The 1st "Golani" Brigade (, Hativat Golani) is an Israeli military infantry brigade. It is subordinated to the 36th Division and traditionally associated with the Northern Command. It is one of the five infantry brigades of IDF, the others being the Paratroopers Brigade, the Nahal Brigade, the Givati Brigade and the Kfir Brigade. Its symbol is a green olive tree against a yellow background, with its soldiers wearing a brown beret. It is one of the most highly decorated infantry units in the IDF. The brigade consists of five battalions, including two which it kept from its inception (12th and 13th), and one transferred from the Givati Brigade (51st).
The brigade was formed on February 22, 1948, during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, when the Levanoni Brigade in the Galilee split into the 1st Golani Brigade and the 2nd Carmeli Brigade. It has since participated in all of Israel's major wars and nearly all major operations, including the Suez Crisis, the Six-Day War, the War of Attrition, the Yom Kippur War, Operation Entebbe, the 1978 South Lebanon conflict, the 1982 and 2006 Lebanon Wars, and various operations during the Palestinian intifadas.
Three of its commanders (Mordechai Gur, Gabi Ashkenazi and Gadi Eizenkot) have become IDF Chiefs of Staff, with many more reaching the rank of aluf (major general).
History
Founding and initial organization As the end of the British Mandate of Palestine was fast approaching, the leadership of the Haganah drafted Plan Dalet for its subsequent organization and operations. The plan divided the fighting militia (Field Corps) into six regional brigades – Levanoni in the north, Alexandroni in the Sharon region, Kiryati in the Tel Aviv area, Givati in the Shfela, and Etzioni in the Jerusalem area. On February 28, 1948, the Levanoni Brigade was split into two—Carmeli in the northwest, and Golani in the northeast.
Golani's area of operations included much of the Lower Galilee and Jezreel Valley, the Jordan Valley and the Hula Valley. It extended to al-Jalama and Bat Shlomo in the west. Major population centers included Safed, Tiberias, Beit She'an and Nazareth. The new brigade had five battalions, with its headquarters in Yavne'el: NumberNameMeaningTheaterComments11AlonOakUpper Galilee ("Tel Hai")Transferred to Oded in May 194812BarakLightningLower Galilee and Jordan Valley ("Benjamin")13GideonGideonEast Jezreel Valley ("Simeon")14DrorNamed after commander, Ya'akov DrorJezreel Valley ("Levi")15GorenNamed after commander, Moshe GorenJordan ValleyCreated to assist Barak Battalion in the Jordan Valley battlesSources: Baltheim (1982), pp. 30–31; Etzioni (1951), p. 5 Moshe Mann was the first commander of the Golani Brigade. In mid-1948, replaced Mann. In the introduction to the book Ilan VeShalach, Nahum Golan wrote regarding the Golani Brigade:
War of Independence
During the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, Golani mostly participated in the battles for the mixed cities in the north, such as the Battle of Tiberias and battles in Safed in April–May 1948. The 12th Battalion captured al-Shajara on May 6, 1948, and the 13th Battalion captured Beit She'an on May 12. After these operations, responsibility over the northeastern part of the brigade's sector (the Tel Hai area, 11th Battalion), was handed over to the Oded Brigade and other forces. In December 1948, the 14th and 15th battalions were merged into the Mechanized Attack Battalion.
The first Golani action following the Arab intervention in the 1948 war was the defense of the kibbutzim Degania Alef and Bet from the Syrian Army in the Battles of the Kinarot Valley. Units from the Barak Battalion, with Yiftach (Palmach) and Guard Corps reinforcements, successfully fended off a Syrian attack. The brigade was also successful at repelling Iraqi forces at the Battle of Gesher to the south. After the Jordan Valley battles died out, Golani went on the offensive, attacking a number of Arab villages in its sector, and finally mounting an offensive on Jenin together with the Carmeli Brigade on June 2, 1948. The attack eventually succeeded, but Jenin was retaken by the Iraqi Army shortly after.
During the Battles of the Ten Days between the first and second truces of the war (July 8–18, 1948), Golani managed to repel the Arab Liberation Army attack on Sejera from Lubya, and helped capture Nazareth and eventually Lubya in Operation Dekel. Golani participated in Operation Hiram in October 1948, where at first it staged diversionary attacks from the south. Afterwards captured Eilabun, Mughar, Rameh and other villages in the ALA First Yarmouk Battalion's zone.
In December 1948, the brigade was largely transferred to the south in preparation for Operation Horev. Golani fought the Egyptians in the Gaza Strip, in Operation Assaf, the Battle of Hill 86 and later battles around Rafah. In March 1949, the brigade was tasked with capturing Umm Rashrash, today Eilat, with the 7th Armored Brigade. Golani advanced through the Arabah region in the east and arrived at the location two hours after the 7th. This was the last operation of the war.
Border Raids and Suez Crisis After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the Golani Brigade participated in a number of reprisal raids in the first part of the 1950s. In 1951, a Syrian patrol entered the demilitarized zone near Tel Mutilla, and was attacked by reservist IDF troops. Golani reinforced a reserve battalion and entered a battle that lasted five days, costing the brigade 40 dead and 72 wounded. The battle caused a number of changes in the IDF doctrine and was a catalyst for the creation of Unit 101. On October 28, 1955, after a border incident with Egypt around the Auja al-Hafir demilitarized zone, Golani was tasked with leading Operation Volcano, an attack on the Egyptian army in the area and the largest military operation at the time since the 1948 war.
