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Battle of Sufa

Coordinates: 31°14′14″N 34°20′29″E / 31.23722°N 34.34139°E / 31.23722; 34.34139
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Battle of Sufa
Part of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war
Date7 October 2023
Location
Sufa, Israel
31°14′14″N 34°20′29″E / 31.23722°N 34.34139°E / 31.23722; 34.34139
Result Israel retakes the outpost[1][2][3]
Belligerents
Hamas Israel
Units involved
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades  Israel
Strength
At least 30 6 armed kibbutz residents

On 7 October 2023, as part of the Qassam Brigades-initiated 7 October attacks on Israel, a series of coordinated armed incursions into the Gaza Envelope, around 30 militants from Hamas' Qassam Brigades attacked Kibbutz Sufa and then overran a nearby military outpost.[4]

Around 7:30am, Hamas militants motorbikes indiscriminately fired guns and rocket launchers at people on the streets before arriving at the gates of Kibbutz Sufa. Once inside the kibbutz, militants went door-to-door shooting anyone in sight, including inside people's homes at point blank range. For an estimated 6 hours, six armed residents of the kibbutz fought off the Hamas militants until the Israel Defense Forces arrived.

Three Israeli civilians were killed in the attack on the kibbutz. Twenty Hamas militants were killed, and 10 were captured by Israeli security forces.

Attack

On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel at approximately 6 a.m., firing rockets and conducting a major ground and air assault against Israeli targets around the Gaza Strip, engaging civilians and military personnel alike.[5][6][7]

Attack on kibbutz

By about 7:30am, Hamas militants reach Kibbutz Sufa, similar to when other militants reach Kerem Shalom, suggesting close coordination between different groups of militants.[8]

According to footage captured by Hamas militants wearing GoPro cameras, militants on motorbikes indiscriminately fired guns and rocket launchers at people on the streets before arriving at the gates of Kibbutz Sufa. According to CNN, a militant fired shots into the town from a moving motorcycle, displaying the indiscriminate nature of the attack. Militants then climbed over the yellow front gates in what The Telegraph called a coordinated maneuver, walking past an unoccupied guard post. The kibbutz had extensive defenses like barbed wire and mechanized gates.[9][8]

After breaching the gate, the Hamas gunmen exchange fire with people inside the kibbutz. Once inside the kibbutz around approximately 7:50am, Hamas militants went door-to-door shooting anyone in sight, at times inside people's homes at point blank range. In one instance, militants find an open loft hatch and shoot inside. Some civilians and security personnel inside homes return fire. Hamas gunmen then shoot the tires of an ambulance found nearby.[9] After hearing an apparent phone ring, a militants shout the Hebrew word for "mother" to lure residents out of hiding.[8]

Six armed residents in the kibbutz fought off an estimated several dozen Hamas militants for six hours until the first IDF units arrived.[10] As Hamas attacks on the kibbutzim unfolded on October 7, a company of all-women tank operators headed from its base in Nitzana to the Israel-Gaza border. From there, one group stayed to guard the border, one crew went to Kibbutz Holit and one went to Sufa. According to the IDF, over a 17-hour battle, the all-female tank crews killed 50 Hamas militants, which Paran Brigade leadership credited with halting the Hamas advance further south inside Israel.[11][12][13][14][15]

Three Israeli civilians were killed in the attack on the kibbutz. Twenty Hamas militants were killed, and 10 were captured by Israeli security forces.[10] Israeli authorities recovered an ISIS flag on the body of a dead militant at the kibbutz. Israeli authorities stated that the militants planned to raise the flag but were killed by Israeli security forces.[16]

Attack on military outpost

Later in the day on 7 October, Hamas released a video of their militants taking over a military outpost located near Sufa, showing the bodies of Israeli soldiers they had killed.[17] After the outpost was overrun, some of the Golani Brigade soldiers stationed there evaded being captured or killed by hiding inside a bunker on the base. Shortly after the initial assault by Hamas, Shayetet 13 naval commandos were sent to retake the outpost and work in conjunction with other units in the area to rescue hostages and regain control.[1]

