The 8th Battalion campaigns in the Bir-Asluj sector
The small 8th Battalion was to occupy Bir-Asluj and block the Egyptian invading force east branch provision axis. Many of Revivim and haluza Members were killed while aiding the 8th Battalion. The Egyptian provision center in Bir-Asluj was occupied first followed by the blocking of the road leading from Be'er- Sheba to Nizana.
Bir- Asluj was a small Bedouin village comprised of a mosque, a few shops, a flour mill and the residence of the Azazme tribe leader, Haj Sa'eed. A desert police station was located in a British army camp near the village. On the 15th of December Azazme tribe members murdered 2 Revivim members exiting the camp. The Egyptian provision force transformed the British camp into a transition camp for the convoys traveling the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem axis on their way from Sinai. The camp was guarded by a Company, 20 armed men guarded Haj Sa'eed and the Police building was surrounded by electric land mines. The 8th Battalion was assigned to occupy Bir-Asluj and block the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem provision axis during the first cease fire of the 11th of June, 1948.
Our forces included a Company of volunteers from Revivim and Haluza, a raid unit Jeep Company, saboteurs and wireless operators supported by: MMG, 2 mortars and 3 "Davidka's". Deputy Battalion Commander, Nimrod Lewita led the operation.
The course of the operation: on the 11th of June, at 02:30 am, the northern attack force left Haluza, deploying north of the target while the road was blocked. The jeeps flanked the target from the south via the Tamila Wadi. The covering force and operation H.Q. left Revivim at 03:00 am, positioning the MMG on a hill located 1 km north of the village while the mortars and operation H.Q. were positioned in the ravine behind them.
The northern block jeeps moved due south in Wadi Tamila and apart from one Jeep that encountered a land mine near Bir-Tamila, killing 3 men and wounding another, the rest of the forces were deployed by 04:30 am. The jeeps were forced to return to Revivim, Unable to secure the area from the south. At 04:45 am, 4 trucks from Uja entered the transition camp, at 05:15 am the MMG, mortars and "Davidka's" opened fire and at 05:30 am the attack force occupied the camp without any resistance.
The force waited for the saboteurs by the building's outer wall and once they entered an electric mine was activated 200 m away from the Haj residence. The fulmination demolished the building on top of the force waiting outside, killing 11 and wounding 5 volunteers from Revivim. The village was occupied at 06:45. 15 Israeli fighters were killed during the operation (3 during the blocking, 11 at the police station and one during the occupation of the village) and 7 were wounded. 17 enemy fighters were killed (mostly Egyptian soldiers) and 13 were captured, including an Egyptian officer and former Eretz Israel policemen.
The loot included: six 60 mm mortars, 22 guns, a 'Browning' MMG, 6 antitank weapons, 3 'Bren' machine-guns, an armored vehicle, 8 trucks and tenders, more than 75,000 light weapon munitions, 1,200 mortar shells, 250 3.7 Howitzer cannon shells etc. The documents captured enabled our forces to study the Egyptian methods of deployment and fighting.
The Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem axis campaign
The age old question whether to confine a quarter of the Mobil force to a stationary post was raised once more as a result of the occupation of the village and the need to capture an army post in order to block the axis. A Company was recruited from the settlements for the purpose of occupying a post located on a hill west of the village that would dominate both the road and the village. 45 fighters with guns, 3 mortars and MMG's, a 'Fiat', 2 antitank weapons, no.2 mortar and no.3 mortar occupied the post. 6 stations without communication ditches and auxiliary weapon stations were dug within the post that was surrounded by 2 barbed wire fences with land mines in between. Anti vehicle mines were laid around the near by hills, the road and the Turkish train station battery.
At the beginning of the cease fire, the Egyptians paved a road undisturbed, away from the post, bypassing the village from the south and the east, but still attacked the post on the eve of the second cease fire on the 19th of July.
At 09:00 am 2 aircraft and cannons bombarded the post, while 12 armored vehicles moved along the road 2.5 km south of the post and 500 soldiers deployed on the dunes 2-2.5 km south of the post. They encountered a mine field by the Turkish train station where 4 vehicles were damaged and rescued. The armored vehicles continued, bypassing the post from east and north and blocking the Bir-Asluj-Revivim road. An Egyptian air cover prevented reinforcements from exiting Revivim throughout the entire day.
From 11:30 am until night, the Egyptian infantry slowly advanced under cover of cannons and no.3 mortars and was forced to retreat after each time our forces returned fire. One man was killed and 4 wounded during the fighting. On the 20th of July, the Egyptians attempted to transport a convoy 1,500 m east of the village under cover of heavy artillery. Our forces returned fire with MMG and no.3 mortars, hitting one armored vehicle and forcing the others to retreat. The Egyptians managed to capture army posts along the 'Burma' road, thus securing the safe passage of convoys on their way to Be'er-Sheba and Jerusalem. On the 31st of July, an Egyptian Battalion captured an alignment of fortified posts north of Bir-Asluj while 2 companies captured the hills east of Revivim, resulting in Egyptian domination over both the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba and the Revivim-Bir-Asluj roads.
