With just one tank, Captain Zvika Greengold
withstood the might of the Syrian military. As the battle around him
raged, he moved in and out of the darkness, firing at Syrian forces
while remaining undetected. He persisted heroically for hours, throwing
himself at the enemy in the face of almost certain death.
On October 6, 1973 – the first day of the Yom Kippur War – the Syrian military bombarded Israel’s northern border. At exactly 2:00 pm, its air force and artillery pounded IDF positions in the Golan Heights in coordination with an Egyptian strike
in the Sinai Peninsula. Hours later, Syrian tanks and troops crossed
the border and invaded Israeli territory. The IDF soldiers, suffering
tremendous losses, scrambled to stop the Syrian onslaught.
Meanwhile, Captain Zvi “Zvika” Greengold, a 21-year-old tank commander,
frantically left his home on a kibbutz near Haifa. Before the war, he
had been granted two weeks’ leave before beginning a course for
commanders. When he learned of the Syrian attack, he made his way
northward to the Golan, where IDF forces were growing increasingly
outnumbered.
In the late afternoon, Cpt. Greengold reached Nafah – an
IDF command center in the Golan’s southern sector. Determined to join
soldiers in the battlefield, he took command of two tanks and assembled
scratch crews to run them. He made contact with troops in the southern
sector and advanced toward them, identifying his tanks over radio as
‘the Zvika Force.’ With night falling, he set out along the Tapline
Route – a road in the Golan Heights used by Syrian forces to enter
Israeli territory.
Cpt. Zvi “Zvika” Greengold – One against many
Moments later, Cpt. Greengold discovered a company of
Syrian tanks moving toward Nafah. With two tanks, he faced slim chances
of success against the Syrian forces, but he was determined to protect
the Israeli command center. In a heroic act, he began to coordinate an
attack on the company. For hours, he persisted with extraordinary
bravery, throwing himself at the enemy in the face of almost certain
death.
Battle on the Tapline Route
Cpt. Greengold’s crew took partial cover beside the road
and waited for the Syrian tanks to approach. When he spotted the first
Syrian tank, he rapidly opened fire. The blast
from his vehicle hit the Syrian tank and ignited it, generating a shock
that destroyed his own radio communications. Left unable to
communicate, he jumped out of his vehicle and ran to the second tank in
the heat of battle.
Cpt. Greengold traded places with the second tank’s
commander and ordered him to follow his lead. But as the two vehicles
moved down the road, the other tank soon lost its direction in the
darkness. With no way to locate the other half of his force, Cpt.
Greengold realized that he would need to face the remaining Syrian tanks
alone.
Several minutes later, Cpt. Greengold beheld a shocking
site – a long column of Syrian tanks moving steadily along the road.
Despite being outnumbered, he moved in and out of the darkness, firing
on the Syrian tanks while remaining undetected. As the battle raged, he
changed his position constantly, firing from different directions to
give the perception of a much larger force. In attempt to uncover the Israeli forces,
the Syrian tanks turned on their searchlights but discovered nothing.
The beams of light only helped Cpt. Greengold identify more Syrian tanks
and inflict greater losses. The Syrian forces, stunned by the attacks,
retreated to avoid further casualties.Cpt. Greengold joined two platoons of reserve
tanks to stop the Syrian advance. Moments into battle, a Syrian tank
fired on Cpt. Greengold, lighting his tank on fire and badly burning his
crew. Although he suffered from burns and shock, he ran to
Meanwhile, Syrian tanks continued to pour over the northern
border. Late at night, another tank
and took command over its crew. He continued in this way for hours,
striking at Syrian tanks and changing vehicles whenever his tank was
disabled.
The fight for Nafah
Before dawn on October 7, the Zvika Force joined other
troops along the Tapline Route, where they confronted the Syrian 51st
Tank Brigade. Although Israeli forces gained the upper hand, they
received urgent orders to return to Nafah – where Syrian tanks were on
the verge of breaking Israel’s defenses.
At noon, eighty T-62s – the most advanced tanks in the
Syrian military – were poised to take the Israeli command center.
Understanding the dangers on the Tapline Route, Cpt. Greengold drove
off the road and reached the command center without encountering Syrian
forces. When he arrived with the 679th Reserve Armored Brigade, IDF forces were withdrawing as Syrian tanks entered the base.
As the enemy forces fired wildly, a Syrian tank pointed its
gun toward an Israeli anti-tank unit inside Nafah. Cpt. Greengold
spotted the Syrian tank and fired, destroying the Syrian vehicle and
saving the lives of the Israeli soldiers. He continued to shoot at the
Syrian forces, replacing his gunner who was too exhausted and shocked to
function. Although Nafah was nearly lost, the tables began to turn in
Israel’s favor. After a brutal fight, the IDF forces overcame the Syrian
tanks and pushed them out of the base.
After more than twenty hours of battle, Cpt. Greengold
exited his tank in the middle of the Nafah base. Exhausted from the
non-stop combat, he fell to the ground. An intelligence officer embraced
Cpt. Greengold and brought him to an IDF medical center, where Cpt. Greengold was treated for his injuries.
Zvika Greengold today serves as Mayor of Ofakim, a city in southern Israel
After the Yom Kippur War, the IDF awarded Cpt. Greengold with a Medal of Valor for his extraordinary heroism.
He is one of only eight soldiers to earn the medal after fighting in
the war. After leaving the IDF, he became a successful businessman,
leading two Israeli companies. Today, he serves as Mayor of Ofakim, a
city in southern Israel. He is married and the father of three children.
No comments:
Post a Comment