09 November 2023 , 22:34
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Israeli soldiers told of their fears as they prepared for the Battle of Gaza but insisted: "We’re not scared."
They say that Hamas militia are wearing Israeli Defence Force uniforms to try to hoodwink them and using human shields, above the subterranean HQ of 30,000 fighters.
The Mirror met members of Israel’s 188th armoured brigade yesterday, as they prepared to fight “in the air, on the ground and underground”. As we spoke, one soldier screamed “get down!”, as a Hamas rocket roared overhead. We hit the deck as the sirens sounded and smoke filled the sky.
We stayed on the ground for several minutes before being allowed to drive on. We passed soldiers sitting side by side, taking a rest by the Forward Operating Base on the edge of the battlefield. Clouds of dust rose from a convoy of armoured trucks and ambulances.
A fireball erupting in the Gaza Strip during an Israeli bombardment (AFP via Getty Images)One soldier, Ilai, 25, told us: “We go in tonight. I’m worried but not scared." He said he flew home from a holiday in the US to fight, saying: “I had to after I saw what happened on October 7. This is not out of vengeance, it is for my people, my family. I heard about Lebanon, Syria, Iran getting involved and I thought ‘hold on, it’s WWIII here’.
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“Hamas wear IDF uniforms taken from our soldiers and pretend to be us; they wear civilian clothes. It’s a tactic they use. Then you see a rocket propelled grenade on their shoulders. They did the same on October 7. They killed police then wore the uniforms to stop cars. They shot at the traffic jams to kill people.”
Soldiers are aware of the plight of families fleeing Gaza. One paratrooper, who could not be named, said: “We go in to fight, but we have also helped a lot of refugees. We take them, feed them, give them water, then take them to the Red Cross. They put these people in the way when they fight which is pretty sick.”
IDF troops on the border making ready to go in to Gaza (Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror)There are scores of armoured troop carriers around us, plus food trucks, tents and equipment. One soldier cancelled his honeymoon to risk his life in Gaza. Barack, 45, a commander with 25 years’ experience, told us: “Hamas is a terrorist organisation. Most of the time they hide behind civilians. They produce weaponry in tunnels below Gaza, rockets, everything. Behind hospitals, clinics, schools. We are real soldiers. We don’t fight civilians, there is a moral code.”
Israel aims to rescue the 240 hostages taken by Hamas. Barack, a history teacher, added: “We must be smart. They are fighting in territory they know well. They use drones, they come out from underground. They’ve been preparing a long time.”
Asked about Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who masterminded the October 7 attacks, he said: “We hope to catch the bad guy and finish it, like a good American movie.”
Israel said it now controls Northern Gaza after more than 50,000 people fled. More than 10,800 have been killed, the Hamas-run health ministry said, including 4,300 children. Israel confirmed the death of soldier Roni Eshel, missing since October 7.