It was erev Shabbat, the first day of Chanukah. Four members of the Israeli tank crew were inside their tank in Shuja’iyya, the Gazan neighborhood district of Gaza City. They were busy combing multi-level buildings for terrorists. Suddenly there was a boom, shouts and shrapnel flying. A Hamas terrorist had shot an RPG (a rocket-propelled grenade is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead) at the tank, and it had penetrated through a meter of armor.
We received a call at about 2:00 p.m. from our daughter-in-law Odeya. She told us that our son Eliyahu Yeshaya, who is in reserve duty in the tank corps, had called her. He told her that he had some “scratches,” and he was being taken to Soroka Medical Center in Be’er Sheva. I didn’t get upset or worried; I felt completely calm. I felt total thankfulness towards Hashem. Our son was alive and conscious. I recited Tehillim 100, a psalm of thanksgiving.
Odeya was in Kiryat Ata, which is north of Haifa, in order to spend Shabbat Chanukah with her family. It was too late for public transportation, and so she ended up taking her parents’ car south to Be’er Sheva. She arrived around Shabbat candle lighting time.
Baruch Hashem, we received a very brief call from our son before Shabbat. He informed us that he had shrapnel in his forehead, left face and left hand. He was waiting to see various doctors and have a CT scan done.
We had a wonderful, lively, thankful and holy Shabbat Chanukah with our nineteen guests. Motzei Shabbat the atmosphere became electric as we prepared for our family Chanukah party. Almost all of the family was at the Chanukah party. The only ones absent were our son Naftali Yehuda, who was in a tank in Gaza, and our wounded son and his wife.
That evening Eliyahu Yeshaya called to say that his CT scan was fine, and that he would not need surgery. He said that he would be discharged that evening! It turned out that the army provides accommodation at a nearby hotel for family members of wounded soldiers.
Sunday morning they drove to the Gaza border to retrieve his personal pistol, army rifle and other items. He was curious to see his tank. Everyone who saw the gaping hole on the left side of the tank’s roof, said it was a miracle that no one had been badly hurt or worse.
Sunday afternoon they dropped by for a visit. He had small pieces of shrapnel on his face and left hand, and he said that the surgeon told him that, over time, the body would rid itself of the shrapnel. That was comforting to know. I didn’t want any unwanted tank souvenirs in my son’s body! We saw how close a piece of shrapnel had come to his eye. He said that he had not been wearing his safety goggles before the attack, but he had immediately closed his eyes. His eyelashes and eyebrows had gotten a bit singed.
He described the missile attack:
On Friday morning, which was the first day of Chanuka, we were in the neighborhood of Shuja’iyya with various other forces. We drove on a street that had buildings of approximately four stories. We entered the area in order to take over, to check them out and make sure there were no terrorists, tunnels and explosive devices. We were two tanks, in addition to a D9, which is an enormous, armored bulldozer which levels the ground (If there is a roadside bomb, for example, the D9 tractor absorbs the impact and soldiers do not get injured or killed.), it builds a wall of dirt for tanks and people to hide behind, and dismantles the building if necessary. With us there was a company of foot soldiers.
And so what happened is that we started the attack. Most of the time you don’t see the terrorists because they are hiding. But the driver of the D9 relayed to us that he saw a head in one of the buildings .But the driver of the D9 relayed to us that he saw a head in one of the buildings. The driver drove a bit in reverse, and we shot a shell. We continued forward for the attack. As a loader, I am able to use an instrument to see what is going on all around the tank. I saw the head of a terrorist who ran towards the building. We also fired at him. During the few minutes that we continued looking for other terrorists, there was suddenly a BOOM. A terrorist had shot an anti-tank missile at us.
What I remember was that there was a flash of light and heat in front of my eyes and a feeling of pain on the left side of my face. The commander was more lightly wounded, but he was in shock that he could not perform his duties as the tank commander. I screamed to the other two crew member – the driver and the gunner – that we had been hit with an anti-tank missile. The tank driver acted properly and drove in reverse. He pushed a button which injected more fuel causing white smoke to cover the tank and act as camouflage. The other tank took our place and shot at the direction of the terrorists. There was a helicopter which shelled the building as well.
The driver continued driving in reverse until we reached a safer spot with other troops. Very quickly, we realized that there had been a big miracle. We were only lightly wounded. The missile had penetrated the tank and reached about five inches from my head. It was such a miracle that the fire extinguishing system turned on properly and put out the fire, which resulted in preventing severe damage (to the crew and to the tank). As soon as we exited the tank, a military doctor was already waiting for us. He did a preliminary examination. From there, we were evacuated in a Hammer vehicle to the border with Gaza. There, a team of doctors and medics were awaiting us. They did another examination, and then took us by ambulance to Soroko Hospital in Be’er Sheva. (Actually they wanted to take us by helicopter, and I said that it was not necessary.)
I have spoken at length with our son about what occurred to him in Gaza. He divulged that he has feelings of guilt that he survived, and many others did not. I told him that his feelings have a name to it, “survivor’s guilt,” and that is what many Holocaust survivors feel/felt. I said that if Hashem gave him life a second time, as it were, then he has more things to accomplish. It is a huge present, but also a huge responsibility. B’ezrat Hashem, he will live a long and healthy life and continue to make Hashem proud of him.
I have undertaken the mission to tell people about the huge nes that occurred. Every time another soldier is killed, I cry, but there are so many unbelievable nissim that occur daily and prevent even greater tragedies. It is so important for people to understand that although it seems to us that Hashem is hiding behind a veil, He clearly comes out of hiding.
Thank you, Hashem for the miracles and the salvations that You shower upon Am Yisrael!
P.S. Within two days after returning to the war in Gaza Eliyahu Yeshaya discovered a problem with his nose and his left eye. He was taken out of Gaza, and he drove himself to Shaarei Tzedek Hospital where he was diagnosed with a viral eye infection and a break in his nose. When the infection cleared up he called his commander and said that he is ready to go back to Gaza. The commander said that it seems like their unit would soon be released from reserve duty, so he did not need to return to Gaza at that time.
