POWs and what really happens during the fog of war
Reader comment on item: The Soviets' Six-Day War
in response to reader comment: Very Informative

Submitted by Mike DeCastro (United States), Jun 4, 2007 at 16:36

First of all Mr. Navarro, I was there for the YK War. Were you? Probably not. Your comments speak volumes about your lack of understanding of what really happened during that war. I have to admit, your over-simplification both gave me a good laugh and also points out the sad state of historical education.

Israel was very nearly annihilated. Had it not been for the American airlift, we would have been completely overrun on both the Syrian and Egyptian fronts. We were out-gunned, out-maneuvered, out-strategized and utterly defeated in the first hours and days. We were defeated as much by our own hubris and stupidity such as the infamous Bar Lev Line, as we were by Soviet war planning, massive logistics, Spetznaz commandos embedded with Egyptian forces using Strela SA-7 SAMs against IAF low-flying aircraft and anti-tank missiles as well as Israel's own lack of effective logistics and military preparation.

In 1967, if Israel had not acted first, the country would have also been annihilated by vastly superior Arab armies. Study your history before leaping to conclusions unsupported by the facts.

As for the POW issue, I probably should have pointed out that technically, the IDF did not "execute prisoners", per se. It simply did not take any in the early hours and days of both wars. Obviously, in 1967 Israel would never want that intel to be acquired by the Egyptians. Ditto for 1973.

During the YK War, orders were given to take POWs only after the tide had turned thanks to the American airlift and the courage and resilience of the IDF. Military commanders and the government, namely PM Golda Meir and Defense Minister Moshe Dayan, realized the extent of Israeli POWs held by their Arabs. We knew we would need significantly greater numbers of Arab POWs to exchange for our POWs so orders went out to take prisoners. A technicality? Perhaps. But an important distinction.

Once again, I was not there for '67 but in '73, it was tough to get frontline units to take prisoners. Why? Simple. The Egyptians and Syrians both perpetrated the most horrific atrocities imaginable against IDF soldiers, many of whom had surrendered when faced with certain death by overwhelming forces during those early days. On the Bar Lev line, the Egyptians did not accept surrender, they simply bulldozed over the Israeli bunkers and buried our troops alive inside. Those that escaped were summarily shot and their bodies were butchered.

Fighting in Sinai was brutal and Israeli victories were hard won. The Battles at Baluza and the Chinese Farm were particularly difficult. The Egyptian ranks this time were bolstered by Soviet SpecOps troops. They made sure their Egyptian comrades did not surrender so easily this time. IDF forces in Sinai and on the Golan both captured Soviet POWs.

In Sinai, retreating Egyptians did not just drop their weapons and throw up their hands. Retreating forces booby-trapped the vehicles they left behind and even the bodies of their own dead comrades. Knowing the IDF would salvage the vehicles and bury their dead. Several Israeli lost their lives to those IEDs. At night, you could hear the wild dogs feasting on the corpses and occasionally, BOOM! An IED-rigged corpse would go off, dogs would yelp and then all was quiet. This is what war is really like. Not the oversimplified way you put it.

On the Golan, wounded Israelis were summarily executed. Forward observation posts that were cut-off and surrounded, with no more ammo and limited supplies had no choice but to surrender. The Syrians drove their tanks into the bunkers and fired point blank at defenseless Israeli troops inside rather than take them prisoner. One of my most prized photos is a dead Syrian T-62 doing just that on the basketball court of the bunker. It was killed in hand-to-had fighting by the last survivors of that Israeli outpost.

After word of Syrian and Egyptian atrocities spread, Israeli soldiers fought to the death. Israeli tank crews were going into battle with only a few rounds after their supplies ran out. They were firing one shot, one kill and vastly outnumbered against the most modern T-62 Soviet main battle tanks. When their ammo ran out, knowing there was nothing back at supply, they would ram the invading g Syrian tanks. When they wrecked their tanks, they attacked Syrian tanks with small arms and grenades. When their ammo ran out, they attacked the tanks with knives and rocks in hand-to-hand combat. Israeli troops were defending their homes and families on the Golan and in Galilee below.

The only thing that stopped the Syrian onslaught was that the Soviets miscalculated Israeli resistance. It was lighter than expected, the Syrians advanced too far, too fast. Their advance outran their logistics and literally ran out of gas at the B'not Ya'Acov bridges, the gateway to Galilee about Lake Kinneret.

Had President Nixon not risen to the occasion, ignored the fact that America's NATO allies (England, France, Italy, Greece)refused to allow any support for the American airlift to save Israel, and initiated the longest military airlift in world history from the United States to Tel Aviv non-stop with mid-air refueling – Israel would have been driven into the sea and the Jewish population of Galilee obliterated. No question about it. Ask anyone who was there. We know, first hand.

We knew what the Arabs had in mind. They were not bashful about it. They left "calling cards". Just like the IAF pilots who had their genitalia mutilated by their captors and were left to bleed out while crucified when they ejected from their crippled Skyhawks and were taken prisoner by Syrian forces near Mt. Hermon. Can you imagine the horror and outrage of seeing your comrades mutilated and strung up that way? I'm certain US Marines felt the same way at Fallujah when they saw the mutilated corpses of the American civilian contractors. I can, and let me tell you that taking prisoners becomes a very low priority after that.

So... Unless you've been there and stared Arab atrocities in the face, then or now, and realized that the only thing between those butchers and your family is you and you brothers and sister in arms, then come and talk to me about POWs and what really happens during the fog of war.

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