Arik, now a major general (he had the rank of captain as the commander of 101) pauses for a moment while studying maps with another general. Taken during the Yom Kippur War, October 1973.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Sharon, 17 years after the end of the reprisal raids
Arik, now a major general (he had the rank of captain as the commander of 101) pauses for a moment while studying maps with another general. Taken during the Yom Kippur War, October 1973.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Motive for forming the unit
The background for the formation of Unit 101 emerged in part from the low morale the officers and soldiers felt while serving in the IDF after the War of Independence. This is seen in this quote from a report Moshe Dayan presented while Deputy Commander-in-Chief:
"Despite the winnowing out of the good soldiers (to courses, to the professional corps), soldiers that were border-line cases with regard to discipline were posted to battalions, command headquarters or various military installations. Soldiers who smoked hashish, criminals and thieves ('graduates of the prisons'), pimps and the like were sometimes sent as reinforcements to battalions. The health classification given to soldiers before their recruitment changes within a short time after their recruitment. Within the first month of military service ten per cent of the soldiers manage to obtain low health classifications and are released from military duty or are transferred to other units. The health level of low-ranking officers is also low. The number of officers in infantry units is miniscule. There are almost no platoon commanders of officer rank. The length of stay of an officer in a unit is generally brief. The level of NCOs is low. The level of shooting in target practice is extremely poor...Given these facts, the units lack the capacity to become combat units. They remain only as units entered in an officially-listed ledger."
Source: Drory, Ze'ev. Israel's Reprisal Policy 1953-1956: The Dynamics of Military Retaliation. Frank Cass Military Studies, Oxon, UK. 2005.
"Despite the winnowing out of the good soldiers (to courses, to the professional corps), soldiers that were border-line cases with regard to discipline were posted to battalions, command headquarters or various military installations. Soldiers who smoked hashish, criminals and thieves ('graduates of the prisons'), pimps and the like were sometimes sent as reinforcements to battalions. The health classification given to soldiers before their recruitment changes within a short time after their recruitment. Within the first month of military service ten per cent of the soldiers manage to obtain low health classifications and are released from military duty or are transferred to other units. The health level of low-ranking officers is also low. The number of officers in infantry units is miniscule. There are almost no platoon commanders of officer rank. The length of stay of an officer in a unit is generally brief. The level of NCOs is low. The level of shooting in target practice is extremely poor...Given these facts, the units lack the capacity to become combat units. They remain only as units entered in an officially-listed ledger."
Source: Drory, Ze'ev. Israel's Reprisal Policy 1953-1956: The Dynamics of Military Retaliation. Frank Cass Military Studies, Oxon, UK. 2005.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
2007 anti-terror raid, Kalkiliya
This is a video uploaded in 2007 of an anti-terror squad in Kalkiliya. This is the same village in the West Bank where Meir Har-Zion was shot in the neck in September 1956 while conducting a raid on a Jordanian police fortress.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA8TMnoc5EI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA8TMnoc5EI
Monday, September 6, 2010
Sharon's final word on Meir Har-Zion,1998
"Meir Har-Zion was not a sociable man. He was not made for lavish receptions, or good at public relations. He was a true fighter, the greatest fighter we have ever had. His activities were spread over a relatively short time period, but they left a strong impact on the IDF and on its soldiers for many years, for generations.
The Israeli nation is fortunate. Today, after fifty years of independence, the Israelis still can see with their own eyes that their hero Har is not a legend, but a flesh-and-blood man of the land - living up there in the heights of Kochav HaRuchot, his star of the winds."
Source: Bar-Zohar.
The Israeli nation is fortunate. Today, after fifty years of independence, the Israelis still can see with their own eyes that their hero Har is not a legend, but a flesh-and-blood man of the land - living up there in the heights of Kochav HaRuchot, his star of the winds."
Source: Bar-Zohar.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Gulliver before the Nebi Samuel raid
The Israeli Defense Force has a link to Unit 101's first official operation. See it here:
http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/about/History/50s/1953/default.htm
"The darkness in the mountains never falls, but rises. It comes up from the valleys and ravines, crawls along the mountain slopes like a winding snake, until it overpowers the sun. The greatest deeds are carried out at night. In the middle of the night God struck down every firstborn child in Egypt. The children of Israel left Egypt at night. Gideon and his boy went down at night and hit the enemies in the camp of Midian and Amalek. The night abounds with magic and splendor. It bestows upon its heroes legendary strength. I simply love the night."
Yitzhak "Gulliver" Ben-Menachem, on the eve of the Nebi Samuel raid
Source: Bar-Zohar, Michael. Lionhearts: Heroes of Israel.
http://dover.idf.il/IDF/English/about/History/50s/1953/default.htm
"The darkness in the mountains never falls, but rises. It comes up from the valleys and ravines, crawls along the mountain slopes like a winding snake, until it overpowers the sun. The greatest deeds are carried out at night. In the middle of the night God struck down every firstborn child in Egypt. The children of Israel left Egypt at night. Gideon and his boy went down at night and hit the enemies in the camp of Midian and Amalek. The night abounds with magic and splendor. It bestows upon its heroes legendary strength. I simply love the night."
