The trickle of military forces that arrived in the first two days since the surprise attack by Hamas on the communities near the Gaza Strip turned into a flood yesterday. Buses packed with reservists and regular soldiers, along with endless columns of transporters loaded with tanks, armored personnel carriers and military vehicles of every kind, filled the roads of the south.
Attack on the luxury Rimal neighborhood in Gaza // Photo: Arab networks
At every gas station, at the entrances to communities and along the roads, private vehicles, including reservists, stopped for refreshment. The familiar sight of comrades uniting in excitement and men and women changing their everyday clothes into uniforms replaced the deathly silence that had prevailed on the roads over the past two days. It seems that the astonishment and sadness have been replaced by determination and vigilance for something big that is approaching.
Fighters and tanks on the Gaza border, photo: Shmuel Buchris
At the entrance to the absorption zone set up by the IDF somewhere near the southern front, hundreds of soldiers and civilians gathered. The atmosphere is electrifying. Alaa Masalha, a tall young Druze soldier from the village of Maghar in the north, stands next to his comrades in the unit, which is one of the fighting infantry brigades, and takes care of raising morale. "When I left the house, my mother cried, everyone is very scared and shocked by what happened in the south," he explains. "But there was no question at all whether to leave. We must defend Israel, defend our home, and I feel that now is the moment of truth. In such situations it is not a question of politics, religion or sector, we are all one people." His fellow soldiers listening to his words nod in agreement.
A group of Chabad Hasidim arrived at the scene and offered the fighters to put on tefillin before entering the reception area, and a drink and sandwich department. "I prayed on the bus," Eran, a young soldier from Ashdod, tells one of the Chabad members as he packs his belongings. They, for their part, move on to the next fighter. "As a resident of the south, I can tell you that I feel that we have already seen all this, we have gone through endless rounds and we are ready for whatever comes," Eran tells us.
Caring for the soldiers
In the midst of the crowd of soldiers stand dozens of civilians who have come to strengthen them and take care of all their needs. Hundreds of boxes of food, clothing and other treats stand near the entrance to the base – like a huge flood of gifts from the public, which is his way of finding solace in the tremendous loss Israel has experienced in recent days. Concern for the security forces in preparation for a possible ground incursion into the Gaza Strip fills them with a sense of purpose.
Shira Bental, a resident of Shoham, arrived with her brother in a car loaded with food products for the soldiers. "My husband enlisted and moved here yesterday before moving on to operational activity," she says. "My brother worked all night packing packages for the soldiers, and we both chose to spend the whole day delivering things to our soldiers."
Soldiers at the border on war alert, photo: Oren Ben Hakon
Ofer Shaked, owner of a catering and events company, is with a large group of volunteers who distribute chef dishes to soldiers passing by the entrance to the base. "We were supposed to prepare food today for an event of a large pharmaceutical company that was canceled in light of the situation," he explains. "So we took the chef and volunteers and went out here to take care of our soldiers."
The group of volunteers, dressed in Brothers in Arms shirts, work diligently to pack the dishes and deliver them to the base opening. Chef Julien, a Brazilian chef who lives on a kibbutz in the north, finds it hard to resist the excitement. "I made Brazilian dishes that I love," he says through tears. "I'm so glad they're going to the soldiers, because what else can I do now in this situation?"
Iris, a volunteer who came with the group, refers to the volunteers' affiliation with a protest group against the legal reform. "There is no politics now," she states. "It's over until the war is over. We are one people now."
Severe shortage of equipment
Within the reception area, armored personnel carriers and other armored combat vehicles undergo final treatments before leaving for the assembly areas and from there for activity. Hundreds and thousands of soldiers crowd the area and engage in various activities of preparation for going into battle. The fighters are amused by the sight of media personnel led by IDF Spokesperson's soldiers and look like curious tourists in the midst of a frantic military operation. "Explain to them that soon there will be no more Hamas left," a soldier shouts with stark optimism as we pass him along the dusty paths.
blowing shofars near the Gaza border,
As we shuffle in the dust between the armored personnel carriers and fighters in the reception area, a friend and colleague calls - minutes after news of the elimination of a terrorist squad in the north. David Becker, a reserve sergeant major in the Armored Corps, was called to the flag and stationed on the northern front. "I and the other soldiers of the 4th Armored Brigade, who are stationed somewhere in the north, are highly motivated and understand the magnitude of the task that may be assigned to us," he tells us. "There is great frustration with the situation in the Gaza envelope and especially many questions about how we got to this sad situation."
But through the high motivation of the soldiers we meet, it seems that the recruitment process has encountered significant difficulties. F., a soldier in a special patrol company who is currently in southern Israel, tells of a severe shortage of medical equipment such as tourniquets and first aid kits, as well as batteries for medical equipment. In addition, it reports the lack of adequate means of communication and the fact that combatants are forced to use mobile phones and unsecured communications. "I've participated in four operations in the Gaza Strip and I've never seen anything like this," he rages. "At Pillar of Defense we got everything we needed straight from the nylons. It is evident that the SWAT units have since been neglected and the things that come are crumbling. We also lack night vision and the most basic means of communication. It's an omission."
Things echo loudly in our heads as we leave the conference area and drive towards Sderot. Smashed, bullet-riddled cars still stand on the side of the roads leading to the city – a reminder of the brutal massacre that took place here just two days ago and a reminder of the great threat the IDF is preparing for as it builds up its forces in the south and north. Perhaps the encouragement can be drawn from the determination that we saw in the soldiers' eyes and from the spirit of unity that this tragedy also manages to awaken in the people of Israel to the extent of our suffering.
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