Hativat Hanegev (the Negev Brigade) (12)
The nature of the Negev Brigade, set up on March, 1948, has been greatly influenced by the intricate military and logistic circumstances of the Negev region. The vast territory with its thin Jewish population, its distance from the center of the country and the sparse resources allocated to it, had their affects on its organizational and operational patterns. The Negev region borders on the north with the Majdal – Faluja – Beit- Govrin (Ashkelon – Kiryat- Gat – Beit- Govrin) road, on the south with Asluj and on the east by Nevatim. Its staff officers were Nahum Sarig, commander of the brigade, Oded Meser, operations officer, and David Niv (Baby) the intelligence officer. The brigade consisted of four battalions; the Second and Eighth Battalions which were ‘spatial’ battalions, and two reserve battalions: the Seventh, Infantry Battalion and the Ninth, Mobile Foray Battalion. The Brigade took part in the battles and operations which were conducted in her fighting zone, her men reaching all the regions of the Negev, from El- Aris, via Bee’r Sheva, Sodom, the Negev mountains and Eilat.
The Negev Brigade - 9
The nature of the Negev Brigade, set up on March, 1948, has been greatly influenced by the intricate military and logistic circumstances of the Negev region. The vast territory with its thin Jewish population, its distance from the center of the country and the sparse resources allocated to it, had their affects on its organizational and operational patterns. The Negev region borders on the north with the Majdal – Faluja – Beit- Govrin (Ashkelon – Kiryat- Gat – Beit- Govrin) road, on the south with Asluj and on the east by Nevatim. The Arab population of the Negev region numbered 120,000 people who dwelt in four cities and towns and thirty villages, alongside a large concentration of Bedouin tribes.
The Jewish population in the Negev, including children, numbered 2,500 people who dwelt in twenty six settlements built between 1941 (6) and 1947 (20). The British forces (which were based in the region until the British Mandate expired on the 14th of May, 1948) comprised of police forces posted in the scattered police stations, and army units whose headquarters was based in Julis.
Nahum Sarig was appointed the ‘chief’ commander of the region in the middle of December 1947. One of his first decisions was to set up the Eighth Battalion alongside the Second Battalion which was already active in the Negev, and to put each in charge of either one of its newly defined northern and southern zones. In addition, he set up a new staff in Kibbutz Nir- Am which, on February 1948, begun, alongside the new Kol Hanegev (the voice of the Negev) radio station, to distribute information to the region’s units and settlements, as well as a home front unit in Tel Aviv under the command of Yosef Shine, which coordinated the General Headquarters with the Palmach headquarters, the Negev committee and various civil institutions.
Only half way through March 1948 was it decided to set up the ‘spatial’ brigade that would be subordinated to the General Headquarters and would be involved with the Palmach headquarters in issues of recruitment, training and advanced command studies. Many scathing discussions preceded this decision, in the course of which, David Ben Gurion, minister of security, insisted that the brigade’s commander would not be a Palmach member. During the first month of his command, Nahum Sarig depended on a logistic system of civil institutions (affiliated with the Histadrut Haklalit (the General labor federation) comprising of: the Mashbir Hamerkazi (the central barn), Solel Bone (the national constructing company established in 1921 by the Histadrut), Mekorot (the national water company) and the two transportation cooperatives.
The day after the invasion of the Egyptian army and the bombing of Kibbutz Nir - Am, the Brigade’s headquarters was transferred to Kibbutz Dorot which was also hit by an Egyptian air bombing (and the shed where the maps and air photographs were stocked, caught fire). After a short while the brigade’s headquarters moved to Kibbutz Rokhama. The headquarters’ officers were: Oded Meser – operations officer, David Niv (baby) – intelligence officer. The brigade comprised of four battalions; the Second and Eighth ‘Spatial’ Battalions, and two Reserve Battalions, the Seventh, Infantry Battalion and the Ninth, Mobile Foray Battalion.
