Posted on 07/27/2006 6:35:55 PM PDT by JewishRighter
The thing that most impressed Capt. Yisrael Friedler, commander of A Company in the Golani Brigade's Battalion 51, during the bloody battle in Bint Jbail on Wednesday, was the way the junior commanders conducted themselves after their officers had been hit by Hizbullah gunfire.
"The moment their officers went down," he told The Jerusalem Post Thursday, "the sergeants took their radios and began reporting in and managing the battle, while at the same time taking charge of evacuating the wounded. It was the height of professionalism," he said.
The firefight began early in the morning when two companies, A and C, began advancing down one of Bint Jbail's streets on parallel routes. Contrary to previous reports, Friedler said, the Hizbullah fighters were not lying in ambush. "Both sides were unaware of each other and it was actually one of our soldiers who saw them first and opened fire."
In the initial firing, 30 members of C Company, a third of its total strength, were hit, as was the battalion's deputy commander, Maj. Roi Klein.
Rubble didn't help Zarqawi or his friends... because the explosions and falling ruble usually kill lots of enemy.
BOMB THEM BACK TO THE STONE AGE.
The problem is, the IDF really got caught with their pants down if they had two companies advancing in the open down one street with uncleared buildings on either side. That many troops in a confined urban space without a screening force in front is a recipe for trouble. Should've been leapfrogging up the street from cover to cover in small squads, clearing structures as they went, and should have had aerial recon (UAVs) with infrared looking for heat sources in the "upper levels of the buildings" before they went in. Somebody screwed up big time.
lol, yeah, we also knew he was inside. If they aren't inside when its hit, they can reoccupy it, and thats where it gets dangerous.
The best example I saw was the Baath Party house north of Taji. The walls were blown out by engineers and tanks and then the rubble was carted off. All that remained were the supports and stairs. You sould see right through the building. No more IED trigger men inside that one!
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Putting aside the natural interest in airpower, and the preparation of the battlefield, which often falls short, this is how battles, and wars, are won.
The moment their officers went down, the sergeants took their radios and began reporting in and managing the battle...
As for leaving buildings standing, read up on some military history...leveling buildings can make an assault even more difficult, as there are lots of unpredictable hiding places.
Indeed. Urban fighting is the worst!
Sometimes/most times command doesn't know it's putting their men in an ambush.
Remember in every battle the enemy gets a vote.
Stalingrad was another good example...the very best Germany good send failed...the Russians knew the city well and the rubble was a snipers haven for them to destroy the moral and leadership of the German forces...what a horrible battle!
Stalingrad should have been left in the rear by the Germans, but it was a propaganda objective.
I just put a bumper sticker on my car (and I am not one for bumper stickers - but this is an extraordinary circumstance) "Support Israel - Now More Than Ever." If you want to get a bumper sticker ($3.00/each) go to www.IsraelMilitary.com or www.Israel-Tshirts.com.
Let's show our support for our brothers and sisters in Israel!
The Battle of Bint Jubayl and Hezbollah's Army
**********************AN EXCERPT ********************************
Hezbollah was reported to have suffered 150 killed as of this morning, and another 40 killed in today's action after fighting "gun battles at point-blank range." An unnamed American military officer reports several Hezbollah operatives, whose primary purpose is logistical support, have been captured and are currently being interrogated by Israeli intelligence.
The Hezbollah bunker in Bint Jubayl was taken nearly intact. Hezbollah attempted to destroy the equipment in the bunker, but was not successful in destroying it all, according to an intelligence source. Abu Jaafar, the Hezbollah commander in southern Lebanon, may have killed himself rather than being captured. The Israeli troops seized Hezbollah computers, documents and monitoring devices used to observe the Israeli border, in addition to the "electronic surveillance equipment, weapons and communication devices made in Iran" which was reported yesterday. The bunker served as the equivalent of a Hezbollah headquarters and command and control center for the southern border.
The Israelis targeted the town of Bint Jubayl with the hope of obtaining further intelligence on Hezbollah's organization and capabilites, as well as the location of their two captured soldiers. The documents and computer seized by the IDF may outline Hezbollah's command and organizational structure in southern Lebanon, although this is unknown at this time. Israeli intelligence is currently analyzing the data.
The Israelis have confirmed that Hezbollah is fighting like a professional military. Their units are fighting at the company level at the least (Unit size of approximately 100 men), and perhaps in larger formations. Intelligence also confirms there is specialization within the Hezbollah units, including trained infantry, mortar teams, missile squads, and logistical personal. Iran has trained and organized Hezbollah's army into something far more deadly than a militia force. Hezbollah's core 'active' army is estimated at 3,000 - 5,000, with as many as 50,000 part time militia and support personnel that can be called upon to fight (20,000 is the average estimate).
Intelligence sources also have confirmed that members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Qods Force have indeed been killed during the fighting in southern Lebanon.
Hanging an Italian CAVALRY division unsupported to cover a 30 mile wide sector wasn't really smart, either....
Basic German Doctrine was to flank, surround and reduce. Paulus wasn't the wisest of the battlefield leaders,either...
Yes, bint means daughter, or young woman.
The town Bint Jubail, means daughter of the Jubail - daughter of the small mountain.
Bless you. I am going to that site.
" The Israelis targeted the town of Bint Jubayl "
Not to mention that to level an entire town of 20,000 - 30,000 is quite a bit of levelling (and ordinance).
The Hizbollah fighters had years to obey the first part of the old American Civil War maxim, "Git thar fustest with the mostest" -- whatever terrain or buildings were there to work with, they were there first and were able to dispose their people to take advantage.
I'll leave to experienced infantry commanders the debate about how much "prep" with artillery, large blast weapons, area antipersonnel weapons, or whatever, might have helped the Israelis in their one-down position going on the assault against long-prepared positions.
For what it's worth, America's best general got it wrong, too. Robert E. Lee learned in Mexico that it is possible for columns of infantry to advance over long, open stretches of unfavorable, sloping ground against prepared positions defended by artillery. That worked in Mexico against slow-firing Mexican batteries. It has never worked since. It cost Lee a war.
It was Romanian sectors that were hit and overrun, no?
Which further explains why the buildings weren't leveled.
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