On October 7, 2023, around 100 Hamas-led terrorists invaded the Kerem Shalom area of “”southern Israel, near the border with the Gaza Strip
Despite the violence of the attack, only one civilian was injured, and no residents were killed or kidnapped, thanks to the swift response of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and local civil defense personnel.
What happened?
On the morning of the attack, terrorists attempted to enter Kibbutz Kerem Shalom, a rural community near the border.
Israeli soldiers in the area eliminated dozens of terrorists before they reached the community.
However, some managed to enter the kibbutz.
Local security personnel fought bravely, killing nine terrorists and successfully stopping the attack, according to an IDF investigation published on Wednesday.
During the clashes, four soldiers and two members of the civil defense lost their lives, and nine soldiers and one civilian were injured.
Some houses were damaged, but residents were protected.
The IDF investigation highlighted the courage of the soldiers and civil defense, who “fought with great bravery” and prevented the terrorists from carrying out their plan to kill and kidnap residents.
The joint action between the civil defense and military forces was essential in saving lives.
Failures highlighted
The investigation also revealed that the IDF was unprepared for an attack of this scale, with thousands of terrorists attacking several cities and military bases at the same time.
There was no intelligence warning about the attack, which left the troops unprepared.
This was one of 40 conflicts analyzed by the IDF after the Hamas attack, which killed about 1,200 people and abducted 251 to Gaza, where dozens are still held captive.
What was the battle like?
6:40 a.m.: After an initial rocket attack, soldiers from the Nahal Brigade, responsible for defending Kerem Shalom, were mobilized.
6:42 a.m.: An IDF tank spotted terrorists at the border fence and opened fire.
The kibbutz’s civil defense was also called in.
6:46 a.m.: About 20 terrorists were spotted outside the kibbutz, and an infiltration alert was issued.
7:00 a.m.: A major battle broke out at three different points.
One soldier, Sergeant Yaron Shay, was killed, and two were wounded.
7:30 a.m.: Seven terrorists managed to enter the kibbutz, but were killed by the civil defense.
8:30 a.m.: More terrorists approached the kibbutz entrance, but were eliminated by the IDF.
9:33 a.m.: The civil defense killed terrorists near a solar field, while the IDF attacked others who tried to enter.
10:00 a.m.: An Israeli Air Force helicopter arrived, striking terrorists east of the kibbutz and halting their advance.
10:25 a.m.: Two terrorists entered a house, seriously wounding a resident, Amichai Shindler.
Civil defense personnel engaged the terrorists, killing them, but losing two members, Yedidya Raziel and Amichai Weitzen.
11:15 a.m.: An IDF drone struck six terrorists near the kibbutz fence, forcing the survivors to flee to Gaza.
11:34 a.m.: A tank arrived to patrol the area.
1:20 p.m.: Four mortar rounds hit the kibbutz, killing Sergeant Nathan Lyard and wounding two soldiers.
During the day, two more soldiers, Captain Tomer Shoham and Sergeant Or Mizrahi, were killed in fighting in the area.
Residents were evacuated on the night of October 7-8.
In the following days, there were more clashes in the area, but no new Israeli casualties were reported.
Conclusion
The courage and swift action of the IDF and the Kerem Shalom Civil Defense saved many lives, despite the shortcomings in military preparedness.
The investigation detailed the events in order to draw lessons and improve security in the future, but did not analyze the broader context of the IDF’s perception of Gaza and Hamas, which is being studied in other investigations.
Published in 05/28/2025 17h26
Text adapted by AI (Grok) and translated via Google API in the English version. Images from public image libraries or credits in the caption.
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