A provision convoy of camels was sent to the posts via the hills south of the road, but the camels fled from the noise of the Egyptian heavy artillery. As result of our forces fearing the Egyptians might capture a post south of the road thus cutting off the provision and escape route between Revivim and our post west of Bir-Asluj, a Palmach Company was sent in order to occupy an army post opposite the 2 Egyptian companies. The Company was forced to take cover in a cave and keep watch outside the cave. The cave kept them well protected against Egyptian heavy artillery and occupation attempts.
The 8th Battalion attempt to block the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem provision axis failed due to the enemy constant attacks, but managed to maintain durably the 2 posts, grounding an Egyptian Mobil force.
Our forces included a Company of volunteers from Revivim and Haluza, a raid unit Jeep Company, saboteurs and wireless operators supported by: MMG, 2 mortars and 3 "Davidka's". Deputy Battalion Commander, Nimrod Lewita led the operation.
The course of the operation: on the 11th of June, at 02:30 am, the northern attack force left Haluza, deploying north of the target while the road was blocked. The jeeps flanked the target from the south via the Tamila Wadi. The covering force and operation H.Q. left Revivim at 03:00 am, positioning the MMG on a hill located 1 km north of the village while the mortars and operation H.Q. were positioned in the ravine behind them.
The northern block jeeps moved due south in Wadi Tamila and apart from one Jeep that encountered a land mine near Bir-Tamila, killing 3 men and wounding another, the rest of the forces were deployed by 04:30 am. The jeeps were forced to return to Revivim, Unable to secure the area from the south. At 04:45 am, 4 trucks from Uja entered the transition camp, at 05:15 am the MMG, mortars and "Davidka's" opened fire and at 05:30 am the attack force occupied the camp without any resistance.
The force waited for the saboteurs by the building's outer wall and once they entered an electric mine was activated 200 m away from the Haj residence. The fulmination demolished the building on top of the force waiting outside, killing 11 and wounding 5 volunteers from Revivim. The village was occupied at 06:45. 15 Israeli fighters were killed during the operation (3 during the blocking, 11 at the police station and one during the occupation of the village) and 7 were wounded. 17 enemy fighters were killed (mostly Egyptian soldiers) and 13 were captured, including an Egyptian officer and former Eretz Israel policemen.
The loot included: six 60 mm mortars, 22 guns, a 'Browning' MMG, 6 antitank weapons, 3 'Bren' machine-guns, an armored vehicle, 8 trucks and tenders, more than 75,000 light weapon munitions, 1,200 mortar shells, 250 3.7 Howitzer cannon shells etc. The documents captured enabled our forces to study the Egyptian methods of deployment and fighting.
The Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem axis campaign
The age old question whether to confine a quarter of the Mobil force to a stationary post was raised once more as a result of the occupation of the village and the need to capture an army post in order to block the axis. A Company was recruited from the settlements for the purpose of occupying a post located on a hill west of the village that would dominate both the road and the village. 45 fighters with guns, 3 mortars and MMG's, a 'Fiat', 2 antitank weapons, no.2 mortar and no.3 mortar occupied the post. 6 stations without communication ditches and auxiliary weapon stations were dug within the post that was surrounded by 2 barbed wire fences with land mines in between. Anti vehicle mines were laid around the near by hills, the road and the Turkish train station battery.
At the beginning of the cease fire, the Egyptians paved a road undisturbed, away from the post, bypassing the village from the south and the east, but still attacked the post on the eve of the second cease fire on the 19th of July.
At 09:00 am 2 aircraft and cannons bombarded the post, while 12 armored vehicles moved along the road 2.5 km south of the post and 500 soldiers deployed on the dunes 2-2.5 km south of the post. They encountered a mine field by the Turkish train station where 4 vehicles were damaged and rescued. The armored vehicles continued, bypassing the post from east and north and blocking the Bir-Asluj-Revivim road. An Egyptian air cover prevented reinforcements from exiting Revivim throughout the entire day.
From 11:30 am until night, the Egyptian infantry slowly advanced under cover of cannons and no.3 mortars and was forced to retreat after each time our forces returned fire. One man was killed and 4 wounded during the fighting. On the 20th of July, the Egyptians attempted to transport a convoy 1,500 m east of the village under cover of heavy artillery. Our forces returned fire with MMG and no.3 mortars, hitting one armored vehicle and forcing the others to retreat. The Egyptians managed to capture army posts along the 'Burma' road, thus securing the safe passage of convoys on their way to Be'er-Sheba and Jerusalem. On the 31st of July, an Egyptian Battalion captured an alignment of fortified posts north of Bir-Asluj while 2 companies captured the hills east of Revivim, resulting in Egyptian domination over both the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba and the Revivim-Bir-Asluj roads.
A provision convoy of camels was sent to the posts via the hills south of the road, but the camels fled from the noise of the Egyptian heavy artillery. As result of our forces fearing the Egyptians might capture a post south of the road thus cutting off the provision and escape route between Revivim and our post west of Bir-Asluj, a Palmach Company was sent in order to occupy an army post opposite the 2 Egyptian companies. The Company was forced to take cover in a cave and keep watch outside the cave. The cave kept them well protected against Egyptian heavy artillery and occupation attempts.
The 8th Battalion attempt to block the Nizana-Be'er-Sheba-Jerusalem provision axis failed due to the enemy constant attacks, but managed to maintain durably the 2 posts, grounding an Egyptian Mobil force.