In the Suez Crisis of 1956, the brigade's task was to capture the area around the city Rafah. The 51st Battalion, formerly of Givati, led the assault on the Rafah Junction. They were ordered to abandon their vehicles after reaching a minefield and coming under fire from Egyptian artillery, although the battalion's sappers slowly created a way forward for a line of vehicles and the battalion captured the intended Egyptian positions. The 12th Battalion captured positions on the Rafah – Khan Yunis road, and the 13th—positions south of Rafah.
In early 1960, after a border incident on the backdrop of the Israeli–Syrian water dispute, Golani destroyed the abandoned village al-Tawafiq, which overlooked Tel Katzir and was used by the Syrians as a military base. In March 1962, Golani launched Operation Swallow against the Syrians at Nuqeib on the east bank of the Sea of Galilee, in response to constant Syrian harassment of Israeli fishermen in the lake. In May 1965, as part of a larger operation, Golani conducted a raid on Shunat Nimrin in Jordan.
Six-Day War On June 7, 1967, Golani units joined Israeli armored units in its assault on Nablus, capturing the city by 15:00. The remainder of the brigade was kept in the north for the planned thrust against the Syrian army on the Golan Heights. Planning called for the 12th Battalion to capture Tel Faher and Burj Babil, Banias, Tel Hamra and Ayn Fit. The 51st took Bahriat, Tel Azaziat and Khirbet as-Suda. The 13th Battalion was left as an operational reserve in the northeastern tip of Israel.
On June 9, the 51st Battalion crossed the border and advanced north along the Syrian patrol road. Its 3rd Company turned west to find Bahriat abandoned, while 2nd Company turned west and flanked Tel Azaziyat. The soldiers drove into a minefield and were forced to abandon their half-tracks, advancing to the trenches of Tel Azaziyat on foot. The battle continued from 16:21 to 17:06, ending in a Syrian surrender. At 16:46, 3rd Company captured Khirbet as-Suda, along with a T-54 tank. Meanwhile, the 12th Battalion split up to assault Burj Babil and Tel Faher. The forces at Tel Faher met stiff resistance and the 2nd Company now in Burj Babil was called to assist them. By 16:20, the southern position at Tel Faher had been taken. At 17:30, the Golani reconnaissance company came from the southeast to reinforce the 12th. By 18:20, Tel Faher was in Israeli hands.
The 13th Battalion was called to help the 8th Brigade which was operating in the same area. They helped capture a position north of Za'ura, and the village Jbab al-Mis to the south. Just before dawn, the 51st assaulted Banias and captured it. Reinforcements from the 45th Brigade captured Tel Hamra slightly to the north. During the course of the war, the Golani Brigade suffered 59 dead and 160 wounded, of them 23 in the Battle of Tel Faher.
Counter-insurgency activities After the Six-Day War, the activity in northern Israel where Golani was based was mostly limited to raids against fedayeen (guerrilla) bases in Jordan, Lebanon and the West Bank, now under Israeli control. The objectives of these raids were to undermine the fedayeen bases in order to prevent attacks against Israelis. The three main raids against Jordan during this period were: the attack on the village Wadi al-Yabis across the river from Tirat Tzvi; the attack on the Cones Position across from Ashdot Ya'akov; and the attack on the Jordanian Ghor canal and defensive line.
The raid on Wadi al-Yabis, code-named Operation Asuta 12, was carried out by the Golani reconnaissance unit and the 12th Battalion on May 4, 1969. The forces did not meet any resistance and returned after completing the mission of destroying a number of structures. The Cone Position, named after a cone-shaped building on the premises, was attacked by the reconnaissance unit in July 1969. The guerrillas fled, but alerted the Jordanians who opened artillery fire on the Israelis. After blowing up two bunkers, the Israelis returned.
The destruction of the Ghor canal was a punitive measure against the Jordanian farmers of the area, from where numerous guerrilla attacks against Israeli farmers were initiated. The three positions defending it did not notice the Israeli forces. While the attack did not go as planned when the bombs laid near the canal were detonated prematurely, it was destroyed and the water drained into the Yarmouk River.
On the Lebanese front, Golani participated in numerous raids into southern and eastern Lebanon. In October 1969, the brigade's forces attacked Itarun (Operation Double Bass 1), Tel Sadr al-Arus and 'Arab Zahiran. Twenty-four buildings were destroyed across the three villages. Another operation, Double Bass 10, involved a retaliatory raid on Kfar Kila on January 2, 1970, in response to the kidnapping of an elderly guard from Metula by Fatah two days earlier. Another retaliatory strike came on December 27, 1970, against the village Yatar, a major guerrilla base.
A major attack was carried out in response to the 1972 Munich Massacre. On September 16, 1972, Operation Extended Turmoil 4 was launched against bases in southern Lebanon, containing an estimated 600 guerrillas. Golani forces reached the Litani river in the east, while Paratroopers reached Juwaya just south of the river. Most of the guerrilla forces did not engage the Israelis and chose to retreat, with over 40 of them killed.
In the Gaza Strip, Golani operated according to the new counter-resistance IDF doctrine calling for the adoption of guerrilla tactics, and operating in small teams and in open areas. During this period, Golani units were also stationed along the Bar Lev line and participated in the War of Attrition, especially in the Qantara East area.