For the first time: rare photos from the Mount Hermon outpost, a few hours after its conquest in the Yom Kippur War, in which the smoke rising from the recaptured bunkers can still be seen. The photos are revealed on the occasion of the artillery rally marking the jubilee of the Yom Kippur War, which will take place this Sunday (July 2) at the Sultan's Pool in Jerusalem, with the participation of thousands of fighters past and present. Danny Kassif, Chairman of the Artillery Association, said: "This evening is meant to honor and salute the soldiers of the IAF, thanks to whose courage, resourcefulness and heroism we are here. The artillery took part in fierce battles and were a significant factor in deciding the battle. In their honor, we are holding the rally."
The person who took the precious photos was the late Meir Doron, a permanent lieutenant colonel in the artillery corps, who in October 1973 lived in the United States as part of advanced artillery studies, to which he was sent by the IDF. As soon as he heard about the outbreak of war, he left his family, boarded the first flight he found and landed 24 hours after the war began.
Fighters in the Yom Kippur War, Photo: Digitization - The Comb (c)
Upon arrival, Meir turned to his old friend Avraham Bar David and asked to help in the fighting. "Since Meir was studying abroad when the war broke out, he was not called up to reserve duty and was not required to come to Israel, but for him there was no question at all. He came immediately and asked to volunteer and help," Bar David recalls.
Raising the Israeli flag over the post, photo: digitization - the comb (c)
Meir was appointed deputy to Bar David, who was the artillery commander in the Northern Command, was assigned to the command's operations center and fulfilled every role required of him – from coordinating fire plans, through supplying ammunition to the firing units, to personnel assignments following the wounding of combatants in the field.
"He was my right hand," says Bar-David. "Each battle had endless preparations of armament, managing forces in the field, supplying equipment, planning the battle and transmitting orders to the field. Meir was involved in every detail."
Great relief
On the night of 21–22 October, the Battle of Mount Hermon took place, and the artillery played a critical role in capturing the mountain. "The fire units assisted the forces of the Golani Brigade," Bar-David describes. "The artillery forces were supplied with ammunition of 30,12 shells and bombs to ensure continuous support for all the fighting. The forces were assisted by 48 batteries with <> vehicles, which fired non-stop until the physical occupation of the outpost and the raising of the flag by Golani."
130mm guns in the Tel al Ahmar area, under Mount Hermon's shoulder, photo: digitization - the comb (c)
During the fighting on Mount Hermon, Bar David and Doron monitored its progress in real time from the operations room. "We heard everything on the radio. In preparation for the operation, new code maps were prepared and artillery liaison officers were assigned to all forces. Meir was by my side the whole time, assisting in coordinating and responding to the fighters in the field. Towards morning, we heard over the radio the reports of the fighters about the takeover of the points on Mount Hermon. There was great relief and also joy. We felt that we had carried out the mission successfully."
After the operation ended, Meir asked his commander for permission to go out with the personal camera he had brought with him and document the Mount Hermon outpost, a few hours after its takeover. Bar David agreed and released him into the field. The result: rare documentation in color photos of the Hermon outpost, including a crate seized with shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles, equipped with Syrian commandos that occupied Mount Hermon on the first day of the war.
The outpost during the Yom Kippur War, photo: digitization - the comb (c)
Meir also photographed the 130mm cannons seized in the Six-Day War, which artillery fighters used during the Yom Kippur War in the area of the Syrian enclave. Meir also tried to document the shrapnel and damage caused by the shells fired by the artillery at the protective stones in parts of the outpost.
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