The borderline between Giv’ati Brigade (on the north) and the Negev Brigade (on the south) was the Majdal – Faluja – Hebron (Ashkelon – Plugot junction – Hebron) road. Up until the second cease fire these two brigades often cooperated. Such was the case in Operation Pleshet, Operation An – Per, Operation Mavet Lapolesh (death to the invader) and G.I.S (one and two). Six months of fighting exhausted the warriors and impoverished their lines, towards the end of August Yiftach Brigade was put in charge of the region to allow the Negev Brigade to replenish and prepare itself for future operations. It remained in Bee’r Ya’akov camp until the eve of Operation Yoav and the second battalion joined Yiftach Brigade. The three other battalions were reinforced with new men, who were mainly recruited abroad (Gachal), and with auxiliary weapons. The units received rehabilitated vehicles, and activated training and advanced education programs.
In Operation Yoav the southern front’s staff consisted of five brigades. During the Operation’s first phase the Negev Brigade engaged in activities whose goal was to harass the Egyptian army and disrupt its traffic routs in the western fighting zone. One of the brigade’s units took part in the attack on the village Iraq- Al Manshia and later on the brigade’s units attacked and conquered Bee’r Sheva (in the course of Operation Moshe) later on, the brigade alongside three battalions moved to Bee’r Sheva and engaged in defense missions in the eastern zone of the Negev. Uzi Narkis replaced Haim Bar- Lev as the brigade’s operations officers. In November 1948 the brigade’s forces renewed the ground connection with Sodom, and in December towards Operation Horev the brigade’s units patrolled the country which was still under Egyptian control (in its eastern zone) on foot, in vehicles and aircrafts. The first phase of the operation resulted in the attack and conquest of the line of army posts dominating the Bir Asluj road (Mash’avim junction) – Auza El Hafir (Nizzana). Next the brigade penetrated the Sinai Peninsula and arrived as far as Abu Agila.
The decision to evacuate the Sinai Peninsula was a political one. The Negev Brigade retreated back beyond the Israeli border on the 3rd of January 1949. The brigade and its units returned to Bee’r Sheva. While evacuating the Sinai Peninsula, the southern front’s staff prepared to conquer Rafah and disconnect the Gaza strip from north Sinai. The Negev Brigade was included in the plan, alongside Hare’l, Golany and the Eighth Battalion. Eventually, only the Ninth Battalion took part in the fighting and returned to Bee’r Sheva on the 10th of January. From the beginning of February onwards, the Brigade’s intelligence divisions begun to examine whether it would be possible to take control of Um Rashrash (Eilat) and a month later the brigade went on Operation Ovda after which the brigade’s headquarters was transferred to a camp in Gadera, and on May 1949 the brigade held a ceremony to note the end of the War of Independence.
The Jewish population in the Negev, including children, numbered 2,500 people who dwelt in twenty six settlements built between 1941 (6) and 1947 (20). The British forces (which were based in the region until the British Mandate expired on the 14th of May, 1948) comprised of police forces posted in the scattered police stations, and army units whose headquarters was based in Julis.
Nahum Sarig was appointed the ‘chief’ commander of the region in the middle of December 1947. One of his first decisions was to set up the Eighth Battalion alongside the Second Battalion which was already active in the Negev, and to put each in charge of either one of its newly defined northern and southern zones. In addition, he set up a new staff in Kibbutz Nir- Am which, on February 1948, begun, alongside the new Kol Hanegev (the voice of the Negev) radio station, to distribute information to the region’s units and settlements, as well as a home front unit in Tel Aviv under the command of Yosef Shine, which coordinated the General Headquarters with the Palmach headquarters, the Negev committee and various civil institutions.
