Yom Kippur Eve

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At Emek Habacha (Valley of Tears) October 9,
1973

• Yom Kippur Eve
• 5766 2005

Photographed, written and preparation of
presentation by Uzi Tauber. Music Let it be,
music and lyrics by Naomi Shemer, performed by
Shuly Nathan. Translation to English Ronit
Ariely Melamed
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Dear Viewer, As Yom Kippur approaches, I wish to
share with you my personal experience. I took
part in the 1973 War as a fighter in a tank
company, M Company, under the command of Amnon
Lavi, in the framework of the 77th Oz Regiment
commanded by Avigdor Kahalani, belonging to the
7th Brigade, commanded by Yanosh Ben-Gal. The
battle was held for 4 days opposite a valley that
was the primary penetration axis for the
Syrians. The climax of the battle was on the
fourth day, October 9, 1973. Over time, we began
to call the place the Valley of Tears.
Photograph Internet
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We were young and flushed with the zeal of a
mission, when we, the troops of the 77th Regiment
of the 7th Brigade, ascended into the Golan
Heights under the cover of darkness (on September
1973). The Sea of Galilee lay before us like a
turquoise eye peering through the carpet of
fields and settlements in the valley. In the
background, the Galilee mountain range towered
above us. The valley slept the residents
peaceful and safe. There was no tension in the
air.
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That was my first encounter of the Golan Heights.
The prehistoric panorama of black basalt -
volcanic rock, thorns, ruins, days of heat and
cold, mosquitoes and fires. The Golan Heights, a
country of transition, a country of nomads the
defensive wall for the State of Israel.
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October 6, 1973. Yom Kippur, the Day of
Atonement, 150 pm. At once the volcanic hills
were completely covered with deadly fire and
pillars of black smoke. Four Syrian Sukhoi
airplanes suddenly appeared in the sky, and
bombed the Nafah military HQ camp. We were
deployed in the field, under camouflage
nets. Indescribable fear the war had begun. I,
belonging to a generation that grew up inspired
by the heroic myth of the 6 Day War, who went to
the army ready to fight, found myself shaking and
trembling.
In the background, an anti-tank ditch intended
to constitute an obstacle for enemy tanks.
My gunner and I (in the center) two days after
the war.
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Nothing of what happened at that time hinted at
what was to follow. We quickly removed the
camouflage nets from the tank and speeded to
perform our mission blocking the storming
Syrian enemy.
The Memorial Monument to the 77th Regiment
soldiers who fell, Valley of Tears
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For three nights and three days, the desperate
blocking battles raged. Hundreds of enemy tanks
flooded the penetration axis from every
direction. Our tanks were hit, scores of fighters
and friends were killed. Israeli soldiers were
found wandering about, shell-shocked. The Syrians
devoted a primary effort to take the axis leading
from the Hermonit (Valley of Tears) approaching
Bnot Yaakov bridge. And that is where we found
ourselves, the remnants of the 77th Regiment
(Oz), commanded by Avigdor Kahalani.
My tank crew on a tank (of a Light Tank model)
that survived the war.
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A view of Kibbutz Marom Golan from Mt. Bental.
Syrians
And thus, on Wednesday morning, October 9, 1973,
we identified a large and long column of about 70
enemy tanks, moving under the cover of artillery
towards the penetration axis. Only four able
tanks from M Company were there to face them.
The rest of the Regiment tanks were on other
missions.
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Despite the deadly barrages of the Syrian
artillery, we hastened to seize the positions of
control. Suddenly we spotted several enemy tanks
that had passed us, and were on their way to
Kibbutz Elrom and the main axis. Their way was
clear What happened over the next hour cannot
be described in words.
Nowhere did we learn what hell was. In no
military exercise were we taught to shoot enemy
tanks at ranges of 5-10 meters. I never imagined
that I would be forced to run over fleeing enemy
soldiers under my tank tracks. I had never before
experienced the loss of a friend in war.
The killing fields of Kibbutz Elrom, the place
where the battle raged. In the background the
booster range.
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An eastern view of Valley of Tears from the
Monument. In the horizon, the volcanic hills of
the Syrian enclave and the Syrian village of Han
Arnava.
The battle that developed on the fields of
Kibbutz Elrom, at the foot of the Hermonit, on
the threshold of the valley, was a life or death
battle. It was the war of the individual tank.
Not a war of armor, not one of controlled
shooting, not an exercise nor reconnaissance.
Shooting in a draw, in movement, and shooting
in 360 degrees. The destruction of an enemy
tank, mixed with a terrible trauma. The ability
to see the frightened expression of the Syrian
tank commander, the eye of the Syrian gunner.
The ability to hear our shouts, stress and
terror broadcast over the means of
communication. The doctrine of the Tank Corps did
not educate us to hold these kinds of battles.
We thought that war could not look like
this. No. and they never talked to us about
emotions either.
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At the Oz Monument, the remnants of a T-62
Syrian tank Scores of enemy tanks were
destroyed at the Valley of Tears.
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And then, after half an hour, as the battle
waned, when the remaining Regiment tanks joined
us, we saw the enormity of the battle, the power
of the fighting, the significance of the blocking
and the heroism and the valley strewn with
hundreds of smoldering enemy tanks. We then began
to count our losses. In time, we erected the
Memorial Monument for the 77th Regiment here, at
the place where the Syrian enemy was blocked.
My tank crew, Tank 1 of M Company. From
right, Avi the gunner, Noah the commander, Uzi
the driver and Nir, the communications loader.
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Please, visit the heroic monument of the 77th
Oz Regiment, opposite the entrance to Kibbutz
Elrom. Please remember the young people who lived
and loved, laughed and teased, who fought and
were destroyed in the hell of war. Remember their
bravery. May Yom Kippur be a day of eternal
memory for the destruction of the safe,
complacent and patronizing Israel. May Yom Kippur
be a day of soul searching, on what we were, and
what became of us.
Uzi Tauber kartis_at_netvision.net.il