The Shayetet 13 commandos were inserted by helicopter, and after a skirmish with Hamas militants, successfully regained control of the outpost and took care of the wounded.[2][3]

Aftermath

The 227 surviving residents of the kibbutz were evacuated to hotels in Eilat. On 18 January 2024, 50 families were moved into temporary homes in Ramat Gan and 30 families were moved to Ofakim, which was also the site of a Hamas attack on 7 October.[18]

The engagement at the military outpost in Sufa became a symbol of the Israel-Hamas war in Israel, after IDF soldiers fought and stopped the advance of Hamas militants at point-blank range. By mid-January 2024, the Sufa military outpost was one of 13 out of 14 outposts rehabilitated by the Technological and Logistics Directorate of the IDF.[19]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "The Battle for Sufa Outpost: How one of Israel's elite units rescued fellow soldiers from Hamas terrorists". All Israel News. 12 October 2023. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  2. ^ a b "Israel war: See the recapture of the Sufa Military Outpost in southern Israel". Washington Examiner. 12 October 2023. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Israeli Shayetet 13 Special Forces Seize Sufa Military Post Near Gaza Border | Defense News October 2023 Global Security army industry | Defense Security global news industry army year 2023 | Archive News year". www.armyrecognition.com. 14 October 2023. Archived from the original on 12 December 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  4. ^ "Why the Palestinian group Hamas launched an attack on Israel? All to know". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  5. ^ "Reuters denies any suggestion it had prior knowledge of Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel". Reuters. 9 November 2023. Archived from the original on 13 December 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023. The photographs published by Reuters were taken two hours after Hamas fired rockets across southern Israel and more than 45 minutes after Israel said gunmen had crossed the border.
  6. ^ "Netanyahu says Israel is 'at war' after Hamas launches surprise air and ground attack from Gaza". CNN. 7 October 2023. Archived from the original on 8 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  7. ^ "Hamas surprise attack out of Gaza stuns Israel and leaves hundreds dead in fighting, retaliation". AP News. 7 October 2023. Archived from the original on 7 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b c Tolan, Casey (26 October 2023). "Slain Hamas militants' body camera videos show the preparation and tactics behind their terror attack on Israel". CNN. Archived from the original on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Chilling moment Hamas gunmen rampage through Israeli homes". The Daily Telegraph. 16 October 2023. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  10. ^ a b Yagna, Yahir (13 October 2023). "שישה תושבים מול עשרות מחבלים: גיבורי הקרב בקיבוץ סופה משחזרים". Walla (in Hebrew). Archived from the original on 6 February 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  11. ^ Silkoff, Shira (12 December 2023). "For Israeli women, the IDF war room's glass ceiling is constantly reinforced". Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 30 January 2024. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Female IDF tank crews ran down dozens of Hamas terrorists on October 7". Times of Israel. 26 November 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  13. ^ "All-woman Israeli Tank Crews Killed 50 Terrorists Over 17 Hours of Combat on October 7". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
  14. ^ Kershner, Isabel (19 January 2024). "Israeli Women Fight on Front Line in Gaza, a First". New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 February 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  15. ^ "IDF to deploy all-female tank crews after two-year trial deemed a success". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 28 November 2023. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  16. ^ Egorov, Ilya (11 October 2023). "ISIS flags found on bodies of Hamas terrorists in south". Israel Hayom. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  17. ^ "Videos show new details on how Hamas launched surprise assault on Israel". CNN.com. 9 October 2023. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  18. ^ Fritzhand, Troy (18 January 2024). "Evacuated Southern Residents Find Temporary New Home As War Continues to Rage On". The Algemeiner. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  19. ^ Bohbot, Amir (16 January 2023). "IDF border posts on Gaza destroyed on October 7 have been rebuilt". Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
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