Yitzhak "Gulliver" Ben-Menachem, on the eve of the Nebi Samuel raid
Source: Bar-Zohar, Michael. Lionhearts: Heroes of Israel.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Scene from Unit 101
This is a scene taken from Joel Redmond's Unit 101, WGA # 1372097. The scene is a direct adaptation of the actual interchange between Colonel Mishael Shaham and 25-year-old Ariel Scheinerman.
HEBREW UNIVERSITY - MOUNT SCOPUS - DAY
Hot sunny afternoon. A neatly dressed, handsome young student taking an exam taps his pen against his mouth.
TEACHER
Stop.
The student walks up to the teacher and hands in the paper, smiling. He is stopped by an ADJUTANT as he gets out of the door.
DOV
Major, Colonel Shaham needs to see you. ASAP, sir. (seeing him nod and salute, seeing him off)
The STUDENT walks down a narrow corridor, down a flight of stairs, and crosses over to an older-looking annex of the building he just left. All around him is the beauty of Jerusalem at the height of summer. He stops for a moment and closes his eyes, listening to the birds, smelling the flowers. Then he sighs, adjusts his backpack strap, and goes into the annex and up to the lecture hall door.
INT. LECTURE HALL
The door is open. At the foot of the lecture hall stairs is a wiry, silent man in his late thirties in full military dress. Before him spread out on the table are an assortment of wrinkled military maps and diagrams.
STUDENT
You wanted to see me, Colonel?
SHAHAM
Have you heard of Mustafa Samueli?
STUDENT
Yes. (seeing SHAHAM look at him) Lost his brother in 48. Swore to kill a hundred Jews for revenge.
SHAHAM
He's already killed four. One of them was a friend of mine, from Ramat Gan.
STUDENT
(sensing an assignment he doesn't really want)
You want me to retaliate.
SHAHAM
I need a deterrent. We have permission from Dayan himself. We have to get across the border and blow up his house, and I want you to do the job.
STUDENT
I still have two more finals -
SHAHAM
(waving his words off) A man has to choose between two options: studying the deeds of others, or leaving it to others to study his own deeds.
The STUDENT is silent.
Choose anyone you want for this. No more than a dozen men. Report back at 0800.
STUDENT
Yes sir.
HEBREW UNIVERSITY - MOUNT SCOPUS - DAY
Hot sunny afternoon. A neatly dressed, handsome young student taking an exam taps his pen against his mouth.
TEACHER
Stop.
The student walks up to the teacher and hands in the paper, smiling. He is stopped by an ADJUTANT as he gets out of the door.
DOV
Major, Colonel Shaham needs to see you. ASAP, sir. (seeing him nod and salute, seeing him off)
The STUDENT walks down a narrow corridor, down a flight of stairs, and crosses over to an older-looking annex of the building he just left. All around him is the beauty of Jerusalem at the height of summer. He stops for a moment and closes his eyes, listening to the birds, smelling the flowers. Then he sighs, adjusts his backpack strap, and goes into the annex and up to the lecture hall door.
INT. LECTURE HALL
The door is open. At the foot of the lecture hall stairs is a wiry, silent man in his late thirties in full military dress. Before him spread out on the table are an assortment of wrinkled military maps and diagrams.
STUDENT
You wanted to see me, Colonel?
SHAHAM
Have you heard of Mustafa Samueli?
STUDENT
Yes. (seeing SHAHAM look at him) Lost his brother in 48. Swore to kill a hundred Jews for revenge.
SHAHAM
He's already killed four. One of them was a friend of mine, from Ramat Gan.
STUDENT
(sensing an assignment he doesn't really want)
You want me to retaliate.
SHAHAM
I need a deterrent. We have permission from Dayan himself. We have to get across the border and blow up his house, and I want you to do the job.
STUDENT
I still have two more finals -
SHAHAM
(waving his words off) A man has to choose between two options: studying the deeds of others, or leaving it to others to study his own deeds.
The STUDENT is silent.
Choose anyone you want for this. No more than a dozen men. Report back at 0800.
STUDENT
Yes sir.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Additional Hebrew
Ata (at)...? - Are you...?
mefakhed (et) - afraid
ko'es (et) - angry
kar li - cold
asir (at) toda - grateful
same'akh (smekha) - happy
kham li - hot
ani ra'ev (re'eva)
memaher (et) - in a hurry
met (a) le... - keen to...
atsuv (a) - sad
menumnam (menumnemet) - sleepy
tankhumay - sorry (condolence)
mitstaer'(et) - sorry (regret)
tsame (tsme'a) - thirsty
ayef (a) - tired
bari (bri'a) - well
mud'ag (mud'eget) - worried
Source: Ben-Adam, Justin, and Wistinetzki, Ilana. Hebrew Phrasebook. Lonely Planet, Victoria, Australia, 2007.
mefakhed (et) - afraid
ko'es (et) - angry
kar li - cold
asir (at) toda - grateful
same'akh (smekha) - happy
kham li - hot
ani ra'ev (re'eva)
memaher (et) - in a hurry
met (a) le... - keen to...
atsuv (a) - sad
menumnam (menumnemet) - sleepy
tankhumay - sorry (condolence)
mitstaer'(et) - sorry (regret)
tsame (tsme'a) - thirsty
ayef (a) - tired
bari (bri'a) - well
mud'ag (mud'eget) - worried
Source: Ben-Adam, Justin, and Wistinetzki, Ilana. Hebrew Phrasebook. Lonely Planet, Victoria, Australia, 2007.
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