operation Hot Winter); Gaza War |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Colonel Muni Katz |
| Notable commanders | Effi Eitam, Imad Fares, Amos Yarkoni |
- "Givati" redirects here. For the moshav, see Giv'ati.
The Givati Brigade (Template:Lang-he-n) functions as the amphibious force and is one of the infantry brigades in the Israel Defense Forces. Givati soldiers are designated by purple berets. The Brigade's symbol is the fox, alluding to Shualei Shimshon (שועלי שמשון, lit. Samson's Foxes), a unit in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
Current status
Units
- (51st "HaBokim HaRishonim" Infantry Battalion was transferred to the Golani Brigade in 1956)
- 424th "Shaked"/"Almond" Infantry Battalion
- 432nd "Tzabar"/"Cactus" Infantry Battalion
- 435th "Rotem"/"Furze" Infantry Battalion
- 846th "Shualey Shimshon"/"Samson's Foxes" Special Troops Battalion
- "Dikla"/"Palm" Anti-Tank Company
- "Dolev"/"Plane tree" Engineer Company
- "Shualey Shimshon"/"Samson's Foxes" Reconnaissance Company
- "Maor"/"source of light" [1] Signal Company
History
The Givati formed in December 1947 and placed under the command of Shimon Avidan. It was responsible for the central region in the beginning of the 1948 War of Independence, participating in Operation Hametz, Operation Barak and Operation Pleshet. As the war entered its second stage, Givati became the 5th Brigade, was moved to the south, and concentrated mainly around Gedera, Gan Yavne and Be'er Tuvia. One battalion fought on the Jerusalem front, including Operation Nachshon and the Battles of Latrun.
When Israel declared independence, Givati consisted of 5 battalions, with notable commanders such as Jehuda Wallach (51st Battalion), Ya'akov Perry (52nd Battalion), Yitzhak Pundak (53rd Battalion), Tzvi Tzur (54th Battalion) and Eitan Livni (57th Battalion). A sixth battalion (the 57th) was founded on May 30, 1948 from Irgun veterans, in preparation for Operation Pleshet. The brigade or parts thereof subsequently participated in the Battle of Nitzanim, Operation An-Far, Operation Yoav, etc. It was converted into a reserve brigade in 1956.
1980s
The Givati was reestablished as a mechanized infantry brigade and then proceeded on to amphibious warfare in 1983. Since 1999 it serves under the Southern Command (Pikud Darom).
2002-2003
The Givati Brigade served under the Southern Command and was deployed in the Gaza Strip. The Brigade was awarded a medal of honor for its service in the Gaza Strip during the last two years of the Al-Aqsa Intifada under the command of Brigadier General Imad Fares. Under Fares' command, the Givati Brigade carried out thousands of operations in the Gaza Strip.
2004
The brigade continued its operations in the Gaza Strip under the command of new Brigadier General Eyal Eisenberg and the new head of Southern Command, Dan Harel. Givati's Recon Battalion, attached with Dolev combat engineering platoon and the Bedouin scouts battalion, won a recommendation of honor, mainly for their activities against Rafah's smuggling tunnels. Givati forces, combined with a special combat engineering tunnel's unit, and IDF Caterpillar D9 armoured bulldozers, managed to suppress most of Rafah's tunnels.
On May 11 and May 12, two armored personnel carriers of Givati's Dolev engineering battalion were destroyed by Palestinian militants. The two separate attacks, in Gaza City's Zeitoun neighbourhood and the Philadelphi Route near Rafah and the Egyptian border, claimed the lives of 11 soldiers. Islamic Jihad militants captured some of the remains, causing outrage in Israel.[2] Following international pressure and further Israeli operations in Zeitoun, the bodies of soldiers were returned to Israel.