Only half way through March 1948 was it decided to set up the ‘spatial’ brigade that would be subordinated to the General Headquarters and would be involved with the Palmach headquarters in issues of recruitment, training and advanced command studies. Many scathing discussions preceded this decision, in the course of which, David Ben Gurion, minister of security, insisted that the brigade’s commander would not be a Palmach member. During the first month of his command, Nahum Sarig depended on a logistic system of civil institutions (affiliated with the Histadrut Haklalit (the General labor federation) comprising of: the Mashbir Hamerkazi (the central barn), Solel Bone (the national constructing company established in 1921 by the Histadrut), Mekorot (the national water company) and the two transportation cooperatives.
The day after the invasion of the Egyptian army and the bombing of Kibbutz Nir - Am, the Brigade’s headquarters was transferred to Kibbutz Dorot which was also hit by an Egyptian air bombing (and the shed where the maps and air photographs were stocked, caught fire). After a short while the brigade’s headquarters moved to Kibbutz Rokhama. The headquarters’ officers were: Oded Meser – operations officer, David Niv (baby) – intelligence officer. The brigade comprised of four battalions; the Second and Eighth ‘Spatial’ Battalions, and two Reserve Battalions, the Seventh, Infantry Battalion and the Ninth, Mobile Foray Battalion.
The borderline between Giv’ati Brigade (on the north) and the Negev Brigade (on the south) was the Majdal – Faluja – Hebron (Ashkelon – Plugot junction – Hebron) road. Up until the second cease fire these two brigades often cooperated. Such was the case in Operation Pleshet, Operation An – Per, Operation Mavet Lapolesh (death to the invader) and G.I.S (one and two). Six months of fighting exhausted the warriors and impoverished their lines, towards the end of August Yiftach Brigade was put in charge of the region to allow the Negev Brigade to replenish and prepare itself for future operations. It remained in Bee’r Ya’akov camp until the eve of Operation Yoav and the second battalion joined Yiftach Brigade. The three other battalions were reinforced with new men, who were mainly recruited abroad (Gachal), and with auxiliary weapons. The units received rehabilitated vehicles, and activated training and advanced education programs.
In Operation Yoav the southern front’s staff consisted of five brigades. During the Operation’s first phase the Negev Brigade engaged in activities whose goal was to harass the Egyptian army and disrupt its traffic routs in the western fighting zone. One of the brigade’s units took part in the attack on the village Iraq- Al Manshia and later on the brigade’s units attacked and conquered Bee’r Sheva (in the course of Operation Moshe) later on, the brigade alongside three battalions moved to Bee’r Sheva and engaged in defense missions in the eastern zone of the Negev. Uzi Narkis replaced Haim Bar- Lev as the brigade’s operations officers. In November 1948 the brigade’s forces renewed the ground connection with Sodom, and in December towards Operation Horev the brigade’s units patrolled the country which was still under Egyptian control (in its eastern zone) on foot, in vehicles and aircrafts. The first phase of the operation resulted in the attack and conquest of the line of army posts dominating the Bir Asluj road (Mash’avim junction) – Auza El Hafir (Nizzana). Next the brigade penetrated the Sinai Peninsula and arrived as far as Abu Agila.
The decision to evacuate the Sinai Peninsula was a political one. The Negev Brigade retreated back beyond the Israeli border on the 3rd of January 1949. The brigade and its units returned to Bee’r Sheva. While evacuating the Sinai Peninsula, the southern front’s staff prepared to conquer Rafah and disconnect the Gaza strip from north Sinai. The Negev Brigade was included in the plan, alongside Hare’l, Golany and the Eighth Battalion. Eventually, only the Ninth Battalion took part in the fighting and returned to Bee’r Sheva on the 10th of January. From the beginning of February onwards, the Brigade’s intelligence divisions begun to examine whether it would be possible to take control of Um Rashrash (Eilat) and a month later the brigade went on Operation Ovda after which the brigade’s headquarters was transferred to a camp in Gadera, and on May 1949 the brigade held a ceremony to note the end of the War of Independence.