Replies

Post Scriptum: The 87th suffered altogether 112 casualties during the war, 45 of whom were killed in action – including two successive battalion CO's and two company CO's.

Major Yoav Brom was posthumously promoted to rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, and in addition received the Medal of Courage. Captain Rafi Bar-Lev and Captain Rafi Mitzafon were both posthumously promoted to rank of Major.

Lieutenant-Colonel Bentzi Carmeli was posthumously awarded a citation of valor by the IDF Chief-of-Staff.

The 87th armored reconnaissance battalion was formed urgently when the winds of war started blowing, five months before the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War. Its personnel was a combination of young warriors from elite units and seasoned recon veterans. On the third day of the war it was the 87th that alone held the front line in a critical area against superior enemy forces, on the night between the fourth and fifth day it was the 87th that went on a scouting mission behind enemy lines and located the weak border area between the two Egyptian armies. And in the great operation "Knights of Hearts" – the crossing of the Suez Canal, that finally turned the tides of war, it was the 87th that spearheaded the attack and lead General Sharon's division ("Pillar of Fire") to the brink of the Canal. And there, in the terrible night battle, the 87th ceased to exist as a coherent fighting unit. But its valiant warriors had had a great impact on the battle on the Egyptian front, and the survivors would go on fighting within other units until the end of the war.

Because of its short life span, and the large number of casualties (112, including 45 killed in action) that included unit and subunit commanders, the unit's legacy evaporated and was left to oblivion for many years. The warriors were assigned to other reserve units and lost contact with each other and with the bereaved families of the fallen. But lately, a group of 87th veterans "Legacy of the 87th." has taken up the challenge of restoring the units legacy to its deserved place in IDF's history. A veterans' convention is to be held at the IDF Armored Corps Memorial Site in May 2005.

Veterans for Constitution Restoration is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and grassroots activist organization. The primary area of concern to all VetsCoR members is that our national and local educational systems fall short in teaching students and all American citizens the history and underlying principles on which our Constitutional republic-based system of self-government was founded. VetsCoR members are also very concerned that the Federal government long ago over-stepped its limited authority as clearly specified in the United States Constitution, as well as the Founding Fathers' supporting letters, essays, and other public documents.

Actively seeking volunteers to provide this valuable service to Veterans and their families.

We here at Blue Stars For A Safe Return are working hard to honor all of our military, past and present, and their families. Inlcuding the veterans, and POW/MIA's. I feel that not enough is done to recognize the past efforts of the veterans, and remember those who have never been found.

I realized that our Veterans have no "official" seal, so we created one as part of that recognition. To see what it looks like and the Star that we have dedicated to you, the Veteran, please check out our site.

Veterans Wall of Honor

Blue Stars for a Safe Return

UPDATED THROUGH APRIL 2004

The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul

Click on Hagar for
"The FReeper Foxhole Compiled List of Daily Threads"

LINK TO FOXHOLE THREADS INDEXED by PAR35

Monday Night Shift Bump for the Treadhead Tuesday Edition of the Freeper Foxhole

Regards

alfa6 ;>}

Tread Head Tuesdays: The Place Where Tanks Keep A Rollin' - Greetings Foxhole, Great thread today.

Thanks for including the story of the 87th.
The veterans' convention was held on May, 19th 2005 with almost 200 veterans+families and 40 of the bereaved families attending. The Prime Minister of Israel, Mr Ariel (Arik Sharon) sent a videotaped greeting to the 87th, and a 30 min movie based on actual authentic footage by war correspondents during the 1973 war was shown.
Thanks again
Dan Kaznelson, Col. (Res)