In the Zeitoun incident, UNRWA ambulances were used as transport by healthy Palestinian fighters.[3][dead link] In an interview with Haaretz, Israel's Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz also said that UNRWA's ambulances were used by Palestinian militants in order to smuggle some of the remains of IDF soldiers killed in Zaitoun neighbourhood in Gaza on May 11, 2004.[4][dead link] UNRWA has described the May 11 incident as a hijacking.[citation needed]
After two more soldiers were killed in Rafah, Israel launched Operation Rainbow. This involved Givati forces reinforced by Golani Brigade soldiers with IDF Achzarit HAPCs, a battalion of officers from the class-commanders school and several IDF Caterpillar D9 armoured bulldozers. The stated aim of Operation Rainbow was to destroy the terror infrastructure of Rafah, destroy smuggling tunnels and stop illegal missile shipment.
The brigade's Shaked battalion, under the command of a Lt. Col. "Ofer" (surname not publicized) was rocked by scandals in the second half of 2004 while stationed in the southern Gaza Strip. Two of the battalion's four company commanders were removed, although one was later exonerated. Captain "R", a Druze officer was tried for killing Iman al-Hams, a 13-year-old Palestinian girl, in Rafah in October 2004.[5] Captain "R" was acquitted of all charges by a military court.[6] Another officer, Captain "N", was removed after Palestinian gunmen infiltrated the Morag settlement and killed three soldiers.[7][dead link] in September 2004.
2005
On September 12, the Givati Brigade left the Gaza Strip as part of Israel's unilateral disengagement plan, one month after the evacuation of approximately 8,000 Jewish settlers living in 22 communities in the Strip. It marked an end to the 38 year IDF presence in the Gaza Strip. Today, two battalions are stationed outside the Strip, while the third battalion is positioned on the northern border.
2006
On June 27, in response to Hamas' kidnapping of Corporal Gilad Shalit, the IDF started an offensive in the Gaza Strip to repel the continuous rockets being fired into the Israeli town outside of Gaza and to pressure Hamas to release Shalit. Givati, together with the Golani Brigade, Engineering Corps and the Armored Corps, participated in Operation "Summer Rains."[8][9] However, Israel failed to achieve the release of Shalit, and a November 26 ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian groups forced Israel to withdraw its forces.
Captain "R", the former Misayat Shaked company commander who was accused in "confirming kill" of 13 years-old Iman al-Hams in Rafah in October 2004, and was acquitted in court, received NIS 80,000 in compensation from the state, according to a December 14 Ha'aretz report.[6]
The Givati was the first brigade to receive the new IMI Tavor TAR-21 assault rifle, in August 2006.
2007
As of 2007, the Givati brigade is organized into three main battalions: Shaked, Tzabar, and Rotem, in addition to associated reconnaissance, engineering, and other units.
2008
Givati brigade participated in Operation Hot Winter
They also participated in the ground phase of Operation Cast Lead in Gaza (ended in 2009).
See also
- Israeli Defence Forces
- Israel Defence Forces History
- List of Israeli military operations in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war
- Mechinat Rabin
References
- ^ Genesis 1, 16
- ^ "Israeli body hunt sparks clashes". BBC News. 12 May 2004. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
- ^ . canadiancoalition.com http://canadiancoalition.com/unrwa/Reuters-UNAmblulance-110504.wmv.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/427679.html.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ Associated Press (2010). "Israeli Soldier Indicted in Girl's Death". msnbc.msn.com. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
- ^ a b Harel, Amos (22 March 2006). "IDF officer Cleared in Death of Gaza Girl to Receive Compensation From State". Haaretz. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
- ^ http://www1.idf.il/DOVER/site/mainpage.asp?sl=EN&id=7&docid=33912&Pos=68&last=0&bScope=False.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "IDF Launches Gaza Offensive". ynetnews. 28 June 2006. Retrieved 12 October 2010.
- ^ Weiss, Efrat (3 August 2006). "Extensive Operation in Strip: 8 Palestinians Killed". ynetnews. Retrieved 12 October 2010.