The attack on the Beit Nuba Positions
The goal of the operation was, within the context of Operation ‘Dani’, to cut Latrun off from the hinterland, Ramallah, by capturing the Beit Nuba Positions and taking control of the road. A Company from the 6th Battalion and a Company from the 5th Battalion, with the late addition of a Company from the 4th Battalion, managed to take two villages from the Arab Legion but had to retreat due to heavy shelling and attacks by armoured cars. The Position above Abu-Lahem was left in our hands and determined the State’s border.
On the night of 18 July, towards the end of Operation ‘Dani’, the Beit-Nuba Positions were attacked by two Companies from ‘Harel’ Brigade – B Company from the 6th Battalion and Zivi’s Company from the 5th Battalion – under the command of Amos Horev (Sochaver).
The goal of the operation was, within the context of Operation ‘Dani’, to cut Latrun off from the hinterland, Ramallah. From these Positions it was possible to control and observe the village of Beit-Nuba, the Beit-Sirah Junction and the Jordanian ‘Burma Road’ which crossed the Jordanian formation at Latrun.
The attacking force moved along a difficult, mountainous route and consisted of three teams of medium machine guns, carried on mules. The Company from the 6th Battalion captured the village of Beit-Tul and Zivi’s Company took the village of Hirbet-Nataf, and afterwards held the central Position – Heitan A-Tzanubar. At this point communications broke down and Zivi did not manage to contact Horev, the operation commander. Zivi decided to retreat with his Company and about an hour later Horev arrived with the second Company and re-took the Position. When communications were re-established, Horev ordered Zivi to join him and marked his position by a beacon.
At dawn the forces were spread out as follows:
B Company held the western part of the Position at Hirbet Heitan A-Tzanubar.
Half of Zivi’s Company was at Hirbet Marj A-Za’arur.
The second half of the Company was south of Nataf (a village it had captured), on the Bir-Gabih range.
At 08:00 hours the force opened fire on the village of Beit-Nuba, on the Latrun road to Beit-Sira, and on the Jordanian ‘Burma Road’, which crossed from Beit-Nuba to Beit-Likia. Within minutes the Jordanians began shelling and armoured cars attacked the force a number of times.
A platoon from the 6th Battalion (new recruits) began to retreat and the Legion took the northern part of the Position. Dado’s Company ‘ (David Elazar from the 4th Battalion) which served as Brigade reserve, arrived in the zone within a short time and captured the Position from the Legion.
B Company from the 61st Battalion left that night to gain control of Hirbet Abu-Lahem Position as a diversion – in order to cover the eastern section of the 6th Battalion which was operating at the Beit-Nuba Positions. This Company was attacked by the Legion and started to retreat when reinforcements were sent to support them – B Company from the 4th Brigade under the command of Dado Elazar. A heavy battle ensued which concluded with the capture of the Position adjacent to Abu-Lahem (N.G. 714). The fighters of the 4th Battalion repelled a counter attack by the Legion and it was left in the hands of the IDF, and established an important fact: at the cease fire the Position was included in the area controlled by the IDF.
The names of the fallen:
Beit-Nuba: Eliezer Weiss; David Zalman Landau (6th Battalion)
Dir Ayoub (‘The Parallel Ridge’): Ya’ir Rozenblatt (4th Battalion)
The goal of the operation was, within the context of Operation ‘Dani’, to cut Latrun off from the hinterland, Ramallah. From these Positions it was possible to control and observe the village of Beit-Nuba, the Beit-Sirah Junction and the Jordanian ‘Burma Road’ which crossed the Jordanian formation at Latrun.
The attacking force moved along a difficult, mountainous route and consisted of three teams of medium machine guns, carried on mules. The Company from the 6th Battalion captured the village of Beit-Tul and Zivi’s Company took the village of Hirbet-Nataf, and afterwards held the central Position – Heitan A-Tzanubar. At this point communications broke down and Zivi did not manage to contact Horev, the operation commander. Zivi decided to retreat with his Company and about an hour later Horev arrived with the second Company and re-took the Position. When communications were re-established, Horev ordered Zivi to join him and marked his position by a beacon.
At dawn the forces were spread out as follows:
B Company held the western part of the Position at Hirbet Heitan A-Tzanubar.
Half of Zivi’s Company was at Hirbet Marj A-Za’arur.
The second half of the Company was south of Nataf (a village it had captured), on the Bir-Gabih range.
At 08:00 hours the force opened fire on the village of Beit-Nuba, on the Latrun road to Beit-Sira, and on the Jordanian ‘Burma Road’, which crossed from Beit-Nuba to Beit-Likia. Within minutes the Jordanians began shelling and armoured cars attacked the force a number of times.
A platoon from the 6th Battalion (new recruits) began to retreat and the Legion took the northern part of the Position. Dado’s Company ‘ (David Elazar from the 4th Battalion) which served as Brigade reserve, arrived in the zone within a short time and captured the Position from the Legion.
B Company from the 61st Battalion left that night to gain control of Hirbet Abu-Lahem Position as a diversion – in order to cover the eastern section of the 6th Battalion which was operating at the Beit-Nuba Positions. This Company was attacked by the Legion and started to retreat when reinforcements were sent to support them – B Company from the 4th Brigade under the command of Dado Elazar. A heavy battle ensued which concluded with the capture of the Position adjacent to Abu-Lahem (N.G. 714). The fighters of the 4th Battalion repelled a counter attack by the Legion and it was left in the hands of the IDF, and established an important fact: at the cease fire the Position was included in the area controlled by the IDF.
The names of the fallen:
Beit-Nuba: Eliezer Weiss; David Zalman Landau (6th Battalion)
Dir Ayoub (‘The Parallel Ridge’): Ya’ir Rozenblatt (4th Battalion)