After a month of fighting, and being the unit with the heaviest casualty rate of Operation Protective Edge, soldiers of the 51st Golani Battalion left the Gaza Strip area and headed straight to Jerusalem on Tuesday afternoon. Their plan? To thank God at the Western Wall.
The purpose of the trip was to recite the traditional blessing recited after emerging from a situation of danger as a unit, known as Gomel, and to raise the moral of those whose friends were killed or injured in combat.
This was the first time that many of them had left the field of battle, aside from attending funerals, since Operation Protective Edge began over a month ago.
Thirteen Golani soldiers were killed on July 20 in the Shaja’iya neighborhood of Gaza City. Despite the heavy losses, organizers of the event at the Western Wall shared how thankful the battalion was.
“Throughout the war we saw great miracles. Only someone deep in Gaza, who is aware of the various operations we conducted and of the great dangers we were in, can understand the extent of the providence that accompanied each of us,” one soldier said.
The battalion showed a strong sense of unity during the event with religious and secular soldiers alike taking part in the prayer and reciting words thanking God for his protection and salvation.
“Blessed are you o Lord who bestows goodness upon the accountable and who has bestowed every goodness upon me.”
One of the soldiers shared his mixed emotions with Israeli press at the event. “Together with the great pain over the loss that has visited the people of Israel, with the murder of our friends, soldiers and commanders (who were killed) in sanctification of God’s name, we see an obligation to express the great divine providence that saved many of our soldiers from death, and not to deny God’s goodness, may He be blessed,” he said.
Many visitors to the Western Wall approached the Golani soldiers to thank them for being at the battlefront defending the nation, and to tell them how they are praying for the soldiers’ safety and success.
